19. Nikita #2
“She doesn’t even know Sav is missing,” he says, and I’m not at all surprised he didn’t tell her. He will do anything to protect her from being upset.
“She would want to know, son,” my Uncle Lev says.
“She’s pregnant,” Sasha argues.
“Yeah, but she’s healthy and there haven’t been any complications. Plus, she’s still in her first trimester and we’re going to find Sav soon. She’ll be okay, Sasha,” he tells his son. “She’s tough, and you’ll be with her the whole time.”
“Fine,” he says, but I can tell he’s not thrilled about it. “I’ll go get her and then we’ll pick up Sav’s parents and bring them here.”
“Thanks, Sasha,” I say when he walks by and squeezes my shoulder.
Savanna is still in my ear, telling me how happy she is that we’re together, how she never knew she could feel like this about anyone.
When she starts talking about us getting married and the kids she wants to have with me, I brush a tear from my cheek and listen to her describe a son who looks just like me but is terrible with computers like her.
“You doing okay?” my dad asks.
“I’m not going to bother answering that one, Dad.”
“I know, but I had to ask. We’ll get her soon, okay? Once we have the grid narrowed down, we can find her.”
I hear the clicking of his keyboard and know he’s already pulling up the different utility zones for the city.
My eyes stay locked on the image of Savanna.
She stopped talking a few minutes ago and managed to fall into a light sleep.
With her head propped against her handcuffed hands, she looks miserable, and I know she’s going to wake up with a stiff neck.
I’m glad she was able to fall asleep, though. She needs all the rest she can get.
After about twenty minutes have passed, my dad says, “I’m going to go get your mom. It’ll help if Sav’s mom can talk to someone who’s been around all this for years and is obviously not being mistreated.”
“Yeah, that’s a good idea,” I say while my brother gets up to join him.
“I’ll come too. I want to check on Talia and Lyra.” He squeezes my shoulder before he leaves. “This will be over soon, Niki,” he tells me, “and after Sav is back, I expect you both to do some serious bonding with your niece. She misses you.”
“Van will love that,” I tell him. As much as I love the thought of Savanna and I bonding with Lyra, I try not to think about it for too long.
I want nothing more than to fill my head with happy reunion thoughts, but I can’t give in to that desire right now.
I’ll become lost in it, desperate for it to become true, and my focus needs to be on the here and now.
There’s a niggling voice in the back of my head that reminds me it’s dangerous for other reasons.
I can’t let myself get lost in a future that may not happen.
Cupid still has her. We may be closer to finding her, but everything could change in a split second.
I know this, my family knows this, and it’s why I can’t let myself go down that path.
Not right now, not while she’s still gone.
Hopefully soon my hands will be covered in Cupid’s blood and Savanna will be back in my arms where she belongs, but until then, I can’t allow myself the luxury of daydreams.
When the door opens and my family walks back in, I already have a new, much bigger monitor hooked up. The city’s electrical grids fill the screen, each section marked off with a different color.
My mom quickly comes over to give me a hug while Max tells the others that their wives and kids have all gathered upstairs.
Everyone is waiting for Savanna’s return and letting me know they’re there if I need them.
I’ve never once taken my family for granted and moments like this remind me why that is.
“I’m glad she’s able to get some sleep,” my mom says. Her eyes stay focused on Savanna’s huddled-up form, and I can hear the worry in her voice and see it so clearly etched onto her face. There’s no way this isn’t bringing up a lot of memories for her.
“Thanks for being here, Mom, but I understand if it’s too much,” I tell her.
She gives me another hug and kisses my cheek. “I’m not going to fall apart, Niki,” she says. “And you’re my son. I will always be here for you, no matter what.”
I hug her back and tell her I love her before she goes to stand next to my dad.
It’s not long before I get a security alert on my phone, letting me know someone’s stepped onto our private elevator.
When I check the camera feed, I see Sasha with his arm wrapped around Cindy and next to them is a very confused-looking Phil and Grace.
I’m not sure what they were told to get them here, but I’m guessing it wasn’t the truth.
They must be scared to death being woken up so early with Sasha on their doorstep.
