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Jasper ignored her. Security overrode sex for the moment. "Thanks. I don't want to know how you got through my security, do I?"
"You're good. I'm much, much better. I won't text you the codes; I'm not convinced Dominic won't be tapped into your phone. They're in your pants pocket." Atticus tilted his head toward the pile of clothing. "You have my number, but there's also a list of tonight's team in the pocket, with their contact details. Anything spooks you, anything feels wrong, you call any or all of us."
"I'm beginning to think I should just stash her in a safe house," Jasper muttered in exasperation.
"Trust me, with the improvements we've made today, you're living in one. Before you leave the house in the morning, I'll need an itinerary of your day, Anarchy. Personally, I'd prefer you stay at home and be productive from there. Looking at the schematics, the security guard rotes, and all the irritating details of a building that size, we're looking at logistical complications."
Logistical complications? That sounded like it was an open door for Erik and Gerald to sneak through. Uneasy, Jasper lifted Anarchy onto her feet. "Get dressed, Archie." He ran his hand down her arm, then narrowed his eyes at Atticus. "If it's not safe for her to go, she's not going."
Slim arms crossed over pert breasts. "Sheis right here, Sir. And sheis required to go into the office tomorrow."
Now was not the time to argue, but Jasper felt it brewing between them. He needed to resolve the problem before it grew out of proportion. "If you need to speak to your boss, you can call him or set up a Zoom meeting. Your personal safety outweighs everything else. If Atticus says you're at risk by heading into the office, then you will not leave the house."
Color was rising quickly into her cheeks. Those chocolate eyes he adored were bubbling with temper, turning them almost black. Her bare foot stomped on the carpet. "It's quite simple, Jasper. I walk into the building, take the elevator to the tenth floor, and walk into the conference room to sit with a dozen colleaguesfor three hours. You can wait in the reception area. Hell, if you want to spy on everyone in the building, sit in the goddamn lobby!"
"Mind. Your. Tone."
Atticus shifted further back onto his seat and propped his foot on his opposite knee, obviously settling in for the show.
"Don't tell me to mind my tone, Sir. I'm being polite and offering you a solution to the problem you'recreating. Master Atticus has the building covered. The one requirement of my job is that I show up to the staff meetings. They don't care if I work from home for the other thirty days of the month, but attending staff meetings is mandatory!"
Jasper tried to bite back some of his own temper. He had a feeling if they both let their anger rip free, there wouldn't be much left of Avalon. "Well then, I'll call your boss in the morning and explain the situation. Are you at risk of losing your job if you don't go?"
"I don't know—I've never missed one!"
"There's a first time for everything. Atticus, your thoughts?" Jasper tossed the volatile ball in his friend's direction to give himself a chance to cool down.
In a huff, his sub snatched up her pants from the pile of clothes and wrestled herself into them, irritation in every movement. Did she know she was straddling a very fine line between being opinionated and downright insubordination? He suspected she did, and was too concerned about protecting her job to cover her ass.
"Thanks, J. I feel like my foot's pressing down on a fucking landmine." Scratching his beard, Atticus sighed. "We're tapped into the building cameras, internal and external. The coverage isn't as extensive as I would like it to be—there are several blind spots within the area that concern me. They need a serious upgrade."
Strike one, Jasper thought dourly.
"I had Stephen and Timothy do a little recon this afternoon. Sent them in with fake IDs to see what floors they could access without the relevant security passes, working as a team like the twins would. Timothy gained entry to every floor in the building, including level ten, without being stopped while Stephen distracted the guards at the lobby desk. They walked in together, Stephen went to the desk, and Timothy went straight to the elevator. As they left, they scoped out the garage and service exits—again, without question."
Strike two.
"A concern I hadn't taken into account, but Michael made a note of, is that several of Anarchy's colleagues have records. Mostly juvenile, but a couple more recently. We ran a full search of criminal records within the staff, and two jump out immediately. One served time for robbery, assault, and carrying a concealed weapon. He looks as though he's turned his life around, but we're keeping tags on him." Atticus's gaze roamed over Anarchy as she almost ripped the arm off her shirt as she yanked it on. "The other poses a huge threat. What do you know about Benjamin Oswald, little bit?"
"Ozzy? What has Ozzy got to do with this?"
"If our suspicions are correct, quite a bit. What do you know?"
Archie's lip curled, then she tugged her hoody over her head. "Not a lot. He keeps to himself. He's part of the sports advertising division. He doesn't socialize with anyone outside of the office that I know of, and there's a rumor he spends a lot of time at the bookies. Other than that..."
"Oswald did time for fraud, blackmail, and theft. He has a gambling addiction—if he can bet on it, he does, but he doesn't have a high rate of success. His winning average is thirteen percent, and he doesn't bet small. More than that, he did his time in Coffeewood. Didn't take a lot of digging to discover he was housed in the same block as the twins. So far, I haven't found any evidence that they ran in the same circles, but they'll know each other. There's potential for Dominic to pay him off for his help."
"Why would Ozzy help anyone kidnap me?" Anarchy demanded. "He's a graphic designer, just like me."
"No, not just like you. He's a criminal with a vast record of using any means at his disposal to get money, little bit. When you're ninety thousand dollars in the hole, that's a massive incentive to do the unthinkable, especially when several of the city's nastiest loan sharks are circling the waters around him. Dominic can buy that debt a hundred times over." When her face fell, he asked, "How long has he been working there?"
"Six months, maybe seven."
Atticus swung his gaze to Jasper. "How long has Dominic been watching you?"
Sonofabitch. Jasper ground his teeth. "Since I bolted from Clintwood. Years." His fist clenched. "You think Dominic knew about Anarchy from the start?"
"I believe he's studied you to the point he knew you wouldn't be able to resist her. He knows about Avalon, the members, so my guess is he's waited to see how this played out. Once he realized Anarchy was sticking to you despite your reluctance..."
