“You know how it is, Sascha, I’m constantly busy.” I shrug, not wanting to get into detail. If I were to get started Sascha would be in my business in a heartbeat. He might be a guy but he’s as gay as they come. Nothing wrong with that since he’s an amazing person. I’ve met his significant other once before and you couldn’t miss the adoration he has for Sascha. He reminds me of Kronid in a way. Always glowering at others yet when he looks to Sascha, his eyes soften.
Now after clearing the air with Kronid, I get it. Sascha is the beating heart to his man as I am to Kronid.
“Well, you’re not allow to not come see me, you know this,” he says exasperatedly.
“I’ll try to remember, Sascha. Can I have two cappuccinos please? One for me and the other for Kronid.” Sascha also knew what Kronid drank so I didn’t have to go into detail with my order. Which works for me. Sometimes the other baristas don’t completely understand me and would mess up our order. One time they ended up give me a cold black coffee when I asked for an americano. Talk about gross. Nope, I like mine with cream and sugar. Lots of sugar.
“Coming right up,” Sascha says, giving me a nod.
“Thank you. I need it. I have a client coming in and I’ve been up all night. Could really use an extra shot of espresso in mine if you don’t mind,” I murmur. I know I’ll need it soon otherwise I’ll crash before I know it and I can’t do that when I have a client coming in soon.
“You got it, sweetheart.” Sascha nods.
“Awesome.” I grin.
“You want to tell me what has that smile on your face?” Sascha asks, placing one of the two coffees down on the counter in front of me.
“Uh, not really. I don’t know if I want to jinx what I’ve got going on right now. At least not yet,” I mutter with a small shrug. I enjoy what I have with Kronid and I’m afraid if I say it aloud my happiness will go away.
We may have started off in the strangest of ways but damnit, I’ve had a thing for Kronid for so long and I’m not ready for anything to come popping my bubble of happiness wide open.
“Alright, well, I expect for you to be ready to come out for our next night out on the town,” Sascha demands.
“Fine, let me know when and I’ll make sure to be there. I already told Meghan I would,” I state.
“I know you did, she told me and the rest of the crew,” Sascha says, waving his hand in a dismissive gesture. “But after seeing that smile on your face. A true smile, I’m not taking ‘no’ when it’s time for us all to go out again. And if it’s someone who put it there. You better bring them along with you. Got me?”
“Yes, I get what you’re saying. I highly doubt I’ll be able to get him to come with me, but we’ll see,” I murmur.
“So, it’s a he,” Sascha grins devilishly.
Damnit.
“Is it Kronid? It has to be. Oh my, it is, it is. I can see it in your eyes,” Sascha says, jumping with glee.
“Calm down before you give yourself a coronary,” I mutter. “It’s new so please just chill out some.”
“Oh, sweetheart, I’m happy for you. Coffee’s on the house today beautiful,” he chuckles.
“Thank you,” I murmur with a smile in place. I pick up the coffees and head for the door. Using my elbow, I open the door and step back outside.
I quickly cross the road and head back into Pins and Needles. Noticing Meghan is in the zone doing her thing, I head for Kronid’s office. As I pass the receptionist’s desk, I hear a woman’s voice, and it’s not someone who’s happy. “Why’d you choose her? I don’t understand it! I’m perfect for you!” Immediately my spine goes ice cold as this woman screams at Kronid.
Wincing, I stop right in my tracks. I don’t want to barge in there and interrupt whatever is going on. Whoever the woman is seems really upset and I’m not the type of person who deals with conflict. I never have been. I leave the coffees sitting on the receptionist’s desk and decide to head out for some air. It’s obvious I need it as soon as possible. I push open the doors and head for the tiny alley right next to the shop, lean up against the brick, and take in some deep breaths.
Whoever this woman is, she knows me and thinks I’m less than her. I’m used to being belittled but I’ve never done anything to anyone.
