by Cole, Jagger
I shut the buzzer off and turn back to her. Her eyes search my face. I grin. Shit, I don’t know if I can think of a time anyone’s looked at me like this. Yeah, it might be because she has no concept of the darkness of my soul. But I’ll take it anyway.
“So, what else did you read about me?” Belle mumbles softly. From the way she looks away, I have an idea what she’s talking about.
“The hacker with your stolen pictures,” I growl
Her eyes slide up to mine. Her lips purse. “It’s not true,” she says tersely. “If that’s why you look ticked—”
“If I look ticked,” I grunt. “It’s because some shithead decided it was okay to steal something very personal to you and threaten to hurt you with it.”
Belle looks at me curiously with her lip twisted in her teeth.
“What?”
She smiles. “Nothing. You just keep trying to tell me you’re ‘trouble’ and ‘bad.’”
“I am—”
“Not from where I’m standing,” she whispers.
She leans in. The growl rumbles in my throat as my hands slide over her bare skin. I pull her hungrily towards me. My mouth presses to hers, and I groan as I lose myself in the sweetness of her lips.
“What do you do to me?” She breathes into my lips.
“It’s what you do to me that I’m trying to figure out,” I groan as I pull her onto me. Her legs move to either side of my hips. She leans down to kiss me again as my hands slide up to her ass. But then she glances to the side again.
“Do you need to get that?”
I turn. Lev’s blowing up my phone, again. I scowl and reach for the phone. When I glance at it, my jaw ticks. Fuck. I have twenty fucking missed calls from him.
“Shit,” I hiss.
“Take it, it’s fine.” Belle blushes as she leans down to kiss my chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”
I grin. “Better not.”
She slides off of me and wraps the sheets around her. I stand, pulling boxers on as I walk into the bathroom and dial Lev back.
“Goddamnit!” Lev roars. “Why the fuck haven’t you been answering your fucking phone!?!”
“Christ, Lev. What the hell is—”
“Are you armed?!”
My muscles tense. I turn to glance back into the motel room, at the gun on the side table.
“Yes,” I growl.
He takes a breath. “I need you to stand down, brother.”
I frown. “Huh?”
“They’re about to come in hot, Niko. I need you to stand—”
“Who the fuck is coming in hot!?” I hiss.
“I’m sorry, man. But you took the wrong thing from the wrong people.”
I bolt into the room and grab the gun. My eyes swivel to Belle. She pales, looking at the gun in my hand.
“Niko, what’s—”
“I told you to lose the asset, Niko,” Lev hisses. “Fuck, man. I fucking told you!”
“What the fuck is going on, Lev.”
“They’ll be through the door in ten seconds. I’m right behind them. Put the fucking gun down, Niko.”
My eyes blaze. I whirl, raising the gun to the door.”
“Lev—”
“I’m begging you, brother. If you’re armed, put it the fuck down.”
“Whoever they are, are they coming for her?”
“You know they are, man,” he grunts.
“Then I can’t do that.”
“Niko—”
“Lev, I can’t—”
The motel door explodes in. Belle screams as smoke, burning plywood, and the smell of sulphur billows into the room. I raise my gun with a snarl. But even I know it’s hopeless in seconds.
Easily fifteen men in full tactical gear flood in, guns up. Fifteen to one is a little past even me. Even so, I’d probably still try. Except it’s not just me here. There’s Belle to think about. It cuts me like a knife, but I know initiating a firefight here will end with both of us dead. And I can’t do that.
The men are barking at me in Russian as I turn to look at her. I toss the gun on the floor and raise my hands. My jaw grits so hard my teeth hurt. My eyes look at her, never blinking.
“NIKO!” she screams as I’m tackled to the ground.
But I watch three other men rush over to grab her. Something in me breaks and snaps. I erupt like a wild bear. I whirl, smashing my fist into one man, and then the next. I shake free of them to lunge for her. But suddenly, there’s a gun to my temple.
I bellow and whirl to take a swing anyway. But suddenly, I hear a familiar voice.
