Declan and Connor give me the same exact scowl. Like father, like son.
I shrug. “Try it. Can’t be worse than whatever you’re doing now.”
After Connor types the password, the screen turns green.
He gives me a single nod. “We’re in.”
Declan gives no acknowledgment, which doesn’t surprise me.
The password working doesn’t surprise me either. I know Trinity. Well, enough to hack a password, apparently.
That confirmation tightens around my heart like a fist, squeezing my chest with every breath.
Too late to consider that now.
Connor clicks though the folders. I sip another drink as I watch his expression. His careful, smooth, blank face never gives too much away, but as he navigates the secrets Trinity spent years gathering, his brow wrinkles.
He’s confused.
Declan finishes his cigar and tosses the butt to the carpeted floor. “What do you see?”
Connor glances up from the screen. Not at Declan, but at me. “The intel on the New York operations is exhaustive. Bank accounts, supply lines, safe houses… It’s a complete decapitation plan.”
“So we can use it?” Sounds like I hit pay dirt, so why does Connor’s expressionless face match the numbness tingling through my limbs?
Declan smirks. “Great. What’s the problem?”
My brother shrugs. “You said this contained information on the whole family. East Coast and West Coast. But the intel on us is nothing. Most of our names aren’t even in here. Publicly available information, known associates, things we gave Maeve for her hotel security briefing last year. A twelve-year-old with a good laptop and an interest in public records could find this shit. It’s worthless.”
The words hit like a physical blow. I drift closer, lean over Connor’s shoulder, and examine the screenwhile blood roars in my ears.
Trinity and I were both playing a game, but from the moment she held me at gunpoint in the hospital, hers was entirely different from mine. She crafted a beautiful, believable lie with only a few words to gain my help, even though she could’ve fled on her own.
She had the chance. Had the means.
But she wanted me with her.
Declan releases a sharp laugh that drips with contempt. “So the girl ran Brody ragged for a weapon she built to self-destruct her own family.” He sneers up at me. “You fell for it. She got into your head.”
I bristle, anger rising from the soles of my feet and shooting all the way up to my hairline.Are you fucking kidding me?“This is everything you’ve ever wanted. Leverage on the Irish Kings. On Shane Gallagher’s legacy. How is this not a win?”
“You spent the last week thinking with your dick, Brody. This woman got the better of you.” Declan scoffs. “She launched World War III between us and Rostov. You’ve killed over adozen of his men so far and injured Kruschev. You know that bastard is Rostov’s son? You riskedreallypissing him off.”
Because I’ve got bigger things to worry about at the moment, I file that information away for later.
“I was keeping our asset safe?—”
Declan waves an impatient hand. “You risked ruining us all, and for what? To protect Shane’s little bitch of a daughter? Admit it. You got played.”
“You ordered me to abduct her. I couldn’t let her get killed on my watch.” I curl my hands into fists and fold them behind my back. If I let them swing, I’ll deck my father in his obnoxious face. “We have Finn’s weakness, right here on this fucking drive. Three decades’ worth of intel at your fingertips. What more do you want?”
Declan either doesn’t notice my rage or doesn’t care. “Have some competency next time. Don’t make such a mess.” He flicks a hand, discarding me as easily as he did the end of his cigar, and focuses on the laptop. “Show me what we can do with this, Connor.”
And just like that, I may as well not exist.
All their attention is on the screen. No congratulations. No thanks. Not even a “good job getting all this dirt on my mortal enemy.”
Just a “do better next time” and a dismissal.
