The Manhattan Bank
Grace arrived at the bank on time and saw Mosely waiting in the foyer. He saw her approach and stood up, torn between the happiness of seeing her again and worry concerning her being caught in the middle between the business with her husband and that with Gabriel.
She smiled warmly at him. "Hello, Mose. Long time, no - oh!"
He cut her off by grabbing her and pulling her to him in a fierce hug, not caring that some of the bank's patrons had stopped to look at them. He fought back tears as he felt the slight jutting of her ribs against him, remembered the paleness of her skin when he saw her step out of the taxi. She wasn't bearing up well at all.
Her voice was muffled against his chest. "Mose? A girl's got to breathe sometime."
He reluctantly let go, managing an apologetic smile.
"Sorry. I guess I got carried away."
She laughed softly, beaming at him. "You're forgiven. So how have you been?"
"I can't complain. I've been slowly working my way up the food chain at the Agency."
Grace raised an eyebrow. "What about personally? Have you been seeing anyone?"
Mosely looked at her for a long moment. No one as wonderful as you.
He shrugged. "Not really. I've been too busy with my career to go out with more than a few women. Anyway, enough about me. How are you these days?"
Her expression was serene, her smile genuine.
"You know, I've been through the emotional wringer with everything that's happened, but now I feel that it's all going to work out for the best. Sometimes, when a person hits rock bottom, there's no other alternative but to climb up."
He smiled back. "That's a beautiful philosophy, Grace. Very optimistic."
She nodded and spoke softly, looking up at him with shining eyes.
"I realize now that we won't live forever, Mose. Whatever grudges or disagreements a person has deep inside, none of them matter worth a damn compared to what's really important: family and friends. Love is everything."
Mosely sighed. "Listen, Grace. About yesterday..."
She shook her head, smiling at him.
"You were absolutely right, but I was too pigheaded to listen. But now I'm willing to do the right thing and tell Gabriel the truth. I owe him that."
He ran a hand over his short hair. "And will you forgive him?"
"Yes. I'm tired of being angry. It's time to let go of the past."
He smiled widely as he reached for her, embracing her again.
"I'm glad for that. So what do you say we go take care of business before that blue-haired lady over there's jaw drops any more?"
Grace laughed and lightly thumped his chest with her hand.
"Yeah, let's get it over with."
The Vault
A clerk led them down the winding flight of stairs to the bank's vault, where a rather severe-looking security guard stood watch beside the heavy steel door. As soon as he saw Grace, he gave a huge goofy grin.
"Good morning, Dr. Nakimura."
She smiled in response. "Morning, Steve. How are Jess and the baby?"
He smiled wider as he opened the door. "They're fine, thanks."
"Glad to hear it."
Removing her key from her purse, Grace stepped inside. With a nod to the guard, Mosely followed. They walked past several rows of safety deposit boxes until she stopped.
"Here we are."
He noted the box number: 1928. Curious, he turned to her.
"Any special significance?"
She placed her key in the lock, turning it. "It's the year that my grandfather was born."
He nodded. "How is old Yukio, by the way?"
She smiled as she opened the tiny door to remove the metal box.
"He lives in Hawaii, with all the sand and surf. How do you think he is?"
Mosely chuckled softly, helping her move the heavy box to the nearby table.
They sat down across the table from one another, with the box between them. Grace took a deep breath and unlocked it to reveal the bag of evidence, which sat on top of what had to be at least five million dollars in cash.
His eyes widened. "Jesus Christ! Are you planning to open your own bank?"
She looked up at him, her eyes serious. "It's for my son."
"How on earth did you come up with this?"
A saucy smile teased her mouth as she held his gaze.
"Let's just say that it's payment for services rendered."
He raised an eyebrow at that, and Grace shook her head.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Mose. I didn't mean that, but perhaps it ought to be included. Five years as the wife of David Anami, one of the brightest stars in the corporate world. It was the hardest job I ever had; even working at St. George's for minimum wage was better. At least there I was surrounded by books. Living in his world was suffocating. Always smiling for the cameras, attending those god-awful social gatherings where everyone except the hired help are phonies..."
She sighed. "It was all a charade from beginning to end."
Mosely watched her. "You'll be free soon. Just hang in there."
She looked down at the opened box, saying nothing.
That, my old friend, is the one thing that I can't do.
