Chapter 8 #2
A doctor. That I hadn’t expected. I thought about the options. “I’ve been shot, beaten to within an inch of my life, knifed in several places, including my kidney and smashed with a hammer on two occasions, so I think I can handle a knife wound.”
“Then suit yourself, but I’m going home.” She pushed me away, immediately reaching for the door.
I snapped my hand around her forearm, realizing I had blood on my fingers. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“What do you mean? If you’re worried I’ll call the police, I…”
“You will. I wouldn’t expect anything less from a woman who took an oath to save lives. However, I can’t allow you to do that.” A prisoner I didn’t need, but I couldn’t think of a more appetizing one.
“So what then? We’re going to stay here? Eventually, someone will come down that corridor and find that man.” Her eyes opened wide. “Oh, my God. There were two others. What happened? Are they searching for us?”
“I assure you while both men appeared as inept as I’ve seen in assassins, even they would have figured out where we’ve gone by now.”
“You murdered them too. Oh, my God.”
“No, Vivian. I merely made it so they’ll need physical therapy for the rest of their lives. To answer your direct question. At this point, you need to come with me. And we very much need to get out of here.”
“What? No way. Not a chance. We aren’t going anywhere. You can go wherever the hell you want.” She did her best to free herself from my grasp, her gaze falling to my bloody shirt. “Shit. Shit… You’re losing too much blood. Damn it. Why won’t you allow me to help you?”
“I’m happy you’re so inclined to help me, but I can’t risk being seen.” Once again, I thought about the options.
“More flattery. I took an oath, Kirill. That’s all this is.” Even the way she grumbled under her breath was adorable.
“Is there a storage room on this floor?”
“Of course. It’s locked. Why?”
“And you have the keys.”
Her nose wrinkled. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I need gauze. I need to check the wound and clean it. You might need stitches.”
“All items that are kept in the storage room. With your expertise, that’ll be all I need.” Fighting with her was getting nowhere and I needed to arrange backup. “Take me there.”
She glared at me defiantly.
“Don’t make me need to tell you again.”
“Fine, but I’m not happy.” Once again, she tried to take control by opening the door and I stopped her as I’d done before by wrapping my arm around her waist and pulled her around and in front of me.
Vivian shuddered in my hold, especially when I whispered in her ear. “You’re not going to do anything stupid. Do you understand me? Perhaps you’ve figured out by now, but in case you haven’t, you should know I’m a dangerous man.”
“A real criminal.”
“You’re right. Now, are you going to do things the easy way?”
Her nod was followed by a slight moan. I pulled open the door, pushing her gently into the corridor. All was quiet, no one within sight.
“Where is it?” I asked.
“To the right about ten doors down.”
“Let’s get going.” I stayed behind her so as not to draw any attention to my injury. Although with sweat beading on my face, it was getting harder to disguise the fact that something was wrong. When she slowed down, I pushed her again. “Move, Vivian.”
“You’re much pushier than I remembered.”
“Yeah, well, it’s not every day some asshole takes a shot at you for no apparent reason.”
“My guess is you gave him a reason. Men with guns usually do.” She made the statement from a place of knowing. While the scrap of information was nothing overt, it was enough to insinuate there were several layers to her personality and her life.
I didn’t like being kept in the dark.
As soon as she stepped in front of the door, we both heard voices.
“Hurry, little lamb.”
As soon was my heated breath washed across her neck, she stiffened, fighting with the keys. Where before she didn’t seem nervous, the reality of what was happening seemed to crowd in on her. She managed to open the door and I gently pushed her inside, immediately switching on the light.
Shuddering, she backed away from me as far as possible while I locked the door. When her back hit a set of shelves, she placed her hand over her mouth. Perhaps she was worried about what I’d do to her.
I glanced at the ceiling, taking gasping breaths. The knife wound was taking its toll. I moved to the only clear wall, sliding down until I was sitting on the floor.
“Shit. What in the hell am I doing?” she muttered while immediately moving to a few shelves, grabbing several items.
“Possibly saving a life.”
