Ruin Me (Savage Bosses)

Chapter 30

CHAPTER 30

M adison

Three A.M. and still no word from Kent. I threw the blankets aside and slipped out of bed. For the first time, I understood Kent’s insistence on having me at his side at night. Our bed wasn’t as welcoming without his body heat and his warm breath fanning my forehead through the night.

Despite the late hour, I called Quarren’s number. I had no hope of reaching him, but I needed something to distract me. When his voice asked me to leave a message, I nearly tossed my phone against the wall.

I desperately needed my best friend. Any other day, she would welcome my presence because she would be as anxious as I was, but I was persona non grata in Ife’s eyes. With her off limits and my desperation growing with each passing moment, I packed up the animals and went to the only other place guaranteed to welcome me.

As I freed my pets from their carriers, my mother’s incredulous voice came from the stairs, “Maddy? Do you know you scared me nearly half to death?” She sped down the staircase, but her first good look at my face transformed her relief at knowing I wasn’t an intruder. Instead, concern furrowed her brow and dragged at her mouth. “Baby, what happened? Why’re you crying?”

“The police found Carol.”

At the sound of my distress, Tyger, Benson, and Stabler encircled me in a protective circle.

Mom frowned. “Isn’t that good news? Now she can face the consequences of hurting my baby.”

I hiccuped and shook my head. “She’s dead.”

“Not the fate I would have chosen for her, but not one worth your tears.” Mom maneuvered between the dogs to get close to me. She cupped my face and swiped under my eyes.

“I’d agree with you if the police hadn’t arrested Kent for her murder.” I hurled myself into my mother’s welcoming arms and broke into sobs.

Benson and Stabler whimpered in commiseration while Tyger pawed at my leg.

“Honey, do you know what time it is?” My dad came grumbling down the stairs. “Your ass belongs in bed, not—Maddy?”

“They arrested Kent, Dennis.” My mother’s arms shifted but with my face buried in her neck, I had no idea what she was doing until my father’s heat joined hers.

“Baby girl, what do you need?” Dad’s voice changed from joking annoyance to concern in the blink of an eye.

“K-K-Kent, I need Kent.”

Nikita sighed and pulled my arms from around her neck. “Alright, baby. Bawling ain’t never solved nobody’s problems. We’ll go to the jail in the morning, but in the meantime, tell me everything you know.”

I relayed what Ife told me, which wasn’t a lot.

“Cops love throwing their weight around, especially when dealing with wealthy people like Kent. I bet they sat on their arrest warrant to ensure Kent spent the weekend behind bars.” Mom brushed my hair out of my face and wiped the moisture from my cheeks. “Since there’s no sleeping for the rest of the night, let’s use those skills of yours to manage this crisis. Or did you forget what put you on the map and kept you thousands of miles from home for so many years?”

Nikita’s much-needed reminder stopped my crying more effectively than telling me to stop. I couldn’t believe I cracked under the pressure when I’d never faltered before.

“Thanks, Mommy.” I straightened with new determination and got to work. Kent needed me more than ever.

Once the sun rose, I was ready for any challenge dumb enough to fall in my way. My confidence remained until I reached the jailhouse and encountered Ife. Her eyes were as bloodshot as mine, but she didn’t have an ultimatum hanging over her shoulder the way I did.

“Figures you’d be here,” she muttered and turned her back on me to address the officer at the entrance. “I’m here to see my father, Kent Luxe.”

The woman glanced at her and yawned. “You’re here really early for a Saturday morning. This guy important?”

“He is to us.” I stepped forward. As much as I respected Ife’s right to see her father, I was too impatient to see him for myself.

The woman checked something on her computer. “Sorry, don’t see a Kent Luxe.” She shrugged and returned to her previous activity of watching the monitors on her desk.

“How’s that possible? I was there when the cops took him into custody?” Ife banged her fist against the officer’s desk.

“Don’t know. He’s not in the system.”

“He has to be. Check again,” Ife insisted.

The woman swatted Ife’s hand away. “He’s not here. Now, leave.”

