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I knew whom he suspected, but Jakob didn’t lay blame. I’d been half tempted to bring Talia with me to this meeting, to prove to Jakob that he was wrong. But in the end, I’d left her at the villa and obeyed Jakob’s precise commands. He was the soldier, trained in stratagem and versed in formidable resources; I was the street rat, scrappy and ruthless. I was wise enough to cede my natural inclination to the advice of an expert. With as many enemies as I had, Jakob’s professional hunch led him to one source for the attack. I hadn’t wanted to hear it, because if it was whom he suspected, then it was all my fault.
The cart arrived at the top floor. I steeled my spine; no one would see the effect this had on me, understandable though it might be to break from grief-induced pain. It was easier to be angry than show weaker emotions.
Time slowed as the doors swept open, exposing Adrian’s haggard face. Our gazes locked, and the horror I’d been trying to swallow back burned up my throat.
“We were at the club, cuz. The girl Yna brought home—they went out for brunch.” Adrian’s voice cracked as he spoke. He couldn’t finish.
“Why didn’t you go with them?” I bit out. At the same time, I was telling myself it was no use getting mad at him. I knew who was truly to blame here.I should never have let her go anywhere without an army at her back!
“I know.” Adrian took a shuddering breath. “I was responsible for her safety, and I failed her.”
I grunted, unable to respond. We’d both failed her. I thought she’d be safe enough away from our villa, especially with the extra security I’d arranged in the middle of the night.
Jakob Webber stepped out of a conference room, running a hand down the front of his suit. “Constantine. I have an update on the situation.”
Clipped and to the point. Jakob’s coldness brought me focus. I cut my hand through the air, gesturing for him to proceed. I followed him back into the conference room, Adrian behind me. From the corner of my eye, I caught the slight tremor in my cousin’s body. He was craving a drink. To my surprise, Adrian didn’t walk to the beverage cart and pour himself one; instead, he fell into a chair and folded his hands tightly in his lap. I clenched my jaw hard. This was not the time to go into withdrawal. Yet another facet to deal with.
The blinds were drawn in here so the screen from the laptop could be reflected on the far wall. A long conference table was fast filling with reports as Jakob’s associates came in and out. The only one who stayed was a very pale young man who sat at the head of the table, clicking away on a high-powered device. He didn’t look up as Jakob went to his side and pushed a few buttons on a neighboring laptop.
“As I explained on the phone, Iryna’s bodyguard failed to check in and was found dead in an alley.” Jakob’s voice held a bite of anger. One thing could be said for the security expert, he was loyal to his men—and vice versa.
“Has law enforcement gotten involved?” I asked Jakob.
The security expert looked up from the screen to shoot me a glare. “You think I’d be here updating you if I had cops breathing down my back?”
The boiling testosterone between us was more helpful than he probably realized. I latched onto it, letting it fuel the destructive urges inside. “What news do you have then?” I pushed.
“We don’t knowwhereshe is, but we knowwhoshe’s with.”
Jakob’s words were a slap. My body rocked, and I took a step back. “Well?” It took an effort to force that question from my throat.
Something flashed through Jakob’s gaze. Pity. “You’d best sit.”
“I’ll stand,” I countered. My heart hammered in my chest, and my palms had grown slick.
The CEO of the security firm shrugged. He clicked a few buttons on his laptop, and the projector played a hideous video. A pixilated image of Iryna flashed into existence. Her hyperventilating, wordless noises filled the room. Duct tape covered her lips, and those slender hands were bound to the chair she was sitting in. Seeing those bloody cuts and swollen features broke something inside me.
But the horror didn’t end there. Claude’s grotesque face swiveled into view as he sneered into the camera, “How do you like them apples, butcher? And how does it feel knowing there’s not a damn thing you can do to stop me?” He chuckled demonically.
The screen stopped on that ugly grin. Such a short video, but it broke me.
My next inhale was beyond painful. I should have listened to Jakob and taken a seat. Instead, the fire that raged in my veins warred with the icy tendrils of fear building inside me. The Beaumont family had my sister! They’d hurt the only person who’d stood by me all these years.
A darker voice raked through my mind, with claws of mistrust and horns of ire:You played right into their hands. Such fucking erotic hands. Was it worth it, Constantine?
“I won’t say I told you so about letting that family get near you; there’s no solace in dwelling on past mistakes.” Jakob crossed his arms over his chest. His lips might not have said it, but the hard glint in his eye was accusing.
And I just might deserve it. But I was too damn shell shocked to tell him so.
Instead, it was Adrian who spoke for me. My cousin shook his head, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You think this was their plan all along? That their target wasn’t Constantine?”
“I’ll admit this move doesn’t make sense. It corners the Beaumont clan and escalates this feud into a sudden death match,” Jakob said. Clearly, he’d worked through every aspect of this latest move, while I couldn’t even draw a proper breath to seriously digest it. “My suggestion is to strike hard and fast and end them all,” he added.
End them all....They’d played me. They’d played me so fucking good. I’d been lost in the throes of physical passion, blinded to the stakes. I recalled my sister’s battered face, and something soft and insistent pinched at the back of my mind, reminding me that this wasn’t the only woman to be beaten by Claude.
But that horned beast of anger quickly stamped out my whisp of conscience. It told me I wasn’t being blind and unfair; that this was me seeing clearly for the first time in weeks! Still, something nagged in the back of my mind that Jakob’s strategy wasn’t just, nor right. But I was too numb to consider Talia’s role in this. Instead, I addressed the more obvious problem. I turned to Jakob and clipped, “That’s a fine suggestion, except for the fact that we have no idea where the devil lurks...unless you can trace that video?”
He shook his head, pointing at the stack of papers an intern had spread out before him. “There’s no digital trail. His server was hidden when he sent the video, and now the thread is broken. That’s always been the problem with that family—they know how to run and hide.” Jakob’s voice was chilly with professional neutrality, and all I could think was that at least one of us could keep a clear head. “We’re searching every available avenue,” he added. “But as we have in the past, we’re turning up empty.”
