by Paula Cox
Tania frowned. She was trapped in her own cleverness. Now that she initiated the plan, it was hard to back out when they were both willing to support her. “I suppose…okay.”
“Great!” Jason pumped his arm in the air. “Now, we’ve got to sit and finalize everything. If the man is outside, there isn’t much time to waste. The more you stay inside, the greater the chance they might suspect you guys are plotting against them.”
So the three of them bent their head over this task and within hours they fine-tuned the scheme as much as they could. Finally, Riley stood. Tania followed his movements.
“We should leave soon,” he said.
Rather than walk out, Tania marched upstairs with him. There were things she needed to say before they left the house. Words were important and she wanted these to matter. When they were alone in the room, she took her hands in his and lifted them to her lips.
But he beat her to it.
“I love you more than I can explain. You’re my light. If anything happened to you…” he said.
“Nothing will,” she assured him.
Although they ironed out all the wrinkles in their plot, something could still go wrong. It wasn’t set in stone. Once they left this house, things would be fluid, ever-changing. A wrong move, and they could end up dead. None of them could afford to make a mistake. She wanted to walk away from this madness, but the truth was that until they sorted out this mess and deal with Devil’s Mafia Brotherhood on their turf, neither of them would be free.
Drawing her in his arms, he kissed her. His lips were soft, sweet, and his mouth even more. She felt the same desire careen through her nerves that she always felt when she was in his arms. The future was far more predictable, but they had each other now, and it was enough. She wanted to savor these moments and remember them for as long as she lived.
When he let her go, they stared into each other’s eyes. It was an emotional moment for Tania. She’d found Riley again after so long. Was she destined to lose him quickly? What if something went wrong with their plan? If something happened to her, he would forever hold himself responsible, and if he were hurt or killed, she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself for pushing him into this mess.
Were they doing the right thing?
“You’re with me?” she asked in a voice that trembled.
“Now and forever,” he said in a firm voice.
All her doubts melted away. He supported her and as long as he did that, she was willing to fight the devil himself to get back her life. Until Devil’s Mafia Brotherhood was taught a lesson, she wouldn’t be able to claim back the respect they snatched away from her.
She kissed Riley on the mouth, taking comfort from his strength and quiet determination. “We’ll beat them at their own game,” she promised.
“And later maybe, we can have a peaceful, quiet life.”
She laughed. “Riley, let me tell you straight away. As long as I am in your life, there won’t be any peace or quiet. If you want out, tell me now.”
He drew her in his arms and rested his chin on top of her head. “I’ll take you and the mayhem that is sure to follow.”
Her life might be a mess, but Tania was happy. Things were moving forward, and she sure hoped that they would fall into place soon enough. For now, it was enough that he held her and they were together. The rest would take care of itself when the time came.
Chapter Twenty One
For a woman who nearly died twice, Tania was holding up really well. Life was uncertain, unpredictable, and she’d learnt to roll with the punches. As she got out of the car and ran her fingers through her hair, her gaze took in the house that gleamed in the sunlight, its white paint shining. Someone took great pains to restore this Victorian house and make it look good.
“Are you sure he’ll let us in?”
“Oh, yes. Raymond is a good man,” Riley assured her. “Come on. We can’t make him wait.”
“I don’t have a good feeling about this,” she complained.
Riley grabbed her hand, looking confident. “Trust me, sweetheart. I wouldn’t lead you in the wrong direction.”
They marched upstairs and rang the bell. The man who opened the door was tall, thin, and boasted a hawk nose. Even though a smile lifted his lips, his eyes remained cold. Tania shivered as she gazed at him. Something was off. She wanted to run far away from this man, but Riley tugged her inside. She followed her lover, trusting him fully.
“This is a pleasant surprise,” said Raymond. “When you called me, I wasn’t sure what you wanted to talk about but I cancelled a meeting so this better be good.”
“Oh, yeah, this is important,” Riley assured him.
Raymond led her into the living room. “What is it?”
“I’ve got important information about Devil’s Mafia Brotherhood, the gang you’re working for. They are involved in illegal activities and recently blew up a warehouse,” said Tania.
Raymond’s gaze shifted from her to Riley. “She has got proof, statements, and copies of papers that Charlie signed,” Riley said, backing up her statement.
Tania sat. She crossed her legs and leaned back, feeling a lot more relaxed now. Of course Riley wouldn’t lead her into a wrong situation. She’d panicked for no reason. It would all play out according to her plan. “I was kidnapped by your gang, and they held me but I managed to escape. It wasn’t easy, but I somehow stole relevant papers from Xavier’s office. I could’ve gone to the police, but Riley convinced me it wasn’t enough for me to nail them. For more information, for your cooperation, we’ve come to you. I am sure if you dig deep enough, you’ll be able to find other things that the police would find interesting. Together, we can put these people behind bars.”
