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“You sure this isn’t a mistake, T?”
First shift guard, Ted Egert grinned broadly as much in response to the question as to the way it was phrased. He and his colleagues always got a kick out of hearing the guy speak when he was out of earshot of his fellow inmates. Gone was the broken english and creative profanity. At 6’7 and 270 pounds of solid muscle, he was no less dangerous yet, in those moments the gangster made room for the gentleman.
“No mistake, Faust,” Egert assured the prisoner.
“What was the name again?”
“Ricxs. Lucas Ricxs.”
Guessing that Egert didn’t have, wouldn’t or couldn’t depart with additional information, Syson Faust mulled over what he knew. Beneath the cuffs of the orange jumpsuit was the faint jingle of the shackles at his wrists and ankles. The sound was a familiar accompaniment to his thoughts. He’d never heard of Lucas Ricxs. Aside from his lawyer, he hadn’t had a visitor since he’d been there.
Syson’s steps slowed, halting behind Egert when they approached the bars overlaying a pair of wide, metal doors. There were no other inmates in the long, cement bricked corridor outside the visitor’s wing. Syson leaned against the wall while the guards conducted the required visitation protocol. Had there been other inmates present, he would’ve been made to stand silent and at attention.
Were he a fool, Syson would’ve assumed the civil treatment he received from the guards of Eames County Detention Facility had everything to do with his winning personality. Perhaps his personality had improved during the 6 years he’d spent as a guest of the state of Florida. He may’ve even attributed that kindness to his mastery of financial markets which had allowed a great many of the guards to pad nesteggs funded by fulfilling illegal favors for the facility’s numerous and powerful criminals.
Syson knew it had to do with none of that. It wasn’t even the brutality of his crime that made the guards so amiable. The facility harbored far more deviant souls. No. His special treatment had everything to do with his last name and what it stood for both inside his guarded residence and the world beyond.
The bleat of a horn filled the corridor and was followed by the clang of bars and metal doors as they were disengaged.
“Sy, my man!”
“Ern,” Syson greeted Earnest Camp, another of the first shift guards.
Earnest relieved Syson of his manacles and then Ted guided Syson forward initiating movement with a squeeze to his shoulder. Syson didn’t recognize the next guard he encountered, but he greeted the man with a nod which was returned. Another metal door creaked and Syson was waved inside without an escort.
He wasn’t unnerved by the treatment, despite the harrowing tales he’d heard of prisoners meeting their ends once shepherded into rooms like this. He was on the verge of smiling over his fate, when he sensed movement and turned.
“Mr. Faust, I’m Lucas Ricxs.”
Syson nodded, appreciating the immediate introduction as well as the sight of the slender, blonde man raising his hands waist level in a show of mild surrender. “Mr. Ricxs,” he greeted.
The man waved one of his raised hands. “Please call me Lucas.”
“Syson.”
Lucas motioned toward the dented table and chairs occupying the middle of the fluorescent lit room. “Please sit, I know you’re wondering why you’re here.”
Syson regarded the space. “You’ve got me curious.”
Lucas nodded. “I hear you don’t have many visitors.”
“Well,” Syson’s jarring gray stare narrowed. “When you kill an important family member, the rest of your relatives tend to take it personal.”
Lucas’ brow quirked. “Important. Not loved.”
Syson grinned once more, the gesture not relayed with nearly as much ease as the ones he’d shared with the guards. “The Fausts love only money, Mr. Ricxs.”
“I’m aware.”
“And you’re here, because?”
“Because that love could put a young woman’s life in danger.”
“What else is new?”
“This is a very important young woman.”
“Aren’t they all?”
“Tell me, Syson, do you know what Drew’s been up to for the last six years?”
The mention of his uncle made Syson’s fist clench under the table. Otherwise, he showed no other signs of temper.
“On behalf of Faust Enterprises, Andrew Faust has made substantial investments in Bino Butterfly.”
Syson smirked. “That a theater production?”
“A company,” Lucas reciprocated the smirk. “A very old, very powerful company in Guadeloupe. Yeah, the one in the Caribbean,” he confirmed when Syson’s brows lifted questioningly.
“Nothing wrong with that, I guess,” Syson shrugged. “Besides corporate security, investing in new ventures is what they do now.”
“Except the company’s in turmoil-the founder, Maxim Bino, he’s on his deathbed. Those closest to him don’t expect him to last another three months.”
“And this very important young woman?” Syson spread his hands across the table. “She’s to inherit the kingdom?”
“If her enemies have their way, no.”
“And my uncle is one of these enemies.”
Lucas sighed. “Chaos and depravity have a foothold in the goings-on of Bino Butterfly. Your uncle thrives on chaos and depravity.”
