Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
ANITA
"Morning, fuckwit." I threw a bucket of ice-cold water on Mason. "I trust that you slept well."
Mason shook his head and sputtered as water dribbled down his face. "Why wouldn't I have with such hospitable conditions?"
He had the nerve to joke while he was tied up to a chair with a swollen face, a stab wound in his leg, and nothing to eat or drink since we picked him up outside the prison.
"You think this is funny?" I grabbed a chunk of his hair and yanked his head back so he was forced to look at me through his swollen eye.
"Not at all. If Nova were alive, she would be so disappointed in you."
I was squeezing his throat before my mind caught up to the fact that I had moved. "Don't you dare speak her name after what you did."
Mason attempted to shake his head. "I loved Nova. I could never hurt her," he squeaked.
"Bullshit!" I screamed in his face. "If you loved her, you would've stayed away knowing what your family was capable of. Her death is on your hands. Now tell me where her body is."
I was losing control. Seven years’ worth of rage was bubbling over, and if I didn't calm myself down, I would kill Mason before I could get my answers.
"I've told you I don't know. She left me. I woke up to a note saying she loved me, and she was sorry, but she couldn't stay."
I stumbled back. It was the first time I was hearing about this. "Why didn't you tell me this before?"
"And admit you were right? That Nova finally realized I wasn't good enough for her? No, thanks."
I didn't know what to do with that information. "What about your family?"
Mason attempted to chuckle. I say attempted because it sounded more like a pathetic whine. "Trust me, if they hurt her, they would've sent her body back to me in pieces. They enjoyed taunting me and knew how much I loved her. If my brother or father killed Nova, the world would've known."
That was true. The Dunkins were a sadistic bunch. They felt they were above the law. The one thing they wouldn't mind doing was bragging that they killed my friend.
"So if it wasn't your family, then who was it? Nova would never have willingly left me." She was my sister in every sense of the word. My ride or die. We had a bond that couldn't be broken. There was no way anything but death would separate us, and it was my job to avenge her.
Mason looked at me through his one semi-open eye. "My family has any number of enemies. Any one of them could've killed her to get back at them."
When Nova had first disappeared, I tortured Mason's father and brother. Both of them insisted Mason was responsible for me losing my friend. I believed them. I wanted it to be Mason's fault, but now I was wondering if they used my hatred for him to cloud my judgment.
It was time to pay them a visit again.
"I know that look. It was the same one Nova used to get when she made up her mind about something. What are you going to do?"
Old habits were hard to break. It annoyed me how well Mason knew Nova.
I wanted to be the only one who was close enough to her like that.
Did that make me a selfish friend? Absolutely.
Did I care? Not at all. Nova was mine long before she was Mason's, and in some way, he was still responsible for her death. Even if she did leave him.
"I'm going to have another unfriendly chat with your father and brother."
Mason snorted. "That's going to be a little hard considering Lex is dead."
I was laser focused on Mason's face. "Since when?"
Mason shrugged. "No clue. Special Agent Beckett paid me a visit right before my release and gave me the good news. He was under the impression my father would want me to take over the organization now that I was the only heir left."
I considered his words. "Is he right?"
"About my father?" Mason waited until I nodded my head before he answered, "Hell no. He would try to have another son before he would ever leave me in charge. He hates me that much."
I wasn't so sure about that, but I would take his word at the moment. At least until I had the opportunity to speak to the head of the Dunkin family. I would enjoy torturing Alexander for the information.
"Anita!" Sloane's harsh demand stopped me in my tracks. She was still mad at me for kidnapping Mason. Her words, not mine. I considered it a friendly discussion.
"What?" I didn't take my eyes off Mason.
"I need to speak with you. It's important."
I considered ignoring her, but that would only damage an already unstable relationship. Something that was entirely my fault. My need for revenge was destroying the team we’d built, but I couldn't stop it. Not if I wanted to find answers.
"Don't think this conversation is over," I warned Mason.
"I would never."
With much reluctance, I walked away from Mason and followed Sloane out of the cell.
"What's so important that you pulled me away?"
"Hawk reached out. Walsh's partner is digging a little too deep into your identity."
