by Kaye Blue
“I promise I’ll take care of you,” was his answer.
Eight
He was coming undone.
Vlad paced the townhouse, methodically working his way from the garage to the roof then back again.
He knew she wasn’t there.
But still, he hoped.
It was an unfamiliar feeling for him.
He didn’t hope for things.
He wanted and he took.
Anything else was a waste of time or a sign of weakness, things that Vlad found unacceptable.
Yet here he was.
The first time he had seen her, he’d known there was something special about her.
Even now, he couldn’t quite decide what, but at first glance, she had caught his interest.
At his second, he had known he had to have her.
And he had.
At first, there hadn’t been anything complicated about it. He figured he’d take her, enjoy her, then kill her or sell her off.
But it hadn’t worked out that way.
His interest in her had grown into hunger, hunger had grown into need, and need had become full-blown obsession.
And now, his every waking moment was spent thinking of her, longing for her.
He hated that feeling.
Hated that she, that anyone or anything, had that kind of power over him.
He would deny it, but inside, he knew the truth.
He had to have her back.
It was the only way.
And once he did, he would never, ever, let her go.
But now, he was stuck, frustrated.
He’d spent decades accumulating connections, if not outright power, and cultivated fear that worked well enough in a pinch.
But all of those connections, that power, that fear hadn’t helped so far.
He had put out the word weeks ago, had heard nothing.
Which was impossible.
Lake had no connections to the outside world. He’d made sure of that.
And with no money, no friends, there was no way she could disappear.
So she had to have help.
But from who?
That was the mystery, the question that he knew was the key to all this.
And he knew where he would get his answers.
He paced the townhouse one last time and then went to his car.
He gave the driver the address.
“Get there fast,” he said.
There was no need to make a threat. His driver knew what would happen if there was a delay.
The man said nothing but pulled out of the townhouse garage and began to speed toward their destination.
“Sir, do you have an appointment?”
The skinny blonde bitch was looking down her nose at him, and Vlad could feel the frustration, the anger, roiling under his skin.
“No. But he’ll see me,” Vlad said, keeping his voice calm, surprised that he managed to speak at all.
“I’m afraid if you don’t have an appointment—”
The woman squeaked and then went silent when Vlad reached out and wrapped his hand around her throat.
He gave her a solid squeeze, making it harder for her to draw breath.
He held her gaze, her ice-blue eyes tearing, her expression stricken with terror.
“Do you want to die, bitch?”
The first tear fell, but she gave no reaction.
“Answer,” Vlad said, squeezing a little bit tighter.
She shook her head furiously.
“Then get Yuri now.”
He added another squeeze for good measure then let go.
The woman was breathing hard, plumes of red on her neck that would soon be bruises.
She took a deep breath, then stood, wobbling on her heels, the adrenaline no doubt leaving her shaky.
“This way,” she whispered.
She started to walk, and Vlad could see she was uncomfortable with him behind her.
He didn’t care.
And besides, if she were uncomfortable, she would move faster, and her moving faster would put him that much closer to finding Lake.
She knocked on the door at the end of the hall then opened it quickly.
Yuri was standing, clearly having expected them.
“Helena, what’s the meaning of this?” he asked.
He didn’t acknowledge Vlad, something that set let Vlad’s teeth on edge. But he said nothing.
“He…insisted,” Helena said.
Vlad looked at her expression, saw the regret and the fear. Tough position for her. Vlad knew Yuri didn’t care for excuses. That he undoubtedly would see Vlad’s threats as just that.
But to his surprise, Yuri nodded at her. “That he did. Leave us,” he said.
She wasted no time in scurrying out of the room.
“She’s a little fragile, don’t you think?” Vlad said.
“Sure. But she’s an excellent receptionist. And she gives exquisite head,” he said nonchalantly.
An instant later, his entire demeanor changed.
His eyes flashed, steely, angry but controlled.
“What the fuck are you doing, Vlad?”
“You knew I was on my way, probably before I even made it to your block. Your men let me in without trying to stop me. So what’s with the theatrics?”
“I wanted to see how far you’d take it. You’ve clearly lost your mind, coming here like this.”
“It’s not far from the truth,” Vlad said.
Yuri lifted a brow, the only indication of surprise.
“I need you to find someone.”
“You asking for another favor?”
“Yes,” Vlad responded.
He felt no shame in it either. After all the shit he had done for Yuri, there should be no limit to the number of favors he had. Though he was sure Yuri didn’t see it that way.
“You need to get hold of your business, Vlad.”
“This isn’t business.”
Yuri looked even more surprised this time, nodded his head faintly as a sign to continue.
“It’s a woman. I need to find her.”
“A woman?” Yuri spat.
Vlad nodded, and Yuri stared at him, incredulous.
“You barge in here, threaten my staff because you can’t control your bitches?” Yuri said, his disgust clear.
