by Linda Verji
“Bye.” And with that he ended the call.
London stared at the phone in her hands for a long moment, unable to believe how cold he’d been to her. Was this the same man who’d been begging for her forgiveness earlier today? To think she’d been so worried about him that she’d driven out here in the middle of the night to check on him. Thank Goodness he didn’t know that otherwise he’d start to think - mistakenly - that she actually gave a damn about him. Scowling furiously, she started to back out of the lot intent on heading back home.
That’s when she saw it. The blue Ford Mustang.
Enzo’s car.
Her lungs seized and all the air was sucked from them as terror rushed through her. Scrambling from the car, she dashed into the hotel all her thoughts focused on Zeke and making sure that he was okay.
SHE WAS RIGHT to be scared because several floors above her Zeke was in big, big trouble.
“Good.” Enzo murmured behind Zeke, the scent of his alcohol-infused breath suffusing the whole elevator. “Give it to me.”
“Enzo, you don’t have to-”
“Give. Me. The. Phone.” Enzo pressed the barrel of his gun to Zeke’s spine. Zeke handed it to him just as the elevators doors opened. Enzo prodded Zeke’s back with the gun. “Now get out.”
CHAPTER 25
Given that he was about to die, Zeke’s anxiety level should’ve been soaring through the roof. Yet, all he felt was a deathly sort of calm. The world seemed to slow down as if allowing him to savor his last breaths. Everything became focused on that gun digging into the base of his spine and the rushed sound of Enzo’s breathing behind him.
“Get out!” Enzo repeated, shoving the barrel of the gun deeper into Zeke’s back. Zeke stumbled out of the metallic cage then instinctively turned to face his attacker. If the bastard wanted to kill him then he’d have to do it while looking his straight in the eye.
Enzo was the picture of panic. Limp hair hung beneath his beige brimless cap, his eyes were bloodshot red, and sweat streamed down his face to pool at the collar and armpits of the ill-fitting bellboy uniform. That uniform was how he’d managed to sneak past Charlie and force himself into the elevator with Zeke. The man had been so sneaky about the ambush that Zeke was sure no one had even seen him enter the elevator or brandish the gun. No one was coming to save him.
Proving himself as much a coward as Zeke thought, Enzo waved the gun. “Turn around.”
“No,” Zeke returned coolly. When Enzo’s hand firmed on the gun as if he was preparing to shoot, Zeke lifted both arms in surrender then in a deceptively calming voice he said, “You haven’t thought this through, Enzo.”
“Shut up. Shut up!” The agitated man waved the gun erratically. “Turn around.”
“Think about it. If you do this you won’t get away,” Zeke said in a soothing voice. “Actually, you won’t even be able to leave this room.”
“Yes, I will. Yes, I will.”
“How? Through the elevator?” Zeke raised his eyebrow. “We’ve got cameras all around the hotel, in the elevator, and security saw you coming up with me.” The truth was that Zeke’s apartment and elevator were on a private surveillance system that only he had access to. But Enzo didn’t need to know that. He warned, “They’re probably already waiting for you by the doors and –“
The ring of the landline cut off his words. And both his and Enzo’s gaze flew towards the phone. Zeke recovered faster and took a step towards the other man, but before he could lunge for the gun Enzo swung back to him, his grip on the gun firm and his features pulled tight into a scowl. “Don’t even think of it.”
“That’s them. Checking to make sure you haven’t done anything stupid before they storm in,” Zeke said, even though he was sure that was just Charlie, perhaps checking to see if he wanted dinner sent up. He added, “The moment you get off the elevator, they’ll arrest you. You don’t want to go to jail, do you?”
Panic flared in Enzo eyes as his shooting arm began to tremble. “You’re lying. They won’t arrest me.”
His eyes on the shaking gun, Zeke said, “Yes, they will. But you can still prevent that from happening. Put down the gun and we can tell them that you’re just my guest. That this is just a little misunderstanding between friends.”
