Page 17 of Taken By the Mobster

“He didn’t approve of our relationship,” Declan finished.

“Or your affiliation with the Muldoons. He wanted to protect me from them.”

Declan’s face hardened as he snarled at the thought of Olivia being forced to marry Clyde. “But he was okay with his daughter marrying one of them?”

Olivia pushed a hand through her hair. “It’s complicated, Declan.”

He shook his head. “It’s not complicated. He sent his daughter to live with the enemy.”

Olivia slapped her hands on the table. “Don’t you think I know that? I live every day of my life knowing my father traded me for some kind of peace between the families. I’m not sure I can ever forgive him for that.” She exhaled. “Look, if it hadn’t been me, it would have been my sister. In fact, it was supposed to be my sister. Daddy was going to force Caitlin to marry Clyde. I wanted to protect my sister, so I offered to go in her place.”

“Son of a bitch,” Declan muttered.

“I told you, it’s complicated.” She rubbed her forehead, the ache behind her eyes coming out of nowhere. “I want to go home, Declan. I want to see my family. My mother and my sister. Except I can’t go home because if I do, Clyde will kill me. But what scares me more than anything is that I don’t know what my father will do to me for defying him. I don’t think I will ever be able to go home.”

Declan took her hands again and held them tight. “Maybe there’s a way. You just have to find it.”

“It’s too late for me. I threw everything away when I ran away. But you know what? I got out. I’m free.” Olivia closed her eyes and chuckled. “Relatively speaking.”

Declan chuckled. “I know, and I am sorry about that. I’m working on a way to fix that, I swear.” He checked his watch. “Look, it’s late, and we both need sleep. Why don’t you go back to bed?”

He thought she might argue, but she rose to her feet, adjusted the blanket around her shoulders, and mumbled, “Good night.” She stopped in the doorway, looked over her shoulder at him, her blue eyes flashing, and eased the door shut.

Chapter 9

Olivia

She lay on the bed, with all the blankets piled on her, and stared at the ceiling. She’d been counting the ceiling cracks for over an hour. Later, she thought she might try counting the tiny, pink flowers on the fading wallpaper again. When she’d tried yesterday, she’d fallen asleep and lost her place.

Day seven of her captivity was a wet, dreary day. Rain pounded the side of the house, and cold air slipped in through the window. The blankets didn’t keep her warm.

She closed her eyes and pulled the blankets up to her ear. Maybe she would sleep. It was the only thing left to do in this hellhole. She wondered when, or even if, Declan planned to move on from this place. Not that she wanted him to; if Declan moved on from here, she wouldn’t see him again. The thought of never seeing Declan Quinn again didn’t sit well with her.

If Declan left, would he take her with him? Or would he leave her behind to fend for herself? Or maybe he would let one of his men take care of her. Olivia was confident that Walsh would be more than happy to eliminate her.

A sound like a gunshot echoed through the house, startling her out of a state of semi-consciousness. Olivia threw the blankets off and stumbled to her feet. It took her a second to realize that it wasn’t a gunshot she’d heard but the door hitting the wall.

“Murphy, get the truck out of the barn!” Declan’s voice reverberated through the walls, deep and gruff. “Conor, grab the guns from the back room. We’re going to need them.”

“There’s some cash below the floorboards in the bathroom,” Conor added. “Don’t forget it.”

Olivia ran to the window and watched Murphy run through the rain across the lawn to the barn, while the men shouted and caused a commotion in the house. He pushed open the enormous barn door and rushed inside. A few seconds later, a dark blue SUV emerged from the barn. He parked it in front of the house, jumped out, and ran around it, throwing open the doors.

The bedroom door flew open and hit the wall. Walsh came in and stalked toward her, his fists tightly clenched and an angry scowl on his face. Olivia pressed her back against the wall and put her hands up.

“Walsh!” Declan yelled. He ran into the room and darted between Walsh and Olivia, one hand on the gun under his arm. He scowled at Walsh, and Olivia swore she heard a low growl come from deep in Declan’s chest. “Go help Murphy load the SUV. Now.”

Walsh snarled at Olivia, then he abruptly turned and left.

Declan waited until Walsh went out the front door, then he kicked the door shut and turned back to her.

“Clyde is on his way back,” he explained. “We have to go.”

Olivia gasped. “What? Why?” Her stomach twisted, and she broke out in a cold sweat. “Why would he come back here?”

“I don’t know, but I have my suspicions. That’s why we have to leave.” Declan grabbed the quilt from the bed and wrapped it around her. “Do not argue with me or fight with me. Do exactly as I say.” He stared at her, waiting for her acknowledgement.

Olivia nodded. The flash of his gun beneath his coat reminded her who she was dealing with, despite their shared past and brief moments of bonding earlier in the night. At that moment, there was nothing of the sweet, kind person she’d known in the past and seen glimpses of the past few days. This was not the man she’d sat up late talking to about their mutual hatred of Clyde. This was Declan Quinn, the notorious mobster, bank robber, and alleged murderer. Declan scared her when he was like this.

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