《King of the Underworld》 Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Chapter One Sephie I hear my wh*te noise app cut off on my phone and my rm slowly getting louder. I wait for the chiming bells to stop before I roll over and hit the screen. With a deep breath, I muster the energy to get out of bed and drag myself to the shower. Another glorious day in the life of waiting tables. I stop myself from skipping to the shower I¡¯m so excited at the prospect of being yelled at by angry customers again today. People are just crankytely. After my shower, I make myself a quick breakfast, even though it¡¯ste afternoon. Working thete shift means I miss the normal breakfast time, but let¡¯s be real. Bacon can be enjoyed any time of the day. Once the dishes are done and washed, I grab my keys and my bag, locking the door on my way out. I live by myself. It¡¯s maybe not the best neighborhood, but all my neighbors are really nice, and we keep an eye on each other. When I turn around after locking my door, I see Mr. Turner walking up the steps to his apartment across the hall from mine. ¡°Hello, Miss Sephie. Going anywhere exciting?¡± He¡¯s slowly climbing the stairs, with his groceries in hand. It¡¯s Thursday, after all. Mr. Turner always stops by the grocery store on his way home on Thursdays. ¡°Hi, Mr. Turner. On my way to work. How was your day? Have any excitement at the hotel today?¡± ¡°No, not today, but I¡¯m thankful for boring days, if I¡¯m being honest.¡± Mr. Turner worked the door at the most expensive hotel downtown. He¡¯s been the doorman for 32 years and knows every single influential person in the city as a result. ¡°Boring days give you more time to find my Mr. Perfect, right? I like boring days too,¡± I chuckle. Mr. Turnerughs as he reaches his door and sets his groceries down to unlock it. ¡°Don¡¯t you worry, Miss Sephie, I¡¯ll find you the perfect man one day. You deserve it.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°I don¡¯t know about that, but I¡¯ll take all the help I can get. Have a great night, Mr. Turner. I¡¯ll see you in the morning and as always, if you need anything, you call me.¡± I waved goodnight to him as he walked in his apartment. My smile lingers as I jog down the steps to the parking lot. Having great neighbors really can make a huge difference in your living situation. Once I pull into the restaurant¡¯s parking lot, I find my normal parking space taken. I grumble to myself as I am forced to park farther away from the building now. I am nothing, if not a creature of habit. Not getting my normal parking space means this is going to be a rough night. Hooray for Thursdays. When I step out of my car, I notice the storm cl*uds slowly rolling in. Inhaling deeply, I breathe in the sweet scent of iing rain and relish thest moment of sanity before my shift starts. I can do this. It¡¯s not just any Thursday. It¡¯s thest Thursday of the month, which means that all the crime bosses in the city meet at this restaurant to discuss ¡°business.¡± They reserve the back room and request that I serve them each time. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because I¡¯m quiet, keep my head down most of the time, or if it¡¯s because I can remember what each boss likes and doesn¡¯t like, but they always request me. They always give me a fantastic tip, so it makes having to wait on known criminals somewhat manageable. Their tips are single-handedly funding my savings ount, which means I¡¯ll be able to move out of my questionable neighborhood sooner, rather thanter. ¡°Hey Sephie. Are youing inside or are you just going to stand by your car with your eyes closed like a psycho all night?¡± ¡°Sh*t- up, Max. I¡¯ming, I¡¯ming,¡± I say as I run to catch up to him. Max is the bartender and has his own fan club of women thate to the restaurant solely to be served drinks by him. His drinks aren¡¯t special. He¡¯s even admitted to watering down their drinks most days. They just want to stare at him while he smiles at them as he serves them their Cosmopolitans. Max is tall, muscr, but a slender muscr. He looked like he could y in the NBA, not the NFL. His d*rty blonde hair was shorter on the sides, but he was letting it grow longer on top. He said the women loved slightly longer hair these days, so he was conducting market research to see if longer hair got him more tips. Max had a boyish charm about him, but he knew how to use his emerald green eyes to get thedies. One look from him and most women would swoon. I was apparently immune to that look. He tried it often on me, but I wouldugh every time. He said I was good for his humility, if nothing else. ¡°Were you meditating just now? Do you need to find inner peace before the meeting tonight?¡± he teased as he opened the back door for me. ¡°I was trying to find the strength not to smack you, a-h*le,¡± Iughed as I walked into the kitchen. ¡°Oh. You wound me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m positive you will be able to find a woman to nurse your wounds, in¡­approximately 30 minutes,¡± I say as I look at my watch to see how long we have before the bar opens. From Thursday to Sunday, the women flock to the bar to see Max. ¡°But none of them will ever have my heart the way you do, my little gingersnap,¡± he says as he stands in front of me, leans into me, and gently tucks a loose curl behind my ear. He adjusts my thick braid over my shoulder and pretends to adjust the cor on my shirt. I stare deeply into his big green eyes, as his fingers linger on my neck. Then I immediately break character into a fit ofughter as he also breaks and startsughing. ¡°Go to work, Max.¡± The ck SUVs start arriving around 8 pm. Max ispletely swamped with single women vying for his attention at the bar but still takes the time to run back to the kitchen like he¡¯s a 5-year-old and yells, ¡°THEY¡¯RE HERE¡± and then runs back to the bar. I shake my head,ughing at his antics, take a deep breath, and steady myself for the night ahead. The six bosses eache to this meeting with at least 2-4 additional people. Some are bodyguards, some are their children, and some are underbosses. The bosses are all very respectful, as are the bodyguards and the underbosses. It¡¯s the children that I loathe. Sons of mafia bosses have the biggest egos I¡¯ve ever encountered and worse, they feel entitled to act however they please. They¡¯re handsy, they¡¯re rude, and they all think that I should be throwing myself at them, simply because of who their fathers are. Luckily, they don¡¯te to every meeting, but they¡¯ll definitely be here tonight. Apparently, this meeting is extra important as the main boss. the overlord? I don¡¯t know what to call him. Lord King Boss? Feels right ¨C the Lord King Boss ¨C will be here tonight. He rarely makes appearances in public, so I¡¯m a little at a loss as to what¡¯s so important that he would show up tonight, but I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll get snippets throughout the night. Because I¡¯m always the one that takes care of this meeting, I know more about the goings on in the city than I probably should. I keep that information to myself, of course. I¡¯m not an id*ot. Chapter 2 Chapter 2 Chapter Two Sephie There is a steady stream of food to the back room throughout the night and the alcohol flows freely. I¡¯ve gotten four smacks to my a*s in the first hour. All the boss¡¯s eldest sons are there. Lucky me. Around 9:30, two new bodyguards, who are quite possibly the biggest men I¡¯ve ever seen, walk into the restaurant as I¡¯m waiting for Max to fill mytest alcohol order. Walking in right behind them, I see a man I don¡¯t recognize, but can¡¯t see clearly as the lights are dim in the restaurant. He steps fully inside the door, and I can clearly see his face. He¡¯s tall, surprisingly young for a Lord King Boss, dark hair, two-day old stubble that I find myself wondering what would feel like against my neck, and he turns to look my direction with the most piercing blue eyes I think I¡¯ve ever seen. He catches me staring at him and a sly smirkes across his face. Just then, Max steps up behind me and gently pushes my shoulder. ¡°Hey, you should go escort him to the back room. He might not know where to go. I¡¯ll have your drinks ready when you get back.¡± I take a sharp breath in, broken out of my daze, and practically stumble toward the men at the front door. ¡°Uh¡­hi, I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re here for the meeting?¡± His intense gaze leaves my face to scan down my body briefly and discreetly, as he reaches down to adjust the cuffs of his shirt. He looks up again and nods once. Okay, man of many words. This, I can handle. ¡°Please, follow me.¡± He nods once more, and all five men follow me to the back. There were two more bodyguards behind him that I couldn¡¯t see until the first two units stepped further into the restaurant. Before I open the door to the back room, I turn around to face them, asking ¡°may I take your drink orders, gentlemen?¡± One of the first bodyguards says, ¡°yes, water for all of us, please.¡± His very thick, very Russian ent is very apparent. I was surprised by his answer, so I cocked my head to the side, letting a ¡°different¡± slip out before I realized I had said anything. My cheeks immediately flushed as I realized I had said the quiet part out loud. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I mean no disrespect,¡± I said as I stared at the floor and stepped to the side while opening the door for them. The first two bodyguards entered the room first, scanned the entire room, then nodded. The blue-eyed Lord King Boss stepped up closer to me while his bodyguards were scanning, that sly smirk on his face once again, and leaned in close enough that I could smell his intoxicating cologne. ¡°None taken,¡± he whispered, his Russian ent detectable as he stepped in front of his bodyguards to the weing greetings of the entire room. ¡°What the f*c k is wrong with me,¡± I muttered to myself as I rushed back to the bar to get those drinks and to add five more waters to the order. The mood in the room palpably changed after Mr. Lord King Boss joined the meeting. Everyone was very tense and very serious. What had happened while I was getting those drinks? I did a quick head count as I delivered each individual drink order. Ok, nobody died while I was away. This is a good sign. I ced a refill of bourbon in front of one of the boss¡¯s sons. Anthony, I think his name was. This was Anthony¡¯s eleventh bourbon of the evening. Max knew better than to water down these drinks, so Anthony was getting the good stuff, at full strength. Inyman¡¯s terms, Anthony was drunk off his a*s . No sooner had the ss hit the table and Anthony reached back and smacked my a*s with such force that I was thrown forward onto the table, giving the men across from Anthony a full view down my shirt. I caught myself on the table and pushed myself back upright, only to meet those steel blue eyes once again. Only this time he wasn¡¯t smirking. Instead, his jaw was clenched. I could feel my cheeks turning fully red as I apologized under my breath and quickly left the room. As soon as the door closed, I rushed through the kitchen and out the back door. Ugh, I hated thest Thursday of the month. I walked to the dumpster and back a couple of times when I heard the kitchen door opening. One of the giant bodyguards came out first, quickly followed by the new guy. I stopped my pacing, not knowing how I was going to walk past him to get back to the restaurant. He turned to his bodyguard, who handed him a cigarette and a lighter. Lazily putting the cigarette between his lips, he tilted his head down slightly as he cupped his hands around his face to light it. When the me ignited, his face was illuminated, revealing that his blue eyes were focused on me. I was still frozen in the same spot, wondering how I was going to walk casually by this very powerful man back into the restaurant. Oh, for f*c k¡¯s sake, just do it. After all, you have a job to do, Sephie. I took a deep breath and walked up to the back door. I kept my gaze down until just before I reached the two men, but quickly nced up and gave them the best smile I could muster, before reaching forN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. the door. Just as my hand was about to make contact with the door, he reached out and gently grabbed my wrist, causing me to look at him in fearful confusion. He must¡¯ve seen the fear in my eyes because he immediately let go and raised both of his hands. ¡°Hey, not gonna hurt you. I just want to ask you some questions,¡± he said. His blue eyes, now darker, were so intense that it felt like he might be looking into my soul. ¡°Um, sure. What can I help you with? Did you want to order some food? Can I get you more than water?¡± He let out a small chuckle, as did his bodyguard. What was so funny about me doing my job? ¡°No. But thank you. You¡¯re very good at your job, but I don¡¯t allow my men to drink when they¡¯re working, and I never touch alcohol.¡± ¡°Oh¡­okay. Um, what kind of questions?¡± ¡°How well do you know those men in the meeting?¡± ¡°Um, I mean, define well? I¡¯m always the waitress that serves them when they have their meetings. I know the older men by name, as they¡¯re here every time. The younger men I have a harder time remembering because they aren¡¯t always here. The sons aren¡¯t always here either¡­thankfully¡± I whispered, once again realizing toote that I had said it out loud instead of in my head. ¡°I know them more by their drink and food orders than anything else. I can tell you exactly what they like and don¡¯t like when ites to food and alcohol, but in the interest of self-preservation, that¡¯s all the information I divulge on those men.¡± He smirked at me and asked, ¡°are they always so rude to you?¡± ¡°The older men, never. They¡¯re very respectful. Most of the underbosses too are very respectful unless they drink too much. I¡¯m not sure if their bodyguards know how to speak, because now that I think about it, I¡¯ve never heard them say a word. The sons, though? What you saw earlier is a normal urrence. Especially when they¡¯re all here. It¡¯s like they try to outdo each other.¡± He squinted his eyes slightly as he inhaled the smoke from his cigarette. Holding his breath for a second before turning his head to bl ow the smoke into the air, away from me, his eyes never leaving mine. Why did I feel like I could look in those eyes for hours and never get tired of it? ¡°Thank you, uhhh¡­I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t catch your name?¡± ¡°Sephie.¡± ¡°Sephie? That¡¯s an unusual name.¡± ¡°It¡¯s short for Persephone. Most people have a hard time pronouncing it, so I just shortened it. Also, those who know are generally nervous once they find out I¡¯m named after the Queen of the Underworld,¡± I said, looking down at my fidgeting hands. I really loved my name, but it dide with a weird history. ¡°Thank you, Persephone. You¡¯ve been very insightful. I¡¯m pleased to have met you tonight,¡± he said as he extended his hand to me. I hesitantly ced my hand in his. He gently turned my hand over and brought it up to his lips. When his lips connected to the back of my hand, it was like fireworks went off in my stomach. I tried not to be obvious about the sharp inhale I took as he kissed the back of my hand, so I said, ¡°yes, you too¡­mister?¡± as I looked at him inquisitively. ¡°Adrik. You can call me Adrik.¡± Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Chapter Three Sephie After my short interlude outside, I returned to work and tried my best to act like nothing happened. Anthony had apparently been chastised while I was away because he kept his hands to himself. This was new. Did Mr. Lord King Boss Adrik threaten him after I first went outside? Anthony had never stopped his juvenile antics before tonight. I think I like Mr. Lord King Boss Adrik. Most of the men had finished with their meals but were still deep in discussions. The room was tense, to say the least. I was busy picking up empty tes and taking them back to the kitchen. I recruited Max to help me pick up tes, so I wouldn¡¯t have to make so many trips. Just as he was about to enter the room, one of the bodyguards stopped him. ¡°Excuse me, sir. Only the lovelydy is allowed in the room,¡± he said with his giant hand on Max¡¯s shoulder. Max wasn¡¯t a small guy either. He obviously worked out regrly and was well over six foot tall, but he looked small next to that absolute unit of a bodyguard. I looked back at Max and smiled. ¡°It¡¯s okay, Max. I¡¯ll get them. Thank you for offering to help.¡± I let out a sigh as I walked into the room. I nced in Adrik¡¯s direction, only to notice his blue eyes staring at me once again. I quickly tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and made myself busy. After depositing another round of di rty dishes in the kitchen sinks, I walked out the kitchen door on my way back to the meeting room. In the back hallway, between the kitchen and the back room, I was met by none other than Anthony. He wasing out of the restroom,pletely drunk, and acting like he might fall at any moment. I tried to hurry past him, but he caught my arm and pulled me back to stand right in front of him. ¡°Please let go of my arm. I have work to do,¡± I said, trying to pull away from him. His vice-like grip on my arm only got tighter. Did bourbon give him some kind of superhuman strength? Seriously. How was his grip so strong? ¡°C¡¯mon, you know you¡¯d much rather go into the bathroom with me for a quickie,¡± he said as he leaned in to try to kiss me, pushing me up against the wall so I couldn¡¯t easily get away from him. Ugh, his breath was horrendous and smelled like he¡¯d drank the entire bar that night. Truthfully, he¡¯d probably had half of it, at least. I turned my head to avoid his lips, which only served to pi ss him off. He said something in Italian, which I didn¡¯t understand because of his slurring, but he grabbed my other arm, again with his vice-like grip. He stepped even closer to me, as if that was possible. I could feel his entire body pressed against mine. I could even feel that he was getting aroused at standing so close to me. He didn¡¯t say anything for a moment. He just scanned up and down my body, his breath getting quicker, his pupils dting. He released one arm and reached up to my face. With the back of his hand, he lightly grazed my cheek. I turned my head, trying once again to get away from him. He sighed. ¡°Do you know who I am? Do you know how many girls would love to be in your position right now?¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you go find one of them. I¡¯ll dly tag her in,¡± I said. ¡°You have a smart mo uth. I¡¯ve always heard that redheads were firecrackers. Maybe someone needs to teach you a lesson.¡± ¡°No thanks. School really wasn¡¯t my thing. I probably won¡¯t pay attention if you try to teach me anything.¡± I was hoping to make him frustrated enough that he would move, and I could escape his grasp. Even if he lost a little focus, I was preparing to deck him and then I was going to make a breakAll content is ? N0velDrama.Org. for it. I thought about screaming but didn¡¯t want to cause a scene. The entire back room was armed with enough firepower that they could level the entire block if it came to it, so making a scene wasn¡¯t my finest idea. I was also hoping someone woulde out of the kitchen, but most of the staff had already left for the night, as it was a slow night in the front of the restaurant. Max was still at the bar, and he likely wouldn¡¯t hear me anyway. I had to figure out how to get out of this mess on my own. ¡°There¡¯s that smart mo uth again,¡± he said as he ran his hand up my arm and slowly wrapped it around my neck. ¡°Do you know what I do to women that don¡¯t know when to sh ut up?¡± he asked as his grip slowly tightened around my neck. My entire body tensed, and my eyes went wide. I knew what was about to happen. I felt my air being slowly cut off. Well, shi.* I definitely didn¡¯t expect this to happen tonight. With my one free arm, I tried hitting him, but he had pressed his body against mine so tightly that I couldn¡¯t get any kind of leverage on him, so my fist was practically useless. ¡°That¡¯s it. I like it when they struggle. I like it when they beg me to stop.¡± Perhaps my smart mo uth wasn¡¯t the attribute I thought it was. My mind was racing as I was trying to figure out how to get away from him when I heard the door to the back room open. Footsteps were approaching. No, multiple footsteps were approaching. Onest feeble attempt to hit him and suddenly he wasn¡¯t there anymore, and I was on the ground coughing and gasping for air. I felt a hand on my shoulder and instantly panicked. I scooted away as quickly as I could. ¡°Whoa, whoa, Persephone. It¡¯s okay. I won¡¯t hurt you. You¡¯re safe now.¡± I raised my gaze and was met with those blue eyes once again. They were darker in this light, but showing nothing but concern, as he reached out to me one more time. This time, I didn¡¯t move away. He put one arm around my shoulders, and I leaned into his chest. I realized I was crying. He gently stroked my hair and told me everything was going to be alright. The next thing I knew, he hooked his other arm under my legs and picked me up, carrying me back to the kitchen. It was empty when we walked in. He walked over to one of the food prep tables and sat me down on the table. Standing in front of me, he produced a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to me, his hands never leaving my thighs. I stared at his hands while I wiped the tears from my face and tried to compose myself. I felt his hand, gently, under my chin. He raised my head and tilted it all the way back so he could look at my neck. ¡°You¡¯re going to have a gnarly bruise tomorrow.¡± ¡°Perks of being a redhead. You can look at me hard enough and I¡¯ll bruise.¡± He chuckled softly and I let out augh as well. It might not be the healthiest coping mechanism, but humor made everything better for me. I¡¯d endured some hard times and made it through because I never lost my sense of humor. Adrik tenderly wrapped one of my loose curls around his finger, while he scanned my face, concern still in his eyes. ¡°Redheads have a special ce in this world. Legend has it they stole the fires of He*ll and that they carry the mark of Cain.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all true. I also steal souls, but only on the weekends. Work has been busytely and I have a surplus of souls, with not enough storage space right now.¡± A wide smile came across his face as heughed. Good grief this man was handsome. I found myself smiling in response to hisughter and in that brief moment I had forgotten the events that led us to this moment. ¡°You are a unique woman, Persephone.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s true too. Redheads are only 2% of the world¡¯s poption and of that 2%, only 2% have an eye color as unique as mine. So, basically, I¡¯m a unicorn.¡± I looked into his eyes as I was talking. His smile faded slightly and the intensity returned. He stared into my eyes long enough that I got nervous. I dropped my gaze and started fidgeting with my hands. My body does this weird thing in response to trauma. It¡¯s like I¡¯m shivering, but I¡¯m not cold. Of course, this was the moment that started up. My therapist had informed me years earlier that it was a somewhat normal trauma response. It hadn¡¯t happened in years, so I wasn¡¯t expecting it to start. I couldn¡¯t get away from Adrik fast enough and he felt my legs shaking. ¡°Are you cold, solnishko? I can get you my jacket,¡± he said, his hands running up my arms to cover my bare skin. ¡°No, it¡¯s¡­I¡¯m fine,¡± I said as I hopped off the table. ¡°I should get back to work. Thank you for helping me.¡± I folded my arms under my chest and walked out of the kitchen without looking back. The past always has a way of showing up at the most inopportune times. Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Chapter Four Sephie When I walked back into the meeting room, it waspletely empty. Everyone had vanished. I can¡¯t say I was disappointed by this development. I busied myself with gathering up the empty sses and the few tes I hadn¡¯t managed to clear already to take them to the kitchen. I hear Max whistling as he¡¯s walking down the hallway toward the back room. ¡°Hey, why did everyone leave in such a hurry?¡± he asked as he walked in and started to help me clear the tables. ¡°No idea,¡± I said. I kept my gaze down, as I was once again on the verge of tears, trying desperately to keep them in so I wouldn¡¯t cry in front of Max. I hated crying in front of people. ¡°That was weird. I saw two of those giant bodyguards that came inst take a very drunk guy out front and beat the living sh it out of him, then walk back inside like nothing happened.¡± I dropped the ss in my hand and looked at Max, wide-eyed. ¡°They did what??¡± ¡°Yeah, it wasical. And somewhat sad. But mostlyical. I think it was one of the guys you said was always an as*shole to you, so I may or may not have cheered as the bodyguards came back in the restaurant.¡± ¡°Max, you have to be careful. You know who these people are.¡± ¡°I know, I know, but I was cheering for the Karma that guy was clearly receiving. Hey, wait a minute ¨C what the he ll happened to your arms?? And your neck??¡± ¡°This was the reason for the Karma.¡± ¡°Holy sh it, Sephie! Are you okay? What happened? Why didn¡¯t youe get me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. That guy is always handsy, but he took it to a new level tonight. I might¡¯ve provoked him slightly and made things worse, so he choked me.¡± ¡°No, no, no. Don¡¯t you do that. Don¡¯t you take any of the me on yourself. That guy is a di ck and he had every b*ow to the face he got tonighting for putting his hands on you.¡± ¡°Yeah. I guess you¡¯re right. I just want to close up so I can go home. I¡¯m really tired.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you just go? I¡¯ll close everything up.¡± ¡°You know I¡¯m not going to leave you here by yourself, Max. You might be a big, strong guy, but that¡¯s still a jerk move. Everyone else is gone already.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so stubborn you¡¯d argue with the devil himself.¡± ¡°True story.¡± Max just shook his head andughed as he grabbed thest ss off the table and headed to the kitchen. We quickly got everything cleaned up, put away, and ready for tomorrow¡¯s lunch shift. We¡¯d both been working at the restaurant for a few years now, so we had a routine down and worked together seamlessly. It always took us less time than everyone else to get our list of chores done in the restaurant before closing. We usuallyughed and picked at each other during the whole process, so time passed quickly. We walked out of the back door around 1 am. I stood and waited while he locked the back door, then we walked to our cars together. I was so busy looking at the still cloudy sky that I hadn¡¯t noticed the ck SUV parked between Max¡¯s car and my car. I stopped dead in my tracks. Max hadn¡¯t noticed it yet, as he was looking at his phone. Probably texting whatever girl he was nning on hooking up with that night. He walked a few steps ahead of me, then noticed I was no longer beside him. ¡°Hey¡­. wha¡­.¡± he said as he turned to find me frozen in ce, a look of horror on my face as I was hoping the person in that SUV was not who I thought it was. Max looked at my face and then spun around to see the SUV parked between our cars. ¡°Ohhhhh sh it,¡± he said as he took a couple of steps back toward me. Without looking, he pushed me directly behind him as he watched the back door open. I couldn¡¯t see over Max¡¯s shoulder and I was too scared to peek around him. ¡°What do you want?¡± Max yelled. I could feel him trying to be brave for me, but I could also feel how every muscle in his back was tense and rock hard. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. ¡°Please, don¡¯t be scared. I only wish to pay Persephone for her excellent service tonight,¡± a deep and very calm voice said, his Russian ent evident. I recognized that voice. I peeked around Max¡¯s shoulder and sure enough, Mr. Lord King Boss Adrik was walking slowly toward us. I put my hand on Max¡¯s back and said, ¡°it¡¯s okay, Max. He helped when¡­you know, Karma. It was his bodyguards.¡± Max visibly rxed and inhaled deeply. ¡°Oh, thank God, I¡¯m not gonna di e tonight,¡± he said under his breath. I giggled and reached up and kissed his cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°You know I got you, gingersnap.¡± I walked toward my car and Adrik, who was watching me intently. ¡°Have you been waiting this whole time? You could¡¯ve juste back into the restaurant. Or dropped it off tomorrow.¡± ¡°I had business to take care of. We dr ove back by and your cars were still here, so we waited. It wasn¡¯t long,¡± he said as he handed me a f at stack of cash. ¡°Wha¡­noooo. This is too much. I can¡¯t ept this,¡± I said, trying to hand the stack of hundred-dor bills back to him. ¡°Please. You earned it,¡± he said as he once again gently grabbed my chin and tilted my head back so he could see my now darker bruise on my neck. I could hear him curse under his breath but didn¡¯t quite catch what he said as he inspected my bruise. ¡°It¡¯s okay, really. I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ve had worse, honestly.¡± His eyebrows furrowed into a frown as he scanned my face, once more tucking a loose curl behind my ear. Without realizing it, I leaned into his touch. My eyes closed and I took a deep breath. Just like when we were in the kitchen, I had a moment ofplete peace. He ced his palm against my cheek, his thumb lightly caressing my face. I relished in the feeling, in the quiet, in the warmth that I felt in my entire body any time he touched me. ¡°Are you okay to drive home, solnishko?¡± His question broke me from my trance, and I momentarily forgot where I was. ¡°What? Oh. Yes. Yes, I¡¯m fine. Sorry,¡± I said, quickly looking down at my bag to dig my keys out. ¡°No need to apologize. I think you need more of that in your life,¡± he said with that se xy smirk back on his face. If he only knew how correct he actually was¡­ Chapter 5 Chapter 5 Chapter Five Sephie I woke the next morning, well before my rm went off, feeling like my throat was on fire. I stretched and immediately regretted it, as my entire body felt like I had been run over by a veryrge vehicle. Repeatedly. ¡°Well, that su-cked,¡± I said out loud to myself. Instantly regretting my decision to speak, I started coughing uncontrobly. I got myself to stop coughing and got out of bed. No more outside thoughts, Sephie. Just inside thoughts. My phone started ringing as I was walking out of the bathroom. I looked at the caller ID. It was Mr. Turner from across the hall. I immediately answered the call. ¡°Hey Mr. Turner, is everything alright?¡± I said in a half-whisper, hoping I didn¡¯t cause another coughing attack. ¡°Good morning, Miss Sephie. Listen, I don¡¯t want to rm you, but there was a veryrge man standing outside your door this morning when I left for work. I asked him what his business was there and he said he¡¯d been assigned to guard you, but he wouldn¡¯t tell me anything else.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s weird,¡± I said, biting my lower lip. I tried to think why anyone would be ¡°assigned¡± to me. Reflexively, my hand went to my neck. ¡°Mr. Turner, was this man the size of a house, with ck hair, crew cut and a beard?¡± He chuckled and said, ¡°that¡¯s a fitting description of him, yes. You know him?¡± ¡°I think I might have an idea. It¡¯s okay, Mr. Turner. He¡¯s one of the good ones. At least I think so.¡± ¡°Ok, Miss Sephie, if you say so. If you need anything, you call me right away. I got my old buddy¡¯s son, on the force, on speed dial. I¡¯ll have him to your ce in no time if you need him.¡± ¡°Thank you, Mr. Turner. I really appreciate it, but I hopefully won¡¯t need that. I promise I¡¯ll call you if it¡¯s not who I think it is.¡± We said our goodbyes and I walked to my balcony door. I peeked outside and noticed the ck SUV parked in the parking lot below, a few parking spaces from my car once again. The windows were tinted so dark that I could only see a giant hand resting on the steering wheel. As quietly as I could, I walked to the front door and looked through the peep ho*le. I couldn¡¯t see all of him, but you can¡¯t mistake a physique like that. It was one of the bodyguards that had delivered Anthony¡¯s karma the night before. I opened the door. He turned around as I said, ¡°good morning, sir. Can I get you a coffee?¡± N?velDrama.Org is the owner. He smiled warmly. ¡°Good morning, Miss Sephie. Thank you, but I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be a martyr. You can¡¯t have slept much if you¡¯ve been here since Mr. Turner from across the hall left. Wait, are you on meth? You¡¯re on meth, aren¡¯t you? Is that how you¡¯re awake right now? Don¡¯t lie to me. You might be four times as big as me, but I know kung fu.¡± That got a bellyugh out of him. ¡°No, ma¡¯am. Not on meth. I still have all my teeth ¨C see?¡± he said in his thick Russian ent, showing me his teeth as proof of his abstinence from meth. ¡°Touch¨¦. But you¡¯ve still gotta be tired. C¡¯mon. You basically saved my lifest night. The least I can do is make you a cup of coffee.¡± His warm smile stretched across his face once more and he ran his hand through his buzzed hair. ¡°Sure, Miss Sephie. That would be great,¡± he said. ¡°Does your pal in the parking lot want one too? You know, while I¡¯m at it, can I get your names? For the coffee order, of course.¡± He chuckled and said, ¡°I¡¯m Viktor. The guy in the parking lot is Andrei.¡± ¡°How very Russian of you both. Please, Viktor,e inside while I make the coffee. It¡¯s weird to have you standing outside my door. I already give my neighbors enough gossip as it is without a gigantic Russian statue outside my door.¡± Another bellyugh from Viktor made me smile as well. He looked like he could k*ll you with his mind, but I could tell that Viktor had a heart of gold. He walked into my apartment, slightly nervous, but scanning the room like the dutiful guardian he is. I busied myself in the kitchen, first pulling my wild, previously slept in hair into a bun on top of my head, then I set about making coffee. ¡°Are you hungry, Viktor? I can make breakfast too. I don¡¯t even know what time it is right now, but it¡¯s always bacon time in this house. Can Andreie inside too, or do I need to make his to go?¡± ¡°No, please, Miss Sephie, that is not necessary.¡± ¡°Um, hello. Saved my life. Least I can do. We¡¯ve been over this, Viktor. Don¡¯t argue with me. You won¡¯t win.¡± Heughed, shaking his head. He just said one word, ¡°ryzhiy.¡± I raised an eyebrow at him, waiting for a trantion. He chuckled. ¡°Redhead,¡± he responded. ¡°D*mn skippy. Now how do you take your coffee? With the crushed-up bones of your enemies? Or without?¡± This time, he pped the counter heughed so hard. He threw his head back and cackled. ¡°You are a funny woman, Miss Sephie.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± I set a coffee cup in front of him, along with milk and sugar, so he could make it the way he wanted. ¡°Are you going to call Andrei toe up here too? Or do I have to make you follow me out to the parking lot to deliver his coffee?¡± ¡°I will call him.¡± ¡°Smart man, Viktor. Smart man,¡± I said as I winked at him and set about getting the pans needed to cook breakfast. In seemingly no time at all, there was a knock on my front door. Viktor immediately stood up from the bar at the kitchen counter where he was sitting. His hand instinctively going to his gun at his hip. He held his other hand up to me, indicating that I should stay where I was and to be quiet. For a moment, I struggled to breathe, wondering if it was someone other than Andrei at my door. Viktor looked through the peep ho*le and opened the door, visibly rxing as the door opened to reveal his equally sized cohort. ¡°Hi, Andrei,¡± I said from the kitchen, as he walked into my apartment. ¡°Good morning, Miss Sephie. Thank you for your hospitality,¡± he said in an even thicker Russian ent than the one Viktor had. ¡°It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s the least I could do. You guys were so kind to mest night,¡± I said as they both took a seat at the kitchen bar. I set a coffee cup down in front of Andrei and noticed that both of them seemed to be¡­blushing? Of course, I doubled down. ¡°Max told me what you did to Anthonyst night.¡± I reached out and grabbed one of Viktor¡¯s hands and one of Andrei¡¯s hands, giving them both a squeeze. ¡°Thank you.¡± They both turned as red as my hair. I smiled at both of them and quickly turned around so I wouldn¡¯t laugh at how flushed their cheeks were. You¡¯d think they¡¯d never been touched by a girl before. Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Chapter Six Sephie I grabbed the coffee and filled both of their cups, along with mine, to help ease the awkwardness of the moment. As I stood sipping my coffee, waiting for my soul to return to my body, and relishing the warmth on my very sore throat, I cocked my head to the side and asked, ¡°so¡­. why are you two guarding me exactly? I mean, I¡¯m notining, but I¡¯m also confused as to why you¡¯re here.¡± They both exchanged a quick, uneasy nce and Viktor cleared his throat. He said, ¡°Um, Miss Sephie, we are following orders. Boss was very clear that we were not to let you out of our sight.¡± ¡°Boss? You mean Mr. Lord King Boss Adrik?¡± This time, it was Andrei that looked in surprise at Viktor. He asked Viktor a question in Russian. Viktor replied, his eyes now almost as wide as Andrei¡¯s were. Andrei ran his hands through his di rty blonde hair, clearly surprised by whatever information he just learned. I cleared my throat to remind them that they were in my kitchen, and I was still waiting on an answer. ¡°Mr. Lord King Boss??¡± they both said in unison. Iughed at myself for saying the quiet part out loud yet again. ¡°Um, yeah. I didn¡¯t know who your boss was untilst night and I didn¡¯t know what to call him, so I came up with the title Lord King Boss. I mean, it¡¯s authoritative. Strong. Monarchial, if you will. I feel like he should use it freely.¡± They both looked at me with their mo uths open, too stunned to reply. ¡°No? Too much? Ok, but it¡¯s his loss,¡± I said, nonchntly, as I ted their food. As I turned to set their tes down, they were still somewhat stunned. I just startedughing at the absurdity of the whole situation, really. They both startedughing along with me, although I¡¯m not sure they knew what to say to me in that moment. ¡°Oh,e on, boys. They don¡¯t have sarcasm in Russia? It was a joke. If you boys have been assigned to me, for whatever reason, you¡¯re going to be busy because this mo uth gets me in a lot of trouble most days,¡± I said with my most demure smile I could muster. They both shook their heads andughed as they attacked their bacon and eggs like it was the first time they¡¯d eaten in days. We ate in silence. I only picked at my food, as it hurt to swallow too much at one time. The coffee initially felt good, but even that was beginning to burn the more I drank. Viktor noticed my difort and said, ¡°soup. Soup will make it feel better.¡± He pointed to his throat and then pointed to mine. ¡°Yeah? You say this like you have experience?¡± ¡°Da. I¡¯ve been choked out many times.¡± ¡°Okay, so that¡¯s terrifying and fascinating all at the same time. Is this amon problem in Russia? Like you¡¯re just walking down the street and ¡®oh f u c k, I¡¯m being choked again?¡¯¡± Both men startedughing again. Andrei stood up and grabbed both empty tes. There was not a morsel of food left on either te. For a second, I was considering not even washing them because they already looked so clean. However, Andrei walked to the sink and began washing them himself. ¡°You can leave that. I¡¯ll wash the dishes,¡± I said. ¡°No, Miss Sephie. You cook, I clean.¡± ¡°Wow. Do you want to get married?¡± I said as Viktorughed at Andrei¡¯s stunned expression. He almost dropped a te when I asked him that question. I just winked at him as I went to wipe off my counters. Viktor pulled his phone from his pants pocket and walked into the living room to answer it, leaving a still stunned Andrei and I alone in the kitchen. He finished washing the dishes and was drying his hands off when he turned to me and asked, ¡°he really told you his namest night?¡± ¡°Who did? Viktor? No, he told me this morning.¡± ¡°No, Boss.¡± ¡°Oh, Adrik? Yes, he told me his namest night when we were in the parking lot. Why?¡± ¡°No one outside of his closest bodyguards knows his name. He usually tells people his name is Ghost.¡± I started to say something and then stopped, not sure how to take that news. ¡°Huh. I don¡¯t know?¡± I said shrugging my shoulders. Viktor hung up the phone and spoke to Andrei in Russian. It sounded very serious, but honestly, I couldn¡¯t understand any of it. I was just leaning against the counter, hoping I¡¯d get a trantion at some point. They had a tense exchange, but it didn¡¯t look like I was going to get that trantion, so I announced I needed to shower to get ready for work. ¡°No, sestrichka. No work tonight. We cleared it with your boss already. We stay here for now.¡± ¡°Okay, weird. But I¡¯m still gonna go shower. If you need to sh oot anybody, please don¡¯t do it on the carpet. Blood stains are hard to get out of carpet. Much easier to clean up from the tile, so let¡¯s keep the killing to the kitchen only, hmmm?¡± I said as I walked back to my bedroom. I could hear both of them chuckling and speaking Russian when I closed my bedroom door. N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. I leaned against my closed bedroom door and sighed. I was strangely totally fine with having two gigantic Russians in my living room that had been ¡°assigned¡± to me for some unknown reason. My mind wandered to Adrik. Why was it seemingly a big deal that he had told me his namest night? Why did I feel like I was missing him? Why did I long to feel his warm touch against my skin again? You really need a social life, Sephie. You¡¯re bing somewhat path*etic. I shrugged off the thoughts and made my way to the shower. A nice, hot shower sounded a little like heaven for my sore body right now. Since I apparently wasn¡¯t going to work tonight, I took an extra-long shower and deep conditioned my long, curly hair. When I finally came out of my room, only Viktor was in the living room. ¡°Where did Andrei go?¡± ¡°He went back outside to keep an eye on the building. We need to know who¡¯sing in and out of the building.¡± ¡°Ha! Just ask Ms. Jackson in the apartment underneath mine. She spends her days spying on everyone. She¡¯s already written your license te number down and is waiting until Mr. Turner, from across the hall, gets home so she can give the number to him and have him call his buddy¡¯s son who is a policeman to run the tes.¡± ¡°No sh it?¡± ¡°No shi t. It¡¯s partly why I¡¯ve stayed in this cr appy building so long. It¡¯s not the best neighborhood, but the neighborhood watch is superb.¡± Viktor just stared at me while he pulled his phone out of his pocket. He dialed a number and spoke Russian when the person answered. He then ended the call and put his phone back in his pants. ¡°Please tell me you didn¡¯t just order a hit on Ms. Jackson.¡± He chuckled and said, ¡°No, no. We just need to take precautions. We technically don¡¯t exist, but we can take precautions that will satisfy your superb neighborhood watch.¡± ¡°Cryptic. How do you not exist? Are you not standing in my living room? Am I having a psychotic break and I just made breakfast for three when it¡¯s really just me in here? Was I really that hungry?¡± Okay, that was only partly a joke. How did they not exist? ¡°We are real. We just don¡¯t officially exist in anyone¡¯s database,¡± he said, adding air quotes around the last word, for effect. ¡°Oh, right. The whole Ghost thing, right?¡± ¡°You are a very smart girl, sestrichka.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift,¡± I said as I winked at him. Chapter 7 Chapter 7 Chapter Seven Sephie Since I didn¡¯t have to work, I decided to turn my television on and mindlessly watch a movie. I was still quite tired from the festivities the night before, but I didn¡¯t want to go back to sleep. I consulted with my giant guardian, and we decided on an action movie. As soon as the action started, Viktor was critiquing the hero¡¯s every move. Actually, Viktor¡¯smentary on the movie turned out to be more interesting than the movie itself. Even though I tried hard not to, I eventually fell asleep. When I awoke, I heard hushed voices in my kitchen. I assumed it was Viktor and Andrei, so I didn¡¯t think before I said, ¡°ok, which one of you is making me dinner?¡± The talking stopped and there was silence for a moment, so I sat up on the couch and looked into the kitchen. That was definitely not Viktor standing in the kitchen and he was definitely not talking to Andrei. ¡°Sh*it,¡± I mumbled to myself as I leapt off the couch and tried to put distance between me and the two new giant Russians in my kitchen. ¡°Who are you? Where did Viktor and Andrei go??¡± ¡°Calm down. I¡¯m Ivan and this is Misha. We reced Viktor and Andrei so they could get rest.¡± I looked Ivan and Misha up and down. Misha was slightly taller than Ivan, but both men were just as huge as Viktor and Andrei. Ivan was bald, with a ck goatee. He also had tattoos on his neck that I hadn¡¯t noticed the night before. Misha looked younger than the other three. He looked less threatening than the others, too. He had soft green eyes that gave the impression he was always smiling, even when he wasn¡¯t. They were a striking contrast to his ck hair. Misha said, ¡°Ivan was just filling me in on information and then he was going back outside. We¡¯re sorry we woke you,¡± he said in a rather mild Russian ent. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. I didn¡¯t mean to fall asleep. Will Viktor and Andrei be back?¡± I asked. I felt weird missing them, but I suddenly felt a little empty knowing they weren¡¯t in my apartment. Misha smiled gently, ¡°Yes, Sephie. They¡¯ll be back in the morning. They needed sleep. We¡¯re working in shifts.¡± ¡°So, they¡¯re really not on meth,¡± I said scratching the back of my neck and stretching my arms over my head. Ivan turned to me with the most intense gaze I think I¡¯d ever seen. ¡°WHAT?!?¡± he said as he started toward me. Misha grabbed his arm to prevent him from moving closer to me as I took a few more steps backward and ended up against the wall. Misha stepped in front of Ivan, to both physically and visually block him from me. ¡°Ivan, it¡¯s a joke. She was making a joke. Viktor told me she makes jokes, especially when she¡¯s nervous. No one is on meth, especially not Viktor.¡± ¡°I feel vulnerably diagnosed, but he¡¯s right. I was joking. I said Viktor was on meth because he couldn¡¯t have slept much beforeing to my apartment before my neighbor left for work this morning.¡± Ivan took a deep breath. His body somewhat rxed but his gaze was still burning holes in my soul. He turned his back to me and left my apartment. I stayed against the wall for a few more seconds, just to make sure he didn¡¯te back. ¡°Is he always such a jovial guy?¡± Misha rubbed his face with his hands as he inhaled deeply. ¡°Ivan didn¡¯t mean any harm. Ivan has very strong feelings about drug use.¡± ¡°Noted.