“There was a time when you couldn’t control yours,” Vlad countered.
Yuri blanched. “You did some work for me, and I did you the courtesy of letting you live. But my charity has limits, Vlad.”
“You’re going to find her,” Vlad said.
It wasn’t a question, and Yuri knew that. Vlad wondered if he would protest, but after a moment he nodded.
“I’ll put some guys on it. Good ones. The one who handled the last issue for you,” Yuri said.
“Good. They did a good job. Though it’s a shame how that turned out,” Vlad said.
It had been unfortunate to lose Warren, especially since he was so preoccupied, but he didn’t care.
Nothing was more important than finding Lake.
“I will do this. But don’t ever come here again,” Yuri said.
Vlad stared at Yuri then smiled.
“See you around, old friend. You know where to find me when you have news.”
He left then, trying to control his excitement but unable to.
Because it was only a matter of time.
Soon enough, Lake would be back with him.
Back where she belonged.
Forever.
Nine
Aras
Lake was sleeping, and while I craved every moment with her, I was happy for the space.
Before, I had told her no promises, had told myself no promises either.
But it seemed I had lied to both of us.
I couldn’t put my finger on when it had happened or what had changed, but I knew now that I would let no harm come to her.
Even if it cost me everything I had been working for.
I had told her it wasn’t possible for me to stop, had denied it to myself, but now, in the quiet of the night, I could accept that wasn’t true.
She had been so earnest, so concerned, it had taken my breath away.
I wasn’t a person people worried about, fussed over.
I certainly wasn’t one they tried to convince.
But Lake had done all of those things.
She worried about me, wanted to protect me, and even though I knew the hope was futile, I couldn’t help but be humbled, and happy, that she cared.
That didn’t mean Vlad wouldn’t pay.
Because he would.
But for the first time since I had embarked on this path, for the first time since I was a child, there were limits.
I just hoped I didn’t get near them.
A subtle beep pulled me out of my thoughts, and I walked to the security camera.
The setup wasn’t nearly as extensive as at my compound, but I still had eyes on each corner of the house, establishing a perimeter.
There was only one person I knew who was bold enough to walk directly to the door, so I wasn’t surprised when I saw Ezekiel on the screen.
I also wasn’t surprised when he flipped me off and then knocked on the door.
“I should have shot you,” I said as I closed the door behind him.
“Shoulda, coulda, woulda,” he said. “Where’s your hostage?”
“Lake is sleeping. What do you want?”
“Let’s go over there,” he said, nodding toward the opposite side of the house.
He headed toward the separate, screened-in porch and waited for me.
In the few seconds it had taken us to reach it, his entire demeanor had changed.
“What’s up?” I said.
“I saw Yuri today,” he responded.
There was nothing out of the ordinary about that, so there had to be more to the story.
“And?”
“And he’s given me another task. Wants me to find someone for him.”
My stomach clenched tight, but I ignored that, nodded for Ezekiel to continue.
“Seems that he owes Vlad another favor. Wants me to find a girl of Vlad’s who turned up missing.”
I had been anticipating what he was going to say, but the surprise of it was still potent.
“Fuck,” I muttered.
“That sums it up rather nicely.”
“What did you tell Yuri?”
“What the fuck do you think I told him?”
“I don’t know. That’s why I’m asking,” I said, my voice taking on edge.
Ezekiel, who up until this point had been relatively calm, narrowed his eyes at me. His posture, which was usually at ease, giving him a look of nonchalance that belied his lethal efficiency, was at full alert.
“What are you trying to say, Aras?”
“What do you think I’m trying to say?” I shot back.
“Well, if I didn’t know better, I’d say that pussy has got your mind addled. That you’re asking if I sold you out to Yuri.”
“Did you?”
“Fuck you. And if I had, you and your girlfriend would be dead by now.”
“You would be too.”
“Yeah, I would be. I can’t fucking believe you,” he said, shaking his head.
“What?” I asked, sounding defensive.
“All the shit we’ve been through. All the years, and you think I’d sell you out.”
“Aren’t you the one who always says never trust anybody?”
“Yeah, I guess I am.”
Ezekiel looked almost wounded, which was more surprising than anything else that had happened today.
Intellectually, I understood.
He and I had been through so much together, and as much as I might not acknowledge it, we had a bond. But right now wasn’t the time to think about that.
I had to make sure Lake was okay, and the only way to do that was to make sure I was okay.
“So you came to warn me?”
“Yeah, though I regret that shit. You are such a fucking asshole.”
“Stop being a baby, Ezekiel. We have bigger problems.”
“You have bigger problems. My only problem is you.”
“Be that as it may, you’re in this now. So what are we going to do?”
“Yeah, I guess I am. I’ll stall, but I don’t know how long that’s going to work. You have an endgame in mind. I know you well enough to know that.”
