Page 27 of Ravaged
“There’s another bowl,” she said. “More soup.”
“So?” I asked.
“I’m not going to eat two bowls.”
“You’re going to refuse your captor’s meals?”
“No. But you should eat with me.”
I sucked in a breath. Nope. No way. Not a chance in hell. It was hard enough as it was to keep my distance from her, and she was in a metal cage.
“I’ll be back to get the tray later,” I said.
“Suit yourself.”
I walked up the stairs and headed to the study. The two bowls could have been Clara’s way of feeding me too, but I usually ate with the family. Perhaps Clara was trying to give me a chance to eat with Teagen. To get to know her better. So I would have some sympathy for her.
Or it was all for Teagen. There was no reason to socialize with a prisoner; Clara knew that. But if I had asked Clara, I knew she wouldn’t have acknowledged that Teagen existed. I had asked her the first night if that tray was for Teagen, and she had said,What do you think it’s for?An answer, without ever naming the situation.
Gerard was seated in a tall, leather-bound chair, smoking a cigar. Derek waved a hand in front of himself, shooing away the smoke.
“Took you long enough,” Derek said.
“I’m ten minutes early,” I shot back.
“Relax,” Gerard said. “Both of you.” Derek and I glared at each other, both of us daring the other to be the first to break. “You’re both acting like you’re going through puberty. This kind of behavior won’t convince me you’re ready to take over the business. Act with diligence, with civility towards your family. Don’t waste your energy on trivial matters. Our business runs best when we work together.”
I faced Gerard. I could do that. But this wasn’t a trivial matter. Running the family business could change everything, depending on who ended up in the leader’s chair.
We spoke about the new shipment coming in, on how best to distribute the goods to the different dealers. It was a regular shipment, but Gerard wanted me involved, and wanted Derek to guide me in the process. I would help deliver and introduce myself, then I would explore Jimmy’s, the Adler family’s gambling hall, a hidden banquet room in a crowded bar.
A knock sounded on the door. The doors came crashing open. Axe threw a man forward by the back of his shirt. Slightly overweight, thinning hair at the top of his head. He crumpled into a pile on the floor.
Without the slightest bit of concern, Gerard turned to Axe. “Wil?”
“Where he always is,” Axe said. In the short time I had been there, I had learned what that meant: he was at Jimmy’s. Gerard turned to the bumbling man in front of him. The man sat up, sitting on the floor, trying to cross his legs, but being unable to. Still, he stayed on the ground. He knew where his place was. On the floor in front of us.
“I’m getting impatient, Oliver,” Gerard said. Derek and I stood on either side of him, waiting for Oliver’s response. “And you won’t like what happens when I’m impatient.”
“Listen, Gerard, you gotta give me a chance to explain.” Gerard raised his eyebrow at the familiar first name, but motioned for Oliver to continue. “I was working with Midnight Miles—”
“That’s out of bounds for you,” Gerard said.
“I know, but I was in the area, and I figured, why not?” He shuffled the stringy hair out of his face. “Anyway, I need your protection, Gerard. Now, more than ever.”
Gerard’s brows pinched together, and he leaned forward, looking over his desk. “Protection?”
“It’s in your best interest to protect me,” he said. “I know Midnight Miles’s plans.”
Gerard leaned back. Derek glanced at him, but Gerard’s eyes were focused on Oliver.
“And what are their plans, Mr. Knox?”
“They’re moving in, trying to take over your territory. Not just in Sage City. All over the state,” his words became panicked, faster with each word. “But I can help you. I can be a spy. I can tell you everything I know.”
Gerard rubbed his chin, stroking his thumb over his facial hair. “Those are some very strong accusations you make, Mr. Knox. Do you dare start a war among crime rings, when we have your daughter?”
Teagen. This was her father, then. Oliver slumped at the mention of her. “I wouldn’t put her in danger like that.”