¡± Instead of making small talk with my new guardians, I gave up and just went to my bedroom. I was still tired, even after my nap. I figured extra sleep wasn¡¯t going to k ill me. I checked my phone. Three messages from Max, asking where I was, then giving me sh*it for not coming to work, and then genuinely asking if I was ok. I thought of Max like an older brother. He always gave me a hard time, but he also always made sure I was okay. I¡¯m fine, Maximus. My throat is still really sore, so the thought of having to speak all night long was too much for me. Max: Pics or it didn¡¯t happen, gingersnap. I snapped a quick selfie of my now very colorful neck and sent it to him. Max: Holy sh*it, Sephie. That looks amazing in the most painful way. I¡¯m d you decided to stay home. Nobody wants to look at that hot mess. You would¡¯ve scared the customers away. I mean, more than you normally do. A*s. Your concern for both my well-being and more so your source of ie is touching. Max: Lol. You know I¡¯m just giving you sh*it. Seriously, that looks bad. Do you need anything? Want me to bring you some food when I get done tonight? Nah, I think I¡¯m just going to go to bed. Sleep cures everything, right? Max: Alright. If you change your mind, let me know. I¡¯ll be your delivery boy any time. N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Thanks, Max. I¡¯ll be fine though. Try to not have too much fun without me tonight! Max: Yeah, you know it¡¯s not going to be fun ¨C Kim came in to cover your shift. Oh sh*it. I¡¯m sorry man. I didn¡¯t know they were going to call her in. She usually only works days. Max: You¡¯re going to owe me for this one. I locked my phone and put it on the charger. I went to the bathroom to wash my face. My neck really did look ho*rrible. My bruise was a nice shade of purple and was so deep you could see the outline of his fingers. Ugh. How am I going to cover this up tomorrow at work? I¡¯m going to have to wear a turtleneck. Long- sleeved turtleneck too. I lifted the sleeves of my shirt and looked at my arms, that were also a very nice shade of purple. The contrast of the color of the bruises to my porcin wh*ite skin was striking, which just served to make the bruises that much more obvious. I decided not to stress about it too much. With the extensive tip that Adrik gave me, I could afford to miss a couple of shifts and still be able to pay my bills. I heard my phone chime again and went to check it, thinking it was Max again. How are you feeling, solnishko? -Adrik Wait, he has my phone number? When did that happen? Well, he knew where my apartment was, so I guess also having my phone number isn¡¯tpletely out of the realm of possibility. Who am I kidding, he probably has my bank ount and entire record at this point. There is really no limit to the power these people possess. I¡¯m fine, Adrik. Thank you for asking. Tired, but fine. Adrik: Good. You should get rest. Put arnica on your bruises ¨C it will help them heal faster. I¡¯m sure by now they¡¯re quite dark. You ain¡¯t joking. My entire neck is purple. I¡¯ll have to go to the store for arnica. I don¡¯t have any. Adrik: I¡¯ll have some sent over. You rest. It will be there when you wake. Good night, Persephone. Thanks. Good night. I locked my phone again and put it on my bedside table. I sat on my bed, lost in thought. Why did I suddenly have that warm feeling in my stomach again? Why was the top guy in the mafia checking on me? Why did he send his personal bodyguards to keep an eye on me? What was really going on? What happened in that meeting while I was out of the room? Chapter 8 Chapter 8 Chapter Eight Sephie I fell asleep some timeter. It was not a restful sleep, as I felt trapped in panicden dreams. In one dream, I relived the events of the night before. I struggled against Anthony, to try and get away from him, feeling once again the air leaving my lungs, feeling like my life was slowly slipping away. I couldn¡¯t talk in my dream. I kept looking toward the back room of the restaurant, but no one wasing. There was only darkness. Silence. The darkness even consumed Anthony in front of me so that it was just me, not able to breathe or move. I don¡¯t know where I got the strength, or air, to do it, but I screamed. I screamed as loud as I possibly could. As soon as I woke up and realized it was a dream, my bedroom door was thrown open. Two men came rushing in and toward my bed. I screamed again, still not fully awake and aware of what was happening. One man came toward me, the other checked the rest of my room. A vaguely familiar scent filled my nose, as I felt a warm touch on my arms and the bed dip beside me. ¡°Shhhh¡­you were having a nightmare. You¡¯re safe. I won¡¯t let anything happen to you ever again,¡± Adrik said as he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me to him. ¡°Adrik?¡± ¡°Yes, solnishko. You¡¯re okay. You had a nightmare, but it wasn¡¯t real. You¡¯re okay now.¡± I couldn¡¯t stop the flood of emotions that came out as I leaned into his broad chest. I buried my face in his chest and cried. ¡°Let it out. You¡¯ve had a big couple of days, but you¡¯re okay now. I promise,¡± he said. He ran his hand slowly up and down my back, trying to calm my raw nerves from the nightmare. ¡°Do you want to tell me about it?¡± I took a deep breath in and wiped my face. I leaned back, with my eyes still closed, trying to find the courage to go through it one more time. He reached up with his thumb and gently wiped a few stray tears from my eyes as he waited for my answer. I opened my eyes and found his deep blue eyes, filled with concern, focused intently on me. I just stared into his eyes for a few moments, not able to speak. Why did I feel like I¡¯ve known him for longer than 24 hours? Why did I feel safe in his arms? When I didn¡¯t answer, he gave me a smile and gently brushed my hair out of my face. ¡°You¡¯re even beautiful when you cry,¡± he said. All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. I blushed and looked down at my hands. I felt his hand under my chin, lifting my gaze back up to meet his. ¡°Don¡¯t hide your beautiful eyes from me, solnishko. I could stare into your unique eyes all day and all night and never get tired of the view.¡± At this point, I knew my face was turning a nice shade of red. I didn¡¯t know how to respond, so I said the first thing that came to mind. ¡°Wait, how did you get here?¡± He chuckled. ¡°I brought you arnica. For your neck. I was discussing a matter with Ivan and Misha when we heard you scream. We thought you were in trouble or being kidnapped.¡± ¡°Why would anyone want to kidnap me?¡± He cocked his head to the side and smiled slyly at me. ¡°I could think of a few reasons.¡± I clearly didn¡¯t fullyprehend his answer. ¡°I¡¯m nobody. There¡¯s no reason to kidnap me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not nobody, Persephone. And unfortunately, you¡¯ve been marked by a powerful mafia boss¡¯s son as an enemy. A petnt child of a son, but still the son of a powerful man. He won¡¯t stop until he has his revenge for the disrespect he feels you caused him.¡± ¡°He thinks I disrespected him?? HE TRIED TO K*LL ME!!¡± ¡°I know this. All the other bosses know this. Even his father knows this, but Anthony doesn¡¯t take having his a*s handed to him in public very well. No matter how deserved it was. His ego was wounded.¡± I just stared at him as he spoke, trying not to think about how handsome he was, how gentle his touch felt, or how pragmatic his exnation of my impending doom was. ¡°This is why you sent your bodyguards to stay with me? What about you? Aren¡¯t you in danger without them?¡± He chuckled and shook his head. ¡°I just told you that someone wants revenge on you, and you¡¯re worried about my safety?¡± ¡°Well, yeah.¡± ¡°I¡¯m well-protected, solnishko. I have other bodyguards, but Viktor, Andrei, Ivan, and Misha are my best, which is why I assigned them to you. I haveplete trust in them.¡± ¡°How long will they be here? When can I go back to work?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s a good idea yet. We can¡¯t find Anthony yet. He disappeared after the meetingst night and no one seems to know where he went. We need to find him first before I feel confident about you going back to work.¡± He saw my eyebrows furrow and added, ¡°don¡¯t worry, solnishko. Your bills are covered.¡± ¡°What? No. I can¡¯t ask you to do that.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t. I offered. Now ept my offer,¡± he said giving me his gorgeous smile. I got lost in his eyes. They were even more beautiful when he was smiling. While they could be cold and lifeless when he was in boss mode, when he smiled at me, they practically sparkled in the dim light of my bedroom. I found myself smiling in response to seeing the joy in his eyes. It made me want to see that joy every day. ¡°Fine. But I don¡¯t have to like it,¡± I said, crossing my arms across my chest like a little kid, pouting. Heughed again and this time, leaned in and kissed my forehead. My whole body felt warm at his touch, but when his lips pressed to my forehead, it was a new level of warmth. I was somewhat stunned at the gesture, but still found myself wanting more. I grabbed his hand and held it between both of mine. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Of course, solnishko. You should get some rest again.¡± ¡°Yeah, so about that, I¡¯m gonna forego the whole nightmare thing for a while. I won¡¯t be able to sleep again for a while.¡± ¡°Then,e. We will put some arnica on your purple neck,¡± he said as he grabbed my hand and stood up. He pulled me up before I could stop him. ¡°Oh¡­ wait¡­¡± I said as I stood up, revealing that I was only wearing arge t-shirt and no pants. He slowly looked down my body, as I tried to pull my t-shirt as low as it would go. His eyes got darker. I noticed his jaw clench slightly and he made a fist with his hand that was not holding mine. His gaze returned to my face, and he leaned in to kiss my forehead saying, ¡°apologies. I¡¯ll meet you in the kitchen.¡± Chapter 9 Chapter 9 Chapter Nine Adrik I sat at my desk, staring at my phone screen like a lovesick teenager. I wanted to go to her. I wanted to hold her, make her feel safe, protect her from everything that might cause her anything but happiness. Not being able to find Anthony was making me crazy. I had spies everywhere throughout the city and no one had seen him. Or worse, they weren¡¯t talking. That meant Anthony had paid them off somehow. My spies were incredibly loyal to me. They all knew the consequences of betraying my trust. How could Anthony convince them to betray me? Inhaling deeply, I stood up. I can¡¯t sit at my desk any longer. I looked at the clock. It wasn¡¯tte yet. I could stop by the pharmacy for some arnica and take it to her apartment. Ivan had an update for me anyway. I would sleep better knowing she had something to help soothe her bruises when she woke. Better yet, I would sleep better knowing Ivan had found something that would lead us to Anthony. Most of the other bosses in the city were Italians. We were the only Russians, so we could get away with speaking Russian in front of the others without fear of them understanding us, but when it came to electronicmunication, we never discussed business. Conversations could be recorded and tranted. It was better to speak in person on sensitive matters. I decided to go to Ivan for an update. At least, that¡¯s what I told myself. I felt s*lly wanting to go check on a girl I had only just met. There was something about her that I couldn¡¯t shake. I¡¯d barely spoken to her, but she was beginning to consume my thoughts in a way that no other woman ever had. She was so full of life, so vibrant. Like she could make the flowers bloom just by walking through a meadow. I thought back to the night before, in the kitchen, with her sitting on the table. The lights were bright enough that I finally saw her eyes clearly. I had never seen someone with unique eyes like hers. She had rings of different colors, each distinct and clearly visible. Her eyes were three different colors ¨C a ring of brown, a ring of green, and a ring of blue. It took every ounce of self-control I had to not get lost in those eyesst night. She captivated me. I needed more. I walked out of the office and motioned for my bodyguard to follow me. ¡°Come, Stephen. We¡¯re going on a trip.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± We pulled into the small parking lot of her apartment building after a quick stop at the pharmacy. Is this really where she lives? I could give her so much better. I shook my head, silently scolding myself for getting so caught up in a woman so quickly. I had a reputation for being ruthless, when necessary, not emotional. I noticed the curtains of the first-floor apartment part just enough that someone could peek through them as I got out of the SUV. That would be Ms. Jackson, I thought to myself, I politely waved to her. I couldn¡¯t quite see her face, but I saw a wrinkled hand wave shyly back and the curtains closed. I had already had Andrei talk to her and exin enough of the situation that she wouldn¡¯t call the police. Most residents of this city knew that my people walked among them but couldn¡¯t pick us out of a lineout. Many were loyal to my organization, as I made sure to fund the localmunity as much as possible. My associates the other bosses ¨C had be greedy in some parts of the city and had instead decided to keep that money to themselves. I had a ¨C feeling it was the greedy little sons, but I still needed proof. The opinion of my organization was changing in the city and I didn¡¯t like it. I had always worked diligently to make sure the people of the city were happy with my dealings. It¡¯s much easier to run a criminal organization when the people of the city loved you than if they hated you. I liked the easy way of doing business. Have the people love you and be respectful with the cops. You can do whatever you please. It had worked for 10 years, but now the other bosses, who were much older than me, were getting older and wanting to hand over their areas of the city to their sons. Anthony was already on my sh*t list, but afterst night, I decided to make an example out of him. He had been trying to usurp power, albeit quietly, for at least a year now. I let it go on too long, honestly. He was smart about it, though. Little bits here and there that went unnoticed until it was a muchrger problem. I also heard rumors that he was. dealing in human trafficking and that was unforgiveable as far as I was concerned. He needed to be put in his ce. His father, Salvadori, had served me well, as well as my father before me, but Anthony was out of control. I tried to clear my thoughts as I climbed the steps to her apartment behind Stephen. Two sharp knocks on the door and we were greeted with Ivan¡¯s substantial frame. My men were well trained, but most of all, they were physically intimidating. Each of them was 6¡¯3-6¡¯5 and well over 250 lbs of solid muscle. They had trained with some of the most elite forces in the world. My life was in their hands every single day and I trusted thempletely. I still didn¡¯t quite understand why I didn¡¯t hesitate to assign them to Persephone, but I wasn¡¯t going to change my mind. I wanted her protected. I needed her protected. We stood in her kitchen, discussing thetest update on Anthony. They¡¯d heard two tips on his possible whereabouts, but both ended up being dead ends. It felt like we were being fed misinformation on purpose. I didn¡¯t like it. Ivan had just finished giving me the information and we all heard a scream from her bedroom. I looked at Ivan and we all jumped into action. Ivan and Stephen covered the outside of the apartment while Misha and I ran to her room. I didn¡¯t think she had outside ess from her bedroom, but I wouldn¡¯t put it past Anthony to order a roof breach. Misha drew his gun, one hand on the doorknob. He briefly looked back at me, as I nodded my head. Misha burst through the door and immediately checked the window, bathroom, and any possible way someone could¡¯ve gotten in. I ran to her side. It felt like I couldn¡¯t get there fast enough. I just wanted her in my arms, to know she was okay. I had never felt this way about a woman before and I didn¡¯t understand why I felt this way about her, but I wasn¡¯t going to fight it at this moment. I just wanted her to be okay. I wrapped my arms around her as I sat on the bed beside her. It looked like she had just woken from a nightmare. ¡°Shhhh¡­you were having a nightmare. You¡¯re safe. I won¡¯t let anything happen to you ever again,¡± IN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. said, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her to me. ¡°Adrik?¡± ¡°Yes, solnishko. You¡¯re okay. You had a nightmare, but it wasn¡¯t real. You¡¯re okay now.¡± Her body was shaking slightly. I noticed she did thatst night too. When I sat her on the table in the kitchen, after that piece of sh*t dared toy his hands on her, she started shaking uncontrobly. It wasn¡¯t to the same level now, but she was definitely shaking. I felt a tightness in my chest that I was not ustomed to. I wanted to make it stop. She was sobbing softly into my chest now. God help me, I loved having her so close to me, even if she was upset. ¡°Let it out. You¡¯ve had a big couple of days, but you¡¯re okay now. I promise,¡± I said. I ran my hand slowly up and down her back, trying to calm her raw nerves from the nightmare. ¡°Do you want to tell me about it?¡± Chapter Nine She took a breath and leaned back away from me. I instantly regretted asking her the question as it put distance between us. She wiped tears from her face, but kept her eyes closed like she was fighting back more tears. I reached up and wiped a few stray tears from under her eyes. She finally opened her eyes. I felt like I was drowning in her beautiful and I didn¡¯t care. The dim light of her bedroom made her teary eyes sparkle, each color catching the light in its own way, making the three colors appear to dance in her eyes. My heart skipped a beat. I reached up and brushed her curls back from her face. ¡°You¡¯re even beautiful when you cry.¡± eyes, She blushed and looked down at her hands. No! I needed her to look at me again. I gently raised her chin up, seeking her mesmerizing gaze once again and said, ¡°Don¡¯t hide your beautiful eyes from me, solnishko. I could stare into your unique eyes all day and all night and never get tired of the view.¡± She struggled to ept my words. I noticed her shyness before at any mention of her beauty. She would usually change the subject quickly or use her quick wit to make light of the situation. Viktor and Andrei were smitten with her because of her sense of humor. They thought of her like a little sister already. I knew they would die trying to protect her, if needed. ¡°Wait, how did you get here?¡± Subject change, as expected. I smiled at her. She was something worth protecting. Chapter 10 Chapter 10 Chapter Ten Adrik ¡°Fine. But I don¡¯t have to like it,¡± she said as she crossed her arms underneath her breasts. Her pouty lips making me use every ounce of self-control to not lean in and kiss them. Instead, Iughed and kissed her forehead. She leaned into me, and I heard her breath catch ever so slightly. She took my hand into both of hers. Her cool hands made me feel a warmth in my body that I hadn¡¯t experienced before. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. She looked into my eyes, and I could tell that she was still very scared but trying to be strong in the moment. Ugh, I would rip this city apart to find that piece of sh**t that dared to hurt her. ¡°Of course, solnishko. You should get some rest again.¡± ¡°Yeah, so about that, I¡¯m gonna forego the whole nightmare thing for a while. I won¡¯t be able to sleep again for a while.¡± ¡°Then,e. We will put some arnica on your purple neck,¡± I said as I grabbed her hand, pulling her out of bed to follow me to the kitchen. I was secretly very happy that I would have a few more minutes alone with her. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. ¡°Oh¡­wait¡­¡± she said as she gently resisted against me. I turned back to her and noticed that she was wearing an oversize t-shirt. And only an oversize t-shirt, My eyes trailed down her body, drinking in her porcin skin. I caught myself starting to think about her long legs wrapped around me when I saw her pulling at the bottom of the t-shirt, trying to cover herself more. Seeing the embarrassment on her face, I kissed her forehead once more and said, ¡°apologies. I¡¯ll meet you in the kitchen.¡± I didn¡¯t have to wait long until she appeared in the kitchen, this time wearing a pair of leggings under her oversize shirt. As she walked in, she was pulling her long, curly hair into a ponytail. It just didn¡¯t matter what she did, I found her absolutely stunning. The fact that she was sofortable with me, in her home, while she just woke up and had zero makeup on, and seemingly didn¡¯t care that she was in her pajamas was a new phenomenon for me. The women I had been with in the past were the type to look like they were about to go to a dinner party at any moment. A few of them even slept in full makeup. When I was younger, I thought it was attractive, but as I had gotten older, I found it more repulsive than anything. Beautyes from within. When you spend so much time trying to make the outside look pretty, it¡¯s usually because the inside is u*ly. This woman standing in front of me with zero makeup on, in her pajamas, with barely contained hair, a purple neck, and bruises on her arms was more beautiful than any woman I had ever seen. She caught me staring at her and grinned slightly. ¡°Hi.¡± Just her little smile made my whole world brighter. I couldn¡¯t help myself. I grabbed her hips and lifted her onto the counter in front of me. I adored the way she squealed and grabbed onto my arms to steady herself. Herughter was infectious, and I found myself drunk on the sound. I stepped to the side to grab the arnica cream I picked up on the way over. She crisscrossed her legs so I could stand directly in front of her. I struggled to get the box open. She grabbed it from my hands and stabbed it with one of her thumb nails, opening it easily. She handed it back to me, with a very proud look on her face. I couldn¡¯t help but smile back at her. ¡°See? What would I do without you?¡± Her grin widened and a small chuckle escaped her lips. I opened the tube of cream, squeezing out a small amount on my index finger. I reached up with my other hand and tilted her head back to give me full ess to the now very colorful bruise on her neck. I touched the cream to her neck and noticed her flinch. ¡°Does it hurt?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. It was cold. It surprised me.¡± I squeezed more cream onto my finger but warmed it between my index finger and thumb before applying it to her neck this time. Once I was done with her neck, I lifted the sleeve of her shirt and applied it to the bruises up and down her arms. I hated seeing any marks on her milky whi*te skin, but at least I felt like I could help make them better. I was finishing up with the smaller bruises around her wrists as she leaned back and uncrossed her legs, dangling one leg on either side of me. My breath hitched and I hoped she didn¡¯t notice. I kept my gaze on what I was doing, but I could feel her looking at me intently. Once I was done, I took both of her hands in mine and kissed the back of each one. In a very quiet, almost whisper, I heard her say, ¡°thank you.¡± I looked up to see she had tears threatening to fall. The tears making the, colors in her eyes dance in the brighter light of the kitchen. I reached up and held the side of her face, concerned I had hurt her in some way. ¡°No, why the tears? Did I hurt you?¡± She chuckled. ¡°No, the opposite, really. You could say I¡¯m not used to people taking care of me. It¡¯s a nice change.¡± I felt that tightness in my chest return. Like a tear in my heart to hear that she had been mistreated in any way. Not knowing her past or what to say to make it better, I was at a loss. I just looked at her, still mesmerized by the dancing colors in her eyes. Without really thinking, I put my hand on the back of her head and pulled her toward me. I slowly leaned closer, watching her face to make sure she was okay with it. I felt her hand grasp my shirt and timidly pull me toward her. My lips touched hers. I felt her tense up, but then immediately rx, as she returned the kiss and pressed her lips to mine. Her legs moved closer to my body. I put my hands on either side of her face, gently holding her face while I deepened the kiss. She responded by parting her lips, allowing me ess. It took all the self-control I had not to just devour her right then and there. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I moved my hands down her body to her hips, scooting her closer to me. She squealed against my lips as she felt me pull her closer and instinctively wrapped her legs around my torso. I groaned as I deepened the kiss even more, tasting every inch of her m*outh with my tongue. After a few moments, she pulled back slightly, looking into my eyes and over my face. She brought her hands to my face and lightly traced the features of my face. I closed my eyes, reveling in her light touch. her eyes I felt her press her forehead to mine. I opened my eyes briefly. She was resting her forehead against mine, closed. I felt her inhale and a small sigh escaped her lips. I wrapped my arms around her waist and held her against me. I could feel the faint shaking in her legs and knew she was fighting demons. Lsqueezed tighter, trying to make her feel as safe as I could. Chapter 11 Chapter 11 Chapter Eleven Sephie I didn¡¯t want to stop the kiss, but I knew I needed to stop the kiss. I pulled back from him and looked at him, expecting him to look angry that I had stopped. Instead, he almost looked like he was in a trance. I could feel his strong, but soft grip on my hips. I just scanned his entire face. He was so handsome. His blue eyes always so intense that I felt like he could see inside me. I lifted my hand to his face and traced my finger along the features of his face. His thick eyebrows, his long cyshes, his cheekbones, his stubble that was as pleasant against my skin as I had originally thought, his plump lips that felt so soft against my own. I didn¡¯t understand it, but I felt safe with this man. I shouldn¡¯t. I knew I shouldn¡¯t. He was the king of the criminal underground of the city. People feared him. Most people didn¡¯t even know his name. Yet, he told me his name without hesitation. He sent his personal bodyguards to protect me from a man I thought was just a do*uchebag, but as it turns out, probably wants to kill me now. He made a special trip to my apartment to bring me arnica. He could easily have hundreds of women that would likely throw themselves at him, but he¡¯s standing in my kitchen after putting cream on my bruises like I was going to break. Little does he know how insignificant these bruises are compared to what I¡¯ve endured in the past. I leaned my forehead against his, my thoughts still racing through my head. I inhaled and sighed. I felt him wrap his arms around me even tighter and pull me as close to him as possible. It was such a small gesture, but I found myself fighting back tears once more. I just wanted to stay like this for as long as possible. A knock on the door meant that moment didn¡¯tst nearly as long as I was hoping. Adrik kissed my forehead before walking to the door to see who it was. He unlocked it and opened it, stepping aside for Misha to enter the apartment. ¡°Ivan just got a call. New lead on Anthony. This one looks promising, so he wants to go check it out himself. It¡¯s close by.¡± Adrik was quiet for a moment, while he pondered this news. ¡°You stay. Ivan can take Stephen and go check it out. Do not engage. I just want him to gather information right now.¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Misha said as he left the apartment, closing the door behind him. Adrik walked back over to me, cing himself in between my legs again. I was biting my bottom lip, worried about what I had just heard Misha tell Adrik. He swiped his thumb over my bottom lip to get me to stop biting it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will find him.¡± I was trying to keep it together, but I was scared. I just nodded and stared at my fidgeting hands. My legs started to shake, despite my attempt atposure. He had his hands resting on my thighs, which meant he felt the shaking. Without a word, he scooped me from the counter and carried me to the couch. Heid me down on the couch but lifted my shoulders so he could sit, and I could use hisp as a pillow. ¡°You should be resting, not worrying,¡± he said as he settled into the couch beside me. Iid my head in hisp. He reached for my hand and intertwined my fingers with his. With his other hand, he rubbed my forehead gently. ¡°We will find him.¡± I tried to rx with his words. I closed my eyes and concentrated on his warm touch against my cool skin. His fingers moved into my hair. ¡°Can I take your hair down?¡± Without opening my eyes, I reached up and pulled the stic out of my hair. My hair fell in a pile across hisp. I felt his hand return to my hair, running through the long strands. It wasn¡¯t very long, and I had fallen asleep again. 1/3 That was a trick my mom used to use when I was a kid and didn¡¯t want to go to sleep. She would alwaysy next to me and run her fingers through my hair to rx me. It was usually only a matter of minutes, and I would be sound asleep. No one had run their fingers through my hair in a very long time. When I woke, I was in my bed. It took me a few minutes to remember that I had fallen asleep on the couch, with my head in Adrik¡¯sp, his hands running through my hair. I sighed at the memory and realized that I hadn¡¯t had any nightmares this time. Thank God. I¡¯d rather not have to relive that ever again. I stretched and went to the bathroom to ssh some water on my face. I walked back to check my phone. Four messages, three from Max, one from Adrik. I opened Adrik¡¯s first. Sleep well, solnishko. I will see you again soon. -Adrik I found myself hoping that soon came quickly. I smiled, remembering the feel of his lips on mine. I opened Max¡¯s messages as I headed out to the kitchen to find out if Andrei and Viktor were back or if I was still stuck with Misha and Grumpy McGee. I have an epic tale to tell you about Kim tonight. How you doin? Want me to drop some food by your ce on my way home? Ok, I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re asleep by yourck of response. No soup for you! Just as I was about to close my phone, another message from Max came in. Holy shit, Sephie! Did you hear that explosion? It was really close to your apartment. Are you okay? If you don¡¯t respond this time, I¡¯m for realing to check on you. I don¡¯t know exactly where that building was that just exploded, but I know it was close enough to you that you should¡¯ve felt it. What explosion? I didn¡¯t hear anything, nor feel anything. But I also didn¡¯t want himing to check on me, so I responded right away. I¡¯m still alive, Max. I was sleepingst night when you texted. What explosion are you talking about? I didn¡¯t hear anything or see anything, so I have no idea what you¡¯re talking about. Clearly it wasn¡¯t as close to me as you thought. Max: There was a warehouse a few blocks from you that exploded a few hours ago. Firefighters are still working on putting the fire out. I just heard about it on the news at the gym. I¡¯m d you¡¯re okay, gingersnap. Aw, you love me. You really love me, Maximus Decimus Meridius. Max: If by ¡°love¡± you mean that I want to strangle you, then yes. Yes, I do. Too soon? Haha only you can get away with that. Maybe a little too soon. Let the bruises heal next time. Max: You know my world would crumble without my gingersnap. <3 Nerd. Thanks for checking on me. 2/3 Chapter Eleven I walked into the kitchen to find Andrei, Viktor, and Misha still there. They all looked very tense and were speaking Russian quietly. ¡°You guys wouldn¡¯t be tense about that building that exploded close by, would you?¡± They all turned to look at me with wide eyes. ¡°How do you know about that?¡± asked Viktor. I held up my phone and jiggled it. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I have bad news, boys. The whole city knows about it now. Is that why you all look like you want to kill someone right now?¡± Andrei chuckled and instantly rxed. ¡°We¡¯re sorry, sestrichka. Come, please. I make you coffee this time.¡± ¡°Seriously. That marriage proposal is still on the table.¡± It was Misha¡¯s turn to look shocked as Andrei and Viktor bothughed. ¡°Where¡¯s Ivan? And Stephen, was it? I didn¡¯t meet him. I just heard his namest night.¡± ¡°Ivan is on his way back here. He was at that building that exploded, yes. We think it was a trap,¡± said Viktor. Misha clicked his tongue at Viktor and said something in Russian to him. Viktor just shook his head and said, ¡°she will find out sooner orter. Boss wants us to be honest with her, so I am honest with her.¡± He looked at me like a proud older brother, winked, and added, ¡°she¡¯s stronger than she looks.¡± ¡°You know I can only marry one of you, right? Andrei already got the proposal. Are you trying to steal it from him? That¡¯s rude, Viktor. But I might warm up to the idea of you two fighting over me.¡± Heughed as there was a sharp knock on the door. Misha went to the door, gun in hand. Andrei covered him and Viktor stood in between me and the door, his hand on my arm like he was ready to pull me away at a second¡¯s notice. Misha just said, ¡°Ivan¡± as he opened the door. Everyone rxed as Ivan¡¯s imposing figure filled the doorframe. His bald head and face were covered with soot. If he wasn¡¯t already wearing all ck, I would¡¯ve bet good money that his clothes were covered in soot as well.All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Chapter Twelve Sephie ¡°Well, you look like you¡¯ve had an exciting morning,¡± I said. Ivan walked into the kitchen, eyebrow raised, and his intense gaze burning holes in my soul as usual. ¡°I see your brush with death didn¡¯t help you develop a sense of humor,¡± I mumbled under my breath. Viktor and Andrei both choked backughter, as they had both heard me. Misha broke the tension in the room by asking Ivan what happened. He started to respond in Russian, but Misha stopped him. ¡°Net. In English,¡± he said, motioning toward me. Ivan once again raised an eyebrow and stared at me but, nheless, continued his exnation in English. ¡°I got tip that Anthony was at a warehouse 3 miles from here. Too close, so I wanted to check it out myself. We get bad information always right now on where that little f*cker is. If information is bad this time, I take it out on my source.¡± While Ivan was talking, Andrei was making coffee for everyone. He sat a coffee cup down in front of me and I signed ¡°thank you¡± to him. He winked and went about giving everyone else their coffee. Ivan continued, ¡°when we got to the warehouse, there was activity, but not enough that I suspected Anthony was there. At least not at that moment. There was maybe 10 guys there. I sent Stephen back here to take Boss home. I wanted a closer look, so I moved my position. I was 25 yards from warehouse doors, watching. Truckse in, men unload, trucks leave. Everything was quiet for maybe an hour, then boom.¡± ¡°Holy shit,¡± I said, under my breath. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Ivan looked at me, somewhat surprised. It was like he wasn¡¯t used to people inquiring about his well- being, and he didn¡¯t know what to say. He nodded his head, saying ¡°da¡± as he took his jacket off. When he turned his back to hang his jacket by the door, we all noticed a huge gash on the back of his shoulder. ¡°Your definition of fine and mine are clearly different,¡± I said. Misha went to inspect the gash. ¡°Looks bad, you might need stitches,¡± Misha told Ivan. ¡°Net. No hospital.¡± ¡°At least let me clean it up for you so it won¡¯t get infected. I should have bandages that can cover it,¡± I said standing up from the barstool to go take a closer look at his injury. I quickly went to my bathroom and came back with a well- stocked first aid kit. They all raised their eyebrows when they saw my medical supplies. ¡°What? I¡¯m clumsy. I get hurt a lot.¡± I looked at Ivan and motioned to him, e here. Take your shirt off.¡± He stayed where he was, without moving for a few seconds. Like he was torn between following my orders and not 1/3 allowing me to help him. ¡°Or you can be stubborn and not let me help, in which case that gash gets infected, and you end up useless to anyone because you¡¯reying in bed with a fever for days, maybe weeks.¡± Misha chuckled and kicked Ivan in the butt, effectively making him take a few steps toward me. ¡°I like her. She¡¯s feisty,¡± Misha said. Ivan mumbled something in Russian, under his breath, but still stood in front of me and pulled his shirt over his head. His entire upper body was covered in tattoos. I nced at them as he took his shirt off but tried not to stare. He looked at me with his intense gaze and turned around. The gash looked even worse without his shirt. ¡°Oh boy.¡± I said. ¡°Misha was right. You might really need stitches.¡± ¡°Net. No hospitals,¡± he said as he turned around to face me again. He towered over me and leaned down to add. ¡°unless you can do it, princess.¡± I held his intense gaze and fired back, ¡°actually, I can stitch it up, as*hole. It just isn¡¯t going to look as pretty as what you¡¯ll get if a doctor does it. And I have nothing to numb the area, so it¡¯s gonna hurt like a son of a b*tch, which I will enjoy, but you will not.¡± The other three men couldn¡¯t contain theirughter this time and all three startedughing quietly at our exchange. ¡°Do it,¡± was all Ivan said as he turned around again. I looked to Viktor, who simply nodded his head. Hopping up on the cab so I could better reach his shoulder, I started to clean the wound. When I got to the antiseptic, I said, ¡°this is definitely going to burn. Please don¡¯t murder me.¡± Ivan simply grunted. His arms were crossed on his sizeable chest. When I put the antiseptic on his gash, he didn¡¯t move a muscle. He showed no signs of difort. I knew he was tough, but that¡¯s seriously impressive. Antiseptic on open wounds usually feels like you¡¯re being burned by battery acid. When I got everything as clean and disinfected as possible, I hesitated to start the stitches. ¡°This is going to hurt. I don¡¯t have anything to numb the area. I might have some whiskey in the cab. Do you want that? It¡¯ll take the edge off, anyway.¡± ¡°Where,¡± he asked. I pointed over his shoulder to the cab the whiskey was in. He grabbed the bottle and downed a sizeable amount in one gulp. I looked at him, my eyebrow raised, ¡°maybe you should drink more. I¡¯d like to stay alive in this process. You¡¯re a big dude. I¡¯m guessing that wasn¡¯t enough.¡± Without a word, he swallowed almost half the bottle. When he was done, he stood in front of me again and said, ¡°do it.¡± I stitched him up as best I could. It was not pretty, but it would heal better than if he had no stitches at all. After I was done ensuring he would have a b*dass scar from this experience, I bandaged the area to protect the stitches. ¡°All done. Sorry I don¡¯t have a lollipop or anything to give you for being a good boy. But I do appreciate you not murdering this princess in that process.¡± Finally. It happened. Heughed. It was small, but I heard it. When he turned to look at me, he had a small twinkle in his eye instead of looking like he was burning holes in my soul. Apparently, whiskeyN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. was the key to this man¡¯s softer side. Chapter 13 Chapter 13 Chapter Thirteen Sephie Misha ran to one of the SUV¡¯s outside to get Ivan a new shirt, since the one he was wearing was basically ruined. Viktor received a phone call, which he took in Russian. Once he ended the call, he said, ¡°Boss is on his way here.¡± He Hooked at me and said, ¡°you get dressed. We¡¯re leaving once he gets here.¡± ¡°We¡¯re leaving? Where are we going?¡± ¡°Somewhere safer. Explosion was too close. I don¡¯t like.¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t leave. I have to take Ms. Jackson to the grocery store this afternoon. I always take her shopping on Saturdays. Without me, she has no way to get to the store, which means she has no way to eat.¡± Viktor frowned at this news. He pondered on a solution for a moment, but just said, ¡°get dressed anyway. We will work it out.¡± I left my first aid kit on the cab and went to my bedroom for a quick shower before Adrik got there. I put slightly more effort into my appearance than what he saw the night before, but it still didn¡¯t amount to much. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn¡¯t get the hang of makeup. I had people tell me when I was younger that I needed to wear makeup to cover up my freckles. I didn¡¯t like the way it felt though. I always felt like my face was being slowly smothered when I wore it. So, I opted for mascara and the slightest bit of eye makeup. That¡¯s as fancy as I got. Throwing on a pair of ck skinny jeans and a white blouse with a camisole underneath, I looked at my somewhat out of control hair. It was still wet from the shower, but I could tell it was going to be one of those days where it did whatever it wanted instead of what I wanted. I shrugged my shoulders, knowing this was not a fight I was going to win easily. I scrunched some product into my curls to help tame the frizz and called it a day. At least having my hair down would help cover my purple neck. When I came out of my room, only Andrei and Viktor were in my apartment. ¡°Where did Misha and Ivan go?¡± ¡°Outside. Keep an eye on the perimeter,¡± Andrei said. ¡°We noticed strange cars and people going into bottom apartment.¡± ¡°The one across from Ms. Jackson?¡± He nodded. ¡°That¡¯s Chen. He sells drugs. Those are just his customers. Chen gets a fresh batch on Friday, so his customerse on Saturdays.¡± Andrei and Viktor both looked unhappy at this news. Andrei looked at me and said, ¡°we¡¯re definitely leaving. Why didn¡¯t you tell us this sooner?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t leave without making sure Ms. Jackson is taken care of for the week. Mr. Turner is at work and Chen isn¡¯t reliable, obviously. And I didn¡¯t think it was important. Chen¡¯s apartment is quiet, except on the weekends. He¡¯s always very respectful to everyone. I don¡¯t even think he lives here most of the week. He just uses the apartment to sell out of.¡± Andrei and Viktor exchanged a look. Viktor spoke, ¡°I don¡¯t like this, sestrichka.¡± A knock on the door interrupted our conversation. Viktor went to the door, gun in hand, while Andrei stood in front of me, protectively. ¡°Boss,¡± Viktor said as he opened the door. Adrik walked into the apartment, his eyes searching until theynded on me. He stopped in his tracks and just stared for a moment before he walked to me. He put his arm around my waist, pulled me close and kissed my cheek. I leaned into his embrace, filling my lungs with his intoxicating cologne. ¡°How did you sleep, solnishko?¡± ¡°Very well, thank you.¡± He put his hand under my chin, inspecting my bruise. ¡°Still too dark. Did you put more arnica on this morning?¡± I nodded my head, suddenly feeling shy that Andrei, Viktor, and now Stephen were also in the room. ¡°Good girl,¡± he said as he kissed my forehead. ¡°Now, tell me. What is this about taking your neighbor to the store?¡± ¡°I take Ms. Jackson, downstairs, to the store every Saturday. She doesn¡¯t have a car and I don¡¯t think she could drive if she did have a car. I take her to the store and any other errands she needs every week.¡± His eyes brightened when he looked at me, as he pulled me just a little closer to him. He kept his arm around me as he turned his head to Viktor and said, ¡°we are going to the store before we leave, then.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Adrik looked at me and asked, ¡°is she ready to go? Do we need to give her time?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t talked to her yet today, but my guess is she¡¯s ready to go. She usually has to wait for me to wake up. I can call her.¡± Adrik nodded his head and told Viktor to let Ivan and Misha know. He noticed the first aid kit on the counter and his brow furrowed. He looked at it, then to me, concern on his face. ¡°What is this for? Are you hurt again?¡± he asked, holding me at arm¡¯s length to check me over. Iughed. ¡°No, for once, it wasn¡¯t me. I stitched Ivan up. I¡¯m guessing he got hit with debris in that explosion and had a pretty good gash. He¡¯s going to have a kickass scar from it,¡± He smiled at me and pulled me to him. I wrapped my arms around him, happy to be in his arms. ¡°Thank you, malishka.¡± ¡°You all are in this mess because of me. It¡¯s the least I could do.¡± He sighed and said, ¡°not exactly. Anthony was already on my shit list before heid his hands on you. You just sped up the process.¡± I hugged him tighter, not wanting to think about any of it. He responded by wrapping his arms tighter around me. I heard Viktor make a call to Ivan to let them know the change in the n. I stepped back from Adrik and said, ¡°I¡¯ll call Ms. Jackson and see if she¡¯s ready to go now.¡± I told Ms. Jackson we would have chaperones on our weekly trip to the store when I called to see if she was ready to ¡°Oh, child. Not those strapping young men that have been watching over you?¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Yes, Ms. Jackson. Those strapping young men will apany us to the store. Did you need to go anywhere else this week? Are your prescriptions good?¡± ¡°Can they take me across town to Edith Riley¡¯s ce? Maybe escort me through the old folk¡¯s home like they¡¯re my ythings?¡± ¡°Ms. Jackson! Don¡¯t you think you¡¯d get more mileage out of therm if they took you to Bingo?¡± She giggled into the phone. ¡°Sephie, you are a genius.¡± I chuckled. ¡°We¡¯ll be down in a few minutes to fetch you for this adventure we¡¯re about to have.¡± ¡°Lord, this is going to be the best shopping trip of my life. No offense, Sephie. You¡¯re precious. But you ain¡¯t 6¡¯5 of chiseled muscle precious.¡± ¡°No offense taken, Ms. Jackson. See you in a few.¡± was stillughing to myself and shaking my head when I walked back to the kitchen. Adrik was in my small living room, carefully studying each one of the handful of pictures I had on disy. They were the only memories I had of happier times. When my mom was still alive. Before my life took a dark turn. Adrik saw me walk into the kitchen and stood up straight, that smirk on his face that I was growing ustomed to. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°What put such a beautiful smile on your face, solnishko?¡± ¡°Ms. Jackson requested your bodyguards escort her to Bingo so she could show them off to her friends. Think they¡¯d be down? I feel like Ivan is going to jump at this chance,¡± I said as I cleaned up the first aid kit on the counter and put everything back in its ce. He walked to the kitchen to stand beside me, his face scrunched in thought. ¡°You know, I could order him to do it.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s just in mean. I love it.¡± I said, smiling broadly up at him. ¡°I love your smile,¡± he said, twirling a curl around his finger as he scanned my face. That twinkle was back in his deep blue eyes. I felt myself blush and looked down at what I was doing. I felt his arm around my shoulders. He leaned down and kissed my cheek. ¡°You don¡¯t have to hide from me,¡± he said quietly as he handed me the roll of bandage tape. I peeked up at him underneath myshes, his gaze intently on me, as always. ¡°It¡¯s just¡­¡± I stammered, not really knowing what to say. I opened my mouth to speak but ended up shutting it again. He reached for my chin and lifted my face, so I was looking at him. He smiled sweetly at me and leaned down to press his lips to mine. Just as our lips met, we heard the door opening. I stepped back, not sure I wanted anyone to catch us kissing just yet. Heughed at my nervousness and grabbed my hands, wrapping them around his waist. I hid my face in his chest, inhaling his scent. Chapter 14 Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen Sephie Ms. Jackson was in the backseat with me and Adrik. Viktor was driving while Andrei was in the passenger seat. We were following the other SUV with Ivan, Misha, and Stephen. You would¡¯ve thought it was Ms. Jackson¡¯s birthday, she was so excited. ¡°I haven¡¯t been this close to this many fine¨Clooking gentlemen since I was in my 20s,¡± she whispered to me. ¡°I knew you were special, girl, but what did you do to deserve this many handsome men at your beck and call?¡± Iughed. ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯re exactly at my beck and call, Ms. Jackson.¡± Adrik cleared his throat, beside me. I looked at him in shock. He smiled at me. ¡°Whatever you need, solnishko. You say the word.¡± ¡°Did you just call her solnishko?¡± Ms. Jackson asked, leaning forward so she could see Adrik. ¡°Da. You know Russian?¡± ¡°Enough,¡± she sat back. She hooked her arm through mine and patted my hand. ¡°Yep. Special, special girl,¡± she said quietly. I nced at her face. She had the look of someone who was reliving her past, so I decided against asking any further questions. I felt Adrik take my other hand andce his fingers through mine. He gently squeezed my hand. I closed my eyes, enjoying the moment of peace I felt whenever Adrik was around. I hadn¡¯t known him for very long, but I felt things I¡¯d never felt whenever he was around. I tried not to think about it too much. It was unconventional, to say the least. It felt like he quieted my storms. Like he was holding my hand as I was fumbling through the darkness, keeping me steady. All I knew is that I didn¡¯t want it to end just yet. I felt the SUV stop and heard Viktor put it in park. Ms. Jackson made a move to open her door, but Andrei stopped her ¡°Not yet, Ms. Jackson. Give us moment.¡± ¡°Honey, I¡¯ll give you as long as you want, as long as I can look at you while you¡¯re doing whatever it is you¡¯re about to do.¡± Viktor caught my eye in the rear¨Cview mirror. He was trying so hard not tough. Poor Andrei¡¯s face was as red as my hair. He could not get out of the vehicle fast enough. ¡°Lord, I hate for him to leave, but I love to watch him go.¡± I wasughing uncontrobly beside her. Even Adrik wasughing. ¡°Bingo might be in Andrei¡¯s future, as well as Ivan¡¯s,¡± Adrik said, trying to catch his breath. ¡°I could think of other activities that would be a whole lot more fun than Bingo,¡± Ms. Jackson mumbled, loud enough that only I could hear. ¡°Ms. Jackson, I never knew you had this side to you!¡± ¡°Well, child, you never had this much eye candy around you before.¡± ¡°Point well made¡± After just a few minutes, Andrei opened Ms. Jackson¡¯s door and offered her his hand. ¡°Oh! And a gentleman to boot! Your mama must be so proud.