Page 118 of Lies (Wicked Empire 1)

TWENTY-SEVEN

Davit

“I guessit’s not such a big deal that our would-be assassin didn’t make it,” I said to Elias about five weeks after the initial attack.

I’d kept him alive for a week, and to his credit, he hadn’t given me a name.

What he had given me was an encrypted hard drive.

One that I had finally cracked.

“Why is that?” he asked.

“Because I now know who was behind the attempt on Amethyst’s life,” I said, forcing myself to stay calm, though my excitement was steadily growing.

“What did you find?” He stood and walked over to me.

“Take a look,” I said, handing him the sheet of paper.

He read it then shrugged. “How devious.”

“And sloppy,” I added.

“What are you going to do about it?” he asked.

I smiled, and my brother chuckled.

“I know what that look means,” he said.

“You should. You taught me,” I said.

“Still, you don’t look like taking care of this will be a hardship. Does Ms. James mean more to you than she should, brother?”

“Don’t worry about Ms. James.” I was so focused on what was to come that not even Elias’s prodding could distract me.

He laughed. “Not gonna take the bait, huh?”

“Nope,” I responded without looking up at him.

“All right. I’ll leave you to it. Enjoy yourself,” he said.

“I will. And I’ll update you on the next shipment soon,” I said.

“Very well,” he said, and then he left.

I pushed out of my chair and began pacing the room as a plan started to form. I was both calm and energized.

Underneath all of that was rage, but I kept that in check. Emotion was the enemy of logic, and emotion would make me sloppy.

Now wasn’t the time for that. I made a few calls to ensure that everything was in place. Then I drove back to my place and found Amethyst there.

Finding out who was behind the attack had taken too long. I could see that the stress of it was wearing on her.

Now, I would alleviate that stress, though I would probably add another in its place.

“Put on your shoes,” I said when she looked at me.

“Why? Are we going somewhere? Where?” She threw questions at me rapid-fire.

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