“His voice makes me want to shoot myself.” I groaned muting the computer in front us. “Maybe we should kill him now. Don’t we have snipers in the area?”
Liam drank my wine as he relaxed as well. “You and I both know that would be a bad idea. Tomorrow begins the reign of terror, just hold off another twelve hours.”
Sighing, I looked to the computer screen where the idiot was still speaking.
“Does he really believe anyone is going to talk?”
“They would have to be pure idiots,” Liam said. However, Fedel stood up and placed another file in front us.
“What is this?” I asked, but the moment I opened it, a grin spread across my face as I handed it to Liam, waiting to see how he would react.
“Jesus Christ, you did this in church?” He laughed, lifting up the hospital photo of Natasha. I should have just killed her.
“I was told you saw her for breakfast,” I stated, and he looked up to me, eyes wide, before turning to Fedel.
His jaw set as he threw the photo back on the table. “You had me followed?” he hissed.
“The morning you were being an ass,” I paused and, grabbing the brandy, added, “the morning you were being a giant ass, I had you followed and your ex-girlf—”
“She was a bitch I fucked in the past, not my ex-girlfriend,” he snapped.
Leaning in, I made sure he could see my eyes. “I’m not sorry, not even a little bit, and I don’t care who she was. She wanted to be a part of your future, and I made sure she knew what would happen if she crossed that line again.”
His nose flared but he simply glared at Fedel. “Why are you showing this to us?”
“Ms. Briar filed a police report to Sam, claiming, ma’am, that you were the one who attacked her. Brooks is waiting for your directions,” Fedel replied.
“Kill her,” he demanded. “I warned her when she ambushed me before.”
“That would look bad.” I sighed because I really did want the bitch dead. “If she were to be killed, it would be too obvious. She has family. They would realize it, and that is just too many loose ends for one whore.”
I just wasn’t sure what to do with her.
Liam pinched the bridge of his nose before lifting up the photo again. “A broken nose and jaw, large abrasions across the forehead, with trace amount of bleach in her throat.
“Bleach in her throat?”
I shrugged. “They must have used bleach in the toilet bowl I stuck her head in.”
He tried not to smile, but I could see his lips twitch up. Shaking his head, he placed the file back down.
“Ninety percent of those wounds could have been self-inflicted. After all she is a very unstable woman with a history of stalking and violent acts in a fit of jealously,” he said, seriously, looking over to Declan, who looked much better than he did earlier in the week. He was lucky I had only used my small knife.
“Declan, make sure all records of Natasha Briar list her as mentally unbalanced. Fedel, have Brooks flag her as mentally ill as well by whatever doctor she visited—pay him well enough to make sure he stresses the need to get her ‘help’—and by the end of the week, make sure she should be in West Ridge.”
“West Ridge is the worst mental hospital in the state, if not the country.” I smiled. If Natasha wasn’t crazy now, she would be.
“I know. We can kill her after the dust settles.” He smiled back.
“How romantic. I hate blondes.” I laughed along with him. However, I stopped when I heard a snicker.
“Poor Olivia.” Liam turned to Neal. I didn’t bother giving him a glance.
“I don’t give a shit,” I replied, looking out the window. “She should be happy I took it easy on him.”
Liam shook his head. “You broke his nose—something I’m starting to see you’re good at—and damn well choked the life out of him, then tasered him.”
“Are you defending him? I did worse to Declan, and he didn’t even shoot you.” He was too calm about this, and it pissed me the fuck off.
“I second that,” Declan muttered just loud enough so we could hear him.
Liam rolled his eyes. “We’re going to war, remember. After tomorrow, hell is going to break loose. We are family, and we need to make sure our personal shit is together. Besides, you stabbed Declan with a knife the size of a dagger.”
“Are we seriously discussing the type of weapon used to stab me in the chest?” Declan asked, and it was my turn to roll my eyes.
“It wasn’t even really your chest. It was much closer to your shoulder-blade. The worse you needed was stitches, you big baby,” I added, and Neal snickered until I glared at him again.
“I have a much bigger knife waiting for you,” I snapped.
“If Neal ever shoots anything near me again, I will take off his head and mount it on the fucking wall.” He seemed to mean it, but I wasn’t sure.
“I still hate him,” I replied, drinking.
“Looks like I’m not the only romantic one.” He grinned, however, it was interrupted by a cellphone. Neal answered it quickly before handing it to Liam.
“Father.” Sighing, Liam placed it on speaker before setting it on the table. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” Liam asked, sitting up straighter. I didn’t understand why men always felt the need to prove something to their fathers.
“Liam, Melody, I’m sure you both took time out of your busy schedules to watch the news. The police commissioner is becoming a problem.” Sedric’s voice sounded hard, like he was trying to control his anger.
“Yes—”
“We are handling it, Sedric. Is that the only reason you called?” I asked before Liam could make a fool out of himself. He looked me dead in the eye, as if I’d lost my mind.
There wasn’t a reply at first, just a deep breath. Did I tick off Sedric? Too fucking bad.
“Evelyn just received an invitation to a wedding being held here in Chicago for a Saige Rozhkov and Amory Valero.”
Liam’s eyes narrowed as we looked at each other. Nodding, he took a deep breath.
“We will be attending. If that is all, Father, we must be going,” Liam replied, ending the call before he could get another word in.
Rising from our seats, we both walked into our private cabin at the back of the jet. The second the door closed, I began to speak.
“You are the head of this family, not your fucking father. You do not sit up straighter for him. You do not even give him all your fucking attention. And you sure as hell do not answer his questions like you are still second-in-command. The only person who gets that amount of respect is me. You are a leader, so lead. You share with him when you motherfucking feel like it. Not when he calls and barks. You may be his son, but you are not his child. You are Ceann na Conairte, and I am the Boss, even to our fathers. If you embarrass me or yourself like that again, I will rip out your throat.”
LIAM
She’s right. That was the very first thing that went through my mind after she left. I was the Ceann na Conairte, not my father. I had seen him as such for so long that it was almost second nature to show him that same respect. Stepping off the plane, Mel stood before none other than Coraline.
“What in Jesus fuck happened to my wife?” Declan asked from behind me.
“What happened to her hair?” Neal asked, staring at the shorthaired girl standing in front of Mel.
Without answering either of them, I walked to my wife only to be met with another shock.
Is that the ugly duckling? Adriana stood beside Coraline, her nest of a hair tamed, her glasses gone, and her face covered in light makeup. She wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous, but she didn’t deserve the ugly duckling title anymore.