Page 11 of Ignite
“Starving,” Marcus’s voice rang behind me.
Because of past experience, I knew the men occupying my living room had big appetites. I made enough food to feed a football team; hopefully enough to satisfy their hunger. As the men dug into their meatloaf sandwiches and piping-hot chili, I found myself with little to no appetite. All I could think about was what would take place tomorrow. I avoided Axe’s eyes as he sat beside me, but I could feel his gaze burning into me. He must have sensed my worry because his hand, firm and warm, rested on my leg for a moment before giving it a tender squeeze. When I looked at him, his expression told me not to worry and that everything would work out. With a reassuring smile, I looked back into my plate and spooned the chili into my mouth. A part of me wanted to believe him, but another part of me knew this could instantly go wrong.
~10~
Axe
I felt the cold metal of the table against my palms. It seemed like a long drive to the restaurant to meet with Van, and my muscles were in knots. When we had last spoken on the phone, Van had agreed to meet me in a public place. If our plan worked, it would be a matter of days until the truth came out. Van and Niles would be in jail and all would be right in the world again. Best-case scenario would be if Van admitted to orchestrating the attack on the bookstore and the authorities took him into custody. The thought made me smile, but who was I kidding?
I scanned the room looking for Van, but didn’t see him anywhere. I was beginning to think this was a setup. My eyes fell on the bar where Calvin and Marcus were seated. Even they appeared to be nervous. It was 20 minutes past the meeting time and Van was nowhere to be found. Something didn’t sit well with me, but that feeling didn’t last long as I spotted Van and Niles approaching me from across the restaurant. Seeing Niles with Van wasn’t what I had expected. Based on our conversation, I got the impression that Van would come alone. Even under his red baseball cap, I could see arrogance splashed across Van’s face. They walked up to me confidently, as if they had been here all along. With each of them holding a drink, they took a seat across from me.
Before I could say anything, Van pulled a very familiar document from his jacket. “Shall we try this again, Riley?” He forced a smile onto his lips but couldn’t hide the contempt in his eye. “This time I’m not going to be so stupid. I want to see your cell on the table, turned off.”
I reached behind my back and pulled my cell from my back pocket. Pulling up the screen, I found the off icon and powered down my phone before laying it on the table, in plain sight. When he slid the document my way, it was Calvin’s and Marcus’s cue to come over to the table. As they walked over, my eyes remained on documents—not reading, just staring at the words.
“Hey, old buddy. How the hell are you?” Calvin asked, overly excited.
“Have we met?” Van’s brows came together in a straight line. “I think you might have mistaken me for someone else.”
Just like we had planned, I placed my hands on the table where Van and Niles could see them. I knew what was to take place next, but keep my expression neutral.
“Don’t you remember that little filly in Kansas? The one with the nice rack.” Calvin kept to the script while describing a woman that didn’t exist.
I almost lost it, but managed to hold it together without breaking into a full-blown laugh. Calvin was genuinely being serious. His little performance was just enough for Van and Niles to focus on him instead of what Marcus was doing. Marcus placed the small device under the table while Calvin continued to talk. Van and Niles were completely clueless as to what was taking place. Before any suspicion was raised, Marcus and Calvin needed to leave. I could tell Van was getting pissed off.
“Like I said, you have the wrong person.” Van growled like he was ready to pop Calvin in the face.
With his eyes on Van, Calvin shook his head back and forth. “I’m sorry. It’s just that you really look like Tom Cook.”
I wasn’t sure who Tom Cook was, but he was more than likely another fictitious person. Before Van spoke another word, he waited for Calvin and Marcus to leave the table. Returning his gaze to me, Van lowered his eyes to the document in front of me. Little did Van know there was no way in hell I was going to sign over my shares.
Staring down at the document, I tapped the pen on the table, pretending to concentrate. Van’s irritation tore me from my fixation on the document. “Just fucking sign it, Riley.”
I set the pen down and look up at Vincent. “Before I sign over my shares, there is one thing I need to know. Why Margot Horton's bookstore? You could have found another location for your development partners to invest in.”
