“No…sorry.” Valentin held up his hands. “Just my anxiety leveling out. I raced down here because I was terrified. All Sandi could tell me was that you’d been stabbed and were headed to the hospital in an ambulance.”
“I’m alright. There was a ton of blood, and I’m sure it scared the staff, but the wound was superficial. Just needed stitches.”
“What happened?
“Got jumped outside the club while I was doing my rounds. Off my game, probably because it was early and you always assume shit’s gonna go down in the dark.”
“Do you think it was one of Bergam’s?”
“Dude came up behind me, and while he was cramming his cheap-ass utility knife into my side, he said, ‘Bergam’s back, bitch.’”
“Shitty alliteration.”
“Shitty everything. I guess our vacation is over.”
A few taps on Valentin’s phone were all he needed to see that Bergam had been released. “I wonder how dangerous he is now.”
“Not very, in the sense that it’s unlikely he has many useful friends left. He was a petty wannabe-kingpin before getting locked up, and he’s less than that now. I bet the guy he hired tonight was a freelancer, not a loyal soldier.”
“Even if he doesn’t have money or a network, he still has the thing that’s always made him a dangerous idiot.”
“Hubris.”
“Exactly. He’s not well-connected, so he can’t intimidate me with a show of force or money, but his ego is huge with misplaced confidence.”
Xan’s lips pursed. “He’s dangerous because he’s reckless.”
“And because he’s got nothing to lose.”
“The doctor is sending me home in the morning, so I’ll be back at work tomorrow.”
“Take a few days.”
“No way. I want to talk to my people, and hire a few more if that’s okay?”
Valentin nodded. He’d been hoping to save for lighting upgrades, but security was obviously more important.
He spoke to Xan for a few more minutes, until he fell asleep. While Valentin hated that Xan had gotten hurt, he appreciated that the trip to the hospital had given him a reprieve from the feelings that had arisen when he finally held Lachie.
He hadn’t been exaggerating when he’d told Wes and Assa that they’d created a monster. All he wanted to do was hold that adorable baby again.
Sandi messaged saying that the detectives had finished up at the club and that everyone had gone home. Since Xan was not badly injured, Valentin doubted the police would do much follow-up. It was just as well, since he had little faith in law enforcement. He was on his own here.
And Bergam would strike again.
Chapter Fifty-One
Valentin
The night after Xan was attacked, Valentin called everyone to the Pashuks’ house to have a family meeting about Bergam.
Jordie was holding the baby when the Rosens arrived. Valentin greeted the teen, then ran a palm over Lachie’s head, leaning down to kiss his cheek. He looked up to see Calder watching him.
The other alpha winked, smiling.
The men set Ryde up in the den with a movie, deciding it was more information than a nine-year-old needed, but Jordie and Ked remained in the living room with Valentin, Wes, Assa, Calder, and Zinn.
Valentin explained that Bergam was out of prison and told them about Xan. He reminded them that Ang’s son wasn’t a big player in the criminal world, but he was a very pesky minor one who could inflict great harm if he got lucky. They needed to be vigilant.
