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“There are other options.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
Flynn’s cell went off. “I have to take this.” He straightened and then leaned down and kissed her thoroughly. “Think about reporting Jason. Go to work. You should be safe there. Stay in contact with me throughout the day and don’t go anywhere alone.”
She nodded. “I’ll think about it and you’re right I should go to work.”
He kissed her on her forehead. “I’ll stop by and see you later.” Then he got in his vehicle and drove away. Harper watched him go. She needed to get to work. There was so much to do for the Halloween Extravaganza, but she couldn’t seem to move. Flynn had rescued her yet again. He seemed to know when she needed help. She’d left the Manor thinking a relationship with him was out of the question. That they’d never work. She had been clear on that. He was dark and wild and could never live the life she wanted. Long distance relationships didn’t work either.
Now she wasn’t so sure. Nothing had changed except she didn’t want to be without him. And that was a scary thought.
“Harper?” her mother’s voice reached her. “It’s Susan. Some crisis at work.”
Harper waved and started toward the house. Was this just a regular crisis? Or was this something more massive? Something like someone blackmailing Susan to get what they wanted. And if that was the case, what the hell were they going to do about it?
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
“Archer,” Flynn said as he drove away from Harper. She was framed in his rear-view mirror, watching him leave. A shiver went across his skin and his shoulders tightened. Unease settled over him.
“Where are we on this? Have you spoken to Gina?”
“No.”
“Why?” Archer demanded.
Flynn spoke through clenched teeth. “Because she’s disappeared.”
Archer cursed. “When?”
“Sometime after I got off the phone with you and I went to look for her. Her stuff is still in her room but it’s hard to tell if anything is missing. The members are just getting up about now. The kitchen staff will do their normal routine and make sure everything is taken care of. I’ve alerted Shah to start reviewing the video feeds to see if we can find her or determine when she left.”
“I don’t fucking care about the kitchen staff. We need—”
“Fisher and his crew need to think everything is normal or we’ll spook them,” he ground out.
“We cannot touch Fisher and Davis. You need to let that go or I will have to replace you.” Archer’s voice was frosty.
It was a threat. Replace meant he would send someone up to deal with the crisis and then Flynn, whether it happened in a week or a month, would be taken out.I’d like to see you try.Archer might be all-powerful in his world, but he didn’t know jack shit about the world Flynn grew up in, the world his family was still a part of. That world was his escape plan when the day came, and he knew it would come. Nothing was forever.
“Let’s set the record straight. I want Fisher. I want him dead. But I’m not fucking stupid, and you declared him off-limits so he’s off limits,” Flynn snarled. “His partners aren’t. One of them killed Astrid Windsor, and, most probably, Calli. Gina knew about it and probably helped. She’s an employee and should have reported it but didn’t. I’m sure she’s skimming on whatever deal you made with her, not to mention she’s one of Davis’s people. All of which meanssheis not off limits. If we spook Fisher or Davis or any of them, then we lose her for sure. Right now, all I know is she’s not in the Manor. At least not in the regular rooms. I have no idea if she’s locked in some secret room. That place is huge and I haven’t been through all the secret passages yet.”
Archer was silent for a moment. “I apologize. I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions.”
Flynn was nonplussed. He didn’t know what to say. Archer Gray never apologized. What the fuck was going on?
“You should know I trust you implicitly. My comment was out of line. I am frustrated. My hands are tied by the rules and my adversaries are not under similar restriction. Things not going my way makes me mean.”
Jesus. Someone was getting to Archer? Did hell freeze over? Was it the end of days?
“Understandable,” Flynn replied. What else could he say? Archer held on a lot longer than he would’ve. He would’ve taken Fisher out at the house in New Orleans when they’d discovered him with all those underage girls. Fuck the rules.
“What is your plan?” Archer asked.
“Find Gina. Use whatever means necessary to get her to talk. I told Shah to tell everyone that they aren’t allowed to leave due to the in-house investigation until the end of the week. There will be a few grumblings, but it buys me probably twenty-four hours before they start to lose their shit and we have to let them go.”
“Okay. I’m sure I’ll get a few calls.”
Flynn had a thought. “Put the jet on standby and have it ready to go at the airport. When I find Gina, after I speak to her, it’s best if she’s gone immediately. Then she’ll have no chance to speak to her cronies.”
