by Sienna Mynx
He released her. She rubbed the soreness from her arm. “My name is Angela Brown. You’re paranoid. I don’t know your brother. These Russians. None of it. But I’m not stupid either. They aren’t business men. They are thugs. And if you get involved with something illegal I’m out. I don’t want any part of it.”
“You’re lying.”
“Christ! I am not!”
“You’re not who you’re pretending to be. And you don’t give a shit about the risks. So you’re not out. You’ll go the distance, because you want something. And one day soon I’m going to figure out what that something is.”
She threw up her hands in defeat. She paced the floor. She almost considered confessing to what she and Daniel had been up too. Or even better revealing how they were really connected. But something held her back.
“You were antagonizing him at the dinner.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“Yes you were! Why? Why antagonize the man. He looks dangerous.”
“I didn’t like the way he kept looking at you,” Tarek mumbled. “It pissed me off.”
“What? Why would you care if you think I’m some fucking spy?”
“Never mind,” he dismissed his concern.
She intended to press him but there was a knock at the door. Tarek collected his coat and gloves.
“Tarek? You can trust me. I swear it. But don’t leave me alone in here.”
He glanced at her and then shook his head. “Lock the door behind me. Don’t open it for anyone but me. No matter what is said to you. Do you understand?”
“No. I don’t understand any of it.”
The knocking on the door turned into banging. Tarek opened the door and three men walked inside. They were stone faced. Tarek put on his coat and gloves. He glanced her way.
“Remember what I told you,” he said before he left. Kassidy immediately locked the door. She put her ear to it. She could hear the men footfalls fade away. She turned away from the door and went to the bed. There she sat on the edge with her heart still racing. What was she supposed to do now? She needed to talk to Daniel. To figure this mess out.
Kassidy went to her bag and got out her cellphone. She tried for a signal and to her horror she didn’t have one.
“Shit!”
It dawned on her that she was helpless. And that’s what Tarek wanted.
Chapter 7
They used three different snowmobiles to head for their meeting. Ice roads were built between the camp houses and the oil rigs to protect the environment. The men only traveled this way. To veer off any of the roads in a snow storm of this nature could mean certain death.
“When did production stop?” Tarek asked the man who drove him.
“A week and a half ago. We are going crazy out here. The storm is expected to pass in a few days. Until then no one can work.”
“But LuxeOil pulled the plug before the storm?”
The man nodded. “Yea, we were worried. These men all have families back home to support. Yegor says when the storm passes we will be back on the rig. I believe him.”
Tarek pulled back his sleeve. He checked the time. He didn’t want to leave her alone for too long. But there was no way to avoid it. Earlier he put her to the test. Pushed hard for answers. And nothing changed. He considered that she was telling him the truth. He just couldn’t be sure.
The caravan stopped at a command post that was an extension to the rig. It looked to Tarek that they would have to walk the rest of the way in.
“Where is the LuxeOil camp?”
“On the other side of the rig,” the man said.
Tarek didn’t question why they needed to make the journey in the middle of the blizzard. He knew the price to pay to get Yegor’s allegiance would be costly. The Russians considered a business merger of this kind a debt. And when the person was untrustworthy as his family had been they required a sizeable deposit to earn trust. That deposit could be anything.
The man next to him passed him a pair of goggles. “Put these on.”
Tarek did as he was told and then pulled up his ski mask to cover his mouth and nose. Once out of the mobile he brought up his hood. Yegor was out and walking with his troupe of men. He looked back at Tarek and gestured for him to follow.
The men braved the wind and snow to make it along the ice paved trek to the door. When he went inside the cold air followed. He waited for the others and they entered through a security door. A man with a gun stood guard. Tarek found that odd. There was no need for it out in the middle of nowhere. But he kept moving. He was directed to a door and had already seen Yegor disappear inside.
Tarek arrived a few seconds after him. Yegor had taken off his coat and lowered the overalls straps from his shoulders. Tarek removed his hood and frowned.
Alec Dresden was tied to a chair. He and two other men looked terrified but unharmed.
