29. CONAN
Chapter twenty-nine
A fter my shift, my body was still buzzing from last night’s high. I strolled into Atticus and Samantha’s kitchen from the garage, whistling a tune. Angel and I had spent one hell of a night together, and I figured she’d be just as amped to see me as I was to see her. But instead of finding Angel hanging out in the kitchen, I found Atticus and Samantha sitting at the island, staring down at a laptop with the kind of grim expressions that could freeze a room. Samantha’s mouth was a tight line, and Atticus, usually the more reserved of the two, had a deep furrow in his brow. His fingers were drumming on the countertop—a sure sign he was deep in thought, even worried. I hadn’t seen him looking this grave since Samantha was kidnapped.
“What’s with the funeral faces?” I asked, tossing my keys on the counter. “Looks like you two just saw a ghost.” I scanned the kitchen. “Where’s Angel?”
No laughs, no smart comebacks. Just heavy air and tense shoulders.
Samantha glanced up from the laptop, her eyes full of something that screamed bad news. “Conan, you need to sit down. We have something shocking to share with you.”
“You’re scaring me, Sam. Just spit it out.”
She took a deep breath, her gaze flicking to Atticus before settling back on me. “When we got home from work, we found Angel gone. At first, we thought she might be out taking a walk, but then Atticus checked the security cameras and saw that she left in a car, carrying a bag of some of her stuff. We assumed it was an Uber since she got into the backseat.”
“What’s the big deal? Maybe she needed to run some errands,” I said, irritation creeping into my tone.
Samantha shook her head, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “That wouldn’t make sense since she had a backpack with her. Besides, there’s more.”
I crossed my arms, trying to wrap my head around what they were saying. “All right, so what’s going on?”
“We didn’t know what to think. But after we settled into the kitchen, I opened my laptop to take a closer look at the security feed. That’s when I realized I had just received an email from Angel.”
I frowned, crossing the kitchen in three strides, and leaned over the island to peer at the screen. “What did the email say?”
Samantha chewed on the inside of her cheek as she clicked open the email, her eyes scanning the screen. “It’s…it’s a lot, Conan. ”
She turned the laptop toward me, and I stepped closer, catching sight of the body of the email—a long dissertation. I pulled a bar stool up under me. “How about you give me the Cliff Notes version?”
Samantha took a deep breath and gave me a sympathetic look. “Angel tried to explain everything in her email, starting with how the bloody boots from the ED triggered all her memories to return in a massive rush. Sounds like it hit her hard. She went on to write that she was sending me this email because I was the only contact she had and wanted a chance to explain everything before she left. She also asked that I make sure to share this with you.”
“Before she left?” I muttered under my breath.
“Conan, brace yourself—her real name is Anastasia Genovese. But she was born Anastasia Volkov. She’s Viktor Volkov’s daughter.”
The room spun for a second as if her words had punched me in the face. The Russian boss of the Volkovi Notchi, the ruthless bastard who had kidnapped Samantha and tried to kill us all last December, was none other than…Angel’s…Anastasia’s…father?
I slammed a fist on the counter, needing something to absorb the shock and fury building up inside me.
Samantha flinched, tapping her fingers nervously on the keyboard. She sighed, steeling herself to come up with the right words. “Angel…wrote about how much she hates the mafia life. She didn’t even know about my kidnapping until we told her about it. It seems she’s been kept in the dark about most of the Volkovi Notchi’s activities. Evidently, she’s just a pawn in Viktor’s plan to ally with the American mob in New York. She sounded scared and warned us not to come after her because these mafia families would kill us. They’re wealthy and extremely dangerous.”
“Kept in the dark, huh?” I asked myself more than Sam, struggling to reconcile the woman I knew with the underworld princess Angel apparently was.
Samantha nodded solemnly. “She apologized over and over. She said if she’d had any idea who she was, she never would have let you get close to her or stayed at our house.”
My gut twisted at the thought of Angel apologizing for something she had no control over.
Atticus spoke for the first time since I’d entered the kitchen. “She’s been under the control of her aunt since she was a little girl and raised to be a perfect little American mafia wife—seen but not heard.”
