He opened the door to the back alley. It was clean and tidy.
Dane came out followed by Jermaine and Leo.
“James, this is not you. Don’t do this,” Leo said.
“I don’t give a shit. This ass**le has pissed me off for the last time.” He stared at the man across from him. Dane looked sad yet determined.
Dane began to unbutton his jacket. “You’re not ruining my best suit, old man.”
“Bring it on.” At forty-six years old, James felt in his prime.
The jacket was handed to Leo who took it grudgingly.
“I don’t want to fight you,” Dane said.
James didn’t know what had come over him. The sight of Prudence and Dane talking had sent him over the edge.
“I don’t give a shit, British. Come on, you’ve been trying to get me to do this for some time. Bring it.”
Dane kept his fists down. They circled each other.
No blows came as the shine of headlights came down the alley.
Cadeon and Stephen got out of the car, followed by Lucas and Sean.
“Seriously, after all the camera crews and news stations, you’re going to start a fight in the middle of an alleyway where anyone can see?” Stephen said, slamming his door closed.
James kept his eye on Dane. The man may be on their side, but he still refused to trust him.
“He’s your responsibility, not mine.” James dropped his fist and then turned to the other men who’d turned up. They were all his friends, or at least he thought they were.
“We all agreed to get to the bottom of this. Not just for us but for Isabella and Rebecca. They need to know the truth.”
Isabella was Lucas’s younger sister. She’d spent six months in the hospital recovering from several years of starvation and neglect. They’d found her behind a load of bushes in the local park. Rebecca was another matter. She was the ex-wife of Lloyd Black and possibly the only real link they had left of Dominic Green’s business.
James hated the way their lives were turning out. They were not supposed to be part of something like this.
“Where are Tate and Kevin?” James asked.
“At Possession with Rebecca and Isabella. They’re keeping an eye on things,” Stephen said.
“Get him out of here,” James said, turning his back on his friends.
“We need to talk, James,” Cadeon said.
James closed his eyes trying to block them all out. Talking wasn’t resolving anything. The last year with having the press diving into his past and his life had left him open. James didn’t feel like his old life would ever return. They were all becoming part of something a lot bigger than them. How could the others not see the dangers being brought to them?
It had taken a long time for him to realise it. When he’d agreed to help with Dane’s release and the women involved with his friends, he hadn’t seen the real danger to them.
They were not white knights or soldiers. They were men from wealthy backgrounds where their money got work done. None of them would ever be prepared for anything else.
“I’m not talking tonight.” He walked away toward Prudence.
****
“Anyone else thinking that good old James has gone off the rails?” Cadeon asked.
Dane kept his mouth shut. The last thing he needed was to be part of their stuff. He had a short period of time to get the money together and do the exchange, money in exchange for the girl.
“He’s clearly not handling everything well,” Stephen said, looking at him.
He climbed into the back of the car. These bastards drove around in luxury, so there was more than enough room for the three of them in the back. Lucas and Sean sat either side of him. He knew these men had gone through a lot of trouble. Dane also knew what Isabella had gone through. He wouldn’t talk.
These men, no matter how hard they tried to help, were not equipped to deal with the men who were running this thing. In comparison to people like Dominic, these boys were country folk. Cadeon and Stephen climbed back into the car. The engine was started up, and they pulled out of the alley. It was the cleanest alley Dane had ever seen. Most of them were dumps with the smell of rotting food and piss.
He shook his head. The biggest mistake he’d done so far was bringing his shit to their door. To a point he understood their need. He’d felt it once before himself. Only once and he knew unless he got her back, he’d never feel it again.
“Why does James hate you so much?” Lucas asked.
“Because I’ve killed people. I think it makes him a little green to think of someone like me in his place.” Dane didn’t understand why. He thought BDSM was some freaky shit, and from what he’d seen in the basement, that was pretty much torture to some people.
Being forced and paid to hurt people or even worse, kill them, took all the possible fun out of kinky games in the bedroom. He liked his sex rough. He didn’t like his sex with whips and chains, that was too rough for him.
“So have I,” Lucas said, on a whisper.
He knew the background of the two men beside him. They’d served their country like noble men, fighting for a cause they believed in. He admired them for it. They killed because it was their job. In the force, it was either them and their team or the enemy.
His kills were nothing like that. He had to kill to show his loyalty. Dane shook away the sound of their screams. The pleading tone of their voices could threaten to send him over the edge. Pushing it away, he stared past them out of the window.
Dane wished he could be like all these men. Calm and collected with plenty of money to be secure. Instead, he was under the radar with a fake identity.
What the hell had he done?
****
Prue sat on the end of the bed seething. Her father had never marched her out of a party or embarrassed her in front of her friends. The way her friends had looked at her had been a combination of pity and fear.
She wasn’t afraid of James. He was all bark and no bite. She’d witnessed how sweet he could be with her sister. There was nothing to him. Tapping her foot on the thick carpet, she watched the door for signs of James. She’d screamed and banged at the hard wood with no promise of being able to escape.
Looking around the room provided her with nothing. There were no personal effects. All that was there was a bed. One bed, nothing else to help her deal with her boredom.
The lock turned in the door. James appeared, and she glared at him. From the expression on his face, he wasn’t in the mood to argue.
Too f**king bad.
“How dare you control me like that?” She got off the bed and moved toward him. James closed the door behind him leaning against the doorframe.