Nikolai (Kansas City Reapers #1)

Prologue

Maddy

“One may walk over the highest mountain one step at a time.” — Barbara Walters

With a roll of my eyes, I cleared the notification from the stupid motivational quotes app I received once a day before pocketing my phone again. When I’d felt the buzz of the phone in my pocket, I had hoped it was my friends letting me know what was taking them so damn long, but no such luck. I sank back into irritated boredom as I stood out in the night air. The line into this club was too long, my friends had not shown up yet, and I was in no mood for stupid motivational quotes. Not even ones from Barbara Walters herself.

“Maddy! Hey!” a voice called from behind me. I turned to see my best friend Jess running along the line, shouting insults at the men griping at her line cutting. About fucking time.

“Hey, you made it!” I said with a plastered-on smile as she approached, joining me in the line. “Where is everyone else?” Peeking behind her, I scoured the crowd for the rest of our group. We had all begun the night at Juniper, a local bar, but the vibe was just not vibing for tonight’s theme: my breakup.

“Kerri ran into some guy she recognized and—”

“And now she’s totally side-tracked by the thought of some good dick. As usual. I assume the others are with her?” I tried my best not to grumble, but it was a losing battle. Crossing my arms over my chest, I tried desperately not to wish death on the lot of them.

“You know how she is, Maddy,” Jess whispered pleadingly. “Plus, I’m here now! And do you really need anyone else?” Sliding her arm through mine, she offered me the companionship I desperately needed.

“Yeah, but does she have to lean into it so badly? Like, seriously, would it kill her not to let her pussy lead her every decision for one night ?” I grumbled, but the corners of my lips lifted into a small smile I could not hold back.

The line moved slowly as we chatted, and another twenty minutes passed before the sound of heels clicking quickly against the pavement drew our attention.

“Maddy, what the hell?” Kerri scoffed, walking up to us like she owned the place, Lily and Melissa in tow.

“Kerri, so nice of you all to finally show up,” The utterly disdainful smile I shot her way was anything but pleasant.

“Why are you guys sitting in line?” Her face twisted into a supremely judgemental scowl.

“Uh, because we’re waiting to get in, obviously.”

“Oh, my God! You’re useless.” Prying Jess away from my arm, she reached into the top of my crop top, grabbing my boobs one after the other and shifting them until my cleavage looked more Pamela Anderson than the subtle tease I had meant them to be.

“Christ, Kerri. Boundaries!” I scoffed, tugging away from her. Though I had to admit, the girls were looking much better after her little jiggle and lift number.

“Come on, losers. We’re too good to wait in line like the riff-raff.” With a tug on my arm and a vivacious smirk to the rest of the waiting crowd, Kerri waltzed all five of us up to the front of the line, where two bouncers sneered menacingly at us. I couldn’t blame them. We were cutting in line like it was nothing.

“The group of us, please, and thank you,” Kerri purred coquettishly. Surely a bat of her eyes and the size of our breasts falling out of shirts was not enough to —

“Right this way.” I stood in a moment of shock as the large man in a suit unlatched the velvet belt between two stanchions for us all to pass in with a wave of his hand.

The music pounded away at a deafening volume as we entered the club. Bodies pressed together, and the pervasive smell of sweat mixed with an overwhelming blend of cologne and perfume stung my nostrils.

Perfect.

The five of us headed to the bar, and a few minutes later, I was halfway through my second martini. While I was normally a fruity drink girl, tonight called for something different. I didn’t want sweetness. I needed the bite of a hard drink — a dirty gin martini, in particular. The strong, smooth flavor played over my tongue like a symphony, complex and rich. I gulped down the rest of the cloudy liquid, embracing the heady buzz that began winding its way through my body.

“Let’s dance!” I yelled back at the group, a wide smile on my face. This was exactly what I needed to get that dumbass Bryce out of my head. Hand in hand, we bobbed and wove our way through the crowd until we found ourselves somewhere near the center of the dance floor.

