Ford Security

by Clara Kendrick

  “You just what?” He cackles. “You got busted. You got outplayed. You’re nothing but a little mouse and you’re surrounded by cats.” He taps his fingers on the wooden top of the desk. “If you get the chance, please tell Shelby I said hi.”

  “You son of a bitch.” I throw my chair backwards and eye him for a second more, just to get a good look at the very man I’m going to be forced to kill if I found out he’s touched my sister. “I swear to God—”

  “The clock’s ticking.” He shrugs. “And something is telling me that your God isn’t going to help you, not this late in the game. The wheels are already turning and there’s no going back. You’ll see what I mean.”

  I stare at him, swallow a lump in my throat. I try to think about my options but I’m running on empty and I know there’s no use trying to plead with him. Men like Seth Grimm don’t bargain with emotion.

  Finally, I twist on my feet and rip the first of two doors open. Standing right outside in the hall are the two security guards from earlier. They pass me an apathetic glare as I race past them and towards the elevator.

  # # #

  I throw my apartment door open and search with my eyes for my sister. It’s too early in the night for her to have turned in already. My stomach twists and turns, knives of terror puncturing through my gut. I try to force myself to not give up hope and to think for the best but that’s a nearly impossible task.

  “Shelby?” I scream out and rush across the small living room to throw her bedroom door open, only to find out that she’s not here. “Where are you?” I mutter under my breath before running back out into the living room to pick up the phone off the receiver to dial her work number.

  “She’s not here,” a man snarls from behind me.

  And before I twist around to face him, I drop the phone back down onto the receiver and ball my hand into a fist.

  “Who the hell are you?” I seethe through gritted teeth at the tall man with peppered hair and a thin leather jacket parked on his shoulders.

  “That’s the least important question right now, wouldn’t you agree?” He leans against the doorframe like he doesn’t have a care in the world and crosses his arms over each other. “You need to think carefully about your next move though.”

  “I’m going to kill you.”

  “Yeah.” He drops his head with a lowly chuckle. “I wouldn’t be threatening me if I were you.”

  My blood is boiling, pumping fast through my heart that’s about to beat right out of my chest. And there’s so much I want to say, but I know it’s better to bite my tongue right now. Diplomacy isn’t likely to work but it might be the last thing I have.

  “I don’t know who you are, but I’m not your enemy,” I plead with the complete stranger standing in my doorway. I’ve never seen him before, not that I can recall, but I can only make the logical assumption that he’s working for Seth. “And whatever you’ve done with my sister, it’s not too late to go back.”

  “It was too late the second you first ran into Seth Grimm.” He shrugs. “Whether that was an accident or it was purposeful, your lives are now inexplicably linked.”

  “Where is she?” I grind out, quickly losing my composure as my fingers dig into the palm of my hand. “If you know—”

  “I don’t know.” He shrugs again, steps away from the doorframe and then takes a measured step forward as if to prove he’s not afraid of me and he has the upper hand. There’s no denying that, not right now. “All I know is that the only way you’re going to get any answers is if you go to Seth Grimm yourself.”

  “I just came from there.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I figured.” He sighs, pushes his hands into his jeans. “We’re not all bad people, you know?”

  “You’re insane to have the nerve to say that to me right now,” I scoff. “You know,” I begin to pace towards him, “I could break every bone in your body and if you think I won’t because I’m this supposed good guy, then you don’t know me at all.”

  “You’re right.” He laughs softly, retrieves a hand from his pocket and wags a finger at me. “I don’t know you at all, but I also don’t need to know you. I’m just here to deliver a message.”

  I continue to stalk towards him. “And what is that message?”

  “I think I should add an addendum—you might want to stop thinking you’re about to do something stupid.” He scratches at his nose before he narrows his eyes on me. “If I don’t report back to Seth Grimm that you’re on your way to see him then your sister is going to die.”

  I grit my teeth and shake my head because it’s literally taking every bit of strength I have in my entire body to stop myself from breaking his skull open. I’ve always been somewhat of a hothead but have been working on it since I got out of the service.

  “So if I were you…” He closes the gap between us and places a palm upon my shoulder, sending shudders through my entire body. I cock my eyes to him as he continues to speak, “I’d stop imagining all the ways you want to hurt me right now, jump back in your car and go talk to the only person who knows anything.”

  I pass him a death glare before breaking free from his grasp and racing out of my apartment, not even bothering to shut the door behind me.

  # # #

  I throw Seth’s office door wide open, my chest heaving and my throat tense. He’s still sitting in his chair and I have a feeling he hasn’t left it since I stormed out not even an hour ago. He’s wearing a sly grin on his face, the kind of grin that could send someone into a fit of rage. It’s laced with snark and malice like he knows he’s already won.

  “Where the hell is my sister?” I scream, my throat tensing in rage with an undercurrent of sorrow. From the time she was born, I’ve dedicated my life to protecting her and right now, I feel like I’ve failed. “If you don’t wipe that grin off your face, I’m going to bury a bullet in your skull.”

  I reach into my holster, draw my gun and aim it squarely at him.

