Текст книги "Harrow Duet"

Автор книги: Scarlett Finn

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Текущая страница: 37 (всего у книги 38 страниц)

Chapter Twenty-Four

The cab took them to Dax’s storage unit where he retrieved his bike, which was the only mode of transportation that they owned here. There was no point in going to a car rental place or even buying a new vehicle, because she hoped that they wouldn’t be in California for that long.

‘We could just go back east,’ Ivy said as soon as they got back to Dax’s apartment. ‘Or we could leave the country entirely and take up residence on a deserted island in the South Pacific.’

‘For half a mill, I know a couple of guys who would still manage to find you,’ he said as they made their way into the bedroom.

‘Do you have a plan?’ she asked, leaning on the inside of the bedroom door after it was shut.

‘I’ve been thinking about that since we left Mauri’s,’ Dax said, sitting on the end of the bed, with his feet far apart, he rested his hands on the bed behind him.

‘And what have you come up with?’

‘If you want me to go back there, to tell Mauri that I’ll stay and do what he wants—‘

‘No, why would I want you to do that?’ she asked, crossing to crouch on the floor between his knees. Pushing her hands up his thighs, Ivy moved onto her knees and rested her head against his leg. ‘I don’t want you going back there, not for anything.’

‘What he said was right,’ Dax said. ‘Mauri can keep you safer than I can, he has the resources and manpower—‘

‘I only need one man and that’s you. For all we know, Mauri wants us to go crawling back, if he’s the one behind this—‘

‘I thought about that,’ he said, stroking her hair down her cheek. ‘If he had put up the bounty then he would’ve shown his hand in that last meeting. He’d have told us that he knew something or someone that would make it go away.’

‘He would’ve blackmailed us?’

‘Yeah. I doubt he’d have come out and confessed to being the one behind it, but we’d have figured it out—‘

‘When he was magically able to make it go away.’

‘Yeah,’ Dax said. ‘But he didn’t, so I don’t think he put the bounty up. For one thing, he could’ve gone higher, made the bounty a whole million or more if he was that desperate.’

‘So that leaves us with nothing.’

‘Not nothing. I’m still trying to track down Winlow, if I can find out who was at that poker game then I will have my guy, I know it.’

‘I can come with you. I can—‘

‘No, you’re staying here, indoors. Outside, you’re just a walking target, and if I’m going to be out there scaring my contacts, then I need to know that you’re safe here. If I split my focus—‘

‘I’ll stay here,’ she said. ‘If you promise not to go back to the mansion, not for anything, Dax. I mean it. Even if I drop down dead this minute, I don’t want you to ever go back there.’

‘Why not?’ he asked.

‘Because they enjoy holding you for ransom. Trystan is beyond hope, and Brad cares only about his own interests. Mauri… I know that you still respect him, but I don’t trust him. He had all of that information about your mother and your upbringing and he never told you any of it.’

‘He had his reasons.’

‘Yeah, because it kept you where he wanted you, right there, doing his dirty work. I love you, Dax, and I know that I encourage you to make your own choices, but please, tough guy, don’t sink to their level again. You’re better than that.’

‘I’d make a deal with the devil if it kept you safe.’

‘And I’m telling you not to.’

‘Telling me,’ he said, arching a brow. ‘You forget who owns you?’

‘Not for a second,’ she said, rising up on her knees. ‘Did you forget who owns you? I told you that they can’t have you. Even if I’m dead, you still belong to me.’

‘Sure, until the first piece of ass comes my way.’

Grinning at his attempted joke, she dug her nails into him through his jeans. ‘That should be your number one reason to keep me alive, ‘cause if I’m not around, you’re not getting laid.’

‘How you gonna stop me?’ he asked. Slipping both hands under her jaw, he angled up her head to bring their mouths close.

‘I’ll haunt you and I’ll haunt her. Do you think that death would be enough to stop me from harassing and annoying you?’

‘If I thought it was then I’d have offed you weeks ago.’

‘You are a clever boy,’ she whispered and leaned in to meet his kiss.

