by Crimson Syn
“Cassandra, please! Please, don’t shut me out.”
I leaned, with my back against the door, trying to control my breathing as my anxiety started to take over. “I need some time.”
“Cassandra, I can’t leave you alone. You need to have someone on you at all times. I can’t leave you unguarded.”
I flinched as he banged on the door again, the urgency in his voice elevating. “Baby girl, please open the door. We need to talk about this.”
I turned, pressing my cheek to the door. “Why did you do it?”
His deep rumble vibrated through the door and I could sense his powerful presence. “Do what, baby girl?”
“Record me. Why?”
There was a long moment of silence and then I heard him sigh. “Because I’m obsessed with you. Because I was afraid I’d never see you again. Because I needed to remember you. Because I was fucking falling in love with you and I didn’t know how to react to the feelings you provoked in me.”
I pressed my fingertips to my lips, remembering his kisses. Somehow, we’d both fallen into this crazy whirlwind of attraction, and it was pulling us into so many different directions I didn’t know how to handle it.
“Open the door, Cassandra. Don’t shut me out.”
I made my decision then, I needed to trust him. I had no one else in this world, and I needed to learn to trust someone.
I slowly opened the lock and as soon as I did he burst through the door, wrapping me up in his arms. My breasts smashed against his chest, his arms cradling me in a warm embrace. He was intense, but he was making it clear to me, that he was mine.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. For breaking your trust, for putting you in this shitty situation, I never meant for this to happen.”
I hugged him close. “What are we going to do?”
“I won’t let him hurt you,” he held me tighter. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”
As we stood there, I believed him. I believed that he would keep me safe, and that was more than enough for me.
“Drake, I…”
He cupped my cheeks and shut me up as his lips slid across my own. It was a soft, lingering kiss that promised a sense of home. I clung to it, getting lost in him. He broke the kiss much too soon and when my eyes fluttered open they met his bright blue ones.
“I may have to leave for a bit. But I’ll come back.”
“For how long?”
“For as long as it takes to get this guy. But I promise you there is not one moment I won’t be thinking of you.”
His mouth found mine again and I whimpered. He lifted me and propped me down on the counter. I sighed as he slid into me. Never breaking his kiss as he gave me slow, deep thrusts. My cries got lost in his mouth, his hands holding me tightly as he made love to me. It wasn’t fevered, it was slow methodical thrusts issued to drive me crazy with need. But wasn’t about getting to that pinnacle, it was about the connection and the raw emotion he was bringing forth. And as I clung to him I knew I had fallen with him, I knew no one else could possibly compare to Drake Archer.
12
Drake
I’d made sure Cassandra had security on her at all times. I couldn’t leave her alone and exposed when this maniac could actually take action on his word. I had cameras installed in her apartment weeks ago, so it was easy for me to see her. Of course she didn’t know what I had done, fuck, I’d been watching her since I found her. Becoming completely addicted to her, to following her, obsessing over her. The fact that she was now mine still seemed a bit unrealistic. She was a fucking dream to me. One I never thought I’d have. In a way I was afraid to wake up and find out that this might be a dream, but then I’d remember her words and how we’d made love and instead I the fear of losing her took over.
Is this what it meant to fall in love? To have this all-consuming need to be with the other, to keep them safe, to love them. It was a foreign feeling, one I didn’t really know how to deal with. Control and rules, that’s what I lived by, but Cassandra was making me lose my control and I wanted to break every fucking rule for her.
I’d spent the first few nights with her, not wanting to leave her side. I made love to her as much as I could and I slept with her in my arms only to wake up being held by her. But I had to leave her. I hadn’t wanted to, but I needed to stay away from her for now. My pretty girl was clouding my senses and I needed every waking hour to focus on the threat that loomed over us. But there was no denying that I missed her. I wanted to hear her whimpers, feel her soft supple body against mine. I wanted to make her mine in every way.
There wasn’t a second she wasn’t on my mind. The first couple days were torture without her. The hours dragged and I thought I wouldn’t make it. I needed to see her. But I kept myself busy, and as we finally made some leeway into the case, I was able to put all my concentration on finding this guy. My girl’s entire life was being held in the palm of his hand. He could ruin her, and I wasn’t about to let that happen.
We were currently in the conference room, a slew of employee files strewn on the desk. We had been able to discard two hundred new hires from the last year. Any female, or anyone over the age of forty weren’t even looked at. That left fifty-two potential employees. Slowly we went through each file and using the FBI’s secure network we started to dwindle them down.
I ran my hand across the back of my neck, feeling the knots starting to form. Maxwell was also looking haggard. He kept talking to himself as he read through each file.
“You doin’ okay over there?”
“There’s got to be a better system than this? We can be working on something else.”
“We don’t know who this guy is. Fuck, it could easily be one of my guys.”
“Fuck!” He threw the file and it slid along the table, sending one to the floor.
I reached down and picked it up and I stared at the picture for a long moment. It was a young kid who was staring back at me. Light blonde hair, a bit on the shaggy side, maybe twenty-two, twenty-three. What caught my attention was the look on his face. He wasn’t smiling, he had this smug look as if saying, look what I did.
