The Underworld Series, page 7
I felt his body tense and suddenly his words had a deadly tone to them. I couldn’t understand what he was saying, but I knew it wasn’t good. He was normally soft-spoken, but he raised his voice while talking to the person on the other end. All while he gently twirled my curls in his free hand. I had to chuckle at the absurdity of this man probably threatening someone’s life while playing with my hair like he wasn’t threatening someone’s life.
He abruptly ended the call and looked down at me.
“I’m sorry, solnishko. Business,” he sighed as he put his phone away.
I smiled at him, and his body immediately relaxed. “No need to apologize. It wasn’t my life you were threatening just then.”
His breath caught. He pulled me so I was standing in front of him and held me close. His eyes scanned my face and my hair for several moments. I thought back to what Ms. Jackson had just told me as his looks softened the longer we stood like that. I smiled at him. I liked seeing his face soften.
“I will never tire of your beautiful smile,” he said as he brushed my hair back from face, placing it behind my shoulders. “Nor your amazing hair.” His hands ran down my back, giving me goosebumps. He looked deeply into my eyes as he held me securely against him. “You look extra beautiful today.”
“It’s all the eye candy I’m surrounded by. It’s beauty by default,” I laughed.
“Your neighbor is a very interesting woman,” his thumbs rubbing my lower back as he held me close.
“Oh, you have no idea.”
He cocked his head slightly and looked at me inquisitively. I laughed again, “You’ll have to ask her. It’s not my story to tell.”
He chuckled, “Whatever it is, I’m grateful that it allows me to see your smile.”
I felt my cheeks flush, but instead of looking down like usual, I stood on my toes and kissed his cheek in a moment of unbridled bravery.
“I owe Ms. Jackson a thank you, clearly,” he said, wrapping his arms around me.
“I owe you a thank you for taking Ms. Jackson to the store today. I know it was not part of your plan for the day but thank you.”
“Of course. I want to make sure you are safe. Always. Now come, we should leave,” he broke the embrace and took my hand, leading me up the stairs to my apartment. “You should grab a few things. I don’t know how long you’ll be gone.”
Chapter Eight
Sephie
Adrik left me to gather a few things while he went to speak with Viktor in the living room. I could hear their hushed voices as I stood in the middle of my bedroom, trying to decide what to do. I was feeling very conflicted. On one hand, I felt completely safe with a man who was basically a stranger, and also the king of the underworld. On the other hand, was I really going to allow him to take me away from my life? I knew it wasn’t much, but I had worked hard to build my little life I was living. I went from having absolutely nothing when I left my old life to being able to take care of myself all on my own. I didn’t have many friends, but the ones I did have, I cherished. If I left now, would I ever see them again? Would I ever be able to make my own decisions again? Was he taking me somewhere to lock me in the proverbial ivory tower, never to be seen again?
I thought back to Ms. Jackson’s words from earlier. “It’s for your safety and I agree. The man they’re looking for is not a good man.” I shook my head, trying to make sense of everything that was happening. “I know you like to argue, but you listen to them when it counts, you hear me. I can see it on the face of every single one of them. They love you and will die trying to protect you, so you let them.”
Ugh, why does my life always have to be so difficult? I exhaled and went to my closet to grab a bag. Just a few things. Just a few days. Then I can come back. They’ll find Anthony and I’ll be able to come back. It’ll be fine. I can do this.
As I was zipping my bag closed, Adrik came to my bedroom. His genuine concern showing on his face. “You okay, solnishko?” He closed the distance between us, and I felt myself relax when his arms wrapped around me once again.
I sighed, “Yeah, I think so. It’s just for a few days, right?”
“I hope.” He put his hands on either side of my face and looked deeply in my eyes. “I want to keep you safe. I’m only taking you away from here to keep you safe.” He noticed the tears forming in my eyes. “Shh. It will be okay. I promise,” he gently pressed his lips to mine.
We both heard a knock on my open bedroom door. Viktor, taking up the entire doorway, said urgently, “Boss, we must go. Now.”
Without any hesitation, he grabbed my hand and started walking toward the door. “Grab her bag.” His grip on my hand was tight, his shoulders visibly tense. When we got to the kitchen, I noticed they had closed all my blinds and Misha already had his gun drawn. “How close?” Adrik asked.
“Five miles out, but our spotter said four vehicles. We don’t know how many routes they’re taking.” Misha handed Adrik two bulletproof vests. Adrik turned to me and said, “Arms up. I need to put this on you.” I raised my arms, as he slid the vest over my head and arms. He reached back and swept my hair back out of the vest. He secured the sides of the vest and kissed my forehead before putting his own vest on.
Adrik nodded and went to the door of my apartment. When he opened the door, Andrei was there with a rifle in his hands and a tactical vest on, looking like he was ready to kill any and everyone that got in his way. My eyes went wide, taking in the change from happy giant Andrei to GI Andrei. “Shit just got real, ya’ll,” I said to nobody in particular. Adrik didn’t respond, he simply pulled me against his side, wrapping his arm tightly around my body. “We’re getting out of here, but you keep your head down, and no matter what, you stay by my side.”
I nodded.
