Chapter 2 - THE RECEIPT THAT COULD DESTROY A KINGDOM
Marin called her brother seventeen times before someone answered.
But it wasn't Wyatt.
"Hello?"
An elderly woman's frightened voice came through the speaker.
"Mrs. Bennett?"
"Marin, sweetheart, where are you?"
Marin nearly collapsed with relief.
"Where's Wyatt?"
"He's here. He's asleep on the sofa."
Marin covered her mouth.
"Oh, thank God."
Enzo watched her carefully from the opposite seat.
"Has anyone come looking for him?" she asked.
Mrs. Bennett hesitated.
"Actually, two gentlemen knocked about an hour ago."
Marin felt the relief vanish.
"What gentlemen?"
"They said they worked for your employer."
Her stomach tightened.
"What did they want?"
"They told me Wyatt needed to come with them."
Marin gripped the phone.
"Did he go?"
"Good heavens, no. I told them he's a minor and they couldn't take him without permission."
Marin closed her eyes.
Mrs. Bennett continued.
"They didn't like that. One of them said they would come back."
Enzo leaned forward.
"Ask her to lock the doors and stay away from the windows."
Marin repeated the instruction.
Mrs. Bennett's voice shook.
"Marin, what's happening?"
"I'll explain when I get there."
She ended the call.
For several seconds, she couldn't speak.
Then she turned toward Enzo.
"They went after my brother."
"I know."
"How?"
He looked at the photograph on his phone.
"Whoever sent this wanted us to know they'd found him."
Marin stared at him.
"You're talking like this happens every day."
"Not every day."
"That's supposed to make me feel better?"
"No."
He didn't offer false comfort.
Somehow, that made her even more frightened.
Within minutes, their car reached Mrs. Bennett's apartment building.
A second vehicle arrived behind them.
Two men stepped out, but Enzo stopped them from approaching the entrance.
"Stay outside," he instructed. "No one enters without her permission."
Marin looked at him.
He nodded toward the building.
"Go get your brother."
She ran.
Mrs. Bennett opened the door before Marin finished knocking.
And there, curled beneath a faded blue blanket, lay Wyatt.
Sixteen years old.
Too thin.
Dark curls falling over his forehead.
An old science textbook resting beside his pillow.
Marin dropped to her knees.
"Wyatt."
He stirred.
"Mar?"
She wrapped her arms around him.
He groaned.
"You're crushing me."
She laughed through tears.
"Shut up and hug me."
He sat up.
Then saw her wrists.
His expression changed.
"What happened to you?"
"Nothing you need to worry about."
He frowned.
"That's what you say when I absolutely need to worry."
Marin smiled weakly.
She had raised Wyatt since their mother died four years earlier.
Their father had abandoned the family long before that.
At twenty-eight, Marin was his sister, guardian, emergency contact, and the person who made sure there was food in the refrigerator.
She was also the person who had promised their mother that Wyatt would finish school.
No matter what.
That promise had taken her to the Vermilion.
The nightclub paid better than any other restaurant willing to hire her.
She had stayed through endless shifts, inappropriate comments, and Hollis's humiliating rules because Wyatt needed stability.
Now that job had nearly destroyed them both.
Enzo appeared in the doorway, stopping at the threshold.
Wyatt noticed him.
"Who's that?"
Marin hesitated.
"A friend."
Wyatt raised an eyebrow.
"Since when do your friends wear suits worth more than our rent?"
Enzo's mouth twitched.
"Since tonight, apparently."
Wyatt studied him.
Then looked back at Marin.
"Is he your boyfriend?"
"Absolutely not."
Enzo lowered his eyes, hiding what might have been a smile.
Mrs. Bennett invited them inside.
Marin explained enough for Wyatt to understand that her former employer had made false accusations and that people associated with the club had threatened the family.
She left out the details of the chair.
The crowd.
The two days alone.
Wyatt listened.
Then said quietly, "You should've told me."
Marin looked down.
