I had messaged Frank when we were in the air to pack a bag for Sierra and Rowan. I can send my movers to pack up and ship the rest of their things, but I didn’t want to organize that without talking to Sierra. She will most likely argue. Though I don’t want to force her hand, she will be moving to Greenwich with me. There is no way I’m leaving her here in Chicago while the Russians pose such a huge threat.
“I want to go,” Sierra says, surprising me. “I’m grateful for all your help today.” Her eyes flit between her parents. “Both of you, but I need to think of what’s best for Rowan, and right now, that is being with Ben.” I shouldn’t be surprised she is placing his needs, and his safety, above her own because I’ve seen her do that time and time again.
“Of course, darling.” Georgia Lawson walks over to us, circling her arms around Sierra and pressing a kiss to her brow and Rowan’s. She pats my arm. “Take care of my daughter and my grandson.”
“I will guard them with my life.”
“See that you do,” Lawson says, coming up alongside his wife. “I know you are keen to get away, so I won’t hold you up, but you and I need to meet. We have a few things to discuss. Perhaps I can come visit once Sierra and Rowan are settled.”
I nod even though I want to rip him a new one. He’s more concerned with getting answers and finding out how this will work to his advantage than ensuring his flesh and blood are safe. I won’t be letting him come anywhere near my Greenwich home. Its existence is a heavily guarded secret for a reason. As far as the Lawsons are concerned, they will be told Sierra and Rowan are staying at my New York penthouse, and Lawson can come to my office at the Caltimore Holdings building if he wants to talk.
“Call me,” Serena says, hugging her sister.
“I promise I will.” Sierra holds Rowan tightly against her upper torso as I usher them out of the room.
“Are you okay?” I ask Alessandro, working hard not to punch him for his stupidity. Hauling him over the coals can wait but not for long. I want to find out how this happened so I can punish those responsible.
“I’m fine,” he slurs, as Leo props him up. “Are you okay?” He fixes Sierra with worried eyes.
She nods. “I’m good. We can talk when the drugs are fully out of your system. You should sleep,” she adds because she’s a much nicer person than me.
“Good. Let’s get the fuck out of here,” I tell everyone.
Frank takes a hold of Alessandro’s other arm, and between him and his brother, they walk him out. Ian and Ciro silently follow them.
“Where are we going?” Sierra quietly asks as we walk along the hallway, trailing my men. I still have my arm around her while she’s holding Rowan.
“To my home in Greenwich, Connecticut,” I whisper in her ear.
“Okay.”
I glance at her with arched brows, thinking it can’t be that easy.
“Don’t look so surprised. You know I always prioritize Rowan’s needs, and right now, getting out of Chicago is what’s best.” A violent shudder works through her, and her body trembles against my side. She is scared too. That much is obvious, and no one would blame her after the ordeal she endured today. I never want her to be in a position like that ever again.
“I couldn’t agree more.” I hold my family close as I walk them out the front door, eager to escape Chicago as fast as humanly possible.
33
BEN
Rowan is fast asleep in Sierra’s arms as we exit the elevator, entering the hallway of my penthouse apartment in Manhattan. It’s too late to travel to Greenwich tonight, so we will sleep here, and I will drive with them to Connecticut tomorrow.
“Where can I put him?” Sierra whispers, stifling a yawn as we step into my open-plan living space.
“Follow me,” I whisper, gesturing to Alessandro and Leo to take a seat on one of the couches. I need to have a word with them before they retire to their apartments for the night. I already excused Ciro, and he went directly to his apartment without question.
Owning the building means I was able to reserve the top five floors for my personal use before the realtor sold the rest of the development a few years ago. We have our own elevator and rear entrance from the parking lot so we maintain complete privacy. The rules are clear—no one entertains guests unless they have been previously approved. Safety is key, and it’s important we don’t give our enemies easy access to attack us. It’s one of the reasons why I have never brought a woman here or to my house. Why I always met my fuck buddies at hotels. It’s also one of the reasons why I had a small pool of women to call on when I needed sex. Trust is difficult when you’re in my line of work.
