Chapter Thirty-Two
KIERAN
Ronan’s estate pulses with barely contained panic as we search for Riley.
Lights flood the lawn as our men search the perimeter, trying to piece together how the hell Sean could have infiltrated the estate and taken out so many of our guys without any of us realizing.
Our men fan out, some of them following the tire marks that lead toward a back lane while others split off to comb the hedgerows.
I don’t stop moving. I can’t.
Movement is the only thing that keeps my mind from becoming a circle of black thoughts.
“We’ll check the fence lines, the tire tracks, and the license plates,” Ronan states. “Brennan will send men to check every scrap of CCTV footage within a ten-mile radius. If Sean took her this way, we’ll find the route.”
I nod.
This plan gives me a focus beyond the image of Riley’s terrified face in my mind.
The rage that has been pulsing through my body has turned into a cold, controlled sort of anger that feels almost comforting. Because to feel anything else right now would make me weak. Weakness gets you killed, and I won’t let that happen to me, or to Riley.
By the time the hint of the dawn breaks out over the estate, we have men searching every part of the city that the tracks could have led to.
We have men checking hospitals and clinics as well as private clubs where men like Sean like to take women like Riley.
It’s sick to even think about, but I have to cover every possible scenario.
When the city swallows the tracks, and the CCTV footage that Brennan pulls up is filled with gaps in the camera footage and angles that miss the exact moment we need, I start to lose hope.
“You think they took her over the fence?” Ronan asks as we stand side by side at the edge of the property.
I stare at the section of fencing before me, trying to picture the scene that could have played out.
The turf below our feet is torn up, and as my eyes scan along the barbed wire, I notice a snag of fabric caught on one of the spikes that I recognize immediately.
“She tried to climb it.”
Ronan’s face pales as his eyes flick up, and he notices the fabric.
“Kieran”
I’m already moving. “I need to get out of here and try to find her.”
“Don’t be a hero!” he calls after me.
“I’m not being a hero. I’m going to get my wife!”
He manages to catch up to me just as I’m throwing open the driver's door of one of the SUVs parked out front and slams it shut.
“Ronan,” I warn.
“You’re in no condition to drive. Let me.”
He’s probably right, so I swallow my pride and walk around the car to the passenger door.
As I open the door, the most ridiculous cherry-red F-type Jaguar comes flying down the drive.
“Fuck’s sake.” I slam the door shut and stalk across the gravel as the car comes to a stop in front of me, kicking up a cloud of dust behind it. “What the hell are you doing here?”
Oscar climbs out of the car. “Kieran.”
I don’t give him a chance to say anything else. I grab him by the collar and slam him against the side of the car.
“What the fuck, man!”
“Are you in on this, huh?” I growl.
“What is wrong with you?”
“Did you hand Riley over to Sean?”
Oscar’s eyes widen with a mixture of panic and confusion. “What?”
“Don’t pretend like you weren’t a part of this. I knew there was a reason you were so desperate to get back in Riley’s life. I tried to warn her, but she wanted to see the good in you. And it might have just cost her her life.”
“Kieran.” Ronan places a hand on my shoulder, but I shrug him off.
“I’m going to kill you.” I pull my gun out of my pocket and click off the safety.
“Can you at least explain to me what is going on before you put a bullet in my head?” Oscar holds up his hands as he glances at Ronan. “Because your brother is acting batshit crazy.”
“Kieran—” Ronan starts, but I ignore him.
“Sean took Riley because of you.”
“You think I did this? You think I’m in on this? Are you serious?”
“You’re the one who tried to force Riley into marrying that piece of shit.”
“I didn’t think we had any other option!”
“Using your sister as a pawn like that, it’s unforgivable.”
“Riley doesn’t seem to think so.”
“That’s because Riley is a hell of a lot nicer than I am. If I had my way, I would have taken you out in the middle of that bistro like I planned.”
“Oh, you mean when I had to cover for her so she could go for her scan because she was too terrified to tell you she was pregnant?”
Part of me wants to be rational for Riley’s sake because this is her brother, and to talk this through over a drink.
But I’m not rational. Not when the mother of my child is missing. The woman I love.
So instead, I swing my fist into his jaw.
Oscar’s head snaps to the side as blood starts dripping down his chin from his split lip.
I don’t give him a chance to recover before I land another blow to his stomach that has him doubling over and grunting.
I’m about to send a knee right into his groin when Ronan grabs me around the waist and hauls me back.
“Enough! We don’t have time for this.”
“Ronan.” I struggle against his hold.
“Wait!”
I glance over my shoulder to see Brennan jogging across the gravel toward us, holding up his phone. “Lorcan got a hit.”
“What?” I force myself out of Ronan’s hold and snatch Brennan’s phone out of his hand. “What am I looking at?”