  He’s unmoved in his resolve though, but maybe that’s because he figures help will be arriving any second. Not if I have my way about it. I take a few short steps backward to lock the doors behind me.

  “This isn’t going to end the way you think it is.” He leans back in his chair and chuckles to himself. He’s cool, calm, and relaxed and I guess that’s one of many things that separate him from people like me. “There’s no going back to the life you used to live, Dominic.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” I grind out. “You’re going to tell me where my sister is and I’m going to take her out of this city and then this will all be over.”

  “And what if I don’t?” He shrugs with apathy. “What if I don’t tell you where your sister is?”

  “Then,” I take a step towards him and swallow a gulp as my finger dances along the trigger, “I’ll kill you right here, right now. The last thing you’ll ever see is this gun pointed at your face.”

  “You could do that.” He nods, swivels side to side in his chair. “And you’d probably be satisfied for a little while knowing that you took someone like me out of the picture permanently, but that’s also where you’d be mistaken.” He leans forward, cracks a teeth-baring grin. “People like me are legends. We live on even when we’re in the dirt, and though you could take a short breather knowing that I’m dead, someone will soon rise to fill the void left behind in my wake.” He pushes backwards in the chair, steadies his hands against the top of the desk and then rises to stand. “Oh, and if anything happens to me, your sister is as good as dead.”

  He’s got me pinned right where he wants me. He knows he holds all the cards and I hold nothing.

  “What do you want from me?” I question lowly, my grip on the gun weakening. “What do you want from Shelby?”

  “The only thing I want from Shelby is you, meaning that she’s my leverage.” He caresses his hand along the surface of the desk as he begins to step towards the side and towards me. “You’re going to work for me whether or not you wan
t to. You won’t be a part of the organization proper, but you’ll be there when I need you.”

  “What do you need from me?” I drop the gun, realizing that I don’t have any bargaining leverage and I’m not going to shoot him anyways. I’m not going to gamble with my sister’s life. “Why is it so important—?”

  “I’m going to stop you right there.” He rounds the table and leans back against it so that he’s standing right in front of me. “The only reason you’re important to me is because you’re an asset, a number. You’re reliable and you’re great at what you do and because of that, I need you on my team instead of playing this game against me.” He steps away from the desk and towards me until he’s standing right in my face, so close that I can feel his hot breath upon my skin. He stares me down as he reaches for my gun and disarms me.

  And I don’t even fight him.

  I can’t.

  “I think you’ll eventually come to discover that you and are more alike than you’d like to believe, but in the meantime, you’re going to work for me.” He passes me a knowing grin. “When I call, you’ll answer the phone and you’ll do what I ask.”

  “And what if I don’t?” I question deadpan, out of fight. “If I don’t do what you ask me to do?”

  “Yeah…” He sighs, steps backwards until he’s parked against the desk once more. “I think you know exactly what’s going to happen.”

  I swallow my pride, every last bit of it. “For how long?”

  “Until I say it’s over.” He reaches backwards to press a button on the desk and almost immediately after, the doors behind rumble in place.

  Thankfully, I locked the doors behind me when I first arrived but I know that they’ll get in no matter what. It’s only a matter of time, so knowing my new place in the foodchain, I twist around to unlock the doors.

  And as the two men step into the room on either side of me, I turn back to Seth one last time to find him now sitting down again. I pass him a death glare, my eyes speaking all the words I want to say but have to hold at bay.

  “Will you two gentlemen get this man the hell out of my sight?” The two men each grab one of my arms to escort me out of the building, but Seth continues, “I’ll be seeing you soon Dominic. When I say jump you jump, and that’s all there is to talk about today.”

  I’m going to kill you. That’s what I want to say, that’s what I’m thinking. In my head, I’m already trying to find a way out of this mess. I’m trying to find a way to save my sister before it’s too late and even though Seth Grimm is basically a king for all intents and purpose, I’m not afraid of him.

  Because I’m Dominic Ford and somehow, I always find a way to win…

  # # #

  NINE MONTHS AGO

  For years, I worked for Seth Grimm and his associates. I did what they asked me to do even when it went against my values and morals, and they frequently did. Because of him, because of the firm grasp he had on my sister, I was never able to say no. The things I’ve been forced to do have weighed heavily on my soul over the years.

  The only blessing that’s come from my relationship with Seth Grimm is that it was the inciting incident for starting Ford Security with some of my closest friends. The whole thing was designed to stand against people like Seth Grimm but never Seth Grimm directly.

  Right before he died the first time back when he had faked his death, he had told me that all my efforts were in vain. He had told me that my sister had been dead for years, but he still needed me so he had me continue to do his dirty work for him. I made it my mission right then and there to make sure I finally put an end to him. The only hitch was that Zach and Zane had beaten me to the punch.

  Only it turns out that they didn’t. I received word from one of Grimm’s associates—a man named Brendan—that there were rumblings he was still alive. And knowing Zach and Zane’s connection to the Grimm family, it wasn’t difficult to follow them to the source so when I shared with Richard that Seth was, in fact, alive, he offered me a trade, said if I took care of him that he would tell me where my sister was.

