Page 2 of Ruthless Billionaire Daddy

After pushing it open, I descended the stairs two at a time. Once at the bottom, I made my way to the only door in the short hallway. I removed my key card from my blazer pocket, inserted it into the door and stepped into the room, with Tony and two of his men entering shortly after. A hint of smoke and chemicals lingered in the air.

Immediately, my eyes landed on the corner of the room, where the once cream-colored walls were now a dark ash grey.As we approached, my eyes lingered on the scorch marks on the shelves and crates that held the alcohol for the bar. Some bottles were cracked, and trickles of alcohol trailed outside of the bottles. But something caught my eye in one of the charred boxes on the floor that was delivered today.

I nudged the metal object with the tip of my boot. After removing a handkerchief from my pants pocket, I picked up the object with it. Short wires dangled from it.

“It looks like some sort of timer,” I muttered to no one in particular.

Tony came up behind me. “Looks like a small explosive device made by an amateur. I’m guessing they were hoping for a bigger explosion, based on the fact that this room is filled with flammable liquid, but it probably malfunctioned.”

“Lucky us,” I said dryly.

But unlucky for the people who thought they’d get away with this.

The fact that it seemed to have been snuck in through a delivery package put me on high alert. Yet, I was relieved that none of the staff had maliciously planted the device. I made a mental note that all packages entering all branches must be checked from now on.

Tonight could’ve ended up in disaster, lives lost, and millions of dollars gone up in flames. The last thing I needed was for the tabloids to get wind of this just as I was about to open a new branch.

Two months ago while hanging out at Dominic’s place, the oldest of us six Quantum boys, Tony called to say that some of Eso’s boys had shown up demanding a protection fee to ensure nothing happened to my chain of clubs, bars and lounges across the state.

Eso and I went way back. He was a part of the gang I joined after my parents died when I was fifteen. Now, he was the gang leader.

My security team had been searching for Eso for weeks, but he was nowhere to be found. Checks had been made, and we knew he was still in the country, but that was all the intel I had so far. After tonight, I planned on personally going to our old hideout to ruffle a few feathers to find Eso myself. Just because I dressed differently now didn’t mean the old Sebastien couldn’t be resurrected.

“Tony, I need you and your men to check the rest of the boxes delivered today to ensure there are no other explosive devices. Then, check this building thoroughly. Call the other establishments and have your men check there, too. No one outside of the security team is to know about this. Keep it discreet.”

“Yes, boss.”

As I turned and walked out of the room, I heard Tony barking orders on his phone as his men opened the rest of the delivery boxes.

Just as I returned to my office to grab my car keys, my cell phone rang. It was Vega, my most trusted hacker. If it had been uploaded or stored on any device connected to the internet, he’d find it. When Dominic’s wife, Emily, and his seven-year-old daughter, Lucy, were kidnapped, Vega had been the one who tracked Lucy’s necklace.

Vega was just one of my connections on the street, a reminder of the life I used to live. I may have stepped away from the streets, but I didn’t let the streets step away from me.

“Sir, Eso was found at the bottom of Silvermill Lake a few hours ago. The report estimates that he’s been dead forapproximately eight weeks. He was so badly decomposed that they had to use his dental records to identify him.”

FUCK!

This timeline meant Eso had already been dead when I received the first set of threats from his boys. If Eso didn’t give the order, then who the hell did?

“Find out who took over from Eso, and who killed him or had him killed. You have videos from when his boys visited the club. Gather all of them for questioning.”

“Got it, boss.”

The line went dead.

I pocketed my phone and poured myself a drink. My fingers were tight around the glass as I thought about Eso. He had been the guy who took me under his wing when I entered the gang all those years ago. He taught me everything I needed to know to survive. And when I told him I wanted out, he understood and helped me get out. We may not have been as close as we once were, but I felt as though someone had stabbed me in the heart and was twisting the knife. I couldn’t help but feel restless. Not only did someone take him out, but now they were targeting me and my business. What was the connection?

I gulped down the brown liquid, feeling the burn slide down my throat before I replaced the glass on the tray and returned to my seat. Between the fire and learning about Eso’s death, I wanted to break something. But, over the years, I’ve learned to keep my cool under pressure.

For a moment, I considered calling Dominic, but after everything he had been through in the past year and a half, burdening him with something I could handle didn’t sit rightwith me. He needed a break to enjoy his family and their newest addition, five-month-old Lillian.

I needed to focus on something I could control to keep myself in check. I picked up the pile of applications that Caite, my secretary, had faxed me earlier that afternoon. With the new club set to open in a month, I had yet to find an event planner with a portfolio that met my expectations.

While scanning the applications, my eyes fell upon a familiar name with a picture attached: Delilah Malone.

“When did Delilah become an event planner?” I murmured to myself as I read through her application.

Delilah Malone was the younger sister of Dean Malone, who has been my best friend since childhood. The last thing I remember Dean mentioning about Delilah was that she was working for some hotshot magazine.

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