Ivy thought that she gave Dax an anchor. But now she realised that he gave her one too. Making out with him never lost its magic, and using his grip on her jaw, he drew her up, onto the bed on top of him without breaking their kiss.

His mouth was never soft, but it was his rough hunger that engorged her, it whipped her into the depth of arousal that eliminated all fears and uncertainties about what they would face together. Kneeling astride him, Ivy crossed her arms to whisk off her dress then helped him out of his tee-shirt. The jeans were next, and as soon as she had them both naked, she climbed back on to seat herself on his erection.

Time and peril dwindled away as she worked herself up and down on him. ‘You see something you want and you go get it,’ he said, skimming his hands up her thighs, her hips, over her waist to take hold of her breasts.

‘You,’ she said, clutching his face and lowering herself to kiss him, he rose up to meet her halfway.

Their bodies came together and with his arms around her they switched positions. Dax took over the dominant position of the union to control the movement of their forms. By now they knew how to tilt, when to rise and when to fall. But no matter how many times they made love together, she never lost the addiction to the feeling of him gratifying her with the bulk of his arousal pushing into her without apology for its mass pervading her.

‘Dax,’ she sighed, but his hand came over her mouth, and he locked his eyes onto her.

‘I’m going to protect you,’ he panted, still thrusting into her. ‘No one will take this away from me, and I’ll kill any man who tries.’

Digging her nails into his shoulders, her body ceased around his, bucking up to keep a hold of his dick within her. He pumped on through her clamping muscles and gave her no space to vocalise her relief, but he growled out his own. Whipping his hand out of the way, he closed his mouth over hers, delving his tongue into her mouth and consuming every part of her.

When he was finished filling her with the liquid of his climax, Dax pulled away and pounced off the bed, giving himself no time to savour the moment. Ivy was curious about why he wasn’t lying with her to recover from his exertion. But she was too busy breathing through the tingling aftereffects of her orgasm that shimmered through her every time she tried to move to question him.

As if Dax had somehow known it would, his cell phone started to ring, so he crouched to swipe through their clothes until he came across the device.

‘Yeah?’ Dax asked the phone.

Opening her eyes, Ivy observed him standing above her at the foot of the bed. Because he was still close, she prodded his knee with her toe. Dax snatched the digit and pulled it high, which forced her legs further apart. Whilst he continued his phone conversation, his focus suggested that he was watching the evidence of their previous union seeping out of her.

‘I’m not on the job anymore, Serg,’ Dax said into the phone. ‘I told Mauri that I wasn’t coming back… Ok… Great, I’ll see you in five.’ He hung up and dropped her foot.

‘What was that?’ Ivy asked, gathering the sheet to wrap it around her body. ‘I can be ready in two minutes if we have to go out, but Serg… what did he say when you told him that you weren’t going back to work with Mauri?’

‘He said this was personal,’ Dax said, throwing the phone onto the end of the bed.

Leaving her, he went into the bathroom. Ivy was up and across the room in a flash, leaving the sheet in a discarded trail on the path she’d taken to get there. Dax switched on the shower then retreated from the stall to give the water time to heat.

‘I’ll grab a towel and—‘

‘You’re not coming,’ Dax said. ‘I want you to stay here and stay away from the windows. I’ll close all the blinds. If you keep the door shut, then you should be safe.’

‘They could come here, anyone who knows where you live… Word will be out about the bounty now and—‘

‘Don’t panic,’ he said, taking her shoulders to square their bodies. ‘I’m going to be as quick as I can. The only way someone will get through that door is to kick it in or blast their way through and in spite of the money at stake here, most criminals don’t want to draw that kind of attention to themselves. This is a good block without many shootings, so if anyone hears gunshots, they’re going to call the cops.’

‘Great, except I’ll be dead by then.’

‘Come here,’ Dax said.

With their fingers linked, he led her out of the bathroom, through the bedroom and into the closet. Reaching up to the top shelf, he pulled down a metal box, which he flicked open to show a nine millimetre.

‘Do you know how to use this?’ he asked, checking the ammunition and loading the chamber. ‘It’s ready, loaded, and the safety is off. If you have to, aim and shoot, just squeeze the trigger.’

