I pressed the back of my hand to my lips, trying to chase away the lingering burn of Zed's kiss so I might be able to focus. "You're fine, Hannah," I replied, sweeping that same hand through my hair. "You were looking for me?"
Her big brown eyes darted between Zed and me again, then she squared her shoulders and refocused. "Yes, sir. I need to discuss a few things, if you have some time?"
I nodded, stepping away from Zed. "Absolutely. Zed, go back and make sure Lucas is still alive."
He gave me a sidelong glance, then scrubbed a hand over his short hair. "Sure can, Boss. I'll see you later, then?"
Not answering him, because it was a stupid fucking question, I led the way into the admin building with Hannah tight on my heels. Not that I had a proper office at Anarchy, but we had a security office and it wasn't currently in use, as the venue wouldn't be open until much later in the day.
"Okay, what's new?" I asked my new assistant as I sat down and indicated she take the other swivel chair beside me. The various security screens showed all different angles of Anarchy, and I deliberately tried not to look for Zed on them—or for the feed that would show the inside of the training room where Lucas was getting his ass kicked.
Hannah perched on the edge of her chair, the picture of professionalism. "First of all, sir, I hope you're feeling better today. Zed mentioned you were quite unwell the other day."
I needed to bite the inside of my cheek in an attempt to stop my face from coloring as I remembered how Zed had called in sick so we could fuck all day.
"Much better," I replied with zero inflection to hint at anything untoward. "What's happened while I've been out?"
Hannah bobbed a nod. "So, someone has been getting in the ear of print media," she informed me, cutting straight to the chase. So to speak. "A journalist for the Shadow Grove Gazette called looking for an interview yesterday, and this morning I had calls from both Cloudcroft Daily and Rainybanks Post."
I arched a brow in interest. "What do they want an interview about? The explosions?"
She shook her head. "No, sir. They want to talk about how the Timberwolves are still a functioning crime syndicate who’ve been operating in the shadows for the past five years. They asked to interview Hayden Timber, not Daria Wolff."
Anger flashed through me, but I quickly got a handle on it. "Chase," I muttered with a small sigh.
"Um, what?" Hannah tilted her head in confusion.
I grimaced. "My ex. Chase Lockhart. He's using the alias Wenton Dibbs and making my life fucking painful right now. This has his name all over it."
Hannah's eyes widened, and she nodded slowly. "Let me guess, a violent abuser who can't take no for an answer, no matter how long it's been?" She wrinkled her nose. "That is something I can understand. Don't worry, sir, I handled the journalists. I just thought you should be aware."
I offered her a smile. "I appreciate it. You're fast becoming invaluable, Hannah. If Johnny Rock is still being a problem—"
"I've got it handled," she assured me. "But thank you. It means a lot. You know, it's funny, people are so scared of you, but you're one of the nicest people I know."
My brows shot up. "I think you're confused. I've got a hair trigger temper and more blood on my hands than a serial killer."
Hannah shrugged and smiled. "Yeah, but I stand by my statement. Anyway, the other thing I need to discuss is the missing 7th Circle staff." She pulled a tablet out of her purse and powered on the screen. With a few swipes she brought up a few employee-intake photographs. "These three have been unreachable since a few days after the building burned down. We've tried contacting them multiple times about new shifts at other clubs but got nothing back. Zelda in the head office said to give up, that they probably just found work elsewhere, but..." She trailed off with a shrug.
Curious, I leaned forward and took a closer look at the three employees she was concerned about. They were all back of house—sex workers—so it wasn't out of the question that they'd taken work elsewhere.
"Your gut tells you otherwise?" I asked, handing the tablet back.
She inclined her head. "Yes, sir. I just have a bad feeling. Would it be okay if I stopped by their listed residential addresses?"
"Go for it," I agreed. "Follow your gut. But take backup with you, just in case. Alexi can assign someone he trusts to shadow you."
Hannah gave a tight smile. "Absolutely, sir. Thank you."
Motion in one of the security cameras caught my eye, and I leaned in to get a better look at what was happening. When I recognized the guy climbing off one of the motorbikes that had just pulled up, I frowned.
"What the fuck does Roach think he's doing coming here uninvited?" I murmured, forgetting for a second that Hannah was still there with me.
"Um, that's the third thing I wanted to discuss," she offered with a cringe. "But I guess he decided to come and speak with you in person."
The security office was near the main entrance, so I pushed to my feet and headed outside to meet the new Reaper's leader myself.
"This is unexpected," I commented with an edge of reprimand when Roach approached. Two other tough-looking fuckers trailed a step behind him, obviously backup, which only made me more curious. Why did Roach feel the need for backup?
"Hades, sir," the young Reaper leader greeted me. Tension held his posture tight and his brow furrowed deeply as he seemed to be visibly forcing himself not to lose his cool. "I apologize for the intrusion, but this matter is urgent. A business in my territory was targeted in the early hours of this morning, front window smashed in and the entire interior vandalized. Not a single piece of furniture or equipment was left untouched."
I arched one brow. "Sounds like a gang dispute, Roach. How is this my problem?"
His eyes tightened further. "Because the business destroyed was Nadia's Cakes. Considering your recent altercation there, I can't help thinking this was your fucking fault." There was a bitterness to his voice that made my anger heat.
"Watch yourself, Roach," I responded, cool as ice despite the agonizing guilt running through me. "You'd be a very, very stupid man to come here and throw around accusations."
He met my gaze, his nostrils flaring, but he kept his mouth shut.
After a moment, I breathed out a calm breath. "Is Nadia okay? Was she hurt?" Because Cass would kill me if his grandmother got hurt in my war with Chase.
Roach shook his head. "She's fine. A couple of my guys have been camping out at her place this week, but the damage was just to her café."
A small sigh of relief ran through my chest, and I wet my lips. "Good. Make sure she stays protected. I'll send my team over to clean up her café and repair the damages. Please let her know she has my apologies for the inconvenience."
Roach gave me a puzzled look. "Th-that's it? Just... like that?"
"Did you expect less? Nadia's is a Shadow Grove institution, Roach. It's in everyone's best interest to get her back on her feet. Was there anything else?"
His lips moved, but no sound came out. Then he swiped a hand over his shaved head and gave me a tight nod. "Thank you, Hades. Nadia will appreciate it."