Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
SILAS
That bitch…that little fucking bitch . I dragged my fingers through my hair, pacing my darkened bedroom. The pit of my stomach gnawed and seethed, like a goddamn beast. That’s exactly how I felt at this moment. A fucking beast.
My cock throbbed and pulsed, barely contained by the zipper of my goddamn jeans, and a vein throbbed at the side of my temple, driving me insane. I didn’t dare risk going near the bulge at the front of my trousers. I doubt I’d last a fucking second before I came.
Maybe that’s what I needed? Just something to take the edge off, and get my goddamn sister out of my head.
I licked my lips and stopped pacing. I needed to get myself in control.
Stunts like the one I did tonight was dangerous…
for me and her and in front of my goddamn brothers and Lincoln for Christ’s sake?
What the fuck was I thinking?
I wasn’t. That’s what.
Not when it came to her.
I reached into my pocket before I knew. My breaths were heavy and thick as I swiped my thumb across the screen and bought the recording up. But I hovered over it for a second, knowing deep down I was sliding into an abyss I’d never crawl out of.
I had to stop this now. Turn her over to someone else and she can become their problem. But the moment I thought about that, about handing her over that emptiness inside howled with rage.
She knew what happened that night.
I knew that for a fact.
But she wasn’t saying.
I needed to get the truth out of her and until I did that she’d stay…right….here where I could watch her. I looked down at the cell in my hand, my thumb poised over the play button on the screen, before I pressed down and watched the recording play out.
My other hand went to the button of my jeans, one hard tug and the zipper spilled open, releasing me in a rush. A sickening, guttural sound came from the pit of my chest as I wrapped my fist around my cock. The goddamn thing trembled.
“Open your mouth.” The asshole on the screen commanded.
But in my head it was me.
Open your mouth, Angel. That fantasy bloomed. She did, parting those tight lips. Anger sparkled in her eyes. But she was unable to fight it, doing anything I said. Now suck.
My breaths raced as the heat of my fist became her mouth, swallowing the twitching head of my cock as she drew me deep inside her. I wanted more…so much more. My hips bucked forward, thrusting deep against my palm.
“Oh, fuuuccckkk.”
Warmth spurted across my fingers. I closed my eyes, those heavy breaths slowing.
Still the ache was there. I opened my eyes while still seeing her.
The goddamn lying bitch who dared share my last name.
This wasn’t just a physical reaction, not just some need that once sated drifted away.
There was something deeper at play here.
Some primal hunger I couldn’t get rid of with a fucking tug of my cock.
I wanted her.
On her knees.
Staring up at me like she did that motherfucker in the camera.
I wanted her naked, spread out in front of me. I wanted her…I wanted her begging.
“Jesus.” A shudder ripped through me.
Begging and desperate. Familiar. That’s what I wanted. I wanted something I could use whenever I wanted. Another image carved into my mind. A memory. Theo stared at her with a look of cruel hunger. He felt it too, that need to bring this stuck-up little bitch to her knees.
The idea of that didn’t repulse me, not like it should.
I released my hold making my way into the bathroom and hit the taps, washing my hands.
Because she’s a liar. The thought came to me.
I lifted my head, finding my darkened stare.
She needs to be taught a lesson. One we were obligated to teach her.
There’s nowhere she can run, no one who can save her.
She wants to be family. Then she will be, she’ll be family now whether she wants it or not.
I hit the taps, letting my fingers drip before I reached for the towel and wiped before casting it aside and fixed up my jeans.
At least I wasn’t stiff as a board. Not yet at least. It was time to think, time to plan.
I wanted to go back out to that place, to the ruin that was the Order and search the hallways more.
There had to be things I was missing. Who was the man behind the camera? Who was the bastard responsible for my parent’s death? Someone had to know. I needed to find that someone.
I snatched my keys and headed out, making sure I didn’t look toward her room, knowing damn well that aching void inside would bellow and howl.
