Page 90 of Lovely Venom
I wait until he’s out of earshot before I grab Rhys. “I need you to stand down, cousin.”
Rhys doesn’t break his stride. “Not my call, and I don’t defy orders.”
“I’m a fucking boss, too.”
Rhys grits his teeth. “What do you want from me?”
I keep my voice low. “I have an idea.”
He stops and turns to face me with sharp, calculating eyes. “You’re playing with fire.”
I cross my arms. “That fire is what we need to burn down the Albanian Brotherhood. Not just their armory this time.”
Rhys shakes his head. “It’s your funeral. Or worse, your excommunication from Quinlan Empire.”
“She’ll come back on her own. She has to. They told her to kill me, and I’m still breathing.”
My cousin studies me, weighing my words. He’s been an assassin for years, but he’s not just muscle. He was a private security contractor for Leinster House in Dublinlike Trace. Rhys not only sees things, but he also understands them.
Like the fact that I have no intention of letting Blade and Jett manhandle Raina to get her into their SUV.
Like the fact that I don’t want her tied down onmytable, my slab, answering to Griffin or Shane.
Like the fact that I need her to come to me first.
Raina Riatt. My lovely venomous snake.
And what do snakes like to eat?
Mice.
Or better yet?
Rats.
“Before you and Trace find Raina, grab me an Albanian boss. Someone who reports to Noel.” Someone who will set off alarm bells in York Towers. “Use whatever muscle you need. Bring one of those scumbags to my tunnel.”
“What are you doing, Connor?”
“Setting a trap.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Raina
Imanage to dodge the world for a few days until Ruby knocks on my door like it’s her turn to do a wellness check on me.
“Hey, it’s laundry day, right?” She stands there holding what looks like thongs and lace bras covered in glitter and male sweat. She won’t put them in her father’s hamper, so she slips them into my wash loads.
After checking the hall for either Valdrin or Connor to pounce on me, I let her inside. “Sure. Let me get my basket.”
In my bedroom, I pick up dirty clothes off the floor. The hamper is buried somewhere, I don’t know. I scoop up everything and shove it into the basket.
Ruby reminding me it’s laundry day means it’s Wednesday.
I’ve also not heard from Connor in a few days.
Bastard is waiting me out.
