On my daily walk through the neighborhood, I walked past the pub needing a new owner. The windows were tinted so I couldn’t make out much as I peeked through them. I shook my head with a laugh. This was ridiculous.
Finn would arrive in New York tonight, and Lorcan had his meeting with the Russian today. There had been a last-minute change of plans—Lorcan had to leave yesterday afternoon to meet Sergej somewhere else, supposedly for business reasons. Of course, he wouldn’t just use the meeting to talk about Imogen. She wasn’t important to him. I had other things to worry about than a restaurant.
I headed into Central Park again. Someone followed me. I could feel it on my neck, like a ghost touch that made you want to take flight. I threw another glance over my shoulder. Suddenly a shadow fell over me, making me cry out in shock and fear. I stumbled back, ready to run but bumped into another tall body.
“NYPD, Mrs. Devaney. No reason to panic.”
It took my terrified brain a moment to processed what the man in front of me had said. “NYPD?” I echoed, confused. It wasn’t Desmond.
“Police,” a familiar voice said behind me.
“I know.”
I glanced back and forth between the two. They were both in jean jackets and sneakers. The man before me, who looked as if he might hail from Mexico or Puerto Rico, reached inside his back pocket and pulled out a police badge which he presented to me. “You can buy them for fifty bucks in Sodom and better quality,” I said haughtily because I didn’t like how they cornered me.
I’d never had a problem with the police. My only encounters with them had been when a customer at Merchant’s Arch had too much to drink and became aggressive. But Desmond and his colleague made me feel backed into a corner. They treated me as if I, too, were a criminal—maybe because I was married to one.
Desmond gave me a condescending smile. “This is the original, Mrs. Devaney. If you don’t believe us, we can take you to the police department to have this conversation.”
“What kind of conversation?”
Desmond raised his hands. “Listen, maybe this meeting started off on the wrong foot. We’re here to help you in exchange for information.”
“You already told me that you think Lorcan is responsible for my sister’s disappearance.”
“And you choose not to believe us,” Desmond said.
He nodded at his colleague who pulled out two photos. They had been taken at night and were slightly blurry but it was very obvious who was on them. Imogen and Lorcan. The photo was taken through a window. Imogen was only in white underwear or a bikini and Lorcan had backed her against a round table with a sleek white leather bench behind it. Where had this photo been taken? Not in Lorcan’s apartment, that was certain. The next photo showed Lorcan tossing a wad of cash on the table beside Imogen’s naked leg. I swallowed hard, remembering how he’d paid me after our night in Sodom.
“When did you take these?” I asked, my voice toneless. My belly flipped and I was sure I’d throw up.
Desmond and his colleague exchanged a look. “About three and half weeks ago. Shortly before you showed up.”
“Where?”
“Where do you think?” Desmond asked, making me feel like a stupid child.
“In Sodom.” It all made sense, the money, Imogen’s half-naked state. This was probably the part of Sodom I hadn’t seen, the one where girls looked for sponsors instead of auctioning themselves off.
I knew what Imogen had done for the money, and I felt as if I was about to pass out. My stomach revolted as my vision became blurry.
“Are you okay?” Desmond reached for me but I stepped back.
I cleared my throat. “I’m fine.”
“You sure?”
“What happened after this photo was taken?”
“Our contact couldn’t take more photos for his own protection. But your sister and Lorcan moved to one of the private rooms to intensify their first encounter. We don’t know if they kept seeing each other after this initial meeting, but we think it’s likely.”
The question was how it ended. Why didn’t he ask Imogen for her hand if they started off in a similar fashion like we did? Or maybe he had and she just wanted his money for the photographer and not a husband. Imogen had never cared for marriage, and she’d always said the only reason why she would marry would be if she met a ninety-year-old billionaire without heirs who didn’t insist on a prenup. Lorcan had money but he wasn’t close to dying, at least not by natural causes.
“Do you know where my sister is now?”
“We believe she had to run from New York because she took a lot of money from Lorcan but didn’t give him what he wanted in turn.”
So maybe she pretended she’d marry him to get more money and then she ran off. “So you don’t know if Lorcan caught her?”
“Lorcan is a resourceful man. Even if your sister managed to talk him out of several thousand dollars, that wouldn’t get her far. Fake papers, a new look …that’s expensive, and I assume she’s not used to running from the mob.”
I nodded.
Maybe I should grab Finn tonight and board the next airplane back to Dublin.
“That doesn’t mean your sister’s dead. We believe Lorcan might have sold her to the Russians. They deal with sex slaves. The clan, due to their connections to the Catholic church, refrain from partaking in sex workers, but that doesn’t stop them from blurring the lines on occasion.”
“What do you want from me?”
“Information about Lorcan, about the clan, about his meeting with the Russian mob. They seem to seek a new partnership. We’d like to know what that’s about.”
“Lorcan doesn’t share much about his business with me.”
“Gain his trust, be a bit more approachable. Give him whatever he wants so you can give us what we need to arrest the clan and save your sister.”