I narrowed my gaze on her and peeked over her desk at the monitors. Because the images were upside down, it took me a few seconds before I found him on the fourth monitor. “That’s him right there.” I pointed to Kent’s face. “Now, you can either allow us to see him, or I’ll make this weekend one you’ll regret. Even if I have to call the mayor himself.”

“People like to drop his name all the time because they’re taxpayers.” She leaned closer to me. “But let me let you in on a secret. Just because your taxes pay his salary, doesn’t mean you have him on speed dial.” She settled in her chair with a satisfied smirk.

“You would be correct if I were a mere taxpayer.” I pulled my phone out of my handbag. “But you see, here’s the difference. A Joe-Schmo taxpayer wouldn’t have Valentino’s personal number on speed dial, or rub elbows with him at fancy events like this one.” I turned my screen for the woman to see.

Her tanned complexion paled.

“Now, do I press this number that clearly states Valentino DeLuca Home? Or do you do your job and get me in to see Kent Luxe, who by the way, is also good friends with Mayor DeLuca?”

Within two minutes, Ife and I stood in front of an interview room. She hadn’t stopped staring at me since I bullied the officer out front.

“You should go first,” I said. “Kent will be worried about you since you saw them take him last night.”

“That…performance you put on?—”

“Ife, I know you don’t want to understand my feelings, but what I did was no performance. Kent has become my world, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure he keeps everything he loves.”

“Does that include me? You’re going to make sure?—”

“Ife? Madison? You shouldn’t be here,” Kent said. He raised his cuffed hands toward us, the sheen in his eyes belying his harsh words.

Two guards stood beside him. “You each have twenty minutes.” They escorted him inside the room and Ife followed.

As time ticked by, I wondered what they were saying. I rested my head against the door as whispered prayers fell from my lips. All of a sudden, the door keeping me upright swung inward and I almost fell on my face. Before I had time to recover, Kent pulled me into his arms and stole my breath with a desperate kiss. My body began softening until I remembered we had an audience.

I pushed at Kent’s muscular arms caging me in, but he wouldn’t relent until I twisted my face away and whispered, “Ife’s watching.”

My conscience wouldn’t allow me to look in her direction. Instead, I hid my face in Kent’s neck.

He loosened his arms but didn’t release me. “Ife, if you have a problem with me showing Madison my feelings for her, turn your back.”

“Kent!”

“I’ll wait for Mads outside.” A soft click of the door told me she left.

“Little bunny, how is Ife going to get used to us if we hide our relationship?”

“There’s hiding and then there’s flaunting. You sticking your tongue so far down my throat you almost touch my stomach isn’t the best way to get her used to us when she feels we’ve betrayed her.” I patted his chest while searching his face for signs of mistreatment. “Did they do anything to you?”

“No. The accommodations weren’t the best, but I was more worried about you.” Kent brushed the skin under my eyes.

No amount of concealer could fully camouflage the dark flesh, proof of my sleepless night.

“I bet you didn’t even eat before you showed up here, did you?” Kent frowned.

His concern for me when he was the one in jail pushed at the tears I’d tried to hold back.

“I’ll have you know, Nikita Montgomery stuffed me with a proper breakfast before she allowed me to step foot outside.”

“You weren’t alone. I’m glad.” Kent pulled me over to the lone desk and sat me on the surface. He wouldn’t stop touching me. My sides, my hips, my face. As if he hadn’t seen me in years rather than hours.

“You didn’t sleep last night either, did you?” I smoothed his beard and caressed his lips.

“You know I can’t when you aren’t beside me.”

“So what the hell is Quarren doing to get you out? I’ve tried calling him, but I only get his voicemail.”

“If he’s earning his retainer, he’s figuring out the bullshit that’s going on.” Kent explained everything the cops accused him of last night. “But that is neither here nor there. I need you to do something for me while Quarren works on my case.”

“Of course. I’ve already started compiling character witnesses, dossiers on the detectives—by the way, my employees are not happy with me for putting them all on your case—mmph.”

