Page 22 of Desecrated Reign

Through our synced earpieces, I hear my mother confirming her position. Kicking back in my seat again, I place my two hands at the back of my head, ready for the show to begin. Lord knows it’s about time he paid penance for his sins.

I shoot Saoirse a wink, and she flashes me a wicked smile that travels straight to my dick. Then, in true Aoibheann fashion, she bounds through the door with a sweet and somewhat sinister smile on her face, arms stretched wide. Gabriel’s eyes round as my sister and mother step into the room, and fuck me if I’m not enjoying every second of hostility creasing his face.

“Hello, Satan.” Aoibheann's eyes shine with mischief. “Lilith’s back!” She steps to the side, arms splayed in a ta-da motion, revealing my mother and the three women standing flank behind her—Fiadh, Éanna, and Beibhinn.

It takes everything in me not to keel over with laughter when Aoibheann calls our mother Lilith—the woman is a shell of who she used to be—but I somehow compose myself, opting to roll my eyes at Avie’s ridiculousness instead. “For fuck’s sake, Avie. Are the dramatics necessary?”

Her tongue pokes out in my direction. “If I’m stepping back into hell, Rohan. You can bet I’m doing it with pizzazz.”

“Who let that fucking nutcase out of her cage?” my father bellows, eyes trained on my sister. Suddenly, her light-hearted expression turns dark, like the flick of a proverbial switch.

I push from my chair but stay a safe distance away, wondering which side of my unpredictable sister will react, but also right here in case either version needs backup. Avie was one of the many reasons my mother left when she did. Gabriel refused to handle Avie’s condition, and instead of helping her manage her illness, he labelled her as a psychopath and tried beating her disorder out of her with a leather belt—the irony.

“Daddy, Daddy, Daddy,” she prowls forward, sweetness dripping from her sarcastic tone. Next, she whips out her arm, and her hand wraps around his neck, squeezing with just enough pressure for his face to turn three shades of red. “For the last time,” she flashes him her teeth and raises her brow. “I’m not a fucking nutcase. I’m mentally ill. There is a difference.” The smile on her face resembles something out of a horror movie—a twisted mixture of a Disney princess and Harley Quinn.

“Aoibheann!” My mother steps forward, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Release him, please.”

Peering over her shoulder, she flashes my mother an innocent smile. “Fine,” she huffs, stomping like a petulant child before dropping her grip. She turns on her heel, grinning at my mother before blowing her a kiss. “But only because you asked so nicely.”

Gabriel lunges forward, ready to attack, but the minx is too quick. She stomps on his toe, and he bends forward in pain. Next, she raises her knee, clocking him straight in the nuts. “Ah, ah, ah, Daddy!” She leans forward, bringing her eyes to his. “I’m not a little girl anymore. I have teeth now, and they’re sharp.” Avie finally steps back, then skips across the room to stand beside me. “I see Daddy’s still a colossal cunt.”

“Yup.” I pop the p and widen my eyes, making her giggle. “Understatement of the year.”

“I’m sorry our mam left you with him. I should have put you in my suitcase or something.”

Throwing my arm around her shoulder, I draw her into my side. “Stop worrying, Avie. I was fine.” I wasn’t, but shielding my sister from the monster was worth every beating.

Around the room, everyone watches the exchange with wide eyes, wondering what the fuck is happening and how my sister can go from zero to a hundred and back again. Saoirse’s eyes find mine through the chaos, and I mouth, “I’ll explain later.”

But then my mother steps forward, stealing the focus when her palm ricochets off Gabriel’s cheek. Anger boils on his face as he raises his gun, but Seamus grips his elbow. “Don’t even think about disrespecting a woman in my presence, you useless son of a bitch.” I can see my father’s body shake with anger, but he’s smart enough not to react in a room full of armed syndicate members.“Gabriel,” Seamus warns with a deadly lilt, “from this moment forward, all assets purchased through the King name with syndicate money will be transferred to Elouise until Rohan passes his final initiation, including the King estate. Elouise has brought divorce papers with her, and you will sign them, stating all your assets are to be divided between your two legitimate children.”

“Absolutely not.”

“You don’t have an option.” Lorcan squares his shoulders and steps into Gabriel’s space. “What’s it matter, anyway? You and Devereux are done.” He grabs hold of Gabriel by the scuff of his collar, forcing him to walk across the room towards one of the chairs Seamus placed in the middle. With force, Lorcan tosses him back, dropping him into the seat. “Have you forgotten the power the syndicate has? Or are you so fuckin’ delusional that you think you’re untouchable?”

Rising from my seat, I walk towards my mother, and she hands me a large brown envelope and a pen. Then, before Lorcan can tie Gabriel down, I shove the papers in my father’s face. “Sign them.”

He hesitates a moment too long, and Lorcan decides he needs some motivation. Flipping back his suit jacket, he pulls out his Glock from his waistband and shoves it against Gabriel’s temple. “Hurry up, King. We haven’t got all night.”

As he flips through the papers, scrawling his signature on each highlighted section, I peer over his shoulder and spy Beibhinn and Fiadh hauling Oliver towards the other chair.

After talking with both Fiadh and Bev over the last few weeks, I know they’ve already confronted Oliver about Liam’s death, and when the time comes for them to exact their final revenge, he will be in for a world of hurt. Neither Beibhinn nor Fiadh will go easy on him, both of them fuelled by the need to avenge Liam’s passing.

Once they secure him, Beibhinn lowers her head to her father’s ear, uttering something that makes his face turn green. Fiadh, on the other hand, is completely impassive, not sparing her husband a glance as she turns away.

Rising to her full height, Beibhinn narrows her eyes on the man she used to idolise. “Remember what I said before, Oliver. Tick-tock!” Her hands mirror an explosion. “We’re nowhere near finished with you.”

Finally, once I have the signed documents in hand, I stride across the room and hand them to my mother. “Free from the devil, at last.” Then, wrapping my arms around Saoirse, I pull her close, kissing her head.

While all this is happening, Lorcan and Seamus have successfully contained Gabriel to the chair next to Oliver. Both are ready to be shipped to the cells at Kill Castle, where the syndicate will watch them until we figure out what we want to do next.

Finally, with Saoirse’s hand in mine, I walk towards the exit, but before I step over the threshold, I glare over my shoulder at my sperm donor. “Oh, and Gabriel, don’t even think about trying to escape. The syndicate has eyes on your every movement. You step one foot outside Killybegs, and it will be your last.”

13

SAOIRSE

Once we reach the parking lot, I finally release a sigh of relief, knowing that the syndicate is transporting Gabriel to Kill Castle’s cells. For the first time since this all started, we’re one step closer to bringing things full circle, not just for me, but for my mam and the Ryan family legacy.

---