Alyssa stepped onto the sidewalk as the leggy brunette from the other day sped off in her red sports car. She frowned.
Feeling far less happy, she went into the club. The closer she got to the office, the more irritated she became. He had pushed her away and yet had no problem calling that woman when he needed. She opened the door to the office to find it loaded with bags.
“What the hell happened in here?” she asked.
“And good morning to you,” Finn said from around several bags.
“Why are there bags all over the office?” she said.
Finn walked over to her. “We threw out all the clothes from last night.”
She nodded. The idea of putting them on again made her skin crawl.
“So?” she said slowly.
“Well, I had a friend replace them for you.” Finn smiled brightly.
She looked around the office at all the bags. He hadn’t just replaced them, he had bought her a whole new wardrobe.
“Was there something wrong with the way I dressed?” she said quietly to him, her anger just barely contained.
“No.” Finn frowned.
“Then what would make you think that I could take all this?” She waved her good arm around the office. “Everything I own would only be about a fourth of all this.”
She stepped back and took a deep breath. It injured her pride. He couldn’t be with her, but he could send his mistress out to buy her clothes? It was a slap in the face.
“I’ve got inventory,” she said and turned to the door.
“Wait,” Finn called. “Don’t you want to try anything on?”
She could feel the heat rising in her face.
“Why don’t you try it on?” she said and slammed the door.
* * *
She was not talking to him. In fact, she didn’t know if she would talk to him ever again. She had spent the last few hours in the back room ignoring him and taking inventory. If he wanted to be a complete idiot, she couldn’t help that. She also couldn’t help that she’d spent the last few hours fuming over the whole things.
“Idiot,” she mumbled.
She rubbed her shoulder a little. It wasn’t like she’d used it much, but it had taken a toll on her. Her mood was plummeting, and she’d had about enough.
Alyssa came out of the back room. The club was in full swing. They had a genuine crowd. The thump of the beats pounded into her head over and over again.
Noel sat at the end of the bar, sipping on a bottle of water.
“Want to take me home?” she said to him.
His eyes shifted toward the office. “Boss know about this?”
“No,” she said flatly. “Are you going to take me home, or am I going to walk?”
She could see him wavering.
“Fine,” she said. She stormed into the office. “I’m going home.”
Finn was sitting in his chair. All the bags from earlier were gone.
He looked up from the computer at Noel. “Are things fixed?”
She looked back to Noel. He nodded.
“Take her home then,” Finn said.
If she had been holding something, she really might have considered hitting him with it.
“Thanks for your permission,” she said and slammed the door.
Alyssa stomped through the club until she was outside in the cool air.
Noel followed wordlessly behind her.
It was almost good dealing with someone like Noel. He didn’t want to talk about things or make her feel bad. He just let her quietly seethe in the car. They pulled away, and she continued to be angry in silence.
She took a deep breath and sighed. It was obvious why she was so mad. Why couldn’t Finn see why she was so mad?
“Your boss is an idiot,” she said to Noel.
He laughed loudly. “I’m sure he knows that by now.”
She smiled a little. “I should hope so.”
Something pinged against the side of the car, and she jumped.
“What the hell was that?” she asked.
Noel pulled out his phone and hit a name.
“Get down on the floor,” he shouted at her.
Alyssa scrambled to the floor.
“We’re getting shot at,” he said into the phone.
Two more shots rang out, and the car wobbled along.
“They hit our tires,” he shouted into the phone. “Cedar and Pine.”
Two more shots, and all she could hear was the squeal of the car as it slid along the road. It hit a pole and finally stopped next to a large building. Terrified, she cowered where she was. Noel’s head lolled to the side, and she saw a red stain on his side.
“Noel,” she whispered.
He didn’t answer.
Her door swung open, and she scrambled away. She looked up and stared into eyes as dark as night. His arms were just as she remembered from the mall, coated with tattoos.
He gave her a wicked smile. “Hello, Alyssa,” he said, his Russian accent unmistakable. “You lucky. I know man who paid lot of money to make sure we don’t take you.”
She shook as he spoke.
“But your friend, he comes with us.” He grinned at her.
The other door opened, and she jumped. Two other large men reached in and pulled out Noel.
“You tell boyfriend we have man,” he said. “Goodnight.” He pulled out a gun.
She swallowed.
He hit her hard on the back of the head with the gun, and she slipped into unconscious.
Chapter Thirteen
“Alyssa,” Finn called to her.
She blinked her eyes open and instantly felt nauseous.
“Where’s Noel?” Finn placed a hand behind her back to help her get into the seat of his car.
“They took him,” she said. She tried to focus on him when she got into the seat, but the throbbing in her head was too much. She closed her eyes and continued talking. “The Russians took him. It was the man from the mall.”
“Fuck,” Finn cursed and hit the side of the car. “I don’t understand why they didn’t take you.”
She opened her eyes and looked over to him. “He said someone paid money for them not to.”
