“I’m sure they don’t mind babysitting instead of patrolling,” he says with amusement, but I know that any of our men wouldn’t do anything unless they were cleared to do it, which means Alexei wanted them there.
I look around while they continue their banter and make sure that all the curtains are drawn. I know from experience that there will be a man outside each window. I want to go out and look for this asshole who thinks he can get so close to us, but I don’t want to leave Ruby.
“Dimitri!” My head snaps around to find Alexei looking at me. He inclines his head, which has me excusing myself and following him to the door. Lowering his voice so that the women don’t hear, he asks what I found out.
“Nik is at the hotel where the assassin is staying. If he goes back, Nik will be there to catch him,” I state. Alexei grunts in response. “As I said in my message, he’s after Ruby. We found a folder with photos and information about her. There was nothing to link him to whoever was paying him or a way to find out how he knew she was here. If we kill him without finding out who ordered the hit, someone else is liable to come after her.” Alexei nods in response. We always try to get to the bottom of an issue. Killing someone is the last resort. First, we acquire as much information as possible before we dispose of them, and I’m hoping it will be the same in this case. I can’t afford to have someone else after Ruby. I want to find who the person is who wants to kill her and why.
Just then, Vlad walks into the dining room, his eyes shining with fury. There is a cut above his eyebrow and blood on his shirt, as if he was in a fist fight with someone. “Are you okay?” Alexei asks immediately, concern in his voice.
“Da,” Vlad replies, but I see his eyes move towards the women before returning to us.
“What happened?” I ask when he steps towards us and is close enough for our conversation not to be heard by the women. They haven’t realized that he has joined us, and we will keep it like that for as long as possible until we know what is happening.
“We have the son of a bitch,” he murmurs. “He tried to blow my head off. Luckily, I turned in time, as you can see.” I look closer and see that the wound doesn’t seem like a normal cut. Alexei swears under his breath but doesn’t say anything else as he waits for Vlad to continue. “I have two men with him. He is a bit banged up but still able to talk.”
“We will be back,” Alexei calls out to the women, which has all of them turning towards us.
“Where are you going? The food will be ready soon,” Jade says, a frown adorning her face when she looks at Vlad and notices the blood on his face. “What happened to you? Are you okay?” She rushes towards us, the other two close behind.
He holds up his hands, taking a step back as Jade approaches. “I’m fine, just fine. This is just a scratch,” he says hurriedly as he looks at Alexei in supplication.
“No, you should have that tended to,” Raven says with concern in her voice as she raises her hand and turns his head slightly to see the wound better.
“Vlad, let them tend to you and come join us when you’re done,” Alexei says as he starts making his way towards the door. I squeeze Ruby’s hand as I walk past and then smile when I hear Vlad’s grumble about being thrown to the dogs. His expression is one of pain, but not from the wound. More from the faffing of the women around him. There’s a caged look in his eyes as he looks at us leaving.
“He’s not going to be happy about that,” I say, and see Alexei nod from the corner of my eye.
“He needs to calm down before he joins us again, and what better way than the ministrations of three women?”
“That’s evil,” I state, which has Alexei grinning in amusement. “He might be there for a while. They’re not going to let him go until they’re happy.”
“I’m counting on it,” Alexei says, and then stops and looks over at me. “You know Vlad. He has a hot head. He would probably shoot him before we could get any information out of him. I’m surprised he’s still alive at all.” He shakes his head and continues walking until we are entering the room where the assassin is being held.
When we walk in, the first thing we see is a man tied to a chair, and from the look of him, Vlad didn’t like being shot at. “I spoke too soon,” Alexei mutters as he also looks over the man’s condition.
Approaching him, Alexei inclines his head to the men, silently telling them to wait outside. “Do you know who I am?”
The man opens his swollen eyes and then nods.
“Why are you on my property?”
The man closes his eyes again and doesn’t reply, which has me stiffening. I need to know who wants my woman dead. I want to put an end to this, and if I must torture this motherfucker, I will.
