Chapter 26
Nairie
My head was throbbing when I woke up. I could feel my pulse reverberating in my eyes, and I had a severe case of cotton mouth.
I was zip-tied to a pole in a small room, but, given the chance, it gave me enough room to break them in a move William taught me recently.
The only light came from a grimy window that looked out into the rest of the warehouse.
A few boats were elevated like they were undergoing repair.
I blinked my eyes to acclimate to the darkness and my roofie hangover.
A chair scraped against the floor across the room, and when I turned toward the sound, Angus came into the light.
The years hadn’t been kind to him. He was handsome once. His blond hair and brown eyes gave him a boy-next-door look that women loved. But he was gangly now, his brown eyes had deep-set dark circles, and he was missing a few teeth.
How long has he been using his own supply?
Angus took a seat and looked me up and down appraisingly. “It’s been a long time, Nairie.”
I scowled at him.
He chuckled. “Nothing to say, hmm? You were always so prepared with quips.”
Angus got up and looked out the window and then his watch. “You’ve grown into a beautiful woman. You sure you picked the right Adair brother? I can show you things you’ve never seen before.”
I snorted. “Seeing the smallest prick in the world isn’t really on my bucket list.”
Angus laughed. “There she is.”
He walked closer to me, and I could smell his stale cigarette smoke and rotting teeth.
“It was pretty pathetic how obsessed you were with Will when we were kids. Now you have him wrapped around your little finger. All it took was for you to open your legs.” He leered down at my body. “You were always a prude, but I’m glad to see my brother warmed you up a bit. Makes my job easier.”
I wanted to vomit. “You’re pathetic. Kidnapping your brother’s girlfriend, seriously? Don’t you have more important things to do?”
Angus slapped me across the cheek, snapping my head to the side. “You two always thought you were better than me.”
He lit a cigarette and puffed it in my face. “I know the cops are already closing in on my operation.”
My eyes widened, and he chuckled. “Yeah, I’m not just a pretty face. There’s not much I can do about it at this point.”
He sat back down in his chair and looked up at me.
“But I wanted to leave my brother a parting gift before I get locked up. There’s one last shipment going out in about fifteen minutes.
You’re part of the cargo, along with a few other unfortunate souls, until you’re sold to the highest bidder.
Men like William and me don’t get a happily ever after, Nairie. ”
I tried to keep myself calm. William would find me before then. I just had to keep Angus talking. “Why do you hate him so much?”
Angus took a long drag of his cigarette. “He never knew when to just shut up. He questioned everything I told him to do. Then he ruined everything I was working toward.”
He got up and moved closer to me, his words filled with rage and vitriol.
“I vetted for him when he was about to be initiated. He made me look like an idiot. Took me years to build back the trust with my employers. Plus, it doesn’t look great when you’re trying to run an illegal operation and your brother is a top soldier for the government. ”
He tossed his cigarette and trailed his hands over my waist. “I’m a spiteful man, Nairie. I don’t forgive and I never forget.”
I turned my face away and held my breath.
He slowly knelt in front of me, trailing his fingers over my thighs, his dirty nails scraping the fabric of my jeans. “Brothers are supposed to share, right? Plus, what I do here will pale in comparison to where you’ll end up.”
He moved his hands to the button of my jeans, but before he could get too far, I kneed him in the nose. He stumbled back as blood gushed over his face. I freed my wrists in the swift move William taught me and shoved against Angus, toppling us both to the floor.
He laughed maniacally. “Oh, she’s had training! This should be fun.”
I scrambled to my feet and stood in a defensive position, pulling out the knife William insisted I keep in my boot.
Angus got up and stalked me as we circled one another. “Do you even know how to use that, little girl?”
“I can manage.”
Angus chuckled, but a loud bang came from outside the door.
He pounced on me while I was distracted and dragged me to the floor, then grappled to get on top of me.
I elbowed his face a couple of times until he started bleeding from his mouth.
I gripped his hips with my thighs and used my core to roll myself on top of him.
The bastard laughed. “Funny, this is the same position William found me in with Shannon.”
He was still fighting for control of the knife, and it slipped from my grip, slicing through my forearm, but I barely felt a thing.
