Aisling Chapter 19

I was trying to enjoy being at our beach house. It was one of my favorite spots, and all I had was great memories of it over the years. Our family came here a lot when we were kids. Not so much as adults, and I vowed to continue the tradition with our kids. Thinking of our kids made me scan for Alistair. He’d been like a great big lion since we got here. He prowled the entire house after doing the same outside. I got him inside by telling him it looked suspicious for him to keep walking the perimeter of the property. Besides, we had men hidden strategically along it.

They had orders to let Danvers and his people infiltrate. This would keep the people gathering outside safe. And yes, there were nosy bystanders and paparazzi out there already, and there would be more. The news that Aisling O’Sheeran, one of the notorious mafia family members, had gotten herself engaged exploded in media outlets. The fact they knew next to nothing about Alistair had them in a frenzy. We had no doubt they were frantically digging, trying to find out who he was and how we’d met. They’d find his cover story, which explained he worked as a security consultant but nothing about his actual work. Telling enough of the truth to make it believable was the trick to subterfuge.

Creed had taken himself to the smaller house on the property where guards stayed when they accompanied us. He was giving us privacy. As the hours passed, Alistair grew more tense. I knew I had to get him to relax. All accounts had Danvers not getting to Florida until tomorrow. He was driving across the country rather than flying, which made sense if he was bringing assassins or whatever you wanted to call them with him. I called them killers. They were entirely different from the Hounds.

Going to the front window where he was stealthily peeking out of it, I ran my hand up his back. He pressed into me. The tension in his body was felt under my hands. “Stair, you need to relax. They’re miles and miles away. Come for a swim with me.”

“Ais, he might’ve sent men ahead to scope the area.”

“He may have, but we’ll be alerted if they’re sighted. It’s dark. No one can see us at the beach. The water is brisk, but it’ll do us good.”

“Are you sure you want to get submerged in the water? It’s probably no more than seventy-some degrees,” he warned.

“I know, and I’ve swam in it much colder than that. I’m putting my foot down. We’re going.” I grabbed his hand and pulled it.

He resisted, and when I tugged even harder, he laughed. I kept it up until he followed me to our bedroom. I’d made sure to pack a bathing suit and his trunks. I may have a deranged maniac after me, but nothing said I couldn’t enjoy stolen moments while we waited for him and his goons to descend. We changed quickly. When I was done, I sent a text to Creed letting him know what we were doing and told him to stay away from the beach unless it was an emergency. I did the same to Kendric. He was with us as well and would pass it along to the men protecting the perimeter. I had more than a swim in mind. Gathering a blanket to take with us along with towels, I took his hand and hauled him outside. It was cooling off, but I didn’t mind. We’d soon be warmed up.

When we got to the beach, I spread out the blanket and lay the towels on it. I’d barely finished doing it when I was hoisted off my feet and over his shoulder. I held in my shriek, not wanting to have our people coming running, thinking I was in danger. He swiftly ran to the water. He didn’t throw me in, but he walked further and further out into the water. It hit my feet first. It was chilly, but I wouldn’t admit it. He kept going until most of me was submerged. It began to feel warmer. Of course, it didn’t come to his shoulders. I held onto him. He was staring down at me with a smile on his face, finally.

“You don’t need to hold me. I can hang onto you.”

“I like holding you. I need to do it, Ais. I’m praying so damn hard this goes off as planned, but there’s this fear inside that something will go wrong,” he admitted.

“ Mil , I know. I feel the same. You’re all about me being in danger, but if this guy is as bad as we think, he won’t hesitate to eliminate anyone between him and me. His hired killers most definitely won’t care. I can’t stand the thought of anything happening to you or the men, but especially you. You’re my soulmate, my heart. It’ll kill me if anything were to happen to you.”

He hugged me closer. “It won’t. I’m a hellhound,” he told me a second before he kissed me.

Dia , the man could kiss unlike anyone I’d ever kissed before. He took over not only my mind but my body, too. I eagerly chased his mouth and tongue for more when he teased me by pretending he was about to pull away. He chuckled. I nipped his bottom lip with my teeth as payback. This sent us into a battle. We were not only kissing and twining tongues but licking, sucking, and biting. By the time we took a time out, we were both breathing rather hard. I was turned on. I felt the slickness in my bikini bottoms, and my nipples were pressing against the cups of my top.

