Vanya #2
I stand, tossing my cigarette to the ground and grinding it under the toe of my shoe as I say, “Soon. This is a hurry up and wait process and I get that. But, can we just leave me outta all the shit til there’s a date and I can tell Kai?”
Vanya nods, “Da, Molodoy, we can. Go, see your Kai. He be here,” he pauses and chuckles as he adds, “soon.”
I growl, “I know. I’m gonna head back in. I do appreciate the help. I just can’t keep gettin’ updates and leavin’ Kai in the dark. I hate hidin’ things from him, it’s too much like lyin’,” I say.
Vanya motions for me to go as Cas steps outside to summon me. I head his way, only one thought on my mind, ‘Kitten’s here.’
Kai
I watch Dax swagger into the visitation room and my breath catches. I miss him so much and last month's overnight visit was such a tease. I want to go back to that room, free to touch and kiss, instead of sitting on these hard stools with eyes everywhere unable to freely be around each other.
As soon as he’s within reach, he pulls me into his arms, laying his head against my chest as I wrap my arms around him, kissing the top of his head.
Pulling back, I look down into blue eyes that I know so well and can see that he’s hiding something.
I lean in and kiss him softly. As I move to pull out of the kiss, he fists my shirt, pulling me in deeper.
He’s begging me for something without words but I have no idea what it is.
Finally breaking the kiss, we sit down and I reach for his hand, watching his knee bounce with nervous energy. “Khayos, you okay?” I ask.
He sighs, squeezing my hand, before asking, “Kitten, distract me. What’s goin’ on in your classes? Got any new friends? Talk to me about anything. Just talk.”
Pulling his hand to my lips, I kiss my die and start talking. “Well, as you know midterms are in a few weeks and I need a favor. And I need you to not freak out when I ask you to do it.”
Dax cocks his eyebrow and motioned for me to continue. I took a deep breath and blurt it out in one breath, “IneedtogonocontactfortwoweekssoIcanstudy.” I stop, taking a breath as I looked at him, waiting for his reaction.
Dax cocked his head sideways, “Huh? You need what?”
“Um, I need to go no contact for two weeks? I took time off of work and I’m only leavin’ the house to go to class.
And I promise, it’s just so I can focus on studying.
A-and as soon as I’m done, I’ll be here to visit.
My last final is that second Friday and I should be done by noon.
You can call me at lunch. We can talk again that night…
I really wanna do well and I am so nervous because the accident made remembering things… ” I start rambling.
“Ay! Kitten. Slow down. Breathe for me,” he says, cutting me off as he takes both of my hands in his, grounding me.
I pause and take a couple of deep breaths.
He continues talking, “If you can promise me that you’ll eat, sleep, and drink at least a big bottle of water a day, I’ll be okay with that. ”
I take a few more deep breaths, “I will. I’m so ready for school to be done for a few weeks so I can have more time for you. This is our first Christmas together.”
Dax smirks, shaking his head, “Actually it'll be the second, but someone was…”
I jump in, not letting him finish his sentence, “Doesn’t count. This one. This is the one that I wanna call our first.”
Dax’s eyes soften as he looks at me. “Damn, you’re sexy when you get excited about somethin’. So, what we doin’ for Christmas?”
I lean in and motion for him to meet me in the middle of the table, when his ear is close, “You’ll just hafta wait and see, Baby,” I whisper, smirking as I lean back
I had Andrei tattoo ‘Revel in the Khayos’ on my shoulder blade in a place that was easy to conceal for a visit. I have an appointment for a boudoir shoot this week and will be sending him the pictures for Christmas.
Quickly grabbing the collar of my shirt, he pulls me back in and sneaks a quick kiss on my cheek. Releasing me he rolls his eyes and says teasingly, “That was mean. Maybe I should tell Santa to put you on the naughty list, Brat.”
Laughing as we settle back into our chairs, I ask the question that’s been bugging me for weeks. “Dax, why are there investigators comin’ around askin’ questions about you, Mel and my accident? What’s goin’ on?”
His eyes slip closed as he squirms, ‘Dax doesn’t squirm, what’s goin’ on here?
’ I think, watching him, waiting for an answer.
When he finally speaks, he keeps his voice low, “Kitten, just talk to ‘em. Don’t worry, everything’s okay.
Honest answers only, and only answer what they ask about.
Okay? It’ll make sense soon,” Dax says, cracking his neck as he says the word soon.
“But, Khayos, why are they askin’?” I ask again. “We can’t afford this, can we?” I know whoever this ‘Otets’ is, is bankrolling a lot of this, but he’s already done so much, I don’t want to take advantage of his generous mood.
