“They’re in the study,” Remus says, covering his phone’s microphone with his hand.
I grunt in acknowledgment and stride past him, through the grand hall with its dark paneling and ancestral portraits. Thestudy door is ajar, voices spilling out into the hallway—Enzo’s measured tones, Rafe’s clipped responses, and a third, higher voice that makes me pause.
Piper stands at the desk, bent over a laptop, her fingers flying across the keyboard. Her usual perfect appearance is gone—hair pulled back in a messy bun, eyes red-rimmed and swollen, designer blouse wrinkled like she’s been wearing it for days.
She looks up as I enter, and something in her expression shifts—not fear, but determination mixed with dread.
“Where is Raven?” I demand without preamble. “Rafe said you found something.”
Piper straightens, exchanging a look with Enzo that makes my skin prickle with warning. “Matteo,” she begins, voice steady despite the tension visible in the tight line of her shoulders. “She’s been working for North Coast Effects.”
“What?” I snarl, patience evaporating like water on hot coals.
She nods eagerly. “Right, so I’d actually forgotten because it wasn’t all that important—”
“Get. To. The. Fucking. Point,” I seethe.
“Easy,” Enzo interjects. “I get you’re in a rush. But don’t talk to my wife like that.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Please may I hear a shorter version of this story? Pretty fucking please,” I grind out through clenched teeth.
Piper rolls her eyes. “Right, so, after the Parkview event where you two met, she was contacted a lot by North Coast Effects. They wanted to work with her.”
Fuck… I’d forgotten all about that too. But now, I clearly remember her mentioning an NDA and agreement with the company. This was back when we were in Holston’s office, and I wanted her to work only for me.
How the fuck could I have forgotten? An angry roar tears out of me as I kick the wall in pure frustration and rage.
Ignoring my outburst, Piper gestures to the laptop, where files and photographs fill the screen. She glances at Enzo again before continuing. “Lee was their account manager. She worked directly with Finn and Adam Kearney.”
“Show me everything,” I demand, voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
Piper turns the laptop toward me. The screen shows email exchanges between Raven and the Kearney brothers. There are also meeting schedules and project notes. Even though Holston seems to have been looped in on everything, this is all Raven.
Something feral breaks loose inside me—a shout that tears from my throat without conscious thought, primal and raw. My fist connects with the nearest wall, plaster cracking under the impact. The pain is distant, secondary to the rage burning through my veins.
“I’ll kill them,” I snarl, yanking my bloodied hand back. “I’ll tear them apart piece by fucking piece.”
Once I’m done punching the wall and feel calmer, I realize something important. None of this is fucking new. I mean, it is, and it isn’t. I knew the Kearney brothers were involved because Raven dropped the business card. But that’s still all I know.
“I looked through the hospital security footage,” Rafe says, reminding me he’s here. “It shows Finn picking up Raven.”
I watch as Piper pulls up a video and plays it for me. There’s no sound, which is fucking unacceptable for a hospital we practically own. And even the camera angle is shit. If I didn’t know it was Raven by her clothes and hair, it could be anyone since it doesn’t capture her face once.
“We’ve been cross-referencing properties associated with the Kearneys or North Coast Effects,” Rafe explains, stepping forward with a tablet in hand. “Official holdings, shell companies, personal residences. We’ve identified seventeen potential locations.”
“I’ve already burned some,” I say.
“We know,” Enzo nods. “We’re focusing on the others now, especially those outside the city limits or in industrial areas.”
Piper moves to another screen, pulling up a map dotted with red markers. “We’re dispatching teams to each location. And we’re monitoring police and emergency channels for any unusual activity.”
“And we have someone who might know exactly where he’s taken her,” Enzo adds, his expression darkening.
I don’t need to ask who he means. Gia. The fucking traitor who let this happen. My body turns toward the door before my mind has fully processed the thought.
“Basement?” I ask, already moving.
“Yes,” Enzo confirms.
