Page 21 of Who's Afraid of the Big, Bad World

“I know.” Abasi unbuttoned his suit jacket and helped himself to a chair. He crossed his legs, appearing relaxed. Only a trained eye would make out the shoulder holster under his tailored jacket. “Annabelle Simmons, thirty-two. Witness to aDemon Brothers hit. Should have been taken into protective custody in a safe house somewhere, but her agoraphobia won’t allow it. She’s been in and out of it from a fever since the Brothers shot up her loft. Benson Security has moved in and turned the warehouse into a fort, hoping to keep her alive until the trial in two weeks. The police and prosecutor’s office can’t be trusted because someone is selling information. And Noah here got shot up in the last gun battle. Did I miss anything?”

There was a moment of stunned silence until Evan breathed an awe-filled “wow” and broke it.

Rochelle slammed her palms on the desk in front of her. “How the hell do you know all that?”

Abasi’s eyes were cold and hard even though he smiled. “I just told you. There’s a leak in Houston’s law enforcement community. Word’s spreading.”

“To a London mobster?” Rochelle demanded.

“Formermobster.” Abasi smiled again. “Although, I’ll always be a Londoner. Here’s the thing about the world’s seedy underbelly, former FBI Agent Davis, it’s a small community. If we don’t know each other by name, we’ve heard of each other. News of the Demon Brothers and their business interests reached London years ago. They wanted to expand their network into Europe and sent out feelers. So, yes, people talk—even to a former mobster—and lately, they’ve been talking about the Houston gang who could be taken down by a housebound comic book artist. And, just so you know, nobody thinks Benson Security has a chance in hell of doing its job.”

“Well, you’d better hope we do because you’re a part of Benson Security now too, Mr. Otieno.” Rochelle’s words dripped with ice. “Aren’t you?” It was a challenge.

“Please, call me Abasi. After all, we’re on the same team.” Abasi widened his hands in a gesture resembling surrender.“We’re all part of Benson Security. Trust me when I say that Lake Benson has my loyalty.”

The unspoken words“for now”hung in the air between them.

“You put any of your teammates in danger, and I will take you out myself.” Rochelle’s words were low, her tone a promise. “Do you understand?”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Abasi stood. “So, I gather we can take assassination off the table as an option. What other ideas do you have for dealing with the Demon Brothers?” He glanced around the office space. “I’m hoping one of those options isn’t just sitting around waiting for them to attack again.”

“We’re still gathering data and fortifying the building,” Rochelle said, her voice tight. “The plan is not to deal with the Demon Brothers unless absolutely necessary. We’re on protection duty, which means keeping the witness safe and alive until she can testify. Now that you’re here, you can help patrol the perimeter and keep an eye out for trouble. Noah will fill you in on what you need to do. How did you get into the building anyway?”

“Violet let me in.” Abasi strolled over to the whiteboard.

“Of course she did. I need to go have a word with her,” Rochelle said as she headed for the door. “Nobody gets in or out of this building without me being informed first.” She looked back at Noah. “Set him up with somewhere to sleep. It’s getting late.”

“No need,” Abasi said. “I’ve taken a suite at the Four Seasons.”

“Of course you have.” Rochelle opened the door. “Wouldn’t want any of your ill-gotten gains going to waste now, would we?” She disappeared into the hallway.

“I don’t think the boss likes me,” Abasi said as he watched her leave.

“Well,” Noah said. “You have been a bit of an ass.”

Evan sucked in a breath, reminding Noah he was still in the room. The young guy looked halfway between shocked by Noah’s audacity and awestruck by Abasi.

Abasi ignored the triplet. “It comes with the territory,” he told Noah. “Not a lot of social skills taught in the thug life.”

Evan barked out a laugh, then looked stunned that he’d done so. Mumbling something about needing to talk to his brothers, he hurried from the room.

“I think you’ve impressed the youngster,” Noah said dryly.

Abasi glanced around the room before speaking again. “I don’t want to impress anyone,” he said quietly. “I would have been here at the same time as everyone else, but I had to clear up some issues with what remained of the James Family.”

Noah sobered. The James Family was the mob that had tried to kill their London computer expert and had succeeded in killing her brother. The same mob Abasi had systematically dismantled after dealing with its leader.

“Got it sorted now?”

Abasi nodded grimly. “The James Family is history.”

Noah studied him for a moment. “Is joining Benson Security some kind of penance?” He decided that being straightforward was the best approach.

“No.” Abasi stared into the distance for a second. “It’s a new start.”

He couldn’t have said anything that Noah would understand more. “Then we work.” He pointed at the board. “Let me fill you in on what you don’t already know.”

“Pretty sure that isn’t possible.” Abasi grinned.