Fate’s Unseen Shadow (Cager #1)

Chapter 27

27

A fter three hours of driving, the temptation to text Damon grew into a pressure she couldn’t avoid. The sun had set, shrouding the van in darkness. She slid her phone out of her back pocket. But how could she keep the light off and the men from noticing?

They hit construction traffic on I-20, and the van slowed. Davies and Walker made small talk about the construction, sounding like two regular guys and not men planning on killing her.

Walker merged the van to the left since their lane was closed.

The sound of a motorcycle engine caught her attention. She glanced out the window.

Her heart thudded hard.

Damon. On Ryker’s bike.

How in the hell…

What if Walker saw him? She kept her posture relaxed but looked again. A gun was in full display along his side, the bandage from his slice visible as well, confirming it was who she thought. She’d recognize him even in the helmet.

But he didn’t see her.

Damon took his glove off and started to mess with his phone now that traffic had stopped. He sat up straight.

I’m right here!

He looked around as if he could hear her silent cry.

Risking it, Ella took out her phone and kept it low in the backseat, firing off a text quickly.

Ella : Van beside you. Walker is driving. Davies here. I don’t know

A hand clamped down over her phone before she finished it.

She hit the side button to lock the phone as Davies wrestled for it.

He smacked Ella upside the head before rolling down his window and throwing the phone out of the van.

Right over Damon’s head.

Damon spotted it midair and looked down at his phone again. Then, at the van. He slowed down.

Why? Where was he going?

She didn’t want to call attention to him, so she didn’t turn to look. But after a few seconds, she heard the throttle of his bike rev twice right behind them.

Closing her eyes, she laid her throbbing head back on the seat. He was here. But how could he get to her and both of them not get killed?

After another two hours, the SUV pulled into a parking garage. But what she didn’t hear was the motorcycle. That would echo off the concrete, and it was silent. After about ten times around and up, they made it to the top. The panic set in when they parked.

What if they made her jump?

What if Damon saw that?

What if they shot her right there?

She gritted her teeth, ready to fight again. That wouldn’t happen. Damon didn’t play the what-if game unless it was productive. It didn’t matter their plan. She would not end up dying without a fight.

The door opened.

She stayed in her same position, eyes closed.

“C’mon, Elizabeth.”

Her head shot up. “Matteo?”

He stood outside the car, his blond hair perfectly styled, teeth shining in a wide smile. “It’s me. Let’s go.”

Ella didn’t have to pretend to act surprised. Seeing him again, knowing he wanted her dead, still shocked her. “Why?” She sat up, knowing it’d hurt worse if they dragged her out of the car. “Are you behind this? I thought it was just?—”

“Me?” Walker headed toward her. “I told you. I’m only the delivery boy.”

“He’s been a great help.” Matteo looked across the hood of the car to Davies. “And maybe this time, Davies will finish what we paid him to do.”

Finish? How could he announce her murder with such calmness? Taking unhurried steps toward the entrance into her condo building, Matteo kept his hand on her upper arm.

“Why are you doing this? What is it you want?”

Matteo sighed. “You’ll find out. But first, let’s see your stepmother. She’s been waiting anxiously for you to get here.”

Ella shoved him as hard as she could, the surprise attack pushing him off balance and making him release her.

She ran.

Fast.

Toward the stairs, which was the only exit. Her mind braced for a gunshot to the back. But she heard the pounding of feet a second before large arms wrapped around her body.

The hard landing on the concrete knocked the wind out of her body and scraped up her arms.

Davies whispered against her ear, “I’ve wondered what you’d feel like under me.”

His soured breath made her gag.

He jerked her hands behind her back, tying them together with something small and plastic. “I like you tied up, too.”

She twisted around, aiming to knee him in the nuts, but he seemed to anticipate the move. He chuckled and fisted the back of her hair, dragging her head back with a painful tug.

“I think we could’ve had some fun.”

“No, she’s a dud in bed.” Matteo pushed open the stairs. “Let’s go.”

“Don’t do this, Matteo. Whatever it is you want, you can have it. Don’t kill me.” She was tied up, surrounded by three large men, and without a weapon. Her only hope was Damon. But what if he didn’t get there in time? Or if he got killed trying?

“Me?” Matteo opened the door, ushering her inside. “I wouldn’t ever try to kill you. I don’t have the stomach for that.” Pulling her tight to his side, he whispered against her temple. “Even though you sucked in bed, I miss having you around.” He kissed her cheek before turning toward the elevators. “This is bigger than you.”

Walker, silent throughout the ordeal, followed him. Davies brought up the rear.