Sitting back, Van gave me a sly grin. "Let me tell you a story. I have no input as to where my development partners want to put their money. Margot Horton's bookstore was in the ideal location. Did you know that we tried to convince her to sell? She had an outstanding loan on the store. We offered to forgive the loan and give her an additional $200K for her troubles, but the bitch wouldn't budge."
“I know how you work,” I replied. “When businesses refuse to sell, you destroy them. You had Levi McBride blow up Margot’s bookstore and then planted my prints on the detonator. Why was it so important for you to destroy me?”
“Because your whore of a mother used my father to get pregnant. You are a blight on our family name. It was time that you were dealt with, just as we dealt with the others. Taking Kenzi was all part of the plan, even if you had followed through with the bookstore. It was Levi’s reward for doing what you couldn’t. He would have his girl back and we would have the land requested by the developers. Thirty million is a lot of money. Not something I could pass up. Funny thing though. We didn’t plan on River finding her. You have to admit that leaving your prints on the detonator was ingenious.” Turning toward Niles, Van gave his brother a light pat on the shoulder, like he was congratulating him for coming up with the plan to frame me.
All this time, Van knew about my mom’s infidelity. He knew that Clyde Wilkerson was my father and not the dead-beat dad who raised me. What I couldn’t understand was why he waited so long to get back at me and why he had gone to so much effort to ruin everything in my life. Two could play this game. Pushing the transfer contract across the table, I stared him in the eye and said, “Go fuck yourself. No way in hell am I giving you any more of myself.”
I grabbed my cell from the table and rose from my chair. I was just about to turn and leave when Van’s icy eyes locked with mine. “Sit down,” he commanded.
I heard the familiar sound of a gun being cocked. The sound made me pause. The recoil spring pushed a slug into the chamber. If this situation went sideways, he would have no trouble putting a bullet in me—here, in a public place, with witnesses around. There was enough crazy in his eyes to make me think he would. I looked around for Marcus and Calvin, but they weren’t in my line of vision. I was on my own. My body tensed as I made my decision. The metal chair squeaked as I fell back into it, my eyes never leaving Van’s.Had he lost it?Hatred laced his face, and I wondered if he was going to shoot me right then and there. That wouldn’t make sense; he was surrounded by people, but then again, he was crazy enough to do just that. Still, I held my hands up in surrender as I decided it would be smarter to do exactly as he said.
I sat with my hands on the table, waiting for a miracle. I had to believe that Marcus and Calvin were still somewhere in the restaurant, ready to intervene. But then, the most unlikely person stepped up to the table, looking more arrogant than his brothers. “Don’t be an idiot, Van,” River warned as he looked around the restaurant. “Shooting Mr. Riley would be a big mistake with all these people as witnesses.”
I wasn’t sure if River was trying to help me or if he was giving Van advice on how to kill me. When I got a glimpse of Van placing his gun back in the holster, I pushed my chair from the table and stood. I came eye to eye with River, who was still standing by the edge of the table—his height a few inches above mine. He was slimmer than me, but with the same muscular build I have. I studied him for a moment as he looked over at Van and then at me. I hadn’t met the man before, but there were similarities between us. His eyes were the same shade of blue as mine, with specks of green throughout the iris. His jaw was strong, squared off, and symmetrical. He stood on his own ground, unapologetic with his arrogance. We were two people who belonged in the same world, but with completely different mindsets.
I didn’t want any part of River or his two brothers. The microphone was still hidden beneath the table, and whatever conversation they continued to have would be recorded. I stayed on my feet, but before I could take a step, the slimy bastard had the audacity to put his hand on my shoulder. “Wait a moment, Riley. We need to talk.”
I waited until we were out of earshot before giving him a piece of my mind. “Whatever you have to say isn’t worth one second of my time.”
“I know about the affair between your mother and my father. I think I can help you take full control of CMW Holdings.” River took a step back, letting his hand drop from my shoulder. “I get that you hate me, but I’m not the man you think I am.”
He was right. I hated him more than I hated my father.What did he hope to accomplish by telling me this? After everything that had happened between us, how could I accept any help he offered? If I didn’t give him the chance to say his piece, I would more than likely regret it later. Without another thought, I said, “Meet me at the pier… tomorrow night, 10 o’clock.”
