10. Chapter 10
AHREN
My jaw clenched, the muscles locking into place as I surveyed the empty room. Relieved. Relieved is what I should be feeling right now.
A deep breath, releasing all the pent up oxygen my body had been hoarding since the moment I set eyes on her in that grove. That, along with three fingers of scotch and a roaring fire, would go a long way to relax the tension that still coiled in every muscle.
She was gone and with her, not only the responsibility of nursing her back to health, but the target painted on my back at the mere proximity to her. My life had become infinitely less complicated with her departure.
I made her a silent promise I would hold the line until she was well enough to be properly offended on her own behalf.
While she hadn’t spoken the words aloud, she had gathered the stones to leave not only my makeshift hospital room, but the entire property as well.
The lads were outside for more than an hour, searching without a sound, though they did trace her scent all the way to the western fence.
She took me out of the equation. That should be the end of my involvement with the entire dumpster fire of a situation.
And yet… my eyes flicked between the empty bed and the message from my tech guy explaining his findings.
Pulling the door closed, I headed straight for the bar, pouring myself three fingers of Wolfsbane Silver, my preferred drink of choice when I needed to mull over a particularly vexing problem and little vexed me more than her.
The cool edge of the glass against my lips was a stark contrast to the fiery amber liquid as it slid down my throat. The burn grounded me in this moment, clearing away the cobwebs of the day and leaving me with just important matters to consider.
Supple leather wrapped me in its warmth, protesting slightly as I settled into its embrace.
I leaned back, allowing myself a moment of comfort as I cast each of my swirling thoughts into the fire, considering them anew as they rose and burned in a seemingly never-ending cycle.
Tierney. The assassination attempt. The broker.
The report from my tech guy. And possibly the most frustrating, perplexing bit of all; why did I give a fuck about any of it?
It certainly was a three finger problem, I thought to myself, smirking as I brought the glass to my lips again. Those were usually fun to solve.
Three fingers of my favorite scotch, followed by those same three fingers buried inside a beautiful woman.
Somehow, in the clarity of my release, I always managed to find the answer.
Tonight though, I found I had little interest in bedding some meaningless girl in hopes of finding answers to life’s—complications.
No. Tonight there would be only one girl haunting my mind .
Soft tapping mingled with the occasional scuffing signaled Connor’s arrival. “Grab a drink. Pull up a chair.”
“I’m here to work, remember?” she scoffed, the sarcasm so thick in her voice I could almost hear her eyes roll back in her head.
“Should have called first. Could have saved yourself a trip.” I drawled, taking another sip.
A quiet chuckle and the tinkling of glass behind me as she poured herself a drink pulled a smile to my lips.
“So, our girl escaped, huh?” she said, sighing heavily as she dropped into the seat opposite mine.
“What makes you think she fucking escaped?” I asked, arching my brow.
I’d learned long ago the quieter I spoke, the more it seemed to unnerve those around me. A tactic I had used in business for nearly a decade, and it worked on everyone. Everyone, that is, except Connor. To my great annoyance, she seemed to be immune to my scare tactics.
She arched her brow, mimicking my expression as she sipped on her drink. “Well, I guess the main thing is that you’re sitting here all broody. I don’t think you’d be pouting like someone shot your favorite puppy if this had been your idea.”
I brought the glass to my lips, taking a long slow sip as I allowed her words to wash over me, buying myself a few extra moments to respond.
“She’s not my problem anymore.” I finished, pushing out a long, heavy breath, raising my eyes to meet hers.
“Mmmm.” she hummed, nodding as she raised her glass again.
Her spine straightened, and she continued blinking slowly, the corner of her lip quirking up into the barest whisper of a smirk.
“Don’t get cocky, Connor. It’s not a good look on you. ”
“Teasing aside, Ahren, she needs medical attention.” She sat her glass on the side table and scooted to the edge of her seat.
“She doesn’t know anything about her injuries or how to care for herself. It’s dangerous. The broken ribs could puncture something. Hell, the internal bleeding alone could kill her.”
“She won’t listen to me. You didn’t see it. She looked at me like I was the damned grim reaper.”
My head dropped back against the high back of the chair, a dry laugh breaking free. “It’s not like she’s wrong.”
“So you won’t go talk to her?” she asked quietly, her eyes accusing me of things her lips dared not to speak of.
“You’re this upset she left, but you’re not going after her.” This time, there was no question in her statement, only a quiet urging for me to reconsider.
“That’s what this is for,” I retorted, lifting my glass and offering her my finest smirk.
“I don’t know everything. Not even close, but I have a piece of the puzzle; one she doesn’t have.” I murmured.
“And you’re trying to decide whether to give it to her?” she asked, her brows scrunching together in confusion.
I shook my head slowly. I had been wrestling with finding the right words to explain it to myself, to lay out the potentially endless string of things that could go wrong.
“This is heavy.” I said, pushing out a harsh breath as I began explaining.
“My tech guy found a fingerprint on the sim card, it led back to the broker. A little more digging and he was able to find encrypted files. Most of it was a waste of time, but there was a purchase order for a batch of phones that included that one. ”
“Ok.” she said, rising to her feet, bouncing lightly on her toes. “So, you find this broker person and kick his ass. Or I guess in this case it's kill his ass. Right?”
I shook my head, the ghost of a smile playing on my lips, and pushed myself to my feet.
“Not quite that simple.” I said, holding up my first finger. “First, the broker is anonymous. No one ever meets or sees him in person. All communication is encrypted. Untraceable.”
She arched her brow, cocking her head to the side. “But you already tracked him down ages ago and know exactly where he is. Next.” she answered, completely dismissing my objection.
Of course, I had tracked him down. It would have been complete idiocy to have done otherwise. Hell, any hitter worth their salt had probably done—I froze. A chill worked its way down my spine. Tierney. She would know exactly where the broker lived.
“Fuck!”
My eyes snapped to hers, and she nodded, a sad smile on her lips.
“That’s not even the worst of it. It’s not just taboo to attack the broker, it’s forbidden. She would be designated kill on sight.”
I turned away, facing the fire. “If that wasn’t enough, it just feels—I don’t fucking know. Maybe just a little too—”
“Convenient?” she finished for me.
I nodded my head.
“Even without this information, she still has the text from the broker setting up the ambush. Odds are, she’ll head there as soon as she is healed.”
“I wouldn’t wait,” she said, giving her head a strong shake. “I mean, she’s wounded and feeling vulnerable—if she thinks taking out the broker would restore her safety…”
Her words hung in the air, heavy and thick, sucking the oxygen from the room.
My spine stiffened, that feeling returning, the one that told me if I didn’t act, I would regret it.
While I may not understand why I should care what happens to my rival. I did know what happened when I didn’t listen to my gut.
I raised my eyes, finally meeting hers. This time I knew they held fire and certainty, all doubts cast into the fire and allowed to burn.
“I’ll make some calls.”