Page 16 of Pretty Vengeful Queen

McKenna chuckles. “I’ve got something that could have been yours.”

Maddoc’s hand tightens on the phone, his knuckles going white. “Where is she?”

“See, now that’s why you Reapers will never be as strong as West Point.You’reasking about some random piece of ass, while I’m talking about cash. A lot of fucking cash. Money that I heard you weren’t even going to take when you had the chance to. That can’t be right though, can it? You’re notthatstupid.”

“Tell me where the fuck you’re keeping Riley,” Maddoc growls.

“Oh wait, you are that stupid.” McKenna’s voice goes hard. “You didn’t wring any value out of her while you had her. Word is, you weren’t even planning to do it when you thought the money belonged to her little sister… and now it’s too late.”

Chloe makes a frightened sound, and Maddoc’s face goes pale. McKenna, that motherfucker, keeps talking, but I know for sure that if he means what that just sounded like, heisa dead man walking.

“The money’s already mine,” he crows. “Unlike you Reapers, West Point isn’t soft. We do whatever we need to, whatever it takes to get ahead. And this new funding of ours? We’re gonna fuckingdominatethis city now.”

McKenna’s only focus is that fucking money… which means he probably wasn’t talking about it being too late forRiley. And yeah, West Point having those kinds of resources is gonna become a problem for us down the line, but problems we can deal with. Losing Riley, we can’t.

Madd ignores all the taunts and posturing and asks the only thing we really need to know. “What have you done with her?”

McKenna stays silent for a minute, drawing shit out for his own sadistic pleasure, and it’s all too easy to picture the gloating smirk that’s probably on his face right now.

Picture it, and picture turning it bloody on the other end of my fist.

But finally—

“She’s alive.”

My heart starts beating again, and all four of us subtly relax.

As long as Riley’s alive, we’ll get her back. Everything else is just fucking noise.

“I don’t need the bitch anymore now that her inheritance belongs to me,” McKenna goes on. “But the way you Reapers have been turning over every stone in this city looking for her? I figured you might be interested in making a deal to get her back.”

Chloe sucks in a sharp breath, and Logan goes utterly still.

Maddoc’s jaw tightens. “What are your terms?”

This time, McKenna doesn’t drag it out. “You. A straight-up trade. The girl for you.”

“Done.” Madd doesn’t even hesitate. “When and where?”

“Tomorrow.”

McKenna rattles off a time and place as Maddoc meets my eyes, and I nod. He’s not gonna get any objection from me. I’d have said the exact same thing if it were me that McKenna wanted.

I glance at Logan as Madd ends the call, half expecting him to be seething with silent anger, ready to tell us this is fucking stupid. Clearly, I’m the one who’s stupid for thinking that, though. Riley’s changed Logan too, and while the silent, seething anger I expected to see is definitely there, there’s nothing but murderous determination in his eyes as the three of us share a look.

“We’re getting her back,” Logan finally says, his voice flat and irrefutable.

“Damn fucking right we are,” Maddoc growls.

“We’ve got a shit-ton of planning to do and not a lot of fucking time to do it in,” I add. “How do you want us to get ready for this drop, Madd?”

“Come on,” he says, not waiting for either of us as he turns and heads toward his office. “Let’s go figure that out.”

Logan follows on his heels, and I’m right behind the both of them when Chloe stops me with a hand on my arm.

I look down at her, half expecting big, teary eyes and trembling lips. Understandable, but not gonna lie, we don’t have time for that shit right now. But once again, what I get instead is a reminder to stop assuming stupid shit about people who care about Riley.

Of course Chloe is torn up about McKenna having her sister, but they’ve both got the same inner core of steel, and she doesn’t waste my time whining about how bad this could go or drowning in fear over shit that’s out of our hands at the moment. She just lifts her chin and locks her gaze onto mine. “Are you really going to get her back?”

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