Chapter 6 #2
“Gemma Monroe. Twenty-six years old. She was sold by her father to sex traffickers. That is how she met Varon. He bought her at an auction and helped her bring the entire sex trafficking ring down. We have confirmed this and linked it to an ongoing investigation of the downfall of the Maddox trafficking ring.”
“Jesus. So, they were responsible for Maddox?” Syntax gaped at the screen.
“Yes, and I hope that drives home the type of people we’re dealing with here.
” Owen met the eyes of everyone at the table, then continued.
“Varon took Monroe in, where she met and fell in love with Hunter.” The screen flashed to the photo of Hunter, face contorted in panic as he tried to reach Gemma.
“Surname still unknown. Around thirty years old. And the adopted brother of Varon. Hunter’s family took ten-year-old Grayson in after the tragic death of his own family.
Nothing more is known about Hunter and his family. ”
I swallowed hard. Nothing more of value to the FBI, maybe.
But I knew plenty more about Hunter. I knew his favourite snacks, his favourite song; the way his face lit up when Gemma walked into the room.
I knew his fierce loyalty to Grayson and Gemma, and I knew the little dimple in his right cheek when he truly smiled—something he only did around family.
And I knew he was Grayson’s rock. The person who kept him grounded, and a person Grayson would take a bullet for. Had taken a bullet for.
“And that brings us to Varon himself.” Owen switched to a picture of Grayson staring down from the helicopter.
Syntax shifted uncomfortably at the photo.
I bet most of the people in the room felt some sort of unease at the brutal anger contorting Grayson’s menacing face.
Looking at the man in the picture, it goes without saying, that anyone who’d received such a glare from him would surely die.
Owen’s eyes flicked to me, checking in to see if I was okay. Only him and I knew that that anger had been directed at me.
“Grayson Varon.” Owen’s voice broke through the silence.
“Thirty-two years old. Mastermind behind the Apparitions. Thief, sociopath, killer. Check your files for a complete profile. Unlike the others, we found a paper trail for him, up until the day his family died. Then he ceased to exist. No social services reports about where he ended up. No sign of which University he lectured at. Nothing.”
“They have an excellent techie in their pocket,” Syntax mused.
Owen nodded. “Exactly. But considering how high profile his family and their murders were, they couldn’t erase him completely.”
“Varon… Varon. That sounds familiar,” Emerie pondered.
“It sounds familiar because your father worked the case,” Owen smiled knowingly at Emerie.
Her frown deepened. “A murder case? Why… Oh my God! The red diamond! The Varons owned the Crimson Dame!” Her face lit up, excitement pouring out of her.
“Can someone please explain what she’s talking about?” Liam cut in, frustratedly.
Emerie turned to him, the broadest smile on her face.
“My father also worked in art, like me, before he retired. And this was one case he could never solve. If I remember correctly, the Varons owned the largest red diamond in the world, called the Crimson Dame. Mister Varon had gifted it to his wife for her birthday or something.”
“Ten-year anniversary,” I corrected softly, not wanting to draw attention to myself, but all the eyes at the table turned to me anyway.
“Yes! That’s right. Someone broke in and stole it and killed the Varon women in the process. But my father could never figure out where it went. It’s still torturing him, actually,” Emerie scoffed, deep in thought.
“The target was the Varon women. The diamond was an afterthought. But Grayson has it now. It was taken by Charles Anderson, but he got it back,” I answered softly, hoping it would bring her father some semblance of closure, even though I didn’t know him.
“Interesting.” Emerie looked up. “You’ve seen it?”
I nodded with a small smile. “I had it in my hands.”
Her eyes widened. “Oh my God,” she breathed. “Wish I could tell my father,” she murmured to herself.
Oh, right. No one was allowed to speak of it to anyone.
“So Varon killed Anderson out of revenge,” Marshall noted. It was the first time he had spoken since entering the boardroom.
“Yes, and please be aware that Charles Anderson’s son had taken over for his father and is gunning for Ava’s life for her involvement.
Him and his capo Wesley are off the radar at the moment.
No one has seen or heard from them in months.
Varon might have gotten to Shaun too, or they’re lying low for now.
But that can change at any moment. So stay sharp.
And for the love of God, keep our consultant alive.
Everything you need to know is in the files.
You all have a lot of catching up to do.
That includes the list of known and possible thefts by the Apparitions.
Ava and I worked tirelessly on that list. It should be tattooed to the underside of your eyelids by tomorrow.
Now, let’s get back on track, shall we? These are known locations of safe houses for the Apparitions as provided by Ava.
Most of them have already been searched and came up clean.
Exceptionally clean. Also, the Varon estate on the outskirts of Willsbury is abandoned and completely torn apart by people searching for the red diamond.
It does not look like Grayson has any connection with it anymore.
We still haven’t found the cabin in Frostford Forest, but we’ve located the ranger that Ava met at the cabin, and he’s going to lead us to it.
This will all make sense once you read through the file.
Just be ready to leave tomorrow for Frostford Forest.”
Owen continued with the briefing, including every aspect of my time with the Apparitions, laying bare my most intimate and crushing moments to the four strangers.
He tried to keep it as vague as possible when he could, but there was no getting around it.
I had fallen hard for a conman. And I paid the brutal price.
“Any more questions?” Owen asked with a sigh after four more hours, slouching into a chair.
Everyone was silent, but Emerie turned to me. “Is there anything else you can tell us about these three people? Anything not in the files.”
I chewed at my lip, as all eyes focused on me again, seeing more of me and my patheticness than I felt comfortable with.
I knew everything about the Apparitions, yet nothing at all.
Nothing that could be used against them.
Had that been by design? “Just know that the three of them will kill for each other and Grayson will rain down hellfire on us if we hurt his family. So be ready. You won’t see him coming. ”
Liam chuckled. “Well, it wouldn’t be fun if it wasn’t a little dangerous.”
I looked down hurriedly, before they could notice how my heart panged, pain filling the empty void where my soul used to be. Grayson used to say the exact same thing.
Taking a few steadying breaths, I quickly reined the feelings back in, locking them down tight.
Yes. The sick bastard might even enjoy this little hunting team we’ve put together.