Same, brother. Same.
“Why the hell would she keep this from us?!”
I blew out a long breath. “Because, mate…she doesn’t want you holdin’ old torches. She knew you’d flip the switch.”
“Andyou?”
I sighed again. “It’s obvious, isn’t it? How do you tell your partner you’re married to somebody else and didn’t know it? And not justsomebody. The biggest rival we had that took everything from us until we blew him eight different directions.”
He eased the knife away from my neck and staggered backwards, gripping his hair and turning himself in a circle. “So, these fucks are after her formoney?”
“I don’t think it’s that simple,” Dan cut in. We both looked over at him. “I studied what I could to see if I could make myself useful and get you some answers. You seemed really uncomfortable with uncovering it yourself. I’ve got no problem earning my keep. I’m also an outsider with no prior details. I like challenges.”
“Spill,” Malek ordered.
“If she’s legally his widow, she didn’t just inherit his money and estate. She inherited every client, every enemy…every loose end he’s ever had. This dude had alotof loose ends.” Dan brought up several scanned documents and email threads, scattering them everywhere like a crime family web at a precinct. “They’re out for blood to satisfy the debt to everything they lost when he was killed. That means your girl…and her family. Anybody she’s associated with. This goes everywhere from guns and drugs to sex trafficking. They want what they’re owed.”
“The Irish were paid off!” Mal snapped.
“Doesn’t mean they’re not still tryin’ to dip their hands into the pot’o’gold, mate. We slaughtered McKinley and his grunts. He’s still got an angry family out there that’s breathin’ air. If they’ve figured out that Bridget has ties to that money,they’ll come for all of us until there’s no Byrnes left. You might have left the family business, Mal…but your Pops was right every time he tried to tell you that there’s no way out of what andwhowe are.”
“They’ll…peel the skin…from your bones…” Vikter’s head hung and he stared viciously through sweaty strands of his hair. His threat dripped with hate in his accent and the side of his mouth turned up. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little impressed. Fucker’s gotta be in agony. He’s got balls. “You kill me…you kill…yourself. We come for you. We come for…yourwomen. We come for yourchildren…andchildren’schildren.”
Malek’s face went pale and gray. His throat bobbed and the look in his eyes was manic and utterly terrifying. I’ve never…seen him this way. His hands shook with fear and rage. His body trembled. Vikter smiled wider and chuckled under his breath. I guess he thought it would save him. That we’d take the bait and send him back to warn the others.
Wrong.
I snatched the knife from Malek’s hand and closed in on our guest. “Thanks for the idea, pal. Play stupid games…win stupid prizes. I warned ya. This was never gonna end well for you.Slán.”
Mal held the bitch by his hair, and I pressed the edge of the blade to his temple, dragging it across his hairline. To Vikter’s credit, he grit his teeth, groaning until I made it to the opposite side and started peeling back the flesh from his skull. I felt the smile slowly take on my mouth when he started to shake violently, inch by inch of his forehead giving way as I tugged the skin away from his face.
More satisfying than peeling a sunburn.
I got halfway down his nose and cheeks before I heard a wrapper rattling from behind me. My chin tipped over myshoulder. Dan cracked open a fortune cookie and stared down at the message.
“Guess this one was for you. Sorry.”
He turned it around towards Vikter, and Malek broke into giggles.
… Your fortune looks bleak …
I took my time killing Vikter Romanov.
Malek’s hands were plenty bloody…but I refused to let him break his vow. We wrapped him in the plastic and put him back in my trunk. I had just closed it when I noticed Mal staring absentmindedly at the gravel.
“Do I need to hold a knife to your throat to make you talk too?” We both turned, crossing our arms at the chilly air and leaned back against the trunk. “You’re not planning to kill our Hobbit friend, are ya? That’s where she’s ended up. She’s safe, Malek. He’s a daft little prick, but I don’t think he’d ever cross you.”
“Nah, I trust Simon. He’s not as daft as you think. I’m glad she turned to him if she didn’t feel like she could do the same to us. What are you gonna do withEagle Eyein there?” His head nodded towards the unit where Dan was cleaning up the back corner.
“Dan? I’m gonna put him up extended stay, in the nicest fucking hotel I can find. Then I’m gonna give him enough money to buy his own wardrobe and find out the true meaning of the termgluttony.” Malek snorted, and I followed suit, chuckling under my breath. “Seriously though, Mal. What’s going on? Youlooked more rattled than when we were about to storm the O’Dell’s last year.”
He got quiet and stared down at his untied boots. “I can’t risk it. I can’t, and I want to.Sofuckin’ bad, mate.”
“Risk what?”
Longest five seconds ever recorded.
“How do you choose between moppin’ up your sister’s mess to keep her safe and whole…and makin’ life choices that change the way you see everything? The pot’o’gold…it’s not the same gold anymore, Dec. This gold is simpler. And it’s a thousand times more precious.”
