Page 54 of Cruel King

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SUMMER

Ipace the length of the penthouse, my heartbeat pounding in my ears. Anxiety coils around me like a snake, tightening its grip with every step I take. Caden’s sudden disappearance in the middle of the night weighs heavily on my mind, and I can’t get rid of the feeling that something is terribly wrong. Why show up here stabbed and then do a runner in the night? It makes no sense.

“Fuck,” I mutter, stopping to press my hands against the cool glass window, trying to steady myself and catch my breath.

Ciarán and Cathal stand across the room, seemingly unfazed by their brother’s absence. They’re huddled together, engaged in a deep conversation about business matters. Their casual demeanor sends a spark of annoyance through me; how can they be so unconcerned when Caden is missing?

“Look, Summer,” Ciarán says without breaking eye contact with Cathal, “we know Caden better than anyone. He does this.”

“Does this?” I snap, unable to hide my frustration.

“Caden’s always been unpredictable. There’s no need to worry.” Cathal gives me a grim glare.

“Unpredictable? That’s just an excuse for you not giving a damn!”

“Look,” Cathal says, crossing his arms over his chest. “We know you’re worried about Caden, but we’ve dealt with situations like this before. Trust us, he’ll turn up.”

“He’s hurt.”

“He’ll live. He’s a Gannon.”

“Fuck that. All you Gannons are a bunch of fucking pig-headed, stubborn assfaces that need a good fucking talking to.”

“Summer, we’ve known him our entire lives. This is Caden we’re talking about. He’s resourceful and can handle himself,” Ciarán insists, his eyes dark and resolute.

“Fine,” I grit out. “But if anything happens to him, I swear to God—“

“Nothing will happen to him,” Cathal cuts me off, his expression unyielding. “But what will you do?”

There is a tinge of amusement coming from my stoic Thal, who doesn’t usually crack a smile unless it’s when he’s slicing your guts open.

“Withhold sex,” I challenge.

“Whoa, hang on a fucking minute!” Ciarán snaps. “You’re not doing that over the little brother you don’t even know.”

“I know him. He’s exactly like you two, but sweeter.”

“She has us there,” Thal murmurs. “The baby of the family.”

“By a few minutes!” Ciarán is incredulous, but now I’m finding it funny, even though I’m worried about Caden. He was kebab’d and then he just walked out of here. He didn’t even take the painkillers I left for him on the nightstand.

It’s true. He is a Gannon through and through, from what I’ve seen. But that doesn’t mean I’ll stop worrying or hoping that he returns.

Running my fingers through my hair in frustration, Ciaran finally relents and comes over.

“Tinks, listen to me. Caden knows how to handle himself.”

“But there’s more at stake here than just Caden,” Cathal interrupts, his voice cold and deadly.

“Like what?” I demand.

“Business,” Ciarán replies curtly. He takes out his phone, scrolling through some messages before continuing. “We’ve got an issue with one of our loan clients who thinks he can just skip town without paying up. We need to go and collect. We weresupposedto go last night, but we got sidetracked.”

“Plus, we’ve got a new racketeering operation starting up soon,” Cathal adds. “We need to lay the groundwork, make sure everything’s in place.”

“Is that all this is to you?” I ask bitterly, trying to swallow the hurt that rises like bile in my throat. “Just business?”

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