Page 89 of Lawless Rivals

Ma climbs inside, slams the door, and takes one last look at us.

Keira backs up and tries to put distance between herself and me. I step into her path.

“You’re a real bastard, you know that?” she hisses.

“Yeah, well, I’m not interested in what ya think of me.”

I inhale a lungful of smoke and watch the wind play with her hair as Ma drives back the way she came, her taillights fading.

“You’re moving. Keep up.”

She looks at me. “Where to?”

I take one more smoke-filled inhale before dropping the cigarette out, grinding it under my boot and heading straight for the barn.

“Not my place, that’s for sure.”

Inside, I move to the tack room, slide Bran’s saddle onto my arm and hang his bridle on my shoulder. By the time I’ve walked to his stall, Keira’s standing in the aisle, arms crossed and a look of pure fucking bitterness twisting her pretty face.

Sera wanders in behind her and lingers by the barn doors, clearly interested in how this is going to play out from here. She leans her shoulder against the wall, eyes moving between me and Keira.

I don’t give either of them a second glance and slide the bolt back, stepping inside the stall and running a hand down Bran’s neck before tacking up.

Once I’m done, I lead him out of the barn and into the floodlight that shows a fresh new wave of spitting rain.

“Where are ya taking her?” Sera asks, coming up to the hold reins.

“Harrington,” I bite the name over my shoulder.

I unroll the stirrups and tighten the girth.

“Out past the south fields,” I tell my sister, not looking at her. “The old tin.”

“The old what?” Keira takes her time coming up behind us.

Sera doesn’t look back at her; rather, she rubs Bran’s cheek. “You’ll be gone a while. I’ll deal with Crowley in the morning.”

I exhale a deep breath, pop the collar of my jacket, and climb into the saddle.

Keira looks at the horse, then up at me, then at Sera. “You want me on that horse, you tell me where I’m going.”

My grip tightens on the reins.

“You’re going somewhere safer than here,” Sera says. “The only thing that’ll kill ya out there is the land if you’re exposed to it.”

Keira doesn’t move right away. “I’m sick and tired of this bullshit.”

I nudge Bran forward, line him up with the mounting block, and wait. She crosses the yard and gets on behind me without another word.

Her hands fist my jacket, without reaching around my waist to prove a point. She’ll hold on tighter when Bran breaks into a canter.

The moment she settles, we head off with the clip-clop of hooves filling the peaceful night.

Drizzle hits my face, and moonlight carves a shadowy path along the track leading to the south fields. Out here, everywhere looks the same at night, except I recognise every bump and wind-battered tree for miles.

She wouldn’t have a clue where to take shelter if she ran. Wouldn’t know which direction brought her closer to a road and which took her deeper into the heath.

Once Bran transitions from trot to canter, her arms snake around my sides, and her chest presses flush against my spine. I shouldn’t like how close she is, but God help me, I do.