“They’re in the elevator,” I say loud enough for everyone to hear.
“Everyone act natural,” my Uncle Vitaly says.
“As opposed to?” Val asks his dad.
“I don’t know.” My Uncle Vitaly shrugs. “Don’t act like criminals?”
“We look like criminals,” my Uncle Lev says. “That’s usually enough for most people to form a very strong opinion about us.”
“True enough,” my dad says, “but their daughter is missing, and we’re going to be the criminals who get her back. My guess is they won’t give a fuck what we do for a living as long as Sav is okay.”
“Of course they won’t,” my mom says, giving me a reassuring smile.
“Whether or not they’ll be okay with me marrying her when it’s all over is up for debate,” I say.
Before she can argue that any mom would be proud to call a career criminal their son-in-law, the door opens and Savanna’s parents step inside.
Sasha’s still keeping Cindy close, and I can tell she’s trying really hard to keep it together.
He kisses the top of her head while my parents walk over and introduce themselves.
“Hi, we’re Niki’s parents,” my mom says, giving them a friendly smile. “I’m Simona, and this is my husband Danil. Our oldest son, Max, is over there,” she says, pointing him out. My brother holds up a hand and smiles.
“I’m Phil, and this is my wife, Grace,” Phil says while reaching out to shake my dad’s hand.
I unhook my laptop, taking it with me because it’s my one link to Savanna and I’m not about to let it out of my sight for even a second. I stand next to my mom and say, “Thanks for coming over.” I run a hand through my hair because I’m not sure how exactly to tell them what’s going on.
It’s Grace who notices the apartment is filled with her daughter’s things. She looks up at me. “Did Sav move in with you?”
“We were going to have you over for dinner this week and let you know about it,” I say. “I know it’s fast, but I love your daughter, and we want to live together.”
She nods, but her eyes keep darting around the room, and she’s squeezing her husband’s arm. Finally, she says, “Can you please tell us what’s going on? Where’s Savanna?”
“Here, come sit down,” my mom says, ushering them into the living room. Evgeny and Luka quickly hop up so they can have the couch. “We’ll explain everything, just please sit down.”
They do, and then there are two sets of eyes on me, waiting and desperate for answers.
I sit down across from them, keeping my laptop propped on one of my thighs, and start from the beginning.
I tell them about Cupid, how he’s been supplying drugs on campus, about the mixup with Cindy and how Savanna was almost drugged a few months ago, about his obsession with her and my inability to find him.
While I talk, my eyes stray to the screen every few seconds, making sure she’s okay and still sleeping.
I tell them about Cupid’s real identity and the fake one he’s been using for decades, and when I tell them he took her and that she’s being held somewhere, her mom sobs while Phil wraps an arm around her, trying to soothe his wife while also not falling apart himself.
Cindy quietly cries while Sasha holds her, and I’ve never felt like such a failure in my life.
“I don’t understand,” Phil says. “Why aren’t we calling the police? She was taken yesterday afternoon. Why didn’t you tell us?”
“It’s complicated,” I say, not at all surprised when that answer isn’t enough for him.
He looks around the room at my family, who, thanks to my Uncle Vitaly, are trying their best to not look like a bunch of criminals.
There’s no hiding certain things, though.
If the tattoos and muscle weren’t enough, then the general air of danger that’s a staple of the Melnikov family certainly would be.
“Complicated how?” he asks.
“We can’t get the police involved,” I say. Before he can ask why not, I add, “They would just mess it up. I don’t trust them. I can do this better than they can. Also, there’s the fact that they’d be too busy arresting all of us to care much about finding Van.”
Her dad raises a brow at my nickname for his daughter, but his focus quickly returns to what I’ve just said.
“Why would they want to arrest you?” Phil asks the question while wrapping his arm a little tighter around his wife and side-eyeing my Uncle Matvey who’s standing next to the couch.
“Because they tend to frown upon organized crime,” I say.
“Oh Jesus,” I hear Grace whisper as she gives my family a horrified look.
“Please don’t be scared,” I say. “It’s not like what you’re thinking.”
“We’re really very nice people,” my mom says, trying her best to comfort them.