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. I didn¡¯t even have to see his face to know that he was blushing. Adrik opened his door. Stepping out, he turned and offered his hand to me. I smiled and took his hand as he helped me out of the vehicle. Once I was standing, he pulled me close and nted a very quick kiss on my lips. I looked at him, wide¨Ceyed. He just winked at me and walked toward the store, with me in tow. We got Ms. Jackson¡¯s shoppingpleted quickly. Andrei followed her around dutifully. Viktor was roaming the store, while Ivan, Misha, and Stephen kept an eye on the parking lot. Adrik would only let go of my hand if necessary. Otherwise, he seemed happy enough to simply follow me around while I helped my neighbor stock up for the week. When we got back to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment, she looked at Andrei and Adrik and asked, ¡°gentlemen, would it be possible for me to have a moment alone with Miss Sephie?¡± They both nodded. Adrik looked at me and said, ¡°we¡¯ll be right outside.¡± As soon as the door closed, Ms. Jackson took each of my hands in hers and looked up at me. ¡°Child, do you know that man is in love with you?¡± ¡°What? No. We just met. Literally. Like two days ago.¡± ¡°No, dear. Can you not see the way he looks at you?¡± ¡°Well, I mean, yeah, but it doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s in love with me.¡± ¡°He calls you solnishko.¡± ¡°They all call me different Russian words. I have no idea what any of them mean. They could be calling me a bitch for all I know.¡± She scoffed. ¡°Hardly. Russian men are not known for terms of endearment, so the fact that he¡¯s calling you his ¡®little sun¡® only days after meeting you means he¡¯s head over heels for you. What else does he call you?¡± ¡°Little sun? I don¡¯t get it,¡± I said shaking my head. ¡°It¡¯s one of like five terms of endearment for a significant other in Russian. They¡¯re not a sentimental people. What else?¡± ¡°I think he called me malishka once.¡± ¡°I rest my case. He¡¯s smitten. What do the other men call you?¡± ¡°Well, just Viktor and Andrei. Misha and Ivan aren¡¯t as chatty, although Ivan did call me a princess, when I stitched him up this morning. Viktor and Andrei have both called me sestrichka a couple of times.¡± Chapter Fourteen ¡°Lord, they¡¯re all in love with you.¡± ¡°No way, Ms. Jackson. You¡¯re being silly. What does it mean? And how do you know Russian??¡± ¡°It¡¯s a pet name for a little sister, but again, only reserved for very special women,¡± she said. ¡°And as for me knowing Russian, well, I spent time there during the Cold War.¡± She sighed, and added very matter¨Cof¨Cfactly, ¡°I was spying on the Russians while they thought I was feeding them information on the Americans.¡± ¡°What?? How have you never told me you were such a badass before??¡± I gasped, ¡°is that how you know how to stitch people up? Did I really learn how to do that from a legit spy? You told me you were a nurse!¡± Sheughed. ¡°Well, I was technically a nurse too. After I came back, I went into nursing. Being a spy is hard on a girl.¡± She sighed. Again, lost in her memories. ¡°That was a long time ago, honey. But you need to know that you are the light to that man¡¯s dark. You are living up to your namesake, dear child,¡± she said as she reached up and patted my cheek. ¡°I don¡¯t think I understand.¡± ¡°Adrik. It means dark. When he calls you solnishko, he¡¯s telling you that you are the light in his dark world.¡± I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t¡­I don¡¯t know what to say.¡¯ She smiled at me. ¡°You don¡¯t have to say anything, dear. You just have to continue to be yourself. How long have I been telling you now that you¡¯re a special girl? You never believed me, but it doesn¡¯t make it any less true. My wish for you is that you¡¯ll let that man show you how special you are.¡± ¡°Ms. Jackson¡­¡± I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. ¡°Hush, child. You deserve every bit of the kingdom that man can give you. Just promise me you¡¯ll keep the eye candy around for me to appreciate.¡± ¡°I promise I¡¯ll make the Bingo escort happen.¡± She threw her head back andughed. ¡°Are you sure you want to be responsible for the sheer number of heart attacks you will cause with those kinds of shenanigans? You know ol¡® Edith has a pacemaker. She can¡¯t handle that kind of excitement.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fair.¡± I chuckled as I leaned down to give her a hug. She might¡¯ve been old, but her frame gave the impression that she was lean and strong in her prime. And she could still give the best hugs. Ms. Jackson was quick to befriend me when I first moved into the apartment. I think she knew I was nothing more than a lost little girl and I¡¯ll forever be grateful that she took pity on me and helped me find myself. ¡°Now. You go to him. I know you¡¯re going away for a little bit. I heard them talking when they thought I couldn¡¯t understand them. It¡¯s for your safety and I agree. The man they¡¯re looking for is not a good man and if he¡¯s the one who gave you that masterpiece on your neck, then they need to find him before I do.¡± ¡°I¡¯lle back to check on you. I¡¯ll have to take you back to the store next week, too.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you worry about me, child. I may be old, but I¡¯m still resourceful. You stay safe and you let those men protect you. 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.¡± Chapter Fourteen I chuckled, ¡°well, maybe not Ivan. He looks at me like he¡¯s trying to burn holes through my soul.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know Russian men, honey. That bear of a man would do anything you asked, especially after you stitched him up. He¡¯s putty in your hands. You just can¡¯t put up with his shit.¡± ¡°Well, I can¡¯t say I believe you on that one. I¡¯m still heavily under the impression that he would rather murder me himself.¡± ¡°Give it time. You¡¯ll see I¡¯m right. Your mother blessed you with the name of a queen. It¡¯s time you stepped into that role.¡± Chapter 15 Chapter 15 Chapter Fifteen Sephie After helping her put away the rest of her groceries, I closed her apartment door behind me. I was lost in thought as I turned to find Adrik waiting, just like he had promised. He was standing just past the breezeway, smoking, and on the phone. When he saw me, he put out his cigarette and extended his arm to me. I walked over to him, allowing him to wrap his arm around my waist. Still on the phone, he kissed the top of my head as I rested my head against his shoulder. 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¨Cspoken, 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 ying 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 rxed. ¡°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, cing 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,¡± Iughed. ¡°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. Iughed 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.¡± All content is ? N0velDrama.Org. 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 n for the day but thank you.¡± Chapter Fifteen ¡°Of course. I want to make sure you are safe. Always. Nowe, 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.¡± 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 feltpletely 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 cane back. They¡¯ll find Anthony and I¡¯ll be able toe 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 rx 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. ¡°Shhh. 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 1. 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 particr. 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 Chapter Fifteen parking lot from thending. ¡°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. Chapter 16 Chapter 16 Chapter Sixteen Sephie 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 2-3 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, it just reced 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.¡± N?velDrama.Org is the owner. 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. ¡°Shhhh¡­¡± 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 s*ck 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 15 minutes out, sir. It looks to be clear now.¡± Adrik nodded, I felt his body rx slightly as Andrei turned forward in his seat. I squeezed his hand, resting my head against his shoulder. Those 15 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 immactely kept, with giant oak trees along the driveway. Their branches making a canopy for the 1/2 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,ughing. ¡°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. Heughed 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 forst,¡± I said quietly so that only he could hear me. His arms tightened around me. Chapter 17 Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen 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 ount 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 rtionships 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 starteding 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 y 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 sessfully. Now, clearly, I had at least one boss, likely more, that had openly dered 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 y. 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 cojones 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.¡± Chapter Seventeen 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 feltpletely calm and in control. From the first moment I looked at her unabashedly staring at me in the restaurant, I feltplete 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 ced a kiss on the top of her head and went back to my conversation. ¡°Can you stop the ne 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 ne by force, but it won¡¯t be pretty, and I can¡¯t guarantee that everyone on the ne 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.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Sheughed. Her smile growing wider, ¡°it¡¯s all the eye candy I¡¯m surrounded by. It¡¯s beauty by default.¡± Whatever it was, I would dly take it. Chapter 18 Chapter 18 Chapter Eighteen Adrik 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¨Ccontrol I¡¯d created since taking over from my father would be gone with herst 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 mmed 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. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her innocence. Her light shone so brightly that I was sure it could light the entire world. Even my men, who are normally quite grumpy and say very little, have all turned into little puppies around her. They will dly follow her around, just to be near her. We all saw the good in her. She made her way back toward me and Andrei, who was standing next to me. He stretched his arms wide and asked, ¡°do I get one too?¡± She beamed at him as she ran to him. He picked her up and swung her around, as she squealed. I made a mental note that she enjoyed that. I caught myself wondering what else would make her squeal. When Andrei set her down, he said ¡°I could get used to that kind of appreciation.¡± She caught sight of Ivan and squared her shoulders as she walked to him. She extended her hand to him saying, ¡°you don¡¯t strike me as the hugging type.¡± He looked at her but waspletely defenseless against how brightly her light shone on him. He grabbed her hand and pulled her into his bear arms, closing his eyes tightly like he was fighting back a flood of emotions. She said something to him, and I was shocked at his reaction. Heughed. Ivan has been working for me for ten years and I¡¯ve rarely seen that man smile, much lessugh. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. I shook my head, watching her with my men. They were all trained killers, but in the span of about 2 days she had wrapped every single one of them around her finger. And she had no idea. She turned away from Ivan and made her way back to me. She wrapped her arms around me, cing her head on my chest. She whispered, just loud enough that only I could hear her, ¡°I saved the best for last.¡± It was that moment that I knew, unequivocally, that I was madly in love with this woman. I would die to protect her. I would work every day of this life to keep her by my side. I kissed the top of her head, thinking about how happy I was in that moment. It didn¡¯t make sense. We just escaped death, but we were all standing around smiling like idiots. Because of her. ¡°Come, let me show you to your room,¡± I said, grabbing her hand and walking toward the steps to the front door. Her e took eyes were wide with wonderment as she took in the house. As we walked through the front door, she could see the grand staircase and the chandelier hanging from the high ceiling in the foyer. There were two wings off that main hallway. My men stayed in the east wing, while all the staff of the house stayed in the west wing. I had the top floor to myself. Sephie would be staying in a room right across from my bedroom, so I could be close to her while still giving her some space. Sephie looked around, eyes still wide. ¡°Are you going to have someone stationed periodically through the house just to give me directions?¡± She pretended to have a British ent as she said, ¡°yes, madam, if you will just walk down the grand hall, there will be a phone at the end. Pick that up. They will direct you to the restroom from there.¡± I just shook my head and led her to the stairs. ¡°It¡¯s really not that confusing. You¡¯ll find your way around in no time. The important thing to remember is that the boys all have rooms to the right as you walk in the door. The kitchen is that way,¡± I said pointing to the left of the staircase. ¡°I¡¯ll show you to your room for now. I have some business to take care of, but if you like, I can show you around the rest of the houseter.¡± She nodded eagerly. ¡°I would very much like.¡± ¡°How can I refuse then? I¡¯ll give you the grand tour when I¡¯m done. Come. Your room awaits,¡± I said, giving her my best butler impression. She giggled and followed me up the stairs. Even the way herugh echoed on the marble floors was music to my ears. I stopped in front of her room, opening the double doors, and stepping aside for her to enter first. ¡°Here we are, madam. Your suite.¡± She walked past me and gasped as she took in the room. All of this? For me? Shit. I¡¯m gonna get lost just trying to find the bathroom in this one room.¡± She paused, turning around to take in the full 360¨Cdegree view. ¡°My entire apartment could fit in this room.¡± Iughed. ¡°Come, you haven¡¯t even seen the best part yet,¡± I grabbed her hand and pulled her toward her private balcony. It overlooked the pool below, but she had the best view of the gardens, as well as the mountains in the distance. I would stand on this balcony during the summer nights, inhaling the sweet floral aroma from the hundreds of flowers below on nights when I couldn¡¯t sleep. ¡°This¡­this is beautiful,¡± she said, her hand covering mouth. ¡°And that is why you will be staying in this room.¡± She was standing at the railing of the balcony, her hands now resting on the stone rail. I walked up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist. ¡°I love this view,¡± she said, breathlessly. I turned her to face me, keeping my arms around her. ¡°I love this one more,¡± I said as I gently kissed her. She responded by wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me closer to her. Without hesitating, I deepened the kiss. I had been holding back before, but after this afternoon and being that close to something potentially happening to her, I needed her to know how much I needed¡­her. I heard her moan softly and she faltered briefly, like her knees gave way. I grabbed her waist lower and picked her up off the ground so she wouldn¡¯t have to stand. I felt her giggle against my lips. She stopped the kiss just long enough to look into my eyes. She put her hands on either side of my face and kissed me even more passionately than before. I couldn¡¯t get enough of her, and she couldn¡¯t get enough of me. After a moment, she broke free, breathing heavily. She gazed deeply in my eyes, almost like she was searching for something. Like she was reading my soul. She could have it all, as far as I was concerned. I¡¯d never met anyorie like her, and I knew I never would again. She smiled sweetly at me and nted a chaste kiss on my lips. ¡°You have business, remember?¡± I lowered her to the ground once again, not wanting to let her go. I groaned. ¡°I¡¯d much rather ignore that and stay with you.¡± She chuckled and tried to push me away. ¡°The sooner you get it done, the sooner you can finish my tour of this castle. Or would you rather I explore on my own and remain lost for 3 years before I find my way out?¡± ¡°You have excellent negotiation skills,¡± I said as I pulled her back to me for another quick kiss before turning to leave. ¡°Rest and rx. The guys will be downstairs if you need anything. My bedroom is just across the hall and my office is at the end of the hall.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be here. Maybe I¡¯ll have a dance party since there¡¯s so much floor space. You never know,¡± she said, raising one eyebrow at me. I sighed, ¡°solnishko.¡± I couldn¡¯t help myself. I stole one more kiss. I felt her moan again in my mouth, right before I felt her hands on my chest, pushing me away. ¡°Go!¡± She said, pointing to the door. Iughed and turned toward the door. ¡°End of the hall or across the hall if you need me. You can alwayse in my rooms, no matter what is happening. Always,¡± I said one more time, for emphasis. She nodded and watched me walk out of her room. As soon as the door closed behind me, I felt like I was already missing her. The more time I spent with her, the less I wanted to leave her. These would end up being the fastest business calls I¡¯d made in a while, just so I could get back to her. Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Chapter Neen Adrik I had a stack of reports on my desk to get through by the end of the day today. I hadn¡¯t nned on our extra excursion to the grocery store, so I was hoping to have thesepleted by now. I sighed, remembering how much I hadughed just today alone. Sephie made mundane activities like the grocery store fun somehow. 1 shook my head, still notpletely sure how I found myself here, but not wanting to change a thing about it, other than not being able to find Anthony. I sighed, picking up the first folder and diving in. The sooner I get it done, the sooner I can finish her tour of this castle. I smiled, reading boring import reports. It took me considerably less time than it normally would have to get through the reports, but I had still been in my office for close to two hours. I walked out of my office and headed straight for her bedroom door. I knocked softly and waited for a response. When I got none, I knocked once more. Again, no answer. I opened the door slowly, not entirely sure if I should enter her room without permission. I didn¡¯t want to catch her by surprise. I stuck my head around the door and scanned the room, looking for her. My eyesnded on her curled up on the bed, on top of all the covers, napping. I walked to the bed, intending to cover her up, as there was a cool breeze nowing in through the open balcony door. As I pulled a nket over her, she woke up and immediately her warm eyes were smiling at me. ¡°Hi,¡± she said in a hoarse whisper. Her throat was still damaged from Anthony, the hoarseness apparent when she was tired. I sat down on the edge of the bed and ran my hand up her leg, resting on her hip. ¡°Hi. I¡¯m sorry it took me so long, solnishko.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be sorry. You¡¯re an important man and have important matters to attend to. The world doesn¡¯t stop turning, Adrik. Especially not for me.¡± I felt that tightness in my chest at her words but chose not to address it just yet. There was more meaning behind those words, but now was not the time. I reached up to brush her curls away from her face. ¡°Would you still like the grand tour? We can do it tomorrow. You can rest now.¡± ¡°No, no. I want to see everything. I didn¡¯t mean to fall asleep. Show me everything,¡± she said, sitting up beside me. Standing up, I offered her my hand. ¡°Well, in that case, please, follow me.¡± She eagerly took my hand and stood beside me. Just as she stood up, her stomach growled so loudly that I¡¯m not certain a dead person could¡¯ve heard it. ¡°So, can we start with the kitchen? I just remembered that I haven¡¯t eaten today. Clearly. As literally everyone in the house could hear.¡± ¡°I will feed you and then we will finish the tour. You have my undivided attention for the rest of the night.¡± Longer, if you wish, solnishko. Sephie I happily followed Adrik down the stairs toward the kitchen. I hadpletely forgotten to eat all day long and now I 1/3 Chapter Neen was sure I could eat enough for three people. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, my bare feet hit the cool marble of the entryway. We turned to the right and walked into thergest room I think I have ever seen. This wasrger than the meeting room at the back of the restaurant, even. As we walked through the room, I spotted a grand piano in front of the impressive windows. I secretly wanted to go sit and y, but food was much more important, as my stomach grumbled once again. Quieter this time, at least. ¡°Can I y sometime?¡± I asked, pointing to the piano. ¡°You know how to y?¡± N?velDrama.Org is the owner. I nodded. ¡°My mother was a piano teacher before she died. I grew up ying.¡± Looking down, I added quietly, ¡°I haven¡¯t had ess to a piano in years though.¡± Adrik squeezed my hand. ¡°You must y whenever you like. Whatever you see in the house is yours,¡± he said, sweeping his hand across the room. I smiled, secretly very excited that I would be able to y, at least for a few days. We walked into the kitchen and there was a woman at the sink. She looked like she could bete 20s, maybe older, but she took care of herself, so she likely appeared younger than her age. She had blonde hair that was pulled tightly into a bun, a wh*ite apron over her clothing. She looked up when we walked in and bowed her head to Adrik. ¡°Boss, may I make you something?¡± ¡°What do we have for dinner, Tori?¡± ¡°Your men requested steak, but I can make you anything you like, sir.¡± ¡°I¡¯m guessing there aren¡¯t any leftovers from the gluttons?¡± He said, smirking. ¡°No, sir. I can make more, though. It¡¯ll just take me a few minutes,¡± she said with a small smile. Adrik turned to me and raised his eyebrow. ¡°What do you think? Sound good?¡± Before I moved my gaze to Adrik, I caught Tori¡¯s eyes going wide for a split second before sheposed herself. What was that about? ¡°Yes, please. That sounds amazing,¡± I said, my mo*uth watering already. Steak was a luxury that I rarely got to enjoy. Once or twice at the restaurant when we didn¡¯t sell enough in a week, we¡¯d get to take one home instead of throwing them out, but I never bought it for myself. ¡°Then, please Tori, make us the same.¡± ¡°Yes, sir. Would you like me to call you when it¡¯s ready?¡± ¡°That would be great. I¡¯m going to show Sephie around while we wait.¡± Of course, sir.¡± Chapter 20 Chapter 20 Chapter Twenty Sephie We continued walking around the maze of rooms. The staff quarters were off the kitchen. More bedrooms for guests next to the staff rooms. There was a library on the other side of the kitchen, which I was excited about exploring. Another grand room held a few couches and oversize chairs. There were French doors leading outside to the pool and the gardens that I could see from my balcony. We walked outside, as Adrik said he wanted to show me the gardens up close. As soon as we walked by the pool, we were hit with the loveliest floral aroma from the gardens. It was even stronger than what I could smell from above. It was like walking through Heaven. I inhaled deeply. ¡°You like?¡± Adrik asked as we walked through the small maze of familiar flowers and flowers I had never seen before. ¡°I love. It smells amazing. I want to bottle it and wear it all the time,¡± Iughed. ¡°This is one of my favorite ces on the property. Ie here often when I can¡¯t sleep,¡± Adrik said. ¡°What are your other favorite ces?¡± I asked. ¡°In good time. We don¡¯t have time right now. We must feed you before your stomach wakes up the neighborhood,¡± he said poking me in the stomach. I blushed, ¡°yeah, sorry. My stomach has a mind of its own. Clearly.¡± He let out a smallugh. ¡°I¡¯m notining. You¡¯re not the only one who hasn¡¯t eaten today. My stomach is grateful yours sounded the rm.¡± I smiled up at him, loving how rxed and at ease he seemed anytime he was near me. I¡¯d seen the tension and the murderous aura he gave off when he was taking care of his business, but I knew I¡¯d only seen a peek of what he was capable of. I¡¯d seen the other bosses in the city enough to know how dangerous they were. If Adrik was above them all, that meant he was even more dangerous. ¡°Excuse me, sir? Your dinner is ready,¡± Tori said from the back patio, by the pool. ¡°Thank you, Tori. We¡¯ll be right there,¡± he said. He watched as she turned to leave and pulled me in close. He kissed me sweetly, his arms wrapping around me the way I had already grown to love. I returned the kiss, but then stepped out of his grasp. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°Race you!¡± I said, not even giving him time to register what I said before I took off running to the house. ¡°Oh, hell no,¡± I heard him say as I heard his footsteps behind me. I giggled as I ran around the pool, trying to stay ahead of him to get to the door first. I barely made it to the door ahead of him and raced inside. I weaved in and out of the couches and chairs, while he chose to simply jump over them. I laughed at him, as he caught up to me and passed me. He turned just before we made it to the kitchen and caught me, sweeping me off my feet. I squealed as he lifted me into the air, spinning me around once. ¡°Got you,¡± he whispered, slightly out of breath. ¡°No fair jumping the couches,¡± I said,ughing, trying to catch my breath. ¡°Oh, now you make rules? After you lost?¡± he asked, still holding me like I weighed nothing. I wrapped my arms 1/3 Chapter Twenty around his neck as he carried me the rest of the way into the kitchen. Tori had set two tes of food on the bar of therge ind in the middle of the kitchen. She was washing a pan and looked up as we entered the kitchen. Again, I caught her eyes go wide and this time she dropped the pan she was washing, making a loud bang. She immediately dropped her gaze and kept washing. We sat down just as she finished up. ¡°That¡¯ll be all, Tori. We¡¯ll clean up. Thank you,¡± Adrik said. She simply nodded, as she was drying her hands on her apron. She kept her gaze down and left the kitchen. ¡°Why was she so surprised when we came into the kitchen?¡± I asked, cutting into my steak. It cut like butter. I was going to enjoy this. My stomach was already grumbling in anticipation. Adrik looked at me, confused. ¡°What do you mean, solnishko? I finished the bite of steak I had just taken ¨C God, it was better than I thought and said, ¡°she was surprised when you asked me what I wanted to cat and again when you carried me into the kitchen.¡± He chuckled, as he cut another bite of steak. ¡°They¡¯re not used to seeing me with a woman, solnishko. I don¡¯t bring women here. Some of the staff even think I¡¯m gay because they¡¯ve never seen a woman here with me.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± He rested his hands, fork and knife still in hand, on either side of his te, seemingly lost in thought for a moment. ¡°Because I¡¯ve never found anyone worthy ofing here, until now.¡± He turned and looked deeply in my eyes, as I was so stunned that I had quit chewing. Ms. Jackson¡¯s words,ing back to mind. ¡°Do you know that man is in love with you?¡± I just stared at him for a moment, as he took another bite of steak. ¡°Are you just going to save that bite forter or are you going to eat it?¡± That smirk that I loved back on his face. I started chewing again, somewhat snapped back to reality. My mind was still racing. ¡°How could they think you¡¯re gay? Don¡¯t you have hundreds of women throwing themselves at you?¡± I asked, trying the mashed potatoes that Tori had made for us. Sweet Jesus this woman was now my favorite person because of her culinary skills. ¡°They try, yes. When I was younger, I dated a few of them. I slept with more of them, but there was no depth there. No feeling. They were all more interested in the empire than they were me.¡± I sighed. I took a drink of water, looking toward the staff quarters. ¡°How sad.¡± ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s sad?¡± ¡°It must be difficult to be in your position. You don¡¯t know who you can trust and who you can¡¯t. That¡¯s sad. Everyone needs people they can trust.¡± He nodded in agreement, lost in thought for a moment. ¡°I have my men,¡± he said. ¡°I trust them completely. They¡¯re actually good judges of character. In the past, they¡¯ve saved me from women who were just after money and power. The women showed a different side to them than they did to me.¡± He took a drink of water, adding, ¡°that¡¯s how I knew you were special. Every single one of my guys loves you like a little sister. I¡¯ve never seen them act the way they do when they¡¯re around you.¡± 2/3 Chapter Twenty Iughed, ¡°even Ivan? Because I¡¯m still convinced he would like to murder me in my sleep.¡± He set his fork and knife down beside his te and turned in his seat toward me. He grabbed my chair and turned it so 1 had no choice but to look at him. ¡°Especially Ivan, solnishko. Do you know how many years he¡¯s worked for me?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Ten years. He¡¯s worked for me for ten years and today was the first time I¡¯ve seen that manugh. I might¡¯ve seen him smile once or twice, maybe. But never, ever, have I seen himugh. He¡¯s the most serious man I¡¯ve ever known. Until he¡¯s around you. You cracked his imprable defenses.¡± ¡°I just asked him to teach me how to drive like he does.¡± Adrik shook his head, chuckling. ¡°You still don¡¯t see it.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t see what?¡± ¡°How special you are.¡± I scoffed. ¡°Now you sound like Ms. Jackson.¡± ¡°If she said you¡¯re special, then she¡¯s a very smart woman,¡± Adrik said, standing up and taking my completely empty te to the sink. My stomach was so full and happy now. I leaned back in my chair and patted my full belly, my mind still racing. As Adrik turned on the water, I realized I was being no help and jumped up to help with the dishes. ¡°I can wash those,¡± I said, standing next to him. ¡°Net. I¡¯ll do it.¡± I grabbed a towel and hopped up on the counter beside the sink. ¡°Ok, you wash, I¡¯ll dry.¡± He smiled as he handed me a clean te. ¡°Teamwork makes the dream work,¡± I said, drying the te. Chapter 21 Chapter 21 Chapter Twenty-One Sephie He just shook his head, smiling as he continued washing our dishes from dinner. When thest piece of cutlery was dried and put aside, he stepped in front of me, his hands sliding up my thighs and around my waist. ¡°I like it when you¡¯re eye level,¡± he said, brushing my hair back from my face. I put my hands on his strong, muscr shoulders. My hands roaming down his arms, feeling his muscles under his shirt. He had unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt when he was done with work, and I could see the smallest bit of a tattoo on his chest. I was curious to see the whole thing. My hands roamed to his chest. He watched my face as I explored his upper body. I grinned and in my best Midwestern housewife ent I said, ¡°your muscles are so big. Do you fight crime?¡± Heughed heartily, taking one of my arms and throwing me over his shoulder. I let out a small scream but couldn¡¯t do much as I was basically a sack of potatoes over his shoulder. He smacked my b*tt as we walked from the kitchen. ¡°Hey! No fair!¡± I said, trying to get out my predicament. He smacked it once more for good measure, so I leaned down and smacked his very fine a*s as we were walking. ¡°Turnabout is fair y, you know,¡± I said,ughing. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. The next thing I knew, he had thrown me down on one of the couches. He slowly climbed on top of me, the look of amusement still on his face. I was stillughing as he leaned over me and kissed my neck. He left a trail of small kisses down to my corbone. His finger traced the bruise still visible on my neck. His brow furrowed as he looked at it. He cursed under his breath and said, ¡°still too dark.¡± My hand went to the back of his neck, and I pulled him to me, not wanting to think about that. I leaned up slightly to meet him as I pulled him down to me, my lips crashing into his. He pressed his body into mine, as I wrapped my arms around him, my hands roaming over his back. I could feel him get hard as he deepened the kiss even more. I moaned softly into his m*uth. He moved to my neck once more, this time s*cking and licking as he moved down my neck. His hand moved to my breast. I moaned quietly, breathlessly, as he squeezed my breast gently, still kissing my neck. He kissed my lips once more, his blue eyes dark as he looked deeply in my eyes. ¡°You have no idea what you do to me,¡± he said, catching his breath. ¡°I could say the same for you,¡± I said, smiling up at him, running my hand through his hair. His eyes closed as he leaned into my touch. I pulled his head down to rest on my chest, while I continued to run my hand lightly through his hair. He took a deep breath, and I felt his whole body rx as weid on the couch,pletely tangled up with each other. I thought he had fallen asleep, but he eventually sat up. I felt a vibration against my hip and realized it was his phone in his pocket. He cursed and rolled to take his phone out of his pocket. He looked at the number but didn¡¯t answer. Instead, he looked at me apologetically, ¡°I need to take this. Come, I¡¯ll take you to your room first. Wouldn¡¯t want you to get lost,¡± he smirked as he kissed the tip of my nose. Iughed, ¡°oh, thank God because I¡¯ve been anxious about that since we left my room earlier.¡± He stood up and pulled me up as well. Taking my hand in his, he led me through the house to a back stairway. ¡°Ok, see now I¡¯m extra d I have an escort because I for sure would¡¯ve gotten lost trying to figure this out on my own.¡± He just chuckled and shook his head as he led me up the stairs. ¡°You¡¯ll get the hang of it, don¡¯t worry.¡± He stopped in front of my bedroom and said, ¡°remember, I¡¯m just across the hall or down the hall if you need anything.¡± He pulled me to him and kissed me passionately before saying, ¡°good night, solnishko. Sweet dreams.¡± ¡°Good night, Adrik. And thank you. For everything.¡± He smiled down at me, before turning toward his office. I watched him pull his phone out of his pocket before stepping into my bedroom. I closed the door and leaned against it. My mind wouldn¡¯t stop reying everything that had happened in thest two and a half days. Your life is anything but boring, Sephie. I took what was quite possibly the most luxurious shower I had ever taken in my 24 years. The shower wasrge enough for at least four people. It had multiple showerheads. I¡¯ve never seen so many showerheads in one shower. I did turn them all on at once, just to see what would happen. There was watering at me from every direction. This must be what it¡¯s like in a car wash. It was glorious. I threw on an oversize t-shirt and a pair of panties and climbed into bed. It wasn¡¯t thatte yet, but I found myself feeling like I could sleep for a week once again. It didn¡¯t take long for me to fall asleep, curled up under the covers. Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Chapter Twenty-Two Sephie I found myself in a familiar old house, d*rty from neglect. That smell of sweat that never seemed to go away hit my nostrils, giving me the familiar nausea that was constant the entire time I lived there. No, no, no, no. I can¡¯t be back here. I ran away. He can¡¯t touch me. He doesn¡¯t know where I went and he¡¯s too l*zy to look for me. I hear a familiar voice in my head, screaming my name. ¡°SEPHIE! YOU GET OUT HERE RIGHT NOW!¡± I knew the routine. He was going to yell at me for some perceived slight that was, in reality, his fault, but he was too drunk to remember. I sighed, hung my head, and walked to my furious uncle. Only this time, it wasn¡¯t my uncle. It was Anthony. I froze in ce when I saw it was Anthony instead of my uncle. Terror took hold. I looked around me for something I could use as a weapon, but as I was reaching for a smallmp, the scene changedpletely. I was no longer in my uncle¡¯s d*sgusting house. I was in a chair, somewhere I¡¯d never been before. The exposed fluorescent lights flickered above me. There was one door to the room, in front of me. I tried to get up, but realized I was tied to the chair. I started to panic. The door opened, revealing Anthony, with a sinister look in his eye. This wasn¡¯t going to be good. He walked toward me, never taking his eyes off me. He reached out and brushed the side of my face with the back of his hand. I desperately tried to get away, just like I had tried to get away from him at the restaurant. ¡°Still haven¡¯t learned your lesson, I see,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯ve been over this. School was not my thing. So, you tell me, who isn¡¯t getting the lesson here ¨C me or you?¡± I felt him punch me with such force that it knocked my chair backward. I was now on my back, still tied to the chair, and unable to get free. It didn¡¯t stop me from trying to get free, but my attempts were unsessful. Think, Sephie. You¡¯ve been in this situation before, and you got free. Keep your head in the game. He pulled my chair upright again, leaning on the arms of the chair, so that he was eye level with me. ¡°You¡¯re so pretty. It¡¯s a sh*me to ruin that pretty face.¡± ¡°What do you want with me, Anthony? Like seriously. You said it yourself. You can have any girl you want. Why me?¡± Heughed. It was not theugh of someone who was amused, however. This was theugh of an in*ane person. His smile didn¡¯t reach his cold, dead eyes. ¡°It isn¡¯t just you, carrot top,¡± he said, picking a knife off a table against the wall. ¡°You belong to Ghost now. I saw the anger in his eyes when I smacked your a*s in that restaurant. I want to hurt him, but I can¡¯t get to him.¡± He was trailing the knife down my neck to my chest. He stopped just above my heart, pressing the knife into my skin in a way that felt oddly familiar to me. ¡°So, I hurt you to get to him. And when hees for you? I k*ll him.¡± I¡¯m not sure what came over me at the thought of Adrik being killed, but I screamed as loud as I possibly could. 1 was suddenly not in the chair but lying in bed covered in sweat. Where was Anthony? How did I get away? My bedroom door swung open, and Adrik rushed to me. ¡°Sephie! What¡¯s wrong? What happened?¡± He went to grab my shoulders to pull me to him. ¡°Jesus, Sephie, you¡¯re soaking wet. What happened? Did you have another nightmare?¡± I was still trying toprehend what had happened and why I wasn¡¯t dead. I looked at him and said, ¡°you can¡¯te for me. If Anthony gets to me, he¡¯s going to k*ll you if youe for me.¡± I burst into tears, grabbing onto him. ¡°Solnishko. Oh, solnishko. He won¡¯t get to you. I promise. I will protect you. We will all protect you,¡± he stroked my hair and ran his hands down my back. ¡°You¡¯re okay. You¡¯re safe with me. I promise.¡± I s*cked in a breath and looked up at him. ¡°He wants to use me to get to you.¡± His blue eyes looked at me intensely, ¡°tell me what happened. How do you know this? I just found this out a few hours ago.¡± ¡°He was in my dream. I was in my uncle¡¯s house. He was yelling at me again like he did the night¡­. but then I wasn¡¯t in my uncle¡¯s house and it was Anthony instead.¡± I s*cked in a breath, trying to not sob as I relived my nightmare. ¡°I asked him what he wanted with me. He said he noticed how angry you got when he smacked my a*s at the restaurant. He said he wants to k*ll you, but he can¡¯t get to you, so he¡¯ll use me to hurt you instead.¡± Adrik swore under his breath, in Russian so that I couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°Sephie, did he say anything else? Can you remember anything else about your dream?¡± ¡°I was in a room that I¡¯ve never seen before, tied to a chair. He punched me and then threatened to stab me in the heart. When he said he was going to k*ll you, that¡¯s when I screamed and woke up.¡±N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 23 Chapter 23 Chapter Twenty-Three Sephie As if on cue, my body started shaking uncontrobly. Sometimes it was just my legs, but this time it was my entire body. ¡°What¡¯s happening? Do you need a doctor? Are you having a seizure? What do you need?¡± I grabbed onto his arms to try and steady myself. ¡°I¡­I¡¯m okay¡­This¡­happens¡­ trauma¡­¡± In one quick motion, he stood up and picked me up. He carried me to the bathroom and stepped into the shower. He turned the water on overhead, making the temperature hot enough that steam quickly began filling the bathroom. He sat on the floor, with me in hisp, holding me while I shook uncontrobly. He gently rocked me back and forth as I tried to gain control of my body again. Slowly, the shaking stopped. Adrik¡¯s arms around me helped to calm me down. I looked up at him, asking, ¡°what did you mean you only just found out about Anthony¡¯s n a few hours ago? How did you know about my dream?¡± He smiled, wiping my wet hair from my forehead. ¡°I didn¡¯t know about your dream, solnishko. It seems your dream knew about Anthony¡¯s ns.¡± I scrunched my face. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± He sighed, pulling me against him again. ¡°We managed to capture one of Anthony¡¯s closest associates. He slipped up and my men caught him. When pressed for information, he finally gave up Anthony¡¯s n, although he was unsure of the specific details. It was just as you said in your dream. He wants to use you to hurt me.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said, folding my arms to my chest and curling up more in between his legs on the shower floor. ¡°I won¡¯t let that happen. He can make as many ns as he wishes, but he won¡¯t get to you. I promise you.¡± I just nodded my head against his chest, suddenly very tired again and not wanting to think about any of this. I sighed. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. He grabbed my shoulders to sit me up slightly and moved so that he was sitting more in front of me. I felt his fingers under my chin, lifting my head so that I would look at him. ¡°He will nevery another finger on you,¡± he said with such intensity in his eyes that I couldn¡¯t help but believe him. I raised my fist between us, with only my pinky outstretched. ¡°Pinky swear?¡± ¡°What is this?¡± he asked, cocking his head to the side. My m*uth fell open. ¡°You don¡¯t know what a pinky swear is?¡± He shook his head no. I scoffed at him. ¡°You¡¯ve been missing out. A pinky swear is the holiest of swears there is. Like more sacred than swearing on a bible or your mother¡¯s grave, God rest her soul. Or not. I have no idea if your mother is alive or not, now that I say that out loud.¡± He just stared at me, the intensity in his eyes reced by amusement. I grinned at him smiling at me, ¡°what?¡± ¡°How do you do that?¡± ¡°How do I do what? Pinky swear?¡± ¡°Net. Well, yes, that too, but how do you bring joy to a truly f*cked up situation? I¡¯m the one that¡¯s supposed to be making you feel better and now you¡¯re making meugh and teaching me new holiest of swears. You are unique, solnishko.¡± ¡°Oh. That. It¡¯s a gift?¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders. He chuckled, shaking his head. ¡°That it is,¡± he said as he kissed my cheek. ¡°Now, tell me of this holiest of swears of the pinky.¡± I giggled at his description. I put my fist up again, with just my pinky out. ¡°Ok, put your pinky up.¡± He did as I asked and I hooked my pinky with his and said, ¡°this is a pinky swear. You pinky swear that Anthony will nevery another finger on me.¡± His eyes lit up with amusement as he repeated, ¡°I pinky swear that Anthony will nevery another finger on you.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I grinned at him, happy that he looked so happy. My eyes drifted down to his shirtless torso and his sculpted six pack. His pajama pants werepletely soaked, as was my shirt. I wasn¡¯t sure how I was getting out of the shower without giving him a show. I reached for his chest, running my hand over his tattoos. His breath caught slightly. He wiped my hair back from my face again. ¡°No more shaking?¡± ¡°No more shaking.¡± ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll get towels,¡± he said, standing and walking out of the shower. His soaked pajama pants left nothing to the imagination. When he turned to step out of the shower, I took in his broad shoulders and back that tapered down to his fine a*s. He walked over to the cab to grab a few towels, then walked back to the shower and stepped back inside, giving me a full view of his half-naked body. He had tattoos across one half of his chest, going down to a half- sleeve on his right arm. He gave new meaning to washboard abs and had that s*xy as h*ll V that disappeared in his pajama pants that were barely staying up on his hips. He stepped back into the shower. Reaching behind me, he turned the water off, then extended his hand to help me off the floor. I kept one arm across my breasts, as my shirt was nowpletely see- through. Once I was standing, he opened the shower door and handed me a towel. He turned his back to me and said, ¡°you should leave your shirt in here.¡± I watched to see if he was going to peek, then I turned around and slipped my soaked shirt off over my head, dropping it on the floor of the shower. I wrapped the towel around me quickly and slipped my soaked panties off too. While I was getting out of my wet clothes, he was too. We were both only in towels. He extended his hand to me. ¡°Come,¡± he said. I ced my hand in his and followed him out of the bathroom. He walked right past my bed to the still open door of my bedroom. ¡°Wait, where are we going?¡± I said as we walked past my bed, ¡°Your bed is wet. You can¡¯t sleep there. Besides, I made a pinky swear. How can I protect you from across the hall?¡± I grinned at him. ¡°You have excellent negotiation skills.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift,¡± he said, looking back at me with his signature smirk. Once in his bedroom, he led me next to his bed. ¡°Wait here,¡± he said kissing the top of my shoulder as he walked to his closet. He returned in a new pair of pajama pants, still with no shirt, carrying a t-shirt. ¡°Here. You can wear this,¡± he said, handing me his shirt. He turned around so I could slip it on. I used the towel to dry my hair. ¡°I can turn around now?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes, you can turn around now,¡± I said still drying my hair. He turned to face me, and his m*uth fell open slightly. He inhaled sharply, ¡°you might have to wear nothing but my shirt from now on.¡± I blushed, looking down. He stood in front of me, taking the towel from me and throwing it over his shoulder. Iughed at his tant disrespect for proper towel storage. He grinned at me, pulling me to him. ¡°Now, I made a pinky swear, which I take very seriously. This means I¡¯m going to have to hold onto you the rest of the night, while you sleep.¡± He cleared his throat, ¡°for protection.¡± I smiled at him, reveling in how much he was opening up to me in such a short time. I never would¡¯ve guessed he had this side to him that first night we met, but the more I saw, the more I wanted to see. ¡°For protection,¡± I said as I climbed into bed. He turned themp off and slid under the covers next to me. He wrapped his arms around me from behind and pulled me to him. His chest against my back was so warm. I sighed, hugging his arm that was around my body. I felt my body rx as I concentrated on his steady breathing next to me. I felt so safe in his arms. Like I had never felt with any man before him. I kept listening to his breaths get slower and felt his body rx as he fell asleep. His arms stayed snug around me, not letting go even in his sleep. I found myself hoping he would never let go as I drifted off to sleep. Chapter 24 Chapter 24 Chapter Twenty-Four Adrik I felt her stir in my arms, trying to reposition herself. I opened my eyes just enough to see that it was daylight outside and to make sure that she wasn¡¯t wanting out of my grasp. She was still sleeping, her breathing still steady and heavier than it would be were she awake. Her head was on my arm, one of her arms draped over my chest. Instead of closing my eyes, I found myself watching her as she peacefully slept next to me. I gently brushed her wild hair away from her face. Her porcin skin giving her a doll-like appearance when she was sleeping. Freckles dotted her face. Her long eyshes resting on her cheeks. I could stare at this woman sleeping every day for the rest of my life. She inhaled and made a small whimper noise. I gently raised my arm underneath her head, moving her to my chest. She barely stirred, only snuggling into my chest, and draping her leg over mine. I smiled, knowing she was sleeping peacefully with me. It made me happy to know that she felt safe with me. That her nightmares wouldn¡¯t haunt her when she was with me. My mind went back to the night before, as I gently twirled her curls around my fingers. She mentioned she was at her uncle¡¯s house when her dream first started. What uncle? What had happened that night that she couldn¡¯t say? If her uncle had hurt her, I would end him. How did she know about Anthony¡¯s n? She wasn¡¯t even in the meeting room when I lost it on Anthony for disrespecting her. She couldn¡¯t have known. I sighed. I needed to stop thinking about that right now or my anger was going to get the best of me. I ran my hand down her back to the bottom of my shirt that she was wearing. It had ridden up and was exposing just the bottom of her a ss. My hand found its way under the shirt to her soft skin. I started to run my hand up her back, underneath the shirt, when her hand caught mine and stopped it. Without moving, she sighed. ¡°I¡­I have scars.