REX #2
I never fucking would be either.
When we reached Wynter’s building, I asked the driver to ride around the block, trying to scope out if there were any Triads sitting in black sedans surveilling the place. I didn’t mind walking into a trap for my daughter, but I wanted to know about it first.
My cell buzzed.
“That you in the rideshare?”
I recognized Ryder’s voice. Goddamn Disciple had an attitude problem worse than Nyx. And the fucker just had to be the one to see me in a cage. Typical.
“That’s me.”
“The fuck you think this is? A carousel ride at Disney?”
“Checking shit out.”
“More like you were checking out that we were watching. We were. Now go and get your fucking daughter.”
“I will now I know you’ll gut the fuckers if they shoot me first.”
“Got enough BS to be dealing with of my own right now. This ain’t my battle, but if those bastards don’t fight fair, I’ll make sure they pay for screwing you over.”
“Appreciate that.”
I narrowed my eyes at nothing in particular but told the driver to pull up outside the building.
I cut the call then left the car.
My ride here had been in two stages.
The first vehicle had taken me to a gas station over in Westmont. That was where I’d bought the gun I’d tucked away at the small of my back. The second car had brought me here.
Once the rideshare merged into traffic, I retrieved the weapon, palming it, and immediately felt better for having its cool weight in my grasp.
I stared up at the building, noticed that only one floor had any lights on, and I strode over to the entrance and began the walk up to her apartment.
There was no one waiting to sabotage me on the stairs, but that didn’t make me let down my guard any.
A single knock to the door heralded a hub of activity that froze as someone called out, “Come in.”
Wynter had never let me inside because, I figured, it was a shithole and she knew I’d say as much—then would try to convince her to let me help her move out of the damn place—and my guess wasn’t wrong.
The door opened to reveal a neat and clean room; I had to give her that. But it was small and crowded with just a sofa bed as the main feature.
There were watermarks on the fucking walls, the smatterings of mildew and black mold around the tiny windows, and a musty smell in here that I did not want my daughter breathing in.
There were also three fucking Triads sitting on her bed.
I tightened my lips at the sight. “Where is she?”
“In the bathroom.”
One of the men got to his feet and raised his hands. “We meant her no harm. We have left her in there since she agreed to make the call. You can ask her yourself.”
I squinted at him, took in the expensive suit, the slick haircut, and reared back to knock on the bathroom door.
“Stay in there, honey, but tell me if you’re okay. Did they hurt you?”
“They didn’t,” Wynter called out, her voice shaken, her fear evident.
Despite her assurance, rage filled me.
“The fuck are you doing here?” I snarled, turning on the prick with a glower.
“My name is Charles Xiang.”
My top lip curled. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“You are the leader of the Satan’s Sinners’ MC. The one they say has deadly hands.”
I didn’t roll my eyes at the rep, just jerked up my chin and corrected, “Prez.”
Charles conceded that with a nod. “Her father, Jeremy Kinnock, owes a substantial debt to one of my Mahjong gambling rooms.
“He offered her to me as payment, however I’m not an animal.
Mr. Kinnock did not seem to realize that was the case until I taught him otherwise.
” A silken gleam that was about as threatening as a knife to the belly speared through Charles’ eyes.
“I have no desire to take on an underaged girl as a repayment of debt.
“When I learned you were her biological father, I knew I wouldn’t be out of pocket for long.”
“How did you learn that?”
His smile was cold. “We have our ways.”
That had better not have anything to fucking do with the Disciples. If they’d run their mouths… God help them.
“How much?”
“Ninety thousand.”
“I’m going to reach for my phone,” I warned him.
He uttered something in Mandarin that had the men sitting on Wynter’s sofa settling back. “Thank you for the warning.”
“I have no intention of getting shot or stabbed today.” I arched a brow at him. “You accept bank transfers?”
“I do.” Charles smiled. “But I don’t want money.”
They never fucking did.
“You want a favor?”
He nodded. “Do you understand the ranking of the Triads, Mr…”
“Rex,” I interrupted. “Just Rex. And to a certain degree. What you let outsiders know, at any rate.”
“A wise man knows his enemy.”
“I’m no enemy to the Triads, and they’re no enemy to me. We don’t cross paths that often.”
“You crossed it with me and you didn’t even know it,” he pointed out.
I hated that he was right.
“If I’d known Jeremy Kinnock was drowning in debt, I’d have given him a better place to die.”
“Venice Beach?” Charles mocked.
“Somewhere picturesque like that, sure.” We shared a look. “What do you want?”
