Page 74 of Once A Crime Lord

“Curiosity. You didn’t wreck the place, and you didn’t have the gun pointing at the door when I came upstairs. Besides, if I don’t counter my command in the system, whatever the cameras record in the next three hours will be sent to the police. Lyla would be free to live her life while you rot in prison for first-degree murder.” Huskin tapped the screen of his cell phone. “Even if you look like you’re in control, I know differently. The system is picking up your vitals. Your heart rate has stabilized, but it’s still elevated.”

Huskin was too straitlaced to make up stories, which could only mean that he had access to an extremely sophisticated surveillance system. He reflected on Huskin’s office of tech gadgets and made the mental leap.

“You created it, didn’t you?”

Huskin hesitated and then admitted, “After Morg—I mean, Lyla, disappeared, I couldn’t stand not knowing what happened. It didn’t make sense for her to leave. I thought she had been kidnapped. I called the cops but had no proof. Creating a sophisticated, undetectable surveillance system has become a hobby of mine.”

He didn’t like that Lyla was the inspiration for Huskin’s creation, but he was a businessman and a paranoid one as well. “How many cameras do you have?”

“Enough.”

Huskin may be naïve, but he had a backbone. This shouldn’t have pleased him, but it did. “Quit your day job. I’ll be your investor, but I get first dibs.”

Huskin blinked. “You’re kidding.”

“I run casinos, among other things. You don’t want to be an IT consultant for the rest of your life, do you?”

“You’re not going to kill me?”

“Who said I was going to kill you?”

“You’re armed.”

“You can never be too careful.”

“I’m not going to be part of the mafia,” Huskin said staunchly.

His mouth curved despite himself. Huskin was a self-righteous little thing, but he appreciated his candor. It wasn’t often that he met someone with morals and standards. Meeting someone like Huskin reminded him there was a world beyond the criminal underworld and Las Vegas. To balance out the evil he faced every day, there had to be light in the world. For him, that was Lyla. Jonathan was also a representative of the good that very few possessed. He could almost understand Huskin’s appeal for Lyla. Huskin was his antithesis. Gavin had to comfort himself with the fact that Huskin would never again have the pleasure of being buried inside his wife.

He pulled his vibrating phone out of his pocket. Lyla. He couldn’t afford to speak to her in Huskin’s presence. Huskin hadn’t betrayed his presence, but he didn’t want to push Huskin more than he had already. It was clear Huskin loved Lyla, enough to sacrifice his life so she could be free. It was romantic and idiotic. How would Lyla respond if she found out that her nerd was willing to put it all on the line for her? Did she already know, and that was why she fought so hard to save Huskin? He couldn’t match Gavin physically, so he fought in his own way—with intelligence and technology. Little surprised him, but Huskin managed to do the impossible.

Huskin regarded him steadily as he tapped his fingers on the countertop. “You’re going to hurt her.”

He said nothing.

“You’re out of control.”

“You’re alive, aren’t you?”

Huskin shook his head. “What does she see in you? It can’t be your money or looks.”

“Lyla and I have history.”

“I always knew she was too good for me.” Even as Gavin nodded, Huskin added, “And for you too.”

Fuck. He resisted the urge to laugh. “She is, but I’m not letting her go.”

“You live in a dangerous world. You could get her killed.”

He didn’t need a fucking lecture from Lyla’s ex, but he could see that the guy was genuinely worried. Heartbreak was written all over his face. He decided to do something nice for the first time in his life and give the poor schmuck some reassurance. “I have something important to take care of before I get out.”

Huskin gave him a derisive look. “How do I know that’s true?”

“Because it’s Lyla’s ultimatum.”

Huskin examined him keenly. “That’s why you’re letting me live. She said she’d leave you if you killed me.”

Fucking smart bastard. “Lyla wouldn’t leave me.”

---