Enzo stared at Zeke, obvious confusion and panic in his dark eyes. For a moment it looked like his words might even be working because Enzo began to lower the gun. Zeke started to move to the side away from the line of fire. His movement seemed to bring Enzo back to life because the man raised the gun again with renewed anger.
“No. No. No. No. No. Stop confusing me!” he yelled. “This is what you do. You confuse people.”
“Calm down, Enzo,” Zeke soothed.
But Enzo was past soothing point. His jaw ticking, he screamed, “She was supposed to be mine. Before you came strutting in with your money, she was mine. You ruined it. Because of you and your mother, she won’t even look at me.”
Zeke never stopped watching Enzo during this whole display. The man looked very close to giving himself a heart-attack, and it was obvious over who. “Then I’ll leave London alone. I’ll walk away from her. ”
“No, you won’t.” A swift rush of hatred filled Enzo’s eyes. “Because you’re like a bed-bug. You crawled your way into her and the only way to get rid of you permanently is to kill you.”
“Be smart, Enzo-”
“Shut up!” Enzo shouted as he took a step closer. “Get on your knees.”
“En-”
“Get on your knees,” Enzo repeated, this time it was accompanied by a swing of the gun. A sharp pain exploded on the right side of Zeke’s face and he realized that the other man had hit him with the gun. He collapsed to his knees without further orders from Enzo.
“You should’ve stayed away from her,” Enzo snarled as he circled Zeke to come to a stop behind him. “She was mine.”
Then he pressed the gun to the back of Zeke’s head.
Everything slowed down within Zeke. Closing his eyes, he turned his thoughts inward. He’d always wondered what the phrase ‘your life flashing before your eyes’ meant. In his case it meant a whirling kaleidoscope composed of the faces of the people he loved. And right in the middle was London biting her bottom lip and her eyes glinting with some sort of secret amusement. Regret swirled through him – regret that he’d never get the chance to tell her that he loved her. It was too late now.
He inhaled deeply and waited for the shot.
But the shot never came, because right then a ping echoed in the room. Both men stiffened and Zeke’s eyes snapped open and towards the elevator. The elevator doors slid open to reveal its occupants. Charlie. And London.
“No.” The sound emerged from Zeke’s throat unbidden as real fear rushed through him, fear he hadn’t even felt when he thought he was dying.
The moment she saw Zeke on his knees and Enzo holding the gun to his head, execution-style, her heart stopped. When she’d pleaded with Charlie to let her come up to Zeke’s room, this wasn’t what she was expecting.
For a flash of a moment panic held her silent. Then she gasped, “Zeke!” Just as Charlie wheezed, “Oh, my God!”
“No. No. No.” Enzo’s eyes lit up in panic as they raced between London and Charlie. “What are you doing here?”
Terrified desperation in her voice, London pleaded, “Enzo, let him go.”
“Get out. Get out.” London’s heart skipped a bit when Enzo pressed the gun to Zeke’s temple as he yelled, “Both of you get out or I’ll shoot him.”
“London, leave.” Zeke’s voice was calm but his eyes screamed worry. “Please.”
Something told London that the moment she left Zeke was as good as dead. So even though fear gripped her tight, she walked out of the elevator. Trying to make her voice even, she said, “Enzo, you’re not angry with him. You’re angry with me. I’m the one who hurt you.”
“London, stop.” Zeke’s voice was even more commanding.
But she h
ad no intention of stopping or leaving. She sucked in a calming breath and focused on Enzo. Her eyes on him, she continued to walk towards them. “Enzo, if you’re looking for someone to punish, then you should punish me.”
“But I love you.” Enzo’s lip trembled as did the hand that was holding the gun.
“And I love you too.” London soothed. “So put down the gun so we can talk. You don’t really want to do this, do you? You just want us to talk, don’t you?”
“Yes.” Enzo nodded, his arm sagging. It seemed that the other men in the room had noticed that whatever she was doing was working. They’d quieted down so much that London wasn’t even sure they were breathing. But she kept her attention and gaze entirely focused on Enzo.
“Give me the gun.” She held out her hand. “Then we can talk and solve what’s going on.”
