Chapter 30 Allie
ALLIE
Car horns blare nearby and an ambulance wails in the distance.
Voices echo between buildings as I drag my coat tighter around myself.
The Fortress feels tropical and warm all the time, but New York City is freezing in the winter.
I almost forgot how cold it could feel with the breeze whipping around the skyscrapers.
I walk slower than I need to. It’s nice being back here. A part of me thought I’d never get to see the city again. The Fortress felt like a prison I’d never escape from, right up until it started to feel like a home I never wanted to leave.
The city might be my first love, but I think my heart’s got room for more than I realized.
I keep my head down and my hands shoved inside my pockets.
I miss Rosie like crazy and wish she were here, but that was never realistic.
There’s no way I could pull off this mission with a toddler in tow, and I’d never put her in this kind of danger, even though I don’t really think anything bad is going to happen.
Still, she’s everything.
I fight the urge to walk faster. Better to blend in. Besides, I’m just on a stroll down a block I’ve been on a dozen times before toward a big residential building I’m very familiar with.
I slow once the brick-front row comes into view.
The trees here are skeletal and reaching toward the gray sky like fingers from the frozen soil.
An old man shuffles past with a little white yappy dog tugging at the leash.
Music blares from a car. A young girl’s got her face buried in a phone, and she laughs at something.
I’m not sure why I’m so nervous.
I cross the street and head up a stoop. The door’s unmarked. There’s a buzzer and not much else. No number, no name, nothing to identify it. That’s on purpose. This place never gets mail. From what I understand, it doesn’t really exist. Not officially, anyway.
I hit the bell and wait. When nothing happens, I hit it again and start counting in my head. If I reach thirty and there’s still nothing, I’ll walk away and just chalk this up to being wrong.
But the door suddenly unbolts, making me jump.
It opens a crack.
“Allie? What are you doing here?”
Gabe’s voice.
“I thought we should talk.”
He glances over my shoulder. When he doesn’t see anything, he opens the door slightly wider.
He’s unshaven. His cheeks are dark with stubble. His clothes are rumpled like he slept in them, and I notice the obvious bulge of a pistol at his waist.
“You alone?”
“It’s okay, Gabe, honestly. If Mass wanted to kill you, you’d just be dead.”
He grunts, jaw tightening. “Perks of being a Dragon.”
“Will you let me in?”
Another short pause before he finally sighs and steps aside. “Funny how hard I worked to get you here, and now you just show up all on your own.”
“I’m not sure funny’s the word.” I follow him into the house and close the door behind me. The place isn’t very well decorated. Mostly the walls are white and empty. There’s some random, mismatched furniture, but otherwise not much effort has been spent on making it feel like a home.
Because it’s not.
“How’d you find me?” he asks over his shoulder. We sit together at the kitchen table. “I’d offer you some tea, but I’m fresh out.”
“It’s your safe house. I figured if you weren’t at home, you’d be here.”
He scowls a bit and leans back. “I always knew it was a mistake to tell you about this place.”
“Oh, come on. It saved my butt more than once.” I smile to myself. “Instead of coming home tipsy, I could crash here until the early morning and then get an Uber back without Mama or Papa noticing.”
He taps a finger against his bicep. “I never liked the way they treated you. It always bugged me how they kept you in a little cage. Like Mama thought you should behave and accept your life just because you’re a woman.
But then you went and got pregnant, and I kept thinking, what if I hadn’t enabled you? ”
“It’s not your fault I got pregnant.”
“I know that. But I could’ve been a better influence.”
“You did great, Gabe, honestly. The pregnant thing was my own stupid mistake. I probably would’ve gotten in more trouble if you hadn’t been willing to cover for me a little bit.”
He looks around the room. “So where is your famously ruthless husband, anyway? I assume he’s pretty pissed about the whole jailbreak attempt.”
“I wasn’t in jail.”
“Weren’t you?” His eyebrows raise. “I watched Mass kill a man and marry you while still covered in blood. From my perspective, he insulted the five families and kidnapped you right in front of us.”
“I know, and I think that’s a big reason why I’m here.” I rub my hands together and shiver. “I begged Mass to send me instead of his soldiers. I told him you’d be reasonable.”
“Reasonable how?”
“First, I need to know something.” I blow on my hands and lean toward him. “Why Medved?”
His face tightens. He stares at me, calculating.
My oldest brother has always been the more cautious of the two.
That’s probably why he has a safe house only he and I know about and why he’s most likely going to inherit control of the Russo family operations.
Being the firstborn isn’t always a guarantee.
“Medved came to me around the time Mass took you. He told me that you were being held against your will, but he knew a way to get you out. All I had to do was help. He provided me with funding, information, and a connection to his insider. I put together the operation from there.”
“It would’ve worked if I hadn’t realized what was going on.”
“Why did you run?”
“Because Medved’s the real enemy here.”
