Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
SINCLAIR
As I expected, Aidan looked half asleep and pissed off. But he wasn't alone.
"This just keeps getting better," I muttered to myself, as I parked the car outside what looked like a warehouse.
I knew the area, but not terribly well. It was usually limited to industrial activities. Automotive mechanics, carpet and kitchen sales, things like that.
Of course, that made it the perfect place to bring a semi-alive attacker to be dealt with.
I turned off the engine and slipped out of the car after the guys.
"Caleb, this is quite a surprise," Coast greeted Caleb Brantley like he was an old friend. Then again, he probably was, even though Caleb was at least a decade older.
Caleb grunted in clear annoyance. "This better be important."
Coast grinned, apparently undeterred. "Of course it is. What could be more important than someone trying to kill three of your best players?"
"And the best member of the PR Department," Phoenix said.
I wasn't sure about that, but I managed a smile, albeit at a faint one, for the Demons' owner.
Aidan looked as pleased to see me as I was to see him, but he basically ignored my presence and addressed the guys.
"You managed to not kill your attacker this time?" he asked.
"He was alive the last time we looked," Coast said. He popped open the back of the car and gestured inside.
The driver groaned, a good indication there was life left in him.
For now.
"Perfect," the third man said. Ice Miller stood beside Caleb, looking all too eager to get his hands and torture devices on the driver. He wore his dark hair up in a bun that looked like he got out of bed as hastily as Aidan and Caleb must have.
"Good work, "Caleb said.
That was the first time I ever heard him say anything nice to anyone. Usually, he didn't have much to say at all, but when he did, it was all business. Never praise. He must have a soft spot for Coast. The centre did have a way of getting under people's skin.
"Thanks, Cal," Coast said. "You need a hand to get this asshole out of here?"
Caleb gave him a look, like he didn't appreciate the shortening of his name, or the suggestion he'd get his hands dirty. If his pressed trousers and blue polo shirt, under a wool coat that looked like it cost more than I made in a year, were an indication, he kept them as clean as possible.
Of course he did. He was one of the two older Brantley brothers. Why would he get messy when he had people to do it for him?
"Go ahead," Aidan said. He also stayed back while Phoenix and Coast, with help from Ice, picked up the driver and carried him into the building.
"You can't say we didn't tell you straight away," I told him as the guys disappeared inside.
Aidan’s gaze slid to me. "I was wondering how long it would take before you said something like that."
"Because it's true?" I asked. How much would I have to pay Ice to deal with Aidan too? Yeah, I know, Elenna would never forgive me, but maybe I'd be doing her a favour.
Fortunately, for everyone involved, I didn't have that kind of money, just a sarcastic, sweet smile for Aidan.
He rolled his eyes at me.
"I liked it better when we were on the same side," I told him.
"We're still on the same side," he said. "If you weren't on my side, you'd know about it."
Caleb was watching and listening to us, both, his expression unreadable. "Is there a problem?"
The look he gave us both gave away nothing of what he was thinking. He might be intending to get rid of me if I was an annoyance to Aidan, but he might be thinking the exact opposite.
Men like him, they always had an agenda. Siding with Aidan might not be on his. The Demons were winning because of Aidan, but no one was under the illusion they were Caleb's priority.
I knew for a fact, Finley was involved in smuggling when the team played away. I'd helped to make some of those arrangements on several occasions. I also knew Elenna helped Finley and I wasn't going to do anything to jeopardise her. Not if I could help it.
"I don't have a problem," I said. "All I'm doing here is what Aidan requested. If he has a problem with it—"
"No problem," Aidan said quickly. "I had to make myself understood, nothing more. Evidently, I was successful."
It sounded like he single-handedly took credit for Coast calling him to fill him in and ask where to bring the body.
"You made yourself crystal clear," I said coolly. Anything else I might have said was interrupted by the sound of screaming. I cringed. I didn't need to see to imagine what was going on inside.
Javey slipped an arm around me. "He's getting what he deserves," he said softly.
"I know," I said. "It's just…" The driver screamed again, with even more agony this time.
"I don't know about anyone else, but I could use a coffee," Aidan remarked. When Caleb nodded, he gestured for him to step inside in front of us.
Only because the idea of coffee sounded so good did I let Javey guide me inside.
I found myself in a harmless-looking room containing a kitchen, which included a fridge, coffee machine and a wide double sink. To the side of the room, stairs led down.
"Ice's workroom," Javey said.
I looked up at him in surprise. "You've been here before?" I'd heard of the place, we all had, but I'd never been here. Never wanted to.