  She’s still alive. That’s what Richard says and though I’m not prone to trust anyone in Grimm’s circle, I’m willing to take the bait if there’s any possibility that it leads me back to my sister. Why he wants Grimm dead? That’s none of my business.

  The front door isn’t locked so it’s an easy task to make my way inside. I push the door to a close behind me but I don’t hear it click into place. That’s not my concern though. I search around the living room and kitchen area with my eyes. It’s nice and modern, but it’s not something I’d ever imagine him living in.

  He has a fondness for older architecture and prefers to be surrounded by things with character—inanimate objects, not people. This place, however, doesn’t have much character at all. It’s like nobody even lives here, a place that any millionaire in the world could live in.

  He has no intention of staying in this house for long. Too bad he doesn’t have long to live. I step down the short hallway and steady one hand on the gun in my holster while pushing the door at the end of the hall open with my free hand.

  The door is beyond quiet as it cracks open, and with the assistance of the hallway light lighting up the bedroom, I can see him sleeping in bed. He’s fast asleep and peaceful, looks like he’s dreaming about something. But this son of a bitch has never been peaceful in his entire life.

  He doesn’t deserve a peaceful death but as I step towards the bed and aim the gun squarely at his rested head, I can’t help but to believe it’s better this way. There will be no struggle and there will be no evidence left behind, not that the authorities will be investigating anyways. After all, Seth Grimm is supposed to be dead.

  But a little birdy tipped me off that he was alive and well and recuperating from three gunshot wounds up in the Hollywood Hills. I just knew I had to get to him before somebody else could, had to get to him before he spilled the beans about our association.

  I’m so close to ending this once and for all. I’m so close to possibly getting my sister back, and I’ll be damned if a ghost from the past threatens that. I’ll be damned if Seth Grimm of all people takes the one thing away from me that he once took before.

  “Goodbye, asshole,” I say quietly, but it still manages to make him stir in bed.

  His eyes flash open and just before he can say anything, just before he can protest, I pull the trigger.

  It doesn’t feel as good as I always thought it would.

  CHAPTER ONE

  DOMINIC

  It’s been two weeks since Zach rescued me from the Grimm Industries building before it was blown to hell and back, debris raining from the sky all around us. It’s been two weeks since I lost any and all hope and in that intervening time, I’ve kept entirely to myself, turned off my phone too.

  I’m not ready to deal with the world right now. Hell, I’m not ready to deal with anything that doesn’t involve the effort it takes to pop the cap off a bottle of beer.

  Clink.

  The cap of the bottle pops off as I thrust it against the hard countertop. I lost the actual bottle opener a few days ago but the counter has become my trusty replacement ever since then.

  I tip the bottle against my lips and take a quick sip and it’s like everything comes flooding back to me; memories of the last time I saw my sister and memories of all of my hope going down in flames. Even after I pulled the trigger, ending Seth Grimm’s reign once and for all, I still had to show up to the Grimm Industries event. I was so damn close to finding my sister again until the building was blown to hell and back.

  A part of me wants to believe that Shelby is still out there somewhere but I’m convinced myself that this strange man—a man named Brendan Brown—was only lying to me in the same way Seth had been lying to me all those years. He needed something from me and knew my weakness and then he tried to exploit it.

  And I did exactly what he asked me to do. I killed Seth Grimm, but even if it didn’t end up with me
getting my sister back, I still took great pleasure in pulling the trigger. Seth Grimm destroyed my life so it was only fitting that I’d be the one to end his.

  I drop my head low and glance out the windows on the back kitchen wall. It’s practically pitch-black outside with only the neighbor’s lights casting a dim yellow hue on the landscaped back yard. And I think about how Shelby never got the chance to own her own home. Hell, she barely had the chance to become an adult. So much was stolen from her and that’s something that can never be amended.

  I tip the bottle back and take another sip.

  Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock.

  A series of knocks at the front door steals my attention. I cock my head over my shoulder and glance down the open passage that cuts through the kitchen and living room and into the foyer. There are no windows in the door so I’m unable to see who’s knocking.

  Knock. Knock. Knock.

  The knocks continue to come at a furious pace with each pound against the door harder than the one before. Someone really wants my attention and though I’m not in the mood to give my attention to anyone right now, I have a gut feeling that whoever it is isn’t going to stop until they have it.

  I resign myself to my fate.

  As I make my way through the living room and towards the foyer to rip some jackass a new asshole, I catch a quick glance at my reflection in the mirror. My face is unshaven and starting to sprout a beard and my eyes are heavy and tired, to say nothing of the tussled hair upon my head.

  I sit the beer bottle down onto the console table in the foyer and rip open the door—something I normally wouldn’t do because I’m always cautions, especially considering I have so many enemies out in the world—to find Zach staring there with his hand held into a fist as if he was just about to knock again. He’s out of uniform in blue jeans and a blue plaid shirt.

  I roll my eyes and sigh. “What are you doing here, Zach?”

  He swallows nervously, cocks his head sideways for a split second as he thumbs his lips before turning back to me with a severe look on his face. “I need to know why you were at the Grimm building the night it exploded.”