Jaxon squinted as the blindfold was snatched from his face, his eyes adjusting to the brightness. Where were they? According to the calculations he’d made while he’d sat quietly in the car, they were about an hour from the church. And from trying to visualise all the turns they’d made, he guessed they’d headed southward.

“Get out,” Dom ordered.

Jaxon got out of the car, looking around the big residential garage. Whoever owned this property was clearly rich. Ten vehicles could fit in here, and there was even a bar in a corner. But at the moment, there were only two cars inside—the sedan they’d travelled in, and a Ferrari parked right in the middle.

“Watch them while I talk to Boss Lady,” Dom said to Alfie, then went inside the house.

“What’s Boss Lady’s name?” Jaxon asked.

“Fleur,” Alfie said. “But she likes to be called Boss Lady.”

“Hey, wanna see the pool?” Bryce asked, starting to undo the handkerchief that had cuffed Jaxon’s wrists together.

Jaxon hid a smile. Good thing the thugs hadn’t thought Bryce had to be constrained, and had only promised to shoot Bryce dead if he’d tried to escape. But they hadn’t wanted Jaxon to see where they’d headed.

“Don’t move!” Alfie said, pointing his gun at Bryce.

Bryce snickered, not following the order. “Fuck’s sake, Alfie. You’re the only one here with the gun. Why don’t you relax and grab yourself a drink? I just want to show Jax the pool.”

Alfie paused for a moment, then put his gun down.

Jaxon followed his brother and looked through the window. The pool indeed was nice. But it wasn’t anything special for a house that Jaxon could tell was magnificent.

Bryce stepped closer to him. “There’s no evidence,” his brother said under his breath.

“What?”

“I have no physical evidence against Dom. I made it up so—”

They were interrupted by the sound of the door opening.

“What’s going on here?” Dom asked.

“They’re just having a look at the pool,” Alfie said defensively. “And I agreed for the handkerchief to be untied. They don’t have weapons on them.”

Dom glared at Alfie before pointing his gun at Jaxon and Bryce. “Come inside.”

Jaxon followed, his heart hammering. What would Dom and the Boss Lady do to Bryce when he failed to point them to the evidence?

Dom led them to a big living room, beautifully decorated with modern, expensive-looking furniture. The wide folding door leading to the pool was open, letting in a refreshing breeze.

“This is your headquarters?” Jaxon asked. “Nice.”

“Alfie, why don’t you get our guests a drink?” Dom said with sarcasm.

“Why don’t you get all of us a drink, Alfie?”

Jaxon’s head whipped towards the newcomer.

A middle-aged woman in a smart pantsuit smiled at him. “Hello, boys. I wasn’t expecting you here tonight.”

“I wasn’t expecting to be here at all,” Jaxon muttered. He hadn’t seen this woman before, not even in pictures. She probably wasn’t known to the Indie Rebels.

“You must have had the shock of your life when you followed Bryce to that temporary office. Do you know he’s one of us? Has been for ten years.”

He glanced at Bryce. “I’m very disappointed.”

“Well,” Fleur said with a heavy sigh. “We’ve been very disappointed with Bryce too. He’s the worst out of everyone who’s ever worked for me. And now I learn he’s been collecting evidence against Dom. How can we trust you now, Bryce?”

Bryce simply stood impassively.

“Give me your gun,” the woman ordered Dom.

Dom placed his weapon on his boss’s open palm.

Then Fleur pointed it at Jaxon’s head.

Jaxon hid a sigh. Great. Back to this again.

“How much do you love your brother, Bryce?” Boss Lady asked sweetly.

Jaxon let out a huff. “Seriously, ma’am, if I were you, I’d just focus on looking for that evidence before you start killing anyone. I don’t have to tell you that you wouldn’t want to get blood splatters all over your nice rug and furniture, not to mention the walls. I’m sure you know they’re a bitch to clean up.”

Fleur snickered. “Sounds like you have firsthand experience?”

“Nah, but I’ve read it somewhere. And, look, I just don’t want to die yet, okay? I don’t exactly trust that Bryce would want to save me. Not that I’m saying he doesn’t care for me, but it’s only been recently that we saw each other again after ten years. The connection is not strong, if you know what I mean. So threatening me might not be as effective as you think. So why don’t we all have a conversation and negotiate? I’m sure we can work something out.”