I jumped up and paced the kitchen, anger boiling in my chest. My fists clenched in front of me as I pictured Angel trapped in that life. “This is fucking insane. Angel—Anastasia—whatever the hell name we’re calling her, she’s so deep in this mafia shit that she can’t escape their grip.”
Samantha held up a hand. “There’s more. She’s been forced into an arranged marriage with a man she despises. And according to her, the only way out of a mafia marriage contract is death. She’s in real danger, and she says that we are too—Viktor has ordered a hit on all of us.”
The words hung heavy in the air. Death. It wasn’t an option. Not for her—not for us. “Like hell she’ll marry some mafia thug,” I snapped, slamming my hand down again, making the cups in the sink rattle. “I’ll go get her myself and bring her back here if I have to. She can’t go back to her old life. Those assholes better understand that I’m not easily intimidated.”
Samantha’s eyes filled with worry. “Conan, you can’t just rush in there.”
“You just watch me!” I shouted .
“Goddamn it, Conan!” Atticus yelled. “Calm the fuck down. We need to think this through. We can’t just storm in after a bunch of mafiosi. It’s not just about rescuing her. We have to protect her and potentially fight off two powerful mafia families. I just don’t know…” He joined me in pacing around the kitchen, wrapping his hand around the back of his neck and shaking his head in frustration.
“Calm down? How the fuck am I supposed to calm down? They’re treating her like property. Arranged marriages are just human trafficking and rape with a different name. I can’t let her suffer that kind of fate. No one—not her goddamn father nor any mafia thug—will force her into something she doesn’t want. I’m going to get her and bring her back here.”
By this point, I was shaking with rage, and I balled up a dish towel in my fist in an effort to contain my anger before I did some actual damage. It was difficult to fathom that Angel had such a deep, dark past.
Atticus grabbed my arm, his grip firm. “Conan, think about this. We need to be smart. We can’t lose you too.”
Samantha’s breathing quickened, her face going pale. “You can’t put yourself in that kind of danger and get yourself killed.”
“If I don’t go after her, who will?!” I yelled. “She’s my girl to protect. I’ll go to New York and bring her back while you guys stay here and figure out how to protect us all from Viktor.”
Atticus whirled around and walked around the island toward the living room. He whipped out his phone to make a call. “Colton, we need protection. Viktor Volkov has put a hit on us. Yeah, the Russian mafia. Get your best team over here. Viktor’s back—”
As I listened, I continued pacing.
Samantha joined me in pacing the kitchen. None of us could sit still. “Conan, she was very specific in her email. Don’t try to play the hero and do something stupid. She was born into that world and doesn’t want anyone else dragged into it. She’s doing everything she can to protect us.”
She was right of course, but every fiber of my being screamed to go to Angel. To protect her. “Then we make a plan. Fast,” I said. “She’s not facing this alone, not while I breathe. Not a chance.”
Atticus’s phone conversation continued, his tone clipped. “Yes, now. We need eyes on us twenty-four seven.”
Bulldozing around the kitchen, I fumed, losing my shit. “We have to do something now. We can’t just let Viktor feed her to the wolves! A sacrificial lamb!” I shouted.
Atticus wrapped up his call and joined us in the kitchen. “Colton’s on it. We’ll have a security detail here within the hour.”
I pulled out my phone, desperately searching for flights. “Dammit! All the flights to New York have already left for the day. I’ll have to wait until morning.”
Samantha placed a hand on my arm. “Conan, Angel warned us. We need to stay safe and plan our next move carefully. Rushing in won’t help her or us.”
Her words hit hard, but my anger and my worry for Angel were overwhelming. “We can’t just sit here and do nothing!”
I stormed around the kitchen like a raging bull, swinging my arm and knocking a glass off the counter. It shattered, pieces scattering across the floor.
Samantha clutched her chest. “Conan, stop. Don’t be so reckless.”
“Dammit, Sam. I have to do this. She’s more than just some girl. Since the day she came into the ED, I knew she was mine. I can’t breathe without her. She’s my destiny. I’ll move heaven and earth to protect her. ”
Everyone was shouting, voices overlapping in a chaotic mess. Samantha’s breathing grew rapid, her face flushing as she gripped the edge of the counter. Atticus noticed, and his expression darkened.
