Heartless Knight (Sins of Knight Mafia Trilogy Book 2) Page 3

  “I’ve been here a while,” I answered. “Just looking around.”

  “Sorry. I couldn’t get away from Brandon,” she explained.

  “Oh?” I raised my eyebrows. “He could have joined us.” I still didn’t feel like I knew much about my brother-in-law. Over five years I’d only seen him a few times. He wasn’t interesting. He seemed to care about Seraphina. He was proud to be in the steakhouse business and whatever else the Castilles ran on the side. It wasn’t much of a brotherly bond.

  I also knew things had taken a new turn now that Seraphina was pregnant. We were about to be tied together for the rest of our lives. The Castilles and the Corbans.

  “No.” She shook her head. “I need to talk to you. Without him anywhere near here. He hates the stables. It’s safe.” I didn’t like her tone.

  Her call last night I had sounded urgent. She seemed frantic and impatient. I was distracted. I was more concerned about my date with Kennedy being interrupted. I tried to read Seraphina’s body language now. What was going on?

  “Safe?” I questioned.

  She twirled her hair. “Can we walk back together?”

  “Sure. But I need to know what’s going on.” I led her out of the equipment building.

  She pulled wide-brimmed sunglasses over her eyes. “Tell me about the vineyards. How are things at the champagne caves? Do you think things are running smoothly? What about the grapes?”

  “They’re fine. It’s a good grape year.” I eyed her as she walked next to me.

  “You loved Paris? Epernay? It was good there, wasn’t it?” she questioned. I sensed nervousness and excitement.

  I groaned. She was hinting. Going in circles. Missing the mark. “Yes. You know I enjoyed the vineyards. I finally got used to living there. What does that have to do with wanting to see me? You said it was important.”

  “It is. I want to know about the vineyards. I’m thinking I should go there.” She walked faster. I couldn’t believe I was trying to catch up to her.

  We arrived at the stables. Seraphina seemed to instantly relaxed. She approached one of the stalls.

  “Why don’t you tell me what the hell is going on?” I kept my voice low.

  She looked left then right. She stepped toward the same chestnut horse I had patted and pressed her forehead against the bridge of his nose. “Knight, I’ve done something.”

  “Okay?”

  Her eyes closed as if she was mustering the strength to tell me. I placed my hand on her shoulder.

  “What is it? You’re scaring the shit out of me.”

  She sighed, her hand resting on her stomach. “I need you to help me get out of here.”

  “Is someone after Brandon? Did something go sideways? I can take care of that for you and him.” I squeezed her arm lightly. “Now that I’m back, I can add security detail for you. I have more resources than the Castilles. You don’t have to worry about anything.”

  She shook her head. “No. I don’t need security detail.”

  “But you just said—”

  Her eyes blinked open. The lashes were damp with the first tears. “I said I need your help to leave, not to stay and be locked in a prison.”

  “You aren’t making any sense.”

  She broke away from the stallion. “I don’t know if it’s going to be safe for the baby and me to be here once Brandon finds out, but regardless, I have to leave. I have to get out of here. I want to go to France and run the vineyards.”

  I inhaled. “Tell me what he’s done.”

  “Nothing,” she whispered. “He’s done absolutely nothing.”

  “Shit, Seraphina. I’m starting to think he’s abusive or drinking until he passes out every night. Cheating on you.” I stared at her. It was the last sentence that made her flinch. “Is that it?” I tried to figure out how to talk to her what would probably not be the last time Brandon cheated.

  “Stop, Knight. Just stop.” She threw her hands in the air and stormed away toward one of the apartment doors. She walked inside and I followed her.

  I didn’t expect it to be decorated in soft blues and off-white antiques. There was art on the walls and two cases crammed full of books. I pivoted in the room. “Who lives here?”

  “It’s mine.”

  “What?”

