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I know I should call Seamus in here to get her out, but I’m too far gone for that. She needs to see me, who I really fucking am, who he really is.

That’s not fair to her, though. I know she should be left with the illusion that he loves her.

Even if he doesn’t.

But I can’t.

“Feeding your girl to the wolves,” I snarl. “To me. You fed her to me, the worst of the lot.” I lean in. “You’re less than nothing.”

I almost don’t see it, him reaching for the small of his back, pulling a gun.

He knows he’s going to die, and so the fucker aims at Lucie.

But before he can pull the trigger, I pull mine, blowing out the back of his skull. I kick the body as it crumples.

Lucie screams. But I don’t look back as I clean off my gun and pull out my pack of cigarettes. I stick one between my lips, pull out my Zippo, and light up.

I take a few deep puffs before I finally stand up and walk toward her.

Lucie is rooted to the spot, staring at me with wide, disbelieving eyes. I know she’ll never, ever forgive me, but still I kiss her softly.

“You’re fucking mine, Lucie. And don’t you wish you weren’t? You’re tethered to a monster, love. Bought and paid for. And if you want to run, do it, but I warn you, I’ll hunt you to the ends of the earth until I find you.”

I don’t know if I’m trying to make her stay with me, if I’m warning her what I’ll do, or if I’m pushing her away.

Shit. Maybe I’m trying to give her everything all at once.

“Seamus? Take Lucie out of here.”

My brother hesitates, like I can’t be trusted. And he might just have a point because there’s an urge beating in me to go on a murderous rampage, to spill enough blood to either cleanse my soul or drown in my own evil.

A long moment passes, and then Mikey speaks up. “I’ll take her home and I’ll take that job offer, too.”

I nod as he leads her away.

Seamus looks from the body to me. “What the fuck, Cal?”

“The fuck?” I push a hand through my hair. “The fuck is he was about to kill her.”

“Then—”

“Shut up, Seamus,” I snap. “You want me to go after her? Itwon’t make a lick of difference. She’s going to leave, and I’m going to hunt her down. But first, I need to get wildly drunk.”

He shakes his head and then glances once more at Vincent. “And this?”

“Cleanup crew.” And with that, I head for the door. He follows. He gets behind the wheel, forcing me into the passenger seat. As we drive away, it registers that there’s no one at the guardhouse at the gate, and no one came running.

Mikey.

I’d bet my life on it. He warned them off or sent them home. When we spoke, he told me we’d be able to drive on in without issue. And he was spot-on.

I don’t know what bar we go to. It’s dark, mostly empty, and suits my mood. I sit in the corner, back to the wall, and shoot whiskey after whiskey.

Seamus nurses one of his own, and I really don’t care that he does, even though I just want to be alone right now. I drag my fingernail through the grooves in the dark wood grain, letting the liquor muffle the noise in my head.

“How long are we doing this tonight, Cal?”

I slant him a glare. “Until I’m numb.”