Alec

"Hi," Alec said, giving me a small smile.

I think I smiled. "Hey."

"Everything is going to be okay, I promise you."

I nodded my head and leaned against him but he kept me sitting up straight. I lazily watched as he ripped a large piece of fabric off the end of his shirt, then he did the same thing to my dress.

He folded up the fabric from his shirt then removed my hand from my head and pressed it against my eyebrow very hard.

"Ow," I whimpered.

"I'm sorry baby, the more pressure I apply the more it will help stop the bleeding."

I nodded my head.

"Hold this piece over your cut. I'm going to place this strip over that piece then tie it off behind your head, okay?"

"Okay," I said.

Alec did as he said, and it may have looked fu

"What was that?"

"Toby, front door!" Marco bellowed.

"Front door is covered, it not coming from the entrance."

"Where the fuck is the exit?"

He bought a building and didn't know where the exit was?

"Eejit," I muttered.

"It's behind you," Alec said, and from the sound of his voice, he was smiling.

I opened my eyes and looked up at him, he was in fact smiling.

"Why are you similin'?"

"Because my brothers are here."

They were?

"Where?"

"There."

I looked down to Bronagh and followed her line of sight.

Dominic Slater was the first brother I spotted followed by Ryder, and Kane.

I lead my head back against the booth and relaxed.

We were going to be okay.

"Put your weapons down," Marco growled.

"We don't have any," Kane replied

Scratch what I said before we were going to die.

"You don't have weapons? Are you fuckin' around?" Bronagh's voice snapped.

"Sorry bee, I don't deal in that business anymore," Ryder said and for some reason I found it fu

"A butter knife would be somethin' lads, not nothin'!"

I agreed with Bronagh, I was just too tired to voice it.

"So you come here unarmed... why?" Marco asked.

"Because your issue isn't with us, it's with him."

Him?

"Who is him?" Marco asked.

"I'll give you two guesses, but you're only goin' to need one."

Uncle Brandon!

"Oh, fuck!" Toby said from somewhere behind me.

Yeah, Toby knew what was up.

"I've tried to think of a logical reason as to why you took my niece into a hostile situation, Marco, but I just can’t see past your stupid."

I mentally snorted.

"She was in the wrong place at the wrong time, it happens."

"That doesn't apply to what is mine, and she is mine."

Silence.

"Take her then, take her and leave."

I opened my eyes and could only see Marco's back with his arm raised.

He was pointing a gun at someone.

"It's too late for that."

Marco shook his head. "It's not, she is still alive. See."

Marco stepped to the left and gave my uncle a clear view of me.

My vision was a little blurry but I could see how pissed my uncle was.

He wasn't nice when he was pissed.

"What. Did. You. Do. To. Her?" my uncle growled.

"I didn't do anything, that was my men-"

"What men? You mean the two pricks who high tailed it up the entrance stairway less than a minute ago?"

Marco glanced around.

"Toby? Thomas?"

Toby and Thomas didn't reply to Marco's calls.

Things were silent for a moment then a loud bang sounded.

I jumped with fright.

"Toby or Thomas, one of them won't be answerin' to anyone," my Uncle Brandon said to Marco.

Marco turned his attention and gun back to my uncle.

"Take her and leave, my problem is with the brothers."

"No, your problem is with me. You see, me niece's lad is one of those Slater brothers, and I'm not tellin' her she can't have him again. I got an ear full the first time so I'm savin' meself a headache and leavin' them be. He is her's and she is mine, and we already know nothin' happens to what is mine."

I think that was my uncle's weird way of giving us his blessing.

I smiled and so did Alec's brothers.

"I don't think you understand the concept of having a gun pointed at your head, Brandon."

"And I don't think you understand the concept of have ten pointed at yours, Marco."

I heard multiple clicks then.

I moved my head to see past my uncle and I caught sight of his men.

I counted six, but my uncle said ten guns so I knew the other four were around the room somewhere.

I tried to lean back against the booth, but I slumped forward. I would have hit the table except Alec grabbed my shoulder stopping it from happening.

"Slater, is she okay?"

"I think she has as concussion."

"Keep her awake," my uncle ordered.

I closed my eyes.

"Hey, you heard your uncle, stay awake."

I grumbled. "I'm tired... and me head hurts."

"I know, but we will be going home soon and then you can sleep."

Home.

I whimpered. "Aideen... Storm."

"They are okay. Aideen is awake and Storm is okay, it was a through and through flesh wound. Aideen and Bra

I began crying as relief flooded my body.

Aideen was okay and so was Storm. He was really going to be okay.

Thank God!

"You shot my niece's dog?"

"You sick bastard," Bronagh suddenly said and it made my uncle laugh.

"The girl said it."

"I didn't shoot it, but it attacked my men," Marco said in a defensive tone.

I growled, "He was protectin' me you sick twisted fuck."

"I heard for the past year that you we goin’ insane. I wondered if it was the reason why you lost so many business partners and then I heard about your obsession with this family. I didn't fully believe it until now, I mean, shooting a dog? You really are fuckin' crazy."

Marco laughed like a madman. "They ruined me, everything fell apart when they jumped out."

"Your empire was never that strong to begin with if a group of brothers ran the show for you."

"You don't know what you're talking about."

My uncle laughed. "No, I actually do. You've lost everythin'. I did a background check on your finances and they are non-existent. You came to the Bahamas to sell this dump to me for fuck's sake, you even accepted half the price it's worth."

My uncle owned Darkness now?

"You thought Dante might earn you a quick buck too, where is he by the way?"

Everything went quiet.

Very quite.

"You know where he is?"

"I do, he came to me looking for an out so I gave him one."

What did that mean?

"I want him back."

"I'm afraid that can't be arranged. I take employee confidentially very serious."

Oh God.

"You son of a bitch, you pinched him?"

My uncle shrugged. "My niece's interest in Alec got me thinkin' on that branch of business. I thought I'd try my hand in it, hence Dante now being on me payroll"

I gasped.

"Uncle!"

My uncle laughed at me and so did his men.

"Sorry baby girl, it's only business."