Chapter 26 - Riley
Martin drives me home, and I change into more comfortable clothes. I brush my hair and put it in a bun, so if someone tries to grab it, they’ll struggle. I don't want to give them any chance to gain the upper hand. I approach the safe and punch in the code. I take a gun and holster it, pulling my top over it. I'm not going to be caught off-guard or unprepared. I grab my purse and head downstairs. “Only two other guards, Martin. And when I tell you to leave, wait a distance away.”
“Yes, Ma'am,” Martin replies. I briefed him on the plan during the drive home. We get into the car and pull out. It's ten in the morning now, and the mall is just opening. I watch the scenery zoom past us. I'm keenly aware of my surroundings as we pull into a parking spot. Martin opens the door for me, and we head inside. We need this to be convincing, so I'm going to do some actual shopping. I enter the first boutique and try to find something I believe Viktor would want me to wear. I imagine us finally celebrating the end of this. I spot a cute blue dress and then sift through the rest of the racks. Not finding anything else that captures my attention, I take the dress to the cashier to pay for it. We visit two more boutiques before I lead them to The Gap. I pick out some clothes to try on and leave them at the front door.
“I'm going to try these on. Wait here,” I say, a little too loudly.
“Yes, Ma'am,” Martin says. They turn their backs to watch the rest of the mall and I go to the changing room. I put on one outfit and step outside the dressing room to look in the bigger mirror. I twirl around as though I'm enjoying myself, but no one approaches me. I try on a second and third outfit. I don't think this is going to work. When I step out in the fourth outfit, I notice movement out of the corner of my eye. There he is, leaning against the wall in the corner.
I look at him with wide eyes. “You!”
“Yes me,” Jimmy says. He gets off the wall and strolls slowly toward me. “You have been on my mind since the day you got away,” he smiles softly, as though the thought is supposed to be endearing. He eyes me out and shakes his head. “I prefer you in a dress. You have sexy legs.”
“Well, you won't get to see me in one, unfortunately,” I say, taking a step back.
I can feel my heart racing and I will myself not to panic. I cannot freeze up now. Not after I promised Viktor, I wouldn't. Viktor has always been right. I need to face my fear and my biggest fear is standing in front of me right now.
“Let's not make this difficult,” he says. “You're going to come with me, out the back, and into the van.”
“What do you want with me?” I ask, stalling for time.
I realize that the changing rooms are out of Martin's line of sight, which actually isn't a great idea. Even if I shout, it'll be too late by the time the guards get here. Jimmy might take off, with or without me. We only have this one chance.
“I want to do so many things to you,” he murmurs, taking another step forward. I stand my ground. “Most of all, I want you to pay. Since your little friends rescued you, I've been at the bottom of the food chain. No one wants to hire me. The Vultures are close to disbanding or kicking me out, whichever happens first. I need to bring glory back to our names and what better way to do that than to take down the most powerful crime family in the city.”
“They won't let you do that,” I say. “They're better than you in every way.”
“I never took you as someone who would fall for a Milov. When I first started following you, I thought you were such a timid little thing. Scared of your own shadow. Tell me, does sucking his cock give you courage?”
I glare at him. “My husband is twice the man you'll ever dream of being.”
“I doubt that,” Jimmy responds. “I doubt he'll be able to save you again. Maybe I'll sell you off to their biggest rival. They can hold you hostage and negotiate the terms. On condition that when they're done, I get you back so I can fuck your brains out.”
I clench my fists. “That's not going to happen.”
“Oh, yeah?” He lunges for my arm and I pull away. I use the palm of my hand to smash his nose, and then I kick him in the groin.
“You little bitch,” he cries out. He grabs his crotch and glares at me. “You're going to regret that.”
“I think you'll find you're going to regret it more,” I say quietly as I see Viktor turn the corner. Jimmy glances behind him and then tries to make a run for it, as best as he can while he's injured. Viktor cuts him off and presses a gun into his back.
“Hello, Jimmy. We haven't formally met. I'm Riley's husband.”
“Let me go. I have powerful friends,” Jimmy says. “They'll fucking kill you all.”
“I can kill you right now and there's nothing your so-called powerful friends will do to stop it,” Viktor says with a low growl. I can't believe how turned on I am by him right now. He's so dominant. It's as though he fills the room. “Did I say you could hurt my wife? Did I say you could even look in her direction?” Viktor asks him. He points his gun down and fires a shot into Jimmy's leg. Jimmy screams and people outside scream and run away. “Martin, let's take this piece of shit to the warehouse on Fifth Street.”
Martin appears with the guards, who drag Jimmy away. Viktor comes over to me and smiles. “Well done. I see lessons are paying off.”
“I have a good teacher,” I say, kissing him softly.
