Chapter 6

6

Gideon's words came at him so fast, André couldn't keep up. One after the other, his secrets kept falling from Gideon's lips, and it took a minute for him to truly hear the question Gideon was awaiting an answer to.

"Could he be trying to get rid of you permanently?"

He, the man who'd fathered and abandoned André.

Someone had tried to kill him and Jules? Their home had clearly been ransacked, as if the perpetrators had been searching for something. What the fuck was his life right now? And now Gideon thought the culprit was Ennis Canto. The same man who wanted nothing to do with André? Couldn't be.

"André."

He blinked at Gideon, who watched him with a calm, direct stare.

"Answer the question. Could your father be behind this?"

His father. It was laughable that someone would even be asking him that kind of question. Why would anyone—even the man who didn't want him—want to kill him? He did nothing but mind his business and take care of Jules. He literally did nothing else. "I think you're mistaken," he told Gideon. There could be no other explanation for this. He had André confused with someone else. "Thank you for your assistance earlier, but I'm gonna take my sister and leave now. We won't take up any more of your time." He turned toward the door. Obviously, this guy had been in hiding for far too long; he couldn't be thinking straight. Nothing he said made any sense.

"There is a price on your head." Gideon's voice didn't raise. He just said that shit calmly at André's back as if he spoke those words every day. What kind of world was he living in and how the fuck could André get far away from it? "If you leave here, I can't guarantee your safety."

André spun to face him at that. "Guarantee my safety?" He narrowed his eyes. "Dude, I don't know you. You can't guarantee shit for me." The fucking ego on this guy.

Gideon's lips twitched and he strode over. He did that a lot, André noticed. Stayed close, up in his face, chest to chest. His stare was intense, but André refused to back down or look away. Gideon and Ennis moved in the same world. They were cut from the same cloth. Both thought they were entitled to power and respect simply because of their last names and the amount of money in their bank accounts.

"I can guarantee you and your sister won't survive the morning if you leave here," Gideon murmured. "I can guarantee you have no idea the shitstorm you're in the middle of just by virtue of whose blood flows through your veins." He cocked his head, expression almost amused when he said, "And I can also guarantee there is nowhere safer than here, under my protection."

Secrets shifted behind his eyes, bigger and darker shit that André didn't want to know about. Just the knowledge that they existed at all had him wanting to take a step back. He meant what he said; he didn't know anything about Gideon besides what little Jules told him earlier. And if any of that were true…he wanted exactly zero parts of it.

He tried to think rationally. Tried to work shit out in his head, ignoring Gideon and that stare of his that made André almost want to do what the other man asked. Almost.

The house had been ransacked; he'd seen the proof of it. His and Jules's photo had been on the pizza shop robber's phone. They were targets, he and Jules.

But targeted for what?

By whom? Not the father who wanted nothing to do with him? The same person who deposited money into André's account every month as if that was all he needed for absolution? Nah.

He took in the man standing in front of him as if he had zero care in the world, waiting for André to speak.

"I want to know what you know." Because Gideon Winters, with all his money and his infinitely powerful reach, definitely knew something.

"Why?" Gideon lifted an eyebrow. "I thought you didn't believe me?"

André rolled his eyes but didn't give him the satisfaction of speaking.

After a short pause, Gideon blew out a breath and returned to his desk, picking up his iPad. He gazed down at it, swiping with one finger as he spoke. "There were six men in total. Robbing the pizza shop wasn't part of the plan. They were just supposed to wait there for you since they knew your routine."

How the fuck did he even know that much? André opened his mouth to ask, but Gideon beat him to the punch.

"We found the two who destroyed your place. They were happy to share some things."

André blinked. What the fuck? "What does that mean?"

"Hmm?" Gideon glanced up at him. "Oh, my security team had a nice conversation with them."

See, the words said one thing but that tone and the gleam in his eyes said something different. The hairs on André's arms lifted. Out of his depth. He was out. Of. His. Fucking. Depth. Who was this man? And why was André still standing there, listening to him talk? Why wasn't he grabbing Jules and getting the fuck outta there? "T-that's five. The three at the pizza shop and two at my house. That's five. One's missing."

"Oh no, he's not missing," Gideon said, and fear iced André's chest.

That tone signaled something bad. "What do you want?" He'd asked before and gotten no satisfactory response. "All this that you're doing…" He gestured in a circle with a finger. "You don't know me, haven't met me until tonight, yet you're invested." Because he saw it in Gideon's eyes. "What do you want?"

Gideon put the iPad down on his desk, then faced André with a smile. "I want Ennis Canto."