He let my legs down but held me up with an arm around my back. I pressed my body against his and let him feel my nipples. As I did, I wiggled a hand down to cup the bulge I knew I’d find in his trunks. He didn’t disappoint. His cock was a big hard monster begging for attention. I rubbed my hand up and down his length and gently squeezed it, then his balls. He groaned.

“You’re gonna let the beast out if you keep it up,” he warned me.

“Oh, I know. It’s my goal.”

The moon was out, so we had enough light to see each other. I gave him a devilish grin when I said it. He growled, and the next thing I knew, I was hoisted higher. This put his head at the level of my breasts. He used one hand to push a cup aside, then he latched onto my nipple and began to suck and use his teeth. I moaned loudly, not giving a damn if anyone heard me. While he was torturing my tit, he slid the hand away and down. Next, he was working a finger underneath the edge of my bottoms and between my slick pussy lips. I cried out brokenly. The rubbing of his calloused finger over my clit and piercing made me insane. If he did this for even a few minutes, I’d come.

I wasn’t able to reach his cock in this position. I whimpered. This made him let go of my tit. “What’s wrong?”

“I can’t touch you like this,” I complained.

“Good. If you did, I’d be shooting my load in the water. I don’t want that. I want to come inside of you.”

“I want you to too. Do it.”

“I will. Just be patient. First, I want to see you come apart as you come on my fingers. Let me see your face as you get your satisfaction, Ais,” he rumbled. His face was taut. He didn’t give me a chance to say anything before he was back to attacking my tit and fingering my pussy. When he thrust his fingers inside of me, I wailed. It felt incredible. I was quickly ramping up to an orgasm. The tension in my body was growing fast. I was really close when he stopped sucking and gave me an order.

“Come. Give me all the sweet goodness. I want your pussy good and wet for my cock.”

The feel of his fingers thrusting and rubbing over my G-spot and the image of his cock sinking into me was enough to hurdle me over the edge into an orgasm. His mouth took mine to hold in my scream as I climaxed. I bucked and jerked in his arms, and he kissed me until I was boneless. When I slumped in his arms, he let go and pulled his hand free of my bottoms.

He began to walk toward the shore, but I shook my head. “No, do it here. Fuck me here in the water. I can’t wait to get to the beach,” I begged him.

“You sure?”

“Yes, hurry,” I cried. Even after my intense release, I was desperate for him to be inside of me.

“Your wish is my command,” he growled.

He moved his arm under the water, and then I felt the crotch of my bikini bottoms get pulled to the side before I was lowered onto the hard, hot length of him. I moaned the entire time I sank onto him. He was groaning softly as I did. When I was full of him, he moved his hands to both of my hips. I had my hands clutching his biceps and my legs wrapped around his waist.

“Ride me,” he commanded.

As I used my legs and arms to raise up, he helped by lifting my hips. I was careful not to go too far. I didn’t want to lose him, not even for a second. I was always so deliciously full when he was inside of me. He stretched me so good.

As my speed increased, his breath became louder. I made sure to tease him as I rode him. I did more than bounce up and down. I twisted my hips and flexed my inner Kegel’s. He’d moan louder each time I did.

“Fuck! You make me insane, woman. There’s nothing in the world better than being buried inside of you. I don’t give a damn if it’s your very talented mouth, your wet, tight pussy, or that even tighter ass of yours. Shit, I’m close, Ais. So close,” he muttered a couple of minutes into our ride.

“I know what you mean. There’s nothing I love more than to have your glorious mouth or cock. You make me lose my mind, Stair. Help me. Harder. I want your cum bathing my pussy and womb,” I taunted.

This set him off. He slammed me up and down his cock harder and faster. I struggled to keep up. Suddenly, he buried himself to the root, held me there, and growled and grunted as his hot seed filled me. It triggered my own climax. We kissed to stay quiet as we came together. It was perfect bliss. By the time we were done, he staggered to the shore and over to the blanket. He lowered me to it, then fell down next to me. He tugged me into his body and covered me with the towels.

“I love you, Aisling.”

“I love you too, Alistair.”

We remained there, staring into each other’s eyes, and whispering words of love until it got too cold. Then, we grabbed our stuff and went inside.

???

