Chapter Nine

Leo

I sat in my office swirling the amber whiskey in my glass and watched the liquid catch the dim light of the room. I had slipped into my office after leaving Brynn in her room. The calm was welcome, but my mind was far from at ease. The burn of the whiskey hadn’t done much to dull the thoughts racing through my head.

Brynn. Maranga. What the hell?

A knock on the door pulled me out of my thoughts. I straightened in my chair, already knowing who it would be.

“Come in,” I called, my voice rougher than I intended.

Apollo entered quietly, moving with that careful precision he always had. He slid into one of the chairs in front of my desk, the leather creaking softly under his weight. He didn’t say anything right away, just watched me with those sharp, assessing eyes of his. I was surprised it had taken him this long to track me down.

I let the silence stretch between us for a moment, draining my glass before setting it down on the desk with a solid thud. The sound broke the tension in the room, and Apollo finally spoke.

“You want me to ask, or are you just going to tell me?” His voice was quiet, but there was an edge to it—one that said he wasn’t leaving until he had answers.

I met his gaze, but I didn’t have the answers he wanted. Hell, I didn’t have the answers I wanted.

“Pretty sure most of your questions are the same ones I’ve been asking myself.” I leaned back in my chair, rubbing a hand over my jaw. “And I’m not sure I have any more clarity than you do.”

Apollo leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Why don’t you start with Brynn being married to Maranga?” he suggested, his voice low but insistent.

I scoffed, shaking my head. “Still trying to wrap my own head around that one.”

“How the fuck does that happen, Leo?” Apollo’s voice was sharper now. “We kept tabs on her all these years. There was never any indication—none—that she was married. Let alone to Guy Maranga .”

I tipped my head to the side, rubbing my fingers together as I thought. “I guess that’s one of the perks of being the most powerful man in the world. You can afford to fly under the radar, no matter what.”

Apollo stared at me, waiting for more. I knew he needed an explanation, but the truth was, I didn’t have one. I’d been blindsided when I found out just as much as he had.

“Do you think she knew who he was when they got married?” he asked, voice quieter now.

I shook my head, feeling that same gnawing uncertainty creep up again. “I don’t know, Apollo. Part of me says no, because she would’ve never gone down that path willingly. But another part…” I trailed off, not wanting to finish that thought.

He rubbed his hand over his face. “This complicates things.”

“That’s putting it lightly.” I reached for the bottle on the desk, pouring another glass of whiskey. “We’re in deep now with their help with Candace, and I don’t even know how far.”

Apollo leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “She was a part of your life a long time ago. You’ve changed since then. So has she.”

“I know that too,” I said quietly, the weight of those words settling over me. We had both changed and yet, seeing her again stirred up things I hadn’t expected—things I thought I’d buried a long time ago. But this was more than just old feelings. This was dangerous , and the stakes were higher than they’d ever been.

“Let’s roll this back a bit,” Apollo said, his voice tight with frustration. “How the hell did Maranga get involved with this? I didn’t know you had connections to him. Did Brynn reach out to you or something?”

I took a slow sip of my whiskey, the burn of the alcohol doing little to ease the weight on my shoulders. I wanted more than anything to tell Apollo the truth—that Brynn wasn’t just involved with Maranga now because she wanted to be, but because Guy was dead . But that was Brynn’s secret, not mine, and I knew she’d never forgive me if I spilled it.

“Maranga’s got his eye on everyone,” I said, keeping my voice as steady as possible. “He got wind that Candace was coming after us and… offered to help.” I made it sound simple, though it was anything but.

Apollo leaned forward, narrowing his eyes. “But then he sends Brynn ?”

I could see it in his face—he wasn’t buying my watered-down version of events. Not fully. Apollo was too sharp for that. I held up my hands, trying to keep things from spiraling further out of control.

“I can’t give you all the answers right now, Apollo, because they aren’t mine to give.” I hated saying it. But it was the truth.

