Page 74 of Queen Of Dark Money

Iturned toStonenext, who was already donning his coat. “Yeah, yeah,I’llfollow you out.Megoing last will ensure the second tail follows me, if there is one.”

“Goodman,”Icommended him, lettingRiverthrow my overcoat on my shoulders. “Withany luck, the bastard thinks he hit someone and won’t be back.Butwe need to track him down.”

Gattturned back to us, pulling the phone away from his ear for a second. “Thatgun’s got a serial number on it, and it’s not a model that many people around here carry.I’llnarrow down the buyer and seller, and we’ll start hunting the bastard down.”

Gattmight be a gun runner, but violence wasn’t in his wheelhouse, and if there was one thing he didn’t take kindly to, it was being shot at.Iknew with him on the job, the fucker who’d fired that bullet wouldn’t get far.Andif he did, he’d better keep on running, becauseGattwouldn’t stop until he’d dragged the bastard back here to answer for his shit.

Ireally pitied the bastard who took this hit contract.Hehad no idea what he was walking into.Justanother politician’s money, just another job to him.Unfortunatelyfor him, he had no idea what shit show he’d strolled into, and now it might mean his life if theKingsgot ahold of him.

Withthe girl securely tucked in my arms,Istrode to the backdoor.BeforeIcould even take a breath of the alleyway’s air, we were in the car, and the driver took off, navigating a series of twists and turns guaranteed to throw even the most skilled of tails.

Thetrip to my building usually took a half hour, but with this guy behind the wheel, it was ten minutes.Theparking garage attendant greeted me at the back window, asking for my passcode.

Whenhe was satisfiedIwasn’t some sort of killer sneaking in—which was ironic—he allowed us to pass through the gates into the secure underground parking lot.Ididn’t relax until we’d parked and closed the doors behind us, blocking off the rest of the world from my private little space.Theelevator required a special card to get on, and only my main guard andIhad one.Thebuilding super, obviously, had an emergency key, but good luck finding out which one it was.Wepaid top dollar for our privacy here, and it was well worth the pretty penny that came out of my bank, in my opinion.

Theelevator doors opened on my floor, andInodded atPercy, my main guard, as he watched us pass through the penthouse entryway.Twosteps in, andIfinally felt likeIcould breathe again.Theroom was silent, butIreveled in the quiet for a change, pleased that there would be no shooting at us on the hundredth floor of a very exclusive, well-guarded building.Notunless the asshole had a helicopter, andIseriously doubted a hired hitman was also a side billionaire on his off days.

Thegirl still wasn’t awake, soImade a split-second decision and took her to my study, laying her out on the sofa untilIcould figure out what to do with her.Theguys had given me her purse and a bag with two very expensive dresses in it, both of which no doubt needed dry cleaning.Whileshe rested,Itook the bag and made for the door again, in search of my second guard this time.

Dirkwas sitting in my kitchen at the island, his stool tiny compared to that beefy bulk of muscle he touted around.Inodded in greeting, and he nodded back–usually the extent of our conversations.Hewasn’t one for many words, like anothergruff ex-military assholeIknew well, but unlikeSoldier, his was a more physical limitation.

Yousee,Dirkonly had half a tongue.Thebastards on enemy lines had tried to cut it out of his mouth when they captured him.Unfortunatelyfor them, they’d left a knife nearby for him to reach out and grab, and he’d stabbed the life out of them before they managed to get it all.Sowhen he did speak, most of his words were a bit rough around the edges.Ididn’t mind, though.Ihad more difficult conversations with toddlers before.Workingaround his speech impediment was like a cakewalk compared to that.

“Dirk.Canyou get ahold ofChancefor me and tell him it’s urgent he come to me in person first thing tomorrow morning?Wehave something to deal with that can’t wait beyond that, butI’mnot to be disturbed until then.”

“Mmm,” he muttered, nodding once. “Unerthood.”

“Oh, andDirk, if it’s not too much trouble, could you send this bag out with the night driver to have it dry-cleaned?They’reexpensiveDiordresses, andI’dlike them back as soon as possible.”

Henodded, accepting the bag from my clutches, and disappeared down the hall like the efficient man he was.

Timeslike these,Iwas appreciative of my staff.Somepeople might thrive on drama, chaos, or disordered insanity, but not me.Iwanted everything to go as smoothly as possible, with no hiccups.Abackup plan for my backup plans.

Itwas what kept me sane.

Bythe timeIwandered back into the study,MissSinclair–no, her name wasKerenza–was sitting upright on the couch, but she was still curled in a ball, and she didn’t even register me entering to join her.Shedidn’t move whenIsat down next to her, and the only sign she realizedIwas there was the flinchthat she produced whenIlaid a hand on her knees, which were drawn up to her chin.

“Heythere, sweetheart,”Istarted, hoping to soothe her with my voice. “Canyou talk to me?Tellme whatIcan do to help.”

Thiswasn’t the first timeI’dseen someone suffer a panic attack, and it hadn’t taken much to figure out that’s what she was going through, not shock from the attempted murder.Still, it was imperativeIknow if she needed medication, if she needed anything from me to make this easier on herself.Ididn’t know a thing about this girl, other than she was one ofEddySinclair’sdaughters, and apparently, he didn’t want anyone to know it.

Somuch so that he was willing to off his own flesh and blood to keep his dirty little secrets.

Itipped her head back so she was forced to look into my eyes, andItried a soft smile, unsure how much of a dominant personality she could handle right now. “Heythere, girlie, look at me.Ineed you to focus.Doyou know where you are?Whoyou are?Whatyear it is?”

Shesniffed, a hand coming up to wipe at her eyes, which hadn’t shed a tear since she passed out. “I’mnot stupid,I’mjust having a panic attack,” she muttered, her sassy voice lighting my dom side up like the fourth ofJuly. “Andyou can call meKenzie.”

“HowaboutKenz?”Iasked, wanting to keep up the rapport with her. “Isthat okay?”

Sheshrugged, studying her nails instead of me. “Sure,Iguess.”

Iyanked her gaze back up, my fingers gripping her chin and refusing to let go. “Heynow, whenItell you to look at me, you look at me, you understand?”

Awhimper escaped her, andIrealizedImight be hurting her.Shit.Idropped her chin, struggling with the urge to command her.Shewasn’t my submissive.Shewasn’t a playthingfor me to toy with.Shewas a woman who had just barely survived being shot at, and she was in shock, and on the downswing of a panic attack.Ineeded to take a gentler approach.

“Iunderstand, sir,” she whispered, shocking me out of my self-flagellation.

“Fuck,”Iswore, realizingIhad just signed up for more thanIrealized. “You’retrouble, aren’t you, pretty girl?”

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