Stingray Billionaire: The Complete Series (An Alpha Billionaire Romance) (38 page)

CHAPTER
THIRTY-FOUR

Brooke

When
I got back to my apartment, I called and ordered dinner from the Italian place
down the street and paid extra to have them rush the order. I wanted everything
ready and waiting when Dax arrived. Then, I opened a bottle of wine, poured
myself a glass and carried it back to my bedroom where I stripped off my work
clothes and slipped into something much more comfortable – and accessible.

I made a quick
sweep of my apartment to make sure that everything was presentable, wiped out
the bathroom sink and put the dishes in the drainer away. The food arrived
quickly, so I set up the dining room table and then, looking at the clock,
tucked the food into the oven and set it on low. I wasn't exactly sure when Dax
would arrive, and I didn't want to take a chance that the food would be cold if
business kept him at the club longer than he expected.

Then, I went out
into the living room and collapsed on the couch. My body felt heavy, almost
liquefied, and I felt a drowsy satisfaction overwhelm me as I curled up under a
quilt. I was pulled out of my dream state when an acrid scent invaded my
nostrils and made my brain scream, "Fire!"

I awoke and jumped
up off the couch and ran toward the terrible smell. In the kitchen, I yanked
open the oven door and found the remnants of dinner baked to a blackened crisp
that was giving off a noxious dark cloud of smoke. I quickly thrust my hands
into pot holders and pulled the ruined food out of the oven and dumped it in
the sink where I ran cold water over it until there was nothing left but a cold
soggy mass of cardboard, aluminum, and blackened chicken parmesan.

I looked at the
clock on the microwave and gasped when I saw that it was six in the morning.
I'd spent the night on the couch because Dax had never shown up. I checked my
phone to see if he'd called, but there was no message or text. To say I was
disappointed was an understatement, but as I thought about the night before, I
wondered if perhaps I'd been played.

Dax had been angry
with me after I'd abandoned him at Beso, so it would make sense that he'd want
his pound of flesh, and I'd been all too willing to supply it. As I replayed
the conversation, I realized that he'd never answered any of my questions about
Lydia; he'd just evaded answering them and then turned the tables and pushed
all the right buttons. I was ripe for the picking and he knew it.

The sex we'd had
in the back room of Dooley's had been the hottest, most passionate sex I'd ever
had, but it had been a cover for what Dax had really wanted – revenge. I was
the fool who'd bought his innocent act because I'd wanted to see him that way.
The strong silent guy who was heartbroken but getting by. I wanted to believe
he had nothing to do with Lydia's death, but the reality was that he probably
did kill her or at least had a hand in her killing. So, he'd preyed on my
weakness and my guilt over having bolted, seduced me, and then made a promise
he never intended to keep.

And why would he?
After all, I was the lawyer who was pushing for answers that he didn't want to
give. Seeing me again would only mean he would have to make up more lies to
cover his tracks and Dax didn't seem like a man who liked complications.

Of course he
wasn't going to show up. I felt like a fool for abandoning logic for hope. He
must have thought I was a total idiot for buying into his lies.

I stood in my
kitchen staring down into the mess in my sink as I bit my lip and tried to hold
back the tears that threatened to spill. I swore to myself that I was not going
to allow a con artist to ruin my life or break my heart. Then, I laughed out
loud at the idea that I could have considered myself open enough to suffer
heartbreak. I didn't know Dax Malone well enough to like him let alone fall in
love with him.

I opened up the
cupboard, pulled out the trashcan, and threw the sodden mess into it before I
yanked out the bag and tied it in a knot. I wasn't going to ruin my life by
ruminating on all the reasons why Dax Malone didn't show up. Instead, I was
going to get dressed and head into the office so that I could give Jordie and
Roger the run down on how they were going to gather clients from central
booking, then I'd make an appointment to talk with William Grant and see if I
couldn't lure one big fish into our practice.

I wasn't going to
let this slight detour create a roadblock that would keep me from saving my law
firm. Instead, I was going to do what I always did, put my nose to the
grindstone and find a way to make everything work out so that I came out on
top.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-FIVE

Dax

When
I entered the club, I was met with Kesha yelling, "Why the hell didn't you
pick up my calls?"

"I was
busy," I yelled over the pounding electronic music. "Why, what's
going on?"

"We're being
raided," she yelled as she guided me toward the back door. "You need
to get the hell out of here until the cops finish their stupid little exercise
in power exertion!"

"Wait, did
they say why we're being raided?" I lowered my voice as we entered the
back hallway and wound our way through the maze of pipes and heating ducts that
turned the back storage area into a confusing labyrinth of twists and turns. It
also made for a great hideout, and that was why I'd constructed a hidden
apartment down here.

Kesha had prepped
the rarely used apartment with all the things I'd need to stay underground for
a few days and told me that the police had come in politely asking to check out
the storage space since they'd gotten word that there were some drug deals
going down in the club.

"I asked them
who their source was for this information, but they wouldn't tell me jack
shit," she said. "They've been downstairs looking around for the past
hour."

"Did you
secure the product?" I asked.

