Page 153 of Tempting Fate

“Fat lot of good that did.” She squeezes my hands to apologise for bringing up the not-so safe house. As her suspicion circulates through my head a couple more times, I decide she might be onto something. “He threatened my dad. They thought I’d left, and Brutus said something about a deal, then Zeke ripped him a new one.”

“Then it’s settled. You deserve answers, and I’m going to help you get them.”

“This isn’t like high school,” I caution when I spy a familiar gleam in her eye. It’s been years since I’ve seen it. “We’re twenty-three… we’re not going to be arrested if we get caught sniffing around where we shouldn’t be. We’re going to end up hanging in the Shamrocks’ bunker.”

“Pfffft.” Nadia waves away my concerns. “Zeke mightn’t bail us out anymore, but I bet we can talk Slash or Toker into saving our bacon if it comes to it.”

Knowing that she’s going to dive plot into this headfirst, with or without me, I decide that she’s right. I do deserve answers. It’s the least Zeke can give me after the way he left things between us.

He doesn’t get to play the victim.

He doesn’t get to call the shots either.

Weeks ago, he accused me of being reckless.

It’s time I show him just how reckless I can be.

“Tell me, Nads, how should I play this?” I ask.

The grin Nadia sends my way is evil. “Oh, that’s easy… you show the dumbarse what he’s missing. Push his buttons. Flirt your arse off in front of him. Bring some guys to the compound. Make sure you’re the life of the party. We’ll fill our calendars with all the social shit we both missed out on when we were coupled up. It’ll be fun, and I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

Just like she did more than five years ago with Alex, Nadia makes it sound easy.

Once again, I’m not quite so sure.

32

VENOM

When Lily runs away from me, I drop to my arse on the floor with a huff. She took me by surprise by the force she used to push me away. My busted knuckles split open when I caught myself. I lick the blood away, flexing my fingers to make sure I didn’t break anything on Slash’s hard head.

Despite the throbbing, my hands still work.

More’s the pity.

“Come with me,” Brutus demands as he exits the chapel.

I surge back to my feet and follow him as he limps through the clubhouse to the laundry. He hefts one of the washing machines out of the way and opens the hatch. The stairs unfold, and the motion sensor light illuminates the vertical passage that leads down to the bunker.

“I can’t get down there right now,” he tells me, motioning to the cast on his lower leg. “But I want you to know that the basement is empty. So is the freezer. While you were lickin’ your wounds in Sydney, tryna turn the other chapters against me, I was cleanin’ up your mess. Joker’s gone. Honey left with him. You have nothin’ but some recorded ramblings taken while I was drugged up to my eyeballs with morphine.”

“They can’t be gone.” Although I can see the truth in his crazy eyes, I don’t want to take his word for it. The need to double-check the bunker is huge. It’s the knowledge that he’ll probably lock me down there if I give in to it that stays my feet. “You haven’t been here.”

“It was easy.” Brutus tries to smirk. He makes a small sound that tells me he pulled the stitches in his face. “My men are loyal. When I order somethin’, they do it. No questions. No objections. No need to know the ins and outs. Just blind obedience to the patch I wear.”

“They helped Alex find Lily. He hurt her.”

“And they will pay for that.” The devious delight in his gaze takes on a brighter gleam. Insanity is stalking him. “When I’m ready… when it works for me. Until then, they remain useful, so I let them live.”

“Bear will double-cross you. He’s already done it once.”

“Keep tellin’ yourself that,” Brutus retorts. “I hope it helps you sleep at night. Alone. Because that’s how all cunts with superiority complexes sleep… by themself. With only their morals to keep them warm.”

“At least you admit that having lines I won’t cross makes me superior to you.”

His lips quirk. He lets the hatch drop back into place, then steps up into my face. Up close and personal like this, I see the signs of his discontent. Red-ringed eyes. Stubble on his chin. Tremor in his shoulders. Stale coffee on his breath. Brutus thinks he’s capable of doing what it takes to win this war, yet it’s taking an obvious toll on him already.

Baring my teeth, I ask, “How are you copin’ under the strain of sellin’ out everyone who once loved you? I bet your conscience is eatin’ at you… keepin’ you up at night while you try to work out where it all went wrong.”

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