André frowned. "For what?"

Gideon simply lifted a shoulder. "Why does one man want another man?"

Okay, he could keep his secrets. André wanted nothing to do with it. "Where do my sister and I come in? How did you even know about my connection to Ennis?"

Gideon grinned. "There are no secrets I'm not privy to, not when I am who I am."

"What does that even mean? Who are you?"

"A man on a mission. As for why I'm helping you, you're how I'll get close to Ennis."

And there it was. "No." He didn't give a fuck who was out there trying to do what to him. He'd chance that rather than willingly stay and allow Gideon to use him and Jules as fucking bait. "Jules and I are leaving." He didn't wait for a response, yanking open the door and retracing his steps back to Jules in quick strides. He pulled open Jules's bedroom door and found her reclining in bed, chuckling at something playing on the humongous TV while eating a slice of cake.

"Dré!" She smiled at him. "Here, have some cake."

"Not now, Jules. Get dressed, we're leaving."

She pouted. "Already? I thought we were staying the night."

"Dunno who gave you that impression, but they were wrong." He glanced around the room, then back to her. "You need help with anything?" he asked, ignoring her disappointed expression.

"No." Her shoulders slumped.

"Hey." He cupped her chin, tugging her head up to meet his gaze. "We don't know these people. We don't belong here." He was going to get them a hotel for the next couple of days and use that time to figure out his next moves, but he would figure it out.

Jules nodded, lips pressed together.

"Okay. Now go ahead and get yourself together. We leave in twenty. I'll be outside your door." He left her with a peck on the cheek and exited the bedroom, standing just outside. He half expected Gideon to follow and try to stop him, but he hadn't. So that was good.

If there truly was someone out there trying to hurt him and Jules, what was he going to do? Call the cops? He couldn't tell them about the pizza shop because as far as they knew, there'd been no other parties involved. And what could the cops do against someone as powerful as Ennis Canto if he were indeed the one behind all that happened tonight? Gideon had shown André just how easy it was for men like that to come in and change the course of an investigation with nothing but their presence.

How was he going to keep Jules safe?

"I'm ready." Jules wheeled herself out of the bedroom just as Gideon appeared as if on cue. "Gideon!"

"Miss Juliette." His smile was genuine, reaching his eyes, crinkling the corners. André stared. "It's been a pleasure having you, even if our time together was so short." He knelt beside her and she threw her arms around his neck as if they were old friends.

André shook his head. Jules was like that, open and friendly. He had to always be the one to bring her back down to earth. "Let's go, Jules. Mister Winters." He nodded at Gideon, who straightened to his full height once Jules released him. "Thank you for your help."

"Of course." Gideon nodded, expression impassive, save for something that gleamed in his eyes. "I'm glad you're not worried about the home invasion and attempt on you and your sister's life."

Jules gasped. "What?"

Fuck!

"I'm sorry you couldn't take me up on my offer to stay here under my protection." Gideon held André's gaze, his eyes issuing a challenge. "Be safe out there."

"Wait, André. What did he say?"

"Jules—" Gideon did that shit on purpose. André swallowed his fury as he told his sister, "Don't worry."

"Somebody tried to kill us?" Jules's shrill voice bounced off the walls, panic in her eyes, on her face. "Somebody wants to kill us?" Her lips trembled.

"Jules." André bent over and took her face in his hands, silently cursing when he felt the tremors that racked her body. "You're safe. I won't let anything or anyone hurt you."

"But why are we leaving?" Her eyes were wet and clouded with fear. "G-Gideon can protect us."

"That's not his responsibility, Jules," André told his sister softly. "We're not his responsibility."

"But there are people out there who want to hurt us!" she yelled. "How can we protect ourselves? Gideon can do that. He has the power to do that."

André very much resented Jules's faith in the all-powerful Gideon Winters, who she'd only met that very night, but he couldn't call her on it. She was scared, and it was his job to alleviate that fear. To ensure her safety. And right now, she buried her face in his chest, clinging to him, her body shaking. She was scared out of her mind. It broke his heart.

"Hey." He pressed a kiss to her temple. "We can stay. We'll stay here and let Gideon protect us until we know there's no threat." He'd do anything to keep her safe.

Jules leaned back, gaze searching his. "You're sure?" she asked, voice hesitant.

"Do you feel safe here?" She nodded vigorously. "Then of course, I'm sure." And it was worth it to see the smile that broke out on her face, wobbly at first and then steadier. She pressed a kiss to his cheek and released him, reaching up both hands to Gideon and hugging him around his waist.