The name on the side read Michael Crowley and his position was as a staff Engineer. General maintenance had access to a few floors. The only time they got access to the server rooms or any secured rooms was when there was something to attend to, then the access was changed.
“What is it?” Maxwell asked, staring up at me.
“Pull up the feed again?”
The man was crouched down, he was working on something in the server room, his head ducked low. “Right there, stop it right there.”
Maxwell quickly paused the tape. “What are you seeing, mate? Quit leaving me in the dark here.”
“Do you see that?”
“What?”
“The tattoo.”
“Yeah, so. I pointed that out the last time. Couldn’t see the name, remember.”
“Anne.”
“What? You can make that out?”
I shook my head and slid the file over to him. Michael Crowley stood in his picture with his right arm extended over his left shoulder. The scripted name clearly legible for anyone to make out. Maxwell stood up slowly.
“We found him?”
“I think we found him.”
“Fuck, yes! You’re not as smart as you thought, were you, Crowley?”
I smiled at Maxwell and he laughed. “We just need to call the FBI now. Leave it in their hands.”
“No!”
“Are you fucking kidding me, right now? We got him!”
“No FBI. If he somehow gets wind of the fact that I’ve called the police, he’ll ruin her.”
“Fuck that! You can’t let him manipulate you that way. The ball’s in our court, not his.”
“Yeah, you’re right. But there’s a reason why he’s still here. And I have a feeling Anne has a lot to do with it. If we find Anne, we find him.”
“And then what?”
“And then…
we bargain.”
“You really think it will be that easy?”
I shook my head. “When you love someone, there’s no stopping you from doing anything you can to protect them. That young man loves his sister. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have exposed himself to the extent that he has. He could’ve left a long time ago and he didn’t. In a way, it’s almost as if he wants to get caught.”
“Isn’t that always the case? The bad guy gets his kicks by the thrill of getting caught.”
“No,” I shook my head staring at the feed. “No, this guy is different. He wants to get caught. Hackers don’t play around. They don’t tease the prey. This guy’s everywhere. He’s never hidden himself. Not even in his past. He’s easy to find, unlike the others on the list. They don’t leave their signatures lying around, Michael Crowley left his crumbs, the question is for who?”
“So what about this Anne?”
“I have a feeling she’s the key to all this.”
“So she’s our bargaining chip?”
“She’s our bargaining chip.” I nodded, knowing that as soon as he found out that I had information on his sister, Michael Crowley would make his move.
“You’re taking one helluva chance! What if he doesn’t give a fuck?”
I stared at Maxwell and raised an eyebrow. “You got a better idea? If you do, please, enlighten me.”
“Stop being a schmuck. This isn’t just about you. There’s a bigger reason here.”
“So, you’re what, Lucian’s lapdog now?”
“Fuck no. But you, yourself said we’re talking about something bigger. What do you think that could be? We manufacture weaponry not bloody toys. What do you think they could be after?”
I stared up at him, keeping my mouth shut because I knew he was right. “Look Max, just go with me on this one.”
“We may catch the hacker, and then what? Oh, typical FBI, following the rules. Be proactive, goddamn it! You’re not bloody FBI anymore!”
I could feel my blood heating up. Like I said, Maxwell Cunningham had a way of pressing the wrong buttons. “I’m in charge here. You do whatever the fuck I say. And I say, we go after the mouse.”
I pointed up at the screen. “He’s your answer. Whatever he’s hiding, we need to find out what it is.”
Maxwell slammed his hand on the table and glared at me. “You better be right, Archer. Because it’s both our necks on this damn line!”
I watched as he stormed off, slamming the door behind him. I sighed deeply and stared out the window. I needed to get my head straight and I needed to make sure Cassandra didn’t get hurt in the process. My gut instinct told me this was just the tip of the iceberg. Ravenhead was being threatened by something big, and this insignificant hacker was the answer to it all.
13
Cassandra
For the last couple weeks, I had been walking around with three to four men constantly watching every step I took. They were like dark shadows that hovered in the distance, lurking and waiting for something to jump out at me. Michael was one of the drivers who had been assigned to me, he was also ex-military. A nice enough guy, young, barely spoke a word to me though. They were all told to keep their distance and to disappear if Drake was around.
I hadn’t seen Drake for the last two weeks. He was caught up in the investigation and there was no way of reaching him. He was like a ghost, disappearing and reappearing when he wanted to. If I was lucky I’d get a text from him ordering me to eat or telling me to have sweet dreams. I missed him terribly. I missed him in my bed, I missed his arms around me.
It wasn’t supposed to be this way, it was supposed to be easier than this. Girl meets guy, guy falls for girl and they live happily after. I smirked at my nonsensical daydreams. The girl definitely met the man, and the man certainly fell for the girl, and then he left her wondering when he’d return. I yearned for him in ways I’d never felt before. I yearned for his touch, for his warm breath against my neck, for the morning coffee and the way he called me his baby girl. I yearned for his sweet talks and the sound of his voice as it rumbled in his chest as I kept my ear pressed to it. And I yearned for the way he’d order me to come undone for him, for his dirty fantasies and heated touches.
