Forever Changed

Chapter 3: Silk and Surprises

Mattia POV

"Congratulations." Tomas extended his hand to me and I was forced to shake it. I didn't want to cause a scene before our reception even started.

"Thank you. Can I ask what is so important that you are waiting for me in the hallway on my wedding day?" My tone wasn't friendly, there was no love lost between the two of us. 

"She looked like a little doll making her way down that aisle. Every man there was thinking how lucky you were that she was going to be only yours." 

"Did you come here to talk about my new bride or are you going to get to the point of what was so important you'd interrupt my wedding?" I didn't want him looking at Angelique, if I was honest I didn't want him even thinking about her. I knew that his family had tried for a Marriage Pact with her and my skin crawled at the thought of him getting his hands on such a sweet girl. His comment about her being only mine shouldn't feel as good as it did. I knew he was into sharing and the thought of him sharing her with others made my temper rise.

"I was merely commenting that she is a beautiful girl and you are a lucky man your father snapped her up so young." 

I didn't even bother to reply to that sentence. We both knew he didn't mean it, he was still irritated that her father had refused his family's request. I wanted him to get to the point of his approach before she reappeared from the room where she was changing into a more suitable gown. I couldn't believe she'd thought her mother's second hand dress was the right choice for our wedding. My father would definitely have something to say about her appearance when he got me alone. His disappointment was obvious to me.

"Fine. If you don't even want to observe normal niceties I'll get to the point. Another warehouse has been hit. We lost just over five hundred thousand in stock this time. It seems the previous smaller hits were perhaps to test our team. The security feed had been cut and the two men on duty didn't notice. Whoever broke in got away clean and we're out of pocket half a million and change from what we can ascertain."

At that statement my temper flared.

"Who was on duty?" 

"Rick and Benny. They swear they didn't leave the security room once and that's probably part of the problem. They rely on the cameras and don't do walk arounds to check for anything suspicious. The loss wasn't noticed until trucks showed up this afternoon to transport a shipment to LA."

"I want them both brought in for questioning. Take them to the Shed. I will handle it personally in the morning." 

He nodded his head. On this subject he wouldn't give me any trouble. Everyone knew I handled these things personally. I wasn't like my father. I actually enjoyed getting my hands dirty.

"Aren't you leaving on your honeymoon tomorrow?" He gave me a smirk I didn't appreciate.

Angelique would probably be disappointed. But she'd have to get used to it. Our marriage wasn't a normal one and she needed to quickly learn her place. Business always came first. It was the way of our world.

"I was but I can't overlook a half million dollar loss. This could be part of a bigger issue and impact other warehouses. I need to ensure we're not missing anything that's going to bite us in the ass. My bride knew what she was signing up for when she took my ring. She will not complain."