“These halls have cameras, Matteo. They’ll know it was you who took me.” She twisted her head to the side. “Walker, you won’t walk out of here alive. You know that. There’s nowhere you’ll go that you’ll be safe. Do you think you’ll get some fast money and then go back to living in Charleston and running Midnights? Not a damn chance.”

Walker smirked. “He won’t even link me to this.”

“I texted him before Davies threw my phone out the window. He knows you took me.” She managed to lean in his direction. “He will be terrifying.”

Walker slowed down, his throat bobbing with a big gulp.

“Are you talking about the big guy? What was his name? Derek?”

“Damon. Damon Vargas. I think it’s only polite to know his name. Once he tortures Walker, he’ll come for you. He knows you’re behind this. And you’ll be next.” She tried for a smug smile. “I’m sure Davies will make it onto his list. I don’t want you to feel left out back there.”

“So dramatic,” Matteo said, gripping her arm even harder. “No one is coming to save you.”

As the elevator doors shut, Ella closed her eyes, keeping her temper in check. Pissing them off wouldn’t keep her alive longer. She had to escape or stall.

“Praying?” Matteo snorted. “Not going to help. Julia has her heart set on taking over this company, and I’m being a supportive boyfriend.”

Her eyes flew open, the plan to stay calm vanishing. “I figured that out. I can’t believe you were sleeping with both of us.” She asked the question she needed to know. “Were you sleeping with her while my father was alive?”

“Of course.” He tucked her blond hair behind her ear. “I’m the one who created the idea for her to fly to New York to meet your father while I met you in San Francisco. This has been the plan for a long, long time. You don’t think Teddy’s murder was the first one, do you? Julia ordered your father’s. I removed her son, although she thinks Davies made a mistake. Teddy was in on it at first but became too loyal to you. Tried to talk us out of the entire plan.”

Ella’s mouth went slack, her mind stuck on the revelation about her father.

Julia killed my dad.

The elevator opened, and Ella’s feet propelled her toward her door. Julia wouldn’t get away with it.

The door opened, and Julia stood there. “About time you got here. Always were inconsiderate, you little brat.”

“You bitch! I’m going to kill you!” Ella launched herself at Julia, headbutting her in the face the way Slater described. He said not to hesitate, and she didn’t. With her hands tied behind her back, her head was her only weapon, and Julia deserved to suffer.

The pain burned across the top of her forehead, but it was lost to the satisfaction of hearing Julia scream and fall. Blood dripped on the floor from both Julia’s face and what felt like a cut near Ella’s hairline.

Matteo hit Ella in the stomach, sending her backward into Walker.

“Guess you’ve been taking lessons from your boy toys at Cager. Nice hit.” Walker held her by the waist, picking her up and over Julia’s sprawled-out form and into the condo. He dumped her onto the sofa. “But making them mad won’t change your fate.”

“And you want me dead, too?”

“Dead? Nah.” He adjusted his shirt. “I want you at my bar, making me money. Since that’s not an option, I’ll just take the money.”

“I can pay you double for letting me go.” At his hesitation, she pushed. “Triple. How much is Matteo paying you?” she whispered.

Walker looked over his shoulder at both Davies and Matteo fussing over Julia. “Two hundred.”

“I’ll make it six. Six hundred thousand, and you let me go.”

“I can’t let you go. I can’t get you past them and us not both be shot.”

Ella looked around. He was right. “Then six hundred to find Damon and the others and tell them where I am and what’s going on with Matteo and Julia.”

“You have that kind of money?”

She sat up, offended. “Do you even know who I am?”

“Someone special based on how you just said that, princess.”

With her hands tied, Ella lifted her foot, pointing at the massive building beyond the windows of her balcony. “That, right there. With the CS logo. That’s mine. All mine. I own one hundred percent of the voting stock of an international company. And they want me dead to take it over. You heard him. He already killed my father and her son to get it. I’m next.” She leaned forward. “But not if you?—”

Julia limped into the living room, a towel pressed against her face. “I’m going to enjoy watching them kill you.”

She looked back at Walker. “One.”

One million.

Walker took a deep breath and scratched the back of his neck. “Damn.”

“Now, Elizabeth,” Matteo said with a sugary sweet tone he’d never used with her. “I have a few things for you to sign to make this easier. A new will is the major one. And then I want you to give us access to your bank accounts.” He set the bank form down in front of her.

She glanced at the paper and snickered. “That’s like half of my bank accounts.”

Matteo shared a look with Julia. “I thought you said this was it.”

“That’s all I knew of. How did I know she’d hide money from me?”

“Is it hiding if I don’t tell you where I keep my money? You’re such a greedy piece of shit, Julia. You killed my father!” Her shock still felt numb. Like her body couldn’t process that her dad had been murdered.

“He told me that I’d inherit part of Cassin Systems, not Teddy.”

