Page 15 of Fierce Monarch

I shifted enough to see Mari’s face, sad to notice it was grim and determined. “Let’s just say I’m motivated.”

This was the deadly queen who took out gangs and protected her city in blood. This was the queen who armed her guards and took no mercy. This was the queen who lost a little bit of herself every time someone died.

Right now, this was the queen we needed, even if it sucked.

Mari handed out the orders, excusing people as she went, until all that remained were her closest allies.

“That won’t hold them forever,” Cameron said, eyes tracking his father on his way down the hall. There was no doubt that was the truth. Joaquin was leading the charge against Mari, and if we didn’t end the war before it could actually start, we were going to lose everything we’d worked for.

Moore cleared his throat, tapping his knuckles against the tabletop as he thought. “I might have some options we can try to seal this up quickly.”

“What kinds of options?” Mari asked.

“The nontraditional kinds. They’ll cost us, though.”

“Cost isn’t an issue.” Mari stared at him, unruffled, but Dominic and I both frowned. Moore was as straitlaced as they came, despite the fact that he protected a crime boss. What exactly was his version of a nontraditional intel source?

Moore cleared his throat again, looking every bit uncomfortable. “One of my friends from the service is a Fed.”

Alarm bells rang, and I swallowed the urge to snap at him. “If finding an Ace in our home was enough to put Mari’s head on the chopping block, what do you think using a Fed for intel is going to do? The other leaders will decimate the city if they find out.”

“They don’t have to find out,” Moore countered.

“How do you expect to hide it from them?” Cameron asked. “The uncles are ruthless. They’ll figure it out sooner than you think.”

“They didn’t last time.” Moore shrugged.

Cameron froze in his seat, and I groaned. We hadn’t told him where the original info on Cash had come from. Moore’s friend had given us just enough to use to convince the leaders to help take him out, but it was outside his investigation and, honestly, barely anything to go on. That wouldn’t be the same case here. We needed cold, hard evidence to get through this shit.

Trying to defuse the situation, I turned to Cameron. “It may not work anyway. We need more than they had.”

If Rafael’s information wasn’t accurate, I doubted the federal government’s would be. A glance at Mari and Dominic—hell, even Tennessee—told me I wasn’t alone in that thought.

“It doesn’t hurt to check,” Mari mumbled, turning to Moore. “Do you think your source will give it to us?”

I wasn’t sure if I wanted him to say yes. Getting in bed with the Feds could hurt as much as it helped.

Moore scrubbed his hand through his hair with a sigh. “Honestly, I don’t know, but it couldn’t hurt to ask.”

“Actually, it could,” Cameron said, earning a nod from Dominic.

“How much will it cost us if we don’t try?” Mari’s words sank into the silence, and I knew she’d made up her mind before she turned to the head of security. “Do it. Let Greyson know what you need.”

Moore nodded, grabbed his phone, and headed outside. Immediately, Dominic turned to Mari, ready to launch an offensive argument, but she shut him down with a single look. When she spoke, her voice was quiet but powerful, even as it nearly shook with rage.

“I don’t care how much money the Fed wants or that it puts us on unstable ground in front of the others. I don’t care, Dominic. He was in my home. He was in my bed. I have to know who he is.” She took a breath, holding it for so long my lungs hurt in sympathy. “I know you’re just trying to protect me, but you can’t protect me from this.”

The suffering in her voice, the way she clenched the pen in her hand so hard that it cracked, obliterated any hope of an argument he had. “Okay.”

His agreement eased some of the tension in Mari’s shoulders and between the two of them. From my spot, I could just see under the table where he grabbed her hand, running his thumb across her skin to soothe her. My breath stuttered out in grateful spurts when she didn’t pull away.

Tennessee clapped, rubbing his hands together with a cheeky—although absolutely fake—grin. “Since we’re in an agreeable mood, let’s talk security.”

Mari sat back in her chair but kept Dominic’s hand. “What did you have in mind?”

“While the Celestine is protected to the heavens, you aren’t.”

Mari raised a single eyebrow. “Doubting your abilities?”

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