AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Someone on the inside had delivered the threat, that much was clear, and Marshal would root out the fucker. He handed over his suitcase to the new guy.
“Mr. Langston has set up a place for you to work,” John said, leading them down a long hallway toward the West wing of the estate.
This part of the place was high-tech and an add-on a century after the original structure had been built. Marshal had had a hand in keeping the high-tech surveillance system up to date.
“Will it be only you?” John slanted Alex a judging look.
“Don’t worry, Jeeves. I have other agents on their way.” Alex smirked and entered the room.
“My name is John.” The man stiffened like he had a metal pole rammed up his ass.
“Yeah, it was a joke,” Alex tossed Marshal a pained look.
“He’s set to retire soon,” Marshal told John. “He’s practicing.”
The butler nodded as if that made perfect sense and then left the room.
“Wow…” Alex murmured, walking over to tap the keys on one of the numerous laptops before placing his briefcase on the table “He’s…stiff.”
“Mmm.”
“Have you checked him out?”
“A long time ago, but we can do another sweep,” Marshal suggested. “I want to recheck everyone.”
“Sounds good.” Alex glanced up from the computer. “Someone delivered that message here. And I bet that same person got Ryker’s blood.”
“No doubt.” Marshal walked over to gaze out the window at the sprawling grounds. There were twenty-seven people employed on the estate and surrounding grounds. And that didn’t include the vendors who came in and out regularly.
“You good?” Marshal shot Alex a glance.
“Yep. I have Hitch coming with a few others,” Alex murmured, placing his laptop on one of the desks.
Marshal nodded, touched the brim of his hat, and left the room. He’d find the traitor in the Langston’s midst.
But first, he needed to make a call.
Marshal was back, but not in the way Ryker envisioned.
Standing in front of his father, Ryker kept his hands at his sides, trying not to fidget. Even at the age of thirty, he still felt like a child beneath his father’s judgmental gaze. It had taken him making an appointment twenty-four hours in advance just to question his dad.
“Why is Marshal back?” he asked, meeting his father’s eyes directly. Doing so had been a hard lesson he’d learned at the age of eight. Meet the man’s eyes or get the fuck out.
“He’s doing a temporary assignment for me. Stay out of his way.”
Exasperation filled the man’s voice. The tone made the usual lump grow in Ryker’s throat. He didn’t know why his dad always treated him like an annoyance. It couldn’t be because of his sexuality, could it? He was bisexual. Sure, he had a tendency toward men, but that didn’t omit women, so Robert Langston couldn’t rule out that he and Hailey might actually get married.
At first, he hadn’t minded Hailey, but lately, something didn’t feel right about their relationship and it wasn’t the fact that they hadn’t been intimate. He suspected their values were far different.
His dad was old school, so even if Ryker married a man, Langston Senior would not allow for a surrogate.
This was his life, right? He had a say in how things went. This was the year 2024, for God’s sake.
But he knew differently. With money came power and with power came a whole set of rules that were a far cry from ordinary people. Ryker hated it, but he’d been raised in it, and changing now wouldn’t be possible.
Right? Right.
Walking out of his father’s office, he took the hallway to the left, skirting around people.
