6. ~Caspian~

I hadn't told her.

Despite her offering me solace, understanding, and love last night, which had been just the right blend of elements to relay what I'd discovered from Ben, I hadn't taken the in.

I hadn't told her that his intel had enabled me to make the connection to Jeremy Wheeler, to that madman being the mole, the one who'd passed on intel to Elijah that had led to this nightmare before us now.

Barbarians. That was what he'd called us during the confrontation we'd had with him, before we'd thrown him out of the manor. With his skillset and his previous closeness to Skylar's vendetta against Jett, he'd been in a position to acquire the necessary information to warn Elijah.

Skylar had already been through a great deal when it came to him.

Telling her this… it would only hurt her.

Until I could use this knowledge to our advantage, to bring Caleb and Bastian back to us, there was no need for her to know. Not until I had a solid lead from it.

The door to my home office opened, cutting into my thoughts, just as Luke strode on in.

"Sorry I'm a little late. I was checking in with the teams scouring the assigned area."

"And?"

He grimaced. "They're eighty-percent done. No leads as yet."

I cursed under my breath. "All right, I need you to reach out to Boris and Jace concerning Wheeler. I already have two members of our security staff ransacking JW Securities for any potential clues as to his whereabouts. Any secure tech or devices they find will be sent to King-Tech to crack."

"Boris, I get. He has underground contacts to disavowed former military personnel. But Jace is a wildcard. It's why you insisted on such stringent controls when it comes to our business with him."

"Wheeler is also a wildcard. I need somebody who thinks and operates in a similar fashion."

"Still, while Boris is the loyal and honorable type and he'll do this out of good faith, Jace certainly won't. He'll demand payment and it could make your arms contract with him far less profitable, possibly even a drain if he really pushes it."

"I'm aware of the potential ramifications. Make it clear that any reward he'll receive is contingent upon viable intel that actually leads to a definitive lead. Nothing short of that."

The corner of his mouth turned up. "Nice." He pulled out his phone and typed in my orders as usual, never one to risk missing a thing or a single detail. When he was done, he pulled another phone from his tactical jacket and handed it over to me. "Caleb's phone. Finally cracked," he told me. "The security he had on this thing gave King-Tech a run for its money. That's why it took so long."

"I'd expected as much," I said, opening it. "That will be all, Luke. Thank you."

As I started to look through Caleb's phone so I could determine his contacts for his rehabilitation facilities and where he was at with each of them, so I could put my people in place to run them in his absence, I felt Luke lingering. "What is it?"

"Dante is running Mancini Syndicate operations from King Manor."

"And? What of it?"

"That and the longer he remains here risks implicating King in his illicit activities."

"King isn't without illicit activities, Luke."

"Full-on mafia is different. Those activities of ours are covert. Mancini's are far from it."

"King's reputation taking a hit isn't my chief concern."

"It should be. This is your legacy. Your life's work. You put a whole lot of blood and sweat into pulling this empire from near ruin and sending it skyward. It would be a shame if Elijah's recent actions impacted that. It would be a win for him, King."

"It won't come to that. King will hold. I'll see to it."

"But—"

"Is your trust in me waning, Luke?" I demanded with a clear edge.

"This is just me expressing concern. Daria has also been trying to reach you regarding you making an appearance at King Tower to reassure your partners, investors, and employees during this tumultuous time, the kidnappings being all over the news, rumors of a missile being launched that's attracting military and government attention."

"It wasn't a missile. I'm already putting out that fire."

"You are?"

"Of course. King has contracts with the military that are most lucrative to them. They were more than willing to buy my explanation should our arrangement continue, along with me providing proof that the rumors had no merit."

"No merit? How did you pull that off?"

"How do you think?"

"You falsified this proof?"

"I did what I had to do. As for the court of public opinion, that noise won't cease until Caleb and Bastian are back here. And I've already organized a video meeting to reassure our own. Tomorrow afternoon."

"Well… good."

"I'm of sound mind, Luke. Don't let Dante's overreaction to my interaction with Ben Harvey get to you."

"So what you did to Ben was just you not pulling any punches?"

"In essence."

"What about pulling on these legitimate military contacts of yours?"

"We're dealing with black ops and a whole lot of subterfuge. It would raise more concerns if they knew I was delving into that. They can't be made aware. It will only backfire and serve to further complicate things. It could even slow us down with us being forced to adhere to protocols and specific rules of engagement."