Guarding my reputation is also of paramount importance, and all my soldiers represent me through their actions and their words, so I expect them to be above reproach. Alessandro and Leo have their own apartments, and we have a bunch of guest apartments that are rotated among other soldiers as the need arises. Sometimes, visiting members of la famiglia stay here.
Sierra follows me up the stairs to the second level where the three bedrooms are. I open the door to the middle bedroom and stride across the room, peeling the comforter back so she can lay our son down. He barely stirs, exhausted from the day. We haven’t had a chance to talk to him yet because it was too noisy in the helicopter and he fell asleep almost instantly when we were on the plane, but it will be the first thing we attend to in the morning.
Sierra removes his sneakers and carefully maneuvers his hoodie off, leaving him in his long-sleeved shirt and sweatpants. She tucks the covers over him, as he snuggles down into the bed, before pressing a soft kiss to his cheek. I lean down, softly brushing his dark hair away from his forehead, before kissing his warm skin. My hand curls around Sierra’s as we stand beside the bed, staring silently at our son as he sleeps. The steady rise and fall of his chest is comforting because I know how close I could have come to losing both of them today.
We walk hand in hand out of the bedroom, and I love that Sierra is leaning on me instead of pushing me away. I don’t know what the future holds for us, but tonight, she needs me, and I want to be there for her.
“The doc is here,” Leo tells me when our feet hit the lower level. “I put him in your study.”
“Can I get you something to eat or drink?” Alessandro asks, looking more alert. He slept the entire plane journey and the car ride here, so I’m hoping it means most of the drugs have left his system by now.
“Order food,” I say when Sierra’s stomach rumbles. I doubt she has eaten much all day. I know I haven’t, and I’m suddenly ravenous. “And I want the doc to check you out when he’s finished with Sierra,” I add.
“Sure thing, boss.”
Placing my hand on Sierra’s lower back, I guide her across the full length of my living area toward my study.
“Your apartment is beautiful,” she says, drinking everything in as we walk.
I had an interior decorator design and furnish the place. It’s largely monochrome with the odd splash of color on a painting or a rug or the cushions on the couch. The space is more clinical and less homey than my house, but that’s on purpose. I stay in the city during the week to be near work, and my apartment is mainly a place to rest my head at night. I don’t even eat here most nights, choosing to dine out instead. I wanted something stylish yet practical, and it suits my needs perfectly.
“I’m betting the view is stunning in daylight,” she adds, staring at the successive floor-to-ceiling windows that run the full length of the apartment at this level.
“It is,” I admit, steering her over to the right, to where my study is enclosed behind the large white and gray kitchen. “If it’s not too cold in the morning, we can eat breakfast on the terrace.”
I also want to show Rowan the rooftop terrace because you can see for miles across the city and I have something up there he will be excited to see. If he hadn’t fallen asleep, I would have taken him up there tonight to watch the stars through my new telescope. I purchased it
and one for the Greenwich house after our conversation last Sunday. I had hoped one day to watch the Skywatch Weekly show with my son in person, and it seems like I will now get my wish much earlier than anticipated.
We enter my study, and I make introductions, staying with Sierra as my personal doctor attends to her injuries. Using steady, skillful fingers, he applies a line of small paper stitches to the gash in her cheek and examines her wrist, to double-check it’s not broken, before wrapping it in a soft brace. With deliberate tenderness, he probes her bruised throat for permanent damage. Sierra winces, confirming her neck is sore, and I stuff my clenched fists in my pocket. I attempt to cage the fury swirling through my veins because I don’t want to spook Sierra, but it’s not easy.
I will murder any asshole who dares to lay a finger on her without stopping to think about it.
No one is hurting her again on my watch.
