Vow to Protect (Vow To Protect 1)

I entered the command room to find the whole team sitting around the table once again. Andrea’s black boots are propped on the edge. Kai is perfectly quaffed next to my favorite chair. Alexei is slumped into the chair next to his twin. Vincent, Ivan, and Michael ring the other side of the table to my right.

But Kai is the one who delivers the news. “Valentina’s father has returned home.”

An image of the old man walking into the house with a suitcase dragging behind him comes up on the screen.

“Anything else,” I wave impatiently.

Kai loads up some more images and lays them all out on the big monitor. Nothing indicates Sal is with him or that he’s been there since the night he attacked Valentina.

“The staff who have pretty much been MIA since we rescued her have all suddenly gone back to work today.”

I sit back and study the images. “Well, it’ll make things easier for us to question them too. We need someone in there.”

Kai nods. “I have someone already. I trust them to report back.”

He’s never steered me wrong yet, so I nod, content to let him figure those things out. “And Sal, has he shown his face yet? I don’t see him in any of these images.”

Kai grins, a dimple popping on his cheek. “That’s where things start to get fun. We bugged his office some time ago, and the old man is so anti-technology that he doesn’t bother to sweep for things like that. Anyway, we overheard him talking on the phone to Sal’s family. He laid down some threats, demanding his daughter be returned to him, untouched.”

I grimace. We can all guess what he means by untouched, and it disturbs me that her father is concerned with it. But if it’s the only reason Sal hadn’t finished things with her, I suppose I should be thankful.

“Any eyes or ears at his family’s estate? What about the deal we offered? Any word on their response?”

Kai’s smile slips, and I glance around the table as every one of my fearless men avoids eye contact. “What is it?”

“They sent some pretty nasty words thinking that we were somehow laying a trap for them or Sal. I don’t know if they are aware of what their son did to Valentina, but they don’t seem inclined to entertain any kind of deal during the season.”

It was a long shot anyway. I didn’t expect them to accept, especially not on the first offer. The season is always a tumultuous time. Empires rise and fall in a few short months, and I hope by the end of this one, Valentina’s father’s house will be destroyed. But only a few weeks remain to complete the work, and one final party where I plan to make an entrance.

“Send one more offer. If they are rude, send them a little gift to let them know we don’t appreciate our kindness being rebuffed. Maybe that will inspire them. I’m tempted to put a ridiculous price on Sal’s head and send it out to all the families. His isn’t the only family hard up for money.”

Kai considers and shakes his head. “I’d wait, boss. The season is almost over, and you know that once things lock down, any activity will be considered an act of war against the council.”

“Thanks for the society lesson,” I quip, still studying the images. “What else did her father say to Sal’s family? Anything about me?”

“Nope, not a mention. Not even the staff have discussed you. We’ve been monitoring the few we saw the night we breached the house and took her out. They seem too scared to discuss it or possibly to be the messenger her father kills when they deliver the bad news. He may be old, but he can lift a gun just fine.”

I’m happy there hasn't been mention of my name yet. I want my involvement secret until I choose to reveal myself and my actions. More than anything, I want to see the look on that old bastard’s face when he sees I’ve taken his only bargaining chip. He’s circling the drain, and he’s too damn stubborn to give up with some dignity. That’s fine by me. I don’t plan to offer him any.

“Make sure our offers to Sal’s family stay private for now. If any of them mentions it to outside parties, deal with it. We keep things under wraps until I decide it’s time to reveal Valentina as my wife to society.”

Kai swipes the screen, and the pictures disappear.

“Keep eyes on him. I want to know everything he does and everything he says.”

“Of course.”

Everyone else is quiet as I glance around the table. “Do you have anything else for me to handle right now?”

They all shake their heads, and I nod. Kai can handle what they need for any of his tasks. No one comes to me for anything these days anyway.