8. Chapter Eight Tristan
While Adriana had brunch with her sister, I asked my brothers to join me at the Callahan estate. By themselves, if possible. Knowing Liam, he would have happily brought his newest girlfriend to a family meeting and we had delicate things to discuss.
The Callahan estate was a sprawling mansion on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by lush greenery and a towering wrought-iron gate, which made me question how anyone would’ve broken in in the first place. It was an intimidating sight, meant to keep unwanted prying eyes away. Although it held many childhood memories for me, I couldn’t deny the dark shadows that lingered in its corners.
“Finally decided to crawl out of your hiding place, eh brother?” Kieran’s voice echoed through the large entrance hall as I stepped inside. He lounged on one of the antique settees, a glass of whiskey in one hand. Liam was next to him, his feet propped up on the coffee table, a video game controller in his hand.
“I wasn’t hiding,” I responded, trying to keep my tone casual. “Just busy with other things.”
“Like playing house with your fiancée?” Kieran jibed, a teasing smirk on his face.
“Something like that,” I replied, not rising to his bait. He was always trying to get a rise out of me, but I’d learned long ago not to give him the satisfaction.
“I wouldn’t mind playing house with her,” Liam quipped. “She’s hot as toast.”
“I swear to God, Liam,” I warned him, my voice carrying a steel edge. “One more word about my fiancée and you’ll be dealing with me.”
His smirk vanished instantly and he raised his hands defensively, chuckling nervously. “Alright, alright. Don’t have a heart attack. I was just saying...”
Taking a deep breath, I waved him off and I walked over to where Kieran sat, meeting his gaze head-on. Something about the way he watched me made me uncomfortable. It was as if he could see right through me, see all my secrets and fears. “I didn’t call you here for your unsolicited opinions about my love life.”
“No?” Kieran asked, raising an eyebrow as he took another sip from his glass. “So what did you call us here for?”
Slowly, I took a seat across from my brothers, leaning forward with my elbows on my knees. I met both their gazes one by one, taking in their curiosity and slight apprehension.
“I called you here because we have a problem,” I said, my voice carrying the heavy weight of the words.
“A problem?” Liam asked, putting down his video game controller and leaning forward, interest sparking in his eyes. “What kind of problem?”
I ran a hand through my hair, sighing heavily. “I think we have a rat in our midst.”
Both their expressions turned serious, Liam’s playful demeanor vanishing instantly as Kieran set his glass down with a sharp clink. “A snitch?” Kieran echoed.
“I’m not sure,” I said, sighing. “Which is why I need your help. I…so, look, the other day, someone broke into the house. Ade and I were sleeping upstairs and...” I trailed off, the memory of that night washing over me. The fear in Adriana’s eyes, the feeling of my heart pounding in my chest. I shook my head slightly, bringing myself back to the present. “I have no idea what they were trying to take, but they weren’t stealthy. We heard glass shattering. I came down to the living room and it was a man dressed in all black who I took care of. But there was no information on him. I look through everything, and he didn’t have anything on him that could identify him.”
Liam interjected, “And you think this guy was working for one of our guys?”
“No. I think he was a Rossi man, lad. But this,” I said, gesturing around the living room. “Dad made sure that it was a fortress. Who comes in here without knowing keycodes for gates or where to scale the right fence?”
My brothers remained silent, absorbing my words. Kieran was the first to break the silence. “So, you’re thinking someone within our ranks told him how to get in?”
“Exactly,” I said, leaning back and crossing my arms over my chest. “Someone gave out vital information about our security system and, by doing so, put us all at risk.”
Liam fidgeted with the controller. He wore a serious expression, the sort that appeared on his face once in a blue moon. “Isn’t that kind of a jump? Maybe he just... I dunno, got lucky?”
“No chance, lad,” Kieran said. “They would have needed to get lucky a hell of a lot of times to avoid all our security. Why didn’t you call me when it happened, Tristan?”
I didn’t want to remind him that I had called him, even though it had been later. He meant why hadn’t I called him to help me get rid of the body, but it wasn’t necessary.
He didn’t know about Alessia’s involvement and I didn’t want him to know.
