This Is Where I Sleep (19 page)

Chapter Nineteen

Liam

“We found him,” Brian said excitedly, as I opened the door to the den.

My head was still spinning from finding out Coral was pregnant with my baby and that she nearly died as a result. I was distraught when Laura’s mother died, not because I loved her. But I did care for her as a person, and she was excited about being a mother. I had no idea what I would do if I had lost Coral. I’d felt like a shell of my former self for the last five years we were separated. If she had...I couldn’t even let myself finish that thought.   

              “Liam, are you still with me?” Brian’s voice broke through my musings.

              “What did you find?” Coral’s feminine, yet strong voice asked before I could pull it together.

              I looked over at her and picked up on the fact that she was avoiding eye contact with me. Soon after Quincy arrived, I called Laura’s nanny to ask her to come watch Laura for the evening. I had a feeling this was going to be a long night just by the way Quincy was glaring at me since he first saw me. He and I had always had a friendly relationship, but I figured he was pissed at me for leaving Coral. I had no idea about the real reason. Shit, I was pissed as hell at myself, so I could understand where he was coming from. He’d always looked at Coral as a younger sister, although they only actually met after her father died and she and Stacey went to live with them. By then, Coral was already seventeen and a year from college.

I turned back to everyone in the den to refocus on the matter at hand. I was anxious to get this fucking case over with and solved. I wanted to know who killed Larry and why. Most of all, I wanted Coral out of danger. I’d known for a while there was something about this case that was of particular interest to her.

“Turned out, his name actually is John. John Walker,” Brian continued. “I spent a few days and made a few calls to break into Rodrigo’s phone. I traced the number Rodrigo said John called from back to a John Walker of Dallas, but currently lives in Austin.”

Brian got my full attention when Austin was mentioned. I stared at Brian, and I knew what he was going to say before he said it.

“He has ties to my father’s office,” I finished his statement for him.

Brian nodded. “He works as a low-level administrator, but get this; his salary is about a hundred thousand a year. That’s a lot for a paper pusher, don’t you think?”

“Sure the hell is,” Coral said.

“Do you have a picture of this John?” Quincy now asked.

“I do,” Brian said pulling out a picture of the folder he’d been carrying.

We all looked at the picture, and the guy did look familiar. I knew I’d seen him around my father’s office when I visited.

“Yeah, it’s the same guy,” Quincy said.

Three pairs of eyes stared at him perplexed.

“Care to elaborate?” Coral requested.

“Jabari was able to get into the drive. That’s the main reason I came. To deliver what he found. I printed it out also. On the drive was a picture of this same guy along with a lot of accounting records going years back. I took the time to go over the records to make sure what I found.” He stopped to pull out the picture and sure enough it was the same person. Then he pulled out page after page of financial data from Bennett Industries. All of these records, however, were from nearly two decades ago. Long before I took over as CEO.

“What is this?” I asked, looking over the unfamiliar records.

“These are the real financial records of your company. Turns out, during the late nineties during the oil crisis, your father made a deal with the devil.”

“My father is the devil,” I interrupted Quincy.

He simply nodded and continued. “You may be right about that. He got in with some unscrupulous men who ran guns, girls and drugs to bail his company out. Of course, they used shell companies to make it look as if everything was above board. Since then, your father was helping to fund that criminal enterprise. It looks like it’s been with the assistance of John here.”

“Did you say drugs, guns, and girls?” Coral asked. Her voice was low and deadly.

“Yup. The governor of Texas has been aiding in funding an international sex, gun and drug ring. Of course, that side of the world doesn’t know who he is. They all know him as the Ghost because he’s virtually invisible.”

“Oh. My. God.” Coral gasped.

****

Coral

Holy shit!
Was the only coherent thought my brain could form with the realization that Liam’s father was Ghost? The bastard who killed my team. But why? This didn’t make any sense.   

“What is it?” Liam’s strong voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

I stared at him. “Your father tried to kill me.”

“What?!” yelled Liam, Quincy and Brian all at once.

