by Mari Carr
Elyse flipped through the radio stations until she found some bouncy pop song. She started to sing along.
Grant grinned. “Taylor Swift?”
Elyse rolled her eyes. “Seriously? No. This is Katy Perry.”
“All sound the same to me,” Grant teased.
“She wouldn’t appreciate hearing that. I partied with Katy one night. She’s cool.”
Sebastian leaned over the backseat. “Seriously?”
Elyse lifted her shoulder. “One of the perks of being super rich. You get invited to some awesome parties.”
Grant plugged in the code to unlock the gated parking lot located beneath his building. His home had previously been a warehouse, but now it housed upscale lofts. “Here we are. Home sweet home.”
They grabbed their overnight bags from the trunk and headed for the door. Grant recalled the lack of response Elyse and Sebastian had when they’d entered the swanky hotel suite in Boston. “I should warn you. My place isn’t very fancy.”
While the loft layout was cool, the furnishings and decorations were sparse. Mainly because Grant wasn’t home enough during the year to put much effort into fixing the place up.
Elyse grasped his hand. “Neither is my condo in Boston.”
He knew that wasn’t true. He’d seen her place. Elyse possessed style, elegance and her home décor had been classy, while still comfortable. “Trust me, your condo is way nicer than my place.”
None of them had initiated a conversation about what came next, what happened once this week was over. The entire relationship was still too new, too tentative. However, like it or not, they were going to have to sit down very soon and start making their three lives fit together.
Grant’s ties to L.A. were fairly loose. Given the fact he worked on contract, he could live anywhere to do his job. He suspected both Sebastian and Elyse had stronger connections in Boston. They’d probably want to stay there.
The idea of a cross-country move was more exciting than he would have imagined. He’d become fairly set in his ways the past few years. That didn’t sit well with him. He liked movement and change. Grant was ready for this. And after last night, he was looking forward to it.
They took the elevator to the fourth floor. There were six units on this level. Grant glanced toward Rose’s place. He’d have to invite her over later to meet Sebastian and Elyse. A member of the Trinity Masters, there was a chance she already knew Sebastian and Elyse as she’d grown up in Boston as well. She had been excited when he had received his invitation to the altar.
Rose had recently had her triad—an odd, old-school betrothal agreement that wasn’t the Trinity Masters’ norm—broken. She’d been delighted that the arrangement hadn’t stuck, but she’d confided to Grant that she was a little bit nervous about what came next. Unlike Grant, who’d spent seventeen years wondering about his future mates, Rose had grown up knowing what her life held. For the first time, she was facing the same uncertainty about her prospective partners he’d lived with for ages.
Grant reached out to put his key in the lock, surprised when Sebastian pushed the door open slowly. Sebastian wrapped his arm around Elyse, tugging her behind him.
Grant’s eyes focused on what Sebastian was trying to protect Elyse from.
Grant’s condo had been broken into, the place completely trashed.
“Goddammit!” Grant started to walk in, but Sebastian grabbed his arm.
“Hang back a second, man.” Sebastian was clearly concerned that whoever had broken in was still there. Grant hoped that was the case because he’d tear the son of a bitch apart.
“Do you have a gun with you?” Grant asked.
“A gun?” Elyse asked, at the same time as Sebastian shook his head.
“Do you carry a gun?” she asked.
“Sometimes.”
She frowned. “For work? I thought you were behind the scenes.”
Both men ignored her question as Grant jerked his arm free from Sebastian’s grip. “Then what are we waiting for?”
“Shouldn’t we call the police?” Elyse was peering over Sebastian’s shoulder.
“Yeah. We should. But I’m not standing in the hall waiting for them to arrive. Besides, their response time gets worse every time I call them.” Grant walked into his loft. The place was too quiet. Whoever had been here had come and gone.
“You’ve called them before?” Sebastian asked.
Grant nodded. “This isn’t the first time my place has been broken into.”
