He nodded and then sighed. “Phebs, you were on your own. I wish we would have found you before you went to that place. I would have told you that we ‘re going to take care of them. But we found you too late. I promise you , they ‘re going down for the hell they put us all through.”
“How?” she said through her tears, and Shane and Blake both moved back to comfort her. She felt a strange pull toward the t wo men, wanting to sink into their embrace and let them take all the pain and worries from her.
“There’s time enough for the planning. First, we need to check you over, see if you need anything more done, and get some food into you , ” Shane said firmly.
Blake nodded his agreement and looked at the other people in the room who took the hint and excused themselves, but not before they each came and kissed her on the top of the head. Phoebe began to cry again as she watched them leav e. It was like she stepped out o f a nightmare and into a fantasy land.
When the door closed, she felt shy and looked around the room as the men came and sat by her again.
“Shane spoke first. “Now darlin’, we need to check your dressings and stitches, to make sure they ‘r e all holding. Plus we don’t want any infections.”
She looked at them warily and whispered, “Are you doctors?”
Blake laughed and said, “No degree, but we have done this sort of thing a lot.”
“Why can’t the girls help?” s he said and looked at them.
“If you would prefer to have them check you over, we’ll let them. But we wanted to make sure for ourselves that you were fine. You gave us quite a scare there on the way up here.”
“Where exactly are we?” she asked and then nodded when Blake lifted her arm to check the cast.
“We’re in Massena, New York. On a small , little compound that we have named ‘The Double D Headquarters ‘. Lily inherited this land from her parents and we have all bought pieces of it. In case you were wondering , Jazz, Rex, and Drew are in a committed relationship with each other. Bear and Trent have set their sights on Lily, and Shane and I have decided that you are the one for us.”
Phoebe gasped and looked between the two in a panic. “What?”
Shane lifted her nightgown while she was distracted to look at the cuts and bruises , and listened as Blake explained to her the way they were.
““Well, darlin’, it ‘s like this. The six of us have been working together for the last ten years; I trust these men with my life. As we worked together more, each of us found that we had a few quirks that kinda matched each other’s. I suppose it could have been because we all worked so closely together. Shane and I have been best friends since the day we met —it was like finding my other half. Don’t get me wrong, I have no desire to have any sexual relationship with the man, no matter how sexy he thinks he is, but we do like to share. And we came to the realization a long time ago that we wanted to find the one woman for us and settle down and raise a family. Our friends felt the same way, and it has kinda developed into this interesting partnership we have. The six of us own The Double D together. When this shit came up with Digrossi , and we were forced to come up here, we kinda fell in love with the place. It ‘s in a small town, where no one seems to mind that Jazz and Lily have two men. They are friendly , and even courteous to us. So we all bought part of Lily’s land and are building homes here. Our business is secure, and we ‘re safe . No one knows where we a re, unless we want them to know.”
Phoebe was trying to take all the information in that Blake was saying, and she didn’t even notice that both men had looked at her body closely , and when he was done explaining , had put her gown back down and looked at her expectantly. Sneaky bastards , she thought , and then grinned.
“Good distraction there guys, now really, we need a plan,” Phoebe said with determination. She wasn ‘t going to let them take her plans away. They killed her mother, and they torture d her. Phoebe knew she was going to have to have therapy because of the things she went through, but she pushed them aside to deal with later. First, she needed to contact the authorities and make her statement. Maybe Junior can have the cell next to his father.
The men looked at each other and smiled. Shane finally spoke up and said, “Sweetheart, we will give you plenty of time to get used to the idea, but make no mistake , you are our choice. We intend on making you the happiest woman in the world.”
“How can you say that? You don’t even know me, for all you know I could be a shrew , ” s he grumbled and looked at the men; they were sex y and handsome. But two of them? She could barely manage to keep one man happy, let alone t w o . The last relationship she had been in , the man called her frigid because she couldn’t orgasm with him. She had no problem making herself do the deed, but with men, nope.
“You are a brave, sexy, compassionate human being. Yeah, we don’t know every single one of your quirks yet. But we do know that when you sleep , you hate to have the covers on your feet, you like PBJ with the crust cut off for lunch, and your favorite food is Italian anything. You chew your lip when you ‘re nervous, just like you ‘re doing right now, and you would give the last dollar in your pocket to someone who needed it, like the man on the subway with his daughter the other day , ” Shane said.
Her eyes grew wider with each sentence, to the point she could feel the pain of the swelling, and so she just lowered her head. What the hell was she supposed to say to that? Sure, she had heard of menages, but she never thought she would be attracted to the thought of loving two men. Phoebe had always had a hard time making friends because of her issues surrounding her birth ; no one had ever paid enou gh attention to her to know her likes and dislikes.
