Chapter 23
I never guessed the man standing in front of me was Thea’s father. I didn’t notice any family photos in her living room the one time I went to her place. If there had been, I would have spotted them as I looked around after noticing the broken window.
Now Brandon Gallagher and I are staring at each other. I didn’t know this man’s name the two times we’ve met, and I don’t believe he knew mine. When Thea’s freezing hand slips into mine, and I feel the slight tremble, I pull my head out of my arse. I walk forward and offer to shake her mother’s hand. Sandra isn’t unwelcoming, but she looks less than thrilled to meet me.
When Brandon and I shake, there’s definitely male posturing as we squeeze each other’s hands far tighter than necessary. When Thea shifts restlessly next to me, I know she can tell what’s going on. I release her father’s hand immediately, and he lets go too.
I don’t think she realizes what she’s doing when her arm goes around my waist, and she turns in toward me. I think she’s monumentally uncomfortable— more likely terrified —and needs comfort. I wrap my arm around her back and hold her against me. Her parents watch us like a pair of hawks. With my hand on the outside of her arm, they focus on my thumb that’s rubbing her shoulder.
“Papa, how do you know Finn?”
“We met several years ago.” He shifts his gaze to me. “You probably weren’t more than a teenager either time.”
“I was nineteen.”
I’m staying tightlipped for now. I don’t know what Brandon wants to reveal to his family. As our gazes lock, he understands what I’m doing. I’m not being recalcitrant. I’m letting him steer the conversation.
“It was one of the times Uncle Corey insisted I ride with him. You were already away at college. He was trying to recruit Rod to get to me. Your brother wanted nothing to do with it, so Corey sent some guys round. I got home in time to be the one teaching them a lesson. But the price of peace was being his muscle at a meeting.”
He goes quiet, and I sense I’m supposed to share now.
“I was at a meeting with Uncle Donovan and the man who used to lead the mob up in Boston. That man and my uncle were like oil and water. It’s why Corey and his guys were there. Uncle Donovan brought his best friend, a guy named Colin. The man was once a golden glove boxer. He went one too many rounds against Maksim Kutsenko, and it ended his time in the ring. But he was still an enforcer. Uncle Donovan also brought Dillan and me as muscle, too. Sean, Shane, Cormac, and Seamus were still too young. Our dads refused to consider it. It caused a heated argument, and it was our moms who made sure their brother understood it was bad enough our parents had to let Dillan and me go. Uncle Donovan loved to say no to any and everyone. But my mom and aunts were the only ones he never refused. It wasn’t fraternal love. It was healthy sororal fear. He couldn’t stand up to one of them let alone all three together. We get the red hair from them.”
I can’t help but grin. My mom and aunts are a foot shorter than all the men in our family. But fucking hell if Uncle Donovan didn’t want to piss his pants when my mom or aunts stared at him. That was all it took. The few times I saw him try to say no to my mom and aunts, he regretted it. I don’t know what they said to him because it was always behind closed doors, but he would come out a changed man.
I’m not supposed to know this, and my parents would flip if they knew all of us do, but my mom put a hit on one of his guys. She made sure the man lived, but not until she made sure Uncle Donovan understood she had the power to do that. The power to make his men obey her. So much for women not getting involved.
It was when Dillan and I were thirteen, and Uncle Donovan wanted us to go on our first mission. Granddad was still alive and leading the family, but Uncle Donovan had a lot of power as second-in-command— the position I hold now —so he thought he could force my parents. My dad and uncles beat the two men who tried to corner us after school to within an inch of their lives. That didn’t satisfy my mom. She wanted to make sure her brother understood her son and nephew would join when our parents said we could. Unfortunately, that was only a little more than a year later.
“Did you talk to each other?” Thea pulls me back to the present.
“No. We stood across a room from each other. I remember asking Colin who the big guy was. He didn’t say your name, but he told me you were a welder. That your arms are the size they are from smashing skulls on your anvil. If I’d been a kid, I would’ve believed him.”
