Page 109 of Rosabel and the Billionaire Beast

I couldn’t grasp this. How could he put any kind of stock in these threats now that the culprit had been caught?

“But I thought the guy who attacked Wonderland is in jail.”

Duncan’s hands fisted in his lap so hard the veins in his forearms bulged. “He escaped. When he was being transported from the county jail to the state pen, he had some cronies intercept. They crashed into the vehicle carrying him. The driver died. Several of the guards were injured, and in the back of the van, the chains had been cut.”

My stomach plunged. “He escaped?”

“We don’t know where he is. Why else do you think I brought you here? Sequestered, alone with just me. I wasn’t going to take a chance on him finding you.”

Duncan had said things about his lake house—about how he hoped it was far enough away. His obtuse comments now made total sense.

That was why. His desperation. The pleading to be his girlfriend, to come home with him. He’d been scared for me.

“This wasn’t about coffee, was it?”

He laughed, sliding his arm around me and pressing a kiss to my temple. “It’s never been about coffee.”

I rested my head against his shoulder, allowing this newfound connection between us to thread itself more fully. My fingers found his free hand and wove through his. He didn’t pull away. He held on, keeping me.

The push and pull of the last year and a half was gone. He’d finally surrendered. I had, too—and for the first time since I’d known him, being together was easy. Which was ironic, since according to Duncan, we were sitting ducks.

“So…” I thought back to the conversation Duncan and Wesley had had. So many details I hadn’t understood now started to make sense. “A jail break.”

“Yep. It’s the reason I didn’t like you running by yourself. Why I hated the thought of having you leave on your own if you’d decided to go back to Westville even though I knew it was what was best for you.”

“Do you really think whoever this is?—”

“His name is Ulrich Phillips. He was part of Sigma Phi Rho and took The Pact more seriously than the rest of us. He first went after Adrian. He and this other guy, Will, but that’s another story in and of itself.”

“How? What did he do?”

“We think he started a company called Wolf Industries. He used that company to target and steal Adrian’s clientele. Then Will kidnapped Gabby and threatened her. At first, we thought the incidents were related, but now, I’m starting to think the timing was just coincidental.”

“You mean, they both went after Adrian but didn’t know it?”

“Yeah. I think so. Will went to jail, but the attacks didn’t stop. And Ulrich did many things to imply that he was the ‘wolf’ part of Wolf Industries, so I’m guessing he’s the one who started the company.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I wish I was. I’ve had someone looking into Wolf Industries,” he said. “Adrian has been investigating it for months now, and we’ve found no leads whatsoever.”

I was sure that was saying something. I didn’t know Adrian Bear all that well, but I knew Duncan, and he had ample resources at his disposal.

“Wolf Industries,” I said, the thought of this mysterious business and its psychotic owner sending waves of fear through me.

Everyone in Westville had heard about Ella being framed for stealing things from Ever After Sweet Shoppe only to have evidence prove otherwise. It turned out that she was framed.

Duncan was saying the man who’d framed her was this Ulrich Phillips? And then he’d been the idiot who’d vandalized and targeted Wonderland last spring?

“Wolf Industries isn’t your typical business,” Duncan said, skimming his fingers down my arm and raising the hairs there. “It’s only been established to see that The Pact impacts each of us who signed it. And now that Ulrich is out of jail again, it’s only a matter of time before he comes after you next.”

I couldn’t remain sitting. “Then take it down.”

Duncan shifted, resting his hands on his thighs. “It’s not that simple. We discontinued The Pact, but as for Wolf Industries, we don’t know who’s working there. According to the internet, the company has been disbanded.”

“What have you tried?” I asked.

“They had a website, but it’s down—and whatever information they used regarding their identities was falsified.There are no annual reports, regulatory filings, or press releases or anything like that. All of the reviews that were on the site were fabricated, as far as we can tell. We tried finding industry reports, or any kind of networking the company may have had, like on LinkedIn, you know?”

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