“What is this Yegor?” Tarek asked.
“Negotiations. My way.” Yegor said. “No more bureaucracy. Eh?” He walked over to Alec and grabbed the man by his hair. He yanked his head back. “You talk like a big man in the meetings. Think you can push me around in front of your bosses? You forget who I am?”
Alec tried to speak but the gag garbled his words. Tarek assumed it would be nothing but pathetic pleas and denial.
“We don’t have to do this Yegor. Get our hands dirty this way. My plan is solid.”
Yegor gaze swung to him. “You want my money. My approval. My father’s investment?”
Tarek glanced to the other men who now stood frozen with hateful glares that matched their leaders. Yegor stepped to him. “Then you have to have my respect Tarek. You aren’t the only one who does his research. I know how limited your power is now. The war between you and your brother goes all the way back to that dead girl in Crystal Beach.”
Tarek eyes stretched.
“Yes. I know about her too. My father has kept his eye on you all these years. Dale almost broke you through that girl. And now, he hires another to finish you off? We’ve been waiting for you to decide to be a man. Now prove that you are one or get the hell off my rock.”
Two men stepped behind him. Tarek glanced to them and then back to Yegor. The decision was made. He unzipped his coat and shrugged it off. Yegor chuckled.
“See boys! He’s not Texan. He’s Russian. Aren’t you Tarek?” Yegor laughed. “Show them.”
Alec Dresden was unlocked from his cuffs. “Not him!” Yegor said. “He belongs to me. Give Tarek one of his men.”
The man went to the other. The bigger of the two. Tarek’s victim was unchained and shoved to the floor. Yegor grinned.
9.
Kassidy dug through his bags and found a small briefcase. She put it on the bed and tried several times to figure out the combination lock. Nothing she came up with worked. Desperate she used a nail filer and tried to pick the lock. The nail filer broke. There was no accessing it.
She had to consider that Daniel was right. She’d gotten in over her head. Even her motives had changed. No longer did she feel disgust and rage toward Tarek. She wasn’t sure what she felt.
There was a knock to the door. It startled her. “Yes?”
“Do you need anything?” A man asked.
“I’m fine, thank you.”
“Are you sure?”
“Ah, yes, I’m fine.”
“Let me in and I can make sure the temperature is comfortable,” he said.
“No thank you, I said I was fine.”
“Thirsty?”
“Go away,” she said and stood.
“I can bring you hot tea. It helps. It gets colder at night. No matter the temperature.”
“I said no, go away.”
There was silence. The person tried the door knob once again.
“I am friend. Open the door.”
Kassidy looked around the room for a weapon. The only thing she could lift and wield was a chair. She walked over to it and grabbed it. The man outside the door kept turning the k
nob. She was grateful for the lock, but would it hold?
“Your man sent me. To make sure you okay. Protect you, no? Let me in pretty brown lady. I friendly.”
“Go away damn it! I mean it! Get the fuck away from my door!”
She heard a muffled conversation. There was more than one of them. Kassidy heart beat so fast she feared she’d have a stroke. If they came in there would be little she could do to defend herself.
Silence answered. No one else spoke. She walked over to the door as quiet as she could. She put her ear to the door. She waited and she listened. Nothing stirred. No one spoke. Were they gone? Part of her needed confirmation. If she opened the door and took a quick peek she would be less afraid to stay the rest of the night. The daredevil in her that wanted to push toward the danger actually made her hand touch the lock. But the sensible part of her continued to shout the warnings that held her back.
And then she heard it. A man chuckling. He was there. He was waiting. Kassidy backed away from the door expecting it to crash in. He said nothing, but she was certain he wasn’t leaving. She was trapped. She sat in the chair and stared at the door. She didn’t know what else she could do but wait.
10.
Each blow delivered a release of more hatred and frustration. There was a wet crack to the front of the man’s face. Something broke beneath his fist. Blood sprayed from his victim’s nose. The man dropped unconscious. Tarek stood over him with his hands and shirt covered in blood. The blind rage he slipped into had come down on him swiftly.
