Chapter 15
Fifteen
J akob kept his arms loose at his sides as he followed his best friend into his study. It didn’t seem like the right time to have this conversation. Still, he figured it would be a good way to distract Ben. Ben was staring out the window, looking at the ocean and the horizon.
“You want to tell me what the fuck is going on with my sister?”
There was a tone in his voice that Jakob couldn’t decipher. Ben definitely sounded angry, but there was something else…something that almost sounded like he was hurt. He knew this was important. Even after all their issues, Ben and Lani were close. He didn’t want to be the thing that tore them apart.
Not wanting anyone else to hear the conversation, he shut the door and walked further into the room.
“Are you not going to answer me?”
“I would rather look at you when I answer…not the back of your head.”
There was a long, strained beat of silence before he started to turn around. Once Ben met his gaze…there was no denying the anger burning within the dark depths of his gaze. It should scorch him. He didn’t have a lot of true friends in the world. His money and fame made it hard to determine who he could trust. Jakob knew, without a doubt, that he could trust Ben. So he couldn’t and wouldn’t lie.
“I’m in love with her.”
“Give me a break.”
Jakob rolled his eyes. “I’m telling you the truth. I’ve been in love with her for years.”
Before his friend could respond, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in,” Ben said.
Ian was at the door. “I have news. They found her car, and they are now searching for her.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes. I’ll let you get back to that,” he said, motioning with his hand.
Once they were alone again, Ben studied him. “I don’t have time for this right now.”
“Time for what?”
“Beating the shit out of you.”
He snorted. “Have fun trying, mate. But know this, at the end of the day, I will still love her, and there’s nothing you can do about it.
Seth followed Ryan and Maya as they led the way on the trail. It was already starting to get hot, and there were no trades giving them any relief. Maya was hot on the trail, and the heaviness in Seth’s gut told him this wouldn’t have a happy ending.
“Bad vibes,” Rami said next to him as they jogged along, both of them keeping their eyes moving to keep site of any other clues as to her whereabouts. Rami was a former SEAL like him, and both had learned to trust their gut. Training was essential, but instincts were just as important.
Seth nodded as they continued on their way, and when he heard Maya’s excited barks, he knew it wasn’t a good sign.
“There’s a Rick here to see Ben,” Eden said, walking into the room. She had gone to chat on the phone, so it apparently was to deal with that.
“Send that loser packing,” Emily said.
“No. He’ll just come back. He has never learned to understand that he wasn’t wanted. And, he might have something to talk to Ben about.”
Emily didn’t look happy about it, but Eden did her bidding.
Rick came into the living area and started to make a beeline for Ben’s study when he noticed Lani. He changed directions.
“Lani, when did you get back?”
There was a tone in his voice, something that felt off.
“I’ve been on the island.”
“That wasn’t our cover story,” Emily said, ignoring the other woman.
“My brother’s talking to Jake right now. Is there something I can help you with?”
“You don’t work for the company anymore,” Emily said.
“I’m still a board member. If it has something to do with Kingston, I can at least see if I can help. My brother has too much on his plate right now.”
He glanced at the other two women, then back to Lani. “Can we do this privately?”
Emily opened her mouth. “You’ve already checked him out. You know he isn’t at fault here. We’ll just step out on the lanai. You will be able to see us there.”
Emily didn’t look happy about it, but she nodded. “I’ll keep watch on you the entire time.” She was looking at Rick when she said that. He nodded and tried to take Lani’s hand. She drew away from him and walked to the sliding door that led to the lanai.
“What’s up, Rick?”
He sighed. “I broke up with Sienna.”
And that was supposed to be important to her for what reason? Now that she had had months away from the insanity of her relationship with Rick, she knew how ill-suited they were for each other. He was still a cheater and probably always would be. She had known that going in, so part of it was on her.
“Okay. What does that have to do with Kingston?”
“It doesn’t. Not really. I mean…” He glanced behind her into the living space, then stepped further away. He headed over to a shaded area and motioned her over. “I don’t want to embarrass myself in front of strangers.”
She shook her head and followed. The guy was stupid as the day was long, even if he was an excellent surfer. It would be best to put this to rest once and for all.
When she stepped into the shade, she felt a bit of relief. The morning sun was heating up the day, and the trades were non-existent.
“So?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Nice to know. What are you sorry about? The cheating? Or was it the number of times you fucked someone else? Or the fact that you fucked Sienna in my bed?”
He blinked. “I’m sorry for it all. I was stupid, but you don’t understand. There was something else going on. Something that Royal knew all about.”
There was another knock at Ben’s study door, and this time, Ian came right in after the knock.
“They found your wife, Mr. Kingston.”
Hope flared to life in Ben’s eyes. “And?”
“I’m sorry.”
And then, Jakob watched the color drain from his best friend’s face. Ian rushed in and grabbed him just as Jakob reached out for him. He had been worried that Ben would pass out.