The woman laughed loudly. “I like your spunk, Jaxon. We should have recruited you years ago rather than your brother.”

Jaxon’s brow rose. That was a strange comment. They must have had recruited Bryce at Darwin or the Whitsundays, and he hadn’t been in those places in the last ten years.

He glanced at Bryce. Hopefully, his brother understood that he was just buying time. After Bryce’s actions earlier, he had no doubts his brother loved him enough.

“Holly Stirling’s here,” Dom said.

Jaxon’s heart stuttered, and he couldn’t help his sharp intake of breath.

“Do you want us to take her to the secret wing?” Dom asked.

Fleur pursed her lips, scrutinising Jaxon. “No. Bring her here. I think my day just got better.”

Fuck! He was normally good at being expressionless when required, but this simply took him by surprise.

“But put Bryce in a room first, will you?” Fleur added.

Dom pointed the gun at Bryce, motioning for him to go.

“I’ll be back, bro,” Bryce said as he went with Dom.

Jaxon nodded. “Don’t let the fuckers hurt you.”

“Alfie,” Boss Lady said, “stand behind Jaxon and put that gun right up against that handsome head of his.”

Alfie did as he was told.

Soon, Jaxon heard hurried footsteps against the tiled floor. Damn it, they were dragging Holly.

Then she appeared in his line of sight, escorted by two thugs.

Holly stopped in her tracks, her jaw dropping. Then tears started falling down her face. “Jax…”

Jaxon couldn’t keep his eyes from misting. He smiled at her, hoping to somehow ease some of the terror she had to be feeling.

“Hah!” Fleur said triumphantly. “I knew it! Jaxon Caine and Holly Stirling are an item.”

Holly tried to go to him, but she was prevented by the two men holding her arm.

“Oh, let her go,” Boss Lady said with a downward flick of her wrist. “Let’s watch this romantic reunion.”

Jaxon didn’t bother to dispute the woman’s words. All he could do was gape at Holly, his heart pounding with relief and fear. And so much love.

Tentatively, Holly walked towards him, copious tears pouring out of her eyes.

“Oh, babe,” he breathed, his heart wrenching from seeing her anguish.

Holly ran the last few steps and threw her arms around his waist.

He crushed her to him. “It’s okay. We’re gonna be okay,” he whispered.

Holly shivered, then pulled away to look at Fleur. “Are you the boss?”

“Yes,” the older woman said cheerfully. “Full title’s the Boss Lady.”

“Why do you have Jaxon? I thought it’s me you want.”

No! Jaxon reached for her again. She couldn’t blame herself for this. “Hols—”

Holly ignored him. “Let him go. You have me already. My family will make sure you get what you want—but it might take a while. We don’t have the amount of money you want in cash.”

“I know that you don’t have sixty million in cash right now. But you’re a big star, Holly Stirling. Your family shouldn’t have a hard time selling assets. I imagine they’d be able to raise the cash in just a handful of weeks, especially when they tell buyers they’re doing it for you. So you’re going to send them a message to hurry the fuck up, so we can buy that island we want before someone else snaps it up. Till then, you’ll be kept in our solitary confinement, which I promise you won’t like.”

“Over my dead body,” Jaxon hissed.

Holly shook her head. “Please let him go.”

“No, Holly,” Jaxon said just as stubbornly.

Holly faced him. “I’m sorry. They shouldn’t have taken you.”

He cupped her face. “It’s not your fault, sweetheart.”

“Indeed it’s not,” said Fleur. “Dom! Bring the brother out here.”

Dom came back to the room, dragging Bryce with him.

“Bryce!” Holly cried out.

“His brother is responsible for Jaxon being here, Holly. Not you.”

Jaxon glared at the witch.

“What?” Holly asked in confusion.

“They’re brothers.”

Holly glanced at Bryce, then at Jaxon. “I don’t understand.”

“I’ll explain later,” Jaxon said.

“Pity there might not be a later for you,” Fleur said with a smirk.

Jaxon inhaled sharply, and his breath hitched some more at the pure shock on Holly’s face.