“Stop it, brother!”
Hands grab me, yanking me from the men with guns and slamming me into the wall. I snarl and claw thought the smoke and bloodlust clouding my eyes. The hands shake me, slamming me against the wall again.
“It’s me, Niko!! It’s me!”
I blink. The man holding me is Lev. But I look past him, and my heart wrenches. They’re dragging Belle out of the room, wrapped in the bedsheets. She’s screaming and crying my name. She’s reaching for me as tears roll down her cheeks.
I explode. I shove my brother aside, reach for his belt, and yank his gun from where it’s tucked under his jacket. I bring it up, but Lev is faster. He whirls, using a pinch on my arm to twist me and wrench the gun from my hand. I roar at him, but he’s faster. He spins us, slamming me back against the wall.
“Enough, Niko!!” He roars in my face. “Enough!”
“Move!” I scream. “Goddamnit, get the fuck out of me—”
“ENOUGH!” he booms. His eyes burn into mine, his teeth bared. “That’s a fucking order, Niko. Stand the fuck down!”
My pulse is racing. My eyes dart past him through the hole where the door was. They’re pushing Belle into a van. I roar again and lunge. But Lev is faster. He grabs me and slams me back hard against the wall.
“Stop, man!” He screams in my face.
“Let me the fuck go—!”
“We’re brokering a truce, Niko.”
I whirl. “What?!”
“A ceasefire between Volkov and Kashenko,” he hisses. His eyes squeeze shut; he shakes his head. “I’m sorry, brother. I’m so sorry. But I told you to drop the asset, whatever it was.”
“She’s not a fucking—”
“Yes, she is,” he snaps.
“Lev—”
“Nikolai, listen to me!”
“She’s not a fucking—”
“This comes from the top, man!!” He roars in my face. His teeth clench as he shakes his head. “This comes straight from Vadik, Yuri’s second in command.”
I stare at him. “She’s not a—”
“She’s a fucking actress, Niko,” he snaps coldly. I snarl, but he pushes me against the wall. “I am sorry, brother. You have no idea how sorry I am. But this isn’t a negotiation.”
The van rumbles to life outside. I hiss and shove Lev aside. But I stand there, watching the taillights fade as it—and the one girl I ever let inside my heart—fade into the night.
“Niko...”
“I’m going after—”
“The fuck you are,” he snaps. “As your commander, I am ordering you to—”
“Nope.”
I walk over to my gun on the floor and snatch it up.
“As your brother, Niko,” he says softly. I pause. I close my eyes.
“Shut down the anger, man. Shut it down and listen to when I’m saying to you. Belle Bardot is a Volkov asset. I know that’s a tough pill to swallow—”
“You don’t know shit,” I snap, whirling on him.
He nods and looks down. “Maybe not. But this is bigger than you, and bigger than me. This is from Viktor, Niko.”
“Fuck that—”
“You’re in a fucking family, Niko,” he snaps coldly. “You’re in a brotherhood. The Bratva is more than your feelings. It’s more than mine. And I know you understand that, Marine.”
My eyes close.
“I’m sorry, Niko,” Lev growls.
His hand lands on my shoulder. “I’m sorry. But you need to drop this, and you have to let this go.”
I breathe out slowly, feeling my chest constrict.
“You have to let her go, brother.”
11
Belle
Los Angeles, Three Months Later:
Outside the windows, the ocean crashes against the rocky Malibu shore below. A perfect breeze ruffles the fronds of the manicured palms outside. As prisons go, it’s gorgeous. But it’s still a prison, and I’m still incarcerated here.
I’ve spent my whole life on schedules designed by someone else. I’ve jumped when they said jump. I’ve worn what they’ve told me to wear and cut my hair only when and how they say so. I’ve eaten what the studios tell me to eat—or more specifically, not eaten what they’ve forbidden. I’ve done the movies someone else picked; smiled when they said smile for the cameras they’ve pointed at me.