I came rearing up in bed. It was dark, and I was disoriented. For a moment, I had no idea where I was, and then it came back to me. As it did, I knew what had woken me up. It was the alarm they’d set up, which would alert us when Danvers or any of his so-called men were spotted. Alistair was already out of bed on his feet and had his phone out. He’d be able to get updates on exactly where they were and an ETA for when to expect them to hit us, as well as the numbers. We’d gone to bed in minimal clothing, so at least I wouldn’t be naked if I didn’t have time to dress. I jumped out of bed and grabbed my top and pants next to it.

“When, where, and how many?” I asked as I tugged them on.

“Kendric says five to seven minutes out. They see six. No idea yet if one is Danvers. They have three coming from the north and three from the west.”

The east side was the ocean, and the south was protected by a huge rocky cliff. You could climb it, but it was dangerous and time-consuming. Some of the men were stationed outside the property and in the surrounding neighborhood to be our advance guard. Once they let the enemy pass them, they’d come up behind them. The remainder were behind the wall with us. I spent a moment praying that the paparazzi and other bystanders had gotten tired and went home for the night. I shuddered to think what might happen to them if they ran into any of the men coming.

“You need to get into the safe room,” he ordered. He was already fully dressed and had strapped on his weapons. I knew it would be useless and a waste of precious time to argue I could help. I’d do as he asked, but if it appeared that he or the others needed help, I wouldn’t stay there. I decided to keep that to myself.

“Okay, mil , I’m going. Be careful. I love you,” I told him. He came over and gave me a deep kiss before letting go of me.

“I will be, and I love you too. Now get in,” he said. He went to the wall next to the bed in the master bedroom where we were sleeping and pressed the hidden release. A door opened, and I went inside. As it was closing behind me, I went to a row of monitors we had in there connected to the security system. It would allow me to watch and hear what was happening.

The hardest thing was to sit there watching and waiting. I saw our men and Alistair slithering around the house and grounds. They were on point. While the enforcers and guards were good, Alistair and the Hounds were like ghosts. As inappropriate as it was, watching my man float from spot to spot, all geared up for battle, turned me on. What was wrong with me? I’d never been this sex-crazed in my life.

It wasn’t long before I saw other shadowy figures. I knew which were ours by the active infrared, IR, light they had on their shirts. It wasn’t visible to the naked eye, but with infrared goggles, they could see each other, and since the security cameras had light IR capabilities, I was able to see them, too. As more and more slunk across the screens, I saw there were more than six, but Alistair and the guys didn’t appear surprised, which told me he had been alerted but didn’t tell me. I wondered if more came after the initial report or if there had been more the whole time, and he lied so I wouldn’t worry. If this were the case, we’d have a talk later. I knew he wanted to protect me, but keeping important information to himself wasn’t the way to do it.

I counted a dozen foreign bodies now on the property, and I was dreading there might be even more waiting outside. Just what had Danvers promised these men to do the job? Including Alistair, we had seven men. He assured me when we came, it was more than enough. I didn’t doubt they were capable, but it still put it two-to-one for most of them.

I was so involved in watching Alistair mainly creeping up on and disposing of a man that I lost track of paying attention to one of the cameras. It was the one that showed the interior of the house, and it was in the hall leading to the master bedroom. It wasn’t until an alarm alerted me that I looked and saw it was the one in the hallway. He’d enabled only that one to alarm, although there were numerous others. He thought they’d be too distracting to me, and he was right. My heart leaped, seeing a dark figure not wearing an IR light creeping stealthily down the hall.

He stopped at each closed door between him and me, opening them cautiously, and checking them out before he would move to the next. Based on the picture on the wall, I knew where he was at. He had two more rooms before the master. I had to make a decision. Checking on the others again, I saw they were all occupied. There was no telling when any of them would realize there was someone in the house. Although there was no way to get into the safe room, even if he knew it was there, he was a threat to them if they came to check on me. My decision was made.

Going to the door, I eased it open only far enough to slip out. Then I sealed it back up. I had my gun out and ready. When the intruder came into this room, he was in for a big surprise. There would be no scared, helpless woman cowering under the bed. I was a damn O’Sheeran, and I didn’t cower from anyone.

I tiptoed to the darkest corner. It was well out of the faint light coming through the blinds. I wouldn’t trap myself in the closet. I crouched, took aim at the door, and waited. It seemed to take forever before I saw the door easing open slowly. A head peeked around it and then disappeared. It came back again. I concentrated on controlling my breathing. I was happy to see my hands were steady. The door moved inward more, and then the dark figure came inside, crouched lower to the floor. I watched him scan the room and then straighten. As suspected, he went right to the closet. I was waiting because I wanted him close and to be sure of what was behind him. If I shot him in the doorway, I risked hurting anyone behind him in the hall if the bullet went wide or through him. I wouldn’t risk it being one of ours or Alistair.

