Hell Is Burning (33 page)

Paris glanced over at his fiancée. “We’re going to be pulling an all-nighter here. We can crash in my office.”

Tessa patted his hand. “I’ll be okay, Paris.”

He didn't care. They’d already had someone take a shot at his woman, putting him in a wheelchair. He wasn’t willing to take a chance.

“We’ll be staying here,” he reiterated.

Greyson was good with that.

“Why us?” Tessa asked. “We’re only the team.”

Greyson knew exactly why. “Whoever is trying for us can’t reach Emma and myself. Look at all the botched attempts. She’s been abducted, and they took a shot at killing her and Randall Mason. Marianna has been trying to out gun me, but now that we’re richer than he is, he’s sunk. If they start chipping away at our family, they might be able to get to us when we’re distracted.”

“And this Curtis thing definitely has us distracted.”

“That’s why we need to figure out who is dicking with our team. So find me something,” he stated. “I can bury Marianna, but I need proof.”

“Did the LVPD find anything working Lana Dumas’s murder?”

Emma shook her head. “My partner and Detective Heath Spencer hit a wall. They didn't find any trace on her--nothing at all. The killer shot her and got away clean.”

“That sucks,” Tessa said. She knew that her boss wanted to lose it, just from the look on his face.

“What about that body that Brynn and I found in the desert?” Emma asked, gathering her gear. “Did Max ever get an ID?”

“No. All the teeth are gone, and there were no fingers to print. We’re working with a forensic artist back at FBI West, but Doctor Armstrong is bogged down. They’re just as busy as we are. Once we get it, we can run it through the system.”

“So, basically, our only hope of pinning this on someone is finding something on Brynn.”

Croft nodded. “We need to find out where Detective Westmore-Briggs was the night she died, retrace her steps, and find the place she was abducted.”

Paris and Tessa’s list was getting longer and longer. They were definitely pulling an all-nighter.

“We’ll crack this, boss,” Paris offered. “They can only run for so long.”

He prayed his profiler was right. They were falling behind, and that meant someone could get hurt.

Shit!

He hoped it wasn’t his wife, or the people he cared about. Something had to be done, and soon.

“Let’s hope Max can pull it off. If the killer got sloppy…”

They all knew what that meant.

They’d close the cage.

       
         
* * *
  Croft & Croft  * * *

The notification came by text.

The hired gun was ready to make the next move. It would be successful. It had to be.

Sitting behind the desk, the corruptor was out for blood. There was no way that Greyson Croft would survive when this was done. Once the shit hit the fan, everything would fall apart.

Emma’s partner was dead.

The city was already talking about how corrupt the Crofts were.

Now there would be one more death to add to the growing list.

If they wouldn’t succumb to the pressure, then there was only one way to handle it.

There would be blood.

There would be death.

There would be guilt.

Greyson Croft would break, and when he did, Las Vegas would be up for grabs.

Then the game would end.

There would be only one victor, and all the wonderful spoils.

       
                        
* * *
  Croft & Croft  * * *

In the vehicle, they needed to get Curtis up to speed, so they told him everything. A lot had happened in two months. If he was going to be part of the family, he needed to know what they were facing down.

“Shit! You’re being followed?” he asked, turning in the backseat to stare out the window. That wasn’t good at all!

“Yeah, and it’s getting ugly.”

Then they told him about Dimitri Gideon.

Curtis whistled. “What can I do?” he asked.

Emma smiled from her spot in the passenger seat. The man they knew and loved was coming back. He only needed a distraction.

This would be a huge one.

“We need you to help Dante get the house ready. Yes, we’re safe in Sky Villa, but it’s not big enough for us. Dante and Steele are moving in, plus with my mother and father arriving any day now, we need room,” Croft stated.

“Can I come?” he asked.

Greyson glanced up in the rearview mirror. “Are you insane? You get first pick of the rooms. You’re the eldest child.”

She found that funny. “He’s the only child.”

He grinned. “Thanks, Mom and Dad.”

“You call me that in public, I’m grounding you.”

Emma laughed. “Ahhh, here are the men I love. This new house is going to be exciting.”

There was no arguing that.

As they pulled up to the café, Greyson saw their bodyguard sitting inside with a woman he said was his sister. “That’s them,” he stated.

Curtis lifted his glasses to check them out. Dimitri Gideon looked like a hired gun. The black hair, the angles of his jaw--they made him look dangerous.

Then he noticed that there was someone beside him. “Who’s the woman?”

“That’s his family, and supposedly, it’s also his partner. They’re as illegal as the day is long, but our backs are to the wall here. If this wasn’t getting dirty, I’d be busting him not hiring him.”

“Hey, you have to do what you have to do,” Curtis said, getting out of the Navigator. There was no way he was going to judge them.

He totally got it.

As they approached, both men flanked Emma. She wasn’t sure if they planned it, or it was something inbred in cavemen. Instead of fighting it, she moved closer to Greyson’s body. There was a time and place to feign irritation by his testosterone jacked antics, and this wasn’t one of them.

Their lives were on the line.

Her husband was in full protection mode, and that meant giving him the benefit of the doubt. She was going to let the cave-Croft run this one.

Inside, they approached the table. Immediately, Dimitri stood to greet Emma. “Mrs. Croft, you look well,” he stated, offering her a kiss to each cheek in greeting.