‘I’ve used a gun before,’ she said, taking the piece away from him.

‘I’m not surprised.’

‘What does that mean?’ she asked, the gun fell to her side when her arm loosened.

‘I mean you have that kind of personality,’ Dax said. ‘I’ve thought about shooting you a few times myself.’

‘You don’t use a gun, I’ve never seen you even touch one. Why would you use one on me?’

‘I’m not going to hit you, am I? That wouldn’t be right.’

‘But shooting me is ok?’

‘I haven’t done it yet, have I?’ Dax asked.

‘Yet?’ she asked.

He didn’t exactly smile, but his frown was far from sight. He squeezed past her, and she heard him move through into the bathroom to take his shower. Ivy wasn’t sure where he was going, but it was admirable of Serg to show such loyalty to Dax. That proved to Ivy that Dax had respect among Mauri’s men that outshone the loyalty they had to the Starks. She just hoped that was enough to help them get to the bottom of this.

Ivy was going stir crazy, it had been an hour since Dax had closed all the blinds and curtains then kissed her and left the apartment. There was plenty for her to do, she could watch TV and clear out the fridge, or finish packing Dax’s belongings ready for them selling this apartment.

But no matter what she did, Ivy couldn’t forget that Dax was out there, in the streets, and a target himself. Anyone who wanted her knew her as Ravager’s wife. So they might try to use him to get to her. Dax could take care of himself in a fight, but that didn’t save him from bullets and knives.

Ivy was on the couch in the living room, tapping her cell phone on her knee when it rang. She jumped to her feet. ‘Hello?’ she answered, having not even checked the number.

‘Ivy?’

The voice was female, so definitely not Dax, and the quiver of the tone made Ivy frown. ‘What is it? Who is this?’

‘He… he’s dead.’

Her first thought was of Dax and the ice of the breath she drew in parched her lips. ‘Dead?’

‘Yes, oh Ivy, I’m so sorry, I… I didn’t know what to do. He said I could use the pool, and I came out and… I didn’t hear a thing, but there he was on the carpet, in the living room, dead.’

‘Wait? Who is this? What are you talking about?’

‘It’s Carina,’ she sobbed. ‘I’m talking about Vegas. I’m talking about Saul.’

‘Saul?’

It disgusted her that her first emotion was relief. One wave crashed over her, and she immediately experienced revulsion. Hearing about the death of a man she once loved shouldn’t please her, and it didn’t, but she was pleased to know that Dax was still alive.

‘They must have come in while I was swimming, maybe they didn’t see me, I don’t know. But he’s dead.’

‘Did you call the cops?’

‘I… I called the cops then left, I hired a car and came back to California.’

‘You’re back in California? Why?’ Ivy asked, sitting on the couch again.

‘Yes, I came back here to Mauri, I… I don’t have experience with these things. I knew… I thought maybe bounty hunters were looking for you. I wouldn’t have been able to answer the cops’ questions, I… I didn’t know what to do.’

‘You’re at Mauri’s? Now?’

‘Yes!’ Carina said. ‘He told me that he would keep me safe. We’re all in danger now, anyone who has been near you… Saul died because you went to him. That means Dax is in danger and me and Rosie and—‘

‘Rosie,’ she exhaled. Her sister had left Mauri’s without any form of protection. Anyone watching the house who may have seen Rosie enter with her and Dax could have taken her.

‘It’s ok. I’m sure she’ll be ok.’

‘Rosie should be long gone by now,’ Ivy said.

‘I hope so, Carina said. ‘Mauri said you should come here, you and Dax, it’s just not safe on the streets.’

She had no interest in going back to Mauri’s, but if it was the only safe place, then Ivy would have to put her pride and personal prejudices aside. ‘Stay there, Carina, I’m going to call Dax.’

‘Call him? You mean you’re not together?’

‘Just stay there, Carina,’ Ivy snapped. ‘Worry about yourself.’

Disconnecting the line, she immediately dialled Dax. He answered on the second ring like he too had been holding the phone waiting for it to ring.

