THE DEVIL’S BRIDE

by April Lust

  Fiona bit back tears. “Get going—I don’t want you to get caught just because we’re being sappy.” She wasn’t lying now, but she also wanted to make sure her persuasion tactics didn’t come up again.

  She told Niko she loved him and hung up the phone.

  “Why didn’t you tell Niko about your arrangement with Ace?” she heard Melanie quietly ask from behind her.

  Fiona closed her eyes, begging the Lord for patience. “I know what I’m doing, Melanie,” she said, turning to look at her friend.

  Melanie stepped forward, concern in her eyes. “I’m worried about you, Fiona.”

  “That makes sense,” Fiona said cynically. “There’s a high probability I’ll be murdered in the next few days.”

  Melanie rolled her eyes, frustrated with Fiona’s attitude. “That’s not what I meant and you know it. This guy Ace is bad news. For all we know, he could be worse than Alexei.”

  “Niko told me he would help us, and he’s helping us!” Fiona cried, conveniently forgetting she had accused Ace of taking advantage of her only last night. “How does that make him a bad guy?”

  Melanie narrowed her eyes at Fiona. “I’m trying to help you, so don’t pretend like he’s some romantic guy, dashing off to protect your honor, Fiona. Ace is an opportunist and he sees you as an opportunity, that’s all. When he’s done with you, he’ll move on.”

  “Please, Melanie,” Fiona scoffed. “You’re talking like I would want him to stick around. I know what he is.” After the way he abandoned her last night, how could she forget? She definitely wasn’t going to tell Melanie about that part—it would just add fuel to her fire. “I’m hoping he moves on. He and I made a deal, and the sooner it’s over, the better. Besides,” Fiona added, “you’re always after me to let loose, and this is a great opportunity for that!” She wasn’t ready to admit to herself how much she had liked what happened last night—or how upset she was Ace had left.

  Melanie shook her head. “From the second you met this guy, you’ve been acting totally different, Fiona. Ditching me, lying to your brother.”

  “That’s not because of Ace, Melanie. That’s because I’m doing whatever I have to, to keep my family alive,” Fiona said flatly. “Either way, it doesn’t matter. If I want Ace’s help, I have to have sex with him.” She was surprised to feel a rush of heat down below at the thought of Ace being fully inside of her. Fiona cleared her throat, hoping Melanie didn’t notice her sudden blush. “Since I can’t change anything, can we not talk about it? I don’t want to argue with you,” she finished, offering a crooked smile.

  Melanie pouted for a few seconds, then eventually smiled back. “Okay, okay. You’re right. We need to stick together if we want to get out of this in one piece.”

  Fiona fixed the corners of her own smile in place as she remembered what Niko had told her about Alexei. She wasn’t sure any of them were going to make it out of this, let alone in one piece.

  ***

  Despite the fact that it hadn’t rained in days, Paul kept feeling droplets fall on him from above, the cold wetness rolling down his neck and along his spine. No matter where he stood in the dark alley, he got dripped on.

  “Come on, William, where are you?” Paul grumbled, wiping the back of his neck with his sleeve.

  William was Alexei’s pet rat at the local precinct. Privately, Paul thought it was a terrible idea to entrust someone who so very obviously looked like a rat to do their dirty work, but no one asked what he thought so he didn’t say anything.

  Maybe that’s the trick, he thought as William turned into the alleyway, his headlights dimmed for covertness. Hide in plain sight. It’s never the guy you first suspect. He waved to catch William’s attention, pointing to a large garage door that slowly began to open to allow the driver to enter.

  Another droplet fell as Paul waited for the car to pull in, the large, wet bead hitting his nose and splashing across his face. He scrubbed at his eyes furiously, wondering how tetanus was contracted.

  “C’mon,” he said as William got out of the car. “Alexei wants to talk to you right away.”

  Paul desperately wanted to ask William if he had found where Niko was hiding, but he knew if he acted like he cared, Alexei would see it as a weakness. Alexei got rid of weaknesses.

  “Easy there, Paul,” William said, grinning. “I only just got here. I’ve been driving around for hours. Let a guy get a drink and a bite to eat first.”

  Paul didn’t say anything. He stared down at William for a moment, then turned, walking through the plastic flaps that separated the garage from the warehouse. William followed him into the other room, his little feet scraping against the concrete floor, echoing loudly.

  Huge shelves lined the walls, most filled with car parts, guns, and drugs. The shorter wall along the front had miscellaneous items: illegal plants and animals, and other valuable items the Russian mob had smuggled into the states.

  Half a dozen men milled about the room, taking inventory, removing or replacing merchandise. A set of metal stairs led up to a second floor where security oversaw both the inner workings and outside activity of the warehouse. Three men stood guard, two at the bottom of the stairs and one at the top. They wore heavy black body armor and held automatic rifles.

  In the center was a massive glass and metal coffee table resting on top of a large polar bearskin rug. Alexei was lounging in a white, plush leather armchair, toying with the four-carat diamond ring he wore on his thumb.

  Next to him, on a matching leather couch, sat Vlad. He was talking to Alexei about the remaining gangs that were still causing them problems downtown.

