Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
“Which family is this?” I asked.
“The O’Murphys,” Luc answered before taking a sip of coffee.
I lowered my gaze. Both Luc and Marksen were keen boardroom negotiators. They knew how to read people and I didn’t want to give anything way. Certainly not the fact that I already was developing a highly confidential case against the O’Murphys. A case I could not tell either of them about, regardless of any potential threat to our family.
“They are dangerous, and I’m concerned they have grown accustomed to a certain lifestyle with the work my father sent their way. Losing that could make them unpredictable.”
“Seems like you know exactly what they want to do. I wouldn’t call that unpredictable.” I sat back and wondered how much I should tell Luc.
“Well, the threats they made against me and everyone I love were pretty clear,” Luc said.
“Wait, are you saying you love us? I think I’m going to cry.” Marksen put his hand to his heart as if the sentiment had touched him.
I rolled my eyes while Luc let out an annoyed groan. “I love my sisters and my wife, and they are protected. They love you too, so I wanted to give you a heads-up.”
“What were their threats exactly?” I asked.
“You know, the usual. You need us, if you stop paying us, we will kill everyone you have ever loved, and anyone they ever loved and blah blah blah. I wouldn’t be concerned, except the way my father’s face paled when I told him what I did makes me think there is more to them than just your common, everyday thugs.”
He wasn’t wrong.
The O’Murphy clan was into some heavy crime, not just running errands for his father. My office was building a case for the kidnapping and trafficking of young women into and out of the States. They were running an old-school human trafficking scam, going to impoverished areas in Eastern Europe and promising the beautiful women there a new life—a life with purpose, the promise of a job, and the American dream.
Then they would steal their passports, tell them the horrors of what happened in the custody of the American immigration system. Once those women were truly terrified of American police officers or anyone in a uniform, the mob got them addicted to meth or whatever else they could get their grubby little hands on and turn them out as prostitutes.
Not the high-end prostitutes that worked the high rises of Wall Street, judges’ chambers, or even politicians’ second homes, but the poor souls who were used and abused over and over until they died, their bodies disposed of in the Hudson.
It was heartbreaking every single time we recovered their remains from the river. It had taken almost two years to put this case together, and we were getting close. So close, I was going to advise Luc to sever the ties before he was dragged down with them. Telling him would have been extremely illegal. I could have been disbarred and thrown out of my office, but there was no way I would have allowed this filth to taint Amelia’s world.
It was better now that Luc had cut the ties on his own. Amelia would remain protected, and I wouldn’t have to break my oath of office.
“Do you want anything legal done, restraining orders or anything like that? It won’t stop them from getting close, but if they do, we can lock them up for it,” I offered like the good brother-in-law I was.
“No, thank you. For now, I just want the added security, and I have it handled. But I will let you know if that changes,” Luc said.
“I’m letting my own security know to be more vigilant.” Marksen typed on his phone. “I know you say you have it handled, but I also want my security and yours to communicate. I don’t want there to be any gaps in their protection coverage, and I don’t want them chasing each other, leaving Olivia unprotected.”
“Anyone you need to protect?” Luc asked. “Rose has been spending time with Amelia, so both of your sisters are covered.”
“If Rose and Amelia are safe, then I am content. The only other woman I would need to have protected would be my mother. But I don’t think informing her of any of this would be wise.”
“Dear God, no,” Luc said, slumping back in his chair in a way that told me he was as exasperated with Mary Quinn Astrid’s antics as I was. Marksen just gripped his mug tighter and clenched his jaw. He was still mad at the way she’d manipulated him.
Though I understood his frustration, it was still his fault for letting her goad him into kidnapping and blackmail. I meant, really, Olivia only needed a few hours with his bank statements to trace everything back to my mother.