Ruthless Doms Boxset

by Jane Henry

  Where did that come from?

  I stand still and listen when I hear another scream.

  I stare at the cellar door. It’s coming from the cellar.

  “Help!”

  Oh, God. It’s Yvonne. Someone has her in the cellar, and she saw me come from below. Her screams become muffled and I hear the sound of scuffles.

  Without thinking, I yank open the door, and race down the stairs. I should get Tomas. I should get Yakov, or Nicolai, or someone to come with me. I have no weapons. I don’t even have my cell phone. But when I hear her screams, I can’t help but run to her.

  She’s cuffed to a post, rope lashed about her body. Her dress is torn from her, and blood streaks her arms and legs. Nausea clenches my belly.

  “Oh my God! Yvonne!” A sob catches in my throat when I see her.

  “I’m so sorry,” she cries. “So sorry.”

  “You’re sorry? Why? Who did this to you?”

  “I did.”

  I know the voice before I turn to him.

  Andros.

  “He made me,” she weeps. “He said if I didn’t call you, he’d kill Yakov. I’m so sorry.”

  I was afraid that Ilya would be used as bait. Instead, he used Yvonne.

  I turn, terrified of what I’ll see. But when I look, he’s merely sitting in a chair with his ankle crossed on his knee. Ilya sits beside him, cuffed and gagged, but his eyes are furious, his face red, and I notice with sickening realization that a clumsy, blood-soaked bandage covers one hand.

  They use thumbprint recognition to gain access to the compound.

  Bile rises in my stomach.

  Andros used Ilya to get in here. Literally.

  “This is your fault, you know,” he says, shaking his head. “All these innocent people hurt because you left me.”

  “You’re sick,” I say, looking around the cellar for something to use as a weapon, but what do I possibly have? “I was never yours and I never will be.”

  “Ilya’s maimed now because of you and will likely be struck from service to his Bratva for betrayal.” He shakes his head. “This poor girl put up a good fight before she caved and agreed to call you. She was the one who told me you’d run here, and you did. Just like a little rabbit to a trap.” He grins and it sickens me. “And the man you call husband? He will pay for touching my woman.”

  “He will kill you,” I say, my voice wavering.

  “Why would they do that? They’ll never even know I was here, because you’re coming with me.”

  “Never!”

  He smiles. “You’ll stay with a worthless man who cheated on you?”

  “How do you—”

  Then I know. He orchestrated this. I don’t know the truth behind what I saw, but I know he set me up. He set us all up. I don’t know how or why, but I know now that I shouldn’t have run from Tomas.

  Andros stands. I forgot how tall and menacing he is, and I hate that my body responds instinctively in fear. I recoil, wanting to draw my hands up over my head to hide from him.

  “My husband didn’t cheat on me,” I say through gritted teeth. “You set him up, didn’t you? How far did you go to do it, Andros?”

  He grins. “You’re so pathetically attached to the asshole, I had to take drastic measures to get you apart,” he says with a shrug. “It was an easy matter to pay the whore to do it.” He suddenly grows furious, the smile fading from his face and his eyes wide with anger. “But you know what that’s like, don’t you?” He steps closer to me and reaches for me. I smack his hand away, and he backhands me so quickly my head snaps back and I lose my balance. Gripping the back of my head by the hair, he yanks me to him. “You know what it’s like to be a fucking whore.”

  I kick at him, but he’s too big, too strong, and I can’t get away. I don’t say a word, biding my time until an opportunity comes to defend myself. I can’t call to Tomas in the cellar. He might not hear me, and he wouldn’t be able to get to me in time. I have to wait until we’re on level ground again.

  I change my tact.

  Andros is a psychopath. I need to play this differently. And the one good thing I have going is that Andros is on our battlefield. Tomas has been hunting him. Now he’s here. Andros is sick enough that his anger could cloud his judgment.

  “I’m sorry, Andros,” I say. “I never should have left you.”

  “That’s right, you fucking whore,” he says, yanking me by the hair again. “I thought anyone would see that you weren’t worth it. I guess I was fucking wrong. But now that I have you back, you’ll never leave again.”

