"You want to lead the Firm that much?" Brennan questioned.
"It’s my right," I told him. "I took a lot of shit over the years for it. Wasn’t about to have it snatched away through no fault of my own."
"You know we wouldn’t have let that happen, don’t you?" Brennan questioned, the scowl back in his eyes.
"I know you don’t want to lead. I know you’ve resented me for putting so much work on you." I grimaced. "I’m sorry for dropping the ball, bro. Thank you for picking up the load."
Brennan’s shoulders wriggled which, I knew, meant he was uncomfortable with the conversation. "You dropped the ball, but hopefully if you’re back, then at least I can have a fucking life again. I got a wife now, Aidan. I want to see her. Be with her."
"I got a woman as well, Brennan. Only Kid doesn’t now." I scratched my jaw. "We’re going to have to work something out so that we have more of a life than Da does.
“I don’t want to be like him. Don’t want to rule with an iron fist at home." I thought of yesterday, and rasped, "He loves us, Brennan. I didn’t think he did, not until yesterday."
"Da doesn’t know how to love," he disagreed. "Ma does, but she’s got some kind of fucking Stockholm Syndrome or something going on. He messed with her head. Gaslit her or some shit."
Slowly, I shook my head. "If you’d have seen him yesterday, you’d get it."
Brennan grimaced. "Maybe I never will. Maybe I’ll always remember what he did, and what he said, rather than what he didn’t do or say."
"I get it. We’ve all got a lot of crosses to bear where he’s concerned," I agreed. "Now, come on. Let’s go home."
He nodded. "Gotta stop off at Conor’s place first. There’s some shit he wants us to bring back."
"Sure," I agreed, twisting around to look at the grim warehouse that had just seen a peace like no other brokered between two of the city’s biggest factions. "Think Valentini will do it? Think he’ll make it as Don?"
"His birthright was snatched from him. You don’t use a cane because you were worried Da would listen to some dumbfucks. I think we can guarantee that Valentini’s willing to do dumb shit to get to where he wants to be."
"Wonder how long it’ll take." I winced as the biting cold in here made my knee ache like a motherfucker.
Brennan sent me a measured look. "A week."
I smirked. "Want to bet on that?"
Brennan grinned. "Yeah, I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is so long as you are." We bumped fists, but it was more than just a bet we agreed on.
In this warehouse where blood was shed and truths were earned through torture, brotherly loyalty was cemented in place, and Brennan, though Finn knocked him out of the line of succession, was born to be my second, and he officially took the role I offered and, more importantly, accepted it.
For me, that meant more than what had just gone down with the Italians.
As he slapped me on the back, I muttered, "You got Cammie a gift yet?"
"Of course. Did our ma raise a fool? Wait, don’t answer that. You were raised by her too."
My scowl ended with a laugh. "Fuck off."
"You need to get Savannah something?"
I nodded.
"I’ll take you to the place I went. They’ll hook you up."
Good. No way was I about to celebrate our first Christmas together without my giving her a gift.