5
“Valentine,” I drawl, kicking my legs up onto the desk, swirling the whiskey in my glass so the ice clinks against the edges.
“Give her back.”
No greeting, how very rude.
“I see you got my message.”
“Oh, I got your message, you sick son of a bitch, Wren has nothing to do with this.”
And this is where he’s going to fail. There’s his weakness, like a beacon for my eyes. Little Wren Valentine is his absolute weakness, one that’ll destroy him. Just as I planned. It’s like exposing a jugular to a predator and in this game of predators it is always going to be me who comes out on top.
“Oh, I think she has everything to do with this, though I’m confused.”
Heavy breathing on the other end of line puffs in my ear but he doesn’t say anything else, so I continue.
“I will give it to you, you kept her a secret for a long time, I’m impressed actually, not a lot escapes me.” I tip the whiskey to my lips before bringing it back down to dangle between my fingers.
“Give her back.” I don’t miss the way his voice lilts at the end, a barely restrained anger though I don’t hear concern, just rage and that piques my interest. He doesn’t seem concerned with her well being, he hasn’t asked how she is or if she is even still alive, only that he wants her back. I keep this all to myself, I’ll get to the bottom of it, one way or another.
“It wasn’t until a little piggy squealed that I figured it out. At first, I thought she was staying with you, that she knew exactly who you were, but I’ve come to realize she’s completely and utterly innocent.”
Innocent wouldn’t have been the word I would have used to describe her, not when the little she devil shot me and continues to fight me at every turn, but he doesn’t need to know that. She may come across as the perfect little doll, smart, composed but I see beneath all of that. I see the fight, the fire, the lust for vengeance. It’s one hell of an aphrodisiac, watching a strong woman fight and not bow down, witnessing the unadulterated fury in her stare as she watches you, calculating all the ways she may hurt you should she break free from her restraints. Just the thought of her fighting me has my cock hardening. In this life, you don’t get anywhere by rolling onto your back, had she been on the right side of the line she would have made one hell of a companion.
“How does that feel, Valentine?” I didn’t usually toy with my victims, but Marcus Valentine was a different breed. This fucker is going to pay for everything he’s done to the Silver family and its interests. I’ll make the asshole pay with more than just his blood.
He probably didn’t realize it when he walked into this city all those years ago just who he was playing with, but he’s soon going to find out he’s swimming with sharks.
“What do you want?” Negotiation is his first point of call.
“Nothing.”
“Money? The trade? My suppliers?”
I roll my eyes even though he can’t see me, “I know each and every one of your transactions, Valentine, but don’t you worry, I have that handled along with your little princess.”
“Silver!” He growls. “You’re fucking with something bigger than you.”
I wonder how far he’ll go to free the little bird. Not that I have any intention of letting the girl go but playing with him is appealing.
“Goodbye now, Valentine. You have yourself a nice night.”
Is this really how we deal with shit in this family? No. It is not, my father would be furious but I’m in charge now and it’s my city to rule as I see fit.
Innocent blood is going to be spilt, it’s inevitable and I’ve quickly learned how to push pass that guilt, it doesn’t affect me.
I do what I need to do for the success of this family, for these men and women working for me.
I hang up the phone and drain the rest of my glass, savoring the sweet burn as it rolls down my throat. My first taste of revenge against the Valentine’s leaves me salivating for more. Standing from the chair in my office, I stretch out my muscles and cross the room, swinging the door open only to find echoes of a fight meeting my ears. Grunts and thuds travel down the long narrow halls of the house, meeting me where I stand in the threshold of my office.
For fucks sake, what now?
I follow the sound and stop short when I see Ainsley on her back, eyes closed, unconscious and Ryker and Wren going at it in the hallway outside the bathroom.
I leave them for five fucking minutes.
Ryker should know better.