Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
Lincoln
I stared at my screen, struggling to focus on the multiple facial-recognition programs I had running. Work was supposed to be easy but thoughts of Zara kept shattering my concentration. After taking the day off to focus on her, we’d spent the night together in complete hedonistic enjoyment. Then she surprised us with breakfast in bed. Unfortunately, her joy and excitement in cooking far exceeded her ability. Neither Colin nor I had cared that the eggs were overdone or that the toast was soggy. Our girl loved cooking shows, but apparently that interest didn’t translate to talent.
The fact that Colin had spent the night with us without incident and the many times we’d woken up to make love had made everything perfect. Neither of us had wanted to burst the bubble of contentment, so we’d gotten a very late start to the day. That meant that it was almost lunchtime before we’d arrived in the office.
I felt a grin tug at my lips at the memory of how fun it had been to relax together. I hadn’t placed anything before work in years and it had felt good. Regrettably, that meant I was swamped, and all I wanted to do was focus on Zara’s case. We had so little information that it was frustrating.
As if hearing my thoughts, Colin glided into the room. Gabe had ripped him a new one for missing morning training with our new recruits, so he’d been stuck running them through drills for the last few hours. I knew training people to replace us was key to being able to step back, but patience was not my strong suit. Every minute not spent on Zara’s case felt like it was wasted. Not that there was much we could do on that front. It was as if the Albanians who we knew were looking for her had vanished into thin air.
They were in the country unless they’d managed to sneak out, and why would they do that if they hadn’t succeeded in their task of finding her? So far we knew they’d trashed her storage area, questioned every person she’d ever worked with, and had planted electronic trackers on her credit cards. We had pictures of them from the airport and from traffic cams outside the storage unit and occasionally got pings on them only half of which were real. I was sure they were in the Philadelphia area but that was it. I stared at the bank of screens as if by magic they’d finally tell me something.
“Anything?” Colin asked.
“Not a goddamn thing.” I rubbed the bridge of my nose in frustration. “I’m honestly lost as to what to do next.”
“Well, we may have some help. I received an odd call from Jared.”
Why would Jared call Colin and not me? The two of them had never been as close as the rest of us. I pulled out my phone and groaned when I realized I’d had the damn thing on silent and missed several calls and texts from him asking me to reach out.
“He said you weren’t answering so he tried me. I assumed your groan means you just figured that out.”
“Yeah. So what did he say?”
“He says he has a friend who may be able to help us with finding the Albanians. I told him we’d take any help if it meant ending this annoying stalemate.”
“A friend? Did he happen to give a name or was he his usual cryptic self?” Jared really was a good friend but he always found a way to avoid answering any direct questions. Especially when it came to things like what he did when he wasn’t with us or who any of his other “friends” were. When we were in our twenties, it made sense. The guy had a trust fund that could support a small nation if necessary, so work wasn’t important, but eventually he had to settle down didn’t he?
“What do you think?” Colin rolled his eyes.
“Fine, did he at least give you a where or when we could meet this friend?”
Colin smirked. “The meeting’s at the Gentlemen's Whiskey Club.”
I groaned. The Gentlemen’s Whiskey Club was an exclusive and expensive bar that had hidden locations around the world. Jared had been a member since our college days but the prices were so high that even Colin and Declan, who was a billionaire, refused to put out the monthly dues. Occasionally, Jared would drag us along as guests and that was more than good enough for me.
“Of course it’s there. Fine, when are we meeting?”
“An hour.”
“Shit. We have to go get changed.” The gentlemen’s club had a dress code and neither one of us was dressed for that. Our usual khakis and V neck T’s wouldn’t get us inside the front door. I pushed my chair back and stood up. “What this guy has better be worth going home and changing into a suit. Why couldn’t he just bring his friend here?”
“How should I know?” Colin retorted. “He’s your friend, maybe you should have answered his message and we’d both know why.”
I texted Jared while Colin drove us to our apartment, but of course the asshole left me unread. It felt strange walking into the condo we called home. We hadn’t been back since Zara had come into our lives. Unsurprisingly, the place was exactly the way we’d left it, but it didn’t feel like home anymore. We’d redesigned the place when we bought it, combining two units into one, but it now felt small and confining.
Once you entered into the main living space, you could go left to Colin’s suite which consisted of a small kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. I had the same on the other side of the combined living room. I’d thought the room big, but now compared to the two-story open-concept entertainment room at the cabin, it was practically tiny.
If we brought Zara to live with us here, she wouldn't have any space to call her own. The place was nice for a bachelor pad, but that was all it was. We’d probably keep it for when we had to work late or emergencies. But it wasn’t where I wanted to spend my free time.
If Zara wanted to live in the city, we’d look for something else. Something that would allow us all to have our own space while also sharing the important moments in life. If we went in that direction, I’d have to reach out to Gabe and ask if he knew of anything that might work. He owned several buildings, ours included.
We rode down the elevator in our custom suits and got in the car. The address Jared had sent us for the current location of the club was about ten minutes from our apartment. He was driving and my anxiety was pushing at me. Going new places was a trigger for my own form of PTSD, so I tried to hold back the attack by talking and distracting myself.
“Hey, what do you think about Brody bringing Zara into the city and we can treat her to a night out while we're dressed in our monkey suits?” The moment I said the words, I knew it was a bad idea and not just because of the security concerns. Colin nor I did well in crowds. The only exceptions we made were when on the job or going to the BDSM clubs.
Colin gave me a hard look before turning back to face the road. “Don’t be a numpty. It’s too dangerous.”
“Yeah, I heard the stupidity as it came out of my mouth. This bullshit is driving me crazy. I want to get back to normal and show her a good time.” I tapped my fingers on the door handle.
“Normal? What the fuck is that? Does she even want that? We are far from normal, and I’m okay with that.”
He was right, not that I wanted to admit it. There were so many more discussions to be had, but it felt wrong to have them until things settled. What if it took months or even years for Mihal to back off? Would she stay patient or would she leave us? What did I really know about Zara’s wants, dreams, plans?
“True. She might want the white picket fence and five kids on a farm.”
Colin snorted. “Doubt it. But you’ve got to stop overthinking things. We told her that we’d support her in whatever it is she wanted to do in the future. I somehow doubt that’s farming with fuzzy animals but who knows. Hell, with a burglar skill set, maybe she’d want to work at G where’s your manners? William has flown in from England to share this information with you.”
“Fine.” Colin sat and tossed back his drink. We all winced as he treated what was probably a thousand or more dollars of whiskey like it was a body shot.
This was going to be a long and annoying conversation, but if it was going to get us the information, I would play whatever game they wanted. Hopefully, Colin would keep his temper in check.