Kent’s mouth smothered mine, preventing me from continuing. Since I’d interrupted our first kiss, I savored this one. He pulled my body until our torsos met and I wrapped my arms and legs around him. Anything to get closer to him and share my heat with him.

His dick grew hard, poking my pussy and serving as a reminder of the time we missed with each other last night.

“Little bunny, I wish we had more time.” Kent pressed his forehead against mine while staring into my eyes.

“Me, too.” I cleared my throat and shook the lust free from my brain. “But we have planning to do.”

He rubbed his thumb against my lips, then trailed his hand to my nape where he stroked the fine hairs and made me shiver. “Quarren has the legal side handled, but there are other matters I trust only you to find out for me.”

“Whatever you need, I’m here for you.”

“I’m sure news has leaked about my arrest. Hal or whoever’s behind him will make their move. They’ll probably call an emergency shareholder meeting to vote me out. Get my proxy documents together.”

“But if you’ll be out by Monday, there won’t be a need. Even an emergency meeting takes at least a week to organize. Wouldn’t my time be better served looking for the real culprit? I already have my private investigator leaning on his DPD contacts to find out what’s in Carol’s file.”

“Little bunny.” Kent sighed and stepped free of my embrace. “Listen to me carefully. I don’t want you anywhere near Carol’s investigation.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but he swiped his hand in the air, cutting me off before I began.

“Carol was murdered, Madison! Probably by the person she was working with. They already tried to kill you once. Don’t give them another chance to murder you and don’t ask me to watch you die.”

And just like that, anything I would have said to argue him to my side died on my lips. To protect his heart, I would never force him to relive another loss like Oye’s.

“Okay, I’ll get your documents together, but only as a contingency. You will get out on Monday and be available for any nonsense Hal and his people try.” I walked into his arms again, desperate to make as much of the little time we had together.

“Promise me you won’t do anything reckless while we’re apart,” Kent said into my hair.

“I promise,” I said and silently added the caveat: unless I’m protecting you.

Enclosed in his embrace, I could forget almost anything, and I hoped he gained more from our hug than I did.

“Times up.” The officer who’d led Kent here entered the room to escort him out.

Behind him, Ife stood, staring at me and Kent, still in each other’s arms.

I stepped back, bereft of his absence but with a new mission.

“What will you do now?” Ife asked once Kent and the officer left.

“Take Hal down. Do I have to do it alone?”

“Your priorities are whacked. My dad’s in jail for murder.” Ife sneered at me, and I felt it slither down my spine and settle in my heart.

“You don’t think I know that?” I whispered fiercely, upset by her accusation. “Kent wants him handled while Quarren takes care of the case. And I only want him focussing on getting out of here, so I’ll take whatever task he needs me to take off his plate as quickly as possible so I can spend all my energy on proving his innocence.”

Ife folded her arms and avoided eye contact with me. “So what’s your plan?”

I glanced at our surroundings. “Not here. I’d rather not have anyone listening in.”

“How about Dad’s old penthouse?” At my frown, she puffed a put-upon breath and rolled her eyes. “We agree we don’t want to be seen talking in public, right?”

“Right…”

“I don’t want you in my childhood home. I don’t want to be in your love nest. So the top penthouse makes more sense.”

Instead of addressing her acerbic tone about my current home, I brought up a potential issue. “Someone might see you on the grounds. Without knowing who Hal has in his corner, I’d rather not risk you showing up on the property.”

“Then where do you suggest, Mads?”

“No need for the attitude, Ife. We both want to look out for your father. How about my mom and dad’s place? We can trust them, it’s private, and I doubt anyone would check for you there.”

“Your parents know about you and my father? They approve?”

“After Carol abducted me, Kent and my mother had words about my living situation. There was no hiding our relationship after that. Plus, Mom’s approval comes with conditions. You can ask her yourself when we get to the house.” I passed Ife, having had my fill of her judgmental looks and silent accusations.