"Seriously,
man, how fucking stupid do you think I am?" she said in an irritated tone.
"Of course I secured the product, I always secure the product. It's our
lifeblood."

"Good. Sorry,
I didn't mean to question your abilities. I'm just looking out for the entire
operation," I said. "Wait, you said the police are checking out the
storage area?"

"Yeah, two
cops with badges and guns," she said. "They showed me the warrant and
it looked legit."

"But there
were only two of them?" I asked. "And they didn't post any guards at
the front or back door?"

"No,
why?" she asked and then suddenly it dawned on her. "Oh shit!"

Kesha took off
running for the storage area with me in close pursuit. We reached the cage and
saw that the false panel we used to separate the liquor from the product had
been cut into huge pieces, and numerous crates had been removed. I estimated
that the thieves had made off with about five million dollars’ worth of
product. In the larger scheme of things, it was nothing more than a drop in the
bucket of our profits, but it also meant that our competitors had found a way
to breach our security and make us incredibly vulnerable. They wouldn't
hesitate to brag about it and that would make us even more vulnerable.

"Shut down
the club now," I said to Kesha.

"But boss,
it's not even midnight!" she protested.

"Shut it
down, NOW!" I yelled as she went tearing up the stairs. I heard the DJ
stop the music and make the announcement that the club would be closing early
tonight because the fire department would be conducting its yearly emergency
drill. That was followed by a collective groan as the club patrons all
protested having to go out and find another place to party the night away. They
were probably more pissed that the source for their nightly dope fix had dried
up, but right now that was not my main problem.

I needed to find
the source of the leak and plug it before anyone else got the bright idea to
break in and rob us. I quickly got on the phone and called my corner boys and
told them to send over the smallest, most invisible member of their corner
teams. I had the brawn covered with my security guys, but I needed guys who
could blend in to the scenery and watch every move on every corner.

"Club's
closed, boss," Kesha said as she descended the stairs. "Dozer and the
boys are sweeping the club to make sure everyone's out before they lock it
up."

"Good, the
corner boys are sending over crews to watch the streets," I said as I
looked back at my phone. "I want you to organize those guys and set up a
check-in so they can report back what they see."

"Got it,
boss," she said. "Anything else?"

"Yeah, where
the hell is Riza?" I asked as I realized I hadn't heard from her in hours.

"Not a
clue," Kesha replied. "I haven't seen her since this afternoon when
she left your office."

"She hasn't
checked in?"

"Nope, not
with me, she hasn't," Kesha said. "Maybe she did with one of the
guys, I'll ask around."

I knew what the
answer would be. If Riza hadn't checked in with me, she sure as hell hadn't
checked in with one of them, but I didn't want there to be the slightest hint
of dissension in the ranks.

"She was out
on a fact finding mission, so maybe she followed a lead," I said as I
looked at the hole in the wall. "I want you to get our building crew in
here to fix this wall ASAP. But this time they need to install a steel frame
and door. I don't care what the building codes are or what it costs."

"Got
it," she said as she tapped in a note on her phone. "I'm on it as
soon as I organize the watch."

"And
Kesha," I called after her.

"Yeah,
boss?"

"Tell
everyone to be really fucking careful. Whoever did this opened a can of worms
and now all the shit is going to start to leak out," I said.

"Gotcha,
boss," she called as I heard her footsteps pound up the stairs.

I looked back down
at my phone and wondered why I hadn't yet heard from Riza.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-SIX

Brooke

After
I'd cleaned up the remnants of the ruined dinner, dumped the floral arrangement
Dax had sent into the trash with it and licked my wounded pride, I showered,
got dressed, and headed into the office. Determined to be the consummate
professional, I'd put on my least sexy, most official looking pantsuit and
pulled my hair back into a severe bun.

"Good
morning, Alma," I said as I walked into the office. I stopped at the desk
and picked up the stack of papers that were piled on the edge of it.

"Good
morning, Miss Raines," Alma said as she sized me up. "Today's weather
looks like it might be a little on the stormy side, so I think your usual
lovely morning will prove to be turbulent, but it should clear up by afternoon
and be sunny."

"Thank you
for the weather report," I said with a smile that didn't reach my eyes.
"Are Jordie and Roger in yet?"

"No, I don't
believe they are," she said and then added, "But they did clean up
the conference room, so there's that."

As I walked back
to my office, I chided myself for not being kinder to Alma who was only
searching for a way to be helpful and maintain an efficient office. I'd have to
do something nice for her later. On my desk there was a stack of papers with a
post-it on top that read:
Sorry we
screwed up. Conference room is clean. Will be back in the morning for meeting.
- J&R

I sighed as I
pulled out the chart on top of the stack and looked at what they'd done. I
spent the next two hours reading through the pile of paperwork they'd left me,
and when I was done, I looked up to find both men standing in the doorway to my
office.

"You ready to
talk?" Jordie asked.

"Yep, let me
grab my notes," I said as I opened my briefcase and pulled out the stack
of papers I'd been working on the day before. I joined them in the conference
room and spent the next several hours giving them the run down on how we were
going to attract new clients from the central booking cells. My plan made
sense, but it also required both Jordie and Roger to actually be present down
in Central. After clarifying the finer points, I asked if there were any
questions and when they both shook their heads and said there weren't, I turned
them loose.