When the man was thrown at Tarek to fight he did just that. He got to his feet swinging. And he landed a few hits. But fear made his coordination sloppy. Tarek’s counter blows were the precision of a boxer. He forgot the man’s innocent attempt to escape the hell Yegor trapped him into fight. A switch was flipped. Tarek pounded on the man until he was unresponsive and his face covered in blood. He might have killed him if he wasn’t dragged off the poor sap.
Now three men lie in their own blood unconscious. Yegor beat on Alec Dresden and the man next to him for sport. Tarek recovered from his black rage. It was then he saw Yegor unzip his pants. The tall Russian began to piss all over the unconscious men.
Tarek stepped back. Yegor laughed and his men laughed. Yegor put his dick in his pants. He turned and narrowed his eyes on Tarek. “Well done,” he said in Russian.
“This is going to make it hard for us to negotiate with LuxeOil.” Tarek wheezed.
“This? You mean them?” Yegor pointed at the men. He coughed up a thick glob of spit and spat it on one of the men. “Nyet Tarek. This is easy. Accidents happen out here on the rigs all the time. This? This get us a meeting sooner than later.”
Tarek felt a measure of repulsion. Not with Yegor. He felt it with himself. He turned to leave but three men stepped forward and blocked him from doing so. He glanced back at Yegor who was grinning.
“We aren’t done. I told you. It’s a matter of respect. You disrespected me earlier. Remember? Mentioning father the way you did. As if I can’t run this operation without his approval.”
Yegor pulled his blood stained shirt over his head. His torso was covered with a very detailed tattoo of Moscow. He had five bar stars stamped on his shoulders.
“Now. You face me like a man and all is forgiven.”
“I don’t want to fight you.”
“You don’t have a choice,” Yegor chuckled. “That pussy you beat on isn’t a man. I’m a man. And only a man can stand down another. We do this.”
“And if I refuse?” Tarek asked.
“Then you join them.” Yegor said. “And I get the brown lady. She’s tasty. Isn’t she?”
Tarek wiped his jaw and left a streak of his victim’s blood smeared over his face. There was no escape. And he sure as hell wouldn’t let Yegor anywhere near Angela. Tarek pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it aside. Yegor circled him. Tarek clenched his fist. The Russian was four to five inches taller. But they were both equal in brawn and strength. Yegor charged first and Tarek’s best move was a duck and defensive slam with his shoulder to the center of Yegor’s chest. He didn’t, however, anticipate his muscular invincibility. Tarek rammed into a wall of pure resistance. Yegor flipped him over his shoulder and sent Tarek flying. He landed hard on his back. The head bang against the concrete floor nearly knocked him unconscious. He remained woke. Yegor to tried to crush his chest with a boot kick but Tarek grabbed the heel. His action was swift enough to cause the Russian giant to slip and trip, landing hard on his ass. Tarek was up in a flash. Yegor was even quicker to his knees. Tarek delivered a swift kick dead center to Yegor’s face. Yegor’s neck snapped back and blood sprayed from his mouth. Tarek delivered another kick to the side of Yegor’s head and another.
There was a loud crack of a sound that made the men in the room tense. But Yegor’s vulnerability was brief. He rolled and got up, bleeding from the nose, ears, and mouth. He swung and landed a punch hard enough to Tarek’s jaw to loosen teeth. Dazed Tarek fell back against the wall. Yegor came for him. But Tarek was up swinging. Yegor punched him hard and fast with lightning speed. The blows to his head were the worst. He landed a few face and chest punches back against his attacker before receiving the kind of punishment hard enough to kill him. Tarek went down. And Yegor was on him. Then he yanked him up by the throat to his feet. Dazed but not done fighting Tarek broke loose and hit as hard as he could. It felt good. He landed harder with his left fist, and then again with his right. Left and right he beat on Yegor’s face until his blonde beard turned crimson with his own blood. Yegor tackled him, weakly, to stop the assault. Tarek wrenched free, he did a reverse move he learned in wrestling that wrapped his arm around Yegor’s throat while pinning one arm behind his back. Yegor bent and tried to throw him but Tarek locked in on his chokehold and Yegor dropped to his knees. Two of his men drew their guns. They’d not stand by and let Tarek kill their boss. But Tarek would not let Yegor go until he was sure the fight was out of him. He felt Yegor weaken and wheeze for breath. The Russian gurgled as if choking on his own blood. Yegor’s men all had their guns drawn and aimed at him. They were shouting in Russian. Tarek didn’t let go. He couldn’t. He enjoyed it too much. Then a man came behind him and hit him to the back of the head. Yegor gagged but was released.
