Chapter 9
CASSIA
As I walk to the bedroom door, the apprehension in my stomach grows into a tight ball. I cautiously peek into the living room, and not seeing Knight, I slowly move forward.
Did he finally leave?
I turn into the kitchen to get a bottle of water and slam into a wall of muscle.
A loud shriek escapes me, and I reach for my gun. As I bring my arm up to train the weapon on Knight, he moves fast, his palm slamming into my wrist while his other hand rips the gun from my hand.
Fuck!
The shock, panic, and fear hitting me make my head spin, and it feels like I’m stuck in a dryer. When I swing around to try and make a run for it, my legs give way, and I go down like a ton of bricks.
Knight’s arm shoots around my back, and I’m yanked against his solid chest. The next second, I’m swung up into his arms, and he carries me over to a couch where he sets me down.
Without saying anything, he heads back to the kitchen, and it’s only then I see the magazine and gun lying on the floor. The man disarmed me, released the magazine, and caught me mid-fall. All in a matter of seconds.
Holy shit!
He picks up the weapon and loads the magazine again, then he proceeds to walk back to me, where he places the gun on the armrest.
“Did you want something in the kitchen?” he asks, not looking bothered by the altercation at all.
I swallow hard, my throat bone dry. “Water.”
I watch as he goes to grab a bottle from the fridge. He brings it to me and even twists off the cap before holding the bottle out for me to take.
My eyes are locked on Knight as I take it from him, and while I swallow a few sips, my mind races to make sense of the man.
His unnerving gaze meets mine, and for a moment, we stare at each other.
I’m surprised when he says, “You don’t have to be scared of me.”
A frown quickly forms on my forehead, and I place the bottle on the coffee table. When I stand up, I grab my gun and lift my chin. I inject authority into my voice as I say, “I’m not scared of you.”
Stepping around Knight, I tuck my gun back into the waistband of my pants while I leave my house. I cross the bridge and walk the short distance to the entrance of the main building.
I focus on taking deep breaths and try to ignore the pain throbbing throughout my body.
Just get through the meeting. You need to know where you stand with the other four.
Once inside the building, I push the button to call the elevator, and when the doors open, Knight steps into the small space with me.
“You’re not coming to the meeting,” I mutter.
From the corner of my eye, I see him nod.
The elevator comes to a stop on the top floor, and when I exit it, I lift my chin and brace for the worst.
I have money. If the alliance kicks me to the side, I’ll have to make a run for it and go into hiding while trying to assess the damage done to the organization.
Jesus. It will be impossible to take my organization back while hiding like some coward.
My mind is inundated with an endless list of things to do as I walk into the room that has a round table situated in the middle surrounded by five leather chairs. Monitors cover the walls.
Enzo, Leo, and Santiago are already seated. Dominik is standing with a phone in his hand, quickly typing on it.
“Come sit, Cassia,” Leo says, pulling my attention away from Dominik.
I walk to one of the open chairs, and taking a seat at the table, I pray to all that’s holy they can’t see my fear.
I struggle to keep my spine straight because it makes the throbbing worse in my lower back.
My eyes flick over the men, and I suck in a deep breath before saying, “Let’s get started.”
Leo frowns at me, then glances at the other men before looking back at me again. “Should you be out of the hospital?”
I resist the urge to wipe the sweat from my forehead. “I’m fine.”
Santiago rests his forearms on the table and leans forward. “You don’t look fine.”
Even though my fear intensifies until it borders on terror, I keep my face as expressionless as possible. “I was told you had my family buried. Eleni just passed away, and I want to have her buried with them.”
The men all look at me with compassion.
“We’re sorry for your loss,” Leo says, his voice filled with compassion.
My eyes flick to the head of the Italian mafia, and my lips part to thank him, but no words come out.
“I know there’s a lot to take care of, but I think you should still be in the hospital,” Santiago says while standing up.
I watch him walk around the table and lightly frown when he crouches beside my chair. His eyes are filled with compassion as he looks at me.
