by Sarah Bailey
I smiled when I saw her own one plastered on her face even though tears were still falling down her cheeks.
“Well, clearly I got Dad’s genes.”
She laughed and hugged me again. It felt so good to see her. I’d kept in touch, but it’d been too dangerous to see them.
“Cole.”
I looked up, finding all four of my dads standing by the living room doorway. Mum let me go, rubbing my arm after she’d turned to my dads with a smile.
“Our son is home.”
I closed the distance. Quinn gave me a pat on the back at first, but then he hugged me.
“Welcome home,” he whispered. “Your mother has been driving us half crazy for the past month since you told us you were coming back.”
“I’ll bet. I wasn’t going to miss Rora’s wedding. She’d throttle me.”
“Hmm, yes, well, that boy has certainly taken his time in asking her.”
I laughed and pulled back, catching Quinn’s scowl.
“Did he ask you permission for her hand?”
“You do not want to know that story,” Xav said, tugging me over to him and wrapping me up in his arms. “Trust me, all of us would rather forget it.”
“That’s not fair, I bet everyone else knows.”
“Fine, we’ll fill you in later at dinner, but it’s not pretty.”
“And yet he’s marrying her anyway.”
Xav laughed.
“Oh, you really have missed out on all the drama.”
I wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. My family drama could be a lot, especially when all nine of us were together. Our family had grown since I’d left. Duke had his lady love. Aurora was getting married. And Raphi? Well, he had finally got his head out of his arse and stopped self-sabotaging his love life. All that was left was for me to get Meredith to agree to be my wife.
All in good time. First, I’m going to stick it to that scumbag who ruined my life, then I’m going to marry my little queen. Make her the happiest fucking woman alive.
Seeing the fear in her eyes before I left made me realise how much I’d put her through. The pain and agony. It only made me more determined to make sure it was safe for us to be together. This time we would be permanent. I’d make it so.
Xav let me go so I could hug Eric. He smiled at me before enfolding me in his arms.
“You’ve been missed around here.”
“Missed you too.”
“How is she?”
I smiled. He was asking me about Meredith. My family had kept in touch with her, but it was more in relation to how she felt about seeing me again.
“She’s okay. Scared I’ll leave again, but that’s not going to happen.”
Eric nodded as I pulled away and squeezed my shoulder. Finally, I stood in front of my dad. He looked me over before shaking his head.
“You’ve been through the wars.”
“Like father, like son.”
That made him snort. Dad hugged me and I tried my best to keep my emotions in check. Being without my family had been tough even though they’d been there for me in spirit. All these years away from everyone I loved left me feeling alone. Some days I lost all hope I’d ever be able to return.
“Did you get what we needed last night?” Dad murmured.
“Yes.”
“I have what you asked me to get too.”
Dad was well aware of my resolve to do what was necessary to end this once and for all. Not that my parents ever wanted this sort of life for me, but circumstances forced my hand. Forced me to become someone who fought tooth and nail just to survive.
“Thank you.”
“Did you tell her?”
I pulled away and shook my head.
“Not the full story. She doesn’t know what you did to keep her alive.”
Dad gave my hand a squeeze. They’d kept it from her. Meredith hadn’t needed to know the lengths my family had gone to in order to nullify the hit the mafia had put out on her. They did it so she could go on with her life here and fulfil her dreams. I knew she was doing what she loved because they told me. They watched over her for me because I couldn’t do it myself. In so many ways it made everything worth the pain and hardships. It’d been my fault she was in danger in the first place. We’d done what we had to.
“Come, let’s move this little reunion into the dining room, we have a lot to discuss,” Quinn said.
The six of us walked through the house. I noticed they’d redecorated, brightening the place up with lighter colours. Unsurprising given five years had gone by and Mum would have wanted a change.
“I like what you’ve done to the place,” I said to Mum who’d come to a standstill next to me in the dining room.
“I haven’t touched your room. I know you don’t want to move home, but there’s always a place for you here.”
I nodded as we took a seat next to each other at the table, placing my backpack down on the floor which I’d retrieved from Aurora’s before I came here. It had everything I needed to show them regarding what I had discovered over the years.
“And Grandpa apologises for not being here.”
Considering my grandfather was now in his seventies, had retired and disassociated himself from the Russian mafia after everything which went down with me, I was hardly surprised. He and Lily were enjoying their retirement and didn’t need to be involved in this. My parents and I were more than capable of handling AJ.
“I’ll see him at the wedding so it’s fine.”
Aurora’s big day was only a couple of weeks away now. It was all hands on deck. I felt bad about pulling my parents away to help me with my shit. Aurora had told me not to be so stupid when I’d expressed my remorse over it the day I’d arrived home. She’d grown less temperamental since she’d been with Logan. I personally liked the guy. His family had a dark past like ours, so he could relate to the four of us in a way not many others could. Besides, he was just about the only person capable of handling my sister and her moods. That counted for something in my book.