She carefully lifted the evidence bag out of the box, and held it out to him. When he reached out to take the other end, she briefly held on. She looked into his eyes.
"I need you to tell me the truth. What will happen once I let go of this package?"
"Since the big league departments are no longer pursuing the investigation, I really shouldn't be here. It could cost me my job, but you sounded so lost on the phone yesterday... Grace, I want to take it off your hands. I'll take the shirt to an independent lab to see if there's anything incriminating there, and I'll run the print in the International crime database to see if Anami was involved in anything suspicious abroad. Specifically, I'm going to search for any criminal activity between 1971 and 1985."
Grace slowly let go of the plastic bag. The 14 lost years after Caitlin's death.
"What happens if you find something?"
His voice was determined. "When I find something, not if. Then I'll do everything that I can to get the case reopened and Anami brought into custody."
She watched as Mosely opened the briefcase that he'd brought and placed the evidence inside. The vault echoed with the sound of the clicking latches when he closed it. A moment later he glanced up at her, his whiskey-colored eyes intense.
"Are you and the boy going to be safe?"
She smiled, touched by his concern. "We're going to be fine, don't worry. We're staying in a place that David doesn't know about, and I've taken security measures."
He nodded, obviously still worried. "If there's anything that you need..."
She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "I won't hesitate to ask."
Together they left the vault and then the bank, returning to the real world. Mosely stared at her as if he was memorizing every detail of her face, his eyes haunted and his voice hoarse with emotion. "Gabriel is very lucky to have you."
Without a word, she cupped his face in her hands and kissed his cheek.
"You take care of yourself, Mose."
He grimaced slightly, fighting back tears. "You too."
Grace gave him a final smile before she turned away, walking toward the street. She hailed a cab and climbed inside, giving the driver directions to the bookstore where she was due to meet Gabriel.
Sonnet Books
Grace arrived at 11:45 and saw no sign of Gabriel. Anxious, she decided to browse the shelves while she waited for him to show. She walked to the back of the store and entered the poetry section, unaware that she was being watched and followed.
She picked up a book that caught her eye. Leaves of Grass, by Walt Whitman. She began to read through "Song of Myself," and was drawn to Quatrain 28.
'Is this then a touch? Quivering me to a new identity/ Flames and ether making a rush for my veins/ Treacherous tip of me reaching and crowding to help them/ My flesh and blood playing out lightning to strike what is hardly different from myself...'
The sensuous prose reminded her of the erotic dream that she'd had the night before. She could almost feel Gabriel's touch on her waiting skin.
'You villain touch! What are you doing? My breath is tight in its throat/ Unclench your floodgates, you are too much for me.'
She jumped as a pair of lips suddenly emerged from the darkness nearby. She felt hot breath caress her neck as she heard a familiar voice reading from Quatrain 29.
"'Blind loving wrestling touch, sheath'd hooded sharp-tooth'd touch/ Did it make you ache so, leaving me?'"
Shocked and frightened, Grace forcibly slammed the book closed and whirled around to find herself face to face with Gabriel. His eyes glittered as he stepped out into the light, and she wanted to slap him and kiss him simultaneously.
He had changed clothes since his television appearance that morning. He wore a green polo shirt, jeans, a black leather jacket and black boots. He looked good enough to eat, and she had a hard time resisting the urge to do just that.
Instead, she frowned at him. "You scared me! That was a very evil thing to do."
Gabriel gave an embarrassed smile.
"I'm sorry, Gracie. I got here first, and I just couldn't resist the idea."
She glared at him. "I just came from turning over the evidence to Mosely, so you'll forgive me if I'm not in a playful mood. He's going to have it analyzed right away."
He quickly sobered at the news. "They'd better reopen the case if he finds something. I still can't believe that all those top crime investigators took the bait like that."
Grace nervously ran her fingers through her hair.
"Well, David can be very convincing when he wants to be."
His eyes narrowed. "Apparently. He managed to get you, didn't he?"
She scoffed angrily, returning his stare.
"That's because I met him when I was particularly vulnerable, if you'll recall."
Gabriel winced and held a hand up. "That's enough, time out."
She took a deep breath, trying hard to calm down. He continued.
"I didn't come here to fight, Gracie. I can list several reasons why I wanted to see you again, but most importantly I needed to warn you."
She felt a tingling sensation in her spine at his words. "Tell me."
His green eyes betrayed his fear. His voice was low and rough as he spoke.
