Page 69 of Twisted Secrets
“Why do you say that?”
“Because it was your half brother who had put the whole damn thing into motion that night. It was his men who showed up to support the double-cross, and it was them that we ended up fighting.” He touched the scar. “The bullet went through. Hurt like a bitch, but it didn’t hit anything vital. I was lucky.” A whole hell of a lot luckier than Devlin. That night Cillian lay there on the cold concrete, the world a blur around him, and wondered if karma had finally come calling. If this was his punishment for being part of the reason his brother died. If it was finally his time.
But then he didn’t die.
Part of him had wondered if that was a mistake. Now he knew it wasn’t. If he’d died on the docks that night, there would have been no one for Olivia to call when she got backed into the corner. For the first time in longer than he could remember, he had a purpose—and a noble one at that.
She opened the door and walked out of the room, stillfrowning. “I didn’t know.”
“There was no reason for you to. It’s not like Dmitri shared his plans with you—and you were in Boston by that point.” He could still remember the first time he’d seen her, and how she wouldn’t give him the time of day. It made him smile to think about it now. “It’s the past.”
“Except it’s not. Dmitri still has his claws in Boston. My half brother doesn’t like to let things go.”
If what he’d found with the accounts was anything to go by, she was right. He wasn’t a hundred percent sure that the money was going to the Romanov bastard, but he was sure enough to bring the information to Aiden and his father. Convenient since they had a meeting with the man himself tomorrow. Whatever the guy was up to, it wasn’t going to stop with three percent from a handful of small-time businesses. Obviously he hadn’t let go of the insult of Carrigan ditching his ass—or the fact that Halloran hadn’t rolled over and played dead like he was supposed to. No, Dmitri Romanov had plans for Boston. And Cillian had to make sure his father and brother were prepared to face that.
He stopped at the top of the stairs, most of him wanting to follow Olivia into the bedroom, but the pull of family digging deep. “Start your shower, sweetheart. I have a quick call to make.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry I brought all this trouble to your door.”
“You didn’t. It was here already. You just helped shine the light on the extent of it.” He pressed a quick kiss to her lips and retreated back downstairs to the study. After closing the door, he locked it for good measure. It was late, but someone would be up at the house back in Boston. They always were.
Sure enough, when he called, his father picked up. “I’m notpleased, Cillian.”
The last thing he wanted to do was have a go-round with Seamus O’Malley when he was worked up. As tempting as it was to mouth off like he normally did, he kept his tone perfectly polite and professional. “I know you’re not happy with how I’ve handled certain things—”
“‘Not happy’ is a vast understatement. I was under the impression that you’d left your wayward habits behind, and then I’m informed that you picked a piece of ass over your family. You’ve used O’Malley resources and put our people in danger, and for what? Throw the woman back to Romanov and good riddance. She’s not our problem.”
He gritted his teeth, fighting for calm. “She’s an innocent.”
“She’s half-Romanov—she’s no more innocent than you are. She knew the risks when she ran, and she dragged trouble straight to our door. Hell, that’s the best-case scenario. She could very well be leading you around by your dick, and you wouldn’t know until it was too late.”
Jesus Christ. “Enough.”
“I know you’re impulsive, Cillian, but this is taking things too far.”
“Enough.” He took a deep breath, but his calm had gone up like a puff of smoke. What was the point of doing every single thing his father ever asked of him if the second he veered off the chosen track, he was being accused of thinking with his cock? “I’m not calling about Olivia. I’m calling about the missing money.”
A pause. “Taking that tone with me is a mistake, boy.”
“Unless you’re planning on declaring me dead to the family like you did Carrigan, there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. I’m doing what I think is best—for both the family and Olivia—andthat’s all I can do. Give me some fucking credit, shut up, and listen to what I have to say.”
There was a rustling, and then Aiden’s voice came over the line, speaking low and fast. “Whatever the hell you just said to him, you need to make it right. He looks like he’s about to drive out there and throttle you with his bare hands.”
Considering he’d never talked to their father like that, his response wasn’t surprising. Hopefully Aiden would be more rational. “I know who’s been skimming off of us.”
Thatgot his brother’s attention. “You should have led with that.”
It was kind of impossible to do that when their father started in on him the second he answered the phone, but Cillian didn’t say that. It was an excuse, and a stupid one at that. “I’m not one hundred percent, but I’m pretty damn sure it’s Dmitri Romanov. Or at least one of his people.”
Aiden cursed long and hard. “That bastard keeps popping up like a goddamn weed.”
“Yeah, well, you have a chance to bring it up tomorrow when you meet with him. The money was routed through half a dozen shell accounts, but it links back to a bank in New York—a branch in Manhattan. It’s not exactly a smoking gun, but unless we have another person in that area aiming for us, then it’s him.”
“You’re sure it’s that bank.”
“As sure as I can be.” Devlin would have been able to pinpoint it. Cillian just didn’t have the skills to take it further. Frankly, he was fucking surprised he’d managed to getthisfar. “Whatever this is about, it goes beyond money.”
“You think I don’t know that?” Aiden cursed again. “Okay. Send me what you have and we’ll deal with it.”
