“How?” Terrance stared at him as though afraid to ask.
Rourke glanced at the guards who’d done a lot already for the Killough Company. They’d removed dead bodies and beaten people, but he wondered if any of them had killed before. “I want his body to never be found. Thrown in the Hudson.”
“He’s not dead, Rourke,” Terrance said.
As if on cue, Montague groaned. He blinked up at Rourke through puffy eyes, and Rourke smirked.
“I know. Get rid of him.”
Terrance’s face paled, but the guards moved swiftly. Two of them clutched at Montague’s arms, dragging him to his feet. He shouted, but it earned him a blow to the head that nearly knocked him out again.
“Get him to the basement. I’lldealwith him when I’m ready.”
They nodded and strode past Rourke, Montague’s semi unconscious body dragged between them.
Terrance scampered closer, worrying his bottom lip with his teeth. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? He’s a well-known lawyer, Rourke.”
“And?” Rourke growled. “He hitForrest. I will not forgive that.”
Terrance’s eyebrows climbed up his forehead. “Because it’s Forrest, or because Forrest is a whore?”
“Professional. He’s a professional. And who’s in charge, Terrance?”
“You are.”
“Then I make the final decisions. Call Conall, tell him what happened. We need to clean this mess up.”
Terrance frowned, but walked past Rourke and out the door. The deafening silence cooled Rourke’s anger, and it took him a moment to realize Forrest was still there, curled up on the bed with Angel’s arms locked around him. They both watched Rourke, Forrest’s shoulders shaking as he leaned farther into his friend’s hold.
Rourke shot forward, shooing Angel out of the way. He dragged Forrest against his chest. He kissed his forehead and then his cheek, and Forrest’s quiet sobs grew deeper.
“I hit him. I didn’t let him win,” Forrest whimpered against Rourke’s white dress shirt. “I gave it back, Rourke.”
“I know you did.” Rourke stroked his head and kissed him on the temple again. “Fuck, Forrest. Why didn’t you tell me? You know the rules.”
Angel glared at Rourke over Forrest’s head. His expression saidnow is not the timeand it’s the first time Angel gave Rourke anything other than compliance. It made Rourke glad someone else was watching out for Forrest.
“Angel, can you give us a minute? Please call the doctor.”
Angel raised his chin, and for a moment, Rourke expected him to say no. He didn’t, though. He slid off the bed, his bare feet padding across the rich red carpeted floor before he closed the door gently behind himself.
“I’m sorry, Rourke.” Forrest’s soft voice made Rourke’s heart ache. He looked at Forrest again and caressed the bruises that ran along his right jaw. Forrest flinched under the touch.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Rourke asked, keeping his voice low and calm.
“He’s a top client, and he never went this far before. It was just little things. I could handle it if meant bringing in money for us.”
“No, youcouldn’thandle it because it’s not something you should have handled. There are rules in place for a reason.”
He laughed sadly. “I just wanted to make you proud.”
“What?” Rourke reared back to look at Forrest’s face, acid rising in his throat.
Forrest blinked up at him, eyes watery. It made the green irises look even more beautiful than they already were.
“That’s ridiculous. I’ve never asked you to keep quiet about abuse from clients. It’s against our policy.”
“I know, but I didn’t want to be the one who destroyed our reputation because we pissed off a VIP.”
