Now, instead of background checks, assessing threats, and protecting high profile individuals, I’m dealing with nightclubs and concerts, and training the majority of my guys to keep drunken partygoers calm and safe.
The rest of my guys are my specialist crew. In total, I have around fifty guys on my books, although only Jared and I run the office. I also have a dozen guys who aren’t officially on my books–they’re more so hired as contractors. These are the guys that have been handpicked based on what they can offer out in the field–some, I knew back in the day, and others have come recommended to me by a trusted contact. These boys are my biggest earners, and when I have a job that can use their particular skillset, I call them up.
Those specialist jobs are becoming increasingly regular, and we’re looking at calling in some extra guys. They’re far more lucrative than club security, because we’re generally being paid to do something that the authorities can’t or won’t do because it’s either out of their power, or just plain against the law. But the money is amazing, and when you’ve been trained to be invisible, it’s not hard to get in and out without getting caught. In theory, we could do two or three of these jobs and line our pockets thick enough that we could take off for the rest of the year. But a business that’s closed for months at a time is a very suspicious one indeed. So we keep our doors open, booking events and clubs, and slowly syphoning money through so it comes out the other end all nice, clean, shiny and legitimate.
Jared is the brains behind all of our computer related stuff. Whenever we have a new intake of recruits, he’s the man who checks out their background to make sure they’re clean enough to let through our doors. His skills with a computer far outweigh my own. He can find out any information about anyone–he can probably find things about you that you didn’t even know. He’s that good.
Jared had actually been a new recruit at Donovan’s when the company fell. I hired him myself, a month before I’d gone on leave then lost my job. With his excellent credentials he could have easily gotten a job somewhere else. He wanted to join Price Security, and he’s been my most valuable employee ever since.
I check my watch as I reach the door to my office. “How long until that meeting?” I ask.
“About two hours,” he replies, watching as I head toward my desk and lift the pile of files off my desk.
“Narrow these down to the absolute best for me. I’ve got something I need to look into.”
“Is that where you were yesterday–meeting with a new client?”
I give him a wink. “Something like that. Give me a buzz when it’s time to go. We’ll take my car.”
The kid’s face lights up like it’s fucking Christmas, and he takes the massive pile eagerly from my hands.
“Can I drive?” he asks as he’s backing away.
“Can I break your leg?”
He laughs and heads to his desk, knowing he was never going to drive my car but risking the ask anyway. No one drives my car but me. I’m not an overly flashy guy, and I live a fairly modest lifestyle, but my Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series, is one of the few status symbols I maintain–nothing rivals the feel of a beautiful piece of machinery that grips the road and corners like a dream. Cars are somewhat of a weakness for me, well, cars and weapons, my favourite being my Colt M1911 pistol. It’s hailed as the handgun of the century, and I have to agree, that thing is still as accurate as the day I bought it–a fucking piece of art. I’m a sucker for good craftsmanship. And I guess we can add women to that list too–well, one in particular. Chloe Donovan will always be a weakness of mine. Whether I want her to be or not. She just has some sort of hold over me. I can’t get my head around it but I can’t fight it either. It’s this draw, this want, this need. I haven’t been able to shake it, not since that very first moment I found her leaning against her father’s desk.
I had thought that when she left me, that was it–I wasn’t going to see her again. But here she is, three years later, suggesting that I help her rob the safety deposit vault in a bank. I know I do recovery work, but fuck, this may even be riskier than I’m willing to try. Stealing onto properties in the dead of night to get back some artwork, or to download computer files is one thing. But getting in and out of a bank undetected, is going to be a whole new set of risks that I’m not one hundred percent sure we can get away with.
But the gain could be incredible–who knows what riches could be hiding in those boxes. And Chloe’s idea has merit. It’s something I wouldn’t have come up with myself. I’m just not fully on board with this whole Audrey-Sargent-did-it story.
Shutting my door, I switch on my MacBook before performing a search on Audrey Sargent to see exactly who and what she’s become over the last few years. Chloe had a lot of information on her, but without my access, she hasn’t gotten as deep into her records as I’d like.
Audrey looks and behaves as though she’s won the lottery in recent years. Her mansion of a house is in one of the most affluent suburbs on the city’s coastline. She has a private piece of beach and her own dock where she keeps a fucking yacht. She hasn’t put a tax return in for the last two years, which backs up Chloe’s findings–Audrey is obviously a kept woman.
I save her search in an encrypted file and pull up information on Michael Goldsmith. I find all of the usual stuff–legal background, tax information, and his extensive asset list. A small shell company of his seems to own everything Audrey is using, which means if anything happens and he decides he’s done with her, then she’ll most likely be homeless. No wonder she stopped talking.
I dig deeper, trying to get a look at some of his more detailed financial records, but there’s a lot I can’t get access to. I’d need to be a hacker to dig any deeper. Luckily for me, that’s exactly what Jared’s special talent is. But I’m not keen to bring him on board just yet. I have a bit more work to do from my side before I’m comfortable helping with this plan of Chloe’s. From where it stands right now, I just don’t see how she’s going to get into that bank on her own. I’ll have to check it out myself to work out the logistics, and then I can talk to Jared and see if it’s worth it.