‘Dax?’ she said the moment the line was active. ‘Carina called, she's back at the Stark mansion. Saul is dead, the bounty hunters got to him.’ She hated the panic in her voice but guilt came with clarity; Saul was dead because of her and the people who had done it could be right on their tail. ‘What do we do? Mauri said we should go over there, but—‘

‘Listen to me, babygirl, I need you to stay where you are. I need you to stay in the apartment.’

‘Are you coming here? Is everything ok? You sound like... Like you're on a mission.’

‘I am. It's a mission to keep you safe. We got him. We know who's behind this.’

‘You do? Who?’

‘It's Bruno, babygirl. He’s been hiding out at Benny's that worthless piece of shit. Bruno just left there, but we're on his tail. We’ve got him. This will be over soon. I need you to stay right there. Get naked and get into bed, ‘cause when I get home, I'm gonna expect you to be very grateful to me for saving your life.’

‘Don't flirt with me when you're walking into danger, tough guy. I love you.’

Gratitude didn't begin to cover the maelstrom of emotion warring in her now. Her love and guilt swirled together because the danger wasn't over yet. There was still a chance that Dax wouldn't make it through this and if she lost him it would be her fault.

‘I can meet you, help you,’ Ivy said, trying to quell her desperation. ‘I don't want to lose you, Dax. I can’t.’

‘You won’t. Have faith and trust me. Of every time I've told you to stay put, this is the most important one. Please, babygirl, will you do as I say?’

She didn't know where he was or where he was going. But he was asking for her faith and she wouldn't give it to anyone else. Through her life, Ivy had believed that she was the only one who would act in her best interest. Altering that mind set wasn't so hard when she heard the hope in his.

‘I'll stay here. Just be safe. Come home to me.’

‘I will. I'm not giving you an escape route because I plan to be at your side again. Soon.’ The line went dead. She’d been dismissed. Now all she could do was wait.

Bruno had been one of his top candidates, but Dax hadn’t wanted to spend the time chasing down the guy until he had a clear lead that indicated him. Bruno could’ve been sunning himself in Barbados this whole time, and he would have loved for Dax to show up ready to take him down for something that he had nothing to do with. Bruno would take great pleasure in hearing that Ivy was in danger and that Dax had wasted his time chasing down Bruno.

But now he knew it for sure, that piece of shit Benny had folded like origami the moment Dax and Serg closed in on him. Benny had never had the stomach for keeping secrets, and he loved his face too much to risk having it rearranged.

Bruno had put up the bounty after he and Mauri had their fight. According to what Benny had told them, Bruno had gotten a call from Mauri less than an hour ago, and he was on his way to the mansion, which was where Dax was going right now.

Dax had told Ivy that he wouldn’t go back to Mauri’s mansion, but this was a one off necessity. Hoping that Ivy heeded his advice and remained at the apartment, Dax prepared himself for this to be wet. He didn’t want Ivy to have any blood on her hands. It could get messy enough that Dax would worry about his own safety, and he didn’t need to be worrying for Ivy’s too.

‘I’ve never seen you this pissed,’ Serg said from the driver’s seat.

It was a good thing that Dax wasn’t driving, he didn’t have the inclination to adhere to any speed limits and if a cop thought about stopping him now… He was too in the mood for a fight for that to go down well.

Serg had never seen Dax this angry because nothing had been personal in the past. When they went after guys who needed to be taught a lesson, it was all business. This situation involved his wife, the woman that he loved, and their future. Someone thought that they had the right to take that future from them, and now that someone had a name.

‘Just get there,’ Dax said, judging from the time and speed they were less than a minute away.

It wasn’t smart of him to go in there ready to combust, but Dax couldn’t calm himself enough to be reasonable about this. Ivy would tell him to have a plan, to be prepared for different contingencies. But the only occasion in which he spent time predicting his opponents’ next move was in the ring and it was never a bad idea to be adrenaline-pumped in that location.

Security let them through the gate, and Serg drove up the driveway at a pace that made Dax consider practising his craft here. ‘Think about what you’re going to do before you get in there,’ Serg said.

‘Fuck that,’ Dax said. ‘You stay out of it.’

