I lean in and kiss him. “We’rereallygoing to do this.”
I leave the last part of that unspoken:
Or die trying.
Chapter Seventeen
Eddie
To say I’m nervous about tonight is an understatement. It’s closer to the visceral fear I haven’t experienced—other than when I thought Jace was about to kill me—since I was a kid.
Am Ireallygoing to do this?
I am.
Weare.
Plus, Ineedto do this.
Part of me—most of me—wants to attend tonight’s event with Jace so Carter can see that I’m all right and moving on with my life. That I’m safe and cared for.
That I’m happy for the first time in…forever.
Part of me, but only a tiny little part, hopes Carter turns green with jealousy when he sees me there with his brother and puts the pieces together.
Obviously, I don’t hate Carter for moving on with his life. I don’t begrudge him his wife or children. Honestly, I don’t even wish I could be the one at his side right now, because I chose not to leave the Army when he was discharged and he wouldn’t have his children had we stayed together.
Plus, I realize I hurt him by pushing him away. Wishing him nothing but happiness and peace and success is a no-brainer, for me.
Everything I’ve learned about Carter from Jace and from Google tells me my old Master made a name for himself through the hard work and fortitude—and stubbornness—that I remember so well from our youth.
Jace told me those are traits all the men in their family share, and their mom ten times so.
I believe it. I wonder if Carter’s children will also grow up to be as determined and dedicated and driven?
Most likely, since their mother had the tenacity and strength to survive a plane crash and weeks being shipwrecked, and still achieved her professional and political dreams.
After Jace returns from the ceremony, we spend the afternoon doing more local research and site visits. When we return to the hotel and prepare for tonight, Jace stands next to me in the bathroom and studies me in the mirror. He took charge shopping for our tuxes for tonight—in Paris—and we do look damned good, I must admit.
He also changed my haircut, and insists I shave every day. Honestly? I barely recognize the man in the mirror now. In just a few short weeks, I’ve ceded control of my life to him in every way and have become a totally different man. I even look younger.
Honestly? I’ve never been happier.
The only item left to check off my bucket list is to take out Cunningham.
We’ve already prepped deep background on Bradenton Rexley and know where his house is located. He owns fifty acres just outside Tallahassee and frequently holds private shindigs for lobbyists and other political bigwigs. Fortunately, the area is rural, not some gated enclave. He inherited his money and the property from his family, who were long ago big players in Florida’s lucrative cattle industry in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
We know he’s hosting an event in two weeks to pair PAC donors with local and state-level politicians and lobbyists. It’s an annual event, and it’s unofficially the most important political event of the year in Florida.
And Cunningham will be in attendance, because he’s good friends with Rexley, who’s invested in helping his friend get elected.
Now, you might ask why can’t two men with the particular skillsets and motivation and experience such as Jace and myself just grab the crotchety old fuck and toss him into the back of a car and haul him off somewhere private to take care of business?
Part of the problem is that he lives in a large, densely populated retirement community with his wife. Just from scoping it out on Google Earth we could see it wouldn’t be practical to go in there and snatch him from his home. For starters, tons of surveillance and doorbell cameras on surrounding homes, no doubt. Traffic cameras, too. And grabbing him in broad daylight off a street somewhere isn’t exactly going to work, either.
We have to make Cunningham come to us, in a way that can’t be traced directly to us, or that can put us in the crosshairs of any potential future investigations into his disappearance.
He’s eager to run for Congress now and is looking for backers. Since he probably has little chance of defeating the Democrat incumbent on his own, he’s really desperate for money and endorsements to help raise his visibility.
