Chapter 22
Felix
Once they had showered—and he’d had so many questions about what was in Brett’s bathroom—dressed, sorted the cats and had breakfast, only cereal as that was all he had, they headed back to Sec HQ, but Brett asked a question that had been plaguing Felix for a while.
“Why did they keep you alive?”
“I honestly don’t know, and Rico mentioned nothing.
When they put that gun to my head, I honestly thought that was it.
And when they pulled the trigger and I heard the shot, I thought I was dreaming,” he murmured, watching the scenery.
“I thought I was dead, and I was dreaming. Then, it was like a rubber band snapping back into place, and I jerked back into real life.” He paused, his stomach swirling with a truth he was about to admit.
“I wished it was the end. I wished I was dead.”
Brett reached across and covered his hand, squeezing. “I don’t blame you for wishing that. I’m extremely glad you’re still here, though.”
“Now I’m out the other side, I am, too.” Felix grinned at him, feeling lighter than he had for a while.
He couldn’t believe he’d spent the night in Brett’s bed, and that they’d had sex again.
It was like a dream come true. He wasn’t stupid enough to think it would last, but he was going to enjoy it while he could.
Which was right around until they reached Windsor Castle. Outside the gates were crowds of people with placards of various sayings, but he got the gist of it: they wanted him arrested for going rogue. Felix’s stomach twisted, his hands tightening around Brett’s.
“Fucking assholes,” Brett said. He glanced across at him. “There are some things I hadn’t got around to telling you.”
They got through the gates, and instead of parking where they normally would, Brett pulled around to the back entrance, which had more cover, then they headed straight for Sec HQ, ignoring the noise of the crowds.
“What the fuck, Brett?” Felix said as soon as they were behind their door.
Brett placed his hands on his hips and glanced around at their colleagues. He faced him again. “Adelaide Thompson started spreading rumours about you being a sniper, a drug pusher and a trafficker.”
Felix went cold all over, and he had to lean against the wall to stop himself from going over. “What?” he whispered.
“Initial rumours came out not long after you went missing. I assumed it was someone involved with taking you but couldn’t prove anything. Then Adelaide came out with the sniper rumour, and everything snowballed. They didn’t know you were missing.”
Felix sank into a nearby chair and dropped his head into his hands. “Holy shit. Why does all this happen when I’m not here?”
“It’s probably the best time for it to happen, in all honesty,” Dominic said as he joined them. He held out a hand to Felix and pulled him into a hug when he stood. “We missed you, man. Sam held his own with the computers, but he just doesn’t have your magic fingers.”
Felix grinned, despite the current news pulling him down. “I’m glad to be back. However, I don’t think I like our new audience.” He gestured towards the windows.
Dominic frowned. “Yeah, me neither. It’ll pass, though. It always does.” He glanced at Brett. “What’s new?”
Brett swallowed as he met Felix’s gaze and then looked away, and Felix’s chest warmed at the uncharacteristic show of embarrassment. “Well, Felix got info from Maddox, so we need to go through that before we decide on next steps. And also, Christian confirmed Venus has never been pregnant.”
“What did he give up?” Dominic asked Felix.
“What didn’t he?” Felix rolled his eyes, even as his stomach rolled with memories of what he’d had to do to get the information.
“He confirmed Malcolm was in on the kidnapping and that they were his men. At least, most of them were. He also said there was another person involved, but he didn’t know who.
Some of the men were that person’s. It seems like they’re working together toward the same or similar end.
He gave me all the names that he had encountered and dealt with and where they stood in the grand scheme of things.
For the most part, everyone else is just collateral or grunts to get the work done. ”
“What is their end game?” Brett asked.
Felix shrugged. “That Maddox didn’t know. As much as he thinks he’s high up in the ranks, I don’t think he is, despite being Malcolm’s son. He doesn’t know enough about the players or the plan.” He glanced at Brett. “He mentioned Venus was a regular messenger for his dad.”
Brett tensed.
“What exactly did he say?” Dominic asked.
They went through it all. Felix told them everything Maddox had said, and it was only when he mentioned that Maddox kept laughing about being a fly in a fly trap that Brett froze and stared at him.
“What?” Felix said.
“What were his exact words?”
Felix swallowed. “He said, ‘It’s never been a cat-and-mouse game; it’s always been a fly and a flytrap.’ Why?”
