A huge shoutout to eschoenh, daytonalay, Christian618, SdaisyS, lanieloveu, and MissG909 for their continued support and amazing kindness! An extended thank you to the ladies of the best Facebook group in existence who showed their unwavering support and encouraged me to keep writing. This is for you guys!
I stifled a laugh as I heard the jealousy seep into his tone of voice. Considering his bravado, he seemed particularly concerned about someone I knew I shouldn't be friends with anyway. He had Taylor to thank for that. "We met freshman year in art class."
"Oh," he said. "What does his dad do?"
I narrowed my eyes at him, disappointed that playful, chatty Christian was slipping away. "I think he's in property development. He helps Native American reservations develop infrastructure."
Christian's eyes narrowed, before his expression changed entirely. "Interesting."
"This trust thing is a two-way street, Christian," I said evenly, folding my arms over my chest. I was very self-conscious around him, especially after what had just transpired in the bathroom. He wanted me, but I wasn't sure I was ready to do that again. Especially if he was keeping vital pieces of information from me- information that could mean the difference between life and death.
"Then trust me that it's not important," he said, keeping his expression neutral. I rolled my eyes and yawned.
"I'm going to try and get some sleep. Is there a guest room? I mean, Grace just put me to bed in your room, but it's clear that I'm okay for now," I said, trailing off as I watched him try to hide his disappointment.
"Up the stairs, the first door on the left," he said, nodding towards the floating stairs that led out of the great room. I hopped off of the barstool and headed to the room, not looking back.
I was woken up from a very deep sleep by a continuous knocking on the door.
"Anastasia, we need you up," Christian called out through the door. "I have some fresh clothes for you."
I rolled my eyes, trying to wrap my head around the fact that Christian was buying clothes of me and somehow knew my sizes perfectly. I pulled open the door and Christian handed me another silver bag. "Elliot called. We'll be meeting Gwen and the rest of my family there."
"Okay, I'll be ready soon," I said, shutting the door again to get changed. I rolled my eyes as I saw the clothes he selected. A black pair of jeans, a black long sleeved tee shirt, a black leather jacket, and a pair of black Converse. The leather jacket was gorgeous, and cost an arm and a leg, but I was hesitant to wear it considering I didn't want to ruin it. Sighing, I pulled it on over my all black ensemble. Christian wasn't a very subtle person.
"Ready?" he asked, holding out my gun and a new phone for me to take. I smiled and accepted them, shoving the gun down the back of my jeans, tucking it in the waistband.
"Elliot called me about an hour ago," Christian said, pulling on a pair of black Ray Bans as we climbed into the Audi SUV with Taylor. "He's trying to get me to help him without tipping off our parents that he lost the guns."
"If that's the case, then why are your parents meeting us at the warehouse?" I asked, puzzled. "Why is Gwen going to be there?"
"Well, there are bodies, which means it's a crime scene. The police will be asking questions about a robbery or if this was just a hit," Christian explained. "I tipped off my parents. Elliot has no right to be upset that I did, considering now we are all short on guns, since out stockpile was robbed."
I nodded. "Gwen?"
"She'll handle the press. We own the warehouse and any blowback will reelect on GEH, which I would like to avoid as much as possible. I'm bringing you along because you're my alibi when Elliot starts pointing fingers. Plus, since Gwen will be leaving us, this will be a great opportunity for you to see how both sides of this business mix."
I nodded, turning my attention back to the streets of Seattle. There still so many questions running through my mind, things I wanted to ask Christian about his life, how he juggled two multi-billion dollar industries and why he wanted to take over when he was already successful. I bit my lip, deep in thought, and I was surprised when we pulled to a stop on the outskirts of the city. It was a rough neighborhood, one that I had never ventured into before. Barney's cryptic remarks about Christian coming from the Jungle popped into my head as I saw the makeshift camp town on the hills in the distance.
"Let's go," Christian said, climbing out of the car. As I walked around the car to join him, I admired his powerful and domineering stance. He shook hands with a couple of police officers, before being waved under the crime scene tape, waving at me to join him. I gave a tight smile to the officers who looked questionably at me. Once I again, I was completely out of my element.
"They think it was a hit, so there's no risk of them discovering that it was actually a robbery," Christian whispered into my ear, his hot breathe causing me to shiver with some level of anticipation.
"How many bodies in total?" I asked, spotting two covered in tarps surrounded by people in white bunny suits.
