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"The guys said you brought her here," he deadpans. Though, my cousin has never been great with emotions.

"I did."

"Why?" he asks. If I had sent John, he probably would’ve shot the girl and moved on. Or maybe he would have relayed a very nice threat to get the point across and made her run across the country and never come home. My father gave John the same lessons as me, the same rules to abide by. But the only one that has ever truly stuck in his head isfamily, above all.And at the end of the day, he'll do whatever it takes to protect the family.

There is no ending where John would have brought the girl home.

Maybe that's because he has his own girl at home, waiting for him. But I digress.

The truth is, I'm not sure why I brought Olivia here. I can boil it down to the turmoil in my head and my inability to kill a woman due to a moral code my father imprinted on me at a young age.

But part of me knows that I just wanted her here. Even if I don't understand why.

I shrug again, and John scoffs at my lack of an answer.

After draining his glass, I watch him discard it onto the side table as he leans forward, resting his forearms on his thighs while his eyes lock with mine. "This is dangerous, ya know."

His words bring forth what my brain has been screaming.

Keeping a witness alive, bringing her into my home — those are bad moves.

"It will be fine." I dismiss his concerns, though my gut nags at me that danger is looming. I've only been out for a little over twenty-four hours. I just killed the acting boss of this family. Everything is chaos, and I decided to take a prisoner.

"We're not in the clear," John adds. "We have a problem with the Iron Serpents."

The name of the motorcycle club grates at my ears, and my chest aches, feeling like someone stabbed a knife right into my heart. I rub at the organ, trying to dull the sensation that rockets through my body every time someone mentions those snakes.

We've been focused on getting me out of prison since my uncle put me away. John's quest for justice on my behalf ultimately led to him killing Marcus, though our cousin didn't leave him much of a choice when he kidnapped Zoe. And once I was released, I was focused on taking out Damien. And then everything with Olivia…

There hasn't been much time for John and me to discuss anything else.

"What happened?" I ask, trying to hide the pain in my voice. John knows that the Iron Serpents grate on me, that even hearing their name sends me back to being that ten-year-old boy, desperate to save his mother, but who failed miserably. I don't need to hide myself from my cousin, my best friend. Butstill, the idea of showing my vulnerability has me reaching for a refill. I won't be weak in front of anyone.

John sighs, his eyes on my glass as I pour more cognac. "They've been moving into our territory while we were distracted by Marcus and Damien." John leans back, his face tight with concern. "They've taken over some of our neighborhoods. Two of our dealers have been injured, and another two are dead. They're coming for the Quarter next."

My blood simmers. The fucking snakes. First, they took my mother, and now they're trying to take everything else. I down the rest of my drink, the burn in my throat matching the anger in my chest. I can't let them run this family into the ground.

"How many?"

"At least thirty members spotted in the Quarter. They're operating out of that old warehouse on Tchoupitoulas."

I grip the crystal tumbler so hard, I'm surprised it doesn't shatter.

"We need to send a message. Clear them out, block by block, if we have to." John leans in closer, his voice deadly serious.

My cousin will always resort to violence first. A trait that has its place in our world. But that's not how I handle things. It's not how my father did business or how my nonno started this family.

"We'll start with a meeting," I tell John, trying to calm the anger now pulsing in my ears.

John shakes his head. "And iftalkingdoesn't work?" He says “talking” like it's a bad word.

"Then we'll try your way."

"My way will be bloody." John quirks an eyebrow.

"Well, if talking doesn't work, I'm afraid bloody will be the only way forward."

John claps his hands on his thighs and stands. "I'll have Adrian set something up."