Before I know it, Jared is tapping on my door to remind me that it’s time for our meeting. In his hand he has the files of those he thinks are the best of the pile. I tell him to keep a hold of them, so that when we get back, he can run further checks on them. If they’re all good, he can call them in.
“So this thing you’re preoccupied with – is there anything you need my help on?” he asks as we head to my Merc.
“Maybe. I need to assess the situation a bit more before I get involved.”
“I’m guessing this one will be off the books.”
“You guessed right. Now get in,” I say, opening my door and sliding behind the wheel.
As we drive to the meeting, Jared changes the subject, chatting happily about his ideas for legitimately expanding the company, so we can put more money through it without raising any flags. I only half listen though, because my mind is stuck musing over what Chloe has asked me to do.
Rob a bank. I’ll admit that her plan sounds almost fool proof, and if I can teach her how to get into those security boxes and how to disable their systems, then she may just get away with it. But a bank job, these days, with only two people…I don’t see it working. And then there’s her friend, Leah. I don’t understand what his involvement is. I don’t understand what he has to gain by being a part of this…
My thoughts continue as I go through the motions of the meeting, answering all of the questions on autopilot, and letting Jared take point on mapping out the venue and discussing a roster with the club owner.
A slight buzz of excitement begins to hum through my body as I continue to mull over Chloe’s idea.
A bank job.
Even with our recovery clients, I haven’t had a taste of real danger for years–not since I left the military. When it was over, I didn’t think I’d miss the risk of gunfire or getting caught by the opposing side. B
ut I do. Surviving the danger was a fucking rush. Shit, I can’t believe I’m actually considering this. I can’t believe I’m thinking about doing it with her.
I begin to get jittery, an excitement surging through me that spurs me on and makes this seem like it may be a good idea. Then as soon as we get out of the meeting, I pull my phone out of my pocket and send Chloe a text.
All right. I’m in. I write, hitting send before I have the chance to think any more and change my mind.
She sends back a reply almost immediately. That was fast. Call me. We’ll discuss your fee.
I grin to myself, typing out my reply. My fee is open. I’ll decide when, how and how much.
Fine, she sends without hesitation.
Think you can you afford me?
That depends
On?
I wait for a moment, but when she hasn’t answered, I quickly type and send, Are you afraid of me, Miss Donovan?
Her reply is fast this time. No more than before
Good, I send back, smiling to myself. As stupid and as risky as this is going to be, I can see that it’s going to be one hell of a ride. I’m actually looking forward to a job where I’m dealing out a bit of justice. Especially if it involves that ant, Sebastian Goldsmith. He’s the guy that got the girl, and he’s the guy that threw her away like yesterday’s news. He was scum when I met him, and he’s still scum now. I’ll never understand what Chloe saw in him. But I suppose it can’t have been much, she happily stepped out on him with me…
Chapter Fourteen
JULY, three years ago
“OY, YOU. Get your head into gear. These walls aren’t going to paint themselves,” Aiden’s sister Marli said when she saw him get lost in thought yet again. “What’s up with you today?”
“Nothing,” he grunted, dipping his roller into the charcoal coloured paint and running it over the drip tray before lifting it to the wall to paint over the powdery blue that was there before.
When their father had passed away the year before, Marli and Aiden had inherited his old, failing bar. Together, they had decided to turn it into a nightclub but the decorating was all Marli. She had decided that they should paint the walls with black and then put some sparkly metallic shit all over them so they resembled the galaxy or something.
Aiden and her husband, Jeff, couldn’t really see the point in making the walls any colour–nightclubs were dark. No one would see anything anyway. But they both thought the world of Marli and would do anything she wanted to keep her happy.
“That isn’t a nothing face, Aiden. Spit it out. I’m not going to leave you alone until you spill.”
“Can you drop it?” he replied, focusing on the wall in front of him.
Of course, being a woman who was used to deciphering the men in her life through her own intuition, she didn’t leave it alone at all.
“Did something happen at work? Is there a problem with you taking so much leave?”
“No.”
“No? Do you hate the wall colour?” she tried again.
“No, Marli,” he laughed. “I’m fine. Just tired.”
“Are you coming down with something?”
“No.”
“What’s going on?” Jeff asked, as he entered the room with more paint.
“Nothing is going on,” Aiden replied, beginning to feel a little exasperated.
“Aiden’s been staring off into space and he won’t tell me why,” Marli supplied.
“He’s probably affected by your galaxy paint idea,” Jeff teased with a laugh.
“Very funny, fuckface,” she said, flipping her middle finger up at him as she grumbled about neither of them having an idea that was any better.
“It’s probably about a girl,” Jeff added, using the corner of a paint scraper to work at the rim of the paint tin to lift the lid.
Marli laughed. “A girl? Aiden? I’m sorry, that’s just hilarious. Have you ever seen Aiden spend more than the necessary time to bed and move on from a girl?”
“I don’t know. He’s got that look about him. I remember feeling the way he’s looking when I started dating you. Look at him. He’s got this goofy grin twisting his mouth up.”