  “You’re right,” I say, giving him exactly what he wants. “I belong with you.” I’m physically sick playing this part. But I have to play this safely.

  “We’ll keep these two down here,” he says. “Useless pawns. Come.”

  He drags me up the stairs, and I scream when he yanks my hair. “Scream again and I’ll cut out your fucking tongue,” he says. I shake. He would.

  We get to the area just outside the compound. I can see a car approaching us and realize suddenly that it’s his car. But Tomas leads an army, and there’s no way Andros has silenced all of them.

  I look wildly around for a weapon, and finally see a large gardening hoe leaning against the cellar door. My heart skips a crazy beat. Maybe I can use it. I pretend to stumble, taking him closer to it, and when we get near enough, I brace myself for the pain that will come when I yank my head away from him. With a deep breath, I fall to my knees.

  My hair rips from my scalp and Andros screams in rage, but I’m louder.

  “Tomas!” I shout as loudly as I can. “Tomas! Someone help me!”

  Andros knees me, but I deflect it, elbow him in the ribs, and in the split second he’s winded, I grab the hoe and swing it with all I’ve got. It hits his stomach with a sickening thud.

  “You bitch!” he spits out, releasing his grip on me, and I swing the heavy tool again before he can touch me again. I hit him again in the belly.

  “Tomas!”

  It all happens in a blur. Andros is on the ground, raising his hands to protect himself. I lift the hoe again and bring it down with all my strength. Blood spurts from his nose and I hear the snap of broken bone, but I raise it again when strong arms grab me from behind. I kick out and scream, trying to shake them off me, when a familiar voice comes in my ear.

  “Leave this for Tomas.” I stop flailing. “You don’t want his blood on your hands. Leave it for him.” Nicolai holds me back, and Yakov stands on his other side. And then I see him. Tomas stands over Andros, his gun at his head.

  I’ve never seen such cold, calculated rage on his face before. His hand shakes.

  “Believe me, Caroline,” Nicolai says. “He wants to kill him.”

  “Cuff him,” Tomas orders, his gun still trained on Andros’ face.

  “You son of a bitch, you took my woman,” Andros says.

  “I’ll remember you called her your woman before I kill you,” Tomas says evenly, surprisingly calm. Yakov cuffs Andros and Tomas yanks him to his feet, then he looks to me. “Nicolai, let her go.” Nicolai releases me. “Caroline, come with me.”

  I do so gladly. I want to throw my arms around him and weep, but it isn’t time. Not now. I turn to Yakov and Nicolai.

  “Yvonne and Ilya are in the cellar,” I say. “He hurt her, Yakov.”

  Yakov and Nicolai race to the door, while Tomas drags Andros along with him. Tomas’ men have come in droves, literally dozens of them. The car that would take me is surrounded by men. There are shouts and cries and the sounds of gunshots, fists, and screams, but I can’t listen. I can’t focus.

  Tomas will exact his revenge, and he wants me with him.

  I’m shaking so badly I can hardly walk. I nearly killed a man tonight. I came so close to being taken from the only safe home I’ve ever known.

  My husband didn’t cheat on me.

  “He set you up, Tomas,” I say, as Tomas drags Andros through the front door and down the hall that le
ads to the interrogation room.

  “Of course he did,” Tomas says. “We’ll discuss that later.” Tomas’ men follow him on instinct, but he shakes them off. “No one but me and Caroline,” he says. “Get rid of every trespasser we have here but bring her brother to me.”

  My brother?

  “He’s here?”

  “Yes,” Tomas says tightly. “When we spoke earlier, I knew I recognized where he was, but it took me a minute to piece it together. He’s here.”

  I look around me, as if my brother will leap out and grab me at any minute, when Tomas shakes his head.

  “No, baby,” he says. Andros roars with fury but Tomas just shakes him to silence him. “He won’t touch you.”

  This place scares the hell out of me. I know what it is, as we had one in San Diego as well. The interrogation room. It’s stark, and outfitted for torture, with cuffs and chains and tables laid out. The walls are thick, the room windowless, the floors concrete. Designed for easy clean up and muting screams. My stomach rolls.