The car stopped, and Dax jumped out. Going straight to the front door, he was happy to dispense with anyone who wanted to get in his way. But there were no guys on the door to obstruct him, which was unusual.

He found out why security was absent from the rest of the house when he got up to Mauri’s suite. There were ten security guys in there, forming a barrier around Mauri and pinning Bruno to the wall near the door. Carina was on the couch, wailing about something, but Dax blocked it out. As far as he was concerned, Bruno was his prey and that was all he was focused on now.

Snatching a handful of the first security man’s shirt, he hauled him back and decked him. While that guy was rolling on the floor, Dax pulled the other one off and landed a knockout punch on him. Bruno was freed, Dax could hear Mauri’s protestations and the thunder of security men closing in on him.

Bruno’s smug face deserved a punch of its own. Dax delivered, knocking the man back against the wall with a thud. He’d had to contain the power of his fist because he wanted answers before he ended the man.

‘Why?’ Dax asked, balling his fists in Bruno’s jacket and slamming him back against the wall. ‘You tell me you fucking piece of shit why my wife was the—‘

‘The slut’s got you on a leash,’ Bruno said, showing his teeth in a grin. ‘Here pussy, pussy—‘

‘Jealous you motherfucker?’ Dax asked. Bringing one arm back, he clenched his fist and thought about how much he’d enjoy ending this bastard’s life.

‘Wait!’ Mauri exclaimed. ‘Dax, don’t!’

‘Why the fuck shouldn’t I?’ Dax asked with his eyes pinned on Bruno, who was still grinning.

‘Daddy wants you taking over the organisation,’ Bruno snarled. ‘That double-crossing bastard needs you to be squeaky clean.’

‘He is your father, Dax,’ Mauri said. ‘Family is—‘

‘Bullshit,’ Dax said, thrusting away from Bruno he turned to face Mauri. ‘You wanted me as long as I did what I was told. You don’t want me now, you don’t want me running the racket; you just want me to agree, so you know that you still have me.’

‘You’re here now,’ Mauri said. ‘This is where you’re supposed to be.’

‘It was you he wanted all along,’ Bruno said, coming close enough to mutter in Dax’s ear. The sound of a gun being cocked made Dax leap back a step, but when Bruno raised the gun it was trained in Mauri’s direction. ‘I gave you my life, and you favour this piece of shit!’

Dax was forgotten in Bruno’s mist of psychosis. Bruno strode toward Mauri. Some of the security men backed off, while others closed in around Mauri. Carina bounced up to her feet, and Dax kept backing away, widening his field of vision so no one could take him by surprise. There wasn’t a person in this room who he trusted, but the only person in the world he did trust was locked up in his apartment far from this danger.

‘You won’t even face me like a man!’ Bruno screamed. ‘You get these bastards out of here and we’ll settle this.’

‘Dax is your son,’ Mauri said. ‘You should be proud of what he’s accomplished that he can take over an empire like the one we built.’

‘We! We built it,’ Bruno said. ‘You betraying fuck—‘

‘Betraying?’ Mauri asked. ‘You slept with my wife for half a decade!’

Dax hadn’t been sure that Mauri knew that before Ivy brought it up, apparently he had. ‘You forgave that!’ Bruno said. ‘That was years ago!’

‘I caught you together, I had no idea that it had gone on for as long as it had. I let you walk away from here alive because of our history and now you do this? You come in here and threaten me in my home! Kill me, yes, you can do that, but it will change nothing. My assets are still bequeathed to Brad and Dax, a bullet will not change that.’

‘Please,’ Carina said. ‘Everybody calm down, someone will get hurt!’

So Mauri had been happy to have Bruno at his side as long as Mauri was still running things, but the betrayal of Bruno and Winnie had come out, and that had changed things for Mauri. He wouldn’t give the reins of all that he had built to the man who had stolen his wife.

‘Is that why you wanted to take Ivy out?’ Dax asked, seeing his chance to get the answers that he wanted. ‘You found a wife you couldn’t fuck?’

