Total pages in book: 132
Estimated words: 127249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 127249 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 636(@200wpm)___ 509(@250wpm)___ 424(@300wpm)
“Is that constructive to your goal?”
“What does that mean?”
“Whoever took her will believe she told you everything. They would’ve made themselves scarce by now. You have a better chance of catching them if you keep them close.”
“I highly doubt the mercenaries would’ve told her who they were working for.”
“Others could’ve been present while they held her captive. You and I both know they weren’t going to send her back to you in one piece.”
The mere sound of that makes my vision fray around the edges.
“She could’ve seen or heard something,” he concludes. “They wouldn’t have been too careful around her, which only gives them more reason for wanting to eliminate her. To them, she’s still a threat. And as long as they believe she knows the location of the necklace, her life is at risk. Letting people know she lost her memory could be the best way of protecting her.”
“Do you think our enemies will believe that? They’ll think I’m lying for the exact reason you mentioned.” My tone is harsh. “It doesn’t matter. No one will get anywhere near her again. One way or another, I’ll find out who paid those mercenaries.”
“Do you have any leads?”
“A fingerprint.” I scrub a hand over my face. “My hacker is working on finding a matching ID.”
“That’s something, at least.”
Silence stretches.
Sav is never silent, especially not when he’s requested the meeting.
“What?” I ask when he only continues to scrutinize me.
“What’s the chances of letting the necklace go?”
Surprised, I say, “Give it up, you mean?”
He rubs a thumb over his bottom lip. “Yes.”
“No.” My firm answer leaves no room for argument. “That’s not an option.”
“From what I’ve heard, Tatiana’s brother is ruined. The man is a walking corpse, just waiting to keel over. Isn’t that enough? Is the money really that important?”
“It’s not about the money.”
“Do your men know that?”
I clench my jaw. “If you’re insinuating that the money is all that matters to them, you’re wrong. Yes, I promised them their share when we find the necklace, but any one of those men will stand by me if I change my mind.” I add in a heated tone, “Which isn’t going to happen.”
Sav raises his hands. “It’s your call. But—”
“I fucking knew you were going to say but.”
“But do yourself a favor and put Tatiana first. If Anya is happy, everyone is happy. Most of all me. Do you catch my drift?”
“I can handle my own wife, Sav.”
“I’m sure you can,” he drawls, but his small smile says otherwise.
He can go fuck himself. I don’t need advice on how to live my life with my family.
“The boat accident,” he says. “Can this come back to you?”
“I made sure it won’t.”
He nods.
As that indicates the meeting is over, I walk to the door.
“Dante?”
I stop and face him.
The ghost of the smile that remains on his lips is more dangerous than amused. “Don’t let me learn about your plans on the news again.”
“Noted,” I say before getting the fuck out of there.
Anya and Reino are chatting behind the bar, each of them with a mug in their hands. I motion for Reino to follow me. If Sav catches him being so cozy with his wife, blood will be spilled before we leave here today.
Anya follows my progress with a frown. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes.” I smile for her sake. “Have a nice day.”
“Wait.” She runs after me. “I was thinking…”
I pause and, as a courtesy, wait as she’s asked.
“I’d love to meet Tatiana and Noah. I saw them so briefly at the wedding. There wasn’t much time to chat.”
Politeness dictates that I accept her invitation, but Sav won’t appreciate it if I put his family in danger by dragging them into our mess.
“Maybe when she’s better,” I say.
Anya’s demeanor is compassionate. “We’re here for you if you need us, and I mean both of you.”
“Thanks.” I raise my hand to squeeze her shoulder but think the better of it. “I appreciate that.”
I say a quick goodbye, telling her to hug the girls for me, and, with Reino in tow, take the elevator to the parking lot.
“The office?” Reino asks when we step out on the underground level.
“On second thought, I’m heading home. You should go catch some sleep. It’s been a long night.” We stop next to the car. “Can you ask one of Sav’s men to drive you?”
He throws me the key. “I’ll borrow one of his cars. I’d like to go past Jazz’s place.”
I still with my hand on the door handle. “Stay away from Jasper, Reino. She’s Tatiana’s friend.”
“I just want to make sure everything is in order there.”
“There are a million available women in this city. Don’t pick the wrong one.”
“No chance of that. She’s made it obvious how she feels about me.”
“She has a strong reaction for someone who’s been deceived into believing you were a handyman. Shouldn’t she have moved past that by now?”