Page 88 of House of Soot

If Flint were here, he’d be seconding that. His absence reminds me of Mrs. Hart.

"Any word from Flint?”

“Last update was an hour ago. Hospital's quiet. Mrs. Hart's vitals are stable. I suspect the Keans have too much on their plate now to worry about her or Jenna, but…” He continues before I can express my belief that we still need to keep them safe. “We’ll still protect them until we can get them to safety."

I glance toward the hallway where Jenna's room sits. The door is shut and it’s quiet. Is she resting? Hiding? Crying? God, I’m such a fucking asshole.

“So, what about this meeting with O’Donnell?” Ash asks.

“O’Donnell hasn’t been happy with Kean for a long time. If we can prove we can retake what’s ours and run it like Dad, he’ll help us.”

That’s good news. “So he’s not broken up about Ronan not being able to marry Hannah?”

“He doesn’t know Ronan’s dead, but he did say he’d be willing to break the arrangement if we help clear the debt he owes Hampton.”

“If we can afford it, it might be worth it. We’d always be at risk of O’Donnell going against us if Hampton holds that debt over him,” Ash says.

Phoenix nods. “There’s one more thing.” He looks at me and then Ash. “Someone needs to take Ronan’s place.”

I frown. “Do you mean marry or get murdered?”

“Both suck. I’m not doing either.” Ash makes a face of disgust.

“He feels a marriage between the families shows more commitment.”

My brow furrows. “So he wants Hannah to marry you?”

Phoenix practically gags. “No. I dissuaded him from that.” He eyes me. “He was impressed to learn you infiltrated the Keans.”

“Me?” I do that thing in movies where people look behind them thinking there must be someone else there that Phoenix is referring to. There is no one. "You can't be serious."

"Dead serious." Phoenix's eyes meet mine. "We need his men, his resources. A marriage would cement his loyalty."

Ash perks up, probably because he’s not being volunteered to marry Hannah. "Come on, Blaise. You're single, good-looking…”

I gape at them for the audacity to suggest such a thing, especially with Jenna in the other room. "I'm not marrying O'Donnell's daughter."

“Why not?” Ash asks. “It can’t be because of her.” He nods toward Jenna’s room. “The woman can’t stand you. You said so yourself that you’re going to send her and her mother off to live away from all this.”

Phoenix’s expression is a bit more sympathetic. “It could help you get over her?—”

“No.” I look at them, wondering how they could even think I could marry someone else. "I don't care if she never speaks to me again. I won't pretend to love someone else when I’m in love with Jenna. It wouldn’t be fair to Hannah.”

“None of us love her. She doesn’t love us. Fairness has nothing to do with it.” Phoenix reminds me more and more of our father, his ability to say something that sounds so outrageous but make it seem normal… Perhaps in our antiquated world, it is normal.

“Then you marry her. Or Ash can marry her.” I rise from the couch with no clear plan. Maybe I’ll go to the kitchen and find the booze.

Ash's face darkens. "If the reason you can’t marry is because you love someone else, then I’m going to use that excuse too. I love someone else.”

I’d be an even bigger ass if I pointed out the woman he loves is dead. She died in the fire that killed our family. Her death nearly destroyed Ash. Even now, a decade later, the pain is etched in his face.

"The woman I want to marry is down that hall," I say instead of dwelling on his old wounds. "And she's carrying my child." The words come out raw, honest. "I can’t do it, Phoenix. I won’t.”

Ash leans forward. "Noble sentiment, Blaise. But the Keans won't care about your feelings when they come for us. We need O'Donnell's men."

“Then you marry her.” I turn my attention to Phoenix. "Find another way."

Phoenix’s gaze moves from me to something behind me. I swivel around to find Jenna standing at the opening of the hall. Her hair falls loose around her shoulders, and dark circles rim her eyes.

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