Bruno whipped around but kept the gun waving in Mauri’s direction. ‘I could fuck your wife if I wanted to, she’s a horny little bitch who likes it rough, I’d fuck that tight pussy, and she’d never come back to your bed!’

Storming over, Dax was ready to finish this; Mauri was shouting, and security had no idea how to act. Until a few weeks ago, Mauri and Bruno had been on the same team. It wasn’t so long ago that Dax was a part of that team too.

The gun came around toward him in an arc and Bruno fired off a round. The bullet went wide, giving Dax plenty of room to duck it. Dipping down, he thrust his arm up to grab Bruno’s wrist and twist it down to free the gun from his grip. The gun fell, but Dax caught it in his lower hand and immediately backed away, bringing the weapon up to aim at the others in the room.

‘Well done, Dax!’ Mauri said with beaming pride, but Dax wasn’t interested in his pride anymore, and he proved that by aiming the gun at Mauri.

‘You all out of here,’ Dax said to the security men. ‘This isn’t your fight, and take those two with you.’

Security did as they were told, taking the two men Dax had hit out of the room with them. Dax had worked with many of them and didn’t want to see them sacrificed for the good of the two scumbag men who remained. The drawing room door closed and Dax waved the gun at the bedroom door.

‘Go and lock it,’ he said. It was unlikely that there was anyone in there, certainly anyone who would take a bullet for Mauri, but Dax didn’t want any surprises.

Mauri went over to the door and turned the key that was in the lock, then he about-faced to saunter back to his place behind his armchair.

‘You,’ Dax said to Carina. ‘Get up and go stand by Mauri.’

‘No,’ Mauri said. ‘She’s not welcome at my side. She has been feeding Bruno information.’

Dax glared at Carina, who hovered in front of the fireplace. ‘He called me,’ Carina said. ‘When we were at the beach house, I was so surprised and—‘

‘And you thought that you’d get in on the action,’ Dax said. ‘Why not claim the bounty for yourself?’

‘She’s no killer,’ Bruno said. ‘And I wanted to see Ivy go slow, the wait was worth it. I knew she was living in fear never knowing who to trust or when the bullet would come… I went to Vegas, we were gonna get together, and that fucking fuckwit of a boyfriend got in the way.’

‘Saul died trying to protect you from the man who wanted Ivy dead,’ Dax said to Carina. He wasn’t hurt or disappointed for himself, he had nothing invested in these strangers. But Ivy would be hurt to hear that the woman she’d been trying to trust had shopped them to Bruno.

‘What are you going to do now, boy?’ Mauri asked.

‘Now it’s time to tell a few truths. I’m not coming back,’ Dax said to Mauri. ‘I will never willingly work for you. Kidnap me, hold me at gunpoint, I won’t do it.’

‘You would if Ivy was at the end of that gun,’ Mauri said.

‘No,’ Dax said. ‘I’d do exactly what I just did, and I’d turn the tables on you. I’ll let you walk away from this today but only because your days are numbered, old man. Brad and Trystan can have your empire, they don’t want me to be anywhere near it and for once the three of us agree on that.’

‘So much for the experiment,’ Bruno said to Mauri. ‘You were so sure that he would come through for you, Mauri. So sure that picking him up at that shitty club when he was a squirt of a kid was going to benefit us all, now look at where we’ve ended up.’

The triangle of men scrutinised each other, each waiting for the other to act. All of them were the alpha types who liked to be in control, but Dax was the only one with a weapon, Bruno’s weapon. Mauri would have a weapon somewhere in this room, but he wasn’t revealing its location, yet.

‘Tell me why you put the bounty on Ivy,’ Dax asked Bruno.

He grumbled but did respond. ‘Because she’s a bitch who took everything away from all of us! Look at this shit! We’re ready to kill each other because of her!’

‘Not because of her,’ Dax said.

‘If you had stayed, done what you were told, Mauri would’ve let us run the show. But I fucked up, my reputation is in the shitter because you had to fall for that cheap piece of ass. Taking her out meant you had no reason not to come and work for Mauri… I was doing you a favour!’

‘You’re jealous that I listened to her instead of you,’ Dax said. ‘That’s it?’