“You have guns with you, which means you didn’t have good intentions, so I’m going to ask you once again. Why are you on my property?” Alexei looks over his shoulder at me and then inclines his head. “He’s all yours,” he states as he moves away towards a chair sitting against the wall.
“We know you are after one of us. The question is why,” I say, and he opens his eyes again and looks at me.
“I don’t ask questions,” he mutters, which has me realizing that he has an accent but doesn’t seem like Russian.
“So, you don’t mind just killing innocent people?” I ask, anger turning into fury.
“If I get paid, I don’t care who the mark is,” he murmurs, and then winces when I punch him in the stomach. The thought of this asshole killing Ruby and not even caring about it has me wanting to stab him repeatedly in the heart.
“Who hired you?” I ask, and he grimaces as he raises his head and looks at me, and then he quirks a smile that clearly pains him.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” he says sarcastically. I want to punch the smile off his face, but instead, I punch him again in the stomach so as not to impede him from talking.
“Fuck,” he grunts when he can breathe again.
“I will do this the whole day if I need to. Why not just tell me who hired you and this will stop,” I say. He looks at me again and then spits. I swear, all I want to do is kill him right now. I don’t know how Nik can do this. He has the patience of a saint. He can torture people for hours—days, even—without losing his cool. “Listen here, motherfucker.” I place a hand around his throat and tighten, seeing him struggle to breath. “You are going to tell me who hired you, or you’re going to die a very slow and painful death.” When he starts to wheeze, I let go of his throat and let him catch his breath. I need him to tell me the name. I can’t let him hold that type of information from us.
“Fuck you,” he says breathlessly when he finally can talk. “I’m going to die anyway, so do your worst.”
“I will.” In a way, I’m glad to be able to get my anger, my frustration, out on someone, but in another, I need to make sure not to go overboard, as I can’t afford for him to die without telling me what I need to know. I continue torturing him just enough to break down his resistance. A couple hours later, my jacket is off and he is bleeding enough to make him very uncomfortable.
“Just kill me already,” he says, his voice weary from the constant pain being inflicted on him.
“Tell me who hired you and I’ll stop, or this can go on for days,” I threaten, and his shoulders hunch in resignation as his eyes close. “Tell me.”
“Cristina Vlog,” he whispers. I hear a rustle behind me and know that Alexei and Vlad, who joined us earlier, are listening closely to his confession. Who the hell is Cristina Vlog?
“You want me to believe it’s a woman who hired you?” Alexei asks from behind me.
“Yes, she wants your wife dead,” he says, and looks directly at me.
“Why?” I ask.
“Don’t know,” he murmurs.
“Did she order her parents’ assassination too?” I ask, making sure it’s the same and only person after Ruby.
“Yes.” I look over my shoulder at Alexei. I don’t want him dead until I have checked that his stor
y adds up, but I will abide by Alexei’s decision.
“I want to verify his story,” I say, and get Alexei’s nod of consent immediately. “How did you know where to find her?”
“I got hold of the plane’s logs,” he mutters. I make a mental note to make sure to put something in place to cover our tracks.
“Go. Vlad will take him back to town and hold him. As soon as you have confirmation, let Vlad know,” Alexei says with a look at Vlad. I will verify if this Cristina Vlog is the person who wants Ruby dead, and if she is, I will personally put an end to her miserable life.
RUBY 18
I should be feeling more at peace. It has been just over a month since Dimitri and the others caught the assassin and promised me that they had information they were following up on and that they were sure they had found the person who wanted me dead. But instead, I’m agitated to the point of feeling nauseous from worrying.
Dimitri and one of his men left three nights ago for Russia. He said he would be back soon, but I still worry. When he told me it was a woman who wanted me dead, I was surprised, to say the least, but when he told me who it was, I was saddened. The Bratva had Cristina and Chris’s father killed, and because of that, they decided that one way to punish my father was to embarrass him by raping me.