I’d adored her sassiness before and the way she tossed me a look with her eyes lit up, irises flickering in the lower fluorescent wattage. “Yeah, well, my oath didn’t prepare me for going against my conscience.”
“Oh, come on. We’re in New York. You can’t tell me that you haven’t been required to work on someone who you’d just as soon see die on the table as to save. A murderer, perhaps?”
“You mean like you.” Her arms were full of boxes and bags and she approached cautiously, noticing I’d pulled the gun from my jacket, keeping it beside me. As she crouched down, she constantly glanced into my eyes.
The spark between us remained, a crackle that she was trying hard to keep from becoming explosive. “I assure you that those I’ve killed were all deserving of their fate.”
“Oh, so you make a habit of trolling hospitals, hoping to find victims.”
Even as I laughed, the pain was biting enough a choking cough developed. To my surprise, she was deeply concerned. “Somehow, they manage to find me.”
“Why do I not find that surprising? Now, hold still. I need to take your jacket and shirt off. Okay? I need to see what I’m dealing with.”
I nodded, the ache dull but my arm was tingling.
She was gentle with her actions, her face contorted when she obtained a better look at the amount of blood soaking into my shirt.
With her gaze lifting to my face, I sensed an entirely different set of emotions, her concern more significant than just her position as a doctor.
As she began to unbutton my shirt, I crooked my finger, rubbing it down her cheek. Her flinch should annoy me. No one pulled away or denied me my desires, but as I’d felt before, there was a stronger connection with her than I’d felt with anyone else.
That didn’t bode well for the situation.
“Do you know who those men were?” she asked before easing me from the wall.
“Not really.”
“Not really means you have an idea. I hope you’re not going to burn down the city to try and find the source.”
Coughing, the flash of anguish forced me to grit my teeth. “Not yet. But the week is early.”
I sensed she had much to say, but concentrated on what she was doing. She unfastened my shirtsleeves, her eyes roaming my chest as any doctor would do when examining a patient.
Only when she removed my shirt altogether, something changed. Her body stiffened, her breath catching and in those few seconds, we were back in the lavatory sharing passion.
Vivian sucked in her breath. “Do you want a painkiller?”
“No. I can’t have my senses dulled.”
“Like I said, hardheaded. I’m going to clean the wound and it’ll hurt.”
“That’s fine. Do what you need to do.”
Her eyes raked over me once again and she nibbled on her bottom lip. She cleaned the wound, taking her time doing so. Initially, when I winced, she seemed angry she’d hurt me, but I could tell she was losing patience when I tried to touch her again.
The look she gave me was one I wouldn’t soon forget. Real concern and not as a patient. “The cut is deep. You’re going to need stitches.”
“Do what you need to do.” I leaned my head against the wall, taking several deep breaths.
There were two options of how to handle this, one of which I couldn’t do and I knew that.
Still, I would need to discover who she was in case she was somehow a part of the Ghost’s world.
Until I discovered everything that made her tick, her life would be interrupted.
While she worked, I made a call, getting Cormac on the second ring.
“Where are you?” he asked.
“Mount Sinai. I need a cleanup crew and a ride.”
“We’re close. Dante was insistent you needed help,” Cormac told me.
“He wasn’t wrong. How close is the house to being ready?” As soon as I asked the question, Vivian stopped moving, staring into my eyes with a hard, cold look.
“I think the cleaning crew has yet to go through, but the house is all yours.”
“Then that’s where we’re going.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll have someone get your things together.” Cormac was highly efficient.
“Perfect. Meet me outside the emergency entrance in fifteen minutes.”
He grunted. “Will do. What floor should the crew arrive?”
“Five. There are two who might be staying in the hospital for longer. Let them live.”
“Yes, boss. Will do.”
I tossed the phone, taking a deep breath. The injury hurt like a son of a bitch.
When the call was complete, her entire face held the same tension I felt.
“You’re going to need to have your bandage changed daily and in truth, I can’t promise you that your muscle wasn’t shredded. If so, you’ll need much more intensive care than I can provide here.”
“Understood.”
“I hope you do, Kirill, if that’s even your name because if you develop an infection, you could lose use of your arm. Who are you?”
