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My boy squeaks, then looks at me. I grin down at him and nod. “Yeah, I am. And you’re Michael.”
“Yep.” Michael stands and holds his hand out. “Is your real name Red?”
Red shakes his hand but doesn’t answer.
An uncomfortable silence fills the room until I clear my throat and direct Red to the chair behind my desk. I sit and he perches on my thigh and I wrap an arm around his waist. Red looks at me and I wink, making him blush furiously. Grinning, I look over at Michael and catch a wistful look on his face that I see sometimes when he looks at Abel and Savage.
“So,” I begin and Michael shakes his head and looks at me. “Red had an … incident and we need to contact Jared down in Ontario.” Red looks over at me and I squeeze his waist briefly. “Jared is a guy we’ve done business with that has ties with the RCMP. He’ll be able to find the right people to maybe conduct a raid on the warehouse if people could be in danger.” Red nods and we look back at Michael.
My best friend nods and reaches for a notepad. “Tell me everything, if you don’t mind, Red.” Michael’s voice is gentle when he addresses my boy and I appreciate it. My mouse is skittish and I don’t want him to freeze up when I know he wants to help those that may be trapped in that warehouse.
After giving him a reassuring look and rubbing his back, Red goes over the full conversation he overheard from Andler. What kind of fucking name is Andler? It takes several deep breaths for me to control my anger when I hear Red go over what he went through again. My hand itches to palm my Sig and track this fucker down and put as many bullets in his head that my clip holds. No one touches what’s mine.
Red finishes telling Michael what happened and Michael clenches his jaw before nodding. While we worked for Savage and the Benavelli family for over ten years, we never had to hurt or kill anyone that didn’t deserve it. After Joe B—Savage’s father—was murdered, Savage told us he wasn’t going to stand for bullshit violence attached to his family name and everyone in his crew stuck to that. So I know Michael doesn’t like hearing that fucking Andler and his crew might have snatched unsuspecting men and women.
Putting the notepad away, Michael picks up his phone. “Jared? It’s Evan. Listen, man. I have some sensitive information that needs to be handled quickly, but delicately.” He stands and takes the phone call into the hall, leaving me and Red alone. Jared is a contact we both share, but I shout to Michael to have him call me back with any updates so I can give them to Red right away.
“Evan?” Red asks me, then gets a thoughtful look on his face. “Evan Gray? And Malcolm Hayes.”
“Yes, my sweet boy. We opened the firm under our assumed names. Safer that way. Only two employees here know our real identities, so try to call us Hayes and Gray if you come visit.”
Nodding, Red leans into me, taking a deep breath. “When will it happen?”
I shrug. “Depends on how long it takes them to put a task force together and do some investigation. A month or two at the most.”
That seems to be okay with Red because he smiles shyly at me. “I can’t believe I did it. Getting them off the streets will help me sleep better at night, even if it’ll take a while. I wish it could be done now though. Those poor people.” He shudders and I have to agree. If the RCMP go in without a plan, it could cause more harm than good.
“I can believe it. You’re so brave. I’m so proud of you, baby boy.” Red lets out a sigh and melts into me, kissing me gently.
Before the kiss can get deeper, Michael walks back into the room. “They’re going to check the area out and get a task force together. They’ll let you know what happens after the raid is over. A few people have reported their loved ones that are sex workers missing in this province and Ontario. So you might be responsible for getting some people home.” Red beams and I rub his back, extremely proud of my boy.
I would rather have found the pieces of shit and killed them myself, but I know it’s unwise, as we’ve already left one life of crime. I don’t want to pick up and move again. I like Canada. But who knows? I might be able to get my chance.
Thinking about the empty desk at the front of the building, I ask Michael, “Who’s on desk duty today?”
He curses and stands quickly. “Supposed to be me. I tried to route the calls back this way, but I can never get that shit right. We need a fucking receptionist.” He rushes to the door.
“I’ll do it,” Red mutters, stopping Michael and making me raise an eyebrow at him. “What? I can do it. I was a personal assistant for a lawyer a few years back. I’m sure it’s much the same. I need to pay my way here. I can’t live off you, Quin. It wouldn’t be right. At least if I’m working, I’ll earn the paycheck you sign. Besides, I speak fluent French.”
I look at Michael and he shrugs. Turning back to Red, I ask, “You sure? We’ll have to use your birth name on the payroll documents. Can Andler identify you by name?
“About as much as you can,” he says cheekily and I give him a look. He quickly tacks on, “Sorry, Daddy.”
“We can change it, if you want.”
“My name?” Red asks and I nod. “Oh God, yes please. My name is fucking terrible and I hate it.”
“What is it?”
Red looks back at Michael and Michael steps out of the office with a smirk. When Red turns around, his face is blazing and he drops his head and whispers something. “Speak up, boy,” I demand.
“Dwight.”
I blink and stare. I expected worse with how closely he guarded it. He meets my eyes and his eyebrows are dipped. “That’s not too bad.”
“Not too bad? Quin, it’s fucking terrible. Imagine calling a fucking three year old Dwight. I was in elementary school before my friend started calling me Red because my face turned bright red when anyone called me Dwight. God, it’s a terrible fucking name. Please change it. I’ll do anything.”
That pulls a laugh from me and Red’s face gets this adorably irritated look that makes me stop laughing. It’s not fair to tease him about something he had no hand in. “Okay, baby. What do you want your name to be?”
