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“I’m willing to work with you, Erin. Welcome to the family.”
I grinned at her. “Thank you, Aunt Cosima.”
She smiled back, head tilted, her lips pulled into a confused smile.
That was okay. I wasn’t sure about this either.
But it was what I wanted.
I waved Redmond over. He hurried back with Palmira strutting behind, grinning like she owned the world.
“Everyone okay?” he asked.
Cosima gestured toward me. “This girl just offered to share her empire with me and the rest of our family. I have to admit, I didn’t expect that.”
“I didn’t either,” Redmond said, studying my face, and I nodded to him. “But if it’s what she wants then I’ll support it.” He took my hand and squeezed.
“What a day,” Cosima said quietly. “Two Oligarchs together. Never thought I’d see it.”
I stood on my toes and kissed Redmond. I didn’t care that the others watched. It wasn’t important that Chika plotted my downfall.
Cosima would come to the table. We’d negotiate the details of my ascension with the rest of the family, and when it was all over, I hoped to heal the fractured wounds that tore them all to pieces. I would be the head of the empire, an Oligarch in my own right.
And I’d have my Oligarch man to keep me company at the summit of the mountain.
“Erin Servant, Oligarch of the Thrush family,” I said and nodded to myself. “I can get used to that.”
Redmond laughed and draped his arms around me.
Chapter 29
Erin
I sat toward the far end of a long conference room table with Redmond by my side. He held my hand out of view of the others, and I felt like a little girl again—giddy with his touch and excited for the future.
Cosima caught my eye and smiled. She winked as the lawyer at the front of the room droned on about property, assets, investments, bank accounts, art in storage, art hung, and on and on. I smiled back, stomach twisting.
Aunt Cosima. Two weeks ago, we were trying to kill each other. Now we were dividing up the empire and putting the war behind us.
There were other members of Maeve’s family: cousins Sherrie, Jami, Fairfax, and Aldo. Each had a team of lawyers present, and the sheer number of inexpensive suits made my head dizzy. Papers, contracts, and notebooks were spread out over the expensive table as the lead lawyer continued his presentation.
The only non-family member in the room was Chika Abarra. She sat behind Aunt Cosima, quietly watching the proceedings. I nearly screamed and choked when I saw her enter the room, but Cosima had assured me Chika was there only to keep the peace, and wouldn’t be a threat anymore. I didn’t know if I believed her, but there was nothing I could do about it now.
At least Redmond was healing. The doctor said there wouldn’t be any complications, which was a relief. He could move around with few issues and could put more and more weight on that side of his body as the days passed, which meant we were experimenting in bed, testing the boundaries of his injury, and pushing the boundaries of what I thought I understood about my body.
It’d been a very exciting few weeks.
“As you can see, there are still considerable assets outstanding,” the lawyer said, a skinny man with a bald head and wire-rim glasses. “Per the agreements on page thirty-seven, section four, subsection three, paragraph six, line twelve—”
Cosima cut in as the lawyers flipped furiously through their draft contract.
“Can we please translate this into normal speech, Alan? I don’t think we want to sit here all day.”
“I agree,” Fairfax said, a puffy man with a white beard and a deep voice. “The details are all arranged. Why waste this time?” His lawyers whispered something but he waved them off.
The head lawyer looked around, but shrugged. “If nobody objects, I’ll speak plainly.” Nobody spoke up. He continued, “All right then. Most of the property in and around Chicago will be split evenly between those present, except for Erin. Most of the physical assets will be sold, and the proceeds will be split, with bigger stakes going to Cosima and Erin. The investments will go to Erin, as will most of the property and businesses across the country and overseas. Stored valuables will be auctioned, and the proceeds will be split. Basically, Erin’s getting sixty percent, Cosima’s getting twenty, and the rest goes to all of you.” He shrugged and wiped his forehead, looking uncomfortable. “Any questions?”
“I have one.” Fairfax glanced at me, eyes narrowed. “When the hell did this girl get so much power?”
Redmond stiffened at my side but I brushed him off. I leaned forward, glaring at Fairfax. “I got so much power by killing anyone in my way and by dismantling Cosima’s army. Do you want to go back to that? Because I suspect I’ll walk away with more than sixty percent.”
