Page 43 of Arranged with Twins

Leo

A n hour passes in my office, and the silence grows heavier with each minute. I try to keep my mind occupied while giving Sienna space to process what she learned. The rational part of me knows she needs time to think, but every instinct screams at me to go after her.

I pick up my phone three times before finally dialing her number. She needs to know I’m willing to answer any questions and show her whatever evidence she wants to see. Pride be damned because losing her isn’t an option.

The phone rings three times before going to voicemail. “Sienna, it’s me. I know you’re angry, but we need to talk. Call me back when you’re ready.”

I hang up and try again five minutes later. It goes straight to voicemail this time, without ringing. Unease crawls up my spine. Sienna might be furious with me, but she wouldn’t turn off her phone when she’s pregnant and alone in Manhattan.

I dial the head of her security detail, but it goes straight to voicemail, telling me something is definitely wrong. I’m out of my chair and running toward the door when Ilya bursts through it, his face grim and streaked with sweat.

“They took her.” He’s breathing hard, like he ran here. “Adrian’s people grabbed Sienna off the street.”

The words hit me like bullets. “How many?”

“Six vehicles total. Three of theirs, three of ours trying to intercept.” Ilya follows me as I stride toward the weapons cabinet. “There was a heavy firefight in broad daylight. NYPD is already swarming the scene.”

“Our people?”

“Two dead and three wounded. Matthews took a round to the shoulder but he’s alive.” Ilya’s voice cracks with regret. “All of Adrian’s men are dead. We can’t interrogate them.”

I pull on my shoulder holster and check my sidearm. “CCTV?”

“Raquel is working on it. She hacked into the police feeds and confirmed they headed northwest, but she lost them when they reached a dead zone in surveillance coverage.”

“How is that possible in Manhattan?”

He looks disgusted. “It happened at a construction zone near the docks. Half the cameras are down for infrastructure work.” Ilya hands me an extra magazine. “They probably planned the route deliberately.”

Of course, they did. “Get me to Vincent Cooper.” My voice comes out cold enough to freeze blood. “Now.”

“Leo, we should coordinate with?—”

“Get me to Vincent Cooper, or I’ll tear this city apart looking for him myself.”

Ilya nods and steps aside. Twenty minutes later, we’re standing outside the Cooper townhouse with six armed men.

I don’t bother knocking. The door splinters under my kick, and we flood into the marble foyer.

Katherine screams from the top of the stairs, her hand pressed to her throat in theatrical shock.

“What is the meaning of this? You can’t just?—”

“Where is Vincent?” I scan the first floor, noting the expensive artwork and pristine furniture that Vincent bought with blood money remains unchanged from the last visit.

.. No, there’s an original Matisse that was hanging above the mantle missing, and a faint indication on the wall that it was there.

Vincent must be reaching the truly desperate stage to start selling his assets.

“He’s not here. He’s at his office, and I’m calling the police?—”

“Vincent!” I bellow his name loud enough to rattle the windows. “Get down here now, or I start breaking things.”

“There’s no need for—” Katherine tries to say, but she’s interrupted by the sound of footsteps comes from upstairs.

Vincent appears at the top of the staircase, his face pale and his hands shaking. He looks like he’s aged ten years since this morning. “Leo.” His voice cracks on my name. “I can explain?—”

“Your daughter has been kidnapped.” I let each word fall like stones. “Adrian’s men took her off the street an hour ago.”

Katherine’s face goes white. “Kidnapped? That’s impossible. She’s supposed to be?—”

“Safe?” I look between them, noting how Katherine’s concern seems more about appearances than Sienna’s wellbeing. “She was supposed to be safe under my protection, but someone gave Adrian the information he needed to plan this.”

Vincent descends the stairs slowly, gripping the banister like it’s the only thing keeping him upright. “I never wanted this to happen.”

“But you knew it could.” I step closer, and he flinches. “How much did Adrian pay you to sell out your own daughter?”

“It wasn’t supposed to go this far.” He reaches the bottom of the stairs, sweat beading on his forehead despite the cool afternoon air. “Adrian said he just needed information as insurance against your operations. He promised Sienna would never be involved.”

“And you believed him?” The question comes out incredulously. “You believed a man who split from my organization because he was too ruthless even for our world?”

“I had no choice.” His voice rises defensively. “The offshore investments collapsed. We lost everything, Leo. After thirty years of building the Cooper name, everything was gone in six months.”

