31. Boden
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
BODEN
“OPEN THE GODDAMN DOOR, VANESSA!” I holler, flustered at being ignored.
I’ve been standing outside her apartment, beating on the door for over ten minutes. It rattles on its rickety hinges, but remains shut. Pretty fucking symbolic of how she’s shutting me out of her life as well.
Being back at her apartment after what happened last time I was here is not something I wanted to do, but she’s left me no choice.
Vanessa has been absent around campus, not showing up for any of her classes.
Same with the counseling center she’s been interning at as a therapist to get her required clinical hours.
And George at the deli told me to fuck right off when I came in looking for her before he launched a loaf of day-old bread at my head way harder than Vanessa ever did.
The only explanation I can assume for her absence in public is that she must be on lockdown after escaping Kirill and Mikhail. Can’t say I blame her. I’ve seen firsthand how terrifying these traffickers are. I’d go into hiding too if I were certain they wouldn’t follow me.
No, it’s best to play the long game, to squeeze every penny I can from the job to pay for the rest of my tuition and make something of myself from this horrid situation before attempting to leave the Black Market Railroad organization.
Besides, I’m not leaving without Vanessa. She’ll be more pliable after I pull her out of the sex ring, willing to forgive me for my past transgressions against her when I’m the hero in her story.
Kirill and Mikhail are lying low after the warehouse they used to hide our trafficked victims was raided. Supposedly, it was the Feds. At least that’s who was on sight when Kirill and Mikhail came upon the aftermath. However, none of Kirill’s men survived—the merchandise gone.
Feds might shoot a threat, but they don’t do a clean sweep of every perpetrator. Nah, someone else did the dirty work, taking out all of Kirill’s men like vermin before the Feds arrived.
Kirill is certain it was the Royal Bastards MC, considering the president of the MC was the one stopping them from taking Vanessa. Mikhail isn’t sure we can’t rule out the Mercy Ravens MC, who are known for busting trafficking rings.
Who do I think it is?
I have no proof, but I’m pretty sure it involves Cupid. The man is violently unpredictable. He seems like the type to walk into a warehouse full of armed thugs and unload on everyone.
Unfortunately for me, I can’t reveal to Kirill or Mikhail that I’ve had a run-in with Cupid before and that he has ties to my ex-girlfriend. I might as well dig my grave if I come clean about it.
Regardless of who’s behind the bust, Kirill and Mikhail are hiding—at my goddamn apartment of all places.
It’s not exactly relaxing sleeping in an apartment with Russian fugitives sharing the same space.
I can only speculate they’re staying at my place instead of Riley’s because they’re doubting my loyalty after they had caught me in my lie about my connection to Vanessa when I suggested her for the trade.
Being monitored by the traffickers only makes me more anxious about them staying in my home.
With matters involving Vanessa, I’m on my own. Kirill told me as soon as I can confirm her location, they’d make the grab. Until then, I’m without her, playing host to criminals and trying to keep Riley from getting into my pants.
“Come on, Vanessa! I know you’re in there.” There’s nowhere else she can be.
Obnoxious whistling cuts through the pounding of my fist on the door. A college-aged guy comes waltzing up to Vanessa’s apartment door, cutting his tune short and eyeing me with suspicion. “Can I help you?”
Annoyed, I suppress my eye roll and turn toward the guy. “Not likely unless you can tell me whether Vanessa is home.”
He shakes his head, pointing at the apartment. “Don’t know any Vanessas, but I can confirm she’s not in there.”
Shouldering past me, he inserts a key into her apartment door lock, turning the handle. It pops open, revealing a completely different space. For a moment, I’m floored, unable to comprehend what I’m seeing. I push past the guy, forcing my way into the apartment.
“Hey, man! Get out of my place,” the guy says, miffed that I’ve entered the unit.
Nothing in the studio apartment is as it was.
All of Vanessa’s belongs are gone. The shelves of books have been replaced with a large desk with two computer monitors and an oversized gaming chair in front of the setup.
Gone are her precious plants and the vintage pinups.
Anime posters line the walls now. Mismatched furniture has replaced her IKEA furniture, aside from the cursed burgundy couch she caught me and Riley fucking on, most likely picked up off the curb.
Vanessa is gone.
Panicked, I grab the guy by the front of his jacket. “The girl who lived here, where did she go?”
He shoves me away, brushing himself off as if I’ve soiled him by laying hands on him. “The hell if I know. I just moved in. Go ask a neighbor.”
“I have,” I snap, running a hand through my hair. “None of them are speaking to me.”
“Can’t imagine why,” he says sarcastically. “You seem like an absolute delight to converse with.”
“Fuck you,” I say, storming past him and out of the apartment.
“Fuck you too, man! Whoever Vanessa is, she dodged a bullet,” he shouts out of the apartment after me before slamming his door shut.
Heated, I punch the wall in the hallway of the complex as I leave the building, cursing and shaking out my hand.
Sonofabitch. I’m in trouble.
Kirill is expecting me to find Vanessa and make good on our deal. He’s already at the end of his rope after losing the property at the industrial park and all the people being kept there. If I can’t produce Vanessa, he’ll lose his shit on me.
A familiar car pulls along the curb near where I’m walking. The window rolls down and I hear, “Boden, there you are!”
I shut my eyes with a groan.
Fucking Riley.