Gabe’s face twitches slightly as he fights to hide his real feelings. I’ve seen that look before a dozen times, mostly when he’s doing his best not to show me how much he disapproves of something I’ve done.
“Are you sure, Allie? Do you really know that husband of yours?”
“There’s so much more happening here than you realize. Believe me, Mass isn’t perfect and his hands sure as hell aren’t clean. But whatever Medved told you, Mass isn’t the problem.”
“And Medved is?”
“From my perspective, yes.”
Gabe hesitates. He leans toward me. “What if you’re wrong? What if Mass has you all confused? He’s a liar, Allie. That man’s famous for saying anything to get what he wants, no matter how much it hurts people.”
I bite my lip. It’s hard to disagree with that. Mass kept the existence of Elias from me for a long time, and he didn’t bother mentioning that he’d been keeping an eye on me for years before we ended up in bed together.
“I need to know something before we keep going.” I cross my arms again. “Where’s Satya?” My voice hardens as I stare at my brother.
He returns my look. “I don’t know.”
“Bullshit. You saved me back on the island. You dragged her off.”
“After we got into the boat, I took us out into the water. Satya was livid when she woke up, but there wasn’t much she could do about it.
Medved’s ship intercepted us and brought us on board, and from there, I was sent back here to the city.
I don’t know where Satya ended up and I don’t really care.
I went into hiding after that. I figured your husband wouldn’t be happy with me. ”
His story makes sense. It’s more or less what Mass told me to expect.
But rage still simmers in me anyway.
That old bitch nearly hurt my daughter, and I’ll never, ever forgive her for it.
“Okay, I believe you. Here’s the deal. Mass is willing to take you in. He wants to talk to you about Medved. You have to agree to tell him absolutely everything you know. And I mean it, Gabe, you can’t lie to him and you can’t hold things back. Full truth or else.”
“If I refuse?”
“I think he’ll kill you. You’re not going to refuse though. I begged him for this chance. I pleaded with him that you’d come in without a fight if I went alone.”
He rubs his face with both hands. “I don’t have much choice, do I?”
“I promise you’re going to be okay.”
“I’m not worried about me.” His gaze is level and steady. My older brother is a strong, brave man. “It’s my family I’m afraid for.”
“I’ll protect everyone. You just need to come in and show Mass you’re playing along. You thought I was in trouble, and you came to save me. He won’t hold it against you.”
“I really don’t think you know your husband as well as you think you do.”
I push back and stand. A part of me worries Gabe’s right. Mass agreed to these terms, but I could tell he wanted to do this his own way, which would have involved a lot more violence and a whole lot of very protracted and brutal torture.
“Come on. Let’s get moving. We have a long flight back.”
But Gabe doesn’t move. He studies me for a long moment. “Tell me something before we go. Are you sure you want this?”
“It’s the only way you walk away unhurt.”
“No, I mean, are you sure you want to be with him? Are you sure you want this marriage to Mass?”
I bristle slightly. “It’s not as simple as you think.”
“But it really is. You two are married, and you get a say in it. Tell me now before we can’t speak openly with each other anymore. Do you really want him?”
“Yes, I do. I really do. Now let’s get moving.”
He sighs and pushes to his feet. “Lead the way.”
I take him back through the house and down the stoop. Outside, the evening looks as gray and cold as it did earlier. But now the block is dead quiet. Nobody moves. Nobody makes a sound.
I notice the people, though. Several are standing nearby. More are sitting in cars. A couple across the street. One on the adjacent stoop.
All men. All big. And all well armed.
Gabe notices them too. His eyebrows are up as he slowly raises his hands. “You weren’t joking. Your husband really does want me.”
I push his arms back down. “You’re with me, remember?” I say it loudly so everyone can hear. “Nobody’s going to hurt you.”
A man comes striding toward us. Mass looks beautiful in a pair of dark jeans and a black sweater. The clothes cling to his muscular body. He’s staring at my brother with a steady, intense gaze laced with hate and anger.
“There’s the traitor,” he says, low and steady. “I hope Allie explained that this is going to go smoothly if you play along. She’s the reason you still have fingers and a tongue.”
“I always knew my sister was a good person.” Gabe’s smile is strained. “I’m doing what’s best for my family.”
“That’s the only reason you’re still breathing.” A car pulls up. Mass opens the back door. “Get inside.”
Gabe gives me one last look before obeying. He climbs into the car. “Hope we can get to know each other some more, brother-in-law,” he says with a grin.
Mass slams the door and scowls at me. “I still want to cut out his tongue.”
The car drives off as I lean against my husband. “Please don’t.” I get on my toes and kiss him. “Exactly how many men did you bring with you, by the way?”
“A lot.” He pulls me tightly against him. “New York’s not entirely safe for us anymore, love.” His lips are soft as he brushes them against my neck. “We should get out of here.”
“You don’t want to stay? Spend a night together for old times’ sake?”
I’m teasing, but I can tell he’s tempted. “One day maybe, but not right now.”
“Your loss.”