I make my other request, expecting Sierra to vehemently argue with me, but she agrees to the procedure. I take her palm in mine, letting her squeeze my fingers until it feels like there is no blood circulating in my hand while the doc inserts the chip in her upper arm. “We need to implant one in Rowan too,” I add, kissing her cheek as the doc wipes her arm with rubbing alcohol and applies a soft circular bandage.
“Can you do that while he’s asleep?” Sierra inquires.
“I could inject a mild sedative first,” the doc suggests, “to ensure he doesn’t wake and then perform the procedure.”
Sierra’s brow’s knit together. “I don’t like the idea of giving him a sedative.” I’m not surprised to hear that, given what Sierra does for a living. She looks up at me. “Could we wait and do it another time, when he’s awake?”
I don’t want to delay implanting the tracking device in our son, because it’s added protection, but I don’t like the idea of injecting him with a sedative either. “Could you come back in the morning?” I ask the doc.
“Of course. I am at your disposal.” I’m glad to hear it. I pay him a massive retainer and huge on-call fees so he’s immediately available to me.
I call Alessandro in next, and Sierra leaves to check on Rowan. I wait as the doc examines him and asks him a few questions. He takes a blood sample for testing, but he’s unsure if there will be any evidence of the drug left in his blood stream. His guess is Alessandro’s coffee was spiked with Rohypnol, which can be fatal if too strong of a dose is administered. Sierra mentioned she believed her tea had been drugged, and I’m so fucking glad she didn’t drink it. If the dose Alessandro was given knocked him out for hours, who is to tell what it might have done to my Firefly. She could have been killed.
Our food has arrived by the time the doc leaves, so we sit at the dining table and chow down. No one speaks. All of us are too hungry to do anything but eat.
After, we move over to the seated area, and I pull Sierra down on the leather couch alongside me, circling my arm around her shoulder and tucking her into my side. Leo and Alessandro sit on the couch opposite us, the latter sitting stiffly, looking rigid with stress.
“How did this happen?” I ask, working hard to keep my tone neutral.
“They must have gotten to the new receptionist,” Alessandro says. “She has been buying us drinks all week, so I didn’t suspect anything.”
“I’m glad I forgot about my tea,” Sierra says, placing her small hand on my thigh while she snuggles in close to me.
“What do you know about her?” I ask, peering into her tired green eyes.
“Not a lot. The manager hired her. She’s a few years younger than me. Degree educated. She was having a hard time getting the hang of the job, but now I’m wondering if that’s because she was a plant with no skills suitable to the position.”
“I will have Phillip pull up everything we can on her. Your father said she wasn’t in the building when he arrived, so she’s most likely on the run already.”
“What about the manager?” Leo asks. “And other staff members? She might not have been acting alone.”
“She’s a stickler for the rules and completely honest,” Sierra explains. “There is no way she is involved with the Russian mafia. The other therapists have all worked at the center for years, and I doubt they are involved either. There were only two other therapists, me, and Lucille in the building yesterday.”
“We will check them all out,” Leo says.
“I want the receptionist found. Alive,” I add.
At least for now.
If I find out she conspired to drug my fiancée, I can’t guarantee her survival. I’m enraged and itching to make someone else pay.
Sierra stiffens against me, and I know she wouldn’t be down for that plan. “I want to talk to her myself,” I say.
“I’m very sorry, Sierra,” Alessandro says.
“It’s not your fault.” She is quick to reassure him, and a surge of jealousy slaps me in the face. I know Sierra isn’t interested in Alessandro like that. They are friends, and I’m being ridiculous. I know I’m acting like a moody possessive teenager, but I can’t help how I feel.
She is mine.
Mine.
“It’s my job to protect you, and accepting drinks from strangers is sloppy,” he tells her. “I know better.”
“You do.” I drill him with a look, but I don’t rip him a new one. Not in front of Sierra. He nods, understanding fully that he messed up. Sierra yawns, and I press a kiss into her hair while maintaining eye contact with Alessandro. “It’s been a long day. Get some rest. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
Both guys stand.
