Chapter 27
Sera
I'm folding baby clothes, marveling over the tininess of the feet on the onesies when Adrian walks in. I smile at him, expecting him to say something light or sexy or even snarky.
Instead, he looks at me with a grimness I haven't seen in weeks.
"What's wrong?" I ask, pressing a hand to my stomach. I've started doing that as a grounding technique, and right now, with the way that Adrian is looking at me—like someone died—I need it.
"We need to talk."
"About?"
"Sit."
"Adrian, you're scaring me."
"I know. Sit anyway."
I do, gripping the armrests of the rocking chair that had been delivered yesterday. "What happened? Is Gabe dead?"
Instinctively, I know this is about my brother.
It's been three days since Adrian told me Gabe was working with the FBI.
Three days of trying not to think about it, of focusing on baby clothes and nursery plans and anything except my brother's betrayal.
Though Adrian didn't say it, I suspected he was now hunting Gabe.
And as much as I've tried, I'm not sure I can save Gabe from that.
But the idea still makes me sick.
"No." He moves to the window, hands in his pockets, back to me. "But I need to tell you something. And I need you to stay calm."
"Okay…" I take a deep breath, steeling myself. This just seems to get worse and worse.
He turns to face me. "What I'm about to tell you is going to upset you. But I need you to listen. Really listen. Can you do that?"
I nod, even though my heart is hammering.
"Eighteen months ago, Gabriel was arrested with a significant amount of cocaine," Adrian says, his voice calm. Clinical. "He was looking at serious prison time. Years. But then he was released. Do you remember that?"
I do. The phone call from the police station. The panic. And then, just as suddenly, Gabe calling to say he was out. That everything was fine.
I'd been ready to ask Mr. Bolinger for a loan to afford a decent lawyer, and then, poof, it was like nothing happened.
"He said it was a mistake. That they let him go because it was a minor offense."
Adrian shakes his head. "He had a significant number of drugs on him. Real prison time. They let him go because he made a deal. A strong one. The feds saw an opportunity to get someone inside the families since Gabe already had connections with the Morozovs through his gambling problem."
Lead falls heavy in my stomach, and my mouth goes dry. "He didn't do this to try and help me." It's not a question.
Adrian looks away.
"Well, I'm a fucking idiot," I snap. I've been holding a pair of infant pajamas, and I've been squeezing them so hard there are wrinkles deep in the fabric. "He told me the judge ordered him to go to rehab."
"Sera…" There's pity in his voice. "I'm sure—"
I shake my head. "No. Don't. He never even went to court. How the hell would he be ordered to rehab?" Suddenly, all the holes in Gabe's story are becoming apparent, and they are wide. "He didn't even need to be a good liar because I'm just so fucking gullible."
Adrian's mouth turns down. "My guess is that the FBI made sure he got a job on the docks, put him in a position to look good for the Morozovs. He had gambling debts, but they were minor. A few thousand here and there. Alexei would have let him work them off…"
My mind is racing, trying to process what he's saying. "I'm so confused."
"Gabriel got greedy." Adrian leans against the window. "My guess is he realized how the Morozovs clean their money and decided to start skimming off the top." He closes his eyes briefly. "The money he stole would have been enough to get him set up far away from the FBI and the Morozovs."
"But they figured out what he was doing?"
Adrian nods.
I feel sick as things start to slot into place. "So when Dimitri came after me—"
"He was using you as bait." Adrian's voice softens slightly.
"For a long time, I suspected your brother knew that attack was coming.
He led you into that alley, then disappeared.
You were the perfect distraction. By the time Alexei would have had you, Gabe would have been in the wind.
Alexei thought he was getting you for leverage, but he was playing into Gabe's hands. "
"He wouldn't—"
"He called you to that café. Told you he needed money. Made sure you'd be vulnerable. He knew he was being watched, and he knew you wouldn't be able to help him." Adrian crouches in front of my chair, hands on my knees. "I'm sorry. But your brother put you in danger. Deliberately."
"You don't know that. Maybe he was trying to protect me—" It sounds silly, even to my own ears, but I cannot fathom a world where my brother would do such a thing.
"By leading you into an ambush?" His voice hardens. "Seraphina, I need you to think clearly. Gabriel is a federal informant who embezzled from the Morozovs. He's desperate. Caught between the feds, the Morozovs, and now us. And desperate men do desperate things."