But for a brief moment in time, I had freedom. For what now feels like a split second, I had the wind in my hair, and my arms around a stranger on the back of a motorcycle going God knows where.
I wasn’t looking for trouble, but I found him anyway. And for the blink of an eye, he showed me a life without a schedule. A life without someone else’s rules, and the freedom to be me.
Now, that seems like decades ago.
For the last three months, I’ve been on the most rigorous, grueling schedule of my life. I’ve been shooting three different movies, nonstop, every day. I hate all three of them. In two, my co-star is Daniel, who despite the best acting coaches money can buy, can’t act his way out of a wet paper bag.
The third had an amazing script, but the no-name—and cheap—director the producers have stuck on it is killing it piece by piece. Oh, and the producers of that and the other two with Daniel? None other than Daniel himself, Jim, my now-former agent, and a super creepy Russian man named Vadik.
When I ran before, I was worried about Daniel’s bullshit tanking my career. Now, I’m sure it’s tanked. Or it will be after the three train-wreck movies with my name attached hit theaters.
But there’s no pulling out of these. There wasn’t an option to say no to these movies. That was made as abundantly clear as the fact that I was now a prisoner, the night I was taken away from Niko.
“Miss Bardot?”
I turn at the sound of the guard’s voice—yes, I have guards now. Not bodyguards, guards. Russian ones who work for the producer, Vadik. Which annoyingly make me think of Nikolai
“Yes?
“You have a guest.”
He steps aside. Instantly, I smile when I see the shock of strawberry blonde hair and the wild green eyes.
“Well, this is a surprise.”
River grins as she crosses the room towards me and throws her arms around me. “I was on my way home from my agency and wanted to stop by for…” she slyly pulls a bottle of rosé out of her bag. Then she wags her brows. “What do you think?”
“I mean, it’s one o’clock in the afternoon.”
“And? This is Hollywood, girl.”
“I guess I could…” My words falter as I yawn. River wrinkles her nose.
“Fuck, that shooting schedule of yours is insane, isn’t it?”
I nod and yawn again. River is about to say something else. But then she glances over her shoulder and frowns at the guard.
“Um, could we get some privacy?”
He shakes his head. “I am sorry. But Miss Bardot is not supposed to meet with guests alone.”
River rolls her eyes. But then she glances back at me and winks before she turns back to him.
“So, what’s your name?”
I shake my head. I’ve seen this routine before. Honestly, it’s her superpower.
“Pavel,” he grunts.
“Well, Pavel, honey?” River purrs. Instantly, the hulking Russian with a gun grins like a schoolboy.
“Da, Miss Finn?” He blurts with starry eyes as she stalks towards him.
“Are you sure you couldn’t give me and my friend a few minutes? You know, for girl talk?”
River bats her eyes and drags a finger over his chest. He blushes, shifting from foot to foot. But then he shakes his head.
“I’m sorry, Miss Finn. But no.”
“Are you sure, Pavel?” She oozes with a sultry tone. “I’d just love it if you did me this favor. And I’d owe you big time.”
The guard looks so torn I almost feel bad for him. But in the end, his job wins out.
“I wish I could, Miss Finn. But no.”
River pauses. I swear I can see the gears changing in her head. I grin when I see her eyes harden. I’ve seen this routine too.
“Here’s the thing, Pavel,” she mutters. The “honey” sugary tone from before is gone. “Me and my friend Belle here have to talk about girl stuff. As in periods. And I don’t mean cute periods, Pavel,” she says thinly. “I mean real periods. Like some heavy flow shit, you get me?”
Pavel’s nose wrinkles in disgust. “What?”
“You see these shorts?” She points down to her white cutoffs. “Shit is about to look like a triple homicide, Pavel. I’m not joking. You’re in the fucking splash zone, buddy. This shit is about to get raw. You get me?”
Pavel looks ill.
“I—”
“Oh, shit! Here it comes!” She dramatically grips his arm. “Fuck, Pavel, here comes the period!”
