Page 146 of Killaney Fire
The silence that follows is brutal.
Declan looks ready to explode. His chest rises and falls too fast, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles have gone white.
Callum just exhales through his nose, slow and controlled.
"Please continue," he says.
I swallow.
"He told me Octavian's family, his uncle, the Ionescus, wanted a foothold in America. That I was the key. That Octavian knew I'd be taken. They showed me the bracelet he gave me. There was a tracking device inside."
Declan swears under his breath, low and vicious.
Callum's eyes darken.
"And Octavian," he says slowly, "were you able to confront him? What did he say?"
"Yes," I nod. "He didn't deny it."
Callum stands abruptly, shoving away from the desk.
"Where the fuck is he?"
"He's alive," Declan says. "One of my men stuck a sedative in his neck. Shane and some others are moving him down to the basement now. He'll stay there until we know the truth."
Callum paces.
"I'll make the calls," he says. "Find out what's real. These cult fucks could be lying or bending the truth to serve them and dismantle us. But," he stops, rubbing his chin, "if it's true, he answers to us, Keira. And I'll fucking gut him like a pig."
Despite everything, I twinge at the mention of my brother hurting him.
So pathetic.
Suddenly, the doors burst open.
Lyra rushes in, hair messy, medical bag half-zipped and swinging from her shoulder. She drops to her knees beside me, wordless at first, then says, "Jesus, Keira. What did they do to you?"
She unzips the bag, pulling out antiseptic, gauze, bandages.
"Let me see," she says, reaching for my arm.
I pull back the blood-soaked bandage. The wound is red and raw, the edges jagged where the knife bit too deep.
Lyra hisses through her teeth.
"This is going to burn."
She pours antiseptic over the wound.
I wince but don't scream, though part of me wants to.
The room is silent. Callum and Declan watch her, watch me, their eyes fixed on the mark that was left on my skin.
Lyra wraps my arm carefully, her hands steady and efficient. When she's done, she sits back on her heels and looks up at me.
"I'm so sorry, Keira," she says quietly. "But this will scar."
I already figured it would.
