Total pages in book: 23
Estimated words: 21243 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 106(@200wpm)___ 85(@250wpm)___ 71(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 21243 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 106(@200wpm)___ 85(@250wpm)___ 71(@300wpm)
Fuck this asshole for being here today. I’ve paid Agent Tanner a small fortune in bribes for years now. And for him to be the one to show up here today, besides the fact that my money should have warranted a heads-up call, makes me furious.
“What are you doing here, Tanner?” I hiss, my arms crossing over my bare chest.
Agent Tanner shakes his head. “I don’t want to be, Jagg—”
“Mr. Kovac,” I spit, giving him a withering look, which does exactly as intended. Agent Tanner is a grade-A pussy, which is exactly why it’s him who’s been my inside guy all these years.
He nods quickly, seeing that I’m not going to bullshit around with familiarity right now.
“And I’m sure you don’t want to be here if you want your donations to keep coming,” I growl under my breath.
This time, he shakes his head.
“It’s bigger than me,” he hisses. “You fucked up big this time.”
The scowl deepens on my face as I mentally try and take stock of my recent business dealings, and anyway I might have left myself open. But no, I never do, and I didn’t. I never leave myself open.
“What is it?” I snap.
I glance past him and see other FBI agents and the local police outside, going through my damn trash. Another team kicks in the side-door to my kitchen, probably scaring old Mrs. Karper, my cook, half to death.
“The fuck are you doing here?” I hiss.
“Our arrangement,” Tanner growls back. “You said it yourself, I look away if you get the family out of the girls and the drugs, and all that shit.”
“And I have,” I spit back.
“Don’t lie to me, Jagger.”
I swear to God, I almost wind back and hit him in the fucking face. In fact, my hand goes back before Luka is there to hold me back.
“Easy, boss,” he mutters.
Tanner gives me a cold look.
“You crossed a line, Mr. Kovac.”
“I did no such—”
“There he is!”
I recognize the voice instantly. It’s Tommy, as in, Skylar’s father. He’s screeching outside, actually tugging on the jacket of an FBI agent as he jabs a finger at me.
“There he is! There’s the one that kidnapped her!”
My jaw tenses.
“He stole her from me!”
“What is this shit?” I hiss as Tommy comes stumbling through my front door — clearly drunk — and leading the FBI agent along with him.
“Mr. Kovac?” Tanner says quietly.
“What,” I hiss.
“This man alleges you kidnapped his daughter, a certain Ms. Skylar Jensen.”
I feel the rage explode out of me as I take a step towards Tommy and open my mouth.
“This man is—”
I freeze.
What do I say? He’s a man who used to drug deal for my decidedly criminal organization? Yeah, things you don’t say to a damn FBI agent. Tanner knows who and what I am, but I don’t have the same agreement with the thirty other guys he’s here with.
What's more, what else would I say? That I won Tommy’s daughter in a fucking poker match? Yeah, I don’t see that going over very well either. Leave it to these fuckers to slap me with a human trafficking charge while they’re at it.
“This man is a liar,” I hiss, jabbing a finger at Tommy.
“Shame on you, sir!” Tommy wails with more phony dramatics than I’d have thought him capable of. Fuck, if he was this good of an actor at the table, he might not have lost so damn much.
“This is preposterous,” I growl, turning my glare on Tanner. “I’m calling my lawyers and—”
“Agent Tanner?”
I whirl, but my face hardens when I see the other FBI agent, and what he’s got in his hands.
It’s Skye’s sundress.
Tanner swears under his breath.
“Tear this damn house apart!” he roars, and the whole fucking crowd of FBI and police start to scatter through my house.
“Find the girl! Tanner barks, turning away from me.
It’s my snapping point. I roar, lunging for Tommy, but a swarm of them pile on top of me, bringing me to my knees. Tommy jumps back like the little pussy he is anyways, and then I’m up again, shaking off the weak-ass agents and lurching for him again. This time, it’s seven of them that bring me down, and this time, I do freeze when I feel the cold metal of a gun barrel against my back.
“Easy now, Jagger,” Tanner hisses. “Just take it easy.”
“She’s mine!” I roar blindly, still shoving at them and trying to get up so that I can get to her before any of these fucking shit-heads get their hands on my precious Skye. “Get your fucking hands off of—”
And then I hear her, and my heart shatters. She’s screaming, and crying my name, and fighting against them.
I’m up in a second, knocking them all away, kicking the gun from Tanner’s hands and probably breaking his fingers in the process. He screams but I’m already vaulting over him and running right for her as three agents try and drag her out the front door.