aHunter4Trust (6 page)

He nodded. “It is best that I leave you.”

“I don’t want anyone else.” Tamsin’s voice
was low.

“I cannot provide protection if you
continue to fight me.”

“If I understood the reason for you being
here, it might be easier.” Tamsin stood and picked up her plate. “You can’t ask
me to blindly believe that I’m in danger.”

“There was no doubt of it last night.”

Tamsin put her plate in the sink and looked
back at Darrogh. “I wouldn’t have been in that situation if I’d been on my own.
I don’t enjoy going to clubs like Beauvie’s.”

“Why go?” Darrogh stood.

“To bug you guys enough so that you’d leave
me alone.” Tamsin’s voice rose in exasperation. “I didn’t want bodyguards.”

“Then we will leave. No other team will
replace us.” Darrogh walked to the counter with his empty mug.

“As easy as that?”

“Yes.” Darrogh put his cup in the sink.
“There are many who desire our help. We do not need to stay where we are not
wanted.”

Pain shot through Tamsin at the thought of
being left alone. It was ridiculous because Darrogh was offering to give her
what she’d been asking for all week. Now that she had it, her victory felt
hollow. She couldn’t explain why, but the thought of being parted from Darrogh
was unbearable.

“Great.” Her voice was low. “When will you
go?”

“Immediately.” Darrogh hesitated a second.
“It is best this way. It has been difficult this past week.”

Tamsin rolled her eyes. At least she wasn’t
the only one who’d found it challenging. “Next time you guard a woman, you
should make certain she wants you in her house.”

“I will suggest it.”

Darrogh looked down at her with an intent
gaze. Her breath caught in her throat and for a second, she thought he was
going to kiss her. Instead, he backed away.

“I will tell the men that we are to leave.”

“Can you thank them for me?” Tamsin
squeezed her hands together. “You all saved my life last night. George intended
to kill me.”

“It is even better that he is dead.”
Darrogh nodded and turned.

At that moment, Firbin entered the kitchen.
“Tamsin’s father is insisting that we bring her to his house. He has received
another threat.”

“Does my father know about last night?”

Firbin shook his head. “He came to your
house and wanted to see you. I told him you were asleep.”

Tamsin frowned. “Do you think he heard
about Saxby and that is the threat he is referring to?”

“I do not know.” Darrogh’s tone was
neutral.

Tamsin bit her lip. Suddenly the thought of
facing her father alone was more than she could handle. If there was a threat
against her, then it would be best if she waited before sending the men away.
What harm would a couple more hours of protection do?

“Could you stay with me until I find out
what my father is concerned about?”

“As you wish.” Darrogh took her elbow and
led her out of the kitchen. “We will take you to Sir Robert’s house.”

“Do you believe him?” Tamsin grabbed her
jacket and purse from the closet.

“Things may be different now.” Darrogh
looked down at her. “You will have to ask your father to be honest with you.
That is the only way you can make a decision about whether we need to continue
protecting you.”

Darrogh shut the door of the house behind
her. The rest of the unit were waiting for them. The van and Tamsin’s vehicle
were parked at the curb. She felt a moment of embarrassment until Savis nodded
at her. She smiled and the men gathered so that she was the center of their
protective shield. During the past week, it had felt ridiculous to go out on
the street like this, but not today.

She felt safe.

Darrogh was by her side and that gave her
courage. She needed to know why her father was worried and she was determined
to get answers.

Darrogh’s eyes narrowed as he entered the
study with Tamsin.

Savis and Kerm, were behind them. Breanon
had set up surveillance on the grounds and Firbin and Jehon were with the
vehicles. Darrogh had ordered full protection protocol after last night and
everyone was on alert. He was not going to allow anything to happen to Tamsin
again.

There was an understated elegance about Sir
Robert Creighton’s house. Painted in warm earth tones and filled with plush
carpets, antiques, and leather furniture, it was a stark contrast to the metal
and glass fixtures of Tamsin’s modern townhouse.

He guided Tamsin to a leather couch and
waited until she was comfortable before turning his attention to her father.
Sir Robert was seated behind a large mahogany desk. At sixty-three, he was
still in control of the family bank that he’d inherited in his twenties.
Creighton’s was one of the oldest and most respected private banks in England.
It did business with the very rich and powerful. Sir Robert Creighton
understood what it took to command. He was a man used to being obeyed.

His assistant Henry Kingsley, was standing
beside him.

Kingsley was almost forty years old, with
auburn hair and a short-cropped beard. Darrogh had read the file on him before
arriving in London. Ardal, had requested the records of all of the employees of
Creighton’s Bank that Tamsin might have had contact with before they had agreed
to guard her. Kingsley had worked as Sir Robert’s personal assistant for the
past fifteen years and was trusted without question.

Darrogh looked around the luxurious study,
noting the large windows and bright sunlight shining in. It would be easy for a
gunman to target anyone inside. He looked back at their host.