He stepped out of the closet and turned to go toward the bed. I let him. I was curious to see what he’d do if he didn’t find me. He kneeled down and looked under the bed. When he didn’t find me, he let out a low curse. I figured he’d leave, but to my shock, he went to the wall by the bed and began to feel the wall as if he knew there was a door there to the panic room. How the hell would he know that? No one who was involved in building it would tell. We didn’t contract that to outsiders.

The thing with the trigger was it had a well-hidden fingerprint scanner to it. So even if found, if your prints weren’t in the system, it wouldn’t open for you. I knew when he found this out. He let out a string of swear words.

“Motherfucking son of a bitch!”

I wanted to laugh at the frustration in his voice. Then he began to yell.

“I know you’re in there, bitch. You may think you’re safe, but I promise you, I’ll blow this fucking door off and get you. You’re dead. Nothing is saving you.”

I’d waited, seen, and heard enough. I eased out of the corner. I stayed low, and I slithered closer. I had a second at the most before he sensed me. I dropped lower before I spoke.

“You’re the one who’s dead.”

He swung to face me and shot. I knew he would, hence me being low. Most people shoot at waist height or higher automatically. The bullet whizzed over my head. I fired back, but I lined up my shot. It took him in the chest. That’s when I discovered he was wearing body armor. Fuck. Sure, I had on a vest, too, but I was hoping they wouldn’t. Either the others who were shot hadn’t, or Alistair and the others were using armor-piercing rounds, which I hadn’t put in my gun. If this ever happened again to me, I’d remember.

He doubled over in pain. I knew taking one to the vest knocked the wind out of you and incapacitated you for a few moments. Not wasting them, I raced over to him. He was trying to rise up and shoot me as I did. This time, I went for the head. My shot went true and took him between the eyes. He dropped like a stone.

I was too numb and worried about what was happening outside to let it sink in that I’d killed someone. I pushed it away to deal with it later. Even though I knew he was dead, I did check for a pulse. I hated to touch him, but it was better to be safe than sorry. No pulse. Leaving him there, I went to the closet. My vest was one of the ones used by Alistair and the team, so I knew they’d not mistake me for an enemy, or I hoped not. It wasn’t as if I could text them. It might distract them at the wrong time. I grabbed a spare set of goggles I saw Stair put in there when we got here. Slipping them on, I let my eyes adjust to the strange vision. If you’d never worn them, they messed you up, but like other things, I was no stranger to them.

Now that I was out, I didn’t want to go back in. What if they ended up needing help? Or more men had joined the first dozen while I was dealing with the asshole in the bedroom? I eased open the bedroom door and started a slow walk down the hallway. I had to check the rooms between the master and the end of the hall just as my assailant had in case someone had come in behind him and was waiting.

I was sweating by the time I made it to the end. Damn, this was nerve-racking work. How did Alistair do it all the time? I kept my finger off the trigger. If you don’t, you were just asking to accidentally shoot someone you didn’t want to shoot. A slight rustling sound to the left made me freeze. Swinging my head in that direction, I caught the reflection of the IR light. Hoping it was safe to reveal myself and there were no attackers in the room, I stood straighter and turned in his direction. The figure came hurrying over to me. When he got closer, I could see his face. It was Creed. He was scowling fiercely at me.

“What the hell are you doing out of the panic room? Do you want to get yourself killed? Or drive Alistair into a berserker rage?” he hissed as he grabbed my arm.

“I was helping. If you don’t think so, go check out the body in the bedroom. He knew about the safe room, Creed. The only reason he didn’t get in was because of the fingerprint scanner. How is that possible? And why was I told there were only six attackers, and I saw at least twice that come onto the property?” I snapped back.

He gave me a blank look, telling me they knew there were more than six men. I was gonna kick all their asses when this was over with. I drew back my foot and kicked him in the shin. I put on boots in the safe room as I watched. He sucked in a breath and pulled his leg back.

“Ouch, what the fuck was that for?”