Even with the obvious injuries, it’s easy to see Brandon isn’t someone you want to pick a fight with. He’s the same size as Seamus and Cormac. You’d never guess he’s old enough to be any of our fathers. He looks like he’s still in his early forties. As I stare at him, I realize something.
“I should have known Thea was your daughter the moment I met her. She inherited the same birthmark on her right forearm as you. With the slight Boston accent, I should have put two and two together.”
“Obviously, I know who the O’Rourkes are, but since no one introduced us those two times, I didn’t know then or on the phone tonight which one you were. I recognized you as fast as you recognized me. You don’t look the same as you did fifteen years ago, but it’s similar enough for me to know we’d met.”
“When was the second time you met?” I glance down at Thea as she asks.
“I won’t tell you that.” I’m fast to answer.
I don’t want Brandon to even hint at the situation. We were at a different meeting six months later, and I shot the man standing next to Brandon. But not before Brandon tried to put a bullet in me. I can’t blame him, and I hope he doesn’t blame me. That meeting went to shite because Uncle Donovan did the exact opposite of what Dillan told him to do.
“Ally, I won’t tell you either. I wouldn’t even if Finn weren’t here, but if he says no, then I’m going to follow his lead.”
Thea’d opened her mouth, but Brandon answered before she could make a sound. She looks up at me, and I see a flash of hurt. Then I watch the resolve come into her gaze. She doesn’t pull away, but she stands a little straighter. Is she pulling away emotionally?
“If Finn doesn’t think it’s safe for me to know, then I won’t ask. I can live without knowing.”
My sweet, strong cailín. She wants me to know she won’t demand information I can’t and won’t give. She wants me to know she’s brave enough to accept this first challenge and go with the flow.
“Why don’t we sit down?” Sandra gestures to the dining room.
The oven timer is buzzing. Thea offers to help her mom as Brandon and I walk into the dining room. He points to a chair, which I stand behind.
“Mr. Gallagher?—”
“Brandon. I don’t know your dad any better than I know you. But I knew about your family long before we met. I know about your mom and what happened with Randall O’Keefe.”
He pauses for a moment, and I nod. Randall O’Keefe was the man my mom put a hit on. It shocks me that he knows about that.
“I also know your parents got engaged within a month of knowing each other, but they had to wait because they were only nineteen. Dillan’s parents met first and were high school sweethearts. Your parents met through them, but not until a few years later. Same as your other aunt and uncle. They got engaged at the same time as your parents. If you’re dating Ally, then it’s because you intend to marry her, isn’t it?”
“Yes. I wouldn’t bring her near my life if it was just casual. I wouldn’t do that to any woman, but Thea’s—” I can’t stop my smile. “I knew when I met her. She’s the only woman I’ve ever wanted to let into my life. She’s the kind of special you only meet once in a lifetime because there can only be one of her.”
“Why do you feel that way?”
“She’s incredibly intelligent. You can tell by speaking to her, then you find out she’s a neonatologist, and that confirms it. She’s kind and self-sacrificing. She’s patient and forgiving. I met the guy she was dating before me. She brings me a sense of peace I haven’t had since I was a kid and was too young to know what my life would become. I tell her all the time that I will do anything to keep her safe. I will, and you know what that means. But I feel safe with her. I don’t feel like I have to be as guarded. I’m not looking for what’s going to go wrong at every corner. I can just be Finn, not Finn O’Rourke.”
“She’s all of those things. You said she told you about our family history.”
“I know what Corey expects of her. I know that you’re probably thinking she’s jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. That I’m not?—”
Brandon holds up his hand as he glances toward the kitchen.
“I’m glad she’s with you. Not because I expect you to shelter her from Corey, so I’m willing to look the other way. In the fifteen minutes you’ve been here, it’s obvious you’re both in love already. It radiates from you both. I didn’t fall in love with Sandra at first sight. It took longer, but I see in you two what I see when I think about my wife. Ally trusts you, and to a man like you, trust is everything. Once it’s gone, it rarely comes back. You won’t betray her trust because that’s not the man you want to be. I know the O’Rourkes more by reputation than anything else. That reputation is rooted in family. Nothing is more important to your family than one another. You wouldn’t bring Ally into yours if you didn’t feel that way about her and think they would accept her.”