“Was she in an accident?”
“No. She was murdered.”
“Where’s Lani?” Jakob asked.
“She’s in the living area with Eden and Emily.”
He turned, but Ben stopped him. “What’s going on, Jakob. I saw the look on your face.”
“Your sister has been threatened several times, and we think it might all be tied together.”
Jakob couldn’t put a finger on his emotion or explain why he was feeling it. Something unsettled him enough to have him rushing down the hall.
“What did she know about?”
This was the most bizarre conversation. He kept pacing back and forth and wringing his hands.
“There was nothing I could do.”
“Okay.”
Suddenly, he surged toward her, and now, the alarm screamed through her system. She tried to step back, but he grabbed her by her upper arms. “I need to protect you. I don’t know who did it, but someone did, and they will probably come after you.”
Panic had her opening her mouth to scream. She was amazed that Eden and Emily hadn’t come rushing out. When he yanked her forward, she tried to glance behind her. From this position, the ladies couldn’t see them.
“Rick, you need to let me go.”
“She wanted me to. She wanted me to do that the entire time. But I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want to let you go.” He was now babbling as he dragged her away from the house. His fingers were digging into her skin. She was sure there would be bruises. Even in the day’s heat, she was freezing, her body shivering from the bone-chilling fear seeping into her soul.
“Rick.”
He looked at her, his eyes widening at something behind her.
“Get your bloody hands off her,” Jakob roared from behind her.
“I’m trying to save her, man. You don’t understand.” But he did let her go.
Jakob grabbed her and spun her around.
“Love, are you okay?”
She blinked at him, her head still spinning from the turn of events. The fury in his gaze sent alarm racing through her.
“He didn’t hurt me,” she said. “Everything is fine.”
“The hell it is,” he said, handing her off to someone behind him. She realized it was Emily.
“Sorry, Lani. I turned away when Jakob came running down the hall.”
“It was a split second. Not your fault.”
“Argh!”
She whipped her head around to see Jakob had tackled Rick. They were rolling over the grass, punching each other. Correction, Rick was trying his damndest to get away, and Jakob was beating the living hell out of him. He ended up on top of Rick and started to pummel the other man.
“Mate, you’re going to kill him,” Ian said, although he didn’t do anything to stop Jakob.
Lani stepped closer. “Jake, please stop.”
He didn’t seem to hear her. The scene before her was wavering, and she realized she was crying. She wasn’t worried about Rick but didn’t want anything to happen to Jake.
“Please let him go. I need you,” she said, hoping that would get his attention. And apparently, that was all she needed to say. He stopped in mid-punch and turned around. Rising to his feet, he approached her and took Lani into his arms.
“Don’t cry, love. I didn’t hurt him that much.”
“I don’t care about that idiot. I’m worried about the man I love going to jail for assault.”
There was a long beat of silence that seemed to stretch and stretch.
He pulled back and looked down at her, cupping her face. Using his thumbs, he brushed away her tears. “I love you, too.”
He dipped his head and brushed his mouth over hers as her heart filled with joy. Even in this horrible moment, she could find happiness.
Lani turned and saw that Ian was on the phone, probably with an ambulance service, because Rick was unconscious.
An hour later, things were still in an uproar. HPD, TFH, and every other letter agency known to man were at the house. Lani was resting far away from the trouble in the guest house as Jakob watched HPD and TFH argue about who had jurisdiction.
“Don’t worry, Hollywood. We won’t let them throw you in the slammer.”
He shook his head. “Not really worried about that.”
Emily sighed. “Sorry about what happened.”
Surprised, he looked at the woman. She shrugged. “It was my job to protect your lady.”
“And I distracted you. Don’t worry about it.”
Conner Dillon came striding into the house, taking in the scene and nodding in their direction. “You might not worry, but that man is going to eat my lunch.”
He made his way over to them. “I need to see you both in another room.”
Emily and Jakob shared a look.
“Wait. What are you doing?” That came from HPD detective Rome Carino.
“Talking to my client. We will not discuss the assault. It’s about my client’s safety.”
“We won’t leave the house,” Jakob promised.
They went into the kitchen.
“What’s up, boss?”
“We have an issue. There is no way that Rick carried out all of the attacks.”
“Lani said it sounded like he had been working with Royal.”
“Yes. We are still digging, but apparently, those two used to work a lot of cons together. Some blackmail. That’s not what has me worried. We are missing something. Royal and Rick were both cleared for the parking garage incident. They either hired someone else, or we are missing something.”
Lani stepped out of the bedroom and started when she saw who was standing in the living room of the guest house.
“Sienna, what are you doing here?”
“I’ve been looking for you.”
The woman was a mess. Her hair looked like she hadn’t brushed it. There was dirt on her face. As Lani walked closer, she realized her shirt was soaked with blood.
“Sienna, are you okay? Did someone hurt you?”
“Yes,” she said, raising a gun and pointing at Lani. “You did.”