Brett raked his fingers through his hair, locking them behind his head, and turned his back, cursing up a storm. Felix waited. He faced them again.
“I know who the other person is,” he said.
“Who?” Dominic asked.
Felix put it together the second before he said, “My sister.”
“She’s not just a messenger,” Felix said.
Dominic frowned at them. “Why would she be involved? I know Malcolm has taken over your family’s business, but why would she want to hurt you?”
Brett laughed, but there was no humour in it. “She’s always wanted me out of the way, but Father would never let her do anything. She and Malcolm have had an off and on relationship for years.”
“But how do you know it’s her?” Dominic said.
“The flytrap. Her first name is Venus, and she gained the nickname the ‘Venus flytrap’ at school after several relationships she had didn’t work out well.”
“But why after all this time?” Felix asked. “If she’s behind all these attacks, starting with Dominic and Randall, that was way before your father died and Malcolm got the seat.”
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s not her.” Brett scratched his head. “What else did Maddox say?”
Felix exhaled, trying to recall anything else he hadn’t already mentioned. “He visits his father more than we realised. Every week without fail. And he sent a check-in message every evening.”
“Where?” Brett asked. “And how did we not know this? I know every-fucking-thing!”
“In a back room of Bernie’s, the chip shop.”
Brett cursed. “Every fucking Friday, he has chips for dinner. He did it right in front of my fucking nose.” He shook his head, hands on his hips.
When Brett started cursing, everyone knew there would be trouble.
Having a traitor within his team had hit him hard.
Even though Brett had held back from Maddox right from the beginning, it wouldn’t hurt any less that his suspicions were true.
He protected everyone with everything he had in him, so it would hurt for a while, and if Felix knew Brett at all, he would blame himself.
“Well, they would have figured it out by now, I’m sure,” Dominic said.
Brett shook his head. “They’ll have eyes on us. If it is my sister, she’ll know our next steps before we even take them.”
“How?” Dominic asked.
“The same way she got the roses into the chapel, the watch, the clothes, the…everything. She’s watching us, maybe listening to us.” Brett exhaled, his eyes narrowing. “I need to talk to Christian.”
Brett disappeared through the door without a goodbye, which everyone was used to, and Dominic blew out a long breath and settled into a seat beside him.
“How are you holding up?” he asked.
“Apart from feeling like I’ve been put through a wringer, the sleep I had was well-needed and rejuvenating.”
“I’ll bet.” Dominic nudged his arm and grinned. “You two finally…?”
Felix knew Brett wouldn’t want everybody knowing about them, but Dominic was a different matter. He had to know because he looked after the king. It might come back and bite them if he didn’t, so Felix took a chance.
“We have, however, we’re not advertising anything right now. With everything that’s going on, we’d be stupid to paint even bigger targets on our backs.” As far as Felix was concerned, they would be getting a lot better acquainted once all this shit was over and done with.
“I’m happy for you, Felix. I know you’ve wanted this for a while.”
“Thanks, but let’s take it a day at a time, yeah?”
“Understood.” Dominic rose. “I’m glad you’re back. And not just because you are so much better at computers than either me or Sam!”
Felix grinned. “I take it I have some clearing up to do?”
Dominic held his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “Just a little.”
“I’d better get to it, then.”
“See you later.”
Dominic disappeared, and as much as Felix wanted some normality, he also didn’t care for being alone in Sec HQ, which didn’t actually happen that often.
He might have to end up talking to someone about what happened to him because, although he felt fine in himself, he knew he wasn’t the same as before.
Nothing bad happened to him, per se; in fact, he was treated fairly hospitably, but kidnapping, even done slightly kindly, was still kidnapping.
He settled in his usual seat, seeing immediately what Dominic meant. He chuckled as he set, first, his workstation to rights, and then the programs they had been using. Maybe he needed to train someone else in what he could do. He wouldn’t be around forever, after all.
His phone disturbed him some time later, and he checked the message.
JASON: Do you fancy getting that coffee now?
Felix brought up the cameras for the surrounding area of the building. Crowds that were six or seven people deep still stood between him and Book Drunk, and his shoulders lowered. There was no way.
FELIX: Sorry, Jason. I won’t get through the protestors. We’ll have to take a rain check.