Page 12 of Dangerous Contract: Part 2

“War with the Tatums? We’re not at war with the Tatums. We’re just teaching those fuckers a lesson.”

“There’s more to this than dad has said. I don’t know all the details. But I heard dad say that he thinks it’ll help you focus if you’re pissed at Monique. I’ve never met the woman, but dad seems to think you’d turn on your family for her. And anything that gets in the way of family has to be squashed. His words, not mine.”

“And Leo was okay with this?”

“You tend to forget that Leo is dad’s guard. Yeah, he works at the casino and follows our orders. But he’s on dad’s payroll. You look at him as if he’s a friend. But at the end of the day, he’s dad’s employee. He’s loyal to dad. If dad tells him to get rid of someone you love, Leo will do it, whether he wants to or not.”

“Those bastards,” Raz snarled, his blood boiling. His hand tightened around the phone, knuckles turning red.

“Keep it together, Raz. I’ve got your phone. I found it in dad’s office. I’ve got Cas’s phone also. Just sit tight, and I’ll be there soon.”

“Make it quick,” Raz growled, hanging up the phone.

When Rome finally arrived, he was carrying a large black duffle bag.

“They let you in with that bag?” Raz asked.

“I know a guy on the security team. He escorted me to the room.”

Raz noticed the maintenance shirt Rome was wearing and smiled. “You’re the smartest out of all of us,” Raz told his brother.

“I know,” Rome admitted, smirking. “And you’re the dumbest for not questioning dad when he came to you with this Tatum shit. If I hadn’t been in Italy, closing deals with the DeLucas, I would have dug into the Tatum issue some more. Instead, I come home to find my brothers in the hospital and the family in fucking chaos.”

“Are you saying there’s more to this Tatum shit than what father told me?” Raz asked.

Rome nodded, placing the duffle on the bed, then opening it. Rome handed Raz his phone.

“The same number has been calling your phone around this time every day,” Rome informed him.

“Who is it?” Raz asked, unlocking his phone.

“I don’t know. I went through the phone when I found it in dad’s desk. But I didn’t call the number back. I believe it has something to do with your lady-friend because that number never called you until the day she went missing and you had your wreck.”

Raz didn’t question how his brother got into his phone while it was locked. Rome was the family hacker. If he wanted into a device, no matter what it was, he’d get in.

“I’ll call the number back,” Raz stated.

“No! Let them call you,” Rome advised. “If this really is connected to your lady’s disappearance and dad, we need to play this smart, brother. You have to pretend you’re playing by their rules. Whoever the fucktheyare.”

“Fuck their rules. I want her back and I want them dead.”

Rome sighed. “You won’t get her back if you don’t handle this well.”

Shit.“Patience has never been my strong suit,” Raz admitted, his eyes fixed on the phone as if willing it to ring. His heart ached for Monique, and he wouldn’t rest until she was safe in his arms once more.

“You look goofy as hell in that hospital gown,” Rome stated as he searched through his duffle.

“You sure know how to hit a man when he’s down, Mr. Man Bun. You should chop that shit off your head.”

Rome chuckled. Raz couldn’t lie, he was so fucking thankful for his brother’s presence. He watched as Rome removed itemsfrom the duffle and began setting up several tracking gadgets. This was his brother’s element.

“It’s good to have you home,” Raz whispered.

“Save the mushy stuff for later. We don’t have much time. We need to be ready when the call comes in,” Rome explained. “I’ll try to trace the call so we can find Monique. You have to keep them on the phone for a while.”

“What if whoever is calling isn’t calling about Monique?” Raz asked.

Rome stopped and faced Raz. “Then this entire setup has been a waste of time.” Rome went back to work. “But I think it has to do with Monique. Your phone is the only phone that this number has been calling. They haven’t called Cas.”

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