“It was in the middle of the night. I didn’t want to bother you this time,” I said, evading his stare. “I wanted to handle it myself, I guess.”
“Aye, that’s all well and good,” Kieran replied. He knew more than he was letting on, of course, and I wondered how much of this was to onboard Liam. It made sense. Kieran didn’t want Liam to feel like we were leaving him out of things after Dad had died, but it was still our responsibility to protect him. “but if there’s a rat in our ranks, we’ve all got a stake in it. This is our life you’re talkin’ about.”
“I know,” I said, frustration creeping into my voice. “That’s why I called you here now.”
Liam put the controller down on his lap, opting instead to play with the sleeve of his dark blue cardigan. “I don’t know if you’re going to like this, Tristan,” he said. “But, uh, what if it isn’t one of our boys?”
“What do you mean?” I asked, irritation seeping into my voice.
Liam shrugged, his gaze fixed on the controller. “I mean, what if it’s not one of the men? What if it’s...someone else?”
“Like who?” Kieran questioned, his eyes narrowing at our youngest sibling.
“Like Adriana.”
The silence following Liam’s statement was deafening. A chill spread through my veins at his suggestion. Adriana? Impossible. She wouldn’t betray me.
She wouldn’t dream of betraying me.
She had looked just as scared as I was when the house had been broken into.
“I mean, think about it,” Liam continued, practically stumbling over his words. “She didn’t want to marry you in the first place, now she’s stuck in this fucking—no offense—super creepy house where her dad’s biggest enemy used to live all of five seconds ago before he was gunned down in front of her.”
Kieran cleared his throat. “Liam–”
Liam did not take the hint. “I’m just saying. She’s going to marry you because, well, she’s pregnant, with twins, so of course she’s going to marry you, and also the peace deal. Right?”
“Enough, Liam,” I snapped, my patience wearing thin. To even suggest that Adriana could be behind this was absurd—she had as much to lose as any of us. More than any of us, in fact, considering the children she was carrying were future Callahans too.
Liam reared back, looking surprised by my sudden outburst. Kieran sighed, rubbing his temples. “Liam. Let me handle this,” he said, sounding weary. “You can’t just shut him down because you don’t like what he’s saying.”
“I’m not,” I retorted. “I’m shutting him down because it makes no bloody sense! Adriana would never put our babies at risk.”
“You’re letting your feelings cloud your judgment,” Kieran said with a frown, looking at me. “I don’t like that any more than you do, but we can’t ignore any possibilities.”
“I’m not being clouded by anything,” I shot back, gripping the arms of my chair. “Adriana has been nothing but loyal to us. To me.”
“Still,” Liam chimed in, looking uneasy. “She’s an Orsini.”
“Enough!” My voice echoed in the silent room. My brothers looked at me, shock evident on their faces. I seldom lost my temper like this with them. Often with others. But almost never with them.
But accusations about Adriana...it was all too much. It was getting to me.
I took a deep breath to stop myself from losing it again. “If we must consider all possibilities, then I should also consider the people in this room, right?”
They both looked taken aback at my words. Liam’s eyes widened, and he quickly shook his head. “Tristan, you can’t seriously think—“
“Why not?” I cut him off, my voice cold. “If we’re throwing around accusations, why should either of you be exempt?”
Kieran looked at me, his eyes hooded. He was silent for a moment before finally speaking in a low voice. “Because we’re family.”
“And Adriana isn’t?”
“She’s an Orsini,” Kieran bit out. “Family by blood, but on the opposite side of this war.”
“She’s literally making future Callahans,” I countered.
“That doesn’t make her a Callahan herself. You can’t ignore that.”
“Just like I can’t ignore that Dad favored an heir,” I said. “And it wasn’t me. Was it, Kieran?”
Kieran’s gaze hardened. “Are you accusing me, Tristan?”
I simply looked at him in response. There was a long, hard silence as we stared each other down.
Liam swallowed audibly. “Guys, come on. We’re all on edge, but-”
“Shut it, kid,” Kieran snapped, never breaking eye contact with me. “Tristan has something he wants to say.”
