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Jean Baptiste was still a formidable man, his reign in the family ending less than a decade before. However, the Frenchman hadn’t retired completely, keeping his fingers in the wealthyThibodeaux pie. While he’d aged, his hair turning almost entirely gray, he’d always had an aura of dark power, as if he could crush a man with his fingers.
Not today.
As the early light of dawn broke through the horizon, he remained at the window staring out into the still darkened skies, his appearance frailer than I’d remembered.
A half dozen soldiers remained at the hospital including Landry, ordered to guard Raven and Arman with their lives. Delaney was caring for Gabriel, the little boy finally taking a nap after asking dozens of times about his father. Even Edmee remained at their father’s house given Zane’s absence. Everyone would hunker down until further notice.
While Louie had come out of surgery to learn about Arman, he’d yet to arrive with his wife and children, something his father had demanded. Louie was the brother who wanted nothing to do with the family business, but over the years had been pulled more and more back into the fold. It was entirely possible any family member could be made a target when it was discovered Zoe had been taken out of the city.
“A somber group,” Thomas said as he eyed my entrance.
“It’s to be expected,” I answered back.
I glanced at Francois, who was finally starting to show his exhaustion. Several of our trusted soldiers were in the room, not only awaiting orders but in position as security if necessary. In my mind, it was too little too late.
“What the fuck do we know?” Jean Baptiste barked, throwing back his scotch. It didn’t matter what time of the morning it was,all of us had alcoholic beverages in our hands. That’s what war did to a man, especially when caught as off guard as we’d been.
“I’m checking some of my old contacts,” Thomas offered. “Francois has already asked me to head to Texas. I’ll keep an eye on Devin Carlos.”
“At this point, we don’t know enough to initiate a war,” Francois said.
“He’s right,” I added. “There’s no scuttlebutt on the street, no claims of ownership.”
“And no gloating either,” Francois added, lifting his eyebrows as he shifted his gaze from Thomas back to me.
We were all on edge, Jean Baptiste even more than usual.
The patriarch turned toward his other son, darting a glance in my direction after doing so. “What the fuck are you doing to try and find out?”
“We’re hacking every enemy operation we know exists,” Francois snapped in rebuttal. He didn’t like being treated as if he wasn’t capable of running the operation.
“I’m checking with every old contact within the FBI,” Thomas added.
I took a deep breath, walking toward the other set of windows in the massive office.
“What say you, Maddox? I want to hear your thoughts on who’s behind this.”
Jean Baptiste should know me well enough to know I spoke my mind. Especially when asked.
“I think we need to go down a list of every potential enemy, including during the time you were leader of the family organization. This attack was definitely revenge based. We need to narrow down that list as soon as possible to prevent an even worse attack.” Christ. I made it sound like we were already embroiled in a war. “And that needs to happen quickly. We need to determine who has the most to gain from destroying the family.” I didn’t bother turning in the patriarch’s direction. He knew when I wouldn’t take no for an answer.
“That will take a good deal of time,” Francois said, which I already knew.
“It’s prudent we go into this with as much accurate information as possible. You’re well aware of that, Francois. It’s what Arman would want.”
“He’s right,” Thomas offered.
“What he wants is his daughter protected,” Francois countered, his anger increasing.
“We will not bicker,” Jean Baptiste hissed. “Maddox is right. We have enough computer-savvy soldiers to track the whereabouts of our enemies. I’ll provide everything I have, including files from my office. Thomas, ensure that Devin is under full control. Texas has become vital to our operations.”
“Don’t worry. I will.”
I sensed Thomas was as surprised by the man’s attitude as I was.
It was always believed Jean Baptiste kept what might be affectionately known as little black books on every single enemy. From methods of operation to known hideouts, he’d always seemed to know where to strike when necessary.
“Good,” I said, my tone overpowering. “I’ll check with various connections we have throughout the world. We can’t rule anyone out at this time. In addition, I think another prudent choice is to check into Zoe’s background. There could be unknown enemies attached to her given the years she lived in New York.” This time, I turned toward Francois.
