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“What the hell,” I mutter. “Might as well make the most of the next few days because I’m not sure what’s coming after this.”
She sips and her eyes narrow, darkening the crystalline blue to a smoky sapphire. A knowing expression follows. “Something big is coming, my dear. You might not believe it or trust it, or even understand it now, but just know this. If there’s any man for the job, it’s Kieran McGregor.”
CHAPTEREIGHT
I now get what it’s like to have my heart shredded to pieces. Shattered. Utterly crushed.
Max stares at me silently, his mood dark.
My words are brittle when I can finally speak. “It’s her.”
There’s no feeling in my hand, it’s completely numb when I pass his phone back. The screenshot of the video is undeniable. Carra Coghlan was pregnant. She was also with a man that I don’t recognize.
When I speak, my voice is distant to my own ears. “What’s the date on that clip?”
“Eight months or so after you left for Colombia.”
Max shifts, leans against the wall, and drops his phone back into his coat pocket. “I know what you’re thinking.”
“Where’s the baby?” I ask harshly, my voice too loud. Instantly, I regret it. We don’t need anyone to overhear this shit.
“We don’t know.”
“And where is thatFUCKER?!”
The quick shake of his head makes my control snap. My fist collides with the wall, leaving an unmistakable hand-shaped hole in it.
So much for discretion. But I couldn’t give a damned. I’m too angry.
Max, per usual, is always cool and collected. Right now that makes me angrier than ever. I want to shove him through the wall too.
He glances at the jagged hole in the drywall, seemingly unbothered, as if he expected that of me. “We’re still trying to find out who he is.”
Through gritted teeth, I snarl at him. “How fucking hard is it?”
Max’s brows knot together, slowly, and he folds his arms. “Believe it or not, harder than we thought it would be. Part of the problem is the angle of his face. The shadows cast by the trees don’t help. It’s not a clean image.”
“Send me the image. I want to have my contacts start working it.”
“Not right now.”
I step into his face. We’re inches apart, me snorting at him like a bull. Him the picture of restrained calm. I seethe at him, “I want to know if that baby was his or mine.”
“You will. But right now, you need to concentrate on this wedding. We have a chance to take down a literal army of mobsters at one event. There hasn’t been a gathering of these players in years. It’s our one chance to have them all in the same place. You know this.”
Grudgingly, I admit, he is right, but that does nothing to cool the anger that is still simmering inside me. “You didn’t give away your life only to have it all crumble now, Kieran. Think about this. I know you’re angry. Hurt. But that’s a personal matter that can be solved later. It won’t change or go away if you wait. And what we are about to do is more important and time sensitive. Lives are at stake here.”
“Fucking. Fuck, Max, don’t you think I know that?”
“Yeah, well, I hate to break that to you, but you have to get your shit under control. A week. Give me a week. Then I’ll make sure that you have everything you want. Everything we agreed on. Think about that.”
We stand off for a long time. Bit by bit, the steam leaks out of my head.
“You’ve come too far, Kieran. Don’t lose the game now.”
Those words hit me in the solar plexus as if he’s punched me. I drag in a breath. I unclench my fists. Unlock my jaw. Inhale again against the band of steel around my chest.
When I step back, he tips his chin. “Think about this. If that is your baby, then you’re going to have a chance to create a new life for you, Carra, and that child. I’ll help you track the baby down myself. Even if it’s been adopted, and you have to accept that, even if it has, you can still make its life better. Money is a powerful tool for change—even anonymous money.”
