Page 144 of Hot for Hostage

Davian

Sadie’s hellhound could be surprisingly obedient when he wasn’t slobbering all over my shoes. It was almost worth having my toes strangled by Vince’s tiny boots, because Bear happily trotted at my side when we left Vince on the sidewalk and tracked down my old man.

It only took one look from me for Chief Peterson to excuse himself from his conversation with my father—who sneered at Bear as we approached.

“Let me guess. You got a job as a dog walker for that damn shelter?” he asked dryly.

I stopped next to him, pleasantly surprised when Bear readily sat on his haunches next to me. The dog leaned forward and gave my father’s loafer a healthy sniffing that made both ears perk up.

If I was lucky, maybe Bear would take a liking to my pop’s shoes over mine.

“Didn’t expect you to show your face here,” I said, ignoring the barb.

“I was curious when Dante started gathering the troops.” Seb shrugged. He eyed the people streaming in and out of Zain’s house. “But this looks like a lot of trouble for one woman.”

“Don’t,” I warned him, remembering what Vince had said. Lorenzo was dead. My father had cut the feeds. And now he showed up here like nothing was wrong. “This was you, wasn’t it?”

The brow over his eye patch rose. “Say again?”

“Did you send Ali after Sadie?”

He barked a booming laugh, startling a low growl out of Bear. “You think I give a rat’s ass about who you roll around with and would turn her over to Ali? I just met the minx an hour ago.”

I refused to take the bait. “If you orchestrated this because of that bullshit engagement?—”

“I didn’t orchestrate shit, and paranoia doesn’t suit you, son.” The humor vanished from my father’s face, replaced by an icy calm I used to admire as a kid. “When have I ever given you a reason to doubt me?”

“That’s a great question,” I said. “And it’s why I didn’t want to believe it. But if there’s one thing you’ve taught me, it’s that you’ll always follow the money.Always. It doesn’t matter who you sell out in the process.”

Even me.

“Everything I do is in the best interest of our family.” His gaze turned glacial. “I’ll even let this little witch hunt of yours go—since you seem to have lost your damn mind after getting involved with that girl—but question me again, and we’ll be having a very different conversation. You understand me?”

I understood just fine. He was a condescending ass with a god complex.

“Just answer one thing first.” I stepped closer, and Bear shifted up onto all fours before copying me. “Did you come here to side with Ali against me, or to silence him before he could snitch on you like you did Lorenzo?”

His eye narrowed, and there it was. A brief hesitation I would’ve missed if I hadn’t been looking for it. “…What’s this about Lorenzo?”

“You going to tell me that wasn’t you, too?” I cocked a brow. “Hard to fake that footage.”

Genuine surprise flashed across his face, and he leaned closer. “Careful what you accuse me of. Everything I’ve done has been for us, Davian.”

“Us or you?” I threw back at him with a tight smile. “Either way, I think you’re overdue for a vacation, Pop.”

He scowled. “The hell are you talking about?”

“Take a trip. Move to another country. I don’t care.” I looped Bear’s leash around my wrist and stared my father down. “Just don’t come back.”

The rest didn’t need to be said. He knew what happened to traitors who showed their faces again.

“Who are you to tell me to leave?” His voice rose, drawing some attention from those nearby. “This has to be a joke. First, you accuse me of working with Ali with no proof, and now you think you can kick me to the curb? Your own father?”

“If you want proof, then show me your recent calls,” I challenged. “You were the only one to step out of my office after we watched the footage of Sadie leaving. Show me you didn’t call Ali as soon as you stepped outside, and I’ll believe you. Go ahead.”

When he only sneered, I slid my free hand into my pocket and gave him a tight-lipped smile. “Like I said, take a vacation. Enjoy the beach. Hit the slopes. Go wherever the hell you want. But never step foot in this city again.”

Seb rolled his eye. “Give it a rest, Davian. You got your girl back. The deed’s done. You don’t want to play this game with me.”

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