Chapter 10 Bash
BASH
Irecognize Riven Kozlov immediately.
Caiden didn’t send a photograph, but he didn’t need to.
A man who murders his own father for the woman he loves carries a certain kind of energy with him.
It’s the same festering violence I see in the mirror every morning.
Besides, the girl with him is looking around in wonderment at the architecture, which is a dead giveaway.
The guy standing in front of me looks exactly how I expect someone from Castlebrook Falls to look. He’s controlled. The kind of calm that comes from knowing exactly how much damage you’re capable of doing if someone pushes you far enough.
The woman beside him stays close to his side. Lakynn, I think Caiden mentioned. I just know that she’s his wife.
Even the way he positions himself tells me everything I need to know. Half a step in front of her. Always between her and everyone else.
Good.
Men like Kozlov understand the rules. This way I won’t have to fuck him up for doing anything stupid around Livy. He’s here because he wants protection for his wife, and in exchange he’ll be on call if Kalen, Jeremy, or I need assistance.
A deep breath leaves my lungs before I step forward.
I don’t feel like this shit today. Livy found that girl down by the water a few days ago, and I’ve been trying to find out who was responsible for that.
St. Killian isn’t the type of place where people leave half-dead girls lying around for people to find.
I don’t like that she’s blonde like Livy and of a similar height and weight.
The fact that she was attacked so close to when Livy got that text message.
“You Kozlov?” I gotta get this intro over with, and by luck Kozlov looks like he’d rather be anywhere else as well.
His girl flinches slightly when I say the name. I notice the way his shoulders tense immediately, his attention snapping toward me.
Protective.
Possessive.
Again… good.
He turns fully now, and for a second we just study each other.
There’s no handshake. No introductions beyond what’s necessary. Caiden doesn’t connect men like us because he expects us to become friends. He does it because we’re useful to each other, and more importantly useful to Caiden.
I can see a glimmer of confusion cross Kozlov’s face, and I don’t have to ask him why. Caiden mentioned that Kozlov spent some time at Castlebrook playing hockey on the same team as my brother.
He probably wasn’t prepared for how much we look alike, or Caiden left that detail out because the motherfucker thinks he’s funny.
“Sebastian Vale,” I tell him dryly, because just like my meeting with Kalen, this little side quest could have absolutely been a text message. I’d even settle for a video call, but this in-person shit when it doesn’t involve my girl is horrendous.
Kozlov’s gaze sharpens slightly at my name, but he doesn’t comment on it.
Instead, he nods toward the girl beside him.
“My wife.” The way he says it almost seems like a warning. She’s off-limits, and he’s going to make sure everyone is aware.
I give her a brief nod out of respect, but keep my attention on him. I don’t need to address her in any other way.
I reach into my jacket and pull out the card Caiden told me to give him.
“You know how this works.”
He takes it without hesitation.
“I know where you stay,” I continue evenly. “If I call, you answer. Same goes the other way.”
A quiet understanding passes between us.
“Understood,” he says, and that should be the end of it.
The favor delivered.
The connection established.
But something shifts in my peripheral vision.
Movement.
A flash of long blonde hair, and she’s walking with a quickness I’ve never seen Livy move with before.
And then I see that Ronan is following her, calling out to her, desperately asking her to stop and talk to him.
My attention snaps toward them automatically.
Motherfucking weasel.
I know he did something to her, because Livy’s always nice to him even when I can tell she doesn’t like being near the asshole.
She looks behind her and begins walking even faster when she sees that he’s not backing off. The protective instinct inside my chest explodes so violently it almost makes me dizzy.
I should wait.
I know I should.
Handling Ronan in public is sloppy, and sloppy draws attention. Attention is the last thing Livy needs right now. I had every intention of dealing with him later, privately.
Somewhere, no one would hear him scream.
Because I know he’ll scream, I’ll make sure of it. He knows I don’t want him hovering around her the way he does, if he didn’t know he wouldn’t run away like a little twit whenever he sees me.
I’m still holding myself back when he snaps, his nice guy mask slipping when he yells, “You don’t have to be a fucking bitch! I just want to talk to you!”
And something I’ve been tempering down inside me snaps.
“Fuck,” I mutter under my breath.
Kozlov probably says something else to me, but I don’t hear it.
I’m already zeroed in on this off-brand Ken doll.
Ronan barely has time to register what’s happening before I grab the front of his shirt and slam him back against the stone wall beside the walkway.
His eyes widen.
“Hey—what the fu—”
My fist connects with his face before he can finish the sentence.
And it’s glorious. Angels should be singing Hallelujah behind me, because I have waited so long to mess up his face.
The crack of bone against bone echoes sharply across the courtyard.
Ronan hits the ground harder than I thought he would. Blood immediately pours from his nose as he scrambles backward on the cobblestones, staring up at me in shock.
Good.
Fear is the correct response here, buddy.
I grab the front of his blazer and yank him halfway off the ground again.
“You don’t follow her,” I tell him quietly.
My voice stays low, but every word carries enough threat to let him know I’m gonna fucking kill him when we’re not in direct view of St. Killian cameras.
He opens his mouth like he’s dumb enough to actually try to reason with me, but I shake him out of frustration and grit out, “Don’t you dare even look at her again.”
His eyes dart toward the path where Livy disappeared only seconds ago like he actually wants me to bash his head on a rock and put him out of his misery.
I tighten my grip and say, “Look at me.”
He does.
And whatever he sees in my face makes the color drain out of his skin.
“Leave her the fuck alone,” I continue, leaning down slightly so there’s no chance he misses a single word. “Or I’m going to shove that little rowboat of yours up your ass and send you out to sea.”
For a second he just stares at me, and then he nods quickly.
Too quickly.
Pathetic.
I shove him backward and straighten my blazer like I didn’t almost kill this fucker.
Kozlov doesn’t say anything else, and neither do I.
My attention has already shifted back toward the path where Livy ran off and disappeared from my sight.
I spot her almost immediately and take off to watch her more closely.
She hasn’t gotten far. She’s walking quickly toward the main quad, her arms wrapped tightly around herself.
For a second I think she’s crying, and my chest tightens hard enough to hurt. But when she lifts her hand to her forehead, almost as if she’s trying to feel if she has a fever.
She’s not crying, but within seconds of watching her she’s coughing, turning slightly away from the wind as a few gusts blow from between the buildings.
I watch her shoulders rise and fall with the motion.
Last night she looked exhausted when she finally climbed into bed. I watched her toss and turn for nearly an hour before she finally fell asleep, curling into herself like she was trying to fight something off.
I noticed the cough then, too.
It was soft at first, but it kept coming back throughout the night.
She shouldn’t be out here walking around and dealing with assholes like Ronan chasing her through campus. What was he going to do if she did turn around and talk to him, anyway? She needs sleep, and I don’t know how to help her with that.
The protective instinct that’s already been clawing at my ribs all morning feels a lot like anger.
Someone should be taking care of her. The thought hits me so suddenly it almost makes me laugh. Because the truth is, there isn’t anyone. She has no family, which means if anyone is going to take care of Livingston, it’s going to be me.
I straighten my jacket and start following her. My girl is going to get a good night’s sleep tonight no matter what I have to do.
I glance down at the top of my hands and roll my eyes. I should probably stop at my place and scrub Ronan’s blood off my knuckles before I make any offers to keep her company while she sleeps.