Page 33 of Merciless Obsession (The Bloodline #2)

I put the negatives into a binder I had set to the side as Nazai’s words played over in my mind.

My blood ran hot. My dad made sure to train us to be the best. We had been in shooting ranges and fighting classes since we were able to walk properly.

While some of us might be better than others at different things we all were built tough and solid.

Nazai was the best shot, I was best known for hand-to-hand combat, Lucas loved torture techniques, his fascination with the body was kind of creepy honestly, and Emmet was the best sniper you’d ever meet.

I knew my brothers. The Bloodline would make the sick fuckers who thought it was okay to kidnap and traffic young girls wish they were never born.

____

Inaya

Do you have your costume yet? We only have a week until the party!

Currently I was waiting for Ryan to show up at our meeting.

I made sure to get here early to scope out the café we were meeting at.

I was tucked in the back corner away from prying eyes.

There wasn’t much going on in the café. A couple of college looking kids on their laptops and two workers behind the counter.

When I deemed the place safe to meet, I decided to cheek in on my Bumblebee.

Bumblebee

No, because I told you I don’t want to go. That’s not my scene. I don’t even know the Kents.

Inaya

Too bad we’re going! I was invited which means WE were invited. All you do is sit in the house in front of the computer all day. It’s time to go out in the real world around people! I found a costume you’ll look hot in! I’m sending the link now.

When the link came through I clicked on it and my teeth instantly sank into my bottom lip picturing Ziora in the Harley Quinn costume.

Inaya was trying to convince her to go to the annual Halloween party thrown at the Kent estate.

Easton Kent owned The Graveyard, an underground fight club.

He and his twin sister Elianna were a year younger than me.

It was always thrown in the opposite direction of the docks, on a large piece of land they owned, near the woods going toward the mountains.

Their estate sat on a shit ton of land they transformed into a horror fest every year.

It was one of my favorite events to attend at the end of the year.

I was curious how Inaya got put on the list, but that was something I would ponder later.

The chair across from me being pulled out caused me to shift my eyes up from the cloned phone.

“Ezra,” he called out with a slight nod.

“Ryan.” I locked the phone and set it face down on the table next to me then picked up the foam coffee cup and brought it to my mouth.

“I assume this isn’t a social call?” His eyes traveled around the nearly empty café.

Lowering the cup, one corner of my mouth lifted. “Observant.” I set the cup down. “You’re correct though, this is a business call. We have a problem that needs fixing. Or should I say, you have a problem.”

Ryan lifted a brow and his mouth hardened. He was around my parents’ age and had been in his position for the past few years. He was graying with the weight of his job showing on his face.

“And what’s the problem?”

“The missing girls in The Sticks.” I watched his face for anything but he kept it rested.

“What do missing girls have to do with me exactly?”

“The fact that the police have yet to find out who is behind all of this and it’s been over a decade is alarming, don’t you think?”

Ryan’s eyes bounced around my face. “Again, what is it that you want from me?”

“The files on the cold cases. As commissioner you can get those, right?” Leaning down I grabbed the briefcase and set it on the table, pushing it forward.

Ryan didn’t have to look because he already knew what was inside.

We took care of those who helped us. Whenever we were in need of someone’s services, they were paid handsomely for it.

“I’ll see what I can do.” He went to grab the briefcase but I yanked it away.

“You won’t see, you will get those files.”

“I will.” He nodded stiffly.

I pushed the case back toward him. “I need them right away. Everything The Sticks’ department has I want.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Good.” I grabbed my stuff and stood. “You know how to contact me. Let me know when you have it.”

Now that that was handled I needed to stop by my firm to grab a couple things.

If I was going to take on the governor’s son’s case then I needed to have all the information.

When I left my dad’s, I had my assistant reach out to his team, letting him know we’d take the case and had them send over anything I might need before I put my researchers on the case.

I had closed out one of the other cases I was working on and my co-counsel was wrapping up the other.

This case and Felix’s had my plate full.

On top of the stuff with The Bloodline it might be overwhelming, but I worked better in chaos, and nothing was more chaotic than murder.