Reckless Abandon (Phantom Protector Book 1) (4 page)

Floyd leaned back in his chair and studied the
men sitting around the table. All of them had great power, and they all had one
thing in common. They each craved more. He’d been recruited all those years ago
and finally moved up the ranks to be sitting with these men. Most of them were more
devious than Floyd considered himself. Each one was in charge of one of ten
territories with their goal to recruit from the gifted men in their region.

Mr. Black pounded the gavel hard against the
stone in front of him. “Gentlemen.”

Floyd wanted to take the gavel and knock the
asshole out. He was the worst bastard of them all. As a form of initiation,
he’d siphoned blood from all of the territory bosses. Whether he’d injected
himself or had them locked away, no one really knew. Mr. Black’s mission, and
those of the group, had one commonality; they all wanted power and would use
whatever means necessary to obtain it.

The room quieted, each men sitting at the round
table on a quest all of their own. Each was also nervous that Mr. Black was
unhappy with their performance. Floyd had been a member of this group for long
enough that he’d seen many men stronger than himself fall to Mr. Black’s authority.
The men standing behind him were dressed in business suits, yet Floyd had no
idea what gifts they possessed. Mr. Black could take a man to his knees with
one look. He didn’t need the help of bodyguards if that was their purpose.

Black leaned back into his cushioned chair with
an air of authority. He gazed over the men at the table until he reached
Floyd’s eyes
. Oh shit.
That was Black’s
telltale sign that the meeting would be focused on himself.

“Benjamin, is it true that you’ve had to move
your operation to another location?”

Floyd wouldn’t show weakness. He stilled his
hands under the table and gripped them together. An uncomfortable reminder of
who he was with.

“We kidnapped an operative from the Phantoms,
and they wanted him back. It was an unfortunate setback, but we have changed
locations and are now up and operational.”

“Any more leads on how to obtain the fortune
teller or the healer?”

Floyd pushed from the table and paced the length
of the floor in the small room. “We know their location, and we will be
initiating a strike of our own.”

Black leaned back in his chair and crossed his
arms over his chest. “Do you think you can handle it on your own or do I need
to send in Freddie’s crew to make sure you get the job done?”

Floyd’s gaze darted to Freddie Sinclair, the
sniveling man who’d climbed the ranks not because he’d initially had power but because
of his ability to obtain it. The man was a monster, not so unlike himself. He’d
do anything to anyone if it meant he could control Floyd’s territory.

Freddie winked. “I’d be happy to help. The general
and I go way back. I wouldn’t mind collecting for a few of the wrongs he’s
committed against me and my team.”

Floyd placed his palms on the back of his empty
chair. “That won’t be necessary. In two weeks’ time they will all be destroyed
except for the strongest, which I plan to convert to my side.

Black rose to his feet. “See that you do.”

Black’s dark gaze penetrated Floyds’. He could
feel the power that the man was sending in his direction. Weaker men would have
crumbled to the floor in pain, but not Floyd. He’d ingested too many powers
through the years and had developed an ability to somewhat stave off the pain.
Floyd felt the sweat bead on his forehead. If Black kept up the intensity, it
would only be a matter of time before Floyd fell to his knees.

Black mumbled, “Interesting.” He let the power
he pushed toward Floyd fade until there was nothing. He turned to his bodyguard
and spoke in hushed tones. He turned back to Floyd. “You have two weeks. If you
can’t get the job done, then expect to welcome Freddie into your territory.”

Floyd nodded. There wasn’t much else he could
do. One thing was for sure; he’d kill Freddie if he even tried to cross into his
borders. Floyd might not be able to take Black, but he could damn sure outfight
Freddie Sinclair.

Black’s threat lingered long after each of the
men departed. Floyd walked into the attached waiting room to find Nicholas
patiently standing next to the fireplace. Floyd knew the moment Nicholas
spotted him. He’d straightened and lifted his chin. “Are you ready to leave,
Mr. Floyd?”

Floyd nodded and walked out of the front door of
the house. Freddie stood nearby, leaning against his limo surrounded by his own
men. Floyd held Freddie’s gaze as he moved to his own limo and slid into the
plush leather seats. He hit the intercom button. “James, take us to the
compound.”

Floyd pulled a bottle of Scotch from the minibar
and poured himself a glass. “I need a status update on Lydia Stevens and Jamie
Bloom. I also want you to send in your brother, Henry, to keep an eye on
Freddie Sinclair. If he even so much as leaves his territory, I want to know
about it.” He narrowed his eyes. “We have two weeks to take their compound down
and capture both of them.”

“Yes, sir.” Nicholas pulled his cell from the
clip and punched in numbers. He held the phone to his ear. “I need an update
and location on the healer.”

He listened in silence as he got the information
he wanted and then hung up.

“They are on the road, and our men are following
behind them.”

Floyd rested one ankle on top of his knee.
“Good. Tell them to just follow for now. I want to know every move they make. I
want to know where they stop, where they eat, and most important, where the
hell they’re going. Every detail could potentially be important.”

Nicholas nodded and started texting.

****

Hours passed, and with each mile marker, there
was no advance from the white van. It kept its distance just as Briggs had
implied it would. Small talk wasn’t his strong suit. The ride had been in
uncomfortable silence, and she didn’t know how to fix the situation.
Frustration had instantly hit her when he’d withheld the fact that they were
being followed. Max was a hard one to figure out that kept his cards close to his
chest.

She couldn’t take his silence for a second more.
“Thank you for helping me.”

He grunted.

“You really are bad at this, aren’t you?”

Briggs released a sigh. “Bad at what?”

