36

“Duly noted, Mikey. I’m not fond of being falsely accused of a crime I didn’t commit either but we all must learn to work with the cards that have been dealt.” As I climbed out of the rental SUV, I immediately buttoned my jacket. As with every other town it seemed within the United States, there were areas more heavily concentrated with nationalities. Russian. Italian. Chinese. Mexican. It all depended on who settled where.

This was an Irish mecca nestled on a few streets in Louisville where the Irish pubs and bakeries outnumbered anything else. There was event quaint Irish music coming from one of the businesses already and it was barely after one in the afternoon. The scent of fresh baked soda breads immediately made my mouth water. But I wasn’t here to be entertained or for delicious food.

I had one thing in mind, making an alliance with Liam Voltair. Given everything that I’d learned from the lovely creature who’d remained nestled against my side all night long, I needed to ensure that someone in this town had my back. While the concept might seem foreign to some, even outlandish, it was a good decision. As long as Liam understood I had nothing to do with his brother’s and sister-in-law’s murders.

At this point, I found the entire situation fascinating, including the possibility that several highly respected women were in charge of putting something like what Selena described together. Was it possible? Absolutely. And in doing so, they could rule with an entirely different iron fist. I had to admire their chutzpa, but they had no understanding that Liam would never allow that to happen right under his nose.

That was my bargaining chip, something I’d yet to do in my career. However, I’d allowed myself to walk into the middle of a nightmare. In providing details to the new Irish leader regarding the situation, I hoped to form a formal alliance. Perhaps at some point it could turn lucrative.

The first thing was to determine who’d really killed Ronald and Fiona. The discovery would allow Liam to burn down the city if he wanted while I got back to business as usual. Somewhere along the way, we could parlay our two fortunes into making even more money, as well as connecting a virtual highway between our countries. In turn, working together would increase our power and keep this kind of bullshit from ever happening again.

That was the initial plan anyway, something I’d thought about several times during the course of a sleepless night. Part of that had also been about ensuring Selena’s protection. I’d been right about the recent walk through of her shrubs by an unwanted visitor, which meant that she hadn’t been seeing or hearing things. The fact she was being watched, maybe hunted unnerved the fuck out of me. Would her boss go to that extreme or was there more than one damning situation going on?

My plans afterwards were likely to change from the original thought. It would seem returning to Montreal might be in mybest interest, even if that would list me as a fugitive. However, the outcome of the trial had already been decided.

What I’d yet to ascertain was who had tipped off the person in charge of the manipulation in the first place. In my mind, it could only be one person. Shawn. I’d called my brother to handle leaning on the family to try to find out. There could be no one else. In my mind, Clinton’s son had been pissed off about what had occurred between us and had done something stupid.

Something he would soon regret.

“I hear what you’re saying, boss, and I appreciate your confidence, but I’d like to get back to Montreal in one piece. I promised my girlfriend as much.”

“I assure you that Liam won’t do something stupid after he hears what I have to say.”

“I hope you’re right cause there ain’t a person on the street who isn’t glaring at us like we just stole their puppy dog.”

The man had a fascinating way with words. “Just keep an eye out for any issues but do not engage in a conversation or be goaded into an act of aggression. Do you understand me?”

“You know how to take the fun out of everything.”

Chuckling, I flipped through the file of information I’d amassed. Liam deserved to know exactly what he was dealing with. The details and photographs could speak for themselves as an icebreaker. At least the restaurant the man had chosen was crowded, which was meant to ease my concern I wouldn’t make it out of the meeting alive or to prevent me from doing anything rash now that I could jeopardize innocent lives.

The space reminded me of the Irish pub owned by the Clintons in Montreal.

“What happens after the meeting?”

“Did you find a place for rent?”

“Not yet.” Mikey looked sheepish, as if I’d be angry.

“Then it’s final. We’re returning to Montreal.”

“With or without a guest?”

“With.” I stopped on the sidewalk, removing my sunglasses. Thank God the sun had returned. I’d allowed my lovelycherieto convince me she needed to return to work if for no other reason than to not raise any suspicions. I’d also advised her to gather whatever information she could from the computer onto a jump drive, surprised when she hadn’t argued against my order.

The only thing that troubled her was explaining Zephyr’s appearance. She would soon learn my men were as discreet as they were well trained in the art of security methods. What I hadn’t told her was that if there was a perceived threat of any kind he would intervene immediately, ignoring whatever rules she thought were set in place. Not only had her safety become one of my main responsibilities but her life as well.

“Make no mistake, Mikey. Selena Barrios is to be protected at all times in whatever way is necessary.”

“You got it. You do realize we could be detained at the airport.”

I yanked open the door to the restaurant, laughing softly. “Now you’re underestimating my abilities? I’m shocked and hurt as well.”

“Are you kidding me? Nothing bothers you. You’re like Ironman.”

“You’ve been watching too many superhero movies.” And that was definitely something I wasn’t.

“I’ll have Zephyr bring her to the plane.”

“No. I instructed her to meet me at a bar across the street from the hotel. I’ve arranged a boat to take us down the river on a sightseeing cruise, where you’ll be to pick us up.”

“You’re worried about being seen, possibly prevented from leaving the city.”

“Exactly.”

“Just shoot the address and we’ll be there.”

“The pilot is on standby. Instruct him to fly to Cincinnati. That’s where we’re departing from.”

Mikey whistled again. “You’re not taking any chances.”

“No, I can’t afford to do that at this point.”

“I’ll make the call as soon as we leave.”

