The Billionaire's Heir: Billionaire Obsession (Tycoon Billionaires Book 4) (17 page)

He pulled out his gun and aimed it at Jake. Ivan frantically glanced around for a way to save his brother, but suddenly everyone’s attention was seized by the boom of roaring engines outside – thundering through the room in a deafening blast.

“What the hell’s that?” Langdon asked.

“Sounded like a fucking plane,” Andreas said, pointing his gun at Jake, but looking out the window.

Jake took the opportunity to pull his own gun. “Drop it, asshole. I’m not a cop anymore and I’d gladly kill you for what you did to me.”

“Don’t be an idiot,” Andreas said. “Now where was I? Oh yeah, about to kill
you
.”

Andreas stood and fired, but Ivan grabbed Jake’s arm and pulled him toward the door – saving him from the bullet. Jake turned back and fired, getting Andreas in the hip – which was poetic revenge for what he’d done to Jake last time they’d met. Andreas flew backward with the impact and shot the ceiling fan, so – while he was incapacitated – Langdon grabbed Andreas’s gun, as the two heavies looked confused now their boss was flailing in pain on the ground.

“Get after them!” Andreas shouted as Ivan and Jake darted into the hallway.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Ivan asked, as they pelted toward the stairs.

“I got him in the hip – now we’re even.”

“Don’t shoot anyone else.”

Ivan pulled his brother down the stairs, leaving behind the chaotic shouts from the Mexicans, Langdon, and the wounded Andreas in the office. They took the steps two at a time and reached the front door as the others chased them. Ivan ripped open the door, pushed Jake out in front of him, and darted into the sunshine – slamming the door behind him as one of the Mexicans fired off a few rounds – shooting the door and – thankfully – missing him and Jake.

“Where to?” Jake shouted. “Driveway’s too exposed.”

Ivan glanced around. Jake was right – if they started running down the driveway now, they’d be picked off easily by Andreas’s men. And they still didn’t have Samira’s passport…

“This way,” Ivan said, already running toward the back of the house. “We can cut through the woods and scale the fence at the far end of his property.”

Jake ran beside him. “Flag down a car when we reach the road?”

“Yeah… hopefully.”

Running as fast as he could, Ivan opened his mouth to tell Jake they should meet at the airfield if they got split up, but he closed it again as he heard bullets showering behind them. Ivan’s heart thumped hard as his lungs gasped for air – which felt as if glass shards were stabbing them with every step.

“Shit!” he shouted. “They’re gaining on us.”

“Keep going,” Jake said.

“I’m good in a fight, but not against a goddamn gun.”

“Maybe you should’ve let me shoot them all then.”

“Oh sure,” Ivan said, panting as another bullet flew past his shoulder. “You could’ve taken out all four of them, huh? We would’ve been dead in that room if I hadn’t pulled you out.”

“So I owe you my life,” Jake shouted. “But it won’t be worth much if we don’t get the fuck out of here.”

Ivan pushed Jake toward the wooded area, making him stumble, but he recovered and they ran onward into the forest with the Mexicans hot in pursuit. Ivan prayed they could shake them off in here, but then – through a gap in the trees – he caught sight of the plane that had just crashed. It wasn’t too badly damaged…

“This way,” Ivan shouted. “We’ll be able to lock ourselves inside and radio for help. Or maybe we can even fly outta here.”

Jake gasped for breath as they ran. “You know how to fly a plane?”

“No idea. But it can’t be that hard, huh?”

“Sure, sure. Tell it to the goddamn pilot who just crashed that one.”

Ivan could hear the Mexicans shouting in their own language as they continued to chase them. Langdon was with them too – Ivan could hear his voice. They’d stopped shooting now – because the trees were blocking their aim – but Ivan knew as soon as he and Jake ran out into the field, they’d start again.

“Come on,” Ivan said, as they reached the edge of the trees. “Ready to sprint? Give it all you got – one last push, right.”

Jake nodded and dashed out into the open field toward the plane. Ivan ran fast too, and – as predicted – the bullets started up, but thank god neither of them got hit as they fled behind the plane, taking shelter there.

“Now we just need to get round to the other side and open the door without getting killed,” Ivan said. “After that… we’re plain sailing.”

****

Samira breathed hard and tried to get a grip, feeling ecstatic just to be alive and back on steady ground. “You okay, Joseph? I think you saved us!”

