Chapter 34
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
DEAN
S tanding over Arnie’s body, I feel rage like I’ve never felt before. Mostly because I wasn’t the one to send the motherfucker to hell. I wanted to crush his skull piece by piece. I wanted to make him suffer. An easy death for a man like Arnie just isn’t right. Isn’t fair. But not much in life is.
“I can’t believe you got fucking shot,” Kaz, the youngest of Vivienne’s husbands, growls.
Vivienne rolls her eyes. “It’s a flesh wound at best. Relax.”
“Relax,” he blows out a breath, looking at his two brothers. “She ran away to another country, got shot, and she wants me to relax?”
The octave of his voice rises with every word he speaks. Vivienne looks down at her arm where the eldest Volkov, Mikhail, is stitching her up. Juliette sits on the other side of her, holding her hand. She hasn’t left Vivienne’s side once since I got here, not even to hug me. All her focus is on her big sister. I think she feels guilty that Vivi was shot because she intervened between Arnie and Juliette. Which is bullshit, of course, but I understand her thought process.
“How did you three find me anyway? I left my necklace at home.”
All three brothers go silent. Something tells me that Vivi isn’t going to like their answer.
“You think that’s the only tracker we have?” Dmitri asks. “You know us better than that, Viper. I planted a tracker in your shoulder a long fucking time ago.”
“What?” Vivienne hisses. “You microchipped me? Like a dog?”
She tries to hop off the desk, but Mikhail stops her.
“I’m not finished.”
“Not like a dog,” Dmitri replies. “Like our woman.”
“And it’s a damn good thing too,” Mikhail adds. “Otherwise, we wouldn’t have found you as quickly as we did.”
“They were dead before you got here, asshole. We didn’t need you.”
“Watch it, princess.”
“I’m not feeding the three of you for a month,” she spits.
“Lucky we know how to cook then,” Kaz replies.
Vivienne raises an eyebrow. “I’m not talking about food.”
Juliette giggles. “Savage but awesome.”
Mikhail drops the scissors in his hand on the desk with a clink. He picks Vivienne up by the hips and tosses her over his shoulder, ripping her from her sister.
“Be careful,” Kaz commands. He turns toward me. “We’re leaving, Walsh. Think you can handle the clean-up?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m going to spank your ass red if you don’t stop moving, Vivienne,” Mikhail says as he yanks the door open.
“I didn’t need to hear that,” I mutter.
I reach Juliette in three steps. She looks up at me. The whites of her eyes are tinted red. Her face is tear-stained, despite the smile on her lips. It’s a punch to the gut. A reminder that I wasn’t here to protect her when she needed me. Again.
Pulling her into my arms, I rest my chin on her head. My lungs take their first full breath since the moment I got the call from Juliette. Her scent fills my nostrils—sweet, sweet vanilla, but there’s a hint of peppermint beneath it today.
“You hate peppermints.”
She lifts her head from my chest. “How do you know that?”
“I told you; I know you.”
Juliette rolls her eyes. “Tell me.”
“I remember you’d complain every time your mom made peppermint tea.”
“Wow, I didn’t know you ever noticed.”
“I may not have noticed you the way you wanted me to back then, but it’s not like I didn’t know you existed.”
She shrugs, burying her face back into my chest. My arms band around her, rubbing soothing circles on her back as she sighs. A silent moment stretches between us.
I cast my eyes down to look at the bodies again. There’s a lot of blood but less than I’d usually expect when Vivienne is involved. Working with the McBrides, you get used to the gore and guts. I just need to figure out where I can dump them. If this were Vegas, I’d have at least four places, but this isn’t Vegas.
A knock on the door startles Juliette and me.
“Do you know if Eva is expecting any other patients?”
“Considering Arnie was waiting in the closet over there, I doubt it.”
“Did you call anyone else after calling me?”
“My mom.”
As much as I hate to, I detach myself from Juliette and cross the blood-stained carpet to the door. I open it slowly, anxiety gnawing at my gut. All I want to do is get this office cleaned up and get Juliette home.
A trace of relief fills me when I see Francine, only to leave when my eyes land on the tall figure behind her.
