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It’s hard to find the words to thank him, so I just nod in reply.
He steps forward and pulls out a screwdriver, working to affix the plaque to the outside of the tree. Once he’s done, he steps back. “Sorry, Aiden. You should have had something like this a long time ago.” Cathal glances at me. “If you had reached out, I could have—”
“My father insisted we could have no ties with Washington or our past life.”
His jaw clenches. “I never liked your father.”
“That makes two of us.”
His eyes narrow. “Did you kill him?”
I shake my head. “No, thankfully an idiot son of a bratva boss decided to kill him, and I had to kill him in return.” I meet Cathal’s gaze. “I’m not going to lie. I wanted to congratulate him, really.”
Cathal nods and gazes at the ground where Aiden is put to rest. “What happened that night?” he asks.
I swallow hard, knowing that I can speak of it now, no matter how hard it is. “We were home playing video games. You know how much Aiden loved playing video games.”
Cathal laughs. “Yeah, he would have been playing them twenty-four seven if he could have.”
I nod. “Well, four masked men broke into the house and Dad wasn’t there.” It feels like I’m being transported back as I remember the horror I’d felt looking down the barrel of a gun. “They wanted my dad, but since he wasn’t there, they shot Aiden and told me to give him a message.” My throat closes up a little. “I remember holding him for a long time, begging him to wake up, but he was already dead. They shot him between the eyes.”
Cathal places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “I can’t imagine what it was like.”
I purse my lips together. “The worst part of that night was my father dragging me out here to dig Aiden’s grave.”
“He did what?!”
“He didn’t even help, just stood and watched me dig. I was numb by the time we buried him, but father insisted we had to hide all evidence of what happened that night, including Aiden’s body.”
“That son of a bitch,” he half growls, eyes flashing with rage. “I would kill him myself if he weren’t already dead.”
I smile sadly, as Cathal’s friendship is something I’ve missed in London. I have many loyal men, but they’re below me, whereas Cathal is my equal and our bond goes deeper than any bond I have with any other man on this planet.
“I’ve missed you,” I admit.
He laughs then, arching a brow. “Careful, you don’t want anyone to think the king of the London underworld has gone soft.”
I clap him on the shoulder. “Tell anyone I said that, and I’ll cut your tongue from your mouth,” I say, half joking.
“That’s more like it,” he says.
“You and Nina will have to visit us in Letchworth.” I swallow hard. “I know Bella is hesitant about leaving her. You better look after her and no breaking her heart this time.”
Cathal glares at me. “You had a hand in that, if you don’t remember.”
I sigh heavily. “I know, and I was wrong, but I had no idea how you truly felt about her.”
“It was my fault for not trusting my own feelings, but thankfully, she’s giving me a second chance.”
I clap him on the shoulder. “I’m happy for you.”
He smiles. “So, what’s next for the king of London?”
“Honestly, I need to get back as soon as possible. These couple of months away have been long enough.”
“Well, don’t be a stranger. You’ll have to visit Washington regularly.”
I laugh. “I doubt I’d be able to keep Bella away considering how close her and Nina are.” I glance at my brother’s grave, now commemorated with a plaque on the tree. “And I want to visit Aiden more often.”
