Page 23 of Dublin Devil

I take the hit and find that some of the desperate disappointment and hurt that’s been aching inside me is turning to anger. That’s good. I’ve cried too many tears in the last twenty-four hours already.

“Take my father out of the equation. I don’t want to be kept hostage.”

He shrugs. “I’m sorry. With what we found out today, you’re stuck with me for the foreseeable future. We need to protect our edge, and I want to make sure someone is dedicated to protecting you.”

“My family can protect me. I truly don’t believe my parents would’ve sent me out with those men if they knew how brutal they could be.”

Sean frowns. “They’re Bratva, Piper. Everyone knows how brutal they can be. I’m sorry. It’s unforgivable, but your father chose a business foothold over you. That’s the truth. It’s vile and hurtful, but it’s the truth.”

“I know it is, and it sticks like a dagger in my heart. But maybe, this is my first big lesson in being part of the family business. The ‘blood in’ moment of initiation. Do you think?”

Sean’s eyebrows arch and are lost behind his ebony hair. “Are you fucking kidding? No, Piper, I don’t think. That’s mental. No one initiates their daughter by setting her up for that kind of abuse.”

I suppose he’s right. Although, my father has made crazy decisions before. Could I forgive him if he truly is losing his grip on reality? Still, if that were the case, why didn’t someone else step up and stop him?

Da doesn’t make decisions in isolation—he always likes an audience. Someone else knew of his plan and didn’t care enough about me to warn me.

I push that thought away for now and focus on my current untenable situation—being the house guest of Sean Quinn.

My tea is warm and has a lovely berry flavor with a hint of vanilla. And when I swallow it, I can’t help but smile. “Your Mam was right. Tea does help.”

We sit quietly until the room grows dark and Sean reaches over to turn on the bedside lamp. “I’m still surprised that you didn’t have protection on you. Even if his plan was to give you to the Russians, why didn’t your father have someone watching you?”

“Ryan was supposed to be there. When we came out of the restaurant, I was surprised to find he wasn’t. I thought hemight’ve been outside in the car, but when I ran out of the hotel, I was on my own. That’s another reason why I need to go home. Ryan is probably in terrible trouble.”

Sean doesn’t look convinced. “Your energy is better served to worry about yourself, not your brother. Mattie used you as a bargaining tool and when you ran, it made him look bad. He’ll take that out on you to save face. Like it or not, you’re not safe from your family right now.”

I hate what he’s saying, but part of me knows he’s right. If I get caught on the south side of the river, Billy Gravely will kill me.

He hurt me before and that was when I was ‘Da’s little girl’. What will he do now? Now that I’ve fallen from favor, there’s nothing to stop him.

The mug trembles in my hand and I take a long sip to keep from spilling it.

“I realize this is hard for you to accept, but your family isn’t a safe option for you. Whether they’re angry about you fighting with the Russians or that you’re here or that we figured out about the gun deal and are about to squash it, you’re in a dangerous position.”

I groan. “But none of that is my fault.”

“That changes nothing. You need to stay here, rest, and in a day or two, we’ll sort things out for you. By then, you’ll be recovering and feeling stronger.”

Sean is a growly biker with long hair and a scar that gives him a bit of a perma-sneer, but when he looks into my eyes, I see the man beneath the violence. His tough exterior likely serves him well while he’s torturing and killing people, but there’s another side to him.

The man who scooped up a beaten woman in the street and, despite who she was, offered her kindness, protection, and honesty.

I look away and focus on the darkening Dublin sky. Nothing in my life is what I thought it was. Was I too naïve to see, too eager to please, or too complacent to ask questions?

Doesn’t matter. That’s over.

Piper McGuire’s eyes are wide open now. “If I ask you a question, will you answer me honestly?”

“If it’s something I’m free to talk about, of course.”

Fair enough.“In the kitchen, Tag said my father deals in hard drugs, hit men, and sex trafficking. Is that true?”

“Among other things, but those are the three areas of focus for your family’s business. Why do you ask?”

I hear the truth in his words and another piece of what I believed my life was about chips away. “And your family controls party drugs, real estate, and guns?”

“We do.”