"Once or twice." He stepped over to the coffee machine and got it started. "Only on the delivery side, never on the receiving end.”
"I figured," I said. "People don’t tend to survive being down there."
He offered me a faint smile and reached for coffee cups. "That's true. Ice is good at what he does, but he doesn't leave people to go and blab about him.
"It's unfortunate people like him are necessary," Caleb said.
I translated that as, 'If people just fucking did what they were told, I wouldn't need to resort to torture.
' I had a sneaking suspicion Ice would be very disappointed if Caleb stopped letting him work with people like the driver.
He might resort to practising on other people, for shits and giggles.
Yeah, it was just as well people didn't always do as they were told.
Fuck only knew how discriminating Ice would be.
Not to mention, he may be influenced by Aidan.
I didn't think he’d suggest I should be tortured, but who knows what Aidan might do when he was in one of his moods?
Since that was most of the time, it was better to stay the hell out of his way.
"It comes with the territory," I said. "Can I ask why you're here?" Caleb had people to deal with situations like this. Why come in person?
His eyebrows twitched. "The situation in Dusk Bay is escalating. I'm concerned it may end up out of control."
That was a legitimate concern. "What will you do if it does?" I asked.
"I hope to stop it before that happens," he said. "Aside from that, if anything happened to any of you, much less all of you, it wouldn't go unnoticed."
Now we got down to the real matter at hand. If players and staff from the team he owned ended up dead, it would draw attention to him and his activities.
I wouldn't have much sympathy, but that would extend it to Finley and Elenna. They'd be the ones to take the fall for Caleb if the police came sniffing around. He'd make sure of that.
"It would be a PR nightmare," I said, as if I didn't know exactly what he was referring to. "Not to mention potentially jeopardising the team's position in the AIHL."
That made Aidan twitch. He was up to his eyeballs in the same shit as Caleb, but he was passionate about the Demons.
The team was his second love after Elenna.
If they lost their place in the league, he'd be devastated. That was, if he had the time to be. Elenna’s arrest would be his primary focus.
Or getting her out of the country before that happened.
"The result would be undesirable all around," Caleb agreed. "Whatever we can do to circumvent it, we'll do it."
"Yes, we will," Aidan agreed. He accepted the coffee Javey handed him and glanced towards the stairs. "Whatever it takes."
His words were punctuated with another scream. Louder, now we were closer.
Javey handed me a coffee. "Do you want to go down and hear what he has to say?"
"So far, it sounds a lot like agony, not confessions," I said softly.
"It will be a confession soon enough," Caleb said. "No one lasts long down there without admitting everything. We already know who he works for. With any luck, he'll be privy to their plans."
"No offence, but it seems like their plans are to kill Coast, even if it means taking other people with him," I said.
The knowledge I could have died, was slowly sinking in. With that came a measure of anger, and a sliver of desire to get revenge. I was usually all about defending myself, and the people I cared about. Being on the offensive was new for me, but right now, maybe that was the best defence.
"Then we need to figure out what method they may try next," Caleb said evenly. "While at the same time, making plans against them."
His piercing blue eyes on Aidan, he asked, "Any word on who is working against us from inside the Demons?"
"We're getting close," Aidan said uncomfortably. "I have someone on the inside with them too. That should get us closer to what we need to know."
"Good," Caleb nodded. "I'm sure Sinclair will be amenable to helping you in any way you need."
"Happy to help," I said lightly. "Trying to kill the guys and me is kinda personal."
"I'll give you a list of names, and you can feel them out," Aidan said. "It's a short list, but when you see it, I'm sure you'll agree they all have grounds to be on there."
The look in his eyes suggested I also did, but wasn't because he knew I'd never do anything to jeopardise the team or Elenna. Him not liking me didn't matter right now. What mattered was figuring out who was betraying us and dealing with them.
"I'll help," Javey said. "People never suspect the quiet, shy guy." He glanced down at the floor, embracing that persona again.
Now I’d seen more of the real him, it was almost funny. He played the role so convincingly. He was right, no one would suspect he was up to anything.
"Between us, we'll figure this out," I said.
Footsteps sounded, coming up the stairs. A moment later, Coast appeared. His expression was one of grim satisfaction.
"We didn't get much out of him other than he was hired by Sawyer Mancini. He was supposed to take us to his house. The downside is, he's dead. Anything else he might have known is going with him to his grave."
"He was never leaving here alive anyway," Aidan said.
Coast's gaze slid to him. "Right. Aidan, a word." He jerked his head back towards the stairs.