Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 133321 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 667(@200wpm)___ 533(@250wpm)___ 444(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133321 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 667(@200wpm)___ 533(@250wpm)___ 444(@300wpm)
He lunges for me and I turn and try to run, but it’s too little too late. He grabs my hair and all but rips it out as he yanks me around to face him. “What do you have in your bag?” He reaches for it, and I punch him, giving help time to arrive, I hope, but it does no good.
He reaches into my bag that I stupidly didn’t zip and grabs the folder. “You little bitch.” He drops it on the ground and shoves me against the wall. “I should have known you were still fucking him. That will never get out of this building.”
“It doesn’t matter. I took pictures. I sent proof to the police. Did you really think you could frame Grayson and get away with it?”
“I’ll get away with it. You’ll be dead and I’ll tell them you were setting me up.”
“Dead? You’re going to kill me? Are you serious?”
“Yes, Mia. You’ll die.” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone. “Mia will need to be dealt with tonight, but not until I’m done with her. Pick her up at the normal spot.” He ends the call. “We fuck first. Maybe you can talk me out of killing you.”
I try to knee him, but he catches my leg. “Not this time, sweetheart. This time I fuck you, you don’t fuck me.” He pulls out a gun. “Just in case you think you might scream. Think again.” He yanks me off the wall and starts pulling me by the hair toward the door. That’s when the door bursts open and Grayson appears, holding a gun and followed by Blake.
“Grayson,” I breathe out as the two men stand side by side, Blake directly in front of Ri, but it’s Grayson that Ri is looking at, his gun now pointed at him.
“Let her go, Ri, or I will shoot you,” Grayson says, stepping closer. “And I’ll enjoy it.”
Ri holds the gun on him to my head. “We walk out together or she leaves dead. Decide.”
Grayson squeezes my hand and I snap back to the present to find him staring at me. And I swear the concern in his green eyes meeting mine is all it takes for me to push past a weak moment. I cover his hand with mine, silently telling him that I’m okay. And I am. I’m alive. I’m here with him. Ri doesn’t get to screw that up for either of us.
Fired up, I focus on Reese. “The FBI and DA need to take this hammer off of Grayson. Blake obviously feels they might come after him or we wouldn’t be sitting here with you.”
“Blake’s being cautious,” Reese assures me, motioning for Blake to join us. “As he should be. Frankly, I’m of the opinion the FBI and DA won’t be stupid enough to come after Grayson. Grayson could sue—would sue—and would win. I’m more concerned about a different type of attack. Something that hits Grayson financially, or personally.”
An attack that’s financial or personal. Those words hit hard. I turn to Grayson. “I’m the personal attack, I get that. What could they do to you financially?”
“I’ve taken precautions,” Grayson assures me. “Shifted my portfolio, layered up different types of insurance.”
Blake pulls up a seat. “Eric and I are working through any and every way Grayson could be targeted.”
Frustration takes root. “My God, can’t the FBI just take down this underground group?”
“They’re as slippery as the snakes they are,” Blake replies. “The attorney holding the payout Ri promised those snakes is another story. The right move is to arrest him and freeze the money. No money, no group.”
“Then what are we waiting on?” I ask. “Why aren’t we already making that happen?”
“For starters,” Blake says, “this doesn’t erase any residual damage to Grayson or his operation that might be discovered later. The FBI and the DA already know what’s happening, and they’re sitting back and observing for now. I need to pressure them to stop sucking their thumbs and make this arrest. That means setting up a meeting that needs to include your legal counsel.”
“I’m in,” Reese replies, glancing at Grayson. “Cat will get you a client agreement this afternoon. That is if that’s what you want?”
“All-in,” Grayson replies, but his focus is instantly back on Blake. “You said for starters,” he repeats. “What else is holding you back on this?”
“I don’t want to fuck you in the process of trying to stop these assholes from fucking you. Everything isn’t online and documented with technology. There could be another method of payment or a backup source of payment. If there is, we could trigger a rapid attack. It’s like cutting a wire on a bomb. If you cut the wrong one, you blow the hell up.”
Grayson’s hand tightens over mine. “Then where does that leave us?”