“Close the drapes.”

After a few seconds of silence, Creighton
nodded to his assistant to do as Darrogh had requested. Once the room had been
darkened and privacy was assured, Darrogh turned to Sir Robert.

“Tell us why you have insisted on this
meeting.”

“I’ve received another threat.”

“I must know the details.”

“I can’t tell you.” Creighton pursed his
lips.

“It is impossible for us to continue
defending her like this.”

Darrogh’s tone was harsh. Tamsin had almost
been killed last night because this man had refused to tell her the truth.
Darrogh was bred and trained to obey orders and succeed. If he was going to
continue keeping Tamsin safe, he needed all the information.

“They insisted that I stay quiet.” Sir
Robert shook his head. “These people will kill Tamsin if I don’t do what they
ask.”

“You can’t expect me to just accept your
word for it, Dad.” Tamsin raised her voice from where she was seated. Darrogh
sensed her agitation and sent her a wave of calm. They needed to convince her
father to help, not antagonize him.

“You have to trust me on this.” Robert
Creighton ran his hand though his graying hair.

“You’ve had me guarded for a week now and
there has been no threat.”

“These people are too clever to show themselves,
but they’ll know if I don’t obey.” Sir Robert’s voice was tense. “You can’t
fool them.”

“Who are they?” Darrogh’s voice was sharp.

Robert Creighton shrugged. “I’ve never met
them.”

“You’re just using this as an excuse to
have me followed,” Tamsin insisted. “You’ve been trying to control my life
since Mum died when I was ten.”

“That’s not true.” Creighton pounded his
fist on his desk. “I have protected you and have always done what was best.”

“Like marrying Winchester Nethercott.”
Tamsin’s voice was filled with scorn.

“We needed the merger with his bank.”

Tamsin shook her head. “I let you talk me
into marrying that snake, yet there is only so much a woman can stand. I’m just
thankful I found out about him before it was too late.”

“I know he wasn’t perfect.” Robert
Creighton’s tone was conciliatory.

Tamsin gave a short laugh. “He couldn’t
even wait until the wedding before he started cheating on me.”

“We needed the merger to protect ourselves
and marrying him was the best solution. Thanks to your refusal, we’re running
out of options.”

Tamsin’s eyes widened. “You think I should
have married him even though I caught him in bed with my best friend, Liz.”

Robert Creighton smoothed a hand down his
tie. “That was unfortunate.”

“A broken dish is unfortunate.” Tamsin’s
tone was sarcastic.

“Nethercott has no honor.” Darrogh
interrupted the argument. He needed more information about the threats “Why did
you need the merger? Is the bank in trouble financially?”

A muscle tightened in Sir Robert’s jaw. He
glanced up at Henry, who shrugged. It took a few more seconds of silence before
Sir Robert nodded and turned back to Darrogh.

“A group of men visited me about a year ago
and insisted that they have access to my bank’s clients.” Robert Creighton sat
back in his leather desk chair. “I thought they were joking. I was wrong. They
suggested that I form a partnership with Nethercott’s to make it easier for the
takeover of both our banks. They gave me a year to make the arrangements.”

Darrogh frowned. To threaten two long
established banks in a stable country was a bold move. He had been on Earth
long enough to know that banks were the financial heart of this planet.
Everything depended on them, from personal savings to the economy of countries.

“Did they tell you who they were?”

“The Albirsion Corporation.” Creighton
pulled a file folder out of his desk drawer and threw it at Darrogh. “I’m not a
fool. I looked into the organization and was astonished by what I found. They
are involved in everything from mining, real estate, communications, and
banks.”

Darrogh’s internal defense mechanism went
to high alert when he heard the name. It was too close to Albireon to be a
coincidence. Albireons were a race of aliens who had somehow insinuated
themselves into one of the major military installations in Australia. Now it
seemed as if their influence was greater than he, and the other Hunters,
suspected.

From the list of their companies and
holdings that Sir Robert’s investigation had uncovered, it looked as if they
had enough control of the planet’s resources and finances to set up a shadow
government. If that was the case, it would not be long before they would
conquer Earth and wipe out the humans.

Invading planets was what they did. First
they would harvest all of the genetic material from the populace. At a later
date they could recombine it with other genes and create new slave species to
sell. Annihilating a species gave them exclusive control over the planet’s
genome in the universal genetic market. It was only a matter of time before
they carried this out on Earth.

Albireons were the scourge of the universe.

“Did you do what they asked?” Darrogh kept
his gaze trained on Robert Creighton.

“No.” Sir Robert shook his head.
“Creighton’s has built its reputation on discretion. Our clients are some of
the richest people in the world and they look to us to keep their finances and
identities private. All that would be destroyed if this Albirsion Corporation
took over the bank.”

“Then why did you want me to marry Nethercott?”
Tamsin’s voice cracked.