I rolled forward above him and tumbled away, but before I could get my bearings, he caught hold of my ankle.
I twisted and stomped his face with my other foot.
He grunted in pain and stabbed the knife into my calf, and I yelped.
In a flash, Angus’s body was kicked to the side.
Strong arms lifted me off the floor, and I fought back, but Finn’s familiar Irish accent spoke from behind me. “It’s Finn. You’re alright. You’re okay.”
My body relaxed slightly, but I watched in anticipation as William hovered over Angus on the floor. I’d never heard his voice so devoid of feelings. His eyes filled with such rage. This was William in battle, and I was glad I wasn’t on the receiving end of his wrath.
“Get up, you piece of shite.” William kicked Angus again for good measure.
Angus lifted himself off the floor and wiped the blood trailing from his mouth.
He pointed an accusing finger at William. “Everything I did was for you, Will! Never forget that. I’m your brother.”
They stalked each other in a circle, and William let out an acrid laugh. “You’re pulling that shit now? After years of mental and physical abuse? Tormenting me the last several years?”
Angus still had a grip on the knife, and his eyes glinted with malice.
“It was to make you better! You were capable of so much more. We could have built this together. And you turned your back on me over what? Some pussy? Look at you now.” He pointed toward me.
“Still the same, guided by your emotions and not your head. Somebody had to teach you about the way the world works, boy. You don’t walk away from family. ”
“You’re not my family. Nairie’s my future. And when you’re rotting in your cell, I want you to think about what you traded your life for, this kingdom you think you’ve built. It’s a type of hell that will never see the light of day again.”
Angus scoffed. “Still a disappointment even after all these years. I should have ended this when Mum brought you home from the hospital. What a waste.”
In a swift move I didn’t know Angus was capable of, he whipped a gun from his back and pointed it at me. There was a loud bang, and Finn shielded me with his body. I waited for the pain to set in, but when I searched my body for wounds, I couldn’t find any.
I looked up and saw Angus on the floor with a bullet hole between his eyes. William stood over him with his own gun in his hand.
Finn released me and grabbed William’s shoulder. “You did what you had to, Will. It’s okay. It’s done.”
William’s glazed eyes found Finn and then me. He looked at me, as if assessing me for damage. A flicker of fear crossed his face.
I ran and leaped into his open arms. He gripped me tightly like our lives depended on it and stroked the back of my hair as I silently cried against his shoulder.
William gently whispered, “Did he touch you? Are you alright?”
I pulled back and looked at William with tears in my eyes. “Just over the clothes. He didn’t get farther than that. He said there’s a shipment with people on it. We have to help them.”
William gripped me tighter and laid my head back against his chest. “Everyone’s safe, love. We got to them in time. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. You’re safe now.”
I clutched onto him like a lifeline, and he carried me out of the room since my calf was heavily bleeding now. I tucked my face into his neck and tried to calm my breathing.
Once outside, I lifted my head from his shoulder and looked around. Police swarmed the area, and Shannon was face down on the gravel with a knee on her back pinning her down as she screamed like a banshee.
William deposited me in the back of a van and walked me through some breathing exercises until I could get a hold of my emotions. When I calmed down, I got a better look at my surroundings.
We were just outside the shipping yard, and Noah, Theo, Finn, and Archer were talking to various law officials.
At least fifty cop cars were lined up with their lights flashing as law enforcement hauled people away in cuffs.
William was wearing tactical gear with a beanie and a bulletproof vest. Handguns were strapped to his thighs.
He stroked the side of my cheek and kissed me softly before pulling me into a hug. “I’m sorry, love.”
“You’re sorry? You saved my life. And you killed . . . Are you okay?”
He pulled back and looked into my eyes. “He hasn’t been my brother for a very long time, and it was self-defense. I’m sorry I put your life at risk. This is what I was trying to avoid from the very beginning.”
I pulled away and gripped his wrists as his hands rested on top of my shoulders. “My whole life, I did everything right. I followed every rule, and I was miserable. The only time I ever felt alive has been with you, even your summer visits, however brief. Just being near you was enough for me.”
William’s eyes watered, and he was absorbing every word like they were a balm to his heart.
“We’re all in now,” I said firmly. “No going back. No regrets. I love you with all my heart.”