“Seriously?” Elyse sounded horrified. “I think I would move.”
“Shit,” Grant muttered as he studied the path of destruction. “They’ve outdone themselves this time.” His couch had been ransacked, the cushions cut open, stuffing covering the floor. Every drawer had been upended, emptied. His photos had been yanked from the wall, the frames smashed. As he walked farther, he was surprised to find his computer, TV and other expensive electronics were still in the place.
“It doesn’t look like theft was the goal,” Sebastian said, walking up to stand next to Grant.
“No. It never seems to be the goal. Problem is I’ve never discovered what the fuck they’re after. Feels like they just want to make my life hell.”
“No enemies from your job? I can’t imagine all your mergers are sunshine and roses. Maybe someone wasn’t exactly farting glitter over your presence.”
Grant had considered that more than once, but each time he discounted it. He simply put the procedures in place in terms of the mergers. It would be unlikely that any disgruntled employee saw him as the enemy. He basically showed up after the war and cleaned up the mess. More Red Cross than militia. Plus his last couple of contracts had involved friendly mergers. It had been a few years since he’d dealt with any sort of hostile takeover and the break-ins started well after those ended. “I don’t think this was work related.”
“You sure? What are you working on now? Maybe someone’s trying to send a message, trying to stop you.”
Grant shook his head. “I’m between jobs. Made enough on my last one that I’d decided to treat myself to a bit of a holiday. Intended to do nothing but sit on my ass, binge-watching all the shows I’ve missed in the last decade and relaxing.”
Elyse grinned. “Sounds like a great plan. I’d like to recommend Breaking Bad, True Blood and Modern Family.”
Grant chuckled. “So noted.”
They were about to move into the bedroom to take in the rest of the destruction when Grant heard a gasp from the front door.
“What the hell?”
He turned at the sound of Rose’s voice. “Did you throw a party without asking, Rose?” Grant figured laughter was preferable to what he really felt like doing…which was beating the shit out of someone.
“God. They really got you this time, didn’t they?” She stepped into the trashed loft, looking around. She wore elegant wide-leg slacks and a silk tank with a graffiti-inspired print. Her black hair and bangs framed a face that was classic English-rose complexion.
“Rose?”
Grant looked over, not entirely surprised to discover Sebastian did know her.
“Seb?” Rose looked from Sebastian to Grant, her eyes wide. “The Grand Master put you and Seb together?”
From the tone in her voice, Grant could tell she found that fact shocking.
He nodded, and then pointed to Elyse. “As well as Elle. Elyse Hunt, I’d like you to meet my friend, Rose Hancock.”
Elyse walked forward and shook Rose’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Rose smiled. It was apparent that Rose—like the rest of the world—was perfectly aware of who Elle Hunt was. “You too.”
Rose stepped into the loft and looked around. “I can’t believe this.”
“So I guess you didn’t hear anything?” Grant was hoping perhaps Rose had seen or heard something that would help them figure out who the culprit was.
“No. Not a thing. Of course, I was away last night.”
She di
dn’t elaborate, so Grant could only assume she’d been out on a date that had turned into a sleepover.
“And they didn’t break into your place?”
She gave him a rueful grin. “Nope. Sorry. They seem to save this torment for you.”
“I wasn’t aware that you two knew each other,” Sebastian said, glancing from Rose to Grant.
Rose shrugged casually. “I met Grant at the winter gala a few years ago. It came up in conversation that we both lived in L.A. He mentioned he was looking for a new place and the guy living in this loft had just moved out. I told him about it and we’ve been neighbors ever since. Plus we have some shared interests.”
Rose gave Grant a sly wink. Rose was into BDSM too, and had arranged for him to have a trial membership at her club shortly after they’d met. The club, Las Palmas, had required more of a commitment than Grant was interested in, but it was a fun month.
Sebastian listened politely, but it was obvious he was distracted. “Are you sure nothing was taken, Grant?”
