“You’ve no idea. I was in that f**king place when I should have been helping her. She’s gone because of me.”
“And she’ll survive because of you. You need to come inside. All of us need to end this once and for all.”
Stephen opened the door taking the metal tin with him. James felt a lump in his throat as he climbed out. He didn’t know how he was going to survive standing in that place.
What about Ravage? That was where she was taken.
He cut off the thought.
You need to be strong, James. She’ll be safe as long as you do as he commands.
The Dom inside him rebelled against being told what to do. He was the one who made the rules. Men abided by what he told them to do. No one else told him what to do. Opening the door, he climbed out then followed his friends inside the house. Biting down on his lips, James did everything he could to contain the rage inside him.
They were all seated at the bar area. Isabella and Rebecca looked terrified and yet firm.
He recognised the two agents who stood to greet him. Ignoring their hands he straddled a chair.
“I’m pleased you could join us,” Josiah said.
“I’m not here because I want to be.”
“No, you’re here because of Daren Robinson and this.” Josiah pulled out a small recorder and pressed a button. Daren’s voice came over the line followed by Prudence’s screams.
“Don’t hurt her. I’ll do anything just don’t hurt her.” That was him speaking. The memory of his pleading was still raw in his mind. James didn’t say a word as he listened to everything spoken.
“Good. Now, I’ve simply made an exchange. Dane and Mary will bring you up to speed. I was going to take the money, but I think Prue will get me what I want. He asked for Mary’s safe return. I prefer to make an exchange, and I knew the Feds would be following him. Prue is simply a means to an end.”
“I will pay anything.”
“Your money is shit, James. I’ve got more than enough money to last me a life time. What I want is all the evidence.”
“What?”
“You have evidence that can be used. You will come to England, alone, and we’ll make the exchange. Prue for the file I’m looking for.”
“How do I call you? I want to make sure she is okay.” Again, his pleading filled the air.
“Prue will be well looked after, James. I suggest you hurry. I’ll give you a month. If I don’t get my file in the next month, Prue goes up for auction, and she’ll be lost.”
James turned to the men in the room. The tape recording was clearly of the conversation he’d had with Daren.
“How do you have that?” he asked.
“You’ll be surprised what we do have on Daren Robinson as well as his boss. We’ve kept a very good eye on him, and you don’t want to know how we got this recording.”
Josiah placed the recorder back in his pocket. James saw red. Before he could stop his actions, he jumped over the table and wrapped his hands around the man’s throat. “If you’ve been watching that f**king bastard and the piece of shit he works for then why did you let Prudence be taken? She’s my woman. She’s a f**king innocent. Tell me, why?” His voice rose until he was shouting in the other man’s face.
His partner, Hubert, tackled him to the floor. James went willingly. His actions were unpredictable. He was starting to fear what he’d actually do to someone if left alone with them.
You need Prudence.
James knew what he needed, but he wasn’t getting her any time soon.
The two agents cleared their throats. James got off the floor holding his arms out in front of him. “Are you going to arrest me?” he asked, not caring about the answer.
“Will you f**king stop it,” Lucas said.
Kevin and Tate walked into the room at that moment.
The two agents sat down after James took his seat. His body shook with the need to do violence. He’d never been a man to viciously react. The only explanation he could come up with was not having Prudence in his life.
“We’re not going to bring the cops. We’ve got a whole unit working on this case. We don’t want to bring the undercover agents forward. Their cover is imperative to this investigation,” Hubert said. “We understand why you’re reacting like this. To be honest, we never anticipated Daren doing this. Henry Warren gave the order for Prudence before our men could update us. We’d never allow an innocent in the field and especially not who isn’t an agent. They had us unprepared for that move.”
They all cleared their throats trying to cut through the tension. They were all in the room. Ursula joined Stephen as Tate and Kevin took their seats. The only people missing were Prudence, Cadeon, and Violet. Their loss hit James straight in the chest.
“We know what Daren wants and what his boss needs. Henry Warren has become sloppy. The man took over from his father over five years ago, and since then he’s been leaving us little breadcrumbs to follow. This latest problem will link him to Dominic Green and Lloyd Black and be the catalyst we need to take him down,” Josiah said. His voice sounded scratchy.
When Prudence was in his arms, James could care about what he did to the man before him. Until then, he didn’t give a shit whom he hurt.
“Are you telling me, a f**king file is all it will take to put this f**ker away?” Kevin asked.
Rebecca whimpered. James saw the pain on her face. There was a lot going on, a lot he didn’t understand.
The two agents exchanged glances.
“For f**k’s sake, tell them,” Lucas said.
“Rebecca and Isabella have agreed to give their statements. Witness statements count for a lot. My contact has said Mary will also testify. She saw Henry Warren with her own eyes. Her witness testimony could be the key we need.”
James frowned then flicked open the file. “Henry Warren.” He repeated the name until he found it. “My father has his signature linking him with Lloyd Black. I don’t understand.”
The two agents stared at Lucas, who then nodded. What the f**k did Lucas know?
“Your mother and father were killed by Henry Warren. We have evidence linking a payment of execution. Your parents were killed by Daren Robinson and made to look like an accident.”
“This just keeps getting better and better.” James hung his head between his knees. He felt sick to his stomach. Prudence taken and his parents murdered. It was too much.
“Then here is the good news,” Lucas said. “That file you found in the safe, James. That’s the file Daren wants.”