17. Andre
ANDRE
A s soon as Amorette’s footsteps were no longer audible, I stood up and shut my office door.
I should have closed it earlier, but the constant video monitoring and threats of violence to the men not to come down this hall unless invited made me lax.
The one man who actually had an office here never used it unless we were away and everything was locked up tight.
A stupid mistake on my part, considering what Grey had shared.
I dialed Lescheva back and took my seat, smoothing the wrinkles out of my button-down shirt. Even in the office of the compound I wore suits almost exclusively. It gave the severe impression I needed to make on the men, on video calls, or anyone who happened to see me.
“Andre. Glad to see you’ve come to your senses.”
“What is Vicente paying you?” I asked. It was a long shot, and I’d dealt with him for years in some capacity. Lescheva was a straight shooter, for the most part, and absolutely self-serving. He usually wasn’t one to make promises he couldn’t keep, but he’d also never pushed so hard for a job.
“What the hell is this?” He blustered.
“You’re salivating for this job. Even better if I come on my own. And you lied about what you could promise my men. What’s he paying you?”
“You’re mistaken, son.”
I laughed. “I’m not your son. And I don’t take kindly to manipulation. Don’t forget, if I can go after my own father, what would I do to you ?”
Lescheva didn’t like that. I smiled. Fucking with him was so much more fun than dealing with Vicente. That was a beast I hated where every move and word had to be analyzed. Lescheva wasn’t so smart.
“Whatever you think is happening, it’s not. I can promise your men immunity for their part. We just need to make sure there’s enough evidence to take his officials into custody. I’m a consultant but a veteran with the team and they listen when I ask for something.”
“So, you’re already saying that you haven’t gotten their explicit approval to offer immunity?”
“Hey, that’s not what I’m saying,” he backpedaled. “We’d have to work out several layers before the big day. You’d get your guarantee before then.”
Suddenly, this wasn’t the path I wanted to take. Not even close. As a rule, we didn’t trust anyone, but we had fragile truces where it suited us. This wasn’t suiting me anymore. It stank like a trap.
“What’s in this for you? Say you’re not getting paid by Vicente. What’s in this for you?”
He huffed out a laugh. “Even without Vicente, this would be the takedown of the century. I don’t need to explain the glory that comes along with that.”
“I thought you never allowed your picture or information to be printed on the news.”
He hawed. “That’s for the public. I want the glory in the Bureau. It racks up tons of clout and favors that go a long way to get me what I want.”
“Which is?”
The only sound was his breathing. Lescheva wouldn’t have slipped up. He wasn’t so careless. But he also wasn’t sure how to answer.
“We all have enemies. I do just like you do, and I want to see my own brand of justice served.” Was that supposed to make me like him more? He was trying and failing to relate to me.
“For now, this is tabled. I won’t be supplying men for your operation, and I won’t be contacting you any time soon.
And Lescheva…” I waited until I knew with certainty he was listening.
“If I find out that you accepted payment from Vicente to fuck me over, I will hunt you down and skin you alive. Then I’ll let Parker play with you. ”
I hit the end button, effectively hanging up on him twice today.
Sending a text to my brothers, I told them to meet me at my place. We needed to have a meeting. This entire situation was getting out of hand.
At my place, I cracked open the bourbon and grabbed four glasses, arranging the tray on the sleek black table. My place differed from the others. It was all black, with the exception of a few silver statement pieces. Everything was buffed until it was pristine and glossy, just as I liked it.
The order kept me calm.
“What’s this about?” Grey knocked the door open as he came in, his face like thunder. Someone was in a fucking bad mood.
“What’s up your ass?” I poured two fingers in each glass.
“Nothing.” He tossed the drink back and slammed it on the tray. The glasses shook, and some of the bourbons sloshed onto the tray. I gritted my teeth, holding my words. We didn’t need a fight right now.
Lafe came in, more alert and present than I’d seen him in a while, although he had dark circles under his eyes. Then Parker brought up the rear, locking the door behind him.
“Look at this, a family reunion. Does anyone else think this directly results from our sweet little love?” He picked up his own glass and perched on the cabinet to face us. Everyone else was on the couches and he had to make a fucking statement.
Grey glared at him while motioning for me to top his glass off.
“I’m not drinking. You can have mine.”
We all turned to look at Lafe. His ears started to darken as he scowled at us.
“That’s fine. I wanted to get you all here to discuss what we’re doing with Vicente.” I tapped my fingers on my knee.
“Yes, brother? Enlighten us on how you’ve decided we would proceed,” Parker snarked.
I glared at him. “This isn’t about me making decisions for us. It’s about you not throwing us into a bloody battlefield because it fucking amuses you or fits your plans for yourself.”
He held my stare, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t backing down. Not when I didn’t know if he would stay with us or suddenly be gone one day without a fucking word.
“I think we’re going too fast,” I said, still daring Parker to fuck up.
I wanted him to. I needed to let go of some steam, and a good sparring session with my brothers sounded like an excellent way to release it.
“I’ve been focusing on taking players off Vicente’s board to ultimately take down Vicente, but I’m moving too fast. There’s too much room for Vicente to fuck us over.
” I finally looked at Lafe, then Grey. “I’m almost certain I would have walked my men into a trap if Amorette hadn’t decided to pay me a surprise visit. ”
Lafe’s eyebrows shot up. “Why did she come to see you?”
Of course, he’d be confused. I held a gun under her chin and would again if she double-crossed us. But something Lafe didn’t seem to understand, but Amorette did–It wasn’t personal. For now, she served a purpose; more than that, she was slowly becoming an asset.
