Page 62 of The Brigadier
“He wants us all rattled. He’s hoping we’ll make bad decisions.” My reminder seemed to fall on deaf ears this time.
All three of us seemed more reflective than normal. I glanced out one of the windows myself, my jaw aching from how many times I’d clenched it. “Maybe we really are barking up the wrong tree. What if this has nothing to do with the regime and more to do with me?”
Aleks snorted. “Meaning what?”
“Why did Damien’s mother just disappear?”
When the two men glanced at each other, I sat up, dropping my feet to the floor. “Hold on. Is there something you haven’t told me?”
Aleks chuckled. “Nothing huge, my man. I knew you tried to find her, but I also did what I could to check on her background, finances. Anything I could find. She was an actress and from what I could piece together, she made the mistake of having an affair with a prominent leading man while she was merely a third-rate actress. She was threatened by the family. That much I discovered, the man’s father some bigwig in Hollywood.Running meant getting away from their scrutiny and threats while taking some part in Bulgaria. Not a good place for a child.”
I could feel I was narrowing my eyes. “Bulgaria?”
Both men laughed. “They make movies there as well,” Vadim huffed. “Anyway, I doubt it has anything to do with her but maybe you have a good point. Someone from your past. Or someone you handled for me. You know, those who reacted the worst.”
“I’ll do that. But not right now. Besides, with the less than scrupulous clients Aleks represented, someone from the opposing side might be acting on the need for revenge.” Great. Now I was thinking the exact way I’d warned Vadim that the perpetrator wanted.
“I agree with what Nik said earlier. We need to keep cool heads. We can have someone in our employ make lists of possible candidates, but that would take a long time and even combined, we don’t have the manpower to hunt down every possible lead.”
“Good point,” I hissed.
“Any chance this has something to do with her boss?” Aleks asked. Now he was floating that same line of reaching for straws.
“None. For all the bragging Mr. Davenport has done, his family isn’t that well off. No real connections.” I hadn’t wasted any time on the jerk, even if I wanted to snap his neck for how he’d treated Chantel.
Vadim shook his head. “Everything that we’ve talked about is understandable but yes, Nik is correct. We’re not thinking clearly. That is a must. At this point, I suggest we all get some R & R. We all know whatever is going on will escalate further whenthe asshole can’t locate us. Be on guard. Don’t let your defenses fall. The meeting is at a Mexican joint on third at one in the afternoon. La Casitas.”
“Mexican, huh?” Hell, I was in the mood for a drink. The wind was whipping up. It would be the perfect night for a fire, maybe more. Great. All three of us had been attacked and I was thinking about hot sex. What did that make me?
“Neutral ground,” Aleks said, grinning even wider.
“Noted and not a bad idea.” There was a Mexican cartel who’d been sniffing around for years, but the true Spaniards had yet to decide the cold weather of the north was the best place for them. However, it was a true melting pot of criminal activity just like people. “I’ll be there but I won’t be hanging around.”
“We both understand, Nik. Take care of your family and we’ll take care of ours.” Vadim was already leaning forward, ready to end the meeting. “And remember what I said from before.”
Don’t touch her again.
“I do and I will. Tomorrow.” As the screen faded to black, I thought about Aleks’ claim regarding Ginger Lee. I honestly wasn’t certain I bought the actress story. But at this point, she was in another country, with no affiliation to any crime syndicate found. I had to consider the last suggestion. I’d roughed up enough smaller enemies in my life, killing enough a long time ago that there could be a string of people who’d harbored a grudge. The question wasn’t just about who was capable of doing such a thing but also about why. That would take time I doubted any of us had. It felt as if some unseen clock was ticking.
In my mind, the questions were piling up. If this was revenge based, why wait so long? Prison? Maybe. Why play games? Most of the burly assholes I’d crossed would never go to such lengths. Still, I would have my hackers run a check. They could do that much quicker than I could.
Right now, I wanted to be able to feel comfortable putting everything behind me. Even for a single night. It might be asking too much but the whirlwind of violence and constant activity was draining. I could only imagine how Chantel felt. She was tough but this was as raw as it came.
I pushed away from my desk, not realizing how long I’d been in my office. It seemed the sun was setting earlier and earlier. A fleeting thought about Halloween and the upcoming Christmas holidays entered my mind.
That never happened.
I’d made Christmas the best I’d been able to the year before. The timing had sucked, Damien arriving in between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’d had to scramble to act like a father, including getting a tree and presents. He’d remained mostly lethargic then. Except he’d thrown his first temper tantrum on Christmas, nearly tearing apart the tree.
If only I’d been a better father, realizing he’d just needed love, not toys.
If only I’d known he existed.
If only I’d allowed myself to care about someone special.
Ah, fuck. Was the old adage true about danger creating passion? Whatever the case, not only was I hungrier for the woman than before, I also felt something else.
Something that would likely get us all killed.