Page 60 of Red Retaliation

Forcing my head around, I look up at Red from below.

I can see up his nose.

In my rising hysteria, I want to laugh, but I don’t. Instead, my fingers clutch at his shirt. “Are they going to kill us? Tell me!”

“Something else happening becauseshe’sout in public with us!” Liam snipes. “See what this brings? Whatshebrings? She’s a fucking Jonah! I told you th...”

“ENOUGH!” Red roars. “Stop fucking whining and concentrate! When we get back to the club and out of this cab, I want her inside ASAP. We must prepare to defend.”

I can’t hear myself think above the roar of blood rushing in my ears.

It’s happening.

The Bristonis will kill everyone, and it’s because of whatI’vedone.

CHAPTER

42

Red

“TAKE THE BACK ENTRANCE”, I shout through the partition to the driver, who is now understandably terrified. Four big men in his cab brandishing guns isn’t a sight he had in mind when starting his shift today, but there’s not a lot I can do about that, short of forcing him to accept a hefty sweetener to keep schtum about what he’s seeing.

Or what he might see, depending how this pans out.

My heart drums at a steady pace. I expected the Bristonis to put in an appearance, but didn’t foresee it being so soon after the newspaper announcement. Neither did I expect them to play their hand openly in broad daylight.

Icertainlydidn’t expect them to pull a stunt on the day of a funeral. Do these wankers have no code of conduct, the lowlife pieces of shit?

But no matter how terrified the taxi driver is, he’s got nothing on Arianna, whose body vibrates fear through me. “It’ll be fine. Just do what I say,” I whisper, giving her hand a quick squeeze.

She nods, fixated on an empty crisp packet in the taxi’s footwell.

I want to demand the driver stops to clean his fucking cab, but I dismiss my irrational irritation. I need to concentrate. If my brothers are correct and this car tailing us is the Bristonis and the stranger Liam saw at the wake is perhaps linked too, then are they coming for me or Arianna?

It might even be the Galvatores, hellbent on regaining possession of her.

Adrenaline thunders in my veins as the urge to protect Arianna surgesto unprecedented levels. They’re not having her. No one is. She isminenow.

Straining to keep below the back window in the event of early gunfire, I risk a peep as we turn onto the road leading to the back entrance of the casino. The car in question has been forced back several places, but it’s still behind us, meaning itistailing us.

My breathing is ragged. Once I’ve ensured Arianna is safely within the building, I’ll blast those fuckers to smithereens. I’ll do it before they have chance to take aim.

I will not lose this. I will not loseher. She belongs tomenow.

I look between my brothers and Del as the taxi turns into my delivery yard. “Ready?”

At their nods, I grab Arianna’s hand, kick open the door and pull her from the still moving vehicle. Her heel snags in her long dress, and she tumbles from the running board to the concrete. The taxi stops a few yards further on, but we’re left exposed.

I’ve got to get her inside.

“Cover us!” I yell.

Not wasting time in getting Arianna to her feet, I drag her along. She squeals, but I ignore her. My only remit is getting her to safety before the Bristoni car rounds the corner, which will be any second now.

I’ll shoot every last one of those bastards, I repeat in my mind. This mantra is all I can hear. There are no alternatives.

None of us will die on this fucking tarmac. Not Oscar, not Liam, not Del, not me. Andcertainlynot Arianna.