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It would be my bullet that ended Sean’s life, after I made him my bitch.
Mike had won his fight, but that didn't mean that his face didn't show the signs of it the next night. To be fair, given the beating he'd taken that had nearly cost him the match, my respect turned up a notch that he'd still turned up the next night to help Sadie with her class.
Women gathered in the gym in astonishing numbers. It made me realize just how many women in the city were unable to afford to pay for private sessions, but needed a way to learn how to defend themselves. I wondered if any of them sensed the danger looming within the city. The growing tensions that were hidden beneath the layers of sudden disappearances. Those same women probably expected the police to interfere to protect them, to investigate to find their missing sisters and friends.
But the police were unequipped to deal with scum like Tiernan Murphy, and their only salvation would come in the form of a Bellandi war. My cell rang as Sadie stepped into the center of the mats we'd laid out to offer more space to the collection of women.
"Okay, everybody grab a partner!" she shouted, turning her attention to Mike. He grimaced at her, looking pained at the prospect of Sadie using him as her dummy. She'd asked me. But as much as I wanted to be the one she put her hands on and threw to the mat, there were too many people in the building for me to be so preoccupied.
I'd had to leave that honor to Mike, so I could keep an eye on the women, and the men volunteering. We knew without a doubt that Tiernan was not above using women to do his dirty work. Not after the way he'd used Sean’s girlfriend to keep an eye on Calla and assist in her abduction attempt.
It hadn't ended well for the men involved when they met their maker in the form of Ryker and his hatchet. If the woman ever left Murphy's protection, she'd probably meet the same fate. I didn't think Ryker had ever killed a woman, but I had no doubt he'd make an exception for the bitch who almost cost him his wife.
"Yeah?" I answered the phone when it rang, stepping closer to the door to put some distance between Sadie's class and myself. My eyes never left her, watching as she demonstrated something with her hands, swinging her body into a punch that glided slowly through the air.
"Is that anyway to speak to your employer?" Matteo teased. "Your eloquence makes me wonder if you're indisposed in a way I do not want to consider." His shudder almost resonated through the phone.
"I'm watching Sadie teach her self-defense class," I responded with a chuckle. "Did you need something or did you just call to bother me, Princess?"
He scoffed his laughter into the phone, the static making me draw the phone away from my ear. "I think that's the first time anyone has dared to call me Princess."
"So stop acting like one and get to the point," I said, my fingers tightening on the phone as Sadie encouraged Mike to grab her arm like an attacker might. How was it that it only took one platonic touch and I wanted to tear the gym apart so that no one could ever touch her again?
"Judge Ryan agreed to oversee the Garcia case against Murphy. Our connection is no secret, and Murphy will see it as the declaration it is. The Judge will not be serving in an impartial manner, given he knows of Murphy's extracurricular activities. He's going to throw the book at him and try to put him behind bars for a very, very long time. Even if he only gets him on the illegal lending, we'll be rid of him for a few years. We won't be involved in the trial, because we both know we do not involve the law in our problems. We want no record of it when we rid the world of Tiernan—"
"What's that have to do with me?"
"He's requesting a man for his daughter, Irina," Matteo said. "I can't blame him since we know Murphy likes to target women."
"Fucking shit, Matteo. Where the hell am I supposed to pull a guy from? Rafe and Calix's men have the streets, but that doesn't mean that we're entrusting any of them with our women or the kids or the money. I don't want to give him someone we don't trust 100%."
"I agree. It has to be one of ours," he sighed. "What about Bryan? Give his cash drops to Benny. He can handle that. If I have to, I'll ask Rafe to supervise him for a week or so."
I paused, considering my words. "You trust Rafe that way?"
"Yeah. I trust him with my life. Don't get me wrong, the guy's fucked in the head, but he's loyal. Besides, he wants something from me. He can't fuck me over if he wants me to help wrap a bow around sweet little Isa and deliver her to Spain." Matteo sighed, and I could just imagine him hanging his head. "Ivory will kill me if she finds out."
"Then why do it?"
"Because I know how he feels. Would you let anything get in your way of making Sadie yours? We claimed our women and gave them the benefit of staying local to be with their families because circumstances allowed it. Is him luring Isa to Spain really any different than me having Scar deliver Ivory here and not letting her go? I swapped out her birth control for shit's sake. Lino carried Samara to their wedding over his shoulder while she screamed. Ryker used the kids to control Calla. Rafe promised me he won't abuse her. That's...all I can ask of him without crossing a line. He's not a man we want as an enemy."
"She's sixteen, Matteo," I groaned.
"And he won't touch her until she's eighteen. He's compromising where she's concerned. That's a first for him."
"Fine. I'll call Bryan and let him know to coordinate the changeover with Benny," I snapped, glancing over at Sadie. Hatred was like acid in my veins, wanting better for the pretty teenager I'd seen on the street with a friend. She was younger than Elisa, for fuck's sake. My baby sister was older than the girl Rafael Ibarra wanted to take away from everything she knew.
I didn't know what he'd do with her. Only that she'd never be an innocent teen again. I hoped she'd enjoy her last years of freedom.
"I need to know you won't interfere with Rafe's plans," Matteo said.
"I won't get in his way," I said slowly, "but if he hurts her—"
"He won't," Matteo said, ending the call.
Pulling the phone away from my ear, I tucked it into the pocket of my jeans and strolled over to watch Sadie more intently. Watching the women practice with one another and the way they interacted with Mike, it was obvious which had already been abused. Their bodies strung tight when he got too close to them, hesitance slipping into their features. I understood why Sadie seemed to try to keep it simple with only one man to help, but at some point, the women would need to practice with men. They'd have to overcome that fear to enact their training and defend themselves in the real world.
Making the note to make the suggestion to her later, I watched her try to coax the more nervous of the women into coming out of their shells a bit. She moved with a bright smile, easing nerves as she went like the ray of light she was. Her demonstrations were explained so smoothly I had no doubt she'd been teaching these classes for a long time.