It wouldn’t be that easy. I couldn’t believe I’d allowed Finn to come to New York.
But was he really safe in Dublin? As long as Lorcan and his clan were free, none of my family would be safe.
“I’ll help you as best as I can.”
I knew this was a huge risk. If Lorcan found out, I’d be doomed.
“Ideally we’d put a wire on you, but considering your intimate state with Lorcan that’s probably too risky.”
“No wire.” I felt icky when I considered carrying microphones on my body.
Desmond opened a small box with three very small devices. “These are bugs. You can put them under the bed, inside Lorcan’s car and his office.”
“What if he uses detectors?”
“If you don’t act suspicious, he won’t have reason to search his own home and car. So be careful. If you can hide one of the bugs in his office at the docks, that would help us the most. That’s where he talks business with his crew.”
I stuffed the box into my handbag.
“Your sister isn’t the only one in danger,” Desmond said. “Our contacts told us that your mother is on the hitlist of the Devaney clan.”
“That can’t be,” I said. “They never bothered her while she lived in Dublin.” At least, that was what I thought, but I wasn’t really sure. Mum hadn’t really been an open book about these things. Was this the reason she wanted Finn to come to New York? Did she know that she was in danger?
“That’s because they forgot all about her. Your mother was lying low, but then your sister showed up in New York, and she insulted another Devaney. Now you are here. Some voices have become loud that the shame of the past needs to be rectified.”
I wondered if this was true. But I couldn’t really ask anyone. I didn’t trust Gulliver. His loyalties obviously lay with the mob and not his family. Even God came in second place behind his criminal allies. And Mum would never tell me the truth. She’d try to deal with things herself. I had to trust my instincts, but even those were giving me mixed signals right now.
“We can protect your mother and you. We can put you in the witness protection program once we have your testimony.”
If I ever made it that far. I nodded because right this moment there was nothing else I could do.
“I have to go,” I said, glancing at my watch. I needed to pick up Finn at nine o’clock. That was in two hours.
“We’ll try to meet you again next week. Same place. We’ll know when you’re around.”
I returned to the pathway and hurried out of the park, desperate to get home and get rid of the bugs. With them in my handbag, I felt in immediate danger. The moment I stepped inside the apartment, I attached one bug to the underside of the table and the other to the back of the headboard in the bedroom. I flushed when I thought about what the police would listen to …though after seeing Lorcan with Imogen, the idea of sleeping with him made me feel sick. But how could I get out of being intimate without making him suspicious? Maybe I could blame it on Finn, at least for a few days, but Lorcan probably wouldn’t accept that excuse for very long. I used a knife to cut a hole in one of my tampons and stuffed the last bug inside. I’d keep it in my handbag like that until I was in Lorcan’s car and could put it under the seat. I wasn’t sure when I’d ever be in Lorcan’s office, so for now the bugs in the apartment would have to suffice. Lorcan had never talked about anything compromising in the apartment, as far as I could remember. For some reason, I was glad that I didn’t have the chance to hide it in his office. It was a dangerous place, one he probably searched often and one where he’d probably spill some secrets that might put him in jail.
I still wasn’t one hundred percent convinced the police told me the entire truth and until then, I’d rather not be responsible for Lorcan’s immediate arrest.
Two tall men walked on either side of Finn, one of them rolling his spiderman suitcase for him. Finn beamed when he spotted me. He didn’t seem scared at all. He began running, though his left side gave him some troubles today. I raced toward him and caught him in my arms, hugging him tightly to my chest and lifting him off the ground.
“I missed you so much, Finn.”
I kissed his cheek several times until he squirmed a little, and I finally pulled back to look at his face. I’d missed him so much, his cute voice and the way he looked with his pacifier when he slept—even his sticky fingers when he touched me right after eating a marmalade toast.
“M-mmm-mis-mis-missed you too,” he said, still grinning widely.
“How was the flight?”
“C-c-cool! We g-g-g-got to see the c-c-c-ockpit and t-t-alk to the p-p-p-p-pilot, and I had a huge seat with m-m-m-my own TV and the seat t-t-t-t-turned into a bed.” He was so excited, his stutter was much more apparent, but I didn’t have any trouble understanding him.
“That sounds amazing. Did you ride business class?”
“Yes,” the younger man said. “Thanks to this little guy, Lorcan treated us to the luxury of business class too. We’ll always be indebted to you, Sir Finn.” Finn and the man exchanged a grin. The man nodded at me. “I’m Sullivan, and this is my older brother Murphy.” He motioned at the slightly overweight but muscular, bearded man behind him. “We’re here to help your husband extend his business.”
“Nice to meet you.”
We headed toward the exit. Finn clung to me like a spider monkey, so I carried him. Luckily, he was a small kid and I had no trouble with his weight. “I don’t have a car. I came in a taxi,” I explained as we passed through the sliding doors.
Maeve had offered to take me but today I didn’t feel like company. My conversation with the police shook me up too much.
“Seamus is coming to get us,” Sullivan said.
