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“Then tell them to your wife before she leaves you for whatever dipshit decided to stab you in the back, yeah?” He walks me to the front desk, raises both eyebrows, and points at the door.
“Good advice.” I sign my name on the bottom of a form, wink at the receptionist, and opt to walk the two miles home.
Dom glares at me from the inside of my own goddamn car, his arms folded, his face as haggard tonight as the tired cop’s.
I hold his gaze for a moment, my expression impassive, giving nothing away. But my actions do as I rotate slowly on my heel and stroll away from him like his time to collect me from jail means nothing at all.
Because tonight, it doesn’t.
****
“I worried about you,” Willow whispers from her perch on our bed as I slip my tie from my throat and wrap it around my fists, pulling it tight.
The walk didn’t do shit for my rage. I should have hailed Dom up to the docks and had it out with him on the cement that bore the echoes of so many invisible bloodstains washed away by bleach.
Our haunting ground.
“Did you?” I murmur, still testing the silk between my fists. “Come here.”
She obediently slides off the bed, traipsing across the plush carpet to stand before me and holds out her wrists. I watch her, and wait. She stands still for the first minutes, then as our time stretches out, she fidgets. Her white nightgown slithers smoothly against her thighs, and I’m pleased to see that she’s held to our “no underwear” rule for evenings and special occasions.
Finally, my silence is too much for her.
“For fuck’s sake, Rafe,” she cries, throwing her hands up. “I don’t know what to do!”
My smile curves my lips at her mini-tantrum. “Kneel. Apologize. Offer your freedom, your body, and your sanity, and see what I’ll do.” Her brow furrows at my words, and she shakes her head, neither able to stand still nor retreat, apparently. My smile widens. “I didn’t think those options would stump you, wife of mine.”
She blinks up at me like a baby fucking owl, too cute for her own sake. “But, Rafe. You already have all those things from me. I promised I was yours when I came back. By choice, with you. You promised to protect us all, and … and Roman,” she finishes on the barest whisper.
The silk drops from my hands and I cradle her head, winding my fingers in her raven-black locks instead. “What about your brother?” I demand, harsh and unyielding.
“He’s gone.”
My heart cracks, straight down the middle.
I never had a brother, or a son, though Dom filled part of that hole for me. I hadn’t understood how much Roman meant to me, to both of us, until that moment.
“How?” I hiss, fisting her hair and yanking her head back.
Willow bows to my will, letting me manipulate her body without resistance.
“I don’t know,” she sobs as I bite her lips, her throat, marking her. She whimpers but never struggles. “After they took you, I ran to his room. He wasn’t there. Dom was gone. Seamus…”
“He stayed here,” I realize, cold horror growing in my stomach. “Fuck,” I swear, dragging Willow upright and folding my arms around her. “I promised you both safety, and instead I allowed a lion into my den.” I kiss her fiercely. “Did you check everywhere else he might go? His other home?” I clear my throat around the pressure building there, the lies tripping off my tongue, knowing full well where Roman is.
Willow caresses my face with trembling fingers. “I’m so sorry, Rafe. I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted to keep everyone safe.”
I smile, gentling my kiss. “As do I. We may break, but are never broken. We get Roman back together.” I kiss her knuckles. “If I fail, I’ll hand you a loaded gun and you can pull the trigger yourself.”
Her jade-green eyes pierce my soul with the look of understanding that passes between us.
“I’d prefer a knife.”
My smile twists as I grab her hand and tow her from our room.
We have an assault to plan. I don’t know if it will be the FBI, Konnor, or wherever else Seamus might hide himself away, but I know one thing for certain: I’ll need those loyal to me at my back.
It’s time to weed out the unfaithful.