“Time?” Adrik asked as he started down the stairs, following Misha. Viktor was behind us, while Andrei covered the parking lot from the landing.
“Three minutes,” Misha replied.
We rushed to the waiting vehicles. Adrik opened the back door of the second one, hurrying me inside. I jumped in, sliding over to make room for him. Viktor threw my bag in the first vehicle and jumped in the front seat. Ivan was driving the vehicle we were in. Stephen driving the other. Misha was in the back seat of the first vehicle and just as I was about to inquire about Andrei, he jumped in the front seat of our vehicle.
The SUVs tore out of the parking lot and raced down the back alley toward the main road. Adrik pulled me close beside him, helping me to stay steady on the sharp turns. We were so close to the first vehicle that I thought for sure we were going to hit them, but whatever move the first vehicle made, Ivan countered it perfectly. He always stayed a consistent distance from the vehicle, no matter what. If I wasn’t scared out of my mind, I might be impressed.
We had made it two to three streets over from my apartment, weaving through the city to make it to the freeway when two of the other SUVs we were running from showed up in traffic behind us. Ivan sped up and passed Stephen, putting their vehicle between us and the two SUVs weaving through traffic to get closer. I turned around to look at how close the other vehicles were to them. There were only a few cars in between them now. Their vehicle started to slow, and I saw Viktor lean out of the window, gun pointing behind their vehicle. I heard two shots and the first SUV veered off the street, plowing into parked cars. The second SUV didn’t stop, just replaced the first vehicle that had just crashed.
We were suddenly turning sharply, and I grabbed onto Adrik to keep from being thrown across the back seat. We were speeding through the side streets, going the wrong way down one-way streets. Adrik smiled gently at me. “Almost there, solnishko. It will be fine.”
I stared at him in amazement. We were in the middle of a high-speed pursuit. Gunfire was popping off behind us and he was as calm as could be. And smiling on top of it all? This man was not normal.
Another sharp turn threw me into him this time. His arms wrapped around me, holding me steady. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you.” I responded by grabbing his arms that were wrapped around me and holding tightly. “Shh…” he quietly cooed into my hair. “It will be over soon.”
There was a loud explosion behind us. I sat up abruptly and looked behind us, worried sick that I would see Viktor, Misha, and Stephen’s vehicle flying through the air. Instead, they were once again right behind us, but the back hatch was open. I let out the breath I had unknowingly been holding and turned forward in my seat once more.
“See? I told you. We’ll be fine,” Adrik said as he grabbed my hand and held it in his.
I looked up at him, still somewhat wide-eyed, as I was still amazed that he could remain so calm in this situation. The vehicle veered onto the freeway, Ivan increasing his speed even more. I had no doubt that Stephen was once again inches away from the back of our vehicle.
Andrei radioed Misha, “The other two?”
Misha responded, “They went to the apartment. There’s no way they’ll catch up to us now.”
Andrei turned in his seat, to look at Adrik. “We’re fifteen minutes out, sir. It looks to be clear now.”
Adrik nodded. I felt his body relax slightly as Andrei turned forward in his seat. I squeezed his hand, resting my head against his shoulder.
Those fifteen minutes seemed to go by quickly. Before I knew it, we were pulling up in front of giant iron gates. The gates swung open, closing after the SUV behind us. We drove down the long driveway and pulled in front of the house. The grounds were immaculately kept, with giant oak trees along the driveway. Their branches making a canopy for the driveway.
Once the vehicles stopped, we all got out. I ran to Viktor and threw my hands around his neck, completely catching him off guard. He just stood frozen for a moment, but eventually returned the hug, with his giant arms wrapping around me. His giant frame making me feel like a midget. “I was so worried,” I whispered to him.
He let out a chuckle. He stepped back and looked at me, a glint in his eye, “It’s going to take a lot more than that to keep me down.” I smiled at him, then went to Misha and Stephen and hugged them both. “Thank you.” Neither knew what to say, they just smiled sheepishly at me.
I walked back toward Adrik and Andrei who were watching the exchange, amusement evident on their faces. As I got closer, Andrei opened his arms and said, “Do I get one too?” I giggled and jumped into his arms. He picked me up and swung me around as I squealed. He set me down, laughing. “I could get used to this kind of appreciation.”
Ivan walked around the front of the vehicle to stand behind Andrei. I walked to him and extended my hand to him. “You don’t strike me as the hugging type,” I said. He grabbed my hand and pulled me in for a bear hug. “Can you teach me how to drive like that?” I whispered to him.
He laughed for the second time since I met him. “Sure,” was all he said as he let me go. I grinned at him and walked back to Adrik. He opened his arms for me, and I readily wrapped my arms around him, resting my head on his chest. “I saved the best for last,” I said quietly so that only he could hear me. His arms tightened around me.
Chapter Nine
Adrik
While Persephone was having a private conversation with her neighbor, I decided to light a cigarette. Inhaling deeply, my mind racing in circles, wondering why we couldn’t get reliable information on Anthony’s whereabouts. There was no way that asshat of a child could get the loyalty of this much of the city. He had to have help, which meant I had dissenters in my ranks. Even more than the situation with Anthony, that bothered me.
