“I didn’t know my grandson was safe. But I’m thankful for it. That isn’t why I came.”
“No? Enlighten me.”
“Would you mind if I poured myself a drink?”
DeMarco snapped his fingers and one of the bodyguards came forward. “A scotch for my guest.”
When the bodyguard started for the bar, Arthur headed in that direction, which brought him closer to DeMarco. His hand went into his pocket. If he hesitated, he’d lose his nerve. He pulled the pistol, aimed, and fired from no more than three feet away.
The stunned expression on Sawyer DeMarco’s face the instant before blood gushed from the hole in his throat was worth the hail of gunfire that slammed into Arthur’s chest. As he hit the cold marble floor, his last thought was of Daniel.
At least his precious son was safe.
THIRTY-SEVEN
After leaving Kenzie’s town house, Reese went home and made a brief attempt to sleep. When the effort failed, he rolled out of bed, showered, dressed, and went into the office. It was early Thursday morning. He filled the day with meetings and appointments, then worked late that night.
Anything to keep his mind off Kenzie.
The office felt empty without her. He’d grown used to her presence, her willingness to help with any problem that came up, used to the warmth she exuded just being near.
But Kenzie needed time with her son. She was doing her best to help Griff through an extremely traumatic experience. Since their return to Dallas, Reese had talked to her only once. Neither of them had mentioned their relationship—or lack thereof.
He’d asked about Griff, and Kenzie had told him she’d made an appointment that day with a child psychologist named Margaret Stone. Reese had checked Stone’s credentials and found the woman was considered one of the best in Dallas.
He was sitting behind his desk Friday morning, going over company financials and checking in with some of his VPs, when the intercom buzzed.
Louise’s voice came over the line. “Detective Ford is calling, sir.”
His pulse kicked up. He intended to talk to Ford about the shooting, but there were other matters to take care of first. Maybe this was the break they’d been hoping for.
“Put him through.” Reese picked up the phone and settled back in his chair, the receiver notched against his shoulder. “What can I do for you, Detective?”
“Arthur Haines is dead.”
“What?” Reese shot forward.
“That’s right. So is Sawyer DeMarco. Shreveport Police got a 9-1-1 call from the Pot-of-Gold hotel. Apparently, Arthur Haines showed up looking for DeMarco and made it up to his penthouse suite. I guess it never occurred to DeMarco that Haines might try to kill him. Arthur put a slug in DeMarco’s throat before his bodyguards took him out.”
“Jesus.”
“Yeah. This thing just keeps escalating. I’m beginning to believe your Ms. Haines could be telling the truth.”
“She was set up, Heath. Haines was killed by a mob hit man.” He didn’t mention Bolt’s name. Hawk was tracking Bolt, putting himself at risk. Police interference could make the danger even greater.
“Assuming you’re right,” Ford said, “why would the mob hit Lee Haines?”
“I asked Arthur about it before we went to Shreveport. He said DeMarco arranged the hit on his son as a warning. Apparently, the debt he owed was substantial. Lee’s death was a way of convincing Arthur to repay the money.” He didn’t mention the gaming permits. Too much information might be worse than not enough.
“If DeMarco ordered the hit, maybe Arthur thought his son Daniel was also in danger.”
“I’d say that’s exactly right. Arthur killed the guy to protect his other son.”
The detective went silent. Then a sigh whispered over the line. “Unfortunately, Kenzie’s still the prime suspect in her ex-husband’s murder. Nothing we can do until something turns up that clears her name.”
“I’m working on it.”
“I’ll stay on it, too. If I find anything, you’ll be the first to know. Good luck, Reese. And I appreciate the cooperation.”
Reese hung up the phone. He needed to talk to Kenzie. And to Griff. The boy had just lost his dad. Now his grandfather was dead. Griff had been the victim of a brutal kidnapping and seen a man killed right in front of him. The boy trusted Reese, and Reese wasn’t going to let him down.
He called the garage and had his car brought up to the valet stand, then grabbed his suit jacket off the coatrack and slung it over one shoulder. Kenzie might not want to see him. Clearly, she was having second thoughts about them after the shooting. But he wanted—needed—to see her.
Kenzie was important to him. More important than he could have imagined. He wanted her, and not just in his bed. Every day he grew more certain of his feelings, more certain she was the right woman for him. And deep down, he believed Kenzie felt the same.
Reese wasn’t the kind of man who gave up when the going got tough. No matter what he’d done to protect her son, he was a different man now than he had been all those years ago. He just had to find a way to prove it.
He walked out of his office, over to Louise’s desk. “Clear my schedule for the rest of the day, Louise. If something important comes up, you can reach me on my cell.”
The older woman looked up at him. “Mr. Stiles called while you were on the line. He said it was in regard to the Poseidon deal. He was hoping to talk to you right away.”
“I’ll call him. Thanks, Louise.”
Reese walked into the elevator and hit the button for the parking garage. As the doors slid open, he pressed Derek’s contact number.
“What’s going on?” Reese asked when Derek picked up.
“I wanted to give you a heads-up on where we are in the deal.”
“I’m just heading for my car. Go ahead.”
“I talked to Sea Titan after your last phone call and we’re back in business. I explained that a problem had come up on our end, but you managed to resolve it. The last of the permits have been approved. If we want this done, we need to act.”
Reese had explained to Derek why he’d changed his mind—again—and decided not to back out of the deal. He’d resolved the problems that had come up on his end—not mentioning the rescue of a kidnapped child—and was ready to move forward. He’d hoped Sea Titan wouldn’t get nervous and refuse. Apparently that hadn’t happened.
“So far everything is moving along smoothly,” Derek said. “No more accidents.”