Page 49 of Operation Wolf: Hunter
CHAPTER 26
Hunter
“SO, YOU REALLY DON’Twant to use any of this information I worked so hard to get?” Eric demanded, tapping his finger against the sheaf of papers on my desk.
I shook my head, taking a drag from the cigar in my hand as I leaned back in my office chair. “No,” I said slowly. “I’m sorry, but I just can’t see the point.”
The stack of papers on my desk was a lengthy report from a private investigator Eric had hired to look into Bradley and Radcliffe and contained a mountain of white-collar crimes that I could use to lock the bastard away forever.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Eric threw up his hands. “So what if that woman of yours is selling the ranch? You can still nail him anyway. The government will seize the ranch, and you can buy it back for dirt cheap. That way, Daniel’s legacy won’t be destroyed.”
I shook my head. “Daniel’s legacy has always been meant for Kia, and I won’t take that away from her. Bradley promised her ten percent of the profits, and she can live comfortably off that and pursue her dreams.”
I wasn’t going to pretend that I wasn’t still angry with Kia, but it didn’t change the fact that I still loved her and didn’t want to jeopardize the deal she’d made by having Samuel thrown in jail. For her and her alone, I’d make that sacrifice . . . but I’d be damned if I was ever going to tell her about it. I didn’t need her to know what a fucking bleeding heart I’d become.
“You’re a better man than I am,” Eric said, shaking his head. He ran a hand through his blond hair, which was cut shorter and more fashionably than mine.
While there was no doubt in anyone’s mind that the two of us were brothers, Eric’s features were more refined, his face classically handsome, while I possessed a more rugged charm.
“I would have hung them both out to dry, especially after the way she treated you.” Eric knew all about my curse.
Though we were two very different people, we still loved each other and trusted each other with most everything, and Eric had proven no different when it came to this aspect of my life.
A knock at the door interrupted us, and Leta stuck her head in.
“Miss Nash is here to see you,” she informed me. “She says it’s important.”
My heart leaped at the thought that Kia was at my doorstep, and part of me wanted to spring out of my chair and rush to the door. But the other half, the part that was still aching over her betrayal, forced me back down into my chair and encased a layer of ice over my heart.
“Tell her I’m not available,” I told Leta.
My housekeeper hesitated, surprising me. Leta had been entirely sympathetic when I’d related to her what had happened, leaving out the supernatural elements.
“She said you would say that and told me to tell you that it’s about Daniel.” She paused. “She said she knows why he was being blackmailed.”
“What?” This time, I did rise out of my chair, shock propelling me to my feet. It crossed my mind that this could be some kind of ploy, but if Kia was sincere, this was important information. Unsure of what to do, I glanced down at Eric.
Eric shrugged. “Can’t hurt to see what she has to say.”
I nodded, sitting back down again. “Send her in.”
I braced myself for my first sight of Kia, but nothing could have prepared me for the sight of the gaunt figure who rushed into my office. The glow of excitement in her face didn’t quite mask the shadows beneath her eyes or the fact that her clothes were far looser on her than they had any right to be after only three days, and I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking about her welfare.
“Oh, I’m so glad you haven’t left yet! I’ve got something important to show you.” Kia slammed a leather-bound book on the table, wedging herself between the empty visitor’s chair on her left and Eric on her right.
My brother cleared his throat, and Kia swung around, startled at the noise.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t see you,” she said distractedly.
I was finding it increasingly hard to hold on to my anger. I’d never seen Kia so scatterbrained before, and somehow, her out-of-character behavior was completely adorable.
“You must be Eric.”
“I am.” Eric lifted an eyebrow, clearly not beguiled the way I was.
I managed to get ahold of myself. “What’s this information that you feel is so important to share that you barged onto my ranch, uninvited?”
Kia bit her lip, some of the light going out of her. She placed her hands reverently on the black journal, focusing on it rather than on me. “I found this in Uncle Daniel’s closet this afternoon when I was going through his stuff,” she said. “It’s one of several journals he kept.” She opened the journal and then carefully flipped through the pages until she found the particular entry she was looking for. “You should read this,” she said, sliding it across the desk to me.