My eyes are filling with tears as my mind begins to reel with the possibility that she’ll get her way and Kronid will end up changing his mind. I hope not. I hope he cares for me in the way I care for him, and he’s said he won’t lie to me, so I know he’s being truthful with his feelings.
Finally, after a few peaceful moments I decide it’s time to head back inside and go into his office. Not only will I show him my support, but I’ll tell this woman what I think of her, even if I’m not a conflicting person. I start to walk back and a hand wraps around my wrist, tugging me backward. I open my mouth to yell at them but find my mouth covered with some sort of white cloth and as I take another breath to scream, my vision begins to fade until it goes completely dark.
Chapter Fourteen
Kronid
I stand here and take every heat filled word Lia’s throwing my way. Like any good man, I wait until it’s my turn to speak. Being interrupted is one of my biggest pet peeves, so I won’t do it to someone else.
“I can’t believe you chose her. What does she have that I don’t, Kronid? I don’t understand it. You . . . you’ve had me here for ages now and I thought that we . . . I thought we . . .” Lia trails off and I use this as my opportunity to speak.
“You thought what, Lia? That we’d be together? Let me make this obvious to you. If you were someone I was into in the least bit I would’ve made my move. It’s evident I’m with Dema, so why even come here and say these things to me? Huh? Why come here?” I clench my fist at my side, wanting nothing more than to slam it through a wall. The audacity this woman has. I doubt we’ll ever find her a good suitor based on her attitude alone.
Lia shakes her head and walks across the room, throws her hands up in the air and then turns to look back at me. Tears slide down over her cheeks and I have no idea why she’s reacting in such a way. While I’ve been nice to her, it’s my job to be kind to the women, just like it’s my job to give a damn about whatever’s going on in their life.
“You didn’t answer me,” Lia points out and she’s right I didn’t. Why? Because I don’t have to fucking give her any answer.
“Let me make something clear, Dema is my girlfriend. Dema is the one I chose. Not you. I don’t owe you any sort of explanation because I’ve never once led you on. I’ve been nice to you because it’s my job, Lia, not because I give a damn.”
Lia shakes her head from side to side and the tears keep coming. I don’t know if the woman’s stupid or delusional. It could be a bit of both. “I can’t believe this . . . I can’t believe I let this happen, that I let myself grow fond of you only to be thrown down and cast aside yet again.”
“Stop with the pity party shit. I didn’t lead you the fuck on, so don’t come in here and act like I have. Now, get your ass in line or I’ll talk to Katya and we’ll throw you back onto the streets. The choice is really yours, considering how you act right now is going to decide your fate,” I snarl, glaring at her with all my might. I’d never put my hands on a woman, but Lia’s disrespect toward me has really tested me. She huffs loudly and walks past me, opens the door to my office and slams it shut. After she leaves the air in the room is a bit easier to breathe and I head back over to my desk, but as I sit down, I see the time. Dema’s been gone a while now and it shouldn’t have taken that long to get a couple coffees.
Immediately I rise and head for the doorway, leave my office and shut the door firmly behind me. I practically always have it locked, especially since the type of shit I do isn’t the kind of thing other people need to know about. I walk up the hallway, passing a few of the artists and see Meghan’s standing against the wall looking at her cell. She must be on break, which is good for me.
“You seen Dema lately?” I a
sk her, not beating around the bush.
She looks up from her phone and giggles lightly. “If anyone should know where Dema is, Kronid, it’s you.” I sense the playfulness in her voice, but this isn’t a playful matter.
Deciding not to be a dick to Meghan since she keeps shit good in the shop here, I clear my throat and rephrase. “She’s been gone a while. I’m getting a bit worried, so have you seen her?”
Meghan furrows her brows and she shakes her head. “No, I haven’t seen her since she left after you two came in together. Hold on though,” Meghan turns and looks around the corner of the wall she’s standing against and calls out, “Vika, have you seen Dema?” Vika is one of the tattoo apprentices, everyone calls her Vika because her full name is Viktoria.