  “This is my place. My sanctuary. Can you believe my husband has never stepped foot in here? Never asked. Never noticed. I hate the Castille house. I hate living with Brandon. I knew what was expected of me. Daddy made that clear on the day of my wedding. I’ve done what I had to do to get out of bed in the morning every day for four years. Until…”

  “Until what?”

  “Until I met someone.”

  “What do you mean you met someone?”

  Her shoulders straightened immediately. “I didn’t know it was possible, and it wasn’t like I was looking for him, or maybe I was. But he’s the one.”

  “The one?” I stared at her. “What are you talking about? You’re married to Brandon. There was a contract. Money was exchanged. Brandon is supposed to be the one.”

  Her blue eyes hardened. “No,” she snapped. “I had no say in the contract. No say in Brandon. No say in the house. No say in my life.” Her voice kept rising. I closed to the door to the apartment in case one of the stable hands was nearby.

  I put my hands out to steady her. “I know all of that. I was there, remember?”

  “And you did nothing while I was sold off to the most boring bland man in New Orleans.”

  “That’s not true,” I argued. “I fought to get you out of it. I guess Dad didn’t tell you I had him in a chokehold on his desk.”

  The information surprised her. “No. He never said anything.”

  “He wouldn’t.” I finally exhaled. “Shit. You’ve met someone.” I shook my head. “Who’s the guy?”

  “Tell me you aren’t going to go crazy. You have to promise,” she pleaded.

  I clenched my jaw. “Tell me who it is.”

  “He’s the best thing that has ever happened to me. Please, remember that. That’s the most important thing. He’s—”

  “Seraphina,” I growled.

  “Fine. It’s Crew West.”

  I stared at my sister. “Kennedy’s assistant?”

  She nodded. “Yes.” She grabbed my arm. “You’re in charge now. You can fix this for me. You can get us to France. I’ll run the vineyard. He’s amazing with numbers. Really, really good. Kennedy has been training him, so you know he’s had the best—”

  “It’s his baby?” I interrupted her.

  “Yes,” she whispered.

  “And Brandon has no idea.”

  She shook her head slowly. “None. He didn’t even realize the dates didn’t match up. He’s clueless. An idiot. He doesn’t pay any attention to me. Except now.” She looked down at her bump. “Except it’s only to tell me all the things I cannot do. I have to get out of here. I’m suffocating in that house.”

  “Who has Crew told?” I asked.

  “No one. He wouldn’t.”

  I huffed. “You really don’t think Kennedy knows her right-hand man is sleeping with you? Come on. She’s smarter than that. How do you know he’s not working for her? This could be an orchestrated plan. How much information do you think he’s been able to take back to her? What access have you given him?”

  I’d never seen that kind of pain on my sister’s face before.

  “What happened to you?” she whispered.

  I ran my hands through my hair. “You know how the organizations work. Nothing happens by accident. You expect me to believe that Crew showed up in your life out of pure coincidence? As if it was fate? The person closest to Kennedy? The new queen of New Orleans. No way. I don’t buy it. Not for a fucking second.”

  “I didn’t ask you to buy it,” she snarled. “I asked you to do what you’re supposed to do as the head of this family and get me out of this horrible marriage.”

  “Of all the things to ask me. This is the first f
avor you want?” She didn’t recognize me, but I didn’t know who she was either. She wanted to upend every tradition we had been raised to follow. Breaking a contract between two families wasn’t something I’d seen.

  “It’s a favor you would have asked for five years ago if you could have.”

  The pain was mine now. I pressed my lips together. “The circumstances were different between Kennedy and me. We weren’t married.” I didn’t need to relive the history to know it was nothing like this situation.

  “You still aren’t.”

  “That’s irrelevant.”

  “Is it?” Seraphina posed. “If you were with her everything would be different.”

  “I’m not with her.” I closed my eyes. This wasn’t about my relationship with Kennedy. This was about my sister going off the deep end. “You haven’t thought about the consequences. We can’t afford to start a war with the Castilles. There’s no other way this could play out.”