I hoped this plan
would work, but I couldn't be certain that we wouldn't draw fire for
undercutting the Public Defender. What I hoped would happen was that the PD
would be so grateful that we'd taken on the smaller cases that generally wasted
his time, that he'd turn more of them over to us. What we couldn't generate in
several big cases, we would make up for in volume. I just hoped this would work
the way I'd planned and that neither Jordie nor Roger would screw it up.

Before I called
and ordered lunch, I walked down to Alma's desk and asked if I could order
something for her. She looked up at me and replied, "Oh no, Miss Raines, I
always bring my own lunch. You can't be too careful about what they put in the
food supply these days."

I scanned her face
for any traces of irony, and when I found none, I went back to my office and
ordered the biggest, messiest cheeseburger and greasiest fries on the menu at
the LID and asked them to have it delivered. Then, I dug back into the stack of
paperwork on my desk and waited for my lunch to arrive.

#

I
was halfway through my greasy burger when Teddy stuck his head in my office and
asked what I was doing.

"Eating lunch
at my desk," I said with my mouth full of juicy burger. "Want a
bite?"

"Yeah,
actually, I do," he said walking in and grabbing the burger out of my hand
and sitting down in the chair across from my desk. "Brooke, what's going
on?"

"What do you
mean?" I asked as I dipped a fry in catsup and popped it in my mouth. I
knew that Teddy was going to finish off my burger, and sure enough, in three
big bites, he did. "You're such a pig!"

"You
offered!" he protested as he chewed. "But seriously, what are you
doing?"

"And again, I
will ask what it is you mean by that," I repeated.

"Billy said
you were in the back room at Dooley's with Malone last night for a long
time," Teddy said as he watched my face carefully. As kids he always knew
when I was lying. I never knew how he knew and now, even as adults, he wouldn't
let me in on the secret. Even though I'd tried to bribe him with money, goods
and finally appeals to his sense of justice by telling him that if he showed me
how he did it, then I could use it to catch the bad guys. He'd never given it
up, and in the process I'd learned to be very careful about what I said and
didn't say to my brother.

"Maybe I was
and maybe I wasn't," I shrugged as I pushed another fry in my mouth and
then held out the box to my brother. He took a fistful of fries and then sat
back and watched me as he popped them one after another into his mouth and
chewed.

"You
were," he said. "Can't deny that one, too many witnesses."

"Okay, so I
was," I admitted. "What's it to you?"

"Brooke, you
don't want to get mixed up with a guy like Malone," Teddy said.

"And why is
that? Are you afraid that I'll emasculate another of your fellow men and you'll
find yourself all alone out there in testosterone land?" I teased. My
words had sharp edges, though.

"No, I'm more
worried about you," he said.

"Teddy, the
guy is a local club owner, how dangerous could he be?" I asked. I knew
Teddy was trying to tell me something without telling me, but I was sick and
tired of the secrets that weren't really secrets and the innuendos that led
nowhere. "Seriously, dude."

"No, not
‘seriously dude.’ I'm not kidding, Brooke," Teddy sat up and leaned
forward, resting his hands on my desk. "The guy is dangerous. You need to
steer very clear of him and not try to tame a wild dog like you normally
do."

"Teddy,
you're making no sense," I said in a bored tone as I tossed the fry
container in the trash and cleaned up the remnants of my burger by wiping down
my desk with a wet wipe. LID always thought of everything, and that's why I
loved it.

"Brooke,"
Teddy took a deep breath and then let the words fly. "Dax Malone is one of
the biggest drug dealers in Los Angeles. He may have had his own lawyer
executed for having turned state's evidence and offering to expose his dealings
in exchange for putting her in witness protection."

"You have got
to be shitting me!" I burst out laughing. "Theodore Austin Raines,
you've come up with some wild stories in your time, but that one takes the
cake! I almost believed you, too!"

"Brooke,"
Teddy looked at me without smiling. There was a veil of sadness covering his
expression as he continued, "Malone is dangerous. The cops are on their
way to the club right now to bust him for conspiracy, intent to distribute
illegal substances and pre-mediated murder. I wish I were kidding, but I'm not.
Not this time, sis."

As the weight of
Teddy's words sank in, I sagged in my chair. Dax Malone? A drug lord? How did
this happen? I was around criminals all the time. I knew who they were. No,
this couldn't be true.

"What
evidence do you have?" I blurted as I went into lawyer mode. "I see
zero evidence, only conjecture and hearsay."

"Brookie,
don't get all lawyerly on me," Teddy said gently. "I'm not trying to
ruin your life. I'm just trying to protect you. I overheard the police on the
scanner at work and I wanted to come tell you before you got pulled into
something that was way over your head."

"Teddy..."
I trailed off.

"I know,
kiddo, I know," he said nodding. "But not this time."

"Fuck,"
I said as I tossed the used wet wipe in the trash and rested my elbows on my
desk. "Why do I always pick the ones that are completely
unsalvageable?"

"You like a
challenge, kid," Teddy said with a grin. "Always have."