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Mine
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Chapter 22: Mine (Rhys's POV)
"You're late," Logan pointed out as I strolled inside The Veil and headed towards the table he waited at, along with Christian and Rowan.
Without faltering in my steps, I slapped my membership card against the security guard's chest and continued making my way to our table, unbuttoning my suit and shrugging it off, draping it on the back of my chair before I sat down and released a breath. "I was working," I replied, looking past Logan and Christian who sat across from me, and towards the bar in the back, waving at the bartender.
"Your usual, sir?" he called out loudly.
I nodded once and turned to my right, taking my card back from the guard once he finished scanning it for my entrance.
"Working?" Rowan questioned doubtfully. "Rhys Romanov still handles cases on his own?" he mused.
"No," Christian scoffed lightly in a sing-song voice. "Only where Stella's concerned."
My eyes cut to Logan's. "You told them?"
He shook his head, hiding his smirk behind his glass of whiskey.
"Zarah wouldn't tell Jules or Evie," I concluded, "so you told them."
"I didn't," Logan defended.
"Word travels fast, Rhys," Christian said, "I heard from a client. They heard it from Nico himself. Logan didn't tell us anything."
Logan shot me a smug look and then leaned back in his chair.
"Is it true?" Rowan asked, "Damien Russo was robbed of two million?"
I stopped to take my drink from the bartender and waited until he walked away. "You know I'm supposed to keep things confidential, right? I'm a lawyer. Wasn't I invited for a chess game?" I looked at Christian. "You called for help. Tired of losing?" I smirked.
He rolled his eyes at me. "I'm playing against Rowan this time."
"Excuse me? What the hell is that supposed to mean? You think Rhys is better than me at chess?" Rowan scoffed.
"Yes," Christian answered bluntly.
Rowan looked at me but I simply shrugged in my defense.
"This should be fun," Logan said, resetting our board, "I figured you would have a bone to pick with me."
My eyes twitched to narrow into a glare. "What makes you say that?"
He chuckled to himself under his breath before glancing at me briefly. "You met her, didn't you? She told you the truth."
"Did she tell you that? I wasn't aware you and Stella were so close."
"No, my wife did." He gestured for me to make the first move and I did.
"You helped her," I stated.
"She asked me to, Rhys," he said, clearly amused at my expense.
"Stella asked you?"
"Well technically, she asked Zarah and Zarah asked me."
"Your wife must be fucking persuasive if you listened and didn't tell me, Logan," I exhaled.
"They asked me not to," was his simple reply before he made his first move on the board.
"Did she pay you?"
His eyes lifted to mine.
"Was she a client?"
"You sound jealous, Rhys," Christian snickered in between.
"No," Logan answered, shaking his head briefly, "she asked me for a favor."
"And you granted her one?" I lifted a brow sharply.
"I did," he replied pointedly, "she owes me a favor now instead."
I inhaled sharply through my nose, seething with frustration and annoyance. "No, she doesn't," I announced.
"She agreed," he mused.
"Because she has no idea what your favors generally entail. The last time you asked me for a favor, I was helping you clean up David Andrei's murder site and bury the body. Stella owes you nothing."
He laughed softly, "Rhys—"
"Whatever she owes you, you take it from me. Understood?"
He held my gaze and let out a quiet breath before nodding once. "Understood."
"Just remember, you already owe me two favors. So be careful what you ask for," I warned.
A smile tugged at his lips as repeated, "Understood. Make your move."
I did.
We continued the game of chess with brief exchanges and I tried to ensure Stella wasn't a topic of discussion but the pure entertainment that my frustration and rage provided Logan made sure I couldn't do that.
"You're pouting," he teased, "is something wrong in Stella Land?"
I took another sip of my drink before setting it down on the glass table, the loud and echoing clink directing Rowan and Christian's gazes toward me too. "How could you not tell me?" I huffed at Logan. "How could you know what she was up to and still not tell me? You knew that it would put her at risk and you knew that her father would force me to get involved. Why didn't you tell me, you asshole?"
He released a breath and made his next move on the board before answering me, "If Stella wanted you to know, she would have come to you herself. She didn't because she wasn't sure if she could trust you to keep it from her Dad. Frankly, I understand why she was unsure. You work with her father, don't you? Of course, she was doubtful."
I let out a scoff. "Well, that's very mighty of you, Logan. Because now with your help and encouragement, she stole two million dollars from her father and I'm responsible for catching the culprit and bringing her to Damien Russo." I glanced over at Christian and Rowan as they exchanged a glance.
"She's the one who stole the two million?" Christian asked in a low voice.
Rowan nudged his arm. "Let's just stay out of it. It's not our territory, man. Play the fucking game." With that, they both pretended to not have heard anything and continued.
"Did she or did she not tell you everything yesterday?" Logan sighed. "She came clean, didn't she? Because she thinks she can trust you."
I rolled my eyes. "If helping her was that easy, I would have done it already. I'm supposed to catch the culprit but I'm protecting her now. It's ridiculous."
"You're the one making this so difficult. Knowing you, you probably agreed and struck some type of deal with her. There's no way you would help her for free. So... what deal did you make?"
I kept my eyes on the board and cautiously made my next move, knocking his bishop down. "I'll get forty-five percent of what she stole."
Christian and Rowan both went still and Christian even choked a bit.
"In exchange, I have to make sure she doesn't get forced back into the marriage and I have to keep her money safe." I looked up at Logan.
