Weird that I’d never really thought of that before. Or paid attention to it. I guess it wasn’t really that strange of a thing. I was one of those people that made sure to keep my receipts as a reminder of how much I’d spent. But I guess when you had as much money as a guy like Ray did, you didn’t really need to worry about that sort of thing.
Finally, I gave up on the closet, moving to the bed next. I lifted the mattress, which wasn’t easy to do by myself. I struggled to hold it up as I searched for any sign that the fabric had been torn or cut. With a shake of my head, I lowered it back down into place and fixed the sheets.
I checked every single inch of that bedroom and came up with exactly nothing.
His office.
Why didn’t I think of that sooner?
If he had anything important, it would be kept in the one room he asked me not to go in. Well, fuck. How the hell was I supposed to go in there to search without anyone knowing? I was willing to risk it at this point.
The annoying, stupid bodyguard was sitting in the living room, or so that’s where he was the last time I had seen him. Granted, that was last night but he didn’t seem like the kind to go checking for me. Like as long as he had the one exit covered, that was good enough for him.
The office was at the end of the hall. If he was sitting on one of the couches, then he couldn’t see down the hall. I could slip down there really quietly and shut myself in.
So far, he hadn’t come to look for me and I couldn’t see that changing. It was clear that he didn’t give a fuck about me unless I tried to escape.
I opened the door and listened. The place was almost silent. If I held my breath, I could hear the low murmur of the TV in the living room. I softly closed the bedroom door behind me and quickly made my way down the hall.
I tried the handle and found it odd that it turned. It did cross my mind for a second that this was all a setup. But I was in it now, no way in hell I was going to turn back.
I began with the desk because that seemed like the most obvious choice. I rifled through drawer after drawer only to find the whole thing completely empty. What the fuck? That was just not normal. Well, I supposed that there probably wasn’t a lot of paperwork involved in dealing or whatever he was into. I thought real hard on it. How would someone keep track of all that shit? There had to be stuff to keep track of, right? Wow, I was really out of my element here.
My mind flashed back to the motorcycle club.
Guns and drugs or whatever illegal thing it might have been wasn’t all that different as far as moving the merchandise. I imagined that it had to be pretty much the same. There was a ledger they kept. That was probably one of the things I wasn’t supposed to know about, but I did anyway. It wasn’t like I was going to use it against them. Granted, moving underground guns wasn’t exactly legal, but the men of the MC never looked as though they might kill me if something didn’t go their way. They weren’t monsters. They didn’t make veiled threats that had the evil undertone that even innocent people weren’t safe as long as it sent a message. And that was what made this situation different.
There had been something that I’d seen in Ray’s eyes, for just a split second when he came out of his office after being surprised that I was there. It might have taken me a little while to realize that I had, but it was there. This deadly look that said he wouldn’t hesitate to do what he had to if I looked like a threat. I’d seen the true him right there and I couldn’t ignore it. He was the type that got his way no matter what.
That was why he’d kept me here, secluded for a reason. I saw it now. He had kept his true self hidden from me because he was afraid I’d run if I ever found out. And he was right. If I knew what he really did, then I’d know the real man behind the sweet, loving boyfriend mask. That was the reason he hid it so well because I was too strong to stay with a man like that.
Well, shit.
I guess I’d gotten it wrong this whole time.
I wasn’t really fooling him. He was simply letting me play my role to see how far I’d take it. Yeah, I knew I was caught now. And there was nothing I could say to wiggle my way out of it. It was only a matter of time before he called me on it.
-10-
Silas
I caught up with my target at one of his businesses. It looked like some sort of nightclub but it wasn’t flashy. The sign on the outside was simple enough. I only guessed it was a nightclub by the bouncer at the door and the way the women walking into the place were dressed. There was only a handful but it was enough to figure shit out. It wasn’t an upscale one and it didn’t look like it was trying to be. This area of town, there was no way to pull off trying to make any place other than a rundown, shady establishment. I’d seen it done too many times before. This place probably didn’t make that much money. No, it was for hiding money.
I went back and forth for a good ten minutes on whether I should go in or not. The way I was dressed, I decided against it. Maybe if I’d worn jeans and a tee-shirt. A suit would stick out at this place and the last thing I needed was to be noticed.
There was no need to rush this job. The longer I dragged it out, the longer I’d have something to occupy my mind. It was a lame excuse but it was what I had at the moment. Besides, there was no reason for me to get sloppy now.
As much as I wanted to watch him and see what he was up to, my curiosity wasn’t worth it. He was just like all the others. I doubted his actions would be anything new to me.
Fuck, I was tired. The drive here was too long and I didn’t break it up enough. I could have flown and maybe I should have. I’d done it before when I had to get straight across the country. I didn’t have a time limit on this contract so I wasn’t worried about making it here in a flash. That said, I forgot how much I hated long trips in a car. I imagined it would be better with someone riding along but that wasn’t an option. Not only did I not have that many friends, but I also couldn’t even imagine how you’d ask someone to go along for something like that.
“Hey, you want to ride with me to go kill someone? Oh, don’t worry, he’s a bad guy. Yeah, a real piece of shit and probably won’t be missed. So, you up for it?”
No wonder I didn’t have any friends. Fucking hell.
I blinked away the sleepiness that was trying to weigh down my eyelids.
For being such a kingpin, this guy was boring.