“It’s not somethin’ anyone’s payin’ for. And I’m asking you, nah, fuck that, I’m tellin’ you to drop it. Don’t ask Zak either. When it’s time, you’ll know and not a moment before then, ponyatno?” Dax asks sternly.
Dropping my shoulders, “Yeah,” I answer sadly, muttering, “I just thought we were done with secrets?”
Dax’s eyes blaze, “Think of it as a gift and not a secret. Just know it’s all good and when it’s time, you’ll know, Kai. Now fucking. Drop. It.” He says again, emphasizing his words and the anger lighting his eyes tells me to not push more.
We had come a long way and maybe there were some things he just couldn’t tell me right away. When he used ‘Kai’, I knew that if I pushed the subject it would turn into a fight, and I didn’t want to fight with him. Sighing, I rubbed my forehead and then looked at him, “Okay, fine, I’ll drop it..”
He visibly sighs in relief before replying, “Thank you, Kitten.”
We sat just holding hands for a bit, not talking, our feet intertwined under the table.
Wanting to be closer, I got up and moved around to the other side of the table.
Smiling, he leaned into me, his head on my shoulder, as I sat beside him, tracing the dice on his hand.
It was almost time for me to leave and it would be a few weeks before I would see him again so I was soaking up his smell and touch.
All too soon, they called the end of visitation. We stood facing each other and he reached out to cup my face, tilting my head so our foreheads pressed together and in a whisper, he says, “Kitten, I love you so much. Stay safe and I’ll call tonight to make sure you got home okay.”
“I love you, too. Doesn’t feel much like home though, something's missin’,” I say, kissing his forehead. I feel him melt into me and can’t help but think, ‘God I hate this part.’
He smiles as he pulls me into a deep kiss, wrapping his arms around me. I pull him in tighter, and as we break the kiss, he says, “I’ll be there with you before you know it, Darlin’.”
We break apart and he shoots me a smirk and wink, shooing me away with his hand, “Go on. Head out so I can watch ya walk away.” I blush, shaking my head as I turn and head toward the door. Catching a glimpse of the clock on the wall, I move a little faster so I don’t miss the train home.
Maddox
I tug at the collar of my shirt, feeling itchy in a suit and tie, as I wait in a room of the court house.
I didn’t tell anyone, not even Kai, that this was happening.
I miss hearing his voice and seeing him, but I was glad he asked for the two weeks of no contact to study and take his finals, it made it easier to deal with this without having to hide it from him.
They had done all the interviews, they had collected all the evidence, it was time.
Feeling the nervous energy running through me as I sat, leg bouncing frantically as I chewed my lip.
Feeling too fidgety, I stood, pacing the room, unable to stay still.
I jerk my head toward the door as it opens and watch as Zak steps in followed by the new attorney that actually gave a shit about me.
With just a few weeks until Christmas, I was hoping to give Kai the biggest gift of all. My freedom.
Zak took a seat as I continued to pace the floor. He chuckles as he says, “Calm down, Tiger. Relax. Sit. Mr. Volkov has under control. Are you ready?”
Pulling out a chair, I sit down, resting my head on my hands. “Yeah, I’m ready. Ready to be done with this. To just know if I’m goin’ home or not. I hate not tellin’ Kai everything and keepin’ secrets from him.”
Hearing this, Mr. Volkov looks at me and says, “Kid, you are going home. That is not question, it is the when. We will present everything today. The DA has signed off most of paperwork. Today is formality.” Eyeing him as this huge man walks toward me, clamping his hand down on my shoulder, “You have been through enough. Vanya would not allow this if it would go other way.”
I shiver thinking about what comes next.
I just hope I get to see Mack arrested. I also hope that I get out before Mack gets in.
If I’m still inside, I don’t know that Vanya’s men can prevent Mack from getting to me.
A sharp twinge reminds me of the last time he got a hold of me and I rub my wrist thinking about it.
The door opens again and we all look towards the door as a bailiff steps in letting us know we’re up. We head into the courtroom and I stand next to my lawyer when the judge enters.
“You may be seated,” the judge says before turning to me. “Mr. Mikhailov, it seems we meet again.”
“Yes sir, but under very different circumstances,” I say before taking my seat.
I’m halfway seated when Judge Bereznak stops me, “Why don’t you go ahead and take the stand so we can have a conversation?” he asks.
I look to my lawyer who nods and I make my way to take the stand, turning my chair to face the judge.