  “…I don’t see why you continue to tolerate them,” he said. Noticing Paul and William, he waved lazily.

  Alexei pointed to another couch for them to sit on as he replied to Vlad. “We have a lot of power here, but not even we will be able to escape unscathed if we do as you suggest and kill everyone we see on a motorcycle.”

  Paul took a seat, resting his elbows on his knees. He folded his hands to keep them from shaking.

  “Not everyone,” Vlad corrected. “Just enough to decimate them. They only threaten our business as long as they’re able to organize.”

  Alexei shook his hand dismissively. “We can finish this conversation in a minute. William,” he turned to address the man who still had not yet sat down, “what have you discovered?”

  “Have you got anything to eat around here? I’m fuckin’ famished,” he said, rubbing his stomach.

  Alexei held William’s eyes for a moment, then nodded to Vlad, who pulled out his phone.

  “How about a steak, huh? Well done?” William asked. “Thanks,” he said, winking.

  Paul tried to pretend he didn’t notice Vlad’s murderous stare. If he were William right now, he’d be wetting his pants. Vlad wasn’t the kind of guy you ordered around. Vlad was the kind of guy that would lay under your bed for hours, waiting for you to go to sleep, then suffocate you with your childhood stuffed animal just because you pissed him off.

  Vlad ordered the food, and William finally sat down.

  Alexei stared at him expectantly. “Well? Did you find Niko or not?”

  Paul felt Vlad staring at him and he made sure to keep his face carefully blank.

  “It’s only been a day, relax,” William said, putting his arms behind his head, his badge reflecting the overhead light. “Now, I can report the car as stolen, but they’re gonna want to talk to the owner of the car, which, from what I understood, was undesirable.”

  “How are you unable to find him?” Vlad asked coldly. “He’s a fucking junkie. Have you checked any abandoned houses lately?”

  “Hey,” William shot back, his voice thin and reedy, “it’s not my fault he left you in the dust after his sister damn near roasted all of you alive, and it’s not my fault he was smart enough to ditch his phone. If he’s just a fucking junkie, then you find him.”

  A knife appeared in Vlad’s hand so fast, Paul wasn’t even sure if
William saw it. Alexei reached over and put his massive hand on Vlad’s shoulder, calming him.

  “Find something for us to use, William. Quickly,” Alexei ordered. “And get your steak to-go, understand?”

  William’s face twisted sourly. “I’m doin’ the best I can with—”

  “Go,” Alexei repeated softly, staring William down. “Now. And don’t come back without new information. Useful information.”

  William stood up angrily, not looking at Vlad as he stormed out of the room, his small fists tightly clenched.

  Alexei waited until William left, then turned to Vlad. “I want that kid and his sister on their knees in front of me before the week is out.”

  “His sister, too?” Paul blurted out, instantly regretting it as Alexei and Vlad looked at him.

  He wished his cousin, Patrick, had never suggested working for Alexei. It had been wonderful at first. He got to work with one of his best friends and make a ton of money doing it. But then they got jumped, and Paul had been sure Alexei was going to kill him. Patrick had paid Alexei off, but the appeal was gone.

  Paul was being forced to do things that made him more and more uncomfortable—like the bird he’d had to kill. Alexei ordered him to buy a bird from the pet store and leave it dismembered on Fiona’s front step. Paul had done as he was told, but he threw up after.

  “She killed Denis,” Alexei said evenly. “Do you think that’s something we can just forget?”

  “No. I only meant that our original problem is with Niko. His sister was just defending him,” Paul said slowly, carefully choosing his words.

  “So you think we should punish Niko for his sister’s actions? Interesting,” Vlad said, thoughtfully tapping a long finger against his cheekbone.

  That wasn’t what Paul meant at all, but he thought he would live longer if he agreed with Vlad, so he nodded.

  “They can both be punished for each other’s actions. Either way, I want both of them here,” Alexei said determinedly.

  “We get it.” Vlad sighed, bored. He was always bored. “Now, can we please get back to talking about what we’re going to do with our little problem downtown? These bikers are like ants,” he said imperiously, flicking a speck of invisible dust from his knee. “You may only see one or two, but there are a hundred more waiting beneath the surface.”

  Alexei picked up his glass from the coffee table, swirling the vodka around as he thought on what Vlad said.

  Paul held his breath. If Alexei decided to make a hard push against the remaining bikers, what would he be asked to do next? He imagined it would be a lot more than killing and dismembering a bird.

  Suddenly throwing back his drink, Alexei swallowed quickly, slamming his glass on the table. “Fine. They all die. We start with The Hell Brothers. They’re the strongest right now. Then we work our way from there.”

  Vlad sat forward, his black eyes gleaming. “Yes!” he hissed, grinning with anticipation. Soon he would have more than enough to entertain himself with.

  Paul closed his eyes as he realized what Vlad’s glee would mean for some poor soul. Could he do it? Could he kill someone? Someone who wasn’t even threatening him? In a few days’ time he was going to find out, and if the answer was no…Paul looked at Vlad again, who seemed more enthusiastic than he had in a long time. He felt sick again.

