Chapter 33 Callum
CALLUM
My mind is racing, and on any other day I would tell my sister to leave.
I would shut this whole thing down, clear the house, and deal with what needs dealing with without an audience.
But my mother is sitting in the kitchen, smoothing her napkin over her lap, her shoulders a little more sloped than they used to be, her face tired in a way that has nothing to do with age.
She's been through hell. Keira's mentioned she's been down, withdrawn, which led to this lunch in the first place.
A reminder from my sister that I am not just a Don. I'm a son, too.
And the duty of a son is probably the highest one I have, and even now, with everything clawing at the inside of my skull, I force myself to keep this meeting with them.
I probably will not eat. I can't. Not with everything swirling through my head. Not with the image of an empty room and a folded piece of paper burned into my mind.
But I sit at the island anyway.
"Thank you for making time, Callum," Mom says, her voice soft. "I know you're busy."
"Always have time for you, Mom."
Keira slides onto the stool beside her, reaching for a glass of water Linda just set down.
"You sure you're alright, Cal?" she asks. "You seem preoccupied."
"Yeah, I'm fine," I lie. Because all I can think about is Zaria, and how one minute I had something, and now it's all blown up in my face.
Linda sets plates in front of us. Some kind of grilled chicken salad. It looks good. Smells good. But my stomach twists at the sight of it.
I pick up my fork anyway.
"So," I say, stabbing a piece of lettuce. "You talk to Declan today?"
"Uh, no," Keira says, taking a sip of her water. "Why?"
"No reason," I say, moving the food around my plate. The last thing I need to do right now is bring up the warehouse fire.
Mom shifts in her seat, her favorite tea, which Linda knows she likes, sitting next to her, untouched. "How you doing, Mom?" I ask.
"Oh, fine," she says, sighing. "Some days better than others, but…" she trails off and shrugs.
Keira interjects and starts talking about a charity luncheon she attended last week. About a woman she met who reminded her of someone she used to know. Our mom loosens up a bit and chimes in with a comment about how exhausting social obligations can be.
I try to focus. Try to be present. But every second that passes, I see Zaria's face, and I'm thrown into a whirlwind of emotions all simmering inside me.
Suddenly, Tommy appears in the doorway. His face is stern, his shoulders stiff.
I look at him and wave him forward.
"Sorry to interrupt, sir. I have something to show you."
"Now?" Keira asks.
"It's alright, dear. Go. We'll be here," Mom says, her voice gentle.
I stand, pushing my chair back.
I give my mom a quick kiss on the cheek, then move around the corner with Tommy, out of the kitchen and into the hallway.
"You'll want to listen to this," he says, handing me an iPad.
I glance back toward the kitchen, then lower my voice. "Let's go to my office."
We start walking, and every step tells me I’m not going to like what comes next.
"What am I going to hear?" I ask.
"It's a recorded call, boss. Since all incoming calls are recorded, I was able to pull up a call to her room."
I stop dead in my tracks and turn to face him. "Her room? How did that happen?"
"Someone got the number. I'm not sure how yet, but they did."
My blood runs cold.
Tommy pushes open the door to my office, and I walk inside, my hands gripping the iPad tightly.
Once Tommy shuts the door, I don't waste any time.
I unlock the iPad and start the recording.
Zaria's voice fills the room immediately. "Hello. Good morning."
My chest tightens, and then a man speaks.
"Sister Omega," he says, his voice cold, familiar.
The sound of his voice hits me like a blow.
I have heard it before.
The night of the ritual flashes through my mind. The woman. The chanting. The man's voice addressing the room.
"Cormac!" I say to Tommy.
Zaria's voice shifts. The warmth drains out of it, replaced by something raw and terrified.
"We have Callum's mother," Cormac says calmly.
The words freeze me in place.
What the fuck? He is lying to her.
"Come to the Old Ruins alone," Cormac continues, his tone smooth, venomous. "Or she dies, and Callum becomes an orphan because of you."
The recording ends.
Silence crashes over the room, and I stare at the screen, my mind working over everything.
"That's all of it," Tommy says quietly.
I stand there, breathing slowly, my mind replaying every word. Every inflection. The way her voice changed when she realized who she was speaking to.
Then it hits me.
Not all at once or cleanly, but it creeps in as the pieces click into place.
She didn't leave to betray me.
She left because she thought she was saving my mother.
Jesus Christ, I was an idiot to think she was using me.
I grip the edge of the desk.
I was wrong. I was so fucking wrong and I’m so thankful that I am.
I thought the worst, and she's out there thinking she's saving my mother.
"What do you want to do, sir?" Tommy asks.
"I don't understand," I say, half to myself as I think everything over.
"What, boss?"
"Cormac isn't stupid," I say slowly. "He'd have to know I'd hear this."
Tommy shifts. "You think it's a trap?"
I look at him. "Definitely. But one I don't have a choice about walking into."
I move toward the door, my jaw tight. "I need you to call Declan and gather a group of our most trusted men, and get them here." I stop and look back at Tommy. "And Octavian," I add, turning back to the door. "He knows about her. Bring him in. I'm going to take care of my sister and Mom."
I pause, my hand on the doorknob.
"We're going to tear this city apart until I find her."
I walk out into the hall, my heart pounding in my ears.
I had a timeline for Cormac's death, but it's been moved up to today.
I will not sleep tonight until he's dead and she's back here.
All this ends tonight.