¡± ¡°Everyone has scars, solnishko. I have scars too.¡± She stayed silent but sat up. She turned away from me and grabbed the bottom of the shirt, lifting it over her head. As she lifted her shirt, she revealed at least 30sh marks crisscrossed across her back. Her milky wh ite skin helped to camouge them slightly, but they were evident. Her back had been ripped open at some point. It was shocking. Her shoulders slumped and her head was down. I did the only thing I knew to do. I sat up and kissed the back of her shoulder. I ran my hands lightly over her back. At first, she jumped at my touch, but eventually rxed into it. After a few moments, I said, ¡°you¡¯re beautiful.¡± I kissed the back of one shoulder, across her back, to the other shoulder. I could feel her rx a little and her breath hitched like she was trying to hold back tears. I moved her hair out of the way and kissed the back of her neck. She leaned back to me, still silent. I moved so that she was sitting in between my legs and pulled her back against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her and just held her, like we were in the shower the night before. She leaned her head back against my shoulder, so I bent down and kissed her neck. She was clutching my shirt to her chest, but her grip rxed the longer I held her. It wasn¡¯t like her to stay silent for so long. I knew she was fighting demons of the past in her head. She took a deep breath in. I could almost feel her gathering her strength. Before she could speak, I asked, ¡°uncle?¡± She nodded but remained silent. I pulled her close and gently said, ¡°you don¡¯t need to tell me right now. When you¡¯re ready. Right now, you just need to know that you¡¯re my solnishko and that will never change.¡± She reached up with one hand and quickly wiped her eyes. She leaned her head all the way back and looked up at me, over her shoulder. ¡°Good morning,¡± she halfughed, like she was still choking back a sob. ¡°Good morning. How did you sleep?¡± I asked, still running my hands over her n*ked body in myp. My morning wood unabashedly poking her in her back. Her n*kedness was not helping that go away anytime soon. ¡°Better with you,¡± she said more steadily this time. She smiled sweetly up at me. I felt my heart stop every time she smiled at me. ¡°Then we will have to do it more often. The pinky swear must be upheld.¡± N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Sheughed. Loosening her grip on the shirt, she inadvertently exposed more of her full breasts. Since she couldn¡¯t see my face, I took the opportunity to ogle her. I have no sh*me. I¡¯m okay with that. She was, after all, a gorgeous woman,pletely n*ked, in myp, in my bed. It was yet another Herculean test of my will to not throw her down and take her right then. She had clearly been through rough experiences, though, so I wanted it to be her idea. I would wait. Hopefully not much longer, I thought to myself as I stared at her half-exposed breasts, wanting desperately to feel them beneath my hands. Instead, I wrapped my hands around her shoulders, massaging gently. She moaned in appreciation. This was not going to help my morning wood, but I loved hearing her moan. I caught myself wondering what else I could do to her to make her moan louder. Before it became too difficult to control myself, I kissed the crook of her neck and got up from the bed. I walked to the bathroom. I needed a cold shower, but I opted for sshing cold water on my face instead. When I came back, she had put the shirt back on. My shirt was big on her, falling slightly off one shoulder as she was still sitting up in bed. Her knees pulled up in front of her chest, giving me a view of her long legs. In short, she looked s*xy as h*ll. I caught her watching me walking back to the bed. Her bright eyes darkening ever so slightly as she bit her bottom lip. I crawled in front of her, reaching and swiping my thumb across her bottom lip so she would stop biting it. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to stop that unless you want me to lose all control right now.¡± Her mo uth fell open slightly and her eyes went wide for just a moment. She looked like she wanted to say something, but instead closed her mo uth. I just smirked as Iid on my back in front of her. She looked me up and down a few times, then asked, ¡°will you show me the rest of your favorite ces here today?¡± ¡°Of course, solnishko. Today, we can do whatever you want. It¡¯s Sunday. Business can wait until tomorrow.¡± Her eyes lit up, ¡°I can spend the whole day with you?¡± I nodded. She grinned, hugging her knees. She was adorable and s*xy all at once, I was going to have to make a rule that she always had to wear my shirt to bed. I was struggling to not stare at her, She jumped up. ¡°I¡¯m going to get dressed and then I want you to finish showing me around. I want to see everything!¡± she said, practically running out of my bedroom. I would¡¯ve preferred toy in bed with her for a while longer, but I could handle showing her the rest of the grounds. Dragging myself up, I went to get dressed as well. I grabbed a pair of jeans and another t-shirt and threw them on. In the bathroom, I ran my hands under the water and through my hair. I needed to shave, but I wasn¡¯t going to take the time to do it right now. I heard my phone buzzing on my nightstand. I checked the text message, from my spy at the private airport. Flight path logged. Italy. Hmmm. This might be a distraction. Or he might be leaving. With his closest associate having been captured, he might be scared. I¡¯ll have people there. If he shows, that ne cannot leave. If he¡¯s not there, let the ne leave. Yes, sir. Chapter 25 Chapter 25 Chapter Twenty-Five Adrik I locked my phone and walked into my office. I looked through the files on my desk, looking for a specific file. Without thinking, I sat down to flip through the pages of the files. I got lost in my search, not realizing that Sephie had walked quietly in. She must¡¯ve noticed me lost in thought as I was searching for my answer. She walked quietly enough to the bookshelves on the other side of my office that I didn¡¯t hear her. She stood looking over the titles of the books, waiting for me to finish. When I finally looked up and noticed her there, I stopped to admire the view. She had a pair of skinny jeans on, which made her look taller than her 5¡¯10 frame. She had a ck t-shirt that hugged her curves in just the right way. Her hair falling loose over her back. I leaned back in my chair, to admire the view. She heard my chair squeak as I leaned back and turned to face me. ¡°Should Ie backter?¡± she asked. Her arms were folded under her breasts, which just served to make them more prominent. I thought back to the other women I had been with. They all hated when I worked, but they loved the benefits of my work. They would pout and throw fits when I worked, like children needing constant attention. Sephie was different. I hadpletely taken her away from her world. I was all she had at the moment, and she was still concerned about interrupting my work. I stood up from my chair, closing the distance between us quickly. I grabbed her around the waist, picking her the floor and spinning her around once. ¡°Please don¡¯t go anywhere. No more work today, solnishko. Promise.¡± up off She squealed as I spun her around, wrapping her arms around my shoulders to hang on. ¡°Let¡¯s get some breakfast first. Wouldn¡¯t want your stomach to wake the dead again,¡± I said, as I put her down. Sheughed at me, adding, ¡°I would kill small woond creatures for some French Toast right now.¡± ¡°Then,e. We must go to the kitchen. To save the animals,¡± Iughed, leading her out of my office. IAll content is ? N0velDrama.Org. never found my answer, but it would wait untilter. When we got to the kitchen, Tori was there making breakfast for the guys. The smell of bacon filled the air, making my stomach grumble. Andrei and Ivan were sitting at the bar on the ind. Viktor, Misha, and Stephen were lounging on the couches in the next room. ¡°Morning boss. Miss Sephie,¡± Andrei said, as he nodded toward both of us. Sephie¡¯s face lit up when she saw them. She walked to Andrei first, wrapping her arms around his shoulders from behind. Even sitting, he was still almost as tall as her. ¡°Good morning,¡± she said hugging him tight. Ivan watched, with an eyebrow raised. She let go of Andrei and wrapped her arms around Ivan, telling him good morning as well. Ivan said, ¡°why do you hug him first? I¡¯m better looking. You should hug me first.¡± Without missing a beat, she looked at him and said, ¡°you¡¯re going to have to get that murderous aura under control if you want to be hugged first, Ivan the Terrible.¡± ¡°Humph.¡± She giggled and leaned in to kiss his cheek sweetly. He blushed, while Andreiughed. Andrei¡¯s laughter brought the other guys into the kitchen. I stood leaning against the ind, watching her interact with them. I caught Tori staring wide-eyed while Sephie hugged Ivan. She looked at me when Sephie kissed his cheek, clearly not sure that I would be okay with it. I could be jealous, but not with her and my men. I trusted thempletely. Andrei told me immediately that she had offered to marry him. He thought I was going to be mad at him, but I justughed. Watching her with them, I realized that I trusted her just as much as I trusted them. She loved them, but she didn¡¯t look at them the same way she looked at me. There was no need for jealously. I just shrugged my shoulders at Tori when she looked surprised to see Sephie kiss Ivan¡¯s cheek. As soon as Viktor walked into the kitchen, he held his arms out to her. ¡°Miss Sephie!¡± he said in his booming voice. She ran to him, jumping into his arms. ¡°My favorite bodyguard!¡± she eximed. All four other men said in unison, ¡°hey, wait a minute!¡± Viktorughed, as he put her down. Looking at the other guys he said, ¡°you guys just need to be better looking. It¡¯s simple, really.¡± She smacked his arm lightly. ¡°Don¡¯t get cocky. I¡¯m still marrying Andrei.¡± Misha stepped in, grabbing her hand, and pulling her close to him, in a dance position. ¡°But Miss Sephie, Andrei can¡¯t dance. How can you marry a man who can¡¯t dance with you at your own wedding?¡± He led her in a few tango steps around the kitchen. She was trying hard to conceal her laughter as they danced. ¡°Misha, you surprise me. You¡¯re so¡­cultured,¡± she curtseyed to him once he let her out of the embrace. He bowed low to her. ¡°Mdy.¡± Stephen stepped in and said, ¡°do you really want to marry a guy you need to worry about leaving you for another man though?¡± Laughter erupted in the kitchen. Even Tori ended upughing at Stephen¡¯s joke. Sephie was speechless, which was impressive given her constantebacks. She simply gave Stephen a high- five and then smacked his a*s. ¡°Good game,¡± she said. ¡°Thanks, coach.¡± Tori was setting out tes of food for the guys as Sephie walked back to me. She was smiling at me, with that spark in her eye that only I could see. I extended my arm to her and pulled her in front of me. I wrapped my arms around her from behind. Tori looked at me, ¡°what can I get you for breakfast, boss?¡± ¡°Sephie threatened violence against small animals if she doesn¡¯t get French toast, so we better make that happen. Don¡¯t want animal rights activists picketing outside.¡± Tori looked puzzled but nodded her head. ¡°Right away, boss.¡± Sephie added, ¡°I mean I wouldn¡¯t really kill small woond critters. I would think long and hard about it, but my follow-through is shit.¡± Andrei choked on a piece of bacon as heughed. Tori set a new ss of orange juice in front of him, a look of concern on her face. ¡°Drink this,¡± was all she said. He looked sheepishly at her and grabbed the ss. Sephie caught the exchange as well and looked over her shoulder, catching my eye. She smiled at me, knowingly. It didn¡¯t take Tori long and Sephie had her French toast. We finished breakfast while the guys hung around and talked in the kitchen. Tori finished up and excused herself. Andrei¡¯s eyes on her the whole time as she walked from the kitchen. Sephie caught him watching her. She caught my eye and looked back to Andrei, raising her eyebrows several times in a row. Iughed, shaking my head. I had never noticed that Andrei had his eye on Tori until today. Sephie really had a way of bringing out the best in everyone, without even trying. Chapter 26 Chapter 26 Chapter Twenty-Six Sophie After breakfast, we were all standing in the kitchen. I asked Ivan how his stitches were holding up. ¡°Let me check it. You might need a bandage change,¡± I said, trying to peek down the back of his shirt. He didn¡¯t hesitate this time to take his shirt off for me. I peeled back part of his bandage, to look at how it was healing. It still looked red and angry, but no signs of infection. Adrik walked over to inspect the stitches while I had the bandage pulled back. ¡°You did this?¡± he asked, looking surprised. I nodded my head, as I put the bandage back in ce. Pressing the adhesive to his skin once more. ¡°Where did you learn how to do that?¡± Adrik asked, still surprised. ¡°Ms. Jackson. She used to be a nurse.¡± I lifted the sleeve of my shirt to reveal a small scar on my upper arm. ¡°I can be clumsy, and I h*te doctors, so she stitches me up when needed. She taught me how to do it.¡± Adrik ran his thumb over the scar on my arm. He leaned closer and kissed my forehead. I knew he was wondering about the scars on my back as well, but I didn¡¯t want to talk about those in front of everyone. ¡°I definitely owe my thanks to Ms. Jackson,¡± he said. ¡°There¡¯s still the matter of Bingo to be discussed,¡± I saidughing. Ivan, as he was putting his shirt back on, turned and asked, ¡°Bingo?¡± Viktor, the only one in the know on the matter of Bingo night, just startedughing. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ivan. You¡¯re going to love it.¡± I tried not tough but couldn¡¯t help myself. Ivan looked so confused. ¡°Ms. Jackson requested that you all apany her to her friend¡¯s ce so she could ¡®show you off,¡± I said, adding air quotes for effect. ¡°But I suggested Bingo, as more of her friends would be there.¡± ¡°What is Bingo?¡± Misha asked. ¡°It¡¯s a game that old people y. It¡¯s an easy game to y. You¡¯ll catch on quick, don¡¯t worry,¡± I said, grinning. They all looked toward Adrik. I knew they would all do it if he said the word. ¡°It¡¯s on the table. But we need to find Anthony first,¡± Adrik said, matter-of-factly. There was an audible exhale in the room. Iughed at how the thought of Bingo with olddies gave trained killers anxiety. Adrik and I walked around the property after breakfast. It was much more expansive than I thought. There was a running trail that took you through the woods, opening to a meadow and ake toward the back of the property. He had guards, with dogs patrolling the grounds. We also had our own guard with a dog following us as we walked the property. They stayed far enough away that they couldn¡¯t hear our conversation but kept us within sight the entire time. As we came into the meadow, overlooking theke, Adrik turned to me and said, ¡°this is another favorite ce of mine.¡± I took in the view. The meadow was full of wildflowers, covering the area in a nket of colors. The trail wound around the meadow to theke. It split off, so you could either go all the way around theke or take the shorter route around the meadow. We had stopped for a moment, to look at theke. Adrik picked up a rock and skipped it across the water. I knew I needed to address what happened that morning. To exin my scars. I always hated this part of getting to know someone new. Having to exin what happened and then waiting to see if they started to look at me differently. Most people did. I¡¯d only found a few who didn¡¯t look at me like damaged goods after finding out about my past. Max was one of those that didn¡¯t look at me differently. I had agreed to go workout with him at the gym one day after work. I had bent over to pick up a dumbbell and my shirt rode up my back, revealing part of my scars. He saw them but didn¡¯t ask right away. He waited a few days and then asked where they came from. When I told him the story, he just hugged me. No words, no ¡°I¡¯m so sorry that happened.¡± No ¡°I can¡¯t believe that happened to you.¡± He just hugged me and then finally said, ¡°I¡¯m d you got away.¡± I was waiting for our rtionship to change. Waiting for him to start avoiding me, or to look at meN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. differently, but he never did. If anything, it made our rtionship stronger. He started confiding in me more and asking my opinion on his dating life. He was probably the first man that didn¡¯t run for the hills at the first chance. Chapter 27 Chapter 27 Chapter Twenty-Seven Sephie I took a deep breath. Adrik nced my way, his eyebrow raised. I just started my story. The faster I told him, the faster it would be over. I told him everything. How my father had died when I was young, so I was raised by my mother. I had no siblings, as she never remarried or even dated after my father¡¯s death. I then went into how she was killed in a car ident one night when I was 15. I was sent to my uncle, ¨¢s I didn¡¯t have anyone else. He was my father¡¯s brother, but I didn¡¯t know him. I¡¯d only met him at my father¡¯s funeral. I was 5 when my father died, so I didn¡¯t remember much about that day. The first year living with Grant was mostly okay. He had a drinking problem but tried to keep it under control now that I was living with him. He had no kids of his own. He had a string of girlfriends that would be at the house. Sometimes it was a new girl every single day. They would help clean up the house a little. Sometimes they cooked. Most of the time, they just drank with him. My mom had taught me how to cook, so I ended up doing most of the cooking and cleaning when his drinking became so bad that he was having trouble functioning. He lost his job around the time I had turned 16 and that¡¯s when things got bad. His drinking got infinitely worse, and he started taking out his frustration on me. At first, he just berated me for things that he had broken when he was drunk and didn¡¯t remember, but he never hit me. He never yelled at me in front of the women, but sometimes he would get me confused with them and would yell at me like I was one of them. He would call me all kinds of names, like I was a sl*t, a wh*re, how I would end up pregnant, how nobody would ever love me, that kind of stuff. As his drinking got more out of control, the women stoppeding around. The yelling got worse, and he eventually started hitting me. The first couple of times, he felt h*rrible about it and would go overboard trying to apologize for days after. The first couple of times, he just smacked me, so it didn¡¯t really leave a bruise. His tolerance for alcohol kept increasing, to the point that it was taking massive amounts to get him drunk. That¡¯s when he started taking pills. The pills made him violent. I would lock myself in my roomN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. when he took them or leave the house altogether. I really didn¡¯t know anyone at the time, but I knew I was safer roaming the streets than I was at home. I would walk around or hide until he passed out and then I would sneak back into the house. Sometimes he would sleep for a day or two after he got high, so I had some relief. I came home a few times, thinking he would be passed out, only to find him still awake and still very high. That¡¯s when the beatings got worse. He punched and kicked me. He would always kick me in the stomach, no matter how tight I tried to curl into a ball. Made me pass out a few times. I knew I needed to get out of there but wasn¡¯t sure how. I had a little bit of money from my mom that I had managed to hide from Grant. I started looking for apartments to rent, far away from him. I didn¡¯t have a car and he would¡¯ve killed me for taking his car, so I would ride the bus to the other side of the city. That¡¯s how I found my apartment. Thendlord must¡¯ve known that I was in a tight spot because he rented it to me when I was still 17. He didn¡¯t ask many questions, either. That¡¯s when I met Ms. Jackson, too. I would take a few things from my uncle¡¯s house and leave them at the apartment. I didn¡¯t want him to notice that I was moving my stuff, so I had to do it slowly. I didn¡¯t have much stuff anyway, which made it easy. Ms. Jackson was nice to me right away. She invited me in for lunch when she saw me bringing more stuff one day. She told me I looked like I hadn¡¯t eaten in a week and needed to eat at least a sandwich when I tried to decline her offer. Each time I showed up, she would feed me. She knew something was going on and that I was in trouble, but she never really asked. I showed up one time with fresh bruises. She didn¡¯t ask about them, she just ced a pocketknife in front of me while I was eating. ¡°You take this and keep it on you at all times,¡± she told me. I tried to say no, but she wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer. ¡°It¡¯s going toe in handy one day,¡± she said. It was that very night when I got back that I got the scars. Grant was higher than I¡¯d ever seen him and angrier than I¡¯d seen him. He was yelling at me for something he had broken a few days before. I knew better than to talk back to him, but I couldn¡¯t help myself. I said something smart to him and he snapped. I¡¯ll never forget the look in his eyes when I talked back to him that night. It¡¯s like his eyes went completely ck and the person standing in front of me was no longer human. He grabbed me by my hair and dragged me down the stairs to the basement. I hated the basement. It was creepy, there was hardly any light down there, and it smelled of mildew. There was no reason for me to go down there, so I stayed away. He dropped me in the middle of the floor and kicked me hard in the stomach, knowing I wouldn¡¯t be able to get up after. I curled up into a ball, knowing that more wasing. I heard him, walk to the table and pick something up. When he came back toward me, I was not prepared. He had a whip. He hit me so hard the first time that my shirt tore open and so did my skin. He just kept hitting me over and over. So many times in a row that he was out of breath. Sometimes when he would beat me, he would get out of breath, and it would give me a chance to get away from him. I was waiting for that moment in the basement. My back was on fire. I was bl*ody. I knew I had to get out of there that night or he was going to kill me. I tried to move and felt something hard in my pocket. The knife that Ms. Jackson had given me. As discreetly as possible, I maneuvered the knife out of my pocket into my hand. I knew I had one chance and only one chance to get away from him. He walked back toward me and drew his leg back like he was going to kick me. Just when his foot should¡¯ve made contact with my stomach, I grabbed his foot and sliced his Achilles¡¯ tendon with every bit of strength I had left. I needed to make sure he couldn¡¯t run after me. He crumpled to the floor, screaming in pain. I used every bit of strength I had left and ran up the stairs. I ran to my room to grab my bag with thest little bit of my stuff in it. I caught my reflection in the mirror and realized I was covered in blood and my back was basically ground chuck. I didn¡¯t have time to change, so I grabbed a jacket and threw it on. I screamed when the material touched my back. Running toward the front door, I saw his car keys. I grabbed them and ran outside. I jumped in his car and d*ove away as fast as possible. When I d*ove up to my apartment building, I saw Ms. Jackson¡¯s lights were still on. I knocked on her door. I didn¡¯t know who else to go to, but I needed help. She could at least call an ambnce for me. I didn¡¯t even have a phone at the time. Instead, she took me inside, cleaned me up and stitched me up. She didn¡¯t ask me anything other than ¡°did you use the knife?¡± When I nodded, she said ¡°see, I told you it was going toe in handy one day.¡± I smiled at the memory of how she helped me that night. How she nursed all my wounds without asking me to relive it. She let me sleep on her couch, as I didn¡¯t even have a bed. I slept for a full 24 hours. That was the first time in years that I could actually rx. She kept an eye on me the whole time. She also made a few calls and had a bed delivered to my apartment while I was asleep. Iughed, telling him she also sold my uncle¡¯s car and had the cash for me when I woke up. She said she knew I stole it and it would be the only way he could find me, should he try, so she got rid of it. Adrik was standing quietly beside me this whole time, listening to my story. I had been avoiding looking at him. It was just easier to get through the story that way. He stood in front of me, taking my hands in his and wrapping my arms around his waist. He then pulled me to him and held me tightly. I rested my head against his chest, inhaling his scent to help me stay calm. After several minutes in silence, he cupped my face in hisrge hands, forcing me to look at him. ¡°You are remarkable,¡± he said, hugging me to him once again. Chapter 28 Chapter 28 Chapter Twenty-Eight ¡°Sephie As we walked back toward the house, his fingersced in mine, he was quiet. I didn¡¯t mind the silence, but I was waiting on the usual change in behavior to happen. I was waiting for the way he looked at me to change. He looked at me out of the corner of his eye, with that s*xy smirk that I loved. ¡°Bingo is definitely happening,¡± was all he said as he grinned at me. It was exactly the thing I needed to hear. I startedughing and wrapped his arm around my shoulders so I could slide my arm around his waist. We walked in silence the rest of the way to the house, but he would periodically peek at me and kiss the top of my head. Maybe he was going to be different too. As we came out of the woods, the cl*uds were growing darker above us. Thunder rumbled in the distance and within a few seconds, a sh of lightning lit up the sky. I inhaled deeply, loving the smell of rain. Adrik stopped and pulled me to him. He kissed me deeply, holding me against him tightly. My knees threatened to give way beneath me. I clung to him to keep from falling as I was caughtpletely off guard by the passion behind this kiss. My breaths came heavier as he was unrelenting. I felt like he was trying to convince me of his passion in just one kiss. Just when I thought I couldn¡¯t take any more, he kissed my lips softly. He looked deeply into my eyes. I was searching his eyes for the change I was expecting, but I saw nothing different. He looked at me with the same intensity he always had, maybe even a little more. He kissed the tip of my nose and with an impish grin said, ¡°race you!¡± as he took off running toward the house. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s on,¡± I said taking off after him. He was fast, but so was I and he didn¡¯t have couches to jump this time. On a straightaway, I was pretty fast. I easily caught up to him in a short distance. We still had around 200 yards to the house. He nced to the side and saw me right at his heels, a wide smile on his face. He tried to speed up, but I was prepared and increased my speed as well, so I stayed right by him. I was expecting him to tire before we reached the house and then I could pass him. We had maybe 20 yards to go and he started to give out. I easily passed him. Looking back, he had slowed to a walk, trying to catch his breath. I kept jogging the rest of the way to the back patio. I stood waiting for him, looking at my pretend watch the whole time. He was still panting when he finally caught up to me. ¡°How,¡± he said, breathlessly. ¡°How are you so fast.¡± ¡°Many of those nights I spent away from my uncle¡¯s house were spent running.¡± I winked at him. ¡°You¡¯re like a gazelle.¡± Iughed at him, still trying to catch his breath. ¡°You okay? Do I need to send for someone to carry you in the house? I don¡¯t think I can do it by myself,¡± I said as raindrops started to fall. He was still partially bent over, trying to catch his breath, but he slung one arm around my shoulders and lifted one leg like I was going to pick him up. ¡°Come on, I think you can do it. You almost killed me. it¡¯s the least you can do.¡± The rain started to fall harder. I grabbed his hand, pulling him along behind me. ¡°You¡¯re very dramatic for a Lord King Boss.¡± As we got under one of the balconies and out of the rain, he suddenly stopped. ¡°Lord King Boss?¡± Iughed, ¡°yeah, that was the title I came up with for you the first night we met. I didn¡¯t know who you were or what your title was.¡± He thought for a minute. ¡°I like it. It¡¯s authoritative.¡± ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I said!¡± I said dramatically. ¡°Where are Viktor and Andrei? They need to hear this.¡± As if he was waiting for me to say his name, Viktor appeared outside. ¡°Boss, you have an important call.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Salvadori.¡± He nced at me, almost like he was seeking permission to take the call. I knew Salvadori was Anthony¡¯s father. This was important. ¡°Go. I¡¯ll be fine,¡± I said. We followed Viktor in the house. Adrik immediately went upstairs to his office, with Viktor. I wandered into the kitchen to get a drink of water. Sprinting makes me thirsty. The house was quiet. Everyone must be in their rooms or gone. I stood in the kitchen, leaning against one of the counters, lost in my head. So much had happened in thest three days. I heard heavy footstepsing toward the kitchen. I looked up to see Ivan, Misha, and Stephen walking together, all looking very determined. ¡°You guys are going to f*ck some sh*t up, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked, 1 Before they could answer, Viktor and Adrik came into the kitchen from upstairs. Adrik had changed into cks and an oxford shirt, with the top two buttons unbuttoned. His hair wasbed neatly, but he still hadn¡¯t taken the time to shave. His stubble was fast approaching a full beard. I can¡¯t say that I hated it, though. I caught myself looking forward to running my hands over that stubbleter. ¡°Solnishko. Salvadori wants to meet with me,¡± Adrik said, walking to my side. He took my ss of water from my hand and finished it. ¡°He¡¯sing here?¡± I said, starting to get nervous. ¡°Net. No onees here. No one knows here exists and I n to keep it that way,¡± he said, refilling my ss of water at the refrigerator. He walked back to me, handing me the full ss of water. ¡°Andrei will stay here with you, just in case,¡± he said. ¡°You don¡¯t need him too? You realize there are like 47 guards and at least that many dogs outside, right? I mean, I feel fairly protected.¡± He leaned in close, kissing my temple and whispered, ¡°I have a pinky swear to uphold, solnishko.¡± 1 blushed. ¡°Stay with Andrei. Please? And do what he says if anything happens,¡± he said. I nodded my head and looked up at him, trying to mask the nervousness I was feeling. His hand cupped the side of my face as he pulled me to him and kissed me deeply, in full view of all the guys. Even Andrei, who had just walked into the kitchen was privy to this moment. I was struggling between feeling utterly shy in front of everyone and not wanting to let him go. He pulled away slowly, that intensity in his eyes making them darker than normal. ¡°Please be careful,¡± I said. ¡°Always. We won¡¯t be gone too long. You¡¯ll be safe with Andrei. Pinky swear,¡± he said as he winked at me before turning to go. ¡°Wait! Salvadori¡¯s eye twitches when he¡¯s being dishonest. Or when he¡¯s angry,¡± I said. Adrik raised an eyebrow, but simply nodded as he turned to leave. Pleasee back to me, I thought to myself as I watched him walk out of the kitchen, followed by everyone but Andrei. I looked at Andrei. ¡°Ok, so now what, boss? You¡¯re the babysitter, so what¡¯s on the agenda?¡± was going to workout, so you cane with me. It might be boring for you, but I¡¯m supposed to not let you out of my sight until Boss gets back,¡± he said. ¡°Ohhh, can I get in on that workout? It¡¯s been like four days since I¡¯ve done anything. Unless you count beating Adrik in a race a little bit ago.¡± ¨C ¡°You beat him? Really?¡± he asked,pletely surprised. I just stared at him for a moment, faking being offended that he didn¡¯t believe me right away. ¡°I¡¯m fast as f*ck, boy.¡± Heughed. ¡°Okay, Usain.¡±N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Chapter Twenty-Nine Sephie I ran upstairs to change, while Andrei waited outside my bedroom for me. I traded the jeans for a pair of leggings. I threw on a sports bra and a bigger shirt, to make sure Andrei didn¡¯t see anything he shouldn¡¯t see. When I came out of my room, he had his back to the door, like the guardian he was. I took the opportunity to jump on his back like a spider monkey. ¡°Onward, trusty steed!¡± I said pointing ahead of him. He grabbed my legs and bounced me up higher on his back. He walked down the stairs like he wasn¡¯t carrying a whole a*s other person on his back. He turned at the bottom of the stairs and went toward all the guys¡¯ rooms. ¡°Ohhh, I haven¡¯t been this way yet. It¡¯s an adventure!¡± I said, trying to be as annoying as possible. As we passed each room, he pointed out who the room belonged to. Like I was going to remember after just one time. ¡°Will there be a test on thister? Because I can tell you right now that I¡¯m not going to pass that test,¡± I asked. Heughed. ¡°Net, sestrichka. No test. We will all help you when you get lost. It took me two weeks to remember where everything was when we first moved here.¡± ¡°That makes me feel so much better.¡± The gym came after all the guys¡¯ bedrooms. It was huge andpletely furnished with every weight and machine you would find in a regr gym. There was even a boxing ring at the back wall. Andrei pointed to a door behind the boxing ring. ¡°There¡¯s a basketball court through that door.¡± ¡°Shut up. You guys have a basketball court here?¡± ¡°Da. We don¡¯t really use it that much. In the winter more. Too hot in the summer.¡± I looked at him, amazed at this house. ¡°I just can¡¯t believe it¡¯s not temperature controlled,¡± I said under my breath. Andrei set me down by the extensive racks of weights. ¡°You do my workout, sestrichka?¡± I nodded. I was always up for a challenge. ¡°Please don¡¯t kill me.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ll go easy.¡± While we worked out, we talked about everything. I learned about his childhood, how long he¡¯d been working for Adrik, how he got the job, everything. During a lull in the conversation, I cocked my head to the side and looked at him, ¡°how long have you had a crush on Tori?¡± He paused, blushing immediately. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, Sephie.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie to me. It¡¯s literally written all over your face right now,¡± Iughed. He put his dumbbells down and walked to me. He grabbed my arm and pulled me deeper into the gym. ¡°Shhhh¡­¡± he said with his finger to his lips. I looked around. There was no one there but he and I. ¡°Who¡¯s going to hear me?¡± I whispered. ¡°Shees to the gym sometimes. She could walk in at any minute.¡± I gasped. ¡°Is that why we¡¯re working out right now??¡± He nodded. ¡°You dog,¡± I said pping his massive bicep. He looked down, his posture crumbling slightly. ¡°I don¡¯t think she notices me. I don¡¯t think she likes me.¡± I scoffed. ¡°Are you blind, son? She might try to hide it, but it¡¯s in as f* cking day that she hearts you,¡± I said holding my hands up in the shape of a heart against my chest. ¡°No shit?¡± ¡°No shit, Andrei. I saw it right away in the kitchen this morning. Even Adrik saw it. You should talk to her. Don¡¯t ask her out, just talk to her,¡± I said, now putting my hand gently on his arm. ¡°She notices you, trust me.¡± He thought for a minute, then shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t. I¡¯m an idiot. I wouldn¡¯t know what to say.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been talking to me for like an hour now. You¡¯ll do fine. H*ll, you got a marriage proposal out of me within an hour of officially meeting me. You¡¯ve got more game than you think you do, Andrei.¡± ¡°You¡¯re different, Sephie.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°I am not,¡± I argued. ¡°I¡¯m just like everyone else.¡± It was his turn to argue. ¡°I beg to differ. You are different. You¡¯re the only woman that Adrik has ever brought here. He worries about you when he¡¯s not with you. He¡¯s forgotten his girlfriend¡¯s name before in the past. He wants to keep you safe. He wants you by his side, always. He¡¯s never been like this with any other woman I¡¯ve seen him with. It¡¯s like he can¡¯t keep himself away from you, like he always has to be touching you. He¡¯s never been like that with another woman. They usually cling to him like he¡¯s going to run away from them at any moment. But with you, it¡¯s like he¡¯s constantly trying to run to you. And it was like that from the first moment he saw you. I¡¯ve worked for him for a long time. I know him. The second he saw you, he was in love with you.¡± I inhaled deeply, not knowing what to say. I waspletely at a loss for words. Some part of me knew he was right, but I still didn¡¯t know how to respond. I thought for a moment more and then raised an eyebrow at him, ¡°you¡¯re this observant and you still can¡¯t tell that Tori likes you as much as you like her?¡± He cursed under his breath, blushing. ¡°Okay, Bubba. I¡¯ll make you a deal. How about I talk to Tori and try to feel her out for you first? Find out if there¡¯s a chance before you sh*ot your shot?¡± ¡°You would do that for me?¡± ¡°Bubba,¡± I said, hooking me arm through his, ¡°I was ready to marry you for washing my dishes. Of course, I¡¯ll talk to her.¡± He grinned at me, then hugged me tightly. We finished our workout. He escorted me back to my bedroom so I could shower quickly. Once again, he waited outside my door. And once again, I hopped on his back after I walked out of my room. I could get used to this mode of transportation through this giant house¡­ I was taken to his room, so he could get a quick shower. He walked out of his bathroom in a fresh pair of sweatpants, holding his shirt in his hands. Good Lord, were they all this chiseled? Tori better jump at the chance to get to know this Adonis better. He pulled his shirt over his head as he walked to his door. ¡°Come. You hungry?¡± he asked. ¡°Now you are speaking my lovenguage,¡± I said standing to follow him. He stopped in his doorway, slightly squatting down, with his arms wide at his side. I immediately jumped on his back,ughing. ¡°Don¡¯t tell Viktor. You¡¯re my new favorite.¡± He patted my leg, ¡°your secret is safe with me.¡± Once in the kitchen, he backed up to the ind so I could sit while he rummaged through the refrigerator. He started pulling random things out and setting them on the counter. ¡°Is there a n here or are you just so hungry that you¡¯ll eat anything?¡± I asked, eyeing the strange combination of food he hadpiled on the counter. ¡°There¡¯s a n. Trust me.¡± ¡°If you say so¡­¡± I said, still very unsure about what was going to happen next. He ultimately ended up being a very good cook. It was unorthodox, I¡¯ll give him that, but his combination of like six different meats, potatoes, and peppers was delicious. Or I was just so hungry that I would¡¯ve eaten anything. It could go either way. Chapter 30 Chapter 30 Chapter Thirty Sephie As we were cleaning up, Tori walked through the kitchen. She looked like she was on her way to the gym, and she stopped to ask, ¡°is there anyone in the gym?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± I said. ¡°Everyone else is gone and we just got done.¡± I caught her face fall briefly. She looked to Andrei, who was looking down like he was petrified of looking at her directly. She¡¯s not Medusa, Andrei. I smiled at her, shrugging my shoulders, and jerking my head toward Andrei. She blushed slightly and continued on her way. When she was out of the kitchen, I smacked his arm. ¡°What the h*ll was that? You didn¡¯t even look at her!¡± ¡°I get nervous.¡± I sighed. I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose. ¡°You can like kill people with just your thumbs, but you¡¯re scared to talk to a girl?¡± ¡°Basically.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Okay, that¡¯s it. I¡¯m going to talk to her right now. You guys are going to keep ying this game forever unless someone intervenes on your behalf. You can wait outside the gym,¡± I said, walking back toward the gym. As we got closer, he started to get more nervous. ¡°Are you sure this is a good idea right now? I mean, we could wait untilter. It might not be a good time. We should wait.¡± ¡°Nope. We¡¯re ripping this band-aid off right now,¡± I said, opening the door to the gym. ¡°Wait here.¡± As I walked in, Tori was just finishing her warm-up on the treadmill. She gave me a small smile, but she was looking past me to see if Andrei was going to follow me into the gym. I nced behind me, following her gaze, to make sure he was waiting outside. ¡°Hi Tori,¡± I said walking up to her. ¡°Hi,¡± she said somewhat unsure of what I was doing there. ¡°Okay, so this is weird and I¡¯m just going toe out and say it. Andrei really likes you, but he¡¯s also terrified of you. He wants to talk to you, to get to know you, but he¡¯s so scared that you¡¯ll turn him downN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. that he won¡¯t let himself even look at you, which is why he acts like a buffoon anytime you¡¯re around.¡± Her eyes went wide in shock. ¡°He does???¡± ¡°He does. He very much does. And I¡¯m guessing from what I saw this morning that you do too?¡± She nodded eagerly. ¡°I¡¯ve had such a major crush on him since I started here. The other guys are so intimidating, but Andrei just seems really genuine. I didn¡¯t think he liked me though because he rarely looks at me. I crossed my arms, ¡°terrified.¡± Sheughed nervously, ¡°I can understand. I¡¯m mostly terrified of him too. All of them, really. They¡¯re so serious all the time. This morning was the first time I¡¯ve ever seen any of them smile and I¡¯ve worked here for two years. Especially Ivan. He¡¯s scary, but he was like a normal guy with you.¡± ¡°Eh, a normal guy that can kill you in 2 seconds. Clearly normal is rtive with him.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never seen any of them act so rxed before. Especially Boss. He¡¯s always uptight and looks like he wants to punch the wall. We have a stockpile of punching bags for him because he breaks them frequently.¡± ¡°Seriously?¡± I asked,pletely surprised. ¡°Yeah. Me and the rest of the staff thought he had anger issues or something. And we¡¯ve never seen him with a woman. The house staff thinks he¡¯s gay.¡± Iughed, ¡°he did tell me that.¡± We were silent for a moment. Then I came up with an idea. ¡°Ok, I have a n. You¡¯re supposed to cook dinner for everyone tonight?¡± She nodded. ¡°How about, I do that and give you time with Andrei, just the two of you. He¡¯s supposed to be babysitting me, until everyone returns, but that doesn¡¯t mean you guys can¡¯t be in the next room without five other pairs of eyes on you for once.¡± She looked shocked. ¡°You would do that? No, I can¡¯t ask you to do that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not asking. I offered. We have a unique opportunity tonight, might as well take advantage of it, no?¡± ¡°Oh my gosh, thank you so much. You¡¯re seriously awesome,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s a gift,¡± I winked at her. ¡°I¡¯ll tell the buffoon and coach him on speaking publicly until you¡¯re ready,¡± I said, walking toward the door. Andrei was going to be so happy. And nervous. So nervous. Chapter 31 Chapter 31 Chapter Thirty-One Adrik We left the house in three vehicles. Ivan and Viktor with me, Stephen and Misha each driving a separate vehicle. Sometimes I showed up in two, sometimes three. I wasn¡¯t entirely sure what I was walking into, so we chose three vehicles. Since we wereing back to the house and not staying in the city, I wanted to make sure no one followed us. We could confuse any tails we had easier with more vehicles. Salvadori had asked to meet me, to discuss his son. He started off by apologizing for him and said he had a n that he felt would satisfy everyone. I was sure it would, in fact, not satisfy me but I would hear him out, nheless. We pulled up in front of Salvadori¡¯s house. The other bosses loved to show their wealth, so he had a giant fountain in his driveway and usually kept one or two sports cars parked in his driveway. Today, it was the Porsche and Bugatti. Nice cars, but I didn¡¯t understand the need for multiple cars that no one ever drives. If you¡¯re going to own one, you might as well drive it. We were met at the front door by Salvadori¡¯s head of security. A man named Andy. He was a mostly good man. He had worked for Salvadori for years. Salvadori didn¡¯t know it was Andy that had first alerted me to Anthony¡¯s dealings with human trafficking. He said he couldn¡¯t stand that Anthony was ¡°soiling the family name¡± by stooping to such a low level. Since then, he¡¯s been my mole in Salvadori¡¯s operation. Unfortunately, even Salvadori doesn¡¯t know everything that Anthony has been up to. He can¡¯t control his own son and that is going to bite himter. ¡°Andy,¡± I said as I spread my arms wide so he could pat me down for weapons. ¡°Sir, good to see you again,¡± he said. That meant he had no new information for me. If he said it had been a while since he¡¯s seen me, then he had information I would be interested in. Andy patted down both Viktor and Ivan, as they would apany me inside. Stephen and Misha stayed armed and stayed outside with the vehicles. They all had wireless earpieces so they couldmunicate with one another. Misha and Stephen would be ready in the event we needed to leave in a hurry. I wasn¡¯t expecting trouble, but I was always prepared for it. Salvadori was a smart man. He knew his ce within my organization and appeared happy with his slice of the city. He was active in his community, as well as loved by the people in his area of the city. He had a good rtionship with the other bosses of the city. The issue remained, however, that he was incapable of controlling his son and that needed to be rectified. Andy escorted us through the house to the back patio. Salvadori was seated at a table; his grandchildren were ying in the pool. I rxed slightly. This was a sign that he meant no harm. We were criminals, but we had a hard and fast rule of no harming to children intentionally. Ever. This is why Anthony¡¯s foray into human trafficking was unforgiveable. Salvadori stood and extended his arms, eximing, ¡°wee, Sir. Wee to my home. I¡¯m pleased you havee.¡± I shook his hand, nodding once. I was a man of few words, whenever possible. I noticed early in life that it tended to make others say more than they should. Most people were ufortable with silence and would fill it however they could, spilling secrets in the process. He motioned for me to sit, as he took his seat once again. Once seated, he began immediately, ¡°My sincerest apologies for the disrespect my son has caused. He has always been a difficult child, with his own ideas of right and wrong. His mother spoiled him to the point of ruin, I¡¯m afraid,¡± he said, making the sign of the cross as he talked about histe wife. I remained silent, allowing him to finish. Viktor and Ivan stood behind me, keeping an eye on our surroundings. Salvadori continued, ¡°I believe I have a n that will satisfy everyone. I want to keep my son safe, difficult as he is, but I recognize that he is out of control at the moment. I propose to send him to Sicily. I have a brother there who can watch him and keep him out of trouble. He can stay there until this rebellious time passes. He¡¯s young,ing into his manhood. Hormones and what not.¡± He flipped his hand in the air, like that was a suitable exnation for his son¡¯s behavior. I inhaled, thinking about this ¡°solution.¡± My reach in Sicily was minimal, at best. I¡¯m sure that Salvadori knew this, which is why he picked Sicily. It was one ce that I couldn¡¯t easily reach Anthony. I felt my anger threaten to rise to the surface. I didn¡¯t like this n. I would much rather see that piece of trash dead. ¡°He goes to Sicily immediately. He is not to return here without my permission. If I catch him in this city, he will be a dead man. The entire city will have shoot on sight orders for him. Understood?¡± Salvadori¡¯s left eye twitched, just as Sephie had said, but he nodded his head in agreement. I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that something still felt off about this situation. I didn¡¯t like it, but I didn¡¯t know why yet. Was he being dishonest or was he angry? ¡°Your tax will be increased for two years, as well. 40%. Take it from Anthony, I don¡¯t care.