"I've been having dreams of you every night for the past week, and each one gets worse. I'm not sure how to explain this, but there is a dark force hovering over us."
Her anxiety intensified. "What do you mean by 'us'?"
"The three of us. You, me and the child. Something is out to get us, and whatever it is, it's tied to David Anami. We need to find out more about him."
He went on to tell her about the dreams in full detail. He told her about his finding her body frozen in the ice, the raven swarm and the horror of finding her dead in the clearing. He also told her about his vision of her working on his portrait in the studio, and of her collapse in Central Park. She remained silent the entire time.
"Gracie? Please, say something."
She looked at his beloved face, which had become even more beautiful with the passage of time. Grace stepped closer. "There's more that you want to say, isn't there? More than the warnings, I mean. I saw you on television this morning, you know, and I was very touched by what you said about Blake not realizing how he felt about Fuji until it was too late. I knew that you were saying it to me then, but I want to hear it again now, without the cover of fictional characters. I need to hear the words."
Gabriel raised a hand to touch her hair. "I have many regrets about that time."
"Tell me about them."
His lips parted as he took a breath. "Ever since you came to Germany to help me with that case so many years ago, and all the time we were living under the same roof at the castle, I was in love with you. I foolishly denied my feelings because I was afraid that because of what I do, of what I am, I would lose you the way I lost Malia. I didn't want anything to happen to you, and I didn't want to be hurt either. It was one of the worst mistakes I ever made, and I'm sorry."
"One of the worst? What else?"
He sighed deeply. "The way that I treated you after we made love in France. I had no right to disregard your feelings like that; it was a weak attempt on my part to regain some sort of balance in our relationship, to return things back to safer ground. Oh, Christ... I didn't realize until after you left that I didn't want to be safe where you were concerned. I wanted you so much that it scared me, and I just didn't know how to deal with it at the time. I screwed up, Grace."
She raised a hand to his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart. "Go on."
He wrapped his arms around her, leaning forward until their lips almost touched.
"My deepest regret is that I didn't run after you the minute I learned you had gone, and now you have someone else's ring on your finger where mine should be, and you have borne another man's child when he should have been mine."
At his heartfelt words, the emotional dam inside Grace broke. All of the love, anger and fear that she'd kept at bay for so long tore their way through the barriers and became an elemental force to be reckoned with, devastating her with its power.
Her eyes watered and her lips trembled with the effort not to blurt out the truth right then. Instead, she shouted the words in her mind.
He's yours! He's yours, Gabriel.
Gabriel saw her tears and stroked her cheek tenderly. "Gracie..."
She knew that he intended to kiss her, and she made no attempt to stop it. She gasped softly as he covered his lips with hers, and she thought her heart would be crushed beneath the weight of her happiness from kissing him again. She moaned at the wonder of it, and she heard him groan in response.
She closed her eyes and gave herself up to the sensations that enveloped her. His lips were soft, his tongue warm and his breath fresh. His teeth gently nipped at her lips, making them more sensitive to his oral caresses. He held her tightly against him, and she could feel her nipples tighten where her breasts pressed against his chest. She sucked lightly at his tongue, and she felt his penis twitch against her thigh.
In a distant corner of her mind, she knew that she should break the kiss and tell him what he had to know. But a selfish part of her insisted that she enjoy the moment while it lasts, because she knew that afterwards he might despise her.
At least I got to kiss him again, and heard his words of love. At least I'll have this to help me through the rough times ahead, this memory of Gabriel.
Slowly, Grace ended the kiss. His eyes were full of love and passion as he stared down at her, and she hated the idea of hurting him. But it was inevitable.
Her voice shook as she spoke.
"There's something very important that I have to tell you, Gabriel. Two things, actually. The first is this: I forgive you for hurting me. I've been thinking very hard these past few days, and I want to be free of all the anger that I've been carrying around inside all those years. I want us to have a clean slate."
Overwhelmed with relief, he grinned widely before kissing her again. "You got it."
She didn't smile back. Her jet-black eyes seemed to darken even further, and for a moment Gabriel could have sworn that one of them was larger than the other.
"Now it's up to you to forgive me for what I've done to you."
His smile faded. "What are you talking about, Gracie?"
Biting her lip, she looked down at the book that she still clutched in her hand. She quietly returned it to its place on the shelf and turned to Gabriel. She held out her hand to him, her eyes pleading for him to trust her.