“He thinks it could be the location where Riley is being held.”
That’s all I need.
“Grab some guys and follow behind us,” I order Brennan.
He nods before stepping back to talk into his radio.
“Ronan, let’s go.” I stalk back toward the car.
Oscar goes to open up the back door of the car.
“Not you,” I growl.
“My sister is in trouble. I’m coming with you.”
“No.”
“We need the extra pair of hands,” Ronan states. “Oscar, get in the car, and I suggest you keep quiet because I don’t have the patience to stop Kieran from killing you.”
I glare at Oscar as he climbs into the car.
I hate that he’s coming with us, but Ronan is right. We need the extra bodies.
None of us talks as Ronan drives away from the estate.
The radio is a low buzz in the background behind the steady hum of the engine.
As we move, I keep in contact with Jace, who is following behind us with Brennan and a few others.
We’ve barely been on the road ten minutes before my phone buzzes with a message from a number I don’t recognize.
Are you willing to trade your life for hers?
I shove the screen under Ronan’s nose.
He scans it quickly before flicking his eyes back to the road, but I can tell from the way his jaw ticks that he’s thinking the same thing as I am.
“Sean,” I state.
“He’s taunting you.”
“Or he’s trying to bait me. Or both.”
“Sean isn’t a man who plays fair, Kieran. He wants to make a spectacle of you.”
I’m well aware of every angle Sean could play.
If he is offering me my life for Riley’s, there are three possibilities. He’s either bluffing, he’s testing me, or he wants me alive so he can use me. All of them are bad and still—
“If there’s even the slightest chance he’ll bring her out for me to see…” My voice is raw. “I have to consider it. If he shows me she’s alive right in front of me, I have to do whatever it takes to get her back.”
Ronan’s jaw hardens.
“Think this through, Kieran. If you walk into his hands, the chances of him letting Riley go are slim to none because this has never been about you. It’s been about getting revenge on Riley.
If you go to him, he can keep you both and will likely keep you close enough to hurt her, keep you alive so she watches.
That’s his kind of cruelty. It won’t be a quick death, and what better way to get revenge on Riley than to make her relive your death for the rest of her life? ”
I don’t bother arguing with him because I know it’s the truth. It will be slow and excruciating because that’s how Sean likes to play.
But what he won’t expect is for me to play right along with him.
“We use that to our advantage. We let him think he’s won.”
“How?”
“I’ll call him.”
“Solid plan,” Oscar mutters from the back seat.
My eyes narrow on him. “That bullet still has your name on it, Walsh.”
“I told you to keep your mouth shut,” Ronan mutters.
“I’ll call Sean and agree to hand myself over in exchange for Riley, but my condition is that the exchange needs to be on mutual soil.”
Oscar scoffs. “You’re going to give him conditions? Seriously, Sullivan, you don’t have the upper hand here. This guy has my sister locked up; I suggest you give him whatever he wants.”
“And whose fault is that? The only reason Sean thinks he has rights to Riley is because of you.”
Oscar stays quiet, which tells me I’ve finally hit the nail on the head.
His guilt must be eating him alive, but I don’t feel even an ounce of sympathy for him. After all, this never would have happened if he hadn’t betrothed Riley to Sean in the first place.
“If Sean agrees, what then?” Ronan asks.
“I will tell him that you’ll be there to ensure Sean keeps his end of the bargain and hands Riley over. Then, when he thinks he’s won, Brennan and the rest of the guys can move in.”
“So, we give him a false victory to distract him long enough to strike?”
“Exactly.”
“It’s risky as hell.”
“Sure, but ultimately it comes down to a simple equation. A life for a life.”
“And if it goes wrong?”
“As long as Riley gets out, that’s all that matters.”
It takes us almost an hour to arrive at the location Lorcan sent us.
We move in the shadows. Nothing more than shades in the tree line near the abandoned house where Sean is keeping Riley.
By the time we’re settled into position, my body is trembling with adrenaline.
Every life out here with me weighs on my shoulders.
We’ve already lost too many, and if I play this wrong, I can lose two more. The most important ones.
Riley and the baby.
I’ve chosen the role of bait, and if I survive it, I’ll be the first to admit I was a fool. If I don’t, then at least I die trying to bring them home. Either way, I’m not walking away from this.
Ronan’s radio crackles quietly as he checks his weapons.
Oscar shifts beside me, trying to pretend he isn’t terrified, but I can see it written all over his face.
I keep my eyes focused on the derelict house as I run the plan one more time in my head.
There are so many things that could go wrong, but at this point, we’re out of options.
I turn to my big brother. “Ready?”
Ronan meets my eyes.
We don’t need to waste time with heartfelt goodbyes because this is what we do. We protect our own, no questions asked.
He nods. “Let’s do this.”