distance.
Not that Shawn was planning to hit anyone or anything. He was preparing to run interference.
Stop the unraveling Pierce was barely keeping contained. The loose ends he was trying to tie up were more than anyone in his life knew.
Could know.
“Your entire company is on the line, Pierce. All of it. The men. The money.” Vincent took a step closer to Pierce, closing the gap between them. “He wants to take it all from you.”
That wasn’t all Anthony wanted to take from him.
Suddenly Pierce’s body shoved back.
Mona bumped him again, wedging her body between his and Vincent’s. “How do you know that?”
Vincent’s eyes dropped to Mona. His reaction to her words could have been missed behind a blink. “That’s classified.”
“Oh. My. God.” Mona’s eyes narrowed as she stared up at Vincent. “You knew.” Her lip curled. “You knew this whole time what was happening.” She let out a disgusted grunt. “And you did nothing.”
Vincent squinted down at her in a look that would wilt most grown men.
But Mona only stood taller. “You’re the reason I was kidnapped.” She shook her head. “You’re the reason I had to kill that man.” The frown on her lips was deep and drawn. “You could have stopped this before it started.”
“That’s not my job, Ms. Ayers.” Vincent’s voice was less hard than before. “My job is to protect the security of the country. Not the security of a single business.”
“But it’s not just about us now, is it?” Mona’s look of disgust held as she sized Vincent up. “Now it is about the security of GHOST. His mess is big enough it’s getting on you. That’s why you keep coming back here.”
Vincent was silent.
“You need us, Vincent.” Pierce pressed closer to Mona, breathing deep as he fought to find the calm he always struggled to keep. “And to be perfectly honest, we need you.”
Vincent rocked back on his heels as he glanced at the handful of his men scattered around the space. “We are limited in our ability to draw him out since his interest isn’t in us.” His gaze leveled on Pierce. “It’s on something else, isn’t it, Pierce?”
There was no way for Vincent to know the truth of all Anthony was seeking.
“You’re worried because he thinks you’re a part of Alaskan Security.” Zeke stepped in. “Because of Shadow.”
Mona’s eyes went from Zeke to Vincent. “How did he find out Shadow worked for us and GHOST?”
“A man with enough money can find anything.” Vincent turned his attention to Pierce. “Isn’t that right?”
“Even money has limits.” It was what he clung to. The hope that there were limits to what Anthony could find.
Zeke turned to Pierce. “What did you do to piss him off so bad?”
The list was long between them. Too convoluted and twisted to lay into any sort of comprehensible timeline. “Anthony and I have known each other since we were children.”
Vincent’s focus sharpened in an instant.
“We’ve hated each other just as long.”
It was a lifetime ago that they met. More.
He’d lived so many lives since then. All of them because of Anthony Sanders.
Because of his ability to bring out the worst in people.
“We will send additional men to you.” Pierce glanced to Zeke. “Choose a team that will work well with the circumstances.” He turned, walking toward the tunnel leading to his office.
“What’s going to happen to him?” Mona stood at the door leading to the room holding the man who made the mistake of answering Anthony’s posting.
“The same thing that happened to Howard and Chandler.” Vincent turned her way, waiting as Mona stared through the glass at the man who most likely expected her to be an easy mark.
“You’re going to kill him?”
“Ms. Ayers, I haven’t had to kill anyone in this.” Vincent glanced at one of his men, tipping his head toward the door. “And I won’t have to kill him either.”
Mona watched as the man from GHOST went toward the door. “You’re going to let him go?”
Vincent tipped his head in a nod. “That’s exactly what I’m going to do.” He seemed happy with the ramifications of his plan. “Anthony will find him and it’ll work itself out.”
“You mean he’ll be mad I’m not dead and kill him.” Mona glanced at the door again.
“Exactly.”
“But he kills everyone, no matter what.” Mona’s brows came together. “Or has them killed.”
Pierce stepped back toward her. “Explain.”
“He doesn’t want any loose ends so as soon as someone doesn’t serve his purpose, they die. Chris killed the men who tried to shoot Bess.”