Chapter 8

Griffin

Whoever’s paying these guys to kidnap Kalista should give them a raise.

They’re nothing if not persistent.

I get it. When your eyes are on the prize, there’s no room to fuck about. And Kalista is one fine prize.

Dark hair, bright eyes, and a spirit that manages to ignite the room even when she’s tied to my bed frame.

By far, she’s one of the best things I’ve ever stolen.

But I suppose that it’s not stealing if your prize then turns around and decides she wants to stay. It doesn’t normally happen this way, but then again, if a painting or a diamond started bossing me about, I’d be less interested in keeping it.

I’ll keep Kalista around for a little while though. I do, after all, like to surround myself with beautiful things.

But we can’t stay here in France. If the heat from the Canary wasn’t about to light my arse on fire, the heat from her kidnappers might. But when that heat dies down, I’m going to move her back into the arms of dear old mummy and daddums.

I don’t need the kind of trouble that comes with a damsel in distress.

I’m spoiled for choices as to where we could go to lay low.

Vienna? Rome? Even London is nice this time of year.

Then, it hits me. I know exactly where we can go.

While Kalista packs the clothes I left in the wardrobe, I use my current phone to call a friend of mine. We call him Eagle—or rather Bald Eagle as a joke—because of the large patch where hair no longer grows on the back of his head.

He’s one of the best pilots on this side of the globe.

And why fly first class when you can fly private?

“Hey, Gryphon, what can I do for you?” Eagle’s voice emits through the receiver.

He’s cheerful as ever.

“How quickly can you give me a flight from the French Riviera to Barcelona? I’m in need of some sun.”

“Well, uh, if you give me an hour, I can take you. But I might be a bit longer.” Eagle’s voice changes from enthusiasm to trepidation.

“I want you here in thirty minutes, Eagle.” My voice hardens as I press into him.

He can be like this from time to time, but all it takes is a little reminder who his friends are.

“But I’d have to have left ten minutes ago, Gryphon.”

“Then get moving,” I say and peer through the door to check on Kalista. She’s almost finished. “Don’t forget who saved your arse in Moscow.”

There’s a sigh on the other end of the phone, and I know that I’ve won. After an event like Moscow, Eagle’s not in any position to say no to me.

“See you in forty-five minutes, Gryphon.”

“Thank you, Eagle.”

We take a taxi to the air field. I haven’t had time to change the license plates on the Lamborghini in the garage, so I shouldn’t really be caught driving it. Taxis are inconspicuous—and as much as I love a high speed chase as the next man—I don’t need the French authorities up my arse right now.

“So, where are we going?” Kalista asks as we step out of the taxi.

Eagle is here, ready and waiting at the end of the runway.

“On a little holiday.”

“Where to?”

“Somewhere sunny,” I tell her and take her bag out of the trunk.

I carry it to the plane, where Eagle is waiting. He tips his hat, and I can’t help but grin.

His balding has gotten worse.

“Enchanté, Madame. The name’s Eagle,” he says as Kalista approaches the stairs.

I let her walk up first, so that he can take her hand. I see the spread of Eagle’s thinning hair as he leans forward to kiss her hand.

She walks inside the plane. Both Eagle and myself enjoy the view.

The pilot grins toothily as he nudges me excitedly. “I’ve got a chance, eh?”

I shake my head and laugh. It wouldn’t hurt to let him live in hope, but it’s best I let him down before Kalista does it.

Once the plane is in the air, I message Leviathan and question him for answers about any recent kidnappings, or if there’s been any chatter recently about the von Knopfs. I leave Kalista’s name out of it for now. I trust Leviathan, but he doesn’t need to know there’s a woman involved.

Women tend to make him nervous.

Once the seat belt light sign has been switched off, Kalista is out of her seat. The curiosity of where we’re going is eating at her.

She sits down beside me and glares at me.

“Yes, love?” I ask, barely looking up from my phone—that’ll drive her wild.

“Where are we going?”

“I told you. On holiday. Somewhere sunny.”

“There was sun in France.”

I roll my eyes at her. “There were kidnappers in France.”

“There’s a kidnapper on this plane,” she shoots back—surprisingly quickly.

Kalista had been so shaken when she realized the men were after her still, but she seems to have adapted to the situation well.

It’s refreshing. I look up from my phone and raise an eyebrow.

She smirks back, raising both her brows as a challenge.

“So, why is the pilot called Eagle?” she asks instead, taking a different route.

“Because he flies,” I reply with a smirk that mirrors hers.

“So, it’s not because he’s bald?”

“Not completely.” I return my attention to my phone.

Leviathan still hasn’t replied, which is annoying considering the long hours I know he keeps. How he survives with such little sleep, I’ll never understand.

“So, do you have a code name?”

“Gryphon.”

“Your code name is your actual name?” She scoffs and stands from the seat to stretch those gorgeous legs.

“No. Gryphon. Like the creature in Alice in Wonderland.”

“So, your name but spelled differently? Real original.”

“You’re very funny, love,” I reply with a deadpan tone.

Her comment was actually quite funny, but I’m not about to let her know that.

“So, are you a spy? Are you James Bond?” Kalista asks as she stands before me.

I can feel her eyes land on my phone, but the screen goes black before she can read what I’ve been messaging Leviathan.

“Want to live out a fantasy, do you?” I stand up and look down at her.

I catch a glimpse down her top and breathe in the smell of her. It’s a sweet scent, but there’s a bite to her perfume. It reminds me of grapefruit and pomegranates with a hint of rose.

“With you, Griffin? I’d like to live out many fantasies,” she whispers seductively into my ear.

It sets the hair on the back of my neck on end. My cock begins to stir, but I take a deep breath and calm myself.

Come on, Griff. You’re not some green-fingered tea-leaf.

You won’t be made a right tit out of by some seductive heiress.

“Yeah? Maybe once we land,” I say, grinning up at her as I sit back down. “I don’t want to give Eagle a heart attack with a free show. I’d very much prefer it if we made it to our destination alive.”

“Will it be our final destination?” Kalista asks with a raised eyebrow.

She pushes her chest together slightly. I look at her breasts—not caring if she catches me looking—and then she stands up again.

Aimlessly, she begins to wander about the cabin. She’s not a woman that does well in captivity it seems, but then I’m not all that different myself. It’s no wonder she was so eager to take a break from her life.

And on a personal note, I could watch her walk around this plane all day.

When she’s no longer hovering over my shoulder, I return to my phone. I call ahead to Barcelona to make arrangements for a driver to meet us at the airport.

I don’t doubt that Kalista can understand most of what I’m saying. I’d be more surprised if she didn’t.

But it’s fun to drop her little hints, to watch her mind tick over all the clues in an effort to decipher everything is entertaining. My own in-flight movie so to speak.

It’s probably cruel to treat her this way—she’s just had to endure an attempted kidnapping—and the poor girl doesn’t really need more mind games when she’s trying to figure out who she can trust.

But she probably shouldn’t trust me.

The sooner she realizes that, perhaps the better.

So for now, I’ll play.