“I thought that if I pretended to want the
merger it would buy me time. Once the banks were amalgamated, then together,
we’d be able to stop these people. We’d be stronger and less vulnerable to a
takeover.”

“So you were willing to sacrifice me.”
Tamsin’s voice was filled with pain.

“It wasn’t like that.” Her father’s tone
was pleading. “You liked Winchester and I thought he’d take good care of you.”

“I don’t need a man to watch over me.”
Tamsin straightened her shoulders. “You should have told me what was going on.
I was working at the bank. I deserved to know.”

“I wanted to protect you.” Her father
exhaled. “You don’t know these people. They kept coming back with bigger
threats and when the wedding was called off they said they’d kill you if their
orders weren’t followed.”

“When was the first direct threat on
Tamsin’s life?” Darrogh closed the file folder he’d been looking through.

“About a month before I contacted you
people.” Sir Robert leaned forward in his chair. “I had several private
agencies watching Tamsin, but they kept losing her. I needed someone who
wouldn’t fail. That’s when I found your website.”

“What site?” Tamsin’s eyes widened.

“AHunter4Hire.com,” Darrogh answered. “That
is how people employ our services.”

“Your site stated that you could help when
no one else would.” Sir Robert shrugged. “I said that my daughter’s life was
being threatened and I was willing to pay. I didn’t lie.”

“You should have told us the complete truth.
You have wasted valuable time.” Darrogh turned around and motioned to Savis. He
handed him the file folder with the list of Albirsion companies. “Contact Ardal
and let him know that we are probably dealing with Albireons.”

“You’ve heard of them?” Creighton’s
assistant Henry spoke for the first time.

Darrogh nodded. “We are familiar with
them.”

“They sound like bullies,” Tamsin said.
“You can’t possibly take their threats seriously.”

“They sent me another message yesterday. It
was very explicit.” Sir Robert nodded to his assistant Henry. “Show them the
note.”

Henry pulled a sheet of paper from his
jacket and handed it to Darrogh. It was written on thick vellum by someone who
was skilled at calligraphy. The message was short and to the point.

We will kill your daughter on Saturday
if you do not hand over the bank.

Saturday was three days away.

Darrogh passed the note to Tamsin.

“Can you protect her?” Creighton’s voice
shook. “I need to know.”

“Yes, now that we know who we are fighting.”
Darrogh’s voice was definite. “I have fought the Albireons many times and been
successful. It will not be easy. Your daughter needs to depart London. There is
no way to protect her here.”

“I’m not leaving my home.” Tamsin’s protest
echoed through the room. “I refuse to run away.”

Darrogh held back his objection. She was a
woman and should be obeyed. If she insisted, then they would protect her in
London. There was still the problem of the Albireons and their demands. The
information in Sir Robert’s file suggested that the Albireons had far-reaching
tentacles on this planet. It would be difficult to hide from them.

“Can you negotiate an extension on their
deadline?”

“What do you think I’ve been doing for the
past year?” Creighton clenched his hand into a fist. “They refuse to give me
anymore time.”

Creighton’s assistant Henry Kinsley cleared
his throat. “I have advised Sir Robert to at least let them into the bank. One
of the people from Albirsion Corporation could sit on the Board.”

“They will not stop there.” Darrogh’s voice
was definite. “Do you know how many more banks they have taken over?”

Henry pulled a small booklet from his
pocket and flipped through the pages. “They have controlling interests in fifty
banks across the world.”

“You can’t let them have Creighton’s.”
Tamsin’s tone was forceful. “Even if they kill me.”

Creighton’s face paled. “I can’t lose you.”

“It will not come to that.” Darrogh’s voice
was hard. “We have accepted the mission of protecting you. A Hunter does not
fail.”

“Thank you.” Creighton wiped a hand across
his face. “I know I should give them the bank. It’s only a business, but my
family has owned it since the sixteenth century. It has been handed down from
one generation to the next and I intend to pass it on to Tamsin intact.”

“We need to ensure that the bank is
protected.” Darrogh looked over to Savis.

“Ardal agrees. Creighton’s Bank must not be
lost to the Albireons.”

Tamsin frowned. “I didn’t realize you’d
left the room. How do you propose to keep the bank safe?”

“Ardal is sending more men.” Savis spoke in
a matter of fact voice. “With your Father’s help, we will be able to shut down
the takeover.”

“Once they realize that we are shielding
the bank, they will know that they are the ones that are vulnerable,” Darrogh
explained.

“I don’t understand.” Sir Robert’s voice
was filled with confusion. “You protect people. How can you stop a business
takeover?”

“We are skilled in many things.” Darrogh’s
voice was dry. “They will hesitate to continue their threats once they realize
that they are dealing with Hunters.”

“They don’t scare easily.” Sir Robert
stood. “I have been trying to get control of this situation for the past year.
The best solution I had was to merge our bank with Nethercott’s so that we’d be
stronger together, and able to fight the takeover this corporation was pushing
for.”