He gave a nod, then went to head out of my office.

But then he stopped and eyed me over his shoulder. "Be careful. It's a dangerous line to walk. Some acts are incredibly difficult to live with in the aftermath, Caspian. Too much of it will weigh you down more than you can possibly imagine. I don't want that for you. None of us do and the boys certainly don't either. Just keep that in mind."

With that, he smiled sadly, then closed the door.

Hell.

I shook it off and rounded my desk, taking a seat, and starting to look through Caleb's phone for the information I would need to ensure his rehabilitation facilities wouldn't suffer in his absence.

But then an unopened text caught my attention.

Ash: Got something. Call me.

I growled low in my throat.

And then I took in the rest of the text conversation.

One particular aspect stood out to me.

Ash: Working on it. Based on what you've told me, suspicion regarding Mancini is valid, my friend. Trust your instincts.

Caleb: Appreciate it, Ash.

"Oh, Caleb."

He was still in direct contact with Asher Monroe.

And he hadn't told me.

Now I could see why.

He was investigating Dante and he'd tasked Asher with such a difficult task.

If he'd gone this far, his suspicion was more than simply borne from jealousy or paranoia because I'd allowed Dante into our inner circle. He would have just pursued information on his own if that was the case. Going to the likes of that psychopath was a whole other level, marking its severity.

Bastian was the one who could read people exceptionally well, but he hadn't spent as much time around Dante, nor even up close, as Caleb had. During our dealings of the last couple of years, I hadn't brought Dante around Bastian at all. That had only changed very recently.

Even as much as his disapproval of my more extreme methods had pissed me off, there still wasn't a single part of me that believed he had any ill intent toward me and mine.

But seeing this from Caleb now, his determination to investigate him, it did spark suspicion that there was actually more to his alliance and friendship than met the eye.

I shoved my hand through my hair. I'd been so focused on this war, on accounting for every little thing, then dealing with Caleb and Skylar returning, Bastian's health, that I'd needed an ally and support in Dante so much that I hadn't delved any deeper beyond making certain he wasn't actually a threat.

I just didn't have time to attend to the issue at the moment.

But somebody else did.

Of course, it wouldn't come without consequences to reach out to him. Being who and what he was, that was a given.

My own phone buzzed on my desk and I put Caleb's down to snatch it up.

I tensed, my muscles locking as I took it in.

Blocked ID: Long time since we've had direct contact, King. How have you been? Oh, that's right, interfering with my shit, you vindictive fuck. XOXO Elijah B.

"Son of a bitch."

Before I could respond, another message came in.

Blocked ID: Your beloveds are settling in very well with me. Miss them yet? How about we make a deal for their safe return?

I gritted my teeth, my fingers tightening around my phone.

King: What do you want?

Blocked ID: Simple. Compensation for what you took from me.

King: What's your price?

Blocked ID: King.

King: Your negotiation skills are lacking. Coming in far too high. The ask needs to be reasonable.

Blocked ID: That's not how I run my business.

King: And behold the fallout of that.

Blocked ID: My ask stands.

King: King is not equal compensation to Bane Industries. It's miles beyond.

Blocked ID: Fortunately, I have powerful leverage to close that gap, don't I?You're finally going to have to make the choice you thought you could avoid, that you believed you were above making. Power or love, King?

Blocked ID: I'll give you some time to think about it.

King: Proof of life. Now.

Blocked ID: Certainly.

In the next moment, two photos came through. He'd obviously been prepared.

I opened up the first, noting the timestamp was from today, my gut twisting as I took in Bastian bound in a dark room looking gaunt and in bad shape.

I braced myself as I opened the second, the timestamp also from today. I choked as I took in Caleb bound naked to a bed passed out and covered in various fluids, being abused by two sex toys.

Caspian: You sick motherfucker!

Blocked ID: Like I said, I'll give you some time to mull over my demand. Don't take too long, though. You've now seen what your boys are enduring. Wouldn't want their continued suffering to be your fault directly. I'd imagine that would be hard to live with.

It took everything I had not to haul my phone across the room and watch it decimate.

I put it down and gripped my desk, fighting to get a handle on my rage and a whole lot of unruly emotions threatening to take me over.

Focus.

Focus on the mission.

So much for contacting that psychopath once all of this was done in order not to further complicate matters.

It had to be now.

But not just for the reason Caleb had reached out to him.

I needed a ringer.

And Asher Monroe was most definitely it.