Page 65 of Enemy of the Heart

“A cock, then?”

He rolls his eyes. “The more appropriate term would be rooster.”

I smirk. “I like cock better.”

“There’s always fowl,” Jace supplies with a ten-thousand-watt grin.

“This conversation is what’s foul,” Vik mutters.

I lift my wine in Jace’s direction, and he clanks his beer bottle against my glass.

“What are you doing here, Mercer?” Viktor circles back to the original topic. Lame. Jace and I could probably make poultry jokes all night.

“Lou’s brother was just telling us all that Conall McQuaid is his latest job assignment. He’s also the subject for his little art project,” Sean says.

Viktor couldn’t look more puzzled if he tried. “What does Conall have to do with anything?”

“Everything,” Mercer replies simply. He reaches into the middle of the table and lifts the bottle of wine straight to his lips. For fuck’s sake. “I was hired to gather intel on Conall’s illicit activities for The Shadows. They’re planning something big, but I don’t know those details.”

I purse my lips and incline my head the way he used to when I wasn’t giving him all the information after he became my guardian. He sighs, but understands there’s no way around answering this question. Not when four well-armed, trained people are sitting with him.

“It took me months to dig deep enough to uncover that he’s interested in far more than fast cars and fancy buildings. That’s why I needed your help to buy myself more time, Lou.” He looks sheepish when he meets my eye before taking another swig from the bottle. I take my own small sip—from the glass because I’m not a heathen. He meets my eye, then adds, “When I finally exposed the truth, I realized that he’s trafficking human beings. Mostly women, but some men, too. Selling them.”

I jerk backwards, my blood running colder than the temperature outside. “That’s…impossible.”

“It’s true,” my brother insists gently. “I couldn’t get the idea out of my mind that you might wind up in one of his shipments someday.”

I toss back the remaining wine in my glass, disappointed that it’s not something stronger. I didn’t bring liquor, though. Shoving my chair back, I stalk to the kitchen, muttering something about more Bordeaux. It’s an excuse. I need space, a moment to gather my thoughts.

My hands shake as I attempt to pull the cork from another wine bottle, and I hiss through clenched teeth when I can’t get it. A sinewy hand covers mind, carefully removing the bottle from my grasp. He uncorks it and sets it on the counter.

“Louhi,” Viktor remarks softly. He reaches for me, but I back up and repeatedly shake my head, my gaze locked on the floor.

Conall is one of my closest friends. I’d know if he was involved in something like that. How was all of this happening right under my nose? It’s grotesque and wrong. My skin feels like it’s crawling.

I’m no stranger to depravity. I don’t bat an eye at criminal activities and the only jobs I don’t take are related to children and animals, but what if my brother was right? What if Conall decided to drug me one day and…sell me? I’ve had countless meals at his house. What if—

“Did you know?” I ask, finally lifting my head to stare into Viktor’s handsome face.

He shakes his head. “No. You know better than anyone that I don’t deal in people. If I want someone gone, I kill them. I don’t sell them. If you’ll remember, I had you kill my grandfather over something similar. It wasn’t only because I wanted to be the Pakhan.”

I was the first phone call Viktor made after he discovered that his grandfather was moving more than illegal firearms. Running a hand through my hair, I blow out a heavy breath. “Vik…”

Expression solemn, he nods. My heart has fractured a little, and when I stare into Viktor’s bright blue eyes, I see that his has splintered, too. “I know.”

I wrap my fingers around the neck of the wine bottle and drag it back to the dining room. For the first time, I’m able to make out the larger image of the puzzle.

Louhi

I drag in a shaky breath as I move toward my seat, but Sean’s hand darts out and catches my wrist. I don’t resist when he tugs me toward him and fall into his lap. Right now, it feels like the only safe place to be.

The dining room is quiet as we wait for Viktor to return. My knuckles are bone white where they grip the stem of my glass. I take a long drink of my wine like it’s a curing elixir.

When Vik returns, his face is carefully blank as he reclines in his chair like he’s the king of the bloody castle.

There’s a beat of silence, then Viktor says, “I hate to admit that there might be something to all of this. Lately, Conall’s behavior has been…odd. I’d figured he was catching heat from someone. I never thought he might’ve been the source of that heat.”

I take another swig of my wine. I can hardly taste the deliciously bold notes of blackcurrant and plum that usually ignite my tastebuds.