Page 69 of Reaper Flame

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After getting through the police statements in less than ten minutes, we huddled together in a velvet booth. Despite my lack of sleep, adrenaline coursed through my veins. We expected there to be a body count at the end of this war, but not this fast.

“I still can’t believe it,” Mieko whispered.

Rocky slapped down a bottle of whiskey and poured generous measures. “Hair of the dog?”

Vixen pushed it away. “Are you trying to make me sick again?”

Zander sipped his drink silently. He hadn’t spoken since the police left. His arms were crossed, and his face closed off like an impassable wall.

West checked his phone, and his lip curled. “We have a visitor.”

He spun his cell around to show CCTV footage of the street outside. Ahead of our return from the yacht, he’d ordered his guys to update the security systems in Lapland and the Seven Sins casino. The new system gave him full access to the camera feeds at the club, casino, garages and his apartment in Bayside Heights.

On the screen, we watched as Giles sauntered over to Lapland’s entrance. He wore a perfectly pressed suit and looked like a wannabe gangster, surrounded by a four-man entourage. I recognized their faces as Hiram’s lower rank goons. It was laughable that Giles believed Hiram valued him enough to give him proper protection. Anyone half-trained would be able to kill them with their hands tied.

“Do we let our men take him out?” West asked, his eyes lighting up.

“No,” Zander said. “Let him in.”

West pouted and grudgingly sent a text to the security guards at the entrance. They would frisk each person down before they set foot in the club. Giles was too smart to show up with a weapon, though. The fucker was here to do what he did best. Gloat.

We filed out of the booth.

“You need to tell your men to be less handsy next time,” Giles said, entering and readjusting his jacket. “A little birdie told me you visited the manor this morning. What did you think?”

“I’ll show you, you fucking bastard,” West growled.

I grabbed his wrist to stop him from doing something stupid, despite every instinct in my body begging me to do the same. We had to be calculated. West retaliating would play straight into his, and Hiram’s, hands.

“It’s nice to see you again, Candy,” Giles said coldly, his gaze lingered on my fingers holding West back. “But it looks like you may have broken your vows.”

“Don’t,” I warned as Rocky and West tensed.

Giles’s henchmen stepped forward. A fight is what they wanted, but we didn’t need to waste time spilling the blood of people who weren’t important. We had to hit Hiram where it would hurt the most, and he wouldn’t even know the names of the goons he hired to look after Giles.They were nothing.

“Although I can’t say I’m surprised. What did I expect when I married a stripper whore like you?” Giles taunted. “Hiram is disappointed.”

“Our vows aren’t the only thing I’ll break,” I spat.

“Why are you here, cousin?” Zander asked.

Giles paced around the club, running his hand over the bar top to inspect it for dust. “I wanted to pass on my commiserations, of course.”

“More like you wanted to brag about how good a job you did,” I corrected him, narrowing my eyes.

“It’s rare you give compliments, my darling wife,” Giles mocked scathingly.

West wrapped his arms around my waist, rooting me to the spot.

“Don’t,” he hissed in my ear. Goddammit, karma was a bitch. Next time he wanted to attack someone, maybe I’d let him if it meant him not having to restrain me in return.

Zander’s ringing phone stopped us all in our tracks. Giles continued to talk and blow more smoke up his own ass, but none of us listened. We all knew what call Zander was waiting for. His brows furrowed, stopping only to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’, then ended the call.

“You seem proud of yourself, cousin,” Zander said as soon as he hung up. “But I wonder whether anyone checked if the manor was empty before torching it down?”

Giles’s smug grin faltered momentarily. He hadn’t expected the conversation to go this way.

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