Part of me wanted to escape before she brought up her ultimatum again. I never answered her the first time, however, the what-ifs kept intruding on my thoughts.

What if Kent and Ife never reconciled because of me, could I live with the consequences? I would be depriving him of a relationship with his future grandchildren, and that would be unforgivable. What if the stress from their estrangement destroyed his love for me over time? Could I survive after sharing a life with him? I was confident in his devotion, but love wasn’t always the solution, and I never wanted to be the reason he lost anyone he loved.

At my parents’ house, Ife disappeared into the kitchen to help my mom. When she reappeared, we brainstormed various ways to expose Hal’s dealings with the mystery shareholder until we landed on one.

Exchanging ideas almost felt like the days we used to plot shenanigans we had no business being up to, or dream up our future lives and how we’d always be a part of each other’s families no matter what. Hope kindled in my heart that Ife could one day accept my new role in Kent’s life.

“This is the most perilous option,” Ife said with a satisfied sigh. “You’d bear all the risk if he caught you. Maybe we should hire someone to do the dirty work.”

Her suggestion stumped me. “Do you have someone in mind you can trust? After all, we’re talking about the company your dad built from scratch. Your inheritance. I don’t know about you, but I doubt anyone but us would work as hard to ensure he keeps his life’s work.”

“You have a point.” Ife bit her bottom lip as she contemplated our plan. “Okay, but nothing you said saves you from the risk you’ll take.”

“True, but as long as you distract him, I know I’ll find what we require. So all we need to decide is when you approach him.” I stretched out on the floor, surrounded by Post Its.

Ife twisted her lips. “That’s not all we lack to decide.”

“Huh?” I raised myself into a seated position, surprised I’d missed something.

“Without me, this plan won’t work. And everything else we thought up and discarded, we did so for a reason. They were shitty ideas.” Ife sat back on the sofa and folded her arms with a gotcha smirk on her face.

“What am I missing, Ife?”

“My price.”

And there it was. The ultimatum I’d avoided at the police station.

“Ife, this is your dad’s comp?—”

“I’m not leaving here without a definitive answer, and I won’t play along unless I know that once everything is done, you’re out of our lives.”

With the finality in her voice, the little flame of hope I held dear dwindled into smoke before extinguishing.

“I-I?—”

“No more prevaricating, Mads. I know you’ve thought about it.”

“If I agree, will we have a chance to be friends again? Even if it’s long distance and only by phone?”

Ife blinked and swallowed multiple times in the silence after my question. As the quiet extended, I understood the true cost of my selfishness. I’d once heard that breaking up with a boyfriend was less painful than a friend, but I was looking at losing both at the same time. I couldn’t tell which hurt worse.

Her suggestion to hire someone rose in my head. If I placed my faith in someone else’s hands, Ife’s ultimatum would be useless. Despite my heart surging at this possibility, I knew I would be on borrowed time. Ife would find another reason to push me out of Kent’s life. However, the stress of waiting for the next warning paled in comparison with trusting a stranger to care about Kent as much as I did.

In Quarren’s case, although I didn’t know him well and hadn’t evaluated his ability to free Kent from the murder charges, I had my mother as a backup. If Quarren made one misstep, I would convince Kent to hire Nikita as his counsel.

With all the back and forth in my head, in the end, I hung my head low in defeat. “Okay. Once we’ve rooted out all the threats against Kent, I’ll disappear.” The words barely passed my lips, and I couldn’t believe they came from my mouth. They were weak. Defeated. Hopeless.

“Alright. I’ll set up a date with Hal right now.” Ife retrieved her phone and walked out of the room, an odd sound slipped past before she disappeared from view.

It could have been a sob, but I shook the thought from my head. She’d been so adamant, she couldn’t now be regretting pushing me this far.

“Hal said tonight works,” Ife said while avoiding my gaze and hugging her body tightly.

“Okay. I’ll get ready.”

We parted ways after going over our plan again. My investigator, Sam, picked me up and drove us to Hal’s house while Ife met Hal at a restaurant downtown. Sam was my best PI. A former Navy SEAL, he had many specialties that could land him on the wrong side of the law but on the right side of my clients.

