Going to Rothwell had been an impulsive mistake. I could see it now. I wanted to ruin Achilles’s life, but I just might pay for it with my own. Moreover, handing him to Rothwell didn’t feel half as good as I’d thought it would. Yes, a part of me loathed Achilles for all he’d put me through, but another part would forever remember him as the boy who gave me my first earth-shattering kiss.
“Tiernan,” Vello greeted, not even sparing me a look. “Sit.”
My brother assumed the seat in front of Vello, planting me on the one next to it.
For once in my life, I found myself shutting up despite myself.
“I respect you, Tiernan.” Vello tossed an unholy amount of what looked like painkillers into his mouth and flushed them down with a tumbler of bourbon. “You’re a decent husband to my daughter, accomplished in your field, and for the most part, you stay out of my lane. Your sister, however, is another story. Considering she’s just landed us in a world of pain and possible imprisonment, I cannot allow her to leave this place outside of a body bag.”
Fear twisted my gut into a tight knot. I’d come here against my will, counting on Tiernan to make things right. My twin brother had always been the smart, quick-witted, calculated one. But what if his calculation was wrong this time? What if these were my last few moments on planet Earth?
I knew Achilles would be happy to do the honor after what I did to him. Judging by the busted-up face, our weekend together cost him much more than the throne.
“The unwarranted hysteria is unbecoming.” Tiernan crossed his legs, leaning forward to flick open Vello’s cigar box and help himself to one. “No one’s going to prison, and no one’s leaving here in a body bag.” He allowed a pregnant pause, grabbing a cigar cutter and pinching the tip. “Unless any of your men touches my sister, in which case, I’ll have no choice but to kill them.”
Vello narrowed his eyes. My brother continued. “Tierney gave Rothwell a USB containing next to nothing. She’s not going to the safe house to meet him. He can do jack shit with out-of-context text messages that may or may not be fabricated. Rothwell doesn’t have any more case against you than he did yesterday morning.”
“How do we know she won’t go to him?” Vello flicked his gaze to me, snarling.
“I’ll be her guarantor. I’ll personally escort her to the airport.”
I kept my expression neutral, the heat of Achilles’s unrelenting glare burning a hole through my cheek.
“I don’t trust her not to come back and fuck shit up,” Luca drawled.
“She won’t.” Tiernan puffed on his cigar, stinking up the place just for the provocation of it. “We’ve reached an understanding. Tierney was rightfully upset after your brother made her his prostitute for the weekend.” The word seared my skin, branding it. “For this alone, you’re lucky I haven’t started a war. Anyway, she’s over it now and ready to move on.”
“Just to set the record straight, your sister threw herself at my feet and begged to be fucked,” Achilles said evenly, his eyes never wavering from mine as he spoke. “Didn’t you, Tierney?”
I slammed my teeth together, swallowing down a venomous remark. Now wasn’t the time to sass back. I needed to get out of here.
“You’ve lost your privilege to talk directly to her,” Tiernan announced to his brother-in-law. Guilt rolled through me. They were so close before our trip to Naples. “For the duration of this conversation, everything you say and do goes through me. Understood?”
Achilles sneered. “You can’t keep saving her forever. Sooner or later, you’ll lower your guard and someone will catch her.”
Tiernan turned to Vello. “We’re wasting time here. She needs to get on a plane before Rothwell gets his hands on her. He’ll try every loophole in the book to drag her into their headquarters and make her sing.”
Vello shook his head. “I’m sorry, son. I can’t let her walk away free. She’s a traitor.”
“Here’s what’s going to happen.” Tiernan uncrossed his legs and put out the cigar in an ashtray. “If you don’t pardon mysister, I’ll gather up every Irish and Bratva soldier on this continent and conquer every single Camorra territory on the East Coast. Now that Alex and I are in business, I have the means and the manpower. Don’t give me the motivation, too.”
Tiernan and Vello stared down each other. The silence in the room felt loaded like a gun.
“You won’t dare,” Vello hissed out finally.
“Tryme.”
Apparently, Vello didn’t want to do that. He blinked first, his gaze skittering toward me, his mouth coiling in open distaste. “I suppose we could make it a lesson.”
I doubted he could teach me anything worth learning but kept my mouth shut. My brother was putting a lot on the line for me, and not for the first time.
“What’d you have in mind?” Tiernan asked.
“She should take the knee and kiss the ring.” Vello pushed up from his seat, using his cane. “Swear loyalty to the Camorra before she leaves.”
I barked out a sarcastic laugh.
To my shock, Tiernan nodded. “That’s fair.”
