Page 23 of Destructive Truths

Tears cloud my vision, burning as they cascade down my cheeks. I feel like an intruder, witnessing a private moment between the two.

Finally, my mam pulls back, placing her hand on Lorcan’s chest. “It’s okay,” she tells him. “She deserves to know.”

“Mam, you don’t have to—”

“I need to, honey.”

Wiping the tears from my cheeks with my index finger, I nod.

“I was so scared, Saor. So, I did what he asked of me. Blindly, I got in the car, and he drove me deep into the mountains. After a few miles, he stopped at the end of a steep walking trail and forced me to hike to the top where the old Hellfire Club ruins look over Dublin.”

Leaning forward, she takes another sip from her water before she pushes through with the rest of the story. “I remember it being a dark December evening, and it was raining so heavily that my school uniform soaked through. Funny, I knew how much danger I’d put myself in, but all I could think about was how bone cold I was. It was as though somehow my mind had neutralised the fear by latching onto something so trivial.” She tilts her chin, giving her attention to the wooden beams running along the ceiling. “After we got to the top, Gabriel and his friends made me strip out of my clothes while they all watched and laughed, and when I was completely naked, they took turns violating every piece of me.”

I’m shaking now, an icy chill freezing the beating in my chest. The pain in her words shackles my breaths, and when I look towards Lorcan, he is vibrating—his face flushed red with anger, but he contains himself for her. I’ve never wanted to harm a human being as much as want to gut Gabriel King. Not even Donnacha jilted me as much as watching my mother wrestle with her memories.

“They left me there, Saoirse. Naked, battered, and covered in their twisted pleasure. For over eight hours, I laid there praying that the life inside me survived. I wished on every fucking star they hadn’t killed the one thing that kept me fighting through the most horrific experience of my life. The next morning, as the sun rose, a man and wife who were out for a morning hike found me. They drove me to the nearest hospital, where I spent six weeks recovering. I never went back to Killybegs after that night. I couldn’t.”

I understand her reasoning, and for the first time in a while, I can say I wouldn’t have handled it differently.

“I had planned to come back,” she offers. “But after I failed my initiation by not completing my trials, they rewarded my fiancé—at least in the eyes of the syndicate—my spot on the council, but only until my brother came of age. So, I made myself a promise. Once Darragh removed Gabriel from power, I’d return home. Only, that never happened.”

“Fiadh mentioned Darragh the day I arrived in Killybegs. She told me he died on my birthday.”

“Darragh didn’t die, honey. Gabriel killed him before his eighteenth birthday when he became eligible to remove him from the Ryan throne. Of course, nobody could prove otherwise. But I knew my little brother was the farthest thing from suicidal. He had called me that morning, and he was happy and in love, and he couldn’t wait to meet his niece or nephew. He made me a promise that day, he swore blind he’d do everything he could to bring me home again.” Eyes rimmed red, she lets her tears fall freely, choking on every word that leaves her mouth. “Those… those were… the last words we shared.”

Pushing from my chair, I close the distance between us, and envelop her in a hug. “I’m sorry, Mam.”

Finally, after her emotions soak through my hoodie, I lift my head to find my father watching with a thunderous expression clenching his face. “Aren’t you supposed to be some bad arse?” I raise a brow, staring him down. “Why didn’t you kill that fucker and be done with it?”

“Trust me, doll. Killing Gabriel King has been atop the list of my priorities for a long time. But there are rules within the syndicate that don’t allow me—Ulster’s king—to act without repercussions. He’d be eating dirt if it were just your ma and me, but it’s not. We had you to consider. Dealing with the backlash of the entire syndicate army would never be worth putting your life in danger. Not to worry, doll. Once we remove Gabriel from his position as Leinster’s king, he’s no longer untouchable. I’ve waited almost nineteen years to kill that cunt once and for all. Have no fear… the day Gabriel King meets his maker, my fucking face will be the last thing that bastard sees.”

I release a breath I didn’t know I was holding, relieving some of the tension that has settled across the back of my shoulders. “I don’t want to run. Gabriel has already taken far too much from our family. I want to take part in the trials.”

“Saoirse. You need to be sure.” My mam bursts the proverbial bubble. “The third trial can change the rest of your life.”

I push to my feet, determination fuelling me. “I can’t hide from this, Mam. And I don’t want to, either. Gabriel doesn’t deserve to play a king in our kingdom. If I don’t do this, he wins.”

“You can’t do this for me, honey. If—and it’s a big if—you decide to partake in these trials, you need to do it for yourself.” Her eyes are heavy, glazed by a glassy finish as she pulls her lips tight, deepening the few wrinkles at the edges of her mouth. “Whatever you decide to do, make sure it’s a choice you can live with.”

FOURTEEN

LIAM

“You know,” Beibhinn pauses mid-thought. From the corner of my eye, I spy her pointer finger tapping against her pouting lips as she mulls over her words before speaking them aloud. “Never mind.” She smirks, punctuating her sass with a raised brow. “Pacing the floor is working spectacularly for you, brother.”

“Your sarcasm’s noted, Bev.” I bring my attention back to the full-length window, and my gaze roots to the cabin next to ours. Folding my arms across my chest, I steal my posture and try my fucking damnedest to burn a hole into the neighbouring cabin’s exterior, hoping to capture a tiny glimpse of Saoirse. Impossible, but I need some reassurance she’s okay and unharmed. Preferably with my own fucking eyes.

Since Lorcan divulged what happened at the Ryan manor, my blood has coursed through my veins with a boiling fury, and no amount of pacing has eased the murderous tendencies tearing at my insides. I’m seconds away from storming over there and busting the door in. This further fuels Beibhinn’s amusement, but I couldn’t care less. After she and I spoke with Rohan, there was no doubt Gabriel was up to his dirty tricks. But my imagination could never have prepared me for the harsh reality Lorcan shared. My protective instincts are on high alert, threatening to break free and string Donnacha Deegan up by his bollocks. He signed his death warrant the second he placed his hands on the only Ryan heir.

Saoirse may be new to this lifestyle, but her army has trained for years while awaiting her arrival. It’s in our veins, passed down through generations—strength, respect, and loyalty for the crown that binds them together. Like it or not, that crown belongs to the Ryan family, and regardless of our stance, we—the future of the syndicate—must protect our future leader.

With every second that passes, my patience wears like a snagged thread on a cheap garment. My teeth gnaw on the inside of my cheek, and a coppery tang taints my tongue when I pierce through the fleshy meat. “Fuck this shite! They’ve been in there for hours. Surely Lorcan has said all he needs to say.”

“Cool your jets, Rambo.” Beibhinn appears beside me and places her hand on my shoulder. “She’s with her mam, not held captive by a ruthless overlord.”

“How are you so calm? Donnacha could have killed her.”

Her left shoulder hikes as if to say Yeah, maybe. But he didn’t. “I’m no waitress, Liam. But you can bet I’ll serve that dickless cunt a dish… One I like to call revenge.” She inspects her nails, and a frown worms across her face when she notices a chip on her painted pointer tip. Finally, she flicks her gaze toward the cabin across the way, and a woeful smile tucks at the corner of her mouth. “Believe it or not, Saoirse is my friend, probably the only one I have, and although family comes first, loyal friends are a close second. I get you are worried about her; I am too. But she’s safe here. We need to wait until she’s ready.”

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