Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
"Don't do anything stupid. We don't want to hurt Tatiana," I growled out, shifting to put myself between her and the gun in Rook's hand.
" Me? " Rook snarled. "I'm not the one who's hurt Tatiana." He shoved the cold end of the gun to my head. "Get up. Off the mattress. I want you on your knees."
"Rook, don't." Tatiana tightened her arms around my neck protectively. "You promised."
" I made a promise? We made them. Together."
"I know, but I...I..." she faltered, then, "Don't do it." I felt her throat bob. "You can't."
"You know I have to."
"You don't."
"I want to. Now let him go and come stand by me. We'll do it together."
"No."
"Then leave the room. We'll talk about this later."
"Rook. I'm warning you. I won't allow it."
The room descended into a stark silence, then, when he spoke, pain etched his voice. "Are you threatening me?"
"Of course not."
"Then..." Once again, there was a silence, and when Rook spoke, his voice had softened. "Tatiana, you know I won't hurt you. But you need to do as I say. Let him go and come stand by me."
"If you hurt her, I will kill you," I snapped.
"You won't have a chance to even move," Rook growled. I could feel the renewed rage rolling off of him, the coldness that had crept into the room –– my death was imminent, if Rook had his way.
And with it, Tatiana's safety was at risk.
"It's okay," I announced. "I'll do what you want. Just let her go first."
"No." She squeezed me so tight, my face was pressed to the side of her face. I could barely breathe.
"Tati," my voice was soft, "it's okay. This is between Rook and me."
"That's not true. I have a say in this, and I'm saying no."
"Baby," I pulled out of her tight hold to look into her eyes, loving the defiance in them. And yet, I needed to keep her safe. "It's okay." I stroked a thumb across her cheek, then kissed her softly. "I don't want you to get hurt."
"He won't hurt me."
"You don't know that," I shook my head, brushing my lips over hers. "You don't know him, not like I do. He hasn't told you all the things he's done to me."
"He has." She shook her head. "And I don't care. This is about all of us, not just you two."
"Baby, I can't lose you. Not like this," I leaned down, kissing her again, inhaling her scent. Wanting to imprint this moment in my mind in case I never saw her again. "I need you safe, so please go. Let Rook and I work this out."
"Tatiana," Rook growled, "you know I'm not walking out this door until I get what I want. If you can't handle it, then you need to get out."
"Fuck you two," Tatiana fired back. "I'm staying."
"Then at least let me sit up, okay?" I pressed my lips to her ear, lowering my voice to a whisper, "I need to face the man who intends to kill me."
She hesitated, her tongue coming out to lick at her upper freckle, and her gaze moved between me and Rook. "You have to promise, Rook."
"I'll do no such thing. He needs to pay for what he's done."
"I swear, I will pay," I called back to him, showing my hands in a gesture of surrender. "Let's just talk about it, first."
" Please , Rook," Tatiana's voice was a soft pleading.
"Give me one good reason why I should listen to him."
"For me," she said, her voice subdued. "Do it for me."
There was a long pause, the air filled with a crackling tension, then, resignation and a grumble. "Fine. We'll talk about it. For now. "
"Promise me," she said.
He took a few steps back and pointed his gun at the floor. "This will have to be good enough."
"It is." She, hesitated, nodded, then released me. I sighed in relief and pulled myself up, facing Rook. She scrambled upwards, like she didn't trust either Rook or me, and promptly sat in my lap, nestling herself there.
"Tatiana, please––" I warned her, but she cut me off.
"You two have used me to hurt each other. Now you want to toss me to the side like a child. I'm not leaving."
She was right. Of course she was right.
I wrapped my arms around her, nuzzling my face into her neck, my teeth grazing over her ear, whispering, "You know it's because we care about you, right?"
"I don't care," she stared up at Rook, and I gave in to the fact that she wasn't moving, loving the feel of her in my lap, so close to me. So caring. For me.
She's protecting me .
