Page 34 of Black Wedding

“Why did you bring them here, Liam? They were safe,” she softly cries, and it breaks my heart.

“I promise you, I will keep them safe,” I explain vehemently as my eyes scan between my crumpling mother and the car outside. My father is currently threatening the driver, telling him to open the doors for him, but this driver doesn’t work for him. I paid for the ride and paid him a fuck tonne of money to only open the car doors to me. But my father’s already nonexistent patience looks to be wearing thin.

“Go. I will stay with your mum,” Bree whispers before pushing me towards the door. I smile gratefully at her before running out the door.

BANG!!

The gunshot rings out loud, and chaos ensues. I turn back to check on Bree to see her push my mother around a corner. She takes out the gun she must have stashed in her leggings and takes position around the corner. Ready for any danger, but also protecting my mother.

Luckily, I remembered to pick up my gun as we left the room, so I slid it out of my ankle holster before looking at where the danger came from. Finn has hit the floor but doesn’t look injured. Instead, he is keeping himself safe as he’s obviously unarmed. Rookie mistake in this fucking house.

Evan stands next to my father with his gun out, pointed straight at me. On the other hand, my father is leaning in through the now broken window, so he can open the car door. I quickly realised that my psychotic excuse for a father got so impatient waiting for the driver to open the door that he actually shot him. The young man I had hired to drive my sisters is slumped over the steering wheel, blood running through his bleach blonde hair and down his face. Given the amount of blood and brain matter splattered across the passenger side window, there is no question that he is dead.

High-pitched screams from the car’s back seat pull me out of the haze I am in, and I propel myself to the passenger side back door. My father has the doors unlocked, but I need to get there first. I pull the passenger side back door open before my father has a chance at the other side. Having already worked out who is opening which side, both girls are huddled against my door. From the second I open it, they practically fall out. I help Ryleigh out first and then Freya, making sure I put them both behind me, keeping my gun aimed at my father. That’s when I see Evan.

Unfortunately, it is two against one. My father approaches from the rear side of the car, his gun aimed at me, as Evan comes from the opposite side with his weapon also pointed at me. Knowing my father is much more of a threat, I keep my gun aimed at him, but I know I’m in the shit here.

Before I can think of a plan, I see Bree come flying down the stairs, her gun firmly trained on Evan, and she plasters herself against my side. Then, using her free hand, she curves it behind her to ensure my sisters are firmly tucked between the two of us. Part of me wants to kill her for putting herself in danger, but the other part of me wants to fucking kiss her. Not only did she put herself between me and Evan’s shot, but she also ensured my sisters were firmly hidden and protected. Fuck, I love this girl.

Wait, what? I love her? Fuck, I mentally chastise myself. I need to get my head back into the game. I will come back to this another time, when I am not being led by adrenaline and how hot she looks holding a gun.

“What the fuck? You did not have to shoot him!” I shout at my father, who simply curls his lip up in a sneer.

“I gave him an instruction, and he refused. I will not accept any disrespect in my own home, boy. You may think you have big bollocks over in London, but this is Limerick. This is my territory, my rules. Now, step down. I will not ask again,” he spits out.

I feel my hand almost start to lower out of instinct alone until I hear the soft cries from behind me. My terrified sisters remind me of why I am standing up to this asshole.

“Why don’t we all lower our weapons? The girls are scared, and I don’t think this is quite the welcome they were expecting,” states Bree from behind me.

My father and Evan both growl at the same time. They are not used to having a woman who is willing to stand up to them. But they are very much mistaken if they expected Bree to stand in the corner cowering like my mother currently is. Bree is someone who loves with all her heart, and if she cares for you, she will think nothing of risking her life for yours. She shows no fear and will throw herself into anything. Basically, the opposite of how every mafia princess is raised. Girls in our world are taught to remain silent and scared. Not to defend themselves or speak their mind. So Bree is precisely the type of girl my father hates, which is a good thing because he is a fucking pervert. He won’t be interested in a girl who can fight him.

“You do not get to make demands in my house. Do you want to end up like him?!” my father shouts, pointing over at the man behind the wheel with a hole running through his head.