“So you decided to rebuild it with my blood?”

“I thought I could manage both sides.” He twists his hands. “I planned to take Adrian’s money, provide limited information, and use the marriage alliance to keep you protected. When you paid out for the engagement, I’d use it to pay off Adrian.”

“Limited information?” I pull out my phone and show him photos from the crime scene. “Two of my men are dead because Adrian knew exactly when and where to hit Sienna’s detail. That information came from you.”

Katherine descends the stairs with careful steps, her mask of composure slipping. “Vincent, what have you done?”

“What I had to do to save our family.” Vincent turns to her, his voice breaking. “We were going to lose everything—the house, the businesses, and our standing in society. I couldn’t let that happen.”

“So, you traded our daughter instead?” Her voice trembles with theatrical horror, but it doesn’t ring true. Her gaze flicks toward me as though calculating the fallout.

I watch her carefully. “That’s rich coming from the woman who’s been calling Adrian behind Vincent’s back.”

Katherine’s head jerks toward me. “What are you talking about?”

Ilya steps forward from the hallway. “We traced three calls from your private line to a number known to be Adrian’s contact. The first was made the day after the Ritz attack. The most recent was two days ago.”

Her silence is telling. She’s too calm. If she didn’t orchestrate this, she certainly anticipated it. “You weren’t trying to stop this,” I say. “You were trying to control and manage it, just like you always do.”

Katherine recovers quickly, spinning toward Vincent. “You gave him too much. You said Sienna would be protected?—”

“You said we had no choice!” Vincent explodes, finally turning on her.

“You were the one who said it would ruin her to be tied to Leo if he went down. You were the one who asked what our options were if the marriage turned scandalous after she seemed to be falling for him. You were afraid she wouldn’t go through with the divorce at the right time. ”

They stare at each other as decades of a selfish alliance crumbles between them.

“So which one of you made the final call?” I ask quietly. “Who told Adrian she was fair game?”

Neither answers. They don’t have to. I step closer to Vincent until he backs against the staircase. “Your intelligence led to the attack at the Ritz. Your security details enabled today’s kidnapping. How many more people have to die for your financial salvation?”

“I was trying to stall him.” His words come out in a rush. “I thought if I gave him enough small pieces, he’d be satisfied. I never imagined he’d go rogue and take Sienna directly.”

“When did he first mention using her as leverage?”

Vincent’s silence stretches too long. Katherine notices it too, her face growing paler. “Last week,” she whispers.

Vincent shoots her a look. “That’s about when he said my payments weren’t sufficient anymore. He wanted direct action against Leo’s operations, or he’d find other ways to collect what I owed.”

“Other ways.” I repeat the phrase slowly. “Like kidnapping my fiancée.”

“I told him no. I said Sienna was off-limits, that I wouldn’t allow anything to happen to her.”

Katherine looks like she might faint, which tells me she didn’t agree. She clearly let Adrian have anything he needed or asked for as long as it meant she could maintain her lifestyle and social standing.

“Yet you didn’t warn me.” I speak quietly, trying to control the surge of rage filling me. “You didn’t tell Sienna she was in danger. You let her walk around Manhattan unprotected while Adrian planned to use her against me.”

“She wasn’t unprotected. You had security on her?—”

“Security you compromised by feeding Adrian their protocols.” I grab Vincent by his shirt and slam him against the staircase hard enough to rattle the paintings. “You gave him everything he needed to plan this.”

“I didn’t tell him that.”

I shake him while glaring at Katherine. “Either you or your wife did. It doesn’t matter who. You’re both equally to blame.”

Vincent sags as Katherine lets out a sharp cry of protest. “Leo, please, you can’t punish is. You don’t understand the pressures?—”

“She’s pregnant.” As I meet Katherine’s gaze, the words explode from me with enough force to make both parents flinch. “Sienna is carrying twins. Your grandchildren, and you handed her to a man who views human life as disposable currency.”

Vincent’s face drains of all color. Katherine makes a sound like a wounded animal, her hand flying to her mouth. “Twins?” Katherine’s voice comes out strangled. “She’s having twins?”

“Two children who will never know their grandparents because you sold their mother to save your precious reputation.” I release Vincent with enough force to send him stumbling. “How does it feel, knowing you traded your daughter’s life for money?”

“I never meant—” Vincent starts.