“You can tell all that?”
“There are things from my past Sandra will never know. That my children will never know. I’ll tell you if I need to. I understand what my daughter is getting into. Motorcycle clubs aren’t all criminal. But the one my family runs is. I’ve known the O’Malleys my entire life. People always assume it must be my mom’s side of the family with ties to the Irish mob since she’s white. They don’t expect it to be my dad’s since he was Black. My dad died of pancreatic cancer when I was fifteen. I looked up to my uncle, and grief nearly destroyed my mom. I did what Uncle Corey told me to because I trusted him. When my mom came out of her grief and realized the crimes Uncle Corey was forcing me to commit, she got me away from him. There was still a price— like an annual tax —for that freedom. He’s still trying to claim it. To men like Corey, family are people to be manipulated and guilted into submission.”
We don’t have time to say more because Sandra and Thea walk in with the food. I lift a platter from Sandra’s hands, and she offers me a warmer smile than I’d received in the foyer. I pull out Thea’s chair, and she sits. But Sandra is still moving things on the table. I don’t sit until she does. Thea’s parents stare at me.
“My parents are strict.”
That gets a smile from Brandon, a nod from Sandra, and confusion from Thea.
“I don’t sit until all the women have. I stand when they do. They always get into the car first. And if I take the first piece of anything, it will be my last piece ever. My parents are old-fashioned.”
“I think it’s chivalry and courteousness.”
If we were alone, I’d kiss her and show her just how courteous I can be when considering her needs. Instead, I grin.
The meal progresses, and I have a great time getting to know her parents. I think they’ve more than accepted me. I think they like me. But the conversation gets hard again when we move into the living room.
“Corey isn’t in Boston like he’s supposed to be. My cousin texted me this afternoon to tell me. I don’t know why he hasn’t left when I’m certain I was clear about my expectations. Has he contacted you in the last two days?”
“Yes.” Brandon’s scowl is so deep the lines might never fade from his forehead.
“What did he demand?” Thea’s leaning against me again while we sit on a loveseat, her hand clutching mine and resting on my lap.
“He wants you back in Boston, and he wants me to ride with him. He said he has a deal going on here, and he needs me to protect his back. I guess he doesn’t have the men he arrived with.”
Brandon stares straight at me, and I stare back. The implication hangs in the air. My silence confirms it, but I will never admit it aloud. Thea and Sandra are watching us. Sandra remains nonplussed by the exchange, but Thea’s getting more anxious. Her hand tightens around mine, she’s pressing harder into my shoulder, and her thigh keeps tensing against mine. She’s getting some large doses of reality today. I think it’s good, though. I’d rather she sees how noncommittal I’ll be about certain topics before we move in together or get married. She needs to accept this, or there’s no future.
“Did he say where you’re supposed to go?”
“Brighton Beach.”
It’s my turn to tense. But I make sure it’s the leg that isn’t touching Thea’s. Rage boils inside me.
“These people know who your uncle is connected to?”
“Yes.”
“And they want to do business with him?”
“Apparently. According to Uncle Corey, they want him to be the middleman for some deal in Boston. He’s the go between to keep them anonymous. Rowan was stupid enough to fall for that sort of thing. But Ewan isn’t. I don’t think they know Ewan well enough.”
“Who?” Thea shifts her focus from her father to me.
“The bratva.”
“The Russians?”
“Yes. If you hear Brighton Beach, nine times out of ten, it’s the Russians. The Kutsenkos run the Ivankov branch. Sometimes Brighton Beach means another Eastern European syndicate, but if it does, the Kutsenkos aren’t far away. They’re either involved, or they know about it.”
Brandon shakes his head. “They’re Albanian.”