“What are you doing here?”
“I don’t have to explain myself to you, Walsh,” Declan says. “Let me see my fucking sister.”
Despite all the bad blood between us and his less-than-stellar attitude, I push the door open wider. Because even if he is an asshole, this is still his family.
I step aside, letting Declan pass with Francine following behind him. Her gaze examines the room. If the gruesome scene bothers her, she doesn’t show it. I’m sure she’s seen it all before. Or maybe she knows Arnie and Eva deserved what happened. They deserved worse, if you ask me. But I’m not worried. I know where Arnie is, and someday, I’ll be in the same place burning like he is right now. That day I’m going to make hell look like a fucking playground compared to what I’ll do to him. I look forward to that day. Until then, I’m going to be here—loving the woman he wishes he could. Fucking her too.
Declan stops just short of Juliette. “You okay, little red?”
“I’m okay. Lucky that Vivienne came down.”
“I should’ve insisted on security for you. I’m sorry. Last time I saw, everything was just so chaotic. I put my feelings over your safety.”
“I appreciate your apology. But none of us could’ve known this was going to happen. We all thought Arnie was in jail.”
“Released this morning,” Declan says. “Somehow got the money for bail. I’m assuming the woman has something to do with it.”
He nods toward Eva’s lifeless body. Every second that passes, she gets paler, colder. Arnie too. There’s something satisfying about watching the two of them rot.
“Eva, yeah,” Juliette replies. “My therapist and apparently the wife of my ex? They were working together. She was his partner in all of the crimes he’s committed.”
“Fuck. Your therapist? For how long?”
“I’ve been a patient for almost a year, and I was with Arnie for six months.”
“These people are sick,” Declan spits.
“Imagine how I feel,” Juliette says.
She’s aiming for sarcastic, but her voice only sounds sad. Betrayed.
“Look, I want you to go back to the penthouse with Mom. Dean and I will clean this up. Okay? It’ll be like it never happened.”
“I’m not sure it’s a day I want to forget.”
Declan tilts his head. “What?”
“They hurt my family, Dec. I’m proud that they’re dead. Pretty proud of how I handled Eva.”
“Oh fuck,” Declan sighs.
“What?”
“You’re going to be as bloodthirsty as Vivienne, aren’t you?”
“No. I don’t have time for that.”
Declan chuckles and shakes his head. “Go back to the suite with Mom. Dean and I will meet you back there.”
“I’m not sure leaving you two alone is a good idea. You beat the shit out of him last time.”
“I’m not going to hurt him. We’ve got bigger things to deal with right now.”
Suspicion colors Juliette’s eyes. She narrows them. “Good. Because it wouldn’t be a very good idea for you to come after my family .”
Warmth spreads in my chest. She’s standing up to her brother for kicking me out of the family. Fuck, I love that woman.
Declan nods in agreement with her terms. His face is a neutral mask when he turns toward me. I can’t tell what he’s thinking or feeling—but at least he’s not kicking my ass.
Juliette hops off the desk. She grabs the edge to balance. All my attention goes to her as she straightens and walks toward me.
“Be nice,” she whispers, wrapping her arms around my neck. “But also don’t let him boss you around.”
“It’ll be fine, bluebird. We’re adults. I’m sure we can be civil.”
“Don’t make me laugh.”
Before I can reply, she presses her lips to mine. “I love you.”
“I love you. I won’t be long.”
She squeezes me, reluctant to let go, giving me one last peck before she leaves with her mother. Once the door shuts behind them, the air turns tense, like all the peaceful energy has been sucked out.
“Let’s get to work.”
His voice is harsher.
“I can handle it alone. Don’t need any help.”
“Yeah, well, tough shit. I promised my baby sister I’d do something. I’m going to do it.”
“Fine. Did you bring your own car?”
“Yeah, why?”
“I’ve got a plan.”
Twenty minutes later, Declan and I are rolling two janitor carts out of the building—perfect ways to conceal a body.
“This is going to look shady as shit to any cop if there are cameras and they check them,” Declan quips as we get to his Suburban.
