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Chapter 21

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Vincenzo

Aiden had approached me and apologized, much like a child ordered by his parent would. I accepted simply to move forward and hoped Fred had the man on a leash.

"Richie called." Zion entered the room just as we were finishing up our food.

"And?" Fred wiped his mouth and relaxed in his chair.

"Tomorrow at noon, if agreeable with you, Albert March would like to meet with you."

Fred nodded. "That's doable. Where?"

"Lancaster Port. There's a fish market there. He said it's safe behind the store because one whole side is water, so we'd be able to stay protected and discreet."

Fred looked over at me, and something inside warmed at the thought that he was wondering my opinion on this.

I hummed. "Have Eden and Parker take a few exercitus and case the place out tonight and get there an hour early tomorrow."

"Yes, good idea," Fred agreed.

"Understood." His tablet in hand, Zion left the room.

Only Aiden, Fred, and I remained.

"I'm going to go to bed if business is concluded for the day?" Aiden asked Fred, not even sparing me a glance.

"It's been a long day. Good night, Aiden."

"Sir." He stood, still never meeting my eyes, and left the dining room. Now it was just Fred and myself.

"Would you care to join me in the sitting room for a drink?" I offered, hoping he'd accept but knowing the day had indeed been very long and taxing.

"One drink wouldn't hurt." Fred stood, and I held back my smile as he regarded me, clearly suspicious.

"Very good."

Once in the sitting room, Fred took a seat on the blue tufted sofa, his gaze moving directly out the window. The gentle lighting in the garden gave off an ethereal ambiance. Between the calming light and the company of this delightfully bratty and beautiful redheaded man, I felt at peace.

"Any preferences?" I inquired as I stood at the small bar.

"Whatever you're having is fine," he said without looking away from the view.

I poured the golden-brown liquid into two tumblers and added a couple of ice cubes to them and joined Fred by the window. There was a matching chair by the couch I took once he accepted my drink.

"Thank you." He didn't ask what it was, just took a sip. Trusting or reckless? Two very different definitions and outcomes once figured out.

He made an appreciative sound. "What is this?"

"Drambuie on the rocks."

"It's delicious. I can taste the honey and spices, but they're not overwhelming. Smooth."

I smiled, pleased he enjoyed the beverage as it was my favorite post-dinner drink. "Glad you like it."

After he took another few sips and rested the glass on the table, I broached a topic with him I'd avoided…Future me might hit present me upside the head.

"Fred, I know you've had a trying day, and I hate to burden you further. But before we meet with Albert tomorrow, I feel I should discuss something that has been on my mind."

He sighed as if I'd shattered the fragile peace he was wrapped in. "Rip it off like a Band-Aid."

"I've been going over everything about the night your uncle and cousin were killed. One thing keeps bothering me."

"Only one?" He snorted.

"Well, yes, actually. I am examining all of this as the professional killer I am. I can remove emotion and only concentrate on facts."

Fred seesawed his head back and forth. "Fair. And what's keeping you up at night, Vincenzo?"

Was there a purr in his voice? Shit, was he flirting, teasing? Maybe I was reading into something that wasn't there. Shit . I was about to burst the bubble I'd worked so hard to slip into with Fred.

"You said you told Aiden to stay with Zion as you left the restaurant. He naturally disagreed and explained he very much didn't like you going without him."

"Right, but stupid me thought we were fine."

"Not stupid, relaxed. And sadly for people like you and me, it's a rare feeling we embrace when we can."

He nodded. "True, so go on."

"If Aiden had followed you, he'd likely have been killed or wounded. Perhaps the whole scenario would have changed."

"I imagine it would have. My uncle might have been able to save Aine, or concentrated on himself and I wouldn't have lost them both that night."

"My point is…" I didn't want him falling into the hole he was sliding into. "If the plan originally was for four of you and not three of you, how'd it go down the way it did?" I held up my hand because I knew it was unclear. "Zion told me that the shots were fired about two minutes after you exited the restaurant with your uncle and Aine. But right after you left without Aiden, he took his phone out and texted someone."

He shrugged. "Okay…he does that. I tend to not follow rules; he might have had Kieran or Adam or somebody on the street and was getting a message to them to watch me."

"Did you see them?"

"I didn't see anything, Vincenzo." Fred's eyes narrowed. "All I saw was the SUV rounding the corner briefly before shots were fired. Then my uncle's face, then nothing."

"You're not going to like what I have to say next, Fred."

"I'm already not liking it, Vin." He quirked a brow as he shortened my name.

"We need to get our hands on Aiden's cell phone records, or find out if he has a burner. We need to get more information as to who Aiden texted and why. How'd he walk away from that?"

"You're dry humping my last nerve." Fred shifted in his seat. "I just explained it to you. It was fast, and even if any of my guys were nearby, I doubt they would have been able to get to me."

"They'd have tried to stop the SUV, though."

He tilted his head. "Huh?"

"The only bullets embedded in the SUV that were found were Zion's from when he tried to stop it. If Aiden had put guys on the street, you and I both know they'd have unleashed on that SUV or at least chased it…and they would have caught it. Where were all your people that night, Fred, and who the hell did Aiden text?"

Fred visibly swallowed, and his coloring turned ashen. "I…I'm tired." His voice cracked. "I want to go to bed."

"Fred."

"No, Vincenzo, I've heard enough. Good night."

I watched Fred speed walk out of the sitting room, and I cursed myself for saying anything. Zion had told me not once but three times the play-by-play of that night, and more questions arose with no answers. I didn't trust Aiden, but the truth was, I didn't trust anyone outside of my own people. Well, maybe Fred, but that was an oddity.

I reached into my pocket and called Kehlani.

"Yes, Praeses," they answered.

"I want eyes on Aiden's and Fred's doors and patrols every fifteen minutes along the premises."

"Yes, sir."

They didn't ask why; they understood the order. If I angered Fred enough for him to grab Aiden and go, I wanted to be prepared. As it was, sleep wouldn't find me tonight.

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