Chapter 43
Chapter Forty-Three
RONAN
I call an emergency meeting with my brothers in the private upstairs room at The Blackthorn so we can discuss how to approach this situation.
This web of secrets is becoming tangled, and somehow Ciara’s brother is at the center.
If I knew it wouldn’t destroy Ciara, I’d take him out in an instant. But their blood runs deeper than betrayal. Even after everything Callum has kept from her, I know she won’t want him dead.
I, on the other hand, want nothing more than to put a bullet in his skull and call it a day.
I enter The Blackthorn through the back entrance, not wanting to draw any more attention to myself than necessary, and take the stairs to the private meeting room.
It’s not lost on me that the last time my brothers and I were all here was after we put our father in the ground.
But I don’t have time to focus on the wave of grief that floods me as I walk in with Cormac trailing behind me.
Kieran is already pacing around the room when I get there, his jaw tight and a storm blazing in his eyes. Brennan is seated at one of the tables, his eyes tracking Kieran’s movements as if waiting for him to explode.
When Cormac and I enter, Kieran pauses and immediately folds his arms over his chest.
“So, we agree that this was a hit.”
I briefed my brothers on the situation before making the drive into the city, not wanting to waste time on explaining the details in person.
Max might have been a nobody to me, but the fact that he’s dead mere hours after being in contact with Ciara turns my blood cold. Time doesn’t seem to be on my side, and I need to get this taken care of before whoever it is decides to come after my wife.
I nod. “Yes. Max is dead, and Mila is missing, which makes me think this wasn’t a random attack. This was personal.”
Brennan drums his fingers against the wooden tabletop. “Message received loud and clear. But who do you think sent it?”
“Callum.” There is no doubt in my mind.
“Are you sure?” Cormac asks as he takes a seat at the table beside Brennan.
“The mystery offshore account, which has all of the payments our father made, is in his name. Ciara had this Max guy track the money trail down.”
“This is the guy who’s now dead?” Kieran scoffs as he shakes his head. “Fuck, he sounds like he would have been useful to have on the payroll. Ciara would have done well to go to you first, brother.”
“What are you trying to imply?”
Kieran simply shrugs, which only adds to my darkening mood.
My hands ball into fists. “This is not Ciara’s fault.”
“Try telling that to this Max guy.”
“It makes sense that Callum’s behind this,” Cormac chimes in before it can get any more heated between Kieran and me. “He has a clear motive behind not wanting this information to get out.”
Brennan shakes his head. “Too late.”
Cormac frowns. “But why would he go to the trouble of taking Mila?”
Brennan shrugs. “To lure Ciara away?”
Kieran scoffs. “It’s a fucking roundabout way of doing things. But then again, Callum never seemed like the brightest spark.”
Cormac lounges back in his chair and rests an arm on the table, the picture of ease. “Whatever the reason is, what do we do about him?”
I narrow my eyes at him. “We bring him in.”
“And if he doesn’t want to talk?”
“Then we make him.”
“Finally.” Kieran cracks his knuckles, a smirk pulling at his lips. “It’s about damn time someone taught that whiny fucker a lesson.”
Brennan doesn’t look convinced. I catch him frowning as he looks at Kieran, and I can see the wheels turning in his mind. He’s always been easy to read, unlike my other two brothers.
I tilt my chin at him. “What is it?”
“What about Ciara? Do you really think she’s going to be on board with you torturing her brother? He’s the only blood relative she has left.”
“She doesn’t have a choice. Besides, blood means shit right now.”
“She might think she does.”
I frown. “She’s a Sullivan. Her loyalty lies with us.”
Kieran snickers. “Does she know that?”
I round on him. “Watch your mouth.”
He lifts his hands. “I’m just saying. She might be a Sullivan, but not by choice.”
“She’s earned my trust.”
Or at least, I thought she had…
I don’t mention that Ciara lied to me about meeting Max. But I can appreciate the work she’s put in to help decode these payments. It’s more than my own brothers have done.
Brennan leans forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “What happens if she finds Callum before we do?”
“She won’t. She’s under lockdown at the house. I have a dozen men keeping an eye on her to make sure she doesn’t leave.”
“Do you really think you can keep Ciara locked away when her best friend is missing? I might be mistaken, but I think you are underestimating your wife.”
My jaw tightens.
Brennan makes a good point, but if Ciara knows what’s good for her, she’ll let me handle this.
“If she finds out Max’s death came after you visited him…” Brennan shuts his mouth at the look on my face.
But it’s too late.
Cormac’s head snaps in my direction, his eyes wide. “You paid him a visit?”
“I wasn’t the one who killed him, if that’s what you’re implying.” I run a hand through my hair, exhaling deeply. “Ciara was getting too close to him, and I didn’t like the idea of some random guy being able to expose our secrets. I sent him a message, that’s all.”
