by Kells, India
Epilogue
Liam tried to ignore the annoying pain in his knee and wondered when his brain would start to treat it as a secondary buzz.
The good news was the constant improvement and, according to the doctor, with steady physical therapy, there was a chance that he could fully recover. Maybe.
At least, his captain allowed him to return for special projects, or more specifically, the Finch project. He was lucky enough that knowledge of Liam being his son hadn’t reached his superiors’ ears. However, no field work, but he could live with that for now, especially since his father had transformed into a dangerous ghost and the situation was doomed to get worse.
Chewy pulled on his leash as they approached the coffee shop. It was their spot as he couldn’t cook. His coffee resembled tar at best, so the local coffee shop was his saving grace. His and Chewy’s.
When he pushed the door open, he was glad to see old Debbie behind the counter. It was against regulations to allow his scraggy mutt inside, but Chewy had charmed the café owner better than he would ever be able to.
“It’s my favorite customer! And his tolerable owner.”
“Hello, Debbie.”
“Hello, despicable cop.”
A bunch of customers laughed, but Liam only shook his head. One of his colleagues had given her a speeding ticket the week before and he was now the demon’s spawn. If she only knew!
“Can this despicable cop have a cup of your amazing coffee, Debbie?”
As usual she sniffed and picked a scone from the tray for Chewy before pouring him a cup. “If it wasn’t for that dog and your gorgeous eyes, I would have kicked you to the curb in an instant, like I did to my ex-husband.”
Liam paid and winked at her before heading to his favorite booth in the corner. Chewy snuck under the table as Liam gave the mutt his treat.
He then opened his backpack and started spreading his files on the table. It was difficult to find any kind of focus, especially in the last few days.
Lazarus had survived the surgery but was still in a coma. Archer had arranged for him to be taken care of in a secure location where Finch wouldn’t be able to find him. Sasha had helped tremendously in that aspect. She had canceled all of her upcoming contracts to stay with Lazarus until he recovered. Liam didn’t know if there was something between them, but one look at Sasha when she saw his brother in his hospital bed confirmed to him that she cared as much as they did.
And now that Izzy had destroyed Jamieson Finch in front of the world, they would have to make sure he never rose again. One of the conversations he’d had with Archer and Aleksei in the waiting room stuck with him. What did Finch have left? Money? And a certain amount of hardcore connections? Connections could be cut, but money was another thing. Slippery to get a hold of, like an eel.
Find the money. An obvious task but far from an easy one.
“Hello, Liam.”
He smiled at that voice that had become so familiar in the last few years. “Hello, Gabrielle.”
The blond spy slid in front of him. There was something changed in her. For the first time, she looked tired, and sadness clouded her blue eyes. “What’s going on, Gab? Any news on Lazarus?”
“No new updates if that’s what you’re asking.”
Liam sighed in relief. “Sorry, it’s just that you look like someone killed your dog.”
When the most dangerous lady he had ever seen got misty-eyed, something had to be very wrong.
“You could say that. Bad news comes in pairs… My boss who is also my best friend has been killed. I just heard the news.”
Immediately, his cop instincts perked up. “What happened? Is the killer on the loose?”
She dismissed his questions. “Our team has a strong lead, and I know they will find him. But I need to get to them. I’ve always been her second in command, and the organization is shaken. Many of our operatives are currently undercover and others are deep in dangerous missions. I need to get there and take care of everything.”
Liam could only nod, understanding her motivation. Until now, Gabrielle Thorne had been one hell of an ally in taking down Finch.
“Is there something I can do to help?”
“No, unfortunately. The other bad news is that I’m leaving you all in a very dangerous jam and I don’t know how long it will be before I can help you again.”
Liam shook his head, hands trailing over the papers before him. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll handle things the best we can.”
“As I was organizing my family to leave Chicago for a while, I was thinking about what Finch would try to do, and where he was hiding.” Pushing the papers around, Gabrielle lifted an eyebrow. “It seems that we had the same idea. At first glance, his bank accounts are fuller than full, and I’m not referring to his bonds, shares, and whatnots. When everything looks so crystal clean, it becomes suspicious after a while. Makes me wonder where the dirt is. Don’t you agree?”
On that they agreed. “It’s going everywhere. I need to get my mind around it. I’ve worked in the Gang Unit so I’m used to complicated cases. Once I get the facts sorted and straightened, it will be easier to figure out what he’s up to and what’s going on.”
“Numbers are not my forte, either. And as I suspected it would cause you a headache too, I reached out to a friend. After a talk, it seems that we are not the only ones digging into Jamieson Finch’s assets. And I have to be honest, apart from Archer, and maybe even Isabel, we are not the sharpest tools in the shed when it comes to numbers.”