Blake put his finger under her chin and raised her head so she was looking at him in the eyes. “You hate when the man at the newspaper stand flirts with you, you like a Mocha Frappachino every morning before you go to work, when you get home you have lemonade with extra sugar in it, and you cry at commercials, especially the Hallmark ones.”
She felt a sob come from her chest and looked back and forth between the two men; she had no idea what to say. Everything was coming too fast.
“Darlin’, we’re not asking for you to make up your mind right this second , “ Shane said. “We just want you to be aware and be open to the possibility, can you do that?”
Phoebe thought for a moment and then nodded, not trusting her voice if she had to actually talk. Holy shit, her world wa s being com pletely turned upside down , all i n a matter of a few hours.
Blake smiled and leaned forward, kissed her softly and then whispered, “More pain meds?”
“Just a little,” s he said, feelin g the edge of the pain she was sure would be bad if she allowed it.
Shane kissed her softly next while Blake got the meds for her. “Get some sleep, sweetheart; we ‘ll be here when you wake up.”
She nodded and then felt the medication that Blake put in her IV start to take over and her eyes grew droopy. She was going to be safe; she could feel her trust grow for the men. If only they lived up to their promises, she may actually be able to relax and figure out her life.
Chapter 5
Junior allowed the officer at the jail to search him and the things he brought for his father, with a large smile. He always played to the guard, but they didn’t trust him. Every time they seemed to try to find something on him.
Finally allowed to walk into the visitor’s yard, he sighed a brief breath of relief. There was nothing on him, but so much had been planned for today that even a small distraction or delay would be disastrous.
Junior walked over to the corner and sat at the table he agreed with the hit man was the best bet for what they had planned. He was ready for this . A fter talking extensively to his father ‘s lawyer, explaining the situation and what would happen if he didn’t get the answers, he needed things to fall into place. His father was in the process of changing his will, but no papers had been signed yet, so the only will that was legal at this moment was the one he m
ade years ago.
Oh, the old man had told him years ago that he had already changed it, but Junior knew his father liked to play games with him. Lucky for him that it had been just that . After today, his brother and he would be extremely powerful and wealthy men. Nothing was going to stop them.
Then, if everything went as planned, they would get rid of all the bastards who could challenge them , and all would be good. Slowly, he looked around at all the people who were getting visitors today. He actually felt a little sorry for the small child who was going to witness this, but he brushed it aside. The father was in prison for something, they already had to be scared.
The buzzer sounded, letting the people who were visiting know that the prisoners were coming out. Junior stood up , prepared to show his father the last ounce of respect he felt for him before he died.
The men began to file into the yard, and Junior waited and watched as his father waddled into the dirt filled yard and no dded to the men as he walked by. Even in jail the bastard still thought he was in control. And he probably was. Senior was surviving on his reputation and money more than his strength.
“Father,” Junior said when he drew close enough.
His father huffed and sat down before saying, “Did you bring me what I asked for?”
“Of course,” Junior said and handed him the papers
His father glared at him, letting him know he heard the tone he was using. Junior could barely contain the hatred he held for the man, but he tapped it down and waited. His father looked over the papers that he had brought with him.
It was all in some kind of code. His business manager is the one who provided him with the information for every visit. Junior was just the lap dog, but not for much longer, soon he would be the one who was in charge.
“So,” his father said and put the papers aside. “Where are we with getting me the hell out of here?”
“Oh, it will only be a short time now, father . Getting you out of this place is our first priority. The lawyers are making a special appeal as we speak to the judge. They ‘re claiming that you have hea l th conditions that need constant monitoring , ” Junior said and smiled, of course that was all a lie . He paid the lawyer s handsomely to sit on their hands and tell his father whatever he wanted them too.
Junior looked around the yard and then up past the gates. The prison yard was the best position for what he had planned. Off to the left there was a hill full of trees that his hit man was sitting in. The angle had been perfect . When he gave the signal, the hit man would make the shot, and Junior would be a traumatized witness to his father’s murder.
The authorities would never be able to pin it on him or his brother, who was right now establishing a rock-s olid alibi at the Federal Court house. The hit man was from out of town, no one they had ever used before, so their normal guys would all also have alibis. But everyone would know Junior arranged this.
He listened to his father whine about the food and the guards for a few minutes before he leaned in and said, “I found another one of your bastards.”
“What?” Senior said with his eye’s narrowing.
“Yeah, a girl, she actually tried to come to work for me and get information out of us about our business, of course she found nothing. But I just thought I would let you know that she has been taken care of. What I don’t understand is why you had so many kids. I mean , good god , father. Have you never heard of contraception?” Junior said sarcastically.
Senior leaned back for a minute and then scowled at him, “You little bastard. How many times have I told you that I would take care of my children i f I needed to? I would never have to have gone out searching for a real woman if your frigid bitch of a mother would have given me the so ns I wanted. You and your crazy ass brother are useless. My other children have proven to be way more useful, even if they are not on my side right now, they will be. I have plans in the works for them. You will not interfere again, do you understand me , you worthless piece of shit? My children are to be left alone. You and your brother will never get a piece of my company . You are an embarrassment.”
