Page 56 of Precious Hazard (Perfectly Imperfect #11)

I step over an electrical conduit that runs from the trailer serving as a mobile office.

The container is located near the gateway, but well beyond the perimeter wall that’s blocking access to the construction site.

There’s no sign of forced entry, and the door is unlocked.

The smell of blood and stale food hits me as soon as I step inside the small space.

The bodies of two security guards lie in puddles of blood.

Both men have gaping holes in the middle of their foreheads.

The message is clear. This was an execution-style hit.

A bag from a local fast-food joint has been discarded a few feet over the threshold.

Its contents are spilled across the floor, which explains the odor.

The attacker likely gained entry by pretending to be a delivery guy.

“The shift changes at seven.” Nino nods at the dead men. “If I didn’t come today, we probably wouldn’t have known about this until tonight.”

“It’s not a coincidence they picked the day the site is shut down. Killing our guys wasn’t what they were after, but something else obviously was. This feels too precise, maybe even enough to require an insider’s help. Any new hires?”

“I’ll check.”

“Do that. And send me the names.” I approach a small conference table in the center of the trailer, glancing at the playing cards and a pile of chips scattered across its surface. “There were only two guards?”

“Yeah. I think so.”

“There are three stacks of cards here, not two. So, who was the third player?” My eyes scan the room.

There are boxes and filing cabinets crammed anywhere they’ll fit.

Extra chairs. A couple of desks with smashed computers and overturned phones.

No third body. In the far corner, almost hidden by a fake ficus tree with a Make Shit Happen sign hanging off its branches, is a narrow door leading to the bathroom. “Have you checked in there?”

“No.” Nino steps over one of the dead men’s legs and opens the door. “Fuck.”

“What you got?”

“Shot in the gut. Looks like— Arturo! He’s got a pulse.”

I reach into my jacket. “I’m calling Ilaria.”

***

“Mr. DeVille?” Tony’s eyes bug out at me at the sight of blood stains on my sleeves and shirt front. “Are you alright?”

“Peachy keen.” I throw him the car keys. “Thanks for loaning me your car. It will need extensive detailing, especially the back seat. It’s a bit of a mess. Have them put it on my account.”

“Uh, sure. Oh! Your vehicle’s back with new tires!” he calls after me.

I smile. My sweet little wife must be pretty disappointed about that.

As I step inside, the house seems unnaturally quiet. Other than the sounds Greta usually makes when she does the chores, it’s been like that ever since Sienna moved out. Until this became Tara’s home, too, that is.

I pause at the foot of the stairs, listening.

No drill noises. None of the background music she likes to have on when she reads her smutty novels.

Nothing. Not a peep. Maybe she’s taking a nap?

Even as that question rises in my mind, somehow I just know my wife isn’t here.

It’s like the charge in the air is different.

The house suddenly seems… numb. And I find myself missing the chaotic vibe that always surrounds her.

She must have already gone over to Drago’s for dinner. My sister all but demanded our presence tonight. Family dinner. The four of us. Get here as soon as possible. She’s such a little brat.

I grab my phone and hit Tara’s number. The line rings once and then disconnects.

Hopefully, she’s just complaining to Sienna about how much it sucks to live with me or to deal with her “babysitters,” as she calls the security guys I’ve assigned to her.

But even if the two of them are making voodoo dolls or throwing darts at a picture of my face, I don’t really care.

I’m just thankful Tara understands we’re on high alert and didn’t fight me too much about having a protective detail.

Today’s incident has me even more on edge, and I’d rather my wife were safe and sound at home right now.

Do I wish she had waited for me instead of heading to her brother’s on her own?

Hell yeah, I do. I guess I’ll just have to go fetch her as soon as I clean up.

Unbuttoning my shirt along the way, I head up the stairs.

The man we found wounded in the bathroom ended up being another security guard.

He survived the trip to our private hospital and is expected to pull through following his three-hour surgery.

Ilaria seemed optimistic about his chances when I talked to her after she finished up in the OR.

He hasn’t yet regained consciousness, though, so I left Nino to wait around and question him as soon as he wakes up.

I need answers, and fast. And although I have my suspicions about who is behind the attack, I need to be completely sure before I take action.

Going after another criminal syndicate without proof would be foolish.

But if I’m right, it means we’re already at war and our retaliatory measures will be well justified.

Before jumping into the shower, I try calling Tara again. Still no answer. At this point, I’m getting annoyed. I’m sure she’s not picking up on purpose. I should have included phone etiquette in the list of rules in our prenup. Live and learn, I guess.