“Why?” Holly asked in a whisper.

His eyes watered, his heart squeezing at the hurt in her voice.

She had to know. In case something happened, in case they never saw each other again, she had to know. And he didn’t care that he had to confess in front of Fleur and her henchmen. “I love you, Holly.”

Fleur snickered, but Jaxon ignored her. He moved towards Holly.

But Holly stepped back, shaking her head and gaping at him in disbelief.

“I couldn’t tell you,” he said in a pleading tone, searching his brain for the right words.

“Because I asked him to keep our relationship a secret,” Bryce interjected. “It’s all my fault, Holly. I tried to keep the truth from everyone, including Jax, so he doesn’t get involved in the mess I’m in. He doesn’t know anything about this—about your kidnapping. Unfortunately, they took him too.”

Holly turned to Bryce, her eyes wide. “You’re with my kidnappers?”

Bryce looked at Fleur, his stare cold.

Fleur’s lips curled into an ugly snarl. “Oh, you’re such a fucking sissy, Bryce, not wanting to dirty your hands. You can’t even kidnap a person! All you do is play…guard. How stupid. As if our people need a nanny. Unfortunately for me, your father had revealed too much about our operation to you. But he’s gone now, so he can’t tell us to be easy on you anymore.”

“What?” Jaxon said. Had he just heard the word father?

Fleur smirked. “Yes. Your father. He died four months ago, so unfortunately for you, you can’t get to know him.”

Jaxon felt blood drain from his face. Their mother had told them their father had died before Bryce was born.

“It’s true, Jax,” Bryce said quietly.

“What happened?”

Bryce inhaled deeply. “When I escaped to Darwin, a couple befriended me. I didn’t realise till later that they were Dad and her.” Bryce pointed his chin at Fleur. “Apparently, the crooked PI Joseph had hired to plant Mum’s jewellery and those drugs in my apartment was Dad’s friend. It took a year before they trusted me enough to tell me that Dad was my real father. Dad and I had already become close then, and he told me all about their syndicate. I was shocked. When they asked me to participate, I said no. But Fleur decided it was too late. I already knew too much, and Dad agreed. So I decided to disappear because I didn’t want to be part of all that. But Dom caught me and brought me back. That was when Fleur ordered a shoot-to-kill order on me if I attempted to leave the syndicate again.”

Holly gasped while Jaxon threw dagger looks at Fleur.

“Hey,” Fleur said to Bryce, wide-eyed. “You still got a great deal. Because your dad had a soft spot for you, I agreed that we can’t force you to do something you didn’t want as long as you didn’t leave. So you had that great lifestyle when all you did was walk around, checking for intruders and pretending our islands were family-friendly. You had the easiest job when the rest of us were constantly taking the risk for the sake of our business.”

“I never wanted to be part of it,” Bryce hissed. “I was practically your prisoner.”

Fleur huffed. “You know that no one who knows about us can leave. Anyway, since we’re into this confession thing, I have one for you. You know how your stepfather manipulated things so he could threaten you to stay away from your mother?”

“What about it?” Jaxon asked sharply.

Fleur showed some teeth. “It was all your father’s doing. Your father forced Joseph to make Bryce look like a thieving drug dealer and you as someone who tried to murder him. Your dad went into some sort of midlife crisis, I think, and he suddenly couldn’t stand the thought of another man being a dad to his sons that had never known him. So he threatened Joseph that he would kill your mother if he didn’t push you away so badly that there could be no possibility of reconciliation. So there! Surprise!”

Jaxon exchanged a glance with Bryce. Both his and his brother’s jaws were on the floor.

“Anyway,” Fleur said, narrowing her eyes at Bryce, “when your dad died, your preferential treatment died with him. You know you can’t decline jobs anymore. I’m sick and tired of you mocking my orders, so I’m telling you right now that if you disobey me again, you’re dead.”

“Fuck,” Bryce muttered.

“Is that why you called in sick?” Holly asked Bryce. “You were supposed to go with me to Byron Bay today, but someone else kidnapped me.”

Bryce nodded, smiling mirthlessly. “I never wanted to hurt you, much less hand you over to this mob. But I guess Fleur discovered my insubordination and sent someone else to do the job.”