  “You will not see this,” Tomas says. “You don’t need to see this. But he does owe you an apology before he dies.”

  Tomas’ men stand by the door, awaiting his commands, as Tomas drags Andros into the room. I follow, and he shuts the door behind him.

  He forces Andros to his knees and puts the gun at his head. “You will apologize for harming my wife. For touching her. For assaulting her, calling her names, and threatening her safety. All of it. Now.”

  Andros glares at me furiously and says nothing. Tomas places his gun down, turns to Andros, and punches him so hard his head snaps back and blood pours from his nose.

  “Apologize.”

  “Why?” Andros snaps out. “You’re still going to kill me. Then do it.”

  Tomas laughs mirthlessly. “And grant you the satisfaction of an early death? I’ll send you to hell, but not until you’ve paid the price for what you’ve done.”

  I can hardly watch as Tomas hits him, again and again. Andros screams and Tomas doesn’t waver, until Andros’ eyes are swollen shut and his face is barely recognizable.

  “Apologize.”

  “I’m sorry,” Andros finally moans. “I’m sorry.”

  Tomas gives one short nod. “Caroline, wait for me outside the door.”

  Shaking, I stand to obey. He’s going to kill him and wants to save me from having to see it. I’m not sure that matters, though. I want to know he’s dead. I want to know he’ll never touch me again.

  “Let me stay, please?” I ask. I don’t recognize my voice. It’s hollow steel, detached and merciless.

  The door behind me opens. “We found him.”

  One of Tomas’ men drags Aren in the room.

  “You fucking bitch,” Aren growls at me, his face splotchy red in anger. “You betrayed our family.”

  I shake my head. “I did no such thing. You were the one who used me to pay off your debt. And you’re the one who didn’t believe me when I told you about Andros.”

  “I’ll kill you for what you’ve done.”

  I shake my head. “I’m afraid you’re mistaken, brother.”

  Aren’s eyes widen when he finally notices Andros’ beaten body, lying at Tomas’ feet. He pales. Tomas crooks a finger, and Aren pales.

  “Bring him here.”

  Aren is brought to Tomas. Tomas grasps him by the shoulders. He looks to me. “The choice is yours, my love.”

  Despite the sickening situation before us, it warms me that he calls me love. I watch my brother’s eyes widen in shock at Tomas’ words. Tomas loves me, and he wants my brother and Andros to know that before they die.

  A lump rises in my throat. It’s an end to an era of terror.

  “I want to stay,” I whisper. “I want to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that these two will never threaten me again.”

  Tomas nods once but says nothing. There are too many things to be said, but I know the unspoken implications. He doesn’t want me to see him kill them, but he leaves the choice to me. He will not shield me fully from Bratva life.

  I am wife to the pakhan, and I will face my new life beside him.

  Because he loves me, and I love him.

  “I love you, Tomas.”

  He stands taller.

  “And I love you.”

  I sit, unblinking, and watch my husband avenge me.

  Chapter 21

  Tomas

  I’m still wearing the blood-soaked clothes I wore earlier. Hers are tattered and torn, stained in red. Neither of us has changed or showered. We’re back in the privacy of our bedroom. Once we were certain that every one of the infiltrators had been dealt with, that our compound was clear and the bodies disposed of, when my cleaning staff had restored pristine cleanliness to every inch of our home, I brought her back with me.

  We sit on our couch, and she’s tucked up against my chest. At first, she shook, but when I draped my arms around her and held her, she eventually settled. I didn’t want her to witness what she did tonight, but when she asked me, I saw how much she needed it. How she needed to see the proof that the tormenters of her past were gone so she could put it behind her.

  I shielded her from nothing. I let her watch me beat the men that harmed her, to punish them for their sins against her. I extracted apologies. She accepted them. And she watched when I pulled the trigger. Twice.

  When they lay lifeless on the floor, she crawled over on her hands and knees and took Andros’ wrist between her fingers, feeling for the pulse. Satisfied that he was dead, she did the same to her brother. Then she got to her feet, trembling but certain.