  Quickly excusing himself to the bathroom, Paul hurriedly shut the door behind him, slamming the dingy toilet seat up just in time. He wiped his mouth with his sleeve. What am I going to do? he desperately wondered.

  Chapter 6

  Ace had told Katie he was going to collect intel on Alexei so The Hell Brothers could set up a plan to get rid of him, but that wasn’t exactly true. In reality, he was going to look for some kid named Paul.

  Fiona had mentioned her brother had a friend who worked for Alexei. Apparently that was how Niko and Alexei had ended up crossing paths. Paul was tied to Alexei, so Ace figured technically, he hadn’t actually lied to Katie.

  Ace sighed. What am I going to do about you, Katie? Her outburst today had been totally unacceptable. He used to think she was a firecracker when she would pop off like that, always setting him on his ass.

  Katie would yell at him for being stupid, then he would fuck her brains out; that was their routine, and it was one he liked. Then why didn’t you fuck her this morning? You didn’t even kiss her when you headed out the door. It was like you couldn’t wait to get away, the voice in his head taunted. Ace pushed that part of his mind away.

  He revved the motor, accelerating down the highway as he mindlessly zipped through the lanes. His thoughts circled around back to last night again, and how nice it had been to have a woman do what he wanted her to do for once. Soon, she’ll want to do it, too, Ace thought lasciviously as he headed towards Uptown.

  Once he told Fiona all the info he was about to dig up on her brother, she’d forget all about his early departure this morning. His plan was foolproof—as long as he found Paul. The only problem was Ace had no idea what Paul looked like.

  Pulling over into a narrow alley behind a row of shops, Ace killed the engine, silencing the echoing motor. He pulled off his leather vest that claimed The Hell Brothers title, leaving him in just a tight black tee. He carefully folded the vest and placed it in one of the side saddlebags on his bike, throwing his do-rag on top.

  Tousling his auburn hair, Ace stuck one hand in his pocket and casually slung his backpack over his shoulder. He walked out of the alley, heading down the street to the warehouse district where he knew the Russians did their business.

  Finding an abandoned warehouse, Ace climbed up the fire escape to stand on the roof. The building was tall, making a good vantage point. He unzipped his bag and pulled out a pair of binoculars. He didn’t know where Alexei’s place was, but Alexei wasn’t a very smart guy. Ace was confident he could figure it out.

  Sure enough, in less than thirty minutes Ace noticed a steady stream of fancy cars heading in and out of one of the smaller buildings, as well as a suspicious number of men in graphic tees and leather pants that were far too snug.

  Twenty minutes after that, a young man exited one of the side doors and began to pace back and forth, looking extremely nervous. Ace had seen that look before—it was one of a man way out of his depth. He had found Paul.

  Ace quickly climbed back down the fire escape, taking the long way around to wind up on the same street as Paul. He didn’t want to walk too fast, or he would attract unwanted attention, but if he took too long, Paul would go back inside. Luck was with him today, and when Ace rounded the corner he spotted Paul, who was now agitatedly sucking down a cigarette.

  Staying in the shadow of the building, Ace pulled down his sunglasses to cover his eyes and began to casually wave at Paul, as if they were old pals, patiently waiting for him to notice. When he didn’t, Ace called to him from across the street, without a care in the world to who might be listening, apparently.

  Paul lit a cigarette, rapidly pacing back and forth as he tried to come up with a plan. Niko was going to die if he didn’t help him, and now his sister, too. But if he went against Alexei, it would most likely result in him only joining the two in a sudden, fiery car accident.

  He jerked his head up, hearing someone shout his name. Paul hastily looked around, spotting a dark-haired man in a black shirt on the street corner. He squinted, but couldn’t make out who the man was; he had a pair of over-sized sunglasses on that covered half of his face.

  He waved again, and gestured that he would cross the street to come to Paul. Paul felt his body temperature drop five degrees. That would not fly with Alexei. He’d kill this man for trespassing on his property, and beat Paul half to death for letting him.

  Paul waved back to the man hurriedly, motioning for him to stay where he was. The last thing he wanted was another accidental death on his conscience. He looked around to double check no one else was around, then jogged across the street to figure out who this man was.

  The second P
aul stepped into the shadow of the building, and outside any watchful eyes’ view, Ace grabbed his shirt and slammed him into the wall.

  “What the fu—” Paul started to exclaim, frantically trying to shove the stranger away.

  Ace shook him firmly to hold still, cutting him off. “Are you Paul Ivanov?” he asked, or perhaps threatened.

  “Yes, m-my name is Paul,” he stammered out. He had a feeling the man would be able to tell if he was lying.

  Miraculously, the giant fists holding him hostage relaxed and let go. Paul knew they would have him again quick as lighting if he tried to run, though.

  “You friends with Niko Brown?” the man asked suspiciously.

  Is this a trap? Paul wondered. Does this guy work for Alexei? Maybe Alexei’s testing me to see where my loyalties lie. He looked at the man in front of him again. Paul decided to play it straight. He took a deep breath. “Yes,” he said resolutely. “Niko is my friend.”