by Belle Aurora
My very soul ached at the force of the relief I felt right then, and as Luka called Twitch, Fern guided me to the sofa and sat me down, where I stayed locked in my head in complete and utter silence because I had nothing more to say.
Chapter Forty-One
A.J.
A.J. looked across the room to where the unfamiliar woman sat on the edge of her bed and brushed out her wet hair, humming to herself and smiling all the while.
Yes, he was only five-years-old, but he knew something was wrong.
Something was very wrong.
This woman—this bad lady—had told him his parents had given him to her as a gift, but that sounded wrong. As wrong as being alone with the too-smiley woman felt.
He didn’t like it here. He wanted to go home.
Home to his mother. Home to father. Home to Molly.
Just home.
A.J. peered around the room as he often did, looking for some way out. But she was always one step ahead, locking doors, closing windows, sleeping in the same room as him. He was beginning to think he’d never find his way home, and remembered what his mother had told him.
If he were ever lost, all he needed to do was find an adult and they would help him find his way home.
He slyly glanced over at the pretty woman. She was an adult, but she wouldn’t help him.
He began to wonder just how many bad people there were in the world. How many of them looked safe and pretty like her? How many of them were women?
It was a frightening thought for such a young mind to comprehend.
“Excuse me,” he spoke softly.
The woman stilled before turning to him. She looked at him expectantly. “Mummy.”
He hated this. She insisted he call her that. But she wasn’t his mother. His mother was his mother. This woman was a bad lady, and he didn’t know why she wanted him, why she took him.
And so, he refused to call her that.
Her smile widened as if she felt his internal struggle. As if she enjoyed it.
When she turned to face him, what she said caught A.J.’s attention. “Sweetie, if you call me mummy, I’ll give you anything you want.”
He thought about that. “Anything?”
The bad lady’s smile stretched into a grin. “Anything,” she promised.
A.J.’s little heart began to beat faster. He didn’t like what he knew he had to do, but he’d do it. He’d do it for his mum.
“Mummy,” he started, and the woman’s face softened along with her smile, “I’d like to go home now.” The moment he saw the woman’s spine stiffen, he knew he’d said something wrong. “To my real mum and dad.” When her eyes shuttered, A.J. felt a cold draught flow through the room as her mood darkened. “Please,” he added as politely as he could.
But as easily as her mood had soured, her lids fluttered and then she was smiling again so sweetly he actually believed she might do as he asked.
He should have known better.
“Oh, sweetie.” The woman gazed at him warmly before uttering, “You are home.”
A.J.’s entire body broke into goose bumps at the way she said it, like she really believed it. Something was very wrong with this lady. And luckily, A.J. was smart enough to see that he was not going to win by upsetting her.
So, for now, he’d do as she pleased no matter how much it hurt him.
He turned back to the toys on the floor, and when he spoke again, he did it gently.
“Okay, Mummy.”
***
Twitch
The front door opened and Thiago stood there, watching me closely, a frown marring his perpetually knitted brow. “Where the fuck you been?”
I pushed past the jackoff and stalked down the hall into the main room where everyone was waiting on me. They were all there. The instant I saw her sitting on the sofa, her face void with emptiness in her eyes, I went to her.
As I approached, ignoring everyone else around me, my chest tightened when, for the first time in two days, she blinked up at me, and muttered, “We’re going to get him back.”
I frowned at my woman. Of course we were. What did she think—that failure was an option? Did she even know me? What the fuck was going on inside that pretty head of hers?
Not knowing worried me.
Taking her small, cold hand in mine, I sat by her and pulled her into me, pressing soft kisses to her clammy brow, and she let me, closing her eyes, taking in the comfort I so rarely offered. And when I pulled back, searching her face, I gently pushed stray hair behind her ears and vowed, “He’s coming home, baby.”
She did her own intake of my sincerity, and as she reached up to cup my cheek with her weak hand, she smiled softly. “Be a parent, they said.” She grinned, but her breath hitched. “It’ll be easy, they said.” When her lips began to quiver, I hugged her to me, cupping the back of her head as she trembled and shook, and in that moment, I knew I would do anything—and I meant anything—to see my son home safely to his mother.
It was cruel to think that our family would likely be torn apart with this battle.
It was cruel to have only had my son with me a few solid months. But, no matter the sacrifice, we’d see it through.
I would give anything for my little man. Including my life.
“Where’s the cop?” Pav asked from across the room.
Peering over Lexi’s head, I stated, “Sent him on his way.” When our eyes met, I uttered, “He can’t help us, Luka.”
From the grave nod he gave me, I knew he got me. This was our problem. We did not play by common rules in this kingdom. The law meant nothing to us. We dealt with our own in whichever way we saw fit, and Ling Nguyen had signed her own death warrant.
I wasn’t prepared for what should occur if Gabe Blanco got to Ling first.
She’d plead insanity, likely serve a few years, and get out on a complication or loophole. And I couldn’t let that happen.
“Okay, let’s get started.” Pav moved into the center of the room and looked around at our small but capable family. “The Dragons kept a lot of their dealings on the hush, which made it pretty hard to track down any property acquisitions they may have had a hand in. But, with the right tools—” He inclined his head to Luna, who returned it regally. “—you can find anything on the internet.”
