Chapter 275

I stare at the papers in front of me, but the words are nothing but a blur. I couldn’t make sense of any of it, mainly because I couldn’t focus on shit.

My thoughts were back home with Ava. I couldn’t help but worry, even though I had bodyguards protecting the whole compound.

What if something happened and I wasn’t there to protect her?

That was my biggest worry right now. I failed her the last time, when she was shot. I was just afraid of something like that happening to her again.

My phone rings, and I dive for it. I’m disappointed when I see Reaper’s name flash. I bought Ava a new phone a couple of days ago, and I was hoping that it was her calling.

With a sigh, I answer, “What?”

“What’s got your underwear in a twist?” he grumbles back.

bastard, and he sure as hell I still didn’t like the didn’t like me, but for Ava and Iris’s sake, we would work together to protect them.

“Did you call for something important, or do you just want to bitch at me?” I push the documents I was studying aside and lean back against my chair. “If that’s the case, then I’m going to hang up because I’m not in the fucking mood to deal with you.”

He doesn’t say anything, and for a while. I almost think that he has hung up. I wouldn’t put it past him anyway.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I let myself exhale deeply. I’ve been at work for four hours, and I already have a migraine.

“Have you found anything related to that day?” I ask him instead.

It was better than just hearing him breathe on the other end. If he was calling, then there must be a reason why His sigh is deep and loaded. That much I can tell.

“No,” he replies. “And that’s what has me worried. I’m usually able to find someone within days; It’s now.

been months, and we still don’t have a fucking clue on who could be behind her attack.”

The police investigations led to dead ends after dead ends. I was hoping that working with Reaper would “It’s starting to get on my fucking nerve because, as long as this person is still breathing, Ava will probably always be in danger.” I hear a growl, followed by a crash on his end.

He was right. That’s what scares me so much. It’s why I’m not big on the idea of leaving Ava home alone.

“Any lead at all? Anything at all that could point us in the right direction?” I almost plead.

We needed something. I needed something. Anything at all. The constant worry was starting to get to me. I couldn’t risk losing Ava. Especially not now, when I feel like I’ve been given a second chance.

“Nothing,” he breathes out. Though there is something that I can’t figure out,”

“What is it?”

I “How has this person stayed hidden?” he replies. “Like I said, it is not really hard for me to find someone.

I mean, I’m king of the underground; no one stays hidden from me.”

I thought about it for a while. He is right. Reaper is the king of his terrain. His name alone is enough to send someone into an early grave. The bastard is unhinged, and most people fear him. The fact that he isn’t able to find out who ordered the hit and who actually carried it out is weird as fuck.

“Could it be that someone is protecting him or her? I murmur more to myself than to him.

“That’s impossible”

“Just think about it. We are yet to trace this person, even with both our influences, meaning someone is backing them up. Someone is making sure that they’re not found.”

He’s quiet for a while. It’s a lot, but I think it’s starting to sink in. It’s the only explanation that makes sense. No one is this good at hiding unless someone else is covering their tracks for them.

“Even if that’s the case, what about the one who fired? He or she might have fired themselves or paid someone else to do it, either way, they aren’t working alone,” he summarizes.

“Exactly”

“That means that someone is hiding them from me.”

A frustrated groan leaves my mouth. “That’s what I’ve been trying to fucking tell you for the past few minutes.”

Standing up, I head to my office bar and pour myself a glass of whiskey. I gulp the amber content and add more..

Dealing with Reaper always gives me a damn headache and ruins my mood. I was already in a bad mood, but he just made it worse.

“Just fucking chill. I’m thinking, and I don’t need you interrupting my thought process with your negative energy.

“Why you…

He cuts off my rant before I can finish.

The glass in my hand was gripped so tight that I was afraid it was going to break. That’s how on my nerves he was.

“All this means only one thing,” he starts. “That whoever is protecting our target is powerful enough to defy us.”

“That or he or she is family,” I add as the thought filters through my thoughts.

“Fuck! You know what this means, right?”

“Yes,” I reply as my tone hardens. “If our target is family, which I suspect he or she is, then whoever is covering their tracks will do anything to protect them, including defying us Damn it, this just made things more complicated. We need to find whoever hurt Ava before he or she can.

strike again.