A light went on in Grant’s mind.
Of course. The map. If the CIA was so anxious to get their hands on it, other factions would be as well. Damn. Was that what these assholes had been after all along?
“Let’s go see.”
Grant started for his bedroom, everyone else following. When they entered the room, his temper spiked once more. The place looked like it had been hit by a tornado. Every piece of clothing he owned was strewn on the floor, the closet and dressers now empty. All his best suits had been rifled through, some even torn.
His blood boiled with rage. “I’m going to kill this person when we catch them.”
Elyse reached for his hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. “I’ll help you,” she said softly.
Grant leaned over to give her a quick kiss. He was in serious danger of losing his heart to this woman. Then he decided he already had.
“Grant?”
Sebastian was like a dog with a bone.
Grant knelt by his bed and pulled back the Oriental rug that covered the hardwood floor. Then he pried up the loose floorboard he had discovered when he’d moved in three years ago. He’d nearly broken his neck, tripping over the thing. That was when he’d found the hiding spot. Grant didn’t have much of value, but he appreciated the need for secrecy when it came to anything related to the Trinity Masters, and he had some important papers he had wanted to keep protected.
Reaching in, he withdrew the small fireproof safe he’d purchased. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have thought to put the map in with the other things, but when his grandmother gave it to him, she explained that his grandfather had moved it to a safety deposit box after Grant had found it when he was just a kid. That fact resonated with him, so he’d stashed it in the box and promptly forgotten all about it.
“Is that the treasure?” Elyse joked.
Grant nodded and lifted the lid on the box. The map was still there, buried about halfway down. He could see the faded parchment peeking out from beneath his will and the title to his car.
“Here.” Grant tugged it out and handed it to Sebastian, who blew out a long, slow breath of relief.
“Thank God.”
“What’s that?” Rose asked.
Grant had forgotten she was there.
Sebastian hadn’t. “Um, listen, Rose, maybe you could do us a favor and call the police, report the break-in?”
Rose grinned and patted Sebastian on the cheek. “Oh, Seb. That’s so cute. You think I’m going to go away.” She reached out, moving at lightning speed and grabbing the map from Sebastian’s hands.
He tried to retrieve it, but she turned her back on him and walked away, unfolding the parchment and laying it on Grant’s bed. “A map?”
“What’s it a map of?” Elyse asked, stepping closer to Rose, the two of them studying the faded ink.
While Grant was amused by the women’s curiosity, Sebastian looked irritated. “Give me the map, Rose.”
“Where’s the rest of it?” Elyse looked at Grant, who glanced at Sebastian.
Sebastian reached into his pocket and pulled out the portion of the map he possessed. Rose unfolded it and placed the two pieces side by side.
“There’s still part of it missing,” Elyse observed.
“Yeah. We’re trying to track it down,” Sebastian said. Grant wondered if Sebastian would give the women the same lie he’d given him.
“It looks like Copley Square,” Rose said.
Her observation caught Sebastian’s attention. “What?”
“Well, not the roads or anything, but the landmarks are definitely in the right places.” Rose pointed to squares that Grant hadn’t noticed, probably because without the second piece, the solid geometric shapes hadn’t been whole, so they’d simply blended in with the other squiggly lines. “There’s Trinity Church and that would have been where the Art Museum stood. See those initials denoting the landmarks? T.C. and A.M.?”
Grant hadn’t really looked at the map since he’d been a kid. He’d given it a passing glance when his grandmother handed it over to him, but he’d been in the midst of a huge merger, so he had simply folded it up and put it in the box. Unlike the portion Sebastian had, his had more words, more denotations of places.
Rose was studying it with interest. “Of course, this is an old drawing because that looks like where Hotel Westminster used to be. That’s long gone now. I’m assuming the part of the map you’re still missing would show the library. Thing is those streets don’t seem right. They’re running through the buildings.”
“Maybe they aren’t roads,” Grant replied.