What a thought.
"Give her a goddamn shirt," I growled to Rook, not wanting him to see her dressed like this, so sensual and fuckable.
Rook shook his head, sighing loudly. "Fine." He walked towards the dresser and pulled out a shirt, throwing it to Tatiana. "You can stay."
As she pulled it on, I watched Rook carefully, but his gaze wasn't on her, it was on me, burning with hatred.
This next part would be difficult, but if everything went as planned, Tatiana and I would walk out of here together. And Rook, a part of our past.
I just didn't expect to have to do this with a gun to my head.
"You know talking won't work, right?" He was standing by an old rickety chair, so strange how it looked exactly like the one in her old room. "I will kill you."
I closed off all emotion in order to fix this. "I was hoping you would come tonight."
"Were you?"
"Of course."
"Hoping your death would come in the form of vengeance?" he scoffed.
"If that's what it takes." Now that I knew that someone from Veracruz, my old enemy, was in Vegas, I was prepared to do whatever it took to keep them from hurting Tatiana again. Including betray my family. "I have what you want."
There was a pause as he rummaged through the fridge, still keeping an eye out for me. He pulled out a ready-made banana split with a candle in the middle. I could only stare at it in surprise. "And what is it that I want, Knight?"
"Apparently, a banana split."
A shoulder came up as he pulled out a familiar looking lighter –– my abuelo's! "How the hell did you get my lighter?"
"Tatiana swiped it from your house."
She gave me a smug look but her gaze remained focused on Rook. "Is it your birthday?"
"Yes," I answered for him.
"How come you didn't tell me?"
"Because," he looked at me as he grabbed the chair, flipping it backwards, then straddled it. "I was going to do this after."
"What? Why?" She sounded confused.
"Because," his eyes were on me. "I never celebrate my birthday. Not since the day my Nana died." His voice was like acid. "The same day as my fourteenth birthday. The same day Knight ruined my life, tying my birth date to the worst day of my life."
Shame burned through me as I watched him light the candle. "Want to sing me happy birthday, Knight?" When I didn't answer, he continued, his voice rising in anger. "No? How about some extra cherries instead?" He suddenly stood, grabbing a glass jar of cherries from the fridge and smashed them on the floor. "You know those are my favorite."
"Rook," Tatiana's voice was filled with sympathy.
"He fucking ruined my life, Tatiana," he was shaking with rage. "And the only thing I wanted for my birthday was to stare into his dead eyes while I ate my fucking banana split." His rage-filled stare landed on me. "And you think you have something I want?"
"Yes." I kept his gaze. "What you asked for, in exchange for Tatiana's contract."
"Excuse me?" she exclaimed, "You've got to be kidding me."
"You still want control over her contract?" Rook ignored her. "Even though you're going to die tonight?"
"I can't believe this is happening," Tatiana growled.
"Yes," I answered simply. "I want to free her."
"She's not suffering under my contract." He straddled the chair again and began to eat his banana split. "Especially compared to when I first met her."
"How the fuck was she suffering when you met her?"
"That's enough about that," Tatiana interjected, her voice firm. "This isn't about me."
"It is," Rook and I said at the same time.
"Right now, this is about your past."
"The answer is, yes." I answered Rook. "No matter what happens here tonight, yes, I'll do what it takes to free her."
"You would betray your family ?" Dark amusement danced in Rook's eyes, disbelief in his tone. "You said you would never betray them."
"I changed my mind."
"Ah, I see." Rook grinned. "You haven't changed. Always doing what's best for you , aren't you? Despite how it affects others."
"This is definitely not best for me." I had no doubt there would be severe consequences for this. Not only that, but it would break my relationship with them. Coulter had always been good to me, and Bourbon was the boss we all hoped for.
But, Tatiana was worth it.
"You're lying." Rook shook his head. "Show it to me."
"I'm going to reach into my back pocket."
"Take it out slowly," Rook had his gun back up again, pointed towards me. Towards us .