¡± His eyes went wide in shock, but he immediately gained control of his reaction once again. ¡°Of course, sir. That¡¯s very reasonable. I will make sure Anthony leaves within the week.¡± ¡°He has two days.¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Salvadori said. He looked to Andy and nodded his head, waving his hand toward the table. ¡°Now, please, I have a gift for the lovely Sephie. A token of apology from an old man.¡± Andy set a jewelry box in front of me on the table. I opened it to reveal a diamond tennis bracelet. It was beautiful, but I couldn¡¯t imagine her wanting to wear it. I still had that feeling that something was off, but graciously epted the gift on her behalf. I stood to shake Salvadori¡¯s hand and followed Andy back through the house. As we walked through the front door, Andy looked to the sky. The spring storm from earlier had passed, but the sky was still slightly overcast. ¡°Looks like it might rain again, sir. Be careful on your drive home.¡± I nodded my head. We got in the vehicles and drove away from the house in silence. Instead of turning to go back to my house, we turned in the opposite direction to drive back into the city. ¡°Penthouse, sir?¡± Ivan confirmed. ¡°Da. Something is off. I don¡¯t like this,¡± I said, turning the jewelry box over in my hands. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. ¡°Agreed,¡± both Viktor and Ivan said. Chapter 32 Chapter 32 Chapter Thirty-Two Adrik It took us twice as long to get to the penthouse as usual. We basically drove in circles for at least 20 minutes, trying to make sure we weren¡¯t being followed. When Ivan was satisfied we were safe, we pulled into the underground parking garage beneath the building. I owned the entire building. The bottom floors were office space and apartments. The top three floors were restricted, with only my people having ess. The top floor was my penthouse, the floor beneath that was apartments for each of my men, and the floor beneath that was office space for me, gym, and secure rooms where I could keep anyone I needed to get information from. Andy¡¯s statement about the weather told me that something was off, but I couldn¡¯t get details just yet. It confirmed my gut feeling that I was missing something. We rode the elevator to my office. I wanted to look through my files in my office. I threw the jewelry box down on my desk as I sat and started leafing through files on my desk. I wasn¡¯t exactly sure what I was looking for, but I knew I would know it when I saw it. I needed as much information on Salvadori¡¯s brother as I could find. After half an hour with still no luck, I called to Viktor. He stuck his head inside my office, ¡°Yes, boss?¡± ¡°I think we should take the helicopter home. I still have a bad feeling.¡± ¡°I already called it, sir. It¡¯ll be here in ten minutes, ready whenever you are.¡± ¡°Thank you, Viktor.¡± I smiled to myself, knowing they were already taking every precaution to keep us safe and protected, which ultimately meant that Sephie would also be safe and protected. She had been on my mind the entire afternoon. I was still in shock over what she had endured in her short life. She had every reason to be hateful, to be mad at the world, to see the evil in everything and everyone. Instead, she was exactly the opposite. She practically exuded love and happiness. She had moments where her past would show up and her light would dim, but only briefly. She was incredibly strong. I was in awe of her. The more I learned about her, the deeper I was falling for her. I stood up from my desk. It was time to go. I needed to feel her in my arms. Sephie When I came out of the gym, Andrei was facing the door, looking more nervous than a man of his size ever should. I chuckled. He raised his eyebrows, looking expectantly at me. ¡°So¡­?¡± I pointed both of my thumbs at my chest and asked, ¡°who¡¯s your favorite?¡± He inhaled sharply, ¡°she¡¯s interested??¡± ¡°Bubba, she¡¯s just as smitten with you as you are with her. She¡¯s had a crush on you since she got here. Thank God I stepped in. You two would be in your 60s before you ever had a conversation about this.¡± I grabbed his hand, walking back down the hall toward his bedroom. ¡°We¡¯re waiting in here until she leaves the gym. I need to have a coaching session with you on how to talk to girls anyway. Then, you and she are spending time together, alone, while I cook dinner for everyone.¡± ¡°But sestrichka, I can¡¯t leave you alone until Boss returns.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be in the next room. You can even move the couches so I¡¯m in your line of sight. It¡¯ll be fine. I¡¯ll tell Adrik that it was my idea, so he doesn¡¯t yell at you. Come on, you have like one chance to be alone with her, so f u c k i n g take it,¡± I said as I pointed my finger at him. Heughed as he shook his head at me. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± After we heard Tori walk past his door, we ventured out toward the kitchen again. As we walked by the doors to the back patio, I had an idea. ¡°Do you have a pocketknife?¡± ¡°Da. Why?¡± he asked, reaching into his pocket to produce his knife. He held it in his palm. I grabbed it, then grabbed his arm, pulling him after me. ¡°Come with me. I have an idea.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like your ideas when you¡¯re armed. Misha was right. You¡¯re feisty.¡± I stopped and red at him for a moment, then smiled, ¡°that¡¯s fair. Totally fair.¡± We walked to the garden. I waved my hand toward the flowers and said, ¡°pick one. Don¡¯t think too hard about it. Pick the one that catches your eye first.¡± He immediately walked to a rose bush. The roses were a mix of yellow, orange, and pink. It was beautiful and unique. ¡°These are my favorite. Don¡¯t tell anyone.¡± I smiled at him, ¡°you¡¯re a secret romantic. I love it.¡± I used his knife to cut one of the biggest flowers off the bush and handed it to him. ¡°Now, you¡¯re ready.¡± He took the rose from me. He did not look ready. He still looked terrified. I felt bad forughing at him, but it was such a funny picture. This huge man that has likely killed people and not thought twice about it was having a full-blown panic attack about talking to a woman. A woman who was clearly into him as much as he was into her. This shouldn¡¯t be an issue, but s. Here we were. ¡°Andrei, look at me.¡± He nced up at me, fear still evident in his eyes. ¡°Talk to her like you talk to me. I¡¯m no different. Think of her like you think of me. Instead of jumping straight into her pants, think about being friends with her first. I know you like her, and she likes you, but you guys don¡¯t really know each other yet. Start with that. That¡¯s the easy part. Don¡¯t oveplicate things or you¡¯ll end up making yourself crazy. You know, like you¡¯re clearly doing right now.¡± He exhaled loudly. ¡°You¡¯re like my rtionship coach now.¡± I chuckled and jumped on his back. ¡°Your rtionship coach spider monkey that needs a ride to the house.¡± ¡°Well, since I¡¯m your favorite now, I guess I can oblige.¡± As he walked us to the house, I said, ¡°I must take advantage of this while I can. If you actually start dating Tori, I won¡¯t be able to do this anymore.¡± I hugged his neck a little tighter. ¡°You can do this no matter what, sestrichka,¡± he said patting my leg. I sighed, ¡°we¡¯ll see, Bubba. We¡¯ll see.¡± Once we got back to the house, we went to the kitchen and I started to rummage through the refrigerator to look for ideas to cook for dinner. As I was looking through the extrarge refrigerator, Andrei wasying down the ground rules for the evening. ¡°You must stay within my sight. You¡¯re my responsibility, so you must stay in the kitchen where I can see you.¡± ¡°I promise I will follow the rules while giving you two as much distance as I can. Don¡¯t worry about me,¡± I said while opening a drawer full of knives. I waved my hand over the top of the drawer, ¡°I¡¯ve got weapons and I know how to use them.¡± He chuckled. ¡°That¡¯s my girl,¡± he said, holding his palm up for a high five. I smacked his palm and went back to looking through the kitchen. Tori walked into the kitchen shortly after. They exchanged pleasantries and walked into the next room, Andrei positioning himself on one of the couches so he could still see me while Tori timidly sat down next to him. I busied myself working on dinner, trying not to watch them the whole time. I would nce into the room every now and then. Every time I did, Andrei was smiling. His gaze would switch between Tori and me frequently. I did feel bad for Tori. This wasn¡¯t exactly fair to her that he had to pay attention to me while he should be paying attention to her. At least it seemed like it was going well. He¡¯s managed to speak to her, so that¡¯s progress.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 33 Chapter 33 Chapter Thirty-Three Sephie I was in my own little world, working on dinner, humming to myself, sometimes dancing to a tune in my head, but mostly really trying to listen to what was being said in the next room while not being obvious about it. She hadn¡¯t pped him and stormed out of the room yet, so I was taking that as a good sign. I turned around to wash a knife in the sink, ncing in the direction of the front of the hous¨¦, Adrik was leaning against the doorway to the kitchen, still out of sight of Andrei. I immediately grinned at him. I quickly nced at Andrei, who was now fully paying attention to something Tori was saying. I motioned for Adrik to be quiet, but to look toward the back room. Just then, the rest of the boys walked in behind Adrik. I motioned for all of them to be quiet and to look toward Andrei and Tori. They each quietly peeked around the corner to spy on Andrei. There was discussion amongst them, but it was quiet enough that I couldn¡¯t hear it. Adrik, smirking, pointed to me and then pointed in front of him, signaling me toe to him. With one quick nce toward Andrei, who still wasn¡¯t paying attention to me, I ran quickly to Adrik¡¯s open arms. As soon as I was with him, they all dispersed and hid in various ces. Adrik pulled me with him, his finger over his m outh to keep me quiet. He took me to a spot under the giant staircase in the entryway. He pressed me to the wall, his body pressed against mine. He whispered, ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting to do this,¡± as he pressed his lips to mine. ¡°But first we must scare Andrei.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be mad at him,¡± I whispered back. ¡°It was all my idea. Technically I put him up to this, because Lord knows he never would¡¯ve made a move without me.¡± He smiled at me. ¡°I¡¯m not mad, solnishko. The opposite, really. But he doesn¡¯t need to know that right now.¡± My smile grew wide. I loved seeing this impish side of him. I couldn¡¯t help but think back to what Tori had said about him earlier. This was clearly not a man who had anger issues. I was happy I got to see this side of him. We heard Andrei in the kitchen, calling for me. He cursed and yelled my name again. When he walked toward the front of the house, the other guys came out from their hiding ces as he walked past them. We could hear them all jump on him, poor Andrei yelling and cursing each one of them. Adrik stayed pressed up against me, his eyes never leaving my face. I looked in his eyes, still expecting to see a change. He raised his eyebrow and asked, ¡°why do you look confused, solnishko?¡± I looked down, not realizing I had given myself away. I felt my cheeks blush. ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± He clicked his tongue, but let it drop. He leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. The guys were laughing now, ¡°Come, we will witness the aftermath of the carnage.¡± ¡°Ohhh, I love good carnage in the evening,¡± I said pping my hands. When we appeared from our hiding spot, Andrei¡¯s face was so red I was worried he was going to have a heart attack. He caught sight of me, ¡°you¡¯re going to be the death of me!¡± I tried to look as innocent as possible. ¡°Tomorrow is never promised, Bubba. You have to seize the opportunities when they arise,¡± I grinned at him. The other guys allughed, walking back toward the kitchen. Andrei looked toward Adrik, still worried he was in trouble. Adrik held his hand up saying, ¡°she already told me she basically forced you to do it. You were fighting a losing battle.¡± He patted Andrei on his shoulder. ¡°Go. All is well.¡± Andrei exhaled and smiled at me, before turning to quickly return to Tori. I turned to Adrik. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°For what?¡± ¡°For not yelling at him.¡± I paused, then added, ¡°foring back to me¡­and for not looking at me differently.¡± He closed the short distance between us and held me close. ¡°Why would I ever look differently at you, Persephone?¡± I caught my breath. He was really the only one that ever used my full name, and I loved the way it sounded rolling off his tongue. I looked at him, somewhat sheepishly. ¡°It happens almost every time someone finds out about¡­you know, my scars.¡± He inhaled sharply. He started to speak but stopped. He just wrapped his arms tighter around me andN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. held my head against his chest. He exhaled. ¡°Never.¡± hugged him a little bit tighter, wondering to myself how I deserved him. Then I remembered I was supposed to be cooking dinner. ¡°Oh shit. Dinner.¡± I ran quickly into the kitchen to find Tori keeping a watchful eye over the food, while Andrei stood close by, keeping a watchful eye on her. ¡°Oh, thank you, Tori. I got¡­distracted,¡± I said ncing back at Adrik. ¡°I should be thanking you,¡± she quietly said, blushing slightly. I looked around the kitchen. It was just the two of them. The guys had all disappeared again. ¡°I will help her finish this up. You¡¯ve done plenty tonight,¡± Andrei said with a wink. ¡°Are you sure? I don¡¯t mind finishing up. I like to cook. I¡¯m nowhere near as good as Tori, but I enjoy it anyway.¡± I felt Adrik slide his arm around my waist from behind me. ¡°Why don¡¯t we give them a little more time. I have something to discuss with you anyway,¡± he said, pulling me out of the kitchen. Andrei simply waved as I disappeared. Chapter 34 Chapter 34 Chapter Thirty-Four Sephie Adrik took me to his bedroom. As he closed the door, he untucked his shirt from his pants. He walked to me as he unbuttoned his shirt. I sat on the end of the bed, enjoying the show. With his signature smirk, he leaned down and kissed me as he took his shirtpletely off. He stood and disappeared in his closet. ¡°What did you want to discuss with me?¡± I asked loud enough that he could hear in his closet. He didn¡¯t answer right away. He walked out in a pair of jeans that looked well worn. He left them unbuttoned, so they were sitting lower than usual on his hips, giving me an almostplete view of that lower ab V that he had. I inhaled sharply, biting my bottom lip without realizing I was doing it. He threw his t-shirt on a dresser and walked to the end of the bed, directly in front of me. He pulled me up, so I was standing in front of him. He took one of my hands and ced it behind his neck, doing the same with my other hand. He ran his hands down my back to my a s s. In one quick motion, he picked me up and wrapped my legs around him. I squealed and held on tighter. My hips were just above his, which meant he was eye level to my b o o b s. He pressed his face into my chest, mumbling, ¡°I could get used to this.¡± Iughed, trying to wiggle away from his face in between my breasts. One hand slid under my shirt and up my back. I froze for an instant as his hand touched my bare skin. There had not been many people to actually touch my back since I had been scarred. He noticed my uneasiness. His hand stopped moving, but he didn¡¯t remove it. His thumb just traced small circles while he held his hand against my back. I was fighting to remain calm. His warm hand felt amazing against my skin, but I was so self- conscious that I couldn¡¯tpletely rx. I was so used to keeping that part of myself locked away tight. ¡°Look at me, Sephie,¡± he said, barely above a whisper. I looked into his eyes. His eyes were dark blue again. I searched his eyes, looking for the slightest change, but still found nothing. He was looking at me just as intensely as he always had. As I was looking at him, his hand started moving across myN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. scars again. ¡°Keep looking at me, Sephie. Breathe,¡± he said, gently running his hand up and down my back. I exhaled, not realizing I was holding my breath. Still holding me, he climbed on the bed so that I was now lying underneath him. He brushed a strand of hair from my face, his other hand still on the bare skin of my back. ¡°I missed you today,¡± he said, cing small kisses down my neck to my corbone. I felt tears threatening to well up in my eyes. I felt a massive wave of reliefe over me. I sighed, closing my eyes. I felt his lips on mine. I could feel him holding back, unsure of my m e n t a l state. As soon as his lips touched mine, I wrapped myself around his body. I kissed him like he was the air I needed to breathe. He responded in kind. Groaning into my m o u t h, his hands started to roam freely over my body, exploring every inch. My breathing quickened when he unbuttoned my jeans. He pulled on them to undo the zipper, his fingers immediately tracing lightly across the top of my panties. I felt his fingers slide inside the fabric, sliding lower between my legs. I moaned quietly as I broke the kiss, needing air. He moved to my neck, biting me lightly as his hand fully slid into my wetness. He groaned, ¡°f u c k, Sephie.¡± His fingers traced lightly back and forth, causing me to moan and push my hips into him. He added more pressure but kept up the back and forth. My hips moving with his motions. His lips pressed to mine again. I kissed him deeply. As I felt his tongue push into my m o u t h, he slid a finger inside me. He slid his finger out and then added a second as he went back in. I arched my back and moaned louder. He kept a steady rhythm with his hand, my hips moving against him. He kept his m o u t h on mine as he pushed me closer to the edge. As I got closer, I pushed into him harder. He increased his rhythm, driving me wild. It didn¡¯t take long before my body exploded into pure bliss. He slowly slid his fingers out of me, causing my body to jerk slightly. He smiled before kissing my neck once more. He brought his fingers to his lips and s u c k e d my juices off his fingers. I covered my face in embarrassment. He pulled my shirt up and kissed my stomach. ¡°You taste heavenly, solnishko. I want more,¡± he said as he bit my hip bone. ¡°But first, we must eat dinner. Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to hear your sweet moans over your stomach growling.¡± Iughed. Looking up at him, I reached up and traced my fingers lightly over his almost beard. He leaned into my touch, kissing my palm before letting me continue. ¡°I missed you today too,¡± I said. ¡°Wait, didn¡¯t you say you had something to discuss with me?¡± He chuckled. ¡°We just discussed it. We¡¯ll have to revisit it againter, though, as we couldn¡¯te up with a solid solution.¡± He sat up on his knees, rolling me on my side. He pped my a s s once before climbing off the bed. ¡°Come, I¡¯m hungry. Let¡¯s go ruin Andrei and Tori¡¯s time together,¡± he said as he pulled on his shirt. ¡°Diabolical. I love it.¡± I jumped off the bed, straightening my clothes. I reached up to pull my hair into a bun, as I was` sure it was even more of a mess than usual. He chcked his tongue and pulled my arms down. ¡°I love your hair wild and untamed.¡± I smiled at him, still wondering what I did to deserve him, as we started downstairs to the kitchen. Chapter 35 Chapter 35 Chapter Thirty-Five Sephie We walked in to find Ivan and Misha in the kitchen with Tori and Andrei. Misha was telling Tori stories about Andrei while she finished up dinner. She looked mostly rxed, especially given that Ivan was in his usual quiet, murderous mood. I walked up behind him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. I whispered ¡°murderous aura¡± in his ear. ¡°Humph,¡± was all he said. ¡°That reminds me, Grumplestiltskin. I need to change your bandageter,¡± I said grabbing a ss from the cab. I filled it with water, drank half, and then gave the rest to Adrik. He finished the rest of it and refilled it. Viktor came into the kitchen, soon followed by Stephen. Misha was still having fun telling stories on Andrei, so he recruited Viktor for more embellishment. Poor Andrei. It was like having four older brothers. Tori seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. She seemed much more at ease with all of them than I had seen her previously. I leaned against the cab, smiling. I felt Adrik¡¯s hand on my back. He kissed my temple. ¡°What are you smiling about, solnishko?¡± he whispered, lightly rubbing his nose on my ear. I felt the goosebumps spread over my body. I turned to look at him. ¡°I¡¯m enjoying watching everyone rx. You guys were very uptight the first time I saw you. It¡¯s nice to see this side of everyone.¡± He pressed his m o u t h close to my ear again, so that his rough facial hair brushed against my cheek. ¡°It¡¯s because of you, you know.¡± I leaned my face against his as he gently rubbed his rough cheek against mine. My lips curled into a slight smile, thinking back to his hands on me. I felt my cheeks flush. I rested my head on his shoulder, as I felt his hand slip under my shirt. His thumb lightly tracing circles on my back again. My back was toward the wall, so there was no chance anyone would see anything. I sighed, turning my head to watch everyone in the kitchen as they all continued to chat. Thest three days had been anything but normal, but I found myself feeling happy. Really, truly happy for the first time in a very long time. Maybe I wasn¡¯t cut out for normal. After dinner, all the guys pitched in to help clean up the dishes. Andrei and Tori snuck away outside to go for a walk before the sun setpletely. Adrik and Viktor were having a seemingly serious conversation in the corner of the kitchen. They were speaking Russian, which meant I wouldn¡¯t be able to understand even if I wanted to. I was wiping down the counters as Ivan was finishing drying thest of the dishes. ¡°So, you want to tell me why you¡¯re so grumpy again?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not grumpy.¡± ¡°You¡¯re definitely grumpy.¡± ¡°I am no¡­I held my hand up to him so he couldn¡¯t finish his sentence. ¡°Did you just think about punching me for arguing with you?¡± ¡°Maybe.¡± I crossed my arms across my chest. ¡°I rest my case, your honor.¡± He grumbled something under his breath and went to the back room to sit on the end of the couch. I followed. I draped myself over his shoulders, like dead weight on his back. ¡°Princess. What are you doing?¡± he said, starting to get even more annoyed. ¡°I¡¯m your emotional support sloth. I¡¯m staying here until you feel better,¡± I said, stillying over his back like a wet towel. He stood up, to try to get rid of me, but I managed to hold on and stay on his back, staying as limp and awkward as I could. He just stood by the couch, with his arms crossed. Misha walked in the room, ¡°what the f u c k is going on here?¡± ¡°Oh, hi. I¡¯m Grumplestiltskin¡¯s emotional support sloth. I¡¯m just gonna hang out here until he feels better. Should be any minute now. I can feel it,¡± I said starting tough at the absurdity of my antics. Once I started tough, Ivan started to crack. He craned his neck to look at me. I saw him fighting a smile Misha wasughing and Viktor and Adrik had walked into the room to see what was going on. They bothughed at the r*diculous scene in front of them. That was all it took. Ivan couldn¡¯t hold it in any longer. He startedughing. I jumped off his back and threw my hands up in victory. ¡°Emotional support sloth for the win!¡± Ivan just shook his head. He surprised me by turning around and hugging me to him. He held me tightly, in that way that someone who is fighting internal battles does when they find an anchor to cling to in their stormy sea. I hugged him back as he whispered ¡°thank you¡± in my ear. I just squeezed him tighter. ¡°I still need to change your bandage,¡± I said, pulling away to look at his face. He nodded, as he let me go. If I didn¡¯t know better, I would say his eyes were a little misty. Viktor said, ¡°we have bandages. I¡¯ll get them for you,¡± as he walked out of the room. Adrik walked up and pulled me away slightly. ¡°I¡¯m going to my office. I¡¯m still looking for an answer that I can¡¯t seem to find. Come get me when you¡¯re done,¡± he said as he kissed my lips. ¡°I won¡¯t be long,¡± I said. ¡°Good. There is that matter we still must discuss,¡± he said. He winked at me as he walked away. I could feel the heat between my legs return at the thought of it. Ivan stood in front of me, shirtless, standingpletely still as I carefully peeled his old bandage off. I was bing convinced he waspletely impervious to pain, as he never even flinched at the adhesive peeling back from his skin. I worked in silence, checking that his stitches were still holding. Once I was satisfied that no infection was starting to set in and everything was healing like it was supposed to, I ced a new bandage over the wound. As I taped the new bandage to his skin, I said, ¡°you know the trick about fighting demons?¡± I didn¡¯t wait for him to respond. ¡°The trick is to stop fighting them and make friends with them. Then they have no power over you.¡± I noticed his jaw clench, but he didn¡¯t say a word. He looked down at the floor, his shoulders slightly slumped.N?velDrama.Org is the owner. Chapter 36 Chapter 36 Chapter Thirty¨CSix Sephie I cleaned up and left the bandage supplies on the counter. Everyone had since disappeared, so I wasn¡¯t sure where they went. I wandered up the stairs to Adrik¡¯s office. I was chewing on my bottom lip when I walked in, my hands in my pockets. I waspletely lost in thought. About Ivan, about Andrei and Tori, about everything that happened thest three days. ¡°You okay?¡± Adrik asked from his desk. As soon as I saw him, I was snapped back to reality. I smiled warmly at him, taking in his features. He had ditched his shirt again and was just in jeans sitting at his desk, a stack of papers in front of him. He leaned back in his chair, pushing it away from his desk. He turned toward me as I walked toward him. ¡°Did you find your answer?¡± I asked, standing beside him, and picking at the top few files in one stack. He shook his head no, letting out a frustrated breath. ¡°I cane backter. I don¡¯t want to interrupt.¡± A smile came over his face. ¡°Give me twenty more minutes? This is really eating at me.¡± ¡°Of course,¡± I leaned down and kissed him, before turning to leave. I heard him blow out another frustrated breath and curse quietly as I walked out. 7 I found the shirt he was wearing earlier on the end of the bed, so I decided to change into that and lie down while I waited for him to finish. Between the sprinting and Andrei the personal trainer today, I was tired. My body was going to be sore tomorrow. I went to the bathroom. I checked my bruises in the mirror. They were still clearly visible, but they were starting to fade just a little. A few more days and they would be much lighter. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. I climbed into bed, thinking I was just going tofortably wait for him to be done. I woke up sometime later. It waspletely dark outside. The only lighting from his office. I got up to go check on him, not even sure what time it was. When I walked to the door of his office, he was hunched over his desk, pouring over a file. I hesitated, not knowing whether I should interrupt him when he looked like he might¡¯ve found his answer. Or at least gotten closer. I leaned on the doorway, rubbing my eyes. When I opened them, he had caught sight of me. ¡°Solnishko. Forgive me. I came in to find you were already asleep, so I came back in here,¡± he said, leaning back in his chair and turning toward me again. He had changed into pajama pants but kept his hatred for shirts alive and well. ¡°Why would I need to forgive you? You¡¯re working. You have a lot of responsibility. I can¡¯t be mad at that,¡± I said, walking toward him. He motioned for me toe to him. As I stepped closer to him, he pulled me onto hisp, so that I was straddling him. ¡°You¡¯re so different,¡± he said. His hands immediately running over my legs and under my shirt. ¡°Different like ¡®she might be touched in the head¡® different?¡± I asked, in my best southern ent. Heughed. ¡°All of the women I¡¯ve dated in the past hated when I worked. They alwaysined when I worked or tried to distract me from it. It made me want to work more to avoid them. You? You try not to bother me, even though I want nothing more than for you to bother me. I want to ditch work, just to be with you. It was torture to have to be away from you today. I¡¯ve never felt that way about any woman before.¡± I felt the goosebumps rising on my skin as I listened to his words and his hands continued to roam under my shirt. I didn¡¯t really know how to respond. I chewed on my bottom lip, trying toe up with words. I heard him groan low. His thumb swiped my bottom lip as he said, ¡°you know what that does to me, solnishko.¡± I grinned at him. I yawned suddenly, still notpletely awake, and stretched. ¡°Did you find your answer?¡± ¡°Da. Finally,¡± he said, as he stood up, with me still straddling him. I just wrapped myself around him as he turned the light off and walked us to the bedroom. ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked, yawning again. ¡°Around 2, I think,¡± he said as he ced me gently on the bed. I moved over so he could climb in behind me. He pulled me back to him, pressing his body against mine. I sighed, ¡°you¡¯re so warm.¡± ¡°Too warm?¡± ¡°No, perfect warm,¡± I said as I drifted off to sleep again. Chapter 37 Chapter 37 Chapter Thirty-Seven Adrik I heard her inhale deeply and felt her body stretch against mine. It must be morning. I was not ready to wake up yet. I pulled her closer to me and she snuggled back into my arms. She rolled in my arms to face me, her fingers lightly running through my facial hair. I loved when she ran her fingers over my face. I kept my eyes closed, still not wanting to admit that it was morning. I felt her lips gently brush mine as she whispered, ¡°good morning.¡± Her fingers still in my facial hair. I groaned and squeezed her tighter, hiding my face in the pillow. She giggled quietly, running her fingers through my hair and down the back of my neck. I buried my face deeper into the pillow as she ran her hands down my back. She rested her chin on the back of my shoulder, giving her better ess to rub my back. It felt amazing. I¡¯d been so stressed since my meeting with Salvadori that I hadn¡¯t paid attention to how tight my muscles were. She would alternate between the light pressure of just her fingertips and using her whole hand to press on my muscles, working the tightness out as she went. I felt goosebumps on my body as she kissed the back of my shoulder. I rolled onto my side, as my morning wood was making it ufortable to lie on my stomach. Sheid her head on my arm and looked at me sweetly. Her hand continued to run lightly over my chest and arms. ¡°How did you sleep?¡± I asked, brushing a curl back from her face. ¡°It seems I always sleep well with you,¡± she said. She stretched her body again, this time several joints popping loudly in the process. She groaned quietly. I raised my eyebrow at her. ¡°I¡¯m a little sore,¡± she said. My eyebrows furrowed, wondering why she would be sore.¡± ¡°Between racing you yesterday and Andrei the personal trainer, my muscles are comining this morning,¡± she said. ¡°Andrei didn¡¯t take it easy on you?¡± I asked. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. ¡°No, he did. This is the problem. It¡¯s been too long since I worked out. I used to go to the gym with Max sometimes after work, but I had skipped it the week before, uh¡­¡± she trailed off, not wanting to say it. She just pointed to her neck. The bruises were slowly getting lighter with each day that passed. I ran my hands over her arm, down her body to her leg. I pulled her leg over my hip so I could easily run my hand over her leg while we talked. ¡°You can go to the gym anytime you want now, solnishko.¡± ¡°I know. I was actually hoping to go for a run today?¡± she phrased it like a question, like she was asking for permission. I smiled at her. She still didn¡¯t know she could do whatever she pleased, whenever she pleased. ¡°You can do whatever you please, solnishko. Take Misha with you. He likes to run. He might be able to keep up with you.¡± Sheughed. ¡°No sprinting today, but it¡¯s been a while since I¡¯ve been for a long run. I miss it.¡± ¡°Then I will tell Misha to stretch so he¡¯s ready.¡± I grinned at her. She smiled back at me, but her smile faded quickly. She looked like she was struggling internally, like she wasn¡¯t sure how to say something. I leaned over to kiss her lightly. ¡°You know you can say anything that¡¯s on your mind with me. I want to know what¡¯s going on in that beautiful brain of yours.¡± She looked at me, slightly surprised. Shyly, she asked, ¡°can I go back to work? I mean, I don¡¯t really miss the job per se, but I miss Max. And I want to check on Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner.¡± I felt a pull in my chest. She¡¯s been so happy here that I almost forgot I took her away from her life. She didn¡¯t realize that she didn¡¯t need to work anymore, because I would take care of every need, or want, she would ever have. I wanted her to be happy. Most of all, I needed to keep her safe. Anthony wasn¡¯t gone yet, but even after he left, I still didn¡¯t trust that he wouldn¡¯t try something. ¡°Not yet, malishka. Anthony will be gone by tomorrow. I want you to stay here until he¡¯s gone, so I know you are safe,¡± I said. I saw disappointment sh across her eyes, but she masked it quickly. ¡°Gone where? Like taking a trip down the river Styx gone?¡± she asked, her eyes wide. I smiled at the direction her mind immediately went. ¡°Unfortunately, no. I would prefer that oue, truth be told. His father made a deal with me. Anthony is banished to Sicily. For now.¡± ¡°Taking that ind off the list of ces I¡¯d like to visit one day,¡± she said, her face serious. She had handled. everything so well, but she had moments where I could tell she was still bothered by it all. I took a deep breath in, thinking about everything she had been through in a few short years. I watched as her face went dark for a moment, She closed her eyes, holding her breath for a moment. When she opened her eyes, her eyes were light once again. ¡°You have to work today?¡± she asked, snuggling closer to my chest, and wrapping her leg tighter around my hips. ¡°Not if you keep doing that,¡± I said kissing the top of her head. I felt the vibration of her giggle against my chest. ¡°Sorry¡­that¡¯s a lie. Not sorry,¡± she said. I ran my hands under my shirt that she was wearing. She didn¡¯t flinch this time when my hands touched her scars. Good. I wanted her to feelfortable. I wanted her to know that my feelings hadn¡¯t changed. As I ran my hand over her body, Izily told her what my ns for the day were. ¡°I have some work to finish here this morning. I have meetings in the city this afternoon. I will leave Andrei with you again if you like. Or you can pick another one to abuse in my absence.¡± She giggled again. ¡°You don¡¯t have to leave any of them with me, you know. You need them more than me. You said nobody knows about this ce, so how would anybody find me here? And if they did find me here, how would they get through the army of guards and dogs outside?¡± ¡°I¡¯m leaving one of them with you. No arguing. The guards outside don¡¯t have the¡­special set of skills that my guys have. You¡¯re stuck with one of them. But I¡¯ll let you choose which one,¡± I said. ¡°Should we let them choose? I feel like it¡¯s punishment for them to have to babysit me, so I don¡¯t want to force them to have to do it.¡± Iughed at her. ¡°This is a good idea. Then you¡¯ll see that it is definitely not punishment to stay with a beautiful woman instead of following my grumpy a s s around all day.¡± I held her close, not wanting to get up. Not wanting this moment to end. As soon as we got out of bed, my day would start and I already knew that I would be counting the mynutes until I could get back to her. Weid in silence for a few more minutes. She sighed and rolled away from me slightly. ¡°I should go get dressed,¡± she said, stretching her arms over her head. ¡°You can move your things in here. There¡¯s plenty of room,¡± I said as she sat up. She looked back at me. ¡°But then it won¡¯t be so easy to kick me out when you get annoyed with me and my smart m o u t h,¡± she said, a devilish grin on her face. I sat up beside her. I looked at her very seriously. ¡°Solnishko. I wouldn¡¯t kick you out. You would just have to sleep on the floor,¡± I said as I jumped out of bed before she could smack me. I heard her laughing as I went to the bathroom, closing the door. Chapter 38 Chapter 38 Chapter Thirty-Eight Adrik Everyone was in the kitchen when we came downstairs. Tori was making breakfast for everyone, as usual. The house staff was back and walking through the kitchen now that it was a weekday. I gave them the weekends off. I always offered Tori the weekend off as well, but she always refused. Now I understand it was because she wanted to be close to Andrei. Misha was already ready for his run with Sephie. The other guys ready for their workouts after breakfast. Mornings were the only chance we had to get any kind of exercise in. My schedule was always full, especially in the afternoons. After breakfast, Misha and Sephie left for their run. I was happy to see her happy. I felt bad for Misha. He had no idea what he was in for with my gazelle. The rest of us went to the gym. Some days we worked out in silence. Other days, we discussed business. We rarely talked about anything else, but today we were very interested in grilling Andrei about his evening with Tori. It was obvious during breakfast that she was much morefortable with all of us, but especially Andrei. I caught him finding reasons to touch her while we were in the kitchen. Andrei and Misha were the most sensitive of all the guys. Andrei was young, but not as young as Misha. He was good at his job, though, and could turn everything off and rely on his instincts when it counted. He¡¯d been with me in a few close calls, including a few days ago with getting Sephie here. When we were done giving Andrei a hard time about Tori, I posed a question to all of them. ¡°Sephie wishes to return to work. I can¡¯t say I¡¯m happy about that idea, but I want her to be happy. Is it possible to keep her safe while she¡¯s at work?¡± They all stopped and thought for a moment. Ivan was the first to speak. ¡°Net. Not a good idea. There¡¯s too many variables. All of us would need to be there, which leaves you vulnerable.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Viktor agreed. ¡°I don¡¯t like the idea either. You saw how many people were in the restaurant the other night. That¡¯s too many innocent people to have to consider.¡± ¡°She told me this morning that she misses her friend Max that she worked with and her neighbors,¡± I said. Ivan asked, ¡°are you nning to keep her here full-time? Why not take her to your penthouse. Move the neighbors into the apartments on the lower floors. She can see Max whenever she wishes. That¡¯ll keep her neighbors out of trouble too. I wouldn¡¯t put it past Anthony to n an attack on the building if he thought it would get to her.¡± ¡°Ivan, you¡¯re brilliant. I¡¯ll arrange everything this morning. She¡¯s not to know about this yet, though.¡± They all nodded in agreement. Andrei smiling at the thought of surprising her with this. Viktor surprised me and asked, ¡°Boss, you love her, don¡¯t you?¡± I didn¡¯t hesitate to answer. ¡°More than anything I¡¯ve known in my life. If something were to happen to her, I wouldn¡¯t think twice about burning this city to the ground to avenge her.¡± Ivan added, ¡°I¡¯ll bring the matches.¡± Viktor nodded in agreement, Andrei spoke up and said, ¡°We¡¯re going to need gas as well.¡± Even Stephen, who was usually the quiet one, said, ¡°I will happily light that fire.¡± I looked at each of them, not really surprised that they all felt the same way about Sephie, but proud that they did. Sh had brought out something new and different in each of us. We were already addicted to her. We had been living in darkness so long that we almost forgot what the light was. She came in to show us what we¡¯d been missing this whole time and not a single one of us wanted to give that up. After I showered and changed into a pair of cks and a fresh shirt, I made a quick trip to the kitchen for a ss of water. I took the back stairs. As I was walking through the back room, I saw Sephie walking around the pool. Misha was behind her, but visibly dragging. His face was red, his shirt completely soaked. She looked like she had walked the entire time. Her cheeks were just the slightest bit pink, but she wasn¡¯t even breathing hard. Gazelle. I opened the door for her, waiting for Misha to catch up. She stood on her toes and kissed me as she walked in the house. I held the door for Misha. ¡°You okay, man? Need someone to carry you the rest of the way?¡± Still trying to catch his breath, he said, ¡°Dude. How. She just kept going. And going. And going.¡± Iughed. ¡°Did you make the mistake of racing her?¡± ¡°Noooooo. I¡¯m not that s t u p i d. I thought this was going to be an easy morning.¡± He stood next to me. Misha was taller than I was, by a couple of inches. He looked down at me. ¡°Why, Boss. Why do you h a t e me?¡± I chuckled at him. ¡°You¡¯re the only one that had a chance. Can you imagine Viktor or Ivan trying to keep up with her? She¡¯s like a f u c k i n g gazelle, man.¡± I said, shaking my head. My loss yesterday still fresh in my head. ¡°I can hear you, you know!¡± Sephie yelled from the kitchen. We bothughed. ¡°Go shower. You smell like you¡¯ve been chasing my girlfriend for thest hour,¡± I said patting him on the shoulder. When I got to the kitchen, she was leaning against the counter. Her arms folded under her breasts, pushing them a little higher than normal, making them look fuller than they already were. Her eyebrow raised, she looked at me, ¡°girlfriend?¡± I stammered. I hadn¡¯t even realized I had said it, but now that I thought about it, it feltpletely right. I was just hoping she felt the same. I had never considered that she might not want that title, though. Now, my heart was racing thinking about the possibility of rejection. I walked to her, taking her ss of water from her hand. I finished thest half of it, then went to refill it for her. ¡°Yes,¡± I stated firmly. I then added, ¡°if you¡¯re okay with that, of course.¡± I was unsure of her reaction as I turned back to her to hand her the ss of water. She didn¡¯t speak right away, making me even more nervous. I never got nervous. ¡°I could get used to the title,¡± she said, smirking at me. I let go of the breath I had been holding. I ran my hand through my hair, relief flooding my body. She chuckled and walked to me. ¡°Were you nervous just now?¡± ¡°Maybe just a little. I mean, I should have discussed it with you first,¡± I said, staring at the counter instead of at her. I felt her hand on my cheek. She turned my head so I was looking at her. She stood on her toes and kissed my lips gently. ¡°You¡¯re my boyfriend. I trust your decisions.¡± Chapter 39 Chapter 39 Chapter Thirty-Nine Adrik I went to my office to make arrangements for Sephie¡¯s neighbors to move to my building downtown while she showered and changed after her torture session with Misha. Poor guy was going to have a rough day because of her. Ivan¡¯s n was a solid one. I was hopeful that Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner would agree to it. It would make things much easier as well. I could be near her during the day. I hoped it would make her as happy as it would make me. Calling her my girlfriend in front of Misha and then the sudden panic that she might reject me made it all seem more real, somehow. With women in the past, I never had any fear that they would reject me. They all threw themselves at me, so desperate for my attention. Sephie wasn¡¯t like that at all. I could see there was an attraction there when she first looked at me, but she ran away just as much as she ran to me. She was always cognizant of what I needed. Women in my past were only concerned about what they needed. Sephie even considers my men before herself many times. She seems to intuitively know what they need, even before they do. I had two apartments prepared for her neighbors. I would stop byter today to speak with them both in person. Unusual offers were always best delivered in person. I texted the addition to my schedule to Viktor. Picking up the file on top of my desk, I read through the contents one more time. I¡¯d been looking for information on Anthony¡¯s uncle in Sicily. I didn¡¯t have much, but what I did have didn¡¯t make me any happier about this deal that I made with Salvadori. His brother, Lorenzo, was no better than Anthony. It apparently ran in that family. I knew something wasn¡¯t sitting right when Salvadori mentioned his brother, but I couldn¡¯t remember what about that man felt wrong. Finally, I found the evidence that I needed. The reason Lorenzo was in Sicily was because of my father. My father had banished him, just like I banished Anthony. Lorenzo had been stealing from my father. My father caught him and in a moment of restraint, he banished him to Sicily instead of having him killed. I always thought he did it as a favor to Salvadori, who had been a loyal boss to my father for years. Now I was sending Anthony, a man who had a grudge against me, to a man who had a grudge against my father. Lorenzo had made a few attempts to overtake my father after he was banished, but he could never get enough support. The other bosses were too scared of my father to side with Lorenzo. The question now was how loyal the bosses were to me. They weren¡¯t scared of me, I knew that. But were they loyal? My anger started to rise over this whole r*diculous situation. I cursed and mmed my fist on my desk. I put my head in my hands, thinking about how much I wanted to watch the life drain from Anthony¡¯s eyes. I felt Sephie¡¯s soft hands on my shoulders. I hadn¡¯t even heard here into my office. She didn¡¯t say a word, she just massaged my shoulders until the tension eased slightly. She leaned down and kissed my cheek, the floral scent of her shampoo filling my nostrils. I inhaled deeply. I reached up, pulling her arms around me. ¡°You look frustrated,¡± she said quietly. ¡°I¡¯m better now. I don¡¯t know how you do it, but I hope you never stop.¡± She looked at me, puzzled. ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°You always know what I need. Sometimes before I do. You do it with the guys too. You know what they need before Chapter Thirty-Nine they do.¡± She just shrugged her shoulders. ¡°It seems obvious to me, most times.¡± I leaned my head back and closed my eyes. ¡°Most people are oblivious to those around them. Your observation skills are next level. I should give you a job just telling me things about people I miss. You were right about Salvadori, too.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be s*lly. Your observation skills are superb.¡± I pulled her around to sit in myp. ¡°I think we should ask Ivan whether you or I am the better emotional support sloth.¡± She started giggling. She covered her face with her hands. ¡°Sometimes I don¡¯t know whates over me. I can¡¯t believe he didn¡¯t k i l l me for that. I know he wanted to.¡± ¡°You still don¡¯t see it. Killing you is thest thing Ivan would ever want to do,¡± I said. My hands running lightly over her back. She leaned against me, lost in thought. My phone started buzzing on my desk. She reached for it, handing it to me. She looked at me with a devilish spark in her eye, ¡°you should let me answer it. I¡¯ll be your secretary.¡± Inced at the caller ID. It was Viktor. I handed the phone to her. Her eyes lit up, as she suddenly tried to be very serious. She cleared her throat and answered the call, ¡°Hello, you¡¯ve reached the phone of the man who shall remain nameless. He¡¯s currently unavable, but I will be happy to give him a message for you. May I ask who is calling?¡± I heard Viktor¡¯s deepugh on the other end of the phone. She recognized hisugh too and started giggling. ¡°Sestrichka, can you please tell the man who shall remain nameless that the helicopter will be here at 12:30 and that, uh, the other matter has been added to his schedule. We will make an additional first stop andst stop.¡± ¡°Of course, I will give him the message right away and you have a wonderful afternoon, you giant Russian bear of a man you. Thank you for calling.¡± We could hear hisughter before the call ended. She set the phone down on the desk and looked at me. ¡°Sir, your helicopter will be here at 12:30 and your additional stops have been added to your itinerary.