Page 111 of Dirty Legacy

“Sounds awful.”

“What about you?”

“Skydiving. Smack right into the ground.” She smiles at me. “That or in the bath.”

“Sounds like fun.”

We lapse into silence. I finish the coffee with a grunt and toss the cup into a nearby trashcan.

“You look terrible, you know. I’m surprised they haven’t called the police yet.”

“I’m being good.” I nudge the bag toward her. “Got what you wanted.”

She pays attention to the plain black duffel for the first time. “What’s in there?”

“Deck. A part of him, anyway.”

I expect her to shrink back, but she only drags it closer and unzips a portion. “Huh. Bit of a cliche, don’t you think?”

“I considered bringing his balls, but the head seemed better.”

She snorts and zips it back up. “Cillian backed me yesterday. Lorcan wasn’t happy, but now that I have this—“ She nudges my cousin’s remains with her toe. “Nobody can say I left any loose ends.”

“And our arrangement?”

“You can consider the war over. There will be amends to make. Reparations to pay. Lorcan will make dramatic demands. In the end, life will go on.”

“I’ll pray for your dad.”

“Will you? Do you think that’ll help?”

“Not at all, but I’ll do it anyway.”

“Thank you.” She stands and sighs. “Go home and shower.”

“I have a few more stops to make before I can do that.”

“Heavy is the head that wears the crown.”

I give her a mocking salute. “As you’ll find out soon, boss.”

“Good luck.” She walks off with a small wave. “And remember. We’re not friends. Never will be.”

I watch her go.

Hell, at least we aren’t enemies.

I’d hate to be the man who crosses that woman.

Casey Whelan leans against the doorjamb and crosses her arms. “Well, look at this. I didn’t expect to see you today. Or ever again, actually.”

“Declan’s still that mad?”

“Can’t blame him.” She purses her lips before nodding for me to follow. “Come on. You wait in his office. I’ll drag him from a very important appointment.”

I sit heavily in front of Declan’s desk. It’s not easy, keeping my eyes open. I keep checking my phone, waiting for an update from Marcus, but there’s nothing. Danielle’s at the hospital with Rowan and Angie, and someone has to know what’s going on. Dad should be out of surgery by now.

“Heard you had an eventful evening.” Declan comes into the room. He’s in gray sweats and a black polo shirt. “I hope you have good news. You pulled me from spending time with my girls. I even got them to stop watching screens for ten minutes.”