Page 89 of Brutal King

He stares at me for a long while, still struggling to process it all. But he sees me. He remembers me.

Finally, he seems to accept everything as truth. That I was there for him like I promised long ago. “What do you need?”

“I will stand with you to take Boston back. You will stand by my side, where you belong, and help me defeat the Sinacore Alliance.”

“I’ve sworn my allegiance. I won’t kill them.”

It stings to hear my own brother say he won’t help me. But I understand. While I’ve been watching him for years, he’d forgotten about me. I might have been his world at one point, but he was so young that eventually I became nothing more than a distant memory. Dionne, the imaginary friend.

My jaw ticking, I say, “All right, then promise me this. You will not help them against me either.”

He nods. “I promise.”

We move quickly. As much as I’d love to sit and reminisce about days gone by, do some brotherly bonding, maybe a bit of fishing,the longer we take to organize an attack, the harder it will be to unseat Declan.

Rowan and I scour the blue prints of the McKenzie house, and together, devise a plan to take it back.

“There will most likely be men posted here and here,” he points to the map. “But Declan won’t know about this open spot here. That’s how we will get in.”

“What about this? What’s there?” I ask.

On and on we plot, and I enjoy every minute of it. That is, until he says, “While you’re securing the first floor, I’ll search for Lou. I need to see… I need to see her one last time.”

My teeth grind together. Louisa the traitor. How easily she gave him up. I don’t tell him that she came to me yesterday. That her father set up the meeting so she could say just how sorry she was for what she’d done, and that she was willing to give me anything in exchange for Rowan. As if I’d give him up to her.

Instead, I handed her the necklace he always wore, along with two pennies, and said, “I’m sorry. If you’d come to me an hour sooner…” I trailed off, letting her come to her own conclusion.

She cried and called me a murderer. I laughed. Stick and stones thrown by a traitor mean nothing to me.

To Rowan, I say, “She may not be there.”

“I have to look.”

I don’t push, afraid that it will make me seem suspicious. As it is, his trust in me is tentative at best. It’s too new. Too uncertain. Any wrong move on my part will send him running back to the alliance.

After coming up with both a plan and a backup, we head to Boston in the helicopter. Ten of my men, including Scarlet, meet us a few blocks from the McKenzie house.

Fully armed and ready to do war for my brother, we move in. Except, we aren’t the first ones there. Someone’s beat us to the punch, parts of the house already in ruins from another battle.

We immediately switch to the backup plan, the one where we’re outnumbered. My men disperse and circle the house, while Rowan and I continue through the side door. I follow closely at his heels, my rifle aimed at the floor, but ready to fire.

My fingers twitch as we press against the wall, listening intently for any signs of danger. In the distance, men are fighting. Hand to hand combat mostly, with lots of grunting, but there is the occasional shot. Something like an explosion shakes the house and large chunks of plaster fall from the ceiling, creating a ball of dust all around us.

“The police will be here soon,” I tell him. “If we don’t find Declan beforehand, it will be impossible.”

He gives me a sharp nod, but I get the feeling that finding his former underboss isn’t his first priority. It’s finding that traitorous bitch.

I bite my tongue to keep myself from saying anything that will push him away from me. Instead, I motion for us to continue.

Rowan rounds a bend and is instantly attacked by two men. I drag one off him and fling him to the ground. I’m on him before he can get up, my fist making quick contact with his throat. He tries to gasp, but finds his windpipe fully collapsed. Within a few seconds, he’s purple and dead. I smile. No one fucks with my brother.

On my right, Rowan dispatches the other goon just as fast. However, we don’t get much of a break as two more men appear through the dust.

“Do you recognize them?” I ask Rowan.

“No. But Declan hired a lot of men without my knowledge.”

“Did they turn on him?”

---