Chapter 4 - The House of Vipers
Connor explained the terms of my agreement in a voice as cold and precise as a scalpel.
In exchange for liquidating my $42,000 debt, expunging Toby’s police file, and securing my mother’s stay at a top-tier private memory care facility, I was to move into Kavanaugh House immediately.
My official title was personal assistant and dietary manager to Connor Kavanaugh. My actual job was far simpler and infinitely more dangerous: I was to watch everyone.
"Three months ago, someone planted a bomb under my car," Connor said calmly, as if discussing the weather. "Two months ago, my food was laced with arsenic. Last week, the hydraulic lift on my custom vehicle failed."
"Someone in your family is trying to kill you," I whispered, horror rising in my throat.
"My cousin Declan wants control of the South Boston docks," Connor said smoothly. "My stepmother Maeve wants my late father's trust fund unlocked. And my head of security, Brendan, is getting paid by someone in New York."
He reached out, grabbing a sleek gold pen from his desk, spinning it between his long, tattooed fingers.
"They think because I am stuck in this chair, I am weak," Connor said, his voice dropping an octave, becoming a lethal, quiet promise. "They think a paralyzed man cannot protect his crown. They are mistaken."
He looked up at me, his storm-grey eyes locking onto mine.
"You will live in the west wing," Connor commanded. "You will prepare my meals personally. You will check my medicine. You will observe who enters my wing when I am absent. Do we have an agreement, Miss Lawson?"
I took a deep breath, feeling my baby kick softly against my ribs.
May you like
I had no choice. I was stepping into a den of vipers, but for the first time in three years, my family would be safe.
"We have an agreement, Mr. Kavanaugh," I replied.
