Page 62 of Seizing Control: Part One

“Sure.” When he glances at me, I nod like I have a clue what he’s talking about. I don’t. His point is lost on me. Since Slash appears to have worked out the connection between the Maddisons lacking leadership and the Shamrocks, I slowly hazard a guess that I hope won’t make me look too stupid. “With Joseph gone and the rumours about Kristoff bein’ a vegetable, it’s our time to attack.”

Although Slash dodges my gaze, he inclines his head, then hastily retracts his agreement when Gabriel makes a dissenting grumble low in his throat. As it becomes clear that neither of us understand what Gabriel’s trying to explain, Slash locks eyes with me and grins like we’re still friends. Out of habit, I mirror his amusement, until we both realise in the same moment that our bond is broken, and we’re now, for all intents and purposes, enemies.

Grin gone, Slash asks the question I’ve been avoiding. “How does anything to do with the Maddisons help or hinder us?”

“Silly boy,” Gabriel scoffs. “Everything the Maddison’s do affects the Shamrocks in some way. They’re your competition. Rivals in the drug trade. Opposition in the skin trade. Challengers in the ongoing turf war. In fact, allies turned enemies are the most dangerous... they know how you operate, your weaknesses?—”

“We’ve never been allies.”

Gabriel hits me with a sharp look. “Untrue. Back in the early two-thousands, there was a period where every organisation in the state was allied, or had a truce at least. It came to an end around the time Scarlett was killed.”

“Killed?” My voice is shrill as I question his phrasing. “Scarlett died in a car accident.”

“Oh, yes...” Gabriel trails off as he grimaces. Looking at his watch, then at the door, he adds. “It’s late, forgive an old man for misspeaking.” Considering I’ve never witnessed the man make a mistake, I’m about to challenge him when he drops a bombshell that distracts me. “Now you’ve got a weapon of sorts—it’ll have to do until your arraignment. The next thing we need to discuss is Slash’s presidency. He already announced it during chapel, along with his impending marriage to Cherub, but we need to make sure things are formalised before the wedding. With Brutus in the wind and the meeting with the Trinity set for tomorrow afternoon, I wanted to talk to you about...”

Although Gabriel continues speaking, I don’t hear him.

I’ve been rendered deaf and mute.

Slash.

President.

Wedding.

Cherub.

Trinity.

Each word is a bullet to the chest.

When I came up with the plan to shield Lily from Brutus and the Maddison clan with Slash’s Trinity connections, it never crossed my mind that he’d take my place as National president. In my head, I saw a marriage of convenience. A temporary deviation from the life I’ve built with Lily over the past five years. The wedding was solely for show. A display of unity that would last until Gabriel worked his magic and I was released from prison. Slash and Lily would part as friends. I would step into my rightful role as my sweet thing’s husband and the Shamrocks president.

Lily loves Slash.

But she will never love him as much as she loves me.

I know that in the same way I know that he was once the only other option for her.

“As president, Slash will be able to meet the Trinity leaders on more equal terms. His marriage will consolidate the bond between the Shamrocks and the guild. It’ll also please the old country.” Gabriel’s voice comes back into focus as my temper reaches fever-pitch. I ball my hands into fists and glare at Slash across the table. “It wasn’t my idea, however, I am on board with it because the addition of another layer between Cherub and the Maddisons will keep her better protected while we track down Brutus?—”

“You’re stealin’ my entire fuckin’ life!”

In the face of my accusation, Slash sits up straighter. There’s a level of arrogance in his posture that I’ve never seen before as he offers me a half-shrug, then lolls back in his seat like he doesn’t have a care in the world. “I’m just doin’ exactly what you would’ve done in the same situation.”

“Yeah?” I quirk my right eyebrow. “And what’s that?”

“I’m takin’ what I want—no ifs, buts, and maybes. No thought given to anyone else. Just pure selfishness and an unflinchin’ resolve to destroy anyone who gets in my fuckin’ way.”

As his lips stretch into a shit-eating grin, I explode. The chair hits the concrete behind me. The metal table that’s anchored to the floor shakes as I place one hand on the flat surface and vault across it. Gabriel scrambles out of the way as I grab hold of Slash’s t-shirt and drag him back to his feet. Shaking him like the dog he is, I walk him backward until his back hits the concrete wall hard.

“Touch her and die.”

“I’ve already touched her, you dumb fuck.”

Narrowing my eyes, I pin him with a look filled with hatred. “Touch her again... see what happens.”

Again, Slash simply shrugs and smiles. He tilts his head to the side and feigns curiosity while he muses, “You mean, kiss her? ‘Cause I did that earlier tonight—” Gnashing my teeth, I snarl in his face, then pull my arm back to punch him. My forearm is seized by Gabriel, my knuckles striking the wall beside Slash’s head instead of his mouth when I wrench free. “—or are you only worried about me finding my way between her thighs? ‘Cause I did that too.”

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