Page 69 of Duality

It might not have been the best idea to antagonize them, but the ache in my jaw had activated my fight-or-flight response, and my dumb ass never knew when to back down. Ryan moved closer, his expression hard, and I braced myself. His gun was still in his holster at his hip. I couldn’t see guns on the other two men, but I had no doubt they were carrying. Which meant if I was going to act, I had to do it unexpectedly and disarm them fast.

“Kill you? Oh no, my dear.” The stranger laughed. “You’re much more valuable to the Kingfisher’s enterprises alive than dead.”

The Kingfisher? This was the first piece of information we had about Citadel’s mysterious client’s identity. Was this man the Kingfisher? Or someone who worked for him? Was the Kingfisher a person or an organization? What did he mean, more useful alive than dead? My head spun from trying to put it together, or maybe that was from the concussion I was sure I had, courtesy of Ryan.

The stranger let out a humorless chuckle. “I find it hard to believe this woman has been the one causing your organization so much trouble,” he said over his shoulder to the other two.

Ryan frowned, his eyes flashing angrily. “She’s just playing dumb. Answer the question,” he growled at me. His cheeks had turned a reddish-puce, and his jaw clenched tight.

Where the fuck were the guys? Had Citadel hit the gala? Fuck, I hadn’t even considered that. Citadel might have struck out at all of us at once. I might be on my own.

I looked at the stranger, tilting my head to the side. “Could you repeat the question?”

He smirked but answered me. “How much of a mess have you caused for my employer?”

“And your employer is the Kingfisher?” Ryan growled, and I held up my hands. “I’m just clarifying. My head is spinning.” I pinned Ryan with a look. “And I want to be clear.”

The stranger nodded, and I thought fast. What could I tell them that would buy some time but not admit to anything? Maybe I could throw Citadel under the bus.

“I don’t really know what’s going on,” I said slowly. “Citadel came after my bosses a few weeks ago. Tried to kill them at the property we were touring. Everything we’ve done since was in retaliation for that attempted hit.”

The stranger cocked his head as he stared at me. I tried to school my face into my professional assistant mask, but I wasn’t sure if he bought it. “At what point did you learn of the Kingfisher?”

“I’d never heard that name until you said it just now.”

That was the truth. We knew Citadel had a new client but not that their name was Kingfisher. Was Kingfisher a company or a person? It was hard to tell with the ringing in my ears.

“And it just made sense for Citadel to go after your bosses without warning?”

A humorless laugh escaped my mouth before I could catch it. “With what Citadel has been involved in over the years, it wouldn’t be out of character.”

“Ah, yes. The Archers have had their fair share of run-ins with Citadel before, yes? You probably more than most as their leader.”

I hesitated. There really was no use denying it. And he had said that I was more useful to the Kingfisher alive, so maybe that extended to the Archers as well.

“Yes, we have,” I said slowly.

He nodded and pulled out his phone, typed something quickly, then pocketed it.

He stood and turned to Ryan and Julian. “The Kingfisher will be having words with you later,” he said coldly.

I expected Ryan and Julian to react to his condescending tone, but they just stood there, paling at his threat. Who was this Kingfisher that he inspired that much respect or fear? It sounded like he was a person, but who knew? My jaw still ached, and when I glanced at the door quickly, black spots dotted my vision. Fuck, this wasn’t good.

“Now, go before your absence is noted. I believe you have an award to accept. Miss Harper and I have more to discuss somewhere else.” His words were pleasant, but his tone had the tiny hairs on the back of my neck rising. I knew the stats on being taken to another location. I couldn’t afford to let them move me. Where were the guys?

The stranger yanked me to my feet, his grip on my arm tight and I yelped slightly. My arm ached and I knew I was going to be collecting more bruises before the night was done. The room spun and I almost went down again but he yanked me forward towards the back door.

“I’ll escort you to your car,” Ryan strode ahead of us, opening the door and peering out into the hallway.

“I should get back to the gala,” Julian smoothed down his suit. “I’ll let you know if there’s any trouble.”

I struggled to get my bearings as the stranger yanked me through the door. I needed to delay them. If they got me into a car then my odds of being found lowered dramatically even with the tracker. A second location provided too many variables. I stumbled and he forced me to my feet.

“Keep moving. If you struggle then I’ll just leave your body here,” the stranger snapped at me.

I glared back. “You try walking with a concussion.”

He ignored me and marched me forward. I stumbled occasionally, keeping up the act. The room was still fuzzy at theedges of my vision but it was starting to clear up. I needed a plan. Ryan strode ahead still. His gun was still holstered but I had no doubt he could get to it quickly. I glanced down at the stranger’s waist. There was a slight bulge in the back of his jacket. He was likely also carrying. My only advantage right now was that no one had grabbed their weapons yet. Surely the guys had to be close, I needed to buy myself some more time.