She bats me lightly on the top of my head. “Not funny.”
“A little funny.”
Liam visits after three weeks. He shows up with coffee one morning and slumps down in the kitchen. He looks tired and slightly haggard, but that doesn’t worry me. It just means he’s been doing his damn job.
“When you told me the new plan, I thought it wasn’t going to work,” he admits, stretching his legs out with a sigh. “But I swear to god, your brothers are morons.”
“No argument here,” Caroline concedes. “What are they doing?”
“Well, they’re swallowing every single rumor I seed out there with basically zero due diligence. I’d say Malachy’s even worse than Dermot. He’s almost losing his mind.”
I glance at Caroline and she seems thoughtful. “What exactly have you been seeding?” I ask.
“Basic stuff. Rumors about Dermot becoming heir, about Malachy taking over more responsibility and pushing Dermot out, about your father purposefully putting the boys against each other. Stuff like that. And the fucked-up part is, I’m pretty sure half the shit I’m making up is actually true, or at least it becomes true the second I say it.”
“They’re jockeying.” Caroline looks bright and happy. Which is odd, considering the context. “Anything overt yet?”
“No action against each other, if that’s what you mean. But both of them have definitely made a few quiet contacts with outside mercenary groups.”
“Jesus. They’re going to war.” Caroline practically bubbles over with a laugh.
“Don’t get too excited.” I frown at Liam, considering. “How reliable is your source?”
“It’s solid. All first-hand stuff.”
“We thought it was solid before, remember? That turned out to be a trap.”
His expression hardens and he glances down at the floor. “I’m not making that mistake again.”
“I know you aren’t, but the Flanagans aren’t stupid. They’ve been in this business long enough to see through our game.”
“Not Dermot or Mal. You should’ve seen them.” Caroline hops up to sit on the counter. “They’re going insane, Finn.”
“Maybe, but I want to make sure we’re not getting played again.” I touch my tender shoulder. “Liam, keep going, but be skeptical of everything you hear. Don’t trust anyone.”
“You think I look this tired because I’ve been wandering around like an idiot listening to any asshole who wants to sell me information?” He sighs and rubs his face. “I’m on top of it.”
Caroline perks up and bumps her head on the cabinet. She groans and jumps down, rubbing her neck. “I have an idea.”
“I hope it’s a good one or else you just concussed yourself for no reason.”
“Guns. Lots of guns.”
“Yeah, you definitely hit yourself too hard.”
She waves me away. “Dermot’s not a gun guy, right? He likes computers and games. He’s not hitting the streets. But what if he suddenly had a little armory in his apartment?”
“That would look very suspicious,” Liam agrees.
I give him a look. “Don’t just agree with everything she says.”
“Only when it makes sense.”
“Trust me, if Malachy somehow found Dermot’s place filled with guns, he’d flip out. Why would Dermot need weapons? Unless he was going to war.”
I hold my hands up. “What happened to slowing down? It’s one thing to seed rumors, but this is something else. You’re talking an actual ground operation.”
“Liam, does it sound like Mal and Dermot are going to fight each other for real without a push?”