I wanted to hold the feeling in my heart. If it was the last memory I ever had, then so be it. Only, nothing happened. Soon, the pressure of the gun against my head eased. I opened my eyes to see Malcolm stepping back, putting the gun inside of his suit once more.
“I’ve decided I’m not going to let you off that easy,” he said, making my skin crawl with his ghoulish grin. “For that matter, I won’t let Dorian off that easy, either.”
20
Plans (Dorian)
Ronan finally arrived.
He entered my office and I stood from my chair, nodding in his direction.
“Come on in. We don’t have a lot of time. I need to get you up to speed.”
Since I’d gotten off the phone with him, I’d huddled with my security team for hours, planning out our attack. We’d studied the building plans and started formulating our strategy by the time he’d shown up.
“Here, Ronan,” I said, placing my palms flat on the plans and spinning them around. “Come have a look.”
He leaned over the desk while I continued.
“There’s a lot of unknowns in the situation, unfortunately. We have no idea about their exact location in the warehouse. We also have no idea how many men Malcolm has working for him. About the only thing we can hope for is that your unexpected entrance will give us the time we need to slip inside get to the electrical controls for the building.”
I stopped, using my finger to pointing out the location. “Here.”
Ronan looked at me. “Knowing Malcolm, I’d say he’s got a half a dozen men or so. He might be crazy but he’d never go into a situation like this unprepared.”
I nodded at him. “Okay, we’ll figure a minimum of six but plan for twice that many. Sound good?”
“Yeah, can’t be too careful.”
I turned my attention back to the schematic.
“It’s really the only chance we have to get an upper hand. Assuming you’re successful and Malcolm doesn’t shoot you on site, we’ll cut the power, switch to night vision and take care of Malcolm’s men. That, of course, leaves you to deal with Malcolm yourself.”
Ronan nodded and glanced up at me. “Understood.”
“Once Malcolm’s men are subdued, the power comes back on, and with any luck, we’ve got them outnumbered.”
“Mmm, hmm…” Ronan muttered. “What about surveillance? Don’t you think there’s a chance there might be security cameras in key positions?”
“Way ahead of you. I’ve got two of my men on the way to the warehouse. They’re going to check for them before we arrive on the scene.”
I looked at him. “Where’s the case, man?”
“It’s outside, in the limousine.”
“All right,” I said, facing him and slapping my hand on top of the shoulder. “I’m gonna be straight with you. I can’t afford to risk anyone’s life. Of course it goes without saying that applies to Ainsley and Tempest but also my men and you.”
“Of course.”
I dropped my hand away from his shoulder.
“Okay, so, if I’m forced to take the shot to kill Malcolm myself, I won’t hesitate. My men have the same orders. My question is… Are you okay with that? If you aren’t, don’t come with us. It’s that simple.”
Ronan hesitated before responding. I expected as much.
“I understand. But I need you to promise me that if a kill shot isn’t required, no one will fire.”
“Yeah, absolutely, you have my word. Ideally, he’s your problem to deal with, not mine.”
A grimace came to Ronan’s face. It had to be a goddamn hard thing to think about – killing your brother. Changing subjects, I started to walk around the table we’d huddled over.
“There’s just one more thing I need to get ironed out before we go.”
“What?”
“Come with me.”
21
Malcolm’s Ultimatum (Tempest)
After he’d killed the men he was going to sell us to, Malcolm’s behavior changed again. He sat across from us in a chair, just staring. I don’t think he said a word for at least a half an hour.
Finally, he narrowed his eyes at both of us. Then, he yawned before speaking. “I’m beginning to tire of this. What am I going to do with two of you? What indeed…”
Glancing over at Ainsley, I noticed she looked as anxious as I felt. He’d removed the gag from her mouth. It was a rare act of kindness.
Malcolm raised his cell phone up in front of his face. “Let’s call my brother and get all this over with. I’m getting bored.”
He lifted the phone and brought it to his ear. I could’ve sworn I heard another phone ringing in the distance. I frowned, looking at Malcolm. Obviously, it wasn’t his phone ringing.
Next, I heard the sound of footsteps… A steady clip clop echoing through the otherwise silent warehouse. The mystery ringing grew louder. Malcolm noticed it too and stood from his chair, turning in the direction of the approaching noise.
A man emerged from the racks of clothing.
“Ronan…” Ainsley whispered.
I snapped my head in her direction. She looked at me.
“That’s him,” she mouthed.
I looked at the man again. In some ways, he reminded me of Dorian. Tall, muscular, and incredibly good-looking. If he was really Malcolm’s brother, one of them must have been adopted, because I don’t think I’d ever seen two siblings look more different.
In his hand, he held the case. I hadn’t seen it since the first night at Dorian’s estate. Goosebumps prickled along my arms. I couldn’t believe the effect it still had on me.
“That’s far enough,” Malcolm said. “Don’t come any closer.”
Malcolm motioned for his goons. “Search him.”
While they patted him down, Ronan stared at Malcolm first and then at the dead bodies and blood littering the floor. His face twisted with disgust. At last, he looked towards Ainsley and me. His expression changed again, this time, to anger.
Malcolm’s henchmen stepped back. “He’s clean, sir. No weapons.”
“Get away from me,” Ronan growled. He looked at Malcolm and glared. “Do you want this fucking thing or what?”
Malcolm nodded once and motioned for Ronan to approach. He did, closing to within a few feet of him.
“Here, take it,” Ronan said, lifting the briefcase in front of his body.
Malcolm reached for it and Ronan let go of the handle, sending the case crashing to the floor. He laughed while it bounced and came to a stop with a thump.
It wasn’t funny, but I couldn’t help myself. Seeing someone else fuck with this psycho brought a small grin to my lips. I glanced at Ainsley. Her smile was smaller than mine but easy to spot. Apparently, she felt the same way.
“This will never work, Malcolm.” Ronan said. “You’ve always been a failure. Taking out your pathetic emotions on me is going to be your downfall.”
The insult of the case and Ronan’s comment pushed Malcolm too far. With a sudden motion, Malcolm reached inside of his suit and pulled out the pistol again, pointing it at his brother. His face wrinkled with rage.