by Nicole Fox
Kenzie knew Angelo meant it; he was a sick bastard and her father had chosen him as her guard for good reason. He wasn’t the kind of guy to get soft and mushy just because he was dealing with a woman. If he was, she would have made her way out of her father’s house a long time ago. But she knew that her destiny was downstairs, and the only way to get to it was to get past the thug. “Get out of my way,” she commanded, doing her best to look as intimidating as her father could. “I need to get downstairs.”
Angelo laughed, a sound that sent a chill down her spine. “I don’t think so, little girl. Matteo told me to keep you in your room, and that’s exactly what I intend to do.”
“What are you going to do to stop me?” She charged up to him, her own fists curled and her chin jutting defiantly. She had nothing to use as a weapon, and even if she did, it wouldn’t be better than a gun. Let him shoot her. That would draw some attention.
He puffed out his chest and did his best to fill the doorway. “Whatever it takes, you little bitch. I have a feeling it won’t be much.”
“And if I asked to see my father? Would you deny me that, too?” The men in the family were undyingly loyal to Matteo. Maybe there was some way she could play off that.
“Then he would come up here to you,” Angelo reasoned, unthwarted. “You think I’m stupid, but you have no clue what I’m capable of.”
“Oh, I have an idea.” Kenzie knew Angelo was probably guilty of more crimes than she dared to think of. But when it came down to it, would he really shoot her? Kenzie ducked to her left and then quickly to her right, aiming for the space between Angelo’s left arm and the doorway. It would take only a fraction of a second to get past him and she would be on her way down the hall and the stairs to find Xavier.
“I don’t think so.” His fingers curled around her neck as soon as she got within arm’s reach. He wasn’t a big man, but he was stronger than he looked. He charged forward into the room, pushing her in front of him.
Kenzie gasped for air, clawing uselessly at his fingers. She could see nothing but his angry face, and for a moment she wondered if this was how she was going to die. The backs of her knees hit the corner of her mattress, and Angelo let her fall backward onto the bed. What little breath she still had left in her lungs was slammed out of her body, and a bolt of fear rippled through her muscles.
He loomed over her. “Don’t try any shit like this again, Kenzie. I’m tired of missing out on all the good jobs just because your daddy needs someone to babysit you. Learn to control yourself!” He stormed back out of the room and slammed the door, the tumbler locking with a final thud.
Gulping for air, Kenzie wasn’t ready to give up yet. She shot to her feet, only to sit right back down again. The lack of breath had left her dizzy and drained of all her strength. Still, she had to find a way to get to Xavier. Sliding down to the floor, she crawled across her room on her hands and knees to listen at the air vent.
“… difficult. See, I have Kenzie on tape saying that the whole thing was set up. Even if you …” Some of what Xavier said was muffled, but there was no doubt it was his voice. Kenzie sat back, reeling. Did he really have her on tape? It was definitely possible. She felt a wave of anger come through her battered body at knowing that he hadn’t trusted her enough, and that he had actually recorded her when she had come to him for help. But then again, what reason did he have to trust her? She was the one who had started their entire relationship—or whatever it could be called—on a lie. If he had her on tape, then it really only showed that he was smart.
She rocked back and hugged her knees. At the very least, Xavier had done what he said he would do. He had come for her. It wouldn’t work; she had no false hopes about getting out of her father’s house right then. Matteo wasn’t going to give her up when he thought he might still be able to use her, and unless Xavier had brought his entire club with him he was far outnumbered. But she couldn’t just let this go without doing something. Xavier couldn’t be the only one fighting for her freedom.
With her lungs working again, Kenzie got to her feet and went to her desk. Colored dots danced in her vision, and she blinked to chase them away. She scribbled hastily in her notebook, trying to keep her hand moving slowly enough that the words would still be legible. But adrenaline and fear were running rampant in her bloodstream, and she knew she was running out of time.
She ripped the sheet out of the notebook just as the front door slammed. Hurtling across the room, Kenzie yanked open the window, shoved aside the screen, and flung the balled-up piece of paper down onto the lawn. It landed squarely on Xavier’s shoulder.
Kenzie held her breath as he bent to retrieve it and then paused to look up at her. He was just gorgeous, his short red hair blowing in the breeze and those brilliant eyes, a man who could easily be part angel and part devil. She still hadn’t figured out which side of that line he truly belonged on, but it almost didn’t matter. Xavier was a better man than her father would ever be. And now he would really know the truth. She just had to hope that he believed her.
Xavier shoved the note in his pocket without reading it. He flung his leg over his motorcycle, which he had parked on the front lawn. She had to smile at that; this man liked to make a point and he knew how to do it. He sped off into the distance.
There was nothing left for her to do but hope and wait.
Chapter Twenty
Xavier
Xavier ran a hand through his hair as he paced the living room floor. He had read Kenzie’s note a hundred times, and still he couldn’t take his eyes off of it.
I’m being held prisoner in my room. My father knows about the baby, and he won’t let me leave. He plans on keeping me here until I deliver, and then he’s going to keep the child for his own to continue the Labriola line. He took my phone and my computer. Please help me, Xavier.
