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I blinked at him. "Is that what they're calling him now? Queenmaker?" I laughed. "That would go straight to Jake's head."
"He doesn't need an ego boost," Hutton said dryly.
"True that," I said. There was nothing wrong with having a healthy ego. I looked up at Hutton and wondered what the hells I was going to do with him, and how I could stop him and Jake from killing each other.
Jake hurried back into the office. "The witch is going to have to wait. We have a bigger problem."
10
"How the fuck did this happen?"I demanded. “And when?”
Jake shrugged. "Today, as far as I can tell."
I turned and stalked across the office to the window, then back again. "Eighteen months. I've been trying to buy the Lair for eighteen months and that little worm goes and sells it to Dagen?"
The Lair was another nightclub, close to Crimson. While Crimson was all about pleasure, the Lair was all about violence. Fights were hosted there nightly. It was one of the last properties in the area I didn't own. I'd already offered well above what the place was worth. I had done everything short of killing the owner and taking it. Now I wished I had.
I rubbed a hand over my hair. "He doesn't even want the place, does he? This is just him making a move against me. Into our territory." He was like a dog pissing on a blade of grass, just because he could.
"We could blow the place up," Jake offered. "Or burn it down."
"If I thought he would care, I would," I said. "That's what he would expect us to do." I paced back and forth again.
"Sometimes it's fun to do what's expected." Jake grinned.
"Just think how many innocent people you could kill," Hutton said scathingly. He had followed us up to the office because Jake didn't trust him to stay downstairs unattended. I wasn't sure how long this was going to go on for. I either needed to hire the man or send him away. Jake didn't seem to like either option.
Jake rolled his eyes. "We wouldn't blow it up while there was anyone in there. That wouldn't be very nice."
"And you're all about being nice, you?" Hutton asked ironically.
"As a matter of fact, yes, I am," Jake said. "I'm a motherfucking saint."
I laughed. "And I'm a virgin surrounded by three wise men."
Cooper raised his hand. "I'm wise."
Jake pointed at him. "Yeah, he's wise."
"That makes one," I said. Cooper and Ben hadn't been able to get any information out of the attacker. Cooper still seemed excited after telling me about how the man screamed, and how Ben let him cut his throat. A good time was had by all.
"Figures you'd be a virgin with these two clowns around," Hutton said. He and Cooper didn't seem to have a problem with each other. They had sized each other up, exchanged nods and got on with their lives. "Want me to fix that?" He grinned.
I stopped pacing and put a hand on Jake's arm before he could pick up a sharp implement and use it on Hutton. "Are there any other properties on the market in the area right now? Has Dagen bought any others?"
"I'm looking into it," Jake said. "It could be he's been buying things quietly for a while. But the Lair, that was definitely to get our attention."
"It worked," I said sourly. I leaned against the desk and rubbed my face. "I'm guessing the knife attack was a distraction from this. He probably hoped it would succeed, but this is his real gambit."
"Oh," Cooper said suddenly. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I got a text from a guy offering to buy the garage." He swiped across the screen until he found what he was looking for, then showed me.
Jake looked over my shoulder. "It's half again what we offered. You should take it. That's a good price."
I turned my head to glare at him. "Have you already forgotten who the buyer is?"
Hutton snorted.
Jake glared at him. "No, I haven't forgotten. But if he keeps buying, Dagen could bankrupt himself. That would be sweet."
