Page 10 of Canvas of Lies
“I’ll get you some painkillers. I mean it, I had no intention of putting you in any danger.” His dark eyes filled with concern as he lowered his hand.
I shrugged like this was an everyday occurrence. “Why am I here, Nico?”
This was it. The moment of truth.A muscle in his jaw ticked as he stared at me, tension vibrating from him anew. I gazed back, trying to hold onto some semblance of patience when I wanted to reach out and shake him until he spit it out.
“Your father has something of mine. I need to get it back. I’d like you to be my insurance policy.”
I drew back and blinked at him in confusion. “Insurance policy? Were you really going to kidnap me?”
“Of course not,” he barked. “I hoped you would trust me enough to come with me. I wouldn’t involve you in this against your will. I didn’t want to involve you at all, but I need leverage.”
“So you’re planning to trade me for whatever this thing is?”
Nico hesitated almost imperceptibly, then nodded, and I exploded—even though he looked like he was expecting it, he still flinched as the words flew from my lips.
“Are you out of your goddamn mind? He hasn’t given a shit about me in decades, Nicolas, ifever. What the hell makes you think he would actually value my life enough to barter with it? And for fuck’s sake, you think he’ll believe you’d hurt me if he doesn’t do what you want? I thought you were smart,Beaumont, but apparently I was wrong.”
He lifted his eyes to the ceiling like he was trying to stay calm, then speared me with a thunderous expression.
“I might not be as brilliant as you, but I’m not a complete idiot. If it comes down to it, he’s not going to know I’m the one holding you hostage. As for whether he values your life, I’m not touching that topic with a ten foot pole, but he sure as hell values his pristine reputation. You really think he’ll want his refusal to save his daughter’s life plastered all over the news? Last I heard, he had his eye on the Attorney General’s office.”
That gave me a moment of pause as I considered it. My father cared for very little in this life—not his daughter, certainly not his ex-wife.
Money, power, and prestige? Those were everything to him.
Then again, the man had an army of publicists out there to stamp out negative rumors and rumblings. If he could figure out how to spin this to his advantage, Nico was going to be sorely disappointed.
“Even if he falls for this, did you ever stop and think that I might take issue with being shoved back into his loving arms? I don’t want to see him, Nico. I am not a bargaining chip,” I hissed.
“Don’t you think I know that?” He thrust a hand through his hair before glaring at me. “Forgive me for thinking you might tolerate a brief exposure to the man for my sake.”
When we were kids, I’d have put up with practically anything for Nico’s sake. Now? It would take something life-changing to convince me this whole endeavor was worth the hassle of dealing with my family.
“What is it you want to trade me for?”
He flinched again, like the words were shards of glass striking him. “I can’t tell you, not yet. Kitten . . . I need you to trust me, just for a little while. Please. You know I would never hurt you or put you at risk, but this is important and I’m desperate.”
I stared at him intently, wondering just what the hell he was up to. With a sigh, I said, “Fine. Where exactly are we?”
“I can’t tell you that either,” he said, then raised a placating hand when I scowled. “Not because I don’t trust you. I don’t want you to be complicit in any of this, Kat. The less you know, the better.”
“Right. Okay.” I fell silent for a moment. “So what happens tomorrow when my assistant shows up at work and I’m nowhere to be found?”
Nico grinned a little, revealing a dimple I hadn’t seen in more than a decade. It captured me, melted my resistance, until I had to force my eyes away.
“If you agreed to help me, I intended to ask you to text her to say you were sick and taking some time off to rest up, but since your phone died a tragic death, you can use my burner.”
I rolled my eyes. “Burner. How very spy thriller of you. Why are we in a cabin? I thought you lived in town?”
“I own this cabin and we’re a safe distance from town, that’s all I can say for now. I didn’t want anyone seeing us together, not if this plan is going to work.”
My gaze jerked back to his face. “There are security cameras out back at the warehouse.”
“Not a problem. They were remotely disabled this morning.”
“What exactly have you been doing all these years?” I asked, frowning at him. The careless shrug he offered was not altogether reassuring, so I heaved a sigh. “Fine. Forget I asked. So I’m your hostage now. Am I a prisoner here, too?”
“I’d like you to stay while I work through the plan, but I hadn’t intended to tie you up.”