‘She deserves it,’ Bruno growled. ‘No stinking bitch is gonna ruin me. I should’ve kicked you out of that beach house, taken over, trained that bitch to sit, heel, and beg. You were weak, but I could’ve done it. She’d have done fucking tricks for me if I’d been in charge.’

So it was Bruno’s wounded pride that made Dax almost lose Ivy. ‘You were left alone out there because you were trusted,’ Mauri said. ‘You were the two men in the world I trusted more than any other… You let me down, Dax.’

‘I don’t give a fuck about disappointing you,’ Dax said. ‘The only thing I’d do differently if I did it all again would be to get Ivy out of there the first chance I got.’

‘You’re a fucking asshole,’ Bruno said.

‘You’re gonna call it off. The bounty, it’s done,’ Dax said to Bruno. ‘Get out your phone and call Benny, you tell him to call off the hunters.’

‘They want their money, and I can give it to them!’ Bruno exclaimed. ‘I made a mint off this family and using some of that dough to blast a hole in your fucking happiness is worth it. No kid of mine will be a mushy fucking lovesick pup. You need to be angry, bitter, out to hate the world, then you’ll fucking know what it is to be respected.’

‘I’m not interested in being your kid,’ Dax said. ‘Take out your cell and call it off, or I’ll put a bullet between your eyes right now.’

Bruno’s lips squeezed together, he didn’t like to be given orders, but Dax would guess he’d like losing his life less. So Bruno reached into his pocket and took out his phone. Punching in a phone number, he lifted the phone to his ear.

‘Put it on speakerphone,’ Dax said, and again Bruno grumbled something, but lowered the phone and did as he was told. ‘You tell him it’s over, and that Ivy isn’t to be harmed.’

The four of them listened to the ringing until Benny picked up. ‘Bruno? What the fuck is going on?’ The guy sounded panicked, his panted words were rushed. ‘Ravager was here, him and that big fuck he hangs with, they were looking for you… they know about—‘

‘I know,’ Bruno said. ‘Call it off.’

‘What?’

‘The bounty, it’s over, send out word, the girl isn’t to be touched.’

‘Are you…? Are you sure?’ Benny asked. ‘You were sure about—‘

‘Yes, I’m fucking sure,’ Bruno said. ‘Don’t question me you little fuck, just do it.’

‘Ok, boss, whatever you say.’

‘Happy now?’ Bruno asked Dax.

‘One more thing,’ Dax said before Bruno hung up.

‘Who…? Who is that?’ Benny stuttered.

‘It’s Ravager,’ Dax said. ‘You tell anyone who thinks about trying to collect anyway that they’ll have to face me.’

‘Oh… ok,’ Benny said.

‘You tell them the money train isn’t capable of delivering,’ Dax said.

‘What the fuck are you talking about?’ Bruno asked probably ready to go on another rant about how much money he had.

‘Where Ivy’s safety is concerned, I’m not gonna take any chances,’ Dax said and squeezed the trigger.

The kick didn’t move him, he kept his eyes trained on Bruno whose stunned expression froze. Carina wailed and dashed across the room. The phone clattered to the floor before Bruno’s body followed and the blood seeping from his head spread on the floor. Carina threw herself down on Bruno and began to sob, but Dax turned his attention to Mauri, he wasn’t interested in her dramatic display.

‘You’re gonna make sure that no one comes near Ivy again. You’re all going to leave us the fuck alone, and if I so much as see Trystan or Brad again they’ll hit the deck just as fast, understand?’

Mauri nodded, his jaw slack and his eyes wide, he obviously hadn’t expected Dax to shoot the threat to Ivy because of their relationship. Dax didn’t care about blood, it hadn’t done him any favours; Ivy was his family, his future, and that was all he needed.

Carina lifted herself from Bruno. ‘Why? Why did you do this? Why did you hurt him?’

‘You’re a sucker for it,’ Dax said. ‘He didn’t love you. He heard you were back in town and could give him information, and you handed it out because you thought it would gain you his approval. Have some self-respect. Don’t ever come near me or Ivy again, we’re not interested, you had your chance and it’s done.’