"There's one more inside, but I had Taylor replace the lock and chain with an exact replica, so they won't find it. Elliot will have to deal with it," he explained, pulling out his phone and texting someone. "Gwen is here."
I waved at the petite redhead as she strolled towards us, dressed in her usual work attire and pea coat. "Morning."
"How are you?" I asked, grinning as she took in the scene and smiled.
"I've been better. Dragging myself out of bed on a Saturday at seven in the morning isn't my idea of fun,"she said surveying the scene. "No press yet?"
Christian shook his head. "Not yet. As soon as they catch wind that this was a hit, they'll be crawling all over it."
She nodded and motioned to me. "It's time to show you how I usually spend my day."
We walked towards the officers who were monitoring the scene, and the nodded in greeting to us.
"Good morning gentlemen," Gwen said, shaking their hands. "I'm Mr. Grey's head of PR and I'd like to know what I would be allowed to say to the press."
They nodded. "Of course, ma'am. Keep in mind that this is an active murder investigation and that significant details cannot be released to the press. If any witnesses show up, you'll be able to share the description, but for now, you need to be very vague."
Gwen nodded and thanked the officers before walking away. I followed her. "Why did you talk to them if you knew their answers?"
"We need the police to know that we will cooperate fully with their investigation. I'm assuming you know what really happened here last night, otherwise Christian wouldn't have brought you here," she said as I responded with a nod. "It's how the Grey family literally gets away with murder. The rumors of their involvement are true, but they've never been able to make any charges stick. And in my humble opinion, that's because I work for Christian."
I giggled at her statement, knowing that it was true. Christian was a good criminal, but he seemed to work even better when there were people behind him, ready to help if he was in over his head. My head whipped towards the sound of another car pulling up. A black Range Rover pulled to a stop and Grace and Carrick climbed out. Mia trailed behind them, looking slightly worse for wear, a familiar sullen expression marring her face. I groaned internally as she spotted me, her eyes narrowing.
Gwen glanced at me and chuckled under her breathe. "She hates you, right?"
"Unfortunately," I whispered in response, plastering a fake smile on my face as Carrick greeted me.
"How are you doing after yesterday, Anastasia?" he asked, concerned.
"I'm hanging in there," I said, honestly. Truth be told, spending time with Christian had taken my mind off things. I wasn't shaken by the explosion as much as I was shaken and upset by Kate's declaration that we could no longer be friends.
"That's very good to hear. I'm so glad you weren't injured. How's working for Christian going?" he asked.
I chuckled at his question. "i'd say pretty well considering where we're currently standing."
"Very true," he said chuckling. "Are you shadowing Gwen?"
I nodded. "She's incredible at what she does."
Gwen turned from her conversations with Grace to smirk at me. I grinned back causing Carrick to chuckled. He clapped me on the shoulder. "I'm glad it's going so well."
I walked with him towards Christian who was watching the coroners begin to remove the bodies. "It will be a miracle if the press don't show up."
"Where the hell is my idiot brother?" Christian asked his father, seething. If there was one thing I had learned about Christian it was that he was a brilliant actor when he needed to be. Somehow, he was always in control of his emotions but could tap into them as soon as it was necessary to play a role correctly. I watched as he shared his frustrations with his father, watching as he projected his anger onto Carrick, who, after a couple of minutes looked nearly as angry as Christian did. He was a master manipulator and I finally witnessed him in action. It scared me, how easily he was able to rile Carrick up. But then again, the man was his father, and I thought about how easy it had been to push Ray's buttons. It didn't stop me from warning myself against him though. I needed to be careful. Especially after I promised him there were no more secrets. He still didn't know about the biggest betray yet- my father was Stephen Morton.
I watched closely as Elliot pulled up in a black Shelby Mustang. Carrick was fuming, and waved him over. Elliot looked nervous, but I could see his hard resolve peaking through. He was going to fight for what he wanted. And I knew that it would probably happen here, and now. The coroner's van pulled away, leaving myself, Gwen, and the Grey family standing in front of the warehouse. There was absolutely no one else around.
"Everyone, inside. Now," Grace said sternly. She even waved Gwen and I forward. Gwen caught my wrist.
"This is what Christian has been waiting for. It's been years in the making. You have your gun?" she whispered as we walked to the door.
I nodded silently.
"Good. You might need it."
"Jesus christ Elliot! Another one?" Carrick spat disdainfully, spotting the other body. I didn't want to look at it.