"Please, come with me."
Much later, Gabriel would recall the following moments as if they had happened in slow motion. Grace's small hand in his, guiding him out of the bookstore and onto the street. The short cab ride to the studio that he had seen in his vision, and the shocking discovery that he would always remember with bittersweet joy.
He had a son.
The Strand
Grace opened the door and held it open for Gabriel to enter the apartment. She took off her jacket and hung it on the coat rack, motioning for him to do the same. He moved slowly, anxious about what was coming.
She heard the television, and together they walked into the living room.
"Guys, I'm back. I've brought a guest with me. Gabriel, you've met my father."
Hiroshi rose from the couch and shook the younger man's outstretched hand, and Gabriel nodded to him. "Nice to see you again, Mr. Nakimura."
The older man's tone was cool as he replied. "Likewise."
Gabriel turned to her. "What's this all about, Gracie? Why all the secrecy?"
She looked at him before her eyes focused on something across the room. He followed her gaze and felt something like an electric shock as he stared into the eyes of the little boy who sat beside the large window. Next to him were several drawings, and as Gabriel drew closer he recognized himself in them.
Rafe stood up from his chair and smiled at him. "Hello, Mister."
He felt a burning sensation in his chest as he replied. "Hey, kid."
Grace began to cry as Rafe approached Gabriel and opened his arms. He didn't hesitate to kneel down and bring his son to him, holding him tightly.
Hiroshi looked on in approval, satisfied at last. The younger man's reaction was the proof he had needed that Gabriel truly hadn't known until then that he was the child's father. He'd thought that Gabriel knew but hadn't cared; he'd been wrong.
The warm family moment was shattered when a bird crashed through the window, breaking its neck and frightening everyone in the room in the process. The broken shards of glass fell like rain about the room, and Gabriel reacted swiftly by covering Rafe with his own body to protect him from getting hurt. He felt the sharp pieces sliding over his back, cutting him through the fabric of his shirt, but he didn't care. His paternal instinct, which was brand-new, demanded everything that he had to make sure his son was safe.
When it was over, he gingerly lifted himself off of Rafe. "Are you all right?"
The little boy gasped, his eyes swimming with tears as he saw the dead bird.
"Yes, I'm fine."
Gabriel looked up to see Grace running towards the kitchen to get a plastic bag to clean up the mess. Hiroshi brushed off a few stray bits of glass off his clothes as he stood up from behind the couch, where he had taken cover.
A scary idea came into his mind just then, and he turned to glance at the bird, hoping to God that it wasn't a raven. He released a sigh of relief; it was just a pigeon.
Then he heard the child's sobs and was alarmed to see him crawling on his hands and knees towards the broken bird, not concerned with the glass that covered the floor.
Gabriel's voice was stern as he addressed the child. "Raphael..."
Rafe had reached the dead animal, and began to reach out his hand. The tears flowed freely as he spoke to his father, creating tracks in the face paint that he wore.
The look he gave Gabriel was a plea from one gifted person to another.
"Please, don't stop me. I must do this."
After a long moment, he nodded his permission. Rafe gently touched the bird's twisted neck, and Gabriel saw a faint glow where flesh touched feathers.
Grace, after searching the entire kitchen for a garbage bag, found one and came rushing back into the room just in time to watch the bird awaken and fly away.
Stunned, she saw Gabriel sitting on the floor beside Rafe, staring at his face.
He reached into his pocket and retrieved a handkerchief, finally understanding why the boy's face had always seemed so unhealthy and pale. It was make-up.
He carefully wiped away all traces of the paint from Rafe's skin, and released a shuddering breath as he saw what Grace had tried so hard to hide from the outside world. The boy had freckles, which was a dead giveaway of his mixed parentage.
Behind them, she lifted a hand to cover her mouth.
This is what Mosely must have seen in Central Park. That's how he knew.
Gabriel's hand tightened on the cloth that he held between his fingers, his earlier rapture almost overtaken by the feelings of betrayal and white-hot anger that surged through him at Grace's deception. Not just for himself, but also for Rafe.
Knowing full well that she was pregnant with my son, she married another man and raised the child to believe that Anami the bastard was his real father while she never told me anything. As if that wasn't enough, she forced him to wear this all-concealing shit on his face so no one would guess that his father is white.
He trembled from the force of his emotions, and he knew that he had to get out of there before he said or did something he would regret later.