I headed out of the rear of the house, climbing onto the Ducati before I started the engine, bringing the engine to life. The heavy throb was what I needed. I yanked on my black helmet, pulled the tinted visor down and pulled out of the garage and left the house behind.
A house I’d never really felt part of.
It was an art gallery for my mother. A talking point between her and her stuffy goddamn friends as they sat at their fundraisers and a house that held secrets with my father. Murmured conversations were held behind closed doors. Shady deals which he kept from me.
But not anymore.
My father demanded we stay there, then stay there we would. All of us.
I gunned the engine, pushing the bike harder as I headed for the city. That nagging desire to go back out to that empty building filled me. But not under the cover of darkness. In the light, where I could get a better look.
Incoming call, Sloane Brooks.
“Answer.” I commanded.
“Silas.” Our head of operations called. “I’m sorry to disturb, but we have a situation here.”
I scowled, pulling in around a line of cars. “What kind of situation?”
“A breech of epic proportions.”
My hand slipped on the throttle. Fear plunged deep before I turned the wheel taking the closest off-ramp. “I’m on my way.”
I made the trip in record time, pulling into the driveway of the inconspicuous accountant building and parked the bike near the rear entrance.
There was no buzzer on the door, no way to get in at all unless you had an access card.
But you can bet your life you were being watched.
I lifted my gaze to the cameras and hit my card against the scanner.
Buzz
Click.
I pushed open the door and strode in, heading for the elevators. The building was three stories high. But it wasn’t what I wanted. I stepped into the elevators and pressed the button marked no access, then I went down, stopping at a level very few people visited.
The dark room was alight with monitors. I strode along the floor between the row of desks that sat a number of high-level operators who ran the backbone of the Ares empire.
This wasn’t just a building, equipped with state-of-the-art protection, encryption technology and the kind of detection systems the FBI or CIA could only dream of.
Lights flickered in the bank of servers behind the glass wall. I turned right at the end and headed to the only brightly lit office in this place and slowed at the door.
The man sitting behind the desk lifted his head, a scowl etched deep between his brows. “This is bad, Silas.”
What, no hello?
“You said that. How bad?”
“Like breech of security and data.”
I froze. “Who’s data?”
He shook his head. “It’s widespread, a bit here and there, concentrating on two main areas.”
I rounded the desk seeing a jumbled bunch of information flying across the screen. “Which areas?”
“The Cartel del Diablo portfolio was copied. It was brutal and swift, happening before I was even alerted to someone trying to hack the system.”
“How the fuck does something like that even happen?” I barked.
“I don’t know. I swear to God every barrier and failsafe is in place. I’ve run countless diagnostics, nothing is showing that it’s broken. I’m at a loss.”
“So one of the most dangerous Mexican cartel’s in existence has had their data stolen by who the fuck knows and we don’t know who’s done it?”
Sloane looked fucking grey, his blue eyes were sullen and sunken in his skull. His hands shook as he typed. I’d never seen the guy rocked like this before. He was the one who was steady. The quiet, dependable person. No one knew money laundering and cybersecurity like this man. No one.
“You need to find them.” I said carefully. “Until then we keep this quiet. No one knows.” I glanced around the quiet office. My staff might not be here, but this was only one of many interconnected locations. “Not even the other offices, do you understand that? We need to hide this.”
“You’re making a bad decision.” Sloane shook his head. “If they find out we knew about the breach and didn’t tell them, it’ll be bad.”
I leaned down, placing my hands on the desk. “That’s why we’re finding out who did this now? I want an IP address and a location by morning, Sloane. Give me that and I’ll take care of the rest…personally.”
But he wasn’t convinced. “I said there were two main accounts that were hit, the Cartel was only one of them.”
I said nothing, waiting.
“The Ares file was hit the most.” Sloane said carefully. “Personal information, especially that pertaining to the investigation the private investigator sent in.”
I winced. “And the police reports?”
He nodded. “All of it.”
Rage plunged deep.
“Background checks, crime scene photos, even the ones kept out of the standard police file. The ones only a certain number of high-ranking officials had seen. The ones where my father’s hand was wrapped around the trigger of the shotgun.”
