Page 77 of Redemption

Thomas sips his coffee and looks from me to Carys and back again. “That’s no small thing. What can you offer me in return, other than money?”

She leans forward, getting her own coffee fixed. “What do you want?”

Thomas sets his coffee cup on the table and focuses on me. “Here are my two issues with helping you.” He meets my gaze to be sure I’m listening. He crosses his arms. “For one, you killed your brother, and I’ve heard you played a part in your father’s murder. Maybe one of those I could live with—your father was an arsehole—but the other I can’t. There’s an honor code amongst families, and you violated it.” He runs a hand down his face. “Then there’s the matter of what you lost in killing your brother. You’re not the strategy man. You’re the muscle. We know it. Lorcan is the plan, and you’re the execution. Nothing wrong with that, worked for you both quite well. But I’m not keen to throw my lot in with a man who can’t win.”

Carys tenses and glances at me. She’s probably wondering the same thing I am. Is now when I admit Lorcan isn’t dead? Doesn’t change the fact that maybe a small part of me meant to kill him in the warehouse, or at the very least, was prepared for him to be severely injured in that confrontation. Thomas is right that impulsiveness can be my undoing.

“I’ll regret what happened between my brother and me until the day I die.” Maybe regret isn’t the right word because the warehouse led me back to Carys, and I’m never going to be sorry about that. The complete truth won’t do me any favors. “So, if my brother were still here, we’d be aces?”

Thomas eyes me. “Why would you put that question to me unless his death was a trick of some sort? Lorcan isn’t dead?”

“I’ll tell you everything, the whole sorry tale, if you’ll agree to protect us and help us.”

A hint of a smile twitches Thomas’s lips. “I must admit, I’m a sucker for a spot of intrigue and fucking over the PLA. If you’ve got your brother stashed away somewhere, you’ve got my protection and my help.”

“Then I guess we’ve got a deal.” I extend my hand to Thomas to shake, and I pray that once Thomas realizes Lorcan and Kim work for the CIA, he doesn’t put a bullet in our heads.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Carys

Idrinkmycoffeeand pour a second one while Finn gives Thomas the barest, most essential details of what’s been happening over the last year and a bit. He listens to the story with an impassive face and calculating eyes. I can’t tell with any certainty whether he’ll welcome Lorcan and Kim into the house or he’ll shoot us dead.

Finn finishes, and Thomas takes another sip of his coffee before sliding his cup onto the wooden table between us. “They turned him.”

“Toward the PLA, yes,” Finn corrects.

“But if they told him to come after me, for example, he would do it.” Thomas scratches his stubbled chin.

“Doesn’t work like that.” I set down my drink too. “Since he’s dead, he could only be slotted into positions where he wouldn’t be recognized.”

He pins me with his gaze. “You want me to believe he wouldn’t come after me if they told him to? I’m not naïve, Carys. Once you sell your soul, you’ve got no control over what it’s forced to do. Such is the bargain you strike.”

I school my face to hide my annoyance. He has a bit of a dramatic flair like Finn. Makes sense they’d like each other.

“You’re worried my brother will use this opportunity to amass intel on you and your family?” Finn asks.

“You’d be suspicious too. Murderous, probably.” He gives a wry smile. “Just because it suits you now, let’s not pretend.”

“It’s true.” Finn leans forward to fill a cup with coffee. “I’m not sure I’d be brave enough to take the risk I’m asking you to assume.”

He chuckles and then scoffs. “Brave. Stupid. Sometimes with you those are interchangeable.”

He smirks and draws the mug of coffee to his lips. “Flattery usually gets me farther with you. I’ve got no problems calling you stupid if you want.”

With a shake of his head, he stares from me to Finn and back to me again. “As the one not involved in some seriously dirty dealings, what’s your gut instinct on Lorcan and Kim?”

I half expect Finn to tell Thomas my gut instincts are always wrong. Finn isn’t going to contradict me—we’re on the same team. Thomas wants to help us; he needs a little shove in the right direction. No one wants to believe they’re stupid, even if it’s dressed up as brave. “I’ve spent the last two weeks with Lorcan and Kim. They’re very focused on taking down the PLA and keeping everyone on track. The CIA didn’t want us to reveal their position to you, but we all believe you can be trusted.”

The golden ticket. Trust. If he doesn’t want to be called brave or stupid, everyone in this business likes to be trusted, even when they shouldn’t be.

A hint of a smile tugs at Thomas’s mouth. “Do youtrustthem?”

Not in every way. Kim’s deception altered our friendship forever, but I trust them in every way that counts for this situation. “I do.”

He releases a deep breath and taps his fingers on the arm of the chair. “My gut is telling me I can trust Lorcan. Kim? I don’t know her, but if Lorcan ripped his life up and threw it away for her, she’s got a powerful hold on him.”

Finn catches my eye and tips his head. What’s he want me to say to that? It’s true. He tossed away his life for her. “You know.” I sense my way through a response since Finn has confidence I can win Thomas over. “When people love each other deeply, the influence goes both ways. Each will do whatever they can to avoid hurting the other. Kim won’t want to disappoint Lorcan any more than Lorcan will want to disappoint Kim.”

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