Anger coiled through me. "Don't fucking point that gun at her."
"I'm not. I'm pointing it at you."
"You could accidentally hurt her."
"I'm an excellent shot."
"And you can't guarantee that she would move to protect me?"
"You know I would," she bit out.
"Fuck," he cursed, giving her an angry look as he put it back in his holder.
Balancing Tatiana in my lap, I slowly pulled out the notebook: the price of my betrayal.
Rook's eyes narrowed in on it, his chest moving in and out as his breathing picked up. "That's it?"
I nodded. "The notebook the old mafia boss kept hidden."
"And you stole that from Bourbon and Coulter? Or did they give it to you?"
"I took it, yes."
"Stole it?" He was staring so intently on the small notebook, he'd forgotten about the halfway eaten banana split balanced in his lap.
"Yes." I answered, admitting to my betrayal. "What is it?"
Rook's gaze snapped away from it, as if breaking from a spell. "You don't know?"
I shook my head. "You need a code to decipher it." I frowned. "But that doesn't mean I'm not betraying them any less."
"And they don't know you took it?"
I shook my head. "Not yet. But I'm sure they'll find out."
A devilish grin crept up Rook's face. "I'll make sure they do."
He reached for it but I held it away from him, and his face grew stark.
"I only want to clarify," I said, "what this means."
"Tatiana's contract for the notebook."
"You have a deal."
"I don't believe this is happening." Tatiana exhaled.
Ignoring her, Rook cocked his head to the side. "It doesn't mean that I won't kill you."
I know," my grin grew bigger. Rook looked confused, but he didn't know the ace I had up my sleeve.
"Rook," Tatiana seethed. "You can't just pass me over like that."
He gave her a look filled with both sadness and anger. "Stand up," he said. "Stand up right now and walk away and out of this room. If you can do that, I'll release you from your contract. You'll walk away a free woman."
"You know I won't do that."
"Then you have no say in this."
Her eyebrows furrowed, her eyes flashed, but she didn't say anything else.
He turned to me. "You have a deal. Her freedom, in exchange for the notebook, but not your life."
"Okay," I said, "send me the contract."
"Give up the notebook first," he sneered, his eyes dancing, "even though you've already betrayed the Kings, and that, in itself is good enough for me."
"So you don't ," I held it up, "want it?"
He held out his hand. "Give it."
"And you'll immediately send me the contract?"
He nodded. "This second."
A few moments of a standoff passed before, hesitatingly, I gently pushed Tatiana onto the bed and stood, passing it over. He didn't jerk it from my hands like I expected, but pulled it firmly, then immediately tossed it to the side, his gun trained on me again. "Now, for our second order of business."
"The contract first," I reminded him.
Still keeping his gun trained on me, he pulled out his phone, tapping on it. I heard my phone beep.
"I can't believe this!" Tatiana exclaimed, but we both ignored her as I pulled out my phone, feeling Rook's burning gaze on me.
As I opened my phone, Tatiana growled at Rook, "We're going to talk about this later."
"No," I tapped on my phone, scrolling through the contract only to make sure that he'd done it, then accepted, signing it on my phone. "You aren't. Because from here on out, you're not allowed to see or speak to him."
I stepped closer, grinning down at him. I slowly reached forward. "Taste her."
He didn't move, curiosity filling his gaze, allowing me to push a finger into his mouth. The same one I'd used to make her come. "This is the last taste you'll ever have of her."
His eyes shuttered, closing off his emotion, but he sucked, a low groan emitting from his throat.
"You guys are both assholes. I should stand up and walk away from the two of you right now."
"But you won't." I said.
"No," Rook agreed, suddenly standing. Within seconds, the chair and the banana split had fallen to the floor and he was standing over me, the gun to my head again.
"Now," I said to Rook. "We negotiate for my life."
"And what could you possibly offer me that would convince me not to kill you. I no longer have need for your money or your company."