He turned to Rafe and took him in his arms, rocking him gently.
His voice trembled. "I have to go now, son. It has nothing to do with you, okay? I just need to be alone for a while, to think things through."
The boy nodded solemnly. "I understand."
Gabriel slowly rose from the floor, and turned to find Grace staring at him. He walked up to her, his eyes fierce and predatory. They were also filled with a tortured sadness, so deep and vast that she wanted to weep as she met his gaze.
"I guess we're even now. I broke your heart, and in return you've broken mine."
He turned on his heel and left the apartment without another word.
As Gabriel was preparing to return to his loft to brood in peace, he saw a black stretch limousine pull up to the curb in front of his apartment building. The door opened and Liam stepped out, smiling brightly when he saw him.
"Hello, my friend! Have you been keeping busy while I was away?"
Gabriel smiled cautiously, convinced that he shouldn't talk too much around the blond Irishman. He was too close to Anami, so he couldn't be trusted.
"I've been around. I heard about what happened in London. Is everything okay now?"
Liam grew serious. "Yes. David was released from the hospital this morning - London time, I mean - and we arrived here just an hour ago."
Gabriel nodded. "I see. Where is he now? Is he resting comfortably at home?"
Liam snickered. "Heavens no! He's at the office! He's a born workaholic. That's actually why I'm here; I've come to fetch you for a meeting that's long overdue. He wants to meet with you to discuss the case."
Gabriel was intrigued. "Will I finally get some answers, then?"
Another smile played on Liam's lips as he held open the door for Gabriel to enter.
"That's for him to decide. Hop in."
Anami Enterprises
Gabriel's emotions were still running high as he was escorted by Liam to Anami's office on the 60th floor, so much so that he couldn't stop the hissing of the poisonous serpent inside his head that whispered words of jealousy and hate.
When the large double doors opened and he saw his enemy in the flesh, the snake tightened its lethal coils around his heart. As Liam made the introductions, he stared at the powerful man before him, consumed with the desire to tear out his throat.
This is the sneaky son of a bitch who stole my woman, raised my child.
Gabriel shook hands with him, and it was a struggle to keep his tone neutral.
"Mr. Anami, it's good to finally meet you."
David smiled. "Same here. Prince James speaks very highly of you. Please, sit."
The two men sat while Liam stood by the large office window, silently observing.
Gabriel cleared his throat. "So, how does it feel to laugh in the face of death?"
David tilted his head, regarding him curiously.
"A very interesting choice of words, Mr. Knight. What do you mean by that, exactly?"
He decided to play his trusty "Dumb Southern Boy" card, a technique that never failed. When he used it on his suspects in the past, they always let their guard down and underestimated him, allowing him to slip undetected beneath the surface. When the time was right, Gabriel took them by surprise when he revealed their tangled web of lies, showing them what a smart cookie he really was, as well as getting the occasional confession.
He spoke slowly, letting his accent run thick like molasses.
"I meant that it must have been very exhilarating to defeat so many men who wanted to harm you, perform such a daring escape and live to tell the tale."
David stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"It was quite the opposite, actually. I was terrified, and I never want to go through anything like that again. I'm glad it's over so I can hopefully return to life as usual."
Gabriel raised an eyebrow. "Hopefully? Why shouldn't you?"
Anami didn't answer. Gabriel continued his probing, unfazed by the silence.
"You must have been relieved when you were cleared by the interesting batch of evidence that was given to the authorities at Scotland Yard."
At his words, David placed his hands together and peered at Gabriel over the triangle that they formed. His beautiful mouth carried a hint of a smile, and the Schattenjäger couldn't tell if Anami was angry or amused. He had the perfect poker face.
"Why do you call it interesting, Mr. Knight?"
Gabriel leaned forward in his chair, spearing his eyes with his own.
"The entire situation is interesting, when you think about it. You disappeared for just over 24 hours, you returned in relatively good condition with a full explanation in tow, and then the evidence was so meticulous and thorough... nice."
David laughed heartily, his eyes shining like polished silver.
"You are a very shrewd man, Knight. It's a shame we won't be working together after all. That's the reason I sent for you; I've decided to call off the case."
Gabriel's eyes narrowed. He hadn't expected to be dismissed before he'd even begun.
"May I ask why?"
