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He gives me an unsteady look. “Wait, what did you do to her?”
I realize now that the only person I told that to was Tristan, and he doesn’t look to be here right now. I know I’ve been giving him quick jobs at some of the job sites and not having him around all that much, but I could have sworn I told him to be here tonight. He’s typically pretty dutiful about being on time, too, better than I am, but still, I can’t make out his face in the kitchen or outside on the back porch.
“Nothing,” I tell Ernesto, waving the topic off in an attempt to drop the subject for the night. “It’s nothing. Hey, have you seen Tristan?”
“He called, and I told him everyone was here,” Anita cuts in.
Ernesto only shrugs. “I haven’t heard anything from him. He would be here by now if he knew it was going on. You did tell him, right.”
I can only bury my face into my hands, the smell of Italian soup lingering all over my skin and in my hair. “Fuck if I know. I’m losing my damn mind.”
“Been there,” Anita chirps.
“Let’s just get this meeting going.”
Ernesto waves the guys inside from the back porch, and I track who all is here, but it doesn’t seem right. Not only is Tristan not here, but Nicolas isn’t either. I have to force myself to be calm, to remain levelheaded so I can get through this talk. But seeing him blatantly ignore my order to be here is a little frustrating.
It’s more than frustrating, actually, but I have to bury it for now.
I nab Tristan’s younger brother, Paul. It’s weird to see him here without his twin sister, Luce, but I try to keep the women out of this family dynamic as much as possible. It’s not in my nature to put them in immediate danger, but I know Paul would rather his other half be here than his older brother.
“Have you talked to Tristan much?” I ask, pulling him off to the side while everyone settles in the living room.
His boyish features soften slightly, like he thinks he is in trouble or something. “No, not really. I called him earlier today, but he just talked about Sam and Isabella. Not you.”
I nod, letting him walk away when his words finally breach my brain. I grab him by the shoulder and yank him back into the spot he was just in.
“What did he say about Isabella, exactly?”
He looks nervous as hell, which is pretty understandable. I’ve been on a rampage lately, and most of the family has taken the brunt of it. It hasn’t been without warrant, of course, but watching me strike Nicolas in retaliation to his smart-ass behavior lately wouldn’t go over well.
“Hey, relax, kid. You’re not in trouble. Just tell me what he said about Isabella.”
After a brief pause, he catches his breath and says, “He talked about Isabella and Rich Donahue. He said she was upset because everyone thought she was cheating but that he was actually really nice to her. She’s been talking to Tristan a lot, too. He drove her to the phone store today, and she vented about the situation with Lilian and—”
I step forward, knowing I need to get my temper under control, but it’s becoming impossible. His eyes widen in horror, waiting for something terrible to happen, but I keep my tone and volume down to a manageable, semi-calm level.
“What did he say about Lilian, Paul?”
He swallows so hard that I can hear thegulpof his throat. “I shouldn’t have said anything about it, Carter.”
“TELL ME!”
Any semblance of me trying to be calm is thrown out the window. Not just that, but it’s thrown out the window, tumbled down the hill in the backyard, and then kicked down every door from here to fucking Boston. Even while I try to maintain my sanity, I want to rip my way through this family and leave nothing in my trace.
I want revenge and control again.
How to do that, I’m not so sure, but I have to figure it out before it’s too late.
I pat Paul on the shoulder, ushering him to sit down. Anita clutches her ladle in the kitchen like it’s a warning she’ll slap me if I get close, but she gives in eventually and sets it down in the pot of soup. I wait for her to scurry off to bed and for Paul to settle after my outburst, and I face the onlookers in the living room.
“I’m fucking done with this shit,” I bite.
I storm to the middle of the group, looking at these men I have had as a family ever since I was young. They have seen me through my life and loss and picked me up off the floor more times than I can count. In return, I’ve tripled our wealth and quadrupled our power, so I’m not sure how it’s for any of them to spread such bullshit through the gossip mill.
I’m going to shut it down.
“The first person who can get Lilian McCoy to give up this attack against me gets a raise and a promotion. I don’t care how it happens or what is done to get her to back off. I just need results, dammit.”
