Page 59 of Corrupted Union

I exchanged looks with my father. “Didn’t anyone tell you?”

Conner had just returned from his honeymoon days earlier and was spending most of his time with his new wife.

Pop shrugged. “It wasn’t worth disturbing the honeymooners.”

I gave a brief explanation. “It’s not really relevant at the moment, but the guy just showed up out of the blue. Says he was sent over by Dublin to check on the Albanian issues.”

Conner sneered. “That’s been resolved for weeks.”

“Exactly. That’s why Shae’s been assigned to keep tabs on the guy. Just in case.”

“In case of what?” Conner looked from me to my father.

Pop shrugged again. “Who knows. Folks from the old country do things a little differently. We’re mostly independent of them, but some old rivalries are still alive.”

“Just what we need,” Conner muttered.

Torin grunted.

Nana grinned. “Just like the old days. This has been a real treat, fellas.” She stood, effectively dismissing our meeting. “Now, go talk to your cousin and get this sorted. I never did tolerate my boys fightin’, and I don’t plan to start now.” She banged her walker into the nearby chairs, shuffling her way toward the door.

Pop just watched, shaking his head in defeat. “Call me when it’s over,” he added quietly.

I tipped my chin. Nana might have been unbothered by what she’d learned, but I wasn’t so optimistic. I had also intentionally avoided mentioning the connection between Oran and Rowan because I didn’t want to discuss the possible implications in front of Nana. She was a tough old woman, but it would hurt her heart to know what I planned to do if Oran tried to hold back information. I never did buy into the prodigal son. People were either friend or foe, and there was no going back once that line was crossed.

* * *

Oran keptan office across from mine above the Moxy, though he had little to do with the club itself. Like his father before him, he had assumed the role of the face of our organization. Where my father was the mastermind, Uncle Brody had been the front. He schmoozed with powerful people in all walks of life. Oran had followed in his footsteps, making sure he had an in with everyone who was anyone.

The setup had always worked for me. The last thing I wanted was to talk to anyone, let alone be friendly. However, with much of my time being eaten up running the strip club, and Conner handling our Bastion club, oversight of the family empire as a whole had slowly been transitioning from my father to Oran. I hadn’t thought the power trip would go to my cousin’s head, but it appeared I was wrong.

The three of us made ourselves comfortable in the large corner office. Conner sat on the leather sofa while Torin and I each took a chair. We were quiet on the way up, but Conner started conversation once we were seated.

“Seems I missed quite a bit on my honeymoon. I hear you managed to squeeze in a wedding while I was gone.” Conner’s stare demanded an explanation.

I tipped my chin, acknowledging his underlying jab. “I’m glad you brought that up because we need to talk about that as well.”

“I knew Uncle Jimmy wanted in with the governor. That was the last I heard.”

“He did, but that wasn’t a part of my reason for marrying Rowan. It’s complicated, but the reason we moved so fast was because Rowan’s in danger. Damyon is somehow connected to a family friend. Rowan discovered that friend had a woman chained in his house, and he and Damyon are now aware that she saw the woman.”

“Jesus Christ, she’ll have a target the size of Rhode Island on her back.”

Tor grunted his agreement.

“I’m aware,” I bit out. “Like I said, it’s been a complicated couple of weeks.”

Conner was silent for a second, but judging by the way his eyes remained trained on me, he wasn’t done. “Marriage—it’s a bold move. Must be some girl to warrant that sort of protection.” He was prodding for information. Fine by me. I had no need to hide how I felt about Rowan.

“She’s mine, and now everyone knows it.” I met his stare straight on.

Conner grinned. “Well, I’ll be damned. Congrats, man.” He turned to Torin and smirked. “Looks like you’re next.”

“Oh, fuck no.”

Conner and I laughed, though it died quickly as the reality of our present situation filtered back into our minds. We weren’t certain when Oran would arrive, but luck was on our side. Not ten minutes later, our cousin filled his office doorway, steely gaze meeting each of ours.

“Isn’t this a cozy family reunion? To what do I owe the pleasure?” His voice was edged in wariness, as it should have been. We didn’t show up unannounced like this without cause. Grave cause.

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