“Because you’re such a fucking incompetent fool!” Fleur spat out.

Bryce ignored her. “It’s my fault that Jax didn’t tell you that I’m his brother, Holly. He cares a lot about you. Well, actually he just said he loves you.”

Holly turned back to Jaxon, her eyes misty.

Jaxon let out a relieved sigh at the softness of her gaze, hope flaring in his heart. He smiled at her. “I’d suspected that Bryce might be up to no good when he asked me not to let anyone know we’re brothers. You see, he disappeared for ten years. I had no idea where he was or what happened to him. And then he turned up again—with a different surname—to be your bodyguard. I was already pushing you away because of the threat against me by my stepfather. I didn’t think I could be with you because of that. I couldn't let you go through a major scandal if Joseph did go ahead and get me charged with attempted murder. Then my brother turned up, who could be wanting to hurt you. That was why I didn’t want you to get close to him, either. I dated you so I could protect you from him. And, sweetheart, I’m so glad my hand was forced, because you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I fell in love with you completely and utterly. I am so sorry for all the deception, but it was necessary. I’d do anything to keep you safe. Because I love you.”

Tears fell down Holly’s cheeks. But she didn’t make a move towards him.

“I have a proposition for you, Jaxon,” Fleur said. “Say yes, and we’ll release Holly without any ransom.”

“Yes,” Jaxon stated without hesitation.

“No,” Holly whispered, her eyes widening.

“It’s okay, babe.”

“Aw, isn’t this touching? So do you want to know what you’re signing up for?”

“I’m sure you’ll tell me,” Jaxon said sarcastically.

“You will join us. You will allow the syndicate to use your resources—business and personal—whenever we need it.”

“Fucking leave him alone,” Bryce said angrily.

“Maybe we can get him to do a lot better job than you!” Fleur snapped.

“You let Holly go,” Jaxon said with deadly quiet. “That’s the deal.”

Holly clutched his arm. “Jax, no.”

He held her tight against him. “You let her go, Fleur.”

“Sure,” Fleur said flippantly. “I won’t ask for a ransom. But…since she’s seen me and has been here and has heard this conversation, she has to be quiet and not say anything. Because if she does say something to anyone, then you both die.”

“No!” Holly said.

“Well, then, you make sure you shut up, Missy. And Jaxon, if you renege on this agreement or displease me or snitch on the syndicate in any way, the same thing happens. You both die. Do you understand?”

“Perfectly,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Good. You and Bryce will stay here with me until I’m happy that you understand your obligations to our syndicate.”

“I have a business to run,” Jaxon said. “I can’t stay here.”

“The minute you fulfil at least one obligation, you can go back to work—with Dom as your bodyguard.”

“And what will that obligation entail?”

“Drug running, kidnapping, probably murder,” Bryce said with contempt.

Heat rose up Jaxon’s face. No fucking way.

Holly sobbed. “Don’t do this, please.”

He kissed her forehead. “It’s okay, baby. Just pretend you don’t know about this at all. Pretend this day never existed and just go about your life like normal. That’s all you need to do. Don’t worry about me. Don’t think about me.”

Holly shook her head vigorously. “My family will come up with the ransom somehow. You don’t need to do this.”

“Too late for that,” Fleur said. “We’ll kidnap someone else for the ransom money. I’ve decided that having Jaxon in our fold is more beneficial to me in the long-term. He’s a successful, respected businessman. I can already think of ways we can use JC Tax Franchise to our advantage.”

Jaxon boiled with anger, and he wanted to so badly to wring Fleur’s neck. But he simply continued to hold Holly in his arms. He had to get Holly out of here and back to where the Indie Rebels would find her and protect her.

As for him, well, he trusted the Indie Rebels, and he knew they’d find him. Eventually. But whether he’d be dead or alive by then, he didn’t know. He had no plans to follow Fleur’s orders.

“Jax, please,” Holly pleaded.

He whispered in her ear. “I want you out of here. There’s no way I’m going to allow you to spend even one night in the hands of these criminals.”

“Why are you doing this?” she sobbed.

He held her tighter, squeezing her and feeling her, perhaps for the last time. “Because I love you,” he said fervently.

Holly pulled away to look at him. “That much?”

