I longed to get out of the car to stretch my legs a number of times, but I resisted temptation. I didn’t want to draw any unnecessary attention to myself, or to the big black SUV I was sitting in. I wished I was able to get closer to her. What if something happened to her? I would never be able to forgive myself. I wanted to swoop in and whisk her away. Away from that house, away from the family, and more importantly, away from that fucker…
Out of the corner of my vision, I saw something glinting in the low light. Just for a second and then it was gone, so when I turned and looked, there didn’t seem to be anything there. Squinting in the darkness, I made out a shape in the front seat of another car, parked on the quiet street a few yards back.
As I watched, it became apparent that there was another man, sitting and watching the property. I supposed he could’ve been eyeing any property on the street, but my gut said otherwise. Every now and again, he lifted a small pair of binoculars to his eyes. Way to be obvious, buddy...
If I wasn’t very much mistaken, there was someone else staking out the Varela mansion. As I sat there, torn between watching for signs of Ana and watching the other stakeout, I contemplated who it could be. The Varelas didn’t have many enemies, to my knowledge. Despite playing a big role in Philadelphia's organized crime syndicate, they weren’t at war with any of the other families at the minute.
Perhaps they were on the lookout for a guest? I strained my neck and looked at the reg, not an out of state car. Maybe he was there for the Varelas…
Surely, he couldn’t have been there for Ana. Either way, I didn’t like it.
I made a mental note of the make, model and plate number of the car and filed it away for later. But it’s presence weighed heavy on my mind. I couldn’t stop wondering if they were there for Ana. Call it paranoia, call it being cautious - I didn’t care. I just knew what my gut told me, and it was telling me to keep a close eye on the fucker.
If the car was there again tomorrow, I’d have to do something about it. And I’d have to try and find a way to let Ana know. She’d go nuts if she knew I was still in Philly, but if I got caught in the crossfire of Ana’s safety and Ana’s fury. I’d always choose to protect her, and I hoped that she knew that. If there was a potential threat unknown to her, I wanted her to be prepared for anything.
Nevertheless, I would be here when she needed me, whether she knew it or not. I couldn’t leave her here alone.
Before it grew too late, I dialled Drex’s mobile. It had been a couple of days since I’d last talked to him and I needed to check in on them back in Boston. In the past decade, we’d barely ever had the opportunity to take time away from work. In the past two weeks, Finch had left and I’d taken a brief hiatus. That only left Zedd and Drex…
Safe to say, I’d been worried about what I’d eventually be going back to.
While Finch had been pulling a disappearing act, my younger brothers had looked to me for guidance. I knew the business better than Finch, that was for sure. I could talk circles around him, and all this had really made me realize that maybe Zedd and Drex were right.
Maybe it should’ve been me in charge.
Maybe I wasn’t supposed to be the man behind the curtain any longer.
Of course, nothing official had been decided. After all this, there needed to be some serious discussion. But now there were too many unknown factors. So, instead of giving an answer, I preferred to just call and check in every few days - make sure they hadn’t fired everyone or had the office burned down.
It had been a busy few days after the party. I had been spending so much time with Kaleb, he was so eager to ‘show me the ropes’. Me? Not so much. Which was why when Rachel demanded that she steal me away for the day, I was actually kind of grateful for the breather. Kaleb relented quickly, he was a man in love and all he seemed to want was to make Rachel happy.
By the time I came down for breakfast, Kaleb was already gone — out of town on business — and Ambrose was getting ready to head out mid-morning for lunch and to watch some sports game with his friends.
I spent the morning in my room, clutching the one thing that I had hidden away since before I got here. Hidden from Nikolai, from Rachel, from everyone.
The night before I left, after I ran away from Finch, I was in my bathroom when Heather found me with urgency. In her shaky hands was an envelope with my name on it. ‘Anastasia’ was scribbled on the front. I’d had no idea that when I read its contents that I’d be set on this warpath. She’d said the letter had been in the mail, and she had come to find me as soon as she’d seen it. I’d never received mail at the King estate as there were few people who knew I lived there.
My throat had caught thinking about the only other person that had found me there, the lawyer. I’d had a bad feeling
