I push the box aside and move to another one, this one even heavier.
My fingers brush against a folder inside, so I drag it out and flip it open.
I balance my phone so that I can see better and read through the contents.
“Holy shit.”
There are financial records for every single account connected to Sullivan Investments. But it’s not just the main ones that Ronan and I oversee. It looks to include accounts that have been buried so deep that even I didn’t know about them, which means Cormac sure as hell shouldn’t have known about them either.
I flip the page to find detailed, handwritten notes on payments rerouted to an offshore account. It’s nothing unusual, given our family’s line of work, but what is unusual is the two columns of names listed on the adjacent page.
At first, it looks random. But then I catch my father’s name, and my stomach sinks. Even though it’s been almost a year since his death, it still hurts to see or hear his name. But my father’s name isn’t the only one on the list that makes my stomach sink.
Ronan.
Brennan.
Ciara.
Lorcan.
Riley.
It’s not lost on me that every member of my family is listed here, including myself,exceptfor Cormac.
I stand frozen, the pages trembling slightly in my hands as the realization crashes over me.
This isn’t just a random list of names. It’s a fucking target sheet.
I reach into my pocket and yank out the letter I grabbed earlier. My eyes flick between the handwriting on the love letter and the notes in the folder, noting the identical way certain letters slant or curve.
“Son of a bitch.”
My voice sounds hollow as I check the handwriting again, but there’s no denying they’re written by Cormac.
Despite wanting to prove to Ronan that I was right all along, a pang of guilt hits me as I dial his number. I guess a tiny part of me, the part that values the fact that we share the same blood, wanted to be wrong about him. But I can’t deny the truth that’s in my fucking hands.
The line connects.
“What is it?”
“I searched the locker, and do you want to know what was inside?”
Ronan sighs. “From the tone of your voice, I’m guessing it wasn’t bags of candy.”
“Boxes of financial records documenting shady transfers to offshore accounts that I didn’t even know we had. But don’t worry, it gets worse. I found a fucking kill list, Ronan, written in Cormac’s handwriting.”
There’s a pause.
“You’re joking.”
“Do I sound like I’m joking?”
“You must be misreading it.”
“Ciara’s name is on it, by the way, along with Riley’s and every other member of our family.Exceptfor Cormac.”
Ronan exhales on the other end of the phone. “There has to be an explanation.”
