Page 5 of Inferno

“I need you to listen to me, very fucking carefully, brother.”

His nostrils flare as Finn patches him up with petroleum jelly and ice on his eye.

“You go down on your ass in the next round, no fucking around. You don’t get a choice here, Conan. You want to keep fighting in the cage, listen to me for fucking once in your life.” I warn.

He grunts, spitting out his mouthguard.

Mom’s death hit him hard. He was her little boy. Even when he towered over her, she was the only person to tame him.

Now, no matter how much me, Finn, or our father try, it falls on deaf ears.

He’s a tank of anger waiting to erupt.

“I said I’ll do it, so I’ll do it.”

I slap his cheek in an attempt to bring him back.

“Don’t let me down, brother. We can’t afford a war.”

Not yet, anyway.

He nods, avoiding eye contact with me as I release him and step back.

Finn’s worried frown and the furrow in his brow are clear as we head down the creaky, old wooden stairs.

“How armed exactly are we, Declan?” Finn asks from beside me, retrieving his flat cap from his inside pocket.

We have men dotted around the venue, a getaway driver, and enough blades on us to have everyone in here bleeding out.

But you can never underestimate the London guys.

They fight dirty and they fucking hate our guts. The feeling is mutual.

As we resume our positions at the side of the ring, I slide the cool metal over my fingers. Better to be safe than sorry.

When the bell rings, my heart races.

Don’t fuck this up, Con.

The fight resumes. Two minutes is all he has to fall on his ass and tap out.

Conan clenches his bare fists and charges at James. Pulling back his arm, his fist connects to his nose again. Blood sprays out, making me grit my teeth.

“He’s just making it look believable, Dec.”

I shake my head. We’re fucked.

James reacts instantly, a left hook followed by a straight right to Conan’s gut, the impact audible even from across the ring.

He doubles over and takes a step back.

James’s stellar uppercut lands with a sickening thud on Conan’s jaw, making him wobble.

Go down. Go down. I’m almost praying.

“Your mom was a dirty, useless whore.”

Those will be the last words James ever utters. I rub my hand over my face and take a deep fucking breath.

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