Page 75 of Dublin Brute

Brendan

“If you boys are going to keep doing this, you should consider renovating the den into a multi-brother office.”

I glance up to where Piper is standing. She’s holding a large tray and the savory scent wafts over.

“Did Cora send us lunch?” Bryan asks.

“She did. She also says you need to stop working long enough to enjoy it or you won’t digest well.”

I snort. “Since when has digestion ever been an issue?”

Bryan closes his laptop and sets it aside, holding up his hand to receive the welcome offering.

“Here you go, Ever-Peckish One.” Piper hands him a plate and then checks to see if I’m ready for mine.

“I’ll take mine at the table, P.” Freeing myself from the comfy confines of the leather couch with an open laptop raised in one hand is a challenge, but for food, I am duly motivated.

I make a place for myself at the end of the dining room table, shifting the stack of missing persons reports Tag forwarded into a pile out of the eating splash zone.

“How bad is it?” Piper’s brow is furrowed as she skims the files.

“It ain’t good.” I lift a forkful of hot hamburger sandwich to my mouth. The richness of Cora’s gravy bombards and my mouth waters as I chew. “Five girls in their early twenties are missing. All from our territory. All victims of what appears to be a professional trafficking organization.”

“Well then, that’s good, isn’t it? You guys don’t deal in trafficking.”

Finn lifts his gaze from his screen on the other end of the table. “No. We don’t, but if we’re right, Gravely and your oldest brother are making it look like we do.”

She takes the lunch tray to Finn and sets his plate next to his computer. He has everything set up with a mess of cables and monitors, and has been searching the CCTV footage he’s been able to access for the last known whereabouts of the girls.

“Is that one of them?” Piper points to one of the screens.

“Aye, that’s Rebecca Kamille. I tracked her to a bar on O’Connell Street.”

Piper squints at her screen, then looks up. “If you need people on the ground to go ask questions, I’m happy to help.”

I grunt. “And put you—our sister-in-law—in the place where twenty-year-old women are disappearing? Remind me again, Piper—how old are you?”

Piper rolls her eyes at me. “Har har. Aye, I’m twenty, but that also means I might draw these guys out.”

“And what happens if they are McGuire men, and they recognize you?” Bryan says.

She waves her finger at my twin. “I’m not helpless. If this is coming from my brother, I might recognize them and if not, I can be very resourceful.”

No shit. Piper single-handedly fought off two Bratva members and survived to tell the tale. She may look like a young, wee thing, but she’s got a steel core. Still, Sean would rip ourthroats out with his bare hands if we even entertained the idea of letting Piper get involved.

Finn gives her a placating smile and goes back to his screen. “Leave it with me, Piper. I’ll dig into it and see what I can find.”

We all share her frustration and that feeling that we’re not doing enough fast enough bubbling under the surface. The McGuires have been stepping too far over the line lately—but taking girls off our streets?

That’s not just crossing territory lines—it’s a declaration of war.

I’m wiping the last bits of gravy from my fingers when Laine walks in, a sunny contrast to the storm brewing around us. She stands there for a second, surveying our makeshift command center like she just walked into an episode of a crime show.

“Hey, boys.” She runs a gentle hand absently over her growing belly as she glances from Finn to me and then at Bryan. “I’m looking for some manly muscle to help me unload a truck. Can I steal you away from your investigations for a minute?”

Bryan is on his feet as quickly as I am. “What do you need, counselor?”

“The delivery truck just came through the gates. It’s the crib and dresser set I ordered for the nursery.”

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