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L eaving my best friend almost tore me in two, but fuck if he thinks I’m in the wrong on this. He always wanted me to stay away from Roman, but at least Roman never actively tried to kill me. Unlike fucking Tennant… The bruises around Benjamin’s throat still disturb me. And now I have to deal with fucking cops!

Fervently wishing my Master was here, I try to remind myself that killing the police is not an option—right now. Once they get out of the house, all bets are off. But fuck, I hope Hollis comes through with all the promises of keeping our files safe.

Midas finds me, making it clear he's unhappy that there are intruders in the household, and I snort. Join the fucking club. I make it to the foyer and sneer at the cop standing there. “You have a warrant?”

“Search warrant.” He smirks. “Plenty to look at in this mansion, isn’t there?”

Midas growls and the cop becomes visibly uncomfortable. While part of me cheers, the other notes that his hand twitches towards his fucking gun. If he dares to shoot my dog… I take back what I said about not killing any cops right now.

I put a hand on Midas’s head, urging him to back down. Fucking people. They see a boxer and make damn assumptions. Then again, Midas is trained to protect…

“Sergeant Mac,” I acknowledge, noting his name for future reference. “I’d like to see the warrant. My lawyer should be here shortly.”

“We’ll go ahead and start,” he says, mockingly sweet, as he practically shoves the warrant at me. Cops flood the house, all of them fanning out. Jenna better get here fast.

“Oh—Mac, just for your information, everything will be recorded. You may want to let your buddies know.” I whirl away from him. There are so many of those fucking pests, I don’t even know who to follow.

I send out a text to the household letting them know what’s going on, and that they don’t need to answer any questions. The cops can follow the warrant to the letter, and that does not include harassing my staff.

“Actually…” Mac says in that same mocking tone, “if you’ll have everyone gather here, it would be best. After all, we don’t want anyone destroying evidence.” I grit my teeth as I send out another order.

Rolling my shoulders back, I wave him away, focusing on my phone instead. At least until Benjamin carefully approaches me. I really don’t have time to deal with that bullshit still.

He leans close to me, and eyeing the sergeant, he drops his voice to a whisper. “There’s been a raid on the whorehouse. I don’t know much, other than that there were injuries. I don’t even know who.”

The desire to swear chokes me, but I can’t let on that something is amiss in front of these fucking pigs.

Gritting my teeth, I turn my head slightly and meet my Second’s gaze. “Get over there. Find out what’s going on. Call Jenna. I need her here, but you’re going to need someone from her office. Tell her I want the best.”

“Yes, Boss.”

His sigh of relief doesn’t last long when I tack on, “And take Ignacio with you. I don’t need Chaos here while shit is going down. Report to me as soon as you know what’s going on.”

I turn away from him, unable to be in his presence for long. There’s a beat of silence before he leaves. Ignacio follows less than five minutes later, tossing a concerned glance at me that I ignore. Those two can figure their shit out—or tell me which one to kill.

When everyone is gathered, Keegan comes to stand next to me. I’m not sure whether it’s to protect me, or to stop me from making a stupid decision. Either way, he’s probably right to do it. The maids are whispering to each other, but I shut them out, keeping my attention on the cops coming in and out of my sanctuary.

Jenna shows up not half an hour later, scowling at the cops. She’s already in her bulldog mode, and I pass the search warrant over to her. It doesn’t take her long to read over the fucking legalese.

“What the fuck is this? Search warrants are supposed to be narrow in scope. This…this is bullshit. When I get a hold of Judge Shelly, I’m going to make it clear this goes far beyond anything that should be done. Anything they get will be thrown out.”

Her fury allows mine to back down slightly. Thank fuck Il Padrone found her and paid for her schooling. It’s been worth every penny. Even if the retainer we pay is higher than most, she earns it. As long as she stays far away from Dr. Ranlen, because those two are a headache I do not need.

I let the next two fucking hours wash over me, stiffening as they take out computers and folders. I can see why Jenna said it was too broad.

Fucking hell. The BDSM play toys almost went out as well, before someone with fucking common sense pointed out what they were. Are these fuckers that unintelligent?

I bear the snickers as they talk about the nursery, taking in names. I won’t forget them. I watch it all via my phone, after tapping into our security system.

Only one cop seems truly uncomfortable with this, and it snags my attention. He’s not acting superior, or nervous about being here. If anything, he’s dragging his feet. The sergeant barks at him repeatedly, but the officer doesn’t speed up. He does a shitty job of searching when he can get away with it, and I hum as I contemplate what that means. Can I turn him? Or is he faking it?

I’m frustrated Benjamin hasn’t called yet, but he won’t unless it’s safe to talk on both our ends. If these cops don’t leave soon, I may duck out myself, as it’s getting too much. Fuck it. I make a move to go forward, but Keegan stops me.

“Don’t. You need to be here. Trust Benjamin and Ignacio.”

Closing my eyes, I try to relax, but there’s no way. Just as the fuckers are wrapping up, my phone finally dings. Reading it quickly, my heart sinks. What the fuck? I show it to Keegan and he gives a wordless growl. Whoever is responsible for not only taking Il Padrone, but injuring my closest, needs to pay.

They may have us circling as we try to staunch our bleeding, but it won’t last. I will fucking destroy them all. They will tremble under me as I crush them—and I’ll do it with a fucking smile. The chains holding me snap, and from the way Keegan grasps my shoulder, digging his fingers in, he must have realized it. Fuck it. Not even he can hold this back. I’m Il Padrone’s, and it’s time people remember that…