I gave him a smirk. "I just need to take something out of my pocket."
"No," he growled. "No more negotiations. I have everything I want, except for one thing."
"And what's that?"
"You. On your fucking knees. Begging for your life."
"I promise, I have something else you want."
"On your fucking knees first."
"Rook," Tatiana said.
"On your fucking knees!" Rook roared. With my heart pounding at the cold look in his eyes, I bent down.
My knees landed in cherries, the smell that permeated the room reminded me of that night. "I am sorry." I admitted, a knot in my throat. "I really am."
"You fucking celebrated my birthday, while your dad fucking killed her!" He heaved, his gaze mixed with both rage and anguish. I'd never seen him so angry. So out of control. "She was my whole world, she took care of me when my mom abandoned me."
"Your mom died, Rook."
"She chose drugs over me! She was my mom, but her high was more important. Just like you. You were my best friend, but you chose Coulter over me."
"I didn't."
"You did! And she was the only one who chose me. Despite being sick, she still took care of me. And you killed her! Admit it! You killed her!"
"It's true!" I choked out, the guilt inside me finally spilling over. "I did, and I'm sorry. I swear, I regret it."
"Why?" His pain was so palpable, it filled the whole room.
"I had no choice."
"You did! You could've warned me. You could've gotten us out."
"I couldn't," I insisted.
"Don't lie to me!" He dug the gun into my head. "Don't fucking lie!"
"I'm not!" I was dead. I knew it. He'd already written me off. "Tatiana, I love you, baby. I've always loved you."
"Don't say that," she answered, her voice hysterical. "Rook!"
"I'm sorry I left you in Cuba. Say you forgive me, baby."
"I don't forgive you! Rook stop this!"
Rook only sneered down at me. "You done?"
"No."
"I don't fucking care." He clicked off the safety.
"I swear!" I put my hands up in surrender. "I swear I have something you want."
"You can't talk your way out of this."
"I have information you want."
His jaw worked. "What kind of information?"
"The truth."
He trained his gun on my head. "You have five seconds to plead your case. Five, four,"
"Rook!" Tatiana said.
"I know who ordered nana dead."
At this, Rook froze. It took him a moment to respond. "Explain."
"My father didn't kill nana for the Kings."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"I need to get something out of my pocket."
His eyes narrowed on me. "Do it slowly."
I reached down, pulling out a flash drive, showing it to him so he could see it wasn't a weapon. "But just know the only time I disobeyed him was when I was hanging out with you."
"Because we didn't have enough money?" he sneered.
"Yes," I answered simply, because it was the truth.
"Except our family name--"
"Meant nothing. Not to my father."
There was a shocked silence, then his face hardened. "Well, that doesn't matter any longer."
"It never mattered," I said, "Not to me."
Rook's throat worked and I saw a flash of softness in his eyes, but his gaze traveled down to my fingers, where I was gripping the flash drive. "And in there is the truth?"
"Yes," I said. "After my father died, I discovered the truth. Who wanted her dead."
"And why wouldn't I just kill you and take it from your dead body?"
"Because you need the eleven number key code." I tapped my temple. "Right here. You'll never get it open without me."
Rook eyed me skeptically. I could see the flush to his cheeks, hear his short breathing, the way his eyes kept going between me and the drive.
He wanted to kill me. Of that I was certain. And, to be honest, I didn't blame him.
I'd played a vital role in the worst day of his life, and I'd done it on purpose.
Not to hurt him, but because I was obligated to obey my father, a choice I'd regretted ever since I saw nana's dead body.
But I couldn't change the past.
And I didn't have a death wish. Now that Tatiana belonged to me, I wanted to show her, every day in every way, how much she meant to me. To this world.
She was the priceless star the world deserved, and I was going to prove that to her.
I needed him to want this more than he wanted to kill me.
"I think that you don't really want to kill me."
"No. I really do."