“I wasn’t sure Logan would ever propose,” Mum sighed. “But here we are, my little girl is getting married.”
“Well, at least you actually get to be there for this wedding.”
She glanced at Xav for a moment before rolling her eyes.
“Yes, well, the less said about that the better.”
I snorted. I was so not going to dig into that right now. Definitely something we didn’t talk about or bring up often.
My attention was dragged away to my dad sliding a small box across the table towards me. His eyes twinkled as I picked it up, my hands shaking a little.
“You sure you got the right one?”
He gave me a look as if to say, ‘what do you think?’
“Okay, okay. I trust you.”
It didn’t make me any less nervous about opening it up. I set it down on the table and flipped open the lid. Nestled inside the velvet interior was a white gold ring with a round cut emerald in the centre. The setting was carved and encrusted with diamonds. It was exactly what I’d asked for. I stared at it for a long time without speaking. The thought of presenting this to Meredith and asking her to be my wife made all my words stick in my throat.
Mum leant her head on my shoulder, giving my arm a squeeze.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered.
“Do you think she’ll like it?”
“I think she’ll cry.”
“I don’t want her crying.”
“Happy tears, baby boy, happy tears.”
“We have to make sure I can stick around to give this to her first.”
“Oh, we will. Your fathers and I want you home and safe.”
It’s not so much I didn’t believe them, but five years on the run had eaten away at my hope this situation would ever end. AJ had a lot to answer for. A hell of a fucking lot.
I snapped the box shut and set it to the side. Th
at ring symbolised everything I was fighting for. A life and a family of my own without this bullshit hanging over my head.
I picked up my backpack and pulled out my laptop, setting it on the desk along with the documents I’d kept all these years. The folder Demetri had given me was worn at the edges, but I couldn’t let it go. I opened it up and set out the pages one by one. Most of them were photos of AJ and his dealings. There was AJ’s criminal record. All of his associates. Everything Demetri had kept on him. Whilst this was useful, it didn’t tell either of us how AJ had framed me. How he’d even managed to steal from the mafia in the first place.
Finally, I took out what I’d obtained last night. The USB stick which contained everything I needed to destroy AJ.
“This is everything I have.”
My dads looked over what I’d given them. Going through all the files on the USB and familiarising themselves with all I had.
“What do you want to do, Cole?” Quinn asked, looking up at me.
“Are you asking me if I want to deal with it personally rather than handing this over to the mafia?”
He nodded. It wouldn’t be enough for me to leave it to the mafia to deal with AJ. He’d stolen five years of my life. Perhaps what I’d gone through had twisted me, but I wanted to destroy him. Personally. Nothing else would do. It had to be me.
“No, I can’t. He’s taken too much from me.”
“Never any doubt who spawned you,” Xav said, giving me a wink.
“Do not start on Ror,” Mum said, pointing at Xav.
“Oh, don’t you worry, I wasn’t talking about him, angel. I was referring to you.”
Mum’s eyebrows shot up.
“Me?”
“Yes, you. Miss I want to murder the man who raised me in cold blood.”
“Xavier! Our children do not need to know about that.”
Her face went pink. I eyed them all, wondering what he was talking about until it dawned on me.
“Wait, it was you?” I asked.
Mum gave Xav a dark look before turning to me.
“We never wanted you to know about this.”
“Mum, did you kill him yourself?”
The whole table went silent. It’s not that I didn’t know my parents had taken lives before, but this little detail was news to me.
“Yes.”
“Oh.”
“Cole, it was—”
I put a hand up.
“You don’t have to explain. You needed it for closure, right?”
She nodded.
“Then I get it. And you can understand why it has to be me.”
Mum put a hand on my arm.
“I do, Cole. We all do.”
“Then you’re not going to stop me. I want to ruin his life like he ruined mine. I want him dead.”
I glanced around the table and none of them said a word. It was their silent acceptance of what I wanted.
“So, shall we make a plan?”
My parents were always going to be on my side regarding matters of our safety. Whilst I’m sure none of them wanted me to have blood on my hands, I’d suffered enough. No one fucked with me and got away with it. No one fucked with the people I cared about. And no one would ever threaten the girl I loved again. Not while I still drew breath.
Chapter Fifty
It was just after nine when I arrived at Meredith’s. I’d spent yesterday with my parents and today setting things in motion. It was only a matter of time now until I finished this shit for good. My plan was dangerous, but the risk was worth the reward if it worked. More than fucking well worth it. I’d be safe and so would Meredith. We could have our life together.
When she pulled the front door open, I could see the relief in her eyes. I didn’t give her a chance to speak, pulling her into my arms and kissing her. She didn’t object, clinging to me as if I was the very air she breathed and needed to survive. When I released her, she looked up at me with a sheepish expression on her face.
“Hey.”
“I told you I’d be back.”
Meredith bit her lip.
“Can you blame me for being afraid?”
I shook my head. She stepped back, letting me in her flat. She had the TV on but otherwise, the room was unoccupied.
