“Loud and clear!” Paul yells back, his voice coming through the door and the big window that separates us from the rest of the office.

“Who’s that?” Uncle Nathan hurriedly gets up from his swivel chair, alarmed. His eyebrows shoot up, his eyes widen. All his cool is gone, replaced by panic. In just a few seconds, the tables have turned.

He looks around, scanning the office, looking at the door, then at his men, then at me, then at his son, who’s just standing in place with his jaw hanging open like an idiot.

For the first time in my life, I see Uncle Nathan completely bewildered, out of control, and I like seeing him like this. He seems to remember something, then starts for the safe.

Oh no, you don’t.

I dash toward Uncle Nathan, my chair toppling behind me, banging loudly against the carpeted floor.

He reaches for the safe. Before he can touch the silver number pad, my fist connects with the side of his face, sending him flying. He yowls as he falls down on the floor.

“I guess you’re right, Uncle Nathan. You’re old and your fists are useless,” I say, taunting him.

That’ll teach him to fuck with my girl, or my family.

The door bursts open. Armed men in uniform flood the office.

“Was that really necessary?” Paul stands at the door and gives me a look when he sees Uncle Nathan lying flat on his back, rubbing his reddened face.

“He was reaching for the guns.” I shrug.

To be honest, maybe it wasn’t necessary. With the cops so close, there’s no way he would’ve had enough time to open the safe, but I couldn’t have passed up the chance to punch the motherfucker in the face.

It felt so damn satisfying. Decades from now, I’m sure I’ll remember that moment with a big smile on my face, recalling the feeling of his old, wrinkled face on my knuckles.

It was the opportunity of a lifetime. When will I get another chance to hit him in the face without consequences?

Paul knows it’s a blatant lie, but he just shakes his head.

Meanwhile, Paul’s men quickly and efficiently disable Nathan, Todd, and the two thugs. Without their weapons, it’s a simple matter of wrangling them into handcuffs.

They cut the ropes around Daisy and hand her a blanket to cover herself. Poor Daisy, caught in the middle of my family’s antics, blamed for trying to tell me the truth.

I take a seat beside her shaking body on the couch, trying to make as little noise or movement as possible. I don’t want to scare her any more than she already is.

Her tense little body is curled in a protective ball. She’s shaking with her head between her knees. She seems to be having problems grappling with the new developments.

I want to pull her against my chest and comfort her with kisses and caresses. Considering the way we left things earlier, though, with me hurling hard words at her like weapons, I’m probably not the most comforting person to her right now. I touch her arm as gently as I can, but she still jumps with surprise.

“Hey, it’s going to be okay. It’s over. You’re okay now,” I say in a soothing voice.

Daisy raises her head slightly, just enough for her to see me. Her arms, wrapped around herself, block the rest of the room from her view.

“Did they hurt you? Are you injured at all?”

Daisy shakes her head, her eyes still widened in fear, her mouth tightly shut.

“I’m so sorry I didn’t believe you. God, I was so fucking stupid. Please be okay.”

Someone pats me on the back. I look up to see Paul. I’ve been so focused on Daisy I’ve forgotten all about my surroundings.

“Good job, Caine. That was a good move, coming to me with the information,” he says.

“Thanks, Paul.” I look up and nod. I helped him solve this case and catch the bad guy, but I owe him too for backing me up.

He was the one who came up with the idea to have Sasha bug Uncle Nathan’s office when she brought him tea earlier tonight. We were lucky Sasha was working for Uncle Nathan. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have anybody we could use to plant the bug.

Now we can use the recording as evidence for the hearing and we can put them all in prison for a long time. They won’t be bothering my family again, and neither will Paul, now that the real culprits behind the latest rise in illegal activities have been apprehended.

Uncle Nathan may have thrived back in the days when my grandfather reigned, but things are different now. Like us, the cops have cleaned up, and they wouldn’t look the other way like they used to.

I wonder why Uncle Nathan was so blind that he couldn’t see how much things have changed, considering how smart he usually is.

Maybe he’s old, too, like my father. Maybe it’s time for him to retire. Well, he can enjoy those golden years in prison.

“Can you have someone look at her?” I ask Paul. I don’t know if Paul has paramedics downstairs, and Daisy doesn’t seem to have sustained any physical injury, but I need to be sure.

To my relief, Paul nods.

The only reason why Daisy’s caught up in this whole mess is because of me.

I already hate myself for screaming accusations and insults at her. I won’t’ be able to live with myself if she suffered any permanent damage, physical or otherwise.