“Who else could’ve done this? I get a letter telling me he’s going to take everything from me, starting with my wife and now this? I don’t need him to spell the shit out for me, Mase.”
Mason’s jaw tenses, the only outward reaction to my comment.
“I’m not saying he isn’t behind it. All I’m saying is let’s not turn him into an all-seeing and all-knowing super villain.”
“He knew about my past. He knew….” My voice trails off, not finishing that statement. My heart is pounding, causing a loud swishing sound in my ears. I have to stop and count down in my head. I feel my façade slipping. My carefully crafted armor is falling. I fight to catch my breath.
Mason watches me closely, his steel-blue eyes narrowing. “Clear the room.”
All the guards, including Roc, clear the warehouse at his command. Grant and Ghost were the last two to leave. Once the metal door is closed, Mason pushes up from the table and walks over to me.
“Take a breath, Nic. You’re spiraling.”
“Spiraling?” I shout. “That muthafucker reached out to my wife and spoke about my past. I have a right to spiral.”
Completely unperturbed by my raised voice, Mason remains calm. “I read the letter. He never said anything about what happened. He told you what he read in Paul’s files. We’ve seen those files and know what is and isn’t written in them.”
I cringe at just the mention of Mr. Howard. That drowning feeling, the one I used to get as a kid headed to his office, rears its head. I shut my eyes to fight off the feeling of nausea coiling in my stomach.
I run through the things that are real. I’m not a child, nor am I at the boy’s home. There is no therapist waiting to see me. I’m an adult. Also, a father and a husband. The thought of Noah and Tiffany has the ability to clear my head.
After gaining control of my emotions and fighting back the dark memories, I say. “I have a wife and son.”
“Both of which your brothers and I will protect with our lives.” He never breaks eye contact as he speaks.
The steel in his eyes proves what I’ve known about him since I was eight years old—I can trust him. Mason would truly die for my family. And not just for my family, he would do the same for me, Salv, and Kaz.
Surrendering to his words, I nod my head.
He stuffs his hands down into his front pockets. “We need to keep a level head. If the Horseman is behind this, he wants to get you off your A-game. We did not get where we are by leading with our emotions. We stay calm and clearheaded. You don’t play chess with emotions.”
He’s right. That is how four young boys with no past could build the wealth that we all have. We did it by thinking clearly, trusting only each other, and moving wisely. No need to change that shit now. Taking a deep breath, I let it out.
“You’re right. First things first, I need to control the narrative about this sabotage in the papers. Even if the Horseman is behind it, I don’t want him thinking we are even considering it. I’ll call my publicist and lawyer and see how we can spin it. Make it seem like a simple vandalism.”
Mason nods. “Don’t worry about the grand opening. Get the hotel cleaned up. We will continue to distribute the moneythrough Salv’s restaurants and your other hotels for now. Everything else I’ll funnel through the offshore accounts. It’s not ideal, but it’s safe.”
Placing the money in offshore accounts meant we couldn’t spend it right away. It had to sit in the account for a while to not draw attention. It would mean a delay in pay, but none of us were hurting for money.
“This is a minor setback,” he goes on to say. “Not the end of the world.”
We’ve honestly dealt with much worse, especially in the beginning. When we first left the boy’s home, we had only a thousand dollars in cash to our names. We survived off that money for months until Nathaniel found us.
“In the meantime, I’m adding more security to your house.”
Shaking my head, I chuckle. “I can hire my own security.”
“Didn’t ask if you could. Does Tiffany need more security?”
“I have Jake with her 24/7, but I’m thinking of adding another hidden detail.”
“Don’t think, do.” Mason heads toward the door. “I’ll reach back out in a few days. I have to go out of the country for some business.”
“Bring me something back.” I say teasingly.
Mason tosses his hand up over his head before shoving the metal doors out of the way and heading out of the warehouse as Ghost and Roc re-enter.
“We got a call. A new shipment just arrived at the docks,” Ghost says, walking up to me.
