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“I know…” I met his deadly stare.
Ryth’s laughter cracked out as scurrying sounds of the damn dog shot from one side of the house to the other. Fuck, she almost sounded happy. Almost sounded…normal.
“Then we talk to Caleb.” Tobias turned toward the sounds. “Then we plan.”
“Then we plan,” I agreed.
Tobias jerked his head toward the kitchen as Ryth let out a low moan that was followed by, “that’s so damn good”.
He limped harder, as he made his way back down the stairs. The image of him holding Ryth’s hand was stuck inside my head. My brother had looked happy, at least, as happy as he could be in this whole fucked-up situation. I’d never seen him so much as take a woman on a second date, let alone hold her damn hand. But here he was…
My brothers’ voices mingled with Ryth’s, echoing in the space. I left them to enjoy that small sliver of normality and instead, turned my focus to Ben’s study. I grabbed the new encrypted phone from my pocket as I walked and punched out a message to the Mafia boss.
I’m in need of a PC, any way I can use yours?
Then I hit send and moved to slip the phone into my pocket as I opened the study door and stepped into the dim room.
Rossi: Figured as much. There’s a new MacBook in the study, internet password and other details listed on top. Let me know if you require anything else.
The damn Stidda Mafia boss thought of everything. I made my way to the bookshelf and found the new laptop waiting in the open, along with all the passwords I’d need. Laughter reached me through the open door as I got to work setting up the laptop and started logging in to my accounts.
I was lost to the familiar glare as I opened secure portals and worked my way into all the crypto accounts I had, as well as my electronic wallet. While the happy sounds of my family thrummed in my chest, I got down to work liquidating and cashing out every asset I ever owned…
To buy us a way out of this.
It felt like just seconds when the soft thud of bare feet drew my focus to the doorway. Ryth stepped in with a smile, carrying a plate. “I helped with the tasting, but that’s about it, I’m afraid. Caleb is a much better cook than I am.”
I turned as she neared, took the plate, and even though I’d passed starving four hours ago, I pulled her into a hug. “Don’t be upset, Caleb is a much better cook than all of us. Did you eat?”
“A little.”
“Good.” I smiled as she leaned down and kissed me.
I wanted more, a lot more. But she needed food and I needed to work, so as much as I hated it, I broke the connection with a soft slap on her ass. “Now, go eat, and let me work.”
She gave a smile and left, but stopped at the door to murmur. “I love you.”
Jesus…
My pulse thudded as I stared at the woman who’d stolen our hearts. “I love you too, princess.”
She gave me the most perfect fucking smile before she turned and walked away. I held onto that smile and used it to fuel me as my fingers flew across the keyboard. It’d taken me years to accrue this much wealth, years of watching the crypto market, buying when it was right, then trading out when it wasn’t. Years of watching, of hunting, of being ruthless, and I was about to undo all of that in a single night.
I opened up secure messages and typed out an email to my stockbroker, as well as a young real estate hunter who’d been after the apartment complex for the last twelve months. I was ready to sell…tonight.
By the time I sat back and took a deep breath, I realized I’d forgotten the food Ryth had brought me. Food that was now long cold. Still, I ate, then went back to work until my fingers ached and a heavy throb started in the base of my skull.
When I looked up from the screen, it was dark outside. Shadows no longer hovered in the corners, they now consumed the room, and silence came from the doorway. I swallowed a flare of annoyance, hating I’d lost the time with her, but this was important. I helped myself to a glass of Scotch from Ben’s cupboard and returned to the screen, watching the market rise slightly before I pressedsell.
Sell…
Sell it all…
Every last thing.
Everything I fucking owned.
I logged back into the messages and found one from the real estate hunter who sounded like he’d almost tripped over himself to get his hands on the keyboard.Name your price.That’s where we were at now, he’d chased me that long. We were well past niceties and desperation, so I punched in a figure, one that was outrageous and three times what it was worth…