Vika nods once. “Yeah, she left a few minutes ago. I saw her set the coffees down on the receptionist’s desk.”
Sure enough as I glance over I see the coffees and my heart sinks down into my stomach. Fuck. She must’ve heard something that Lia said to me and if she didn’t, she wouldn’t have left. Dammit! Now I need to find her, and quickly.
Shit, what did she hear? Was it Lia in her jealous rage, or did she hear specific things? Dammit, regardless this isn’t good and I know she’s probably a mess right now. We’ve told one another that we’d hidden our desires and even with that declaration, this is still very new. We might be making it appear like this isn’t new, but it is, and given the circumstances I need to be delicate with her.
I pull my phone out from my pocket and call her, bring the phone to my ear and the ringing sound repeats over and over again until her voicemail message comes on. I call again, and again, and again until the phone is picked up and I hear an unknown woman’s voice on the other end. She explains she found the phone in the street and answered. I asked her where it was and she gave me the location. It’s right outside the shop.
I don’t know what’s going on, but I have a sick feeling hitting the bottom of my stomach and something isn’t sitting well with me. I don’t believe for one second that Dema would be reckless enough to leave her cellphone or drop it in the street, not when she has two elderly grandparents who depend on her.
Chapter Fifteen
Dema
I wake up to an ice-cold chill covering my body. It’s so bad I can’t help but shiver. It’s not uncommon for there to be cold weather here but as I look down, I realize nothing is shielding my body. I’m completely bare, not a speck of cloth covering me.
I’m in a dark room, one where I can’t make out anything around me. Everything is pitch black and creeps me out beyond belief. I want to get out of here. To move around, to maybe figure out where I am. Unfortunately, much to my horror I realize I’m not only naked in this room. With the slight movement of my neck as I try to understand my surroundings, a rattling sound echoes around me and the reality that I’m chained like a dog to the wall by my neck hits me like a ton of bricks.
This isn’t happening.
It can’t be.
Wait, no.
Could that man Rytas or whatever his name is have done this? Could he have decided not to believe Kronid and wanted to make me pay for what I saw him do to the man in the basement?
“Hello,” I call out as I hear some sort of noise coming from above me. I must be in some form of basement or cellar.
I need to stay calm, to not freak out. If it’s Rytas, I could simply explain he’s mistaken and Kronid and I are together. He would have no choice but to believe me. After all, Kronid and I are together, and we’re making a big show about being together in public, ensuring everyone around us believes we’ve been together for a while as well.
There’s something to be said of the irony of being chained to a wall. It fits closely to a story of what Burner, the tattoo artist back in the U.S. told me as he’d worked on my sleeve. How Ally, his ol’ lady, was forced to wear a collar around her neck. If she tried to speak or cry out while standing on a box with nails sticking out, the collar would dig into her throat and kill her.
I don’t think I could’ve been as brave as her, but she’d done it and survived. Ally had also told me some of her background while I sat in Burner’s chair. She must’ve felt I needed to hear her story since she’d seen the scars on my arms. After hearing she’d spent a majority of her life in the clutches of men who raped and hurt her, my own self-conscious feelings felt minimal to what she endured.
I decided then I wouldn’t allow myself to do anything else to harm my body. If someone as strong as Ally can withstand such traumas in life, I could make it through my own. I know I can get through this. Now, how long have I been here? I couldn’t have been gone long. I’m sure by now, Kronid must’ve realized I’m missing. At least, I hope he has. Otherwise, I’m screwed.
Kronid will come for me. He gave me his word he’d protect me and I’m willing to bet whoever is behind this will feel his wrath.
The footsteps above me become louder and I follow them until they stop. A door opens, shining a bright, white light into the room and it blinds me in the process. As my eyes adjust to the sudden illumination of the room, my eyes widen in horror.
It almost looks like the torture chamber of something you would see in the Tudors or Bravehart, as if it’s been plucked from some medieval time period. I don’t know much, but what I do know is that this isn’t good. Not in the least bit.