He’s got a point. We would definitely look shady. But I don’t see a single security cam so far. Unless they’re well hidden, I’m not sure there are any. The building is so empty, it’s practically a ghost town.
“I don’t know anything about the security of this building. But I’m going to guess it’s pretty nonexistent if Arnie and Eva used it as a hub.”
“Possible. After this, we’ll have to come back and check. If there are cameras, maybe Juliette can hack into them and erase it.”
Declan opens his trunk. The two rows of seats are flattened already, making it a smidge easier for Declan and me to get each cart into the car. Declan climbs into the driver’s seat, leaving me to take the passenger. It’s not a place I’m used to. I prefer to be in control.
I’m not even a hundred percent sure if Declan is an enemy or a friend right now.
“Now to figure out where to dump them,” I say as he pulls out of the empty parking lot.
“The old mines are just out of town.”
“How do you know about them?” I ask.
“Dad used to tell me stories about them. He spent a lot of time here as a kid.”
“Okay, hope they’re still there.”
“They are. I’ve already checked them out.”
“Why?”
“Wanted to make sure I had a place to dump you if needed.”
“Fuck off,” I reply. “Your sister would never forgive you.”
“That’s why I need you to break up with her.”
“What?”
“Break up with my sister. Take your ring off her fucking finger, Walsh. We both know you’re not worthy of her or the McBride name.”
I glare at him when he glances at me. “I won’t be taking your name. That’s a stupid rule. I know Patrick was just trying to protect the girls. But it should be our choice. Second, I know I’m not worthy of your sister. And I don’t care that you don’t like us being together. But I’m not leaving your sister. She’s my future bride whether you like it or not.”
He comes to a stop at a red light. The red glow casts over his face as he turns to look at me. It’s a challenge, and I don’t back down. Not with this. The light turns green, illuminating the inside of his car.
“Good,” he finally says. “Otherwise, Gemma would’ve wasted four days convincing me that you were worth having around.”
“Honestly, Dec, it’s not up to you.”
“I could kill you.”
“And your sister would never forgive you.”
He turns away from me, hitting the gas. “You’re going to marry her.”
“The moment she lets me.”
Declan grips the steering wheel. “Look, Walsh, for my little sister, I’d do just about anything. Even accept you back into the family after all the damage you’ve done. But if I see one drop of alcohol ever near you, I will kill you.”
“It’s not going to be a problem anymore.”
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.”
He goes quiet as we pull down a dusty road. It twists around, almost like an abstract spiral. Declan pulls his SUV to a stop right in front of a mine shaft. It’s all boarded up, but it’s a large enough hole to accommodate the carts.
Together, Declan and I carry the cart holding Eva’s body toward the entrance.
I let go of my half of the cart so I can remove the boards. There’s a loud splintering sound as I kick them into the mouth of the mine. I don’t hear the echo of their fall, assuring me the mine will be enough to hide our sin.
We toss the first cart and go back for Arnie.
“See you in hell, buddy,” I say as I push the bastard into his grave.
“I want you to get Juliette to move home,” Declan says as we get back in the SUV.
“Um, I can ask her, but I’m not going to make her.”
“I’ll give you Balor’s old position. Number two. As long as you stay sober and get my sister to move home—where I can protect her and your son.”
“I can protect them just fine. So if she wants to stay here, I will decline your offer.”
He sighs. “Try to talk her into it.”
“I’m not going to do that. She can decide for herself, Declan. I’m going to support whatever she chooses.”
He clenches his jaw. “Fine. Hopefully Gemma is with her by now. She can talk her into moving.”
I roll my eyes. He’s dumb if he thinks she’s going to cave. Juliette is a stubborn woman. I’ve spent like ninety percent of my time lately trying to get her to forgive me. To accept me. And now that she has, I look forward to spending all my time spoiling the shit out of her and PJ. It’s even better that Arnie is out of our hair now too.
Declan doesn’t say anything else. He focuses on the dark winding road ahead of us. I know he’s pissed, but there’s a flicker of relief sitting in my chest. Whatever happens next—whatever she decides—I’ll be there. No matter what.