Chapter Forty

CHAPTER FORTY

Chicago, Illinois

“ A ny questions about our cover before we head out?” Ash asked.

Sitting on the sofa in the hotel suite they’d booked for the week, Gideon draped his arm around Eve and shook his head. He then glanced down at his wife for confirmation. “Seems fairly straightforward to us, right, darling? We go in as investors interested in either buying or forming a relationship with Ryan Doyle.”

Taking a drink of coffee, Ash swallowed and nodded. “Ryan Doyle has been putting out feelers for investors for a few months now, so it shouldn’t raise any flags that we’re anything other than that. I want to get the lay of the land and get a feel for the family as a whole.”

“Because there’s no indication that anyone in Doyle’s family knew what that bastard Kevin did,” Gideon said.

“Exactly.”

“Both men, Kevin and Ryan, have successful, legitimate businesses, which means they both knew how to hide behind a facade,” Eve warned.

“True. I don’t expect Ryan to give up any secrets, but I want to see him face-to-face before we start accusing him of anything nefarious. Serena has found no evidence that Ryan Doyle is not one hundred percent legit. From all accounts, he and his father were not close. So just because the old man was a scumbag doesn’t mean the son is.”

Xavier sat a few feet away from the group and listened to the plan. He was here only for observation and backup. They were going on the assumption that Kevin Doyle had found Jazz because of the social media posts about Bass’s shooting, and Xavier had been with her in those videos. If Ryan Doyle was involved with what his father had done and Xavier showed up as an interested investor, Ryan might recognize him, thwarting this fact-finding mission.

Which was why this low-key mission was driving him out of his mind. Everything within him wanted to go through the city and clear out every single threat against Jazz. Problem was—they had no idea who and how many there were. Had Kevin Doyle been a lone wolf, taking it upon himself to try to grab power and money and establish himself as the leader of their newly regenerated organization? Or were others involved?

He considered himself a patient man, and he liked mysteries and puzzles. This wasn’t one of those times, though. Jazz’s life was in danger, and taking the slow, methodical route went against every instinct he had.

Returning his eyes to the intel lying on his lap, Xavier reviewed what Serena and her people had been able to uncover about Doyle and his family.

On paper, Kevin Doyle had been a wealthy businessman, owning several businesses, including three restaurants, two convenience stores, and a dry cleaner. They were good fronts, and as long as you didn’t dig too deep, you wouldn’t be able to tell that they were all excellent sources to launder a ton of money.

Fortunately, OZ knew how to dig beyond the depths most people could never reach. So beneath that sparkling-clean surface, Kevin Doyle had been a small-arms dealer and importer of designer knockoffs from Thailand, which he sold for ten times their actual value to local clothing stores.

Years ago, when Ronan Byrne had been alive, Doyle had enjoyed a high position within the Byrne crime family. Then Byrne died and everything fell apart. Doyle had likely seen Jazz as his way back to the top of the crime family, with him calling the shots.

Only it hadn’t worked out that way. Doyle had had no idea what he was getting himself into when he’d captured Jazz McAlister. He had, in fact, likely never met anyone quite like Jazz. Xavier smiled at the thought, because there was no one quite like her anywhere.

Why Doyle had died by his own hand was a mystery. That left the hundred million dollars up for grabs for anyone willing to get their hands dirty and go after the only person who would have access to those funds. Who would that be?

Ash was right, though, that Doyle’s son looked clean. Ryan was a thirty-year-old father of two sons and had a baby girl on the way. He looked like a successful man, totally devoted to his family. He’d even married his childhood sweetheart, who had absolutely no ties to the Irish mob.

The “get the lay of the land” meeting that Ash, Gideon, and Eve were getting ready to attend would hopefully give them all a better idea of what they were facing. And while he couldn’t be there, Eve would be wearing a brooch with a small camera and microphone so he’d be able to hear and see everything.

