6. Cian

As I watchVictoria walk away, I feel a sense of unease settle in my gut. I trust her, but the idea of her going to Castle alone makes me nervous. We are rivals down to the bone, and while a truce was called on BlackBriar soil a couple of months back, her going there alone isn't something I'm happy about. But right now, she is raw, edgy and burying it all deep under her smile. I know my girl better than anyone. She is relieved, happy she got rid of the monster who hurt her, but that doesn't take the memories away. If anything, it brings them all back.

I should fucking know. I've been doing a bang-up job of reburying all of my old wounds since Oisin's death. His wake is tomorrow, but I won't be going. Robert knows I won't be, so that's the end of that as far as I'm concerned.

I know Victoria is capable of handling herself. She's proven that time and time again, and I trust her judgement. If she thinks it's best to go alone, then that's what she needs to do.

I turn to Luke and Gianluca, who are both watching me carefully. "Let's get to work," I say. "We need to find out everything we can about this threat."

Luke nods, his expression grim. "I'll contact my father and see what he knows. He's been in the game a long time, so he might have some insight."

Gianluca's jaw clenches. "I'll talk to my parents, too. They've always been open with me about this sort of thing. Maybe they can shed some light on what's going on."

As they both turn to leave, I feel a sense of gratitude towards them. They may not be blood, but they're my family, and I know they'll do whatever it takes to keep BlackBriar and us safe.

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to push down the fear that's bubbling up inside me. I can't afford to let it unfocus me. I need to stay steady and do whatever it takes to protect what's mine.

I shake my head and push the thoughts aside before I pull out my phone and start making calls, reaching out to my contacts in the Gannon family underworld to see if anyone has any information on this new threat and to ask why the fuck I wasn't told about it in the first place.

But I get it. The world of the mafia is constantly changing, and it's hard to keep up with who's in charge and who's trying to take over. But one thing is for sure: I won't let anyone hurt Victoria or Luke and G.

"Sinclair," I murmur. "What's this I hear about next gen being targeted? Did no one think it was information I should know about?"

I listen intently as Sinclair fills me in on the small details they have, my anger rising with every word.

"They're new on the scene," he says. "Trying to make a name for themselves."

"Got a name for me?"

"Not yet. Working on it."

"Is it connected to Castle?"

"Could be indirectly. But Dunsany was definitely hit."

"Dunsany…"

"Lake District."

"Ah, yeah. I want everyone on this. And, Sinclair? Do not ever leave me out of this shit again?"

"Sorry, sir. It wasn't intentional. Your father?—"

"Fuck that. I'm the boss now, and everyone needs to get fucking on board with it. If there is anything else?"

"No, sir."

"Fine." I hang up.

This is unacceptable. We need to act fast, but we also need to be smart about it. There's no room for mistakes in this game.

Luke and Gianluca return, their expressions equally grim. They've clearly had similar conversations.

"What did you find out?" I ask, trying to keep my voice even.

Luke runs a hand through his hair. "My father confirms that there's a new player on the scene. He doesn't know much, but he's heard rumours of a group called the Red Reapers. They're small, but they're vicious."

Gianluca nods in agreement. "My parents have heard the same thing. They're still trying to gather more information, but it's not looking good."

I try to contain my anger. "We need to take them out before they have a chance to do any real damage at BlackBriar."

Luke nods. "I agree. But we need to be careful. We don't want to tip them off that we're onto them."

"Does anyone have any fucking clue who is behind it? Is it Kellerman?"

"No ideas from my side," Gianluca says. "But Kellerman was ruled out. Mrs Kellerman?—"

Luke snickers.

Gianluca glares at him. "What? That's who she is."

"Fine. Fine. Carry on, Your Princeliness."

"Fuck you, asshole," he mutters, and I clap my hands together, a sharp crack that makes them refocus.

"Mrs Kellerman is too small time for this. The Red Reapers might be small themselves, but they have cash. Lots of it. Drugs, mostly, my dad thinks."

"Good. We need to find out where that money is coming from and cut it off at the source," I say, my mind already racing with potential plans.

"Agreed," Luke says, his expression thoughtful. "I can see if my father knows anything about their distribution channels. Maybe we can intercept a shipment and send a message."

Gianluca nods. "I can reach out to my contacts in the police force. See if they've had any run-ins with this group and if they have any intel on their operations."

"I'll work on finding out more about their leadership and hierarchy," I say. "We need to know who we're dealing with if we're going to take them down."

"Agreed. The masks need to drop. We will neutralise this threat before they even think about setting foot on BlackBriar's campus," Luke says.

"Right, let's dig and dig deep," I say, then frown when my phone rings. Swiping my thumb across the screen, I answer it. "Yeah?"

"Word's just come in," Sinclair says. "Seems the troops have rallied."

I glance at Luke and G and smile. "What have you got for me?"

"They've hit the Norwich campus. Three students are in the hospital, two in critical condition. The police are on high alert, but they don't have any leads yet."

A cold, hard knot forms in my stomach. This is it. This is the moment I've been training for my entire life. The moment when I have to step up and lead. "Norwich? What the fuck do they have to do with next gen?"

"Nothing."

The word is like a dead weight, dragging me under the surface of confusion. This doesn't make sense.

"Red herring?"

"Could be. Or it could be one particular student, maybe? We're looking."

"Look fucking harder," I growl.

"On it, sir."

"I want you to get me every single piece of information you can find on the Red Reapers. Emails, texts, chats, financials, everything. We need to know who they are, where they're coming from, and what their next move is going to be."

"Yes, sir. I'm on it."

I hang up the phone and turn to Luke and Gianluca. "This just went from annoying as fuck to a bit weird."

"I know a guy at Norwich," G states. "Let me see what I can find out."

I nod as he disappears and stare at Luke. "Where is he?"

"Asher Quinn? In a vat of lye under the stage with his two sons."

"Is that the best place for this?"

"Needed a quick setting. The doors have been barricaded with a notice saying: hazardous. We only need a few days, and then we can move them."

Nodding, I let out a sigh. "This is a small shitshow and we need to contain this bollocks before anyone else ends up fucking dead on our campus."

"Agreed."

We share a nod of understanding, and then he leaves me to contemplate who could be behind the Red Reapers. The trouble is, this world is full of assholes just waiting to make their move.