Page 47 of Redemption

“And you’re an expert on domestic disputes?”

He returns my glare. “I’m an expert on manipulation. On people trying to con me. On power dynamics.”

“You’re telling me shewantedto be hit? The sole purpose of him hitting her was tomanipulateyou?” The idea is ludicrous. What woman would agree to be slapped so hard she tumbled to the ground? Will she have a bruise tomorrow?

“I’m saying there’s something off about their relationship, and it’s not the domestic abuse. You weren’t there. The energy in the room…” He fumbles for an explanation, flustered. “It wasn’t right.”

The wind lifts the few strands of hair that have escaped my braid. I tuck them behind my ears as I consider Finn’s words. How does he not see this for what it is? “I think you’ve been so used to being the most powerful man in a room, you can’t understand a woman’s fear and how it might look to someone else.” God knows the number of times I’ve had to conceal my fright are too numerous to count. The result isn’t always neat and tidy.

He purses his lips, and when our gazes connect, his is brimming with the same stubborn determination as mine. “Maybe I’m wrong. It’d be a first.” His hands rest on his hips, and he takes a deep breath. “Don’t let your guard down with her. I might not understandexactlywhat happened between them, but my gut doesn’t buy what my eyes saw.”

“What woman would welcome the abuse? That doesn’t happen, Finn.” I can’t hide my frustration. She’s trapped in an abusive relationship and rather than helping her, he walked away. I love him, but at times like this, I don’tlikehis stone-cold facade. “Whatever our plans to get out of this end up becoming, we need to keep in mind she might be a victim too.”

Finn runs the palm of his hand across his shorn strands. “What’d Kim think of Jade today?”

A lie forms, and then I reconsider. We have to survive this as a team. “She said something seemed off with her.”

He raises his eyebrows in the closest he’ll come to anI told you sowith me. “You’ve got a good heart, Carys. Someone with a black heart, they’ll take advantage of your kindness in an instant.”

“I’ll be careful,” I murmur. “Doesn’t mean you’re right.”

He loops his arm around my shoulders and brings me to his side, his lips pressing against my temple. “Except I’m always right.” I shove his side, but he tightens his hold on me with a chuckle. “Let’s go back to our room and give them an earful.”

“We’ve got some lost time to make up for.” I rise onto my toes and kiss his jaw.

Chapter Twenty-One

Finn

Insteadofmemorizingtheplan, Lorcan and I meet on a deserted side road, well before he’s due to arrive at the mansion. He walks me through the takeover strategy he and Kimi brainstormed the night before. Solid. Not brilliant, and certainly not without complications, but better than anything I’d have come up with in less than twenty-four hours. Our meeting is to make sure I don’t have questions about the plan before I present it to Pierre-Jacques, Daniel, and Noel. Otherwise, how do I respond if they push back on something?

“The PLA believe I’m capable of this.” I wave over Lorcan’s detailed scheme. “We both know if you weren’t here, my action items would not be so… subtle.”

He chuckles and rubs his cheek. “Not much subtle about our ideas either. Calls for the murder of the oldest McCaffrey son to guarantee obedience.”

“None of the others are strong enough to step in and take over?” If somebody had murdered me, Lorcan would have been more than capable of taking the reins for the Donaghey family.

“CIA doesn’t think so.” He shrugs. “It’s the intel we’ve got, which Kim says is sometimes shit.” He squints into the distance. “Think they’ve got eyes on you?”

“Didn’t notice a tail. I ran for about five miles before I started walking. Anyone who might have followed would need a drone, which I would have heard, or be running behind me on foot. Either way, I tried my best not to make the chase worth their time.” I stare at his scrawl on the page. “They’ve got ears on us. In the bedroom.”

His eyebrows lift. “You and Carys are being careful? Jay knows as well?”

“We’re going to kill whoever is listening with mundane chatter. This morning’s topics were the effectiveness of antiaging face creams and blow jobs.”

Lorcan snorts. “Blow jobs? Those two are connected?”

I chuckle. “Nah, but the stupid conversations have been making Carys laugh.” A bonus for me. Since Pierre-Jacques threatened the kids last night, and I didn’t buy into her ‘scared woman’ defense of Jade’s behavior, things have been strained between us. If Demid agrees to take everyone under his protection, maybe that’ll ease her mind.

Lorcan taps the roof of his car and stares at the deserted, winding country road. “You got any questions?”

“I gotta go there to execute your plan. So, if I have to leave, you need to be here to protect Carys.”

“I won’t go south.” He leans against the vehicle. “McCaffrey family would recognize me right away. Bullseye between the eyes. I’m the spitting image of the old man.”

The same goes for any interaction with the Byrne Family. They’d recognize him in a heartbeat. No goatee and a different hair color aren’t much of a disguise. The CIA may not care if they’ve got one less operative, but I’ve only got one brother. He’s the sole surviving member of my family. Despite our history, I’m not letting him walk into a trap.

“Pierre-Jacques can’t trust me yet. I reckon he’ll send Daniel or Noel with you. Keep you in line.” His lips quirk up at the suggestion. He flicks the paper in my hands. “Memorize this and burn it, yeah?”

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