For about the twentieth time in the last half hour, Xavier checked his phone for a text. Even though it would’ve chimed if he’d gotten one, he couldn’t help looking anyway. He knew Jazz was fine. She’d called him last night, right before she went to sleep. She’d sounded wiped out, but she’d also seemed to be at peace. Maybe going to Wisconsin and getting away from all this shit was exactly what she needed. Even though he missed her like a lost limb, he was glad to know she was safe and well.

He’d texted her this morning but hadn’t heard back yet. As exhausted as she was, she’d likely slept in, so he told himself there was no reason to worry. Besides, Serena would have called him if anything had happened.

They’d barely had a moment alone to say goodbye to each other before she’d been whisked away by the private jet. Flying commercial airline had been out of the question. Who knew how many people were on the lookout for Jazz?

The brief hug and kiss they’d shared before she’d walked up the steps to the plane had been sweet but entirely unsatisfying. It didn’t matter to him if the team knew they were now more than just partners, but since they hadn’t discussed it, and he wasn’t sure how or when she wanted to inform them, he’d kept the kiss discreet. There would be plenty of time when this was over to reveal to the others that he was crazy about her and that he planned to spend the rest of his life showing it.

“Xavier, you have any questions before we leave?”

Did he have any questions for the man who might’ve been involved in kidnapping and torturing the woman he loved? Hell yeah, he did. But he knew that wasn’t what Ash was asking.

“No, not really. I’ll let you know if I see anything off.”

Ash gave him a searching look, and Xavier could only smile. His boss was likely wondering if he was going to go off the hinges and do something crazy. Barging in and threatening Ryan Doyle would be tempting, he couldn’t deny that. But he was willing to let this play out for now. Didn’t mean he wouldn’t change his mind later.

After thirty seconds of silence, Ash nodded and said, “Then let’s get this done.”

They drove to the meeting place in two separate vehicles. Ash, Eve, and Gideon arrived at their destination in a black Rolls-Royce Phantom, looking every bit like wealthy investors. They stopped in front of a large office building, and a valet eagerly rushed to the driver’s side, most likely hoping for a sizable tip.

Xavier arrived a minute later in a ten-year-old van with a cracked windshield and rusty tailpipe. Even though it looked rough on the outside, the sophisticated camera equipment in the back had cost more than the Rolls.

He parked on a side street half a block away but within easy distance of getting inside fast if the meeting somehow went sour.

Opening the back compartment, Xavier climbed inside and turned on the equipment. It took only seconds for the camera to show that the trio was walking into the building and then onto an elevator. Ash pressed the button for the eighteenth floor.

Xavier sat back and waited for something to happen.

The instant the elevator door slid open, Ryan Doyle was there to meet them. His voice slightly on the gruff side, as if he had a cold, he introduced himself and welcomed them to Chicago.

There was nothing threatening about the guy and he didn’t exhibit even the slightest hint of darkness. Tall, lean, and blond, with the athletic build of a swimmer and a slightly nervous grin as he shook everyone’s hand, the man looked as unintimidating as apple pie. Even though some of the most-innocent-looking people could hide the evil within their soul, Xavier had to admit his first impression of Kevin Doyle’s son did not change his belief that the man was innocent.

Since snap judgments weren’t his thing, he paid attention as the meeting got under way. After an hour and a half of intense questioning by all three operatives, and surprisingly frank answers from Doyle, Xavier’s butt was numb, and they were no closer to getting answers to their questions.

Well, with the exception of one. If Ryan Doyle had been involved in Jazz’s abduction, Xavier would eat his proverbial hat.

He watched as his three teammates ended the meeting and walked out the door. He’d wait until they gave their opinions, and then, if they agreed with him, they would starting looking in a different direction. What that direction would be, he had no idea.

A chime from his phone showed a text from Jazz. His heart leaped into his throat, but the minute he read the message, he laughed out loud.

I just finished milking a cow, and now I’m cuddling a baby goat! Wisconsin is awesome!