Ruined Wrath (The Sullivan Mafia #6)

1. Fiona

Chapter One

FIONA

Scout is gone.

Cormac’s voice carries across the estate, raw and frantic as he shouts Scout’s name again and again. Each time it echoes and there’s no answer, something inside me twists tighter.

He’s gone, and it’s all my fault.

If I hadn’t been sneaking around, if Cormac didn’t have a reason to confront me, we would have seen or heard something. I could have screamed, I could have warned someone or gotten in the way of whoever it was who took Scout.

Instead, while I was hijacking Cormac’s attention by pleading with him for forgiveness, his son was being snatched, and his brother was beaten half to death.

Logic tries to cut through the guilt.

I try to tell myself that there was a high chance that either Cormac or myself could have been hurt, or worse, but I’m not ready to hear that yet.

What I want is a way to undo this because I need Scout to be here safe and sound.

I love that boy, and the thought of him out there going through god knows what is killing me.

I know any chance I had of earning Cormac’s forgiveness has dissipated. There is no future for us, not after what I was forced to do.

But regardless, I can’t be the reason he loses Scout forever.

The grass beneath my knees is damp and cold, seeping through the fabric of my pants.

Brennan’s blood is on my hands, and no matter how many times I wipe them against my thighs, I can still feel the stickiness of it.

He hasn’t moved, and the pulse I obsessively feel for is weak, but I refuse to accept the possibility of losing Brennan too.

I keep hoping he’ll bolt upright and start cracking jokes, but he doesn’t. He stays crumpled on the ground, with blood streaked across his temple and matted into his hair.

“Please wake up,” I whisper as Cormac’s yells for his son echo beyond the tree line.

I want to join him, but I can’t leave Brennan, not when he’s so vulnerable.

All of the guards have been taken out, and Ronan and Kieran haven’t arrived yet, so it’s up to me to make sure he survives until then.

I alternate between holding Cormac’s jacket against the wound on his head to help slow the bleeding and feeling his neck for a pulse. “You better not die. Do you hear me? You’re Scout’s favorite uncle, and if you’re gone, that means Ronan or Kieran get the job, and you don’t want that—”

Brennan groans, and the rush of relief nearly knocks the air out of my lungs.

“Brennan, can you hear me?”

He lets out a low, pained sound as his head lolls to the side.

I swallow hard and shift closer, sliding my hands carefully along his arms and his ribs. I’m not a doctor, but I know enough to look for any other signs of external injury.

His breathing is steady, if a little shallow, and aside from a few other shallow cuts and scrapes, he seems intact.

I think he’s going to be all right.

The thought doesn’t bring the relief it should because Scout is still missing. And every minute that passes, he could be slipping further out of reach.

My stomach twists violently, bile burning the back of my throat.

I squeeze my eyes shut, pressing my palm flat against the dirt as the weight of my reality crashes over me.

This is all my fault. Cormac’s world has been torn apart because of me, and now he is having to hunt for a child who should have been safe.

“Scout…” The name spills from my lips like a prayer.

Footsteps crunch behind me, and I turn to see Riley.

Her face is pale as she looks from where I’m kneeling beside Brennan to the edge of the trees where Cormac’s voice echoes.

“Fiona,” she says quietly. “Is there any sign of Scout?”

I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.

Her gaze drops to Brennan, to the blood pooled on the gravel beneath him.

She noticeably sways on her feet before she drops to her knees beside me, her cardigan slipping from one shoulder, as she gently reaches for Brennan’s wrist.

“Is he—”

“He’s breathing. And his pulse is steady, though a little weak. I think he was just knocked out.”

Riley nods, absorbing the information like she’s filing it away for later. She’s good in a crisis, I’ll give her that.

“And Cormac?”

“He’s still looking for Scout.”

Her jaw tightens, just for a second.

“Cormac will find him,” she says with such certainty that, for a moment, I almost believe her.

We sit there in silence for a beat before more footsteps approach, faster this time.

Ciara appears, carrying the twins on each hip, their faces scrunched and red from crying. Her hair is a mess, and her sweatshirt is on backwards, as if she got dressed in the dark.

Her eyes dart between us. “What happened? I thought I heard a scream.”

Neither Riley nor I can answer fast enough before her gaze lands on Brennan.

“Oh, Jesus Christ. So much blood…”

“He’s alive. He’s breathing,” Riley says quickly as she gets to her feet to take Nico from her.

“He doesn’t look it.”

I look at the babies. “You should take the twins inside—”

“What happened?” Ciara’s eyes remain fixed on Brennan, as if she can’t quite believe that he’s hurt.

Sometimes, I forget that Cormac and his brothers aren’t invincible. I’ve come to see them all as the rock that is the steady calm among the storm.

The fact that someone was able to tear through their defenses long enough to cause one of them damage tells me all I need to know about the enemy we are facing.

“Fiona…” Ciara’s panic is starting to creep through, and it’s only going to get worse when I tell her who the scream belonged to.

“Scout… He was taken.”

Ciara swears viciously under her breath, bouncing Addison instinctively even as shock ripples through her.

