Nate(29)

“Fuck,” he said, pulling out his phone and hitting a couple of buttons. A second later, he said, “Aspen. Come out here.”

“Why are you getting my sister involved?”

The first two officers had gotten out and were rounding the vehicle, starting over the lawn.

“You kidding me? Seattle loves her.”

Aspen came out, but if I’d been nervous about my sister, I didn’t have to be. Her jaw was firm. Her eyes were blazing, and she had her phone up.

“You’re going live?” Logan asked. The amusement in his tone was mixed with awe.

“No, but I’m recording, and if they make one wrong move, this is going to be uploaded to one of Blaise’s social media accounts.”

My brother-in-law had followers in the millions.

Also, considering how he didn’t give a damn what people thought of him, a video like this would be on-brand for him. His PR team wouldn’t have a problem with it.

“Officers.” I nodded to the first one.

Officer Gravers and Officer Diaz.

The first nodded at me. “You’re the owner of this home?”

“I’m in the process of buying it, yes. There’s a legal agreement between myself and the current owners.”

They didn’t say anything at first, their eyes scanning behind us, trying to see inside the home.

The speaking one motioned to the two vehicles they had blocked off. “You know the owners of these two vehicles?”

“I do, yes.”

“May we please speak to them?”

“Concerning?” Logan stepped forward, his lawyer voice on. It was no-nonsense, and he was just looking for them to fuck up.

The second officer seemed to sense this and took a step back.

“I’m his lawyer.” Logan gestured toward me, his tone sounding considerably more hostile. “What’s the basis of this visit? You’re required to inform us of the reason.”

The two cops shared a look, one stepping back and his hand moving to his radio.

He didn’t need to call for backup. Two other cars idled in front of my house, both with two officers and all watching this event.

Gravers nodded to the house. “We got a concerned call about a possible kidnapping. Is there a Miss Royas inside?”

“There is, but she’s playing with Nova.”

The two cops shared a sharp look at the mention of Nova.

I’d had enough. “If you were called by Quincey’s father, he wasted your time and effort. Quincey and my daughter have decided to live with me.”

Both their eyebrows went up at the mention of “my daughter.”

Gravers’ mouth flattened, and his eyes went hard. “This is a child custody dispute?”

“No.”

“No?”

“No.” Logan’s tone was harsh. “As of three days ago, Miss Royas signed a legal and binding agreement between herself and my client concerning the custody of Nova Nathaniel Robertson. You can call your supervisor up and make a request to my office and also to Miss Royas’ attorney’s office to obtain what legal documentation you need. Just know that any further errand you might be sent on on behalf of Mr. Duke Royas has no legal standing. And once this has been retained, any further action could be viewed and will be documented as harassment. I’ll be making the appropriate legal claims for that to happen.”

The one was squinting his eyes at Logan. “Where are you a lawyer from?”

Gravers’ radio went off as Logan clipped out, “Boston.”

Gravers stepped back, listening, and returned a moment later. He nodded to Aspen. “That Blaise DeVroe’s wife?”

“That’s my sister, and yes. She’s married to Blaise DeVroe.”

He reassessed me. “So you’re Nate Monson?”

I nodded.

Logan gave the other two squad cars an assessing look, smirking at the same time as he sighed. “We shouldn’t have to give you our famous connections or give you a ballpark guess at how much money Nate, Aspen, or myself have for you to return to your vehicles and continue with your evening’s normal activities. Mr. Royas sent you on a wasted trip.”

They shared a look, but Gravers held his hands out. “We need Miss Royas to come out and tell us she’s not here under duress. We can’t leave without that.”

Logan was going to fight it, but Quincey called from behind us, “I’m here.”

She stepped out, her face pale, but her chin up and firm. She stopped beside Aspen. “I’m here under my own volition. I’m no longer living with my father, and he has no legal standing over Nova. He would know this if he had taken the time to call his own lawyer before calling Bud.”

The two cops grimaced at that name.

I was assuming Bud was their boss, the Mr. Casino VIP.

Quincey’s eyes chilled. “Leave. Now.” She went inside without a second glance.

Logan was handing over two business cards as I took over. “My sister has a video of this whole thing if you’d like to give that to your boss? If not, get the fuck off my property.”

They bristled but didn’t dispute me. The three cars left not long after.

Logan murmured, “That was a bit too easy.”

“I know. Aspen gave you Quincey’s phone?”