Finn stared at her for a moment before looking away. “It wasn’t me,” he said quietly.
She frowned at him.
“Well, who else could it be?” she asked.
Finn shook his head. “I don’t know.”
She watched as he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
“The Russians have Noel,” he said into the phone. She watched as he listened. “You think you and Ryder could get him out? He’s got a lot of connections.”
He nodded a few times.
“Sounds good. Do it.”
He hit end.
“Will they find him?” She couldn’t stop the panic from creeping into her voice.
“Liam and Ryder are the best trained for this,” he said. “If anyone stands a chance, it would be them.”
She definitely trusted Liam, and he’d worked with the Allen brothers at their security firm for a while. She’d seen Ryder Allen in action at the club during the trouble with Dale. The Allens stayed on the right side of the law, for the most part, but a few recent favors by Finn and the Allens’ own run-ins with the Russians had managed to bring them into the underworld’s problems almost as much as the Kellys.
She bit her lip as they slowly made their way to the car. When she climbed in, the tears came.
Finn climbed in next to her. “Hey,” he said. “We’ll find him.”
She shook her head. “It’s my fault. I was angry and wanted to leave early. And I could’ve stopped them. I didn’t stop them,” she sobbed.
“You didn’t do this,” he said firmly and took her hand. “And you may be a little spitfire now, but you wouldn’t have been able to stop a Russian enforcer. This is on them. They did this and when I find them, they are going to pay.”
Alyssa nodded. She knew he would and was glad. Eve
rything she’d heard about the Russians scared her. Noel might be suffering like no one should suffer, and she might have been able to help.
They raced through town. Obeying the laws wasn’t in the books tonight. She held on to the door as he raced to get home. She thought it was likely easier for him to decide which way the tides were going from home.
Conor opened the door as they came up the walkway.
“Any word?” Finn walked in and looked around the room.
Alyssa didn’t see anyone near.
“Someone sold us out,” Finn said. “There was no way they would have known someone was taking her home.”
Conor’s eyebrows show up. “Are you sure?”
Finn shook his head. “No, but it’s the only explanation that makes any sense.”
“Wait. Wouldn’t someone be taking her home normally?” Conor asked.
“I went home early,” Alyssa said.
“There’s no way they would have known that she would go home early unless they also knew that she would come to work and get pissed at me.” The corner of his mouth twitched.
“You know that wouldn’t be that hard to guess right?” Conor looked between the two of them.
Finn shook his head. “This felt too planned. Like they were just waiting on the call.” He looked over to Alyssa. “And they didn’t take her. They said someone paid for her not to be taken.”
“You?” Conor asked.
Finn shook his head. “There is only one other person with that kind of money that might, but I just can’t figure out why my brother would do that.” He put his head in his hands and sighed. “Lot of things are not making sense in all this.”
He stared out the window for a minute before turning back to Alyssa.
“You should go to bed,” he said. “You’re still healing and that knock to the head isn’t going to help.” He turned to Conor. “Take her to my room while I get her pills.”
Conor took her by the hand and led her up the stairs. They walked in silence as she concentrated on not falling. When they reached the top, she sighed. It had been much harder than she expected.
“I can take it from here,” Finn said from behind them. “Go put the doctor on standby.”
Conor nodded and went back downstairs.
She leaned heavily on Finn as they walked to his room. He opened the door and helped her into bed.
“I’m so tired,” she and laid down on the bed.
“Here are your meds.” He placed them in her hand.
Alyssa tossed them back in her mouth. He handed her a bottle of water. After she swallowed her pills, he went to his drawer and pulled out a sleeveless shirt for her.
“I’ve got to go down there and organize all this,” he said. “Are you going to be okay?”
She wrapped her arm around his neck.
“I’m fine. Just find him,” she said into his ear.
He nodded and stood.
“Just me know if you need anything,” he said.
He walked through the door and shut it behind him.
She dressed carefully. She hadn’t hurt her arm any more than it was already, but she didn’t want stress it further.
Alyssa lay back and tried not to think, but the terrible man’s face kept coming back to her. His sinister smile chilled her to the bone.
The images of the day drifted away as she fell asleep.
* * *
“Put him on the rug,” someone shouted in the hall.
Alyssa bolted upright. There was a loud commotion coming from downstairs. She slipped on her pants and peeked outside the door.
The hall was dimly lit as she slowly made her way down the stairs. She could make out the forms of Liam and Ryder, as they carried someone into the house.
“Oh, thank God,” she whispered, as she continued down the stairs.
They placed him on the Oriental rug in the living room. His eyes were closed. Something was off with his face. As they rolled him to his side, she could see the massive burn on the side of his face. She gasped and tried to steady her breathing.
“Get that shirt off of him,” Finn shouted. He was followed by a tall older man, a stethoscope hung from his neck.
“Don’t pull it off,” the man said. “Rip it.”