My Capo would have every right to be concerned about being detained at the airport except that I owned almost all the border agents, half of the law enforcement inside Canada. What I didn’t like was being forced to depart from another city, but I refused to be chased off the runway or worse. And at this point, I wouldn’t put it past the Kentucky authorities to do so. It would seem dirty cops and politicians were everywhere, my country included.

I almost laughed at the thought. Who was I to criticize?

“Let’s fucking get this over with. This place gives me the creeps,” Mikey grunted.

“Patience, dear man. Learning the attribute will do you some good.”

“Fuck patience. This is Russian roulette and we’re the ones holding the weapon.”

He had a point there. My father would have a stroke if he knew what I was risking in doing this.

As soon as we headed inside, it was as if I’d walked into a moment of déjà vu, almost every person inside the joint stopping what they were doing and turning in our direction. It wasn’t as if we should stick out like a sore thumb other than we were both dark haired, my skin slightly olive toned given my mother’s Italian heritage. However, in comparison to a sea of pale skin, and blond and red hair, we stood out.

Or maybe because everyone had seen my picture plastered all over their news broadcast. While I was wearing my weapon protected inside a holster, I wasn’t here to brandish firearms or to threaten anyone.

Unless of course it was absolutely necessary.

As we walked through the crowd of people, most backed away, only a few burly men standing in our way as if they would be able to stop us from gaining access. When one in particular, a bouncer type standing six foot five and weighing in at a solid three hundred pounds, moved directly in front of my path, I cocked my head, lifting a single eyebrow. Yet I didn’t reach for my weapon.

“That’s enough, Aiden. They’re our guests,” another man said as he walked from what had to be a back room.

Aiden didn’t seem pleased he’d been called down, taking a few seconds before moving aside. “I apologize, Mr. Voltair.”

“Understood. Make certain we’re not interrupted for our meeting.” Liam lifted his head, locking eyes with mine before shifting his attention to Mikey. “Are you armed?”

I unbuttoned my jacket, allowing him to see the weapon. What I wouldn’t tell him about was the one strapped to my ankle.

“As a gesture of good faith, I’m going to have my bartender keep our respective weapons behind the bar. Will that work?” he asked, as if I really had a chance to answer no.

“Absolutely. We are businessmen.”

“Good to hear. Too much blood has been shed already.” Liam took a moment to glance from one side to the other, as if he was reminding the customers that this wasn’t going to become a shooting gallery. He placed his weapon on the bar first, giving the bartender a solid nod.

Both Mikey and I dropped our main weapons on the surface as well, following Liam into the back room where his right-hand man closed the door. At least there were the four of us instead of a room full of armed soldiers.

The location was a small conference room with a bar on one end. There was also another door that I assumed headed toward a private exit. I had a feeling this was the location where his brother had done most of his business, the man now following in the brother’s footsteps.

“Can I offer you a drink, Joshua?”

I hadn’t been called by a formal name in a long time.

“Scotch,” I told him. “And you can call me Joshua.”

He seemed surprised, giving me a nod of respect. There wasn’t a question as to whether my man or his would be offered one. They were nothing more than placeholders at this point, enforcers meant to keep the peace. If either one was offended, you couldn’t tell. They knew the score better than anyone.

As he made the drinks, I settled into a seat, pushing the folder across the table. He took his time, pouring both glasses full of amber liquid from a decanter. Walking toward me, he stared me in the eyes, attempting to determine if I had a hidden agenda.

“I admit it, Joshua, I was shocked that you wanted to have a meeting. That takes guts and balls the size of watermelons. From what I’ve heard about your reputation, you are very take-charge. I appreciate that.”

I laughed softly, lifting the dense crystal in a salute. He watched me with a wry smile on his face, waiting for my reaction before sitting down. “Yes, I don’t like to leave anything to chance or to misunderstandings. And this is very nice. Some of the best liquor I’ve had.”

“I appreciate the compliment. The Irish can make decent whiskey. From one of my distilleries.”

“I’ll have to order a case.”

Liam snapped his fingers at his man. “Finn. Ensure our friends have a case of our finest before they leave.”

“Yes, sir.”

The man was nothing if not a consummate host. “Very much appreciated.”

“I value a man who can appreciate excellent liquor. Now, I understand you have some business you want to discuss.”

“First, allow me to say how sorry I am about your brother and sister-in-law. We had a very good meeting only hours prior to his death.”

Liam took a deep breath, leaning over the table. His reputation was of a fiery redhead that had no control, brutal and destructive. Perhaps with the death of his brother, he’d realized certain politics were best used when dealing with one’s enemies. And up to this point, that’s what I was, no matter the gestures of good faith. “Are you trying to tell me that you had nothing to do with Ronald’s murder?”

I looked him directly in the eye, not blinking. “No, I did not.”

After a full twenty seconds, he took a deep breath. “Oddly enough, I believe you. I can always tell when a man is lying. The question is do you know who is responsible?”

“Not yet. That’s where our alliance comes in.”

I nodded toward the file and he sighed, taking a sip of his drink before opening it. Within seconds, I could tell he was engrossed with my business offer as well as with what little I’d learned from Selena.

“From what I can tell, you’re being used,” he said after finishing reading over the documentation.

“It would appear so. To that end, I plan on leaving the city tonight. If I want any chance at clearing my name I can’t be behind bars.”

“I can’t say I blame you. If what you’re suggesting is the truth, then we both have issues to deal with.”

“Yes, most of which are better handled for me in Montreal. However, I will want my name cleared. I intend on doing additional business here in the States.”

“I like your offer. It beats the hell out of the bullshit Shawn Clinton presented to me,” Liam said, snorting afterwards.

“Yeah, well, sadly, I don’t believe he’s trustworthy any longer.”