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I decide to bypass Gibbons and call the big boss directly.
“Boss? It’s Brax. Can you talk securely?” I ask when he answers.
“Yes, Brax. For what do I owe the pleasure?” he replies in his low monotone voice. The boss is not one to show emotion very often, it helps with the persona.
“I think we might have a problem,” I explain.
“Go on.”
“Shay was kidnapped by Evans overnight.”
“What did you say?” he says, the anger in his voice is palpable.
“Yup, Evans had his goons grab Shay as he was leaving the bar last night and I didn’t hear about it until I got a text from Evans himself this afternoon,” I explain. “At the very least, the GPS in his phone or car should have been tagged when he was taken. Why wasn’t I called?” I ask, getting angry the more I think about it.
“Good question, Brax. Better still, why weren’t you with him?” he asks sternly.
“I was distracted, sir,” I say solemnly.
“I see. The girl again, was it? I warned you about this, Brax,” he scolds.
“Yes, boss, but it can’t be helped. Shay and I kept to our normal protocol so he wasn’t drinking much last night. But that’s not the biggest problem—why wasn’t Shay’s GPS tagged when it moved out of the area? We always check in with HQ.”
“Yes, I know. Gibbons was on the night shift last night, he doesn’t usually miss something like this,” he notes.
“Well, I’m a little spooked now. Given that despite all security measures being in place, Shay was still taken.”
“Yes, Brax. I’m not happy about it at all and will be investigating” he states in his ‘I mean business’ voice.
“You can understand why I’d rather just deal with you now, though. I don’t trust anyone else right now.” I hope like hell the chance I’m taking is the right one.
“Brax, I’ll always have your back, you know that. What did Evans want?” he asks.
“Daddy dearest wants us to work for him. Apparently this was his way of getting that message across, but I’m not buying it.”
“Nope, the fact that Evans wants you by his side is no secret Brax, and you know why. Lucky for you, I know where your loyalty lies so I’m not worried. Do I have reason to be?”
“Not at all. You know my opinion of Evans, and you and Shay are the only one who know exactly why. I’m also curious why it’s taking so long to get intel back from Gibbons about the two notes Elle has been sent?”
“Really? Now that’s interesting because he assured me he had reported back to you. There was no evidence on them. We can’t link them to Brimstone or Evans, or anybody else for that matter. They’re clean,” he informs me.
I suddenly have a sick feeling in my gut. Why is Gibbons lying to the boss?
“Okay, boss man. I’ll leave you to sort it out with Gibbons, but I might just contact you directly if anything new comes up, all good?”
“Sure thing, Brax, and might this be a lesson to you. Focus on the job a little more, girls come and go.” I hear the line go dead in my ear. The boss has always had a way with words.
He obviously hasn’t met Elle before otherwise he would know that it is impossible not to get distracted by her. She is not someone you easily forget.
I know that I’ll never want to forget her. I want her forever.
I’m knee deep in my English Literature paper when I hear a knock at the door. Looking through the peephole, I see a delivery man on the other side. I open the door and he’s holding a thick yellow envelope in his hand, addressed to me. I sign for it and he hands it over, wishing me a good day as he heads back down the stairs. I’m not expecting any documents to be delivered, but it’s highly possible that Lawrence, my lawyer, forgot to tell me. He is usually the only one who sends tracked mail to me.
I put the envelope on the kitchen counter and go to top up my coffee. I’ll just wait until Lawrence contacts me, then I’ll open the envelope. No doubt it is probably just some documents to sign for my portfolio or my trust fund.
Checking my phone, I see that it’s been a couple of hours and I haven’t heard from Brax yet. He seemed really strange when he left home, like he was mad about something. We normally message each other when we’re out, so I hope he’s okay. As soon as I put my phone back down I hear a beep, letting me know I have a new text message. Expecting it to be Brax, I have a huge smile on my face as I open the new message.
Unknown: Hope you like your delivery, Elise.
My smile instantly fades when I open the message. This is weird. If it was Lawrence, he would simply call me, and I have his number programmed into my phone anyway. I decide to reply.
Elle: Who is this?
Unknown: Your nightmare come true.
I drop my phone. What the hell?
There is no way I’m opening that envelope now, especially when Brax isn’t here. I shouldn’t have accepted the delivery without knowing who it was from. I send a text to Brax while I’m walking around the apartment, checking that all my windows are latched and my front door is locked. I’m feeling really uncomfortable in my own home now and it’s the last thing I wanted. I’m supposed to feel safe here.
Elle: Hey, babe. What time you heading home?
Brax: Just packing up now, what’s up?
Elle: I’m okay. Just missing you xxx ooo
Knowing Brax is on his way home, I start to relax a bit. I can explain to him all about the envelope when he gets home, maybe he’ll know what to do with it. I didn’t want to tell him via text, just in case he was busy doing something. I know he would drop everything to get home to me if he knew and I don’t want him to have to do that. I sit back on the couch and try to calm myself down, but I can’t seem to stop staring at the yellow envelope on the counter. I check my watch again.
I hope he gets home soon.
About twenty minutes later, I hear Brax at the door. I jump up and open the door for him, almost crushing him in a huge hug.
“Whoa, babe. I missed you too” he mumbles as he tries to catch his breath back while holding me up.
“I’m sorry. I should’ve told you sooner, but a delivery man brought around an envelope when you were gone and I signed for it without thinking because I thought it would just be documents from my lawyer,” I explain, talking way too fast but my voice getting shakier with each word.
He puts his hand on my head, pulling me tight into his chest as he talks. “Babe, calm down. I’m home now. Now slow down and tell me what happened.”
