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Forty-five minutes later, the kitchen is clean and the invitation is still there. Swallowing my fear, I walk over to the invitation and take it.
Chapter 2
Michael
I’mnotreallysurewhy I get these updates. It’s not like I’m going to do anything with them. But they are the only thing that keeps me connected to who I used to be and who I am now. Michael Prince and Evan Gray are the same and they are different. Michael Prince was willing to put people in the ground for fucking with his family. Evan Gray will call the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to report suspicious activity at any event he does security for. They are the same person but have different mentalities.
Which makes me wonder why I’m looking at a report on the brother I left behind—my biological half-brother, as we don’t share the same dad—saying there will be an attempt on his life. The intel is good, as I got it from Quin, but there’s nothing I can do about it. I have to let that side of who I am go. I have to let it die.
Except I can’t. My brother is good. He’s not involved in the shit I had going on. He got lucky and was adopted by people that actually gave a fuck and instilled good values in him. He’s a good person. Running for senator on a great platform and wants to make lives better. I can’t let that be snuffed out, right?
But I can’t go back. I can’t go back to California. We ran away when my chosen family was in danger. When my brother, Abel, was kidnapped and tortured for information. When another brother, Savage, had to go rescue him. I can’t leave them to save a brother I don’t even know.
But something won’t let me say no to saving him.
Looking at the image of the man on the screen is like looking at my mother. The only thing we have in common are our gray eyes. He’s my brother, there’s no denying that. And someone wants him dead.
Scrubbing my hand down my face, I look over at Quin. “How did you find this?”
He shoots me a smirk and shakes his head. “If I try to explain, you wouldn’t understand a word of it. Suffice it to say that even when messages are deleted and completely wiped, there’s always a little that remains. I traced the little that remained and built the message to what you see. It’s legit.”
I have no doubts about that. Quin, my best friend, roommate, and business partner, is the best hacker I know. He has skills I can’t even fathom. He’s been keeping tabs on my brother for me for years. He helped me find my birth mother, who didn’t even want to see me when I contacted her. Now she’s dead. After being clean and sober for ten years, she got back into drugs shortly after I found her when I was twenty-eight. It’s hard not to think that my showing up had something to do with that. She overdosed a few years later. I found out about my brother, Brent, a month or two after she died. He had been searching for her as well.
I kept an eye on him from afar and was glad to see he wasn’t into the shit I was. He was on the straight and narrow, had good grades and a few college degrees. Brent was too good to know me, but I watched out for him all the same.
Brent’s life being threatened pulls me in two different directions. One where I stay out of sight and live my life with my chosen family and another to protecting my biological brother.
Clearing my throat, I say, “He has a kid.” Quin looks over at me with a raised eyebrow. “Brent. He has a daughter. She was just born a few weeks ago. I’m technically an uncle. I don’t feel like I am, but that’s what biology says. And his wife seems like she’s a real nice woman.”
“So, when are you leaving?” Quin asks as he turns back to his computer.
I huff a laugh. My best friend knows my mind better than I do sometimes. In this, we’re on the same page. If it were his brother, who he had a good relationship with before we disappeared, he would already be gone. “In a few days. The message says to take him out during some kind of ball. I’ll have this man dead before he gets the chance.”
I watch Quin’s lip tip up and he says casually, “You should use your tie. It won’t leave a trace and you won’t have blood on your hands. You could even go back and enjoy the ball if you’re smart.”
My friend is a sadistic fuck. Which is why we get along so well. “My tie … that could work.” I look at his handsome profile. “You think me going is a bad idea?”
He takes a long time answering. I don’t rush him—Quin will answer when he’s ready. Finally, he says, “You don’t know your brother, but you feel responsible for him because of your shitty mother. From what I can dig up about him, he’s a good guy.”
Sitting back in my chair with my hands laced behind my head, I twist my chair to Quin. “What else did you get about the hit?”
“Supposed to be at a charity masquerade ball.”
“Masquerade ball?” I sit up straight and shake my head. “How the hell will I find Brent there?”
“Patience, young grasshopper,” Quin says as he types quickly, eyes locked on his computer screen. “Almost …” he mutters to himself. His voice takes on a reverent quality it does when he’s having a good hack. “There.” He smiles that sly smile he does when he’s gotten his way. “Check your email.”
I open the message he sent and find a seating chart. “You had to hack the system for this?” I joke, giving him shit.
“Hey, now. Say thank you or I’ll add a virus to your computer that you can’t get off.”
I hold my hands up in mock surrender, chuckling as I memorize the seating chart. As a benefactor, my brother will be seated at a table in the front, close to the stage, between his personal assistant and the president of the company he works for—both women—so it’ll be easy to locate him.
“Who’s doing the hit?” I ask while studying the layout of the building the ball will be held in. I need to know where there are empty rooms, offices, closets and exits. I’ll have Quin disable the cameras so that I can do a recon of the area under the cover of darkness.
Quin tsks. “This guy is supposed to be good. About thirty kills under his belt, if my intel can be trusted. Name is Mamba. Has a snake tattoo on his neck. The suit may hide it, but from what I can gather, he’s pretty proud of it and won’t let it be kept secret. Since most people will have masks on, you’ll have to keep your eyes peeled.”
Rubbing my hands together, I smirk and look over at my best friend. “Let the games begin.”
