Page 105 of Vengeful Secret

But who knows when it comes to Murphy? This could be a trap.

Declan and Kael show up in exactly an hour, with Declan coming right in and Kael following him. Liam’s a couple of minutes later, and they all come inside and shut my office door.

I wordlessly hand Declan the invitation, and he shares it with Kael.

Kael looks up at me with wide eyes.

“He addressed it to you.”

“I know.”

That can only mean one thing—he suspects that Da is out for the count, even if it’s not confirmed.

Parlays are always done between the bosses of the clans, after all.

Declan looks at me. “Fuck. What if it’s a trap?”

“I thought the same thing, but… He knows I’ll take my men. There’s no indication that he wants me alone.”

“Of course, you’re not going alone. We’ll go with you.”

I take a breath, knowing that Declan might blow his top over what I’m about to say next.

“I think I should go alone.”

“What? Are you crazy?” Declan hisses.

Kael puts a hand on his shoulder. “Maybe he’s right.”

Declan turns to look at him as If he's crazy, too, and Kael sighs.

“I know it goes against every instinct, but he’ll be expecting us all. If it is a trap, we don’t want to be down and out,” Kael explains.

“Exactly right, Kael.” I nod at him, but Declan doesn’t seem to agree.

“We’ll have more firepower if we all go. At least us four.”

“I’m going alone, and that’s that.”

Declan glares at me. “Just because you’re acting boss?—”

Liam cuts in. “I'll go as backup. I’ll stay in the car, wait outside as a getaway driver.”

Declan grumbles out a curse under his breath.

“It’s an order, Declan. You stay here with your wife. You can’t be going out, anyway, she could go into labor at any moment.”

Declan sighs, knowing I’m right. “All right, but I want you to check in every hour.”

I nod. “I can do that. Liam, we’ll head out about eleven-thirty. Just stay at the house until then.”

Liam gives me a thumbs up and a smile and they trail out of my office.

I sit down behind the desk, feeling a little guilty that I’m not consulting Da over this.

He’s been doing a bit better, awake more often, but he’s still weak as a kitten. There’s nothing he can do in this situation butworry, so if there’s anything to talk about after the parlay, I’ll let him in on it.

There’s no reason for him to stress. It isn’t good for his heart.

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