Yegor fell forward wheezing, coughing, in complete distress and Tarek feared he crushed his larynx. Apparently his men did too. They went on attack. Tarek was kicked and stumped from every direction until he blacked out.
11.
Kassidy couldn’t sleep. After hours of feeling trapped and helpless she laid down and forced her eyes to shut. And just as she felt her fears subsiding along with the desperate urge to run from the room she heard another knock to the door. This time faint.
She sat up.
The knob turned but the lock held.
“Angela... it’s me,” she heard a man say.
“Tarek?”
She was almost certain it wasn’t him. But something deep within her forced her to believe. She got up from the bed.
“Tarek? Is that you?”
He didn’t answer. She went to the door and unlocked it. Tarek was carried in by two men. He was dropped on the floor. Kassidy stepped back in terror. The men didn’t even look at her as they turned and walked out. She immediately locked the door behind them.
When she turned around she saw the state Tarek was in. His face was bloody. His eyes swollen with dark bruising. His lip was split and there was blood coming from out of his ears and nose.
“Oh my God! What happened? Tarek? Tarek?”
She dropped to her knees to help him. He rolled over to his back. She unzipped his coat. He winced and groaned but she managed to pull him out of it. She got to her feet and went to the bathroom. She wet two towels. When she returned to the room Tarek had pulled himself up. He crawled toward the foot of the bed.
“What happened? Did Yegor do this to you?”
“I’m fine. I need my phone.” He spit up blood.
“No signal in here. You have to go out of here to get one I guess. I already tried. We need to call the police.”
She went to him and forced him to sit still. She cleaned his face of blood and was able to see the swelling and bruising more clearly. The left side of his face was the most battered. It appeared Yegor was right handed. She thought his nose was broken from the misshapen swelling.
She looked at his hands and saw his knuckles were all swollen and bloody. His clothes were dark but the stains had to be blood as well.
“We need to get out of here. You need to see a doctor.”
“I’ll live,” he winced.
“Can you breathe? Do you think any ribs are broken?”
“I’m fine,” he said.
“Why did he do this to you? Are we in danger? Tell me what to do?”
He didn’t answer. She sighed. She removed his boots and then helped him from his shirt. She could see the darkening bruises on his chest and when he leaned forward she discovered they were on his back as well.
“What the hell? Did he run over you?”
Tarek chuckled.
“You think this is funny.”
“I need a shower and rest. Everything is fine.”
“I don’t understand any of this. You bring me here? You tell that man I’m some corporate traitor to you, and then you go off with him and let him beat you half to death. What are you trying to do Tarek? What is really going on?”
He looked at her. “I need you.”
“What?”
“I need you to help me. To the bathroom. To shower and then to lay down so I can get my strength. That’s what I need. Can you do that for me?”
She wanted answers. She needed them. But she also wanted his trust. He was fighting something bigger than what she and Daniel suspected. She was more than intrigued. She was invested.
Kassidy pulled Tarek up to his feet. She undid his snow pants and yanked them down with his underwear. He was naked and leaning on her for support. She was careful with him as she walked him to the bathroom. It was much too small for two people to shower. She helped him the best way she could and turned on the water. She left him there rinsing the blood from his body down the drain. She picked up his blood soaked shirt and considered throwing it away. But she wasn’t sure who’s blood and DNA was on it. She’d wash it by hand and let it air dry. She put his things by the bathroom door and his wallet dropped out.