Page 7 of Royal Deception
Kellan follows me out of the office, and the two of us cross the living room, filing behind the rest of our siblings as we head to the dining room.
We all sit down together, the clink of silverware and the gentle hum of conversation filling the room as we begin to eat.
“How’s your little girlfriend?” I hear Lucky tease Liam. He goes red in the face and glances down at his phone. With the amount of texting our brother has been doing lately, Lucky has decided that it means Liam’s been seeing someone.
While I don’t give a flying fuck about his personal life, Lucky’s been taking every opportunity to do some good-natured teasing.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Liam mumbles, shoving his phone into his pocket. Rose quickly diverts attention away from her uncle when she knocks over her glass of milk, spilling it across the plastic placemat under her plate.
“Dammit,” Darcy mutters, jumping up from her seat. Kellan follows, grabbing Rose under her arms to lift her, pulling her away from the wet mess while Darcy mops up the puddle.
“Saved by the kiddo,” Alannah jokes, giving Rose a high-five. Rose grins, not fully understanding what she did but thrilled to bond with her aunt anyway.
Once the mess is cleaned, dinner resumes and the promised lamb makes its appearance on the table, accompanied by a rich cream soup. As we eat, I take a moment to clear my throat. “I had something I wanted to discuss with everyone,” I say, reaching for my wine. “Senator Burns and I had a lunch meeting the other day, and he brought a few things to my attention.”
“Burns is probably trying to angle for more money for his campaign,” Liam mutters, ever the skeptic.
“No, that’s not what we discussed,” I insist, smoothing a hand across the linen tablecloth. “We talked about business. He made me realize something. The Russians may have lost the fight with us that day at the old shipyard, but they’ve won the war. Their side dealt more damage to our reputation than we can sustain.”
“We’re rebuilding,” Kellan says, bypassing my statement. “We can fix it.”
“We’re hemorrhaging money, you fools,” I hiss. “We need to do something before it gets worse. Burns showed me that we’re focusing on the wrong thing here. We’re trying to gain back control of the family business, but what we should be doing is expanding, diversifying.”
“What are you saying?” Lucky asks, looking up sharply. “Drugs? Girls?”
I shake my head. “None of that shit. We go legit. Get into the security business. Offer our services to the rich and famous, show them we can protect them.”
“Leave the family business behind?” Kellan asks, a note of doubt in his voice. “That’s beyond crazy, Rory.”
I sit up straighter. “Hear me out on this. We’ve been small-time for a long time. Dad might’ve built us up, but at the end of the day, we have no more power around here than the Russians. We’re just a small-time criminal empire in a mid-size city.What if we could go beyond that, spread our wings, and make something of the Brannagan family name?”
Liam furrows his brow. “Like take control of the whole state?”
“Bigger.” I smile, my grin widening. “We could be as big as one of those media empire families or those brothers who own half the business world.”
“Aren’t you worried that getting into the security business might encroach on Russian territory?” Alannah offers, speaking up from where she’s been helping to feed Patrick. “It’s a good idea, but the Russians might feel like we’re stepping on their toes.”
“The Russians are low-level thugs. We get into this kind of business, and we’re no longer anywhere near their level. Besides, this has nothing to do with any of the shit we already run, so why would they care?”
“You’re underestimating the Russians' desire to see us fail,” Alannah says, her voice soft but firm. “I think we should think this through more.”
“We have nothing to lose from moving away from competing with the Russians on their level,” Liam argues.
The debate continues, but by the end of dinner, the consensus among my brothers seems to be that the security venture is a good idea, though there are still a few logistics to work out.
When Darcy and Kellan head into the bedroom to put Rose and Patrick down for bed, Liam goes out to the balcony for a smoke, and Lucky takes a phone call on the roof, the opportunity I need finally presents itself.
I pull Alannah aside in the kitchen.
“You need to go back to school,” I say, starting the conversation without preamble. “I let you take this past year off to help Darcy, but it’s time to go back.”
“Rory,” Alannah begins, a frown pulling at her lips.
“No,” I say, crossing my arms. “I’m tired of you sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong. Go back to school, Lana.”
“You never listen to me!” Alannah says, putting her hands on her hips.
“Because you’re just a kid,” I tell her firmly. “You have no experience in our world. My job is to protect you from this kind of stuff, Lana. You’re always trying to stick your nose in things, but you don’t belong here. You belong at school—safe, away from all of this.”
