Page 102 of Then We Shatter

“Whoever this place belongs to, we’d love to have you here,” I tell my sestra. “We only have one bedroom, but my husband won’t mind sleeping on the couch.”

“Whoa,” says Killian. “I was thinking Sasha would stay at the castle.”

“Whose castle would that be?” Rory asks.

I spear Rory with one look. “Rory Moncrief, titan of a hospitality empire, are you saying you’re not going to offer shelter to a friend of your friend’s friend’s wife?” My brain hurts a little from the word soup that’s just come out of my mouth. Killian is most definitely rubbing off on me.

“Let the women do what they want, would be my advice,” Ash says handing out whiskeys to his friends.

“She can stay at the castle,” Rory and Killian say at the same time.

Sasha’s expression remains deadpan. “I’m not sure it’s big enough to meet my needs.” She’s looking at Rory when she adds, “I prefer my own company and you’re very loud.”

Ash snorts a laugh. “That’s telling you.”

Rory, a man who trades on his bonhomie, blinks a few times as he searches for an appropriate response. He’s not one to back down from a challenge. “If it’s isolation you want, there’s another crofters cottage on the far north of the isle. It’s a shell at the moment, but it’s on my list of outstanding projects. I thought my daughter might want to use it, but it’ll be a while. She’s just started university,” he explains. “She’s not that much younger than you.”

There’s an awkward pause and I don’t think I’m the only one wondering why thirty-seven-year-old Rory Moncrief felt it necessary to point out to twenty-two-year-old Sasha that he had a daughter close to her age. Or why the ruddiness of his cheeks has deepened.

“You could help with the design,” Rory continues when Sasha’s response is simply to stare at him along with the rest of us. “If you liked.”

“And why would you let me do that?” Sasha demands. It’s more accusation than curiosity. She’s not used to kind gestures and will be looking for some Machiavellian plot behind the offer.

“I… Well, I suppose… I mean, why not?” Rory stutters.

“What he means to say,” Ash finishes for him, “is that he’s never going to get rid of our mutual friend, and you two ladies should stay close after everything you’ve been through, but not so close that you can’t find the solitude you enjoy, Sasha.”

“Exactly,” Rory agrees, but his brow furrows when he turns to Killian. “Unless you have plans of coming out of exile any time soon?”

“Not while my dad is living and breathing,” Killian replies, stiffening abruptly. “I’ve no intention of putting him out of his misery. Let him suffer for what he did.”

There’s grit in Killian’s voice that scratches his words. Hatred would be too simple a description of the rage my husband felt when he found out it was John McConkey who gave my uncle the anonymous tip off that foiled my original escape.

Malachy would have shared what he knew about the Griffins’ plan with his dad, but it was the father and not the brother who decided I couldn’t be trusted to deny my uncle a place at the Moncriefs’ table. Perhaps he didn’t know the depth of Killian’s feelings for me when he fed me to the wolves. Or else he knew exactly how entangled his first born had become with a Bratva princess and that was enough for him to betray me, the Griffins, and ultimately his son.

“I had a call from John last week,” Ash says. “He wanted to know if I was willing to come out of retirement. He wasn’t surprised when I said no, but we did have an interesting conversation about you.”

Killian drains his glass. “Don’t want to know.”

Rory pulls his phone from his pocket. “Sasha, I can show you the renovation plans for the cottage, if you’re interested?”

His not-so-subtle withdrawal from the conversation with Sasha passes without remark. It’s safe to assume Rory already knows what Ash has to say.

“He knows your alleged death wasn’t in Colorado.”

“How?” I ask because Killian’s lips are pursed shut. He doesn’t want this conversation and I hate the pain the rift in his family has caused him. I can’t help feeling responsible.

“Shelley told him,” Ash explains. “It was always going to be risky making her a part of the coverup. I know she’s been loyal to you, Kill, but now she thinks you’re dead, her remaining loyalty is to your dad. Not me.”

There’s more silence from Killian in answer.

“At least she doesn’t know Killian survived,” I offer.

“Nor does John, for now,” Ash says, still addressing Killian. “And like the rest of the world, he thinks the Bratva empire imploded in on itself after Vasili’s unfortunate accident. I think that’s why Shelley told him you were shot by the Bratva. She didn’t have to worry about him stirring up another war between your families. She saw how much your dad was grieving and she thought he deserved to know your death hadn’t been some freak accident.”

Ash’s persistence pays off. “I bet he wasn’t too pleased that you were behind the lies,” Killian mumbles.

“Not as pissed off as he’d be if and when he finds out you’re alive.”