When that produced more revenge by having Chris killed for attacking me, Cristina had my parents killed and now wants me dead too. The way I see it, violence only brings more violence, but as Dimitri says, he doesn’t see another way to end this except to put an end to Cristina. He refuses to listen to any idea of letting her live, saying that he’s not going to allow any chance of someone else coming after me.
“Are you still not feeling well?” Raven asks from the other couch.
I joined Jade and Raven a couple minutes ago in Raven and Nik’s apartment, as it’s going to be their little boy’s birthday party tomorrow, and we are all preparing the gift packs for the other children invited.
“I’m just stressed with this whole situation of Dimitri going after Cristina,” I say.
“He will be fine, and Alexei sent Andrei with him,” Jade says as she raises her head from the ribbon she is tying. “He needed this; you know how he was climbing the walls. Alexei said that if it hadn’t been for him stopping Dimitri, he would have gone after that woman as soon as he found out.” What Jade is saying is true. Since finding out that Cristina is the person trying to have me killed, Dimitri has been impossible.
Last week, I heard him arguing with one of his men. He wanted specific information that the man hadn’t been able to produce. This had ignited his anger. One thing I realized about Dimitri that day, though, was that he admitted when he was wrong. A couple hours later, I heard him phone the same man and apologize for his quick temper.
He has been kind and caring with me, trying to appease my fears at every turn, but I can tell this situation has him stressed. “I just worry because Cristina’s family is powerful in Russia. Admittedly not as powerful as the Bratva, but she would be able to get to Dimitri if she knew he was coming for her.”
Jade stands and comes to sit next to me on the couch. Placing her hand on my knee, she squeezes gently. “This isn’t his first rodeo, sweetie. He will be okay,” Jade says. She has been a dear friend ever since I met her. Since coming here, she has tried to make me feel at home, make me feel like I belong. I still don’t feel completely at ease with men around me, especially now that Dimitri isn’t around, but I know he has men keeping an eye on me while he’s away. I know he knows what he’s doing, but knowing that he’s in danger because of me has my stomach tightening again to the point that I think I’m going to be sick.
“I need air,” I mumble as I shoot off the couch and look around desperately, but before I can move, my vision starts to blur and my stomach feels like it moved up to my throat.
“Ruby,” I hear Raven call, but before I can answer, everything goes dark and I feel myself falling.
“What the hell happened?” I hear Vlad ask as if from a distance, but my eyes feel so heavy that I can’t seem to open them, and my head is still spinning around.
“She hasn’t been feeling well. She stood up, and then the next minute, she’s fainting into Jade’s arms,” Raven is saying. Fainting? I have never fainted in my life. What is wrong with me? “I’ve called the doctor.”
“Shit, Dimitri isn’t going to be happy when I tell him,” Vlad says in an angry mumble.
“Well, maybe he shouldn’t stress her out, then. Going away to kill someone isn’t exactly calming. Maybe you should tell him that he should have left it to the guys in Russia to deal with instead of going all out like a berserker,” Jade says angrily. “If you want, I can tell him.”
“Jeepers, Jade, draw your claws in. What did you expect him to do when he knows someone wants to kill his wife?” Vlad asks.
“You men are so dense.” I force my eyes open, and immediately my stomach lurches, but I’m able to hold it in.
“Ruby,” Raven calls, and then I feel her fingers stroking my forehead gently as she leans over me in concern. “How are you feeling?”
“My head is spinning and I’m still nauseous.” My voice comes out in a whisper, but I’m afraid if I speak any louder, I’m going to be sick.
“Don’t worry, we have called the doctor; he should be here soon,” Jade says, and only now do I realize that my head is in her lap. I try to sit up, but she gently holds me down. “Shh, lie still. Would you like some water?”
The thought of eating or drinking anything now makes me sick. I wonder if I have come down with some bug and the stress has simply made it worse. Before I can answer, I hear someone at the door and then men’s voices before the doctor is looming over me.