It’s my turn to shake mine. “Maybe that’s who you’re meeting, but the Albanians are weak right now. Here and in Boston. The bratva pulls their strings. The Albanians don’t breathe without asking the Kutsenkos’ permission.”
We got sucked into that fucking Albanian shitshow a couple years ago. It was one of the few times my family hasn’t wanted to gut our rivals and was willing to help. However, it all blew back on us thanks to fucking Declan. He started the shite but didn’t live long enough to see it through. No one else completely believes that part. They blame Dillan.
We lost our family home— the house we considered our ancestral one here in NYC —because Misha Andreyev lost his shite and blamed us. The circumstances of what happened to Misha’s sister-in-law and what nearly happened to Maria Mancinelli meant we had no leg to stand on. We had to take it when the bratva struck back. We had trouble with the Albanians again two months ago when Dillan and Mair were only dating.
“When is all of this supposed to happen?” I need to let my family know.
“Next week. Corey said he’d come back down.”
“Next week? Papa, he just got you injured, and he wants you healed enough to ride with him? He’s even crazier than we thought.”
“I’m more bruised than anything else.”
Thea scowls, and I can tell she gets that expression from her dad. “I’m not all right with that. Not as your daughter, and not as a doctor.”
“That may be, squirt. But they didn’t invite me. They told me. It’s part of that annual tax.”
“He made you lose your job, so he could loan shark you. When you refused his so-called help, he nearly killed you on your bike. And now he wants you to go with him to some meeting that could get you killed.”
I let go of her hand, but she clutches mine. I use my free hand to pull hers off and place it on my thigh. I wrap my arm around her and press her against my side. I won’t be over the top with my PDA, but I kiss the top of her head while I squeeze her upper arm. She rests her head against my shoulder.
“Papa, you can’t do this.” Her voice catches.
God, I wish I could pick her up and put her on my lap. I wish I could slip inside her and hold her until she calms. I wish I could blink and make this all better. But I can’t do any of those things.
“Thea, Sandra, I need to speak to Brandon alone.”
Thea tries to shake her head, but when our gazes meet, tears fill her eyes. She’s guessed what’s happening, but I won’t tell her a thing until Brandon and I speak to my family. I kiss her cheek and whisper to her.
“It’ll work out.”
“But not for the best.” Her voice is equally soft.
I stand when she and her mom do. I risk her parents annoyance when I pull her in for a hug. I kiss her forehead when all I long to do is press my lips to hers.
“Nothing’s planned yet. Don’t panic until there’s a reason to, cailín.”
She nods, and we let go of each other. She follows Sandra from the room. I watch as the door shuts. Then I turn to Brandon.
“I know you killed two men to protect Thea. You shot at me once before. Corey is going to die.”
“And I’d like to be the one to kill him.” Brandon’s so deadpan you’d think he just told you about the weather.
“I can’t promise that, but I can try to make that happen. We need to speak to Dillan. First, I need the truth. How much of a liability are you if you ride with Corey or come with us?”
“I’m pretty banged up, but I’ve been worse. My children haven’t seen that, and Sandra’s only seen it once. It was when she and I were dating. Her reaction was completely justified, but I swore I’d never put her through that again. I’ve stayed away an extra day or two to heal enough to not frighten her. Ally and her brothers were too young to remember, or they were away at college. There were a lot of years Corey left us alone. He’s been pushing harder since Thea turned eighteen.”
“I disliked him but didn’t give him much thought until meeting Thea. Now his days are over because he wants to pimp her out.”
“No one understands that better than me.” Brandon’s gaze bores into me.
“And that’s why I’ll do my best to let you have the kill shot. You don’t need to ask to come along. We both know you are. We need to talk to Dillan about logistics, not permission. I will have to explain things to him, but he’ll get it.”
I pull my phone out and open a group text.
Me
Answer when I call.
They’ll know that means it’s a six-way call.
I dial Dillan first.
“Hey.”
“Hey. Hold on while I get the others.”
I tap Cormac’s contact, and it doesn’t even ring.
“I’m with Shane.”