“I have to go deal with this,” Viktor says. “But I'll see you at home.”
“No, I want to go with you. I want to see it through to the end,” I say quietly.
“I'm going to kill him, Riley. After I torture him, I'm going to kill him. That's not something everyone can handle.” He strokes a loose strand of hair out of my face.
“I know what you're going to do. And I want to watch,” I say calmly. “I'm figuring out I can handle a lot more than I give myself credit for. I'm a Milov.”
Viktor takes my hand and kisses it. “Yes, you are.”
We walk out of the store and I look at him curiously. “What about the cops?”
“The footage will mysteriously disappear, and any trace of Jimmy with it,” Viktor answers me. He leads me out of the mall and to his car. I climb into the back with him and we follow Martin's car. It seems so calm, so relaxed. As though we're taking a Sunday drive for fun. Nothing out of the ordinary. We pull up to a warehouse and we get out of the car. Martin drags Jimmy from the trunk of his car and we take him inside. Martin cable ties him to a chair, arms behind him, feet against the legs.
Rigor, Roman, and Anton are there already, standing to the side. Rigor looks surprised to see me but doesn't question why I'm there. I cross the room and sit on a chair in the corner. Viktor approaches Jimmy and slides a knuckle duster onto his right hand.
“You're going to suffer for what you did to Riley,” he growls. He punches Jimmy in the face. Again and again, he just keeps hitting him. Never letting up. Not stopping for a breath. He must punch him fifteen times before he steps back. “You're such a lowlife. Picking on a girl that's half your size. I hope you know I enjoyed watching her kick your ass.”
Jimmy spits blood onto the floor. “I'll give you money and I'll leave you alone. Just let me go.”
“No, I don't think so,” Rigor says. “You wanted to take on the Milov family, now you have our undivided attention.”
Viktor drops the knuckle duster and starts pummeling Jimmy in the stomach. He cries out, coughing up blood. I know I should turn away and not watch, but I can't help but be satisfied.
“Baby,” Viktor says. “What are some of the things he said he'd do to you?”
“He'd remove my fingernails,” I say calmly. “He promised that every day. Even brought pliers to my hand once.”
Viktor crosses to a table where a bunch of tools are lying about. He picks up pliers and goes behind Jimmy. He grabs his hand, and Jimmy tries to fight him, but he's tied too tightly. “Come on, man,” Jimmy gasps. Please, I can pay you good money. What am I worth to you?”
“Nothing,” Viktor says. “You're worth nothing.” He rips off one of Jimmy's fingernails and tosses it aside. He pulls off another two before he pulls out his gun. “This is boring. You're nothing more than a sniveling manbaby and it's going to give me great pleasure to forget you ever existed.”
I don't look away as Viktor puts the gun to Jimmy's head and pulls the trigger. Jimmy slumps in the chair and I get up, crossing the room. I feel slightly sick, but I keep the contents of my stomach down. Viktor holsters his gun and comes over to me. He takes my hand. “Come on Love, let's go do something romantic.”
“I'd like that,” I say. “My husband.”
Viktor smiles and leads me out of the warehouse. We leave Martin to clean up the mess. I see Rigor, Roman, and Anton also leave. Getting into their own cars and driving off. Roman and Rigor to their wives and Anton, no doubt to have a drink. I sit in the back of the car with Viktor looking out the window.
“Are you okay?” he asks quietly.
“Yes, I'm fine. A little queasy but fine,” I admit. “It's really over now, isn't it?”
“That'll send a clear message to them,” Viktor says. “They'll back off from the Milov family. They know we're not backing down now, and we're not the family you want to fuck with.”
I smile softly. “No, we're not.”
Viktor kisses my hand and then plays with my wedding band. “Riley?”
“Yes, Viktor?” I look at him.
“I meant it, you know, that I would burn down this entire world to find you,” he says softly.
“I know you did. I would too,” I smile.
“I want to do this properly,” he continues. “I want to have a proper wedding with you in a beautiful dress, a party for our family afterward.”
“But we're already married,” I say. “Isn't it a bit redundant?”
“You deserve to have a special day. We'll make it the biggest and best wedding the family has ever seen.” He leans over and kisses me softly. “I want to gloat about my beautiful bride. I want wedding photos and a honeymoon where we spend every night in bed. I want us to have a fresh start. A proper start. I want your family to get to know me.”
I can feel tears welling up as I raise my hand to stroke his face. “You're so special, Viktor. Beneath all that scowling and toughness, you are truly a gentle soul. I want a wedding too, and a fresh start, plus a honeymoon sounds perfect.”
He leans down and kisses me again, and I return the kiss, deepening it. He clicks his fingers, and the visor that separates the back from the front rolls up, making me giggle. “Again?”
“Again,” he murmurs against my lips.