  “Thank you.”

  I left my men to clean up the mess, lifted her in my arms, and carried her straight here. We’ve been here ever since.

  “You are brave,” I tell her, running my fingers through her hair over and over, until she sighs a little.

  “I was terrified,” she whispers.

  “Fear doesn’t mitigate courage, my love. Courageous people face their fears instead of running from them.” I hold her to me. “I’ve never known anyone braver than you.”

  I realize she’s quietly crying. “I can’t believe they’re gone forever,” she says. “Even when I was here with you, in the back of my mind I knew they could come for me. And hell, they did. The bastards.”

  I rock her gently, letting her process this. Giving her space to exorcise those demons.

  “I know, love,” I whisper. “But yes, they’re gone.”

  A few moments of silence pass before she speaks again. “I’m sorry I thought you cheated on me. I should have known better.”

  “He set this up well. He was conniving, orchestrating this from the very top. He hired her and hired someone to take those pictures. I have no doubt. He admitted as much. But I want you to know something, Caroline.”

  I take her chin in my hand and lift her tearful eyes to mine.

  “I would never betray you. You are my wife, and I will follow you to the ends of the earth.” I run my thumb along her scar, and gently brush my lips to hers before I continue. “I love you, Caroline. I thank my lucky stars to have a woman like you by my side.”

  “And I love you,” she says, placing her hand atop mine. “Thank you.” She blinks, and a tear rolls down her cheek. “I thought I was worthless. That no one would ever want me.”

  “And here you are, all mine,” I say. “Sweetheart, your worth is beyond measure.”

  I pull her to my chest and kiss the top of her head fiercely.

  “Now it’s time to put this behind us.” I stand and hold her to my chest, walking toward the bathroom. When I reach the tiled floor, I gently slide her down my body and begin to strip off her clothing. She allows me, lifting her arms so I can take them off. When she’s stripped, I take my clothes off as well. I lift the pile of dirty, ruined clothing, and shove them in the trash bin.

  Holding her naked body to mine, I turn the shower on. When steam billows around us, I take her by the hand and guide her into the
hot water before I join her.

  It feels good, the hot liquid scalding our skin like this. I turn her to face me. She lifts her chin and lets the hot water cascade over her head and face. I lift the bottle of shampoo, tip some into my hands, and lather her hair. She holds onto my shoulders as I clean her hair, then soap her body, cleaning every drop of blood, sweat, and tears from her. And when I’m done, she takes the soap from my hands. We don’t speak. There’s no need.

  First, she washes my hair, standing on the very tips of her toes to reach me. I bow so she can do the job. Then she washes my shoulders, her hands massaging the taut muscles until I relax under her touch. Next my chest, my back, and my legs, until she’s washed me clean as well. I hold her to me when we’re done, under the steam and heat.

  She whispers to me. “I want your babies, Tomas.”

  I blink in surprise. I can’t believe this is where her mind goes after a night like tonight. And what changed her mind? I hold her tighter. I know she has more to say. After a moment, she does.

  “The only way to fully put this era behind us and begin again is to start a family of our own,” she says. “To truly unite us. And the idea of bringing new life into this world pleases me now.”

  It amazes me how quickly circumstances can change. Months ago, I didn’t even know who Caroline was, and now I’m here with her, we’ve washed away the memory of the two men I killed tonight for her, and now we’re planning our future.

  She lays her head on my chest, and wraps her arms around me, as the hot water continues to pound down. “And you’ve wanted that from the start, haven’t you?”

  I hold her to me. “I want to see my children with your eyes, your laugh, your radiance and beauty,” I tell her.

  She doesn’t protest. Maybe now she actually believes me. If she doesn’t, I’ll whisper it in her ear when she wakes and sing it to her as she goes to sleep at night. I’ll tell her every single day until she knows to her core how much she means to me. Though she’s beautiful to me, her beauty transcends the physical. Her heart and soul are precious. I don’t deserve a woman like her, but I’ll be the best husband I can possibly be.

  I don’t speak this to her. Not tonight. But I will.