Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 100416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100416 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 402(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Aiden blinked, then blinked again. Understanding dawned across his face, and the change might have been amusing under other circumstances. “You love her.”
Dmitri didn’t dignify that by addressing it. “I will do what it takes to ensure she’s safe and happy—and that includes removing you permanently from her life if it becomes necessary. You had her on the road to drinking herself to death and living in misery, and you never once pulled your head out of your ass to realize how close you were to losing her. I will not make the same mistake.”
Aiden rocked back on his heels. “I’ll take that into consideration.”
He let the subject of Keira go. If her brother was willing to listen to reason long enough to put it on the back burner, Dmitri could do no less. As long as Aiden didn’t fuck things up for him tonight, the rest would fall where it may. “Finding Alethea would have been more effective if we had worked together.”
“You’re right.” Aiden scrubbed a hand over his face. “We should have been able to find her before now.”
“She’s being careful and not leaving a trail.” Dmitri hesitated. Although he always played his cards close to his chest, there was one factor of the upcoming scenario that Aiden needed to know about. “John Finch contacted me.”
“You’re joking.”
“Hardly.” Dmitri leaned against his desk and crossed his arms over his chest. “He’s been trying to get enough evidence to bring me down for years. I’m aware of it. He knows I’m aware of it. It’s a game we play, because they’ll never find anything incriminating, but he’s too proud to admit that.”
“What’s that have to do with anything?”
He held on to his patience through sheer force of will. If Alethea attacked, having Aiden and the rest of the O’Malleys on his side would be invaluable. “Someone has been interfering with the cameras they have set up. It’s happened several times over the last couple days, all for approximately five to ten minutes. It’s not my doing, which means someone else wants access to this house without the eye of the government on them.”
“Why the fuck would he tell you that…” He stilled. “Does he honestly want us to believe this is for Charlie? He already made his priorities painfully clear when it came to her versus his job.”
Dmitri crossed his arms over his chest. “Have you seen him since the events at the Eldridge warehouse?”
“No. He’s called Charlie a couple times, but she’s not ready to see or talk to him.”
That lined up with what Charlie had told Keira—and the desperation he’d seen lurking in John Finch’s eyes. “You know that saying that you don’t know what you have until you lose it? Finch is old. His career has an expiration date on it, though it’s not for years yet. He might have been disappointed with his so-called disgraced daughter, but she was still his daughter. And now it comes out that she was never a dirty cop and she removes herself from his life in one fell swoop?” He shrugged one shoulder. “He wasn’t able to protect her—not from the dirty cops who got her kicked off the force and not from Mae Eldridge. He couldn’t even ensure that Mae stayed locked up until her trial. He’s a smart man. He knows Mae will want to finish what she started, and he knows that the Eldridges would see this reception as too tempting to ignore. All their enemies in one place? Even if Alethea could resist, Mae won’t be able to.”
Aiden’s expression might as well have been stone, not a single one of his thoughts flickering through his eyes. “This is all just theory.”
“It’s theory grounded in fact.”
Aiden finally dropped into the chair. “If I were Alethea Eldridge, I’d attack tonight. Maybe not something direct, but I’d do it to prove you aren’t strong enough to protect your guests, or your people.”
“That would be my play as well.” He sank into the chair next to Aiden. No power plays. No trying to avoid the fact that they were equals. From the way the man’s green eyes widened ever so slightly, Aiden recognized the symbolism. Dmitri leaned forward. “I’m reasonably confident I can repel whatever she throws at me, but we need to stop fucking around. I don’t want Boston.”
Aiden’s expression gave nothing away. “I don’t want New York.”
“Then now’s the time to decide—are we going to cling to our tangled past and bring up the bullshit moves we’ve made against each other every time we interact?” He sat back. “Or are we going to put it all aside and focus on the future? You’ve seen what can be accomplished when the three power players in Boston stopped fighting and became true allies. Be my ally in truth, Aiden. Give me your word that you’ll stop the plots against me, and I’ll return the favor.”