¡± I ran my hand up her back to the back of her neck. Grabbing a fistful of her still damp hair, I pulled her close and kissed her deeply. She was so full of life. ¡°I could get used to having a s e x y secretary,¡± I said, trying to catch my breath. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. She pressed her forehead to mine, her breath erratic as well. ¡°Wait, you have a helicopter?¡± Chapter 40 Chapter 40 Chapter Forty Adrik I had told the guys to meet me in the kitchen at noon. We still hadn¡¯t decided who was going to stay with Sephie. She was still under the false impression that it was more like punishment to have to stay with her, rather than go with me and wanted to let them decide amongst themselves. She wasn¡¯t expecting them to argue over who got to stay with her, but I was. I was expecting to have to break up a fight, honestly. They all looked at me expectantly when I walked in the kitchen with Sephie. I looked at them as seriously as I could. ¡°One of you must stay behind with Sephie. She won¡¯t make a decision on who she wants to stay with her. She wants you to decide amongst yourselves who will stay.¡± I barely finished the sentence, and they were already arguing over who it should be. Andrei was quickly eliminated, as he had stayed with her the day before. That left the other four. Misha made a solid argument that she had tried to kill him that morning, so he had earned being able to stay with her. Ivan argued that he was the most skilled in hand-to-handbat and could therefore offer the best protection to her. Viktor used the fact that he was her favorite, so he should clearly get to stay. Stephen made the case that he was the most urate shot out of all of them, so he should stay with her, as he could easily drop a threat from 40+ yards. I looked at her as they argued, smirking. ¡°I told you.¡± ¡°This did not go how I thought it would go,¡± she said, staring at grown men arguing over who got to babysit her. I kissed her temple and listened to the arguing for a few more minutes. When they still couldn¡¯te to a decision, I finally stepped in. ¡°Okay, enough! Misha will stay with her. My little gazelle did try to kill him this morning. He definitely earned it.¡± Misha threw his hands up in victory while the other three looked quite disappointed at my decision. I wasn¡¯t sure whether I should be proud they all wanted to protect her or offended they would rather stay with her than me. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll all get a chance eventually. We¡¯ll have to set up a schedule or something so nobody gets their feelings hurt,¡± I said, overemphasizing ¡°feelings¡± so they would know how s i l l y it all looked. Although, I couldn¡¯t me them. I desperately wanted to stay with her as well. Just a few more days and I wouldn¡¯t have to be so far apart from her during the day¡­ Our first stop was to the hotel where Mr. Turner worked the door. I knew Mr. Turner, as he had been working the door to this hotel for at least 20 years, maybe longer. He had seen me as a child, with my father. He knew just about every important person in this city, as they all frequented this hotel for various reasons. We caught him as he was returning from his lunch break, on his way back to the front of the hotel. ¡°Mr. Turner, if I may have a few moments?¡± ¡°Of course, sir. What can I do for you? How is Miss Sephie? Is she keeping you on your toes?¡± he asked, with the warm smile of a grandfather inquiring about his favorite granddaughter. I gave him a half-smile. ¡°Yes, sir. That¡¯s actually what I wanted to speak with you about. Of sorts. She misses you and Ms. Jackson, but I don¡¯t like the thought of her going back to that apartment.¡± Mr. Turner nodded in agreement. ¡°You know there were men that kicked her door in the day you left. Ms. Jackson told me about the whole fiasco.¡± ¡°I know this, which is why she¡¯s still with me,¡± I nced around us and nodded for him to move with me to a quiet nook in the lobby where our conversation couldn¡¯t be overheard. ¡°I would like to offer you an apartment in my building, just a few blocks from here. I have the penthouse, which would mean she would be somewhat of a neighbor to you again. I will take care of moving everything for you. In fact, everything will be taken care of. As a token of gratitude for being so good to her.¡± He stared at me,pletely stunned. ¡°Sir, I can¡¯t possibly. This is way too much.¡± I waved my hand dismissively. ¡°Please, Mr. Turner. She misses you and I would like to see her happy. I also don¡¯t like that they know where her old apartment is. You could still be in danger there and I would never forgive myself if something happened to you and Ms. Jackson. You¡¯re very important people to her and that¡¯s all I need to know. Please tell me you¡¯ll ept.¡± He stammered for a moment, running his hand through his hair. ¡°Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.¡± ¡°And could we keep this between us for now? I would like to surprise her with it once everything is settled.¡± His warm grandfatherly smile came back. ¡°Of course, sir. Mum¡¯s the word.¡± I extended my hand to him. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said as he shook my hand. ¡°She¡¯s going to be very happy, which makes me very happy.¡± ¡°She deserves it. That girl is one of a kind,¡± he said. I gave him a knowing look and took my leave. One down, one to go. The afternoon was full of meetings and various matters to take care of. Before I knew it, it was time for thest stop. We pulled up to the small parking lot and parked next to Sephie¡¯s car. As I stepped out of the vehicle, the curtains parted slightly in Ms. Jackson¡¯s front window. I knew she had seen me, so I waved. I didn¡¯t even need to knock. Her door opened as I walked up. ¡°To what do I owe this pleasure? How is Sephie? Is she okay?¡± Ms. Jackson asked as she motioned for me toe in. ¡°Sephie is fine.¡± I exhaled and paused for a moment. ¡°More than fine. She¡¯s amazing.¡± She nodded her head. ¡°Does she know you¡¯re in love with her yet?¡± I raised an eyebrow and looked at her. ¡°Oh, please. You can¡¯t fool me. It¡¯s been written all over your face from the first time I saw you step out of your vehicle and look toward her apartment that first night.¡± I smiled. ¡°Guilty.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t me you. There is something about that child that draws everyone in. Her light is so strong that people just want to be near her. She¡¯s a special one. If you hurt her, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± I coughed, not expecting to have my life threatened. ¡°I don¡¯t n on it. In fact, I came to you with an offer to help make her happier, if you agree.¡± ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± ¡°I own a building downtown. Office space, apartments. I have the penthouse. I¡¯d like to move her there soon. She misses you and Mr. Turner, so I¡¯d like to move you both to that building so you can be nearN?velDrama.Org is the owner. to her. Everything will be taken care of if you agree.¡± She thought for a minute, then looked at me squarely in the eyes. ¡°My Lord, you love her more than I thought. I¡¯ve been worried about her since you took her, but now I see there¡¯s no need to worry. You would die to protect her.¡± ¡°As long as I breathe, she will be loved and protected,¡± I said, not breaking eye contact with her. ¡°I¡¯ll do it,¡± she said as she walked closer to me. She took one of my hands in both of hers. ¡°You¡¯re a good man, Adrik. She¡¯s going to show you the best parts of yourself if you let her.¡± ¡°Her wish is mymand, Ms. Jackson.¡± She patted my hand, ¡°good.¡± ¡°Oh, can we please keep this arrangement between us for now? I¡¯m hoping to surprise Sephie with it.¡± She smiled at me. ¡°You¡¯re in deep, boy. Hope you know how to swim.¡± ¡°Me too.¡± 1 Two down. I walked quickly back to the vehicle. Viktor was waiting outside. ¡°Did you get everything?¡± I asked, as I climbed in the back seat. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Good. Thank you.¡± ¡°Of course, sir.¡± We d r o v e in rtive silence back to the house. I was lost in thought, anticipating how happy she was going to be when she found out. I smiled to myself, eager to get home to her. I chuckled, remembering Ms. Jackson¡¯s frankness. I could see why she was so important to Sephie. ¡°You¡¯re in deep, boy. Hope you know how to swim.¡± I might not be the strongest swimmer, but I knew I could endure anything with her as my guide. As we got closer to the house, Viktor asked Ivan, ¡°do you think sestrichka has hooked Misha up with one of the maids yet?¡± Ivanughed but said nothing. ¡°She¡¯s going to show you the best parts of yourself if you let her.¡± Chapter 41 Chapter 41 Chapter Forty-One Sephie After everyone else had left for the afternoon, Misha turned to me, grinning from ear to ear. Misha was the youngest. He was the little brother of the group, but right now, he looked like he¡¯d won the special prize and he was going to enjoy every moment of it. I couldn¡¯t help but smile back at him. ¡°What¡¯s on the agenda for the afternoon, boss? You¡¯re the babysitter and I can still only barely find my way around the house on my own.¡± Heughed. ¡°You know it took Andrei two weeks to remember where everything was when we first came here? You¡¯re doing better than him.¡± ¡°He told me! Bless him,¡± I said, clutching my imaginary string of pearls around my neck. He walked to the windows, looking at the storm cl ouds rolling in once again. ¡°It looks like it might storm again this afternoon. What do you say we grab some lunch and spend the afternoon watching movies? I need some recovery time after you tried to k ill me this morning anyway.¡± ¡°That sounds perfect. Want me to make you lunch?¡± I asked, walking back to the kitchen. ¡°Net. I have surprise for you. I sent Tori to my favorite deli. She¡¯ll be back any minute now with the best sandwich you¡¯ve ever eaten.¡± ¡°Oh, I love surprises! Did you know you were staying with me this whole time?¡± ¡°I suspected that Boss would take it easy on me after you tried to k ill me this morning, but even if I didn¡¯t get to stay. I could¡¯ve had my sandwichter. It¡¯s worth the wait.¡± My stomach growled in anticipation. Tori arrived soon after. Misha was right. It was the best sandwich of my life. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to run more if I keep eating like this,¡± I told him as I finished thest bite of my sandwich. He groaned, wiping his mo uth. He thought for a moment and then shrugged his shoulders. ¡°At least it will be a delicious death.¡± I started cleaning up our mess. ¡°I¡¯ll clean this up. You go pick the movie. I¡¯m sessfully in a food coma and would love to do nothing more than lie around for a while.¡± His wide smile appeared as he got up from the counter. His boyish good looks bing even more attractive when he smiled. Tori reappeared in the kitchen. She went to help me clean everything up. ¡°It¡¯s okay, Tori. I can clean this up. I feel bad for you to constantly be cleaning up after me.¡± She gave me a tight smile. ¡°It¡¯s my job, Miss Sephie. Besides, I owe you forst night.¡± ¡°So, it went well¡­?¡± I asked, dying to know how it ended up. ¡°Very well, Miss Sephie. He was so nervous to start with, but he rxed after Boss came back. He was almostpletely different when we went for a walk after dinner.¡± ¡°He was so worried he was going to get in trouble. He¡¯s adorable. I¡¯m very happy that it went well.¡± She grabbed my hand, looking at me seriously. ¡°Thank you. You¡¯re going to have to give me your secret on how you¡¯ve changed all of them for the better in such a short time.¡± I blushed. ¡°No secret. I haven¡¯t done anything other than allow them to be who they are.¡± She gave me the same tight smile but said nothing further. Her reaction gave me pause, but I brushed it off as Misha yelled from the other room, asking me to choose between two movies. ¡°My babysitter beckons!¡± I said dramatically as I left the kitchen. We couldn¡¯t make the decision between two movies, so we decided to watch them both. Not like we had much else to do that afternoon¡­ The first movie was about a fictitious war, with all the fighting and gore you would expect. Maybe a little over the top. but a good movie. I enjoyed Misha pointing out mistakes in the fight scenes. He would point at the screen and say, ¡°that¡¯s not even humanly possible¡± or ¡°he would be dead if he tried that in real life.¡± It made meugh every time. The second movie was a bit of a supernatural thriller. Ghosts, demons, and the like. The sky had gotten darker outside when we started the second movie, as the storm was now directly above us. The thunder rumbling and shes of lightning added to the eerie feel of the movie. I didn¡¯t usually get scared at these types of movies, but this one was creeping me out. I jumped a few times at what was happening on the screen. Mishaughed at me, but he still got up and moved to the couch I was on. He picked my feet up, cing them in hisp as he sat down. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, gazelle, I¡¯ll protect you.¡± I kicked him in his ribs, gently, ¡°I am not a gazelle!¡± ¡°You¡¯re a gazelle. Or would you prefer wildebeest? Zebra, maybe?¡± I scoffed. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll stick with gazelle.¡± Heughed and patted my legs. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, gazelle.¡± I red at him. ¡°I h ate you.¡± ¡°I know,¡± he said, his wide smile stretching across his face once more. The movie ended, but the storm was still raging outside. Misha had fallen asleep as the movie was ending. He had stretched out beside me, his legs behind me on the couch. He still had his arm protectively around my legs as he slept. 1 smiled at how innocent he looked when he slept. I watched the lightning show through the expansive windows. There was always something about storms that I loved. My mother told me I was born in a thunderstorm. She would say ¡°children born in a storm can walk in the dark without fear, for they know the light is always with them.¡± When I was young, I never really understood what she meant. After the past few days, I was starting to understand a little more. I should be terrified of all these people. They basically kidnapped me, after one of their associates almost killed me. But I was more than fine with it. In fact, you could say I was happy about it. They weren¡¯t terrifying in the slightest. Well, maybe Ivan was a little. But even with him, all I saw was good when I looked at him. When I looked at all of them. Adrik, especially. Life was about bnce. We all had good parts and bad parts. Each day was about choosing which parts you paid the most attention to. I heard Misha snoring softly. I slowly pulled my legs away from him and got up as quietly as I could. I stood and stretched, the soreness still present in my muscles. It felt good, though. I left Misha napping on the couch and wandered around the house. I walked into the room with the piano. No one was around, so I sat down and yed a few notes. I was probably going to wake Misha up with this, but IContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. didn¡¯t care. It felt good to have a piano to y right now. My mother always said I had more talent for the piano than she did. She was the ssically trained pianist though. I never had as much interest in it as she did. I just enjoyed ying the songs I liked and making up my own songs. I hadn¡¯t yed much since she died. Every now and then I would visit the Steinway gallery and would y one of their floor models for an hour or so. The salesmen had known my mother, so they would let me y as long as I liked. It was a free demo for them, so they loved it when I woulde in. They always said they sold more pianos when I was there. I started to pick at the keys, trying to decide what to y. I yed quietly at first, not really wanting to wake Misha up, but as I repeated the melody, I got lost in the music and just started ying, not at all concerned with the volume. Music was an escape. A way for my emotions toe out. I could y angry, sad, happy, and everything in between. There was never a time that I didn¡¯t feel better after ying for a while. Before my m om died, I would y for hours, gettingpletely lost in the music. I was so wrapped up in what I was ying that I hadn¡¯t noticed Mishae into the room. He didn¡¯t say a word, he just sat in one of the chairs on the other side of the room and listened intently while I stayed lost in the melody,pletely lost in my own head. Chapter 42 Chapter 42 Chapter Forty-Two Adrik We pulled up to the house, the spring storm that had rolled inte afternoon now in full swing directly above the house. We ran from the vehicles up the front steps, to avoid the rain, not bothering with umbres. As we got to the front door, we could hear musicing from the house. The house was always quiet. It waste enough that the house staff had already left for the day. Tori sometimes listened to music as she cooked, but never loud enough that you could hear it from outside. As I opened the front door, we were met with a haunting melody. We all stopped in the entryway, listening. It was like we were frozen in ce. It must be Sephie ying the piano. The only time it ever got touched was when one of the maids cleaned it. Otherwise, no one ever yed it. It had belonged to the previous owner of the house. They didn¡¯t want to move it, so they left it. Now, I was d they did. The music felt like raw emotion expressed in a melody. It was haunting. It was beautiful. We walked quietly to the next room. She didn¡¯t notice us walk in, she just continued to y. The piano was positioned in such a way that she couldn¡¯t see much of the room. Misha was sitting in a chair, his gaze fixated on her ying. His expression one ofplete awe as he watched her. Without a word, we all took seats and listened to her impromptu concert I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye and saw Tori step into the doorway, equally as mesmerized as the rest of us. She nced and saw all of us in the room, then quickly left to the kitchen. She would be starting dinner, I was sure. Andrei got up as quietly as he could and walked to the kitchen, trying not to disturb Sephie. She continued to y for a few more minutes, but the song slowly ended. As she yed thest note, she sat and stared at the keys for a moment, sighing. I heard apuse and smiled as I looked to see the guys all giving her a standing ovation. I stood and pped with them. It startled her. She looked up, completely surprised that we were all there. ¡°Holy s hit! When did you guys get here?¡± she jumped up from the bench, walking to us quickly, looking like she was slightly embarrassed. Her cheeks were flushed. She chewed on her bottom lip. She walked to me, tucking herself into my arms where she fit so perfectly. I kissed the top of her head. ¡°That was beautiful, solnishko. You must y for us more often,¡± I whispered to her. She hid her face in my shoulder. ¡°I haven¡¯t yed in a while,¡± she said shyly. Viktor answered her, ¡°no one would¡¯ve ever known. You have a gift, Sephie.¡± She didn¡¯t answer, she just hid her face from everyone in my shoulder. This was a new side of her that we hadn¡¯t seen. yet. She was normally so open and confident; it was adorable to see her be shy about something she was so clearly good at. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her closer. I felt my heart swell. The guys all walked away quietly, leaving the two of us alone. I kissed the top of her head again. ¡°I missed you, solnishko.¡± She looked up at me, smiling. My heart skipped a beat as I looked into her beautiful eyes. ¡°I missed you too. How was your day?¡± I smiled back at her, ¡°good. I have a surprise for you. You¡¯re going to love it.¡± ¡°I love surprises! What is it?¡± she eximed, as she wrapped her arms around my waist. I clicked my tongue. ¡°Not yet. In a few days. It¡¯s still in the works.¡± She pouted her lips, feigning disappointment. I kissed her lips, realizing that I¡¯d been longing for them all afternoon. Her hands moved to behind my neck as she stood on her toes and deepened the kiss. God, I could get used toing home to this every day. From the doorway, Andrei cleared his throat. ¡°Boss, dinner will be ready in about 10 minutes.¡± She turned her head and red at Andrei. ¡°Rude, Bubba. Rude.¡± His face dropped as he thought she was serious. She giggled and he immediately look relieved. ¡°Thank you, Andrei,¡± I said. With my arms still tight around her, I walked us back toward the stairs. I wanted to change before dinner, and she wasing with me whether she wanted to or not. When we got to the bottom of the stairs, I stopped. I bent down and threw her over my shoulder, walking up the stairs as sheughed at me. We got to my bedroom, and I threw her down on the bed. She was stillughing at me. I walked to the closet, asking what did you and Misha get into today? Were you nice to him, I hope?¡± ¡°Mmm hmm. I had to be since he gave me the world¡¯s best sandwich for lunch.¡± I looked back at the bed from the closet. ¡°From Vinny¡¯s?¡± She nodded her head. Vinny¡¯s was a great little ho le in the wall restaurant that we discovered somewhat by ident. Vinny¡¯s father, who started the restaurant was having health problems. The family was trying to work as much as possible toe up with the money to pay for his treatments, but they fell short. Vinny came to me, exined the situation, and asked me for a loan. He had set out generous terms for paying me back. He had even brought lunch for everyone when he met with me. After one of his sandwiches, I covered all the medical bills for his father. I just asked that he pay me back in sandwiches, to which he readily agreed. ¡°Then we watched movies and Misha fell asleep on the couch. I watched the storm for a while, then got up and started ying. You know the rest,¡± she said, still sounding shy about her ying. I walked out from the closet, my shirt in my hand. She was sitting on the bed, knees pulled up to her chest, her chin resting on her knee. Every time I saw her, I felt this invisible pull toward her. Like I had to be near her. Like I had to touch her. I pulled my shirt over my head as I walked to the bed. She looked at me, matter-of-factly, and said, ¡°I need to go back to my apartment. I need more clothes.¡± ¡°I can buy you whatever you like,¡± I said, sitting beside her. ¡°I have clothes. They¡¯re just not here. There¡¯s no need to buy me new clothes,¡± she said, rather short. I smiled, loving this side of her. ¡°I know, Sephie. Anthony is leaving tomorrow. I promise you will have all your stuff by the end of the week. If you need anything before then, I can send someone to buy it for you.¡± 2/3 She hugged her knees tighter to her chest. She nodded slightly, not saying anything. I knew she wasn¡¯t happy with my answer, but I couldn¡¯t let her go back to her apartment. She also didn¡¯t know that we had already gotten all her things out of her apartment earlier this evening. If she went back to her apartment now, it would ruin the surprise. I kissed her forehead. ¡°Come, this talk of Vinny¡¯s has me hungry.¡± She silently got up and followed me out of the bedroom. Before we walked down the stairs, I stopped and turned toward her. I took both of her hands in mine, kissing each of them, ¡°I won¡¯t keep you here forever. Just until Anthony is gone, and the threat has passed.¡± I raised my pinky between us, ¡°pinky swear.¡± She smiled and wrapped her pinky around mine.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 43 Chapter 43 Chapter Forty-Three Adrik After dinner, she had asked if we could take a walk as the sun hadn¡¯t setpletely yet. We walked around the property in rtive silence, followed by a guard at a distance. She seemed lost in her thoughts. I was honestly impressed that she wasfortable with so much silence. I would steal nces at her regrly, watching her as she took in everything around her. The way the fading light of the day made her hair look like actual fire, with its varying shades of red and orange. The evening sun also made the brown in her eyes more prominent, making her eyes almost match her hair at the right angle. She caught me staring at her and walked closer to me, silently grabbing my hand. We walked the rest of the way to the house in silence, hand-in-hand. ¡°Do you want to talk about it?¡± I asked once we got to the bedroom. She stopped, like she was thinking about it, but shook her head no. ¡°You know you can say anything to me, anytime. I want to help.¡± She gave me a small smile. She walked toward me and gave me a quick kiss. ¡°I just want to go to bed right now. It¡¯ll be better in the morning.¡± I woke up sometimeter to an empty bed. I had fallen asleep with Sephie in my arms, but now she was gone. I sat up to see if the bathroom light was on, but the room was dark. The bedroom door was slightly ajar. I got out of bed to see if she had ventured downstairs. The bedroom that she had stayed in the first night was open and I could feel the cool breeze from the balconying into the hallway. I quietly walked to the balcony, finding her sitting on one of the chairs. She was hugging her knees to her chest, with her head buried in her arms. I could hear her softly sobbing. My heart felt like it had just been punched at the sight of seeing her cry. I wanted to make it stop. I said her name quietly, so I wouldn¡¯t scare her. Kneeling in front of her, I rubbed her leg lightly. ¡°What¡¯s wrong. solnishko?¡± She su cked in a breath but didn¡¯t raise her head to look at me. She stayed silent. ¡°Sephie. Talk to me. Please.¡± She raised her head enough that I could see her teary eyes. I wiped the tears from her eyes with my thumb. I looked at her, full of concern. She looked at me for so long that I thought she wasn¡¯t going to say anything. ¡°Everything. Everything caught up to me at once. I miss my m om. I¡¯ve had to relive living with my uncle. The fu cked- up events with Anthony. Being here and not being able to leave. All of it.¡± I found myself flinching at thest part. Did she want to leave me? Was she tired of me already? My mind was racing. How would I live without her now? It¡¯s only been a few days, but I knew for sure that I never wanted to be without her for the rest of my life. I heard a smallugh. She reached down and touched my face. ¡°I don¡¯t want to leave you, Adrik.¡± I exhaled, clearly relieved. She stretched her legs down and pulled me to her. She was upset and yet, she was once again consoling me instead. I sat up again, asking, ¡°what can I do? I promise you¡¯ll be able to leave here after tomorrow. Anthony is supposed to be gone today, but I want to give it one more day to be safe. And then there¡¯s the matter of your surprise at the end of the week. What about your uncle? Do you want me to have him killed? Say the word and he¡¯s a dead man.¡± Sheughed, but I could tell she was seriously considering it. ¡°He¡¯s probably fried so many brain cells that he doesn¡¯t even remember who I am. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s anything to worry about. I just don¡¯t like having to relive it when someone new finds out.¡± She leaned her head back against the chair and closed her eyes. ¡°Sephie, I don¡¯t know why you had to go through all of that. But it made you into the woman that I¡¯m falling in love with today, so as weird as it sounds to say, I¡¯m d for it all. You¡¯vee into my life and made everything brighter. You light up the room when you walk in. You have five trained killers downstairs fighting over who gets to stay with you. You notice the slightest things about people. What they need, what they like, what they need to hear. You share your light with everyone and never ask for anything in return. You have my heart, Persephone. So as in sane as I sound saying it, the road you¡¯ve been forced to travel has led you here and I will spend every day of my life from this point on trying to show you how grateful I am that that road brought you to me.¡± She had lifted her head when I started talking and was looking at me. A few stray tears fell from her eyes. I wiped them as she wrapped her arms around my shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I got so lucky,¡± she whispered. ¡°It¡¯s me who is the lucky one here, solnishko.¡±N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Chapter Forty-Four Adrik When I woke up this time, Sephie was still sleeping soundly in my arms. She would usually wake up once she felt me start to stir, but I was able to get out of bed without her waking up. She must be exhausted afterst night and everythinging at her at once. I felt guilty for not being able to take care of her better. She¡¯d been through h ell and hadn¡¯t taken the time to process it all. I changed as quietly as I could and went downstairs to breakfast. Everyone was very concerned that Sephie wasn¡¯t with me. I told them that she had slept poorly and was still asleep. ¡°Is she having nightmares again?¡± Misha asked. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have watched a scary movie with her yesterday. This is all my fault.¡± ¡°Net. No nightmares, at least not that I know ofst night. She¡¯s been through quite a lot in thest few days. It caught up to her,¡± I said, taking a sip of coffee. ¡°What can we do?¡± Viktor asked. Ivan added, ¡°does she want to leave? Is that it? She¡¯s tired of all of us now.¡± ¡°She does want to leave, but not because she¡¯s tired of all of us,¡± I said. Ivan visibly rxed when I said she wasn¡¯t tired of us. ¡°Ivan and Viktor, I want you two to oversee her surprise. I want to have it done by Thursday morning, if possible. I¡¯ve asked her to give me through tomorrow. I want to make sure that little piece of sh it gets on the airne today and leaves this city. Then maybe I can rx.¡± Viktor and Ivan nodded as they finished breakfast. My phone buzzed in my pocket. I looked at the number, but it was not a number I knew. I looked at the text: Bracelet ispromised. Do not give to her. We need to meet. Regr spot, 10 pm? -A Salvadori¡¯s guard. I knew there was something off about that gift. I felt my anger rise as I cursed loudly. I had forgotten about the bracelet, to be honest. Before leaving my office, I threw it in the safe, not giving it another thought. ¡°Boss? Everything okay?¡± Misha asked. ¡°Andy, Salvadori¡¯s guard,¡± I said, holding up my phone. ¡°He said the bracelet Salvadori gave me for Sephie ispromised. I haven¡¯t given it to her. It¡¯s too ostentatious for her anyway. But the fact that he would try to get to me through her means his time is growing short.¡± I heard a couple of them curse. Ivan smacked the counter. ¡°He¡¯s working with Anthony. I would bet he knows everything Anthony has been doing. He¡¯s probably been benefitting from it, too. They¡¯re both cut from the same cloth.¡± ¡°Agreed. However, we can use this to our advantage. We¡¯ll check the braceletter. We can use it to feed them false info, if nothing else,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s been in the safe since Sunday night, so he hasn¡¯t gotten anything from it. We can change that. Andy also wants to meet tonight. He must have more info.¡± ¡°Regr spot?¡± Viktor asked. I nodded my head. I confirmed the meeting with Andy that night. I also sent a text to my spy at the airport, asking for confirmation that he was able to get a camera inside Anthony¡¯s ne. I wanted to make sure it was him on that ne. I also had them put a tracker on the ne, so we could make sure it made it to Sicily. Tracker and camera both in ce. ne is scheduled to leave at noon. Will notify when it¡¯s in the air. At least that detail was going to n. Now I had to n what to do about Salvadori, but I would wait to hear what else Andy had for me tonight before making any definite ns. When I was done with my workout, I walked quietly back in my bedroom. Sephie was still sound asleep on the bed. I grabbed clothes and went across the hall to shower so I wouldn¡¯t wake her up. When I was ready to leave, I left her a note on the bedside table and kissed her forehead gently. I was secretly hoping she would wake up so I could spend a few minutes with her before I left for the day, as I wouldn¡¯t be back untilte. She didn¡¯t move as I kissed her forehead. Sleep well, my love. I needed Viktor and Ivan, which meant neither of them could stay with Sephie. Since Misha and AndreiN?velDrama.Org is the owner. had both already gotten the chance to stay with her, that left Stephen as the only fair choice. Stephen had been with me the shortest amount of time of all of them. I trusted him, but I didn¡¯t trust him as much as the other four guys. I didn¡¯t feelpletelyfortable leaving him with Sephie. Not yet. I pulled him aside. ¡°I need you at the airport. You¡¯re the best shot of everyone here. I want you on a roof. If that fu cker tries to send the ne off without him on it, sh oot him.¡± ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I can¡¯t be sure, but he looked a little relieved to not be on babysitter duty. I wasn¡¯t sure if that was because he was awkward around women or something else. He immediately left for the airport. That left the choice between Misha and Andrei. Of course, they argued. This time, however, they decided by paper, rock, scissors. I was happy to see my men making such important decisions based on a children¡¯s game. Andrei won, best 3 out of 5. They would¡¯ve kept going, had I not pushed Misha toward the door. I looked at Andrei. ¡°She¡¯s a little fragile. Be gentle with her.¡± He nodded once. ¡°She¡¯ll be fine, boss. I¡¯ll do my best to cheer her up. See you tonight.¡± The day went fast, as I had endless meetings that consumed the entire day. Viktor and Ivan were sessful at getting Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner all set up in their new apartments that day. They just had a few items at their old apartment to get the next day. This meant I would be able to bring Sephie with me on Thursday to show her the surprise. I was looking forward to seeing her reaction. I caught myself thinking about how much making her happy was making me happy. I had never really bothered to care about anyone else¡¯s happiness before. Definitely not any woman I had been in a rtionship with. They were more like an afterthought. I would regrly forget their names when I was younger. That¡¯s how little they mattered to me. I wasn¡¯t sure I could breathe without Sephie in my life. I had known her for such a short time, but I couldn¡¯t imagine being without her. I was counting the minutes until I could get home to her. It was gettingte. I only had my meeting with Andy left and I could see her. Andy always met me across town from where Salvadori lived. He didn¡¯t want to take a chance on anyone recognizing him. There was a small park in that part of town. He would take a stroll and sit on the same park bench, waiting for me to arrive. Just as expected, he was waiting for me. I sat next to him, looking out at the river that ran next to this area of the park. ¡°Sir,¡± he said as I sat down. I nodded. ¡°What do you have for me?¡± ¡°That bracelet, sir. It belonged to Anthony. He had it custom-made for one of his girlfriends. He thought she was cheating on him, so he gave that to her so he could track where she went and listen to what she would say. It was Anthony¡¯s idea to give it to you for Sephie. Salvadori wasn¡¯t going to do it at first. I¡¯m not sure what changed he¡¯s been taking another guard with him when he meets with Anthony. They¡¯re nning something, sir. His brother in Sicily has been waiting for a chance toe back to the states and feels like Anthony is his chance back. They want to take over, from what I can gather. I think they have Salvadori convinced they can do it. He¡¯s be greedy in his old age.¡± ¡°I see,¡± I said. It did not surprise me that Lorenzo was trying toe back, nor that he would use Anthony and Salvadori to do it. ¡°To your knowledge, are any of the other bosses involved?¡± ¡°No, sir. He tried to recruit Niko, but I¡¯m not sure of Niko¡¯s reaction.¡± ¡°Thank you, Andy. Anything else?¡± ¡°No, sir.¡± ¡°Are you okay still at Salvadori¡¯s? He doesn¡¯t suspect?¡± ¡°He might be getting suspicious. I think this needs to be thest meeting for a while, sir. My apologies.¡± ¡°No need, Andy. You know where to find me. If it goes south, we will get you out.¡± ¡°Thank you, sir.¡± I got up and walked away. ¡°Viktor, schedule a meeting with Niko tomorrow,¡± I said as I climbed in the vehicle. ¡°Yes, sir. To the house, sir?¡± ¡°I think we should go back to the penthouse first. I want to take the helicopter instead of drive.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have the pilot waiting when we get there.¡± ¡°Thank you, Viktor.¡± My mind reyed my conversation with Andy on the drive back to the penthouse. It angered me that Salvadori was actively trying to turn the other bosses against me. He was quickly bing a ca ncer that needed to be cut out. But he could prove useful to me for a little while longer. This wasn¡¯t the first time I¡¯d dealt with unruly bosses. It was more of an annoyance than anything. I¡¯d been so much more generous than my father ever was, I had a feeling they all 3/4 thought of me as soft. Good. Let them think that. I could be just as ruthless as my father in matters of business. But I now had the one thing my father never did. Sephie. I would destroy the world to protect her Chapter 45 Chapter 45 Chapter Forty-Five Sephie I woke up and slowly stretched, fully expecting to feel Adrik¡¯s body next to mine. Instead, I felt the cold bed. I sat up, not realizing it was aste as it was, searching for him. I reached for my phone on the bedside table and saw his note. *Sephie, You were sleeping so peacefully that I couldn¡¯t bring myself to wake you before leaving. Know that I¡¯m counting the minutes until you¡¯re in my arms again. -A* I checked my phone. It was 12:30. They¡¯ve probably been gone for a while already. I decided to get dressed to go see who the lucky guy was that got to stay with me today. It didn¡¯t take me long to find that answer. Andrei was reading a book, sitting on the top stair when I came out of the bedroom. He closed his book and stood up. ¡°Good morning, sestrichka. How did you sleep?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not technically morning anymore, Bubba. That¡¯s how well I slept,¡± I said, rubbing thest bit of sleep from my eyes. ¡°You must be hungry, Sleeping Beauty. You slept through breakfast. It¡¯s not like you to skip a meal,¡± he said, squatting down in front of me with his arms out to the side so I could hop on his back. ¡°You spoil me, Bubba. But I fu cking love it and hope you never stop. Walking is highly overrated,¡± I said as I hopped on his back. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to make some kind of agreement with Tori so you can keep doing this when you two get married. Like grandfather me into your rtionship.¡± He just shook his head as he walked downstairs, again like he wasn¡¯t carrying me. ¡°She will be okay with this. Or she won¡¯t and I¡¯ll deal with it,¡± he said shrugging his shoulders. He deposited me on the counter as he opened the fridge. ¡°How long has everyone been gone?¡± I asked, swinging my legs like I was a kid. He ced a sandwich from Vinny¡¯s next to me on the counter. ¡°Long enough that I had Tori grab us lunch.¡± My arms shot up above my head, ¡°YES! It¡¯s official. You¡¯re my favorite. Misha had a good one-day run, but his reign is now over.¡± ¡°He almost won and got to stay home today. We had to go best 3 out of 5 so I could beat him.¡± I raised my eyebrow and cut my eyes at him as I unwrapped the sandwich. ¡°We yed paper, rock, scissor to decide who got to stay home with you,¡± he said grinning. ¡°He gave you the rock thinking it was going to win every time, didn¡¯t he?¡± Andreiughed. ¡°Almost every time. He¡¯s too predictable.¡± ¡°Poor Misha. He¡¯s so young. So inexperienced,¡± I said in between bites. ¡°Besides, I wanna know about you and Tori. Did you get some time with her this morning while I was still asleep and everyone was gone?¡± He blushed and nodded his head. ¡°We had a little time this morning to speak in the kitchen after everyone was gone. She¡¯s the one that told me about Misha getting you Vinny¡¯s yesterday. We had lunch together, since you were still sleeping.¡± ¡°I owe her a high-fiveter.¡± He smiled. ¡°You like her?¡± cocking his head to the side as he waited for my assessment. ¡°I don¡¯t know her very well, but she seems nice, Bubba. Girls are sometimes weird with me, but she¡¯s been nice. I think it¡¯s because she works for my boyfriend.¡± ¡°How are girls weird with you? Doesn¡¯t everyone love you?¡± he asked. ¡°Ha! Oh, no. No, they do not. Not everyone. I have a long list of people that would dly p for my demise. Most of those are girls. You can ask my friend Max. He¡¯s never had a girlfriend that liked me.¡± Andrei looked very serious as he threw away the wrapper from my sandwich. ¡°I don¡¯t understand. You¡¯re so¡­you. How could anyone ha te you?¡± His innocence made me smile. I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Bubba. It¡¯s a mystery because we both know I¡¯m perfect in every way.¡± I grinned at him. He was still looking at me seriously. ¡°Da. You are. I read that on the inte so it must be true.¡± Iughed. He couldn¡¯t hold a straight face any longer and startedughing as well. He leaned closer to me so he could whisper, ¡°she¡¯s not as funny as you. She doesn¡¯t think my jokes are funny.¡± I covered my mo uth and faked being shocked. ¡°Your jokes are supposed to be funny?¡± He clutched his heart. ¡°It hurts. It hurts right here.¡± He bent over and clutched the counter just as Tori walked into the kitchen. She saw him bent over the counter looking like he was maybe having a heart attack, possibly dying, all while I sat on the counter andughed at him. Going out on a limb here and marking this one down as one of the reasons girls didn¡¯t like me. Tori rushed to him. ¡°Andrei!¡± she said as she grabbed him. It only made himugh, which embarrassed Tori. Her face turned red as she looked at both of us. ¡°We were joking. He faked being hurt by my sarcasm. No harm done,¡± I said. She looked to Andrei, who was stillughing, and walked off in a huff. His face got serious. He looked to me, but I just shrugged my shoulders. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me, Bubba. I would¡¯ve thought that was funny. I¡¯m offended she didn¡¯tugh, if we¡¯re being honest, but you should still go talk to her. I¡¯ll stay right here until you get back.¡± ¡°You promise you¡¯ll stay? I¡¯ll be right back. Like two minutes, tops.¡± ¡°Go,¡± I said, shooing him toward the direction Tori had left. It was more like ten minutes before Andrei came back. He had his head down, looking slightly defeated. ¡°That bad, huh?¡± I asked, still sitting in the same spot he had left me in. He just exhaled loudly, running his hand through his hair. ¡°Come on, let¡¯s go for a walk. You can tell me about it,¡± I said hopping off the counter. ¡°You want to walk? You don¡¯t want a ride?¡± ¡°Bubba. You¡¯re already in trouble. I don¡¯t think we should add to it. Come on, let¡¯s go,¡± I said, hooking my arm through his and pulling him toward the back door. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. Once we were outside and a safe enough distance away that she wouldn¡¯t be able to overhear our conversation, I asked, ¡°so she¡¯s mad because you were having fun with me?¡± He just looked at me, somewhat surprised. ¡°Da. She said we¡¯re all acting so different now that you¡¯re here He paused and then added, ¡°she¡¯s right about that. We are acting different, but I thought she liked the change? I¡¯m so confused. Now it seems like she doesn¡¯t.¡± I thought as we walked slowly past the gardens. The sweet floral aroma was heavy in the air as it was warm today, with very little breeze. I reyed the conversation Tori and I had in the kitchen the day before, when she asked me what my secret was for getting them to alle out of their shells. I sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Andrei. Maybe she¡¯s jealous? Maybe she wanted you all to act differently for her? Maybe she thought we wereughing at her? Maybe it doesn¡¯t have anything to do with us and she¡¯s just having a bad day? Women areplicated.¡± He rolled his eyes. ¡°You are so right. She has nothing to be jealous of and I told her that we weren¡¯t laughing at her. Maybe she¡¯s just having a bad day. It has nothing to do with us because we¡¯re perfect in every way.¡± He nodded his head like he was confirming hisst statement. I grinned at him. ¡°I mean, that exnation is good for me. Will it be good for her, though?¡± ¡°Ugh. This is why I don¡¯t want a woman sometimes. They¡¯re too stressful.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll hear no arguments from me on that one. This is why the only female friend I have is 50 years older than I am. Ohhh, you can have Ms. Jackson. She¡¯s got a good sense of humor!¡± He had to stop walking because he wasughing so hard. ¡°Can you¡­imagine¡­. I would break her. This is a bad n.¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°That is not the visual I was nning to have in my head this afternoon, but you make a solid argument. I¡¯ll concede. It was a bad n. Looks like you¡¯re stuck trying to make up for whatever it was that we did wrong.¡± He hooked his arm through mine this time. ¡°Let¡¯s keep walking for a little longer first.¡± ¡°Procrastination for the win!¡± I said, happily walking farther away from the house with him. Chapter 46 Chapter 46 Chapter Forty-Six Sephie We stayed gone for close to two hours. We walked to theke where we sat and talked for a while, then decided we should probably return to the house. When we got closer to the house, he turned to ask me, ¡°you miss your friend, Max?¡± I nodded. Max and I had been friends for a few years. We both started at the restaurant around the same time and quickly discovered that we could make the time pass faster by clowning around with each other. The regr bartender had quit, so we covered the bar until they found a recement. We ended up making the restaurant more money than the other bartender ever did in one weekend. Women were flocking to watch Max pour their drinks and give them his best million-dor smile. I always thought he was handsome, but I didn¡¯t quite understand the obsession with him. Maybe that¡¯s why we were always friends. I was immune to his charms. ¡°I do miss him. I miss my life. It seems crazy toin about being here and I¡¯m notining. I¡¯m really grateful to all of you for keeping me safe. But I miss being able to do what I want when I want. With no babysitter. Not that I don¡¯t love you guys, I mean.¡± He walked a few steps in silence. He just stopped in front of me and got in his usual stance for me to jump on his back. ¡°Come, we must make the best of it while you¡¯re here then.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to get in so much more trouble with Tori if I do that,¡± I said trying to walk past him. He grabbed my arm and pulled me back toward him. ¡°I don¡¯t want to date a woman that has a problem with my friends. She will have to get used to it. Or she can date someone else.¡± I looked at him, somewhat wide-eyed. This was a change. Max usually put distance between us when he would date a girl that didn¡¯t like me. It only eversted a few weeks and then he¡¯d be back to wanting to hang out with me. ¡°You¡¯re sure, Bubba?¡± He smiled at me, ¡°sure, spider monkey. Now get on.¡± ¡°You ain¡¯t gotta ask me twice,¡± I said in my best re dneck voice as I jumped on his back. He walked us toward the house. I thought about everything as we got closer and hugged his neck a little tighter. ¡°I hope she deserves you, Andrei.¡± We couldn¡¯t find anyone when we got back inside. I told Andrei to drop me at the piano and he could go find Tori. He¡¯d be able to hear me that way and know I was fine. He reluctantly dropped me off and rushed to find her. I sat looking at the keys for a few minutes, but eventually started to y one of my m om¡¯s favorite songs. I had made up most of the song one night, just goofing around. She said she loved it so much she made me write it down and finish it. She would ask me to y it often. It reminded her of my father and a song he would hum to her when they were around the house. She was convinced I had remembered the song from when I was a baby. She said he used to hum it to me to get me to go to sleep. I barely had any memories of my father, as he died when I was still so young. I had a few pictures of him, but it was almost like looking at a stranger. My m om told me I had his eyes, but my eye color was different than his. It was different from hers, too. And neither of my parents had red hair, so I was somewhat of a mystery to them both. My m om used tough, especially when I was mad about something as a child and tell me that I hade out right as the biggest streak of lightning lit up the sky and it burned my hair and gave me a temper. I smiled as I yed her sorig, remembering the good times with her. A single tear fell as I looked down at my hands, remembering what her hands looked like when she would y. When I was small, I used to sit beside her and watch her as she yed. I waspletely mesmerized by the piano from a young age. She was so hopeful that I would be a concert pianist one day. That didn¡¯t exactly happen. More tears threatened to fall as I contemted whether I was a disappointment to my m om. I was definitely not a concert pianist. I was a waitress that wasn¡¯t even allowed to work at the moment because some in sane man wanted to have me killed to get to my boyfriend. Yeah, seems like the fairy tale she always wanted for me. The song ended and I rested my head on the music rack, fighting back tears. I chewed on my bottom lip to calm myself. Just one more day and I can leave. Maybe I can go see Max. I exhaled, trying to keep the tears from falling freely. I wiped my eyes just as a giant Russian sat down beside me on the piano bench. Andrei didn¡¯t say anything, he just pulled me into his side, hugging my shoulders. The tears started to fall, and he hugged me tighter. I finally got control and looked at him. ¡°How did it go with Tori? Did you me everything on me like you should have?