Page 7 of Obsession

I wipe my eyes, sniffle, and start walking away. “I’ll come for my shift. I’ll be on time. You tell Mr. Middleton he’s the best!”

Who said rich men were assholes?

I know he’s got a reputation in the club, but maybe that’s just exaggerated.

As I exit the campus, leaving behind the two baffled henchmen, I think to myself that Mr. Middleton might not be as horrible of a boss as I had imagined him to be.

So maybe he’s not a completely deranged psychopath.

I suppose only time will tell.

Chapter 3

The File

HUNTER

“The Caller brothers have been dealt with,” Lars announces.

I study the body hanging from a rope around his wrists, his face bloody.

“And what about Isaiah?”

“Dead,” Parker adds. “There were torture marks on him, so we know they grilled him for information.”

When neither of them adds anything further, I lift a brow. “Where is he?”

“They shot him in the alley behind the club. We reviewed the security footage, and it seems that one of the bartenders saw the body.”

I blink in mild surprise. “The police weren’t called?”

“Well, she opened the door, and she didn’t step outside when she saw the body. The new cameras we installed in the kitchen last week show her locking the door and kicking the key under the counter.”

Amusement flickers in my chest upon hearing that.

“Who was it?”

I already have a feeling that I know who it is, but when the two men exchange a look, my answer is confirmed.

“The bartender we tracked down today at the college.”

My memory goes back to the young woman who looked at me with such reckless eyes, even as she had quaked in her shoes. She was like a hissing kitten, afraid for her life but baring her fangs at me.

“Did she give any clarity on why she hasn’t been back at work?”

“Not really. I think it surprised her that she still has a job,” Parker replies.

I’m not typically a man who is easily intrigued by a woman or by anyone, but the way she rushed forward to defend her coworker, just seconds away from me slitting the throats of those two men, has left a lasting impression in my mind.

“Are we sure that the Caller brothers killed Isaiah?” I move back to the topic at hand, gesturing towards one of my bodyguards to cut down the body.

Parker nods. “We found his wallet on one of them. We also went to his clinic. It was trashed. Looked like a break-in.”

“Isaiah didn’t keep my records on hand, which is probably what they went looking for,” I say slowly. “But murdering him in my backyard is a challenge being thrown at me. The Blue Whiskey has to remain neutral territory. Find out who hired those two. This wasn’t just a random act of violence on their part.”

I watch Lars and Parker leave and then look at the bodyguard. “Dispose of this one and send word to Mr. Romero that his daughter got her justice.”

He nods, and I go to my office, contemplating this new turn of events. Isaiah was my personal physician. To be kidnapped, tortured, and killed on my turf is highly disrespectful and bold.Somebody is trying to make a statement, but who would be stupid enough to go against me?”

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