“What do you need done, Cassia? We’ll take care of it while you recover.”
I glance at everyone, then ask, “Shouldn’t we talk about my position in the alliance?”
Santiago straightens up again, and shoving a hand into his pocket, he frowns at me. “Why? Do you plan on withdrawing?”
I quickly shake my head. “No, but my organization took one hell of a hit. I don’t know how long it will take for me to rebuild it all.”
Everyone looks at me with confused expressions, and I begin to realize the men have never given me any reason to assume they’d want to cut ties with me.
Enzo lets out a sigh as he stands up. He buttons his jacket while muttering, “We don’t turn our back on each other when shit goes down.” He gives the other men a chin lift and walks to the door. “Go back to the hospital and heal.”
When he leaves the room, my gaze swings back to the remaining three men.
“Is that what you thought?” Dominik asks. “That we’d kick you out?”
“I don’t have much to offer the alliance right now,” I admit.
“You dragged my ass out of a burning building,” Dominik reminds me.
“Mine too,” Santiago adds.
“Now it’s our turn to help you,” Leo says as he climbs to his feet. “I’ve sent word out to any survivors in your organization. My men are on the ground and helping them find their way to Chile.”
Oh my God.
For a split second, my chin trembles, but I fight to keep my composure. “Thank you, Leo.”
“You would do the same for me,” he says before heading to the door. “Let me know when you’ve fully recovered so we can plan how to proceed.”
“I will.”
When I’m alone with Santiago and Dominik, Santiago takes the seat beside me and scoots closer.
He places his hand on my shoulder. “You’ve suffered one hell of a blow, Cassia. We’re all here to help where we can. What do you need?”
“I need to have Eleni transported to Athens so she can be buried there,” I say while my throat strains. My heart shatters again as I ask, “Did they really wipe out my entire family? No one survived?”
Santiago gives me a compassionate look that makes it so much harder for me not to cry. “Your uncle and aunt were hit at the same time as you. They also attacked three of your warehouses. None of your family survived. I’m sorry, Cassia.”
Jesus.
“And my mother’s sister?”
He tilts his head. “You have another aunt?”
I nod quickly. “Marina Doukas. She lives in New Zealand.”
Santiago glances at Dominik, who says, “I’ll have someone check on her as soon as possible.”
My eyes widen again. “Oh my God. If you didn’t know about her, that might mean the bratva also doesn’t know of her.”
“With a little luck,” Santiago mutters.
“If she’s alive, please bring her to the island,” I request.
“I’ll send Evinka to get her.”
I give Dominik a grateful smile. “Thank you.”
“Anything else?” Santiago asks.
I think for a moment, then say, “No, just help with getting Eleni to Athens.”
“I’ll take care of it for you. You need to go back to the hospital.”
Nodding, I climb to my feet and take a moment to look at the men. “I appreciate the help.”
“Don’t worry. One day you can drag my ass out of a burning building again,” Santiago chuckles.
We walk to the door, and as we leave the room, Knight pushes away from the wall he’s leaning against.
“There is another problem,” I say as I come to a stop. Gesturing at Knight, I ask Santiago, “Can you tell him to stop following me.”
Santiago looks at Knight and asks, “Do we have a problem?”
Knight shakes his head. “Just keeping her safe.”
“I don’t need protection on the island, and soon, I’ll meet up with my own people,” I mention.
“They didn’t keep you safe in Greece,” Knight grumbles. “You almost died.”
“I don’t really have a say in the matter,” Santiago informs me.
My eyes snap to his face. “Doesn’t he work for you?”
Santiago shrugs. “No. He’s more like a business partner slash friend. I can vouch for him, though. He’s really good at what he does.” I watch as he starts to walk away from Knight and me. “Take a moment to talk things out, then get your ass back to the hospital.”
Dominik comes out of the office, and busy on the call, he jogs to catch the elevator Santiago is climbing into.
Just great.
I lift my arm and use the back of my hand to wipe the beads of sweat from my forehead while letting out a sigh.
First things first. I need to lie down before I pass out.