I thought about that for a minute and decided that would probably work best. “Do you know where he is right now?”
“He’s currently in LA. I’ll divert him from his job there and send him to San Diego to find out what he can.”
“Thanks, Miles.”
“And don’t worry about yelling at the pilot to do your bidding. They’re going to fuel up and get you back in the air as quickly as possible.”
“You’re the best. If you don’t already have someone on it, get eyes on my girl and don’t lose her.”
“I will do what I can. We’re still searching for where she went after leaving the airport but we have a picture of the man she was with - presumably her fiancé. That should help us track them both down.”
“Fuck,” I hissed. I didn’t need another damn reminder that Aoife was taken now. “Stay on top of it. Nothing else matters.”
“What about your brothers?” Miles asked.
“Nothing. I prioritized someone else’s bullshit ahead of her once before and look what happened. Never again, Miles.”
“Good. If you’d given me any other answer, I wouldn’t have helped you.”
“Thanks, asshole.”
Miles had been just as worried about Aoife over the past twelve years and held a lot of guilt because he dropped her off at her dorm without a thought to her safety. When she disappeared, it killed a bit of my friend’s spirit, as none of uswere sure she was even alive. The only indicator we had was that her father had made a huge stink about his daughter’s whereabouts in the beginning but he hadn’t started a war to get her back or retaliate against anyone. It was the reason we all assumed she had disappeared of her own free will.
It took entirely too fuckinglong to turn around and get back to New York. By the time I landed, exhaustion threatened to pull me under. I stayed in contact with Miles and we had a fairly decent idea of where Aoife would be that evening. I didn’t want to wait. A million things could go wrong, but I had to see this through. If she truly, knowingly chose this life, then there was nothing to be done anyway.
If that was the case, why in the fuck would she still be operating under an assumed identity?
Nothing made sense. Least of all my best friend’s sudden reappearance. I couldn’t be bothered to think about what I’d do if she chose the path she was on with eyes wide open. That would mean she had well and truly given up on us and the life we always dreamed of. Granted, I deserved for that to happen, considering why she ran without me in the first place.
“Here. Go change,” Miles ordered as he thrust my suit at me the minute I walked into MadDox Security Company.
“Thanks,” I tossed back on my way to the ensuite bathroom in my office. After flying all fucking day, I took a quick shower to try to wake myself up and clear away the airplane funk, suited up, and then made my way back into my office.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Lucian as he stood there in his own monkey suit and grinned at me in that way he didthat was slightly discomfiting, or maybe menacing was a better descriptor.
“You think I’m going to let my baby brother walk into a mafia engagement party operating as a holiday shindig and not be there as backup? We’re getting in, getting your girl, and getting the fuck out. No harm to you, Aoife, or me.”
“Everyone else?” I questioned.
“Collateral damage doesn’t bother me. It’s not like anyone there will call the cops if shit goes down.”
“What about Calista?”
“She’s safe.”
My brother was a man of few words. He was also a man of action. If he said we were all getting in and back out again unharmed, then we would. Everything he said about not giving a damn if there’s collateral damage was also the real deal. He’d burn the city down for any of us. Our parents might not have given a shit about us, but we always had each other’s back.
“Are Adrian and Gideon coming?” Miles asked when he entered into the office straightening his tie.
“They’re both neck-deep in shit.” Lucian chuckled and shook his head as if there was something funny about it.
“What’s going on with them?” I asked.
“Women troubles. We’re going to leave them to it while we deal with yours. If we need them, they’re on standby.”
Miles shrugged and I gave a quick tip of my chin in acknowledgment as we left the office. “I can’t believe she’s here,” I whispered more to myself than anyone else.
“Doesn’t feel real,” Miles agreed.