Liam snorted. “Not when it’s this deeply detailed. That’s when I reach out to a specialist within our department.”
“And that’s what I got you.”
Liam sighed and leaned back on his seat. He didn’t need a specialist. This Irish boy needed a damn miracle.
Distracted by the chiming of the front door, he looked up and saw an angel.
It was a damn cliché, but he could hear bells ringing as the woman glided inside.
Her tawny hair was tied in a loose chignon with tendrils falling around her oval face, framing it to perfection. Pale skin and full lips, with curves that were perfectly enhanced by her pantsuit. In response, his own trousers started to feel way too snug.
Gabrielle turned to follow his glance, and smiled. “Catriona!”
Liam almost jumped and Chewy barked in echoing surprise.
The angel smiled back and gave Gabrielle a hug before kneeling in front of an excited Chewy to give him a rub. “What a handsome boy you are!” She fussed over him before smiling up at Liam. “Sorry, I love dogs, I didn’t mean to be impolite.”
Gabrielle seemed amused. “Liam Harker, Chicago PD, may I introduce you to someone who has a magical touch with numbers. In fact, she’s been handling money for as long as I can remember before becoming a key investigator and consultant for the Vatican police department. You want Jamieson Finch’s assets found, she’s the lady you need by your side. And the bonus is that she’s Irish too.”
She was smart, sexy, and a smile to die for, and Liam knew it would be hell accomplishing anything if he didn’t focus.
Catriona extended her hand. The touch was electric, and he could see in the warm caramel of her eyes that he wasn’t the only one who’d felt it. “Enchanted to meet you.”
“A pleasure, Liam. I’m Sister Catriona Walsh. But you can call me Catriona.”
<<<< The End >>>>
Don’t miss Liam and Catriona’s story in the next installment of the Dark Sparrows Series.
Discover Aleksei and Deva’s story in Lost Bastard
In front of her, skin glistened, and men grunted, as the sound of slapping flesh resonated, it made her heart skip a little, reminding her that she had been alone, willingly, for a long time. Deva had always liked the raw power of a man. Power, as long as it didn’t crush people beneath him. An impossible feat, she knew from experience. Men couldn’t be changed. Power corrupted, whatever the form. But it wouldn’t mean she couldn’t fantasize a litt
le bit, memorize that muscled flesh and sweaty skin for when she was alone in her bed.
Deva dropped her bag near the counter, looking around the gym when someone called her name.
“Deva! You are Deva Landry, right?”
She smiled and turned to the bulky, red-headed man with a wealth of ginger beard, giving her a welcoming grin. “It’s me alright. And you are Rusty Spears I’m guessing?”
“Damn right. Welcome! I’m so happy you could make it. Are you settled? You’ve found a place?”
His hand engulfed her. “Yes, and not too far from here. Maybe I shouldn’t have bought a car after all.”
“Parking’s a pain, but public transportation is okay. Unless it’s late, I’ll pay for a cab to drive you home in that case.”
Deva smiled at the gruff, but chivalrous man. “That won’t be necessary.”
“Oh, I insist. The neighborhood is safe, but I wouldn’t risk you. And I’m so happy you could come and work for me. I saw your credentials and couldn’t believe my luck.”
Deva almost blushed at the sincere compliment. “Well, you’re lucky I needed a change, Rusty.”
“Yeah, but I admire what you did. Taking care of our military, our heroes defending our land, you are one tough lady. We are all grateful.”
The praise surprised her, and emotions clogged her throat making it difficult to answer back. “The honor was all mine. But as I said, I needed a change.”
“First time in Chicago?”
Sticking close to the truth was the best course of action. “No. I was born and raised here. Well, close to here. But when I chose physical therapy, work called in Texas. That was a position I couldn’t refuse, so I moved there ten years ago.”
Rusty nodded. “It takes a strong mind to see people suffering that much and still want to help. You won’t have the same type of challenge here. My fighters can be quite gruff at times. I hope you won’t be put off by them.”
Deva laughed and saw a few male heads turn in her direction. “Believe me, none of them would put me off. I’m from tougher, rougher stock than I appear.”
Rusty seemed to examine her as if to determine if she was bluffing or not. Deva suspected that she wasn’t the first female to work here, and there might be a few horrified ladies behind Rusty’s worried look. “If any of them behave inappropriately, you tell me, and I’ll smack some sense into them. They’ve been told to behave, but some may have to be reminded. Now, let me show you around and then, we’ll go see your treatment space, or whatever you call it.”