Pavel yanks his arm away from her, turns, and bolts out the door. I almost have an aneurism holding the laughter inside as River and I collapse onto the floor.
“Okay, that’s the most fun I’ve had in a very, very long time,” I finally giggle. Laughter tears stream down my face as I wipe my eyes.
River does the same and then grins at me. “Think I took it too far?”
“Hell no. That was perfection.”
“Here it comes!” She dramatically acts out again. I lose it once more, rolling on the floor with laughter.
River giggles and wipes her eyes again. “How the hell do you become a grown man and not know how this shit,” she gestures to her midsection. “Works?”
“Steadfast denial.”
She giggles as we move to the couch by the windows and slump onto it. River turns to look at me intently.
“What?”
“How are you doing?”
I look down. “Fine,” I mumble.
“Belle—”
“I’m fine,” I say quietly.
“I’m tempted to kidnap you, you know.”
I smile. “Oh?”
“Yeah, I mean…” she grins. “I know that’s your thing.”
I smile. But then the sadness takes over.
“Fuck, I’m sorry,” she frowns and puts an arm over my shoulder. “I was just trying to cheer you up.”
I nod. “I know.”
River and I don’t get to talk much these days. Our hangouts are supervised. My phone is definitely bugged. But when I first got dragged back to LA, we managed to have one afternoon where I spilled everything—Niko, our time together… all of it.
“Have you been able to reach out to—”
“No,” I say quietly.
“Belle, you know I can absolutely get him a message—”
“Can’t,” I say thinly. “You know I can’t.”
My eyes close. Of course I’ve considered it. And I wanted to, every second of every day when I first landed back in LA. But once I realized the gravity of the threat Daniel and his new Russian friends had against me, I didn’t dare.
If I reach out to Niko, he’ll come for me. That’s not me being conceited, that’s fact. Or, it was. After months of silence from me, I’m not sure anymore. But if I did reach out, and he did come for me, Daniel would pull the trigger on his threat. Forget my career; my whole fucking world would go up in flames.
The mere thought of his threat makes my stomach turn.
River’s hand lands on mine. “Look, I know people, Belle. Security types, private contractors. The agency u
ses these guys when they take us on shoots to sketchy places. They’re legit.”
“River…”
“I’m serious, Belle. This is fucking insane. You’re literally a fucking prisoner.”
I chew on my lip.
“These guys? They’d come in, break you out—”
“And then Daniel would make good on his threat.”
Her lips purse. Her eyes narrow furiously. “I fucking hate that guy.”
“Yeah, well, join the party,” I mumble.
“Are you sure he really would? I mean, that’s hard-core, even for a douchebag like—”
“Positive.”
Her hands squeeze mine. “Say the word, girl,” she whispers. “And I’ll be right there with them breaking you out.”
I smile wryly at her. “I know you would.”
The door suddenly flies open. Pavel, looking angry but sheepish, comes barging in along with two other guards and my new second least-favorite person after Daniel: Vadik.
“Miss Finn,” the older, scary and creepy-looking Russian leers at my friend. “Thank you so much for visiting our star, but it’s time you left.”
The three huge guys with guns standing behind him put a pretty heavy weight to his words.
River turns to glance at me. “Belle—”
“It is time to go, Miss Finn,” Vadik hisses dangerously.
“You should go,” I mumble. I smile thinly. “Rain check on that rosé?”
She nods and stands. “Yeah, rain check,” she mutters, glaring at the four Russians. She turns back to me. “Call me any time.” She leans in to hug me. “I know your phone is bugged. But use the word ‘hullaballoo’ any time, and I’ll bring in the cavalry. Got it?”
“Got it,” I say quietly as I hug her back. She pulls away and turns to the door.
“Right this way Miss—”
“You fucking touch me and there’ll be trouble, okay fuck-head?” She snaps at Vadik.
He just smiles and ushers her out. When she’s gone, he nods at Pavel and the other two guards. They file out before he turns to me.
“We have not had much time to talk,” he grunts in his heavy Russian accent. “To get to know each other.”