Tiernan grabs me by the nape of my neck, and crashes his mouth to mine, sealing the priest’s fate with a kiss.
And for the next few hours, I sit back in my seat with my in-laws and watch Shay nail the priest’s hands and feet to the cross with his blades, pulling out each fingernail and then cutting off his fingers and toes as he goes about it. Tiernan takes his time beating Father Doyle’s face into a bloody mess with his knuckles, while Colin does the same with the rest of his body. Once they tire of that, Tiernan grabs hold of Shay’s dagger and starts cutting into the priest’s body, making sure he feels every wound and waking him up every time the pain is too much for him to remain conscious. After Tiernan guts his belly from navel to neck, pulling his insides out while the priest watches in horror, my husband’s men pull the cross back up to its rightful standing position. That’s when Colin brings his blowtorch into play. He lights the priest on fire, his tormented screams sure to give most people in attendance nightmares for years to come.
But not me.
I watch in utter fascination, as the blood of my enemy streaks down my men’s faces, surprised that his burning flesh doesn’t churn my stomach as I thought it would.
I’m suddenly reminded of Alejandro’s words to me as he described the family I was about to become a part of. My brother said that the Kellys were nothing but animals. Filthy, unscrupulous, vicious animals, he made sure to add.
But that’s not what I see here today.
I see men who would do everything in their power to protect those they love.
I see a hand of just retribution for those who decide to take it upon themselves to hurt us.
But most of all, I see love and what they would do to anyone who dared take it away from them.
If this is what my brother meant when he called them savages, then I guess I am one, too.
A vicious savage who couldn’t be more proud to call herself a Kelly.
Come hell or high water, that’s who I intend to be for the rest of my days.
Chapter 25
Rosa
Nine months later
“MOVE!” Colin shouts, pushing people out of our way, left and right.
I’m too focused on doing my Lamaze breathing to reprimand him for being rude. Tiernan wheels me down the corridor, cursing in Gaelic while Shay stares at his watch, counting the seconds down to my next contraction.
And here comes another.
“ARGH!!!” I wince, clawing at Shay’s arm as the pain physically rips me in two.
“Fuck!” he grunts, pained, more from seeing me in so much agony than at the damage I’m causing him with my nails.
I try to breathe through it while praying to the Virgen de Guadalupe to give me the strength I need to deliver this baby. I have no doubt I want to have more children, but right now, I’d sell my soul to the devil himself for an epidural. Once the worst of the contraction has passed, I let go of Shay’s arm and entwine my hand in his instead.
“It’s okay. I’m okay.”
“You fucking don’t look it, petal,” he chokes, looking awfully pale himself.
“I’ll be fine. Just find me our doctor and get me in a room. This baby wants to come out now. He’s just as headstrong as his father, calling the shots before he’s even born.”
I crane my neck back and look up and smile at my husband. He throws me a conspiring wink, but I can tell he’s just as anxious and nervous as the rest of them.
When a nurse at the end of the hall waves her hand, calling us into a room, Tiernan speeds up.
“Mrs. Kelly, seems like your boy is in a hurry to come into the world,” Doctor McNamara greets with a warm, kind smile as he ushers us into my private room.
“Less talking, more moving, Doc. Rosa is in a world of pain, and I can’t guarantee if she screams again that my cousin won’t break a wall in,” Shay tries to joke, but it falls flat on the floor with the worried expression on his face.
Colin picks me up from the wheelchair and lies me on the bed like I’m made of crystal. I press my hand to his cheek to ease his worry.
“I’m okay, Col. This is normal. Millions of women do this every day.”
“None of those women belong to us. You do,” he whispers, kissing my sweaty temple.
I’m about to say something to console him, but then another contraction blows any chance of that happening.
“OHHHH GOD!” I scream, biting down on my bottom lip so hard, I pierce the flesh.
Tiernan grabs my face in his hands while Colin and Shay take one of my hands on opposite sides of me.
“No more of that, acushla. I won’t have you in any more pain than you necessarily have to be in,” he coos, releasing my lip from my teeth’s grip. “Can you give her something to ease the pain?” he asks the doctor, who is currently under my blue hospital dressing gown, head deep in between my legs.