She turned to face him and her heart sank. He was bent over the controls, unmoving. He looked dead… Oh
god
…

“Joseph!” She reached out and shook him. He groaned. She could see that his forehead was bleeding where he’d hit it hard against the console. But at least he was alive.

She scrambled up out of her seat – driven by a desire to get off this stupid plane to find help – so she grabbed the suitcase, and slowly opened the silent plane door, letting in the gloomy air.

The scene before her made her blood freeze with fear. Ivan and Jake were there, with two heavy-set gangster types she didn’t recognize, seemingly ready to fight. It looked as if the two guys had chased Ivan and Jake here. This must be something to do with Langdon and her passport…

The gangsters were both holding guns, and pointing them directly at Ivan and Jake.

She held her breath as Ivan raised his hands and started to walk toward one of the gangsters. “Listen,” Ivan said. “Before you shoot me, there’s something you really need to know.”

The gangster stared at Ivan with cautious interest as he continued to walk slowly towards him. “It’s about the drugs,” Ivan said. “I can help you get really, really rich…”

The gangster opened his mouth to reply as Ivan halted, but he didn’t get the chance to speak, because – in one swift movement – Ivan kicked the gun away from the now-shocked gangster and kneed him in the nuts, causing him to crumple to the grass in a heap. One down…

While ‘gangster two’ was distracted by his friend’s groans of pain, Jake launched himself and punched him in the face – grabbing the wrist of his gun-holding hand, and squeezing until he dropped his weapon. Ivan kicked the incapacitated ‘gangster one’ in the face – making sure he was definitely out – then he darted over to help Jake – punching ‘gangster two’ into unconsciousness, while Jake kicked his gun away.

“That was easy,” Ivan said, surveying the knocked-out gangsters.

“You’re not bad in a fight,” Jake said.

Ivan shrugged. “I guess we make a pretty good team.”

“I guess we do.”

Samira cheered with relief and pushed down the retractable steps so she could get off the plane. “Oh my
god
,” she said. “I can’t believe we crash-landed right in the middle of this!”

Jake and Ivan looked up and saw her for the first time.

“Samira, what the fuck are you doing here?” Ivan asked.

She strolled down the wobbly steps to the grass and held up the suitcase. “I tried to call you but I couldn’t get through. Joseph flew me here. You’ve got the wrong case.”

“We know,” Jake said. “We found out the hard way.”

Samira opened her mouth to reply, but she suddenly realized there was someone missing. She gazed down at the suitcase in her hands, and–

“Samira, look out!” Ivan shouted.

But it was too late. Langdon pounced and pulled her against himself, holding a gun to her head.

“Thanks for bringing a plane and the coke, Samira,” he said, gripping her tight. “Looks like I can still use you after all. Your pilot can take us to Mexico and we can sell that cocaine. And who knows, perhaps I’ll even get a good price for
you
.”

She struggled against him. “Fuck you!”

“Hmm… And now that I know people care about you, I can charge a good ransom for your release. I’m sure they’ll do all they can to get you back!”

There was a loud crash inside the plane, and Samira glanced up to see that Joseph had tried to climb out, but he’d fallen over in the doorway from where he was still concussed.

Langdon tightened his grip on Samira, pushing the gun barrel into her temple. “Is that Joseph Quinlan? Jesus, Samira, you’re better connected than I realized.”

“Let her go, Langdon,” Ivan growled. “If you hurt her, I’ll fucking kill you.”

Samira saw one of the concussed gangsters twitching behind Ivan… the other gangster was still out cold. But now where had
Jake
gone?

Langdon opened his mouth to reply to Ivan, but there was a loud bang and he suddenly let go of Samira. She realized he’d been shot in the shoulder, and she saw Jake standing at the side of the plane, holding the smoking gun.

“He said leave her alone, motherfucker,” Jake shouted. “And he means it.”

Langdon pushed Samira out the way, raised his own gun, then – without hesitation – he shot Jake in the chest.

“No!” Samira shouted, as Jake flew to the ground, where he remained unmoving.

“You killed my brother, you asshole!” Ivan shouted.

Langdon was clearly in agony from the gunshot wound in his shoulder – he spoke through gritted teeth. “Your brother? Jake’s your brother?”

“Yeah. Funny who you bump into when you’ve got a psychopathic murderer in your life, isn’t it?”