¡± ¡°Everything will be fine, Sephie. None of this is your fault and we will make it better very soon. I promise.¡± I rested my head on his shoulder. We sat like that for a few minutes. He reached out and started tapping at random keys. He would test the sound of each one, then would y the keys that sounded best together. As he was pecking out a small melody, I yed a more intricate improvisation on top. He grinned as he kept trying to y the right notes that he¡¯d chosen. ¡°You¡¯re a natural, Bubba,¡± I grinned at him. The sun set and Adrik still wasn¡¯t home. Andrei had said that he had ate meeting, so I was trying to not worry about him. The house staff and Tori had all left for the evening, so it was just me and Andrei. He was still partially in the doghouse, so he thought it best to give Tori some space. He said their talk that afternoon went better, but she was still mad at him forughing at her in front of me. Delicate ego. Check. Around 10:30, Andrei got a message that they wereing home. ¡°They¡¯re flying in, so they¡¯ll be here soon.¡± I tried to contain my excitement. I felt si lly missing Adrik this much, but I had missed spending any time with him this morning after we went back to bed. I thought back to our conversation on the balcony that morning. ¡°¡­it made you into the woman I¡¯m falling in love with today.¡± He had said that so easily, like it was fact. I smiled to myself, thinking about his nervousness when I said I wanted to leave the house. Was this powerful man really worried that I would want to leave him? Andrei pulled me out of my thoughts. ¡°Come, I¡¯ll take you to thending pad. You can meet him there. It will make him happy.¡± I jumped up. ¡°Really? It would make me happy too.¡± He bent down and I jumped on his back eagerly, pping his shoulder. ¡°Get the lead out boy! We don¡¯t want to bete!¡± Heughed and took off toward the front door. He walked us some distance to the side of the house, where there was arge clearing with a concrete pad in the middle. I hadn¡¯t been to this side of the property yet. We were just approaching the pad when he heard the helicopter. ¡°See? There they are,¡± he said pointing to the lights in the sky in the distance. It didn¡¯t take them long tond and Adrik stepped out of the helicopter. He was a sight for sore eyes in all ck. Da mn, he looked extra sexy. Was it because I missed him? Andrei was still holding me on his back. I jumped down, as Adrik saw us and started to close the distance between us quickly. I ran to his arms, my lips crashing into his. I felt like I was almost desperate for him right then and I wanted him to know, without a doubt, that I had missed him. We heard a couple of whistles from the guys, but I didn¡¯t stop. I didn¡¯t care at that moment. He groaned as he broke this kiss to breathe. ¡°Somebody missed me,¡± he said, that sexy smirk on his face. 1 grinned at him. ¡°Maybe a little,¡± I said as I reached up and kissed him again. I felt him smile against my kiss. ¡°I missed you more,¡± he said, picking me up to carry me to the house. I smiled and rested my head against his shoulder, wrapping my arms around his neck and shoulders. ¡°How was your day, solnishko?¡± ¡°Um¡­good.¡± I said, not sure if I should bother him with the drama between Andrei and Tori. He stopped walking and looked at me seriously. ¡°Who do I need to have killed?¡± he asked. I giggled. ¡°Well, technically me, so I feel like that¡¯s a bad life choice all around.¡± He looked at me sternly, one eyebrow raised. ¡°Persephone, what have you done?¡± *I made Tori put Andrei in the doghouse already. I didn¡¯t mean to! We were just joking in the kitchen, and she walked in, thinking Andrei was hurt and we startedughing more and she thought we were laughing at her.¡± He scoffed. ¡°Women areplicated.¡± He continued up to the house. ¡°You¡¯re telling me,¡± I said, rolling my eyes as heughed. When we got inside, I asked ¡°did you eat? Do you want me to make you something?¡± Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. ¡°No need, love. We ate already. I am, however, still hungry,¡± he said as he set me down. He leaned in to kiss me and added, ¡°just not for food.¡± I couldn¡¯t help myself. I kissed him deeply, my entire body craving his. I pressed my body to his, not wanting any space between us. I wasn¡¯t sure what hade over me, but I simply couldn¡¯t get enough of him. He responded in kind, his strong arms pulling me against him firmly. His lips devouring mine as his tongue explored every inch of my mo uth. A soft moan escaped my lips as I tried to press my knees together, feeling the incredible need for him growing. ¡°We should go upstairs before I loseplete control, solnishko,¡± he said as he grabbed my hand pulling me quickly to the stairs. Chapter 47 Chapter 47 Chapter Forty-Seven Adrik I was anxious to get home to Sephie. Missing talking to her before I left for the day was harder than I thought. I had already grown ustomed to our morning routine in just a few short days. Not being able to kiss her, to talk to her this morning made me miss her more than usual. I found myself hoping that she was in better spirits tonight thanst night, but I vowed to do everything in my power to make it better if she wasn¡¯t. ¡°We¡¯re 10 minutes out, boss. I also sent word to Andrei that we were on our way home. He said Princess was starting to get impatient and worried,¡± Ivan said. The corners of his mo uth were curled up in a half smile. ¡°Thank you, Ivan. Did he say anything else?¡± ¡°Net. Just that she was starting to worry because it was sote, and we weren¡¯t back yet. He told her you had ate meeting.¡± I found myself getting more anxious to see her. I never wanted to cause her worry. I should¡¯ve told her I had ate meeting, but it slipped my mind. I was too focused on how beautiful she looked while peacefully sleeping this morning to consider small details. We approached thending pad on the side of the house. It was dark, but the lights from the helicopter were bright enough that I could just make out Andrei¡¯s sizeable frame walking toward thending pad. I could see Sephie¡¯s red hair just to the side of his head. She must be hitching a ride. It was one of the small things that made me adore her. She had a childlike innocence about her in so many ways, but I was impressed that she could keep that innocence knowing what she¡¯d been through. I smiled at the thought of herughing with Andrei while they waited for us tond. As soon as we touched down, I opened the door and stepped out. Andrei kept Sephie a safe distance away, but I could already see her gorgeous smile as she waited for me. Ducking to avoid the des, I walked quickly toward her. Once I was clear, I stood uppletely and saw her running to me. I was met by her lips crashing into mine as she wrapped herself around me. I should let her sleep in the mornings more often if this is how she greets me when I get back¡­ I pressed her even closer to me and returned the kiss, barely able to breathe from her passion. As the guys walked by us, they whistled. Somebody pped, even. She had been shy before about showing too much affection in front of them, but that was clearly not an issue tonight. I groaned and broke the kiss, needing to breathe. ¡°Somebody missed me.¡± She grinned up at me. ¡°Maybe a little.¡± She stood on her toes and kissed me once more. I smiled against her lips. ¡°I missed you more,¡± I said as I reached down and picked her up in my arms. She wrapped her arms around my neck, resting her head on my shoulder. ¡°How was your day, solnishko?¡± I felt her tense slightly. ¡°Um¡­good.¡± I stopped immediately. ¡°Who do I need to have killed?¡± 1/3 She giggled, that sweet preciousugh that meant she was truly happy. I felt my heart swell in my chest just looking at her, happy in my arms. ¡°Well, technically me, so I feel like that¡¯s a bad life choice all around.¡± She was so adorable; it was hard not to smile at her. I looked at her sternly, with one eyebrow raised. ¡°Persephone, what have you done?¡± ¡°I made Tori put Andrei in the doghouse already. I didn¡¯t mean to! We were just joking in the kitchen, and she walked in, thinking Andrei was hurt and we startedughing more and she thought we were laughing at her.¡± Delicate ego on that one. I just shook my head and continued walking. ¡°Women areplicated.¡± ¡°You¡¯re telling me,¡± she said as she rested her head on my shoulder once again. As we walked to the house, her fingers yed with my cor and ran lightly over my neck and chest where it was exposed.N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. She was driving me crazy and didn¡¯t even know it. We got inside the house, and I set her down. ¡°Did you eat? Do you want me to make you something?¡± Always so thoughtful toward everyone else. ¡°No need, love. We ate already. I am, however, still hungry,¡± I said as I kissed her lips once more, then whispered ¡°just not for food¡± into her ear. I was not expecting her reaction. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her body completely to mine and kissed me just as passionately as she had on the helicopter pad. I felt my desire for her trying to takeplete control. I wanted her. All of her. I heard her moan softly into my mo uth and that was the end of my control. I grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the stairs. ¡°We should go upstairs before I loseplete control, solnishko,¡± I walked quickly up the stairs. She was right behind me the whole time. It almost felt like she was pushing me to go faster. We got to the bedroom and as soon as the door closed, I pulled her toward me again. I turned and pushed her against the door, pushing my body against her, my lips on hers. I was now fully aroused and wanting her to know what she was doing to me. She grabbed my shirt, untucking it. Her hands quickly found their way to my bare skin, her touch was almost electric. She ran her hands up my back and I felt her dig her fingernails into my back lightly. I groaned into her mo uth. I could feel her smile as she knew she was driving me crazy. Her fingers quickly moved to my chest, unbuttoning my shirt. Once she got two buttons unbuttoned, I stepped back from her. I pulled my shirt off over my head and threw it down. My hands grabbed her hips to pull her to me once again, her lips immediately on mine once again. As slowly as I could, my hands slipped under her shirt. I didn¡¯t want her to feel ufortable. Not now. She broke the kiss and looked at me like she knew what I was thinking. She smiled at me, gently pushing me back so I would give her a little room. She lifted her shirt over her head and threw it on top of mine. She then grabbed my hands and ced them around her, so I was touching her scars. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I want you to touch me,¡± she said, looking me in the eyes as I ran my hands over her back. She didn¡¯t flinch, she didn¡¯t get tense, she just looked at me while my hands ran over her scars. I leaned down and kissed her neck. I could hear her breathsing quicker as I nibbled my way down her neck. With one hand, I unbuttoned her pants, pulling at the zipper to give me more ess. I grabbed her hips, picking her up. She wrapped her legs around me, her lips finding mine once again. I walked us to the bed. Laying her down, I pulled her jeans off, throwing them toward the pile of shirts somewhere by the door. She laughed. I ran my hands up her long legs, watching her reaction to my touch. I leaned down and kissed her stomach. She flinched and giggled. ¡°That tickles.¡± I rubbed my facial hair lightly over her stomach to make herugh again. She pulled me up to her lips, wrapping her legs around my waist as Iid down on top of her. I could feel the heat between her legs. I was dying to be inside her. I kissed her neck again, giving her little bites every so often as they always made her gasp slightly. ¡°Adrik,¡± she said breathlessly. Her breathy voice turned me on even more. ¡°I want you.¡± Chapter 48 Chapter 48 Chapter Forty-Eight Adrik I looked at her, searching her eyes for the slightest hesitation. She put her hands on the side of my face and repeated, ¡°I want you.¡± I kissed her deeply, reaching behind her to undo her bra before standing to get rid of my pants and her panties. When she saw me fully na ked, her eyes widened just slightly before she swallowed once. I smirked at her. ¡°I¡¯ll go slow, solnishko. I don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± She nodded as Iid on top of her again. Her legs wrapped around my waist once again. I kissed her, my hands. roaming down her stomach and over her hips. When I felt her pus sy, it was even more wet than thest time. ¡°F**k, Sephie. You¡¯re so wet,¡± I said kissing one breast, then the other. My fingers moving back and forth across her little. button. I leaned down and kissed her, positioning myself between her legs. I rubbed my co ck in her wetness as she moaned into my mo uth. It was the sweetest sound. I slowly started to enter her, watching to make sure I didn¡¯t hurt her. I pushed in a little more, then waited for her to adjust before continuing. ¡°You¡¯re okay?¡± She nodded her head eagerly and pushed her hips against me, indicating that I could slide all the way in. I still went slow, as she gasped when she felt the full size of my co ck. Once I waspletely inside her, I felt her clench around me. I groaned, knowing that I wasn¡¯t going tost long if she kept doing that. She did it once more and giggled in my ear as she kissed my neck. I moved slowly in a steady rhythm and then mmed into her hard, just once. She moaned loudly as I whispered, ¡°turnabout is fair y, my love.¡± She smiled up at me and pulled me to her so she could kiss me again. I followed her lead, as she increased the kiss, I increased the rhythm. It didn¡¯t take long until her legs were starting to shake around me and I knew she was close. I watched as she gave into her o*gasm, losingplete control for a few moments, lost in the feeling. She was the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. As she came down, she wrapped her legs tighter around me, clenching against my co ck inside her. She was already tight, but when she did that, I just about couldn¡¯t take it. Her hands ran over my back, lightly grazing me with her fingernails. She ran her hands down to my a*s and grabbed it as she pushed her hips into me. I inhaled sharply. I wasn¡¯t expecting her to be so demanding, but whatever she wanted, I would give to her. I¡¯d never felt this way toward any woman before. I already knew I¡¯d never be able to get enough of her. She pushed the limits of my stamina. I wanted her to o*gasm again while she made me c um. Increasing my rhythm, I started to push into her harder. She moaned louder, meeting my thrusts with her hips. She was amazing. I could feel her getting close again and I knew I wouldn¡¯t be able tost much longer. As I pushed her over the edge and felt her o*gasm again, I felt my own release. She wrapped her arms around me as I copsed on top of her, still inside her. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. It took a few minutes for us both to catch our breath. I propped myself up on my elbows and looked at her. She was absolutely stunning lying beneath me, her eyes dancing in the light, her cheeks slightly flushed, her hair as wild as ever. My breath caught looking at her. ¡°You ok?¡± she asked, reaching a hand up to my face. I turned and kissed her palm. ¡°Very. I just can¡¯t help it. You¡¯re so beautiful.¡± She smiled sweetly at me. I went to move off her, hating the part where I would have to pull out of her. I stretched out on the bed, opening my arms for her to snuggle in next to me. She immediately moved to my side andid her head on my chest, her arm across my stomach. I ran my hands over her body as sheid next to me, still not feeling like I had gotten enough of her. ¡°I¡¯m going to let you sleep every morning if this is the result,¡± I said. She rested her chin on my chest to look at me. ¡°I mean, it wouldn¡¯t be the worst thing in the world, but I like seeing you in the morning before you leave.¡± I smiled at her. ¡°I like seeing you in the morning too. I almost woke you this morning just so I could steal a kiss.¡± ¡°You have my permission to always wake me to steal a kiss,¡± she said, resting her head on my chest again. She was tracing circles across my stomach as I was running my hand across her back. It seemed like only a few minutes, and her hand got quieter, her breathing slower, and I knew she had fallen asleep. I watched her slumber for a bit before losing my own battle against sleep. When I opened my eyes the next morning, the sun was beginning to rise, and the early morning light was just starting to pour into the bedroom. I looked at Sephie, still sleeping soundly half on top of me. I managed to sit up just slightly, so I could get a better look at her. Her pale skin gave her the look of a porcin doll. It was a stark contrast to her red hair that fell over her scarred back. I ran my fingers through her hair, causing her to snuggle into me more. She sighed. ¡°Good morning,¡± she said in a half- whisper. ¡°Good morning, solnishko.¡± I ran my hands over her body as she continued to wake up. ¡°Mmmm. This is really what I missed when you let me sleep yesterday. I love your hands on me as I wake up.¡± ¡°You can have my hands on you whenever you like. For as long as you like.¡± She rested her chin on my chest to look at me. ¡°Promise?¡± I held my pinky up to her. ¡°Pinky swear.¡± She grinned and grabbed my pinky with hers. ¡°Are you going to bete tonight?¡± she asked, a devilish grin on her face. ¡°I can be if you want to greet me the way you didst night. I wouldn¡¯t be mad at that.¡± ¡°It was pretty amazing,¡± she said, reaching up to kiss me. My phone buzzed on the nightstand. I groaned and checked it. It was Viktor. Meeting with Niko at 10. Your office. ¡°Business?¡± she asked as she rolled off me and stretched, her joints popping. ¡°I have a meeting with Niko this morning. This Anthony situation is getting bigger.¡± ¡°Niko? He¡¯s the older guy with ck hair except at his temples where it¡¯s shockingly wh ite?¡± I nodded. She thought for a minute. ¡°He rubs his left eyebrow when he¡¯s being dishonest, like he¡¯s smoothing out the hair. Granted, he has some bushy a*s eyebrows. But that¡¯s his tell when he¡¯s lying.¡± ¡°How do you know all this, solnishko? You were right about Salvadori. His eye twitched like you said.¡± She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It seems obvious to me. I have been their chosen waitress for a couple of years, but I picked up on their quirks pretty quickly. I guess I just notice things like a weirdo.¡± I chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re not a weirdo. You have a very valuable skill. I¡¯m going to give you a job just observing people for me.¡± She inhaled and stretched again. ¡°Are you sure you can afford me?¡± she asked as she got out of bed and headed for the bathroom. She looked back at me before she closed the door, grinning over her shoulder Chapter 49 Chapter 49 Chapter Forty-Nine Adrik I reluctantly left the house much earlier than normal because of my meeting with Niko. I was tense at the possibility that this situation with Anthony was going to get out of hand. I feared it was already to that point, given he was talking to other bosses and trying to persuade them to turn against me. I was anxious to get this matter resolved quickly. As we flew to the penthouse, I reyed the previous night in my head. The way Sephie looked at me with so much longing, so much passion. I¡¯d never had a woman look at me like that, especially not after such a short time. She gave herself sopletely to me. I wanted to spend every night showing her just how much she meant to me. I closed my eyes, the picture of her face etched clearly into my mind¡¯s eye. I was already counting the minutes until I could hold. her in my arms once more. Poor Misha had to stay with her, as she wanted to go for another run after we left. At least I wouldn¡¯t have to worry about him getting soft while he watched over her. She promised to go easier on him this time, but I have a distinct feeling that his idea of easy is much different from hers. Niko was led into my office by Viktor promptly at 10:00. I motioned for him to take a seat. He looked nervous, so I reprained quiet and watched him. He wiped his sweaty palms on his pants as he sat in the chair opposite mine. ¡°Hello, sir. It¡¯s good to see you again,¡± he said, trying to sound friendly. His thick Italian ent prominent. I nodded. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind my asking, sir, what is this meeting about?¡± he asked, still visibly nervous. ¡°It¡¯se to my attention that you and Salvadori have been¡­speaking,¡± I said. ¡°Salvadori and I speak often, sir. Can you tell me what we¡¯ve been speaking about that gives you concern?¡± He rubbed. his palms on his pants once more. ¡°You tell me.¡± I wanted to see if he would tell me everything or if he would try to cover for Salvadori. ¡°Uh, well, sir, Salvadori sometimes has grand ns that he has no intention of following through on. I believe this was one of those times. He was angry about you increasing his tax, he might¡¯ve said some things that he didn¡¯t mean in the heat of the moment.¡± I raised my eyebrow and stared at him intently, which proved to make him even more nervous. ¡°Sir, if you please, I thought he was crazy for even thinking it and I told him so. I said, ¡°Sal, you¡¯re fuc king crazy to be even thinking that¡¯ and told him to be careful.¡± ¡°Tell me his ns,¡± I raised my voice just enough that he cleared his throat, now visibly squirming in his seat. ¡°He wasn¡¯t happy that you banished Anthony to Sicily, even though it was his original idea. He thought he¡¯d be able to send Tony to Sicily for a few weeks and then he¡¯d be able toe back. You forbidding him toe back angered him. He told me that his brother has beening up with a n toe back to the states, but he¡¯s been ignoring him. Now that Anthony is there with his brother, he¡¯s starting to listen to his brother. Lorenzo is an evil son of a bi tch. I¡¯m d he¡¯s not allowed in this city. He did tremendous damage while he was here,¡± he said while rubbing his left eyebrow, like he was trying to smooth the hair. ¡°What else,¡± I said, tapping my fingers on my desk. I could feel myself losing patience, but I was determined to remain calm. I couldn¡¯t use this situation to my advantage if I lost my temper now. ¡°Sal was talking about talking to the other bosses, namely Vito because he thinks Vito is weak. Sal wants power. He wants to take over other areas of the city. He¡¯s greedy in his old age. The people in his part of the city are not happy right now, as he¡¯s been withholding money from them. I¡¯ve heard he¡¯s starting to force more taxes on the businesses in exchange for his protection. If they don¡¯t pay, his guys go rough the owners up. I clenched my jaw, trying to keep my cool. Those were tactics that were prevalent when my father was in charge. The people of the city feared my organization and wanted us gone when my father was in control. I¡¯d spent years reversing that. Why does he now wish to ruin the peace? He¡¯s making more money under me than he ever did under my father. N?velDrama.Org is the owner. It didn¡¯t make sense. ¡°Anything else?¡± I asked. ¡°No, sir. I just want you to know I¡¯m loyal to you, sir. It was never a question,¡± he said, running his fingers over his left eyebrow once again. ¡°That¡¯ll be all then.¡± He quickly got up to leave. Viktor opened the door to escort him out. Once he was out of sight, I stood and paced my office. Viktor would return with Ivan once Niko was out of the building. I was furious and on the verge of losing my temper. I mmed my fist on my desk just as Viktor and Ivan walked into my office. ¡°It went that well?¡± Ivan asked as he took a seat. Viktor smirked and took a seat beside Ivan. ¡°That son of a bi tch Salvadori is trying to take over the city. Niko supports him. I need to meet with the other bosses to find out where their loyalties lie. I want you two to send guys to Sal¡¯s part of the city. He¡¯s been strong-arming his businesses. Find out how the people feel about this change. We might be able to use the people against him. I need guys that I trust in there to find as much information as I can.¡± I was still pacing my office. ¡°Viktor, I need you to set up meetings with the other bosses.¡± ¡°Yes, sir. Do you still want tomorrow mostly clear?¡± he asked. I had nned on surprising Sephie tomorrow and I wasn¡¯t going to change those ns unless absolutely necessary. ¡°Of course. She¡¯s the only thing keeping me from ordering their deaths right now.¡± Both chuckled. Ivan asked, ¡°why does he want to take over the city? Is he not making enough money? What¡¯s the end goal? It doesn¡¯t make sense.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet. I suspect it has to do with his brother Lorenzo and my father, but I don¡¯t know. I agree that it doesn¡¯t make sense. He¡¯s made more money under me than he ever did under my father. Up until a few days ago, I barely taxed him. Both Andy and Niko said he¡¯s gotten greedy, but there must be a reason for it.¡± Ivan tapped the side of his nose. ¡°Is he sampling his product?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have been surprised if Anthony was. Is. But I don¡¯t know about Salvadori. Seems out of character, but four days ago I would¡¯ve said him trying to take over the city was out of character as well.¡± 2/3 We all sat in silence for a few minutes, contemting what to do next. ¡°Let¡¯s see what the other bosses have to say before we make a n.¡± ¡°Agreed,¡± they both said. I looked at my watch. I didn¡¯t have another meeting for two hours. I decided to hit the gym and beat the s hit out of a punching bag for a while to clear my head. Chapter 50 Chapter 50 Chapter Fifty Adrik The rest of the day went by quickly. Before I left for the evening, I stopped by to see both Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner and make sure they were both settling into their new amodations. I made arrangements for Sephie¡¯s surprise the following day. They were eager to see her again and I found myself once again anxiously anticipating her reaction. Everything was ready. We dr ove to the house. The vehicle had barely stopped, and I was already opening the door to get out. I couldn¡¯t wait to see her, to hold her, to kiss her. The house was quiet when I walked in. I walked toward the kitchen. Tori was working on dinner. She looked up and saw me and just pointed to the back of the house. I quickly walked through the back room and out to the patio. I spotted her and Misha walking back from the gardens. She was carrying a handful of flowers that she¡¯d cut, listening intently to what Misha was telling her. She smiled big at something he said, and my heart stopped. Her smile made me forget everything from earlier in the day. They got almost to the pool before she spotted me. As soon as she did, her face lit up again and she smiled even bigger at me. ¡°Did you bring me flowers, solnishko?¡± I asked, smirking. ¡°I did. I thought the house could use some color,¡± she said as she inhaled the floral scent. ¡°And some fragrance. You boys st ink.¡± She winked at me. From behind her, Misha said, ¡°I heard that!¡±. Sheughed, turning to him, and asking him to take the flowers inside for her. Then she turned back to me and slowly wrapped her arms around my waist, pulling me closer to her. ¡°Hi.¡± I kissed her forehead. ¡°Hi,¡± I said, wrapping my arms around her, inhaling her scent as she leaned against me. All the tension started to leave my body as soon as I felt her touch. ¡°You had a rough day, huh?¡± she asked, looking up at me. I gazed into her eyes for a moment, admiring every little detail of her face and brushing a curl from her face. I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers, needing her to help me rx even more. Without aN?velDrama.Org is the owner. word, she stood on her toes, her arms wrapping around the back of my neck. She pressed her body even closer to mine and kissed me passionately. My mind returning to the night before and what she looked and felt like beneath me. I felt myself starting to get fully aroused and stopped the kiss. Before I could say anything, she caressed the side of my face. ¡°Wanna tell me about it while you change, or you don¡¯t want to talk about it right now?¡± ¡°I could think of a better option,¡± I said as I pressed my hips into hers. ¡°How much time do we have before dinner? Wait. Doesn¡¯t matter. I have an idea,¡± she said as she pulled me toward the house quickly. She practically ran up the back stairs, pulling me along with her. Once we were in the bedroom, she made quick work of my shirt, throwing it on the floor. Her hands worked feverishly on my belt and pants. I stepped out of my shoes so I could take my pants off just as she dropped to her knees in front of me. ¡°Whoa, Sephie are you sure?¡± I asked as she was pulling off my boxer briefs, freeing my hard co ck. She looked up at me, slightly confused. Instead of answering, she just looked at me as she grabbed my co ck in one hand, licking the tip of it. I suc ked in a breath. I felt her hot breath as she opened her mou th and slowly took my co ck in her mou th. I moaned as she started moving up and down, working her tongue along the shaft. My hands went to her hair as she increased the rhythm. I was so turned on by her that I knew I wasn¡¯t going to last long. She started to use one of her hands along with her mou th and I felt myself getting close. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re going to make me cum.¡± I could feel the vibration of her moan on my co ck. ¡°Fu ck, Sephie. You¡¯re a goddess.¡± I inched closer and closer as her lips were tight around me, her tongue slowly working up and down my entire length. Her other hand grabbed my hip to steady herself. I warned her right before I exploded in her mou th. She stilled until I stopped twitching, then stood up, wiping the tiniest bit of cum from the corner of her mou th. I stood, almost frozen. Completely stunned at what had just happened. I could count on one hand how many times a woman has offered to do that for me. ¡°You should try breathing,¡± she whispered in my ear as she kissed my cheek. I exhaled, still not knowing what to say. She walked to the bed and sat on the edge. She looked at me with a somewhat worried expression. ¡°Are you okay? Did I break you?¡± I opened my mou th to say something and stopped, still not sure what to say. I walked to my closet to grab a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. When I walked out, she looked more worried. ¡°Should I not have done that?¡± I walked to her, pulling her to her feet in front of me. I kissed her neck, biting gently the way I knew she liked. ¡°Please do that anytime the desire arises.¡± She pushed me away, but she was smiling. ¡°You scared me! I thought I did something wrong!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was stunned. I¡­I haven¡¯t had a woman ever do that for me¡­like that,¡± I said, running my hand through my hair. I looked down at the floor. I could feel myself blushing. I felt her hands on my chest, slide up to my chin, making me look at her. ¡°I¡¯ve never done that for a man before, so it¡¯s a first for both of us.¡± She smiled as she kissed me sweetly. ¡°You¡¯re amazing. I can¡¯t get enough of you.¡± ¡°I hope you never do.¡± ¡°Come. Let¡¯s eat. You¡¯re going to need all your strengthter,¡± I said leading her from the bedroom. Chapter 51 Chapter 51 Chapter Fifty-One Sephie I felt Adrik stir next to me. I groaned a little as I didn¡¯t want it to be morning yet. He made sure that I would have a hard time walking today. He was insatiablest night. I loved every minute of it, but I was paying for it now. My body did things and felt things that I didn¡¯t know was possible. I felt his warm hands on my body, leaning into his touch. ¡°Good morning, my love,¡± he said as he kissed my shoulder. [hid my face in the pillow, not wanting to open my eyes yet. I felt his breath on my shoulder as heughed. ¡°You must get up today, solnishko. Your surprise is ready.¡± I picked my head up and looked at him. ¡°Where is it? Can you bring it to me? I don¡¯t think I can walk today. I think you broke me.¡± Heughed as he ran his hands over my body. He rolled me onto my back, and I felt him above me, leaving kisses down my neck and chest. ¡°If I agree to carry you everywhere, does that mean I can have you again this morning?¡± He ran his hands over my breasts down my stomach to my hip. He pulled one leg up and over his hips as he leaned down and kissed my lips. ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡± I said. I felt him lower himself as he pressed his hips to mine. I could feel his hard coc k pressing against my slit. I tried to hold it in, but I moaned quietly. That was all the encouragement he needed. I gasped as he slid inside me, still needing a moment to adjust to his size. He stilled and kissed me. As soon as I rxed, he started moving, slowly, gently at first. He kept the pace slow, but started to increase the intensity of his thrusts. It was exactly the thing that would make me have an o*gasm every single time. I was close to the edge almost right away. It was like he knew exactly what to do every time to make me o*gasm, like he was reading my mind. My breaths quickened as he slowly increased the rhythm. Wrapping my legs tighter around him, I threw my head back against the bed, not able to contain my loud moans as he drilled into me, sending me over the edge. My hips met his with each thrust, pushing him deeper inside me. I grabbed onto him as I felt my o*gasm explode, causing him to release as well, both of us breathing hard, unable to move. He was the first to move. He kissed my lips, then got up from the bed. ¡°Wait here,¡± he said as he walked to the bathroom. I heard him turn the shower on. I wasn¡¯t sure why he felt the need to tell me to stay. No way was I moving voluntarily right now. I closed my eyes, still riding the high of morning se x. I felt his arms underneath me as he picked me up and carried me to the bathroom. He walked me into the shower and gently set me down under the warm water. ¡°This will help your sore muscles,¡± he said as he grabbed the soap and started to wash me. I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch. I loved the way his hands felt on my body. He gently guided me to the water so he could rinse me and get my hair wet. I felt him massage the shampoo into my hair, taking extra care to massage my scalp before rinsing it and doing the same with the conditioner. He quickly washed himself, then wrapped me in a towel. He picked me up again and carried me to the closet so I could get dressed. The warm shower did help loosen me up. I might be able to walk today, after all. He carried me downstairs to breakfast. The smell of bacon making my stomach growl as we were coming down the stairs. ¡°Somebody worked up an appetite,¡± he said, with his s**y smirk. I hid my face against his shoulder. There was only Tori and Andrei in the kitchen when we walked in. It was still early. Adrik put me down on one of the chairs at the bar to the ind. Andrei smiled when he saw me, ¡°good morning, spider monkey.¡± ¡°Morning, Bubba,¡± I said smiling back. I caught Tori frown out of the corner of my eye. She turned her back and I gave Andrei a serious look, pointing to Tori. He rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders. Adrik saw our exchange and said something to Andrei in Russian. Andrei replied and they both nodded. Adrik winked at me, with a devilish grin. Viktor walked into the kitchen, still looking half asleep. He walked to me and hugged me, sitting down next to me. ¡°Good morning, sestrichka.¡± ¡°Viktor, you look like s hit, buddy. Did you not sleepst night?¡± He shook his head no. ¡°Coffee. I need coffee.¡± I went to stand up to get him some coffee, but Adrik put his hand on my shoulder. He whispered in my ear, ¡°we made a deal, remember?¡± as he walked to get Viktor a cup of coffee. I felt my cheeks blush. As he was getting coffee for Viktor, the other three guys showed up, looking only slightly more rested than Viktor. ¡°Are you guys having a party down here at night? Did you not invite me? Rude,¡± I said, crossing my arms across my chest. Ivan grumbled. Viktor said, ¡°is Misha¡¯s fault. He¡¯s never seen The Evil Dead trilogy, so we stayed up to watch them allst night.¡± ¡°Worth it.¡± Iughed at them, as Misha nodded and winked at me. After morning workouts werepleted and everyone had freshly showered, Adrik asked Viktor to get the vehicles ready to leave. ¡°Who¡¯s the lucky guy that gets to stay with me today?¡± I asked, walking to his side. He smiled down at me. ¡°You¡¯reing too,¡± he said, pulling me to him. ¡°I am? Really??¡± I started to get slightly excited about being able to leave the house after almost a week stuck there. ¡°Your surprise is waiting. It can¡¯te to you; you must go to it.¡± He kissed my forehead just as Viktor and Stephen were pulling up in front of the house. He took my hand and led me to the SUV that Viktor was driving, opening the back door for me. I hopped in and slid over so that he could get in beside me. Ivan got in the front seat, while Andrei and Misha got in the vehicle with Stephen. ¡°Where are we going?¡± I asked. Adrik¡¯s arm around me, pulling me closer to him. ¡°That would ruin the surprise, my love. You will see,¡± he said as both vehicles pulled away from the house.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 52 Chapter 52 Chapter Fifty-Two Sephie We dr ove away from the house and closer to the heart of the city. This area of downtown wasn¡¯t too far from the restaurant worked at, but I didn¡¯t have much reason toe here I would sometimes run through downtown when I was waiting for Grant to pass out. The buildings got taller and the people more numerous on the sidewalks. We passed by a small caf¨¦, with a giant sign above it that read ¡°Vinny¡¯s ¡°Hey, is that the best sandwich shop ever?¡± I asked as we dr ove by. ¡°The one and only,¡± Viktor said from the front seat. A few blockster and we were pulling into an underground parking garage. I was trying to pay attention to where we were, but honestly, I had no clue. There was so much to look at, it was hard to keep track of everything. We parked, the other vehicle parked next to us. Everyone headed toward the elevators. There were three to choose from. We took the one that was by itself, away from the other two. In the parking garage and in the elevator, the guys essentially surrounded us. Two in front, three in back, all times. Adrik had his arm around me, so I just walked with him, but it felt like we were moving as a unit and not seven separate people. During the elevator ride up, I noticed that all the guys had smirks on their faces. Like they were all privy to a joke that I hadn¡¯t heard yet. It made me wonder what wasing once those elevator doors opened. We stopped at the next to top floor and everyone got off the elevator, except me and Adrik. ¡°Give us a call when you¡¯re ready,¡± Viktor said as they all exited the elevator. I looked at Adrik,pletely confused. He just pulled me closer as the elevator doors closed. ¡°One more floor and you¡¯ll see,¡± he said. As the elevator doors opened, we were met with two guards, who both nodded at Adrik. We walked down a short hallway to another door. As he opened the door, he smiled at me, and motioned for me to walk through the door. When I walked through the door, I could see that we were in a penthouse. There was a very spacious, very open floor n, with incredible views of the city in every direction. I stood in one spot, just taking in the views, as well as theyout of the penthouse. My eye caught a familiar picture frame next to one of the couches. I walked to it, picking up one of the few pictures I had of my mother and me. I felt tears threatening to fall as I turned to Adrik. ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°This is where you will live now, assuming you want to, of course. You¡¯ll be closer to your friends, and I can see you throughout the day here too.¡± ¡°You live here?¡± I said, still astonished. ¡°Da. This is where I spend most of my time. This is my building. The lower floors are offices and apartments. The top three floors are restricted to only my people. You¡¯ll be safe here. I had the guys pick up the rest of your stuff from your apartment and bring it here. Please don¡¯t be mad, but I left your sh itty furniture,¡± he said, running his hand through his hair. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you would not want my very expensive thrift store furniture in this ce.¡± I said, still trying to choke back tears, but trying to smile through it. He walked to my side, wrapping his arm around me. ¡°You can leave whenever you want, just please take at least one of the guys with you when you go. We still don¡¯t think going back to work is a good idea, but you can at least see your Friends again. I wish you could walk freely once again, but I still don¡¯t trust this situation. There¡¯s more to it that we don¡¯t know yet. I would d ie if something were to happen to you,¡± he said, kissing my temple and holding me close. I stared at the picture in my hands, not sure what to say, still fighting tears. I was so happy that I could be closer to Max, and I would be able to see Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner again, even if it meant I had to take one of the guys with me. Ms. Jackson would be happy about that. I was so touched that he thought things through enough that he had the guys get my stuff from my apartment. I didn¡¯t have much, but a few things were very valuable, if only to me. I looked up at him, tears still welling up in my eyes. ¡°Please tell me those are happy tears?¡± he asked, his face showing his nervousness at my reaction. I put the picture down and wrapped my arms around him, burying my face in his chest. I just nodded my head as I fought back the tears. After I gained control, I looked up at him, a few tears still in my eyes. ¡°Thank you. Thank you so much.¡± He wiped thest few tears from my eyes and kissed my lips gently. ¡°I will give you the world, solnishko.¡± As I stood looking at him, looking down at me with nothing but love and adoration in his eyes, I realized that I loved this man. I was hopelessly falling in love with him. I never wanted to go another day without him. ¡°Come. You haven¡¯t seen everything yet,¡± he said, pulling me with him to show me the rest of the penthouse. I couldn¡¯t get over the views of the city as we walked through the penthouse. ¡°This must be beautiful at night,¡± I said, staring out the windows as he pulled me through the penthouse. ¡°I can¡¯t wait for you to see it tonight,¡± he said. He proceeded to show me everything the penthouse had to offer, stopping at his bedroom. When he showed me the closet, he motioned for me to walk inside. When I walked in, all my clothes from my apartment were hanging in one section of the closet, with space for more. ¡°You did this?¡± I said, smiling at him. ¡°Well, not me technically, but I told someone to do it,¡± he said, sheepishly. I walked to him. I ced my hands on his chest, as his arms circled my waist. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. ¡°Thank you for keeping me safe and for thinking of the little things that I missed from my life. Thank you for allowing me in your life. Thank you for trusting me enough that first night to tell me your name.¡± He had a zy smile on his face as he looked at me. ¡°So, you¡¯re happy with it?¡± ¡°Very.¡± ¡°Good. Because it¡¯s not over yet. There¡¯s more to the surpriseter.¡± ¡°More? What else could there possibly be?¡± Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. He grinned at me. ¡°You¡¯ll see. Now, do you want to see the two floors underneath this one?¡± ¡°I want to see everything you want to show me.¡± Chapter 53 Chapter 53 Chapter Fifty-Three Sephie We explored the next two floors below his penthouse. There was, of course, a full gym here too. Walking through the gym, I asked, ¡°where¡¯s the basketball court in this one?¡± Heughed. ¡°No basketball court here. Only at the house.¡± ¡°How do you guys manage. Like seriously. Take me back to the house. I can¡¯t live under these conditions.¡± It was so hard to get that out with a straight face, but I managed. He turned to me, worried that I was serious. Just the look of worry on his face made me lose it. I startedughing. He pushed me gently. ¡°You worried me!¡± We finished the official tour around lunchtime. On his private elevator back up to his penthouse, he asked ¡°now, would you like to go somewhere for lunch?¡± ¡°Like actually go somewhere? We can do that?¡± ¡°We can do whatever we please, solnishko. What would you like?¡± My mind immediately went to Vinny¡¯s and their life-changing sandwiches. ¡°Can we go to Vinny¡¯s so I can actually thank them in person for changing my life with their sandwiches?¡± Heughed. ¡°Of course. The guys will be so happy. They can¡¯t get enough of that ce,¡± he said as he pulled me to him. He kissed me, saying, ¡°and I can¡¯t get enough of you,¡± against my lips. I rested my head against his chest, inhaling his scent. My arms hugged him tighter as I was thinking about how lucky I was. Our trip to Vinny¡¯s was not what I would consider normal, but they all acted like it was nothing. I was going to have to get used to having six men surrounding me in public, apparently. Most people were somewhat used to seeing Adrik with his guards, but the addition of me was clearly noteworthy, judging by the number of looks we got walking around. We left through the lobby, as they had pulled the vehicles out in front of the building, and we couldn¡¯t even get through the lobby without everyone stopping and staring. I was starting to feel very self-conscious as we got in the SUV. Ivan turned from the driver¡¯s seat, grinning at me, ¡°you just sessfully smashed all the rumors that he¡¯s g ay. He hasn¡¯t been seen in public with a woman in a few years.¡± He winked at me. ¡°I feel like I should¡¯ve given them a show,¡± I said, rolling my eyes. The caf¨¦ was much better. It was small, without too many people inside, so we had a good time during lunch. We wereughing and joking, as usual. Vinny arrived as we were leaving. He stopped to address Adrik. ¡°Good day, sir. I¡¯m pleased you¡¯vee today. And with such a gorgeous woman, too!¡± he said as he looked at me. I smiled at him. ¡°You must be Vinny?¡± ¡°Si, be.¡± ¡°You are single-handedly responsible for making me have to workout more, but my stomach is so grateful for it,¡± I said, offering my hand to him. ¡°Hey, we¡¯re Italian. We can¡¯t help but feed everyone,¡± he said pulling me into a hug instead of shaking my hand. I was surprised by it, but I felt Adrik¡¯s hand on my lower back. ¡°Youe back often, be. Good marketing to see a beautiful woman eating at my shop,¡± he said winking at me and giving Adrik the thumbs up. Viktor, with his serious, deep voice, said, ¡°careful what you wish for, Vinny. This girl eats as much as we do.¡± ¡°Ah, she¡¯s wee. You¡¯re all wee here as much as you like. I¡¯m so grateful to you, sir,¡± he said, shaking Adrik¡¯s hand. Adrik and I spent the next few hours by ourselves in the penthouse. In short, it was glorious to spend time with him during the day. We talked, weughed, we acted like two people falling in love with each other. At precisely 5:00, he stood up from the couch and extended his hand to me. ¡°Come, time for the next part of your surprise.¡± He led me to the elevator and pushed the button for the 5th floor. ¡°Where are we going?¡± I asked. He smiled down at me, ¡°you¡¯ll see.¡± When the elevator doors opened, he pulled me down the hallway, made one right turn and stood in front of an apartment door. ¡°Knock,¡± he said. I knocked on the door, only to have Mr. Turner answer the door. ¡°Mr. Turner!¡± I yelled, throwing my arms around his neck. ¡°Miss Sephie! I¡¯m so happy to see you again!¡± he said, as he hugged me back. ¡°How? Why? You live here now?¡± I asked, confused. I hadn¡¯t noticed that Adrik had stepped across the hallway and knocked on the door across the hall from Mr. Turner¡¯s. ¡°He lives here now and so do I,¡± I heard a familiar voice from behind me say. I turned to find Ms. Jackson standing in her doorway. I rushed to her and gave her a hug as well. ¡°Oh, Ms. Jackson! I¡¯m so happy to see you!¡± I could feel the happy tears welling in my eyes at getting to see them both again, knowing they were both okay. ¡°Well,e in, child. Let me show you around,¡± Ms. Jackson said, grabbing my hand in hers. She looked at Adrik and Mr. Turner. ¡°You two might as welle too. It¡¯ll be an open house.¡± ¡°But how though?¡± I asked Ms. Jackson quietly as we walked through her apartment. Mr. Turner and Adrik chose to remain in her front room as she showed me the rest of her ce. ¡°Do you believe me now that that man is in love with you?