Page 57 of Vicious Souls

“You and the old man seem to be getting along well,” he remarks, folding the table away and crossing one leg over another.

“Your father is a remarkable man,” I tell him. “I can see where you get your character from.”

“Ahhh…do I detect a compliment?”

“I never claimed there was anything wrong with you, Dante. Contrary, you’ve looked after me and kept me safe, and saved me more times than I care to recall.”

“All in a day’s work, King.”

The way my name slides off his tongue, like it is a sacred gift, causes my insides to do somersaults. I fall quietly into the comfort of his words as he speaks, wanting nothing more than to engage him in endless conversation just so I can continue to enjoy him honoring my presence.

“Where are we headed?” I ask him.

“New York.”

I can feel my brows lifting, can feel the arch of them hitting my hairline in surprise.

“What’s in New York?” I ask, a little hesitant to hear the answer. I’ve never been to New York, but I realize it’s as far away as possible from Tate. I know the tracking device has been left behind in Dante’s house; I don’t know how effective it will be in luring him back to finish the job he started, but I assume he hasn’t given up his quest for domination of the Murray empire.

“The best security firm in the world,” he says, watching my reaction carefully. I don’t know why it matters to him so much what I think about what he is doing. “Ex Navy Seals, some elite who have served in the Russian security services, and a ton of kickass ex-military types who you can’t go wrong with.”

“Me?” I gape.

“I told you I wouldn’t let you out into the world until I was sure you had the means to survive. I wasn’t joking Kingsley; you on your own wouldn’t last a day on the streets.”

“They’re so good, but you don’t use them?”

“I’ve never had to, King. Tate’s actually the biggest threat I’ve ever had to face. There’s never been a need past the professionals I’ve hired. Until now.”

“Until I came into your life,” I mutter, the guilt overwhelming me once again.

“Don’t do that,” he commands.

“Do what?”

“Don’t martyr yourself. At any point, I could’ve walked away from you. I made my choice.”

I almost stop breathing. He’s right. At any point, he could’ve walked away and let me fend for myself. He could have saved himself all this heartache and trouble. He could have easily walked away and would not now be on this plane with me, trying to figure out an exit plan for my troubles. But he didn’t. He stayed. He defended.He got shot.And he persisted. Did not give up when any sane man would have cut his losses and cut me loose.

“Why didn’t you?” I whisper, my breathy voice almost causing me heart failure.

“I think you know the answer to that even better than I do, Kingsley.”

52

DANTE

It’s the most amazing feeling having friends you can count on in your darkest hours. I had refrained from reaching out to Allied Security Vision until it was absolutely necessary. Now that I know what I’m dealing with, it is time to bring out the big guns. For even though we live and breathe in a world ruled by guns and violence, for many years peace has reigned amongst the families. There has never been a need to look past our security measures or to re-align our processes to deal with such a nasty wave of violence. Tate’s attacks has brought upon us not only added bloodshed, but also unwanted attention to the families. With that attention, a call to arms to put an end to the bloody violence by any means necessary.

When I call my contact at ASV, he is only too happy to set up a meeting, even knowing that we would be touching down late in the afternoon and the meeting would have to be relegated to an after hours time slot. The minute I step out of the elevator on the twentieth floor and into the spacious lobby of ASV’s waiting room, I am met by Stella, the gorgeous Brazilian model who ditched the pages of glossy magazines to work as the personal assistant to Claymore Collins, the company CEO. Wasting no time, she winds her arm around my waist and pulls me in for an embrace and a kiss to my cheek. It is not lost on me that her arm remains firmly around my waist as I introduce her to – my father, who she’s already met previously, and Kingsley, who shakes Stella’s hand but clenches her jaw as though desperately biting something back.

“Let me show you to Clay’s office,” she says, spiriting us through the lobby and then through several security doors using fingerprint recognition, until we arrive in the CEO’s office. “He’s just finishing up a quick staff meeting and will be in shortly. Please help yourselves if you’d like anything to drink.”

She waves in the direction of the minibar, before advising us she’d be right outside if we need anything, fixing the whole room with a smile before she leaves. The thing about Stella is she has an infectious way about her. Everything about her is sexy, fun, and supersized – from her charm to her personality and her sense of humor. I could see, out of the corner of my eye, the way that Kingsley follows Stella’s swaying hips as they sashay out of the room, a hint of jealousy in her eyes. Truth be told, there is nothing for Kingsley to be jealous about; yes, Stella is a stunner, but King does far more damage to my senses than Stella ever will.

“Don’t let her looks deceive you,” my father pipes up, picking up on the tension radiating off King. “Stella has some kickass moves on her; she’s the personal assistantandbodyguard to the CEO.”

Kingsley whips her head toward my father, frowning. We settle into a comfortable silence as we wait for Claymore Collins to make his appearance. When he finally does, it is my turn to shift a jealous eye toward Kingsley, who stands on wooden legs gaping at the man as he makes the rounds and claps my father and me on the back in welcome.

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