Chapter 4 - The Shadow of Silas
Gideon stood in the silence of the study, the weight of two years of lies crashing down on him. His brother was a coward, a man who had traded his sister-in-law’s life for his own skin. But Silas... Silas was a monster.
“Pierce!” Gideon called out.
The door swung open instantly. Pierce stepped inside, his eyes scanning Nolan with open disgust. He had heard every word through the intercom system Gideon had activated before the meeting.
“Take him to the basement,” Gideon ordered, gesturing toward Nolan. “Lock him in the secure room. If he tries to leave, shoot him in the legs.”
“Gideon, please!” Nolan begged as Pierce grabbed him by the arm, dragging him toward the hidden door behind the bookshelf. “I didn't want her to die! I’m your brother!”
“You stopped being my brother the night you let her car go over that bridge,” Gideon said coldly.
Once the room was quiet again, Gideon walked up to the nursery. The baby was awake now. Marnie was holding her, feeding her a bottle of formula they had rushed to procure from a twenty-four-hour pharmacy. The child’s gray eyes locked onto Gideon as he entered, and for the first time in two years, the tension in his shoulders eased slightly.
“What’s her name, Gideon?” Marnie asked softly.
Gideon looked at the hospital band around the tiny wrist. Baby Girl Rowan. He touched the soft tuft of dark hair on her head. “Her name is Clara. It’s what Lydia wanted if we ever had a daughter. It means 'bright.' She said our world needed more light.”
He took Clara from Marnie’s arms. The baby was warm now, her skin soft against his rough palms. He held her close, feeling the steady, fragile thump of her heart.
“Pierce,” Gideon said into his earpiece.
“Yes, Boss?”
“Get the jet ready. We’re going to New York. And bring a strike team. We’re going to visit Uncle Silas.”
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“And the baby?” Pierce asked.
Gideon looked down at Clara, who had grabbed a fistful of his shirt. “She stays here with Marnie. Double the guards. If anyone so much as breathes near this estate without my permission, kill them. I’m going to end this, Pierce. Once and for all.”