Despite his heavily bleeding shoulder, Langdon directed the gun toward Ivan. “Well, now it’s your turn to join him.”

“Stop it!” Samira shouted, feeling all hope drain from her body. “Don’t kill him, please!”

Langdon’s finger twitched on the trigger, but Jake suddenly leapt up and shot Langdon again – this time incapacitating him. Samira grabbed his gun as he fell to the ground – writhing in agony from two bullets.

Jake rushed forward and stood menacingly over Langdon, pointing his gun down at him. He didn’t flinch at the sound of the approaching police sirens, but Samira guessed one of the staff must’ve called the cops because of all the shooting.

“I should fucking kill you for trying to set me up like that,” Jake shouted at Langdon, looming over him.

Samira ran to Ivan, who wrapped her up in his embrace. Her heart pounded painfully in her chest, and she bit back her tears – relieved he was okay, but terrified about what was about to happen next.

Langdon covered his face with his arm, preparing himself for the impact. Jake was bleeding badly too, but the adrenaline was obviously pulling him through.

“No, Jake!” Ivan shouted. “Don’t you fucking dare kill him – I’m not losing you to the electric chair.”

“No… I won’t kill him. I’ve got a better idea.” Jake locked his gaze on Langdon. “I’ll let you live
if
you give Samira your late-wife’s identity. And then leave her alone after that. That way she gets to stay in the country and you get to live. Do we have a deal?”

Langdon nodded frantically. “Yes, we have a deal.”

Jake stepped down just as the cops reached them. “Everyone freeze. No one move! Someone call paramedics!”

Jake turned to face the cop who was doing all the shouting. “You’ve got an injured drugs baron in the house and a concussed rockstar in the plane. And here… this is Mrs. Langdon. Right?”

Samira gazed up into Ivan’s eyes, then she walked forward to speak. “Jake, I appreciate the thought, but we need justice for the real Mrs. Langdon. I can’t steal her identity. Her husband murdered her, and he would’ve murdered me. He needs to go to jail.”

Jake nodded, indicating that he understood. He opened his mouth to talk to the police, but he collapsed to his knees, finally giving in to the gunshot wound in his shoulder. Samira wanted to run over and thank him for the sacrifice he’d made, but the paramedics rushed to attend to him.

She glanced over at Langdon who was also being attended to. Then she turned to Ivan. “I hope they both survive. I couldn’t bear it if anyone died… Not even Langdon.”

Ivan put his arms around her, holding her tight. “You okay?”

She laughed at the craziness of it all. “I think so.”

“I’m proud of you, sweetheart. You’re a good person, and I love you so much.”

She buried her face in his chest. “Oh, Ivan. I love you too. The only person I ever want to be from now on is Samira Quinlan.”

“Sounds good to me, baby.” He kissed her tenderly. “Come on, let’s go get your passport.”

Samira held Ivan’s hand as she watched Jake lying on the hospital bed, sleeping. After he’d been rushed here from the ranch, he’d spent the last few hours in surgery to remove the bullet from his deltoid muscle, but the doctors assured them he was going to be fine. It’d been a tense night though. Mr. and Mrs. Quinlan had flown to Texas straight away, bringing little Quin with them, who was currently snoozing in Ivan’s arms, resting his head on his daddy’s shoulder. Dylan had come too, because he’d been worried about Joseph – who was fine after his concussion – and was now with them all, waiting for Jake to wake up.

The hospital décor was dull and functional. There was a large window, but it was covered by a navy curtain. The bedframe was gunmetal grey. It was gloomy and uninspiring. Samira had no idea what time it was – all she knew was she was exhausted, but relieved.

Mr. Quinlan gazed at the paper cup in his hand. “If only the coffee was better in these places. It might not seem so darn depressing.”

Joseph leaned forward. “I think he’s waking up.”

All heads turned toward Jake. His eyes flickered open and he blearily took in the faces around his bed. His biological parents were on one side, Joseph and Dylan were at the foot of the bed, and Samira and Ivan were standing on the other side.

He threw them that cheeky grin of his, still half-dazed. “Hi, everyone.”

“Good to have you back with us,” Dylan said, gently squeezing his foot.

“How are you feeling, honey?” Mrs. Quinlan asked. “We were so worried.”

“I’m okay... I think.” He turned his head and smiled at Samira. “Did you get everything fixed?”

