Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Dimitri
I JUMP IN the air and grab the end of the fire escape ladder high above me. I pull the ladder down and ascend it, trying not to make too much noise as to alert Savina’s downstairs neighbors.
The heavens opened up on my way here, and I’m soaked to the bone thanks to having no coverage on my bike.
My boots slosh with every fucking step as I carefully trek the metal stairs and balconies up to the fifth floor.
I pray the window is unlocked; but when I go to lift it, I realize it’s not.
Swearing under my breath, I reach into my pockets, determined to break into her apartment one way or another.
Suddenly, the window cracks open before whooshing upwards, scaring the hell out of me. Taking a step back and peering into the darkness before me, I see Savina’s roommate beyond the open window, brandishing a huge fucking butcher knife.
“What are you doing here, Dimitri?” Darby asks, pointing the knife towards me, the blade glinting in the light from the streets below streaming through the window. She’s still in her work uniform, so she must have just gotten home and caught me in the act of trying to break in.
“I need to see Savina,” I tell her vehemently.
“Couldn’t use the front door?” she asks, her eyes narrowing.
“Didn’t want to deal with the doorman,” I explain. I don’t need any more blood on my hands tonight, and that is exactly what would have happened had I been turned away by security for trying to enter the building after hours.
“Are you here to hurt Savina?” Darby then inquires, catching me off-guard.
“No, of course not,” I scoff, as if the idea is inconceivable. Which it kind of is at this point, considering I just tortured and murdered someone for her.
Stepping aside slowly, Darby allows me inside, but keeps the knife aimed at my chest. “Do you know who hurt her then?” she questions while worrying her full lower lip in between her teeth. “Savina has been locked in her room for days and won’t tell me shit.”
“I took care of it,” I answer her honestly. “That man won’t hurt her or anyone else ever again.”
Darby hesitates, allowing my words to fully sink in before she finally seems to retract her claws and relax a little.
“Okay, I believe you. But so help me God, Dimitri, if you hurt my best friend, you’re gonna be on my shitlist. And that’s a very bad list to be on,” she says, threatening me again.
And then she adds for good measure, “I watch a lot of true crime documentaries,” before giving me a pointed glare.
“I know how to make someone disappear and get away with it,” she says with a whisper.
I have to force myself not to grin as I give her an emphatic nod. It actually makes me happy that Savina has such a caring, overprotective friend. “You have my word,” I vow to her.
Darby stares me down for a few seconds more before she finally nods, giving me her blessing.
“Okay, good.” Then, as she’s walking away down the hall to her room, I hear her murmur, “Fuck, I’ve been reading too many dark romances lately, ‘cause breaking and entering in the middle of the night is normal and freaking hot to me now.”
When I hear Darby’s door clicking shut, I proceed to Savina’s bedroom.
I have an overwhelming sense of need to see her, to touch her, to make sure she’s okay.
I’ve never experienced something like this before.
But this time, the new emotions and the new feelings, they don’t scare me.
I want to let them in and swallow me whole. But only for her. Only for Savina.