As men were working out around them, Rusty described his installations, office, and the various working spaces, each with different torture devices in them. He presented her with fighters and trainers. And in the middle, an impressive octagonal cage. She knew about MMA in ways she didn’t want to remember. As images flooded back, she was careful to keep them in check.
Her gaze wandered over the men training; she had carefully studied each of their files that Gabrielle had provided. Each of them were fighters in their own right, but with links to the underworld in one way or another. Rusty’s gym acted as a neutral ground for all these men of different families and organization to meet and train. It amazed her.
Currently in the cage were two fighters. One of them she recognized from his file. Andrew Brannon. Dark red hair, he was tall with well-defined muscles. He was the rising star at the gym and preparing for an important fight in less than a month. Irish Mafia if she remembered correctly. A good-looking man, but her eyes were drawn to his opponent, no less small, but less bulky, and much darker. Not his skin but in the impressive ink etched all over his body. Tats were common both in the underworld and in the fighting community, but this man had markings all over his front and back, arms, and even his legs. The only reason for so many of them was if he was part of a gang or the mob. There, in front of her, stood Aleksei Voronov.
“I see you are admiring two of my best fighters. Andy, the ginger one, is in the last stage of his training and you will have him in treatment on a regular basis.”
“And the other?”
“Aleksei. He’s training here, but doesn’t have official fights scheduled so far.”
“Official fights?”
Rusty seemed to hesitate before finally changing the subject altogether. “All of my fighters can ask you for treatment. I know you have many specialties, but they can’t just decide to come to you and ask for only a massage. Either I tell you the kind of therapy they need, or you decide depending on the ache, pain, or injury. I trust your judgment and experience. I want them in top shape. They may appear as badasses, but outside of the cage, they tend to avoid being uncomfortable. That’s where you and I need to push them. Sometimes, an achy, untreated muscle can flip a match from winning to losing, if you get my drift.”
“Understood.”
And as she was about to follow Rusty on his tour, a buzzer sounded, indicating the end of the round. Both men in the cage stopped wrestling and started walking in circles, catching their breath. That was when Aleksei turned to her. It was like a blow to her gut. He stood tall, with muscles quivering, skin glistening with sweat, and black hair spiking on his head. It was the familiar silver eyes, that had a feral look to them, that almost made her flinch. His gaze stared straight at her as he moved, assessing her like she was potential prey. Behind the wired enclosure, he looked like a mean predator, one of those big cats she had seen in zoos, waiting for a single opening, a weakness, before leaping to taste blood.
She had seen her share of wild men, but this one was the very first that gripped her gut this way, making it impossible to move or look away. Clenching her teeth, she forced herself to breathe slowly, and not look away first. But when Aleksei came to a standstill before her, his arm stretched on the fencing above his head in a powerful stance; Deva hoped she was far enough away for him not to notice the slight shiver that ran down her spine. He jerked the wire, and she jumped at the reverberating sound. Cursing under her breath, she saw him smile as the buzzer rang once more and he returned to his opponent.
“Deva?”
Rusty looked at her, a question in his eyes, but she forced herself to smile. “Lead on, Rusty. I can’t wait to get my hands on your men and make them suffer.”
And God forbid she wouldn’t spare that Voronov bastard if he ever tried to make her scared of him again. Mission or no mission, she wouldn’t be bullied. Never again!
Get your hands on Lost Bastard now!
Also by India Kells
Women of Purgatory Series, a Romantic Suspense:
To Fool and Assassin
To Blind a Sniper
To Trick a Hacker
Breaking Point
Women of Purgatory Boxset
Sanctuary Chronicles, a Paranormal Romance:
Broken Magic
Blind Magic
Hidden Magic
Dark Sparrows, a Dark Romantic Suspense:
Lost Bastard
Cold Bastard
Erotica Romance:
The Debt Collector, A Bad Boys Romance
The Inheritance, The Story of an Unlikely Submissive
Romantic Fairytale:
The Wolf Malediction
About the Author
Writing for me is like being caught in the eye of a storm and loving every single minute of it.
Dear courageous readers, who dared to tread inside my wild imagination, filled with adventures of amazing women and brave men, welcome to my world. When all seems to be lost, strength, intelligence, and love will help my heroes fight back darkness, and find their way to each other. And you know what? That’s my favorite kind of story!
When I’m not writing about sexy thieves, dashing soldiers, and cunning villains, I am traveling the world to find inspiration for my next story. Human nature is the greatest muse! If you’ve enjoyed reading this story, please consider leaving a review where you bought it or on Goodreads.
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India xx