“So what do you think all the zigzag lines are?” Rose asked.
This time it was Elyse who replied. “Tunnels?”
Sebastian reared back. “Holy shit. Yeah.”
Though he’d only muttered the words, his response confirmed what Grant had suspected. This map had fuck-all to do with the White House.
“What are these initials over here? The ones that were penciled in? They don’t look as old as the rest of the map,” Elyse asked as she pointed to R.B., M.H. and C.W.
Sebastian reached down, folding up each part of the map and tucking them away in a file folder. “That’s classified information, ma’am.” He said it tongue-in-cheek, which worked with Elyse, who laughed.
Grant and Rose didn’t.
“You know, I have a friend who’s a historian. I bet she’d take a look at that for you if you want. I could give her a call and take them over to her,” Rose offered.
Sebastian shook his head. “No. That’s okay. I’ve got my own guy…um…at work. He can do the research for me.”
Grant wondered exactly who Sebastian planned to ask for help. Because he was certain this map had nothing to do with a CIA investigation.
“So,” Rose said, looking strictly at Sebastian. “You three were called to the altar?”
Sebastian didn’t reply, so Elyse did. “Yes. Were you at the gala, when the new Grand Master was announced?”
Rose nodded, still staring at Sebastian. “I was. Does that map have something to do with your task?”
“Task?” Grant asked.
“Oh my God. I forgot about that,” Elyse said. “The Grand Master said each new trinity would be given a task to perform.”
Rose grimaced as she added, “And you’ll only be formally married once that task or puzzle is worked out.”
Elyse frowned. “We weren’t given a task.”
Sebastian cleared his throat. “It’s only been a few days. Maybe the Grand Master is giving us a chance to get to know each other first.”
After all of Sebastian’s lies, Grant found it difficult to believe anything the man said.
Even Rose didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t press for more. “I’ll admit I’m curious about what happened to the old Grand Master. Still, it’s exciting that it’s a woman this time, wouldn’t you say, Seb?”
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed, but he remaine
d silent. Grant couldn’t tell if he was annoyed or pissed, but Rose’s comments didn’t seem to warrant either response.
Of course, Rose’s curiosity was rather unlike her normal teasing, biting manner. What was going on?
“And she seems young,” Rose added. “According to the rumor mill.”
Elyse answered once more as Sebastian’s silence continued. “She does seem young. She performed our binding ceremony.”
Given the way Rose and Seb were looking at each other, Grant thought that maybe either one or both of them knew who the Grand Master was. Which, given the way Sebastian bolted after the Grand Master following the binding ceremony, made sense.
Rose got a text. “Oh, hey. I need to get going. I’m sorry about your place, Grant. I assume you’re going to call the police and the realtor to let them know?”
Grant nodded, mentally adding the realtor call to his to-do list. “I will.”
She gave him a quick, friendly kiss on the cheek. She reached out to take Elyse’s hand. “Really nice to meet you. Hopefully we’ll see each other again sometime soon.”
Elyse smiled. “I hope so too.”
Then Rose walked over and gave Sebastian a hug. “Give my love to Dev and Juliette.”
Grant recognized the names. They were her former betrothed.
“I will,” Sebastian answered shortly.
Grant would have to get Rose alone at some point and question her about this conversation. Now, however, wasn’t the time. He had too many other mysteries to solve. Like why Sebastian wanted the map. And what the hell Grant was going to do about his two new spouses. He’d always thought that once the binding ceremony happened, the future would be set. That didn’t appear to be the case. Everything felt more up in the air than ever.
The sound of the front door closing behind Rose drifted down the hallway. Elyse bent over and began picking up some of Grant’s clothes, folding them and placing them on the dresser neatly.
“I guess we should start figuring out what comes next,” she said as she worked. “We only have a month to get our affairs in order before the official marriage ceremony.”
Grant agreed. “I suppose the first question is East or West Coast.”