Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

Fred

When I was a little boy and my mother was far too drunk to keep an eye on me, my father would bring me to his meetings. My earliest memory was at the age of five, and all I could recall was a ton of yelling, finger-pointing, and on occasion somebody throwing something against the wall.

At the last meeting I'd gone to with my dad, one of his lieutenants—Hank, who was now dead—had threatened a shot-caller for not making his quota. It had turned into an all-out brawl. That was the moment I'd realized I never wanted to be the boss of these buffoons.

It was a dead dream because here I was, seated at the head of a large rectangular table, listening to Finn, one of my lieutenants, call out two of Lorcan's—a shot-caller—enforcers for not doing their job and kneecapping someone for nonpayment.

"You're fuckin' crazy, Finn. Jimmy is paralyzed, feels nothing below the waist. Why would I have Brody or Arthur ineffectively break the legs of someone who can't use 'em?" He stubbed out his cigarette rather aggressively. "I do my job; my guys do their jobs. Maybe mind your business. If you're bored, go fuck something."

Finn picked up an ashtray and was about to toss it at Lorcan's head, so I stood.

"Enough!" I shouted, a headache beginning to form behind my eyes.

"Finn, he makes a good argument. The punishment would have been for nothing. Lorcan, how'd you end it with Jimmy?"

"Brody took his wheelchair. Told him if he don't get us the money in two days, we torch it along with his store…and he'll be in it."

"Seems fair." Uncle Sean shrugged. "Give it forty-eight hours." He directed his attention to Finn. "Think smarter, not harder."

"I agree." I cocked my head at Lorcan and asked, "Why'd you send enforcers to deal with Jimmy and not one of your soldiers?"

"They had collections, and Patrick and Oran had gone to the deli twice already. Figured he needed a scare."

Logical, even if thinking about a paraplegic without a wheelchair made me want to puke.

"You're becoming weak." Finn sat back down, shaking his head.

"Fuck you." Lorcan leaned across the table. "Wanna wake up on fire, shitbag?"

"Hey!" I pushed Lorcan's shoulder, so his ass hit the seat. "Respect."

"Come on, Boss. Because he's higher up, I get none and he gets it all?" Lorcan huffed. "Bullshit."

I didn't get a chance to respond because Sean turned and punched Lorcan square in the jaw, toppling him, chair and all, to the floor.

"That's the boss you're talkin' to!" Sean loomed over a bleeding Lorcan. "Learn your place or lose your life."

This was the violence I could never be part of. If it weren't for my uncle Sean, I'd likely already be dead. I never retaliated like he did, and I found myself wondering why he couldn't take over in my place.

Lorcan glared at my uncle for a moment, then slowly rose and nodded to Finn and me. "Sorry."

"Is there any other business we need to discuss?" I made sure to meet every eye in the room. I was exhausted, my feet ached, and my spine felt as if it were going to crumble, but I'd show no sign I was hurting.

"There's a property for sale between Norport and Danford," Hugh, the shot-caller for section three, Norport, said. "Rory and I think it'd make a nice club, good revenue, and we'd split it fifty-fifty."

Rory nodded when I looked at him. "What's it selling for?"

"It's three thousand square feet selling at one fifty." Rory lit a cigarette.

Finn was my lieutenant and advisor regarding money, so I deferred to him.

"It can be done. You each get fifty-fifty, but you kick up percentages as you would all your properties, got it?"

They agreed and made arrangements to figure it all out.

"If we're done here, Uncle Sean, I need to speak with you privately."

They all cleared out and once the door was closed and Aiden was on the other side, making sure nobody inadvertently entered, I tried to speak first but Sean beat me to it.

"Before you start, Fred, is this about Aine?"

I sighed and nodded. "Aiden heard the lieutenants talking about how her presence is causing problems. I know I made a promise that I could get her to the top, but it's been three years, and they aren't budging. Hell, they're getting angrier."

He leaned back and sipped his brandy. "Yeah, I figured."

"If I keep pushing, it won't end well."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'll talk to her."

"How about we all go out for drinks tonight? We can tell her together. I still want her to be involved. She's brilliant, but maybe in a more secretive position."

Sean scoffed. "She'll hate it."

"I know, and I'm sorry." Shaking my head, defeat suffocated me. "I hate this job, I suck at it, and I don't want it. The one person who does and would kill at it isn't welcome because they're a woman. Such bullshit."

Uncle Sean reached over and squeezed my hand. "I love you like a son, Fred, and Aine loves you like a brother. We both know how hard you tried to make this happen, and we don't fault you one bit."

"Why don't you take over?"

Sean burst out laughing. "These guys, they're of the mind that the eldest son takes over when the father dies. None of them know you're gay, and they won't hear it from me. Only if they knew that would I stand a chance."

"What if I stepped down and gave it to you?"

"They'd kill you, and you know it."

"Maybe, but I think I'd have a better shot of convincing them you're a better fit than Aine. And besides, I'm not popping out any kids, so the line will die with me. You're saying they'd just disband? I don't think so, Uncle Sean."

"Fred, I don't have a son. It would defer to the next male of age and closest to you in relation."

"Who would that be?" I was wracking my brain, thinking of the family tree. Aine had no children yet, so maybe it would've been her son. Sean only had Aine.

"It would actually be Aiden, your driver."

True, the driver tended to be the next in line if there was no mafia heir, but Aiden was related to me?

"I know the hierarchy that my driver would step up in my absence, but relation wise?"

"He has both. He's in line, but he's your second cousin. His parents are dead but he'd be the next up and honestly, not a bad choice."

"But I can't step down?"

Uncle Sean shook his head. "Not in the way you're thinking. Unless down is six feet under."

One way or another, this job was going to kill me.

"One step at a time." I smiled and stood. "Drinks tonight."

"Make it tomorrow night. Let's do dinner."

I cocked my head. "Why tomorrow? I'm free tonight. and I'm betting anything you are too."

He tilted his head toward something over my shoulder, and I spun to look out of the small window in the door. Aiden was standing there with someone whom I thought I'd expressed quite clearly that I didn't want to see.

"Fucking Zion."