Page 41 of Always Been Mine

He couldn’t stay away for 24 hours. He couldn’t wait until tomorrow to see her again. He’d met with Ashe and Duke earlier. Gabe knew he was being underhanded filtering information before any of it reached Beatrice. She was a damned loose cannon, and with Porter not answering his phone, Gabe didn’t know what he was going to do with the information. There was still that matter of Crowe having an accomplice inthe Fuego gang, and if this killing had nothing to do with Beatrice’s client, it was best they kept the information classified. Luisa Delgado was killed with a garrote, while the others were killed execution style—single bullet to the back of the head. The question Gabe had was why not execute everyone with a bullet?

“They should be finished soon,” Emily smiled at him.

The office door opened and a blonde woman walked in. Travis’s wife, Caitlin. Gabe felt a stab of guilt. He knew her when she was Sarah.

“Hey, Emily, is Travis almost done? We don’t want to be late for our dinner reservation,” Caitlin said.

“Why don’t you head on back and shoo them out of Conference Room 2. Ed and I have to be somewhere as well.”

Gabe decided to re-introduce himself and got up from the couch just as Caitlin pivoted toward him.

All color leached from her face. A mixture of terror and anger took over her entire body as she leapt behind the reception area, startling Emily. Before he knew it, a 9-mm was pointed at him.

Fuck.Gabe was not having a good feeling about this. He raised his arms instinctively.

“Cat, what’s going on?” Emily screeched.

Travis’s wife continued glaring at him. A stampede of footsteps rushed from the hallway. She must have pushed the panic button.

Travis burst into the room.

“Cat?” Travis’s eyes widened when they landed on Gabe. “Why are you pointing a gun at Gabe?”

“Gabe?” Caitlin asked. “What are you talking about? That’s a Russian hit man.”

Double fuck.

“Cat, put the gun down.”

Beatrice cleared the door and froze when she saw the scene before her. She had never seen Cat look so terrified. And why the hell was she pointing the gun at Gabe?

“He’s Bee’s Gabriel?” Caitlin asked.

“I’m sure she doesn’t want to admit it right now,” Gabe said, smirking. Only Gabe would smirk with a gun pointed at him. “She’s in denial, but she’ll come around.”

Beatrice rushed to Gabe’s side even before Caitlin fully lowered the gun.

“You must have me confused with someone else,” Gabe added.

Lie.Beatrice knew. She just knew Caitlin was right, and with that knowledge came a whole new level of anxiety.

“I don’t understand,” Caitlin whispered. “I saw you meet with Jase. He didn’t know I followed him. I was worried because he said he was cutting a deal with a Russian hit man. It was you.” Beatrice hated how Caitlin looked troubled. “It was you,” she whispered again.

Travis walked to his wife’s side and put an arm around her shoulder. He jerked a chin at Ed, who understood and walked straight to the exit door, locking it.

Beatrice felt Gabe turn solid beside her. These guys were not letting him out without answers.

“Care to tell us the truth, Gabe?” Travis said icily. “I figured that’s how the admiral got Jase’s letter?”

Gabe didn’t say anything. Fury was evident in every line of Travis’s body as he left Caitlin’s side and stalked toward Gabe.

“Tell me, Sullivan,” Travis said coldly. “Did you know my wife was alive? Were you part of the whole fucking cover-up?”

No answer.

A fist flew. And then another and then another. Travis hammered away at Gabe until they both fell to the floor.Travis straddled him and continued punching; Gabe blocked some blows, but didn’t fight back.

Beatrice yelled for Travis to stop; Ed held her back. It was Nate who finally dragged Travis away from Gabe.

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