Page 16 of Whispers In Wonderland

Where’s he going?

Riley’s lifeless face still dances through my mind, and my fists clench as my mind races. I search the faces of the remaining men surrounding us. There’s no hint of betrayal, not among my men or Cillian’s.

My fists curl tight as I look into Cillian’s eyes and a silent but crucial lesson sinks into my bones. There’s deep anger within, maybe even rage, but it’s being mastered by calculated calm. I would no longer be making calculations from 1000 yards at the end of a scope. This war will be up close and personal, like the image of Riley’s head, the vantage point leaving little room to understand the terrain.

“Derek, do you recognize the phone number?” Cillian asks me, his voice laced with concern.

I shake my head. “No, I don’t. It’s not one of our associates.”

Ronan strides back into the room, a determined look on his face. With a sweep of his hand, he dismisses the other men from the room. Shadow remains at my side, clearly uninterested in Ronan’s orders.

“I’ve got some information for you, boss,” Ronan says pointedly, raising an eyebrow. With a flick of my chin toward the door, I bid Shadow to leave us. My right hand is pissed, but moves to the door without a word, as I hold my ground.

“Go ahead,” Cillian says, his eyes never leaving my face.

“The text message came from inside Lucian’s organization,” Ronan says, his voice low and tense. “I traced it back to one of his associates.”

My heart races as I take in the implications of this revelation. The enemy is closer than we thought. We need to act fast if we want to take them down before they strike again.

“Who is it?” Cillian asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

“He goes by the name ‘Sleeper’,” Ronan says. “He’s one of Lucian’s most trusted men.”

My mind races as I try to piece together what this means for us. Sleeper’s a key player in Lucian’s organization and getting to him will be difficult. But we can’t afford to let him go unchecked. We need to find out what he knows and use it against him.

How did Ronan find out where the call came from that quickly? Something doesn’t smell right. Are there more threats lurking in the shadows than I’m aware of?

“How did you get this information so fast?” I ask Ronan, my voice sharp with skepticism. “This can’t be an isolated incident.”

“We have our ways,” he says evasively. “We have people on the inside who are loyal to us.”

Cillian nods in agreement. “We knew this was coming,” he says calmly. “We just didn’t know when or how.”

I draw a deep breath and suppress the urge to cross my arms over my chest, knowing it would be far too telling of my inner turmoil.

“The last time I saw Riley, he was in the bar, not 300 yards from where we’re standing now. You’re telling me you knew there was a risk of attack here, and said nothing?” I demand, incredulous.

Both men just regard me with steely calm, as if I’m failing to grasp something incredibly obvious. At my silence, Cillian shakes his head and the subtle disappointment in his eyes grates on my nerves.

“You know better than that, Derek,” he says softly. “This is our safe haven. We take great care in maintaining its security and secrecy.” He pauses, choosing his words with care. “We have protocols in place for situations like these. We’re always on guard. However, we couldn’t have predicted this, or it wouldn’t have happened.”

“Whatever did happen, sure as fuck didn’t happen here…” Ronan chimes in. “… your man left the premises through the side door at 10:15.”

“I have many sources of information,” Cillian cuts in, voice as smooth and hard as granite before I can react to the implication that Riley was off script during his last moments.

I hate that the newest member of the team went rogue the second I let him off Shadow’s leash. Hate the lack of discipline that has lowered my standing with these two.

“This isn’t just about Riley,” I state the obvious. “There’s something bigger going on here.”

“It’s our business,” Cillian doesn’t give an inch, “and we’ll deal with it.”

“Your business,” I echo, thoughts racing, as the tension in the room intensifies. “Lucian is my problem. He’s now become a much bigger problem for you, too.”

Cillian meets my eyes, “We need to set a trap for Sleeper. You’re the perfect bait.”

Want to know what happens next? Turn the page for a sneak peek into Derek’s world as he takes on Lucian and maybe finds love in Discovering Desire, Shattered Embrace Book 3.

CHAPTER TEN

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