Enzo took a deep breath, which led directly into another as he looked at her. His eyes softened, and she thought he was about to give up. Then something snapped inside him. She saw it in the way his gaze suddenly turned wintery, felt it in the way the atmosphere in the room suddenly pulled in on itself.
“No.” His voice was as cold as ice as he added, “But you’re right. This is all your fault.”
Then he lifted the gun and leveled it her.
In that moment London saw her life flash before her, saw its end. She opened her mouth to beg Enzo to do it, but no words fell from her lips even as Enzo’s finger tightened on the trigger.
“London, duck.” Zeke suddenly shouted as he threw himself against the Enzo’s shooting arm.
London didn’t even know how she did it. She found herself crouching on the floor, even as the cracking sound of a bullet released from its chamber echoed in the room along with some kind of shattering behind her.
Chaos ensued.
Zeke lunged for the gun, trying to snatch it from Enzo. But Enzo was just as determined to keep control of it. With a snarl he yanked hard at the weapon and punched Zeke hard in the jaw. But Zeke didn’t back away, he drove his fist into Enzo’s midsection, and when the man doubled over, he followed it with a sharp elbow to his back. Enzo grunted in pain even as the gun fell from his limp fingers.
Charlie seemed to come to life then, scrambling towards the gun and picking it up. Meanwhile Zeke wasn’t done with Enzo. Straddling the man, Zeke seized his head and slammed it against the floor with a force that London was sure had Enzo seeing stars. Groaning with pain, Enzo struck out with his fist, ramming it upwards into Zeke’s shoulder. But Zeke looked like he barely felt it. His expression was savage, pitiless even – as if he was planning murder.
“Get off me,” Enzo screamed. “Get off-”
Zeke cut off the scream with a brutal punch which had to have cracked the other man’s jaw. Enzo drew his arms up to protect his face, but that only gave Zeke more space to work with. His breath coming in harsh irregular pants, Zeke hammered brutally at the man’s arms and torso with warlike rage. Even after Enzo was subdued into a quivering heap he kept on punching him.
Jesus. He was going to murder Enzo.
“Zeke, stop.” London scrambled to his side. “Zeke, stop. Stop.”
He tensed with his arm crooked and his fist poised to fall on Enzo again, then turned to her. She’d never seen his blue eyes this full of rage, this full of hate. His voice didn’t even seem to belong to him as he said, “He was going to kill you.”
“I know. I know.” She smoothed her hand over Zeke’s tense back. “But he didn’t. You need to stop.”
Their gazes held. His demonic, hers insistent, until she finally yanked victory from him. He surrendered with a frustrated groan and a lowering of his fist. Clambering off Enzo, Zeke turned his gaze to Charlie and said, “Watch him.”
While Charlie moved to stand over the moaning heap that was Enzo, Zeke dragged London up to her feet. He lifted her so she was at eye level with him then crushed his lips over hers. The kiss caught London by surprise, so much so that she didn’t respond at first. But Zeke was insistent, kissing her with determination as if to confirm that she was still alive.
So she gave what he needed. She fell into the kiss, sliding one arm around his neck while the other hand cupped his cheek as she parted her lips for him. He drank hungrily from her, devoured her whole with his passion. And when he had her completely wrecked, he tore his lips from hers to whisper, “I love you.”
His words reverberated through her like an electric current, leaving her speechless and staring at him in wide-eyed awe. She’d thought she was shocked to find Enzo holding a gun to Zeke’s head, but this…
Now this was shock!
CHAPTER 26
Zeke could tell that he’d shocked London with his declaration of love. After all the drama of the last hour, he wanted nothing more than to be alone with her so he could explain himself. But there was still too much to deal with. Like the gaping crack in his wall courtesy of the bullet Enzo had fired, the members of Landa-Heron security who were milling around his apartment assessing the damage, and of course who could forget Enzo. Now handcuffed and his face swollen almost to the point of being unrecognizable, the man was seated on the floor and weeping as if he was just now realizing the foolishness of his actions.