Rain poured against the window as we drove through the streets of Manhattan. The city continued to bustle even in the rainstorm. Dozens of umbrellas lined the streets as people rushed home from their long days at work. I stared forward and caught Michael’s gaze through the rearview mirror.
“Would you like me to stop and get you something to eat Miss Hayes?”
“No Michael, I’m fine, thank you.”
His eyes strayed back to the road and then he spoke. “He’s doing fine, ma’am.”
“Oh,” I sighed. “Well, that’s good to hear.”
I stared out the window again as I sat in silence wallowing in my own doubts. We pulled up to the front of my townhome and I waited for Michael to open my door. He handed me an umbrella just as I stepped out.
“Thank you, Michael.”
He stood there in the rain, waiting for me to get inside. I quickly ran up the stairs only to have a man step in my way. I looked up into the face of a young man. His blue eyes glared back at me, a small smile on his face. It was odd for a man to be hiding in the shadows like this, especially one that didn’t belong here. I took a step back and tipped my umbrella up.
“Excuse me, Miss.”
“Yes,” I whispered.
“I was just wondering if you could help me with something?”
He took a step toward me and I glanced back at Michael who was turning to get back into the car. “Umm, I don’t think so. I’m sorry.”
“But I believe this is something you definitely want to help me with.”
I took another step down, ready to run back to the car. “Who are you?”
He reached out for me then and I took another step back. “What do you want?”
He leaned in and my hand tightened on the handle of the umbrella. “You’re much prettier in person.” He reached down and played with the belt of my coat as I stared back at him. I was shocked, frozen in fear. This was him. This was the man Drake was searching for.
“What do you want?” I whispered.
“Ma’am is everything okay?” Michael’s voice at my back, reassured me.
The man in the hoodie narrowed his eyes on me and a shiver went down my spine. As I went to yell out for Michael, the man grabbed onto my sleeve. “Tell him to back off.”
“What?” I tried shaking him off, but he held on tight.
“He either backs off, or they’re coming for you.” His words were said in earnest. “They’ll come for you.”
“Who? Who will come?”
“They’re bad men. They want one thing and they won’t stop until they have it.”
“Please,” I tried shaking his hand off again, but he pulled me close.
“Tell Archer to stay away.”
“Hey! Get your hands off her!” Before Michael could reach us, the man jumped down over the side of the railing and ran off into the shadows.
“Are you alright Miss?” Michael asked as he came up to my side.
“I need-I need Drake. Take me to Drake.”
“He’s back at Ravenhead, Miss.”
“Take me back. Now. I want to go back.”
“Yes, of course.” He followed me back to the car and ushered me into the back seat. I didn’t want to be alone tonight. I needed to tell Drake what had happened. He needed to know.”
“Right this way, Miss Hayes.” Michael guided me through the conference room doors, shutting them as soon as I entered.
A set of green eyes met mine followed by the electrifying blue ones I’d missed so much.
“Cassandra, what are you doing here?” He came up to me hugging me to him and then cupping my chin, tilting my head up to meet his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
I glanced at the other man in the room and then blushed.
Drake grunted a
nd wrapping his arm around my waist he turned us to face the man. “Cunningham, this is Cassandra Hayes. Cassandra, Maxwell Cunningham, Ravenhead’s head of Defense technology.”
“Oh my, yes, I’m well aware of who he is.” I stepped out of Drake’s embrace and got closer to the other man.
He was also incredibly attractive, tall, chiseled jaw, blonde hair cropped short along the back, and spiked on top. His beard was trimmed close and slightly darker than the blonde in his hair. He was a big, broad man, unlike Drake, he dressed casual. Jeans, a white button-down shirt and a scarf, which I found rather attractive.
“You were British SAS.”
“Why yes, yes I was.”
“Wow.”
He chuckled. “I wasn’t aware I was that popular.”
I smiled at him. “Word gets around quickly among the female population here at Ravenhead.”
Drake grabbed my hand, dragging me back into his embrace. “That’s enough,” I smiled up at him as Maxwell chuckled.
He looked at me and rolled his eyes. “Now, tell me, what’s going on?”
I glanced at Maxwell again, only this time with trepidation. Drake and Maxwell exchanged a look before he looked back at me. “It’s okay, you can trust him.”
I nodded. “I was…I was approached today. By a man.”
“What?” He breathed, gripping me tightly.
I held on to his suit jacket. “It was a strange encounter.”
“Are you alright?”
“Yes. I’m fine, just a little shaken up. Michael was still around when it happened and thankfully he scared him off.”
“Did he say anything to you?” Maxwell interjected.
I nodded. “He told me to tell you to back off. He said if you didn’t they’d come after me.”
Drake looked over at Maxwell. “They’d?”
I nodded. “He didn’t disclose who they were, but he looked scared Max. I didn’t take it as a threat, I think he was warning us.”