I pushed all thoughts of my asshole ex away from my mind, letting the music take over me. I didn’t even mind the pulse of the bodies around us as my devoted group of friends and I raised our hands in the air and danced like there was no tomorrow.

I lost track of time as one song blended seamlessly into the next. The DJ was spinning the perfect mix for the vibe I desperately needed tonight. Desire was the best club in town, and it was not easy to get in. Unless you were Kerri, apparently.

“Oh, my God! I love this song!” Kerri and Melissa screamed out simultaneously, their shouts barely heard above the thumping music. Bodies pushed us this way and that until we were all essentially grinding on each other, losing ourselves to the music.

I sang the lyrics at the top of my lungs, laughing as we danced together until someone knocked into me. The blow between my shoulder blades pushed me forward, straight into Kerri.

“Hey, my bad!” An oddly familiar voice called directly behind me. I turned slowly, suddenly oblivious to the press of bodies around me.

This was not happening .

Sure enough, as I turned, none other than Bryce Willerman stood directly behind me.

The blonde bimbo I’d caught him in bed with last week was hanging on him like a badly tailored suit.

“Oh, shit.” I saw his lips move more than I heard his actual words.

Rage filled me.

Rage…

And hurt.

“Listen, Maddy… can we talk?” Bryce yelled above the noise, wrapping his hand around my upper arm and tugging me towards him.

Fury spiraled through me like a tornado, filling every part of me until I could almost see it flitting at the edges of my vision, a brilliant and horrible shade of red. Yanking my arm back, I nearly spat in his face. I would have — if Jess hadn’t tugged me away right then.

Quickly, moving as one unit, Kerri, Jess, Melissa, Lily, and I all moved back towards the bar, leaving Bryce and his bimbo out on the dance floor.

“Maddy, are you okay?” Jess asked. I could feel her hands touch my arm, but her words sounded jumbled and distorted, almost as though she were speaking to me underwater. Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes.

“I’m going to go find the bathroom,” I shouted to her. I swore there wasn’t a single spot in this place where you could hear someone talk. No wonder I had no voice the day after partying with Kerri — regardless of what club or bar we were at.

“I’ll go with you,” Jess quickly offered. I shook my head vehemently.

“No, I just need a minute. I’ll be back in a bit, okay?” I offered her a smile I hoped looked more real than it felt.

“If you’re sure.” Jess looked at me hesitantly, but nodded her head, releasing my arm.

Leaning over the edge of the bar, I hollered towards the bartender until he saw me and bustled over in my direction.

“What can I get you tonight, beautiful?” I didn’t miss the way his eyes roved lower than I liked, but I shook it off.

“Where is the bathroom?” I hollered.

“What?” The bartender cupped his ear, leaning in closer to hear me above the music.

“Where. Is. The Bathroom?” I all but screamed.

“Downstairs. That way.” He pointed towards the back of the club. I nodded and waved a hand in thanks before turning and making my way through the crowd. Bodies pressed in even more tightly than they had when we first arrived. Tapping on shoulders one after the other and literally pushing my way through the crowd, I finally made it to the back of the club. A neon sign hung over the top of a staircase, pointing towards the basement of the building.

The stairwell was dark and strangely just as crowded as the main floor of the club. Thoughts of Bryce and that woman filled my mind, taking me back to barely a week ago. Bryce and I had been dating for nearly two years. Funny, had things not transpired, I’d be celebrating our anniversary tonight instead of out here trying to forget his very existence with the help of booze and dancing. I had planned to cook a nice dinner for him last week. Since he’d given me a key only a month before, I’d thought it would be the perfect surprise to brighten his day.

Apparently, he found other ways of brightening his own damn day. I had walked into his apartment and set my bag of groceries down on the counter, then noticed the pair of heels by the front door. What I found in his bedroom — let’s just say that I ran out of his apartment like a bat out of hell. I had wanted to give him a piece of my mind — to chew his ass out until he shit like a sprinkler, but all I could manage was a measly, “How could you?”

The noise grew louder; the bodies pressing into me as I tried to find my way to the bathroom. I couldn’t hear anything over the noise of the crowd and the sound of my own thundering heartbeat as a panic attack settled in.