"Thank you, Gideon." She wheeled back to her bedroom. "I'll be in my room!" she called before the door closed behind her.

Her room. André faced Gideon with a glower, hands fisted. "You did that shit on purpose."

Gideon shrugged. "I always get what I want, André. Now, let me show you to your room. I had it prepared for you while we were talking in my office." He started walking.

André didn't move. "Wait, what?" He'd only just now decided to stay.

"Like I said…" Gideon glanced over his shoulder with a smirk. "I always get what I want."

Gideon took a deep breath as his pilot touched the helicopter down on the roof of the prison. Visiting a place like this wasn't high on the list of things he wanted to do, but—like everything he did—it was a necessity.

He waited for Samir and Will to exit the chopper first, then Samir opened the door for him and Gideon stepped out, buttoning his jacket, eyeing the three men waiting for them. At just after two a.m. on a Tuesday morning, this wasn't your typical visit. But he hadn't met a person yet, man or woman, who would say no to him.

Actually, no, he had.

He gritted his teeth when he thought about André, shoving the man back into the recesses of his mind. Now wasn't the time.

"Mister Winters." John Barrows, the prison's warden, approached him with an outstretched hand. "Welcome, sir." There were only two other men with him, but Gideon ignored them. He ignored Barrows's hand too, jerking his chin toward the building.

"Everything set?"

Barrows lowered his hand and nodded. "Yes, sir." He was a hulking presence, towering over Gideon in his wrinkled black suit. He had a receding hairline, his dark brown skin dull, eyes bloodshot, looking way older than his sixty-two years. Gideon imagined it was the stuff of nightmares, trying to run a prison that housed some of the worst of humanity.

"Lead the way," he instructed Barrows, and the man did.

Gideon kept pace with him, his people and Barrows's a step behind as they entered the prison through a secret entrance. Their footsteps echoed on scratched but shiny floors as they made their way through winding corridors. They must've walked for about ten minutes before Barrows stopped at a door. He opened it with a key, and Samir entered alone first, gun in hand while Gideon waited outside.

When Samir came back out, meeting his gaze before stepping aside, Gideon entered the room.

It was small, with dark carpet and no windows, smelling of something hot and stale that turned Gideon's stomach. A man waited for him, seated in one of two chairs in the room with his back to Gideon, gray head bowed, clad in prison garb.

Gideon glanced over his shoulder and nodded to Samir, who pulled the door closed, leaving Gideon alone with the man waiting for him. He didn't lift his head until Gideon stood in front of him, waiting in silence. And when he did look up, he smiled, brown eyes wrinkling at the corners.

"You know who I am?" Gideon asked him.

"Even in here, you can't escape news about the prodigal son who returned from the dead."

Lips twitching, Gideon sank into the chair opposite him and leaned back, crossing his ankles as he met the other man's eyes. He'd been a kid the last time he'd seen Warren Choi. To the child Gideon had been back then, Warren had seemed untouchable. He'd worn his wealth and power like armor. Protected. Someone who could never be brought down from his soaring heights. Much like Gideon's own father. Now, his father was dead and Warren was caged.

Funny how things changed.

It'd taken a few days to set up this meeting once Ree finally answered her father's call and reported it to Samir. Warren had to be secretly transported to this prison for the meeting since he was housed out of state. The logistics involved a whole lot of money changing hands.

"Do you have what I came for?" he asked Warren.

Warren nodded at the question but didn't say anything else.

"You want something in return." Gideon didn't phrase it as a question because it wasn't.

Warren cocked his head. "You know, Aldo and I thought for sure you and Rebecca would grow up and marry each other." He chuckled. "You were each other's shadow from the moment you met."

Gideon didn't speak, nor did he give Warren any indication that the words meant anything to him. Because they didn't. He'd been an innocent boy then. He was neither of those things now. So he just sat back as Warren kept talking.

"She hates me, you know. Rebecca. Ree." Warren rubbed his jaw with the hand that wasn't handcuffed to the back of his chair. "She blames me for her mother. For all of it."

He did have a part to play in why he was in his current position, but Warren already knew that, so Gideon didn't bother pointing it out.

"The other day was the first time she spoke to me in years and that was because of you." Warren swallowed, voice rough when he said, "Thank you for that."

There was more. Gideon waited.

"I want you to make her talk to me." Warren's gaze sharpened on Gideon's face. "You can do that."

He could do anything. Gideon wasn't about to do that , though. Still, he nodded and got to his feet. "Anything else?"

Warren remained seated, gazing up at him with a gleam in his eye. "I'm sure I'll be able to think of something. I'll reach out when I do."