“More than that.”

Despite her tears, Holly’s smile was real and sweet. “I love you too. So much. And frankly, as long as we both get out of here alive—Bryce too—I don’t care what kind of scandal I have to face. I just want to be with you.”

“Pity you can’t be together,” Fleur said cheerfully. “Dom, take Holly Stirling back to her house.”

Dom nodded and headed for Holly.

Holly clung to Jaxon.

“You have to go, babe.” He kissed her lips before turning around and walking away, his eyes swimming in tears.

His heart tore to pieces at Holly’s distress as Dom forced her to go with him, but he didn’t look back. He just needed her safe.

A female scream made him whirl around. People wearing all-black attire, black face masks and dark glasses were streaming in with fast and quiet movements. One of them quickly unarmed Dom while four wrestled with the other thugs, easily subduing them. And someone was cuffing Fleur’s hands behind her back.

The criminals’ faces held complete and utter disbelief.

Jaxon grinned. The Indie Rebels found them. How?

He rushed to Holly, who appeared too scared to make a single movement. He took her in his arms.

“Who are these people?” she whispered as more shouting was heard in other parts of the house.

“I think they’re the Indie Rebels,” he said, injecting awe in his voice. “You know those private citizens helping the police?”

“Oh.”

“You guys okay?” one of them asked as he passed by.

Jaxon hid his smile at the familiar voice. “Yeah.”

Holly gasped. “That guy… He sounded like Xave.”

“Did he?” Jaxon asked, feigning surprise. “He couldn’t be Xave.”

Holly shook her head. “I think I’m still in shock.”

He kissed her forehead. “Probably, babe.”

“How did they know to save us?”

Jaxon shrugged. They must have traced him or Holly somehow. “Maybe they’re already watching these people. We’re lucky.”

Another IR walked into the room. “All clear. We got all the rest of them.”

Holly tugged Jaxon’s sleeve and surreptitiously pointed to an IR standing guard beside Fleur. “She’s a woman. How exciting,” she whispered.

He grinned. He wouldn’t be surprised if that was Eve. She wouldn’t have wanted to sit out saving Holly.

“Where are you taking me?” shrieked Fleur.

“You were a tough one to crack, Fleur Horsefield,” said the IR who looked to be the leader of the operation. “But the police are learning about you as we speak. So we’ll save them some time and dump you and your guys inside one room in this house. They’ll be happy to find you there.”

Jaxon recognised that voice too! So Aidan did go out in the field. He gave his mentor a brief salute.

Aidan copied his gesture.

Fleur and her men were dragged out of the room, and Bryce took a step towards Aidan.

“Thank you guys for coming,” Bryce said, his grin wide.

Aidan turned to him. “No, thank you, Bryce. We’ll be in touch.” Then he left.

Jaxon gaped at his brother. “What was that about?”

“I contacted them and asked for their help.”

“What? When?”

“When we were in the car on our way here. I sent them a message through a website I discovered, and I said Holly Stirling was gonna be kidnapped. I gave them this address because I didn’t know where they were taking Holly. I’ve been thinking of asking for their help for a long time, but it was only this afternoon that I took the plunge. I’m glad they responded.”

Jaxon was stunned. His brother had contacted the IR? “So you have another phone? Dom chucked yours in the bin too.”

“Yep. The phone in the bin is tracked by Fleur. Anyway, you were blindfolded. And luckily, Dom and Alfie were too busy yacking to pay attention to what I was doing.”

Jaxon gave his brother a big hug. “Thank you.”

Holly embraced Bryce too. “You really are my bodyguard. Thank you.”

Bryce laughed. “I couldn’t let anything happen to you. You mean so much to Jax.”

Holly smiled at Jaxon. “He means a lot to me too.”

A sudden burst of happiness exploded within Jaxon. There was nothing in the way of him and Holly anymore. Now that he understood what Joseph’s threats were about, he, Bryce, their mother, and Joseph could forget about what had happened. He didn’t care anymore if the media dug into his life. There was no longer anything to hide.

He lifted Holly from the floor and kissed her hard. “I’ve no more secrets that can hurt you, so will you take me back?”

Holly’s eyes watered. “What kind of question is that? I thought I already did.”