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Was she serious? “You told me to stay away from him.”
“I thought that was the safest thing. You ignored that advice, and maybe, just maybe, you and Leo were meant to be. But if you don’t talk to him, you’ll never know.”
“But he said—”
“Is he trying to protect you, or does he really not want more?”
“I don’t know.” Earlier that night I’d been convinced he didn’t want what I did. Now I wondered if he just didn’t think he deserved it. “I’ll think about it.”
“Ezra, you left school because it wasn’t what you wanted, because you wanted to choose your own life instead of doing what everyone expected. Now it’s time to actually do that.”
Maybe it was, but Leo needed to focus on his mission. After he’d dealt with Swain, I would see if I had the courage to ask for more.
22
Leo
When X answered the video call I’d placed, everyone was already gathered in his office.
“What are you going to do about the fundraiser?” Giorgio asked.
“I told my assistant to extend an invite to Swain.”
Niall frowned. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“I want him out in the open. I want all of you there as well.”
“We’ve always stayed away from anything that happens at your house,” I insisted.
“This is too important. I’d rather risk my identity than not nail this bastard.”
We had other ways of getting to Swain. “If you’re exposed, and you can’t continue with Vigilance—”
“I will continue. I’ll find a way.”
With anyone else I would think that was just bullshit, but with X… The man did whatever he put his mind to.
“What will our roles be?” I asked.
“I’ll add Niall to the guest list since he blends in better than the rest of you.”
I huffed. “I can blend anywhere.”
“You used to be able to. Are you sure you can now?”
My hand tightened on my phone. “Are you insinuating I’ve lost my edge?”
“No, I’m insinuating you’ve grown a beard and gotten a lot more tattoos. You’re rather distinctive.”
Fine. That was all true.
Giorgio rolled his eyes. “We all know Niall blends in best with the rich and boring crowd.”
Niall glared at him.
“But he still looks like a fucking fed,” I said under my breath.
“That’s enough.” X’s tone told us he was done with our banter.
“Leo and Giorgio, you will be on security detail and stationed at the two entrances to the ballroom.”
Giorgio grinned. “I still love that your house has a fucking ballroom.”
“It would be nice if we could all take this seriously.”
“What if he tries to expose you during the event?” I asked.
X let out a long breath and brushed a hand over his hair. He looked tired, which was unusual. He rarely let his worry show.
Giorgio smiled. “If he causes a scene, I’ll escort him out and make sure he’s never seen again.”
He sounded as eager to end Swain as I was. “I’ll gladly help.”
Niall shook his head, and X glared at Giorgio. “You really think it would look good if he died right after leaving my house.”
None of us responded, but I knew we were all thinking the same thing. We would do whatever needed to be done to keep X safe. X was willing to die for any of us. When we were all still with our respective agencies, and our joint mission had gone to shit, it was X’s leadership that had gotten us out alive. We needed him, and more importantly, the city—hell the whole country—needed him.
X sighed. “I’m as done with this as you are. I want it finished, but I know what happens when we rush things.”
“Everything goes to hell,” Niall said.
I glanced at Giorgio, and he nodded. “We could pull it off if we needed to.”
“I know you could,” X acknowledged. “But there would be questions no one wants to answer and a hell of a lot of scrutiny. I don’t want to put my family through that.”
I nodded. “Fair enough. We’ve got three days until the event, right? What’s the plan?”
“We get him to the party, watch him, and head off any major incidents. Hopefully, we find out how much he knows about me and what his next plans are.”
Giorgio nodded. “Then we hunt him down and put an end to him and anyone who’s helping him protect himself.”
“That’s a lot of people,” Niall said. “Swain’s influence runs far and deep.”
“I’m sure many of his agency contacts are being blackmailed or threatened,” X said. “They’re not loyal to him. They’re just afraid. They’ll be relieved he’s gone, and there won’t be any further problems from them.
That assessment rang true to me. “Sounds good. “Will you approach him? Do you plan to wear a wire?”
“Yes, to both. I want you listening, and I have every intention of meeting him face-to-face. It would be odd if I didn’t since I’m the host and he insinuated himself into my party.
