Debt Collector's Due

Chapter One

Alfie

Ifan Redd walked into the office like a zombie. His tan skin had a pasty undertone, and his blue eyes were wide and dilated. Alfie Bowring narrowed his gaze and searched for further signs of drug use or intoxication. It was just after lunchtime, but his mate could hold his liquor like a champ. It’d take more than a few pints at the pub to make him behave so strangely.

“Whas amatta, If? We got a problem with one of the boy's collections?” He’d been legit for the past five years with his debt collecting company. They took care of the shite other people couldn’t or didn’t want to. It was a good life. One that allowed him to use his past reputation for more than death and destruction.

“A phone call just came in. There’s a man on hold for you.”

“Alright. Who is it, then?” Alfie asked.

“That’s the thing, mate. It’s Porter Douglas.”

Rage exploded inside him like an atomic bomb, mushrooming up and consuming every inch of him in his wake. His body shook. He balled his fists to keep from destroying everything on his desk. He ground his teeth and cracked the bones in his neck.

“Patch him through, and give me the room,” he said quietly. There are things a man has to do alone.

“Are you sure?” Ifan says as he hesitates in the doorway.

My chest heaves, and my breath quickens. The blood in my veins feels more like lava as heat rises up inside me. Porter Douglas has been back in my life for less than a minute, and Ifan is already treating me like I’m going to have a breakdown. “Do I need to tell you twice?”

Ifan slips out of the room, and my phone lights up.

I’ve thought of this moment for years. What I’d say if I ever got the chance. Now I’m struck mute and dumb as my mind goes blank. I grip the phone so hard the plastic protests with a creak. Hours in the gym have made me a formidable man. I have to keep in shape and stay one step ahead of the crooks I’m after. If you showed any weakness in this business, they’ll exploit it, and hollow you out like a pumpkin.

I bow my head and take a few deep breaths, steadying my nerves as I regain my composure. The man in control was the one who holds power. I’ve proved myself and built my own empire. I’m worthy of the same respect Porter demands. The thought cools my blood lust. In the end, Porter conceded to me. Amused by the thought, I pick up the receiver.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t hang up this phone on you, old man.”

“Athena needs you.”

The name is a sledgehammer to the sternum. Images of large milk chocolate-colored eyes fringed with dark lashes, shimmering with tears, and filled with pain flickered in my mind.

“You don’t even deserve to speak her name to me.”

“Perhaps not. But you’re listening to me now, aren’t you?”

Shrewd. “Speak.”

“My time is over. A man can only hold the top position for so long. I accepted this when I began. My number’s finally getting called in, and I choose to go down with the ship. She can’t be here when that happens. I know the drill. They’ll come in, clean house and convert the ones they think will be loyal. The sheep. I can’t take my last breathe knowing my daughter’s about to be another man’s slave. She’d be nothing more than a toy to be ridiculed and abused. We both know she deserves better than that.”

“She always has,” I spat. I’m not moved by the old man’s sudden change of heart. This is his swan song. He means to assuage his guilt before he leaves this world. It’d take a hell of a lot more than this last-ditch effort to keep her safe to do that. He treated her more like a possession than a child. It always rubbed me the wrong way. If I had a child, they’d know they were my world.

“Yes. You’re right.”

“Look I’m not buying what you’re trying to sell here—

“I can see all the mistakes I’ve made now. Don’t make her suffer for what I did.”

“Uh-huh. You’re telling me this looking for what mate? Forgiveness?” I snort. “I’ve none to give you.”

“I didn’t expect you to. This is about Athena.”

I close my eyes and rub my right temple to ease the ache beginning to set in. “And you think she’ll leave everything she’s built behind, why? We both know she’s stubborn as a mule.”

“I’m not giving her a choice. I’ll send the information that tells you when and where she’ll arrive and how she can retrieve her money. Make sure you’re ready for that. She can’t ever come back, Bowring. If she does, she’ll be a pawn. A symbol of the old god that fell. They’ll break her and parade her living carcass around.”

I don’t respond. He’s right about this. “What do you want me to do? Hold her prisoner? Make a new cage for her to live in?”

“No, create her a new life so good she won’t miss the old one.”

“This is a mess you made. You leave it at my feet and expect me to clean it up?” I snarl.

“Was your love for Athena so fleeting?”

The words piss me off further. “You don’t get to feign concern now. Too little too late.”

He continues, ignoring my barbs. The move drove home the seriousness of the situation. He always had to have the last word and prove his dick was bigger. This isn’t a ruse or paranoia. He’s certain about this takeover. I sit up straighter in my chair. Athena is in real danger. “Do you understand what it means if you agree to this. She’ll be your responsibility going forward. Yours to care for.”

“You’re a right fecking git. Ya know I won’t deny her this.”

He chuckles. “I did. I’ll be in touch.”

The dial tone in my ear signals the end of our conversation. I slam the phone down and run my hand over my face.

Ten Years Earlier

I unlock the door and slip into the front door of the three-bedroom high-rise apartment. I quickly enter the security code and get a beep of confirmation before I re-arm it. The smell of roses that permeates the air and the homey setting flip a switch inside me. I’m home and free to be myself. I allow my guard to lower, relax my muscles, and soak in the gentle atmosphere that’s become a refuge. My life is complicated, stressful, and bloody. A man needs an outlet.

I distance myself from the interrogation I’d completed hours ago. I place the persona most fear aside and let the one rarely seen come to the forefront. Compartmentalizing is the only way to remain sane with all the blood I have on my hands. Shrugging off my jacket, I wince slightly as my muscles protest. Heavy from the punishing blows I’d rained down, they’re screaming at me now. Along with my red, inflamed kn

uckles. I bend down and slowly unlaced my boots. I step out of them and leave them beside the coat stand where I hang my jacket.

I roll my shoulders and navigate the home in the dark. I know every piece of furniture in my path. I pause in the doorway to admire the sight of the woman who holds my heart. Asleep, her oval-shaped face is a work of art. From her full parted lips to her high cheek bones, long slender nose, and the thick coal-black hair, she'd braided. She’s breath-taking. Her sienna-colored skin glows with health, and the goodness she houses inside her. A port in the storm, she keeps my head from growing overcrowded, and my heart from turning cold and black.

I’d seen that happen to men like him who have nothing else to keep them from crossing over the edge. Our relationship sprung from nowhere. I worked for her father since she was twenty, watched her blossom, and kept her safe. Then she turned twenty-three, and the chemistry between us ignited. I tried and failed miserably to stay away from her before I gave in to the powerful pull.

Padding over the cherry wood floor, I move to the bed. Perched beside her, I run my sensitive knuckles over her soft cheek, ignoring the smarting. The pain the gesture caused is worth the reward.

She mumbles in her sleep.

"Alfie?"

"Better be."

A smile curves the corners of her lip up. Her eyelids flutter as she fights against sleep. "Are you really here? Or is this another dream?"

"I’m here, Princess." It's been weeks since we’ve been able to be together like this.

"Mmmm. I missed you." She leans into my touch, and my heart skips a beat. I can kill a man without batting an eyelash, yet this woman makes me tremble like a child frightened of a thunderstorm. She strips me to my barest form and pulls things out I thought were long gone.