Shit! If Hawk was reaching out, it had to be bad. "I'll take care of it."
Sloane crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me. "And just how do you plan to do that? We can't afford a dead agent on our hands. Especially not one who's been looking into you."
"I'm not going to kill anyone. I'm just going to remind him why it's not a good idea to get on my bad side."
"Then take Nyx with you."
I scoffed at the idea. "No, thank you. I’ll handle Walsh on my own."
Sloane stopped me from walking away. "I'm not saying you can't but think about it. You're not in the right headspace at the moment. Don't do something that could jeopardize your chance at figuring out what happened to Nova."
That was a low blow. Even for Sloane. But she was right. I was losing my temper a little too easily lately, and one wrong move from the special agent and I was likely to do something I couldn't fix.
"Fine. Go tell Nyx she has three minutes if she plans on joining me."
My friend didn't comment on the order even though she could've. We had no official team leader, but most of the time I took the lead. That didn't mean I normally went around shouting commands at them. It was more proof that I was losing my touch.
Nyx climbed into the passenger seat of my Jeep two minutes later. "Worried I would leave without you?" I raised my brow.
"Yup. You're unpredictable as fuck lately, and I wasn't taking any chances." Leave it to Nyx not to hold back.
"You make it sound like I'm going to go off the rails at any moment." I put the Jeep in drive and headed off the property.
"The possibility is there."
No, it wasn't. I wouldn't let it. Now that I was aware just how bad I was slipping, I would fix it. This team was Nova's dream, and there was no way I was fucking that up. She deserved to live on through me.
The hour drive was done mostly in silence. Nyx didn't speak again until we were a few minutes away from Walsh's house. "So how do you want to handle this?"
"Not sure yet. It's all going to depend on if he's home or not."
It was a little past oh seven hundred. I had purposely started the morning very early in hopes that Mason would talk. I didn't plan on taking a trip to Nashville, but the early morning might work out in my favor.
"If he is home?"
"I'll threaten him and his partner to back off."
"And if he's not home?"
I shrugged my shoulder. "We'll see." I knew that's not what she wanted to hear, but I didn't exactly have a plan. I couldn't storm the FBI field office and threaten him there. That would call too much attention to me and my team.
"Luck is on our side." As I pulled up to the curb, I could see there were lights on inside.
Nyx followed me up the walkway. I glanced around before pulling out my lockpicking kit.
"I guess it would be too much trouble to just knock on the door and be invited in?"
I kept my head down and focused on my task. It took me less than six seconds to get in. "I prefer the element of surprise."
Special Agent Walsh had yet to learn his lesson. He didn't even have the alarm on. Making it that much easier to slip in unnoticed.
Nyx and I followed the sound of the shower running. I knew from the last time I was here that the bathroom was attached to the master bedroom, so that's where we headed.
"What are the chances he comes out naked? I could use a good peep show."
The instant rage I felt at her words shocked the hell out of me.
I wasn't entirely sure since I never felt it before, but was this what jealousy felt like?
I had no reason to be jealous. Beckett wasn't mine, and I didn't want him to be.
He was a federal agent for fuck's sake, and I was a paid assassin. The two certainly didn't mix.
I didn't get the opportunity to tell Nyx to go back to the fucking vehicle before the shower shut off and Walsh was strolling into the room. And sure enough, he was as naked as the damn day he was born.
A few things happened at once.
Walsh stuttered to a stop, immediately dropping his hands to cover his very large––and I mean extra large––cock.
Nyx whistled. "Hot damn."
And I shoved my friend back out the door. "Go wait in the damn Jeep," I hissed.
She gave me a knowing smirk. "Oh sure. You get to have all the fun."
I wanted to smack the smile off her face. Whatever was going on in her head wasn't even close to the truth.
Sure, I'll just keep lying to myself.
"Just go. I promise not to maim anyone." Well, except for her for seeing Walsh like that.
By the time I turned back around, Beckett had found a towel to wrap around his body. I had to admit I was slightly disappointed.
Wait, what? Now was not the time for my libido to step into the driver's seat.
My body didn't care what I thought though. It had a mind of its own.
Fuck, I was in so much trouble.