Chapter 49
Chapter Forty-Nine
I shove open the door to the backroom of Club Gara and stumble inside.
My legs are unsteady beneath me, my feet dragging like they’re made of lead.
I jut my hand out, using the wall for balance.
Looking around the room, I see no signs of the previous damage made by Volkov’s men.
Every edge and corner is pristine and new, decorated in sleek reds and dark woods.
Malik tips his head up, looking at me from his seat on a new velvet sofa.
His mint green suit looks out of place against the cherry red fabric.
He closes the book in his hands and drops it onto the cushions.
Smoothing out the wrinkles in his suit, he stands.
His leather loafers tap against the patterned tile floor as he walks toward me.
“You’ve redecorated again,” I note.
Malik’s eyes roam over me, rising from my feet to my face. “You’re injured,” he says in a voice laced with concern, “and you’re covered in blood.”
“I need your help.” The words spew from my mouth, feeling foreign as they dribble off my tongue.
When was the last time I asked someone for help?
Memories of suburban neighborhoods flood my mind and my lungs tighten.
The child that still lives somewhere deep inside of me stirs, his pleas for aid whispering through my mind.
Every one of them went unanswered. I shake my head, forcing him to step back inside of me where no one can find him.
Malik’s dark brows shoot up into his hairline. “You’re asking me for help?” His eyes narrow, honing in on the wound on my forehead. “This must be truly serious, habibi.”
“Please.” The word whispers through my gritted teeth.
He wraps a large hand around my forearm, his gold rings digging into my aching muscles. He moves us forward, leading me toward a small table in the corner.
“Sit,” he says, his hand pressing against my shoulder to force me into a chair.
He pushes a bottle of water into my hand. I look down at it, my mouth suddenly feeling dry and sticky. I immediately gulp it down, quenching the thirst I hadn’t realized I had.
“Layla,” Malik calls, “ak’l law samahti.”
The young woman I’ve seen here before dashes out of the room, her long skirt billowing behind her.
The gold stitching its edges shimmers in the light, casting little specks of amber that glitter across the floor.
I should buy Ava a skirt like that. The thought bursts through my head unbidden, making my heart sink into my stomach.
“Tell me what happened.” Malik’s voice drags me from my thoughts.
“Bianca,” I spit her name like it’s poison, “she’s taken my woman and I need to get her back.”
Something crosses over Malik’s features, memories flashing in his eyes. “How did this happen?”
My hands ball into fists and the plastic bottle in my palm cracks into pieces. “Her men showed up in the middle of the night. They blew the door off my fucking house and knocked me out.”
The back door creaks open and Layla walks in. I avoid looking at her skirt, my eyes inspecting the wood grain on the table. She places a tray of sandwiches down in front of us along with two more bottles of water. Malik clears his throat and waves his hand toward the food.
“You need to eat,” he says.
Grabbing one off the platter, I stuff the corner into my mouth.
The bread and beef slide over my tongue and my stomach lets out a loud gurgle, reminding me that I haven’t eaten since Ava was taken from me.
There didn’t seem to be a point to it. The moment she was gone, food ceased to have value.
Everything that I eat without her tastes like ash.
“I’m certain they took her to Bianca’s compound,” I mumble around a bite of food.
Malik rasps out a sigh. “No one knows where that is.”
“I know where it is.”
His eyes widen and he quirks an eyebrow. “Are you certain that—”
“Look,” I grumble, “I know where it is, and if we go in together, maybe we can find her. Fuck, maybe we’ll find your sister, or maybe we’ll die.
” I slam my palms against the table, toppling sandwiches and bottles.
“But I’d rather be dead than live without the woman I love.
I’ll die long before I have to live with the knowledge that I didn’t try to save her. ”
“My sister.” Malik exhales heavily, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. “That was many years ago, Grayson. I fear we won’t find Rana there. Inshallah, I will see her again, but it won’t be in that place.”
My stomach plummets to my feet and my fists clench at my sides. Malik has no reason to help me, not if he won’t find his sister. I straighten my spine, willing my body to harden for what comes next. I’ll go to Bianca’s compound alone and I’ll get Ava out, even if I can’t make it out with her.
“I’ll help you,” Malik declares.
My mouth drops open. “What?”
A deep chuckle rumbles from his chest. “I’ll help you. We’ll bring your love home.” Emotion flashes in his eyes and his body tenses, making the table groan under the weight of his grip. “And we’ll kill Bianca for what she’s done to us.”