Liam and Ryder ripped the shirt off, and she could see why. There were burns all over his body. Some worse than others. There were some where the flesh looked like it had been almost melted.
She let out a sob, and Finn walked over to her as the doctor examined him.
When he lifted Noel’s hands, she noticed his fingers were bent at odd angles.
“They broke his fingers?” she whispered to Finn.
He stared grimly at his cousin. They had grown up together. This had to be even harder for him to watch.
“The burns on his face and body are too extensive for me to mend.” The doctor stood and came over to Finn. “I can give him a shot of morphine, but there’s not much more I can do. He’s going to need to go to the hospital, or he’ll probably die. He’s likely going to go septic. He’s going to need some skin grafts, and his hands might even need reconstructive surgery. I don’t want to mess with them too much in case the bones shift.”
“Give him the shot, and we’ll take him,” Finn said. He looked over to Liam. “Bring the car around and be ready to go. We’ve got to get him in as soon as we can.”
“What are the burns from?” Alyssa asked.
The doctor looked to her for the first time, and she felt so small.
“Some look to be from a branding iron, but others I think are chemical. It’s the only thing that could make the skin melt like that.” He nodded and went back to Noel.
She watched as he administered a shot. The shaking seemed to subside some.
“He’s going into shock,” the doctor stood. “We need to move quickly.”
Liam burst in the front door, leaving it open wide.
“Ready,” he said to Ryder.
They lifted with ease and carried the hulking man out to the back of the car. She could see they had laid down the back seats and put a blanket down.
Alyssa ran into the living room closet and pulled out the blanket. She raced out to the car and placed the blanket over him. Everything in her ached to make this better for him. He was in so much pain.
Finn pulled her back, so they could close the doors. She watched as they drove away.
Finn stuck out his hand to the doctor who shook it.
“Thanks for being on call,” Finn said.
The doctor shook his head. “I’m only sorry I couldn’t help him more. He’s going to have a long road to recovery and that’s not even looking at his mental health.”
“Well take good care of him,” he said.
The doctor gave a smile. “You always do.” He started to walk away but stopped. “And tell Teagan to give me a call sometime. She’s seeing some new doctor, and I just want to make sure she’s doing well.”
Finn frowned. “I hadn’t heard this. I’ll talk with Conor.”
When they were inside, Alyssa turned to Finn.
“Aren’t we going to the hospital?”
He nodded. “Just need to make a few calls.” He lifted her chin and kissed her forehead. “Go get ready. We can leave here in five.”
Finn walked with determination to his office and closed the door. This was a call he had really hoped to avoid.
“Hey, it’s me,” he said into the phone. “I know we were both trying to avoid going this direction, but I don’t think we’ve got much choice at this point.”
He listened to the man on the other end.
“I know this is hard on you, but if you don’t get involved, it’s going to end badly for everyone. You’re the not just the best man for the job. You’re the only man.”
Finn nodded as he listened. “I’ll get you what you need before then, but things are progressing quickly. Be prepared for it to happen any day.”
Finn pressed end and pinched the bridge of his nos
e for a moment. At every turn, there was something slowing them down. He just hoped that, in the end, he could make this all work for the people he cared about. It was going to be hell getting there though.
* * *
Finn sat nervously in the waiting room. They had been in there for hours, and although he wanted to just tear into the room, he kept his calm.
He glanced to his left where Alyssa slept peacefully against his body. She had been so unwell recently, and the crash today hadn’t helped. He just thanked God that she hadn’t been taken as well. Noel was tough, but he’d be lucky if this doesn’t break him. He couldn’t even guess what something like this would do to Alyssa.
Liam sat at on the other side of Finn. They had sent Ryder home and thanked him for his help. He had help rescue his cousin, but this was still a family matter.
“They let us take him,” Liam said after some time.
Finn looked over to him. “What do you mean?”
Liam shrugged. “There’s no way we would have found him so quickly if they hadn’t,” he said. “I think it was a message for you.”
That sounded like the Boris he had heard about. The rotten bastard loved this sort of cat and mouse game. It was all about setting people up to be in certain situations and then pulling the rug out from under them.
The doctor came in the room, and Finn woke up Alyssa.
“He’s doing fine,” the doctor said, and they all let you a relieved sigh. “We’ve got him sedated since some of the wounds are worse and others. Particularly the one on his face.”
Finn nodded. “And what about his hands?”
“The bones were broken but not smashed. We were able to splint each one and wrap them. If he’s a good patient, they should heal just fine.”
The doctor looked between the three of them.
“I don’t suppose I’m going to get a straight answer from any of you as to how this happened.” He stared hard at Finn before sighing. “Fine. We’ll be keeping him here for some time. He’s going to be in quite a bit of pain when he wakes up.”
“He’s tough,” Finn said.
The doctor shook his head. “Maybe, but you’ve never had pain like this. It feels like your skin is on fire. His face was badly damaged. It looks like they used acid.”
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