Zep’s gaze rolled over the woman sitting next to him before reaching out to impishly pinch her side. “Lulu to the rescue, huh?”
“Stop it.” She flinched, pushing away his hand. “I’m ticklish.”
Zep’s eyes hooded, and nobody missed the claim in the way he said, “I remember.”
Happy stood to the side, leaning against the wall, and he jerked his chin to the boyishly styled woman. “What did you find, Luna?”
“Actually,” she began, throwing a co-conspirator look to her sister, “it was Pav and Fernanda who gave me the idea.” She glanced around at her peers. “It’s no secret now that Ling and Aslan were a couple, and after he ended it, things went sour. So after a bit of inside research, I simply looked up all of Sadik’s prospective property hauls. It took some time, but I managed to track down some of his losses.” She shrugged, completely undermining the extraordinary work she had done. “They all lead back to the same offshore account.”
Julius spoke low, folding his arms across his chest. “Those accounts should be untraceable.”
It was then Luna let some of her pride show. “Should be, yes.”
Happy, now curious, came over to take the spare seat next to Luna and pulled her laptop closer to him, going through her findings. “She did well trying to cover her tracks. Bounced transfers from multiple accounts from different countries, but she fucked up in a very small, very stupid way.”
Luna peered at Happy a long moment before a slow smile spread across her lips. And Zep did not like that. “Oh, yeah?” he muttered, breaking Luna’s spell. “How’s that?”
Happy exchanged a knowing look with Luna. “The originating account was kept the same. Rookie mis
take. Also dealt in Australian dollars. It’s a massive giveaway. Should have dealt in Euros or US Dollars. It would have made the search that much broader.”
Evander stood behind Manda, his brow low. “How many properties are we talking here?”
“Fourteen,” specified Luna. “But we’ve narrowed it down to three.”
“Three?” Manda frowned. “That’s all?” She peered around the room, confused at the hold up. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go.”
Evander nodded in agreement. “I’m ready when you are.”
Pav held up his hands, and uttered, “Now wait a second. We’ve only got one chance at this. She sees us coming, you think she’s just gonna try to escape and move along? Nah.” His lips thinned as he shook his head. “She’s gonna take out her hostage and then herself. So we need to be smart about this. Set it up right.”
No one expected Lexi to speak, let alone say what she said. “We’ll do it your way, Luka. But I’m warning you. All of you.” A pregnant pause followed. “At the first opportunity, I’m taking her out. Me.” She turned her serious expression to me. “I get to kill her.”
I pulled back from my woman enough to look her in the eye. “You’re not coming.”
She smiled then, so serenely that my stomach cramped, and when she uttered, “You think you could stop me?” my heart sank.
Because I couldn’t stop her. Wouldn’t stop her.
And there was safety in numbers.
***
A.J.
A.J. couldn’t sleep. It was the first night she’d left him to sleep alone, and he wondered why he slept easier with her in the room. It made no sense.
He should have felt safer without her, but even a boy as young as he could see that the bad lady didn’t mean to harm him, only claim him as her own. Be a mother to him.
And so, in the dead of night, he went looking for her.
He found her quickly, sitting in front of the television, her wide eyes glued to the screen as she watched the news. Approaching quietly from behind, he stilled midstep when he focused on the television screen and watched what she was observing so intensely.
It was a photo of him.
“...day two of the search for missing school boy, Antonio Julius Falco. Footage shows the five-year-old being brazenly taken from the wreckage of one vehicle and being escorted to another by this woman.” A photo of the bad lady showed up on screen. “Ling Nguyen.” The reporter went on, “Ms. Nguyen, known leader of the nefarious Dragons, has a warrant out for her arrest for the murder of her brother, Van Nguyen, and kidnapping. If you have seen this woman or know anything about the kidnapping of Antonio Julius Falco, please contact Crime Stoppers on...”
A.J. stopped listening. He stopped listening because the bad lady was wrong.
They were looking for him.
He smiled inwardly before clearing his throat. “Mummy?” He rubbed his eyes for good measure, and when the woman hurried to switch off the television, she spun and frowned at him.
“What are you doing up, sweetie? It’s late.”
A.J. pouted his lips the way his real mother found adorable and muttered a croaky, “I can’t sleep.”
The bad lady clicked her tongue and held out her arms. He went to her willingly and allowed her to wrap her arms around him, and it was funny. When his mother hugged him, he felt warm and safe and loved. But when this woman hugged him, he felt nothing. He felt numb.
She kissed his head and rubbed his back. “How about I make us some hot chocolate?”
Anything to stay awake a while longer.
Now that A.J. knew his parents were looking for him—not that he had doubts—he needed to find a way out of here, and he could only do that if she were preoccupied.
“Yes, please,” he murmured softly.
And the smile she gave him was so wide, so sweet, that he almost forgot how bad this lady was.
Almost.
“Anything for you.” Without delay, she adjusted the robe from around her, tightening the ribbon around the waist, then moved into the kitchen. His eyes scanned his surroundings but he saw nothing. So when the woman called him into the kitchen, he went. She smiled as she pulled out a stool for him, and when he sat, his heart jerked as his soft brown eyes landed on the object in front of him.