My eyes travel over the different objects filling the room before settling on the man coming down the stairs. This is not Rytas.
I don’t know who he is but from the sadistic smirk on his face and the evil pouring off him, I know I don’t want to be around him.
“It’s good to see you’re finally awake,” he cackles.
“Who are you?” I ask apprehensively.
“You don’t ask questions, whore, but I will tell you who I am. Since I’m the last person you’ll ever have the pleasure of seeing. I’m Maxim Volkolv.” He grins, taking a look around the room.
Maxim Volkolv?
I’ve never heard of this man before.
Why would he say he’s the last person I’ll see in my life?
Fear starts to take hold of me again as Maxim strolls around the room. His gaze stays pinned on mine while he runs his fingers along different pieces of torture equipment filling the room.
“You know I’m going to have great pleasure in what I have planned for you. I intend to make you suffer.”
“Make me suffer for what?” I ask without meaning to.
Maxim crosses the room in a matter of seconds and the back of his hand meets my cheek. “You do not speak unless I tell you to, whore.”
Pain radiates from my cheek unlike any other pain I’ve felt before. I’ve never been slapped in the face before so I bite my lip to keep from saying something else that might anger this man in any way. If I can keep him from hurting me until Kronid gets here, I’ll be okay. It’s the only sense of hope I have left in me.
Even as this thought comes to mind, I know there’s no keeping this man from hurting me in any way. This lunatic is going to kill me. For reasons I don’t even know.
“Good, you learn your place quickly,” Maxim snorts, his eyes leering over my naked body. His gaze locks on my pierced nipples. “You are a beautiful whore,” he states, lifting a hand to cup one of my breasts. The tip of his fingers pinch my nipple harshly, causing me to cry out in agony.
“You even sound like a whore,” he chuckles, releasing the pressure he has on my nipple and steps away from me. “Yes, I do intend to savor every moment I have with you. You’ll pay for what your father did to mine, so you’ll pay with your life in the end.”
My father?
He’s dead.
I mean I know who my adoptive father is. I don’t even know my biological father. I know nothing about him. As far as I know he gave his rights up to my mother so she could raise me the way she wanted to, and he didn’t have a problem with it. It was a mutual understanding. Or at least it’s what I was always told.
She
told me my biological father loved me in his own special way, but even he knew he wasn’t fit to be a father. So, they came to a mutual understanding. He provided for me and gave me the best life he could, and in doing so I lived in America with my mom.
I never asked questions about the man, because I had the best dad a girl could’ve had growing up. I guess being in this situation, I should have known who this man is Maxim is speaking of.
Closing my eyes, I try to block out Maxim’s voice. I continue to repeatedly tell myself, ‘Kronid will come’.
He has to. Without him I will die.
Chapter Sixteen
Kronid
My hands shake as I stand and look out through my office window with constant emotions plaguing my mind. It’s been four days since she’s been gone, four days of endless worrying, of me showing up at her grandparents’ home, helping them with the activities she normally does every night. They’ve asked me where she is and I’ve had to be honest with them, I’ve had to tell them I haven’t got a clue where Dema is, but my men are on the case. Even when telling them that I knew it wasn’t enough and still I stand, unsure of what to do next when every path we’ve gone down has only led to a dead end.
“Boss, I have something.” Michail’s voice comes from the other end of my open office door. I turn back and signal with my hand for him to come in. Within his hand he’s holding a thumb drive and comes over to me. I take it from his hand and insert it in the side of my laptop and hear the click of my office door being shut.
“What is this?” I ask as my computer recognizes the device, first scanning it for viruses.
“Video of the alley a few days ago. The woman who lives above the café had a camera pointed that way and we didn’t know. Sascha said the woman came downstairs and told him about it after she heard Dema went missing.”
Blood & Agony: A Dark Criminal Romance (Pins and Needles: Moscow Book 1) Page 7