Addison blinks up at her with wide, confused eyes while Nico only continues to cry harder.

“This house is supposed to be secure,” Ciara snaps, though there’s no real anger behind her words, only fear. “How does this even happen? How do they get through the guards?”

I don’t have an answer.

I don’t think any of us do.

“The twins shouldn’t be out here. It’s not safe.”

“I’m not leaving,” Ciara says stubbornly, though Addison lets out a scream of protest.

“We should go and help Cormac,” Riley chews on her bottom lip as she looks into the distance. “God, I hope he finds Scout.”

“He will,” Ciara says firmly.

I want to believe her, but with each second that passes, Scout grows further out of reach. Even if we do find him…

I don’t let myself finish the thought. I can’t. Not when I’ve grown to care for this kid as if he were my own.

“How long until Ronan and Kieran get here?” I ask Riley urgently, trying to ignore my racing heart.

“I-I’m not sure. Kieran said they would be as quick as they can, but they’re coming from the city. They’re sending more men in the meantime.”

Ciara is pacing. “They better be. Otherwise, they’re both in for the ass-kicking of a lifetime.”

“I can’t believe this happened…” Riley whispers. “Kieran and I… We brought you all here because we thought it was safe. Oh god, if something happens to Scout—”

Ciara holds her shoulder with her free arm. “Stop it, do you hear me? You are not to blame here, Riley.”

“But—”

I nod. “Ciara’s right. This is not your fault.”

It’s mine.

All of a sudden, a string of black SUVs comes hurtling down the drive, kicking up a cloud of dust behind them.

Armed men pour out of them before they even come to a halt.

It feels like everything is happening at once as their voices mix with the sound of radios crackling and engines rumbling.

Cormac appears from the shadows and starts barking orders.

Men file out in all directions, surrounding the property as more men start to arrive.

But there is still no sign of Scout.

Ciara hands Addison to Riley. “Here, take the kids. I’m going to go and help—”

Brennan groans.

The three of us freeze, watching as his brow furrows before he sucks in a breath and blinks against the blinding floodlights mounted along the perimeter fence.

“Scout?” he mumbles.

I lean closer. “It’s Fiona. You hurt your head, but you’re okay.”

Brennan pushes himself upright with a sharp grunt, swaying slightly as he does.

I reach out instinctively, bracing him, but he barely seems to notice.

He scans the drive wildly. “Where is he? Where’s Scout?”

My chest tightens. “Cormac’s looking for him. He’s got everyone searching the property. We’ll find him.”

“They grabbed him, and I tried to get to him, I swear I did, but—” He breaks off, his jaw clenching. “Next thing I knew, I was on the ground.”

Brennan grunts as he reaches up to touch the nasty wound on his head. “They came out of nowhere. I tried—”

“I know. You did everything you could,” I say quickly, but Brennan shakes his head, though the movement causes him to curse.

With Addison back in her arms, Ciara leans to get closer to Brennan. “Did you recognize who it was?”

“There were too many of them.”

Riley swallows a sob as she hugs Nico tighter.

I swallow. “How many?”

“Four or five? Honestly, it could have been more.” Brennan grunts as he rubs his temples. “They took out all the guards like they were nothing more than bowling pins. Whoever they were, they weren’t amateurs, that's for sure.”

Ciara looks down the drive to the open gates. “Where the hell is Ronan?”

The night feels too big, and I can’t shake the prickly feeling on the back of my neck that makes me think someone is watching us.

I press my hands flat against my thighs, trying to ground myself.

“It’s okay,” I tell Brennan, even though we all know it’s not. “Cormac will get him back.”

Brennan looks at me then, really looks at me, and whatever he sees on my face must mirror his own fear because his expression hardens.

He attempts to push himself to his feet. “I need to help.”

I grab his arm, panic flaring in my chest. “Brennan… You were knocked out. You need to sit down, at least for a few more minutes.”

He shrugs me off and climbs to his feet. He’s unsteady, but I know nothing we do or say will stop him from going to join his brother.

“Scout needs me.”

So does Cormac, I think, but I don’t say it.

I go to step aside, but then Riley is there, pressing a firm hand to Brennan’s shoulder.

“You just got knocked unconscious.”

Brennan pushes her hand away. “I don’t care. I’m not sitting on my ass while Scout’s out there.”

Riley looks to Ciara for help.

She opens her mouth to argue, then stops as her eyes flick to each of her children.

“Be careful,” she says instead, her voice strained. “All of you.”

“You should all get inside,” he orders before staggering away to join the search party.

None of us moves until Brennan fades into the chaos that surrounds us.

I hug my arms around myself, suddenly aware of how cold I am.

Riley shifts closer, her shoulder brushing against mine.

“This is no one’s fault,” she says softly, like she’s reading my mind.

I shake my head, unable to meet her eyes.

Somewhere out there, Scout is alone and terrified, calling for a father who will tear the world apart to get him back. And no matter how this ends, I know with devastating clarity that this is all my fault.

And nothing will ever be the same again.