Chapter 10 #2
“Liz, man,” I call out, making him squeak. “I’m going to need some gauze.”
He scatters in a second, bringing me the gauze, and Ivan and I work in tandem, carefully wrapping Tommy’s wounds. Leaving him to die of infection is no way to send a message.
When I’m certain the wrap is strong enough to keep the blood in, I huff a satisfied breath before rising back to my feet and repeating the process on the other hand.
“Y-you heard him,” Liz stutters once I finish. “It had nothing to do with me.”
“I know. Here’s what’s going to happen. You’ll send Tommy with the shipment, as planned.
I’m certain he’ll deliver the message.” I lift Tommy’s hand, the middle finger staring straight at them.
Ivan barks a laugh, and I can’t help but follow.
Liz and his guys join in, clearly thrilled not to be next on the chopping block.
We head out of the warehouse, Liz walking swiftly behind us. “Thank you, Luka. I’m sorry. This wasn’t my fault, but I’m still sorry it happened. I wished I could have stopped it.”
I turn around suddenly, grabbing him by his shirt.
“You could have stopped it. You’re responsible for your men.
And just because I let you off this time, doesn’t mean that I’ll allow this to happen again.
So be more careful. Russians are poaching, and we’d rather burn the whole place down than lose our kingdom.
” With that, I drop him and start for the car.
“How come you haven’t killed him?” Ivan asks, as he starts the car.
“Who?”
“Any of them?”
“It’s not how we do business.”
I stare out of the window the rest of the ride to the club.
My father built the family business on loyalty.
Not loyalty out of fear, but out of respect.
It’s why we grew so strong, so fast. The people we work with know we have their backs as much as they have ours.
We won’t throw them under the bus as soon as it becomes convenient.
Not everyone in the family agrees with this. But I need to preserve Father’s legacy.
I stalk through the club, not sparing anyone a second glance, and head straight to the dungeon. Something about tonight made unease settle in my stomach. You never know who you can trust. Russians will probably help Landers free his daughter, and I need to check she’s still here.
The guard turns toward the door as soon as I barge in, cocking a gun at me. It’s a guy my brother sent. With all the extra work, I hardly have men to spare.
“Nice reflexes,” I tell him, and he lowers the weapon.
He grumbles in response. My gaze drops to the bed, finding Sophie crying again. Her face is scrunched up into a painful grimace, her cheeks wet with tears. Her pleads are quieter now, distressed whispers pouring out.
“You can go now,” I say, not bothering to turn my head away from her.
In a way, these silent, excruciating pleas are even harder to listen to than the loud wails.
I groan before making my way to her.
Since I sent the guard home, it’s obvious I’m staying here for the night. It’s already two am, my eyelids are drooping with exhaustion, and this won’t help me get any rest.
I approach her carefully, setting a hand on her shoulder. She smells different. I lower my head to her hair, inhaling a fresh coconut scent. She obviously showered, though she’s still wearing her baggy sweatshirt.
No wonder. The stuff I gave her was practically stripper clothes.
My head draws back to an appropriate distance. “Sophie. Cough, cough. Sophie, wake up.”
Tears stream down her face as she continues begging for mercy. A knot forms inside my chest, constricting it. I clear my throat.
“Sophie, wake up!”
She sucks in a shocked breath, her torso lifting into a seating position and her eyes opening. They widen in an instant as pure terror overtakes her features.
“No, no, please,” she pleads, wrapping her arms around her knees, now fully awake.
“It’s okay. It was just a nightmare.” I try to convey safety with the look in my eyes, but she looks like she’s a second from fainting.
“But y-you…You.” She points a shaky finger at my face and it’s when it dawns on me.
I stroke two fingers over my cheek, only to find them bloody. “Fuck,” I mumble.
With a huff, I get up from the bed and enter the bathroom, rubbing my face with water until the mirror shows no trace of blood.
Drops of water falling to the floor, I make my way back to the room and stand at the foot of the bed.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” My hands lift in surrender motion. “You were having a nightmare, and I wanted to snap you out of it.”
She dips her head before swallowing audibly. “Wh-whose blood was that?”
“A bad man’s.” I turn away from her. “Go back to sleep.”
My eyes focus on my phone, hoping that me being distracted will give her more comfort. It takes a while, but eventually she dozes off. In the meantime, I arrange for Mia the waitress to leave clean clothes in front of the door.
Grabbing the clothes, I glance at Sophie again, before heading to the bathroom She looks peaceful now, her brows relaxed, which is a goddamn miracle. I haven’t planned on showering in her room, but I sent the guard away, and there’s no way I’m leaving her alone.
So I undress in the small grimy bathroom with doors only halfway shut, keeping an ear out for the noise outside.
Luckily, it’s silent. The only sound is the water dripping over my naked body as blood washes down the drain. A snort escapes me, remembering how I woke her up in the middle of the night, my face splotched with blood.
I know how to send a message. To get a job done. I’m not an expert on how to console someone. Or make them feel better.
Dressed in clean clothes, I exit the bathroom. Her breaths are even as she sleeps in a peaceful slumber, her cheeks still glowing with the moisture of her tears.
I exhale a relieved breath and lie down on the couch. My eyes are fogged as I type a text to Ivan, telling him to buy some normal clothes for Sophie. My phone pings with a response, but I’m already drifting off to sleep.