David shrugged nonchalantly. "Let's just say that there's been a change of plan. I'm very sorry to have inconvenienced you by dragging you to New York for nothing, but please feel free to spend a few more days here at my expense. Do whatever you like, and when you're ready to leave, just let Liam know and he'll arrange for one of the private jets to take you wherever you wish."
He reached into his suit jacket and produced two invitations, placing them on the desk.
"I would be honored if you came to the masquerade ball I'm throwing at the Guggenheim tomorrow evening. Bring a friend if you like. It's to raise money for cancer research, so it's a very important event. Everyone is going to be there."
"Your wife?"
The words escaped from Gabriel's lips before he could stop them, and he felt a measure of satisfaction when Anami's eyes darkened. He wanted to bait him, let him know at least subconsciously that he had a claim to his wife, his son.
David cleared his throat in an attempt to mask his discomfort.
"I imagine she will be in attendance, yes."
Gabriel smiled wolfishly as he pocketed the invitations.
"Good. Thank you very much for your generosity, Mr. Anami. However, there are a few things that we need to discuss before our business is concluded."
The older man ran his fingers through his hair, which had visibly grayed since Gabriel saw him on television the first time, over a week before.
Was it because of his ordeal in London, or the stress of beating a murder wrap?
David's clipped British accent returned Gabriel's attention to the man himself.
"Fire away, Mr. Knight."
"Will I still be paid the agreed amount, even though the case has been called off?"
Anami nodded to Liam, and he briefly left the room. He returned with a black suitcase, opening it to reveal twenty thousand dollars in cash. His expression blank, Liam closed the case and handed it to Gabriel.
He nodded to David. "Thank you."
David nodded in response. "Of course, you can also keep the laptop that we gave you, as well as the clothes and tuxedo that we provided you with."
"Again, thank you."
Anami appeared bored as he asked, "What else did you want to talk about?"
Gabriel glanced at the gold signet ring on David's right hand.
"That's a very nice ring you've got there. Is that a raven?"
David looked at his hand. "Yes, it is. Would you mind getting to the point, please? I'm a very busy man, and I have a lot of catching up to do because of London."
Gabriel flushed, secretly glad that he'd managed to rattle Anami's cage.
Maybe if he gets angry enough, he'll let something revealing slip. I'd be more than happy to make that happen, to catch this smug bastard in a lie.
His emerald eyes glistened. "Aren't you the least bit curious as to what I've been doing all these days alone while you were away?"
David sighed deeply in frustration. "No, Knight. What have you been doing?"
Seducing your wife, learning the truth about who your little boy really belongs to.
"Research, and a lot of it. I admit that it was very difficult at first, since I'd been given so little to go on, but then I learned some interesting facts about possession, ravens, Celtic lore, and about yourself as well."
Anami leaned forward. "Really? I'm eager to hear about what you have found."
Gabriel made a show of preparing to speak and then backing down.
"Perhaps I shouldn't now that I'm off the case. I'll just leave you to your work."
David grinned, admiring the younger man's tenacity and spirit.
"You just don't give up, do you? Tell me what you know."
Gabriel stared at him, his face blank and his eyes cold as ice.
"I know that you are a follower of the Morrigan. I know what happened during your childhood, with the deaths of your parents. The loss of your first wife and baby. I can't imagine what it must have been like for you to experience such pain."
David stared back at Gabriel, all traces of mirth gone from his face.
"No you cannot, and I hope that you never shall. But concerning that other matter, I have no idea what you are talking about. I have never heard of such a thing."
Gabriel stood up and took the briefcase, slowly backing out of the office.
"I agree with what you said earlier, Anami. It is a shame that we won't be working together. I really wanted to help you when this whole thing started, but I must admit that my priorities have shifted in a big way since then. So much that I wouldn't have been able to perform at my normal capacity in any case."
He sighed and gave David an intense look that betrayed all his feelings of hostility.
"Now that I'm out of a job, I guess that I'll have to find something else to investigate. I've never been very good at knowing when to stop. Good afternoon, gentlemen."
Gabriel left the office, and after a moment David pressed a button on the phone beside him to call his personal security team. "Hello?"
"Jones, Anami here. Put a tail on Gabriel Knight. I want to know where he goes, everything he does and everyone he meets with. No exceptions. Report back to me."
He disconnected the call and sat back in his plush chair to ponder his next move, while Liam's dark blue eyes remained on the door through which Gabriel left.