"What you want is retribution for Nana's death. And even though I did betray you, I didn't kill her. For my penance, and in exchange for my life, I'll give you the truth, so you can go after the people truly responsible for her death."
There was a long pause. Eyebrows furrowed, his face: pale and broody.
"You'll find that everything you believe in this world is wrong," I hinted. "You walk out of here and the information is gone forever. No one else knows this. You won't be able to get it from your secret network, I can promise that."
I didn't gloat.
Being cocky would only get me killed.
Plus, he deserved to know the truth, and I deserved to give it to him.
I'd pursued the truth as a way to make it up to him, for my part in it.
"Here." I held the drive towards him, deciding in that moment to hand it over.
I'd played a part in the death of his grandmother, the woman he loved like a mother, and the only person who ever loved him unconditionally. "Take it."
Within a second, he'd snatched the drive from my hand, then pointed the gun, clicking the trigger.
The gun went off.
* * *
My world didn't pass before my eyes, but faces did: all the people I loved.
Then came the regrets. My betrayal to Rook and Tatiana –– the highest. My mother's voice sliding through my mind like an eel, no one will ever love you...
It was then that I knew I had to change, because the bullet whizzed right past me, and I was still alive.
"You fucking bastard!" Tatiana vaulted herself at Rook. She screamed and thrashed her fists against him. She punched him in the face before he could react.
Bones crunched, blood spewed from his nose and lip.
Recovering from his surprise, he wrapped his arms around her. He banded her tight so she couldn’t move.
"You mother-fucking asshole!" She continued to scream, practically sobbing against him.
I stood up in a daze, my ear ringing, and feeling a new appreciation for life.
Holy fucking shit. He’d almost shot me. But he’d aimed right, hitting the wall instead.
In fact, he’d aimed far enough away that there wasn't a chance he would kill me. But, for a moment, I'd truly thought I was going to die.
"Tatiana," I pulled her from Rook's arms and she straightened in shock, then fell against me.
"Oh my god!" She jumped into my arms, wrapping her legs around me. "Oh my god." She was crying, clinging to me tight and, for a long moment, I could only close my eyes, holding her close, breathing deeply.
I was alive. I was fucking alive.
I’d fucked up in the past but now, I was going to make it right.
I would make everything right.
And the only way to do that was to break her bond with Rook so she'd give me a chance.
Still holding her tight, I spoke to Rook. "I give you that information and, from here on out, we're even. Believe me, what I'm giving you is worth my life."
"It better be. Or I'll be back."
"No. From here on out, you and me and this sick game we play, is over. I need to move on with my life. Stop fucking with my businesses. Give me back my money. And don't ever fucking try to kill me again. I’ve been lenient with you, but now, all that is over. We’re done. You and her, done. I promise you that if I ever see you again, I will kill you."
"What the hell is going on?" Tatiana pulled back, her eyes puffy from her tears. "Why can't we all be friends?"
"Not happening," I growled out.
"It's okay, Tatiana. I'm not mad." Rook brushed his fingers through her hair, tucking it behind her ear. "I always knew, sweetheart."
"Knew what?" She stood on her feet, pulling away from me.
Rook's voice was soft, gentle, ... understanding. "I knew you could never kill him."
"What?" Her face grew pale and she took two steps backward, away from both of us, shaking her head.
"It's time," I said, pushing the issue. This revelation would only hurt Tatiana. "Say your goodbyes."
"Give me the key code," Rook demanded.
"I want you out of here, first." Grabbing the gun that he'd dropped, I emptied it of the bullets, then tossed it to the side. "I'll text it to you as soon as I receive a notification that you've left."
"How the hell will you know?"
"Because I own this building."
"What?" For the first time in a long time, Rook looked surprised.
"It's been in my family for generations."
"Fuck me," Rook ran a hand through his hair, his shoulders slumping.
"I know it doesn't mean much," I said. "But I really do regret what I did that day." I paused, for the first time in my life, admitting this out loud. "My father. He knew what was important to me, and he used that against me."
