Chapter 365
Chapter 0365
“You weren't a shit spy,” I say, shaking my head. “You worked for years doing that, and Kent never suspected for a single second.
My dad just convinced you that you were bad at it because he doesn't feel like he needs to respect you.
“What are you doing, Fay,” Fiona snaps, staring hard at me. "You are getting into some dangerous waters right now. And you
might want to stop — because as much as I admit I don't really like your dad, and I think he's doing kind of a shit job making the
right choices for this family? I am not ever going to betray this family.”
‘I’m not asking you to betray it.” I say, leaning forward and holding her gaze. “I'm asking you to...consider a change in
leadership.”
“What.” she scoffs, laughing at me as she starts to shake her head. “What, you want me to follow you now, baby Fay? After
“No, Fiona,” I say quietly, still holding her gaze seriously. “I want you to do that.” And her jaw falls nearly to the floor.
Fiona stares at me, and then Daniel, and then Jerome for a long, long moment before shutting her mouth, hard. “All right,” she
says hastily, looking around the room anxiously. “I’m listening. And that does not mean that I am in. But I am listening.”
And then Daniel, Jerome, Fiona and I talk for a long, long time.
By the time we're finished making our offer to Fiona, the bar has filled up a little bit with some of its regular clientele —
neighborhood folks, mostly, but no one who's paying a great deal of attention to us. Fiona serves a couple of beers and then
comes back shakes her head at me, a small smile on her lips. "I always knew you had the balls, little cousin.” she says. “I just
never knew if you'd find them or not.
“Yeah well,” I say, shrugging and sipping on the Shirley Temple that Fiona made me, “one learns a certain set of skills at Kent’s
knee.”
“Oh yeah?” she says, smirking. “Bent you over his knee, did you? He likes that.”
“a
Enough!” Daniel almost shouts, os cutting. the air between us with as slice of his hand. “No more of that! Toomuch sharing of
things I {do not need to know!” -
Fiona and I are still laughing, hard, when the old beige rotary phone next to her starts to ring. She makes a move to answer it but
I grab her hand instead.
“Fiona,” I say quietly, my heart in my eyes as shelooks into my face. “
AN understand that you might say noc And that’s okay. But if you do.. could you please not totally fuck me Over? Or teltanyone
anything that’ 'sgoing toget me killed?” 4
Fiona clicks het tongue and takes my hand, sqleezing it. “I promise you, cousin.” she says quietly, = holding * eyes. “If I decide to
say no, them this conversation never happened. You're my baby Fay. !'ll never hurt you.” on
Tears sting my eyes a little bit as I nod to her, smiling. grateful. Daniel puts a warm hand on my back, letting me know that he
thinks we can trust her. “But really, kid,” she says, nodding towards the phone. “You want me to get this one. “What?” I ask,
confused, pulling my hand away and letting her reach for the phone.
“It's for you,” Jerome says quietly, leaning forward from Daniel's other side. “I, um...I set it up. Because I thought you needed it.