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I get the feeling there may be some groveling in his future. I just don’t know if Layla is going to want anything to do with him now. She’s growing in leaps and bounds lately, deciding who deserves her time and who doesn’t.
Atlas glares at me, pissed I’m being closed-mouthed, so I close my eyes and pretend he doesn’t exist. Draven snorts, muttering, “Silly Atlas, tricks are for kids. Adults figure shit out by putting in the work. Stop looking for the shortcut.”
Yeah I think we’re definitely keeping him.
LAYLA
This corridor should be in a scary movie. I can hear people shouting, but can’t see them as I walk down the sparsely lit walkway. Seán strides with purpose ahead of me, knowing I’ll be following closely behind him. What the hell else would I do?
There’s clearly no way I’ll be trying to escape, not when I desperately want to see my uncle. I don’t know what kind of work he could possibly be doing for a crime family, though I’m sure it’s not legal.
I don’t even care about the legalities of shit, mostly because I don’t have a leg to stand on. I’m pretty sure Jack is bleeding out on the floor of the VIP room and I can’t bring myself to feel badly about it.
One of the light bulbs pops as I walk past it, causing me to stiffen. Thankfully I’m able to bite back a gasp. Fuck me, can we be there yet? This corridor is a hall of nightmares.
Someone steps out of the door in front of me, cutting me off. He’s wearing black plastic gloves, but it doesn’t change the splatter of blood I can see. There’s a man hanging from a hook in the room, passed out, and my jaw drops in surprise.
“What are you doing back here, girlie? Did you get lost or wander somewhere you’re not supposed to be?” he growls.
Stepping back quickly, it doesn’t seem to matter as he cruelly grabs the inside of my arm, squeezing so hard I whimper in pain.
“Hey! She's not yours,” Seán says gruffly, turning back to shove at the man’s shoulder. “Layla owes me a debt, so I need her in one piece. Let go of the girl, Bruin.”
The deep gravel tone of the head of this family makes me shiver in fear. Seán is the only person keeping me semi-safe right now, and I don’t know how long that’ll last.
“Why is she dripping blood on the floor?” Bruin asks, squinting at me. “She’s awfully tiny to be shedding people’s blood.”
“I’m sure everyone is tiny next to you,” I tell him. I’m trying to be brave, but there’s a tremor of fear that bleeds through. There’s a reason my sister has tried to keep most of the seedier side of life from me. It doesn’t appear to matter though, because I’m the poster child for finding trouble it seems.
“Hence the debt,” Seán grunts, tapping on Bruin’s hand. “Off, you brute. You’re the one getting blood on her now.”
Startling back to himself, he lets go. When he grabbed my arm, he also lifted me off the floor, so my heels hit the groundheavily. Seán steadies me, which surprises me, glaring at the man in front of him.
“Off you go, now. Clean yourself up, and then dispose of the body,” he barks.
Grimacing, Bruin shakes his head. “Bobby didn’t give me shit, so I’m not done with the arse yet. I was gonna grab me a snack before I wake him up,” he mutters.
“Go on, then,” Seán says, rolling his eyes. “You’re in my damn way.”
Nodding, Bruin almost scurries off under the weight of his boss’ stare, surprising me.
“I rule here, girlie. I don’t put up with bullshit either. Don’t dawdle, now. I’m sure that’s going to bruise,” Seán says, shaking his head as he looks at my arm before striding away.
Not wanting to get caught in this cursed hallway alone again, I walk quickly to keep up with him. I don’t pepper him with questions, because I don’t have a death wish, but there’s an awful lot of them running through my head.
What kind of debt do I owe? Where’s my uncle? What kind of place is this?
Forcing myself to breathe even as my ears ring, I listen to the punches happening behind closed doors, and the noises coming afterwards. Could they owe Seán money? Maybe offend him in some way?
“I need to check on some things, girlie. Don’t get any bright ideas about getting old Jordan out of here, because I doubt he’d go,” Seán says cryptically, stopping at a door. “I’ll give you just enough time to get your answers and see that he’s quite alive. How big your debt to this family is depends on whether or not Jack survives.”
“His death seems like a heavy price to pay for touching me, but I’m alright with it,” I tell him, looking up to meet his gaze. Ihate being so much shorter than everyone else. “It appears a lot of your men seem to have that problem.”
He can take it as a threat if he wants to, but the truth is I’ll be spending a lot of time talking my sister and brothers-in-law down if they see the bruise I can already feel forming.
“You and what army will teach them manners, girlie?” he scoffs. “There’s a sink in there to wash your hands.”
“Seán, I’m going to remind you that you don’t know who I am. It would be a very poor choice to hurt me or mine. I feel as if you’ve lived this long as the head of your family for a reason,” I say to him.
