Page 7 of Savage Reign

Gregory cracked a smile. “I thought if this partnership?—”

“Business,” I interrupted. I didn’t need new partners. And I knew my brothers agreed with me.

He didn’t seem put off by the correction. If anything, the fucker’s smile grew. “Business,” he amended. “If this business relationship is going to work, then I should warn you. It didn’t seem smart to do so on the phone.”

Killian and I shared a look. Silas was still staring the man down. With the way Silas had been since Mila’s disappearance, I doubt he had it in him to be civil to anyone.

“And what do you have to warn me about?” I asked.

“You know what’s interesting?” he asked. I didn’t answer. He took a sip of the coffee in front of him, taking his sweet time. “The more years you work with someone, the more you come to understand how they work, whether you want to or not.”

Silas scoffed. “And I suppose you think you’ll have us figured out sooner or later?”

He shook his head. “I don’t think you’re the kind of man that others can easily read. You and your brothers.”

I could say the same about him.

“I heard a rumor that you lost your little bird.”

I could feel Silas tense beside me, and though that wasn’t obvious, I had a feeling Gregory didn’t miss much.

“Yeah? And you’re going to help us find it?”

He shook his head. “My abilities only go so far. No, I just find it interesting how there seemed to be so much interest in such an insignificant little bird.”

Mila was anything but insignificant, but I knew to everyone else, she seemed that way. She was born a daughter, so she couldn’t have helped Daniel run his club. To everyone else, she was essentially powerless. If only they knew how much power she actually held over us.

“Not just to you. What you and your brothers do in your personal time is none of my business or concern.”

“You’re right. It is none of your concern,” I said, putting no bite behind my words.

“Daniel Hayes wasn’t the kind of man to care about anyone or anything, much less a daughter. But he was possessive of her. I had only seen them interact once. But the way he looked ather… not in the way a father looked at his daughter, but in the way a greedy man looked at his greatest fortune.”

We didn’t say anything. There was always a part of me that didn’t understand why the bastard had put so much effort into keeping Mila under his control. He was possessive with her, much more so than he had been with his wife. And he had let his wife go.

The words he uttered to us the night we attacked the clubhouse had been running in my head for a while.

I’ll give you the girl. My daughter. Surely, she’s worth something—she’s wortheverything.

He was the kind of man who would have placed his life above everyone else, yet he thought Mila’s worth would have been enough to save him. Why?

“And now you let the little bird escape. Those who knew the exact reason why Daniel was so possessive of the girl would surely try to get her now.”

He wasn’t telling me anything we didn’t already know. We knew Sebastian Cline was hunting her down.

“What do you know?” Killian asked quietly, echoing my thoughts.

Gregory just smiled and stood. “I very much look forward to working with the Tiernan Syndicate. And if the rumors are to be believed, then Declan Tiernan’s children are even more ruthless than the old bastard ever was. Savages of Las Vegas, no? I’m sure you’ll make your name in Chicago soon. But I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you, one littlegoldenbird might just aid in your downfall if you’re not careful. And it has nothing to do with love, although…”

He laughed, and I placed my hand on Killian’s leg to stop him from doing what he always did—kill someone who pissed him off.

“And you just decided to warn us from the goodness of your heart?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I am simply looking after my own interests. I would no doubt make more money with your brothers than I would with anyone else. So make sure you hold on tight to this newly acquired empire. And please send my cut of the percentage to the bank account my assistant emailed to yours. The goods are already in place, ready to be shipped out, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

I didn’t stop him when he walked away.

“I don’t know why you stopped me. We don’t need him. We could find our own way to Stocken Isle without the bastard and with the Cadorna Famiglia,” Killian said quietly.

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