Chapter 4
Jameson
“SO, WE’RE KEEPING HER?” Hades’s voice cut through the soft music playing as I stepped into my study. He didn’t even look up from the ice he was swirling in his drink, having no opinion one way or the other. His cool gray eyes were focused on the whiskey, unreadable like always.
Across from him, my brother Callahan lounged like he owned the damn place even though his estate was further south in Paradise Grove.
One arm was draped across the back of my leather couch and the other tossed a stress ball in the air.
His polished wing-tipped shoes rested on my hand-carved coffee table.
“Of course we have to keep her. She witnessed a shoot-out.”
“Not the end of the world. She’s under an NDA and contract,” Archer reminded him, like he wanted to give her a way out. Fucker.
Hades took a sip of his drink before murmuring, “Could have just done the same to her as you did most everyone else.” He knew it was the cleanest of scenarios.
Archer glared at him. “She’s been the teacher to Fran Bran all month.”
“What’s a month?” Cal scoffed.
“Fran likes her,” Archer threw back, and I couldn’t argue with that. None of these guys could. Fran was our one and only princess between all of us. She’d weaseled her way into all of their hearts with none of them having kids yet.
Cal sighed and squeezed the ball in his fist, assessing the situation. “You really don’t think she’ll talk?”
Archer’s dark brows were furrowed in concern as he swirled his own tumbler, leaning against the fireplace. “Don’t think so. She’s sweet on the kids, doesn’t want to cause any harm.”
“Doesn’t mean shit when she’s offered a mint to give a story.
” Cal shook his head, throwing the stress ball up again.
Leave it to my brother to be concerned about our image.
“Plus, I saw her. Mia Darling in a sundress on the top of academy hill, her pretty brown curls blowing in the wind telling her story to the news? Yeah, she’s the kind of beautiful people sit up and listen to. ”
Cal was right. I saw the way Archer looked at her. How every one of the men at the academy had eyed her up at least once, their features softening for the girl.
Mia Darling was flawless. Her skin color was warm and tan, her curls that grew past her shoulders were loose just enough that I could thread them around my fingers.
Her lips were pink and plump and her eyes the color of whiskey that warmed a man’s stomach.
And that’s where I tried to keep my gaze rather than letting it travel down the curves of her body.
“What in God’s name are you worried about the news for? Not one outlet is going to push a narrative of our syndicate being painted in a bad light anyway.” I swiped Cal’s feet off my table.
My brother chuckled and set his elbows on his knees, his blue eyes the same color as mine as he looked over at me. “You got the Irish and Paolo’s cartel pissed at our syndicate, Jameson. You think they wouldn’t pay to sway the public?”
“The Irish are dead men walking after what happened at Franny’s school.
Those were his men. You and I both know it.
” Every one of the guys in that room knew that if I’d decided their fate, it was already done.
I had names on lists now, phones tapped, routes traced, and deals made.
“And I’m considering Paolo’s involvement—”
“Agreed on O’Connor and his men. The world will be better for it too,” Cal started, but then pissed me off by saying, “Why not meet with Paolo though? Even if it’s quiet and unofficial.”
“For what, exactly?” I asked, looking over a paper on my desk and trying to appear unbothered.
I knew Paolo’s cartel was crumbling. They’d misstepped and made one too many wrong moves over the years.
Begging for our help or leniency under the guise of diplomacy wasn’t something I had time to listen to right now.
They needed us more than we needed them.
“The senator was close with Paolo’s father. It’s a courtesy and smart business to hear him out. He’s saying he wasn’t involved.”
Cal might have cared about courtesy, but I didn’t give a fuck.
“Paolo can wait while I decide how involved he may or may not be.” They knew I meant it, as my tone was as razor sharp as a blade now, ruthless and unforgiving.
“Plus, I’m not leaving Franny right now to pacify his ass … or the mayor’s.”
Cal sucked on his teeth, holding my gaze.
My brother ventured to the East Coast more, had stronger ties there, and stronger feelings about it than I did.
“Fine. I get it,” he conceded, only for now.
He had as much fight in him as I did. “We’ll adjust schedules.
I’m just keeping up appearances. You know as well as I do it’s good to keep a senator happy, bro. ”
“Which is why we buried that little mess he had with the union funds last year and ran cleanup for the ‘accident’ he had with his deputy.”