"I didn't want you worried."
"I'm not five."
"I know."
"Then stop acting like you're supposed to protect me from everything by yourself."
Her throat tightened.
It sounded so much like their mother that she almost cried again.
Enzo remained near the door, giving them privacy.
Finally, Marin turned to him.
"What happens now?"
"You need a safe place to stay tonight."
"We don't need charity."
"I know."
She crossed her arms.
"Do you?"
Enzo met her eyes.
"Yes. And you don't have to stay anywhere I own. My attorney can help arrange a hotel or another temporary residence."
Marin looked toward Wyatt.
He was pretending not to listen.
"We'll take the hotel."
Enzo nodded.
"No obligations."
She studied him.
"Why do you keep saying that?"
"Because I want you to understand it."
An hour later, Marin and Wyatt checked into a modest but comfortable suite under arrangements made through an independent security service.
Mrs. Bennett agreed to stay with them for the first night.
Wyatt immediately fell asleep.
Marin couldn't.
She sat beside the window staring at the city.
Every time she closed her eyes, she heard Hollis's voice.
Eighty-six thousand dollars.
Sign it.
You know what happens to your brother if you refuse.
At two in the morning, there was a quiet knock.
Marin approached the door cautiously.
"Who is it?"
"Enzo."
She opened it a few inches.
He stood in the hallway carrying a paper bag.
"Food," he said.
Marin stared.
"You came back?"
"I realized you probably haven't eaten."
She looked away.
It was humiliating how accurately he had guessed.
Inside were chicken soup, bread, and a bottle of water.
Nothing extravagant.
Nothing that belonged in a luxury hotel.
Just food.
She stepped aside.
Enzo placed the bag on the table.
Then handed her a business card.
"Attorney Claire Donovan. She handles employment disputes, fraud, and civil rights cases."
Marin looked at it.
"Why would a lawyer like that help me?"
"Because I asked her to review the situation, and because you have a case worth examining."
"What will it cost?"
"Her first consultation is covered. After that, you decide whether to retain her under terms you understand."
Marin stared.
"You really thought about all this."
Enzo's expression became serious.
"I've seen too many people sign papers they didn't understand because someone frightened them."
She sat down.
He remained standing.
"There's something you should know," he continued.
"What?"
"The receipt Hollis signed doesn't prove that you owed money."
Marin looked up.
"It only documents what he claimed?"
"Exactly. And the terms he signed may help demonstrate that he was willing to transfer the alleged debt without verifying it."
She frowned.
"Then why did you pay him?"
"Because I wanted him to release you immediately. I wasn't going to gamble your safety on how long it took to prove he was lying."
Marin stared at him.
Something about that answer disturbed her.
Not because it sounded false.
Because it sounded painfully sincere.
"Who are you really, Enzo?"
He looked toward the window.
"My father built a business empire that included people like Hollis."
"Was your father a criminal?"
Enzo didn't flinch.
"Yes."
"And you?"
He met her eyes.
"I inherited more than I should have."
Marin looked at his tattooed hands.
The expensive coat.
The calm, dangerous confidence.
"Are you going to tell me you're a good man?"
"No."
That surprised her.
Enzo continued.
"I'm going to tell you that I can choose what I do next."
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then Marin whispered, "My mother used to say that."
His gaze sharpened.
"What was her name?"
"Lila Holloway."
Enzo went perfectly still.
Marin noticed.
"Why?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Then asked, "Did she ever work at the Vermilion?"
Marin frowned.
"Years ago. Before Hollis took over the place."
Enzo's expression changed.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
"How long ago?"
"Fourteen years."
He slowly sat down.
Marin felt her stomach tighten.
"What is it?"
Enzo looked at the silver earring resting inside his palm.
The one he had picked up from the nightclub floor.
Then he whispered something that made her blood turn cold.
"I knew your mother."
Marin stared.
"What?"
May you like
His expression grew darker.
"And I think she was the first woman Hollis's partners tried to destroy."
