Page 6 of Unhinged Cravings
“Boss, the plane was dark.”
“And that didn’t give you pause? Make you curious as to why Greyson Tides would need his own plane dark?”
“We thought he was gonna fuck her.”
My teeth ground loudly before I brought the gun up and shothim. He stumbled back, clutching his chest, and I sent another bullet through his head.
His body fell in a lump right behind the woman, who was screaming again, holding her ears.
“Stop that incessant screaming before I drag your face through his brains.”
She shut up just as I placed my gun to her temple. “You have three seconds to tell me who the fuck you are and why I should let you live.”
“I’m Ava Shelton. Riley is my friend. I was her bridesmaid, and my uncle works for Greyson.”
“Doing what?” I asked, her value rising with each admission.
“He’s like a right-hand man. He was his best man at the wedding.”
Gun lowering, I stooped in front of her. Big brown eyes, the color of golden caramel, looked back at me.
“You just bought yourself time.”
A relieved breath fled from her lungs.
“Take her to the guest room,” I told Pack, tucking my gun in my pants and rising. “She’ll be staying with us for a while.”
“What? You can’t do that.” She got to her feet, and I turned on her, grabbing her scarf and looping it around my hand so that it cut off her airway.
“I can do anything I want. You’ve got fire and I appreciate that, but I’m an inferno that will swallow your fire whole and decimate it.”
The scarf unraveled but remained in my hand as I shoved her toward Pack. “Play by the rules, Ava Shelton, and you’ll live until my brother comes to rescue you. Push me, and I’ll send your body to him piece by piece. I’m sure your uncle would appreciate that.”
I walked away shoving the scarf in my pocket, hearing her bitch but not caring to listen to what she was going on about. Rubbing my temples, I questioned if this was a good idea. She was bound to push my buttons and given the high stakes, my tensionwas so tight I would snap. I pulled my jacket off before pouring myself a glass of scotch.
Fuck ups. I had nothing but fuck ups on my team now. Unseasoned and making novice mistakes. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I cursed my situation. It had been my doing and now I was paying the price, my empire hanging in the balance.
Pack returned a few minutes later. “She’s in the north wing. I’ve got two men outside her door.”
“Good.” I sat, planting my elbows on my desk.
“You think killing them was best, Cade?”
Eyes lifting slowly, I studied him. He was the only one I ever let question my methods. One of the few I still trusted.
“Yes.”
“So what do we do now?”
“We wait for my brother to discover she’s missing. I’m sure someone will go to the hangar since it seems they changed plans. Brinks and Raines maybe. They’ll inform him and he’ll call me. Then…” What then? Convince my brother to talk to me, to believe me. I sat back in my chair, staring out the window. Maybe he’d listen. “Talk to your contact in Bridgeville. See if they went to their destination or if they changed the itinerary altogether. My brother doesn’t make swift changes like that.”
“You mean he didn’t make changes, boss. He’s married now, and that’s enough for him to do things differently.”
“Confirm that and let me know what you find out.”
“And the woman?”
With a sigh, I took the scarf out of my pocket and let it drift through my fingers, saying, “Leave her where she is for now. She’s our prisoner, but treat her like a guest. Make sure she has food and whatever she needs.”