Hasn’t the woman gotten me into enough shit without hounding me all the time?
It’s her fault I’m in this mess. Riley is the one who introduced me to Kirill and their fucked-up organization.
She’s the one who seduced me at my lowest and had me railing her into my girlfriend’s couch.
She’s the reason Kirill is breathing down my neck when the grab on Vanessa went sideways.
And now she’s here, tracking me down and potentially putting me in the hot seat with our boss again.
“Seriously, Riley, I swear to God, you need to piss off already,” I say with a snarl, stomping down the sidewalk away from her.
The stupid bitch can’t take a hint, following at a snail-pace in her vehicle. “Boden, please. I know you’re mad at me, but I want to help.”
I bark an unamused laugh, stopping to face her in her car.
“Every time you help me, I get screwed over. You shouldn’t even be around me.
Kirill probably has a damn tracker on you like he does my cell.
You’re lucky all he did was smack you around a little after he found out we had sex.
What the hell do you think he’ll do if he catches us anywhere near each other again? ”
Riley bites her lip, her eye glistening with unshed tears.
“Look, I know I’ve fucked up and you’re in this mess because of me.
I know it’s a risk being seen together, but your search for Vanessa will be twice as long if you don’t let me help you.
You don’t have the luxury of time before Kirill snaps. ”
“FUCK!” I shout, grabbing fistfuls of my hair.
As much as I don’t want Riley anywhere near me, I don’t have time to mess around with. Two heads are better than one when tracking someone down.
“Boden, I know I’m the last person you want to be involved with,” Riley continues.
“Yes, I like you—a lot. I’ve wanted you for a long time, and I’m not sorry we slept together.
If my circumstances were different, I’d want us to be together.
However, the best I can do is to help keep you alive, and that means finding Vanessa.
We’ll work as a team and bring her in together. ”
“Do you honestly think I can get anywhere near Vanessa with you tagging along with me? You’re the other woman.”
Riley flinches like I’ve slapped her. “I get you blame me for what happened between us, but I’m not the only guilty party.”
Don’t I know it, and I live with my guilt every second I’m not with Vanessa. “You’re right. It’s a mistake I’ll never make again. She’s my person and I need her back.”
Riley’s face pinches, turning red. She looks away before I see her cry. “I’m not convinced you’re meant for her.”
“You would say that,” I say with a sneer. “You’re still trying to get with me. What you cannot grasp is that I love another woman.”
Riley’s head snaps back to me, angry tears running down her face. “Right. You loved her so much you fucked me as soon as I offered it.”
“You came on to me at my weakest, like you were waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. Fuck you for throwing my mistake in my face, Riley!”
“We were not a mistake!” she fires back, gripping the steering wheel hard enough to snap it clean.
“I can’t talk to you when you act out like this,” I mutter, waving her off and continuing on my way. “I have enough shit to deal with without adding your emotions into the mix.”
“Boden, wait,” she hollers from her car.
“Not now!” I yell back as I continue walking down the sidewalk away from her.
The car revs behind me. Riley steps on the gas, leaving smoke in her wake. She whips around the corner, slamming on the brakes and halting me at the crosswalk where she nearly hits me.
“Are you fucking crazy?” I yell at her as she gets out of the car.
“Maybe,” she admits heatedly. “I care enough about you to risk Kirill’s wrath, so yeah.”
Exhausted, I let out a tired sigh. “Riley, we can’t work together.”
“Lower your voice when talking business out in the open,” Riley says in a hushed tone, reminding me eyes and ears could be anywhere.
Contrite, I grimace, looking around to make sure no passersby overhears our conversation before readdressing the issue. “As I was saying, working together will get us into hot water with the boss. We’re better off splitting up. We’ll be able to cover more ground.”
“Or we lose our only chance to nab her. Two against one are better odds.”
“She can’t know it’s me,” I say, shaking my head, uncomfortable with her suggestion.
Riley releases a conceited snort. “You honestly think you’ll want her after Kirill gets done with her?”
“I fucked you after Kirill ran a whole brothel of Johns through you,” I say pointedly, my anger simmering on the back burner.
Wounded, Riley’s lips pucker as if she is trying hard not to scream her head off.
“Listen,” I say, harnessing her attention. “I know you don’t believe me, but I love Vanessa. I need her to forgive me. If I come in as the hero?—”
“She’d have to be seriously abused to fall for it, Boden,” Riley says, cutting me off and shaking her head like she assumes my plan will fail.
“But she will,” I say confidently, manifesting it into existence.
Riley shrugs. “Fine. Maybe she will. But don’t count on it. And if at some point she finds out the truth…”
Hopefully, she never does.
“We should check the surrounding hospitals,” Riley says, climbing back into her car.
“It sounds like Artem and Mikhail had quite the scuffle with her. She may have sought medical treatment. If we’re lucky, they may have kept her for observation for a few days.
And if she’s not at any of the local hospitals, we’ll check the women’s shelter next.
Chances are high she could have gone there for a safe place to stay. ”
My eyes widen. Riley’s suggestions make total sense. Why the hell had I never thought about those places?
Guess it takes a woman to understand another woman.
I run around her car and climb in the passenger side. “Riley, you’re a genius.”
She gives me a pointed look, eyeing my crotch hungrily before meeting my eyes again. “You can thank me properly after we find her.”
Her audacity makes me smirk.
She can dream.