Page 50 of Cruel Possession
There has to be information in here that I can use.
The lighting in the room is dim, the curtains pulled to block out the sun. I flick on a lamp and tiptoe across the room.
My heart pounds, my palms clammy. I wipe them on my jeans.
Get yourself together. This is nothing you haven’t done a million times before.
However, doing it a million times before didn’t mean pissing off the person holding me captive. It didn’t mean that my ass could get locked in a cell again. I wasn’t playing with people’s emotions.
A small wave of guilt washes over me as I open the top drawer. I sit in the chair, leaning over and rummaging through the papers, shoving some of the receipts on top to the side.
Messy as hell.
I close the top drawer and open the bottom, files neatly in a row. Near the back is one with Logan’s name.
Is this the file he got at the club? It doesn’t look like it, but he could have changed the folder, and even if it isn’t, there could still be something useful there. Besides, it’s not like I’ll ask Aiden any time soon.
I might finally get rid of the cop.
I drag out the file and open it, sifting through the various incriminating pictures of Logan. While there is plenty of information on him taking dirty deals and doing what he could to bury the drug trade that’s now under my control, there’s not much to cover up a murder.
“Fuck.” I run my hands down my face before leaning back in the chair and looking up at the ceiling.
There’s nothing there that I could use to frame someone else. Not right now, at least. Perhaps in time, but all of the people he’s pictured with are people I know. People who are now either dead or in jail.
“Logan will have to wait for another day,” I mutter, sliding the folder back into the drawer.
A couple of other files were labeled, but none of them are of much interest. I need something that is good enough to arrange for someone to get me out of this house, and for the boss to keep me alive once I’m out.
And that’s when I see it, sitting in the back of the drawer. A file with a bright red tab and no label.
I pull it out and lay it on the desk, a slow smile spreading across my face as I flip through the first few pages.
This is exactly what I need to keep on this side of breathing. Lists and lists of bank accounts and businesses sit in front of me.
Fuck’s sake, Aiden, do you know nothing about keeping your banking safe?
Though I don’t have the full account numbers or their passwords, there’s enough for one of my hackers to get to work. It’s going to take time, but I could have the accounts drained and moved to my own account. Then I could take Gia and Bianca and get the hell out of here.
I pull out my phone and snap a picture before hiding the photo in a private album. As soon as it’s tucked away safe, I put the file away and turn off the lamp, leaving the office the same way I found it.
Heading outside, I try my best to look like I’m doing nothing but walking around. In reality, I’m searching for one of the million members of the Lynde family and making sure they’re not lurking around behind me. After doing everything I could to gain Aiden’s trust, I wouldn’t want to lose it before I have the chance to plan an escape.
Once I’m sure nobody is around, I sit down on the edge of the pool and dial Morgana’s number.
“I was wondering if you were dead.” The sound of a door closing follows from her end of the call. “I thought that you might have bit the dust in there with them.”
“Well, apparently, I’m alive and have access to a phone and the ability to wander around the property. Under cameras, of course, but as far as I could find out, they don’t get audio outside the house and away from the entrances.”
Morgana hums. “Well, when am I coming to get you?”
“Not yet.” I watch the house and the reflection of the yard behind me in the windows. “I don’t have everything I want to get out of being here yet. I think there’s still more I could find for the boss.”
“Trying to keep yourself alive once you get out?”
“That, and I need to get my family out of here.” I take off my shoes and dip my feet in the cool water of the pool, the hem of my jeans getting wet.
Thankfully, it’s heated, so even with the clouds above me looking heavy with snow, it’s not absolutely miserable.
