Chapter Three
Cooper
I sat in my office at the warehouse, putting together a few stacks of invoices for Colton to go through and either process or forge, depending on exactly what the shipment was. Even though he had been reluctant, I was glad he’d agreed to help me out with the paperwork. Now that I’d taken over for Steele, I didn’t have the time to doctor invoices and inventory records. I was too busy meeting with customers and clients, schmoozing and networking. That was usually Steele’s department, especially since the dick was titled and could manage an invitation to practically any event in Europe, but I was slowly connecting to the right people. But even though I was coming into my own, I still missed Steele.
My phone rang, and I answered it. It was Mario, letting me know that everything had been carried out and that Tomas McCroy was behind bars. I should have felt some amount of guilt, tracking him down and beating the shit of out of him while Mario held him, but I didn’t. That’s just who I was.
I disconnected the call, staring at the filing cabinet next to my desk. I wasn’t sure why I’d gone out of my way to take care of my physical therapist’s crazy ex, but something in me made me want to…protect her. It was a strange emotion, but I told myself it was just because she was going to help me ride my bike again. I ne eded her alive. That was all.
As I turned my attention back to my papers, my phone buzzed again. A text from an unknown number. My stomach twisted as I read the message:
Shipment received. Absolutely not acceptable. We need to talk .
I swore under my breath. This had to be about the weapons shipment to Sudan. I’d known it was a risk, but the money had been too good to pass up. Now it seemed like that decision might be coming back to bite me in the ass.
I glanced at the clock. It was nearly midnight, but sleep wasn’t an option now. I needed to get ahead of this situation before it spiraled out of control. But before I responded, I had to know exactly what went wrong and how to fix it.
And there was one man who oversaw the shipment with me.
“Cooper?” Colton’s voice was groggy with sleep. “What’s wrong?”
“I need you to come to the warehouse. Now.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. I could practically hear Colton fumbling for his glasses. “Is this about the Sudan shipment?”
“Just get here,” I said, then hung up.
While I waited for Colton, I pulled up the shipping manifest for the Sudan order. Everything looked correct, but clearly, something had gone wrong. Had we been duped by our suppliers? Or was this an attempt at extortion from the buyers? The numbers before me swirled, and I reached back into my jacket pocket to pull out a flask. I tried not to drink when I was at the warehouse, but I needed to calm my pulse and my wandering mind.
The sound of the warehouse door opening jolted me from my thoughts. Colton appeared, looking disheveled but alert. Instead of wearing his contacts, like usual, he had on his glasses.
“What’s going on?” he asked, closing the door behind him.
I handed him my phone with the text message. Reading it, the color drained from his face.
“Shit,” he muttered. “What are we going to do?”
I leaned back in my chair, trying to remain calm even though my heart was pounding. “First, we need to figure out what went wrong. Check the inventory records against what we actually shipped. I want to know if this is our fuck-up or if we’re being played.”
Colton nodded and got to work, while I rummaged through the warehouse making sure nothing was accidentally left behind from the shipment. As Colton continued to pore over the records, I couldn’t help but think about how different this was from our childhood dreams. We’d always talked about working together, but I doubt either of us had imagined it would be like this—in a warehouse at midnight, trying to untangle a mess of illegal arms deals. It made me long for simpler times, back before our mother had died and our father had gotten sick.
After what felt like hours, Colton finally looked up from the paperwork. “Cooper, I think I found something.”
I leaned forward. “What is it?”
“The numbers don’t add up. According to our records, we shipped exactly what was ordered. But...” he hesitated .
“But what?” I prompted, impatience creeping into my voice.
“But the supplier’s invoice doesn’t match our order. They shorted us on some of the higher-end items and padded the numbers with cheaper alternatives.”
I slammed my fist on the desk, making Colton jump. “Goddammit! How did we miss this?”
Colton looked away, guilt written across his face. “I...I might have rushed through the inventory check. With final exams coming up, I’ve been stretched thin, and—”
I held up a hand, cutting him off. “Save it. We don’t have time for excuses.” I stood up, pacing the small office. My leg ached, a constant reminder of my own vulnerability. “We need to fix this, and fast.”
“What are you thinking?” Colton asked, worry evident in his voice.
I stopped pacing, an idea forming. “We need to make this right with the buyers. If word gets out that we can’t deliver, we’re finished.”
“But how? We can’t trust our suppliers anymore and we don’t have the right merchandise.”
