Chapter 57 Asha
ASHA
Beeping. Steady, insistent. It dragged me up from the dark.
And spat me out into a world of agony. The heavy throbbing deep in my abdomen pulsed with every shallow breath. It hurt too much to move, too much to think.
My eyelids felt like lead, but I forced them open. Bright lights made me flinch, and the slight twitch of my face set off another blaze of pain. A sharp sting that pulled tight along my cheeks.
The Soul Collector. The knife.
The beeping in the room grew faster.
“Wildfire?”
Rook.
He was already leaning over me, his hand clamped around mine so tightly I could feel the tremor in his grip.
His blue eyes were bloodshot and hollow with exhaustion.
Beard, rougher; hair, unkempt. Gone were the tactical vest and weapons, but he still wore the black fatigues from when he’d rescued me.
He looked like he hadn’t left that chair in… however long I’d been lying here.
“You’re awake,” he breathed as if he didn’t dare believe it. “You scared the shite out of me.”
I tried to swallow against my dry throat. “Water, please.”
Rook poured a cup and raised the straw to my mouth. I took a few sips that tasted of pure heaven.
“How long have I been out?” I asked.
“Two days.” His voice was raw, like maybe he’d been yelling a lot. “They had to operate. Twice. You lost a lot of blood.” His jaw flexed. “You’ll heal, but it won’t be easy.”
Two days? No wonder I felt as though I’d been hit by a truck. I reached for my face, but Rook caught my hand before I touched it.
“Don’t,” he said.
“How bad is it?”
For the first time since I opened my eyes, he looked away. His jaw locked, throat working as if the words hurt.
“That hideous, huh?”
His gaze snapped back to mine, fierce and unyielding. “You’re not any less beautiful. Don’t ever think that. You hear me?”
I wasn’t sure I’d be as convinced once I looked in a mirror. Tears stung my eyes. I gave him a weak smile, then dropped it when my cheeks burned.
Rook traced his thumb over my knuckles, and something about the action felt odd. When I glanced at my fingers, I realized what it was.
In a panic, I asked, “Where’s my ring?”
“It had to come off for surgery.”
“When can I have it back?”
Rook swallowed with difficulty. “I’ll keep it safe for now.”
I’d grown used to the emerald’s weight on my finger, and strangely, I missed it.
Or maybe I just craved what it represented. Rook and me. Our unorthodox relationship. Despite everything we’d faced, we were alive and reunited.
“Can you give it to me? I want to wear it.”
“Forget about the bloody ring, Asha, and think about what you did,” he ground out, his tone vibrating with barely restrained fury. “You took a bullet for me. Why would you do that?”
I blinked at him. “Because I prefer for you not to die.”
His nostrils flared, and his eyes blazed with everything he must’ve wanted to say while I’d been unconscious.
“I’m not the one who needs saving, Asha.
You are. Always you before me. Do you understand?
If you’d died—” His voice cracked. He shook his head and pulled his hands back. “Don’t ever do that again.”
“I won’t promise that.” I sighed at Rook’s frown and added, “It was instinct, okay? I saw the gun and acted. We’re both alive, so I have no regrets.”
“Stubborn woman.”
“Insufferable man.”
For a second, it almost felt like we were back to normal. Almost.
Memories of my captivity and rescue flooded back to me. I had so many questions. One felt more urgent than the rest.
“Daisy and Beth. Please tell me they’re okay.”
“They’re fine. They were drugged also and taken from the bar to divide our resources while the men were kidnapping you.
But we were able to track the vehicle they left in and recover them quickly.
They woke up feeling shite but don’t remember much of what happened.
They stayed with Orla until we were certain they were safe, but they’ve gone home now. ”
Relief crashed through me so hard it made my eyes sting. I’d pictured them lying in some filthy room like I had, or worse. Knowing they were safe loosened something in my chest I hadn’t realized had been clenched tight.
“How much do they know?” I asked.
“I had to explain who I was and my association with the Beasts, and that you were kidnapped by Baranov because of me.”
“No.” I licked my dry lips. “I mean, what did you tell them about us?”
He shrugged. “I stuck with the story you gave them about me needing a green card.”
“That’s all?”
He didn’t tell them he was in love with me? That I was in love with him? Even when he’d thought I might die?
The door eased open, and a nurse slipped inside.
“Glad to see you’re awake,” she said with a warm smile, and collected the clipboard from the end of my bed. “I’m Kate. Let’s check how you’re doing.”
She scanned the chart, then looked at me. “Can you tell me your pain level right now on a scale from zero to ten?”
I hesitated. Everything hurt. “Eight. Maybe nine.”
She nodded and jotted it down. “All right. You’ve got a patient-controlled analgesia pump.
This button here”—she pointed to the remote resting by my hand—“will give you a dose of pain relief through your IV when you need it. Don’t be afraid to use it.
Keeping ahead of the pain will help your recovery. ”
“Thank you,” I said, meaning it. My whole body screamed for relief, but I didn’t touch the button. “Not yet. I want a clear head for a little while.”
“Understood.” Kate set the clipboard aside and pulled on a pair of gloves. “Let me take a quick look at your dressings.”