A wave of nausea hit me. I’d tried my best to keep the information out of the media.
The last thing my family needed was more lies and allegations.
My fingers curled into fists. “They’re fucking dead.
” I lifted my gaze. “Messing with business is one thing, but messing with my family is a whole other thing.”
“I’ll find out who this is.” Sloane straightened his spine. “Believe me, I won’t rest until I have a name for you.”
“I’ll be waiting.” I straightened and turned. “And Sloane.”
“Yes, Silas?”
“Thank you.”
I left the office, walking back along the empty workstations and headed back up and out of the building. By the time I climbed back onto my bike I was shaking with rage. Motherfuckers! I started the engine, and kicked the bike into gear, tearing out of the parking lot.
Gabe’s sweet face filled me as I turned back for home and punched the throttle hard.
The last thing I needed was him seeing his father’s dead body plastered over every vile dark corner of the fucking internet.
I needed to get home before it got out. I needed to protect them… because that’s what I did.
“Siri, call Theo.”
A second later my brother’s cell rang, before it was answered. “Yeah, what?” He snapped.
“Where are you?”
“Why?”
“Answer the goddamn question, Theo. Where are you?”
Now he sounded concerned. “I’m just pulling up at home.”
“Good, stay there. I’m on my way home.”
“What’s going on?”
I wanted to tell him, but it wasn’t something he needed to hear over the phone. “I’ll explain as soon as I’m there.”
I pulled in around cars and trucks, pushing the bike hard.
Red and blue lights illuminated as cop cars headed the other way.
Still, I didn’t slow, tearing past the traffic as though it stood still until I finally hit the off-ramp and sped along the quiet, upper class residential streets.
I lifted my head, searching the streets ahead through my visor.
A memory nagged me. St. James turned up on our doorstep the day he moved into the neighborhood.
Dad didn’t trust him.
Going so far as to get Sloane to add him to the watch list. Which made him a target.
Was he behind this attack? I didn’t know.
Right now, everyone was a goddamn suspect.
I pulled the bike into the cul-de-sac and slowed at the entrance to the driveway.
An armed guard stepped aside, nodding as I passed.
I pulled in, killed the engine, glancing at Theo’s Audi parked almost sideways and shook my head. Cool air rushed in as I pulled my helmet off and placed it on the bike. It was time for a lot of things. For them to know the truth…and for me to get answers. One way or another.
I strode in, locking the door behind me and headed for my room, the musky scent of desire still lingered. I ignored it, tossing my keys onto my desk and walked out, striding to Theo’s room.
One hard knock and I pushed the door open finding him tugging on a cotton t-shirt with what looked like the beginning of a bruise on his cheek. I pointed to my own. “What happened there?”
“Nothing.” He muttered sullenly. “Going to tell me what the fuck is going on?”
I jerked my head. “In a minute, come with me.”
I headed along the hallway finding Jude sitting against the wall, his head leaning back and his eyes closed. I kicked his foot gently. “In the study, now.”
He opened his eyes, finding mine a second before I left him behind and made for the study. They needed to know, but not Gabe…not yet.
The moment Jude stepped inside he closed the door.
“We have a problem.” I said carefully. “There was a breach at the office. A rather large one. But the most important thing for us is that the police and the investigators reports were taken. Now, it could be anyone. Sloane is working on an ID now. I plan on having a name by morning. You can bet blood will be spilled. But we need to keep Gabe off the internet. The things in that report no one wants to see, let alone our goddamn brother.”
“And Angelica.” Theo asked instantly. “What are we going to do with her?”
“I have an idea.” I answered, and that slow heavy thud in my chest hit a little harder. “But, I’m pretty sure she’s not going to like it. In fact…she’s going to fight me all the way.” Thud. Thud. Thud. That deafening boom filled my head. “Either way, we’re going to find out exactly what she knows.”
“When?” Theo urged.
“Tomorrow.” I answered coldly. “Then, this will all be over.”