He rolls his eyes, the same attitude his eldest sister has, which makes me see red.
“I’m not supposed to do a lot of things.” He looks at Alessio, smirking slightly at his confusion. “Being able to hack into the Pentagon is one thing. Are you going to tell on me?”
“I don’t need to tell—you know we’re watched. You’re on seven hit lists as is.” Every night I go through them, trying to burn them, but they always reappear. “You can’t be in Boston. That was the rule.” If anyone finds out, it’ll be war.
“Rules.” He cuts me a hard look. “I came because my sister needs me.”
Forgetting that his loyalty is ridiculously high to the woman who practically raised him, he’s going to fucking ruin everything if he stays. “Briar?—”
“Briar?” Alessio says, eyebrow cocked. “As in the youngest sibling? The one no one talks to?”
Holding out his hand, he winks. “Nice to meet you, bro. And that’s extreme—I talk to everyone. My older sisters only get texts, but Hayes and Maeve get phone calls.” He points at me. “Him too. By the way, I hope you’re not still tracking my sister with her wedding ring. Kind of extreme, don’t you think?” He picks at his nails. “I could disable it, but I thought you’d want the chance to do it yourself.”
“Who the fuck?—”
Grabbing the scruff of Briar’s neck, I toss him forward. The capo is going to shoot him, and I don’t feel like another bloodbath tonight. “Now is not the time to pick a fucking fight, kid.”
“No?” He turns, glaring at me, though the smile stays on his face. I know I’m intimidating, but Briar’s on his way to scaring the most hardened of men. “Tell me, Reaper, were you going to fill me in on the shit that’s been happening here lately?”
“You know most of it.”
“And my sister almost dying?”
I roll my eyes. “That’s a bit of a stretch.”
Hayes laughs. “Maeve wasn’t going to die. Hell won’t take her.” Alessio makes an affirmative noise.
Briar glares at Lex. “We might be family, but don’t think I won’t fuck up your businesses with a few clicks on my laptop.”
Alessio’s brows lower, side-eying Hayes. “Who is this kid?”
Tossing a black portable power bank into my chest, I snatch it, glaring at the troublesome kid. Holding it up to the light, I ask, “What’s this?”
Because it’s not a simple power pack. Not with Briar.
“Information.” He gives us all an annoyed look. “Watching you three try to figure this situation out has been painful. God. How do you accomplish anything?” He rolls his eyes. “If this is how you protect my sister, I’ll need to seriously try and set her up with other men.”
“Rude,” Hayes mutters, but I ignore him.
“Information aboutwhat?”
Briar gives me a dry look. “You’re not the only one tracking the people in this organization. It took me a while, but I cross-referenced the Board’s activities and which of our people were out of communication. It was tedious—small blips on the radar—that all turned into something bigger. That pack is the evidence.”
“Who else did you find?”
“Basically, everyone you killed.” He shrugs. “Don’t worry. Those deaths are staying off the police frequencies.” Briar winks at the capo. “You’re welcome, by the way.”
“Briar.”
“There were like seven of them that turned. Some real fucked-up idiots.” He shrugs. “I’ll keep an eye on the clan and see if anyone else pops. But I think you got everyone.”
The capo crosses his arms. “You don’t seem too involved to warrant such activities. I have men who can look into everything.”
I see the change in Briar’s demeanor the moment Hayes does. His eyes narrow, a coldness seeps into them, and his hips shift. Grabbing his arm, I pull him back before his fist flies out, and Hayes shifts, blocking Alessio.
Fuck, Briar’s temper hasn’t dulled much with his time away. That’s the reason we’re in this mess—hiding him from everyone else.
“You think you can protect my sisters better than me?” He scoffs. “Just wait until I dig into your finances, capo. Air all your dirty laundry. You’ll see how fucking dangerous I can be.”
