I hand the phone to Lucien, who sighs loudly but takes it from me.
Chapter 10
JULIAN
Idon’t like coincidences.
They’re sloppy. Lazy. The kind of thing amateurs lean on when they don’t want to admit they missed a variable. And yet here I am, standing in the middle of a jungle villa owned by a former CIA contractor with a talent for plausible deniability, listening to a secure phone line crackle while two American brothers with a private army worth of tech toys and weapon argue with Lucien about how to best extract Iris. My Iris.
Because, and here’s the twist, they already fucking know Lucien. They’ve done business with him in the past.
The universe has a sense of humor. I’ve never appreciated it.
Lucien leans against the stone counter like this is a cocktail party and not a fuckup of epic proportions. This whole time, he could have called these guys and gotten Iris out.
He pours himself coffee, unhurried, while I stand rigid a few feet away, jaw tight enough to ache, as I listen over the speakerphone that Lucien engaged when Iris handed him the phone.
Nick’s voice comes through first. Sharp. Controlled. The voice of a man who has learned how to turn rage into logistics.
“You want to repeat that,” he says, “slowly.”
“Iris is with me,” Lucien says evenly, sipping his coffee. “She’s safe for now.”
“For now,” Jay cuts in, warmer but no less dangerous. “You want to explain why my wife’s best friend is at your house and you’re just now calling us?”
Lucien shrugs. “I didn’t know she was connected to you.”
“She’s not just connected to us,” Nick says. “She’s family. If anything happens to her. You’re on our hit list. Understood?”
Lucien lifts his cup in a mock salute. “Absolutely.”
“Are you okay, Iris?” Nick asks. “I need to hear you say it.”
“I’m fine,” Iris says. “Lucien’s been a wonderful host.”
Someone swears in the background. I think it’s Jay.
“I already told you that,” Lucien says mildly. “Why wouldn’t you believe me?”
Nick doesn’t hesitate. “Because we fucking know you.”
Lucien leans closer to the phone, voice smooth, infuriatingly calm. “And I know you, Nicholas and Jameson. It’s been a while.”
Jay exhales sharply. “Jesus Christ. Of all the places.”
Nick’s voice hardens. “What the hell is Iris doing with you?”
Lucien’s smile turns faintly reproachful. “Sheltering from a violent overthrow of government. Try to keep up.”
I cut in. “Enough. We’re arranging extraction.”
“Who the fuck is that?” the brothers ask at the same time. “You got the Brits involved?”
Lucien cuts in. “It’s an interested party who prefers to be anonymous for now.”
There’s more swearing on the line. “Is that party friendly?”
“Very friendly.” Lucien looks at me. “Especially when it comes to Iris.”
