Page 71 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
One, how the hell does he know that? And two, he has no right to be questioning me. Hisdateshaven’t stopped since we returned from our weekend away. The long line of women didn’t even falter after I kicked him out of my apartment two weeks ago.
Before I can form a response, Alex walks through the glass door of our office. When he notices my wide-eyed expression, he closes the distance between us. He appears surprised to see me in the office so early.
“Good morning, Isabelle.”
“Morning,” I babble, trying my hardest to ignore the angry growl of Isaac grumbling down the line.
“If he touched you, I’ll break every fucking bone in his body,” Isaac snarls viciously.
Although I can’t see him, I can imagine how fast his jaw is ticking right now.
Unleashing my inner bitch, I reply, “I’m sorry, I’m indisposed right now, but be sure to say hello to Tatiana for me,” before disconnecting the call.
There must be something wrong with me because not only is my blood rushing through my body so fast my veins are bulging, but my sex is soaking wet. An angry Isaac is sexy as hell, so imagine what an angryandjealous Isaac would look like?
Raising my hand to fan my flaming cheeks, I catch Alex’s confused gaze raking over my face.
“Are you okay?” he questions, noticing my flushed expression.
Unable to form words through my lust-filled haze, I smile and nod. I may be treading in shark-infested waters, but I’m fine nevertheless.
I freeze as part of Isaac’s statement runs through my mind. “I’ll break every fucking bone in his body.”
My heart rate quickens as I skedaddle back to the conference room to rustle through the folders my eyes skimmed early this morning. My quick movements wake Brandon from his restless sleep. He rubs his eyes before moving to stand next to me.
“How many years ago was Col Petretti’s son admitted to the hospital?” My words come out in a hurry.
Brandon takes his time considering a response to my question. His brain is obviously still jumbled from only two hours of sleep. “Umm, around six, seven years ago,” he eventually replies.
After I find Col Junior’s (CJ’s) hospitalization record, I move to the stack of Isaac’s bank records, which date back to when he was a freshman in college. My eyes dart between the date on the hospital files and Isaac’s bank statements.Bingo. I’ve found a connection between Col Petretti and Isaac.
“Look.” I thrust the papers toward Brandon. “Isaac’s hefty Monday morning cash deposits during his first two years at college ceased the weekend Col’s son was admitted to the hospital. CJ’s medical report indicates he was extensively covered in bruises, and he sustained multiple broken bones and fractures.”
Brandon examines the extensive medical report.
“Isaac was a fighter in the underground fight ring, just like his fighter, Jacob, is now. I’d put money on it that Isaac and CJ fought that weekend…” I suddenly stop talking, realizing I just spilled private information on Isaac I gained in confidence.
Alex enters the room. “How do you know Isaac was a fighter?”
Shit!
“Umm… I’m just assuming.” My heart rate increases. “It doesn’t seem like an industry you would get into unless you had some prior knowledge about it.”
“Your investigating skills are starting to flourish, Isabelle. I’m very pleased with your dedication of late,” Alex commends me.
I remain quiet, riddled with guilt that I just snitched on Isaac. Even angry at him, I didn’t intentionally mean to break his trust.
“We recently discovered Isaac was indeed a fighter in an underground fighting ring during his years at college. That fighting ring’s organizer was Col Petretti,” Alex informs us.
“Ah, hold on,” Brandon interrupts, his eyes meeting mine. “CJ’s injuries weren’t from a fight. That weekend he was involved in a car accident with his sister, Ophelia.”
My eyes burn from a sudden rush of moisture in them. “What?”
“CJ and his younger sister, Ophelia, were involved in a fatal car accident six years ago.” Brandon hands me back the medical record along with a police record on the crash.
My hand trembles when I remove the documents from Brandon’s hand. As I scan the reports, my mind flicks back to the night Isaac ran into Col.
“The prodigal son returns. What has it been… six years, and I don’t even get a hello.”
