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I arch a brow in her direction. “You’re threatening one of very few people who mean anything to me in this whole world. Why the fuck shouldn’t I kill you?”
“I’m not threatening her,” she says primly. She’s far too calm for someone who’s standing within shooting range. “I’m trying to protect her. Because as I said, IlikeCat.”
“How are you trying to protect her?”
“Use your manners, Mr. Hanson. Invite me to sit down.”
I close my eyes and squeeze the bridge of my nose as I point to the chair in front of me. “Sit.” When she glares in response, I add, “Please.”
With more poise than I’d expect from anyone in this position, she takes a seat and crosses one leg over the other. “Now, as I was saying, I like Cat. But I don’t like her enough to die protecting her.”
“Why would you die?” I ask, even as I consider whether I should shoot her.
She doesn’t have much time. Quite frankly, I’m trigger happy right now. I’d love nothing more than to take out my anger on someone deserving.
Throwing her head back, she lets out a haughty laugh. “You didn’t really think Evan would let you ride off into the sunset without monitoring you, did you?”
Ice courses through my veins at the name, but I maintain an even tone, as if I don’t have the faintest idea who she’s referring to. “Evan?”
She smirks. “Please don’t play dumb. We don’t have much time.”
My tongue feels thick, and my mouth goes dry as fear threatens to crack the façade I’m maintaining. If Evan knows about Cat…fuck, if he knows about Chloe, he’ll know everything.
“What do you want?” I ask, resigned to doing whatever she asks.
“One million.”
I let out a relieved breath. That’s simple.
“A year for the rest of my life,” she finishes.
I drop my head back and glare at the ceiling.
“Or I could shoot you right now, and I won’t have to pay a dime,” I reply, bringing my focus back to her.
“Do that, and the information I have will be emailed to Evan. My sisters have been given strict instructions about what to do if anything happens to me.”
What information? Does she know about Chloe?
Keeping my cool, I counter, “I could kill them too.”
She glares at me. “You’re awfully greedy, Mr. Hanson. You have more money than you could spend in a lifetime. You can have your precious Kitten, and in return, all you have to do is share the wealth.”
Internally, I breathe a sigh of relief. She doesn’t know about Chloe. Regardless, she has me. I’ll do anything to protect Cat. Which she knows since she’s aware of my goddamn nickname for her.
“How do I know you won’t go back to Evan as soon as I hand over the money?”
She laughs. “Because I’m going to disappear. If I don’t, he’ll kill me for betraying him.”
My mind races at that comment, and I squint in confusion. “Why are you betraying him?”
She focuses on something just over my shoulder, and when she looks back, she smiles. “Because, like I said before, I like Cat. She’s a good person. And if Evan finds out her family took the money, that the funds were funneled into her account…” She closes her eyes.
She doesn’t need to finish the sentence. It’s the reason I stayed away for so many years. I thought Evan would be appeased when I put him in his position. I thought I could go back to my life. But I should have known better. Mobsters only know one thing, and that’s greed. Being in charge wasn’t enough. To him, I hold too much power. Which means he needs to have something to hold over my head in order to guarantee my silence.
Fuck. I should have thought of this before.
Why didn’t I think of this before?
