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I left without another word so he wouldn’t hear me cry.
* * *
Rain fell in sheets outside. I stood—barefoot—under the awning while the SUV pulled up. If I’d had shoes, I would have walked to the nearest bus station and took that instead. As it was, I looked homeless wearing too-big men’s clothes.
Just as the vehicle came to a stop in front of me, a man bumped into me, knocking me backward. His hands snapped out and grabbed my biceps hard before I could hit the pavement. Iswore over his apologies.
He wore a black hat pulled down his forehead, nearly obscuring his eyes, along with a dark trench coat. “So sorry, miss,” he said, but didn’t let me go, instead tugging me against him.
I swallowed hard, my hand instinctively going toward my knife, but stopped. It was in my jeans, discarded in Kieran’s limo.
Shit.
“Let me go,” I said firmly.
The driver from the SUV got out, looking at us. “Julietta,” he called, and relief washed over me.
The man in front of me tensed. Finally, he let go, stepping back.
“Stay safe, Julietta,” he whispered in a gravelly voice before heading out into the rain.
My heart thundered as I watched the figure vanish. What was that guy’s problem?
Before I had any more time to freak out, I headed for the vehicle and climbed into the back. On the drive through the city my mind raced, replaying everything with Romero, wondering how far he would have gone if I hadn’t said what I did.
What was the point of him causing such a scene to stop me from going to Kieran when he wouldn’t act on what he clearly felt for me?
An idea slowly took shape in my mind, causing me to pull out my phone. I stared at the dark screen for another couple moments before I found my courage. Smiling, I sent a text to Kieran, telling him my plan.
It took only a few moments for him to respond. Hope you know what you’re doing, baby girl.
“Yeah,” I said under my breath. “Me too.”
Chapter Nineteen
ROMERO
When my call to Rafael was forwarded to voicemail yet again, I growled in frustration, slamming my phone down on the desk.
My texts to Darren and Eli had gone unanswered as well. Normally, I’d assume it was just our equally busy schedules conflicting, but Aaron and Kieran both had freight stolen in the past forty-eight hours.
I needed to know if the weapon stock that was currently missing from one of my warehouses was a coordinated attack, or mere coincidence.
“Cas!” I barked.
Castiel, my second set of eyes and ears, entered the room. As ex–German military, the guy was built like a tank, his expression permanently a scowl. The light reflected off his waxed head, but it somehow only made him look more menacing.
“What do you need?” His tone was strictly business, though his gaze cataloged my rumpled appearance and the dark smudges beneath my eyes. I hadn’t left my office in two days, using scotch and tracking Barrera down to keep me away from Julietta.
Running a hand down my face, I stood. “We need to make a trip to the South Bay warehouse.”
Castiel blinked. “And why is that?”
I never oversaw the physical aspects of my business dealings. There were more than enough people below me that handled that. The paperwork was sent to me for approval, which was why Cas was confused.
“A report was filed about a gas leak inside the warehouse. All the inventory was removed.” Cas nodded, already aware of that fact. “It was split, sent to the other three warehouses, along with one of Aaron’s. But when I called to ensure the shipments had arrived successfully, no one at any of the facilities had any idea what I was talking about.”
Castiel’s brows furrowed. “When were they supposed to arrive?”
