Page 28 of Stranger Gifts

“I don’t believe you,” said Kat. “You knew. They made sure you knew so that you would be a liability. If you talked, they’d kill you. You definitely know.”

Bolchek was quiet, chewing on his bottom lip and looking out the windows. He didn’t care what they thought of him, he wasn’t going to die for the stupid nun. If she’d just done what she was told, none of this would have happened.

“Need some help?” asked Kane. Kari grinned at the man and nodded.

“Yep. Our friend here says he doesn’t know who the other two men were who attacked Jenna.”

Kane placed a firm grip on Bolchek’s arm. At first, the man tried to pull free but Kane was much stronger. He stared at his face, tilting his head back and forth.

“He’s lying. He knows who the other men are and he knows a lot more than that.”

“Shut up! You don’t know what’s in my head. What the fuck are you people?”

“We’re the people that finish the job you should have been doing all along. Who were the other two men?” Bolchek said nothing, just looking from one person to the other, a fine sheen of sweat forming on his face. “One is older. The other is middle-aged. I can see the tattoos.”

“N-no. No, you can’t!” he yelled. He pulled hard trying to break free then felt the iron grip on his shoulders.

“I wouldn’t move if I were you,” smirked Alec. “See, that’s my sweet sister-in-law there and I adore her and Kat both. You do anything that might harm them, I’m gonna be a really, really angry boy.”

“You’re all mad. You have no idea what these men are capable of.”

“Oh, I think we do,” said Kane. “We’ve been dealing with men like these for decades. And believe me, they never win.”

“You’re all crazy,” he said shaking his head. Kane held steady to his arm, glaring at the man, then shaking his head.

“The other man was Killer. It was Harry Clayton.”

“No! No, I never said anything to you!” he screeched.

“You make me sick,” said the small voice at the door. He turned to see his daughter and started to speak but she held up a hand, stopping him. “You let them take me, you let them beat me, rape me, and prepare to sell me. You allowed them to beat and rape that poor nun, and all those other girls. You knew about them. You knew who they were and you were too much of a coward to do anything about it.”

“Samantha, it’s not what you think,” he said shaking his head.

“Oh, I think it’s exactly what I think. I’m going to help these people to put them behind bars and when that’s done, I’m going to disappear from your life. Don’t call me, don’t speak to me, don’t try to find me. If you do, I’ll kill you.”

She left the office building, walking away from her father. Alec sat in front of the man and nudged his knees.

“How does that make you feel? Father of the year material for you?”

“What would you know?” he sniffed.

“I know that I chose what was right for my son, instead of what was easy. I didn’t ignore shit that could have hurt him and if it did, I ended it.”

“So, that’s your answer for everything?” he scoffed. “Kill, maim, or beat to a pulp anything in your way.”

“No. That’s not our answer for everything,” said Kane. “But it’s a damn good start. Defend what you love, what’s important to you. I suspect that you were doing that. The problem is that your daughter wasn’t your priority. Your money, your reputation, and your practice were priority.”

“I will remind you again,” said Alec. “If you attempt to leave this property or phone Clayton to warn him, I will rip you to pieces and carry them to him.”

“I’m aware. You forget that I’ve been exposed to Clayton and his men for months now and you’re not much different. Maybe better educated, maybe more formal training, but you’re still just like he is and I recognize it right away,” he said shaking his head. He turned and left the offices, Kari and Kat staring at Alec and Kane.

“He’s going to try and warn him,” said Kat. Alec nodded.

“Yep. I know. And we’ll be there to finish him.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

“I can’t believe I actually got an appointment with you guys,” smiled the man.

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