His face turned red with anger. “Goddamn it, Conan! Look what you’ve done! You’ve pushed her too far. Sit down and shut the fuck up.”
I watched in horror as Samantha went into a full-blown panic attack. Her breaths came in ragged gasps, and she couldn’t seem to get enough air. Atticus gently guided her to a chair and had her bend over. Then he scurried around the kitchen and found a paper bag for her to breathe into. He rubbed soothing circles on her back as he whispered to her gently.
“Samantha, you’re okay. Breathe with me. In and out, slowly,” he coaxed, his voice calm and steady.
Feeling like a complete asshole, I slumped into a chair, watching helplessly as Atticus took care of Samantha. “Sam, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
When Samantha finally calmed down, Atticus shot me a glare that could melt steel. “We need to think rationally. No more yelling. We need a plan to figure out how to protect the house and Samantha.”
Braxton had walked in during the commotion and now stood next to the island, a look of shock on his face. “What the hell is going on?”
Quickly, Atticus filled him in while I rubbed my temples, trying to calm my racing thoughts.
Atticus looked at me. “No rash decisions, Conan.”
I nodded reluctantly. “Fine. But we can’t leave Angel to fend for herself.” I took a deep breath, trying to get my thoughts in order. “There’s got to be a reason she ended up in our emergency department the very day we were all working. Of all the hospitals in all the towns in all the world, she ended up in ours. I have to go save her. She’s mine to protect.”
I clenched and unclenched my fists, seething but trying to rein it in. I told them, “After we lock this place down, I’m still going to New York. I’m getting Angel back, and I’m not taking no for an answer. I don’t care about the risks. She’s worth it. I’ll put my life on the line for her just like I would for any of you.”
Samantha shook her head. “Conan, you can’t just up and leave. You need to think about this. Think about your job… You’re already on probation.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll take some time off from the hospital. I’ve got tons of sick leave and vacation. And if they refuse to let me go, I’ll quit. I don’t give a fuck. No job is more important than saving Angel from those mobsters.”
Atticus and Samantha exchanged a look, clearly taken aback by my determination. I pushed on, my voice unwavering. “I can’t describe it, but since the day she came into the ED, I knew she was mine. No woman has ever affected me like this.”
Samantha said cautiously, “Conan, now that she has her memories back, she may see things differently. You might get your heart broken. She’s not the same person we’ve gotten to know since the wreck. She seems resigned to her arranged marriage.”
“I got to know the true person she is,” I argued firmly. “Not the one manipulated and controlled by mafia dynamics. I have to go to her and do all that I can. I would never forgive myself if I didn’t. My mind is made up. What is life worth if you can’t protect and provide for the people you care about? I don’t have many people I’m close to, but for those I am, I’m a hundred percent loyal.”
Braxton, who had been listening quietly, stepped forward, grasping my shoulder. “You can’t go alone. Atticus needs to stay here with Sam to keep her safe, so I’ll fly to New York with you. You’ll need someone to watch your back.”
“Braxton, you should stay. I’ll be fine,” I said.
But he shook his head. “I’m going with you, brother. This isn’t up for debate. You’re not doing this alone.”
Braxton may have been the quietest of us brothers, but he was also the most empathetic. He was the one who always kept us tied together with his levelheadedness. I honestly could never recall him getting angry or losing control of his emotions. I guess that was what made him such a good EMT. No matter the scene, he would calmly assess the situation and deal with it. Nothing could fluster him, and he handled even the worst accidents with kindness and professionalism.
A tense silence settled over the kitchen. Samantha finally broke the quiet. “I’ve never seen you so enthralled about a woman before.”
I shrugged. “There’s something about this entire situation. It’s fate. She’s mine to protect and care for. What more is there to say?”
Atticus gave me a knowing look and chuckled softly before returning his attention to Sam, brushing his knuckles along her cheek and then pulling her to her feet. She melted into his chest and hugged him fiercely. My knees felt like jelly as I watched them. God, how I wished I could hold Angel in my arms right now.
We all sat down at the table and began to plan the best strategy, determined to bring Angel back and keep everyone safe.