Syson’s expression was a cross between humor and suspicion. “How do you know all this?”
Lucas nodded, not surprised by the question. “I’ve worked for Bino a long time. The man’s no saint, but this...what could become of his legacy was never intended.”
“And you want to toss this girl in the middle of all that?”
“There are those in Bino’s family who don’t like the status quo. They want to see a change. But what they really need to make that happen-besides a change in mindset, are heirs and they have none.”
“And the girl?”
“Bino’s niece,” Lucas supplied. “He doesn’t know her. His sister ran away to marry the girl’s father-age old story-their father didn’t approve...”
“And you’re sure she’s his niece?”
“Positive.”
“So...” Syson chuckled, rubbing all ten fingers through the short blondish-brown curls cushioning his head. “You’re just going to tell some unsuspecting woman she’s an heiress and toss more chaos into the bowl.”
“Oh we think she’ll accept our offer to come take her place in the company.”
“Right! To the tune of a few billion, I’ll bet she will!”
“Folks observing her say she’s ethical.”
“You’re having her followed.” Syson lost any traces of humor.
“Nothing invasive,” Lucas leaned close to the table reluctantly as he sensed the larger man’s disapproval. “She comes across as a compassionate person. We believe she’ll react to what’s happening inside her uncle’s company-react and change things for the better.”
“So why come to me?” Syson shifted on the hard chair, looking bored. “Sounds like you’ve got it all worked out.”
“On the side of chaos or on the side of peace Syson, I think you know where your uncle sits. He’ll never let someone like Benaja Lake take charge of that company.”
“Benaja Lake.” Syson repeated the name and inwardly grimaced over the fact that he liked the sound of it on the air. “What do you want from me, Luke?”
“Be her shadow.”
Syson smiled coolly. “I don’t blend in very well.”
“Damn right. You within a mile of her will keep Drew off balance enough to stay away from her.”
“Right,” again Syson rubbed his fingers through his hair, “just the small issue of my current lodgings. Sadly, they don’t come with nights out.”
“They could.”
“Could they?” A muscle flexed with wicked intensity along the square jaw. “This a ‘get out of jail free’ deal, Ricxs?”
“It’s a ‘you have friends in very high places which is one of the reasons why you’re serving ten years instead of fifty or more’ deal.”
“One of the reasons?”
“You confessed. Didn’t even want a trial. Some of those important friends have questions about whether you’re even guilty at all.”
Syson’s expression chilled. “Like you said, I confessed. My guilt is no longer up for discussion.”
Again, Lucas raised his hands in a show of defense. “The fact remains that your uncle has a lot of enemies, Sy. He had a lot before you went in, even more now.”
“So again, I ask ‘why me?’ Why this song and dance instead of just takin’ him out?”
Lucas nodded. “Some of his enemies don’t want him gone, they just want him controlled.”
“Controlled, huh? You don’t know my uncle very well.”
“We know he’s afraid of you.”
“Afraid of me? He’s afraid to die like any coward.”
“And he knows you’re one of very few men ready to make it so. Come with me to meet her, Syson. Judge her for yourself. If you don’t think she’s worth it, walk away. You’ll have your freedom regardless. You and any two men you choose, to have your back in this.” Lucas gave the uninspiring room a bland look. “You’ve been hiding out here long enough.”
Syson bristled over the declaration. No one, not even his lawyer and best friend Kayden Scales knew he hadn’t dreaded his ‘sentence’ as much as he should have. Only Avery Damien and Jace Coyt, his newest friends and the men he’d come to trust absolutely, knew he’d looked on prison as something of a refuge.
“Syson?” Lucas nudged for an answer.
He smiled. “You’re sure I’ll accept, aren’t you? Let me guess, she’s a dime?”
“Beyond that,” Lucas waved off the compliment and settled back on his metal chair. “This’ll sound like bullshit, but it really is who she is at the heart of it all that I need you to pay attention to. Her uncle’s world is chaos and a lot of innocent people are paying the price for it.”
“So what’s the price for all this moral fiber you want me to dig for?”
“Besides the chance to take your disgrace of an uncle down a few pegs, you might find something to care about enough to keep your ass out of here.”
“Care about, huh?” Syson regarded the room. “Caring enough is what got me in here.”
“Really? I thought it was a hasty confession?” Luke lifted a brow in challenge to Syson’s grimace. “So?” he prompted “Are we doing this?”
There was only brief hesitation on Sy’s part and then he nodded. “Looks like we’re doing this,” he accepted Lucas Ricxs’ outstretched hand to shake. All the while, he looked as distrustful of the situation as he felt.