Claimed - a Portwright Book

Chapter One: Declan

I looked at my watch as there was a crash from the main bar. "It depends how badly ye want to impress upon him the urgency of yer situation."

"What would ye suggest, lad?" Paddy asked with a chuckle.

I shrugged and crossed my arms. "It's not my place to make suggestions. I take orders."

"I might just order ye to be more helpful, Dec." He gave me a wry grin.

There was another crash from the main bar and a bit of shouting. But so far, nothing to worry about.

"If it's just information ye want, then he doesn't need much roughin' up, does he? Ye want me to send a message...?" I shrugged again. "Well that's different now, isn't it?"

"I'll trust ye to know how much is needed. Ye know what I want, lad."

"All right, then," I nodded, "I'll deal with it."

Paddy leant towards me. "Decky-boy, take Rory, eh? Lord knows that boy needs a good kick up the backside." He frowned. "Where the fuck is he anyway?"

I uncrossed my arms and ran a hand through my hair. "I don't know. Last I saw, he was out the main bar and Shauna was fillin' him up again."

"This rate he'll be too pissed to go," Paddy sighed and leant back in his chair. "Son, I'll need you to sort him first–" He stopped as another crash sounded, louder this time. "I'll need ye to deal with that ruckus, then Rory, then go see Roy." I nodded and Paddy chuckled. "God rest ye ma, Declan, but I'm glad it brought ye to me. A better son I couldn't have asked for."

"Don't let yer actual sons hear ye talk like that, Paddy. Ye might miss me pretty face," I answered, giving him the closest to a sincere smile I ever got these days.

Paddy laughed and waved me out. "Go find Rory and bring him in, then do what ye do best, son."

"Aye, will do."

I nodded and walked out, pulling the door closed behind me. A fight had obviously broken out in the bar and I figured Rory might as well be at the forefront of it. But then, what kind of Tuesday night would it be if there wasn't a fight at Shauna's front bar. I strode down the hallway, stretching my neck and cracking my knuckles. I pushed through the door to the front room and saw the usual carnage ensuing.

"Oi, Sean!" I heard a voice call and the two main fighters stopped, fists drawn back comically, as they turned to me.

Everyone else in the room stopped and turned.

"Aye, aye, Declan. All right, mate," Lochlan said slowly as he let go of Sean's collar and held his hands up.

I looked around at them all, my face a stony mask perfected through years of necessity. I raised one eyebrow and they all hurried to sit down. Chairs scraped and glasses clinked against the wooden tabletops as they pretended they hadn't just been brawling. The lot of them, mostly middle-aged, in their leather jackets, with their long hair and tattoos looked like chastened school children after their ma walked in on them jumping on the beds.

"Don't let me interrupt ye, fellas," I said slowly as I walked forward, keeping my eye on them all in turn. I nodded to Shauna behind the bar, who gave me a wry grin. "I was spoilin' for a bit of a fight. Now, the fun's just spoiled."

Sean chuckled awkwardly as I stopped beside his table and leant on the back of his and Lochlan's chairs. "No harm done then, lad. How about a round on me, eh?"

I nodded. "Aye, I think that'll do just fine, Sean." I clasped his shoulder and looked up to Shauna. "Ye heard the man. A round on him."

"Righto, Decko." She nodded.