Chapter 38 #2
The thought of us separating is the last thing I want, but it’s unavoidable. If anything, it matches the rest of the drama already happening.
“Santiago will help me. There are a few loose ends, and if he is with me and Roshka, it will back up our story.”
“What is our story?”
He grins. “It’s a horror at the moment. Maybe later, we will make sure some smutty romance comes into play?”
It’s a question, but not one too.
I slide into the space he provides, his arms welcoming, and they’re fast becoming one of my favorite places to be.
“Soon. I’ll be like Roshka, demanding all your time.”
I laugh as we walk into the kitchen. The place is a mess, like people left in a hurry, as opposed to the kind of mess left behind in the restaurant.
“Santiago and I will be a day behind you. Maybe more, maybe less, but there are loose ends that I can’t leave. You and Kade going to ground will help our story.”
“That I’ve been abducted?”
“Yes. I will say Kade and Nalla were killed in the attack on the restaurant. I need to mourn my brother and deal with the fallout, including calling Victor. I’m being overzealous in how I cover our tracks, but I’m not risking you,” Aleksei says, clicking his fingers impatiently for Roshka to take the lead.
The dog trots past, giving his owner a fair bit of defiance that Aleksei sees. He whacks his butt.
“Aleksei,” I say, pushing his hand away.
He twists his hand, catching mine, bringing it up to bite.
“No, Quinn. He is stressed, he knows he is leaving with me. He’s not in a shitty mood because Nalla is hurt.
He trusts you. Like I do. But he needs constant reminders of who is Alpha here.
” He drops his hand to my lower back, so relaxed and calm, it would be easy to imagine him talking and acting like we're going to grab a coffee.
“Why is he upset?”
“He wants to stay with you. I need him first, though, for what’s coming next.”
“And what is next?”
“Tie up some loose ends, and then I will be with you.” He opens the driver’s door of a jet-black Audi coupe hatchback.
“I have to be honest, maya, Santiago is still a maybe. He is lucky. I know you like him, so he is more than a maybe.” Aleksei is getting more and more settled in his skin, and I like his ego. A lot.
Santiago comes up behind me, only stopping when he’s so close I can feel him breathing against the back of my neck. He dips down and presses a kiss on the side of my neck. “Are you okay? Anything you want to ask or say before we split up for a while?”
“I’ve currently got a list of questions a mile long, but they can wait. I have one request—don’t call Victor. I need to figure out if it’s better for me to call him first. Once I have Kade fixed up and resting with Nalla next to him, I’ll give it the focus it needs, but not until then.”
“Of course. We can’t afford to leave contacting him too long, though, bebe, it will make him suspicious. I need to call him with an update within a few hours. Maybe that's the way to lead into what happened?”
“Maybe.” I take a step away from both Aleksei and Santiago. It’s weird how quickly I’ve become attuned to them, and I feel the loss of their presence like you would losing a blanket in winter.
I give them a final once-over, driven by some crazy voice in my head that’s suggesting two grown-ass Alphas can’t look after themselves for a few hours.
If this is what being a part of a pack involves, there better be some serious benefits.
I shut my eyes, a little fed up with my seesawing mood swings, but it helps.
It makes me remember exactly how much crazy BS I’ve endured in the past few days.
I open my eyes, coming face-to-face with three ‘looks’ of concern. “I’m good, I promise. I just want us to get to the place where we can all sit and talk. We’ve got a fair bit to discuss.”
“And we will. Come on, Quinny. I want as much time with you to myself as possible.” Kade pats the driver's seat. He looks okayish. Similarly, Nalla looks fine from her spot in the back of the wagon. She nearly takes up the whole space.
I sit down, and before I can even reach the door to pull it closed, Aleksei is squatting in the space, his hands pulling the seat belt over my lap.
“Kade assures me he can fire a weapon. If he can’t, and you’re injured, I won’t be asking for an explanation.
I’ll be shooting him between the eyes. It’s a mate thing, so don’t be upset with me.
Now, the address where you need to go is already in the sat-nav, and the code for the keypad is there.
” He points to a sticky note on the dash.
He doesn’t move away, though, and reaches into the crevice between the seat and the center dash, pulling out a black woolly hat.
With a tenderness I’m fast associating with him, he lets my hair down, brushes it all back, then tugs the beanie on my head. But then he pulls it down further, and I realize it’s actually a balaclava. Kade rolls his down too.
We look hilarious, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Aren’t we going to get stopped for wearing balaclavas?”
Aleksei pulls a lopsided grin. “We’re in Russia, maya. Balaclavas are basically uniform because everyone is fucking crazy here.”
He has a valid point.
“Drive fast, like someone is chasing you. It’s how we drive, but it also will help with our story.
You two are the decoy, which is why you have this car.
She goes fast, so be careful, maya. Now, don’t worry about us, or maybe you should worry a little about Santiago.
If he is slow, he will go up in flames with the restaurant. ”
“You’re going to burn down the restaurant?” I ask, my voice muffled until I wiggle my mouth free.
Which Aleksei promptly takes advantage of.
He leans in and kisses me hard, making my toes curl up in delight.
He pulls away, going straight back into answering my earlier question.
“It’s cheaper than paying someone to dispose of the bodies.
Plus, Sergey owns the building. He’s been warned countless times about the gas pipes leaking. ”
Aleksei shuts the door and walks back towards the restaurant. Santiago waits until I’m looking at him, giving me a measured, heated look.
“Is it just me imagining things, or are we actually doing this?” I ask, genuinely interested to hear Kade’s explanation. Them, the events happening around us, seem so illogical, and crazy, I’m still trying to figure out what’s real.
He chuckles, dropping his hand on my lap and squeezing my leg reassuringly.
I press the Audi’s ignition, and the car roars to life.
The V8 engine vibrates through the low-slung leather seats, up into the steering wheel.
I can literally feel how much power the small car holds.
The neon lights flash on the dash, and when I gently press down on the clutch, the engine purrs like it’s begging to be let free.
It’s a souped-up street racing car; pretty on the outside, lethal power hiding within.