  “I have thought about the consequences,” she argued. “I’ve thought what it would be like to raise this baby with the wrong man. To give it Brandon’s name. To have to lie to my child every day of its life about whose DNA runs through its veins. There are more consequences than what happens in the organizations. There used to be a time when you knew that. A time when you would have left the organization to be with Kennedy. You know what this feels like. You know what I’m feeling right now. Can’t you try to remember that feeling? You would have walked through fire for her. I know you would have.”

  I raised my finger to stop Seraphina from continuing. I heard the crunch of straw under boots. There was someone outside the apartment. The footsteps stopped.

  “Shh,” I warned her.

  “It’s okay.” She smiled. “I’m expecting someone.” She stepped around me, unlocked the latch, and opened the door. “Hi.”

  A man a few years younger than me stood in the doorway. He grinned at my sister before he nodded over her shoulder in my direction. He looked like someone who had just come from a work meeting. His suit was expensive, but not custom. He wasn’t from an organization family.

  “God, you look awful,” she fussed.

  “Late night at the office.”

  “I know it was really hard, but come here.” She reached on her tip toes to hug him. As soon as they separated, Seraphina spun around. “Knight, this is Crew.”

  Shit.

  “Seraphina talks about you all the time. It’s nice to finally put the man with the stories.” He stepped into the apartment, reaching to shake my hand. “How is it being back from France?” he asked with a casual attitude. Maybe this was what happened when a man graduated from Kennedy Martin’s mafia queen school. He became as fearless as she was.

  I watched at how quickly they were drawn back together after I shook his hand. She fit against his arm. He wrapped it around her protectively. She seemed happy as if she was warm for the first time in a long time.

  “I hear you want to go to France and take over the vineyards.” I waited for Crew’s response. There was no reason to be subtle or pretend that my pregnant sister wasn’t standing between us.

  He nodded. “Anywhere we have your blessing. I’ll take any assignment.”

  I looked at Seraphina. “Why don’t you see if the horses are getting the training they need? I think I heard other voices. One of the trainers is probably around.”

  “Knight,” she began to argue, but I quickly warned her with a glance. “All right. I’ll be back in a few minutes,” she relented. Her fingers fell away from Crew’s hand.

  Once she was gone, I knew I didn’t have much time with him. It was barely noon, but it felt like a good time for a drink. I searched the apartment for bourbon. There wasn’t anything in the bar cart other than vodka and gin. Both bottles were unopened. I cracked the vodka.

  “Want one?” I offered Crew.

  “Sure. I have some time.”

  I poured the drinks and handed one to him. “Looks like we have a problem to solve.”

  “That’s what I do every day.”

  “For Kennedy you mean?” I eyed him.

  “Mostly, yes. Whatever she wants to throw at me.”

  I slung back the vodka. “My sister seems to think your boss doesn’t know anything about your relationship.”

  “She doesn’t.” He gripped the glass. “My personal life is private. I don’t think she needs to know about my relationship with Seraphina. I don’t let it interfere with work. It’s part of Kennedy’s philosophy. Makes it easy to keep things separate.”

  My father was an asshole, but he was good at judging people. He could sniff out a liar within five minutes of talking to them. A con or a thief even faster. I tried to tap into that Corban intuition. I tried to size up Crew. What I saw was a confident man. It would take more than five minutes to decide if he was sincere about my sister.

  “Kennedy’s philosophy?”

  “Yes. She believes that work should strictly be about business. She doesn’t make exceptions to any of the rules she has in place.”

  “I see.” I walked around the small apartment. I started to think about the opportunity I had been given. How badly did Crew want to make a deal? How much was he willing to sacrifice for a life in France with my sister and their baby?

  I pulled up a chair. “Why don’t you sit?” I motioned across from me.

  Crew took a seat.

  It was a long shot. But this man knew her. He knew how she thought. What strategies she used. He knew her in a way I hadn’t begun to examine yet. I realized I might have a plan to get Kennedy back. Just maybe I was willing to start a war to make it happen.

