Page 47 of A Man of Prestige

I watch these three powerful men hesitate. That’s when I know. Beyond a show of a doubt, these men love us. They don’t want us to be left unsafe and unprotected.

Aiden surprises me when he pulls a gun out of the waistband of his pants and sets it on the table, pushing it to me.

I pick it up and stare at him. He motions to the gun. “You know how to use it.”

I roll my eyes. “Yes, I know. I was literally trained by the U.S. government to kill people, so I think we’re good here. Now, please go deal with things.”

He nods and steps toward me. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Conner kissing Vivienne and Sebastian hugging Alexis. Aiden takes my chin in his hand and forces me to focus on him. “Do not leave here unless it becomes unsecure. We will come back to you.”

“OK,” I whisper, suddenly feeling unsure.

He leans down and presses a gentle kiss to my lips. “I promise you. We’ve got a second chance, Ella. And I’m not throwing that away.”

“Be careful,” I reply as he lets go of me and I step back.

The three of them give us all a final look, and then they leave, shutting the door quietly behind them.

“That was…” Alexis starts.

“Fucking intense,” Vivienne finishes.

“Have they always been like that?” Alexis asks me. I laugh. Alexis is young. She reminds me a bit of my sister, and I know that I’m going to be good friends with her based solely on that.

“Yes. Those three are…well, they are what they are,” I state not sure how to explain the men that just left us tucked away in this apartment.

“They won’t leave the brotherhood, will they?” Vivienne says with a sigh as she sits down in front of her whiteboard and opens her laptop.

“Nope,” I reply. “Loyalty is part of their souls. There’s a reason they all joined a secret society that promised them power, wealth, and prestige. That’s who they are. We can’t change that. But deep down, they all crave those things for a reason. The losses in their lives…shaped them and made them better men. I just don’t think they see that.”

“Well, I suppose we need to show them,” Alexis ponders as she looks at the whiteboard.

“I have a feeling that’s easier said than done,” Vivienne mutters.

“So,” I say, clapping my hands together, “I do believe we have a few loose ends to tie up. Let’s bring down a few CEOs, a crime boss, and an admiral, shall we?”

Vivienne laughs. “Now that, is my area of expertise.”

She tosses some documents on the table.

“It’s all here,” she states as she looks at the dozen or so manilla file folders. “I have emails, memorandums, secret messages from the dark web, financial transactions, and calendar events. As Conner noted, we had Bryce using a source to pull additional information from the dark web and also from his dad’s company’s server. We can conclusively tie it all together. Jared, Jason, and Adam were friends with Damien. They likely shared a penchant for drugging ladies to use as they pleased. That sick bond turned into a business relationship when Jared’s company stumbled upon something they could use, and Damien suddenly needed to launder some funds. It looks like Vance got brought in to assist with hiding the funds. If they were having to make a product for the military, then they would be receiving money and also spending more. It’s the perfect way to launder. Who’s going to figure that out? Since Adam’s and Jared’s companies were the only ones that had this drug and microneedle to deliver it, the military by default had to hire them. They won a bid based on no other company having that exact combination. By bidding together, they ensured their farce would be effective. Meanwhile, they had free range with the drug for their extracurricular activities. They essentially had free test subjects. I think the early version of the drug didn’t work so well. Girls ended up dying, except for Tina. And recently, they needed to dispose of some girls because they were remembering things.”

“Damn, you are a good investigative journalist,” Alexis says with a low whistle.

“I have my moments,” she says with a wink as she pulls out her laptop. “I’ve written most of the article already. Who wants to proofread it?”

Alexis and I both raise our hands and Vivienne smiles as she sets her computer down for us to see.

I look from one to the other. “Ladies, no matter what happens from here out, I want you to know it’s been a pleasure. I always wanted Conner and Sebastian to find their soulmates. It makes everything complete.”

“Let’s just hope we can finish this with all of us intact,” Vivienne says with a frown.

I pat her arm. “We can sure as hell try.”

Chapter21

Aiden

As we siton Sebastian’s bench at the Tidal Basin, we all turn on our phones together. We’d spent the walk here talking. All three of us are still in shock, but we’re also ready to finish this.

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