The woman went to the fridge, pulling out the milk, and as she did, she watched his observing gaze closely.
A.J. swallowed hard before looking up at her. His voice was timid. “Is that a real gun?”
She poured the milk into a pan then turned on the gas stove. “Yes.”
Wow.
“Why do you have it?” he asked quietly.
The woman placed her elbows on the counter and leant in. “To protect you.”
A.J.’s brow knitted. He didn’t know anyone who wanted to hurt him. “From who?”
“From the people who want to take you from me.”
A.J. wondered if his father had a gun. A bigger gun than this one. He didn’t know, and not knowing frightened him.
He needed to do something, and do it fast.
So when he reached over and picked it up, his other mother tilted her head, never taking her eyes off him.
A.J. had seen people use guns, on TV, in movies.
How hard could it be?
It was heavier than he expected. Much heavier than the toy gun he had at home. But he lifted it high, putting his finger to the trigger. His other mother smiled, her eyes on the weapon he held. So A.J. closed his eyes, held his breath, and pulled the trigger.
Click.
His eyes opened and a look of confusion crossed him.
Nothing happened.
A.J. let out the breath he was holding, and before he lowered the gun, his other mother spoke kindly.
“You’re holding it wrong, sweetie. Here. Let me show you.” Over the counter, she adjusted his grip and placed his finger back on the trigger. Her soft gaze was cunning. “Now. Shoot.”
A.J. didn’t hesitate a second time.
He pulled back on the trigger and...
Click.
Nothing.
The bad lady grinned. “Oops. The safety is on.” She reached over and flicked something. “Try again, baby.”
He did.
He pulled the trigger and, this time, the gun actually fired.
Bang.
But A.J. wasn’t prepared for the force behind it, and when the gun kicked back, right into his nose, throwing him from the stool and onto the ground, his other mother laughed, walking around the counter to help him up off the cold tiled floor.
A.J.’s nose tingled and he thought it might be bleeding.
She knelt by his trembling body, took the gun from his shaking hand, and got into his space, and she was not laughing anymore. Instead, she leant in real close, held his terrified gaze with her wild eyes, and whispered, “Boom.”
And as A.J.’s body shuddered, she lifted her head heavenward and laughed openly.
One thing was for sure. This woman was scary. And A.J. was afraid of her.
She didn’t act like a mummy should. She didn’t act like his mummy did. She did everything different, wrong. She was unpredictable, and that made A.J. feel helpless. He never knew what she’d do next.
When she stopped laughing and lowered her face to his, she watched him a short while and her smile began to wane. “I get it,” she started. “You don’t love me, not yet. But I need you to know that I love you. I love you very much.” The rest of her smile fell away, as she said, “So I’m going to lock you into your room tonight, my love.” She reached out to smooth his messy hair. “Before either of us does something silly.”
Suddenly, A.J. didn’t feel so good. The words he spoke were nothing but hushed. “I’m sorry, Mummy.”
She smiled then, and the knot in his stomach loosened. “It’s okay, baby.” The woman stood and held her hand out to him. Without hesitation, A.J. took her hand and she hugged him to her side, rubbing his shoulder. “Are you okay? I know that was a l
ittle scary.”
He nodded. His nose hurt, but he was okay.
“My strong boy.” She chuckled proudly as she guided him into the kitchen. “It’s been a long day. Let’s have some hot chocolate and go on to bed. Okay?”
“Okay,” he whispered, and they sat in silence, drinking their hot chocolate, looking at each other all the while.
A.J. didn’t know much, but he knew one thing.
He needed to get his hands on that gun again.
Because if they weren’t coming for him, A.J. was going to save himself.
Chapter
Forty-Two
Thiago
Dressed in black, merging with the shadows surrounding us, I looked across the lot to my sisters and gave a sharp nod.
Fernanda moved first, gracefully, like a ballet dancer. Luna went next, with a casual air only she could pull off.
The first two buildings were a bust. They were abandoned. Empty. On the verge of demolishment. Normally, this would have made for a decent place to stash a child. Unfortunately, from what I knew about Ling, she was the ballsy kind. Cocky. She liked to put on a show. And although we hadn’t done a full sweep of the building yet, I knew she was in there somewhere.
In the fully occupied apartment building.
It made it harder for us to do what we needed to, but it didn’t mean shit, because we were the notorious Vegas. We could get any job done for the right price. Alone, we weren’t worth much, but as a family, we were priceless.
Each of us brought something different to the fold; each of us brought something important and necessary. Together, my sisters and I were invincible. Regrettably, that meant we often had targets on our heads. This was why we chose to stay underground for the most part.
This was also why Luka banished us.
I wasn’t a stupid man by any means. Being banished only did two things to our business. One, it raised our fee to astronomical proportions. And two, it kept Fernanda safe. And safe was how Luka liked his woman.
Yeah, he was pissed at her, but Luka Pavlovic adored my sister. He adored her so much that even though it likely killed him inside, he sent her to live half a world away from him.