Page 106 of The Beast's Broken Angel
The admission satisfied me more than his initial deflection. These men had bled for our family, had stood between my enemies and everything I'd built. Their welfare wasn't just practical consideration—it was personal responsibility.
“Good,” I said, letting warmth creep into my voice for just a moment before the ice returned. “Because when we find Harrison, I want you both there to watch him pay for every drop of blood he's cost us.”
The temperature in the room seemed to drop several degrees as my tone shifted from protective concern to something altogether more dangerous. Both men straightened unconsciously, recognizing the promise of violence that lay beneath the civilized words.
“Double security at all properties,” I continued, the caring employer replaced by cold calculation. “Recall ourinternational assets. Liquidate what we need to for operational funding. And find out who else is backing Harrison. I want names, connections, the whole fucking web.”
“What about the medical situation?” Dominic asked carefully, not quite meeting my eyes. “Noah saved a lot of our people last night.”
“Noah will continue his contracted duties,” I replied, ice in every syllable. “Medical treatment only. His... other privileges have been revoked.”
Something passed between my lieutenants, a silent communication I chose to ignore. They'd seen Noah and me over the past weeks, had drawn their own conclusions about our evolving relationship. Those conclusions were no longer relevant.
“Dismissed,” I said. “Except you, Viktor.”
The room emptied quickly, wounded men eager to escape the arctic atmosphere I projected. Only Viktor remained, patient and watchful as always.
“You have something to say?” I prompted when the silence stretched.
“The medical professional saved your life,” he observed carefully. “At considerable personal risk.”
“He betrayed my trust.”
“He acted from care.” Viktor shifted slightly, choosing words with unusual delicacy. “In my country, we have saying: 'Love makes fools of wise men and wise men of fools.'”
“Love?” The word tasted foreign, dangerous. “This isn't a fucking romance novel, Viktor. He's a contracted employee who overstepped boundaries.”
“Da,” Viktor agreed. “Employee who ran into active firefight to treat wounded. Who chose your life over his safety. Who looks at you like...” He paused, clearly struggling withemotional territory he usually avoided. “Like you matter more than contract terms.”
“Enough.” The command came out harsher than intended. “Focus on Harrison. Everything else is irrelevant.”
Viktor nodded, but I caught his expression before he turned away. Disappointment mixed with something that might have been pity. From anyone else, I'd have put a bullet in them for that look. From Viktor, I had to endure it.
Because maybe, in some part of my mind I refused to acknowledge, he was right.
I returnedto Ravenswood like a conquering king nursing hidden wounds. The ancestral estate had been transformed into a fortress that would make Harrison's government facility look like a garden party. Guard posts at every entrance. Patrols with military precision. Electronic surveillance that could track a mouse across the grounds.
Overkill? Perhaps. But I'd underestimated one enemy. I wouldn't make that mistake again.
The house itself felt different. Colder. As if Noah's absence had stripped warmth from rooms that had never been particularly welcoming. I found myself avoiding the medical suite, the formal dining room where we'd shared breakfasts, his quarters in the east wing that still held his scent.
Fucking pathetic.
I buried myself in tactical planning instead. Maps covered my study walls, Harrison's known associates marked with red string like a conspiracy theorist's wet dream. Financial records going back decades. Political connections mapped with obsessive detail. The web of his betrayal spread wider than I'dimagined, tentacles reaching into Parliament, the Met, even the bloody Foreign Office.
“You've not eaten.” Sophia's voice cut through my concentration. My grandmother stood in the doorway, dignity intact despite her advanced years and recent chaos. “Or slept, from the look of you.”
“I'm fine.”
“You're being an idiot.” She entered without invitation, settling into the chair across my desk with imperial grace. “But that's hardly unusual. What is unusual is punishing Noah for having the audacity to save your life.”
“He drugged me.” The words came out petulant, childish even to my own ears. “In the middle of an operation. He compromised?—”
“He loved you enough to choose your life over your revenge.” Sophia's interruption was gentle but implacable. “And you're too much of a coward to admit that terrifies you more than Harrison ever could.”
“I don't?—”
“Spare me.” She waved away my protest with one elegant hand. “I've watched you for weeks, Adrian. The way you look at him. The way you soften when he enters a room. The way you've let him past defences no one else has breached since the fire.”