Dino by Jaime Lewis
Chapter SIX
Demitri closed his eyes and gritted his teeth as Carmine tended to the bullet wound to his side. Thankfully it hadn’t hit anything significant internally, but it still hurt like hell and needed to be stitched up.
“Sorry, boss.”
He waved him off. It wasn’t the first time he’d been shot, and most likely wouldn’t be the last. What he was more concerned about was his missing flash drive. That specific drive had critical information stored on it, and if it fell into the wrong hands, it could spell trouble for his organization and him personally - although it would take an expert computer hacker and coder to access the files. If they did, they would see every fucking thing on his human trafficking operation.
“Any word on Anna or the flash drive?” Demitri asked Carmine.
“Nothing yet. All we know is that Enzo exited the building with her. As for the flash drive, I have a couple of men stationed at the castle to search the room once the police presence has cleared.”
Demitri cursed and slammed his hand down onto the table.
“Fucking Enzo! That bastard is up to something. He had to have been the one who stirred up shit with Petro. How did Petro even know I’d be here? Any word on Petro’s status?”
“Dead,” Camine said with a deadpan look.
“I hope to hell one of our men took his ass out.”
Carmine shook his head. “The FBI is pointing the finger at you, but there was a witness who said that it was an FBI agent who shot him.”
“So the FBI was there?” Demitri started to get that feeling in his gut that he had been betrayed. But with so many options to choose from, he wasn’t sure who he should seek out first. But one that they had been warned about earlier stood out—the Black Swan.
Carmine secured a bandage to Demitri’s side then stood up. He stared down at him. “I know what you’re thinking, and I don’t think you should jump to conclusions just yet.”
Demitri stared up at him. “You don’t think she was involved?”
“No. For the simple fact, she was seen leaving with Enzo. No agent would be caught with someone with his reputation. They are very close. From what I was told, the FBI was there to arrest Petro.”
Demitri was surprised at that revelation. “Petro, huh?”
“Rumor circulating around town is he double-crossed one of his suppliers, and they turned on him. They planted some evidence incriminating some of Petro’s dealers around the city, and when the police brought them in for questioning, they squealed. Our contacts made sure that criminally you were in the clear by being at the castle.”
His mind kept going back to Anna. How he wished the evening had turned out differently because he was confident that he’d be inside her at this very moment. He wanted to explore every inch of her body.
He glanced at Carmine, who was cleaning up the blood-stained towels. “I need to find her. I’ve had a taste of her, Carmine. She is addicting, and I want her.”
Carmine smirked. “I knew you wouldn’t let her go. I’ve got men looking into her whereabouts. We know she lives in the city, but we can’t find anything registered to Anna Humphreys.”
“She could be using an apartment owned by Claude. He’s known to put his models up in a residence under his name or his company.”
“We’ll find her. The problem we face right now is Enzo and how he fits into all of this.”
Demitri stood up and buttoned up his shirt. “Someone out there knows where she is. What about that Miles guy—her agent?”
Carmine snorted. “That guy was so far off his rocker last night he’s probably lying in a ditch somewhere.”
“I bet you that if you find him, you’ll find her.”
“I still say you should look into Enzo. He’s obviously very protective of her. Look at the way he barged into the room, acting all fatherly and protective of her. His people have been quiet.”
“Do we know whose blood was on the wall?”
“No. But I couldn’t tell if Anna jumped in front of Enzo or if Enzo pulled her in front of him. If she played hero, then it appears those feelings are reciprocated. She may have taken a bullet for him.”
“I wanted to kill that bastard,” Demitri growled out.
“You’ve felt that way for a long time.”
“That’s because he was involved in the set-up that killed my father.”
“Yet you’ve never been able to prove that.”
“Not yet, but eventually, I will. He walks around like he owns the goddamn industry.”
“Yet, you are the one that everyone wants to meet. You have that whole cloak and dagger thing going on. Women and even men find that appealing. Have you ever had a model reject an offer made by you?”
Demitri smirked. “Sometimes I don’t give them an option.”
Carmine finished cleaning up the surgical trash. “And his day will come, Demitri. I’ve always told you that. Right now, we need to lay low for a while, until the FBI moves onto something or someone else.”
“I’m going to lie down for a while. Wake me if you hear anything.”
“Will do.”
As Demitri made his way up the stairs to his bedroom, he vowed that he’d find Anna before he left Europe. She couldn’t stay hidden forever.