“I enjoy a similar rank to your own. I am the Dragon Head of this area.”
“I’ve met the Dragon Head of New York City,” I told him.
“I know. You have, therefore, met the Chairman. Very few people know he holds both roles.”
This was the first I was hearing about any rank called a ‘Chairman.’
“What is the Chairman?”
“You are the President who oversees multiple chapters, are you not?”
“I am.”
“The Chairman is like you. He sits above all Dragon Heads in the USA. It is a wise man who courts his favor. Especially when his son has been kidnapped.”
My brow furrowed. “I had nothing to do with that.”
“I did not say that you did. But I know you have certain people in your acquaintance who might be able to help the Chairman with his current dilemma.” He bowed his head.
“I have no wish for your money. I have no wish for your daughter. But I will kill her and you if you do not accept this gesture of goodwill and extend me the courtesy of utilizing the hacker known as Lodestar to find the boy.”
Word had spread that Star was with the Sinners? I wasn’t sure she’d appreciate that.
Hell, I didn’t know if I appreciated that.
“Sounds like a fuck-ton of bad will to me,” I mocked.
Charles merely smiled. “Information is painless.”
“The people I know…” I purposely didn’t use Star’s tag. “…won’t have the answers immediately.”
Although, knowing Star, maybe she did and she just hadn’t said anything.
“Of this I’m aware,” he said, his tone uncomfortably reasonable. “So long as we have them before the boy is killed, I’ll consider our debt satisfied.”
“What do you get out of it? You want me to put in a mention that you’re the guy who found the Chairman’s son?”
“I do not have to curry favor with the Chairman. I am a father. Much as you are. Would you wish to share his pain?”
“No,” I said grimly, but I wasn’t buying what he was selling. “Selflessness isn’t a part of our world.”
“Do you understand what a tithe is?”
“I’m not an idiot.” Understanding flickered through me. “He was skinning you all alive to pay the ransom?”
“For far more than the paltry ninety thousand Kinnock owes me.” Charles dipped his chin. “Make the call.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What did you do with him?” I’d noticed he hadn’t said much about the location or the status of the bastard who thought my daughter was a commodity he could trade.
“He and his wife are somewhere safe.”
From his lack of expression, I knew that was as much of a reassurance as I’d get. Not that I gave a fuck about Kinnock, but Ally was another matter entirely.
Knowing that Xiang was leveraging their safety too, I made the call to Lodestar. When less than a minute later it was severed, I knew she had her phone switched off. Annoyed, I called Maverick who, thank fuck, answered.
“Rex? What’s up? Is it true you were wearing a tuxedo last night? Lily told Link and he told me but I don’t fucking believe—”
“Maverick, I’ll tell you fairy tales later. I need your help.”
Charles watched as I gave Maverick the lowdown.
“Lodestar’s better suited for that shit than I am,” Mav said uneasily.
“She ain’t answering her phone.”
“No, she came home late. Been sleeping upstairs ever since.”
“Can you go and wake her?” I told him the consequences of failure and, grunting, he promised:
“I will. I’ll be in touch soon. Does this Xiang dude want his prints on the situation?”
I caught the other man’s eye for confirmation he wanted nothing to do with the ‘rescue,’ but he shook his head.
“No. Anonymity is the key.”
“Anonymity and Lodestar don’t go hand in hand,” Mav warned with a snort. “Leave it with me.”
As he disconnected the line, I told Charles, “Keep my daughter out of this.”
“Now that I have your compliance, I will. But I’ll be watching you all.
” Charles shot me a smile as he clicked his fingers at his men who immediately started to walk toward the front door.
As he followed, on the doorstep, he murmured, “I would have thought a man as wealthy as you would have provided better accommodation for his daughter.”
He didn’t wait for an answer.
It was a damn good thing he didn’t, seeing as I wanted his face to meet my fists.
Annoyed, I watched the fuckers head down the hall to the staircase, then I moved toward the bathroom door. Knocking on it, I called out, “It’s okay, Wynter. They’re gone.”
In less than two seconds, she was out of there, the door whirling open as she hurled herself at me.
Her sobs broke me, but the way she clung to me gave me hope for a deeper relationship in the future, all while I knew that it hinged on Lodestar managing the unthinkable—finding a kidnapping victim so that Wynter’s mom didn’t die a brutal death at the hands of the Triads.
And so that my kid didn’t blame me for something that wasn’t technically my fault.
But I’d been the one to give her to the Kinnocks…
The original sin was mine.