Page 15 of The Faceless Omega

The aggressive response only pulled a slow, dangerous smirk over Lennox’s face. “Better.” He let the word linger long enough to watch it stoke the fire in Neil’s eyes. “I’m not the fool who let his ‘life’s work’ rot away in a dilapidated building, held afloat on the shoulders of less than a dozen employees all crammed together in one cesspool of a workspace.” He took one step forward and leaned in, using his larger frame to crowd the blustering moron. “That would beyou, Neil. You are the one who did those things. Just like you are the one who sent a beautiful, vulnerable woman into the fucking lion’s den last night without any protection whatsoever.” Lennox drew a breath but did not otherwise move or raise his voice. “And now I’m here.”

The fight had drained from Neil’s face before Lennox finished, and Neil’s eyes were wide with both understanding and something like fear.

Lennox slowly straightened. “Show him the other list,” he said without breaking eye-contact.

He heard the briefcase snap open again. The flutter of paper quickly followed.

Neil finally looked away, his attention drawn to the next paper being held out for him. He gulped audibly and dropped so hard into his chair the chair threatened to upend him. “What the hell is this?” There was no fire in his question. The words were practically a whisper.

“That,” Lennox said, “is the list of infractions attributed to you, your business, and your employees while acting under your direction, that my team has been able to dig up in the past four hours.” He tucked his hands back into his pockets. “I would advise you to consider how much more they’ll uncover if they have the full day.”

Neil slowly lowered the full page of aforementioned code and ethics violations before turning his head toward Lennox again. “Why?”

“My generosity expires twelve hours from the moment I set foot into your office,” Lennox replied. “If you haven’t accepted the offer by then, I’ll take the updated list from my investigative team to the governor. He’s a busy man, but he’ll make time for me. And I’m sure he won’t appreciate hearing about all that unscrupulous behavior and blatant disrespect in one of his busiest cities.” Lennox shrugged for good measure. “What he does after that will be up to him.”

Neil huffed. “You’re bluffing.”

Lennox furrowed his brow. “I don’t bluff, Neil.” He extracted one hand again and made a circular motion with his pointer finger, blatantly telling his team to pack it up. “You have less than twelve hours to make the smartest financial decision of your life, or lose it all. Your choice.” He turned, heard paper shuffle quietly and the subtle click of the briefcase as it snapped shut, and his arm was lifted toward the doorknob before Neil found his voice again.

“Wait. Please.”

Lennox only glanced over his shoulder with a calculated air of impatience. Beside him, his attorneys moved closer.

Neil dropped his head into his hands, slumped over his desk, and barely spoke loud enough to be heard through the added barrier. “I’ll … read it over.”

Lennox bit back his victorious smile and shifted his focus to the lawyers. “Get to work, gentlemen.” They were more than capable of handling the job from this point. Neil was clearly not the sort of man capable of standing between a demon and his closing commission.

With Neil Waters’ office door closed again behind him, Lennox took one more look around the main space. His singular exit had not gone unnoticed by several of the staff, but none of the eyes looking back at him were the right shade of brown. The omega he sought was not present. Had she been sent on assignment?

Lennox strode up to the nearest cubicle and regretted the choice before he could open his mouth. The male gaping up at him like a fish was as unimpressive as they came. He had muddy brown hair that had already receded notably along his scalp, a rounding beer gut, and a clinging, stomach-churning stench. It was hard to imagine Brinley working in the same vicinity as this male.

“Uh,” the man stammered. He shoved to his feet, smearing his hands across his shirt as if to wipe them clean. “L-Lennox Mitchell, sir, it’s an honor—”

“I’m looking for Brinley Young,” Lennox said sharply. “Where do I find her?”

The man faltered, confusion overcoming his features for a prolonged second. Then he scoffed and made a dismissive gesture. “Brinley? That stupid bitch fucked up a big job, then had the audacity to beg for sick leave. Waters fired her ass about an hour ago.”

Lennox felt his lip curl. For an irrational moment, he had the powerful urge to storm back into the office and rip up his check and go straight to the more aggressive tactic. But that would only satiate him for a minute. As would punching the asshole who’d just insulted Brinley in the face. Instead of surrendering to either urge, he spoke in a low voice. “What’s your name?”

“Oh.” The man blinked. “I’m Jerrod.”

Lennox held his stare. “I look forward to our next conversation, Jerrod.” The words were civil, but he made no effort to hide the threat in his voice. Nor did he wait to hear the man’s response before turning and striding away. If Brinley had been fired, she was as likely to be home as she was out on the streets doing any number of things. That would make finding her more difficult.

Wait. Sick leave?She hadn’t seemed like the kind of woman who reacted poorly to a lecture, and in general people with those types of attitudes didn’t retain jobs for multiple years. But she’d been fine the evening before. More than fine.

Another possibility slammed into Lennox so unexpectedly he nearly tripped on the sidewalk.

She’d said she had a couple of months before her next anticipated heat, and she was obviously on medical suppressants. But even the best medicine only worked so well. Was it possible taking her first knot had forced her body into a premature heat cycle?

The idea sent an inappropriate thrill through him.

She was probably alone, feeling like crap, and thinking she was suffering one of the worst days of her life—made worse on the heels of a night she couldn’t possibly regret. He didn’t get off on any of that. But soon, if not soon enough, he would ease every single one of those aches. There was just one thing he had to do first.

“Home,” Lennox said, a little too sharply, as he ducked into the car once more. “I need to shower and burn this suit. After you drop me at the house, take the car out to have the interior detailed, too.” Jerrod’s obscene body odor still clung to him like a curse. He couldn’t show up at Brinley’s doorstep with that stench hovering around him, least of all if she was nesting.

Fuck, he prayed she was nesting. He was hard just thinking about it.

Chapter 7

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