As I’m putting on a fresh shirt after washing off the day’s grime, my phone starts ringing. With my mind entirely on my wife and her irritating habit of needling me, I hit the green button then the speaker icon without checking the caller ID. “Ignoring my calls, gattina ?”

Someone clears their throat. “The guard just woke up.”

Disappointment hits like a punch to the gut. I wasn’t expecting Nino. Closing my eyes, I try to get my head back in the game.

“Did you get anything out of him?”

“Not yet. He’s still groggy. Might be another hour before he’s coherent enough.”

“Okay. I’ll head back to the hospital in a few. If he tells you something before I get there, call me.”

I grab my holster and jacket off the bed, then dial Tara once more on my way downstairs. The damn line rings and rings until her voicemail picks up. I call Sienna instead.

“Does my wife intend to answer my calls anytime in the near future?”

“I wouldn’t know, Arturo. But if you take this tone with her, she should block you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Put her on.”

“Can’t do that, sorry.”

“Damn it, Sienna. I need to speak with her.”

“What you need is to stop acting like an idiot and—” Her muted shriek cuts off whatever she was going to say next, and then she giggles in the background. “Stop it, Drago! I’m on the phone with Arturo.”

“Hang up.” That’s Popov’s gruff voice. “Unless you want your brother to hear your moans as I feast on your pretty pussy. For the record,” he hollers, entirely for my benefit, “I’m totally okay with that, jackass.”

Jesus! “Sienna! Is Tara there?” I yell, heading to my Land Rover.

“No, Arturo,” she answers, returning to the line. “I’m afraid you’ll need to look for your wife elsewhere. And I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she decided to ditch your cranky ass. Bye.”

Fuck. I get behind the wheel of my SUV and call Tara again while backing out. No answer. Where is that woman?

“Tony!” I shout when I reach the guardhouse at the gate. “Have you seen my wife?”

“She stormed out of here about an hour ago and got into a waiting Uber. I have no idea where she went. She mentioned that you pulled her security detail—”

“The fuck? I did no such thing! You note the plate on the car?”

“Umm… no. It parked a ways down and on the other side of the street.”

Something she arranged on purpose, I’m certain. “I’m gonna head out and see if I can find her. Call me immediately if she gets back.”

What if she went to meet with the silver-spooned oil brat?

Curtis or Conan or whatever. Maybe the little shit decided to ignore my warning and reached out to my wife despite my threat?

Or maybe Tara has just had enough, and as Sienna suggested, chose to leave me?

Ditching her guards could certainly point to that.

The ringing of my phone interrupts my turbulent thoughts as I’m flying down the road. For a split second, I hope it’s my wife, but it’s only Nino.

“What?”

“The guy started talking. It was the Greeks.” That confirms what I already suspected.

“A raid on a mostly unmanned site because Katrakis is still pissed over losing the land? That’s kinda pathetic, to be honest. If this property is so important to him, I would have expected the old fart to do something more drastic than fucking up our construction equipment.”

“This was nothing but a prelude to the main act. Katrakis holds another party responsible for their loss and our gain, apparently,” Nino says in a grim tone. “They are going after Drago.”

“What?”

“Our guy overheard those fuckers flapping their gums while they were smashing up the office. They didn’t know he was there at first cause he was in the john taking a piss prior to the attack.

Seems that Katrakis believes Drago betrayed their trust by offloading the property deed to us before they got a chance to repay him. ”

That sneaky bastard. I should have guessed he was behind the offshore company that sold us the land. If my sister wasn’t married to that dick, I’d enjoy letting Katrakis fuck him over real good.

“Have you let Drago know?” I ask.

“Just before I called you.”

My phone beeps with another incoming call, and I glance at the screen to see that Sienna is trying to reach me. Quickly disconnecting with Nino, I switch lines.

“Sienna! Are you alright?”

“We’re fine.” Her slightly hysterical voice is nearly drowned out by the plethora of background noise. “Drago just put the house on lockdown in case of an attack here. But you need to get to Naos!”

“I have more important things to deal with right now than checking up on your husband’s joint. And I’m sure his people are more than capable—”

“Tara is there, you idiot!” she shouts.

My heart stops beating. “What?”

“She just texted me a few minutes ago. I tried calling the club, but couldn’t get ahold of anyone. No one is answering their phone!”

The tires screech as I do a one-eighty, hitting the gas and flying down the road like a bat out of hell.