Her question was to be expected. “Straight and to the point. I admire that about you.”
“You give me no choice. You took me hostage. Now, answer the question.”
“My guess is someone you would have preferred not meeting on your flight from Rome.”
She yanked a package from a box, ripping it open with as much anger as I sensed she was finished with hiding. “That’s not an answer. The man I met on the flight was a gentleman, kind and nurturing, treating a terrified woman with grace.”
“What makes you think I’m not that man?”
“Because I know your type.” She placed the gauze on the wound, pressing gently before grabbing a roll of medical tape.
“And what type is that?”
“A man who inflicts pain on everyone he meets.”
My laugh was followed by another painful wince. “Maybe you’re right. A function of my job description.”
“As a very bad man?”
“Put simply. Yes.”
When she was finished, she leaned back, still staring at my shoulder while her mind was spinning with possibilities. “Then I guess this is where I say I don’t want to have anything further to do with you.”
“You would be right, only that can’t happen.”
Now she jerked back as if I’d hit her. “Meaning what? You are not serious about taking me with you. I can and will keep my mouth shut.”
When I struggled to get to my feet, she did the same, taking a few steps away. “And as you might imagine, I can’t risk that. Which is why you’re coming with me.”
“Like hell I am. I have responsibilities here at the hospital, including likely cleaning up after your mess.”
“Don’t worry. I already have a team coming to do that.”
She laughed as if I’d been on Comedy Central and gathered the items from the floor. “So thoughtful.”
“I do try.” I moved toward the shelves, searching them.
“What are you looking for?”
“Something to wear that won’t draw as much attention as my bloodstained white shirt.”
When she didn’t say anything, I tipped my head over my shoulder.
She was staring at my back, her chest rising and falling.
With a roll of her eyes, she dumped the items in the trashcan in the room before moving toward where I was standing.
She grabbed two items, her anger evident.
“Here are some scrubs used by the orderlies. I suppose you also take what you want.”
As soon as she handed me the stack, our fingers touched and she sucked in her breath. But this time, she didn’t pull away. Her chest rose and fell, obviously under duress, but I had a feeling it had little to do with being fearful I’d harm her in any way.
She curled her fingers. Every time she backed away from me, it was as if she wasn’t certain she wanted to.
In truth, I craved her touch even if she was someone who could be working with the Ghost. An option that had to be considered.
Morning would dawn soon and the best scenario was for us to leave before it was light out and there might be a shift change. As soon as I began to strip off my clothes, she turned away from me, even placing her hand in front of her face.
Yet when I was in nothing but boxer briefs, she dared another look, sighing when she did.
“Do you like what you see, Vivian?”
“How could I? You’re a killer. You made what we shared tainted. So, no, I do not like what I see.”
“Then you’re lying to yourself since your body has already betrayed you.”
The snap of her head and the vile expression brought a smile to my face. She remained where she was, staring at me as if determined to prove she didn’t give a damn about me or what we’d shared.
I’d known many women in my life. There were some I’d enjoyed more than others, a couple who I’d thought about getting close to, yet I’d hesitated for reasons that seemed decent at the time. And one who had reminded me that I was a beast. However, when walking away, not one had been missed.
At least not after the first woman who’d laid her hands on me, making a lasting impression that I’d never forget.
To have this woman at this point in my life awaken certain emotions from deep inside seemed like a waste.
I could never allow her into my life, nor would she want to be tied to a man who made her job that much harder.
“Why are you in New York?”
Another honest question that deserved a decent answer. However, when I looked at my watch, it almost felt as if more than just time was running out. “How about this. I’ll tell you what you want to know after we arrive at our destination.”
“And where is that?” She was furious, her stunning eyes drilling a hole straight into me.
I noticed a bag on the shelf and grabbed it. “Here, fill it with some supplies you’ll need. Please.”
Her huff was exactly as I’d expect. “Why, yes, sir.”
“To answer your question. Somewhere safe in an environment I can control.”
She tossed a few items into the bag before stopping long enough to address what I’d said. “Answer me this. Is there anywhere I can go that will be safe from you?”