“If I die, you take over. It’s already written in my will. Plus, I won’t be alone, will I, Samson?” I pivot to him, looking for backup.
He knows better, especially working for my father for so long. He knows that when my mind is made up, it’s final.
“I can inject you with a tracking device so he won't find it on you. It’s not ideal, but he’ll strip search you, making sure that nothing traces back on you. We’ll also set up surveillance. You’ll have someone following once you’re taken. We can be in and out, getting both of you out. Depending where you want this to happen, we’ll have people on the inside along with the cameras in the area. Once he gets to his location, I’ll be able to hack into his devices.” He looks down at his phone, taking notes as he explains.
Atta boy. I love the way Samson feeds into my insane plans. He pays no mind to the raging two men in the room.
“What about your boyfriend? Maybe you can get some stuff out of him?” Larson picks up the seat and sits back down.
“He likely won’t tell me much or anything we don’t already have here, but I could tip him off about an event that’s at the club. We would advertise it to catch Oliver's attention, and maybe they will get a lead on him. I saw files on his counter when I was over there last, but I was a little occupied to sneak a peek.”
“I’ll meet you at the training ring at noon. I got shit to do,” Antonio dismisses himself and leaves the room.
Samson takes his leave shortly after leaving me the documents to review. Larson decides to hang around longer and helps me plan the event for the club and how I’m going to get myself captured. He had his moment of panic but in the end, he knows I’m as stubborn as my father and I won’t get myself into anything I can’t handle. He understands I would put my life on the line for those who work for me and my family. They would each do the same and would be a hypocritical not to allow me to do so.
“Excuse me, Miss Hansley?” Angela peeks through the doorway. “I have the reports you requested. Traffic was an utter bitch today. Everyone seemed to have to do errands.”
She looks around until her eyes land on Larson. She looks him up and down, checking him out. A blush creeps on her face when she notices that I’m watching her check out my friend.
“Thank you, Angela. Have you met Larson yet? He’s a dear friend of mine as well as one of my guards. You may call meCeleste in front of him. Please bring those over here.” I gesture her over to bring me the envelopes.
“What are those?” Larson gets up from his seat to join me at my desk.
“They're the results of my father’s autopsy. I had a feeling something was off with his sudden death, but now that they’re here, I don’t know if I can handle it. I had talked to him when I was in Rome. Before I was captured, I gave him an update about our meeting. He sounded fine. Healthy even. He was fine before I left, Larson. I know things can happen suddenly, but not to him. Not my dad.” My hands begin to tremble.
He reaches for my shoulder and gives it a tight squeeze. At least he’s here and I don’t have to bear the news alone.
“Maybe we should head home and review them. This may not be the right place to do so.” Larson warns as if he knows the doom that’s looming over me.
Hey may have a point. We might need bulletproof glass to protect everything around me if the results are as bad as I think they are. I can’t wait though, I need to know now.
“No, I need to know now. They are here and I can’t wait another second for the truth.” My voice waivers.
He nods in understanding, without saying a word. He remains at my side, letting me know he’ll be here to help me through this.
“Angela, will you shut the blinds and give us a minute, please?” Larson gives her a hint of warning and privacy.
She walks over to the windows in the office and pulls the blinds across, making sure they’re shut from prying eyes. She looks back at us for a split second with worried eyes and silently leaves us be, closing the door.
We sit there for a few moments staring at the envelope. This is the moment I’ve been waiting for, but I hesitate to view them. Looking up at Larson, he gives me a slight nod, signalingthat he’s ready. Ready for whatever comes next, to catch me if I fall or burn the fucking world down for the liars who tried to deceive us.
Breaking the seal, I pull the documents out and look over the first page. It indicates his basic information, time of death and the procedures they did to find the results. I turn the second page and read down the page.
Case No. 98-6251
Decedent: Alejandro Hansley
Type of death: Suspicious, Unusual, or Unnatural
Age: 56
Sex: Male
Date of death: February 5, 2025
Probable cause of death: Poison consumption of Cyanide. It appears the poison was mixed with liquid or mixture of food. There would be no indication as the substance is tasteless. Cyanide works fast, causing nausea and a severe headache, followed with causing the consumer to become unconscious in a coma. The final step, Cyanide attacks the heart, causing it to fail, resulting in death.
The original report indicates the death was the result of a heart attack. Although there was a similarity between the two reports involving the heart, we found that the heart failed due to an unnatural cause.