  5

  Kennedy

  I was impressed with Victoria Banks. Renee had been right about her. She might be the best lobbyist I’d ever hired. Three days passed since our meeting, and I believed her when she said there were other ways to get the votes we needed.

  I was going to get the bill passed to allow gambling rights at the Crescent Towers. In the process, I would make sure Knight Corban never had a chance in New Orleans to regain a shred of power. What he had done to me wouldn’t be forgiven or forgotten.

  It had also been three days since I woke up in bed with Knight. The morning I discovered how far he was willing to go to destroy me. It was the first time I had let me guard down. I knew what a mistake it was to let him in. It would never happen again.

  The water rippled in the pool. I watched one of the floats bob underneath the waterfall. I tugged the kimono wrap around my shoulders. The wind was picking up. The palms rustled and the flower petals began to detach and whip around the courtyard. I glanced at the file I was reading again. I couldn’t remember where I had left off. I skimmed the numbers, trying to find the spot. Was it revenue? Was it the quarterly profit and loss?

  I looked overhead a flash of lightning crackling across the sky. I gathered the folders and shoved them in my pool bag. One warning was all I needed.

  Kimble was waiting for me when I stepped inside.

  “There’s a weather alert about a tropical depression. I was headed out to make sure you knew it wasn’t safe to sit by the pool.”

  “The lightning was enough for me.” I clutched the straw handle. Kimble didn’t alter his stance. “Is there something else?” I asked. Usually at this time of night he was in his suite. He popped out for perimeter checks a few times. As long as I was in for the night, I rarely saw him.

  “Have you seen the radar? It’s going to be a rough night.”

  I shook my head. I didn’t bother with weather. “No. I’ll stay in if that makes you happy.” I smirked.

  “I think we should talk in your office,” he answered. “I need to brief you on something I learned today.”

  “Oh? I’m headed upstairs to change. Can you give me a few minutes?” I was wearing a swimsuit under the kimono. I wanted to swim a few laps before the storm blew in. The thunder crackled. I felt the vibrations as the windows in the old house rattled. The panes were fragile and t
hin.

  “It’s important. I think you’re going to want to hear this.”

  I blinked. “All right.” I slipped into my sandals. “Let’s go to my office.” Kimble followed me along the corridor. He tugged the sliding doors closed behind us.

  “What is it?” I rested the straw bag on the floor.

  “It’s about Crew.”

  “What about him?” I couldn’t think of Crew crossing paths with Kimble lately.

  “He had lunch with Knight Corban yesterday.”

  “Is that all?” I laughed. “He has an assignment from me regarding the Corbans tech investments.”

  Kimble cleared his throat. “It’s wasn’t a meeting about tech.”

  “How do you know that?”

  Kimble’s eyes narrowed. “My priority has and always will be to keep you safe. I don’t believe those men were meeting about tech.”

  I groaned. “You’re going to have to give me more to go on than that.”

  “Because of this.” He held up his phone. I saw a picture of Crew and Knight. I ignored the extra beat pounding in my chest when I saw the sharp lines of Knight’s jaw.

  “Lunch. Yes, I get it.” I glanced at Kimble.

  He pinched the screen, zooming in to the table. “Look closer,” he instructed. “At what they are doing.”

  I peered at the photo again. “Is that?” I yanked the phone from Kimble’s hand. “Those are the tunnels. The plans for the Vieux Carre.” I stared in disbelief. I twisted the phone around, in case I was wrong about what I thought I spotted.

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “But why would Crew have those?” I realized now that they were both staring at the plans on the table, spread out between their place settings.

  Kimble shook his head. “I don’t know.”

  “Why would he share those with Knight?”

  “I have no idea.” His lips pinched together.

  I leaned against the front of the desk. I returned the phone and crossed my arms. “What do you know?”

  “That they are working together on something.”

  My eyes quickly flashed from the floor to Kimble. “How do you know they are working together?”