Page 37 of Embrace the Darkness

The corner of his mouth twitched. “Normally, our guests are someone of importance.”

“I’m the Banphrionsa and the only child of Stefan Quinn, the boss of the New England Irish mob. Are you saying I’m not important?” I challenged with an arched brow.

He didn’t argue. With a proud glint in his eye, he pulled out his chair and also took a seat. “The reason I brought you in here was to go over everyone’s role at this table and why it’s imperative they are always informed when something goes down.” He pointed to Samuel’s chair. “Samuel oversees drugs. Be it obtaining them, making them, or distributing them. Dylan works directly under Samuel. His main focus is getting the product out there and making sure it’s being sold. They have men that help them man that pillar of the empire.”

I quietly listened, digesting the information he was giving me. It was one thing to know your family was a bunch of criminals, but hearing it explained straightfrom the horse’s mouth, as it were, was still a little eye opening. It hadn't felt real until now.

“It’s sort of set up the same way with your Uncle Conor and Rourke, except they deal in guns. Conor works with our contacts in Ireland to get the guns. Rourke makes us a lot of money by selling them to other crime families and gangs across the States. They also have men who work under them who help move their product and man their pillar. Louie is our top enforcer. He helps Jamie with a lot of tasks, but he’s in charge of all our security. He oversees recruitment, placement, and passing along orders.”

“What about Jamie?”

“Jameson ismyenforcer. He’s also my second pair of eyes and hands. He makes sure everything runs smoothly and if it doesn’t, he fixes it. If we have a rat, he finds them and brings them to me. If I need information, he gets it. When I’m needed in more than one place, he steps in and we divide and conquer.”

“How does the chain of command work?”

He seemed pleased by my question. “If I’m ever indisposed or otherwise occupied, Jameson runs things. If I die, Samuel.”

“Samuel?!” I was going to be sick. No way could that man be in charge.

Stefan nodded. “Don’t worry. I have a failsafe in place for you in case anything happens to me.”

“What do you mean?”

“All I’ll say is you’ll be taken care of and out of Samuel’s reach. He may be my brother, but I’d never trust him with you.”

“Why haven’t you named Jamie as your successor? You raised him.”

Stefan sighed. The topic seemed to frustrate him. “He doesn’t want it.”

There was no way Samuel could be in charge. He’d undoubtedly destroy this family by ruling it like a tyrant. Not to mention, he’d either marry me off or beat me until I learned to be as submissive as he expected a woman to be, which would still probably end with me being married off.

“Back to the point of all this,” Stefan said, pulling my attention back to him. “The reason your uncles need to be in the know is because the men who work under them have heard what’s happened or what they think has happened. Regardless, all they know is one of our own is dead and that you killed him. I need to go over what happened with Samuel and Conor so they have the information they need to keep morale up among the men.”

I supposed that made sense. Getting up from my temporary chair, I started for the door. “I’ll see you at eight,” I said before I left.

CHAPTER 17

Like Stefan had said, my family underestimated me. I wanted to keep it that way until I had a better understanding of how things worked and how everyone interacted with each other on the business side. So instead of one of the suits Stefan had bought me, I chose an old white sundress I found in my closet. It was short sleeved and went to my knees. I didn’t put on any makeup and made sure to pull my hair back into a tight bun. The white color washed me out, making my skin look paler than it actually was, which in turn made the bruises on my face and arm stick out. The look I was going for was battered and innocent.

Let the games begin.

I arrived outside Stefan’s study at the same time as my Uncle Conor. He noticed my face and immediately hugged me.

“Are you alright, darling?” he asked, his accent coming out thick, especially the worddarling.There was real concern in his voice, which warmed my heart. He was a good man—or rather, good to his family. He did smuggle guns in from Ireland and sold them to other criminals across the country. No judgment though.

I was distracted from answering when his eyes traveled behind me, just before someone stepped into my peripheral. Every nerve in my body screamed it was Jamie. I glanced to my left to confirm it was indeed him and caught him staring down at me. My heartbeat accelerated.

“We need to talk,” he said, voice like stone. It gave away nothing as to what he was feeling, yet still ravaged me with anxiety. We did need to talk, and I was compelled to beg for his forgiveness, but I’d fallen into a false sense of security where I'd thought I had more time before I had to face him again. I should’ve known he’d be present at this meeting.

Looking away, I nodded curtly. Glancing between us, Conor must have read our need for privacy because he excused himself and entered Stefan’s study.

Jamie stepped in front of me and I found it extremely difficult to meet his eyes. My neck and cheeks flushed, betraying my overwhelming shame. “I’m so sorry. I don’t… I should have woken you. I’ll understand—”

“Why are you apologizing?” he interrupted.

My eyes shot up to his. They were darkened with a mixture of anger and confusion.

“Because I took advantage. You were asleep. I should have stop—”