The words were bad enough, but even the handwriting showed him what a desperate situation she was in. He hadn’t seen what her script looked like before, but he highly doubted it was normally full of smudges and shaky lines. No, Kenzie was in a very desperate situation. She was a scared girl trapped by her father, a girl who needed to be rescued. It was no wonder she hadn’t called or texted him, since her father had taken away every form of communication. His visit to the Labriola mansion hadn’t been entirely futile. At least he now knew exactly what was going on with Kenzie and where she was.
In his mind’s eye, he could easily seem himself breaking down the front door and charging up the stairs. He would fling open every door in the big house until he finally found her, probably in a room filled with pink lace. When he scooped Kenzie up in his arms, she would instantly agree to go with him anywhere he wanted to. He would her knight in shining armor, and she would ride off on the back of his bike with him. When they reached safety, they would make love all night, that sexy body of hers writhing underneath him as he pleasured her over and over again.
It was a nice fantasy, but it was still fantasy. Matteo and the rest of his men would never let him get away with something like that. He needed a plan, and he knew where to start. He launched across town on his motorcycle, dodging down side streets to avoid stoplights until he pulled up at The Scythe. He recognized Chrome’s bike in the parking lot and was glad to see it.
Xavier quickly found the ex-con sitting at the bar. He had a computer set up in front of him, which might have been an odd scene at a pub if this was any normal place. But the skinny man’s sharp elbows moved quickly as he entered information into a spreadsheet.
“What the hell are you doing?” Xavier crossed the floor in a few long strides and looked over his shoulder.
“I’m keeping track of the Labriolas’ movements,” Chrome explained without looking up. Several empty beer mugs sat on the counter next to him, but the alcohol didn’t seem to have affected his work ethic. “I’m taking all the information about the comings and goings of the thugs—like the times and where we think they’re going—and putting them in here so we can look for a p
attern. Obviously, some of it is going to be purely random, but we’re already seeing a little bit of a routine.”
“Such as?” Xavier was eager for this information. It was the one thing that was going to help him save Kenzie. If Matteo had been just a normal asshole, Xavier could have easily extracted her from his clutches. But he was disgustingly rich and horrifically powerful. Matteo knew the reach of his fear, and he used it to his benefit. That wasn’t helping matters at all.
Chrome lifted one shoulder and let it fall again. “It’s early, yet. We haven’t had nearly enough time. But it looks like Tiny—that’s the big guy—leaves every Thursday at nine in the morning and goes to visit his mother.” He laughed and shook his head. “It’s kind of funny to think about a big ol’ brute like that being sentimental, but that’s just what the statistics show! The others haven’t been nearly as regular, shall we say.”
“What about Matteo?” Xavier demanded. He didn’t give two shits about Tiny going home to see his mother. Granted, it helped in a small way, since he was planning on getting into that house one way or another. Having Tiny out of the way wouldn’t hurt. But the boss was the one he was most concerned about.
“That one’s going to take a little more time to establish, and that’s even saying that we can.” Chrome flipped the screen to a different spreadsheet and pointed at some numbers. “I’m pretty sure he’s been in the business long enough that he knows how to keep his schedule random. For instance, we’ve been able to find that he has lunch with his top associates every week at Vigiano’s, but it’s never the same day of the week or even the same time. He even gives different assignments to different men, making sure they’re shaking down the businesses under their protection on a rotating basis.”
Xavier gritted his teeth together and shifted his weight from foot to foot. He was antsy for some real information, and he hadn’t thought the mob men would be so hard to track. “This isn’t helping me, man. I need something concrete.”
“Only way you’re going to do that is if you have a live camera watching his house. Even then, you’d need quite a few of them. The place is huge, and all the windows on the cars were tinted. It’s almost impossible to tell when they’re coming and going, unless they want to make it obvious. The only reason I really know about Tiny’s visits to his mother is because he always stops at the supermarket to buy her flowers on the way there. He gets out of the car, and that’s when we have confirmation of who’s coming and going. But if a car leaves and we don’t happen to see someone getting in or out, we don’t really know who is where.”
“Damn it!” Xavier slammed his fist down on the bar.
“Easy now. We’re doing our best, and I told you it would take some time.” Chrome’s fingers clacked away at the keyboard once again.
“Yeah, but I don’t have time! I want to get in there and punish the Labriolas, like we planned, but I’ve learned some things that have bumped up my schedule a bit.”
Chrome turned to look at the VP now, his dark eyes curious. “What’s going down? You’re not thinking of heading in there alone, are you?”
“I’m not going to give you all the details,” Xavier replied. “It would just make you an accomplice when Asphalt finds out what I’ve done.” He knew he shouldn’t have gone to Matteo’s by himself. Vice president or not, it had been a risky decision. He would be making that same decision again when he went back, but he wasn’t going to drag anyone else into it.
“But you can’t go there on your own. You’ll get slaughtered.” Chrome slid off his stool and went around behind the bar to pour himself another drink. The Scythe didn’t bother employing a full-time bartender, since all the men knew what kind of drinks they liked and how to mix them. Someone always stepped in to pour when they decided to party, and they didn’t have to waste their money paying someone.