Raymond ran a hand over his jaw as he paced the floor. His gaze landed on Riley who was still standing at the door and then flitted away. “Where is the information you’ve gathered?”
“In a safe place,” she promised.
Raymond stopped. He turned to face her. “The accusations you make are very serious, Tania. I can’t just listen to them and take action. We need proof.”
“And you’ll get it when you show me something you’ve got. Riley has seen some of the papers. He can vouch for my information.”
“Shit!” Raymond began to pace. “It’s a good thing you brought her here.”
“Yeah, I know. Any rash action and this could go badly. I don’t want a repeat of the fiasco that has become Charlie’s trademark,” said Riley.
Tania sniffed. She didn’t know what the hell was going on with these two men. The undercurrents of the conversation they had were strong, but she wasn’t sure if they were discussing the same thing she brought up.
“Why didn’t you make a copy of the papers that she had?”
“I couldn’t.”
Tania stood. She’d heard enough. Fear ran through her veins like ice. “I don’t think you’re paying attention to my words, Raymond. As I said, those papers are safe. I’ve gone to considerable lengths to secure that information and I don’t have any intention of sharing them with people who don’t want to cooperate with me. I should go now. If you change your mind, you can call Riley. He knows where I would be.”
She walked towards the door. Riley didn’t move. As she neared him, Raymond grabbed her arm. “Where are those damned papers?” Anger loped and coiled through his eyes. He wasn’t cold anymore. In fact, he was enraged.
Tania tried to tug her arm free from his grasp. He didn’t let go. “I’m not telling you anything. Let me go.”
“You’re not going anywhere.” His grip remained strong on her arm and he dragged her over to the couch. One shove and she was down on the seat. “Now tell me…what did you do with those papers?”
She looked towards Riley for support. He didn’t budge. “I said they’re in a safe place. When we go to the police, I’ll take them out.”
“You?” Raymond pursed his lips. “Have you put them in a locker?”
“I’m not telli
ng you anything.”
He leaned down until his face was inches away from her. His breath was hot against her skin, and she could see the coils of rage in his eyes. This was a dangerous man, and she’d been stupid to come here.
“Now, listen to me, and listen well. You’re in a great deal of trouble, lady. If you don’t tell me what you’ve done with that information, I’ll start to break the bones in your body. One by one. It would hurt like hell.”
The color drained from her face. For the first time, Tania realized how deep this shit was. She was in great trouble. Her gaze darted to Riley but he looked away. So, this is what it came down to. She curled her lips. “You bastard. Asshole. Jerk. You said you would help me, that you loved me.”
Raymond laughed as he straightening. Walking over to Riley, he clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Good man. I should’ve put you in charge of things from the first day. Trusting Charlie with this was a huge mistake. He has been making one blunder after another. How did you find out that she had such information?”
“I didn’t. When I told her I loved her and had been looking for her because I was worried when I didn’t find her after the warehouse blew up, she told me everything on her own.”
The men shared a good laugh. Tania recalled the incident. She’d trusted Riley. They both fought to secure the same warehouse for their clients. He worked for an organization that she didn’t know, and she was a hired employee at an agency. Tania lost the deal because she trusted the wrong man. When she confronted him at the warehouse, it blew up. She’d assumed that Riley was behind her, but he managed to convince her that he wasn’t. That he loved her.
“That was all a lie?” she screamed. Tania got up from the couch and lunged towards him. Reaching him, she slapped him across his face. “You bastard. How dare you! I trusted you.”
“You trusted the wrong man.” He rubbed his jaw where she’d hit him. “And now you’re going to pay the price for it. What went down was terrible, but if you didn’t get involved in that investigation of yours, nothing else would’ve happened. We didn’t want to hurt you.”
“Yeah, I can vouch for that. He tried to convince us that you knew nothing, that it was a lucky break for us but I insisted he meet up with you,” gloated Raymond.
“How the hell was I supposed to know she was conducting her own searches? The woman is crazy,” said Riley. “She broke into Xavier’s office and he doesn’t even have a clue. Why the hell did you guys leave the papers with him?”
“He had a copy,” said Raymond. “That was, of course, the only weak link in this part. The man insisted we sign an agreement so if anything bad happened, he would be absolved of all crimes. We wanted the money pretty bad. Blowing up that warehouse and claiming the insurance money was our only option, so we’d to agree to his demands. My papers are kept in my safe, and there is no way anyone can get them. But in a way, she has done what we couldn’t. She got those papers away from Xavier, and now all we need is to take them away from her.”
“Only when hell freezes over,” she growled.