“Being a damn pigheaded man like Stair. Let’s stop arguing and go help clean up this mess. Before you try to order me back into the room, it’s not happening, and if you try to force me, I’m screaming the whole house down. Tell me the truth. How many came, and how many are left?”

I knew he didn’t want to, but technically, he worked for me and not Alistair. He must’ve remembered this because he sighed and told me after only a couple of seconds of silence.

“There were a total of fifteen. They came in two rounds. Twelve in the first bunch, then the other three. They hung back far enough that the advanced guys never saw them. It wasn’t until they came up behind the first group and the one lookout left behind sighted them that we knew. The last I heard, we’ve killed ten.”

“Tell them it’s eleven. We need to clear the rest of the house. I don’t know if more are in here.”

It was kinda dangerous for us to be standing here yapping, and he recognized it. He pushed on his earpiece. “Eleven. Got primary. Clearing the house. Over.”

I had no idea what was said back, but the way he flinched made me guess it wasn’t good. He tugged me to stand behind him and to his left. “You cover my six. I go in first, and you stay down and to my left. Do not get ahead of me in my field of vision. Got it?”

“I know how this is done. I was trained. Go.”

As fast as we could go without giving ourselves away, we worked the first floor. It was empty. Heading up the stairs to where there were more bedrooms, bathrooms, and an office, we crept up the stairs. I was happy they were kept in such good repair. They didn’t creak and give us away. We’d cleared the first bedroom when I heard noises coming from the office, which was at the far end of the hallway. Exchanging a puzzled look with Creed, we started in its direction. I knew he didn’t want to leave potential enemies at our backs, so we cleared the rooms between us and the office as fast as we were able. When we got to it, we’d found no one in them.

Using hand signals, he counted off before opening the door. We heard mumbling and swearing coming from inside, but there was no light on. I stayed back and went in low and to the left while Creed went right. When we got inside, I saw there was light from a flashlight. There was a person at the wall where we had a safe. He was busy trying to break into it. Not far from him was another man. They were so into what they were doing they didn’t know we were there.

“Have you got that damn thing open yet!? They can’t keep them off us forever. I had no goddamn idea she’d have so many men protecting her. Travis must’ve found the whore in her hidey-hole and killed her ass. He’s taking his time getting here. It’s been long enough since the shots downstairs,” the second man, who was shorter, said.

The one at the safe gave an impatient huff. “Listen, this isn’t easy. This is a top-of-the-line safe. It takes finesse and time to do this. I need silence. You’re the one who insisted we hit this while we were here. I said we should just get rid of her and go. Yeah, I didn’t expect the number of men, but they’re no match for my men. You just be ready to pay us what you promised,” he warned.

I caught Creed’s signal to get down and move further left, so I did it while he did the same to the right. It brought us up behind the two men. I was behind the short one. Holding up three fingers, Creed lowered them to make a fist. As soon as he did, we stood tall, and he called out.

“Put your hands in the air. Do it now, and don’t make any sudden moves,” he barked.

The men froze. I heard the swift inhalations. I was ready. As far as I could tell, they weren’t holding guns, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have them.

“Do it!” Creed shouted.

Their hands came up. When all four hands were in the air, he flipped up his goggles, and I followed suit. I knew what he was about to do. The lights came on. It was rather blinding, but I kept my eyes squinted on the intruders. They were even more blinded. As our eyesight cleared, as if tied together, we moved in sync over to the two men. I saw the man I was approaching rear back in surprise when he saw my face. He knew who I was, and as I stared at him, I recognized who he was. It was my good luck to catch Danvers Kelly. He’d accompanied his hired assassins, after all.

“You!” he hissed.

“You, I’d like to say it was nice to meet you, Danvers, but then it would be a lie. You were a fool to think you could come after me or my family and not be stopped.”

“How do you know who I am and that I was coming after you?”

“Securing him,” Creed called to me.

I kept watch on Danvers as Creed holstered his gun, then jerked the other man’s hands behind his back and slapped flex restraints on his wrists. When he was secured, searched, and his weapons removed, it was my turn.

“Securing,” I called back to Creed. He nodded. As I holstered my gun, Danvers must’ve felt he could grab me before he would be shot by Creed, or he’d be able to use me as a shield or maybe a hostage because the fool lunged for me. Unfortunately for him, I wasn’t an idiot, and I was prepared. When he came flying at me, I automatically drew back my fist and smashed it into his jaw. He dropped like a rock and lay on the floor unmoving. I rolled his deadweight ass onto his stomach and secured his hands behind his back. When I was done, I advanced on the other man, who was watching me wide-eyed. I’d had enough of this shit.