“Would you two just fuck off and get some work done. You were bitching about me not working, and you’re both too busy standing around gawking at me to get any bloody work done yourselves.”
He glanced around at the two of them, glowering before turning back to his own section of the room.
“Oh. My. God,” Marli gasped, after taking that opportunity to study his face properly. “You’re right, Jeff. Holy shit, Aiden. Who is she? I have to meet her.”
“No. No one is meeting anyone. It’s nothing. There’s nothing wrong. There’s nothing going on that you need to know. Just stay out of my business all right?”
Marli turned to Jeff. “You’re so right. It’s definitely a girl.”
“I know, right?” Jeff agreed.
“Fucking hell,” Aiden grumbled, throwing his roller down on the drop sheet and storming out of the club.
“He’s got it bad,” Jeff commented, watching after him as the door slammed shut behind him.
“I can’t believe I missed that,” Marli said, moving over to pick up the roller Aiden had discarded. “Aiden’s smitten over some girl… I never thought I’d see the day.”
Chapter Fifteen
PRESENT, 12 days before the job
Chloe
ARE YOU afraid of me, Miss Donovan? The text sends a shiver down my spine as I entertain the idea of spending some time with Aiden near me. I shouldn’t be feeling this way but I can’t help it. Aiden is my dream–my fantasy. He’s the happy ending I’ll never have. Just being near him will make all of this worth it. I don’t know that he’ll allow anything to happen between us again. But the sexual tension between us is still so palpable that I’m not sure we’ll be able to work side by side without something happening. I think I’m going to have to talk to him to clear the air about what happened between us–why I left and what he meant to me. It doesn’t matter if he thinks I’m shallow because of it. All that matters is that he understands that I’m trying to fix what I broke, even if he and I are far too broken. There’s still a lot of other people who suffered because of me.
No more than before, I send back.
And his reply is instant, showing me he remembers perfectly the buildup that began our all too brief affair. Good
“What’s got you grinning from ear to ear, girly?” Leah asks, watching as I look down at my phone.
“He’s in,” I reply, smiling that it took even less time than I’d anticipated for Aiden to get back to me.
“Seriously?” Leah grins, and lifts his hand, slapping against mine in a high five. He then pulls me up from my seat and spins me around as if we just won something wonderful. “He’s in. He’s fucking in,” he crows, before setting me on the ground again. I’m laughing with him happily as he grabs a hold of my face and touches our foreheads together, taking a deep breath before becoming serious. “We’re going to get those fuckers, Chloe. They’re going to have to pay for what they did to us.”
I grip his thick forearms and let out a sigh before I move to wrap my arms around his neck. “We’ll get them, Leah. They’ll be sent to prison to rot for their crimes.”
“Right where we want them.”
I pull away from him and look into his eyes. “Are you still sure you want to do this?”
“Yeah,” he nods. “I want to do this–more than anything in this world.”
“Ok.” I step away from him and head into the kitchen, grabbing two bottles of beer from the kitchen and taking the tops off them. I hold one out to him. “To our success,” I toast, tapping the neck of my bottle against his as he takes it.
“To our success,” he repeats, before lifting the bottle to his lips and taking a mouthful. Our excitement is short lived, and it isn’t long before we’re both sitting and contemplating where we go from here. Now that Aiden is involved, thi
ngs are going to get very serious, and if we’re not careful, we’ll end up behind bars while Goldsmith continues to walk free.
***
A few days later, I arrive at Aiden’s house early in the morning. “What the hell are you doing here?” he asks, half asleep as he answers the door in his boxers. My eyes travel over his torso, over the tattoo that symbolises his time in the armed forces, and light smattering of hair…my fingertips remember the feel of him beneath them…
I clear my throat and clench my fist to keep myself from reaching out. “We have some reconnaissance work to do,” I say, holding up the duffel bag I’m holding in my hands.
He steps aside to let me through. “I was asleep you know. I worked a club shift last night, and I do have a day job, you know.”
“I do know that,” I state, hefting the bag up onto his dining room table. “That’s why I got here before you started your day job. It will give you time to organise someone to look after things for a while.”
He shakes his head and mutters something about women being presumptuous as he walks across the living room and disappears into his bedroom. He returns shortly after with a set of dark cargo pants on and a fitted t-shirt that accentuates his physique. My mouth goes dry and I struggle to swallow.
“Do you have any coffee?”
He laughs at me, but not in a fun way, in a you’ve-got-a-nerve kind of way. “Make it yourself, you seem so at home here. What’s in the bag?”
“Supplies,” I respond, as I walk into his kitchen and hit the button to switch his coffee machine on. It’s one of those automated machines that does everything for you, which I love. It’s one of the few things I miss from my old life. I move across his kitchen, and grabbing two mugs from his strainer. I set them under the spout and hit what looks like the right buttons to make two long blacks.
He walks over to the bag and pulls at the zip. “How long is this ‘reconnaissance’ supposed to take?”
“Just this morning,” I state, carrying the mugs to the table and setting one in front of him.
Partners (Fire & Lies - One) Page 9