Junior smiled at him and said, “Well, father , if I had not been convinced before I walked through these gates what needed to be done, now I am.”
His father sneered at him, “Oh really, and what are you going to do about it? When I get out of here , I ‘m going to do something I should have done years ago.”
“I think I beat you to the punch on that one, dad , ” Junior said and put his hand to his forehead giving the signal the hit man needed. “I will see you in hell. Good bye , father.”
The confused look on his father‘s face would be the last t hing that he remembered. The sho t rang through the air, and Junior felt the splatter of blood hit his face and he jumped up. People in the yard screamed and ran for the door as Senior Digrossi slumped over in the chair. Junior looked at him with an expression of displeasure as his blood dripped to the ground, and he turned and began to yell for help, like any loving and devastated son would do.
It seemed to take forever for Junior to be allowed to leave. The prison had gone on lock down and the visitors all taken to a secure room where they were all questioned and gave statements. No one had seen or heard anything, and no one had been close enough to hear what they had been talking about. The guards who were watching them said that Junior and Senior appeared to be having a civil and appropriate discussion.
Junior, of course, appealed to their sense of decency and ask ed for them to call his brother and lawyer. He seemed to be in shock, and the guard s allowed him t o clean himself up a little, as his clothes were taken into evidence for examination. He was walking out of the prison in a drab , brown jump suit.
He climbed into the back of the limo that was parked out in front of the gates and laid his head on the back of the seat. His brother followed him, and his father’s lawyer got in last. Junior raised his head and looked at th e lawyer in the eyes and said, “When can you read the will?”
“I have to go through all the formalities with the court, but you will be able to access the account you want now. It ‘s listed in a trust anyway. Your father never named a successor to the trust, so it falls under his final wishes. You and your brother are the sole beneficiaries, although there is a provision in there about other children. He was in the process of naming them as the sole heirs.”
“Asshole,” Junior muttered and then looked at his brother and grinned. “Well brother, we are now the most powerful men on the east coast. I suggest we celebrate.”
***
By the time word reached Rex and the others, Junior had already made plans to hire the best hit men in the trade to search for them. Andre called and insisted that they remain in daily contact with updates from both of them so they could stay on top of the situation.
Phoebe was getting stronger, although her bruised ribs were painful. The girls spent a lot of time bonding, if that ‘s what you called it. Painting finger nails and toe nails seemed a bit too much for the guys. They left them alone to do their bonding —the laughter that would drift out o f the room made all the men smile.
Each of the men had taken to monitoring different channels of communication, trying to get a hand on what was going on. So far, the only thing they heard was that Junior was claiming to be responsible for his father’s murder in his crowd, and taking control of all the companies his father held.
The Feds had brought him in for questioning several times in the last few days, asking that since he was such a respon sible business man that he turn all of his father’s records over to them.
Junior wasn’t stupid. He had books doctored incriminating his father and turned them over, claiming to have no knowledge of the activities of his father. He played his part to the hilt, according to their sources.
Rex sighed and looked at his men. “Guys, I think we are going to have to make a trip.”
Blake looked up surprised and said, “Where?”
“The funeral, it seems to me
the best way to get Junior’s attention is to be right in his face. If we show up there , he ‘ll know that we ‘re still around and going to be a thorn in his side until we get what we want. And I want him to know we ‘re not goin g to go away. That family has a lot to answer for, with Senior dead , it ‘s only going to get worse. Junior and Sam are going to continue to try to wipe out their siblings, so we can’t lay claim on anything. Also, I think he ‘s going to be more visible in the underworld trafficking. That ‘s where the money is at right now, and he won’t pass that up.”
Blake ran his fingers through his hair and looked at Shane, who was agreeing. “When’s the funeral?” h e said resigned to the fact that he was going to have to put off courting Phoebe again.
“Day after tomorrow. Andre is going to meet us also; he wants to show a united front. And he wants to meet Lily and Phoebe.”
“What? I thought we were leaving the girls here,” Shane said, and Bear and Trent spoke up at the same time.
Rex held up his hand and said, “No, they will not go to the funeral. Noah and Dallas have an apartment secured for us to stay in; they own the building. So we ‘re all going to meet in New York tomorrow night, have a meal together, and then the following day we will go to the funeral and beat feet the hell out of there when we ‘re done. The FBI and Justice Dept. are gonna have guys crawling all over the area; we ‘re going to be lucky if we make it out of there unseen. But we are making a plan.”
Bear grunted. “Dude, are we gonna be like the fuckin‘ wind or something? How the hell are we gonna get in , let Junior and Sam see us, and then get out before the feds see us? It ‘s impossible.”
Rex grinned and shook his head. “Oh ye of little faith.”
***