Zeke was unmoved. The man had almost killed London.
“Sir, what do you want us to do with him?” One of the security guys asked as they all stared at Enzo.
“Do you want us to call the police?” someone else asked.
“No.” Zeke saw Enzo’s shoulders sag with relief, and he scowled in return. He wasn’t keeping the police out of this whole incident because of pity. He was doing it for self-preservation. If Enzo went to court, he’d have to state why he’d tried to kill them – in front of the judge, anyone else present - including the press. Eventually everything would come out, including the part London and his mother had played in this drama. No, none of them could afford that kind of press.
“Toss him over the balcony,” Charlie mumbled behind Zeke.
“That’s not a bad idea.” Zeke nodded, drawing a whimper from Enzo and a quick anxious upward glance.
“Zeke!” London elbowed him in the arm.
“I’m joking.” Zeke chuckled as he cast a glare of loathing at Enzo. Actually, he was only half joking. He really wanted to toss the guy over his balcony, but then there’d be a mess. He’d have to increase his employees salaries if they were to clean it up. So he sighed. “Call Augusta House.”
“Isn’t that the psychiatric hospital?” London drew his attention.
He nodded curtly. “Yes it is.”
“You can’t take Enzo there,” she protested.
“I have to.” Then seeing how everyone else in the room was interested in the conversation, he cupped his palm on her elbow and motioned to the other side of the room. “Let’s talk there.”
Nodding, she followed him to the more private corner. The moment they got there, she said, “You can’t take him to Augusta. He hates it there.”
“He’s been there before?” he asked. When she nodded, he said, “Well there’s no other option. I can’t take him to jail and I can’t just let him go. He’s obviously got some mental issues, and could come after you again.”
London looked like she wanted to protest. But there was really nothing to protest about, was there? He was right.
However, reluctant as Zeke was to take pity on Enzo, the guy was London’s friend. So softening his voice, he said, “Look, they’ll only hold him in there for a few days to get his head straight. Then I’ll drop by and give him a stern warning about keeping his mouth shut and staying away from you, and it will be over, okay?”
Biting her lip, she nodded. “Okay.”
Minutes later, security led Enzo towards the elevator. He went without protest, stopping only to throw London a feeble, “I’m sorry.”
Then Zeke and London were alone.
Immediately, the tension seeped back into the room and as if trying to escape it, London started towards the elevator. “
I guess I’d better head out too.”
“Hey. Hey.” Zeke stepped in front of her before she could and reached for her wrist. “Where are you going?”
She dipped her head. “Home.”
“Give me a minute to talk to you first.” When she didn’t lift her head or acknowledge his words, he asked, “You heard what I said, right?”
“What?” She didn’t meet his eyes, but he knew that she knew exactly what he was talking about.
He repeated it anyway, “I said I love you.”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me not to take it seriously.” Her head still lowered, she took a step back. “I know you just said it in the heat of the moment.”
“No, I didn’t, and I want you to take it seriously.” He closed the distance between them again. “Because I was serious.”
“Oh.” She snatched a quick shocked glance at him before lowering her eyes back to the floor and taking a step back. He followed her, stalking her as she took several back steps until she came up back against the bar. Her eyes shot upwards to his when she realized that there was nowhere else for her to go. “Zeke, I want to leave.”
“And I don’t want you to leave.” His heart beginning a fast race, he repeated, “I love you, London.” Finally accepting and voicing his feelings gave him relief that he didn’t even know was possible. He felt freer, lighter, happier. So he repeated, “I love you.”
She stared at him for a long moment, confusion pulsing in the depths of her eyes, before she asked, “Why? Why are you telling me now?”
There was something about seeing London on the edge of death that had completely cleared up his mind. In that moment everything that had seemed so important to him before had faded and he’d realized that the she was the most important thing to him. He couldn’t let her die because he couldn’t imagine living without her. How could he explain it to her?
Sucking in a deep breath to steady his thumping heartbeat, he said, “You asked Enzo to shoot you instead of me.”