Chapter 66
My arms are fettered well above my head, chains bolted to the ceiling that keep me strung up, dangling, the tips of my feet barely touching the cold stone floor. By the lack of light, vast breadth of space and oxidized equipment in the distance. I'm guessing I'm in an abandoned warehouse or factory. My fear of Calum's welfare triumphs over the haunting horror of seeing Orian again. I haven't seen him since the villa. Everything happened so fast. I woke up before him and he was sleeping so blissfully; I didn't want to wake him. I know the difference between being asleep and finding rest. I just wanted to go get a start on dinner. I was in the kitchen when I heard the first gunshot. And everything from there was thrown into hyperspeed.
A clangour of noise disturbs my train of thought.
Two men peel from the darkness. The one sets down a metal chair. The other claims it, settling down and holding a furnished cane beside him like its a sceptre. Santos. He eyes me down with a humourful expression, like he knew this was going to happen. It was just a matter of time.
"Where's Calum?" I croak out.
His eyes spark. "She speaks."
"Where's Calum?"
"I'll give him back to you," he says with a hint of a smile playing on his lips. "Piece-by-piece, if you don't tell me what I want to know."
After a long moment, I concede a stiff nod.
"Good girl," he says wryly. "What does Torin plan to do with my master key?"
My face contorts into a frown.
Intrigue spreads out his smile at my visible confusion. "You don't know? That's what he stole from me, and he was only able to do it because of the information in that book that gave him access. Everything he needed to make a clean entry."
I shake my head rigidly. "All I know is that his account got drained and he was looking for a way to get more money. That's it."
His lips explode into a grin. "Is that what he told you? The master key doesn't give him any access to my financial accounts..." He gives me a long, examining look with careful calculation. "You have no idea what the book is, do you?"
"Magnus Quinque," I utter, my voice raspy. "There are five of them. I suppose they hold state secrets, unsanctioned assassinations...exposing powerful players in politics."
He releases a hearty laugh. "That's only a taste. The government doesn't rule this world, gangsters do—"
"And what do you think I can do for you? I gave Torin what he wanted—"
"Then you have no value," he yells over my voice. "And yet you're still breathing. Torin is not as ruthless as his brother but he is cunning. Smart enough to know when loose ends must be cut. So it means he still needs you for something... and the boy. Calum?"
I lunge violently, swaying forward. "Leave him out of this."
"You put him in this the moment you stole from my brother." His hand clamps down on the gilded head of the cane, moving it in front of him. "For an elite investigator like yourself, hunting down criminals... you have the conviction of one—willing to break boundaries to get what you want. Even if those you care for—innocent people are put in harm's way."
"You're the last one who can judge my moral fortitude."
His tattooed fingers drum the neck of the shaft. "No, because I just don't give a fuck. I don't hide it behind a vigilante visage and a self-righteous mentality. How evil prompts a man's actions, it merely perverts his mind. Or in some cases makes him turn a blind eye to certain truths."
I peer down at him, glowering. "And what truths are that?"
"Only one you can discover."
"As riveting as your parables are. What do you want from me?"
"They kept the boy alive, the smart one, because he can decipher the book. Yes?"
I don't respond.
His expression goes dark, his eyes deadening. "You will answer me."
"Or what?" I spit out.
"I will make you wish I left you to burn alive."
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