Someone laughed.

The crowd shifted.

The press of bodies pushed me back against a wall so hard the cold painted concrete nearly knocked the wind out of me. Tears blinded my eyes, but not so much that I could not see the door just to my right. Pulling the handle, I forced my way through to the other side.

Cold air filled my lungs as the sound of the door slamming shut rang out loudly in the eerily quiet alleyway, the thundering music now a dull pulse held inside by concrete walls. I’d had a few too many drinks tonight already, it seemed, or perhaps it was just the panic attack that now held my lungs in a vice-grip.

I took in great lungfuls of air, hoping to clear my head. But all it did was throw me into a coughing fit, the smoke stinging my lungs. Stumbling forward with one hand stretched out, the rough brick of the building across the narrow alley caught me as my heel slipped and I almost fell.

Flipping around, I pressed my back into the rough brick, tears freely falling down my face unhindered. There was no one to see me cry here, so why the hell hold them back any longer?

That fucking asshole, Bryce, had the audacity to show his face in public with that relationship-wrecking twat on his arm, instead of being holed up somewhere, embarrassed and miserable over being caught with that bleached harlot and not only losing but hurting me?! I wasn’t exactly sure if I was mad at him for what happened, or mad at myself for not seeing that he was a philandering bastard sooner. Either way, I had loved him, and it had hurt.

I let myself feel the loss of the man I had thought loved me for a few minutes longer. I needed to get back to my friends soon. Plus, I wasn’t about to let Bryce think that he’d bested me. Knowing my luck, he was sharing quite the laugh with Blonde Bimbo about how he’d run me out of the club.

Not on my watch.

Fuck him.

Pulling on the door handle beside me, I made my way back inside. I’d go find my friends again — after I went to the bathroom. I needed to freshen up before I faced anyone. There was no way I’d let Bryce or his bimbo see me with mascara running down my face.

I quickly made my way down a staircase, eyes glued to my phone as I texted Jess that I would be back up in just a few minutes, making some excuse about long lines to avoid having to admit to my brief panic attack back there. At least I could hear my own thoughts now. The club must be swapping out DJs.

Pushing through a door at the end of the stairwell, I entered a long hallway with doors on either side a little way down.

Now, which one was the lady’s room?

The lighting down here was much brighter than anywhere else in the club, but I could not see any signs for the bathrooms. Weird.

Pocketing my phone once more, I moved further down the hallway. I could hear the faint sound of voices behind the door to my left. If that wasn’t the bathroom, then at least I could ask where the fuck it was.

Just as my hand turned the knob, a voice rang out loudly.

“No! Wait, I—”

I opened the door, but before I could process what I was seeing, there was a bang and a flash, and the feel of wetness splattered across my face and chest.

I closed my eyes tightly as a scream froze on my lips.

Red.

All I could see was wet, sticky, red as I realized what it was that had just splattered all over me.

Blood.

Turning on my heel, I sprinted towards the stairwell.

My heart thundered. My breath completely stopped.

I stumbled, my heel slipping against the slick flooring. My arms jolted painfully as I caught myself against the stairwell, instantly hoisting myself up as I kicked off my heels.

No time for that now.

Clamoring up the stairs, I saw the exit sign.

It was only then I noticed the beige walls.

The club walls were all black.

This wasn’t the club.

And I was not safe.

I hit the bar on the door at full speed, bursting my way out into the alleyway once more, but this time I did not stop when tears began to flood my vision.

Unable to remember which door led back into the relative safety of the club, I ran for the street, screaming at the top of my lungs.

“HELP ME!!!”

My phone buzzed in my back pocket. With shaky hands, I grabbed it, expecting to see a text from Jess, or Kerri, or anyone really.

But all I saw was the notification I thought I had ignored earlier tonight.

“One may walk over the highest mountain one step at a time.” — Barbara Walters

The path to the top of the mountain of one’s life begins by taking the first step.

I just had no idea that my path forward would be filled with blood.