“Where’s Jonah?” I asked as we walked over to the sofa.
“In his room.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Alone?”
“Nope, not alone.”
“Is it…?”
Meredith nodded, her eyes twinkling.
“And he didn’t want to come say hello?”
She shrugged, sitting down. I took a seat next to her and Meredith immediately tucked herself under my arm, curling her legs up on the sofa.
“Have you not seen him since you got back?”
“No. He’s been busy with your brother, but to be fair, I only flew in a few days ago.”
Meredith shook her head, wrapping her arm around my waist. It felt like no time at all had passed between us even though it’d been years. I didn’t know how to feel about her not getting annoyed with me over leaving her. It seemed all too easy. How could we just fall back into a relationship without addressing everything? Surely there would be more consequences for me with her than this? I didn’t want to ask in case I rocked the boat or upset her. It wasn’t like me to take things at face value. She might be okay now, but how would she feel when she knew the truth about everything?
“I saw my parents yesterday.”
Meredith looked up at me with a smile.
“Yeah? How did that go?”
“It was nice. I missed them a lot whilst I was away and I can’t really thank them enough since they saved us.”
Her brow furrowed.
“Us?”
“I told you, I left to keep you safe.”
She sat up, extracting herself from my grasp.
“I was in danger?”
I nodded, not liking how her voice had become strained.
“In danger how, Cole?”
I sat up straighter. She deserved to know even if I hadn’t wanted to start this line of conversation right then. I had no option but to lay it all out on the table.
“The mafia knew about you… who you were to me.”
She stared at me for a long moment without speaking.
“What does that mean?”
I looked away. This was the part she would hate, but I couldn’t blame her for it. There was never going to be an easy way to reveal it.
“It means your life was under threat. They couldn’t take me out because of their respect for my granddad.”
Meredith got up off the sofa and paced away. I watched her drag her hands through her hair.
“Let me get this straight, Cole. They were going to kill me for being your girlfriend, is that what you’re saying?”
I rubbed my thigh with my hand.
“Yes.”
“Why the hell am I still here then?”
I let out a sigh. Her tone made it clear she wasn’t happy with this revelation.
“My parents.”
Meredith stopped and stared at me.
“Your parents? What did they do?”
“Meredith…”
“What. Did. They. Do?”
Her green eyes had darkened and narrowed to slits. If I didn’t tell her, it would be worse for me.
“They paid them off so you could go on with your life, finish uni and fulfil your dreams.”
Meredith sucked in a breath. Then she threw up her hands and paced away again.
“I cannot believe this,” she muttered.
I watched her, unsure of whether or not to say more. It’s not like I advocated throwing money at a situation to make it go away, but we’d had little time to make a deal in exchange for her life.
It took Meredith a minute to stop walking around the room but she didn’t look any less agitated.
&nbs
p; “Why would they do that?”
“For me… and because they love you and think of you as family.”
She ran a hand over her chest as if hearing that physically pained her.
“How much?”
“You don’t need to know that.”
She took a step toward me.
“How much? How much was my life worth, Cole?”
I flinched. Meredith was priceless to me. She didn’t understand how that world worked. I’d protected her from the harsh reality of a life of crime. It wasn’t a world she belonged in. In all honesty, neither had I. Now? That was a different story, but I wasn’t going to get dragged down by it. When this was over, I’d be done. No more bullshit.
Rubbing my face, I tried to think of a way I could explain this to her so she could understand.
“Meredith, trust me when I tell you this isn’t about your worth. Their world doesn’t work in the same way as ours does. It’s about money, honour, debts and pride. It’s not like anyone could put a price on you. Not really.”
“How. Much?”
I looked down at my hands, resigned to the fact she was not going to back down.
“Two million. Half of it was what was stolen from them and the other half was to pay them off so they’d leave you alone.”
The room was silent for a long time except for the noise coming from the TV. I finally looked up at Meredith when I couldn’t stand it any longer. She was visibly shaking.
“Your… your parents paid the Russian mafia two million pounds to keep me safe?”
I nodded once.
“What the fuck, Cole? Where the hell did they get all of that money from? And why on earth would they spend that much on me? Are they insane?”
I stood up and stepped towards her. Her voice had got all loud and high pitched. I was worried her brother would hear. It’s not as if I thought Meredith wouldn’t tell him, but this was something between the two of us. I didn’t want an audience.
“They’re incredibly wealthy. Like insanely so, okay? I mean, I don’t know how much they’re worth exactly, but it didn’t make a dent in their finances. And I told you why already. There’s nothing they wouldn’t do for you because I love you.”
She shook her head as if she couldn’t believe a word coming out of my mouth.
“This is not normal. Parents don’t pay off the mafia to protect their children’s girlfriends.” She threw up her hands again. “I can’t believe they did this. Do you realise how this makes me feel? My life was fucking well bought. Bought! Like I’m some kind of fucking commodity. Jesus Christ, how am I ever going to face them again?”