Honored_ An Alpha Mob Romance(11)

“You know how bad that would be if she talked, and so far it seems like she hasn’t. But we can’t take any chances, Liam. We need to make sure she stays quiet.”

I stared at him, shocked, as comprehension slid down my spine.

“You want me to kill her?”

He let the question hang between us, smiling.

I shook my head, at a complete loss for words. It was unprecedented; at least, it was unprecedented for the last fifty years. We didn’t kill civilians, period. That was part of what kept us alive. We had a code of honor, and that involved not murdering random strangers that were unlucky enough to come upon our business. We paid them off when we had to, and we dealt with the cops when we couldn’t. But we never, under any circumstances, murdered someone who wasn’t directly involved with our business.

“Colm, we don’t do that. I mean, we don’t just kill unlucky assholes who stumble on our shit.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “I knew that’s what you’d say.”

“It’s the honor code, Colm. It’s what keeps us from getting the worst of the heat. We don’t kill innocent civilians, and the cops don’t care if a few junkies go missing from time to time. That’s how it works.”

He leaned forward again, pressing his palms flat on the tabletop, a wicked grin spreading over his face. His crooked teeth made him look like a monster as his eyes lit up, excitement rippling down his expression.

“Fuck the code and fuck the old ways.”

I blinked. “It keeps us safe.”

“You don’t get it, do you? The old ways are dead. They died out when the old bosses passed on. This is a new fucking world, with new cops and new officials and new shit to deal with.”

“You’re talking about murdering an innocent girl,” I said softly.

“I’m talking about survival,” he said viciously. “I’m talking about adapting to our new reality. We either change or we get rolled over.”

I stared at him, shock and dread mixing in my stomach, as he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.

“I can’t do it,” I said.

“We’ve been soft on you, Liam. We’ve been soft on you because of your father and your good work. But a new age is coming, and you’re one of the people I don’t trust. You kill this girl, you take care of our problem, and you’ve earned my respect and my gratitude.” He paused, staring at me. “You don’t do it and we’ll have a problem.”

I shook my head, at a complete loss for words. I could kill a junkie asshole, I could break kneecaps and beat down men who didn’t pay their loans. But I had never murdered a woman before, let alone someone completely unconnected to our business.

Colm stood. “Think about it. Make your decision by tonight. Max will stop by, and he’ll give you more instructions.”

I looked at him, my face hard. “And what if I refuse?”

He grinned and shook his head. “You’re smart. You won’t do that.”

Without another word, he walked off toward the back room, pushed open the kitchen door, and was gone.

I stared at his seat, my entire body tense with shock as the implications of that meeting rolled through my muscles and my gut. I was either going to murder an innocent girl or I was going to be cut out of the gang. I was either going to kill or be killed.

I gripped the edge of the table and worked my jaw.

I knew it was going to be a shit day.





Chapter Four: Ellie


It had been two days since the man in the park had chased me. Two days, and I hadn’t seen either of them since.

Two days was a long time to let your paranoia get the best of you.

At first, I pretended like I was fine. It was no big deal, probably all a misunderstanding; he didn’t mean me any harm, I was sure. But as the night wore on, I kept glancing at the front door, and I must have checked to make sure the deadbolt was firmly shut at least ten times. I even caught myself glancing out the front window and had to force myself to stay out of the kitchen.

Work that first day helped keep my mind off the incident, but when I went home on my lunch break to take Petey for his walk, I found myself going an entirely new route. Petey loved it, of course, but I couldn’t help but feel a little insane. I was intentionally going out of my way on the off chance that those men were somewhere along my old route, lurking in the shadows, waiting to strangle me.

I knew it was crazy. The whole thing was crazy. Obsessing over every little possibility was crazy, and the guy actually chasing after me was crazy.

And I felt a little crazy.

By the end of the second day, though, the throbbing paranoia began to abate, if only slightly. I walked outside, stretching softly, looking out over the kids as they played with each other, jostled for spots on the bus, and climbed into their parents’ cars. I smiled softly, letting myself get lost in the din of the noise and commotion. It soothed me, the crowd, and I felt safe, even if I was the one in charge. There was something about the wild, frenetic energy of the kids that calmed me, or at least it calmed me when it wasn’t directed my way. It was a lot like white noise.