“I do.”
“Well it’s time to put that shit in play. Vlad needs to come off the board, or we’re gonna find ourselves in the eye of a shitstorm. It’s not gonna end well,” Ezekiel said.
“Yeah. You’re right.”
To my surprise, Ezekiel turned his lips up in a smile and let out a short bark of laughter.
“What could possibly be amusing right now?” I asked distractedly.
“I’ve been waiting more than two decades years for you to finally admit that I’m right.”
He laughed again, and I started to smile, my own humor rising even with the seriousness of the situation.
“Enjoy it. It’s not likely to happen again,” I said.
We shared a moment of companionable silence, the earlier tension gone. Nothing that was unusual. I had never had a brother, but if I had, I’d imagined he’d be like Ezekiel. We got pissed at each other, but shit always got worked out.
“So you’re gonna stall and keep Vlad and Yuri off my ass for a couple of days?” I asked.
“Yeah, I can manage that,” he said.
“Good. I’m moving again.”
“You think this place has been blown?”
“No. But better safe than sorry.”
“Any muscle?” he asked.
“I’m keeping it small. I’ll get Roman to stay with Lake while I take care of everything else,” I said.
Ezekiel nodded his approval. “You know how to reach me if you need me,” he said.
“Yeah. And Ezekiel,” I said.
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
Ezekiel didn’t respond, but his quick nod told me that everything was cool.
“I let you know when there’s something to tell you about Vlad. Watch your ass.”
And then he was gone.
I stayed up a long time after he left, compulsively checking security.
There was no reason to do so, but it calmed me, helped clarify things.
In some ways, I couldn’t believe this was actually happening.
I was close, so very close to finally getting my revenge.
And to my surprise, I didn’t feel anything like I had thought I would.
Oh, I was anticipating it. Looking forward to it.
But that joy, the completion that was in hand, was tempered.
Because to do this, I would have to make sure Lake was okay. And if at any moment she wasn’t, my victory wouldn’t be worth it.
I still didn’t understand it, the hold she had on me, the way she made me do things, wish for things I never had before.
But whether I understood or not didn’t change the truth. My feelings for her were deep, potent, left me with only one path. I would get vengeance, but I wouldn’t lose Lake in the process.
“Aras?”
Lake
I had debated whether or not to go to him.
Had decided not to.
But found myself moving toward him anyway.
I had never mentioned it, but I had noticed that he seemed to gravitate toward his security cameras, and that was where I found him.
After I called his name, he turned to face me slowly, his eyes worried initially, but that worry fading, his eyes darkening when he looked at me.
I was wearing one of the gowns I knew he liked and was rewarded with his appreciative stare.
I still wasn’t quite used to that.
Someone looking at me with desire, possessiveness, but not the kind that scared me.
The kind that m
ade me crave.
“You should be sleeping,” he whispered, his voice rough, gravelly.
“You should too,” I responded.
Aras stood, his powerful body unfolding in controlled movements, and walked toward me slowly, each step sending my heartbeat spiking, making my sex damp.
He stopped in front of me and stared down at me, his eyes dark but the desire in them as clear as the bright sun.
“I don’t want to sleep,” he whispered.
I swallowed thickly, my pulse pounding in time with the throb that started in my belly.
“What do you want?” I asked, my voice shaky.
“You,” he responded.
Without pause he reached for me, lifted me against his chest. I wrapped my legs around his waist automatically, my core centered over his hardness.
His physical strength was a thing of marvel, and he made me feel delicate, like someone worthy of protection.
It was a feeling I loved, one I doubted I would ever get used to.
He stared at me, our faces so close that my breath mingled with his, the thin barrier of our clothes the only thing separating us.
“Here I am,” I finally whispered.
He stared at me a moment longer, but then something in him seemed to be unlocked. He leaned forward slowly, almost excruciatingly so, and when he finally sealed his lips against mine, I felt like I could breathe.
He kissed me deeply, thoroughly, each stroke of his tongue sending me higher. But I knew that was only a taste of things to come.
My eyes had drifted closed, but when he laid me down on the bed, I opened them. Watched as he quickly discarded his clothing, every movement of his body graceful, efficient, driving my desire that much higher.
As he stepped toward me, my gaze was riveted to his cock, and the urge, the need, to taste him was one I couldn’t ignore.
When he reached the side of the bed, I put a hand on his hip, stilling him. I glanced up at him, saw the curiosity and the patience in his eyes. I had never loved him this way, but now I wanted to taste him, feel his hardness against my tongue, more than I wanted my next breath.
I let the hand I had on his hip drift down, the tremble in my fingers a mix of both excitement and trepidation. I wanted to please him, worried that I might disappoint him.
But through force of will, I pushed the thought away.
Knew that no matter what, I could trust him.