Chapter 38 Declan
Declan
If anyone else stormed into this room and pulled a gun, they'd be toast. Luckily for me, not only was I infamous enough not to need an introduction, but I had my two most trusted men at my back.
Most of the disgusting pieces of shit running away like cockroaches were small fry in our world. Not one of them worthy of a role in my organization.
I spotted three members of a smaller Russian mafia bratva linked to the Romanians, which I planned to mention to Kyril. Like me, he was not a fan of human trafficking, and if Milo was correct, this club was a small but important piece in a much bigger operation.
I'd spoken to Milo once I found out where Verity was working, and he'd called me minutes before we pulled up outside the club's entrance. It seemed this place had a reputation in some circles, just like the Lolita Club back in Ireland, and a similar one in London’s Mayfair.
Knowing our girl was in here, oblivious to the dangers, made my blood boil. I wanted to punish her, so she never went against my orders ever again. What that punishment looked like remained to be seen, but right now, my priority was getting her away and back to my hotel, where she’d be safe.
If she thought she was spending another night in that shitty hostel, she was in for a rude awakening.
The Romanian mobster whose name escaped me seemed surprised I'd dared to threaten his life.
"Do you know who I am?" he sneered when I pressed my gun into his neck. The only thing stopping me from pulling the trigger was the fact I wanted some answers.
He clearly knew who Verity was, which meant he knew her father.
"We need to leave, boss," Ash warned from behind me, but I ignored him.
"Small fry, not worthy of my time or energy." My dismissive tone had the desired effect.
"I'm Avram Marku!"
"Well, Marko," I replied, deliberately mispronouncing his name, even though I'd made the connection now. "You'll be a dead man unless you hand the girl over." His hand slid into his pocket as he grinned.
"I think not." The arm around Verity's waist tightened, but before he or I could react, she threw her head back and smacked him hard in the nose, taking us both by surprise. He howled in pain as his nose shattered, spraying a fountain of blood all over Verity.
It was the distraction I needed. I grabbed my girl and shoved her at Ash before pulling the trigger.
Unfortunately, Marku spun out of the way at the last second. His hand flashed toward me, and I ducked, narrowly avoiding the blade he wielded. I fired again, but he dived behind the chair.
Did this asshole have nine fucking lives? It sure seemed like it.
"Declan! We need to leave now!" Ash's warning cut through my rage and I turned to see Rafe, the club's owner, heading toward us with a pissed off expression. He knew who I was, which was why he'd not intervened, but it seemed we'd overstayed our welcome.
"I do not appreciate the interruption to my event," Rafe snapped while trying his best to sound reasonable.
"And I don't appreciate you involving my ward in your business affairs!"
He threw his hands in the air as Marku ran toward the exit like the coward he was. Fucking Romanian scum. I'd ask Milo to dig into his business later once I'd locked Verity in my hotel bedroom for her own safety.
Rafe pursed his lips in barely concealed irritation, his beady little eyes raking over Verity’s tits. "How was I supposed to know she was your ward?"
"I'm not his anything!" The little minx huffed in annoyance, showing a surprising amount of backbone for a girl who normally struggled to even look at me without blushing fire-engine red.
Did I like it?
Why yes, I did, which was concerning.
I ignored her show of defiance and turned to Rafe, not appreciating his pissy attitude.
"You know now, so let this be a lesson for you. Do NOT touch what's mine!"
Rafe gritted his teeth and nodded. "Understood." His business model relied on acting like fucking Switzerland. Piss off one mafia family and it all fell apart.
"We need to help the girls," Verity whispered just loud enough for me to hear.
I sighed. Now was not the time to get involved in a rescue operation. Rafe might not want to piss me off, but we would be in trouble if he called in reinforcements.
"Not now, Verity. We need to go." Ash nodded in agreement and tugged Verity away.
She struggled briefly, then slumped in defeat.
Unlike me, she didn't understand the bigger picture.
Rescuing the girls caught here wouldn't solve the wider problem.
To do that, I needed to know who was behind the trafficking network.
Marku played a key role, and possibly Verity's father, but until Milo dug up more information, there wasn't much I could do.
"I hate you," she muttered under her breath as we left the club via the service door.
"Most people do," I replied, not giving a flying fuck if she hated me. It was better if she hated me because the alternative was not an option.
Not in my world.