Wasted

Jericho’s POV

Ash always manages to find the most extravagant places, and this time was no different. Royce, his driver, pulled up to the biggest building in Amestris, a stunning structure with a courtyard that stretched across half a city block. I couldn’t help but wonder how he pulled off such a setup. It seemed like Knox needed to keep a close eye on his drugs and runners, especially given his trust issues that bordered on paranoia when he worked for me.

“Tomorrow, we’ll head back for your stuff so you don’t upset Aria,” Ash mentioned the night we checked in.

“Sounds good,” I replied, but a wave of regret hit me.

I didn’t want to leave her like this. Still, she was the one who wanted me gone. From the moment I arrived, she’d been trying to get rid of me.

She’ll be relieved I’m out of her way.

That didn’t change the fact that I felt awful about how things ended. But Ash was right; I needed to give her some space to process everything she’d heard about Knox. The gargoyle had been her boss long before I came into the picture, and her loyalties were definitely conflicted.

Ash got me checked into a suite that was way bigger than Aria’s whole house. It had three bedrooms, a full kitchen, and two bathrooms. Plus, there were twin balconies that offered stunning views of the city from different perspectives.

I had a restless night on a massive bed that reminded me of the one I used to have back when I lived in the city. My old estate had been turned into what Ash called a “shopping complex” ages ago.

It was time to rebuild my empire.

“It’s fit for a king,” Ash said as I stood on the living room patio the next morning, gazing out at my town.

Looking at it now gave me a strange feeling. It had changed so much since my time here, but it wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for me. When I first arrived in that barren desert, all I saw were buzzards and nomads. That was part of the reason I chose it. The blank slate was enticing, and the lost souls were looking for direction. I had led them to prosperity. And I would do it again.

“This isn’t exactly flying under the radar,” I muttered, mostly to myself, but Ash didn’t seem to mind.

“That was Aria’s idea,” he reminded me. “Now that you have resources, there’s no need to hide your return. Knox should know you’re back to reclaim what’s yours—and to put an end to the slave trade he’s running.”

I glanced over at him.

“I can’t believe that jerk went so low with the Black Society,” I said, feeling sick just thinking about it. “I never thought he had it in him.”

Ash frowned. “I’m not surprised. Humans are treated worse than ever, and women…”

He turned away, but I could tell the topic was weighing on him more than he let on.

“Do you have a daughter?”

Ash tensed up even more, but he jumped in before I could switch topics. “That’s why we need to make changes for all women.”

I thought about Aria working for Knox and what else he might have her doing. The thought made me furious, jealousy taking over for a moment.

“Come on,” Ash said. “We’ve got stuff to do.”

He guided me back into the suite, where Royce had brought in a few bags, including one that was mine.

“Did you see Aria?” I asked, but the driver shook his head.

“I waited until she left before going in.”

I wanted to ask how she was doing, but I held back. I’d check on her myself once things calmed down. I didn’t need to rely on Ash’s driver for updates about my mate.

“What’s all this?” I asked, eyeing the strange gadgets the driver was pulling out of the bags.

Ash gave me a skeptical look. “They’re computers,” he said. I just stared at him, and he let out a loud snort. “You’re kidding, right?”

“I’ve heard of them?” I replied, but that was a total lie.

I’d caught snippets about this tech, like mobile phones, but I had no clue how to use them or how they worked. But as Ash sat me down in front of the keyboard at the dining table, I was completely lost.

“This is your new best friend,” Ash said, pulling up a chair next to me. “The computer.”

He slid a cell phone across the table.

“And this is a cell phone for you, too. I’m guessing you don’t have one?”

“You guessed right.”

“Do you know how to use it? Avalon said you were yelling at him when you called.”

Heat rushed to my face, but I kept my cool.

“I wasn’t screaming,” I shot back, trying to sound confident. “He’s just old. I wanted to make sure he heard me.”

Ash chuckled.

“Sure.” He turned to the laptop and booted it up, while I fought to hide my annoyance.

“I should be out there taking back what’s mine,” I muttered, confused about how this was helping me. “Not stuck here…”

I waved my hand at the screen.

“To get back in the game, you need to do some digging, figure out what’s happening, and learn about your opponent,” Ash said straightforwardly. “You can’t do that the old-school way, Jericho.”

I raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “I’m doing all that with this?” I gestured at the computer.

“That and a whole lot more,” Ash said, turning the screen toward me. “Everything you need to know about Knox from the last two hundred years is right here… Well, mostly. You just have to know where to look.”

He placed the laptop in front of me, and I stared at the search bar on the screen.

“Type in whatever you want to find out,” Ash encouraged.

“What?

Ash let out a sigh and pulled the screen closer, taking charge of the situation. His fingers danced across the keyboard, and just like that, the display transformed into a full list. I leaned in, curious about what he had uncovered.

A flood of headlines featuring Knox's name filled the screen, making me furrow my brow in confusion.

“What’s going on here?” I asked, puzzled.

“Just some recon,” Ash said with a smirk, leaning back in his chair. “Time to get familiar with your guy and see what he’s been up to over the last couple of centuries.”

I clicked on one of the links and jumped a bit as the screen changed again, prompting Ash to chuckle.

“Don’t worry, you’re not going to break it,” he assured me.

Suddenly, a loud noise pierced the air, making me spin around, my fangs instinctively ready for a fight. Ash burst out laughing as Royce got into a defensive stance.

“It’s just my phone, Jericho,” Ash managed to say between laughs, pulling the device from his pocket. “Hang tight for a sec.”

As he took the call, I relaxed a bit, giving Royce an apologetic nod, and turned my focus back to the computer to dive into Knox’s recent activities since I had been away.

There was a ton of information, and I found myself sifting through the endless data from sources I didn’t even recognize.

“How trustworthy is this?” I asked, raising an eyebrow when Ash came back from his call. “Where’s all this info coming from?”

Ash looked at me, a bit surprised. “It’s everywhere. All kinds of information just floating around has been gathered, and now it’s right at your fingertips.”

“But who’s behind this? How can I be sure it’s legit?” I pressed. “Anyone could be adding stuff here.”

Ash shot a glance at Royce, and they shared a look before he turned back to me.

“How did you survive all those years?” he asked, a hint of pity in his voice, dodging my question. “I can’t even find this Seven Rock on a map.”

I brushed off his teasing but felt a bit more at ease. If Ash believed in this whole interconnected info thing, I figured I could trust him.

Still, I was uncertain about how this would actually help me in the long run. Ash seemed to sense my doubts and settled back down next to me.

“Just remember, every good battle starts with a solid plan,” he said calmly as I leaned back and rubbed my tired eyes. “And for that, you need to know every strength and weakness of Knox before you go after him.”

I turned to him, dropping my hands from my face to meet his gaze.

“Are you really not going to stick around to help?”

Ash shook his head. “This is your fight, my friend. But I’ve got some guys on their way right now. They’ll be here this afternoon. In the meantime, you need to hit the books, Jericho. You’ve already wasted too much time.”