Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Julius’s hand touches my lower back in warning. And my cheeks turn red with pent-up frustration.
If my feigned flirting bothers him, he shouldn’t have told me it would be better if these men didn’t know he was my husband. I’m just playing my role.
“So,” Braden starts, “why have you come calling? We haven’t seen you since our brother’s funeral.”
My mouth opens without permission or thought at that. “I’m sorry for your loss.”
All eyes on me.
After a moment, Shane responds with a heartfelt, “Thank you, dear. Mighty kind.” Then he raises his arms in the air, stretching. “But the boy brought it on himself, got his nose caught up in something he had no business being a part of, and that got him killed.”
Julius responds a quiet but unyielding, “Killing him wasn’t something I wanted to do.”
And it hits me like a wet towel thrown at my face, connecting with a harsh and echoing slap.
Julius.
Of course.
Judge. Jury. Executioner.
Shane eyes his brother’s killer hard. “We know. We all have our places in this world. Danny didn’t watch the road, and he stepped into oncoming traffic.”
Connor leans closer to me, blinking thoughtfully at my face. “I swear I’ve seen you before, dearie. I just cannae place where.”
“You haven’t,” I say in a tone that leaves no room for contemplation.
Braden watches Julius carefully. “Enough chatter. Why are you here?”
Julius steps forward, taking a seat in the vacant chair in front of the desk, and I move to stand behind him. “Can you unscramble a file?”
Braden blinks, clearly not expecting the question. “It depends on what was used to scramble it in the first place.”
“How long would it take?” Julius asks, looking bored, tapping his fingers on the arm of the chair.
Braden shrugs. “If I had the file—”
Julius reaches into his pocket, retrieves a metallic USB and throws it to Braden. “How much?”
Braden Kelly clutches the USB and grins. “You think I’m stupid, Carter? Money means naught to me. Life of a gypsy, ya know. I’m thinking of something more useful.” Still grinning, his eyes widen as he points a finger at Julius. “I want a solid.”
It seems having Julius Carter owe you is worth more than all the money in the world.
Julius pretends to think about it a long while before he nods in acceptance. “A marker it is. Now…”
Braden moves around the desk and sits himself down before the running laptop. He locks in the USB and, without so much as a word, his fingers move over the keyboard at a rapid pace. A minute passes and he snorts in amusement. “Whoever scrambled these needs a solid kick to the shin. A five-year-old could have done a better job.” He glances up at Julius. “They’re video files. This’ll take no time at all. Sit tight.”
Shit.
Video files.
Oh shit.
My gut clenches.
They couldn’t be? Dino would never have been so stupid. He didn’t… He wouldn’t…
Would he?
Julius seems to be thinking the same thing I am, because his face turns hard and he stands rapidly, looking to Braden’s brothers. “Excuse us, boys. We need a moment alone.”
Shane raises his hands in understanding. “Come, Connor. We have work to do.”
As Connor stands, he looks me up and down. “Aye, I’m coming.” He exits the room, closing the door behind him.
Braden works tirelessly until finally, he smirks, raising his hands in a holy gesture by the sides of the laptop. “I’m a fucking genius, I am.”
“You did it,” Julius muses out loud. He sounds impressed.
“I think I have, my friend. Give me a second.” Braden types some more then suddenly, the file opens, and although I can’t see the screen, I can hear the commotion.
If Braden’s face hadn’t blanched so much as he stares at the video in shock, the sounds of my audible sobs and pained screams in the video tell me what he’s watching.
I should’ve known Dino would record what he and Gio had done to me. He was, after all, a voyeur.
Braden looks up at me, confusion written all over his face, his voice soft with compassion. “Lass.”
Without warning, the door swings open and we all turn. Connor stands there, a proud smile on his handsome face. He clicks his fingers, and announces, “I know who you are.”
I swallow hard, my hand fisted by my sides. I feign arrogance. “Oh yeah?” I taunt. “Who am I?”
In a second flat, Connor’s smile turns into a glower. From behind his back, he raises his hand and points the gun at my head. “A dead woman.”
My eyes close and my body jolts with every shot that is fired.
A moment passes, and I feel no pain. When I hear the agonized groan, my eyes widen in stunned disbelief.
Julius stands over Connor, who clutches the bleeding wound at his shoulder, holding one hand up in the air, a hole through it, dripping red onto the white tiled floor. His teeth gritted in pain, he hisses out, “You fucking mule. Do you have any idea who that woman is?”