She lifted the edge of my gown, exposing the thick bandage taped across my side. Her touch was careful, but the movement sent a hot flare through me. I hissed and clenched the sheets in my fists.
“Be gentle with her,” Rook snapped, and shot from his seat.
Kate flicked her gaze to him without losing her cool. “I am being gentle. She’s just very tender right now. And if you don’t watch your tone, I’ll have security escort you from the building.”
That didn’t ease the tension bracketing Rook’s mouth. His eyes still fixated on the bandage and Kate’s hands like he wanted to go to war with them.
Before he could dig himself into an even deeper hole, I said, “Rook. I’m fine. Stand down and let her do her job.”
He raked his hands through his hair. “You don’t look bloody fine.”
“Actually”—Kate peeled off her gloves and stuffed them in a nearby medical waste unit—“she’s doing remarkably well. Dressing is clean and dry. No fresh bleeding. Everything looks good right now.”
She made a note in the clipboard and returned it to the slot at the end of my bed. “I’ll be back to check on you again shortly.”
When she slipped out, the room fell quiet. It was then I noticed the two suited men standing sentry at my door. Neither of them was my bodyguard.
“Where’s Finn?” I asked.
Rook sat back down. “He’s here, just in another ward.”
“He’s hurt?”
Rook nodded. “He got in a shoot-out with the Russians when they kidnapped you. Finn took a bullet to the thigh. He’s lucky to be alive.”
Guilt tore me up. Finn had been hurt doing his job protecting me.
I tried to sit up, but fire tore across my abdomen, and I collapsed back against the pillows with a groan.
“Christ, Asha.” Rook pressed a hand to my shoulder to hold me still. “If you need to move, ask me.”
“Is Finn going to be okay?”
“Aye. But the bullet shattered his femur. He had emergency surgery to save his leg when they first brought him in. They’re putting him back under this afternoon to see if they can do a better job of repairing it, but it doesn’t look like he’ll be able to fight again. Not professionally, at least.”
“When can I see him?”
“You’re in no state to roam the hospital. And Finn’s not in the mood for visitors right now. He’s taking the news hard and needs some time.”
My heart broke for him. Fighting wasn’t just a sport to Finn. It was his dream, his purpose. To have it ripped away in a single night…the weight of that loss must be unbearable.
“I have some good news for you. We received word from Brandon that his Zulu mercs recovered several of the women trafficked out of Philly. Sierra is one of them.”
Relief washed through me again, and tears prickled my eyes. I could hardly believe it. Her parents must be overjoyed.
“Is she all right?” I asked.
Rook’s face tightened. “Physically, yes. Emotionally…she’s got a long road ahead. Brandon’s team took her to their ranch in Montana, where they help trafficking victims heal from their trauma. Sierra will be well cared for there until she’s ready to come home.”
“I can’t imagine what she’s been through.” I let out a deep exhale.
“There’s something I want to show you.” Rook grabbed his phone from the side table, found what he was looking for, and handed it to me.
On the screen were Sierra’s parents, Mark and Elise Witkowski, seated by the window of an airport terminal. Both looked tired, and Elise’s eyes were puffy.
I hit Play on the recorded message.
Elise’s voice trembled as she said, “Hi, Inferno. We’re on our way to Montana to see Sierra. The people there told us she’s safe.”
Mark’s arm came around his wife’s shoulders, steadying her when her composure broke. “We just want to say thank you,” he added quietly. “You were the only one who listened to us, the only one who tried to find her. You never gave up on our girl, and we’ll never forget that.”
They exchanged a tearful glance before the video ended, leaving a lump in my throat the size of my fist.
“I’m happy for them.” I handed the phone back to Rook. “They think I helped save her, but it wasn’t me. The Beasts killed Baranov and his men. Zulu rescued Sierra. I didn’t do anything.”
Rook shook his head. “You gave the Witkowskis something no one else could.”
I frowned. “What?”
“Hope.” His gaze held mine. “You fought for Sierra. You gave her parents a reason to believe she was still out there, and you showed them she hadn’t been forgotten. That must’ve helped them more than you know.”
“Thank you for saying that.” Rook’s words made me feel a little less like a failure. At the end of the day, Sierra was safe, and that was all that mattered. “Now that the Soul Collector’s dead, does that mean the trafficking ring is busted?”
“Aye, in Philly, at least. I can’t say for sure what the Russians are doing anywhere else. But we have to stay vigilant. As long as there’s demand, someone will find a way to make money from the skin trade. With Baranov and his crew gone, it won’t be happening in our backyard.”
“Did you know him?”
Rook nodded. “He was pakhan of the New York Bratva. The Russians were ousted from Philly decades ago. Guess they were trying to sneak back in and Niall learned about their trafficking ring. And when Aidan and I raided the docks last week, we got close again. I thought we’d kept our find under wraps, but Baranov must’ve been onto me. And that led him straight to you.”
His expression darkened, and I knew he was finding a way to blame himself for the actions of a depraved man. What Baranov had done to me wasn’t Rook’s fault.
I reached for his hand and squeezed. “Sierra is safe, and the Soul Collector is dead. It’s over now.”
“Aye.” He nodded, his features solemn. “It’s over.”