I looked between the three of them. “You asked why I left the Agency,” I began. “Almost two years ago, I was on an assignment in Colombia. We were tracking an international terrorist known for running drugs, guns and girls into the U.S. We had no idea what he looked like. There was no picture of him. Not even a real name. My team gets a tip that someone high up in the guy’s network was staying in this little pueblo outside of Bogota. We set up a meet with the person who gave us the tip, but something was nagging at me. It didn’t feel right. I didn’t read any dishonesty from the guy who gave us the tip, but still it just wasn’t right. So, I set up another meet with a previous contact I trusted—well trusted as much as possible in that world. Anyway, I get ready for that meet and told Sheila and Don, my team, not to do anything until I got back. I told them not to make a move.” I paused, overwhelmed by the guilt.

“What happened?” Liam’s sincere voice wrapped around me, blanketing me in security.

“They didn’t listen. Sheila was young and had been recruited right out of undergrad. She was less than a year out of The Farm. She was smart, capable, and she had a great career ahead of her, but she was ambitious. Wanted to prove to me that she could handle the mission. Don was loyal. He’d never let anyone of us walk into danger alone, so when Sheila opted to keep the meet, he went with her. It was a setup. There was a bomb set to a timer in the bar where the meeting was. Sheila and Don never saw it coming.” I paused again.

“You never told me any of this,” Quincy stated almost accusingly.

I turned to him. “I never told anyone. After the bombing, I was put on desk duty while an investigation took place. It looked suspicious that my team was killed, and I made it out unscathed. I got that. But I fought hard to prove that I had nothing to do with it and was just as dead set on finding out who was behind it. I was cleared, but it still felt like someone above me was pulling strings. The assignments I was given felt riskier, little intel and not enough backup. I started to believe the bombing was an inside job, so I resigned. I’ve been investigating on my own ever since. A few months ago I was led to a guy who ran girls up through Mexico. He told me the name I was looking for was Ghost.” I saw Li’s eyes widen in shock. “For whatever reason this Ghost had it in for me. A month later, Jeremy winds up in Savannah saying an employee of yours was killed, but he left a message saying something about a Ghost being behind suspicious financial activity some years back in Bennett Industries.” I looked Liam in the eye. “I came for two reasons. One, you were in danger and two, I need to get the bastard who killed my team. Sheila and Don should still be here. Don had a wife and kids. They deserve justice.”

“He fucking went through with it,” Liam’s said, his voice just above a whisper.

My brows crinkled in confusion. “What?”

Li remains silent for a few seconds.

“I told you I didn’t leave because I wanted to. The night I left I got a call from my father. I never told him about us or that I was planning on proposing to you. Somehow he found out. He woke me in the middle of the night, telling me he wouldn’t allow this to happen. Of course, I told him to go fuck himself. I couldn’t care less about being kicked out of his will or even not being allowed to take over Bennett Industries. I would have given it all up for you.”

His words sent a shiver down my spine.

“He knew that, though. When his threatening to cut me off didn’t work, he made real threats. He threatened your life. Not just yours, but your family. He knew everything. Where you lived, where Stacey lived, Jabari, Quincy, your aunt and uncle. He even knew about Tasha. He recited all their addresses and said he had guys following them ready to do whatever at his word. I knew they weren’t idle threats, so I agreed. He’d been pressuring me for years to marry Michele and take over Bennett Industries as his sole heir. Her father had important political ties that helped him win the election, and he believed she was better for the image of a CEO than you,” he stated looking at me. “I left, cutting off all contact and married who he wanted me to, to keep you safe. I’ve spent the last five years trying to gather information on him to take him down. Larry was originally a forensic accountant. That’s why I hired him a year after I took over Bennett Industries. He died because of this.”

“Did anyone else know why you hired him?” Quincy asked.

“Only Jeremy and he wouldn’t tell anyone.”

I knew Jeremy wouldn’t go against Liam. He owed Liam too much.

“You have the proof that my father is the ringleader of all this? It needs to be tangible so I can take it to the right people to have that bastard locked up for good.”

Quincy nodded, fanning out the papers on the table in the room. “All the evidence is here.”

We spent the next hour poring over the financial records that it must have taken Larry years to track down and compile. We discovered the man Li’s father originally borrowed money from was the son of a crime family out of New York that originated down in Colombia. He lent the company almost twenty million dollars. With that exchange, Liam’s father began helping him clean the money from his criminal activities. Once the son died, it looked like Liam’s father took over and began running drugs, guns and worst of all, girls. He didn’t run for low-level criminals either. Records showed he had connections in very high offices around the country, including in the CIA. No wonder he was able to nearly kill me.