We’d have to see how that would play out in due time.
“Because Parker wants to steal from people she deems victims. She’s disgusted.” I cut my gaze back to him, and Parker, the bastard, gives us a close-lipped grin, fucking ecstatic with himself. “Care to tell us what that’s about.”
“Not yet,” he said and swung his feet, lightly kicking the cabinet like a child.
“Parker,” I growled. “No more of this stuff. You either bring us all in on the plan, or you don’t fucking do it.”
Grey and Lafe both shot him heated looks.
“If you put us in danger again, I’ll kill you,” Grey shared without an ounce of hesitation. “Brother or not, that boat only goes so far as being able to trust you. If I don’t trust you, you’re not my brother.”
Lafe didn’t say anything, he just watched Parker with more than a little hurt in his clear blue gaze.
Parker lost his shit-eating grin and hopped off the counter. “You bastards are acting like I’m selling you out for the hell of it.” Heat hit his cheeks and bled down his neck. “You assholes,” he spat.
I stood up and faced him. “What is your issue with this vase? Are you stealing it anyway? Are you just fucking with her for fun?” A few minutes ago, he had that look about him that he always got before he planned something big. I never paid that much attention because it hadn’t affected us.
That was before he started trying to take down Vicente on his own. Or gain enough leverage to escape on his own, leaving the rest of us to endure Vicente’s twisted ire.
He wanted to argue. I could see the scathing words on the tip of his tongue, but he glanced between the three of us.
For the first time, maybe ever, we were united against Parker, and that bothered him.
Perhaps not like it would most people, but it did.
He grunted and swiped a hand over his head in irritation.
“Whether I stay or not, whether Vicente means to take us out or not, we have to beat him to it. The men Amorette is referring to were the personal collection of the Curator. She thinks they have or had the vase I’m looking for, as well as several other of his artifacts.
I’m inclined to believe her.” He paused, waiting for Grey or Lafe to pipe in with questions.
When they didn’t, he continued. “Their life is too lavish for what they’ve made even with their success, and she thinks they deserve to keep whatever they’ve gotten as payment for such a shitty childhood.
” His top lip raised. “I wonder what Little Love thinks we deserve?”
“Are you going after the vase?” I urged. He was getting lost in his thoughts and I had shit to do.
“Not in the way Amorette believes I am,” he reluctantly answered. “I have a plan, but I need to work out some details. It won’t jeopardize us with Vicente, not any more than we already are.”
“Vicente isn’t playing this time,” Lafe interjected, shaking his head. “He tried to kill Grey. He’s slowly hitting us where he can. I think he hasn’t gone after the rest of us more directly because we haven’t left the compound.”
“This doesn’t make sense,” Grey added. “You said Mia wasn’t caught. What else has happened to push him over the edge?” He kept his gaze on me, completely ignoring Parker.
We exchanged glances, because none of us had any idea.
“It could be that Vicente doesn’t have a reason. Which is more motivation for us to take him out,” Parker argued, taking a few steps closer to their chairs.
I didn’t disagree with him, not with the erratic way Vicente was trying to get to us, but hell, this whole mess was starting to give me another migraine.
My right temple throbbed as I tried to lay the plans out in my mind.
“Then we need a plan. A solid, well-thought-out plan. Otherwise, we’ll just end up fucking ourselves in the ass.
” I loosened my tie, pulled it off, and tossed it in the corner. “I think Lescheva was setting us up.”
“He’s been one of your contacts for years.” Lafe scooted forward in his seat and clasped his hands between his thighs. “He’s never fucked you over.”
“What’s the number one rule?” I smiled sardonically.
“No one can be trusted forever,” they all parroted. And I flicked a brief glance at Parker. He ground his teeth and looked away. Luckily, he kept his mouth shut, as I couldn’t be responsible for my actions if he pissed me off.
“Right. Everyone has a price, and it’s fluid depending on their life situation and circumstances. Amorette happened to be in my office at the tail end of our conversation, and she pointed out some critical flaws on his side. He couldn’t promise immunity like he said he could—”
“Hasn’t he promised that before?” Grey asked, slouching down in his own seat.
I shook my head. “No, not like this. My dealings are usually turning over rats or men we don’t want the responsibility for.
A clean death. This would have been an operation to set up Vicente’s top advisors.
A completely different operation. And anything close to this in the past was run through Special Agent Morgan.
” I rolled my lips together. “Another thing Amorette warned of… She said we’d have to be careful that our plan wouldn’t be seen as entrapment.
And I have to say we’d be flirting with the line. I ended the call with Lescheva.”
We were all quiet, me for an entirely different set of reasons I was sure.
When I glanced up, Grey was smug, and Parker had a dirty little smile on his face. “What are you two so fucking happy about?”
Grey raised an eyebrow. “I knew Amorette would fit in here.”
“I knew Little Love would be useful.” Parker smirked.
Then there was Lafe. He looked at them like he wanted to believe in Amorette as much as they did but didn’t know how.
I was partly to blame for that, but there was nothing I could do about it now.
Paranoia was a better tool for him than trust. He’d live longer because he wasn’t cruel or detached like the rest of us.
“So, how are we supposed to protect ourselves?” Lafe turned to me.
The was the million-dollar question, and one I didn’t have the answer to. “The only thing I know for now is we can’t rush anything. We can’t leave the compound without a clear plan and contingency plan. And we can’t trust anyone.”
“And Killer? Can we trust her?”
Could we?