“Glad we’re on the same page.” James downed half his beer. “Look, my brother wasn’t a saint and we both know it. But he was still family so, yeah, I’m not exactly bursting with happiness right now.”
That was about what he expected. “What if I can find out who killed him?”
He frowned. “What?”
This was it—where he’d either garner support or alienate the man completely. Teague took a deep breath, praying it was the former. “I don’t want this war. Neither does Callie.”
“No one wants this war, except maybe our fathers.” He smirked. “And Callie, huh? Sounds like you’re getting plenty cozy with that fiancée of yours.”
“I like her. I didn’t expect to.”
“Then you’re goddamn lucky.”
“I know.” He let out the breath he was holding. He’d been sure James didn’t want to go to war, but six years could change a person. They’d changed Aiden. Taking another drink, he steered clear of that thought. “If I can find out who killed Brendan, will your father call off his dogs?”
“You know something?” He zeroed in like a hunting dog catching a scent.
It was almost a shame Teague didn’t have concrete information yet. “I had some men who were there that night, up in one of the private rooms on the same floor. I’ve talked to them, and word is that it’s a woman. One of the strippers.”
James’s shoulders slumped and he scrubbed a hand over his face. “Fuck. I’d hoped it wasn’t.”
“Why?” The question was out before he could think better of it.
The man’s expression was bleak. “Do you know the types of girls my brother staffed that place with?” He went on before Teague could answer. “Runaways. Girls—and I do mean girls, not women—who came stateside on the promise of a dream. Most of them wouldn’t have chosen that for themselves.”
It was all too easy to imagine his sisters there, helpless and doing their damnedest to survive. How long before one of them broke and lashed back? Sloan might take it until it killed her. She was the type to keep her head down until she was in danger of breaking. Keira…How long until the fire inside her that he loved so much was doused? And Carrigan…
He set her beer down carefully. Carrigan would stick a broken bottle in someone the first chance she got. He studied James, trying to figure out where he was going with this. “What are you saying?”
“If one of those girls killed my brother, she’s long gone by now.” He looked away, his voice so low, Teague almost convinced himself he was imagining the next words. “And maybe Brendan got what he deserved.”
As much as he understood the sentiment—he would have killed Brendan himself if he tried to lay a hand on Teague’s sisters—knowing that didn’t solve the current issue. He cleared his throat. “If I can find the person who did it, will your father pull back?”
James sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe. I can’t guarantee anything, but being able to get his vengeance might be enough to make him hold off punishing the insult of your marriage.”
He tapped the table. “I get that you have mixed feelings about this, but I’ll do damn near anything to stop this war from escalating before someone does something they can’t take back.”
“Even if it means some poor girl who might have just been defending herself is going to die?”
Teague stared at the wall, trying to come up with an answer that wasn’t cold and heartless and completely self-serving. If he were a better man, he’d let this search go. His father’s men were better equipped to deal with the inevitable violence of war than some runaway who’d gotten in over her head. But war never came without collateral damage, and it was the thought of one of his younger siblings or, worse in some ways, Callie, being hurt that had him turning back to James. “Yes.”
He was a bastard and a half for sacrificing a woman who was likely already a victim for the sake of those he loved, but he’d own that.
“Cold.” James finished his beer. “I can’t promise anything and I don’t particularly support this, but there’s a chance it would be enough for my old man. A chance, Teague. I can’t guarantee anything.”
It wasn’t the firm agreement he’d wanted, but a chance was better than being turned down flat. There wasn’t much he could bring to the table as leverage, so he had to work with what he had. “I have to do whatever it takes to put a stop to this.”
“Yeah, I know.” He didn’t look too happy about it.