“If anything, Senator Panwell can keep up appearances by making sure the mess we’re making over this academy shooting isn’t in the headlines,” Archer grumbled.
“Wouldn’t be a problem if you hadn’t killed half the town in front of the teacher and then kept her alive to tell the story.
” Cal jabbed at my men like they were novices.
Archer was highly trained and one of my best. Couldn’t speak for my other hire, Xavier, who had almost got his head blown off after I saw him pull his gun on Mia, but he’d been reprimanded.
“Would you shut up, Cal?” Archer rolled his eyes and then threw back more whiskey.
“Yeah? Why? He can’t really let her go back home like nothing happened now. You’ve made a mess—”
“It doesn’t matter.” I summarized, “Franny confides in her. Likes her.”
“Exactly. No one’s touching Mia,” Archer ground out before his gaze hit me hard and mean. “Right, Knight? Because she would still be teaching at some regular old school had you not hired an inexperienced random girl who you then proceeded to manhandle.”
“Manhandle?” My brother’s dark eyebrow raised with interest.
Archer was quick with his response because his ass wanted the heat off himself. “Jameson choked her.”
My brother whistled like I’d stabbed her when she was fine. I pulled at the collar of my shirt. “Hardly choking. She was wasting time I didn’t have. Quite frankly, she’s a waste of time now, too, other than the fact that Franny is comfortable with her.”
Franny even thanked me and told me I was a good dad on the way out of Mia’s room. She didn’t see that I locked her teacher in there and told her to keep quiet or else.
“Franny’s comfortable with Ma and Valerie.”
“Is she? When’s the last time she asked you to play a game?” I pinned him with a look. “We had lunch last week with Ma, and what did they discuss?”
“I don’t know. They chat about nothing for hours.”
“Ma talks. Franny listens. With her teacher, she learns.” I took a breath before I admitted the rest. “She also told Mia she saw the bodies at her school. She didn’t tell Val that.”
“Shit,” Cal swore, and Hades whistled low.
“I took Ms. Darling’s phone. She doesn’t have much family. And I’ve informed her of what will happen if she leaves. So, let’s accept that Franny needs her friendly face and move the fuck on.”
My brother hated complications. “I’m friendly,” he replied gruffly as he cracked his tattooed knuckles. “And so are you. Why can’t she confide in us?”
Hades, Archer, and I had dumped more bodies in the last twenty-four hours than I cared to count.
“Your face has never screamed friendly, dumbass.” I dropped into my leather chaise to contemplate our next move. “The school have evidence for us, Archer?”
“What evidence do we need?” Hades answered for him, now looking at his phone, only giving us half his attention. “O’Connor’s leading the charge. Those were his men and we know why, that’s obvious—”
I hummed to cut him off. “You don’t attempt to kidnap my child over a few legislative quarrels.
There’s more to it than that. The East Coast is most likely coming together against us.
” Hades tried to argue, but I held up my hand.
“I don’t give a fuck who is. All of it will come to light in the end.
We start with O’Connor. He’s going to pay the ultimate price with his fucking life. ”
“You think Paolo’s involved too?” Hades said what we were all thinking.
Paolo Ruiz and I had a history no one liked to bring up or talk about.
Dropping his name alone tightened the room with tension.
He used to run most of the East Coast cartel activity with dirty money from his father and was able to leverage ports, launder through shell corps, and buy off power.
But his global reach had withered in recent years, and we all knew it was because of us.
“I know he’s bitter.” I also knew I didn’t really care.
“Your relationship is strained at best after you endorsed a clean pharm company over the ones he wanted,” Hades agreed.
“Not my problem. He should have known going legal was the smart move. I can’t help if his shipments have been cut in half over the past few years.” I could have probably done more to tip him off, but we weren’t allies or friends. I owed him nothing.
Less than nothing.
“They know those businesses we endorsed have been making money hand over fist after legislation passed to tighten import inspections and limit unregistered chemical imports.” Cal chuckled and then set the stress ball down to meet my gaze head-on.
“That was a big fuck you to them and we all know it. They were bound to retaliate.”
I rubbed a hand over my jaw. “Not by involving my daughter. It crossed a line. And I’m not calling a damn meeting or a full table for permission to answer that retaliation.”
“The Diamond Syndicate has been quiet now for years, Jameson. We should enjoy that. Enjoy your daughter. Disrupting it isn’t my idea of a fun summer.”