“Ok. Let me get Seamus and Sean.”
I get them on the line before I say anything important.
“I’m at Thea’s parents’ house. I didn’t know this until we arrived, but Dillan, you and I met Thea’s dad in Boston when we were nineteen. Brandon’s on the call with us. We’re in the living room.”
I’m grateful this is an older home and not open concept.
Dillan responds first. “You have a birthmark on your arm, don’t you? I saw it on Ally’s arm a few days ago. I remember you now.”
“I do.”
“How do you know each other?” Seamus already isn’t thrilled about this conversation.
“When Dillan and I were nineteen, do you remember Uncle Donovan made us go to Boston with him? Corey and his guys were there when Uncle Donovan was negotiating with Rowan’s dad. Remember the firefight six months later? Remember how I almost got shot after killing one of Corey’s men? Brandon was there.”
I won’t confess Brandon was the one who nearly killed me.
“Your future father-in-law nearly killed you.” I guess Shane’s going to put that out there.
“And I’m eternally grateful I didn’t. Finn makes my daughter happy.”
There’s silence for a moment, then Dillan speaks. I’m confident he’ll go along with what I want, but I can’t be certain until we hear what he has to say.
“If Finn’s calling all of us with you, then you know something we need to. What happened?”
I nod to Brandon, encouraging him to tell Dillan. I don’t want to get the details wrong since I can only assume a lot.
“Uncle Corey cost me my job to force me to accept his financial help. I refused to do that, so he’s pushing for Ally to go back to Boston. He knows she’ll consider it to help me. Neither she nor her mother and I want her anywhere near Boston. If Ally weren’t with Finn, I’m certain Uncle Corey would target her and press harder. He caused my bicycle accident as a reminder that he believes he still owns me. He hasn’t since I was a kid. Now he wants me to ride with him to some deal in Brighton Beach that’s supposed to happen with the Albanians. Finn says it’s likely really the Russians.”
When Brandon says nothing more, I continue with my hypothesis. I’m not fully convinced and won’t be until we’re there. But this is what I’m guessing based upon what Brandon shared before this call.
“I think Maks wants us there. Thea had some odd pages the other day. Death was the common denominator. It was a warning. I suspect Sergei or Anton hacked the hospital’s paging network or had someone do it for them. They want me pissed off at Corey and going after him to prevent this deal with the Albanians. It’s a bit of a stretch, but a logical one. Maks knows Corey would order Brandon to go with him since we took out Corey’s men. Maks knows that if Brandon goes, so will I. If I go, we all go.”
“How do they know any of this to put it together?” Brandon’s question is reasonable, and I don’t love the answer I have to give to my girlfriend’s father.
“We follow each other, and all of us have informants.”
He doesn’t look surprised. He nods. But it doesn’t take him verbalizing his frustration to know he feels it. It hardly thrills him to know people will follow his daughter. At least when she’s with me. Shane shifts the focus when he speaks.
“Do you want to keep Maks from getting further involved? You can let the meeting happen with the Albanians. It can be mutually beneficial for you, Mr. Gallagher, and us.”
“It’s Brandon. I suspect we will be in-laws in a couple months.”
I fucking hate my fair skin. I tan, which is great. But when I blush, I’m fire engine red. He already said Thea and I are meant to be, but that’s not the same as knowing we’ll live together and all that goes along with that. That’s why we were going to wait to tell her parents and mine that we want to move in together.
“As long as Corey is no longer a threat to my family, your family can do whatever you want to the others.”
Shane plows on. “Then we need to know when and where. We need to know what the bratva plans to gain. Right now, the bratva and Cosa Nostra have put the most pressure on the Albanians. Maybe we should let them know we feel left out.”
Seamus probably has his phone out and is already tapping out a text as he adds his thoughts. “I’ll speak to Bujar and see what he knows. I don’t know if he’ll know how the bratva’s involved, but he can tell us about the Albanians. He should tell us the where and when. We can confirm that against what Corey tells you, Brandon. He should tell us what goods will exchange hands.”
