“Aubrey didn’t just wake up one day and decide to target Holloway,” he continues. “She and her husband ran scams for most of their adult lives. They built a network of shell corporations and false business ventures. Holloway became a target for them early on, shortly after their marriage. My guess would be it was Aubrey’s idea to go after it. Seems as though they were trying to dismantle it enough to push the Holloways out. Probably wanted to swoop in and buy up what was left for pennies on the dollar and make it their new cover, since Holloway has so much legitimacy. It looks like they were nearly successful before, around the time the Holloway couple’s son died.”
I grind my teeth, fury rushing through me. Fucking vultures.
“All this that you’ve found… it’s solid?” I ask. “Usable evidence in court?”
“I’ve already verified several of the fraudulent transfers,” Harvey assures me. “Federal agencies will be interested once we formally submit everything.”
I let out a slow breath. God damn it. I should have followed my instincts earlier, but I’m glad I hired Harvey in the end. I knew there was something fucked up about the Reynolds. More than them just being the usual snotty, irritating rich assholes. Something sinister. Calculating. I waited too long. Now they’re going after Sutton and her family again, and I’ve been dragging my feet to deal with them.
“Why haven’t they been caught until now?” I demand to know, shoving the file away without opening it.
Harvey sits back in his chair and shrugs. “Money. Influence. You should know more than anyone what rich people are capable of getting away with.”
Yeah, I fucking do. My fury burns hotter, not only at the Reynolds, but at myself. I should have done more to keep them away from Sutton. I clench my fists so hard, my knuckles hurt.
Suddenly, my phone buzzes. I unclench my fists and dig it out. Relief washes through me when I see that it’s Sutton. I left her so abruptly earlier, right when I was going to confess my feelings, and part of me has been afraid she wouldn’t want to talk to me. The fact that she’s calling has to be a good sign…
I answer the phone and open my mouth to say her name, but my words die on my lips when I hear something strange.
“Time has a way of changing things…”
That’s not Sutton’s voice.
I hear a low growl, and I freeze. Was that Leon? What the fuck is going on? Widening my eyes, I set the phone down on the desk and put the call on speaker. Harvey frowns, then realization dawns on his face, and he gestures toward me.
“Mute it,” he whispers. “And I’ll record it. Don’t tip them off.”
Nodding, I quickly do as I’m told. Harvey is already reaching for his phone.
Sutton’s voice finally comes through. I shove to my feet, ready to go to her, but Harvey reaches over his desk and puts his hand on my arm, giving me a warning look. My hands clench into fists as I stare at him, furious he’s preventing me from taking action. Sutton is mine to protect and right now she needs me. This fucker better have a plan.
Forcing myself to stay silent and still, I listen as Sutton speaks. I can tell she’s scared, but she’s doing her best to sound calm.
“This isn’t going to work, Aubrey,” Sutton insists. “You can’t force me to marry Leon, and even if you do, my parents aren’t going to just …givehim the company.”
That’s my fucking girl. I want nothing more than to shout that I’m here, and that she is not alone, but I force myself to stay silent.
Meanwhile, while Harvey is recording my call with one phone, he’s pulling another phone out of his desk and calling the cops.
He glances up at me and murmurs, “Where are they?”
“They have to be at my place,” I reply. “That’s where Sutton was going to go when you called me.”
Nodding, he gives my address to the police then hangs up. He hasn’t skipped a beat. Always a professional.
“Let’s go,” he says, standing. He opens a drawer in his desk and pulls out a gun, which he slips into a holster at his hip.
We leave his office at a dead sprint. The moment we hit the sidewalk, the cold air slams into my lungs like a punch, but I barely feel it. My entire body is running on adrenaline now, my muscles tight and heart hammering so hard it feels like it might crack my ribs.
I grip the phone in my hand, holding it between us as we run, keeping the speaker on so we can hear what’s happening.
Sutton’s voice spills through it. Hearing her keeps me grounded so I don’t completely lose my fucking mind. If I can hear her, she’s alive. If she’s talking, that means they haven’t hurt her.
Yet.
“Just sign the documents,” Leon’s voice crackles through the phone.
My jaw tightens so hard it aches. Every instinct in my body is screaming at me to run faster.
