Chapter 39
DANTE
Inearly lost my mind when Ivanov grabbed Alex. I wanted to rush out into the path and tear Ivanov apart. Lorenzo kept a hand on my arm, making me wait. I knew that things would go best if we followed the plan.
But now, Ivanov had a gun to Alex’s head. I felt sick. Terrified. He could kill Alex in a second. Why had I ever agreed to this?
“He doesn’t want him dead,” Lorenzo reminded me. “He wants to take him so he hurts all of us.” I knew that was true, but I was panicking inside.
Fortunately, Lorenzo was doing better than I was. He moved to where Alex and Ivanov could see him. “Let him go. Your fight is with us.”
Ivanov chuckled. “So you do know who I am?”
“We do,” I said, joining Lorenzo on the path. I still had the small hope we were wrong about his identity, but now I knew we’d been right all along.
“It took you so long to figure out I was tracking him. I guess you’re not so smart after all. Even now, I doubt you know everything. I drugged him and brought him to you as a present, Dante. I wanted you to take him in, hoped you started to care for him. I never dreamed how easy it would be.”
I was going to fucking kill him, and I was going to make it hurt.
“We figured that out.” At least we’d had an idea. “You’re not the genius you want to be.”
“I followed him everywhere. It was so easy to track his movements. No one even noticed.”
“Alex did.” I calculated my chances if I lunged for him. I would take another bullet, but I couldn’t risk Alex.
“But that didn’t stop him from walking right into my path. Now, I have him at my mercy.”
Alex looked at me, clearly pleading for me to save him. I’d promised him I’d protect him. I’d promised him he would be safe. We had to get him away from Ivanov.
Lorenzo glanced at me and held out his hand in a gesture that told me to calm down and let things play out. We had a plan.
“Do you have any idea when I’m going to do to him?” Ivanov asked. “Do you know how much I’m going to hurt him, him and his fucking friend? I’ll make them watch as I torture each of them, then I’ll kill them both before I kill all of you.”
No sane man could do what he’d done, but now he had really lost it. His eyes were wild, crazy.
“You ruined everything,” he yelled. “You and my worthless cunt of a daughter.”
It was all I could do not to rush him. If his gun hadn’t been where it could kill Alex in an instant, I would have taken him then.
Then, just as we’d planned, a small monkey scurried down onto the path headed straight toward Ivanov.
“What the fuck is that?” he screamed. “A rat?”
He turned the gun toward the monkey at the same time I raised my gun, shooting him through the shoulder. He screamed as Lorenzo shot a tranquilizer dart into his neck.
As he fell, Lancelot whistled to his pet, and Tony ran back to him.
I raced to grab Alex, who stumbled to the side.
Lancelot and Lorenzo were supposed to secure Ivanov, but he pulled the dart out, threw it down, and took off running.
How was he able to move like that? He had to be in so much pain.
And why wasn’t the tranquilizer working? Did it not shoot the medicine into him?
“Have you got Alex?” Lorenzo asked.
I nodded.
Tony jumped down from Lancelot’s arm and ran to us as Lorenzo and Lancelot took off after Ivanov, chasing him into the dark.
I pulled Alex into my arms and held him tight. I needed to feel him against me, to know he was there, alive and safe. Tony climbed me and sat on my shoulder.
When I’d satisfied myself he was really here with me, I pulled away from Alex. “Are you really okay?” Tony chirped at him as if asking the same question.
“Yeah. I… I am.” He looked at Tony. “This little guy is really Lancelot’s pet?”
“Yes, he really is. This is Tony.”
“Can I pet him?” I was sure he was okay then. He wouldn’t be asking that if he was freaking out too much.
“You can.”
Alex scratched Tony behind the ears, and the little monkey jumped over to his shoulder. Alex gave him more attention as he said, “Is Adenine all right? Did you leave food for her?”
“I did. She’ll be fine. She used to live on the streets, you know?”
He looked up at me then, and as he held my gaze, tears came into his eyes. “I thought I was going to die.”
I pulled him into my arms again, and Tony began combing his hair, trying to soothe him too. Alex clung to me, burying his head against my neck.
“I’ve got you, baby. You’re never doing anything like that again.”
“I was so fucking scared,” he said.
“I was so scared for you. I knew we’d made a terrible mistake with this plan. Thank God you’re all right. Let me get you to my car so we can get out of here.”
“What about Lorenzo and Lancelot?”
“They’ll contact me when they get Ivanov or…”
“When they lose him. How the fuck did he run after being shot?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know, but we will eventually catch him and make him pay.”
I texted Lance and Renzo to let them know we had Tony, and we were heading to Bébé’s house. Tony sat on Alex’s lap as I drove.
“Is your arm really okay for driving?”
“Yes, my stitches are mostly dissolved, and I’m fine.”
“Right. You said that hours after you were shot.”
“I was fine then too.”
Alex snorted, but my phone rang, ending the conversation. It was Lance. I answered through the car’s speakers. “We fucking lost him,” Lance said. I could hear the anger in his voice.
Alex dropped his head back against the seat, and I had to take a calming breath before speaking. “How the fuck did he run that fast after the tranq shot?”
“I don’t know. Unless something went wrong and the drug didn’t go into his system, it seems impossible.”
“We are going to get him.”
“Fuck right we are,” Lorenzo said.
“Are you both in Lance’s car?” I asked.
“Yes. We aren’t far behind you.”
“All right. We’ll make a new plan when we have everyone together.” Tony made some loud chattering sounds as if he agreed, and Alex petted him. “Your monkey is going to expect some treats when he sees you.”
“I’ve got them ready.”