Page 57 of Royal Beast
“That’s right,” the lieutenant replies, his smirk widening. “Suspicion of illegal gambling operations. You know, the kind that runs out of places like, oh, say… Brannagan-owned hotels?”
The officer behind him steps forward, cuffs at the ready.
“Careful,” I warn, my eyes narrowing. “You don’t want to make this worse for yourself.”
The lieutenant chuckles darkly. “I think we’ll take our chances.”
The cuffs click around my wrists, and I allow them to lead me to the squad car, keeping my steps steady and my expression blank. Losing my cool now won’t help, and besides, I know exactly who to call.
By the time I’m seated in the booking room, Ronan Calhoun is already on his way. The officers keep their distance, but I can feel their eyes on me, waiting for me to crack. They’ll be waiting forever.
The door swings open less than thirty minutes later, and Ronan strides in, his presence like a gale-force wind. His tailoredsuit, silver tie pin, and no-nonsense expression turn heads immediately. The man is a shark, and the look he’s giving tells me he smells chum in the water.
“Gentlemen,” he begins, his tone dripping with mock civility, “I understand there’s been some sort of misunderstanding regarding my client.”
The lieutenant steps forward, his bravado faltering slightly under Ronan’s sharp gaze. “This isn’t a misunderstanding. Kellan Brannagan?—”
“Save it,” Ronan interrupts, holding up a hand. “If you had anything concrete, he wouldn’t still be sitting here without formal charges. This is nothing more than an unlawful detention. Release him now, or I’ll bury you in so many lawsuits, your precinct will be working out of a tent.”
The lieutenant’s jaw tightens, but he doesn’t respond. Ronan takes a slow step closer, his voice dropping.
“And just a suggestion… perhaps don’t test the patience of a man with my resources. Now, unlock the cuffs.”
With a sharp nod from the lieutenant, an officer steps forward and removes the cuffs from my wrists. I stand, rolling my shoulders, and offer a tight smile.
“Thanks for the hospitality,” I say, my voice cold.
Ronan doesn’t break stride as we leave the station, his phone already in hand. “I’ll follow up on this,” he says briskly. “We’ll deal with the aftermath later. For now, keep a low profile.”
“Sure thing,” I reply, though we both know that’s the last thing on my mind. I’m going to make every single person involved in this situation regret the fact that they woke up this morning and chose to come after the Brannagan Family.
As soon as I reach the office, I storm directly into Rory’s office without warning, slamming the door behind me. He looks up from his laptop, startled.
“What’s the matter now?” he asks, a frown on his face.
“They arrested me,” I inform him, fire burning in my gut. “They got to Fiona Grace, took her black book of clients, arrested several of the Twin Shores hotel employees, then came after me.”
Rory leans back in his chair, whistling low. “Fuck. You thinking what I’m thinking?”
I nod, crossing my arms as I sink into the leather chair facing him. “It’s the Russians. They’re onto us. This is a distraction, I’m sure of it.”
Rory scrubs a hand over his face. “What’s our move, then?”
“We hit Anatoly. Hard and fast.”
A spark of interest flashes in Rory’s eyes. “You sure about that? It’s not like we can half-ass it.”
“I’m sure,” I say firmly. “We’ve waited long enough. He’s getting bolder, and if we don’t take him down now, he’ll bleed us dry.”
Rory nods, leaning forward. “Targets?”
“His clubs,” I say without hesitation. “Take out his income streams. And his political contacts. Leak what we can or bribe who we need to. We make him untouchable in the worst way.”
“And his lieutenants?”
“We flip the ones we can.” I shrug. “Eliminate the rest.”
Rory nods, already pulling out files and notes. “This is going to take everything we’ve got.”
