Page 12 of The Devil's Detail
“Have you called Jackson?” Of course he would ask. He’s the only person I told about wanting to meet Jackson to potentially revamp my security team.
“If I bother the man anymore,he’llhave a peace bond and a restraining order onme. Or worse, he might let his crazy brother loose on me.” I give him a knowing look. He knows who I’m talking about. “I’ve called about security, I’ve called about the baby, I even called to speak to Jonno about some computer crap. He knew it was bullshit, and put me straight back to Jackson.” My voice rises with every word, until I’m hollering at the end.
“Oh, shit. Has he said he won’t sort out the close protection for you. Surely you offered ridiculous money.” Freddie’s answer to everything.
“I’d offer the man marriage and no prenup. But he ain’t interested.”
I scrub my hands through my dirty blond hair, catching sight of myself in the mirror. I do look a bit of a mess.
“How long do I have to stay here? How much longer do I have left?”
He pulls out the schedule. “A few weeks, until the beginning of May. But Kasey is coming over, so at least you’ll see a friendly face.” He’s trying to cheer me up.
“Sure, but I’m telling you, and I want you to tell them, ‘cos they don’t listen to me—I want Gary kept away forever. And they need to find that stalker. He’s everywhere.” I stand with my hands on my hips.
“Sure, sure. We will.” He’s placating me, he just wants me to carry on with my head in the sand like the rest of them. Well, I’m not. They better get ready, ‘cos if I get a whiff of a stalker—or fucking Gary—I’ll go ballistic.
10
Jackson
Scotland,Barclay House—the ancestral home to one of my sister’s husbands—should be all peace and tranquility, but with kids, a new baby, and the husbands, it’s chaos. Every night I fall into bed, too exhausted to even dream, and in a morning I’m awoken at some ungodly hour by the twins, Lachlan and Sorley.
Bit by bit, I mellow down, and the weeks fly by. The only time I’m riled up is from my regular call from either Carter or his unofficial babysitter, Ash. Ash is one of my top guys. We worked together in the forces, and now that he’s retired, he came to me for work. I trust the man with my life, and that of my family. He’s also patient and calculated—two vital qualities needed when dealing with Carter. Because that man is a butterfly, and has a tendency to go with the feeling. It’s a nightmare for a proficient security team. And the one he has, well, they’ve no chance.
“Jackson, Carter’s on for you again.” Jonno hands me the phone with a smirk.
I drop my head back in exasperation. Here we go. “Carter, hey, everything okay?” I’ve gotten to stock greetings with him. Every day is a wilder and wilder tale.
“I’ve seen him again. At a coffee shop this time. Jackson, I’m telling you?—”
“Did you get a photograph?” I interrupt him. “Anything at all that we could use to look into it for you?” The line goes silent.
“I didn’t think to,” he finally admits. “I sent one of my guys over, but he’d already disappeared, and they came up empty handed.”
He’s sounding distressed, so I go for soothing. If I start shouting, it’ll likely push him over the edge. And I know if I get too involved, his security detail will get shirty and I’ll have to deal with themandCarter.
“Look, how long have you got left in London?” My voice is low and melodic. I need to lull him into a trance. It’s the only way I’ll get a rational conversation.
“Maybe a week. I really wanna go home, sugar. I can’t fuckin’ wait.” He sounds like his breath is stuck in his throat.
“Was it Gary again? Or the unknown man?” I have a feeling it might be Ash, which is good because it at least means there is no actual stalker. But the fact that only Carter has spotted him is another huge black mark against his security team.
Ash said he’s just following generally, not everyday, and he’s being careful, so I’m only half bothered about the unknown stalker. If Ash is around, an actual stalker won’t get anywhere near Carter, but I better check in with him to make sure it is him and not a threat.
“That idiot Gary has been to three locations. This is why I think someone is selling me out. Nobody should have known, yet there he was.” His voice sounds worried. I know he’s dramatic, but that is a concern. Maybe someone on his team is feeding Gary information.
After our meeting at the cafe, I looked deeper into his security team as a whole. The old guy who owned the company originally, I knew. Really good guy. But he’d been ill, and I think his nephew has taken over the business. No real security experience, no military training, not much training at all other than what he’d learned from his uncle.
It’s a shit show. They’re really only one step away from a disaster. No direction, only concerned with how much profit they can make out of Carter. I knew some of the decent guys that had been on payroll, but they’d all left for one reason or another before the old man retired. And as the younger nephew took the reins, more departed.
“What should I do, Jackson? I don’t want to go out. I feel like I’m bein’ buried alive. Eaten away from the inside.”
I take it back. He is drama in the extreme. But still, it’s a concern. And I know if he gets on the phone to Evie, I’m in swinging distance. I’ll not hear the end of it.
“Do you want me to ring your head of security?” I query. I know that won’t help, but he wants to feel as if someone is doing something. Unfortunately, other than him firing them outright, I’m not sure I can actually do anything really substantial. “Or have you managed to source some proof and we can use that to get you out of your contract?” There’s silence again.
“I don’t know where to start on that. And to be honest, I don’t trust anyone enough to help me. I’m between a rock and a hard place.” He sounds resigned now. His moods swing like a pendulum.
