Page 94 of Reckless Seduction
“Human trafficking.” Ava lets out a breathy laugh. “She combated human trafficking, and if Sarah and Lina were working with Richard and Elias, they were all a hindrance.”
“Not only that,” Kiernan jumps in. “We’ve been wondering why Eriksen would need the port. He doesn’t. Crowe and Lina do.”
“And making sure she marries Eriksen means that she has not only status, but people she can control and manipulate. It also feeds into her obsession.” It is all coming together. “I wonder how many of Eriksen’s men even know that their boss isn’t the one giving the orders anymore.”
“I think it is time we go find out.”
THIRTY-EIGHT
It isthe last place I expect him to want to meet.
Eriksen.
The warehouse is dilapidated, vines growing over and through leftover barrels, abandoned cars. Anything they can grow on, they take over without remorse, spreading across the graveled lot. We haven’t brought any men with us.
There is no need.
It wasn’t easy to reach him. We had to be sure that Lina didn’t intercept any messages. If she did, we would all be dead, and so would Bailey.
Fuck.
Bailey.
I can tell from Kiernan’s downcast look that the guilt over what happened to her is overwhelming him. Ava reamed him, no doubt spurring the feeling of regret even further. I had counseled him against handing her over, but he had been sure that nothing would happen to her. That he and Seamus could easily get to her once Crowe’s indiscretions were revealed.
He doesn’t know the man like I do.
Doesn’t know what he is capable of.
For once, I wish I hadn’t let my son learn from the consequences of his own actions. I have always allowed them to experience what it means to fail. Unless it would harm them physically. And even then, I was not too worried about a few bruises or broken bones. They needed to learn that every action has a reaction. Sometimes it is good, but other times there are real consequences.
He is feeling that now.
Kiernan couldn’t have known what would happen to her, but he should have thought about the worst-case scenario. He knew Crowe wasn’t a good man. He was aware of what had happened to Bailey in the past. I explained to him what she told me the night she broke into the safe.
Still, he chose to move forward.
And I did nothing.
Now, I stand with my sons in a warehouse that time has frozen. Nothing has changed since the night of the massacre. Nothing is out of place. You can still see the bloodstains clinging to what is left of the rotted wood floors. Bullet holes riddle the metal walls, allowing the sun to sneak through and cast an ethereal light over the darkened room.
And there he stands, in the middle of it all, the one man I’ve grown to hate more than any other. I’ve been so blinded by rage and hatred that I never bothered to dig up the truth behind the hits. Even after all these years, I still make mistakes. Ava’s mother once said I was ruled by my emotions. My men are family to me. Not just pawns to be manipulated and used as cannon fodder.
“You came.” I stop a few feet from him. He’s come alone as requested, but I’m not stupid enough to believe that he doesn’t have some kind of backup.
“You sent me a photo of my daughter,” he rumbles. “Say you have a plan to take down Crowe. I’d be stupid to ignore that.”
“Thank you for listening,” Seamus speaks up. “We need all the help we can get, and so do you.”
The corners of Eriksen’s lips turn up in a sneer. “I’ve been trying to get my daughter out from beneath Crowe’s thumb since she was three,” he spits. “What makes you think you can? And why would you care?”
“Bailey was under our care for some time,” I admit to him. “We didn’t know she was your daughter. She didn’t even know she was your daughter. We used her to gain access to some confidential information that is on Crowe’s laptop.”
“Was she caught?” he growls, taking a threatening step forward. “Did he find out?”
Kiernan clears his throat awkwardly. “I handed her over to him,” he admits. “My plan was to get him to trust us by turning her in. I gave him a fake drive, thinking that he would never truly hurt her. I didn’t know?—”
“Where is she?”
