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I looked into Kara's eyes and saw the confusion in them. I wanted to tell her it was all going to work out and that we'd be fine, but of course, I couldn't. I couldn't ease her mind by letting her in on my plan. Hell, I had no idea if my plan was even going to work.
I gave her my most earnest look, begging her with my eyes to trust me.
“So, since you have hidden your son from me,” Killian said. “And you're standing before me empty handed, what is it you want?”
I let out a long breath. “You let Kara go,” I said, “and I'll come work for you. No conditions, no strings attached. I'll work for you, doing whatever you need done. And in exchange for my work, you let her go, and you clear her father's debt. In other words, you get the fuck out of her life and leave her alone. Forever.”
“Declan, no – ”
“It's okay, Kara,” I said. “I got this.”
Killian clasped his hands behind his back and paced around the room, looking from me to Kara and back again, a bemused little smirk on his face.
“That ship has already sailed, brother,” he said.
I cocked my head and looked at him. “What do you mean?”
Killian glanced at his watch. “Well, it seems that Kara's debt – ”
“Her father's debt,” I corrected him.
“Of course,” he replied. “It seems her father's debt is being squared up. She'll be free to go soon. So, what else do you have for me?”
“Squared up?” I asked and looked over at Kara, who shrugged. “By who?”
“You'll see in a few minutes,” he replied. “Anyway, I was actually thinking that these issues that exist between us can be settled by you working for me, just as you said – with no conditions or strings attached.”
“And what do I get out of that deal?” I asked.
“Well, you get to live for one thing,” he replied. “That, in and of itself, should be worth quite a lot. Don't you think? But, just to sweeten the pot, you will also stand to make a lot of money. You will be able to provide very well for your son – and Kara if she chooses to be with you.”
“Yeah, and all I have to do is kill people for you.”
He shrugged. “That's a rarity, brother,” he said. “But yes, that is an unfortunate reality of our business from time to time.”
Kara was shaking her head, her eyes fixed on mine. “Don't do it, Declan,” she said. “It's not worth it. You're better than that. Better than them.”
Killian turned to her, a cruel little smile on his lips. “The other option is death,” he says. “My brother disrespected me. Deeply. I don't take that lightly. Most men, I would have killed already had they disrespected me the way my brother has. But, I'm giving him a chance to redeem himself. To set this right.”
Kara wasn’t listening to him though. She wasn't even looking at him. Her eyes remained fixed on me. They shimmered with tears and she was pleading with me to not do what Killian wanted me to do.
I knew if I gave in to him, started doing the work he wanted me to do, I would lose myself. If I became Killian's hitman, my soul would forever be damaged. Sullied. I knew I wouldn't be the same man ever again.
The door to the room opened and I turned, looking at the newcomers, confusion crossing my face. There were four large, burly men wearing dirty jeans and leather biker kuttes. They all had scraggly hair and had a hard edge about them. These were men for whom, violence was a way of life, you could tell. You could see it in their eyes and in the way they carried themselves.
I turned and saw Kara's eyes widen. They were almost cartoonish, they were so big. Her lips trembled, and tears rolled down her smooth cheeks.
“Y – you came for me,” she said softly. “You came for me, Dad.”
He looked at her, giving her a small smile. “Of course I did,” he said. “You're my daughter.”
“Michael Boyer,” Killian said, a wide greasy smile on his face. “So good to see you. Though, I didn't expect you to bring your friends with you.”
The man stepped forward, a scowl on his face and murder in his eyes. The tension in the room ratcheted up a thousand-fold. All of these large men, all rough, all used to violence gathered in one room. Yeah, this was going to get ugly. I just knew it.
“You're holding my girl,” he snarled. “You threatened her.”
“Yes, because you owe me money,” Killian said. “Coarse, disagreeable measures that would not have needed to be taken had you simply paid your debts.”
