Chapter 29

AIDEN

I stopped the car outside the warehouse, thirty minutes from the office. This is where less-than-lawful activities were conducted. I had preferred a satellite office, but Cillian insisted on the warehouse. He said it gave him the right feel.

"Ah, finally!" Cillian exclaimed, discarding his cigarette. He was standing outside the building, looking as impatient as he sounded.

Cillian didn't know Freya personally, but like me, he despised men who hit women. That lowlife assaulting Freya was reason enough for him to look forward to this meeting.

I gestured for him to follow. In the middle of the last aisle, our guest sat with his hands tied behind his back and his legs secured to the chair.

His frantic eyes landed on us, widening in fear.

"Hey, buddy!" Cillian grinned, but his tone was anything but friendly. Noah nervously glanced at Cillian before looking back at me.

"I didn't think we'd meet so soon," I muttered, lowering myself into a chair facing him. He squirmed.

"L-look, man, I did what you asked. What more do you want?" He tried to sound confident, but fear bled through his words.

"You did what I asked, huh?" I rubbed my jawline. "So, was it I who asked you to hit Freya?"

"I-i-it was an accident," he stammered, panic etched on his face. The corners of my mouth curled into a humorless smile.

"Was it now?"

"Yes, I swea—" Noah's scream filled the space as Cillian plunged his knife into his thigh.

"You… saying…?" Cillian prompted, a dangerous smile stretching his lips.

"Fuck you!" Noah spat, gasping for breath. His eyebrows were drawn low in agony.

Cillian smirked, patting his cheek. "Nah, you're not my type."

"Let's chat a little, shall we?" I stood, shrugging off my jacket, keeping my eyes on Noah.

"Let me go," Noah mumbled. He looked close to wetting himself.

I walked toward him and grabbed the back of his chair. He trembled. Pathetic!

"Why did you hit Freya?"

He wet his lips nervously before stuttering another lie.

"I didn't. She tripped and hit her head on the wall."

He hadn't finished the sentence when I punched him. The sickening sound of his bone cracking fueled my need to inflict more pain. I was there to make him hurt. Nothing and no one would stop me.

"Fuck!" Noah cried, his eyes squeezed shut.

I grasped his shirt and pulled him forward. "Answer me."

"I told you I didn't hit her—" His head swiveled from the impact of a second punch.

"Man, I swear—" He didn't finish before another blow landed. I kept hitting him, my patience snapped. The rage inside me increased with each hit until I was consumed by the urge to kill him.

"Brother."

Cillian's voice cut through the haze. I stopped and stared at Noah. His face was a bloody mess. I released his shirt and stepped back.

Chapter 29

"I happen to hate lies. So why don't we start again! And this time, you tell me the fucking truth."

He spat blood on the floor, grunting in pain.

"Why did you hit Freya?"

"I was jealous," Noah admitted, glaring at me as if that was sufficient explanation.

"Speak!" Cillian stepped on Noah's toes, making him whimper.

"She was so fucking happy to break up with me. I loved her, and the second you walked in, that bitch kicked me to the curb."

My fist clenched. He had the audacity to disrespect the woman of my dreams in front of me.

"Never too late, huh? Maybe she ultimately realized you weren't worth her time," Cillian grinned, enjoying Noah's anger.

"She's a money-digging whore?" Noah sneered. I pressed down on the knife in his thigh, making him howl.

"Repeat that. I dare you."

"You two are psychos. I'm calling the cops the second I'm out of here," he croaked.

Great! Not only was he stupid, he was brain-dead, threatening his potential kidnappers with the police. As if that wouldn't eliminate any chance of survival.

Cillian whistled mockingly. "Bold of you to assume you're getting out of here alive."

His expression changed instantly—from angry and vengeful to pathetic and panicked.

"P-please, just l-let me go. I'm s-sorry! I have my family. My mother… she's sick."

His tears made me want to kick him.

"Mother? You mean the one you never visit?"

Records showed her last visitor was eight months ago. He used his mother as an excuse; he saw her as a responsibility.

"Please, man! Let me go. All this over some pussy. I swear—"

My fist connected with his face, knocking out teeth. I wanted to strangle him.

But there was a problem: Freya. I knew she wouldn't appreciate me killing him. We weren't at a point where I could just tie her up and have my way with her until she forgave me. Killing Noah would push her away, a risk I couldn't take.

"Now listen carefully," I said, touching his bruised cheek. "You'll forget about Freya and our daughter. You don't come near them, you don't think about them. My men will watch you. If I find you within a hundred meters of them, you'll wish this meeting was peaceful. Do I make myself clear?"

He nodded, relief in his eyes. He didn't deserve it.

"Oh, and you're fired." Distress filled his eyes. "Mr. Rigera's bills will be taken care of, but you can starve for all I care."

"Aren't you worried I'll go to the police?"

Cillian chuckled. "Aren't you bright?"

He could go to the police, but they wouldn't care. Noah's self-preservation was nonexistent.

I tilted my head. "You want me to kill you?"

His eyes widened as he shook his head. "No! No! I'm sorry! I'll shut up!"

2:31 PM

Chapter 29

We stood outside while our men worked. Noah would be escorted back blindfolded. If he had any brain cells left, he'd lick his wounds and forget it.

It didn't matter. He couldn't touch me. Money and connections go a long way.

Cillian pulled out a cigarette. "Now that the problem is, well, scared to death, when's the family meeting?"

"Not now." Cillian had been pushing for a meeting with Freya and Gia for weeks. I suspected he enjoyed seeing me stressed. His curiosity only made sense given his emotional intelligence.

His only weakness was his mother. That's why I hadn't tried to make him understand my perspective. He saw my coldness toward my mother as displaced aggression.

That wouldn't bother me until he started advocating for family dinners. If it were up to me, I'd have shut that door long ago. The only thing holding me back was Gillian.

"How's Freya?" He took a long drag, offering me the cigarette. I took it. I didn't smoke regularly, but today, I welcomed the smell of tobacco.

"Beating herself up over everything," I said, looking away.

Cillian took back the cigarette. "Guilt can be overwhelming."

I snorted. "Like you know anything about—"

He chuckled, shrugging nonchalantly.

"A pretty useless emotion. Just like the rest of them."