Both our eyes fell to Tatiana, silence fell over the room.
"What?" she said. Her cheeks were blotched red, her face still pale.
"So," Rook said, answering her, "he used her to manipulate you."
"He told me that if I didn't take you out that day, he would sell her to Raul. And I couldn't let that happen." I shook my head. "She was only thirteen. It would've killed her."
"You could've tried to warn me. I trusted you with my life, Knight."
"And I trusted you. You were the only person I ever talked to about Tatiana. You knew how much I cared about her, and that's why you went for her. Because you wanted to get back at me."
"Yes," A shoulder came up, "I never hid that from you. Or her."
"And you're both dicks," Tatiana growled out.
"I tried to make it up to you," I continued. "I paid for your education."
"You did not. Dougl––"
"I arranged for it through Douglass." Douglass was the man who took Rook under his arm after nana died. He helped guide him into the man he was today.
"You know him?" Once again, Rook was surprised.
"He was friends with my mother."
Silence filled the room, realization dawning on him. "So all this was you? You told Douglass about me?"
"Like I said, I regretted what happened."
We stared each other down, a sort-of peace filling the space between us. I held out my hand. "Truce?"
Rook didn't immediately react but I was patient. He needed to process all the information I'd just dumped on him. And so, I waited, knowing that this was only the first step of peace between us.
Finally, after a long moment, he shook my hand. "Truce."
"Now say goodbye," I turned away from him and Tatiana, letting them have a moment. I collected as many pieces of the red ribbon I could find, tucking them into my pocket. When I heard their murmuring stop, I called over my shoulder. "I've already sent Douglass the key code. He's waiting for you."
The room was silent, and I turned to him. He was staring at me in shock. "You already gave it to him?"
I nodded. "I told you, Rook. I never meant to hurt you. It was the least I could do."
His lips twisted upward. "So I could've killed you and still gotten the information?"
"Yes."
There was a long moment between us then, shaking his head, Rook hooked an arm around Tatiana's neck. Pulling her against him, he kissed the top of her head, speaking too quietly for me to hear. It was time for him to leave.
I waited until he was gone from the room before approaching her. She was leaning against the wall, and had folded her arms across her chest, staring at me warily. "I still don't understand why we can't all be friends."
I caged her in, leaning in to run my nose across her cheek. "Because, I said so."
"You're kidding me, right?" Her hand went to my side, clutching me close.
I kissed her nose, the side of her face. Then tugging her jaw upward, pressed my lips to hers. "You're too attached to him." Now that I'd kissed her again, I never wanted to stop. I needed to be inside her, to feel her in every way possible. To know what it was like to have her by my side every day. I'd never been able to have that, and now, I needed it.
I needed her . Always.
She kissed me back, warmth washing through me at the connection between us. Finally, finally , we were trusting each other again. She murmured against my lips. "That's because he took care of me when you didn't."
"And all that is over now." I tugged my fingers through her hair, deepening the kiss, shoving my knee in between her legs. "I'm going to make sure you never worry about anything ever again."
"That's where you were always wrong, Knight." She moaned against me as I rubbed up against her with my thigh between her legs. "I need to take care of myself."
"That will never happen." I bit down on the delicate skin of her neck, possessiveness roaring through me. "I have your contract now."
"But––" She protested, pulling back to reveal the growing fire in her eyes. "I'm not a fucking piece of jewelry or a doll, Knight. You guys can’t just control me or pass me around whenever you please.”
“Apparently,” I grinned, pride filling me at what now belonged to me . “I can.” God, it felt good to say that. To know that I owned her now.
"You asshole," she hissed, shoving me away.
Anger rolled through me, a possessiveness I'd kept at bay for too long making me growl. I wrapped my fingers around her neck, pinning her against the wall. "You're fucking mine, polva. You always have been and you always will be. I just let you have your fun for a little while. But now, it's time to return to your owner. You belong to me now, and I'm never letting you go."