Gideon held his stare. He still didn't have what he'd come for.

"Paul Traeger. That's the name of the man who hired the assassins to kill you."

Gideon inhaled deeply. The second attempt on his life—after they'd taken his mother, they'd tried again. His father had suspected that whoever made the second attempt was not responsible for the first. Gideon didn't know how or why Aldo thought that, but they'd run with it, hunting two different sets of assassins.

And Aldo's hunch had paid off, it seemed. It made Gideon smile, the idea that his father was rarely ever wrong.

"I don't know where he is now or if he's even alive. He's been MIA for nearly as many years as you've been dead." Warren smirked at his weak attempt at being funny. "But find him and you'll most likely find the person on The Council who set the entire thing in motion."

Gideon nodded, blowing out a breath. "Thank you, Warren."

"I did my part," Warren told him. "Now, it's time to do yours."

"It is," Gideon answered gravely. And he pulled the Glock from his waistband and put a bullet between Warren's eyes. The others had to have heard the gunshot but nobody came in. Gideon stared down at Warren, at his head thrown back, eyes still open but sightless.

He'd been a chess piece, set up and put in place by Gideon's father with the promise of freedom if Warren played his part and did as instructed. His only job had been to get close to one man inside the prison where he'd been sent to serve out his sentence, to become his best friend, his confidant…hell, his lover if need be. Then pump him for information. He'd done that, but Gideon no longer needed him, and what little Warren did know was already too much. Gideon wasn't about to keep anybody alive who could hurt him and his plans in any way. Warren was always going to die, but he'd sped up the process by demanding things.

Shoving his gun back into his waistband, Gideon went to the door and pulled it open, meeting the warden's gaze. Barrows didn't like what was happening, but he couldn't do shit to change it. "I'm done here." Gideon nodded to Samir and Will. "Let's move." He walked away without a backward glance, leaving Barrow and his people to handle Warren's body.

In no time, he was in the chopper and headed back to his penthouse. He stared unseeing out the window. He had a name now. He'd already texted Marco, who'd remained at the penthouse with Kaleb and a dozen others watching over André and his sister. Marco would get to work on finding Paul Traeger.

In the meantime, Gideon would try to get some sleep.

The operative word being try .

But as he walked into his office, flanked by Samir and Will, Samir turned to him, lips twitching as if he were trying not to smile.

"What?" Gideon demanded.

Samir glanced down at his phone. "Kaleb says our guests are still up, watching a movie in the media room."

Gideon had done so well not thinking about André with that stubborn gleam in eyes that reminded him of his enemy. "What does that have to do with me?"

"The girl heard the chopper. She wants to know if you'll join them."

Gideon frowned, glancing at his watch. "It's almost four in the fucking morning."

Will chuckled. Samir just walked away, but not before smirking at Gideon.

"Sounds like you're her new favorite person," Will teased before she too left, leaving Gideon standing alone in the middle of his office.

His plan for keeping André and Juliette close was so that he could use them to get to Ennis. Use André. Nothing in that plan included getting close to Juliette, whose eyes lit up every time they landed on Gideon.

But Juliette was the key to getting André under control.

So, despite the tiredness battering him and his gritty eyes, Gideon made his way down to the media room. They were on the couch, on either end. Juliette looked as alert as if it were four in the afternoon, eyes on the screen. André, on the other hand, his eyes were closed, hands folded atop his belly as he lay sprawled out on his back.

Juliette spotted Gideon first as he stood in the doorway. "Gideon!" She waved him in.

André's eyes opened. He did not look happy. Likely still carrying a grudge from earlier.

"Come watch a movie with us."

"Why aren't you asleep, Miss Juliette?"

She shrugged. "Couldn't fall asleep, so Dré said we should watch a movie." She gazed up at him, light from the movie playing across her face. "Where'd you go? That was you in the helicopter that landed on the roof, right?"

He nodded. "Yes, I had to take care of some business." The couch was wide and long enough that he took a seat between her and André, who still hadn't spoken, shaking his head when Juliette offered him popcorn. The bowl was nearly empty. "I'm not staying. I just wanted to check on you." He lifted his gaze to André, then back to Juliette. "How are you?"

"I'm okay." Leaning toward him, she lowered her tone. "Stay for a little bit?"

"Sure."

Somehow Gideon ended up accepting popcorn the next time Juliette pushed the bowl his way, watching some kind of spy movie all while ignoring André's sullen, heavy gaze. He leaned his head back, allowing the tension to drain from his shoulders.

In the middle of a loud car chase on screen, he closed his eyes.

Just for a little while, then he'd leave.

Only for a little while.