Page 13 of Dublin Brute

Tag nods. “Aye, the Bratva are pleased enough, but some of the Irish heads of family don’t like us doing business with them.”

Piper grips her napkin and pulls it into her lap. “But that was my father’s doing, not yours. You fixed what could’ve become a Russian/Irish rift. They should be mad at the McGuires.”

Sean sets a hand over Piper’s. “But the Quinns rose above and ended up stronger for it. The heads of the other families don’t appreciate that. Most of them were banking on Tag failing as a leader when Da died. They didn’t expect the five of us would hold our seat, let alone strengthen it.”

Laine reaches to squeeze Tag’s hand. “Which makes last night’s shooting even more distressing. North Dublin is supposed to be off-limits.”

Piper sighs. “I can call Rory and see if he knows anything.”

Sean shakes his head. “No, kitten. It’s too soon. If Rory gets pressured to answer your calls every time we think your family is involved with something, it puts him in danger. You’re a Quinn now, not an informant. We’ll figure out who came at us without putting your brother in the crosshairs.”

Although it would be faster and easier for her just to ask.

But I can’t say that because it’s above my pay grade.

“How many were killed last night?” Laine asks.

Tag taps a finger on the paper folded on the table. “The coverage of the incident is vague, at best.”

I wipe my mouth with my napkin and hand my empty plate back to Cora with my thanks. “Just one dead that I’m aware of. Her name was Tanya. She and the blonde I tackled out of the way were friends and were headed for a pint after a night at the Abbey Theatre.”

“How heartbreaking,” Laine says.

“Aye, Nora was torn up about it.”

“The blonde you mentioned last night?” Tag guesses. “Is she going to be a problem? The last thing we need is panic amongthe locals. Our vow to keep the streets safe is our greatest asset within the community.”

It is at that.Da saw the wisdom in cultivating the trust of the locals and it’s served us well for decades.

“She won’t be a problem. The lass was rightfully rattled at first, but once she got over the shock, she handled the chaos of the night like a champion. She’s got an iron core beneath the veil of sweet innocence.”

Finn chuckles, flashing me a grin of pure mischief. “This has got to be a first, even for you, brother.”

“A first for what?”

“You’re on the make. You tackle a woman in a spray of gunfire, and you’ve got the hots for her.”

I roll my eyes. “Fuck off. You’re an eejit.”

“And you’re full of shite. You’ve got that look in your eye that says I’m not an eejit.”

“What look?”

He grins, looking much too smug with himself. “The one you get when your cock is twitching for an extra-curricular workout. Something happened last night. You want her.”

“What if I do?”

Finn holds up his palms. “Hey, I’m not judging. I’m in awe, is all. Tackling a woman to the ground is a unique way to introduce yourself.”

All eyes are on me and for once, I don’t like it. Standing up, I grab a cherry pastry to go. “I’m not on the make. The girl was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Her phone was smashed in the confusion, so I dropped her home. End. Of.”

Finny looks like he might open his mouth and pop off some more, but Tag cuts him off. “Kieran’s been at the hospital all night. You and Bryan go relieve him. The kid wasn’t as bad off as it looked at the scene. Doc Kelvin will discharge him later today and you’ll move him to the safe house on Howth Road. Hecan convalesce there. We need to know what he was bringing to Kieran that was worth our enemies shooting into a crowd.”

I down my pastry in two massive bites and head for the door. Something doesn’t sit right. Random drive-by shootings don’t happen in our territory, and Petey has never brought us anything big enough to warrant this kind of attention.

Was this the McGuires? Is Billy Gravely flexing his muscles?

Or is there something we’re missing?

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