“And that it would do so much earlier than you anticipate, sweetheart,” said Riley with an awful grin. “I don’t know where she has kept them, but I have an idea. She might’ve handed them over to the guy who was sheltering her in his house all this while. Jason. He’s a director. He must be keeping them.”
“So break into his house and get them. We can’t afford to let that information fall into the wrong hands.”
Riley grimaced. “That house is a fortress. He has tons of security. There is no way anyone is going in there without his permission.”
“Then we’ve got a problem,” stated Raymond.
Tania’s gaze darted to the door but there was no way she could make it. Riley stood right in her path and it looked as if he weren’t in the mood to give her an inch of space. “Let me go, please.”
“On one condition, sweetheart, hand us over the papers.”
She bit her lip. “What guarantee do I have that if I give you the papers, you would let me go?”
“You would have to trust my word,” said Riley with an awful grin
Raymond laughed. “Look, we don’t want to hurt you. Call your friend and tell him to bring the papers and take you. It’s a fair deal – your life in exchange for that information. In this situation, nothing else makes sense.”
Truer words were never spoken. She was trapped in here with these two goons. “You did it on purpose,” she accused Riley. “Raymond was never one of the good guys. He’s the mastermind behind this scheme, isn’t he? And you told me that he would help us.”
He shrugged. “I had to do something to protect my club.”
The biker’s club, Devil’s Mafia Brotherhood, to which he owed his loyalty came first in his life. “Even if that meant breaking the heart of the woman who loved you.” Her voice broke. “It’s my mistake for trusting the wrong man. How can I place my faith in you again? What if you kill me after you take the papers from Jason?”
“So Jason has them?” said Raymond
She nodded. “He’s keeping them safe for me.”
Riley snapped his fingers. “Look, sweetheart, killing you won’t serve any purpose. It might get us into greater trouble. Murder is a big thing and there is no statute of limitation on it. That means that if we kill you, we would have to look over our shoulders our entire life. So we don’t want that kind of trouble. Give us the papers and we’ll let you go. Without any evidence, you can’t do much and we’ll be safe,” said Riley, his voice calm. “Help us, and we’ll let you go. Hinder us, and we won’t have any option but to murder you and your friend. Do you want his death on your conscience?”
She gulped. His voice was so cold, so emotionless. “It was stupid of me to think that you were capable of love. You’re an animal.”
“Sticks and stones don’t hurt my bones and neither do words.” He grinned. “Now come on. Stop wasting time. What’s it going to be? Death or defeat – it’s your choice.”
“I hate you.” Her voice trembled. Raymond laughed as a tear spilled down her cheek. “I’ll forever hate you.”
“I don’t give a shit. Now tell me what I want to hear.”
“Fine. Call Jason. Tell him to come here and bring the papers.”
“Here?” said Raymond. “Why here?”
Riley shrugged. “Is there another safe place? I can’t take her to another location. What if she makes a fuss in the car? Anything could happen. It’s too risky.”
Raymond frowned. “I don’t want to keep her here for long. At night, I want you to shift her to another place.”
“I can’t find a secure location in such a short time,” argued Riley.
“We’ve got a warehouse out of town.”
“If I take her there, Charlie will get to know, and you are quite aware of how he is. He will interfere and I can’t make guarantees that things will progress as smoothly. Right now, it’s just the two of us, and we can handle things the way we want. Jason will bring the papers here, and we’ll let her go. They can cry to the police all they want but without proof, there isn’t much that they can do.”
Raymond gnashed his teeth. “Shit! I don’t like it, but fine. I don’t want to involve Charlie. He messes up things. What’s her friend’s number? I’ll call him.”
Riley glanced at Tania and repeated the number that he’d taken from Jason not long ago when he went to see her at his place. “Do you want me to talk to him?”
Raymond shook his head. “I’ll do it. You just stay here and make sure that she doesn’t escape.”
“Not a chance.” After Raymond left the room, he turned right and they heard the door of another room close. He was going to call Jason. “Your friend, Jason, will come through?”
Tania grabbed his arm. “He will. Sorry about the slap.”
He winced as he gazed into her eyes. “Went with the flow, didn’t you, sweetheart? It was a hard one. My eye is still throbbing.”
“I had to make it look convin
cing,” she whispered. Knowing they were safe for now, she gave him a quick kiss on his lips. “The way you said those things sent shivers down my spine. For a few seconds, I thought you were playing for real.”
“Never, sweetheart. I’m on your side and don’t you forget it for a moment.”
She gave him an encouraging smile and then walked to the couch. Tania rearranged her features so that she looked suitably upset. This was all going according to plan. Raymond believed Riley dragged her here so he could help his gang. Now, he would call Jason and that would set into motion the second part of their scheme. Things were going exactly as they predicted – and soon they would’ve enough evidence in their hands to bring this club to justice. Only then would they be able to start their life again.
