“Tell me what?” I snap, losing my patience.
“Our wives have been talking and making plans on our behalf. Georgie called Jess and told her about everything that’s been going on with your father and the stress it’s put you under. She asked Jess to speak to me, and…well…here we are.” He shrugs, opening his arms and gesturing at the other guys. “Your alliance,” he smiles.
Nestor steps forward, also smiling. “You should have called, man. This is what we’re meant to do for each other. If you’re struggling with something, you have support.”
Ardalion and Benedikt nod in agreement.
“Georgie reached out?” I ask, still processing what’s going on, feeling warmth spread through my chest.
“She did. She was worried about you,” Benedikt says. “We immediately got on a plane to Phoenix.”
I chuckle. It’s filled with relief and the realization that all this time, when I thought I was alone, I was turning a blind eye to the very strong group of people around me. Georgie, my sister, my alliance. No matter how I paint this picture, I was never carrying the burden of my father alone. I was just being stubborn. I pushed everyone away, telling myself that I was protecting them, but all I was actually doing was making things more difficult than they needed to be. It prolonged this situation.
“So, what’s the plan?” Ardalion claps his hands together.
“How much do you know?” I ask, sitting on one of the sofas and inviting the others to do the same.
In no time at all, we have a solid plan pieced together.
And by early the next morning, all five of us are walking into Ali’s office in the city. We catch the elevator to the top floor, and his personal assistant stands, mumbling in panic, when we walk straight past her towards his door.
“Wait, you can’t go in there. He’s on a call,” she shouts, running after us.
We ignore her and shove his door open, walking inside as a solid force.
Ali’s eyes grow wide with shock when he sees us.
“I’ve got to go,” he mutters into the phone and hangs up, standing to face us. “What is this?” he demands.
“Sit down, Ali,” Benedikt snaps.
“You can’t just come into my office like this,” he says, but the confidence in his voice is wavering as he presses his hands against his desk.
“Actually, we can, and in all honestly, this was the polite way of doing things. The alternative was for us to take out a few of your businesses to grab your attention. We can still do it that way, if you prefer?”
Ali’s jaw drops open in shock. He might be a powerful man, but against the five of us, he’s nothing, and he knows it.
He sits down in his office chair and presses his lips together in anger, resigning himself to his predicament.
I take a seat opposite Ali at his desk. “Start talking, Koskos. What’s happening at the warehouse, with the auction, and with my father?” I demand, getting right to the point. I’ve wasted enough of my time on this man and his schemes with my father.
He mulls over his choices, but only briefly.
Leaning back in his chair, he closes his eyes for a moment. “I was working with Faiz,” he sighs. “We’re in the process of growing the auction event into something larger, a thriving business. It was the plan right from the start. We needed that property, and your father knew how we could get it from you. He approached me with the idea, and together we started putting it together.”
“The first step being to kidnap Georgie?” I snarl.
“Correct,” he sighs again. He tells us everything, from beginning to end, providing details of their process and what they’ve been up to in order to try and weaken my position in the city in time for the launch of the new auction event. I listen, letting him spill all of their secrets.
“You realize the position you’re in?” Benedikt asks, his eyes burning into Ali.
“I do,” Ali nods.
“Good. Because we aren’t taking this lightly. Any move against one member of this alliance is a move against all five of us. And I assure you, you don’t want to face the wrath of all of us put together, which is what you’re on the verge of doing.”
For a moment, anger flares over Ali’s face, but it’s gone in a flash. His ego might still want to fight against the inevitable, but he knows better.
“I understand,” he growls. “What do you want from me? Get to the point.”