“I want a quick word, Leo,” I say, hauling Sierra to her feet. Leo flops back on the couch while Alessandro walks to the elevator. Gently, I palm Sierra’s uninjured cheek. “Alessandro put your bag in my room already, but if you’d prefer to stay with Rowan or in the other bedroom, that’s your choice.”
She places one hand on my chest, staring me straight in the eye. “I don’t want to be alone tonight.”
Thank fuck for that because I need to keep her close. To remind myself she’s safe. I nearly lost her today, and it’s put a lot of things into perspective for me. I brush my lips against hers, uncaring that Leo is here. “I will be up in a few minutes.”
“Good night, Leo,” she says, clamping a hand over her mouth to stifle another yawn as she walks off.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” Leo says, and she smiles before grabbing hold of the glass bannisters. “See you in the morning,” he adds, and she nods. I watch her walk up the stairs and disappear into my room before I reclaim my seat.
A shuddering breath escapes my mouth as I lean forward on my elbows, running one hand through my hair.
“You look beat,” Leo says.
“I am,” I truthfully admit. Lack of sleep is catching up to me. “It’s been one hell of a day.”
“What time do you want to head out tomorrow?”
“Before lunch to beat the traffic, but it will depend on when Rowan and Sierra wake. I don’t want to rush either of them. They’ve had a traumatic day.”
“I’ll ensure everything is ready to go, and I’ll touch base with Phillip first thing.”
I already called my IT guru when we were en route to Chicago and got him to pull up the employee listing for the center. I knew someone who worked there was involved, so Phillip is already looking into everyone. “Call him now and ask him to prioritize Lucille. We need to find her.” Hopefully, Phillip will have background information tomorrow so we can narrow her whereabouts down.
“Consider it done, boss.”
“One other thing. I need you to accelerate finding a property for Saverio and Anais.”
He nods. “I’ll consider it a priority. Until then, why don’t we move them to the west wing of the house?”
The last place I wanted to take Salerno and his daughter was my house, my own personal refuge, but he called in his favor, and I had no choice. He was badly injured in the attack on Vegas and lucky he got out of there with his life. As
far as we know, the Russians are still after them. As long as Salerno is alive, their hold on Vegas is not guaranteed, so the threat to his life is considerable. I couldn’t turn him away in his time of need, so Leo drove him, Anais, and a couple of their soldiers—all with blindfolds on—to Greenwich in the dead of night. All the staff has been sworn to secrecy so no one reveals the location.
I had put them in the east wing so Angelo could keep an eye on them while I’m not there during the week, but housing Sierra and Rowan with them is not a good idea. There is no love lost between her and Salerno, and I want him nowhere near my future wife. I haven’t forgotten how much he wanted her.
Having them in my house is not ideal—at all—and it was only meant to be temporary while Salerno healed and we identified a secure house to move them to. Their remaining men are scattered across a few different safe houses, and the plan is to find one large property where they can all regroup and we can plan retaliation.
Now my priorities have changed, and I need to get them out of my house ASAP. Until then, I want them kept far away from Sierra and Rowan. If she knew they were there, she would resist moving in, and I can’t let them fuck this up for me.
“Ask Natalia to make it happen.” I called my sister earlier, and she immediately dropped everything to go to my house. I had a list of things I wanted her to set up for me, and she didn’t hesitate to offer her help.
Leo sees himself out, and I grab a few bottles of water from the refrigerator before switching off the lights and heading upstairs. I set one bottle down on the bedside table in Rowan’s room, kissing his brow and watching his breathing for a few minutes to reassure myself he is okay, before I pad out of the room and into the master suite.
Sierra is already in bed, but she’s not sleeping. She is sitting upright against the headrest tapping out a message on her phone. “Is everything okay?” I ask, tugging my shirt from my pants.
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