“Alright then,” I said, leaning forward. My heart pounded in my chest, but I gave no indication of it. I had to stay calm, composed. For Adriana. For our unborn children. “Tell me, Kieran...do you know anything about this break-in?”
His eyes flashed with indignation. “You dare to accuse me?”
“Just like you two dare accuse my future wife.”
“Stop this,” Kieran’s voice was hard, but there was a hint of uneasiness. “You know damn well I would never betray my own.”
“Do I?” I shot back, the anger making my voice sound colder than intended.
“Yes, Tristan,” Kieran said, his voice softening. “Fuck Malachy. Fuck what he wanted for me. I don’t want your life. I count myself lucky I was born second.”
The emotion in Kieran’s voice was raw and exposing, leaving a silence that hung heavily in the room. Liam shifted uncomfortably in his seat, looking from me to Kieran and back again.
I leaned back in my chair slowly, feeling my heartbeat against my chest, each thud as loud as a drumbeat in the strained quiet. The anger slipped away from me, leaving an icy numbness in its wake. I had crossed a line accusing my own brother out of misplaced defensiveness for Adriana.
And he was telling the truth. I knew Kieran. I knew when he was lying—right then, he wasn’t lying.
Kieran’s words echoed in my head. He didn’t want my life. And who could blame him? Who would want a life full of deceit, uncertainty, and constant danger?
I broke the silence finally. “I’m sorry,” I said, barely louder than a whisper. The words tasted bitter on my tongue. But they were necessary. My brother didn’t deserve this.
Kieran’s sharp gaze softened slightly. His lips pressed into a thin line. “Apology accepted,” he muttered, his tone gruff.
Liam let out a sigh of relief, the tension rolling off him in waves. “Okay, okay. Good.” He ran a hand through his messy hair, eyes flitting between us uncertainly. “But then who...?”
“We don’t have that answer yet,” I admitted with a heavy sigh, leaning back in my chair and staring up at the ceiling. This was going nowhere and casting suspicions on each other was only making matters worse. “Could be any of the lads.”
“So what do we do?” Liam said.
“We need more information,” Kieran said, standing up and pacing the room, his hands on his hips. “We can’t go accusing people without proof.”
“Agreed,” I replied, my gaze following him as he moved. There was a weight to our conversation now. A tension that hadn’t been there before. And it was my fault. “I think we attack the Rossis.”
“Wait. How will that help?” Liam asked, straightening up.
“We play dirty,” I said, tapping the armrest of my chair rhythmically, my mind working fast. “We send a message, show them we mean business. We plant incorrect information about the attack with every one of our men. Killian, Sean, Ray, Ronan…all our capos get different intel.”
“If the Rossis get any of that intel, we’ll know who our leak is,” Kieran finished, a thoughtful look on his face. “It’s risky, but it could work.”
Liam frowned at me, uneasy. “And what about the fallout? It’s sure to piss off the Rossis, and who knows what they’ll do in response?”
I shrugged, glancing between my brothers. “We’ve been at war with the Rossis for years. They want us dead just as much as we want them dead. This will just be another drop in an already overflowing bucket. And since they’ve decided to come after us more since the Orsinis and Callahans brokered the peace deal, then they’d be the least of our concerns.”
“But, Tristan—“ Liam began, only to be cut off by Kieran.
“No, he’s right,” he said, nodding slowly, his gaze distant. “It’s a risk, yes. But it’s a calculated one. We’re running out of options here.”
Liam continued fidgeting with the end of his sleeve. “Alright,” he finally conceded, albeit reluctantly. “So we’re really going to do this?”
“We have to,” I responded, my voice firm. “We need to protect our own.”
Liam grabbed Kieran’s whiskey glass. “Can I have this?”
“No, lad. Let me go pour you a drink instead,” he said, then looked up at me. “You want one?”
I nodded and then watched as Kieran crossed the room to the bar, pouring a measure of whiskey into a tumbler before pushing it across to Liam. His hand trembled slightly as he picked it up, taking a cautious sip before setting it back on the table.
“Thanks,” he muttered, his voice shaky. “What happens if they come after Adriana, Tristan?”
“When they come after Adriana,” I walked over to them to grab my drink as I corrected him. “I’ll just have to kill them.”