“Victor didn’t tell me anything about the bratva getting more involved with the Albanians when he checked in yesterday. I might need to remind him that a selective memory isn’t good enough.” Cormac’s great at refreshing people’s memory.
Seamus oversees a lot of our informants since he’s also our criminal defense attorney. It pays for him to know his clients. If he’s too busy, then Cormac steps in. Bujar has a healthy fear of Cormac after watching my cousin crush his brother’s skull with his fist.
I need to know a few things since I’m certain Dillan will let me lead because it involves my girlfriend and her family. I’d beat my chest and roar my woman if it weren’t such an inappropriate time. But that’s how I feel.
“Do you want us to take what we find?” It’s Dillan’s decision, so everyone knows who I direct that question to.
“Bujar needs to tell us what it is. It might not be worth it.”
“I think I know.” Brandon’s not hesitant to chime in, but he’s not boasting either.
He looks at me, and I nod. He can either volunteer it or wait for one of us to ask. The former would be better since the others don’t know him, and I’m just getting to know him. It’s not a good idea to make any of us beg for information.
“The Albanians want the O’Malleys to launder money for them through their construction companies. In exchange, the O’Malleys sell more product to them. They then pass that product along to the bratva, who sell it at a ridiculously high price in Europe. I don’t know if Rowan knew the Russians were pulling the Albanians’ strings, and he wanted the deal to mess with you. Or he truly was that ignorant, not caring what happened to the coke once he got paid. My guess is the Boston Irish are skimming at least twenty-five percent off whatever the Albanians want laundered, and they’re saving that to make another move on you.”
I laugh. “Ewan will take at least thirty percent if not more. He has titanium balls. He’s not scared of the Albanians like he should be since he just took the reins. They’re bloodthirsty. Plenty of people won’t go near them because they’re so damn insular and secretive. The best anyone can hope for is a blood feud starts among their families, and another syndicate can capitalize on it.”
Sean’s been quiet so far, but I know he has plenty of thoughts on anything related to the bratva. “That’s what the Kutsenkos are betting on. With three leaders in as many years, and none of them particularly strong. The bratva’s hoping with the Kurti family wrestling power away from the Hoxhas and them supporting the Kurtis, it’ll start a blood feud between the two Albanian clans. The bratva will put enough oil on the fire for the Kurtis and Hoxhas to destroy each other, leaving the bratva with even more power.”
“Complicated.” Brandon mutters the word, but we all hear it. I don’t blame him. Maybe I can sorta explain it.
“If you think of the various international regions as wheels, the Four Families are the hubs. All the lesser syndicates are spokes. Now, imagine the four wheels are all racing downhill, bumping into each other and crashing. The goal is always to send your wheel on the straightest, fastest path without falling over. But while you’re in this race, the finish line keeps moving, so the four wheels take turns being in the lead.”
Brandon nods his head, so I guess that means my analogy made at least a little sense.
“Cormac, Seamus, how long will it take to get that information from your CIs?”
Dillan’s probably thought of four plans while he’s been quiet. That means he’s also thought of their permutations for how things could go wrong with each one and the needed solutions.
“Give us a day. Right, Shay?”
“Yeah. I already sent a text to Bujar, saying we need to meet.”
“Brandon, when is all of this supposed to happen?” Sean’s probably already hacking Sergei’s and Anton’s computers. I’m a strong hacker, but it’s mostly in the financial realm. Once we fully decide what to do, I’ll be the one who makes the money disappear.
“In five days. Finn said Corey is still in the city. He told me he was headed back to Boston until this rendezvous. My guess is he thinks I’ll let my guard down, and he’ll be here and ready to spring the trap.”
That’s my guess too. We finish the conversation with a couple more logistical concerns, but we have everything in place for now. We end the call, and I’m left staring at Brandon.
“You might get the kill shot, Bandon. But I deal with Corey first. If you can’t handle seeing the worst things you can imagine one person doing to another, you won’t be the one to kill him.”