Page 36 of Ruined Wrath
Ronan finally speaks, his voice measured and cold. “If Fiona is compromised, we risk more than just the operation. We riskeverything. She could double-cross us in plain sight.”
“I promise I won’t?—”
“Your word means nothing,” Kieran spits, but I hold up a hand to silence him.
“If you waver from this plan, we can’t protect you. Do you understand that?” I say to her.
Fiona swallows hard, her eyes flicking between us all, until finally, she nods.
“Good. That’s settled, then. You won’t speak to Lorcan without our approval. Everything you give him, every word, every movement, it goes through me first. Understood?”
“What if he figures out the truth?” she asks.
“The only way that will happen is if one of us tells him,” I remind her. “You trust us, don’t you?”
Fiona hesitates for just a second, and I can see the doubt flicker in her eyes.
“You have my word,” I add. “And unlike yours, my word actually means something.”
Her cheeks heat as she bows her head.
I can feel Ronan’s judgment as he looks at me, as if I’m being too harsh to the woman who has been lying to me since the moment I met her, but I push on before the doubt can creep in.
“The plan is set. Fiona will continue conversing with Lorcan, but only feeding him information that we approve. Any deviation, and it’s over. Is everyone clear?”
Kieran snorts, and I turn to glare at him.
“One misstep—” he starts.
“One misstep, and it’s onus, not her,” I finish. “We can’t waste time doubting each other now. The stakes are too high. So, are you in?”
I look at Ronan then, who silently dips his chin.
“I don’t like this,” Kieran mutters.
Ronan looks at him. “You don’t have to like it. But it’s the best chance we have of taking Lorcan down.”
Kieran glares at Fiona, his shoulders stiff with tension.
She braces herself for another explosion, but it doesn’t come. Instead, he stalks over to his bar and snatches up a bottle of Macallan.
“I think that means Kieran’s in,” Brennan mutters.
My eyes go to Brennan. “What about you?”
Brennan shrugs as he keeps his gaze on the floor. “I agree that the plan is solid. I just… I don’t know if I can forgive you just yet.”
I don’t know whether he’s talking to me or to Fiona, but either way, he’s on board.
For the first time in hours, the air feels a little less tense. Not because we’ve forgiven or forgotten, but because we finally havea plan, and I can see it on Fiona’s face that she’s fully in this with us, no matter the cost.
My hands flex at my sides, the weight of what’s coming pressing down on my shoulders.
This won’t be easy, but if we play this right, Lorcan doesn’t stand a fucking chance.
Chapter Nine
FIONA