“Not if I’m careful and I go when Matteo is gone. The men who work for him are idiots, and I think I can get past them without a problem. But I don’t think Matteo will hesitate to kill me if he finds me coming after his daughter. I need to know when he’ll be gone.” Xavier could feel the tension in his muscles, tightening him into a stiff statue. He was used to urgency when it came to missions for the club, but this was completely different. Not only was his own life on the line, but Kenzie’s and the baby’s. He had no choice but to ask. If Asphalt and the others didn’t understand it right now, they would eventually.
Chrome shut off the beer tap and admired the head on his drink. He took a long swig before he pressed his lips together and glanced up at Xavier. “I can’t give you a guarantee. But I can tell you that sometime around lunch is going to be your best bet. You might need to wait and watch the house, but like I said, just because a car leaves doesn’t mean we know who’s inside it.”
Xavier nodded, mapping everything out in his head. “Okay. Thank you.”
“Listen.” Chrome grabbed Xavier’s arm just as he was turning to leave. “I get that this is important to you. But can’t it wait just a few more days? We can gather up the men and finalize our plans. We’ll make our advance on the mansion like we’ve been planning, except we move it up a few weeks. It won’t be as precise as we originally wanted, but at least you won’t be at the battlefront all alone.”
“I appreciate it, but there’s no time to wait.” He hesitated, not wanting to reveal everything but feeling the need to at least let Chrome know he wasn’t being reckless without a reason. “Kenzie’s in danger. That’s all I can really tell you.”
“Then at least let me come with you, if nothing else. You’ll have someone watching your back.”
“It’s nice to know I always have someone willing to do so. That’s one of the good things about being a member here. But sometimes, it’s better to be on my own. As you said, we don’t have their exact movements mapped out yet. It would be crazy for us to attack. They’ll hear us coming from a mile away, and they’ll be prepared. But if I go in on my own, I’m less likely to get caught.”
“And what if you do?”
“Then it will only be one of us lost. Maybe I’ll have a few good men willing to avenge my death.” Xavier clapped Chrome on the shoulder and turned for the door. “Don’t worry, Chrome. I’ll be back, and you’ll have your chance for a piece of the action.”
“Crazy son of a bitch,” Chrome muttered as he returned to his work.
It was hell waiting. Every second that Xavier wasn’t there trying to save Kenzie was another second that she could be getting hurt by her father or his men. Xavier tried to tell himself that if Matteo had her locked in her room, then at least she was safe. But it was clear that Kenzie wasn’t the kind of woman to just give up, and he wouldn’t be surprised if she pushed the crime boss into doing something rash. Still, it didn’t make sense to return the very next day. Matteo would be expecting him. He had to bide his time, at least for a little while.
Two days later, Xavier parked his bike half a mile away from the Labriola mansion. He had gone back and forth on what vehicle he should bring. A car would let him get closer without looking suspicious, but a bike would provide an easier getaway once he made it back out. It was a risky endeavor either way, and in the end he chose to go with the one thing that made him who he was. There was a certain amount of comfort and confidence that came with riding his motorcycle, and this wasn’t the time to trade that off.
He approached on foot, wishing Matteo preferred to have meetings with his men over dinner instead of lunch. At least then it would be dark, making it easier to get close to the house. Nobody could miss him with his red hair, tattoos, and leather. He slipped into the shade of a tree on the side of the neighbor’s house, right where he had a good vantage point on the front of Matteo’s mansion.
Xavier could not only see any cars that left the driveway, but he had a steady view of Kenzie’s window. He watched it carefully, hoping for some sign of her. If he could just see her open the window to let in the fresh breeze or pause in front of the glass for a moment to view the worl
d she could no longer be a part of, then he would feel much better for knowing she was safe. He knew that his conversation with Matteo the other day—and the fact that he knew about the baby—could have put Kenzie in even more danger than she was already in.
No, he reminded himself. He couldn’t think that way. Kenzie had said in her note that Matteo wanted the baby, and that had to mean he would keep his daughter out of harm’s way at least until the child was born. By that logic, Xavier could wait weeks or even months before he swooped in to save her. But he wasn’t that patient.
He had to wonder, as he waited, why Kenzie had bothered to tell Matteo about the baby in the first place. If what she had told Xavier was true, and she had only slept with him as part of her father’s blackmail attempt, then surely a pregnancy wasn’t going to put her in her father’s good graces. Was that why he had locked her up? There were too many things that didn’t make sense, but that was Matteo in a nutshell. He was a rich and powerful man gone mad, and now it was up to Xavier to deal with him.
The quiet hum of the garage door opening snapped him out of his mind and back into the present. Xavier stayed in the deep shade, hoping to keep himself inconspicuous while the black sedan glided down the street. As Chrome had noted, all the windows on the vehicle were tinted so dark that it was impossible to see who was inside. It could have been Matteo, one of his men, or even Kenzie. That thought reminded him of the doubts he’d had about her. Was her pitiful note just another part of her plan to fool him? Was Matteo thinking several steps ahead of him, gambling on Xavier feeling sorry for the girl? He refused to believe it, and he was willing to risk his life to find out for sure.