“Your op in Bogota was getting close to discovering the truth,” Quincy said as we examined the records showing his Colombian connection. “It’s why he tried to take you out.”

“No, not the only reason,” Liam interjected, looking down at me. “He told me he’d leave you alone if I did his bidding. Took over Bennett Industries while he ran for and became governor. I complied, but I’m sure he already knew I never intended to stick with that plan. I’ve been making moves to uproot him for years. I think he suspected as much.”

“You two have been playing chess,” I said.

Li nodded. “Trying to kill you was his final checkmate, or so he thought.”

The look in Li’s eyes was deadly.

“It’s time to pay my father a visit.”

“I’m not staying here,” I informed him.

“No one is. I don’t want you out of my sight.”

“Wait,” I said turning to Quincy. “I need you to do me a huge favor.”

“I’ll get Jabari to cover Stacey for protection and inform her and Andre of what’s going on,” he said knowing that my sister’s safety in all this would be at the forefront of my mind.

“No, I can do that,” I countered.” I need you to go to Vermont for me.”

“What the hell is in Vermont?”

“Tasha. I don’t have time to explain. I’ll just say she’s a friend, a close friend and I won’t let anything happen to her. Li said his father knew about her so he could try to get to her too. Here’s her address,” I began writing down her Vermont address. “I can arrange for a private plane and car to take you to her.”

He stared at me for a few seconds. Whatever he saw in my eyes must have let him know I was serious. He agreed and took the address, pulling out his phone to arrange the flight and car service.

I needed to make a call to Tasha first. She didn’t take well to new people, and I knew she’d be frightened by Quincy’s brooding, burly self, approaching her. Li’s hand on my arms stopped me. He pulled me to the side and his hands gripped my waist, tightly. He put his forehead against mine. I could tell he was blaming himself for all this. The anguish on his face made me want to console him. I reached up and stroke his cheek.

“I should have protected you better. I thought I was doing the right thing. I’d do anything to protect you. He will pay for your team, for Larry and for keeping me from you when you needed me most,” he said, as his hand slid down covering my womb. “I’ll spend the rest of our lives making it up to you,” he promised, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

I smiled up at him and pressed a kiss to his soft lips. “I just might let you.”

Chapter Twenty

Liam

I stared down at a sleeping Coral. We were thirty thousand feet in the air on the plane towards Austin. I could think of nothing more than to finally have this shit over with, getting my father out of the way and finally having this woman to myself. I knew what we were about to reveal was going to set off a shit storm around the nation. The governor of a major political state had also been running an international crime ring for more than a decade. The same governor who has very publicly discussed the possibility of entering the run for President. Yeah, there was about to be some shit. But none of that concerned me. What I was most concerned about was keeping this woman lying in the bed beside me out of harm’s way. She and my daughter were the most important things to me in this world. If anything were to happen to either one of them I’d lose my fucking mind.

“You going to keep staring at me this whole flight?” she asked, her eyes still closed.  

              “I thought you were asleep.” I couldn’t help smiling as she slowly opened her eyes.

              “The only place I can actually sleep is your house,” she said looking around the private jet’s small bedroom.

              Laura was out in the main cabin, sleeping next to Brian. Ron and the rest of my security were out there as well. I couldn’t leave the two most important people in my life behind.

              “
Our home
,” I corrected her last statement.

              Her eyes widened, and she just stared at me.

              I decided it was time to tell her everything. “Don’t look so shocked. Why do you think you had that reaction the first time you saw the house?”

              She looked down trying to recall the first time I brought her home after her hotel room was broken into. She looked back up at me, a surprised, questioning look on her face.

              I nodded answering her yet-to-be-asked question. “You remember that night we stayed up talking about the house of our dreams?”

              She nodded.

              There were many nights we stayed up talking about what we would do when we got home after our tour. It helped pass the time out in the desert. One night we started talking about our dream homes. Coral mentioned that her dream home had lots of huge windows. Growing up in the projects there were few windows, and the ones that existed were covered by steel bars to prevent falls. She said she’d want it outside of a city so there’d be no constant blaring from sirens or other typical city noise. I always carried that with me and made sure the home I built for us had huge windows and lots of open space.

