Chapter 81. War

S:

The TV still buzzes with chaos. Sirens. Smoke. The red and blue swirl of panic. My name runs through every headline like blood on concrete.

Mafia King’s Empire on Fire.

Gas Plant Explosion Leaves Dozens Dead.

Who Will Answer for This Carnage?

I shut it off.

Silence.

Rae clutches my hand, her knuckles white. Kieran’s pacing, already on the phone barking orders. Eliza leans on the wall, brows drawn, lips pressed thin.

Me?

I just sit there.

Still.

For a full minute.

Breathing through the fire rising in my gut.

Then I stand.

“I need my coat,” I say.

“S—” Rae starts, but I shake my head.

Not now.

I head to the hall, throw on my long black coat. My gloves. The ones I only wear when I plan to bury a part of myself. My boots echo across the floor like war drums.

Kieran follows. “Where to?”

“Warehouse. Get the boys. I want nam