"This had to be an inside job! The lock was intact!" Elliot yelled.
"Yeah or your enemies are just really fucking smart," I said, before I could help myself. Grace raised her eyebrows at me.
"What do you mean, Ana?" she asked. I glanced at Christian, who was trying to fight a smug smile.
"I mean, obviously someone knew this place was here. I'd guess they followed any one of you here. It's not as heavily guarded as any other place, which should make it less of a target, but it makes it seem more secretive. Now, if I was an enemy, looking to cripple your family, I wouldn't want the police to know this was anything more than a hit. It's quietly sending your family a very personal message. They can dump those guns at any time, any place and have them tied back to all of you. Am I wrong?" I asked, looking at all of them.
"You seem to have given this a little too much thought, Anastasia," Elliot spat.
"I agree with my brother. You may be smart, but no one is that smart," Mia said, examining her nails. "I don't trust you."
I looked up to see Christian trying to fight a smile off of his face. "I'm sorry to disappoint you both, but Anastasia, as you know was with me last night."
Elliot waved his hands. "She had someone she knows do it, obviously."
"No known associates, Elliot," Carrick interjected while Grace looked thoughtful.
"Christian, she was sleeping in the guest room. We all know you have a strong distaste for cameras in your personal space. How do you know she didn't sneak out and do this?" Grace said, expertly planting a seed of doubt.
"Grace, you give me too much credit. I'm a good shot, but there's no way I could take out two security cameras at the same time without help," I said, goading her.
"Mom, Ana slept in my bed last night. I should know, I was there," he said dryly.
"You both did this then! He's trying to frame me!" Elliot said, pulling his gun on Christian, who just looked bored. I pulled my gun and removed the safety, chambering a bullet before pointing it at Elliot.
"Yes Elliot, we've heard it before. But, my company is doing very well right now. Tell me, why would I want to get more involved in illegal business when I can enjoy all of my wealth without having to ship the cash to Mexico daily to get it cleaned?" Christian said. "I don't want to take over, and I know I've made it clear I don't trust you to lead this family, but honestly. You think I would kill three of our men? You know how loyal I am. Don't question it again," Christian said, pulling his own gun on Elliot. Christian was terrifying in that moment, able to crush and doubts in Elliot's mind and scare him into never doubting him again. Christian was a calculated killer of everything, from people to thoughts.
Gwen chuckled. "Now that the family spat is over, can we all admit that this looks exactly like the Cartel robbery we dealt with last year? It's the same MO. Busted security cams, tactical, lethal execution of the guards. The lock was replaced with an identical one, meaning someone did their research. The stole the goods and stabbed the last guard and left him inside. And we'll get the message from the Cartel in a day or so."
Carrick sighed. "Gwen is right. Thank you for acting as a voice of reason, something my family seems to be lacking these days. Elliot, this is on you. We'll discuss it tomorrow at Brunch. You and Ros will be there, right Gwen?"
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she said with a happy smile. Gwen left the warehouse, followed by Grace and Carrick and very pissed off Mia, who had the audacity to bump into me on the way out.
"Do you need help, Elliot?" Christian asked, referring to the body.
"Nah, I'll call one of the guys. I'm sorry for doubting you bro. I know you hate the idea of me in charge, but I know you'd never go against me," Elliot said, holding out a hand. Christian nodded and shook his hand, escorting me out of the building.
Once we were in the confines of the car with Taylor, I asked him the question that had been on my mind. "Did you steal from your family before?"
Christian chuckled. "That was actually the Cartel. They don't want Elliot to take over for my Dad when he steps down, so they were more than happy to help me out this time."
I shook my head. There was no way in hell I would be able to keep up with all of this regularly. I was going to have to make a map or a key for every complex business and personal relationship Christian had. On both sides of the law.
I know it's been a slow burn between our two favorite characters, but next chapter will be the turning point in their relationship...
Thank you to everyone who always leaves me reviews and reaches out. Interacting with this audience is the best and I love hearing your ideas and questions! The support that I received aft announcing I wouldn't be continuing The Fling was incredible, and I'm pleased to say that it's on a vacation, it's not finished just yet. I needed to step away, and I'll be staying away for a while. But it will be completed as I intended. Thank you again to everyone who encouraged me not to give up (insert heart emoji here).
Please let me know what you think! If you like Sons of Anarchy, please check out my new story, The Ride.
And, as usual, my Pinterest board for this story can be found if you search /mosaic23/ or you can find the link on my profile!