I frowned. “Seamus is away on business with Lorcan.”
“He’s over there.”
I followed Sullivan’s pointer finger toward a Cadillac. Seamus leaned against it, talking to no other than Lorcan.
The color instantly drained from my face. I wasn’t expecting Lorcan to return until tomorrow. I thought I’d have until then to brace myself, to play my part. I was fully unprepared now.
I felt like a deer in headlights when I walked toward him.
Lorcan looked up and spotted me. Though, his expression had warmed a tad, when he met my eyes, his brows pulled together. Get a grip, Aislinn. You need to play your part. Don’t mess up.
I forced a smile, but I knew it wasn’t convincing.
Lorcan briefly greeted Murphy and Sullivan before stopping in front of me. Finn peered up at Lorcan then quickly buried his face in my shoulder. He was always shy with strangers, especially men, and Lorcan was a very imposing man.
“No need to be shy, Finn. I have my trunk filled with toys for you. I hope you like some of them. I wasn’t sure what you’d like.”
Finn peeked out of one eye, curiosity filling his face but he still clung to me. He yawned. The time difference was obviously messing with him.
Lorcan opened the back door, and my eyes widened when I saw a brand-new child seat. “I had Seamus buy it a couple of days ago. I don’t have a clue about child seats.”
I put Finn in it, but he quickly gripped my hand, not letting go. “I’ll sit in the back with you, okay? I just need to buckle you up.” He released my hand but kept a close eye on me as I closed the door and moved to the other side. Lorcan waited beside the driver seat. “You don’t look happy to see me.”
My heart hammered in my chest. “I was just surprised.”
“That wasn’t surprise.”
Think, Aislinn, think. I slanted a look at Finn, who was watching closely from inside the car.
“Are you worried about him?”
“Yes,” I said quickly. “Many people treat him as if he’s different. They don’t know how to act around him because of his spasms and stutter. You don’t strike me as a patient man, and caring for Finn requires patience. I was anxious about your first encounter.”
Lorcan pulled me against him, and I tensed. “Not in front of him,” I whispered, hoping Lorcan would buy it.
He chuckled. “Calm down. I’m hugging you. I’m sure he won’t mind. And now about your concerns about me treating him differently. He’s a boy like any other. I won’t treat him differently, except to spoil him rotten perhaps.”
“Why?” I asked. I didn’t want Lorcan to be kind, not after the photos I saw today. What was going on? What was he playing at? I didn’t understand any of this, but deep down I had a feeling Finn would be safe here.
“Because he is important to you, and this marriage is important to me.”
He released me and got into the car. He hadn’t said I was important, only this marriage. Maybe that was why I believed him.
I slid into the back of the car and took Finn’s hand that he was holding out to me. We’d been driving for fifteen minutes when I remembered the bug hidden in my tampon. Was now really the time to hide it somewhere? I wanted to get rid of it as soon as possible. In the past, Finn had used my tampons as floats in the toilet or bathtub, and I could just see this happening again and Lorcan finding the bug in the water. I pulled the tampon from my handbag. Finn was distracted by the skyline, and Lorcan was cussing at the traffic, hammering his hand on the horn. Finn had heard enough cussing in his lifetime so I didn’t bother keeping bad words from him anymore. Mum was a notorious cusser.
I had stuffed the bug really well into the tampon and getting it back out proved a challenge. Eventually Finn noticed. “You have the c-c-curse?” he asked, his stutter a bit better than in the airport.
I froze, the tampon in hand. The bug was peeking out at the bottom.
Lorcan glanced over his shoulder at the tampon then at Finn. “The curse?”
“Th-th-th-tha-t-t-t-t-t’s h-hh-how Nana c-cc-c-ccc-alls it-t-t-t-t-t wh-wh-when she n-n-n-n-needs ‘pons.”
I had tensed during Finn’s reply. He’d taken a very long time to speak due to Lorcan’s attention but my husband did not interrupt him. Many people finished Finn’s sentences even if they weren’t sure what he was going to say. He rarely contradicted them, and it always broke my heart.
“It’s a bit like a curse, I suppose,” Lorcan said and turned back to the street.
Maybe I could pretend I had my period. It wasn’t due for a few more days, but Lorcan didn’t know that. It might stop his advances.
When both Finn and Lorcan had lost interest, I continued to fumble with the tampon and finally managed to extract the bug. I coughed and dropped it. “Shoot.” I bent forward as if to pick it up and attached the bug to the underside of Lorcan’s seat before I straightened with the tampon in my hand.
“I hope you don’t use it once it hits the floor,” Lorcan said with a chuckle.
I flushed and almost commented that his cock had been in worse places, but with Finn present I controlled myself. I needed to be on Lorcan’s good side. I had to keep up the act and more, make him trust me. I needed to gather information so the police could put Lorcan behind bars. I could only pray that my family and I would be put into the witness protection program as soon as possible. If I was responsible for sending a Devaney into prison, the rest of the clan would hunt us.
