66. GRAYSON
66
GRAYSON
“Vosch,” I said, my tone low, trying to hide my shock. I eyed him waltzing into my living room, two men packing guns flanking him.
What the hell was he doing in my penthouse? How did he get up here? Past security? My mouth ran dry, wondering if any of them were still alive.
But even more horrifying was the reminder that anytime now, Ivy would come up here. My gaze lingered on the elevator doors, wondering with horror how much time I had until Ivy walked into the room with one of the most dangerous criminals in the world.
“Thought you left the country.”
“That’s what they always think, isn’t it?” he accused. “When someone lays low to plan his next move.”
His next move. The tone of his voice made it clear that whatever it was, it was big.
“Pity,” I said. “What do you want?”
Vosch ambled forward.
“Your building has top-notch security,” Vosch said.
“And yet here you are.” Packing at least two guns himself, based on the bulge in his right hip and ankle—one more than me. And that didn’t include his armed thugs, who were staring at me with such an intensity that they might blow my head off if I merely hiccuped. “Why?”
Vosch’s silence hung in the air, a deliberate slight that spoke volumes, while his attention roamed over my penthouse. His presence here was the filthiest of invasions. A plague-infested rat slopping along the floor, leaving a trail of disease behind him. I wanted to burn everywhere he had been.
“You created quite a complication when you killed your boss,” he said.
“He killed himself.”
“Not what I heard.”
“Then, your intelligence is subpar,” I retorted. “So, why don’t you just get to your point and tell me why you’re here?”
Or have your soldiers go for a walk so I have a better shot at blowing your head off before you do mine.
“Perhaps it’s to eliminate the man who created such a complication for me.”
“If you were going to eliminate me, I’d be dead by now.”
“That’s not entirely accurate.”
“Then, enlighten me.” I clenched my hand into a fist.
“As I said, you created quite a complication, eliminating one of my agents.”
“ Your agent,” I scoffed.
“Daniel was a good soldier.”
“He was,” I agreed. “Until you got your claws in him.”
Vosch paused, trailing a finger along the wall like he was inspecting it.
“Everything is so black and white to you, isn’t it?”
“When it comes to murdering innocent civilians? Yes, it is.”
Vosch cocked his head, as if studying a science experiment.
“You kill people for a living,” Vosch said. “You and I are not so different.”
“We’re very fucking different.”
“We have our own motivations, but our actions are the same.”
“They are not even close to the same. You supply weapons to violent criminals, knowing they will use them to complete mass murders. That doesn’t even include all the innocent people that you and your minions have murdered.” All in the name of growing his organization.
“How many people have you murdered, Grayson?”
“Get to your point,” I demanded. “Why are you here?”
Vosch examined his fingernails. “You killed my inside man.” He shot his ugly-ass dark eyes my way. “Now, you will become my inside man.”
The nerve of this fucker.
“I left the CIA.”
His eyebrows shot up. “You’ll tell them you’ve had a change of heart and you’re ready to come back to work. That way, you can keep tabs on things.”
“That will never happen.”
He motioned to his armed guards. “You act as if you have a choice.”
“Everyone has a choice, so you can go ahead and kill me right here and now, because I will never help you.”
My stomach ached with a fresh wave of bile; I prayed I’d figure a way out of this alive for Ivy’s sake.
Vosch let out a bored sigh.
“You sound just like your mentor did the first time we spoke.”
I clenched my teeth, and my stomach roiled; this vile monster having knowledge about my relationship with Daniel, knowing he was my mentor, it made me feel filthy.
And sad at the same time. What did Daniel go through when Vosch confronted him like this? I wish Daniel would have told me; maybe I could have helped him before it spiraled out of control.
“If I’m willing to look past our ugly history, surely, you can too.”
“Why would you want me, of all people?” I balked. “I tried to kill you.”
“You’re the one that eliminated my last agent, so this is your mess to clean up.”
“Well, it’s never going to happen. So, go ahead and kill me.”
He smirked.
“You think I’m threatening your life?” He pointed a finger at me.
My blood ran cold.
“Your girl,” he said, walking casually over to the window.
My fingers instantly clenched at my sides, trying to resist the temptation of knocking him through the glass. The glass was shatterproof, built to sustain winds in excess of a hundred miles an hour, though. Chances were his accomplices would kill me before I ever took Vosch down.
“She’s wearing black leggings and an elegant silver sweater with a black coat today.”
My stomach retched.
“Don’t worry.” He smirked. “She hasn’t noticed people following her. Yet.”
My throat ran dry. She had security with her, but none of that felt safe enough at the moment. How could I have been so careless? I shouldn’t have been merely haunted by Daniel’s words, shouldn’t have eventually dismissed them as ramblings of a guilty conscience. And I should have done more than merely take precautions . I should have locked Ivy away in a fortress of steel.
Once again, I’d failed her.
“Your brother Hunter. He went into the courthouse today, wearing a black Armani suit with a red tie.”
A fresh punch to my gut threatened to make me panic, but I needed to hold it together. No matter what he said, I couldn’t comply. I would never turn on my family or country like that.
In fact, I needed to focus, not on his words, but on my actions. Vosch showing up here was an opportunity to end him once and for all.
“Your brother Jace. He’s quite the look-alike to you, isn’t he?” Vosch scrubbed his temple. “Ever worried he’ll pretend to be you and screw your girl?”
If I timed this right, I could disarm the first man and use him as a shield while I put a bullet in thug number two’s brain, followed by Vosch.
“Bryson. He hasn’t gone into work yet today,” he mused. “Wonder if he’s taking the day off?”
That was it. With one last glance at Vosch, I lunged for the thug closest to me. He looked more like a businessman than a killer with clean-cut hair, a sharp business suit, and a freshly shaven face. But I could see the killer in his eyes the moment I came at him.
In one fluid motion, I wrapped my arm around his throat from behind and used him as a human shield while I drew my weapon from the back of my waistband and aimed it at the second henchman. Who reached for his gun.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” The calm certainty in Vosch’s voice made me pause. He locked his wrists behind his back and took a step toward me. “Perhaps I failed to mention one important thing.”
The man in front of me tried to elbow his way out of my grip, but I deflected it with ease.
“At this very moment, everyone you love requires your cooperation.”
The ground seemed to open up beneath my feet. Our eyes locked, and in that instant, a cloud drifted over the city. The sudden dimness felt like a shroud, smothering every last flicker of hope and optimism as the realization hit me with crushing force—there was no way out.
Not for me and certainly not for those I held dear.