Page 30 of Breached

He dropped his feet heavily to the floor, reached over, and pulled a pair from a box. He slid them across the desk to me without question, and I snatched them up. Atlas didn’t even flinch at the intrusion.

“Cole is fine with this?” His comment made my chin jerk in. Cole never set any boundaries—he just said not to leave the property alone, and without talking to one of the guys first.

“I wouldn’t ask if he wasn’t.”

“Channel seven,” Rafe grunted and went back to the position he was in before.

“Thanks.” I turned to leave but stopped myself, as curiosity got the better of me. “I thought you guys were at Esmeralda’s compound.”

“Shift change,” Atlas explained.

“Where are the guys? Shouldn’t they be listening, too?”

“They are,” he assured me.

I snuck a glance at Rafe, who had gone back to leaning against the wall. “Okay.” I held up the headphones as if to say I was going to go listen.

I settled in across from them at what I considered a safe distance then turned the volume up and switched to the correct channel.

Instantly, my blood ran cold when I heard Bruno’s voice speaking about the women around him.

“Pretty young things,” he hissed.

I remembered the time he had called me a pretty young thing as he stalked around me in a circle, sizing me up with his demon eyes. He was ruthless and dangerous, but there was a fakeness to him, and once I spotted that, I knew I could outsmart him. I had a few times before, but at what cost?

“I’ve got all flavors if you’d prefer a different look.” I shuddered at that. I was impressed with how well the bugs picked up his voice. I wondered how close it was to him.

“These—” I went still, trying to place the voice. A muffled sound blocked the mic, and I fought to hear better. The odd sound went on for a few moments, and I grew frustrated. I knew that voice but couldn’t place it, given the few words he said.

A tapping noise on the desk had me looking up to find Rafe towering over me. I removed the headphones with my heart in my throat. It was dark in the room, and the little light from the electronics made his eyes glow silver. He was like a lion perched on a rock above me like friggin’ Mufasa. If I weren’t so nervous, I’d laugh at my comparison.

“You dating Paul?” he grunted, and I shook my head. I was unsure where that question came from. Whatever his reasoning, it was none of his business. He squinted like he was contemplating something, then gave a tight nod and moved away again.

Okay…

I put my headphones back in place.

“And where, exactly, is my son?” At his words, my spine snapped straight, and I locked eyes with Atlas, who must have sensed my change in mood and looked over. That southern drawl and the low voice were unmistakable. Eric Noah. I quickly looked down, nervous that Atlas might come over.

“With her—and those fucking Americans from the north,” Bruno explained, and my chest heaved at the thought that he was talking to Eric Noah about his son. He can’t have him back! I didn’t care that Eric was his father. I could never let him be subjected to such a monster. He doesn’t love Chase like I do. I knew that was an irrational thought, but I didn’t care.

“I can give you a child,” a woman said. “I can give you whatever you want.”

“Oh, yeah?” Eric purred, making my eyes roll. “Maybe you can show me later.”

“There’s my old friend.” Bruno made a loud noise, and it was gross. “Now, tell me what you came here to tell me.”

“Give me a second, darlin’.” Eric’s voice came again, and I heard the loud scrape of a chair, then a girl yelped then cursed in Spanish. “Fiery little thing, ain’t ya?” Eric drawled, and Bruno laughed. I distinctly heard the click of high heels and figured the girl had run off.

“I’ll make you a deal, Bruno. You bring me in on the whole thing you’ve got going on here, and I’ll tell you where that American team’s safehouse is.”

I held my breath and replayed what he just said in my head. I felt the blood drain from my face.

“You know where the safehouse is?” Bruno sounded shocked.

“It’s what I came here to tell you,” Eric drawled. “You went to Redstone, ain’t that right? You were on the right track, but you didn’t go far enough north.”

I ripped the headphones off, jumped to my feet, and raced out the door. I turned in a circle, looking at all the buildings around me. Panic ripped through me. “Cole!” I shouted at the top of my lungs, not wanting to waste any time looking for Blackstone. “John! Keith!”