There was an off chance he would know exactly who had him. He clawed at me. Fought, kicked. I had to move my head away to avoid his clawing fingertips. "Hush now. Nice and easy. You like it in the dark, don't you? Where things go bump in the night and no one can see your dirty deeds?”
"Who the fuck are you?"
Bonus, he didn't know it was me.
What was I going to do with him, kill him?
No. We do not kill our enemies. We put them in jail to rot. Far more payoff that way.
My inner self shrugged as if he didn't care either way as long as Middleton was punished.
"Fuck you.”
I tsked. “Easy does it. I hold your life in the balance. You sure you want to go down that route?"
"Take whatever you want. My wallet has plenty of cash."
"No, I don't want cash."
He struggled in my hold, but I had him in a lock. I was stronger. And jujitsu was my forte. He wasn't getting out unless I wanted to release him. His arm movements were getting more sluggish and slower as he tried to suck in air unsuccessfully. “Where are you going?"
"Take whatever you want.”
"And if I want your life?"
That zing of fear wafting off him smelled like piss and sweat. "I can pay. My family will pay whatever you want. You can't kill me."
“And how am I supposed to get the money from your family if we're in a dark alley?"
"I can call." He stuttered as his body started to slump.
"Like I'm going to let you make a phone call right now. Where were you going?”
He started to sag even more, his lips muttering the words I wanted to know. "Meeting. Meeting. You could have one of them. Men who have as much as I do. Just let me go."
"Who are you meeting?"
"Can't say. But you can have one of them. Anyone. Some of them are worth billions."
I bit out a harsh laugh. "Do you think they have those billions on them, then?"
"Just don't kill me.”
“You can relax, you twat. I'd rather watch you suffer.” And then I squeezed until his eyes fluttered closed and he sagged fully. Knocked the fuck out.
What meeting was he going to? We needed to get the damn data off his cloned phone. We hadn't been able to get anything on it. But maybe the primary phone would be easier. I used his face ID to open it then changed the settings so that we would no longer need a passcode and then pocketed the thing. Maybe East would be able to get something off the original. I checked his pulse to make sure he was still alive. Because I had been serious. I preferred his suffering to an easy death.
And then I left him there in the alley to rot, leaving his wallet exactly where it had been. I was going to get answers. And I was going to make him pay. But I wasn't going to give him the easy way out.
I was done with being on our back foot. It was time we went on the offense. And I knew just where to start.
Twenty-Five
Bridge
When I returned to the mansion, Emma was waiting for me. She was leaning on the door jamb wearing a set of lingerie that could be classified as a couple of strings and bits of lace. “I was worried about you.”
I ignored the statement. When I texted Jacob from the alley and told him to take her home, I knew she would have questions. And to be honest, I was still furious enough with her that I didn't feel like answering them.
“So what, you're not going to answer me?”
I shook my head. “I’m bloody knackered, Emma. I don't want to do this right now.”
“No more running, Bridge. I fucked up today. I know that and I’m big enough to admit it. And I also know that you were just worried.”
I stepped toward her, unleashing just a little bit of my anger. My body brushed against hers, and I placed my hands on either side of the doorjamb. “Worried? You think I was worried? I'm bloody incensed. After all that talk about learning to trust each other, you went to meet a mysterious caller who likes to leave you notes without telling me?” What the fuck was she missing from this picture?
She lifted her chin. “Don't you have a go at me. Aren't you the same bloke who tore out of your office instead of speaking to me? Tell me, exactly where did you go tonight?”
I tightened my grip on the doorjamb, feeling my muscles go a little too tight, the pain radiating along my neck into my shoulder. “That's none of your concern.” It was like no matter what I did, Emma was going to run headlong into danger. She was determined to give me a heart attack. Determined to terrify me.
“Oh, you're real mature. Trying to give me a dose of my own medicine? You see, Bridge, I am a grown-up. I'm owning my mistake. I didn't go in alone. I kept my security guards. I had Interpol agents with me. And shit still went wrong. Fair enough. And yes, I do prefer to ask for forgiveness instead of permission. Have you ever stopped to think about how frustrating it is to need someone? That I have to depend on you lads for my safety, for my vengeance? The fact that these men are so powerful that I didn't stand a chance alone to make them pay for my brother’s death… Can you see how that is frustrating for me? I just wanted to be able to do something useful. To have a purpose.” She shoved at my chest, moving me barely a centimeter.
When she turned to stroll back into the bedroom, showcasing her spectacular arse, bisected once again by a piece of string and bits of lace, I growled and snatched her hand. “Where are you going?”
“To bed. I was planning on giving you an apology blowjob. A really good one too. One where you would fist your hands in my hair and beg just as I took you deep. As you know, I do lack a gag reflex. But since you're insisting on being a knob head, I'm going to sleep. You can go sleep in one of the other rooms.”
I swallowed hard. She really didn't fight fair.
And she has a point. You took off on your own, too.
“I'm bloody sorry all right?” I pulled her closer. “I fucking lost it when Jacob said you were knocked out and zip-tied to a bloody door. I don't think I've ever been so terrified. I didn't know what you were doing at the library. I could glean that you were meeting someone, but what if security hadn't gotten to you in time? What if you'd been really hurt?”
“Look, I can't promise that I'm not going to get into anything. That's not my personality. If you want that, you might as well go back to Mina.”
I winced, feeling like she'd slapped me. “Fuck, Emma.”
“I'm serious, Bridge. I'm not the girl who's going to decorate your house. I'm not going to meekly sit on charity boards. I'm going to get my hands dirty. If you're planning something, I'm going to be in the middle of it. I'm not Little Tobes. I'm your wife, but you can't protect me from everything. There will be danger. I can't protect you from everything either. All I can do is trust that you're not going to do anything truly stupid. All I can do is trust that you won't leave me alone again.”
My heart cracked in two. She'd been worried. I hadn't even thought about that. She was right. I was being a hypocrite. A big one. “Ems, I'm sorry.”
She nodded. “Maybe just stop being an asshole and tell me if you're okay or not.”