“So you killed your own son?”

“No!” Julia’s emotions overtook her control. “I’d never hurt him. There was a mix-up.” Her eyes shifted to the left, past Walker, to Davies. Her hand shook as she pointed her finger. “It was your fault. You killed the wrong person. Everything would’ve gone to Teddy. Everything would’ve been ours.”

Davies shook his head, seeming unbothered by the accusation. “You said you wouldn’t stop until the top person at Cassin Systems was eliminated. I thought that was Theodore. I had no idea he was your son.”

Julia reached out, snatching a gun from Matteo’s pocket. “You killed him!” She lifted the gun and fired.

The bullet hit Davies right between the eyes.

Ella screamed and squeezed her eyes shut, turning away from the site. Her body shook as her breath came in big gasps.

Walker shouted. “Fuck! Look, I delivered her to you. I have nothing to do with your son or what happens to her afterward. I ain’t telling nobody anything.”

“Not even Ella’s sweetheart?” Matteo asked, his tone mocking.

“Hell, naw. I hate those guys. They make my life a living hell. I’m happy to screw them over and see him suffer.”

Ella breathed in her nose and out her mouth. Deep and controlled. She couldn’t freak out. She needed Walker’s help. With her back to Davies, she opened her eyes in time to see Matteo give Julia an oddly tender kiss on top of her head.

He pulled a wad of cash out of his pocket. “You’re good. She’ll be dead, so she won’t identify you. I had the cameras cut off in the building. If you tell anyone about me or this situation, I’ll find a better hitman to take you out.”

“You won’t hear a peep from me.”

Matteo turned back to Julia. “We need the other accounts.”

Walker moved backward. Her only hope was a strange smile on his face. He held up one finger.

Ella nodded and mouthed, “One.”

He gave her a thumbs-up and then turned and left.

If only his plan had included taking her with him. She’d stall, keep them talking for as long as possible. What worried her now was who would kill her—Julia or Matteo.

“Why?” Ella asked. “You’re successful. Do you want more money, Matteo? I’ll give you money to let me live.”

“The simple answer for me is yes. I want money. Julia, on the other hand, wants the company.”

“So you never loved him?” Ella asked, although clearly the answer was yes. “You seemed to adore him. I know he loved you.”

Julia, the bleeding on her head down to a small trickle she dabbed every few seconds, set the bloodied towel in her lap. “I hated every second with your father. If I didn’t have Matteo, I don’t know if I could’ve done it.”

“Why involve me?” She looked to Matteo. “If the idea was always for Julia to get my company?”

“Because I’d hoped to marry you, too. But we had that one conversation about prenups, and you made it a point to say you’d never marry anyone that could get their hands on your money.”

She remembered. “And I thought it weird that that made you so angry. You’re rich.”

“I am. Although the sex after that fight was some of the best we’d had.”

She tucked her knees to her chest, the only way to ward off the cold chill from the memory. He’d been on the edge of violence. He’d enjoyed himself, but she’d been scared out of her mind.

“When your father died and didn’t give Teddy his fair share of the company, I realized I needed to kill you off, too. Especially when Teddy told me you’d left him as your beneficiary on everything. You die. Teddy was in charge. And that was good enough for me.”

“But now Teddy’s dead.” Ella looked at the paperwork laid out across the coffee table. “All my stock goes as a donation to Children’s Hospital if I die.”

“Exactly. Such a waste,” Julia murmured, her eyes turning toward the building, now lit up and pretty in the darkening night sky.

“What we’re doing is wasting time. I doubt your little boy toy will miss you. Too bad you didn’t look this good when I was screwing you. Being a suspected murderer suits you.” Matteo laughed at Julia’s jealous huff. “What? You can’t say she doesn’t look better than before.” He kissed her. “But no one looks as good as you.”

Julia ate up that compliment and kissed him harder.

Even knowing they’d been together for so long and Ella was the strange addition, her stomach revolted at the sight. She closed her eyes and laid her head back on the sofa, breathing through her mouth so she didn’t smell Davies’s blood, spreading across the floor.

Her only hope was Walker. She wasn’t Wonder Woman. She couldn’t get out of zip ties around her wrists. Not sitting on a sofa in front of two people with a gun, ready to kill her.

At some point, they’d want her to sign the paperwork, and they’d have to release her hands, but then what? Overpower them and escape? Her only option was to keep stalling and hope —she crossed her fingers—that Walker was a greedy enough jerk to take the money and tell Damon where she was and what Matteo had planned.

She lifted her head, torn. She wanted to live, but she didn’t want Damon to die. What if this entire thing went wrong?

Shaking her head, she refocused on Matteo. She would not play what-if games like that.