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With my hands on the edge of the table, I pushed my chair back and rose to my full height. If I stayed and called for Orin, Lorcan would kill me before I got the words out. If I walked out the door like he was trying to convince me to do, I would condemn his life. I wasn’t in the business of selling out family, so I needed a plan C. Something that would ensure Orin’s safety, as well as mine. But what?
“Can I leave out the back door?” I asked. “I don’t want everyone out there to see me.”
He seemed to think about it a moment before nodding. “Fine. But go now.”
Taking in a deep breath through my nose, I willed my legs to move toward the bar’s back door. I found what I was looking for as soon as I turned the corner—a closed door that I knew concealed another set of stairs. This building had once been a grand house, and the servants’ stairs would’ve been hidden away back here. Squeezing my eyes shut, I prayed that the door wasn’t locked and grabbed the handle. I turned it, letting out a breath when the knob twisted to the left and the door opened. I slipped inside, then ran as quietly as I could up the stairs. At the top of the landing, there was another door where a strip of light shone out from underneath it. I prayed that my good luck continued and twisted the handle on this door too. It opened soundlessly, and as I peered out, I saw Orin already standing in the hallway.
I called his name, making his head whip around.
Striding over to where I stood, he demanded, “What are you doing there?”
“Trying to save your arse.” I glanced behind me to make sure the Fiach Reaper hadn’t followed me. “There’s a man named Lorcan Kane downstairs. He says he’s …”
“The Reaper for the Fiach Clan,” Orin finished for me, his mood darkening. “Fuck.” He stared off into the middle distance for a moment before he asked in an angry rumble, “Did he threaten you?”
I swallowed, knowing it was hopeless to try and lie to him. Somehow, he always knew. “Yes, but—”
“I’ll fucking tear him apart.” His eyes had clouded over with intense rage like a storm threatening to break on the horizon. I didn’t want him to charge downstairs and get himself shot, so, without thinking, I reached up and placed my hand on his chest. He was warm and firm beneath my palm, and I couldn’t ignore the way his breathing hitched.
“Orin, please. He told me he’d let me live if I left you here.”
His chest was rising and falling with shallow breaths, and I curled my hand into a fist and withdrew it. His raven eyes remained on my face.
“You came to warn me instead?”
“We’ve been through too much for shit to end this way,” I told him. “There’s another way out though. Come on.”
He stepped into the servants’ stairs, and I followed him in. The tiny space was immediately sunk into darkness when I shut the door behind us. I felt my way along the wall until my fingers brushed up against something hard and warm. I’d reached Orin at the bottom of the stairs, and his hand curled around mine for the briefest second before the pressure disappeared.
He opened the door a sliver, peered out, then eased his big body from the cramped stairway. The pub beyond was quiet, except for some pacing footfalls in the dining room. I took a step closer to the entry into the dining room when Orin grabbed my hand and yanked me closer to his body. He held his finger up to his mouth in the universal sign forshhh, then began moving toward the kitchen.
The waitress who had served us was crouched down behind the stainless-steel workbench. Her eyes widened when we stepped into the room.
“Please,” she whispered. “It was my boss who called them. He’s second cousin to Gannon Sweeney. His loyalties lie with them. The next few towns are also loyal to the Fiach Clan.”
I could see the irritation written on Orin’s face. He glanced around. “Tell me there’s a goddamned way out of here.”
Lottie pointed at something behind her. “Beside the walk-in freezer, there’s a back door.” When she dug into the front of her apron, I saw Orin’s shoulders tense, then relax when Lottie pulled out a set of car keys. “Mine is the red Focus. Take it. Get out of here.”
“What if they find out you helped us?” I asked as Orin accepted the keys.
“The Mac Tíre Clan has helped my da for years. I owe them this.”
I nodded to Lottie as we rushed past her and out the back door. The night air was biting against my cheeks, but we found the car we had been gifted. Orin unlocked the door remotely, and I started opening the passenger door.
“No,” Orin said. “You’re driving. You have to look like you’re leaving alone.”
Hustling over to the other side, I got in while Orin squeezed himself into the back seat and hunkered down. There was a blanket over the rear seat, so I grabbed it and settled it over him.
“Where are we going?” I turned on the car and checked the rearview mirror.
Orin’s voice was muffled as he spoke. “If what the girl said is true, the northern part of county Galway have defected. Finnan couldn’t have known that. We need to return to Oranmore.”
“Okay. Oranmore. I can do that.”
I stalled the car coming out of the car park, and Orin whispered, “Easy,” to me.
“Sorry. I haven’t driven a manual car in a while.” I tried again, this time getting the balance between the clutch and the accelerator timed perfectly. The car moved forward, and as I glanced to the right, I saw the bartender and most of the patrons waiting outside. Apparently, murder did nothing to dissuade people from finishing their drinks.
