Page 17 of Vengeful Union

“Will you be handing her over?” he asks, his tone void of emotion, but his eyes... Fuck, they’re filled with knowing.

Dammit. This is why having your best friend as your right hand, doesn’t bode well. “We’ll see.” Even saying the words has my gut clenching.

“Whatever.” He grins. “Alex,” he yells, and the man in question steps out of the shadows. He’s always on standby in case we need him. “Find out who the fuck Carter’s been rubbing shoulders with. We need everything.”

Alex nods. “On it.”

“What’s the next step in your plan for vengeance?” Jacob queries.

“Get Destiny fighting fit. If the looks she gave her father were anything to go by, she could be what we need to take him out once and for all.”

I have a feeling Destiny Carter knows a hell of a lot about her father’s organization, and I’ll do whatever is needed to get her onside.

No matter what it takes.

7

Destiny

Two weeks later

The door opens and I brace, unsure of who’ll be coming through it. The past two weeks I’ve been locked away in this room. It’s a beautiful place to be—there’s an enormous bay window that overlooks a meadow, meaning we’re no longer in New York City—but I’m going stir crazy. The white walls are slowly caving in on me. The first few days, I was so weak I couldn’t get out of bed. Then, slowly, I regained my strength. Now, my strength is almost back to how it was before my father lost his damn mind and tied me to the bed. My weight, however, is nowhere near how it was. Even with Finn and his men constantly having food made for me.

“How are you feeling?” Bannon asks as he walks into my room carrying a tray.

I get to my feet and stare at him, still unable to work him out. Everyone I’ve encountered since I’ve been here at Gallagher Manor have been assholes. Each of them look at me as though I’m the enemy, and they’re right. I’m a Carter. But they have no right to judge. All of them work for Finn Gallagher. The man’s a monster. I’ve heard the stories about him, seen the torture he gives to those who go against him.

Henrietta Leinster was a maid in the Gallagher home. She worked for Finn’s father, Seamus, for over twenty years, and when he died, she continued working for them. The rumors of why she was tortured are rampant. They range from her stealing to selling them out. Everyone knows it was Finn who went for her. If she was selling them out, she can’t do so anymore. They took her tongue, not to mention one of her eyes, along with several fingers and toes. They gave her husband worse treatment. His face is slashed with ugly scars. It’s as though a vicious, wild cat mauled him. His arms and chest also bore the same fate: deep, jagged, and angry-looking scars. Whatever happened between them, it was enough for Finn to exact revenge. To show them they mean business.

Henrietta and her husband fled New York not long after it happened, but not before people got a good look at what had befallen them. It was a lesson. Do not mess with the Clann. A warning my father never heeded.

“Fine,” I reply when Bannon pushes the tray into my hands. There’s something about this man I dislike. He acts too kind to be a soldier for the Gallagher’s. Having him as a member of the Clann is dangerous.

He regards me intently, studying me a little too closely. “You’re not what you appear,” he comments.

He’s trying to bait me. To get a reaction from me.

“You mean like you?” His brows knit together at my words. “You’re not like any of the others.” I put the tray down on the table beside the chair I was sitting in.

His eyes harden, and his lips twist into a snarl. “Eat up. Finn will be back today.”

Ah, the asshole who kidnapped me disappeared almost a week ago and I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him since. Instead, I’ve had to deal with Alex and Jacob.

“Great,” I reply sarcastically.

The look Bannon gives me is full of contempt. “Listen, if you wish to survive, do as he says.”

I scoff at that. “Are you that naïve?” Seriously, this guy is a joke. He’s not a soldier. Fuck no. “There’s no way I’m getting out of this situation alive.”

His eyes widen at my candor. I’m not stupid. I’ve been part of this life for a long time. I know what it means to be taken by a Gallagher in exchange for revenge. I’m as good as dead. So, I’ll wreak as much havoc as I want.

“So, why are you pretending to be someone you’re not?” I have a feeling good ol’ Bannon here is a cop, and I know that if I call him out in front of anyone, he’ll be six feet under. I wouldn’t do that to anyone.

His lips thin into a hard line. “What would you know about it?” he snarls at me.

I give him a pitying look. “You’re looking at the fucking queen of pretenses and facades. So, you’re undercover or you have a vendetta against the Gallagher’s. Which is it?”

He lets out a bitter laugh. “You need to learn when to keep your mouth shut, girl.”

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