Vienna looked furious. “We should talk to Harlow and see if her father can get their visas revoked. I’d like to see them deported. What jerks. I can’t believe they would be a part of such a vile conspiracy.”
“Rainier has already started the process of sending them back to their country,” Raine said. “Your man doesn’t tolerate attacks on you. That’s the bottom line. Jack’s only protection is that he’s your father.”
“I’m worried about what he might do to Bale,” Shabina admitted. “Rainier is always calm and purposeful, but I know him well enough to realize Bale could be a target for him. No one should put themselves in his crosshairs, and Bale did that. Unfortunately, Rafferty and those FBI agents were right there. If Bale has an accident and someone gets suspicious, they’ll look straight at Rainier.”
Raine shook her head. “Even if they did, Rainier will have an ironclad alibi. I’m not above saying, I hope Bale gets a visit from Rainier.”
—
Bale woke atthe first touch of the knife against his throat. He gasped and brought both hands up in an attempt to move what must have felt like a steel arm holding him immobile.
“What…who…” he spluttered.
“I thought we should have a quiet chat, just the two of us,” Rainier said. “I want you to be very clear on who and what you’re dealing with.”
“Get out of my house. I’ll have you arrested. You’ll be thrown into prison,” Bale blustered. His fingers dug into the arm holding him still, but the arm remained locked around him, preventing all movement.
Rainier ignored the posturing. “I do a certain job for the government. They send me in when they want someone to quietly disappear. You may have heard rumors about my friend Sam or even Zale. Just to be fair so you know exactly who you’re dealing with, I’m far, far worse than either of them. No one wants me coming after them.”
“You can’t arrest me.”
“I don’t arrest people,” Rainier corrected. “I end them. Sometimes I take my time. When anyone threatens my wife or makes her cry, I find it brings out my skills as an interrogator. It’s always good to hone them. I’ve taken days to kill men, making sure they felt everything their victims felt before they died. In the end, they begged me for mercy. It didn’t affect me in the least. I’m sure their victims begged and didn’t get mercy.”
Bale tried to shake his head, but the blade of the knife was still pressed against his neck and bit deeper with each movement. Blood trickled down to his shoulders in a steady stream.
“I don’t like the threats you made to my wife. I don’t like the way you spoke to her. I just want you to know that if anything happens to her, the dogs or the café, if there’s so much as a scratch on her, you will get another visit from me, and I’ll be the last face you ever see. You’re damn lucky Shabina has compassion for you. I don’t. You’re a coward and a bully. I’ve met hundreds of menlike you, and all of them ended up crying and begging for their lives.”
Bale had gone very still, recognizing the merciless conviction in Rainier’s voice.
“I want to know you understand. There won’t be another warning. You go near her or hire someone else to do your dirty work for you, I’ll be coming for you. You’d better make it your mission in life to ensure nothing happens to her.”
“I get it,” Bale choked out.
“I hope you do, Landry.”
He was gone as silently as he’d entered the bedroom. Like an apparition. A ghost. Bale lay in his bed, his heart pounding wildly, one hand covering the cut on his neck while blood trickled through his fingers.
Chapter Fifteen
The café was packed, and the line outside was long. Shabina was thankful she’d hired two new waiters instead of just one. She’d gotten up early to run the dogs before they started their long day. Rainier was already gone, and the house seemed empty without him. Even the dogs seemed to miss him, crowding around her when she first got up as if seeking reassurance. They searched the entire house before returning to her to wait patiently while she fixed them food. When she sent Sharif, Morza and Malik out to patrol the grounds, she let Sonar, Bomber and Mick inside so she could lavish attention on them and give them their food.
When she took the dogs running, three of the men ran with her while one stayed at her home with the dog team left behind. The other kept guard over the café. Instead of feeling uncomfortable with the men as she normally would have, they made her feel safe because they worked for Rainier and he was the one giving them orders.
Quite a few locals were in the café, business owners showing their support of Shabina after hearing how Bale had treated her. She wasn’t sure how to respond to so much kindness, so she worked hard to help her staff and made her rounds, greetingcustomers, locals and tourists alike. Morning turned into afternoon, and some of her favorite customers came in for lunch.
Edward and Janine were back, sitting closer than ever, laughing softly and whispering intimately to one another. Shabina wasn’t sure how she felt about them, but Edward had immediately stood up for her during what she now dubbed “the incident.” He’d even offered to pay for the breakfast Bale had initially refused to compensate the café for. She didn’t know if his offer had been genuine or if Janine had been so offended, she had offered and shamed him into standing up for Shabina. It didn’t really matter, since Edward had stood up to Bale, and she knew he would incur Bale’s wrath.
The Garner sisters sat with Janine’s two friends, the four women laughing together as they discussed Theresa, Janine and Val attempting to climb a boulder for the first time with Felicity and Eve. They had video, which they were watching on Felicity’s laptop. Miguel had been with them and seemed to be shouting advice as he stood on the crash pad, arms up to guide Val when she fell—and she did fall, more than once.
They showed the videos to Shabina as she stopped by to greet them and ensure they had everything they wanted for their lunch. Felicity’s laptop was top of the line. Shabina recognized the laptop of a professional after being around Raine so much. It occurred to her she’d never asked about either of the women’s work, not even when they’d first come to Knightly after they’d lost their sister, niece and brother-in-law.
Felicity and Eve had recounted how their sister met her husband, Emilio, at work and the two had fallen in love. They’d talked about Freda’s and Emilio’s jobs and how proud they were of Freda for the work she did with youth. She even knew Emilio had coached both soccer and baseball when he didn’t have childrenplaying either sport. Shabina was upset with herself for not asking Felicity and Eve what they did. Sometimes it felt as if she had little experience when it came to connecting with new people.
The videos had been filmed by someone who knew what they were doing. Each video was clear and taken from angles showing the boulder and the climber in close-up shots as well as long shots that allowed the viewer to see the entire rock and the difficulty of attempting to ascend it. Shabina couldn’t help but ask.
“Who took the videos? They look professional.”
Eve lifted her hand. “Thanks. I’ve been shooting videos for a number of years professionally for people. Weddings. Kids’ sports games and gymnastics. You name it, I’ve probably photographed or shot video of it. It also helps to have a laptop like Felicity’s. I have one I use to Photoshop and clean up my pictures, but her programs are so much better. The quality really comes across when you play a vid on her laptop.”