When I took over the business from my father, I tried to be fair and reasonable in every one of my decisions. My father was known for being ruthless, and maybe greedier than he should’ve been. No one ever called him on it on account of his reputation. I wanted to take the business in a different direction, where we weren’t constantly at war with the people of the city, or the police. It was exhausting. Too many good people died because of my father’s rule. I was tired of death on a daily basis.
Gradually, I mended the relationships with the people of the city. We started giving back to the people, supporting their causes, giving money for little leagues, building parks. With a little time, the people of the city lost their fear of my organization. They started coming to us for business deals, for help with matters that the city wouldn’t help with. My empire has grown exponentially as a result, but the people of the city are safe. They’re protected. Gone are the days when kids couldn’t play outside for fear of stray bullets.
I was proud of what I had done. The police worked with us, instead of against us. Sure, they required their cut of the illegal side of the business, but that’s to be expected. They knew what we were doing in the dark, but because we had helped build the city up so much, they said nothing about it. This was how you conducted business successfully.
Now, clearly, I had at least one boss, likely more, that had openly declared war on me. What was his end game? It can’t be all to do with Sephie. I would still end his life for harming her, but there had to be more to his play. What was he after? Power? Territory? Did he know that I found out about his recent venture into human trafficking?
That was a lucrative business, but one that I absolutely would not allow. It was disgusting. More so than the drugs and the gambling. I forbid it and every other boss in the city knew it. I’ll give Anthony credit, he had serious cajones for going against my direct order. It would not serve him well in the end, but he had chutzpah.
As I took another drag from my cigarette, my phone rang. Looking at it, I recognized the number and answered right away. It was my spy that I kept at the private airport just outside the city. I wanted to know where Anthony was going should he try to leave the city.
“Hey, Boss, so I have good news and I have bad news.”
“Good news first.”
“Anthony has chartered a flight for middle of the week. He’s on the passenger manifest, along with his four closest associates.”
“And the bad news?”
“There’s no flight path logged yet. They have time to log it, granted, but I have a feeling that they’re going to take off without logging it to try and give us the slip.”
My jaw clenched as I felt the temper I had inherited from my father threatening to rise up to the surface. I turned to see Sephie stepping out of Ms. Jackson’s apartment. I put out what was left of my cigarette and extended my arm to her. She was the key to keeping my temper under control right now. So help me, every single time she was near me, I felt completely calm and in control. From the first moment I looked at her unabashedly staring at me in the restaurant, I felt complete calm and peace when she was near. I don’t understand how, but I know I will do whatever I need to do to protect that feeling.
As soon as she sees my outstretched arm, she walks quickly to my side. She fits perfectly next to me. I’ve never been with a woman as tall as her and I didn’t realize what I’ve been missing. She’s still shorter than I am, but I don’t have to break my back bending over to kiss her. She instantly wraps her arms around me and rests her head against my shoulder. I know I will never tire of feeling her against me. I placed a kiss on the top of her head and went back to my conversation.
“Can you stop the plane from taking off without a flight path logged?”
“Technically, no. They can log a path while they’re in the air.”
“I’m not asking for the legal method here.”
“We can ground the plane by force, but it won’t be pretty, and I can’t guarantee that everyone on the plane won’t be dead at the end of it.”
My frustration with this situation got the best of me. I raised my voice enough to drive my point home. “I pay you for guarantees. If they’re not scheduled to leave until the middle of the week, then you have three days to fucking figure something out. If you don’t figure out how to both keep him from leaving, as well as keep him alive in the process, then it will be your life that is lost.”
I ended the call and put my phone back in my pocket. I looked down to see Sephie peeking up at me. “I’m sorry, solnishko. Business.”
Her beautiful smile stretched across her face, “No need to apologize. It wasn’t my life you were threatening just then.”
I inhaled sharply. I thought she didn’t understand Russian. She could gather I was threatening someone just from the tone of my voice? She was truly remarkable. I pulled her in front of me, taking in how stunning she was in the afternoon sunlight. “I will never tire of your beautiful smile,” I said. I watched the way the sunlight brought out new shades of red and auburn. Twirling a curl between my fingers, I added, “Nor your amazing hair.” My hands roamed over her back, wanting to feel her soft skin underneath her shirt, but not wanting to be too forward. I settled for holding her close and told her, “You look extra beautiful today.”
She laughed. Her smile growing wider, “It’s all the eye candy I’m surrounded by. It’s beauty by default.”
Whatever it was, I would gladly take it.
We pulled up to the estate finally. It was close. Too close, considering we had Sephie with us. I already knew I would burn the entire city to the ground if something happened to her. She only just came into my life, but without her the careful self-control I’d created since taking over from my father would be gone with her last breath. I would turn into him, and the city would pay.
We stepped out of the vehicle. She immediately ran to the vehicle behind us, straight to Viktor. She slammed into him, hugging his neck tightly. He was taken aback by her gesture and looked to me before moving. I simply nodded. He wrapped his arms around her, like an older brother reuniting with his favorite sister after a long absence. She then went to both Misha and Stephen and gave them each a hug too.