“Well now, I hear you aren’t feeling too well. You want to tell me how you are feeling?” he asks. The only thing I can think about is that he might want to touch me to decipher what is wrong, and I can already feel my body tensing at the thought of this man touching me. My stomach rolls again, and I gasp as my hand rushes to my mouth.
“Raven, bring something for her to be sick in, if need be. It’s okay, sweetie, I’m here,” Jade says, and then to the doctor, “She’s been feeling nauseous the whole day, but that’s because she’s stressed because of her fool husband, and then when she stood up, she fainted.” If it weren’t for feeling the way I do, I would laugh right now at Jade’s explanation and how angry she is at Dimitri on my behalf.
“Maybe you could all leave so I can examine Ruby,” the doctor says as he places his bag on the floor next to the couch and starts to open it. I’m going to be sick now. My body tenses when I see him pulling out his stethoscope. I hear Vlad moving away and know that he’s going to respect the doctor’s request. My head snaps around, and I look up at Jade and see her looking down at me. I’m sure she must see the anxiety in my look, because she gives me a tender smile and a slight nod.
“I’m staying with her,” she says as she raises her eyes to the doctor. I turn my head to look at the doctor, and see him frown at her statement, but he doesn’t say anything. Raven places a bowl down next to the couch, but then she also steps away and leaves.
“Well, then, let’s see. You are still nauseous, right?” he asks as he leans down and takes my hand in his. The touch has me wanting to jump up and run, but I force myself to take it even though my heart starts to race.
“Yes.” My voice comes out breathless, as if I’ve been running a marathon.
“How long have you been feeling like this?” he asks.
“For about a week,” I confess, but it hasn’t been as bad as today.
“Is it possible that you could be pregnant?” he asks as he lets go of my wrist.
“No,” I whisper as the usual pain tightens my heart.
“You seem very sure; you know contraceptives do fail sometimes.”
“She was told she can’t have children,” Jade says, which has the doctor frowning and then nodding.
“Well, then, let’s open th
e buttons to your shirt so I can examine you.”
I can feel myself starting to spiral. I don’t want this man to touch me. I don’t want any man to touch me except Dimitri. My breathing quickens, and I know I’m going to start hyperventilating soon if I can’t calm down.
“Okay, okay, relax,” the doctor says when he sees that I’m starting to lose control. “Just breathe, Ruby. Calm down.” But it’s easier said than done.
“It’s okay, sweetie, relax,” Jade says. “I think you should leave, Doctor, but thank you.”
The doctor frowns and shakes his head. “She’s clearly not okay. Of course I can’t leave.” I see his hand coming towards me, and I cringe in reaction.
“You don’t understand. You’re not helping,” Jade says as she slaps his hand away. I calm slightly at her aggressive protection of me, knowing that she won’t let him do anything I don’t want him to. “Relax, Ruby, just breathe. He will leave now.”
I try to regulate my breathing as I have done so many times before. I thought these episodes were over, but it looks like they were just dormant when Dimitri was around.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t leave. She is clearly in distress,” the doctor says.
“Vlad,” Jade calls out loudly, and I hear footsteps as someone approaches. “Please get him out of here.”
“What did he do?” Vlad asks suspiciously, and I see him glare at the doctor.
“Nothing, he just needs to leave now,” Jade states.
There is a short argument between Jade, the doctor, and Vlad, but he soon leaves, escorted by Vlad. “Will it be okay if we call a woman doctor?” Jade whispers. I hate that I freak out like I do when a man comes close. Since having Dimitri around, I have had a sense of security around me, and even though I’m still surrounded by that same security, I don’t have Dimitri.
“Sorry,” I say.
“No, oh no, don’t be sorry. If anything, I’m the one who is sorry. I should have realized,” Jade says. I sit up so I can look at her. I’m still dizzy, but not enough to faint again. Vlad approaches, a frown on his face.
Mayhem: Bratva Fury (book 3) Page 14