My fist ached a bit, but I wasn’t letting them know it. It might ruin my badass bitch status. I got in his face. “If you don’t want to end up like your buddy here or way worse, you’d better tell me what you were doing here and what he offered you to do it.”

“Lady, I don’t snitch. You’ll have to ask him.”

“You don’t snitch. Well, we’ll have to see if you stick to that after they get done with you.”

“I’m not afraid of your bodyguards,” he sneered.

“You might not think you should be, and that’s fine because when her man gets in here, he’ll put the fear of God in you. Anyone trying to touch a hair on her head is dead, and they likely won’t go easily or quickly,” Creed told him.

A groan from Danvers diverted my attention back to him. Creed grabbed his prisoner and marched him to a nearby chair. He shoved him in it. As he did, he pressed on his earpiece again. “Two secure in the office. Primary is still safe.”

He listened for almost a minute. As he did, he kept busy by picking Danvers off the floor and throwing him into another chair, even though he was still mostly insensible. He was beginning to come around, but he wasn’t fully with it. His eyes were still shut. Creed snickered when he got off the radio.

“Damn, you must’ve given him a helluva pop to the jaw, Aisling. We’ll have to start calling you Rocky. Maybe I should let you loose on this idiot,” he gestured to Mr. No Snitch.

I chuckled and was about to tell him I’d gladly do it when I was interrupted by the appearance of men in the doorway. The way Creed didn’t react, he knew they were coming, but the dog didn’t tell me. In the lead was my man, and he wasn’t amused. He was glaring and had a savage expression on his face. It was enough to scare me. He marched directly toward me.

“We’ll talk later,” he growled.

I chose not to say anything. If he wanted to reprimand me, it better be in private. I knew Daid and Mam strongly disagreed at times, but they kept it between them. We never truly saw them fight, even though we knew it had to happen. He gave me a hard, brief kiss. When he was done, he gave his attention to our prisoners.

The alert one was checking him out. Danvers gave a loud moan, and his eyes fluttered open. They widened when he saw everyone standing there. I knew Alistair recognized him. I watched Danvers’ throat bob as he swallowed. There was no way he didn’t know he was in deep shit, and there was no way out.

“Your other men are dead. A cleanup crew will be coming to dispose of their remains. No one will know what happened to them. As for you two, I want information, and you’ll give it to me,” Alistair informed them.

“That one isn’t a snitch, according to what he said. I warned him, but he seemed sure he wasn’t scared of any of you,” I gladly explained.

Stair folded his big arms across his chest and scowled more. “Oh, he’s not, well, more fun for us. I promise you before we’re done, you’ll tell me everything I want to know. You think you’re a bunch of big bad assassins. I beg to differ. You’re thugs for hire. You were stupid to ever take this job,” he told the lackey.

“Mister, I have no beef with you. It was just a job. I don’t have a horse in this race. Let me walk, and you’ll never hear or see me again.”

“I can’t do that. See, then I’d always have to look over my shoulder wondering if you might get stupid again and come after me and mine. I don’t live with threats. I eliminate them. It’s what makes me the leader of the Hounds of Justice.”

Danvers’ friend went pale when he heard the Hounds of Justice. It was clear he’d heard of them. His words confirmed it.

“Y-you’re a Hound, the head Hound?”

“I am. So you’ve heard of us.”

“Everyone who’s anyone in our line of work has heard of the Hounds.”

“What’s your name?” Alistair asked.

“It’s Beck, Josiah Beck.”

“Well, Beck, we’re not in the same business, not even close. See, the Hounds bring justice to those who deserve it. We don’t target innocent people for personal gain, greed, or revenge. This bastard here came after her for no other reason than he’s jealous of her success and wants to get one over on a sister he’s never met.”

Beck looked over at Danvers in disbelief. “You said they stole money and land from you and were responsible for ruining your life and had been threatening you.”

“They did. She’s ruining my business because her aunt, my half-sister, ruins everything. She drove my dad out of Florida with threats from her mafia family and thought I was gonna let her ruin my family’s life work!”

I stared at him open-mouthed. He truly sounded as if he believed what he was saying. The guy was nuts. I stood there waiting to see what Alistair would say or do. I knew he wouldn’t let either man live.