Greyson gave him a look. The man was skirting a very thin line.

“Thank you, Mr. Gideon. I’m glad we could meet here and not at gun point.”

Katerina Gideon laughed. “I’m impressed at how fast you move, Detective. I never saw you coming, and I’m pretty good at what I do.”

Emma took her seat, facing the table so she could look out the window. It was a nice day, and god knew when she’d see the sunlight again. Curtis was beside her with Greyson on her other side.

“And what exactly are you good at, Ms. Gideon?”

She grinned, staring over at the young agent beside her. “Allocation, and let’s leave it at that.”

Curtis couldn’t help himself. It was hard to believe that the pretty woman was a criminal. “So, you’re a glorified thief.”

He had both of their attention now.

Without batting an eyelash, she held out her hand. “I like my term better. I don’t believe we’ve met,” she stated.

Curtis glanced down at her hand. “I’m Special Agent Briggs,” he stated, accepting her offering.

Greyson watched the interaction. There was this sizzle of electricity in the air. Dimitri didn't miss it either. He touched his sister on the arm in warning.

Regretfully, she removed her hand from Curtis’s.

“Why is he here?” Dimitri asked. “This is a serious meeting. I asked to see you alone.”

Greyson ordered their lunch and took a sip of his iced tea, biding his time until the waitress left. The second she was gone, he dropped the smile and lowered his voice.

“You’re looking at our heir. We’re adopting Curtis. Since he’s family, and in just as much danger as we are, he deserves to know the truth.”

Curtis felt something, or someone, brush his leg. He glanced over at the woman beside him.

She winked salaciously at him.

He didn't know what to say. He was definitely confused.

Was she hitting on him?

Could that actually be happening?

“I see,” stated Dimitri. “Are you giving me your word that we can trust him?”

“I trust him with our lives. You need to trust him too.”

“So, you want us to also protect the boy,” stated Dimitri.

They all heard the tone of his voice, and it probably had everything to do with the way Katerina was watching Curtis. Her big aqua eyes were tracking his every move, and there was a seductive smile etched onto her face.

It spoke volumes.

“Yeah, about that,” Emma stated. “You’re fired as our shadows. We don’t want you tailing us in the cover of alleys.”

He looked surprised. “That’s very foolish, Mrs. Croft. I assure you that you need us. Randall Mason wanted this done. It was his dying wish.”

Greyson leaned over to kiss his wife. He loved watching her work. If Dimitri thought that throwing a dead man into the mix would soften his wife up, he was mistaken.

Instead, it was going to piss her off.

“Is this because of the little altercation in the alley?”

Greyson shook his head. “No, it’s about something more important to us--the image we portray.”

He looked offended.

“So, my help is beneath you.”

Emma lifted a hand. “Hold on, Mr. Gideon. You’re jumping the gun. We’re simply asking if you own a legit security company. You know…one on the books? I’m sure you pay taxes, right?”

“Yes, I do but why?”

“We want to officially hire you as our security team,” Greyson added. “It’ll be for our personal safety and our home security at Terrace Glen. I don’t think the company doing it now will be to standard.”

He leaned back in his chair and pondered what they were saying. “I think I get it now. Your wife is definitely behind this,” he stated, pointing at Emma. “You want us to be legit.”

“Is that a problem?” Croft asked.

He laughed. “Who wears the pants in the family?”

Emma felt her husband tense.

It was like Dimitri knew right where to strike.

So, she spoke up, “Oh, make no mistake, Mr. Gideon, that my husband is the boss. I’m just looking out for our best interest. I’m just the little woman, but my husband needs to look like he’s not up to his neck in a mess. Having sneaky Russian commandos following you around screams attention grabbing. We’re up to our necks in bad media as it is.”

“Public relations, huh?”

“Exactly. My utmost concern is that he looks good. He has the prestige, the job, and the money. Now he needs to be kept safe. I’d like him to come home every night. That has nothing to do with power, Mr. Gideon, and everything to do with the fact that I need him. He’s the love of my life. If you can’t handle me wanting to keep my soulmate safe, maybe you’re not the man for us.”

Dimitri calmly watched her. He was measuring her words, and also the honesty in them. He read people a lot in his line of work, and he wanted to make sure he could trust them. After all, they were cops.

If anything, he was slumming.

Greyson’s heart skipped when Emma stroked his scarred cheek. Her eyes never left his, and they were filled with so much emotion. “He’s my all. Let’s face it--someone is gunning for him, and I need them to fail.”

Dimitri saw the love there.

It was genuine.

Greyson continued, “We have billions of dollars, none of which we wanted or asked for, and we need someone to guard our backs. Doing it this way allows you to do your job, and it looks legit. You’ll be able to follow us around and keep us safe in plain sight. It will act as a deterrent if you’re good at your job.”

Greyson got his shot in.

Two could play alpha male.

Dimitri said nothing. For some reason, these two ruffled his feathers when they thought he wasn’t worthy to protect him. Maybe it was his past rearing its ugly head, but now that they explained their reasoning, he was okay with it.

He’d studied them.

The Crofts were unusual.

They made him…curious.

“I’m damn good at my job, Mr. Croft. My team is very efficient.”