Chapter 55
Lana
All heads turn toward me as I wrap the blanket I brought from upstairs tighter around me. M stands up and walks over to me.
“You are supposed to rest for a little bit more. You can’t walk, you’ll get hurt.” His eyes are pleading and full of regret. He probably blames himself for my abduction, but he shouldn’t blame himself. The responsibility for that lies in my past.
“I can walk, ljubavi,” I tell him, even though my knees are still wobbly.
“Like hell you can.” M positions himself to scoop me up, but I take a step back and smile.
“You can’t be serious. I can walk.”
“I didn’t fucking ask, little hummingbird.” Before I can say something, he scoops me up in his arms and kisses me on the lips while carrying me to the oversized couch. He sets me down, gently, like I’m made of glass.
The sorrow in his eyes tells me everything—he wants to absolve himself from the remorse he is feeling.
He wraps me around in his arms and holds me tightly, while my knees are up to my chest. The closeness between us right now is unlike before. M has cemented himself as an integral part of my life in many ways. He is my protector, bodyguard, and the love of my life.
Shit.
“As I just said, my father holds those places dear to his heart.”
“Why?” Josh asks me.
I look down at my hands and do my best to sound convincing.
“When my mother was alive, we went to those places every summer. My father was very much in love with my mother, and he did everything for her.” My chest is tightening because memories flash right before my eyes.
M squeezes my shoulders, showing support.
I continue, knowing he is here with me.
“After my mother died, he decided to build offices in those places. They are legit offices for his legal businesses in the restaurant industry.”
“Sounds fair. And you can’t get your hands on that, right?” Josh continues with his questions.
“Exactly, because he is still alive. He probably has someone conducting his business for him. I’m afraid of something, though.” I feel all eyes on me, listening to every word I utter. “You burned down his prized restaurant. He’ll be looking for retaliation.”
“What was the significance of that restaurant?” M asks me, while he is stroking my hair.
“He built that restaurant for my mother.”
“Shit. I’m sorry, Lana,” Oliver apologizes because he is the one who set it on fire. I wave my hand at him.
“Don’t worry, he deserved it.”
“Did you see your father last night?” Sara asks the million-dollar question. I wish I had seen him.
“No. When I was done with Emin’s henhouse, I went back inside because the phone was ringing. I picked it up, and Emin’s elderly neighbor asked me to come to his house to help him with something.”
“So I went to his house by exiting from the door on the right side of his home.”
“That’s probably why our guy didn’t see you.” The realization hits them all at once. They probably know where I’m going with this.
“When I arrived at his home, three masked men were waiting, and then one of them hit me on the back of my head. I blacked out immediately.”
“Please tell me that we killed the bastards last night.” M is looking for retribution, and I nod at him. The relief washes over him.
“You did. They were men working for my father. I have never seen them.”
“I always had the feeling you didn’t know anything about your father’s lucrative business.”
“I don’t, M, but I knew some of the men and women.”
“Tell us more about your father. We might get to the bottom of this if we know how he started.” Sara makes an excellent point; one I intend to explain. Nothing wrong with that, right?
“My grandfather built this empire, and my father rolled into it. Grandfather dearest taught him everything. My father was exceptionally skilled in approaching his hits silently, but killing them in gruesome ways.” I realize now that there are many similarities between my life and M’s.
We both have fathers who aren’t here anymore, fucked-up family bonds, and unresolved anger issues.
“How did the stuff with the hands come into place? That shit is ghastly,” Oliver notes.
“My father, against all odds, was raised religiously. His mother, my grandmother, was a devout Christian and wanted to raise him in a household where God meant everything to them.”
“Don’t get me wrong, Lana.” Oliver shifts forward. “But isn’t it one of the Ten Commandments, or whatever, that you can’t kill anybody?”
“True, but my father was something else. After he moved out at eighteen, he started to interpret religion differently. It wasn’t enough for him to abide by His words; he needed to fulfill his duty as a servant of God in another light.”
“I get that, but why the hands, though?”
“It was his fucked-up way, and his call-off sign, of honoring God. And before you ask, no, I wasn’t raised religiously. My father left that decision up to me.” I look at M, and he kisses my right cheek. Affirming that he is still here. When I look at Sara, she raises her glass and winks at me.
“How did your mom come into the picture?” Josh asks me, picking up where Oliver left off.
“My father met my mother while he was on a job in Calabria. She was there on vacation. He fell in love instantly, and they married pretty quickly. After two years, I was born. We had the perfect life, even though I lived with my aunt.”
“How did it go haywire?”
“Well, my mother died a couple of years ago, and my father spiraled. He loved me, yes, but my mother was everything to him. Every single piece of happiness was tied to her.” I hesitate on how to continue, and M steps in to defend me.
“My love, you don’t need to continue now. You have told us as much as you can.” His heartwarming words touch something inside of me that I thought was completely dead. I shake my head because I need to get this out of me so I can continue with my life. I turn my attention back to Josh.
“I graduated, and I went back to Sarajevo to visit my father, and once I got home, it was abandoned.
My father disappeared. I think that my mother's death was the breaking point for him.” I can hear the wheels turning in their heads.
They are all processing what I just said. After a while, M breaks the silence.
“Lana, why is he coming after you right now? I know that you mentioned that a deal with another assassin went bad, but why you?” His question is valid, and it makes sense. It takes a lot for me to open up and be honest, but I try anyway.
“So, I told you that a deal went wrong, and that he can’t forgive me.”