Page 47 of Deadly Rival

Jacob glances at his battered, old watch. “We need to move.”

“In a minute.” Kendrick narrows his eyes at me. “Is there anything else I need to know? I don’t like surprises. If something I’m not aware of comes out at this meeting, I won’t be pleased.”

Kendrick’snot pleasedis anyone else’sreally fucking pissed.I close my eyes, say a small prayer to the patron saint of ridiculously stupid people, and explain about the photographs I sent.When I finish my sorry tale, the silence has actual physical weight. It crushes me into the floor.

Kendrick’s voice is a snake’s hiss. “And why, may I ask, did you feel the need to antagonize Ophelia’s father further? Was abducting his only daughter not sufficient?”

I clench my fists. “You said it yourself. They’re bottom feeders. Scum. I don’t want to cut a deal with them. I want to end them. I just made sure the feeling was mutual.”

Jacob’s long sigh holds all the thoughts he’s keeping to himself, thoughts I’ll no doubt hear later in painstaking detail.

Kendrick gets to his feet. “Well, you’ve made the bed, and now we all have to lie in it.” His voice drops. “Don’t disappoint me again. I like you, Sebastian, but even I have my limits.”

We walk three abreast to Main Admin, where we angle toward the Boardroom. I’ve only been there once, to demonstrate a highly successful new algorithm to a group of senior Brothers.

It’s ironic, really. I came from money, and my greatest skill is making more of it. My predictive algorithms have thousands of applications, but financial trading is by far the most fun. I make a game of it, the numbers meaningless digits, and I’m sure it won’t hurt my situation that I bring millions of dollars each week to the Brotherhood coffers.

If it wasn’t for that, my head would probably already be in a box on Randall Calder’s doorstep.

The Boardroom falls firmly in the gloomy old country club side of the Compound’s aesthetic. A heavy oak table, shiny from years of varnish, sits in the center. It’s over three hundred years old, one of the Compound’s original features.

Oil paintings stare down from the wood paneled walls, and the ugly green brocade carpet would look at home in some disheveled, old stately home filled with ghosts. The whole setupis designed to intimidate and depress, and even knowing that, it works.

We’re the first to arrive, and Kendrick takes his seat at the head of the table, flanked by Jacob and myself. A clear statement of intent. Jacob might not be a full Brother, but his place is assured—Quinn has been going around telling everyone how excited she is about the ceremony. Also, his public position and military background give him serious clout.

I’ve heard rumors people think Kendrick is grooming him to take over one day, and I’m not sure they’re wrong. Jacob snorted and told me to fuck off when I asked him, but that doesn’t mean anything. The people best suited to lead are usually the ones who don’t want to.

Kendrick speaks quietly. “All five councilmen are attending. My vote holds the weight of three, and it takes five votes to carry a motion forward. If two support us, we succeed. If all five go against me, I can’t protect you.”

I lean forward, interested despite the circumstances. The Brotherhood keep their politics secret, leaving Kendrick as the visible face of all decisions. “What if it's a tie?”

“A tie is the same as a loss. The motion is dismissed. We keep proposing alternatives until one passes outright.”

All in all, not a terrible system, but I’d always imagined Kendrick would have the ultimate power of veto. Five votes, and I could be done for. The balance of probability sits in my favor, but I’m a long way from safe. A really, really long way.

I jump when the door opens, and Jacob shoots me a frown. I can almost read his thoughts.Keep it the fuck together.

One by one, the councilmen exchange polite greetings with Kendrick and take their seats. None speak to me or Jacob.

My stomach turns over, and I’m glad I didn’t eat this morning. Isn’t there some line about condemned men eatinghearty breakfasts? Not today, I didn’t. Once all five are seated, Kendrick thumps a smooth rock with a little hammer, and I jump again. Fuck. I hadn’t even noticed the stupid thing in front of him.

“Welcome, all, and thank you for attending this extraordinary general meeting. Is anyone present unaware of the reason?”

A chorus of negatives punctuated with hostile glances in my direction follows, and Kendrick nods. “To business, then. Randall Calder has demanded not just his daughter’s return, but Sebastian’s life. As this demand is clearly unacceptable, we must decide on a response.”

“Why unacceptable?” a ginger-haired, bearded Brother who looks like he’d play an angry dwarf in a fantasy movie asks. His honking Texan voice doesn’t fit his looks. He should be Scottish. “You want all our families to pay for his mistake?”

A rumble runs around the table, but I can’t tell if it’s agreement or anger. Kendrick doesn’t miss a beat. “The Calder family are low-life criminal scum. We’ve tolerated their interference in our affairs for too long as it is. And you want to offer up one of our own as a sacrifice?”

“Not one of our own yet. Just an initiate. I know he’s part of your special little club, Kendrick, but that doesn’t make him a full Brother.”

Special little club.Interesting. Is that really how the other Brothers see us? Fred said something similar. Something to think about later. If there is a later.

Kendrick’s face tightens. “Sebastian’s work has been impeccable. I don’t need to remind any of you how much money he’s brought into the Brotherhood bank accounts. And his initiation is only a month away.”

A different man, tall, bald, and with jet-black skin, speaks. His deep voice echoes around the Boardroom.

“His initiation won’t happen. There’s no way that girl will submit to his authority. A month or a year, it doesn’t matter. She’s a crime lord’s daughter, and there’s a good chance she already knows what happens if she refuses to obey. She’ll act up out of spite to see him dead.”

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