Page 57 of Taken By the Mobster

“Yeah, macushla, it’s me,” he replied. “You ready to get out of this place?”

Olivia nodded and clutched his hand. “God, yes.” She struggled to sit up, moaning as her muscles clenched in protest at the abrupt movement.

Declan shook his head. “Wait a second. I need to get all this stuff off you. The nurse is going to come running when I pull the heart monitor, so I need you to do exactly as I say. Do you understand me?”

“Yes,” Olivia murmured.

Declan removed the IV from her hand, then he helped her sit up and wrapped a blanket around her. The last thing he did was pull the sensors off her chest. Within seconds, the machine beeped, alerting the nurse something was wrong. Declan gathered Olivia in his arms and headed for the door. It opened just as he got there.

Drew stood in front of him, the nurse they had seen earlier wrapped tight in his arms, Drew’s hand over her mouth. He pushed past Declan, shoved the nurse in the bathroom, slammed the door shut, and propped a chair under the handle, making it impossible to open.

“We need to hurry,” Drew said. “I don’t think that will hold her for long.”

“I can walk,” Olivia muttered.

“No, I got you,” Declan said. He held her in his arms, hugging her to his chest. He kissed the top of her head, then he nodded at Drew. “Lead the way, bro.”

They rushed through the hospital, closed doors flying by on either side of them. They burst out the door they had come in, Drew holding it open as Declan exited with Olivia in his arms.

Conor started the car as Drew opened the back door and Declan climbed inside, Olivia’s slight form in his arms. The door slammed shut, and Drew got into the front with Conor. The tires squealed on the pavement as they left the hospital parking lot.

Declan held Olivia in his arms, his lips pressed to her forehead, breathing her in while Conor drove them into the night.

Once Declan had Olivia settled in a bedroom upstairs, he went to find Shane. He’d only had time to say hello when they arrived; his priority was Olivia and making sure she was comfortable. Now it was time to talk to his friend.

He found Shane in his study with Conor and Drew. Shane dropped his drink on the table and pulled Declan into a hug, slapping him twice on the back before he stepped back.

“It’s been a long time, Deck,” Shane said. “Too long.”

Declan laughed. “In my defense, I’ve been on the run for eighteen months. It’s a little hard to visit old friends when the cops are looking for you.”

“Yeah, I had a couple of visits from the Feds asking about you. It was easy to say I hadn’t seen you when I literally hadn’t seen you in two years.” Shane picked up his drink and took a drink. “And now you want my help.”

“I didn’t know who else to turn to, Shane,” Declan said. “You’re the only person I trust to help me with this. You don’t have loyalty to either the Muldoon or O’Reilly family.”

Shane Kelly was a lone wolf in the mob underground, a mercenary for hire. His loyalty belonged to whoever could pay him the most money. He had few friends in the world; luckily for Declan, he was one of them. Four years ago, two months before the Folger’s Café shoot-out, Declan had saved Shane’s life, pushing him out of the way of a car intent on running him down. Shane had sworn his undying loyalty to him on that day, promising to help Declan whenever he needed it.

“I need you, Shane,” Declan said. “I can’t do this alone. It’s too big.”

Shane nodded. “Anything for you, brother. Tell me what you want to do, and I will make it happen.”

“I want to destroy Clyde Braniff. I want to make him regret being born. Can you help me do that?”

Shane downed the rest of his drink and slammed the glass on the desk. “With pleasure.”

They spent the next hour working out a plan, one Declan thought might succeed. If this worked, Clyde Braniff would be out of his and Olivia’s life forever.

After they wrapped things up, Conor and Shane headed to bed. Declan finished his drink and turned to leave.

“Are you sure about this, Deck?” Drew asked.

Drew had been quiet while he, Shane, and Conor made their plans. Declan intentionally left him out of them; he didn’t want Drew to get hurt, so he would stay behind.

Declan nodded. “Yes, I’m sure.”

Drew pinched the bridge of his nose. “What about Olivia? How do you think she’s going to feel about this plan of yours?”

“She’ll understand,” Declan said. “I’m doing this for us.” He cleared his throat. “I need you to take care of Liv, Drew. No matter what happens, you make sure she’s safe.”

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