“Don’t worry, I’m not going back to Poulton Springs, not ever. In fact, weird thing is, I’ve just had a job offer in Colorado. The email came out of the blue this morning, and they’re not even asking for references. I’ve been saying for a while that I wanted to head back that way. I have family there.”
I’d been stepping towards the door, but I stop. “Saying to who?” I ask.
Jason shrugs. “Anyone who’d listen.”
Quinn being one of them. And I ponder that thought as I head back to the parking lot with Jake.
Helicopter blades whir into action, kicking up a dust storm as Jake and I hurry to join our pilot. It’s almost laughable that Jason thought he was the only one who could identify me given we’d arrived in a helicopter emblazoned with the Griffin logo.
We’re in the air seconds later, on our way back to Poulton Springs. And the nearer we get, the more tempted I am to land right in front of Barrett’s mansion. Quinn has some explaining to do, and I’m about to message her when Jake looks up from his cell phone.
“We have a problem,” he says. “There’s activity at the house.”
“Is Ilya back?” I’m not ready to have him this close to Quinn again – not after my conversation with Jason.
“No, it’s Quinn. She’s been stuck at the gate for almost ten minutes. She’s out of her Jeep, arguing with the two guards.”
Blood rushes to my head. “They’re not letting her leave?”
“Looks that way. We’re getting a drone in the air right now to take a closer look.”
“How long until we can get there?”
“Under five,” says the pilot, who’s part of Jake’s security team. “Where do you want to land?”
Before I can answer, a call is patched through from Ash. “Don’t give Ilya even more reason to start a war,” he warns by way of a greeting. “We need him to play his hand first.”
“And you don’t think this is it? Whether he’s aware of my relationship with Quinn, or not, he knows we’re here to stop him exploiting women. He’s already isolated her, Ash. I’m pretty sure he engineered the whole drama with the gardener just so she’d be on her own. If you don’t want anyone else involved, fine, but I’m going in.”
“Jake, get your nearest team outside the gates in full view of the guards,” Ash says, barely leaving a pause before he’s made a plan of action. “Let them know we’re watching.”
“We could fly the drone low enough for them to spot,” he replies.
“You know what’ll happen, but fine,” Mace says, joining the conversation. I should have known it was a conference call.
“Have the helicopter land on the public road,” Ash tells us. “Reid, when you get there, go to the gate and see if you can get Quinn out with minimal force. Let Ilya decide if he’s ready to start a war.”
Chapter 20
Quinn
Istand in front of my Jeep with my arms folded. My foot taps nervously as I watch one of the guards on the gate take his phone from his ear. It’s Mikhail, the one with the scar running down his face, and when he smiles at me, he looks all the more menacing.
“Apologies, Miss Jamieson, but I can’t get hold of Ilya just now.”
“You don’tneedto get hold of him. This is Barrett’s property and I’m his representative. We employyou,” I remind him.
As Mikhail arches an eyebrow, his scar pulls taut over his eyelid and cheek. “You still work for Barrett?”
I open my mouth to respond, but words fail me. I was Barrett’s representative up until an hour ago. It’s fair to say that the heir of the Emerson empire is having a minor breakdown somewhere in New York right now, but he’s no longer my problem. Ilya on the other hand, has me trapped in a constant state of anxiety.
“That’s beside the point,” I answer. “Ilya left you instructions to let me come and go as I–”
Mikhail tips back his head and stares up at the seamless blanket of grey cloud. As I raise my gaze, I hear what’s drawn his attention. The shrill humming triggers a memory from the night I killed a man. The sound of the drone is more distinct than it had been that night. The curse Mikhail releases under his breath suggests it’s not one of their toys.
The drone is flying at an altitude that’s hard to miss. As becomes apparent when a shot rings out and it explodes into a thousand pieces. My eyes snap to the second guard, standing just outside the guardhouse. As he lowers his rifle, his aim drifts towards me for a heart-stopping moment before he turns towards the black SUV that’s just pulled up outside the gate.
My heart restarts with a stutter. Reid’s come for me.
