Page 64 of Mob Bride

“He won’t back off, Carrie. I’m not exaggerating. I can’t stress that enough.”

“I get what you’re saying, Shane.”

“Do you want to call your handlers now? I have burners you can use. They’ll never detect where you are because I have jammers here at the house.”

That doesn’t surprise me either. “Yeah, I’ll take you up on that. Better sooner rather than later.”

I glance at the clock he has on the mantel. It’s definitely a well-maintained antique. Shane notices where I’m looking.

“It was my nana’s before she passed away. Finn inherited the bar she ran, and Sean got much of her jewelry. I got several of her household decorations. Seamus and Cormac inherited stocks, bonds, annuities, while Dillan got all the properties. It might not seem evenly distributed, but each of us got the things we most wanted.”

It surprises me he’s telling me something so private, but I know he’s trying to let me in more. Trying to show me he won’t be closed off when he doesn’t have to be. I appreciate it.

“It was a hard loss for all of us, but having things like her clock on the mantel to remind me of her makes the loss a little easier. She was gone from us years before she actually died. Dementia stole her from us, but it wasn’t long after Colleen’s death that she passed as well.”

I reach for his hand and slip mine into his and give it a squeeze. I hear sadness warring with fondness in his tone.

It’s only been two-and-a-half hours since I bolted from the car. It feels like it should have been much, much longer, but really we’ve spent most of that time driving from one place to another.

“Could I have a phone now, please?”

He leaves me in the living room as he heads into his study. I hear him on the phone, but I don’t know who he’s speaking to.

“She’s going to contact her handlers. I’m giving her a burner right now. She’s not sure what she’s going to say. I’ll be there for the conversation.”

I can’t hear whatever the other caller says, so it’s silent for a moment.

“I spotted the extra guards already positioned around the neighborhood, so it shouldn’t be a problem if they decide to show up.”

They?I assume he means Bartlomiej or Jacek.

“Yeah, I know we have ways of blocking their entry, but I don’t want that.”

Block their entry?Does he mean barricade us in here?

“Even if they figure out where she is, I don’t want to make a bigger fuss than need be. I don’t know if they’ll know the house belongs to me or not, but she doesn’t have her tracker on, so that shouldn’t be an issue. And if Bartlomiej and Jacek show up or they send men, kill them.”

He meant my colleagues at first. There’s silence again, and I still don’t know who’s on the other end.

“Okay, I gotta go. Just wanted to touch base. Keep me posted, Dillan.”

I lean back over the sofa, and I can see down the hallway to his office. He slides his phone back into his pocket and opens the bottom desk drawer, then pulls out a phone still in the package.He also grabs a pair of scissors before straightening. I shift, so it doesn’t appear like I was spying. He heads back in here, and his expression tells me he knows I listened and watched.

Of course he did.

He hands me the phone and scissors. I’m certain he wants me to see they’re still unopened.

“Shane, I trust you. You didn’t have to keep it in the package, and you don’t have to let me cut into it.” I take both items and pull apart the plastic.

“I know, but there’s a lot of times when I won’t be able to reassure you. Right now, I can. I’ll seize these opportunities when they’re available.”

That fills me with happiness I didn’t know I needed. Once the phone’s out of the package and I’ve turned it on and set it up, I sit here staring at it. I’m still incredibly conflicted about what I need to do. There’s what I believe is a simple answer, but that doesn’t make this any easier. I eventually dial the number and put the phone on speaker.

I hope Shane understands my faith in him since I’m willing to let him hear this call. I could easily step out of the room and go somewhere else or let it be a one-sided conversation. Instead, I’m letting him be privy to it.

“Hello, Kaja.”

That voice.

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