Chapter Thirty-Nine
Dristan
“You’re staying here,” I told Penelope with a glare, but my female folded her arms beneath her breasts—which told me she was prepared to fight.
“No,” she said, narrowing her eyes at me. I braced myself for the upcoming battle, but her father put his hand on her shoulder.
“He’s right, Pen. I think you should stay here too,” he told her.
Relief swept through me and I sent a grateful look his way. He nodded in my direction, letting me know that he understood I was only trying to protect her.
“But—” she started saying, but her father gave her arm a little squeeze and shook his head.
“No, he can handle it,” he told her, giving her chin a little tweak. “Let your male take care of you.”
Pride swelled my chest until I was almost certain I would pop a button on my shirt. I would take care of her. I was certain I would have to prove it to her and her family, but it looked like he was giving me the benefit of the doubt.
“He already handled that mess with the bank,” he continued and satisfaction simmered inside me.
I had handled the bank.
“He’s got this,” he told her and she sighed, but nodded.
“I never doubted that he had it,” she murmured, turning to look up at me with a smile. “I just want to help.”
“You can help by staying here and being safe,” I told her. “Those males have already threatened your family. I don’t want you anywhere near them.”
Her parents nodded in agreement and she gave up, moving forward to hug me around my waist. I swept my arms around her, holding her close and enjoying our scents mingled together on her skin.
“I’ll be back soon,” I said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head before stepping away. She released me—with a level of reluctance that made my heart soar—and I waved at them all before heading out to the SUV where Rudgar and Kor were waiting for me.
My brother looked behind me toward where the door stayed closed and whistled low. “What did you say to keep your little hellion inside?”
Kor just grinned, rocking back on his shoes, his briefcase in his hand. I already knew he’d filed the harassment charges against the developer and was waiting to present them with it. That was what we were doing this morning. I wasn’t leaving this town until those assholes saw, in black and white, that if they came after my family again I’d make them pay.
“She listens to me,” I lied, and they both snorted out laughs before Rudgar got into the driver’s seat and Kor sat in the back. I shuffled into the passenger’s seat, still annoyed with how tiny the SUV was.
“I have the address on file, but when I searched nearby cameras, it didn’t show anyone there. We can start there and then go to the office a little further out. I saw a guard posted there, so I’m thinking that’s where they spend most of their time,” Rudgar told me, pointing to the locations on his phone.
I nodded, slapping him on his shoulder with gratitude. My younger brother specialized in security systems and had a knack for hacking into them. It was how he knew what to guard against when he set them up with his company. He was the one I went to when I needed anything done without others finding out.
He started the drive, and I felt a small niggling in the back of my mind. I couldn’t pin-point what was bothering me, but I knew that my instincts were telling me that there was something wrong.
The original office that was listed on the company’s website—and that was also on the header for the letters that had been sent to my mate and her parents—was located near the town center. It was a small leased space that I assumed people could walk into and get pricing for the new homes.
We pulled up in front of it, but I already knew it would be empty. The glass facade showed the inside—an empty reception desk and only two small tables to the side. I still got out, trying the handle on the door, but it was locked. There was a sign stating Call for appointments on the front.
I dialed the number, but there was no response. I left a message on the voicemail as I got back into the SUV. Shaking my head at my brother, he sighed, setting his GPS for the second location.
“This one’s a little ways out of town, closer to the city, but I know that we can at least talk to the guard,” he said, sending a grimace to Kor and I.
I nodded, feeling that niggling sensation again. Tapping my foot, I pulled my phone out and shot my mate a message.
Dris: Everything okay?
Rega: Yes. What about you? How’s it going?
I could sense the worry in her message and decided to shake off whatever I was feeling. My mate was safe at home with her parents and we could deal with whatever came from the developers. The only reason we hadn’t gone to them right after the face-off against the bank was because we’d had to wait for the damn police to give us the papers to stop the harassment.
Now that we had them, I was impatient to give them to the developers, get my mate and return us home. I already had the paperwork started for a second home—one that was a little bit outside of the city—with less hustle and bustle, but enough space for our growing family. I’d even added an extra surprise for my mate.
“There’s something you should know,” Kor called from the backseat, frowning down at his phone. “I had an investigator looking into the developers.”
He had our full attention now.
“And it seems like they’re going by a new name. This is a company I’ve dealt with in the past, Dristan,” he said, looking up at me and shaking his head. “And it wasn’t good. They didn’t just harass people. I represented clients against them. It was a huge case, but we ended up losing because, in the end, the clients willingly signed away their homes.” He blew out a breath. “I tried to prove that there was harassment and abuse but none of them followed through with the police or even bothered to file charges. In the end, there wasn’t enough evidence to show that the people were coerced out of their houses. They were forcing people to sell the only homes they had for pennies, and then building hundreds of McMansions all stacked on top of each other to sell for profit. It’s disgusting. We couldn’t arrest anyone the last time, because we just didn’t have the evidence.”
He reached out to squeeze my shoulder and I braced myself for his words. “A few tried, but it was taking too long and they were tired of the harassment, so they just gave in. A lot of them couldn’t even afford to sue them after they lost their homes.” He sighed, shaking his head. “Enough stink was made that the company disappeared, but not before those homes were destroyed and warehouses were put in.”
He clenched his jaw, and I could see the frustration brimming in him as he continued, “They took a smaller sale price than they would have for the mansions and sold to commercial buyers just so they could get out of town, and off our radar faster.” He scowled, looking grim, but then his eyes narrowed in determination. “Now that I know it’s them, I’ll do everything in my power to take them down.”
I nodded, already dialing. When I finished my call, I turned to look at Kor. His brow was furrowed and he was fiddling with his phone.
“What aren’t you telling me?” I demanded.
He squeezed his eyes shut before blowing out a breath. “They weren’t just harassing people with letters, Dristan. It got physical. That’s why I got involved,” he said in a low voice.
“They hurt someone?” My hackles were all the way up and I sent a message to my mate. “Who?”
“They started graffitiing homes and throwing paint on a few residents. Then some of them were being followed. One guy was nearly driven off the road. They were being stalked, called at all hours of the night.” he told me, meeting my worried gaze. “At one point a kid was taken. He was returned a few hours later and they never caught the kidnapper, but the only reason these guys weren’t arrested was because they couldn’t prove it. We couldn’t prove any of it. So they got away free and clear.”
My entire body went stiff and I started dialing before I could think of anything else. We were almost to the office, but it didn’t matter. I needed to know she was safe.
When she didn’t answer, my blood ran cold.