A grimace spread across my face. “No, but I know someone who might. I’m thinking Viktor Petrov? He bought a sculpture from us a while back. Well, from Steele.”
Colton’s eyes widened. “Cooper, no. Viktor’s dangerous. You can’t trust him.”
“We don’t have a choice,” I snapped. “It’s either this or watch everything we’ve built come crashing down.”
Indecision etched itself into Colton’s expression. He was always the more cautious one, the voice of reason. But right now, I couldn’t afford caution, not with my reputation on the line.
“Fine,” he said finally. “But I’m coming with you when you meet him.”
I shook my head. “No, I need you here. I’ll call Viktor first. You keep digging into our supplier. Find out if this was a one-time thing or if they’ve been screwing us over on other shipments, too. I need to know the full sum of their betrayal so I can address it properly.”
Colton looked like he wanted to argue, but he nodded reluctantly. “Just...be careful, okay? This isn’t like the old days with Steele. We’re in deeper waters now.”
I clapped him on the shoulder, trying to inject some confidence into my voice. “Don’t worry, brother. I’ve got this under control.”
As I left the warehouse, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was lying—to Colton and to myself. This weapons deal was supposed to be my big break, my chance to prove I could run things without Steele. Now it was threatening to ruin everything.
I climbed into my car, wincing as my bad leg protested at the movement. As I started the engine, Steele’s words from our last conversation echoed in my head: “ You risk everything .”
I clenched my teeth, pushing the thought away. I didn’t want to admit it, but a nagging voice in the back of my mind whispered that maybe, just maybe, Steele had been right. This weapons deal was turning out to be more trouble than it was worth, and I was in over my head.
My mind was on autopilot and before I knew it, I was at my building. I parked my car in my secure garage, all the while trying to figure out if I really wanted to get involved with Viktor. He was a dangerous man, and I didn’t like to expand our circle. Steele and I had mostly worked on the high-stakes stuff alone. We’d had several guys on our payroll, but we hardly worked with people who weren’t under our direct control. After he left, I had to widen that circle, albeit reluctantly. But I was hesitant to open it even more, especially to someone I couldn’t control.
I opened the door to my building and rode up the elevator to the second floor. I owned the entire building, but really only used the second and third floors. It didn’t take me long to upgrade my living arrangements after Steele left the business. I had previously lived in a penthouse, but I felt that I needed more security if I was going to become the public face of my new business. This new building had it all in terms of security.
Walking towards the living room, I sat on the sofa, absentmindedly looking out at the Paris skyline, trying to summon my courage.
Finally, I pulled out my phone and dialed Viktor’s number. It rang three times before he picked up.
“Cooper Moreau,” his accented voice drawled. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
I took a deep breath, trying to hide my trepidation. “Viktor, I hope you’re doing well. I’ve got a business proposition for you.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. When Viktor spoke again, I could hear the sly smile in his voice. “I’m listening.”
As I outlined my proposal, with us splitting the profit evenly, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was making a deal with the devil. But it was too late to turn back now. I was all in, for better or worse.
We scheduled a meeting, and then I finally hung up, exhaling deeply. The skyline was starting to lighten with the first hints of dawn, and I watched the sun slowly creep into the sky, feeling the weight of my decisions pressing down on me. I stood up, debating whether I wanted to sleep, or try to stay up now that it was nearing morning. I had a lot of work to do, and not much time to do it.
I found my mind searching for a distraction, and it landed on my pretty little physical therapist. Allegra. Allegra Prescott. Even her name was beautiful. Her smile, her determination, the way she’d looked at me during our session…standing up to me in a way few had—I was definitely intrigued by her. Enough so that I had found and read her entire profile on her clinic’s website. For a moment, I allowed myself to imagine a different life—one where I was just a normal guy, trying to heal, maybe hooking up with my physical therapist.
But that wasn’t my reality. I had chosen this path, and now I had to see it through. No matter the cost. I never wanted to be helpless, vulnerable again. When my father’s illness got so bad that he couldn’t work, we had faced eviction and I was days away from ending up on the street. I had been in upper school at the time, and had tried to pick the wrong pocket. Steele’s. But it ended up being the best move of my life.
Yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Steele had been right all along. Maybe getting into weapons was a step too far. But it was too late for second thoughts now. I had made my bed, and now I had to lie in it—no matter how painful it might be.