Page 76 of Gabe

With a surprisingly playful expression, Alex tipped his head to the side as he looked Sebastian up and down. “My father is… was set in his ways. He preferred to rely on his old allies rather than forging new ones. It created certain… blind spots in his influence, which you and your brother have navigated expertly. Well done. I, however, do not have those same blind spots. Now, sit. We have a lot to talk about.”

Still, nobody moved, until Gabe unexpectedly spoke up.

“Reyes.”

He pointed at the man standing behind Alex, eyes narrowed and mind obviously spinning.

The man stared back.

“Long? Right? You were the medic.”

“Garrison?” Alex leaned over to address his bodyguard with an inquisitive raised eyebrow. “You two know each other.”

“We served together. Different units, but we went on a few joint missions.”

Gabe flinched like he’d just remembered something. “The mission with the camels.”

“Those fucking camels,” the bodyguard, Garrison, agreed.

The two studied each other for another moment, though this time there was less hostility. Eventually, Gabe nodded and gestured for me to take a seat on the couch.

“All right. We’ll hear you out.”

“What?” Sebastian started to protest, but Gabe cut him off.

“It won’t hurt to talk. They’ve already found us, so running now wouldn’t do us much good.”

With some grumbling, and help from Newt to navigate his crutch, Sebastian also took a seat.

“Great.” Alex clapped his hands together like this was a brunch meetup with friends and he was about to spill the latest gossip. “First, a show of good faith. I’m here to provide you with Tansie Bell’s true identity.”

That information would really help with the case against the pedophile ring, and I could tell Gabe was eager to hear it from the way he shifted forward slightly.

Alex seemed to sense the eager atmosphere in the room, for he grinned like a satisfied cat. “Tansie Bell does seem to be her real name, not that it means much. She was sold into human trafficking at a young age and managed to work her way up into a position of power. We think she did it mainly through blackmail. You’d be surprised what secrets people are willing to admit during pillow talk.”

He consulted something on his phone, scrolling through information with a scowl before continuing. “A few years ago, she got pregnant, and that seems to have been the catalyst for her to start her own operation.”

“Why…” Newt started to speak, then stopped himself. However, when all eyes turned toward him, he plucked up his courage and kept talking. “Why would getting pregnant inspire her to start her own pedophile ring? That seems… unnatural.”

Alex just shrugged. “Perhaps she realized she had easy access to new product? I’m not going to pretend I understand the mindset of these kinds of people. I’ve always had more… mature preferences.” As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward his bodyguard. The heat in his gaze practically undressed the man in front of all of us.

There was no mistaking the nature of their relationship.

“Anyway...” Alex cleared his throat and tore his gaze away from his bodyguard with obvious reluctance. “Do with that information what you will. It’s just a peace offering, and not really why I’m here.”

“So, what is your purpose here,” Gabe demanded. He draped his arm around my shoulder in a protective position, like he was ready to drag me out of the room at a moment’s notice. “If you’ve had the ability to find us whenever you want, why approach us now? Does your father know you’re here, or are you going behind his back?”

I flinched when Alex suddenly started laughing. It was a light and mirthful sound, as though he were truly delighted. Such a genuine expression was unexpected coming from a man in his position.

“At this point, if I wanted to go behind my father’s back, I’d need a shovel. He’s already dead and buried.”

Sebastian shot to his feet, but tripped over his crutch and would have face planted in the carpet if Newt hadn’t caught him. “What? How? When?”

“A few weeks ago,” Alex said with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Someone killed him, which isn’t a surprise. Someone was going to kill him eventually. It was a lovely funeral.”

The wicked twist to his grin told me that something had happened at that funeral, and based on the glint in his dark eyes, I probably didn’t want to know the details.

“And you’re here to…” Sebastian shook his head as he struggled to understand what was going on. “Settle his scores?”

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