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“Tonight, you’ll tell me then?” He sighs as he looks into my eyes before acquiescing, and I know that’s the best I will get. For now.
CHAPTER 17
Adonis
There’s something to be said about the cover of night when holding sinister meetings where I have every intention of committing a crime or two. The sky is crystal clear, not a cloud in sight as the moon sets high on the horizon, offering a glow the city lights can’t compare to.
When my father bought this piece of land a few decades ago, he’d done so with the notion that there would be screaming from the men he tortured. He wanted privacy. A gated estate gave him that. Add in the acres it sits on, and I have access to it all. It was never guaranteed that I would gain control over my father’s interests until my older brother Theias moved to Nevada and decided he wanted nothing to do with the family legacy. He’s too busy building his own.
Now, everything is mine. As Matthew Chambers and Robert Stark are escorted from the vehicle Eli, Joe, and Craig picked them up in, I can hear them asking questions. They know where they are, and if they were smart men, they’d understand why.
They don’t strike me as such, however.
“Gentlemen.” Keeping my arms crossed, I watch them closely as they share a look. A flash of something crosses Robert’s face, and it answers the question of whether he had anything to do with the attack on Soren.
“Saw that,” Zak comments quietly next to me.
“This way.” Eli points to a door leading right to the basement, hidden by the steps ascending to the front entrance. Both men pale slightly when they realize this isn’t an average meeting. Joe shoves Matthew in the back when he pauses before continuing on.
“Let them sweat?” Zak asks, and I nod.
Entering the house through the front door, I glance up the stairs leading to my room, where I left Soren exhausted not long ago. She was filled with anxious energy and couldn’t settle down when I sent her to bed shortly after midnight. After half a dozen orgasms from my tongue, she succumbed to sleep, leaving me enough time to get dressed before our guests arrived.
“They leaving on their own tonight?” Zak asks when I begin walking again. Sally pops up with a tray of whiskey and a slick grin on her face. She knows what’s going on tonight because the woman seems to know everything. If I didn’t have the house swept for bugs on a near-daily basis, I’d think she listened in.
“Thanks, Sal. Why don’t you head to bed for the night?” My suggestion is met with a scoff and an eye roll.
“As if I’d allow Soren to wake up and find you missing, or worse, in the basement covered in the blood of your enemies.” Grinning from ear to ear, she marches back into the kitchen.
“Would she even care?” Zak questions.
“She thanked me for killing Hudson, so I don’t see her being shocked. Killing her father might raise some feelings, though.” Which is why I’m letting them sweat. There’s no doubt in my mind about how Robert Stark will be leaving. We found the wire transfer the day after the shooting. Trouble is, we haven’t been able to locate the men who committed the crime yet. I need that information before I can kill him. Before I can full-on attack Abdul Karas.
I also need to know if Matthew was in on the decision to eliminate his daughter. “What about the wife?” I glance at Zak. Soren hasn’t spoken much about her mother, but I gather she has mixed feelings about her.
“She’s a bit of a ditz. I don’t believe she’s aware of the things going on around her. She lives in her own little world,” he explains.
“Think she could orchestrate something like this?” The thought has crossed my mind a time or two. Soren explained how the woman wanted and expected her daughter to sleep with and get impregnated by Stark before marrying him at the end of summer. When I found out, I wanted to kill the man for that alone; unfortunately, it wasn’t a good enough reason to risk losing Soren over.
“I wouldn’t put anything past anyone, ever.” I’m with Zak on that. Some of the most devious crimes come from those you never expect.
Downing the rest of my whiskey, I say, “Let’s do this.”
Cracking my neck from side to side, I lead the way to the basement, where the blustering and threats from both men can be heard. Eli would have chained them up against the wall by now, giving them just enough leeway to step forward, but nothing more.
On the back wall is where they stand, the fresh blood from the bank robbers staining the concrete below their feet. Taking a seat in the chair in the middle of the room, I accept the lit cigar from Joe as Craig pours everyone two fingers of whiskey. Taking a puff, I close my eyes as I blow the smoke out. The sounds of both men shuffling give away their nervousness.
“I made a claim on Soren the day of the robbery,” I state. “Had I not been shot twice, she’d have been in my home much sooner than when I eventually got my hands on her.” Opening my eyes, I stare at Matthew until he wrestles with his restraints. “You came to my home intending to take her away. I allowed you to leave that day with the knowledge that she is mine.”
I return the cigar to Joe and roll up my shirt sleeves to my elbows. Downing the whiskey in one swallow, I stretch my shoulders before taking the cigar again.
“You had your chance to walk away, Chambers. Why didn’t you?” Stepping forward, I have every intention of making him sweat until I catch the lie he’s conjuring up within his beady little eyes. Ripping his shirt down the middle, I press the lit stub into his chest. The smell of burning flesh and singed hair meets my nostrils. Most men would gag, but I’ve grown used to the scent.
“She’s my daughter. Why would you ever think I’d do something to hurt her?” His gasping breaths irritate me.
“Because you and your wife have arranged for her marriage to this piece of shit, who we know has hired Abdul Karas’ men to attack her.” I keep my tone neutral despite the anger rolling through me in crashing waves of fury.
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” Matthew's heavy breathing as tears leak from his eyes continues to piss me off. Bringing the cigar back to my lips, I inhale deeply, blowing the smoke into his face.