My sisters began to cry again at the mention of the body nearby, as did my mother. I look over at her and see Finn has crawled over and is standing in front of her. He might not be armed, but he will protect our mother if things start to go to shit.

“We both know you can’t kill me. If you do, the entire O’Keenan Family will rain holy hell down on you and will wipe out any trace of your existence. And before you say anything, that is not a threat, it’s a certainty. So, unless you want to curse everyone who has ever come into contact with you, then I suggest we all lower our weapons, and we can welcome the girls peacefully,” Bree states.

There is no threat in her voice, nor does it shake. She simply affirms precisely what would happen. She is the apple of Patrick’s eye, and even Vernon would want to get revenge for Bree. My father knows it would start a war, but he is still determined to save face in front of all the employees gathered around the grounds. They obviously heard the gunshot, and it got their attention, but they are not stupid enough to get too close. They have seen my father lose his shit before, and everyone is in danger until he drops the damn gun.

“Look, I will put mine away first, then Evan. We go one at a time, so you know we are serious,” I say as I put the gun into the waist of my sweats. I will put it in my holster when shit has calmed down more, but I know one of the girls can get it if they need it. Both girls have been trained to shoot with me. Freya is a damn good shot too. The problem is that even though they can shoot if needed, they don’t want to. I have sheltered them from this shit for so long, it’s like they aren’t used to it happening anymore. Which is why they are so upset. I should be pleased that the loss of a human life still gets to them, but I do need them to toughen up just a little, at least around Desmond. He will tear strips off them if not.

Once the gun is away, I look over at Evan, waiting for him to lower his weapon, which he doesn’t. Instead, he looks over at my father for his permission. With a slight nod of the head, Evan follows the instructions like a good little lapdog and puts away his gun. My father then looks towards Bree.

“Your turn, Pox. Gun away...but don’t think I will forget this,” he threatens, and Bree just laughs.

“You forget, I may have been born in England, but my family is Irish, and I spent every summer in Cork. I know what Pox means, and I may be a nuisance, but you need to take what I say seriously. I am not kidding around when I say I want to rule the Family, and I am not afraid of you. At some point, we will have to discuss whether you want to be my enemy, or see if we can work together, but now is not the time for that. So, I will put the gun away, and I hope you have the balls to stand by your word and do the same.” Bree stands firm as she tells my father exactly how she plans to handle their business relationship. I had no idea she planned to talk to him about an alliance, if he turns out not to be the enemy we are looking for, of course. I would have told her she was fucking crazy.

Desmond looks like he is physically shaking with rage, but I know he will put the gun down. Bree called his word into question, and although my father is a psychopath, he is very strict about promises. If you commit, there is no backing out. He puts the gun into his holster, and as the final threat is removed, I let out a breath I didn’t know I had been holding.

“Get your sisters settled in. We will meet for breakfast in twenty minutes. And Bree...we will have that meeting after. Understood?” he asks, and Bree is quick to confirm.

Before I have time to object, Bree takes hold of my arm and indicates we should take the girls inside. I am pulled out of my anger by the silent sobs coming from my sisters, and the overwhelming need to protect them forces me to push them into the house. Finn already has mum in the house, and the girls are quick to run as far away from Desmond as they can.

I take them up to the room next to us, as I instruct Finn to help Mum calm down. Once the girls, Bree, and I are in their room, I close and lock the door. My fingerprint lets the sensor know it’s me and that there is no danger yet. As soon as the lock turns, my sisters crumble. Freya falls to the floor in front of the bed, her head against her knees as she folds herself, making herself as small as possible. Her tears flow freely.

Ryleigh, on the other hand, throws her arms around my neck, gripping onto me like I am her final lifeline. Her sobs echo around the room, and I wrap my arms tightly around her, stroking her back and whispering reassurances into her ear.

I look over at Freya and watch as Bree sits down beside her, mimicking her position. Freya casts a glance at the stranger sitting next to her, and seeing the small smile Bree aims at her, Freya gently lays her head on Bree’s shoulder. Bree looks over at me with her smile, and I know for sure what I felt earlier wasn’t just an adrenaline rush, heat of the moment thing. I fucking love this girl, but I need to find the right time to tell her.

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