“Letting people in.” She glanced out the window.
“I can see you care about your friends, but you keep them at arm’s length.” She
turned in her seat. “Forgive me, Max, but I have to ask… Who truly knows you,
the real you?”

A sly grin formed on his lips. He’d caught on to
what she was trying to do. She needed to figure him out and fast. She sighed
her disappointment when he remained momentarily quiet.

“You can’t fix me, Jamie. This is who I am, like
it or not.”

Jamie leaned over and touched his arm. She
concentrated on a calming energy to travel from herself to him. A reassurance
that everything would be all right. “Let me try.”

Briggs glanced at her. A knowing look ensued. He
slid his arm from beneath her palm. “I know what you’re trying to do, and it
isn’t going to work.” He cleared his throat. “I’d appreciate it if you don’t
try and manipulate what I’m feeling. It makes me who I am.”

Jamie pulled her hand back. Her gaze fell to her
lap. “I’m sorry. I thought it would help.”

Briggs’ fingers turned white as he gripped the
wheel. “It won’t.” He never took his eyes off the road and the rearview mirror.
“It’s time to text Jonah. They just exited the highway.”

Jamie turned in her seat and pulled the phone
from her pocket. Her fingers flew over the keyboard, sending the information to
Jonah. Seconds ticked by until the GPS dinged. The display read, “Reroute in
progress” as the screen cleared and a map popped up, telling them to get off at
the next exit.

Jamie’s phone vibrated in her hand. She read the
screen. “He said to let him know if we need any more help.”

Briggs nodded and slowed to get off at the next
exit.
 
He followed the directions the GPS
indicated, taking a left at the end of the off-ramp. “With any luck, they’ll
return to wherever the hell they came from when they realize they lost us.”

“Who do you think they were, and how did they
know we’d be leaving?”

“I can only guess that they were some of Floyd’s
flunkies. He’s the only one with a beef against you guys.”

“I think you’re right.” Jamie felt some of the
tension leave her shoulders. Yes, they were being followed, but now that they
had some breathing room, she relaxed as much as she could with the man behind
the wheel. She hit the lever on the side of her seat and leaned back into a
more comfortable position. She closed her eyes and breathed a bit easier. “Wake
me when you want me to drive, and I’ll take over.”

Max remained silent, never responding to her
request. She figured he’d get tired eventually. He was a big man, a sexy man,
but a man just the same, and everyone needed to sleep some time, including the
silent giant.

****

Floyd squeezed his eyes closed as a headache
from today’s events started to form. He clutched the phone as it pressed
against his ear. He opened his eyes, and a red tint covered everything as he
glanced around the room. He knew he was losing control. Black was not going to
be happy about this latest development. All of the bosses had wanted to get
their hands on the little healer. He was no different. His men were
incompetent. “What do you mean you lost them?”

The man on the other end of the line stuttered,
“W.w.we were on fumes; we had to get gas.” He cleared his throat. His nasally voice
sounded like a whining teenager. “We had no choice.”

Floyd took a deep breath and closed his eyes
once more, only opening them again to realize the haze hadn’t cleared. “Why
didn’t you follow them and stop when they did?”

“Sir?”

“It stands to reason they had to be on fumes
also. Why didn’t you wait?” Floyd walked over to the window and blinked his
eyes until the world returned to its natural colors.

“We coasted into the gas station. We were lucky
we exited when we did.”

Floyd clenched his fist. If what they said had
been true, then the healer should have needed to stop too. “Did you try and
catch up with them after you refueled?”

“Yes, sir. We tried to make up for lost time and
drove ninety miles an hour up the highway and never found them again.”

Floyd pulled out his leather chair from behind
his mahogany desk. He ran his hand over the smooth surface remembering his
father and how this had all started all of those years ago. “Find a place to
hole up until you receive further instruction. I’m sending the helos to scour
the area. When we get a lock, I’ll call you back.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And, Philip, if you lose them this time, don’t
bother coming back. Your services will be terminated along with your life.”

Floyd pushed the button on the phone,
disconnecting the call. All of his plans were unraveling. He’d tried only
months ago to capture Lydia.
He needed the redhead for her gift. He’d planned to drain her dry and use her
power of visions and telekinesis to further his plans to overthrow Black and
the other territory bosses. Knowing the future would have been an advantage,
and his current situation made him more determined than ever. “Where are you
going, little healer?” he asked the empty office He opened his bottom desk
drawer and withdrew the file he was looking for—a file on one Ms. Jamie Bloom.
He flipped it open and started scanning the information.
 
“You can run but you cannot hide from
me
.”

Floyd pushed a button on his desk phone.

A sweet female voice filled his ears. “Yes,
sir?”

His new assistant didn’t even realize what she’d
gotten herself into, and he liked it that way. She would fulfill his needs and
be none the wiser that she dealt with such a ruthless man. He’d been working
from his home office on the same property as one of his numerous compounds. The
familiar surroundings helped to soothe his foul mood while the men at his
compound waited for further instructions. “Can you come in here, please?”

The door to the office opened, and Floyd leaned
back in his chair and let his gaze flow over the beauty that stood before him. Her
chestnut hair fell around her shoulders in a cascade of waves as she batted her
innocent blue eyes. She held a notepad and pen in her hand. “Have a seat, Ms.
Retsil.”
 

She slid into the leather chair on the opposite
side of his desk. Her teeth bit into the pink flesh of her lower lip as she
slowly crossed her legs. Floyd clenched the pen in his hand to keep from taking
what she so obviously offered. His hands itched to slide up the length of her
long legs to see if she was wearing thigh-high stockings. He wanted her all right,
and before everything was said and done, he’d be getting not only a taste of
her but his fill. His dress pants tightened at the thought, making it
uncomfortable to sit.