Page 81 of Obsession

“I want an external investigation. I find it hard to believe that a customer would be able to get in and out of the basement so quickly not unless they had help.“

“Inside help,” Vaughn adds, his expression heavy. “I’ll run facial recognition software over the video. I need a list of your regulars as well. Could be staff or somebody who’s in and out of the club regularly.”

“You can talk to Megan,” I tell him. “She seems to know mostly everybody who comes in.”

Vaughn runs an information brokerage company. His services are used widely, and he’s made a name for himself. Despite his easygoing demeanor, he’s not someone to be taken lightly. I typically use in-house resources to gather information on potential clients, but shit has just gotten real, and now I need to use someone I can trust 100%. Vaughn can be a dangerous opponent if crossed. After all, information is the most dangerous of all weapons.

“I’ve got access to traffic cams all around the city. So far, I haven’t seen a glimpse of Johnathan, but then, with all that money, he could have gotten surgery to alter his features. That’s what I would’ve done.”

“Check into the deaths of any prominent or small-level plastic surgeons, starting from the day he ran,” I say. “If he used one, he’s not stupid enough to have left them alive.”

Vaughn nods, “Got it.”

When he doesn’t leave, I stare at him. “What else?”

“So, who is she? This girl we’re looking for.”

My fingers tap on my desk, and after a long silence, I say quietly, “My younger sister. There’s a possibility she survived the fire fifteen years ago that I thought killed her.”

Vaughn’s eyes widen, but he doesn’t say anything else. He’s not that stupid. Instead, he gets up to leave. He makes his way to the door before pausing and looking over his shoulder. “What’re you going to do if it is your sister?”

“Bring her home.”

I’m not surprised by his question. After all, my reputation as a heartless monster precedes me. The people closest to me know that rather than having a weakness, I’d rather eliminate it altogether. It’s why I’ve never had a serious relationship like Vaughn does.

I get up and walk over to the large window, and look outside at the busy Los Angeles traffic. From this floor, the cars passing by look almost like tiny Matchbox cars. As I take in the sight of them, my eyes are unfocused.

It wasn’t easy to be raised in the streets. My father abandoned us after my sister’s birth. I was old enough at that time to still remember his face, even now. The bastard took every cent my mother saved up and left us while she was in the hospital, leaving us broke and homeless (although it wasn’t like we were well off before then.)

I tried my best to take care of them, but I was young and had few resources, and ultimately made the biggest mistake of my life, a mistake that cost me them. I became a runner for a small-scale gang in my area which was part of a larger crimeorganization. They gave me good money, which allowed me to put a roof over my family’s head, but the good times were short-lived. I was framed for a local murder I didn’t commit, and the gang decided to torch my house to teach me a lesson. It was only later they discovered I was innocent. But it had been too late.

So I waited.

I waited for years until I had the money and the power to hunt them down one by one and murder them in the most vicious manner possible. It hadn’t brought my mother and sister back, but wiping out that entire gang with such meticulous precision and watching them cower in fear, not knowing when I would strike next, had been satisfying.

I close my eyes in regret. I should have kept at least one of them alive. Maybe I’d know the truth about my sister if I had.

With a sigh, I open my eyes and see the hard glint in my eyes reflected in the window’s glass. It will be challenging to weed her out, but if it is truly her, then I have enough resources to scour the entirety of LA with a fine-tooth comb. It’s just going to take some time.

The same goes for Johnathan.

There is nowhere he can hide from me. I just have to be patient. I might have let him off easy for stealing from me because of our history, but attempting to find my sister and use her against me is unforgivable. I’ll make him pay in blood for even entertaining that thought.

I will have my vengeance.

Glancing down at my watch, I check the time, and a cold smile settles on my lips. I have to settle another score in the meantime. I recall Megan’s words.

I’m going to make something of myself, and they’ll regret looking down on me!

I take the elevator into the garage, where Parker and Lars are waiting for me. It’s time to give my fierce-eyed kitten a little vengeance of her own.

Chapter 27

I Need An Explanation

HUNTER

“Mr. Middleton, what brings you here today?”

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