Page 62 of Taken By the Mobster

Clyde’s eyes darted around the room. They finally landed on his uncle, and he swallowed. “Uncle Donovan?”

“I understand you’ve been working on a change in leadership, nephew,” Donovan said.

Clyde looked at Declan, then back at his uncle. “Wh-what? I don’t understand.”

“You heard me,” Donovan said. “Do you want me out?”

Clyde visibly swallowed and clenched his hands in his lap. “Maybe.”

Donovan crossed his arms over his chest and glared at his nephew. “It’s a yes or no question, Clyde. Answer it.”

Clyde sighed. “Yes, Uncle, I want you out.”

Donovan rolled his eyes. “Why?”

Clyde snorted. “Why?” He leaned forward, the fear in his eyes replaced with hatred. “Because I hate you. I hate everything about you and this family. The honor system, the loyalty to a fake family, the inability to make a name for yourself outside of the damn family. The archaic rules you follow because of tradition. It’s outdated, and frankly, it’s a joke. You’re a joke.”

Donovan was out of his chair so fast he was nothing more than a blur. The crack of the slap Donovan planted on Clyde’s face echoed through the room. He leaned over his nephew, so close that spittle hit Clyde in the face when Donovan spoke.

“You’re out.” He looked at Declan, Conor, and Shane, then he tipped his chin at the man standing behind the chair. “Step outside, Liam. I think these gentlemen would like a few minutes alone with my nephew.”

Donovan followed Liam to the door. Just before he stepped out, he turned to look at Declan. “Declan, could I speak to you for a moment? Alone?”

Declan nodded, rose to his feet, and followed Donovan Muldoon out the door.

Chapter 29

Declan

When Declan returned to Donovan’s office, Clyde was in a chair in the center of the room. Blood dripped from his nose and covered his upper lip, and he had a swollen eye that was shut. Shane stood in front of him with bruised, battered, bloody knuckles and a grin on his face. He stepped aside when Declan walked in, allowing Declan to stand in front of the mobster.

Declan stared at Clyde, the urge to kill the man overwhelming him. He reared back and hit Clyde as hard as he could. Clyde’s head snapped around so hard, he fell out of the chair. He hit the floor with a sickening, yet satisfying, thump.

Clyde pushed himself to his knees, and to Declan’s surprise, he laughed. “What’s the matter, Deck? Are you upset about your girlfriend?” He shook his head as the laughter rumbled through his chest, echoing in Declan’s ears. “You know, I would have given anything to see your face as Walsh cut into Olivia and made her bleed. I bet it was almost as good as when you found Sarah in that box. Too bad Walsh didn’t finish the job like I did with Sarah.”

Shane hauled Clyde to his feet and dropped him back on the chair. He leaned over the smaller man, his hands on the back of the chair on either side of Clyde’s head. “Close your mouth,” he said.

Declan shoved Shane out of the way, reared back, and hit Clyde hard enough to make his knuckles bleed. He lost count of the number of blows he landed. Clyde’s left eye swelled shut, his lip split, blood flowed from both nostrils, and a deep cut appeared beneath one eye.

Declan could have gone on hitting him forever, anything to wipe the smug grin off his fucking face. But Declan didn’t want him dead. Not yet anyway.

Declan took a step back and sucked in a giant lungful of air. “I’m done here,” he muttered. He nodded at Conor. “Go get him.” He waited until Conor was out the door, then he turned back to Clyde.

“I could kill you myself,” Declan said. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, calming himself. “Trust me, I want to kill you myself. But I think it would be better if you suffered. Like you made me suffer for more than a year. Like you made my sister suffer and Drew suffer. So, I asked your uncle if I could bring in someone to help me. He was very accommodating.”

The door opened, and Donovan Muldoon entered. Right behind him was Grady McCarthy. Sheer terror dawned in Clyde’s eyes as Sean O’Reilly’s second-in-command stopped in front of him and smiled.

“Clyde, I’m sure you know Mr. McCarthy,” Declan said. “He knows everything. In particular, he knows what you did to O’Reilly’s daughter.”

“Mr. O’Reilly also knows what you did to his daughter,” Grady said. He crouched in front of Clyde and stared up at him. “Not that I need it, but I have his permission to do whatever I want to you.”

“He has mine as well,” Donovan said. “I’m finished with you, Clyde.”

“My mother—.” Clyde gagged and blood dribbled from his mouth.

Donovan shook his head. “I’ll handle my sister,” he said. He turned to Declan. “Once Liv is feeling up to it, you come see me. I’ll have everything ready. Grady, take care of this scum and get him out of my house.”

Declan gave Clyde one last look as he shook first Donovan’s hand, then Grady’s. Then he followed Conor and Shane out the door. He didn’t turn back, even when he heard the first scream of pain.

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