“Yeah…that sounds nice.”
I continued to stand in the doorway, but I had no idea what kept me there.
She glanced at the door then looked at me again. “Something wrong?”
“Abigail told me you haven’t left your room in four days. I wasn’t sure if I should be concerned or not.”
“It’s been hard…but I’m a little better now. I don’t think I can cry anymore.”
The funeral and the days that followed were her darkest. A part of me actually pitied her, seeing the way she crumbled into so many pieces. I didn’t have the nerve to be a dick because it seemed so harsh at the time. Her tears actually made me feel terrible… Maybe that was why I hated it when she cried.
“Thank you for everything you did at the funeral.” She dropped her gaze as she held on to her purse, like she was remembering all the events in the privacy behind her eyes. “That was so hard for me, and you were…my rock.”
Publicly, I was her husband and I acted that way. But I also saw an innocent woman going through a difficult time. Her father screwed her over then died right afterward, taking the easy way out. Now she had to live with the consequences of his stupidity…it wasn’t fair.
“And what you said about my father at the funeral…that was really nice.”
I didn’t come here expecting her gratitude. I let the words bounce off me.
She waited for me to acknowledge what she said, but when nothing happened, she dropped it. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” She maneuvered past me and walked out the bedroom door.
I didn’t turn around to watch her leave. I focused on the sound of her footsteps, listening to them trail away until she was gone.
I was asleep when my phone rang on the nightstand.
No one would be stupid enough to call me at this time of night, so whatever it was, it was important.
Becky moaned at the sound, kicking me under the sheets.
I answered the call without checking who it was. “Maverick.”
“Sir, it’s Liam down at the gate.” Liam was the head of my security for the property. My estate didn’t just include my private property where my residence was. It also included the factory where we produced the high-quality cheese that was distributed all across Europe. I had a large territory to maintain and protect.
“What is it?” My eyes were still closed because I was half asleep.
Becky moaned like she wanted me to be quiet.
“A group of men pulled up in a Hummer. Five armed guys. The leader is asking for you. His name is Kamikaze.”
Not that asshole.
“The gate is locked and they haven’t tried to enter the premises, but he’s asking for you. Says you can face him now, or you can face him later—your choice.”
Kamikaze was basically the devil. He made underground deals all over the world, commissioning the sale of weapons, humans, drugs, and anything else you could think of. He was a third party in commerce—but not the middle man you could just cut out. I’d done business with him before—only a handful of times. “Did he say what he wanted?”
“No.”
I didn’t want to send him away so he could sneak up on me later. I would just lie there in bed and wonder what was going on in my own front yard. I didn’t appreciate his unexpected visit, but when someone raised the stakes, I had to do the same. “I’ll be there in five minutes.”
I walked down the driveway and approached the closed gates. My hair had been hastily styled with my fingertips and I’d washed the sleep out of my eyes, so I looked like I’d been up at three a.m. like these assholes. “Open the gate.” I had armed men all over the place, and these guys obviously didn’t want a war if they only had five men altogether. Just because they were armed didn’t mean they were hostile—all men were armed.
The iron gates swung inward and opened onto to the dirt path that extended a quarter mile before it connected to the main road.
Kamikaze was in the front, with his big, square head and nearly seven feet in height. His arms bulged with pounds of muscle, and he looked suited for war. A shotgun was draped across his back, like he was prepared to blow someone to pieces in close proximity.
His size didn’t scare me. “This better be important to show up on my doorstep like this. Drop your phone in the toilet?”
Kamikaze smiled, showing all of his white teeth. Combined with his large cow-like eyes, his grin looked maniacal. He stepped closer to me, ignoring all the guns trained directly on his forehead. “It’s very important. Martin Chatel cost me millions—and now he’s dead.”
In the back of my mind, this is what I’d feared. The hounds were on the scent and looking for someone to blame for their loses. This was the price I had to pay to avenge my mother. I had to protect Arwen from this double-decker bus. “Explain how that concerns me.”