He paused and nodded in acknowledgment. "You met her yesterday?"
"Yes," I bit out.
"And you owe her an answer by...?"
"Tomorrow."
"And you have no plan?"
"Correct."
Rowan chimed in. "And if you decide now that you can't help her, then...?"
"Then she will kill me. I believe it."
"I do too," Logan agreed, "she won't even hesitate."
While we all sat in silence, I made my next move on the board.
Logan took in a breath and contemplated his words before speaking them out loud. "What would happen if you got directly involved?"
"What do you mean?" I exhaled in annoyance.
"What would Damien do if you stood in the way? You have to make sure he doesn't drag her back to Nico, don't you?"
I nodded once.
"He can't force her if she's already seeing someone, right?" Christian mumbled with a small shrug while staring at the board cluelessly. I watched him in amusement. "Oh, the knight," he muttered before knocking Rowan's player off and scoffing arrogantly.
"What if you tell Damien that she's seeing you? Would he still force her?" Rowan questioned. "Or would he back off?"
I paused in thought and watched Logan continue the game, striking with his knight. "I'm not sure," I admitted, "I don't know if it would change anything. Making him believe she's mine..."
"It would change everything," Christian prompted. "I mean, aren't you like Damien Russo's right-hand man? How would he play you at your own game?"
"If you can convince Stella to play along, you'll both get what you want," Rowan added.
It's too risky.
I began shaking my head but never got to voice my concerns.
"I think you should just do it. If not for Stella then for yourself," Logan shrugged, lifting a brow at me.
"I agree," Christian said, "it's the best opportunity you could ever get to finally do what you've been planning to do for years."
"The perfect opportunity to pursue your ulterior motives," Logan finished, "and to help Stella, of course. Although, you keep claiming that's not your priority," he smirked.
Rowan huffed, "Even if it's not the priority, which it should be... It's still a great bonus. Do some type of good deed in this lifetime, man. She clearly needs your help and it's not costing you much. In fact, it's gaining you nine hundred thousand dollars."
I glanced from the board to Logan, waiting for his next move.
"Whatever you do," he sighed, "just know your reasons for doing it. Know your priorities. It'll come back to bite you if you don't."
I blinked and dwelled over his words while trying to focus on the game I had to win. "What do you mean?" I questioned.
"If in the future, Stella somehow finds out the truth about who her father really is, who you really are, and what your history is..." he paused and shrugged, "she'll question why you really worked with her. Especially since you can't tell her the truth right now without admitting why you came back to New York and back into her life. She'll want to know. Was it because of your ulterior motives or because you truly wanted to help her?"
He knocked off my knight and took it in his hand with a smirk. "So, which one is it, Rhys? Because we all know it can't be both."
My eyes locked onto the board as I neared my victory. "I want what I want," I said, "and she has never been my priority." I ignored the small snicker that escaped Logan. "My ulterior motives are hardly ulterior," I continued, "they're the driving forces." I made my move on the board before meeting his eyes. "Check."
Logan's eyes dropped to the board before he chuckled softly. He didn't stand a chance at winning but with a final move, he made a futile attempt. "I just hope you don't regret anything. I hope it's worth it in the end."
Knocking down his king, I claimed my win. "Don't worry, it will be." I stared back at him. "Checkmate."
Logan leaned back in his seat and held up his glass. "Congratulations. You win. This time."
I held up my glass mockingly before we took a sip each.
"So, you know how you'll help her now?" Christian questioned, exchanging an amused, knowing expression with Logan.
"I suppose so," I muttered, "now I just have to propose the idea and see if she'll agree."
"She will," Logan said confidently. "Trust me."
"You're awfully certain," I scoffed, "what makes you so sure Stella would ever want to be mine? Even if it's for show?"
A laugh escaped Christian before all three of them glanced at each other. "It's just a feeling, Rhys," Christian said.
"I mean, you'll only be pretending, what's the worst that could happen?" Rowan mused, biting down a laugh.
"Who knows? Maybe you'll finally admit what you've been denying since you met her again," Logan smiled behind his glass.
"And what must that be?" I huffed, downing the rest of my drink.
"That you're still in love with her," he said, swallowing his whiskey.
Rolling my eyes, I stood up and grabbed my suit, holding it on one shoulder. "I don't have time for this. I need to get back to work, figure out where to keep two million fucking dollars."
"Rhys," Logan called out after me before standing up to walk me out. He hesitated. "When I was checking Damien Russo's account to teach her how to..."
My glare shut him up.
"Never mind that." He cleared his throat, "There was something else in the account."
The D'Angelo's property. Fuck.
"What was it?" I questioned.
"There was... a gun and... a dagger. I take it they don't belong to Damien but to D'Angelo instead..."
I grew still in realization.
They're murder weapons. Fuck, fuck, fuck. In Stella's possession?
"Did she take those too?" I asked, holding my breath as I anticipated his answer.
He shook his head immediately. "I made sure the transaction could only transfer money, not the other belongings."
Oh, thank God.
I blinked in confusion, my chest saving in as I exhaled. "Does that mean the weapons are still with Damien? And the idiot doesn't even fucking know it?"
Logan nodded once as Christian called out for him. "Good luck," he said, squeezing my shoulder before turning around and heading back.
.
.
.
.
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Chapter 22
THIS BOYS' SQUAD IS ALWAYS SERVING LMAO I LOVE WRITING THEM ALL TOGETHER
Logan's the captain of the ship and nobody can convince me otherwise
next ch: safe