Apollo’s eyes hardened. “So, you want us to blindly follow you? But now also Brynn and Maranga?” There was an edge to his voice.

I pointed a finger at my chest. “You follow me , and you know I will never put you guys in a situation where there’s known trouble. Ever.”

“ Blindly ,” he growled. “We’ve been with you a long damn time, Leo, and you know we’ll do whatever you ask of us. But this?” He shook his head, his frustration bubbling over. “This is more than we’ve ever dealt with. I’m not the only one with a family now. Murphy, Creed, Princeton… they’ve all got people in their lives they care about. People, they don’t want to get caught up in something like this.”

His words hit hard, and I couldn’t blame him. He wasn’t wrong. I could see the worry etched into his face, and it wasn’t just for himself. This was bigger than just us now. Our choices weren’t just affecting the men who stood beside me—they were affecting their families, too.

I locked eyes with Apollo, my voice low but firm. “And I swear on my life, nothing will happen to them.”

Apollo crossed his arms, his jaw tight. “Well, getting into bed with Guy Maranga doesn’t seem like the way to keep that promise.”

I let out a long sigh, sinking back into my chair. Apollo was right. This was a mess. And it was getting more complicated by the minute. But there was no turning back now. Brynn would have to come clean with the guys. There was no other way.

“We’re meeting with Brynn in a little bit,” I said, shifting my tone to something more resolute. “Ask her all the questions you just asked me. If she doesn’t give you the answers you want, then I’ll tell you what I can.”

Apollo’s eyes narrowed. He wasn’t letting me off that easy. “So there is more to this.”

I turned my chair away from him, looking out the window into the night. The green expanse of the yard stretched before me, quiet and still. But inside, everything was churning.

“So much more,” I muttered, my voice barely above a whisper.

Apollo didn’t say anything for a moment, the weight of my words hanging in the air between us. I knew he wasn’t satisfied with what I’d told him. Hell, I wasn’t satisfied either. But this situation had spiraled into something so much bigger than either of us had anticipated.

“Leo,” Apollo said, his voice softer now, less demanding. “If there’s something you’re not telling me… if it’s something that could get us all killed—”

I cut him off before he could finish. “It’s not like that. I wouldn’t drag you guys into something I couldn’t handle.” I stood from my chair, pacing behind the desk. “But I’m not going to lie to you either. This is messy. Brynn’s tied up in something, but she didn’t ask for this.”

Apollo watched me, his gaze steady but unreadable. “And Maranga?”

I clenched my jaw. “Maranga’s powerful. We all know that. But for now… he’s not our enemy. And as long as we play this right, it’ll stay that way.”

“For now,” Apollo repeated, a hint of skepticism in his voice.

“For now,” I confirmed. “But if it changes, we’ll deal with it.”

He stood up from his chair, eyes locked onto mine. “We better be ready to deal with it.”

“We will be,” I said firmly, though I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince—him or myself.

Apollo let out a heavy breath, rubbing the back of his neck. “I just hope Brynn knows what the hell she’s doing.”

I didn’t have an answer for that, either. The truth was, I wasn’t sure any of us knew what the hell we were doing. We were flying blind and trying to piece together a puzzle that none of us had the full picture for.

If there was one thing I was sure of, it was that Brynn wasn’t going to hurt us.

Apollo gave me one last look, something unspoken passing between us, before he turned and headed for the door. But before he left, he paused, his hand on the doorknob.

“Leo,” he said, not looking back. “I trust you. You know that.”

“I know,” I replied, my voice steady. “I won’t let you down.”

He nodded once, then slipped out the door, leaving me alone in the quiet of my office. The weight of everything hung heavy on my shoulders, and I poured another glass of whiskey, though I wasn’t sure it would help this time.

I downed the drink in one go, setting the glass on the desk with a soft clink. This was just the beginning. There were still too many unanswered questions, too many things that could go wrong.

And deep down, I had a feeling it was only going to get worse before it got better.