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“Do you always swear that much?” Her brown eyes flicker with amusement, but it rapidly turns into something like worry when she catches my stare. “Are you all right?” She adds, voice laced with tension. For a moment, I can only stare at her, baffled. It’s like it’s the first time we’ve met. Perhaps wehavejust met. For real, that is.
She seems to interpret my temporary inability to speak as doubt, because she brushes a hand through her hair and adds, “You said I was coming with you, right?”
My mouth opens and closes, but I’ve got no clue what to say. Instead, I just nod and allow her to scoot closer to me. Somehow some of the weight slides off my shoulders, as if we’re really going to do this. Share the burden, share that twinkle in our eyes.
I slide my arm around her warm shoulders and tuck her closer against my chest, inhaling her unique scent. My breath slows and my foot stops tapping. Angélique nuzzles my neck and puts an arm around my chest and I need to fight the urge to close my eyes. Fuck this feels good.
“Let’s go.” My comment is clipped and the car instantly leaves the curb.
The drive’s quiet, the tension real. So there’s a video of an execution? I know that Mom and Dad are proud of the fact that The Business has never been caught on camera,ever. Guess there’s a first time for everything. I clench my jaw as my fingers lace through Angélique’s hair. After his earlier fuck up I know Mason won’t talk, leaving me with my spinning thoughts. It’s like these past years have been insignificant in comparison to what life’s decided to throw at me over the last twenty-four hours. My face leans on Angélique’s head and I breathe her in again. I can’t help it, it’s so comforting. It's like…I’m not alone in this wholetaking-over-the-business-thingthat’s got everyone excited. The thought is so staggering, that I promptly sneer. “Talk to me Mason, give me something about what we’re facing.”
Mason looks over his shoulder and gives me a sad smile. “I’m sorry Logan. Your mother would prefer to inform you in person. We’ll be there in five.”
I give him a growl, but really, there’s nothing he can do about it. Instead, my focus goes back to the soft hair I’m still stroking. The shape of her head fits perfectly into the crook of my neck, I realize with wonder. “Are you sleeping?” I give her a soft squeeze on her shoulder.
“Maybe,” she replies with a husky voice. “Why?”
“Are you nervous?” I can’t help but ask.
This time, it takes her longer to reply. Her voice sounds a bit strained. “Should I be?”
I exhale, not sure what to say. “I guess this is no surprise, but we’re in a bit of a sticky situation. I apologize in advance for any lack of politeness you’ll face today. My people won’t be on their best behavior. You think you can handle that?”
She looks up, hazelnut eyes finding mine. “I don’t know. But I’d rather find out than never know.”
Angélique Lavigne is the most courageous woman I’ve ever met. And that realization brings a heavy thump to my chest. I drop a soft kiss on the top of her head and tuck her back against my neck. “Thank you,” I whisper.
When we walk into the living room, the entire crew’s already waiting for us. The round table is full with computers, stacks of paper, and a bottle of wine which Dad is, by the looks of it, about to open. Him and Mom are seated in their usual spots, with Harry, Samuel, Big, and Ella at the other side as they talk in hushed voices. The tension is thick. Nolan’s sitting in the middle between Dad and Jayden, who’s wearing the same suit as yesterday.
All eyes are immediately drawn to us, and I feel Angélique tense up against my arm which is still loosely draped around her shoulder. I don’t know what I’m doing here, but one thing’s for sure—I won’t let her walk into this wolf’s lair without protection.Myprotection. Her eyes are fixed on Wyatt, who gives her a friendly smile. She gives him a quick wave and I feel her relax ever so slightly.
Mason takes out two chairs for us and when I’m sure that Angélique’s sitting down, I walk over to my parents to greet them. As expected, Mom’s eyes are instantly on Angélique.
“Hello darling,” she practically purrs, “And you are?”
I reply instead. “Her name’s Angélique and she’s with me.” Mom gives me the look that clearly states that she wants to know more, but we both know that right now is not the time. Which is why I can make my way back to the free chair without any further comment. As I sit down next to Angélique, I press her close and give her something like a reassuring smile, before my attention goes back to the crew. “Now, show us what we’re dealing with.”
Jayden coughs and Ella places the computer in the middle of the table. Seconds later, Connor’s face is on the screen. Maria puts bottles of water and beer in front of us.
“Sorry, it’s always a bit messy with so many people,” I hear myself stupidly explain. Mom must have heard too, for she looks up and gives me a grin, before handing a bottle of water to Angélique.
Dad pours the wine and passes me a glass. “An excellent Bourgogne,” he explains, his eyes on the woman glued to me. “Do you like red wine?”
“Careful, it’s a trick question,” Harry jokes from the other side of the table and I give Angélique a soft, reassuring squeeze.
“I do,” she replies with a light voice, that’s surprisingly lacking the nerves she must surely be feeling. Dad makes a show of getting out of his chair and walking over to her with a full glass. As he hands it over, he muses, “I don’t think any of my boys has ever brought a lady home before.” His gaze finds mine and I scowl at him. Then he gives Angélique a smile and walks back, clapping his hands. “All right, let’s go.”
Jayden coughs and unnecessarily exclaims, “Connor’s joining the conversation,” since we all see my brother’s copper hair and big glasses filling the screen. Not only that, but he also immediately takes the lead. “So, after the previous mail, we’ve now received the full video, sent from the same IP address. Am I correct, Jayden? The one that we haven’t been able to trace up to now?”
“Correct.” Jayden’s voice sounds tight, laced with embarrassment.
Connor nods. “Right. So far, as a precaution we’ve changed all passwords of both business accounts for The Whisper and for the law practice. Also, just to be sure, we’re currently scanning all computers for viruses and malware and we will reinstall all our backup data. Please, don’t touch your computers and don’t open any mail on your phone. Take this seriously and stay on the safe side, because whoever’s behind this, really has us by the balls.”
“The Void.” I choke, disgust filling my gut. “We know it’s The Void.”
“The Void,” Connor confirms. “But we need a face. A name, or for now, an IP address. We’re also working with a variety of scripts to prevent us from possible hacks since we have an embarrassingly bad security system.”
“That’s because Dad doesn't like anything modern,” I chime in, and both Connor and Mom snigger. When she sees Dad looking at her with a sneer, Mom quickly adds, “Well, it’s not like we do business by email, is it?”