We sat in a nondescript vehicle across the street from Hal’s place. A wrought-iron fence separated us.

“You know, I could do this myself,” Sam said.

“We only have about two hours to search his house from top to bottom. The more hands we have, the faster we get out of here and back to safety. Because one thing for certain, two things for sure is I don’t intend to end up in a jail cell tonight.” I urged him out of the car, pretending I wasn’t scared shitless about the crimes we were about to commit.

While Sam remotely disconnected Hal’s alarm system and opened the gate, I drove the car further down the road. Once I joined Sam at the gate, he led me toward the there-story mini-mansion Hal called home, using his flashlight to avoid obstacles. I turned mine on as we passed rooms with opulent furnishings.

“We need to search his study, office, and library. I doubt Hal would keep records anywhere else in his house.” Sam opened an app on his phone. On it was the blueprint of Hal’s home.

“What about the basement?” I pointed to the large space beneath us. “Don’t guys like to keep their secrets hidden in dark, unexpected places?”

“Madison, look at this place. Why do you think any part of this building is dark?”

“Good point.” I nodded and followed him to the office.

Four wooden filing cabinets matching the rest of the furniture lined the wall. Each had four to six drawers.

“We’ll be lucky if we have time to search other rooms.” Sam swung his flashlight across the room.

“Let’s split the cabinets first, then regroup. He might have a secret compartment in his desk. Your expertise will be best used to ensure we don’t leave any traces behind.”

“Let’s get to it.” Sam proceeded forward and chose the cabinet furthest from me.

I went to the other end. As we rifled through the cabinets, we would meet in the middle. We got to work in what I imagined was companionable silence for Sam but for me, fear filled the void and screamed in my ear. Files filled each drawer to the max. Tax filings for the last fifteen years, investment statements, and a lot of miscellaneous documents that had nothing to do with the information I needed to help Kent.

Forty-five minutes passed before I finished going through all the files in the first cabinet. I glanced at Sam.

“Found anything yet?” I slid another drawer closed, trying not to lose hope while another worry piled onto the one that had ridden my back since Ife and I came up with this plan. Because there was a possibility I would leave here with nothing to keep Kent at the helm of Luxe Locations. Ensuring his future was worth the price Ife demanded, and I would gain no pleasure in seeing our venture fail.

“I’m not sure, but I think I found something promising. In case this leads us to what we need, I’ll take pictures. You should too.” A flash followed his statement, followed by many more.

The next cabinet called my name. Unlike the first, this one didn’t open when I pulled the handle. I searched for a locking mechanism by running my hands along the surface.

“Sam? I’m having difficulty finding where to open this.”

He interrupted his search to join me. “Hmm. This might have the jackpot we’re looking for.”

“Because it’s locked?”

“Not just locked, but it has a hidden mechanism.” Sam ran his hands along the front and sides. “If it isn’t easily visible, then we’ll check the back.” His muscles bulged while he struggled to shift the cabinet.

Who knew papers could be so heavy?

My phone dinged.

Things are not going well. Hal’s getting ready to leave and I don’t think I can buy you more time.

“Shit!”

“What’s the problem?” Sam grunted under the strain.

“Our time got cut short by fifteen, twenty minutes tops.” I bit my lip as the pressure from Kent’s future pressed heavily on my shoulders.

My heart thumped against my ribs, drowning everything except my doubts.

“Found it.” Sam fiddled behind the cabinet until a soft click sounded. “Here you go. Don’t bother reading, just take pictures.”

“Right.”

He returned to the files he was working on and I turned my attention to the folders in front of me. The closest three confused me. They were empty. When I checked the label, the blood in my veins iced over and the folder slipped from my numb fingers.

“Madison? Why don’t I see your camera flashing?” Sam asked.

Right. I was here to find evidence, but the empty files creeped me out. Regardless, I photographed the labels and placed them where they were. The next file sickened me and gave me hope. As I swallowed my bile, I sped through the files while taking photographs of the contents. There were so many. Awful images bombarded me, but I snapped picture after picture, knowing the more I had the better off Kent would be.