“It’s
our
home. Always has been. I built it for us.”

She sat up staring at me, silently.

I reached out to caress her cheek with my hand. I was always amazed at how soft her skin was. Her career and demeanor gave her a hard edge. But the softness of her skin reminded me of the different layers beneath the surface. The layers she rarely allowed anyone else to see.

“Why would you do that?” she asked almost timidly.

“You have to know by now that I had every intention of coming back for you. I never left because I wanted to. I left to keep you safe. Seems I didn’t do such a great job of that,” I admitted, frowning. “But, you’ve always belonged to me. Even when you didn’t know it.”

She lowered her head for a second and looked up at me smirking. “Is that why you went to visit Nate a few weeks ago?”

My eyes narrowed. If that bastard went crying to her about my little visit the tiny amount of respect I had for him was going right out the window.

“No, he didn’t tell me,” Coral continued. “He stopped calling right around the time you returned from your trip, and I overheard your driver saying you left a pair of sunglasses in the backseat after your trip to D.C. I put two and two together.” 

I chuckled. Of course, she would figure it out.

“You know a relationship normally works when the couple mutually decides to be together,” she joked.

I took her hand in between both my hands. “Sweetheart, when the hell has anything between us ever been normal?” I asked, right before covering her lips with mine.

It was a true statement. For all intents and purposes, Coral and I should have never met. She was a girl from one of the toughest communities in New York City, and I’m a Texas good ‘ol boy, born with a silver spoon in my mouth. Some would say we were an unlikely pair, but those people wouldn’t know the truth, which is that this woman saved me. She taught me there was life and humanity beyond the selfish world I was raised in. I was a better man, father, and I would be a better husband all because of her. And I intended on showing her that right now.

“Mmm,” she moaned as I place kisses down her jawline and lick the spot just below her ear.

“Shhh, CeCe. We’re going to have to be quiet this go ‘round,” I said reminding her we’re not alone on this jet.

When she whispered my name in that sexy lilt, my cock jumped in my pants, and I knew I needed to be inside her soon. I pushed her down against the mattress and unbuttoned and pulled her jeans down before quickly doing the same to my own clothing.

“Damn, CeCe, you're soaking wet,” I crooned in her ear, touching her wetness with my fingers.

“Only for you, Li.”

Those words had an instant impact on my cock, making me painfully hard. I pulled Coral’s legs up to my waist and pushed all of myself into her in one fell swoop. I didn’t immediately begin pounding her like my rock hard dick was telling me to. Instead, I paused, staring down into the only face I ever wanted to see in this position again. “Can you still have kids?” I asked the question that had been lingering in my mind since she revealed that she lost our child.

“Wh-what?” she panted, and it was the sexiest fucking sound ever.

“Can you still have kids?” I asked again, beginning to thrust my hips.

She nodded.

“And it’s not a health risk?”

“No….the doctors said I should...be able to...carry and have...a healthy pregnancy and birth in...the future.” She panted and moaned with every down stroke of mine.

“Good. Cuz we’re making a baby. Again.” With those words, I picked up my pace and thrusted my unyielding cock into her with every bit of strength of I had. When her moans got a little too loud, I fused our mouths together. I reached down with both my hands, propping her waist up, allowing me to go even deeper. Coral gripped my shoulders tightly and kissed me back with the same amount of passion.

Goddamn I love this woman.
That was the only coherent thought running through my head as we fucked each other’s brains out as quietly as possible. I felt her wetness grow, and her pussy muscles tightened around my cock, and I knew she is coming. She ripped her lips from mine, turned her head and biting my upper arm to keep from yelling out. The pain mixed with her tight, clutching pussy shattered me, and I lowered my head into the crook of her neck, shouting my release. My thrusting hips continued pumping ensuring every last drop of my seed made its way into her canal.

“As soon as this is all over,” I said low in her ear, as we both struggled to catch our breath, “I’m officially making you mine.”

She simply stared at me.

I pressed my lips to the corner of her mouth and turned us so that we were both on our sides, still facing one another. Our bodies still joined. Minutes later our pilot alerted us we were making our final descent into Austin. Good. I was ready for this final checkmate against my father and to lay claim on my queen.