Chapter 30 Mauro #2
I don’t care. I shake my head. A life without Alina is not an option for me. I shake myself out of his grip and charge out of the restaurant, beelining for my truck. Just as I slide into my seat and press the start button, the passenger door opens, and Alex jumps inside.
I face him. You don’t have to come. I understand the danger and risk this poses to us, but I’m willing to take it. You have Clara to think about.
“I’ll always have my brother’s back,” he affirms, regarding me the way a big brother would. “And Clara will still have a father when we’re through with this shit tonight because I don’t plan on dying, which means you better have my back too.”
I nod. Always.
Facing forward, I step on the accelerator and peel out of the lot.
“We’re going to need backup, though.” He connects his phone to my truck, and his call echoes through the speakers.
“You’re late,” Vin says with annoyance. “I’ve been having to entertain Caine and Romeo while we wait for you.”
“You scared I’m going to beat your ass?” Caine asks.
“Shit. We forgot about cards.” Alex drags his fingers through his hair, looking at me. “I’m with Mauro and we…have a problem.”
“What kind of problem?”
“One that you’re not going to be too happy about.”
A moment of silence passes before Vin says, “Talk.”
Alex spends the next few minutes informing Vin of everything that has transpired, and when he’s finished, he says, “I’m sending you the location. How soon until you can be there?”
“In rush hour,” he starts, “probably a few hours.”
“Fuck.” Alex rubs his jaw.
“We can be there sooner,” Caine says.
“How?” Vin asks.
“I have my ways.”
The call goes dead as we race through traffic and eventually turn off an exit, getting closer to Alina’s location. When we come upon the dirt road leading to the private airport, I pull over, parking the car alongside a line of trees for cover.
“This place is going to be filled with guards. I hope you know what we’re in for.” Alex shakes his head, securing a silencer to one of his rifles. “With a lack of light, I might not be able to see your hands, so stay close.”
I nod and then reach behind me for my toys: one pair of brass knuckles and two handguns. Placing one gun into my holster, I look at Alex, who does the same.
He grasps my shoulder. “Let’s go get your wife.”
We step out of the car and make our way through the brush, relying on the moon and the stars as our only source of light, as we hide in the darkness, using it to our advantage.
“Ten o’clock,” Alex whispers as we approach the clearing. We both stop, crouching behind the bushes. We observe the guards rotating, circling as if waiting for an imminent attack. “I counted twelve, but I don’t have a good angle to see inside the hangar.” He looks to the right. “Follow me.”
We come upon a large tree, both of us utilizing it for coverage as we peer around, and when I do, my heart falters at what I see.
Alina.
Tied to a chair with blood trailing down the side of her face.
Duct tape is smeared over her lips.
And Kazimir looms over her.
My whole body shakes with rage the longer I stand here.
My feet begin to move forward of their own accord, but Alex pulls me back, shoving me against the rough bark.
“Not yet,” he hisses. “I know you’re upset, and you have every right to want to go down there and rip them to shreds. But if we don’t play this smart, not only do we die, but she does too.”
He’s right. Of course he is.
I nod, dragging my fingers through my hair as we separate and once again take our places. Alex sets up his Accuracy International AXSR, something usually reserved for the military. It’ll give us the chance we need to make a vital shot from a distance this far.
We sit in silence as we watch a private jet land on the runway and slowly creep toward the hangar where Alina is. Once it comes to a stop, the door opens, and a set of stairs is placed to the side by a few guards and flight attendants.
And then, I see him.
Fucking Mikhail walks down the stairs with his usual calm demeanor. Appearing as if all is right in the world when it is far from it.
He approaches Alina and Kazimir and speaks to them.
I consider myself a pretty adequate lip reader, but from this distance, it’s not possible.
“They’re telling her she can blame you for this predicament,” Alex informs me, tapping his earpiece.
We watch as Emil appears from around the side, walking toward them.
“Kazimir said…” He stops and swallows, and I look at him, arching a brow.
“Kazimir told her she was beautiful and Mikhail told him they don’t fuck blood relatives. ”
What?!
I pound the tree with the side of my fist, ignoring the ache that spreads through my bones.
Alex pulls his headpiece out and presses a button. Suddenly, their voices fill the space between us.
“We wanted to keep things simple, but now everything has become messy. And I really do hate a mess,” Mikhail informs her. “It’s bad for business, which means now it’s time to clean everything up.”
“And we’ll do that,” Kazimir begins, “by starting with you.”
“All you needed to do was sign over the land,” Mikhail says.
“You were supposed to sign over what was rightfully ours, and then we would have let you go on with your miserable, pathetic life. But then you backed out of our arrangement. Even knowing the consequences.” I watch as he crouches before her at eye level.
“Your father is going to be so disappointed to learn that you played with his life in your hands with such recklessness.” He reaches out, tucking a loose piece of hair behind her ear, and anger surges through me.
“Out of all the men on this planet, you chose a goddamn Alarie, which made things worse for you. You see, they took from us, so now, we’re going to take from them.
An eye for an eye. Or in this case, a girl for a girl.
” He pauses. “Because of them, we’ve lost a lot of money.
Too much money. But you… You will help us make up for that loss. ”
“Oh, I just love how this all worked out,” Kazimir muses.
“After you sign all of the paperwork to give us the land,” Mikail begins, “you’ll be working for us, starring in our next auction.”
Mikhail places his hand on her cheek. “There, there. It won’t be so bad. They will take good care of you.”
“Think we can get more for her, seeing that our blood runs in her veins?” Kazimir asks.
Mikhail drops his hand. “Possibly.” He stands and checks his watch. “I’m going to see what time takeoff is.” He looks down at her. “What a vicious twist of events your life has led to.” And then he walks away, heading toward the plane.
A black SUV pulls around the side of the building, and Emil looks over at it. “That would be her father. I’d better make sure he’s still breathing. He’s no good to us if he’s dead.” I glance at Alex, who gives me the same look.
This isn’t fucking good.
He walks away from them, leaving Kazimir alone with Alina.
My fingers clench into tight fists as I watch him stare her down.
“Mikail says I shouldn’t fuck you because we’re related, but it feels a shame not to test out the goods before others.
And besides, you know what they say… Durakam zakon ne pis’an.
” Kazimir drags the tip of his blade along her neck, pressing it beneath her chin until she lifts her head.
“I’m going to fuck you, dear sister, but the question is…
” He rips the tape from her face. “Should I fuck those soft lips, your pretty pussy, or…” He leans forward, brushing his lips over her ear. “That tight ass.”
Suddenly, she screams out, his hand dropping his knife to seize her neck in a death grip. And I can’t watch one more fucking second of this.
I step around the tree directly into view of the guards.
“Mauro, wait!” Alex yells for me, but I’m not stopping.
Because nothing and no one could stop me in this moment.
Swiftly, a bullet flies past me, heading directly toward the hangar, and all I can hope is that it pierces Kazimir and not Alina.
Confirmation is heard from the curses Kazimir screams out.
I sneak up behind the closest guard and, not bothering to use a weapon, I coil my fingers around his head and twist until I hear a snap, letting his body drop to the cold ground.
All the wrath within me brews tenfold, and I release an unholy sound into the universe, letting every motherfucker know I am coming for my wife. “Alina!”