“Madison, if we want to get out of here undetected, we need to clean up and leave now.” Sam cupped my shoulder, and I jolted at the contact.

Sweat dotted my forehead, and my breathing came out in pants. I nodded and made way for him to put the cabinet back to rights. As we were finishing, car lights passed over the windows. Sam lunged at me and we fell to the ground.

I fumbled with my flashlight until I turned it off. “Do you think he knows someone’s in his house?” I whispered.

“If he doesn’t, he will when he doesn’t have to disarm his alarm. We’ve got to leave, now.” Sam grabbed my hand and we ran while crouched toward the garage.

I didn’t ask him any questions, though our destination was risky. If Hal’s headlights landed on us, we’d be lucky to only land in deep shit.

Sam paused at the alarm panel while I tried to control my shaking limbs. “Alright, the security system will be up and running in five seconds. Pray he hasn’t opened the garage by then because that’s our best exit point.”

“God, Sam, how the hell are you so calm right now?”

“Madison, I’ve survived war zones and special ops missions. Shit isn’t bad until it’s bad.”

“Right.” I nodded though I had zero confidence in my agreement.

How could I when prison bars filled my vision? Terror had my limbs in a chokehold and every movement was a constant negotiation.

“Alright, let’s go.” Sam grabbed my arm and pulled me along as we entered the garage.

“Where do we hide?” I scanned the dark area.

Like the house, the garage was huge and filled with shadows.

“My eyes have adjusted. Yours?”

“Not quite.” All bravado fled from my voice, but I relied on my faith in Sam.

He squeezed my hand. “Then follow me.”

We rushed toward a destination I couldn’t see. We were still in motion as the garage door began to rise and a car’s headlights beamed into the space. For a brief moment, I glimpsed a row of cars before Sam yanked me to the ground behind a tarp-covered vehicle.

Sweat now slid in a river down my back and I pressed my hand against my mouth to quiet my harsh breaths.

The car door opened, and Sam tugged on my hand again. Crouched, we quietly sprinted toward the exit, and barely cleared the door before the hinges of the garage door engaged and started to fall closed.

Once outside, Sam and I ran like Dobermans were on our tail and about to rip us apart. At the gate, Sam quickly did his magic and we slipped through before Hal would know we’d been on his property.

When we arrived at the car, I fell into the passenger seat and shook. The text I sent Ife informing her we got out was probably full of gibberish because I couldn’t control my body long enough to send a coherent message.

Throughout the long ride to arriving at my parents’ doorstep, my body rebelled at the thought of portraying a calm facade. There was no way to slip past my mother in this state. And if my father caught me, I would unintentionally activate his overprotective mode. Either way, I was screwed.

“Looks like your parents aren’t home yet,” Sam said.

“What?” I turned toward the house, blinking away the haze of my hysteria. The house was dark, but it was too early for Mom and Dad to have gone to bed. “Oh, you’re right.” I breathed a little easier, but my body remained shaky as I opened Sam’s car door. “Thanks for everything you did tonight.”

“No prob. I’ll email you the pictures when I get home. I’m sure we’ll find something to trace Hal to the secret shareholder you’re looking for.” Sam waited until I got inside and shut the door before driving off.

As soon as my door clicked, the hours of terror leading up to what Sam and I had escaped took their toll. I ran to the downstairs half bath, dropped to my knees, and emptied the contents of my belly. Tyger, Benson, and Stabler crowded the entrance, watching me and mewling in concern as I heaved even when I had nothing but stomach acid left to come out.

How long I spent on the floor, I didn’t know. But I hugged my animals to me as I tried to scrub the images I’d seen at Hal’s house from my mind and reminded myself I was safe in my childhood home where guards patrolled and my dogs would protect me with their lives.

For more hours, even after I went to bed hugging my animals, I watched the door and jumped at every slight noise until my body rebelled and shut off without my permission.