And weakened him enough that he wasn’t able to defend himself.
The reality sits like a lead weight in my stomach.
If I had never gone over there, Max could still be alive.
I can’t help but wonder what Ciara would think if she found out the truth.
Would she ever be able to forgive me?
Kieran chuckles darkly. “Well, it seems like he wasn’t the only one to receive it.”
Cormac rubs his jaw. “If Callum really is behind this, he clearly worked out that Ciara was doing some digging and decided to kill Max as a warning.”
Brennan frowns. “And Mila?”
I look at my brothers. “Taken as collateral or leverage. Either way, she’s not safe, and the sooner we find her, the better.”
Kieran nods. “So, let’s get a fucking move on. Let’s finish this.”
Brennan shoots a glare at me. “We need to be sure Callum is the one involved before we rip him apart.”
I give him a death stare. “I am sure. Do you really want to wait for a signed confession?”
Before Brennan can fire back, my phone buzzes in my pocket, and I curse under my breath when I pull it out and see it’s one of the guards I put in charge of keeping an eye on Ciara.
“What is it, Jace?”
There’s a beat of silence, which means whatever it is he’s about to tell me isn’t good.
“She’s gone.”
It takes a second for his words to register in my brain. “What the fuck do you mean, she’s gone?”
“There was an incident—”
“You have exactly ten seconds to explain yourself, Jace, or I swear to god I will have Kieran put a bullet in your skull.”
Kieran frowns at my words, but I shake my head at him, letting my rage show on my face.
Jace stammers through what sounds like some bullshit story about the alarms of the cars in the garage all going off, but when they didn’t find a reason, they realized Ciara had gone.
“She must have done it on purpose to cause a distraction.”
“Jeez, you think?” I pace back and forth, trying not to completely lose my shit. “And what, all of you decided to abandon your posts to go and check on the state of my fucking Mercedes?”
Jace’s silence is answer enough.
“You better hope she’s hiding in the pool house,” I growl before hanging up the call and cursing under my breath.
My rage feels like a ticking time bomb as my ears start to ring.
Brennan smirks. “Do I say I told you so now or…”
“Can it,” Cormac warns.
I sit down in the closest chair. “She’s gone.”
If I wasn’t so furious, I’d be impressed that Ciara somehow managed to sneak past half a dozen of my men. But the fact is, she’s gone and put herself at risk, and I have to divide my attention between finding her and Mila.
If she had just listened to me…
Then again, this is Ciara McCarthy. She listens to no one.
Cormac touches my shoulder. “Where would she go?”
Kieran scoffs. “To look for Mila, dumbass.”
Brennan nods. “Either that or Callum.”
Kieran frowns. “Do you really think she’d protect him after this? After all the lies he’s fed her?”
I shake my head. “She wants to believe he’s innocent. And knowing Ciara, she’ll walk into hell to prove it.”
Brennan gets to his feet and smooths his hands over his shirt. “So, what’s the plan?”
“I want you and Kieran to go after Callum. But…” I hold up a hand at the look of feral delight on Kieran’s face. “I want him alive.”
“What if he resists?”
“Then you do what you have to do to make him cooperate.”
Brennan nods. “What about Ciara?”
“Cormac and I will go after her.”
Cormac nods.
I unlock my phone and load up my tracking app, even though I’m certain I know what I’ll find. “She’s left her phone at the house. But I’m pretty sure she’d head straight for Mila’s apartment to look for answers.”
Brennan walks over to me and claps a hand on my shoulder. “I have to say, I admire her quick thinking. She is one stubborn woman, brother.”
I grit my teeth. “She’s not thinking. She’s grieving and desperate, which makes her a vulnerable target.”
Cormac shakes his head. “Desperate people make bad decisions.”
Exactly.
I turn to the door. “Let’s move.”
My brothers and I head down the stairs and out the back of the pub, where my SUV is parked up behind Kieran’s Hummer.
“Remember, I want Callum alive.”
Kieran rolls his eyes at me before climbing in his car.
I clap Brennan on the shoulder, before climbing behind the wheel of my Mercedes. “I expect an update every hour.”
Cormac is silent as I load up Mila’s address on the GPS. He knows me well enough to know I need quiet in order to think through my next move.
But my thoughts are spiraling at the idea of Ciara walking straight into a trap.
I made her a promise that I’d always protect her, and now she’s god-knows-where with a target on her back.
Whoever orchestrated this hit is two steps ahead of me.
It was a smart move on their part to take Mila, knowing Ciara would likely fall for the bait, despite my warning her of the fact.
But little do they know, they’ve just declared war by going after my girl, and when I get my hands on them, I’ll show them no mercy.
I’ll make sure they know what it means to mess with my family.