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Rich folds his arms over his chest. “How fast can yours?”
“They’re already on the way,” I reply, pausing to use a rug to wipe off my bloodied knuckles. “If your men make it there before mine do, you can have your pick.”
Rich does a double take, a furrow appearing between his brows. “What did you just say?”
“I know the value of a good ally.” I tuck my gun away and roll up the sleeves of my shirt. “As a thank you for helping the Blackthornes double their business, you get half of the spoils.”
Rich barely manages to hide his surprise. “I don’t know what to say.”
As I brush past him, I pause to place a hand on his shoulders. “Don’t fuck this up, Donahue, or else you’ll have me to answer to.”
With that, I brush past him and step outside.
On the streets, several more Blackthorne men are arriving. They all look relieved to see me, and a few even exchange surprised looks when Rich emerges, his own men in tow. I wait until I’m in the SUV before I take my anger out on the passenger seat of the car. I punch it a few times while Ernesto drives us through the streets of the city, not daring to say a word.
“Goddamn it. How the hell did Lilian manage to get their protection? What the hell did she offer them?”
Ernesto meets my gaze in the rearview mirror. “My guess is she promised to ruin you if she couldn’t have you.”
“Fucking bitch.” I run my fingers through my hair. “I need to find her and kill that article before she finds out that Isabella and I are engaged. Otherwise, nothing is going to stop her from posting it.”
And I have no idea how bad the damage is going to be.
From what little I’ve been able to glean, Lilian is not holding back any punches.
She’s gunning for my family and me, and she’s not exactly making a secret of it.
When I get home, I find Isabella working on a few sketches in the study. Even though I’m dirty, sweaty, and covered in blood that isn’t my own, Isabella doesn’t say anything. Wordlessly, she leads me upstairs and helps me strip out of my clothes. In the shower, she scrubs every inch of my skin twice until the water swirling beneath our feet is filthy.
I can’t stop thinking about the fact that I might lose her.
In the morning, Tristan and I are out on the docks when we run into Rich and a few of his men. He doesn’t look happy to see us, and when I approach him, more and more of his men emerge from the shadows.
Unease settles in the center of my stomach as I glance around. “What’s going on here?”
“I really was hoping to avoid all this.” Rich makes a vague hand gesture. “I’m sure you’ve realized by now that there’s not enough room in this city for more than one powerful family.”
I frown. “I’m well aware of that.”
Was Rich unhappy with the business I gave him? Was he trying to shake me down for more?
I take a step forward and offer Rich an encouraging smile. “I’m sure we can talk about this—”
Rich holds his hand up and bridges the gap between us. “I don’t think so.”
Without warning, he draws his hand back and punches me squarely in the face. I spit out a mouthful of blood at his feet and throw myself at him. Rich and I fall onto the uneven ground, kicking up dust and dirt as we roll around. I manage to get in a few more punches before I’m being pulled to my feet.
Two of Rich’s men hold me back. A third lands a kick to my stomach. I don’t hiss or cry out because I don’t want to give him the satisfaction.
Why hadn’t I listened to my gut with this guy?
Jesus fucking Christ. Of course, he’s working with the Philipses and the Natoris.
Rich uses the back of his hand to wipe the blood away. Then he strolls over to where they’re holding me. Another one of his men forces me to my knees so I’m looking up at Rich. Gone is the shy and indecisive man who approached me, and in his place is a man with a cold gleam in his eyes and a calculating smirk that fills me with more dread than I’d like to acknowledge. Now, he looks just like his brother, Jacob.
He better not touch a hair on Isabella’s head.
“Fucking Rich Donahue. I should’ve known you couldn’t be trusted as an ally.”