“Yes,” she said. “I told the police the truth. They said if I can testify as a witness against Langdon then it should help my case to stay in the country.” She cringed. “And they were
so
pleased they caught Andreas – the drug baron. He’s going to jail for a long time.”

Jake nodded pensively. “That’s the best news I’ve heard all day… You’re a more honest person than me, Samira – you could’ve totally gotten away with stealing Mrs. Langdon’s identity.”

She shrugged. “It wouldn’t have been right. I can’t live a lie.”

Ivan kissed the sleeping Quin, and put his arm around his wife. “Jake, I still think you’re a mercenary ass, but you made a huge sacrifice for us.”

“I did?”

“Aw, come on. You must’ve known Langdon would retaliate once you shot him, but still you did it. You took a bullet to save us. Thank you.”

His expression remained blank. “Well, let’s just hope Clara’s friend at immigration can work his magic. We can’t lose Samira after all this.”

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Dylan said. “We can always employ Samira at Quinlan Brothers. Sponsor her to remain in the country until she gets her visa cleared.”

Warm gratitude fizzed in Samira’s heart. “Thank you, Dylan. That would be awesome.”

Dylan shrugged. “Hey, you’re a part of the family now.”

Mr. Quinlan Senior cleared his throat. “Jacob… you did good, son. You’re a true Quinlan. Welcome to the family – at long last, huh?”

Jake nodded. “Thanks…
dad
.” They shared a smile, causing tender vibes to resonate around the room.

Joseph broke the moment by holding up today’s newspaper. “By the way, we made the front page…”

Samira read the headline out loud. “Exclusive! Drug-bust blaze of glory! Joseph Quinlan saves day!”

“What a lot of exclamation points,” Mrs. Quinlan said with a chuckle.

Jake smiled. “Wow, Joe – turns out
you’re
the hero… Did Ellie write that article by any chance?”

Joseph laughed. “She might’ve had something to do with it.”

Mrs. Quinlan rubbed Jake on the arm. “You should come stay with us in New York for a while. Until you feel better.”

“I’m okay. A gunshot wound is becoming familiar territory for me.”

“Well we don’t want it happening again,” Mrs. Quinlan said.

“You know what you need?” Samira said. “You need to find the love of a good woman. And let her take care of you.”

“Nah… People like me don’t fall in love. And besides, I’ve got a legacy to find.”

“What’s that?” Ivan asked, gently rubbing Quin as he slept in his arms.

“Some of the money that Quinlan Senior… I mean, Dad… stashed from the gun-running. You and your gang hid it somewhere, right, Dad? When the cops started sniffing around. That’s what
my
dad told me.”

Mr. Quinlan frowned. “Well now, Jake, I honestly couldn’t tell you where that money is. It might be gone. I can probably point you in the right direction. But don’t forget it’s dirty cash. I don’t want anything to do with it.”

“Good,” Jake said. “More for me.”

Ivan shook his head. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“Yeah, I do. I’m going on a treasure hunt.”

Dylan folded his arms across his chest. “Actually, Jake, Adam and I have a job for you – we need a private investigator we can trust.”

Jake flicked his eyes at Ivan. “Did you tell them I needed a job? Because I don’t.”

“Nothing to do with me,” Ivan said.

“No, nothing to do with him,” Dylan said. “My lawyer’s been bugging me on the phone all night. We urgently need someone to check a few things out for us.”

Jake tried to sit up, but couldn’t manage it. “What do you need investigating and how much are you paying?”

“We’ll pay you well, of course,” Dylan said. “But Jake, don’t forget that we’re family now. You’ve got to stop being so spiky all the time. We Quinlans stick together.”

“Yeah, yeah. So what’s the job?”

“We’ve got a government health and safety woman on our back. There’s a product we’re interested in investing in, but it’s being dragged through this huge insurance claim, so the woman is working onsite with us, going through all the paperwork…”

“And where do I come in?”

“We need someone to make sure the company isn’t covering up anything. You just need to work alongside this health and safety woman, and make sure she’s not trying to fuck things up. She’s almost as much of a pain in the ass as
you
.”

“Okay. I can do that and go on my treasure hunt at the same time. Give me her details and I’ll look into it.”

“Great, Jake. I’m sure looking forward to working with you. You’re definitely going to be an asset to this family.”

Jake closed his eyes and smiled, looking more content than Samira had ever seen him. This was the end of an adventure for them both, and she couldn’t wait for the beginning of the next one.