"What are you saying?"
"I'm saying your brother might try to use you as leverage. As a bargaining chip to get himself out of whatever mess he's created." His hands tighten on my knees. "I'm saying he's dangerous. And I need to know—" he takes a deep breath, "—did you know about any of this?"
The question hits me like a slap. "What? No! Of course not!"
"Are you sure? Think back. Did he say anything? Give you anything? Ask you questions about me or my business?"
"No! Adrian, I swear, I had no idea about any of this." My voice breaks. "He's my brother. I thought—I thought he was getting his life together. The job, the apartment. Until he asked me for money, it seemed like he was on the right track. For once."
Adrian's voice is gentle now. He looks at me with pity in his eyes. "I'm sorry."
I can't breathe. My baby brother. The one I would have done anything for, used me. Put me in danger. Led me into an alley where I could have died.
Where my baby could have died.
"I'm going to be sick."
Adrian moves fast, grabbing the trash can, holding my hair as I retch. Nothing comes up. I hadn't had lunch yet. But my body tries anyway, heaving with the force of betrayal.
When I'm done, I'm shaking so hard my teeth chatter.
Adrian takes me into his arms. His warmth envelopes me, but my bones are so cold, it's like I can't get warm.
"He could have killed me." The words come out broken. "He could have killed our son." I press the soft onesie to my body, wishing it was my baby.
"You're safe. You're both safe."
"Because of you." I look up at him. "You saved me. In that alley. You killed a man to save me."
"I'd kill a thousand men to keep you safe." His silver eyes stare at me with an intensity that takes my breath away. I don't know what to do with Adrian, but I know the truth in his words.
And that's what's hard. Adrian represents things I don't believe in, but I also understand that Adrian's violence isn't random or cruel.
It's protective. Possessive.
He kills to keep what's his.
And I'm his.
"I'm so angry," I whisper. "At Gabe. At myself for not seeing it. At—" I break off. "I brought this into your life. Into your family. I'm so sorry."
"Don't." His arms tighten around me. "This isn't on you. You didn't know."
"But I should have. There were signs. Things that didn't add up. I just—I wanted to believe he was okay. That he'd changed."
"That's not a flaw. You're his sister. You wanted to protect him.
" Adrian's hand finds my stomach, protective.
I like the feel of his steadiness on the swell of my belly.
It makes me feel protected, like myself and our son are the center of his world.
"Sera, you need to understand something.
Gabriel isn't going to change. He's not going to suddenly become the brother you want him to be.
He's desperate. Dangerous. And if he contacts you, I need to know immediately. "
"You think he'll try?" I shake my head. "Why though? He has a million dollars. Why not just leave?"
"He can't spend it."
I'm so confused. "What?"
Adrian twirls one of my curls around his finger. "He didn't steal a million liquid. The Morozovs sell opioids. He'd need to offload his merchandise, which he likely can't do without attracting attention."
Fuck. I close my eyes. My head is pounding, and I feel even more nauseous.
"What are you going to do?" I'm afraid to ask. "When you find him?"
"That depends on what he does next." Adrian tilts my face up to look at him. "But I won't lie to you. If he threatens you or our child, I will kill him. No hesitation. No mercy."
I should be horrified. Should beg him not to. Should defend my brother.
But all I can think about is that alley. The terror. The blood. How close I came to losing everything.
It would have killed me. I might have had complicated thoughts about my son then, but I loved him. Instinctually. Fiercely.
I love Gabe, but I'll protect my son and Adrian with everything I have.
That knowledge makes my next words easier.
"Okay."
"Okay?"
"If he threatens us, you do what you have to do." My hand covers his on my stomach. "This baby comes first. Not Gabe. Not me. Our son."
He nods.
"Our son comes first."
Three days later, Adrian tells me he's arranged a spa day. It's so sudden when he tells me I feel as though I have whiplash.
"A what?"
"A spa day. You and Gemma. Massages, facials, whatever women do." He's getting dressed for a meeting, adjusting his cufflinks with practiced efficiency. "It's all set up. Car leaves at ten."
I blink in surprise. He's been incredibly attentive, but he's been more protective than ever.
"Why?"
He turns to look at me. Really look at me. "Because you haven't been sleeping properly. Because you're barely eating. Because the doctor said you're underweight and your stress levels are concerning." His voice softens. "Because you look exhausted, and it's not good for you or the baby."