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But my father laughs. “She’s obviously not very bright.” He looks at Callahan. “I went through the contract. Null and void if she chooses me. Null and void if she’s dead.”

“You’re a fucking bastard,” Callahan mutters.

My throat tightens.

“Sheis. See, I don’t care what actually happens to this one. If it was my Viviana, then yes, I’d do anything to protect her, but my bitch of a wife fucked one of my rivals and had his spawn. Lucia. Having her around worked for me, gave me something to hold over the man’s head and all that, plus, itwas great for controlling the wife. So you have a choice, Murphy. Give me what I want or Lucie’s dead.”

The world sways and I clutch the sides of my head, my stomach churning, blood gurgling with rage.

Holy fuck.

So much makes sense right now.

He’s not my fucking father.

THIRTY-THREE

callahan

It’s writtenall over Lucie’s face.

Confusion. Pain. Rejection. Betrayal.

And it makes me snap. I push her out of the way, lunging for that fucking cunt, de Rosa. I slam my gun into the side of his head, knocking him down to the floor. I kick his weapon away. It skitters across the hardwood.

Seamus is in the hall with Mikey, who called me and then let us in. Seems Mikey understands real loyalty. His is to Lucie, and he chose her and us.

He lives. I can use him.

Shit, I can make room for anyone loyal to Lucie, anyone who cares for her.

But the piece of shit who isn’t even her fucking father?

No.

He could be lying about that, but I really don’t care. A real parent isn’t a matter of blood and birth. And he’s not even close to being a fucking parent to her. He treats her like property, one he knows the price of but not the worth.

And I do believe he’d kill her if he needed to.

If he chose to.

He doesn’t give a damn about her. I can see that now. It’s so clear, I don’t understand how I missed it before. And it makes me so furious, so fucking sick to my stomach.

“Get on your fucking knees,” I growl.

Vincent pushes himself onto his knees, then tries to rise, but I shake my head and shove my gun deep into his mouth. “No chance, asshole. You don’t deserve to fucking stand. You’re a piece of shit.”

“Callahan, please, don’t. He’s my father,” Lucie says behind me. I squeeze my eyes shut for a second, trying like hell to shut her out.

Because her words have the opposite effect on me. They should make me hesitate, rethink what I’m doing. Instead, they make me struggle with not pulling the trigger.

“I was willing to let you live if you left Lucie alone,” I say softly. “I’d have let you live, even let you keep access to the doors I opened for you. But now? Fuck no.”

He tries to speak, but it’s a little hard to form coherent words when you’re deep throating a gun.

“Callahan. Please…”

Her voice breaks now, and I can hear the tears in her pleading tone, the hurt.