¡± she asked. ¡°He did this?¡± She nodded her head. ¡°He came to both of us, told us that you missed us, and asked if we would move here to be closer to you. He wants nothing more than for you to be happy, sweet girl.¡± I stood still for a moment, inplete disbelief. ¡°I can¡¯t believe he did this for me.¡± ¡°Do you believe me now, child? He¡¯ll give you the moon if you want it. That boy is in deep.¡± I stared at her, knowing she was right, but still not able to quite believe it. She reached for my hand and patted it with her other hand. ¡°You¡¯re starting to believe it, but you¡¯re also starting to feel the same for him, aren¡¯t you?¡± N?velDrama.Org is the owner. I nodded my head. ¡°How could I not?¡± ¡°Smart girl. You offer him something that he¡¯s never had before. He¡¯ll d ie to protect it. To protect you. I was worried about you when you first left. I thought you¡¯d gotten in over your head, but I couldn¡¯te up with a better solution. When he came to talk to me abouting here, I knew I was worrying about nothing.¡± She paused for a moment. ¡°Does he know?¡± I knew what she was asking. ¡°I told him. He¡¯s seen the scars. I even told him you stitched me up and everything you did for me. Ms. Jackson, he never looked at me differently. Not once.¡± ¡°Do you believe me now, child?¡± she asked, a small smile on her face. I smiled at her, realizing she was helping me piece together everything. I hugged her. ¡°I missed you.¡± She hugged me back, ¡°and I you, child.¡± Chapter 54 Chapter 54 Copyright ? 2023 Noveljk. All Rights Reserved Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Disimer: This site Noveljk does not store any files on its server. All contents are provided by non-affiliated third parties. Chapter 55 Chapter 55 Chapter Fifty-Four Sephie We walked back to the front of the apartment to find Adrik listening to Mr. Turner tell stories from his time at the hotel. Adrik probably knew most of the people Mr. Turner was talking about. I walked to Adrik. He opened his arm for me as I walked up. I stepped next to him, wrapping my arm around his waist as we stood listening to Mr. Turner¡¯s story. After he finished, Mr. Turner looked at me, smiling. ¡°Miss Sephie, I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll be needing my services any longer.¡± Iughed, forgetting that I used to ask Mr. Turner to find me the perfect man while he was at work. Adrik looked between me and Mr. Turner, a confused look on his face. ¡°I used to ask Mr. Turner to please find me the perfect man while he was at work.¡± Adrik¡¯s face softened, as he kissed my forehead. ¡°Turns out I found him while I was at work,¡± I said, hugging him a little tighter. He looked at me, slightly surprised, but quickly masked it. We spent more time talking to both Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner. It was starting to gette, for them, so we took our leave and went back upstairs. In the elevator, his phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out, looking at it. ¡°The guys are ordering Chinese. Sound good?¡± ¡°Yes please!¡± Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. He responded to the text, putting his phone back in his pocket. He looked at me, like he was thinking about something. Finally, he said, ¡°the perfect man? Really?¡± Then he added, ¡°I¡¯m far from perfect, solnishko. I don¡¯t want to disappoint you, but I¡¯ve not been a good man for most of my life.¡± He looked down at the floor. ¡°You¡¯re perfect for me, Adrik. You¡¯re good to me. You¡¯re good to the people that matter to me. I know who you are. I knew when you walked into the restaurant that night, but when I look at you, I see the good in you.¡± He looked at me, pulling me to him. ¡°You say I¡¯ve brought light into your life, and maybe that¡¯s true, I don¡¯t know. But you¡¯ve made me less afraid of the dark and what¡¯s found there.¡± His lips crashed into mine. He reached over and stopped the elevator, pulling me tightly against him. His kiss was unrelenting, like he was desperate for me. Just when I thought I was going to pass out fromck of oxygen, he stopped with his lips still close to mine, his breathing heavy. His eyes were closed, like he was trying to gain control of himself. I ced my hands on either side of his face, kissing him gently once more. Without a word, he reached over and started the elevator again. He pulled me back to him, his thumbs tracing circles on my back as he held me close. I rested my head against his chest. We rode the rest of the way to his penthouse in silence, him holding me close. The next day went by fast, as I had more to do during the day to keep myself busy. I spent time with Ms. Jackson, along with Andrei, much to her amusement. I also got to spend time with Adrik in the middle of the day when he had a break in his schedule. I could get used to this kind of day. When he was done for the day, he asked ¡°would you like to go see your friend Max tonight? Is he working? We can go to the restaurant.¡± ¡°Really? You would go there with me?¡± ¡°Of course. You haven¡¯t seen him in a week. You should go to see him.¡± ¡°Oh, thank you! He¡¯s going to be so surprised!¡± I said, hugging his neck. We walked into the restaurant, with Viktor and Andrei in front, Adrik and I in the middle, and Ivan, Misha, and Stephen bringing up the rear. Max looked up from the bar when Viktor and Andrei stepped inside the door, vaguely recognizing them, but not seeing me behind them yet. When Adrik and I stepped forward, Max saw me and literally jumped over the bar to run to me. Out of habit, all five bodyguards stepped closer, essentially boxing us in, using their bodies as shields. I laughed and tapped Viktor on the shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s Max. He won¡¯t hurt me.¡± ¡°Sorry, sestrichka. Habit,¡± he said, stepping aside. I stretched up and kissed his cheek. ¡°No need to be sorry. Thank you for being so da mn good at your job,¡± said as I stepped around him to get to Max. He hugged me tight, eximing, ¡°I missed you SO much!¡± Once he released me, Adrik caught my arm, whispering in my ear. ¡°We¡¯ll be right over here. Go, catch up.¡± They all turned to sit at a table close to the door, where they could clearly see the bar and the front door. I walked with Max back to the bar, so he could get back to work. I got plenty of looks from his fan club as we came back. They had all witnessed Max jumping over the bar to get to me. He pulled me behind the bar, so he could talk to me as he kept working. ¡°Where have you been, gingersnap?¡± ¡°Um, somewhere safe. I¡¯m not far from here now, though, so we can hang out again.¡± He turned his back to the customers at the bar, so they wouldn¡¯t hear him. ¡°Are you okay? Like for real? They didn¡¯t kidnap you or anything?¡± Iughed. ¡°I mean, it depends on your definition of kidnap, I guess. I¡¯m fine, Maximus. More than fine. I¡¯m great.¡± He looked at me, skeptically at first, but he could see the happiness on my face, so he rxed. ¡°Okay, well give me the safe word at any point if you need to.¡± ¡°Max, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll be saying ¡®Saskatchewan¡¯ anytime soon.¡± ¡°You just said it! You¡¯re in trouble, I knew it!!¡± Iughed, pushing him away from me. As he went back to making drinks, I stepped beside him, leaning into his shoulder. ¡°I missed you, Max.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of my face, isn¡¯t it?¡± He mmed an ice cube into a ss. ¡°Da mmit, these devastatingly good looks are a curse!¡± Chapter 56 Chapter 56 Chapter Fifty-Six Misha Three Martha Later ¡°Are we taking the usual route, boss?¡± I asked Sephie as we both stretched for our morning run. Since I¡¯d been running with her regrly now, I was able to keep up with her better. She was still faster than I was. I did make the mistake of testing that out a few weeks ago and I still regret it. I¡¯m not sure my ego will ever recover. ¡°I think so. I like being able to see Mr. Turner at work on the way back here.¡± ¡°You got it. You¡¯re sure you don¡¯t want to eat something before we go?¡± I asked. She had been doing fasted cardio in the morning, trying to lose a few pounds. I didn¡¯t see where those pounds were that she needed to lose, but I knew better than to argue with a woman over these matters. ¡°I¡¯m sure. It¡¯s not as bad as it sounds. And there¡¯s that da mn p, ball, extravaganza thinging up in a few weeks. I have to like wear a dress for that and I ha te wearing dresses and being in public. Everyone stares. I¡¯ll be da mned if they can say I¡¯m f at while they¡¯re all staring at me.¡± Iughed, shaking my head. I always found it funny that men were constantly trying to be bigger while women were constantly trying to be smaller. ¡°You will look great, gazelle. And just think about all the sandwiches from Vinny¡¯s that you¡¯ll be able to eat after it¡¯s over.¡± ¡¤ ¡°Someone should warn that poor man. He¡¯s going to go hanaupt feeding me after that event,¡± she said, a very serious look on her face. She could definitely pack the food away, esperally for a girl. It was one of the things we all loved about her. She was always down for a food run whenever we got to stay with her. She always worked out with us, too. She was practically one of us. We finished stretching and set out on our usual route. Over the past couple of months, we¡¯d all settled into somewhat of a routine. It was so much easier with her at the penthouse, We didn¡¯t have to fightN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. over who got to stay with her. We would take turns throughout the day and we each had found unique things that we did with her. I would run with het. Andrei was basically her trainer now, ?van was teaching her how to drive defensively, Viktor was teaching her how to defend herself, and Stephen was teaching her how to sh oot. She took an interest in each of us as an individual and his point, she likely knew more about each of us than Adrik did, even though we¡¯d been with him much longer. We all had demons from the past and in her own way, she was helping us deal with that. She was always there to make everything mate fun. Woman¡¯s touch, I suppose. She was different from any woman any of us had known before. We all loved her and loved being around her. She woulde hang out with us if Adrik had ate meeting or needed to workte. As we ran, I was silently grateful we were back at the penthouse and not at the house. She always wanted to take the kong way around theke when we were at the house, and I would suffer every time. The route we took through the city wasn¡¯t nearly as inng I still had some improvements to work on before I could easily keep up with her on the long Funs neated thest leg of our route, the hotel that Mr. Turner worked ating into view as we ran down the street Only a few more blocks to go now. We passed by the hotel, stopping briefly to say ¡°good morning¡± to Mr. Turner. As we left the hotel and continued on our way, I got a bad feeling. I made sure to keep an eye on Sephie beside me, while trying to weave in and out of pedestrian traffic. There were suddenly a lot of people on the sidewalks. I was just about to stop her so I could keep her closer to me when I felt someone try to tackle me from my left side. Just as I was pushed to the side, I heard her scream behind me. S hit. They¡¯re going to try and grab her. The man that tackled me was still trying to get me to the ground but couldn¡¯t. He still had his arms around mine. I still had full use of my legs and I was taller than him, so I was using that to my advantage. He had pushed me closer to the buildings, so I turned and shoved him into the building as hard as I could. The shock of the impact made him loosen his grip enough that I could get my arms free. I elbowed him in the face, causing him to stumble. I looked to find Sephie. She was fighting with her attacker. The guy that had tackled me wasing back for more. He looked like he wasn¡¯t completely with it, somehow. His eyes were having trouble focusing. I punched him in the face as hard as I could. His body immediately going limp and falling to the ground. I ran to Sephie, who had her attacker on the ground. She was straddling him, just letting her fists fly in this guy¡¯s face. I could tell she was pi ssed. I¡¯d sparred with her a few times. If you pushed her to the point of anger, you better be ready for a fight. Clearly this guy was not prepared. I caught her arm and pulled her off him. He was unconscious. He wasn¡¯t going anywhere. I stood her up and looked her over. While my attacker couldn¡¯t get me to the ground, hers took her down immediately. She had road rash down one side and she had clearly hit her head. She was bleeding from a cut above her eyebrow. Adrik was going to be so pi ssed at me. ¡°Sephie, look at me. How bad are you hurt?¡± I asked, holding both of her shoulders. She didn¡¯t answer. She just kept staring at the guy on the sidewalk as she was trying to catch her breath. Mr. Turner, who had seen everything, ran to us. ¡°Are you guys okay? Do you want me to call an ambnce?¡± ¡°No, Mr. Turner. I¡¯m calling my people. We¡¯ll take care of it. But thank you.¡± I turned to look at Sephie, who was still hurt?¡± breathing hard, her face red, still pi ssed. ¡°Gazelle? Talk to me. How bad are you She finally looked at me and I could see the switch flip in her head. ¡°I¡¯m okay. My head hurts, but I¡¯m okay.¡± I exhaled, taking my phone from my pocket. I had Viktor on speed dial. He answered on the first ring. He knew we were out and the only reason I would be calling was not a good one. Chapter 57 Chapter 57 Chapter Fifty-Seven Misha ¡°My location. Get here now. Bring everyone.¡± I hung up the phone, slipping it back in my pocket. I still had one hand on Sephie, trying to make sure she stayed with me. I was concerned about her hitting her head. I didn¡¯t want her to pass out. I knew the adrenaline rush was eventually going to wear off and didn¡¯t want her to crashpletely. The guys were there within minutes. The two men who attacked us had their hands bound behind their backs and were thrown in the back of an SUV. Viktor talked to Mr. Turner, as he had seen everything happen. A few passersby had stopped to help and gave their version of events. We loaded up and dr ove back to the penthouse. On the way to the elevator, Sephie started to stumble. She grabbed Ivan¡¯s arm as she was going down. He caught her and carried her straight back to the SUV, taking her to the hospital right away. I jumped in the back with her. I felt responsible for her since this had happened on my watch. I cradled her head on myp, monitoring her breathing on our short ride to the hospital. Ivan made it in record time, pulling up to the ER. I got out, pulling her out and running inside with her. I was starting to get worried that she hadn¡¯t woken up by now. Anytime one of us had passed out from a bl ow to the head, we usually woke up a few minutester. It had already been 8 minutes and she was still out. I found a doctor right away who directed me into a room. It probably helped our case that she was covered with blood. Iid her on a bed in the middle of the room. The doctor began checking her over, asking me what happened. I exined about the attack and that she had passed out after. ¡°She¡¯s probably got a major concussion, but we¡¯re going to run some tests to make sure there¡¯s not more going on in there. She¡¯s got a pretty good cut above her eye. She hit her head hard,¡± the doctor said, checking the rest of her. Ivan. walked into the room, looking more worried than I¡¯d ever seen him. He spoke to me in Russian, so no one else could understand us. ¡°What the fu ck happened?¡± ¡°It was a setup. It had to be. Suddenly, there were a ton of people on the sidewalk, just past the hotel. I was just about to stop her so I could keep a closer eye on her when I got tackled from behind. But they went for her at the exact same time. They had to have been waiting for us to pass. The extra people were cover for them.¡± ¡°Fu ck. It¡¯s been so quiet we gotcent. I was afraid something like this was going to happen. Boss is going to be pi ssed.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t remind me,¡± I said, running my hand through my hair. I realized I had Sephie¡¯s blood on my hand, but I didn¡¯t care. ¡°He¡¯s going to fire me. I know it. I had a bad feeling just as we left the hotel too. I knew something was about to happen.¡± ¡°You did good, kid. Don¡¯t worry about Boss. He¡¯ll surprise you. Just as long as the princess doesn¡¯t d ie.¡± It was like she understood him, because just as Ivan said that Sephie started to wake up. The doctor had stepped out to order her tests. I rushed to her, grabbing her hand. ¡°Sephie! Can you hear me?¡± She lightly squeezed my hand. ¡°Why is it so fuc king bright in here?¡± Iughed. I couldn¡¯t help it. I was so relieved. ¡°Gazelle. You passed out. You¡¯re in the hospital.¡± ¡°Makes more sense than the parking garage smelling like antiseptic,¡± she said trying to cover her eyes with her arm. ¡°Why does my head feel like it¡¯s being split open?* I looked to Ivan, slightly worried. He walked to her side. ¡°Princess, do you remember what happened?¡± He gently put a hand on her stomach. ¡°Um, mostly. Did I punch a guy?¡± We bothughed. ¡°Yes, Sephie. Yes, you did. Multiple times, even,¡± I said. ¡°He might need facial reconstructive surgery you punched him so many times,¡± Ivan said, patting her stomach. ¡°Goddammit why am I so hungry?¡± she asked. Iughed again. ¡°I told you that you should¡¯ve eaten something before we went for a run.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t I listen to you?¡± she groaned. I patted her hand. ¡°I don¡¯t know, gazelle. They want to do more tests on you, but then we will get you food as soon as possible.¡± Ivan heard amotion outside the room we were in. He looked at me before stepping out of the room to see what was happening. He disappeared for a moment, leaving me with Sephie. He returned with Viktor, Andrei, and Adrik. As soon as Adrik¡¯s eyesnded on Sephie, he went from being angry to relieved to worried in an instant. He rushed to her. I stepped out of the way so he could grab her hand that I had been holding so she wouldn¡¯t have to uncover her eyes. ¡°Solnishko,¡± he said quietly. ¡°Adrik?¡± she asked quietly, not taking her hand from her eyes. He leaned down to her and whispered something in her ear that only she could hear. It brought a smile to her face. The doctor came back in, somewhat surprised at the number of people in the room. He cleared his throat. ¡°We¡¯d like to take her upstairs to run a quick test to make sure there¡¯s not further damage to her sk ull and her brain.¡± ¡°Is it this fuc king bright up there? Because that¡¯s gonna be a no from me if it is,¡± Sephie said. The doctor was unaware that she had woken up. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re awake. Good. Very good. Although, I still think it¡¯s a good idea to run the tests to make sure. We can, uh, adjust the lights for you. That¡¯s a commonint for head injuries.¡± Adrik looked at the doctor. He could be very intimidating when he wanted to be. The doctor shrunk back, looking from Adrik to the rest of us. Sephie lifted her head and peeked through her hand at the scene in the room, when the room went silent. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about them, doc. They¡¯ll only k ill you if I d ie upstairs.¡± Sheid her head back down. The doctor scratched his head, ¡°okay then. Well, we should get on with it.¡± He started to pull her bed toward the door. A nurse showed up to help him push her toward the elevators down the hall. We all stood in the hallway, waiting for the doctor toe back with any news on her condition. Speaking in Russian, Adrik stood in front of me, ¡°tell me everything that happened.¡± ¡°It was a trap, Boss. We ran our usual route, so she could stop by and say hi to Mr. Turner. After we left the hotel, there was suddenly a ton of people on the sidewalk. I was just about to stop her so I could keep her close to me when I got hit. She got hit at the same time. The guy that hit me was trying to take me down to the ground, but I managed to stay upright. I shoved him into the wall to get him off me. He came back for me, but I punched him and that¡¯s when he passed out. I¡¯m guessing the other guy was able to get Sephie to the ground and that¡¯s where she hit her head. I had to pull her off him. She rearranged that guy¡¯s face. He pi ssed her off, sir. I¡¯ve never seen her so angry. After, she was lucid. She said she was fine until we got back to the parking garage. We were walking to the elevators, and she started to go down. She grabbed Ivan¡¯s arm and he caught her. We rushed her here.¡± He didn¡¯t say a word, which made me nervous. He stared at me for a moment, but then patted me on the shoulder. ¡°You did good, Misha.¡± He turned to pace the hallway and I exhaled loudly. The other three guys looked at me, knowingly; all three nodded to me. I still felt responsible for this. More time passed and the doctor finally came back. We all walked to him quickly, causing him to take a step back and put his hands out. ¡°Whoa, easy fes. She¡¯s fine. She¡¯s going to be fine. She has a really good concussion, but nothing more. They¡¯re stitching the cut above her eyebrow right now and then she¡¯ll be back down. Keep her quiet and in low light for the next two weeks. Try to keep external stimuli to a minimum. That means TV, radio, all of it. Her brain needs time to heal.¡± Adrik visibly rxed at the doctor¡¯s words. He extended his hand to the doctor. ¡°Thank you, doctor.¡± ¡°Thank you for not killing me,¡± the doctor said smiling nervously. ¡°She¡¯ll be down in just a few minutes, and you can take her home.¡± I leaned against the wall, closing my eyes. I was relieved she was okay and could go home. I felt Viktor¡¯s hand on my shoulder. ¡°It could¡¯ve been any one of us, kid. Don¡¯t stress. You did good.¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°It¡¯s still my fault she got hurt. I should¡¯ve stopped her sooner. I could¡¯ve seen iting.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t do that. Don¡¯t y the ¡®what if¡¯ game. You¡¯ll drive yourself crazy ying out alternate scenarios. You did what you needed to do. She did too. They weren¡¯t expecting her to fight back, I¡¯m sure. We just have to be ready for the next time, because there will be a next time.¡± I nodded. I had a feeling this was only the beginning. Sephie came down the hallway, in a wheelchair, her hands still covering her eyes. When the nurse stopped in front of us, she started to get up from the wheelchair. The nurse put her hand on Sephie¡¯s shoulder to stop her from getting up. Without even opening her eyes, she just said, ¡°Ghost?¡± He was there in a second. ¡°Can you take me home, please?¡± she asked as she extended an arm toward him, not opening her eyes. Without hesitation, he reached down and scooped her out of the wheelchair. We all walked toward the door, leaving the nurse with her wheelchair, lookingpletely stunned. Sephie hid her face against Adrik¡¯s shoulder as we walked to the vehicles. He put her in the backseat and removed his shirt before getting in beside her. He draped his shirt over her head to make the ride home darker. I found myself admiring him. He was so attuned to her needs. I¡¯d never seen anything like it. Chapter 58 Chapter 58 Chapter Fifty-Eight Sephie The ride back from the hospital was somewhat excruciating. They had given me painkillers at the hospital before I left. but they hadn¡¯t kicked in yet and my head was pounding. Adrik had taken his shirt off before climbing into the backseat with me and thrown it over my head to make it darker for me. I kept the shirt over my head and hid my face in his chest for the entire ride. His arm stayed securely around me, keeping me stable, while his thumb gently traced circles on my hip. Once in the parking garage, I peeked out from under his shirt as he carried me to the elevator. The light wasn¡¯t as bright, so I stole a look up at him. His face was tight, pensive. He was worried. Or angry. Or both. He took me straight to the bedroom andid me on the bed. I felt the bed dip as he sat beside me. ¡°What can I do, Persephone? What do you need most right now?¡± he asked, concern evident in his voice. I groaned. ¡°Once the painkillers kick in and my head stops pounding, I¡¯ll be fine.¡± He took my hands in his. I could tell he was looking them over. I had a memory sh from right after the incident. I looked at my hands, noticing the bruises already appearing on my knuckles. I had another sh, of something familiar, but I couldn¡¯t remember clearly. It was like a d¨¦j¨¤ vu moment, where I had been there before. ¡°How is Misha?¡± I asked, still not opening my eyes. I felt his hand on my stomach. ¡°You can open your eyes, solnishko. I closed the windows.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, you did what?¡± ¡°Closed the windows. It should be dark enough in here, but if it¡¯s still too much, I¡¯ll close thest one all the way.¡± I opened my eyes, to almostplete darkness. ¡°How did I not know this was a thing that could happen?¡± He chuckled. ¡°I rarely use them, but there are blinds in all the windows. I enjoy the view, so I leave theN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. windows open most of the time. I never thought about it until now.¡± I sat up slightly. The painkillers were beginning to work so my head was starting to pound less aggressively. ¡°Is good?¡± he asked. ¡°Much better, thank you. Now, how is Misha? Are you angry with him? Please don¡¯t be angry with him. I can¡¯t remember everything yet, but I know it wasn¡¯t his fault.¡± He stared at me for a moment. His lips curled into a small smile. ¡°You¡¯re covered in blood, some of which probably isn¡¯t yours, you just left the hospital and you¡¯ve been ordered to basically bed rest for two weeks.¡± He reached up and very lightly ran his finger down the side of my face. ¡°And you have stitches in your beautiful face, but you¡¯re worried about Misha and whether I¡¯m angry with him?¡± ¡°Basically, yes.¡± ¡°Misha is fine, love. He feels terrible about what happened, but it wasn¡¯t his fault, like you said. He did everything he could. That is all I could ever ask.¡± He leaned down and kissed my lips so gently that I almost didn¡¯t feel his lips on mine. Those painkillers must be kicking in faster now, ¡°Good. I feel like there¡¯s something I¡¯m forgetting about it though. Something important.¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°Something felt familiar about it, but I can¡¯t ce it.¡± ¡°Familiar how?¡± he asked, his eyebrow raised. ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet. It was like a feeling of d¨¦j¨¤ vu. Like I¡¯ve seen it before, you know?¡± I looked at him. My brain was desperately trying to grasp something that was just out of reach. He thought for a moment. ¡°You should be resting, solnishko. It wille to you. I¡¯ll talk to Misha again about what happened, maybe he can shed some more light on it. We have the men that attacked you, as well. We¡¯ll get answers from them,¡± he said, cracking his neck to the side. If I didn¡¯t know him, I would think it was scary as h ell, but I found myself slightly turned on by his anger. How many drugs did they give me again? He looked me over. ¡°How is your head? Do you feel up to a shower before I put you back to bed?¡± I looked down at my clothes. My shirt was red. And sticky. It was originally a wh ite shirt. It was also now torn, along with my shorts. My left leg had road rash on it, as did my left arm and hip. I looked to him, the painkillers now making me feel like I was floating and somewhat giddy, and said, ¡°are you trying to tell me that you don¡¯t want a piece of this right now?¡± I ran my hands over my beat-up body, for emphasis. Heughed. ¡°You are amazing. I¡¯ll go turn the shower on,¡± he said kissing my lips once again. ¡°Wait here. I will help you.¡± He looked at me sternly as he got up to leave. While he went to the bathroom, I made a feeble attempt to get up from the bed. As soon as I was upright, the room was spinning. I sat right back down on the bed, trying to make it stop. I felt his hands on my arms and I said, ¡°um, this might be a bad n. Unless you can make the room stop spinning when I stand up.¡± ¡°Stay here. I have an idea.¡± I heard him go back to the bathroom. More water running. Suddenly I was very sleepy. I can just take a nap before hees back. That¡¯ll be ok. Iid back on the bed, my legs still over the side. I vaguely remember himing back. He pulled me upright and took my clothes off. Then I was in the air, adding to the floating feeling from the painkillers, then I was being submerged in warm water. My eyes were barely able to stay open, but I knew I was in his arms. I just snuggled close to him, and I didn¡¯t care about anything else. I felt the vibration of hisugh as I drifted off to sleep. Chapter 59 Chapter 59 Chapter Fifty-Nine Sephie I had no idea what time it was, or what day it was when I finally woke up. It waspletely dark in the room, so I couldn¡¯t tell if it was day or night. I checked the bed, searching for Adrik. No luck. Just me. I vaguely remembered not being able to stand up before, so I slowly moved to the side of the bed. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and sat up. The room was stable so far. This was a good sign. I stood slowly. My legs felt weak, but I could stand up. Okay, I can do this. I took a few steps toward the bathroom. So far so good. I had my arms out in front of me as I couldn¡¯t see the bathroom door very well. I found the wall and felt my way to the door. I found the light switch and flinched when I turned on the light. That was a bad idea. I squinted to find my way around the bathroom and do what I needed to do. I stood in front of the mirror. My face was bruised, as I expected it would be, but it wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. I took inventory of my body. Adrik had put one of his shirts on me. I pulled it up. My body was multi-colored. I had bruises around my ribs and down my left side. Pretty. I left the bathroom light on so I could see in the bedroom. I found a pair of panties, a bra, and a pair of shorts and threw those on. I did everything at a snail¡¯s pace, but I could manage. I only felt a dull ache in my head as I moved around the bedroom. When I opened the bedroom door, I could hear voices. I walked down the hallway, walking close to the wall to help steady myself. When I got to the end of the hallway, I could see Adrik and all the guys sitting on the couches. Adrik saw me and rushed to me, picking me up immediately. ¡°Solnishko, what are you doing out of bed? Are you okay?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay. I feel better, somewhat. What time is it?¡± I asked, settling into his arms as he walked me to the couch. Misha, with his wide smile, said, ¡°more like what day is it.¡± I looked at him, confused. ¡°What do you mean?¡± He looked at his watch. ¡°You¡¯ve been asleep for 36 hours now. You slept through the entire day, thenN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. most of the next one.¡± ¡°S hut up.¡± I thought he was ying a trick on me. ¡°It¡¯s true, solnishko,¡± Adrik said as he kissed my cheek. He looked at me, brushing my hair from my face. He still had a look of concern on his face. ¡°What was in those painkillers?¡± I said scratching my head. They allughed at me, Misha asked, ¡°are you still hungry? You said you were starving in the hospital. I promised to get you food once we got back here, but then you passed out for a day and a half.¡± I thought for a minute. I really wasn¡¯t hungry. My stomach did not feel right. I must¡¯ve made a funny face, thinking about not wanting to eat, because Mishaughed. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you turn down food before. What was in those painkillers??¡± Ivan had gotten up to go the kitchen. He came back with water for me. He handed it to me and said, ¡°start with this first. If you can handle water, then you¡¯ll be able to eat soon. If water is too much, then you need to wait a little longer for the drugs to leave your system.¡± ¡°Thank you, Ivan.¡± I took the ss and took a sip. Okay, I was really thirsty. I took a big gulp and Adrik pulled the ss from my lips. ¡°Easy, love. Go slow or you¡¯ll definitely p uke it up.¡± I pushed my bottom lip out but didn¡¯t fight him on it. I hated to p uke, so I would do whatever was needed to avoid that. ¡°Can you remember what happened, princess?¡± Ivan asked me. I thought for a moment. I nodded my head. ¡°Mostly, I think. We had just left the hotel and Mr. Turner. There were lots of people on the sidewalk like all at once. I remember Misha nced at me and then the next thing I knew he was going one way and I was going the other. I hit the ground hard, but so did the guy that jumped on me. He kind of faltered and his grip on me loosened. I flipped him off me, like Viktor taught me. As I was getting up, I saw Misha get free from the guy that was on him. I remember being really pi ssed. I jumped on the guy and started hitting him. There was something familiar about it that I still can¡¯t ce. Misha pulled me off him and you guys know the rest.¡± ¡°Familiar how?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Familiar in how he acted? How he smelled? How he sounded?¡± I thought back to the guy. ¡°He didn¡¯t look like he was entirely with it when he attacked me. Like, it was too easy for me to get him off me.¡± Misha sat up. ¡°I had the same thought. When I got the guy off me the first time and he came back for more, he looked like he was unsteady. Like he was high.¡± Ivan said, ¡°if they were high, that would exin why neither one of them has woken up yet.¡± My eyes went wide. ¡°That¡¯s what it was! My uncle used to have the same look when he was high on pills and would beat the s hit out of me!¡± I realized toote what I had just said in front of all of them, my hand flying to cover my m outh. Adrik knew, of course, but none of the guys knew about that yet. Chapter 60 Chapter 60 Chapter Sixty Sephie They all looked at me, then looked quickly to Adrik. He nodded and pulled me closer. ¡°You can show them, solnishko. They won¡¯t look at you differently either,¡± he whispered to me. I slowly stood up and raised my shirt up high enough that they could see most of my scars. I heard a few of them inhale sharply. I dropped my shirt and sat down next to Adrik again. He wrapped his arm around me again, pulling me to his side. I took a deep breath and gave them the abbreviated version. ¡°I was sent to live with my uncle when my m om died, as he was my only family, and I was only 15. He had a drinking problem thatter turned into a pill problem. He started to beat me when he started on the pills. I would leave the house for hours when I knew he was high, waiting for him to pass out. That¡¯s how I started running. Sometimes he wouldn¡¯t be passed out when I got back, and he would catch me and beat me. Most of the time it was just his fists and he¡¯d kick me, but thest night he used a whip on me.¡± Andrei asked, ¡°how did you get away?¡± ¡°I had found that apartment I was in when I met you guys and I was slowly taking my stuff there, nning to just never go back one day. Ms. Jackson had befriended me in that process. Earlier that day, she had seen fresh bruises from thetest beating, and she gave me a pocketknife. It was in my pocket when he had exhausted himself from beating me with the whip. He came back to kick me, and I grabbed his foot and sliced his Achilles tendon so he couldn¡¯te after me. I stole his car and d rove to the apartment. Ms. Jackson stitched me up and helped me out. She sold the car while I was sleeping so he couldn¡¯t find me.¡± I said, smiling at the thought of her helping me. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. They were silent for a minute. Ivan leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. ¡°So, about this bingo that she needs a date for¡­?¡± Iughed. ¡°That¡¯s why she means so much to me. I owe her a lot.¡± Viktor said, ¡°she can take each of us to bingo every night of the week if she wishes.¡± ¡°Where is your uncle now? What happened to him? Can we k ill him?¡± Misha asked. I smiled at him, getting his wide smile and a wink in return. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t seen him since that night.¡± ¡°We can find him. We will dly find him,¡± Stephen said. ¡°I can pick him off from a rooftop somewhere. No one will ever know.¡± I looked at him, smiling at his offer of violence on my behalf. ¡°I think he¡¯ll get his Karma on his own. I don¡¯t think any of you need to step in. But I love you all for offering.¡± Adrik pulled me close and handed me the ss of water again. We sat in silence for a few minutes. Adrik asked, ¡°you said the pills your uncle took made him violent. Do you remember what it was he took?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what they were called. I only saw them once or twice. They were pink and purple pills. Like the gel cap kind that you can pull apart and the powderes out, you know?¡± ¡°Did he swallow the pills, snort it, or cook it and inject it?¡± Ivan asked. I tried to remember what I¡¯d seen my uncle do. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I know he swallowed them at first, but I don¡¯t know if he did anything differentter on. He had an extremely high tolerance for alcohol, so maybe he developed a tolerance for the pills too? He would pass out for sometimes days at a time after taking them.¡± They all looked at each other, like they had just gotten an integral piece of the puzzle. I looked at each of them. ¡°Do you guys know what he was taking?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a mixture of three drugs. Dealers started mixing drugs a few years back to try to create different highs for their customers. They call it ¡®brawn,¡± Viktor said. ¡°It makes people feel stronger, but it also makes them more violent. Then their body crashes, which is why your uncle would pass out for a few days after each time. That¡¯s probably why the guys who attacked you are still out. I¡¯d be willing to bet they were on it.¡± ¡°The question now is who put them up to it and who gave them the brawn. Most of the city is clear of it now. There¡¯s only a few areas where you can find dealers still willing to make it. Most of the bosses told their dealers to quit making it. Either a few of them didn¡¯t listen or the bosses never actually told them to stop,¡± Ivan said. I rested my head on Adrik¡¯s shoulder, suddenly exhausted again. He took the now empty ss of water from me and set it on the table beside the couch. ¡°Come, back to bed for you. We¡¯ll talk about this more in the morning,¡± he said picking me up off the couch. I didn¡¯t argue, I just snuggled into his arms as he walked me back to the bedroom. The guys all waving bye as I disappeared down the hallway. Heid me on the bed and walked to the closet, untucking his shirt as he went. I was fighting to stay awake when he got back. ¡°Will you stay with me?¡± I asked, trying to keep my eyes open. He climbed into bed beside me, wrapping his arms around me. I sighed, contentedly. ¡°How¡¯s your head? Still have a headache? Do you need more painkillers?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. It¡¯s not bad now. I don¡¯t want to sleep for a day and a half again.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t argue with that,¡± he said holding me tighter. ¡°I missed you.¡± He pulled me closer, holding me tightly. ¡°You clearly needed to sleep though. I was worried about you.¡± I rolled in his arms to face him. My hand went to his face, running my fingers lightly over his facial hair. I was still fighting to stay awake when I felt him kiss my forehead. ¡°Sleep, my love.¡± Chapter 61 Chapter 61 Chapter Sixty-One Sephie The next few days were mostly a blur. I was asleep more than I was awake, and I could still barely eat. By the third day, I finally woke up with an appetite. It was the middle of the afternoon when I woke up that day. Adrik was at the kitchen counter, working. He had brought his work upstairs so he could be there if I needed anything. I walked into the kitchen, without having to squint. I was also steadier on my feet. I walked to him, draping my body over his back, hugging his neck. ¡°Good afternoon, solnishko. How are you feeling?¡± ¡°Better now,¡± I said, kissing his cheek. ¡°I think I can eat now, I¡¯m finally hungry.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good sign. Come, sit. I can make you something.¡± He pulled up a chair next to his for me to sit. ¡°You know how to cook?¡± I was legitimately surprised. He looked at me with his sexy smirk. ¡°I am capable. Mostly. It won¡¯t be as good as Tori¡¯s or yours, but it¡¯s edible.¡± He opened the refrigerator. ¡°What would you like? We have some eggs and bacon.¡± My stomach growled loud enough that he heard it. ¡°Eggs and bacon it is,¡± he said setting both items down on the counter. ¡°I feel like my stomach is also in a rtionship with you. She needs to be validated from time to time.¡± I laughed. He cut his eyes at me, smiling. I sat and watched him make me breakfast in the middle of the afternoon. I couldn¡¯t think of a sexier sight. He set the te down in front of me, handing me a fork. Just as I went to take the fork, he pulled it back, looking me in the eyes. ¡°Slowly. Okay? You haven¡¯t eaten for a few days. You don¡¯t want to make yourself si ck. Eat this and if you keep it down, I¡¯ll make you more in a bit.¡± I took the fork, nodding in agreement. I was starving at this point though, so eating slow was going to be hard. But if he was going to stand there and watch me the whole time, I would have to pace myself. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°Have you gotten any information from the guys that attacked us yet?¡± I asked, trying to deliberately chew as slowly as I could to keep from inhaling the food like I wanted to. He nodded. He was leaning against the counter, with his arms crossed across his chest. Da mmit, he was handsome. I had to look down and cross my legs because my body was suddenly hungry for more than bacon and eggs. ¡°We found out where they got the drugs from, but they¡¯re still not talking as to who put them up to coming after you and Misha. We¡¯re close though. One of them is cracking faster than the other, on ount of his entire face being broken. By a girl, no less.¡± He looked at me proudly. I looked down at my food, slightly embarrassed. He chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t be embarrassed, solnishko. You did good. They weren¡¯t expecting you to fight back. We threatened to send you in the room with him. That¡¯s what got him to start talking.¡± He rubbed his facial hair,ughing. ¡°I never thought my girlfriend would be the threat to make someone crack under interrogation.¡± ¡°My street cred just went through the roof,¡± I said smiling at him, taking another bite of bacon. After I was finished eating. I wanted a shower. I hadn¡¯t showered since I came home from the hospital, and I felt st inky. Adrik offered to help me. After watching him cook for me, I wasn¡¯t going to say no. In the shower, I leaned back against him as he washed my hair for me. He was extra gentle and took his time massaging my scalp. My headache was gone, but my head was still tender where I had hit the sidewalk. His hands massaged my shoulders as I rested my head against his shoulder. His hands continued to roam farther down to my breasts. I could feel him grow hard. I leaned against him more, giving him more ess to my breasts. I felt his lips on my neck, gently kissing, then biting the way he knew would drive me crazy. My breath caught and I moaned softly. I had missed his touch thest few days. I turned to face him, my hands roaming over his chest. He pulled me closer, his lips finding mine. He kissed me passionately, but I could feel him holding back, like he was scared he was going to break me. He broke the kiss and pulled me to his chest. ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be resting. The doctor said no excessive stimuli for two weeks. I think s ex is included in that list. I don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± ¡°Why does that doctor h ate me?¡± I rested my head against his chest, still happy that I had his arms around me, at least. He kissed the top of my head. ¡°Two weeks is a long time,¡± he said, sighing. I managed to stay awake after the shower and I kept my food down. It was a big day for me. Adrik cooked me a few more eggs after a short time. His phone buzzed on the counter as he was cooking. I grabbed it and looked at the caller ID. ¡°It¡¯s Ivan. Can I answer it?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course, love.¡± ¡°Hello, you¡¯ve reached the phone of the man who shall remain nameless. He can¡¯te to the phone right now. May I give him a message?¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°Princess. It¡¯s so good to hear your voice.¡± ¡°Aw, Ivan. I always knew you were squishy inside that tough exterior. You missed me. Don¡¯t lie.¡± ¡°Da. Very much. Tell Boss that we have new information we need to discuss.¡± Adrik motioned for them toe up. ¡°Well, Ivan the Squishy, why don¡¯t youe up and tell him?¡± ¡°Be right there,¡± he said, ending the call. In what seemed like two minutes, all five guys were walking in the door. One by one, they all came and hugged me, telling me they had missed me. ¡°How are you feeling, gazelle?¡± Misha asked. ¡°Better. I ate earlier and managed to keep it down. I even took a shower. It¡¯s been a big day for me,¡± I grinned at him. ¡°Now that you can eat, you¡¯ll feel better much faster,¡± Stephen said. Ivan came over and inspected the stitches above my eye. ¡°Bruise looks better. Cut still looks ug ly.¡± ¡°Ugh, don¡¯t remind me. I¡¯m probably gonna have yet another scar to add to my extensive collection.¡± Ivan surprised me by wrapping his arm around my shoulders. ¡°Be proud of your scars. They¡¯re a visual representation of how fu cking strong you are.¡± He leaned down and kissed the top of my head as Adrik set my next te of food in front of me. He winked at me, as I was shocked at Ivan¡¯s response. Adrik looked at Ivan, ¡°so, what news?¡± ¡°We showed the guy that attacked Misha what the guy that attacked Sephie looked like and then threatened to send her in with him. He sang like a fu cking canary,¡± Viktor said, trying to keep a straight face, They all had to stifle theirughs, as I looked at them wide-eyed. ¡°You guys aren¡¯t serious. Like you¡¯re just messing with me, right?¡± Misha leaned on the counter, looking me in the eye. ¡°He was terrified, gazelle.¡± ¡°Sh ut up.¡± ¡°Terrified,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Almost pi ssed himself terrified.¡± I felt my cheeks flush. Adrik, who was clearly enjoying this, asked, ¡°what did you find out? Who put him up to it?¡± Viktor sighed. ¡°It was a bit of a test run. They¡¯ve been quietly testing a new formtion of brawn around the city, seeing if they can amp up the violence. They feel like they got the rightbination and gave it to these two mo rons with Misha and Sephie as the target to see how it would go. I¡¯m sure they were being watched.¡± ¡°Who put them up to it?¡± Adrik asked, his jaw clenching. He crossed his arms across his chest. I could see his angering to the surface. ¡°Salvadori,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We don¡¯t know his exact n but given that half the bosses are with you and half are with him, I¡¯d say he¡¯s trying to tip the scales in his favor. I think he¡¯s nning on giving it to his soldiers. He wants a war in the city.¡± I dropped my fork and they all looked at me. ¡°Why would he want a war in the city? The people of the city love Adrik. They won¡¯t stand for Salvadori trying to take over. Even if he beat you guys, which he won¡¯t, the people won¡¯t let him take over.¡± Andrei sighed. ¡°He¡¯s probably not thinking about that. He just wants power and doesn¡¯t care how he gets it. He¡¯ll try to scare the city into bending to his will after he defeats us.¡± ¡°Innocent people are going to get hurt if he tries to start a war,¡± I said, finishing thest bite of eggs. ¡°We won¡¯t let that happen,¡± Ivan said. Chapter 62 Chapter 62 Chapter Sixty-Two Sephie The guys stayed in the penthouse for a few hours. I managed to stay awake the whole time. Big day, indeed. They discussed business, but then switched to what I¡¯d missed while I¡¯d been sleeping for days at a time. Misha was teasing Andrei for being in the doghouse with Tori again. ¡°What did you not do this time, Bubba?¡± I asked. ¡°She¡¯s mad at me. I was supposed to go to the house for a couple days, but I stayed here in case you woke up. We were all worried about you, Sephie,¡± he looked at me sheepishly. I got up and moved beside him on the couch. I curled up next to him, hugging him. ¡°You¡¯re the sweetest, Bubba. You also seeded in making sure Tori will forever ha te me, but I can¡¯t be mad at you.¡± His giant arms hugged me tight. N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. ¡°I¡¯ve missed my spider monkey,¡± he said quietly. Iughed, hugging him tighter. Everyone left as it got dark outside. Adrik cleaned up the few dishes in the kitchen, keeping a watchful eye on me. ¡°Are you tired again, solnishko? You¡¯ve been up for quite a while.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a little tired, but I¡¯m tired of sleeping. I haven¡¯t done anything but sleep for days.¡± I stretched my sore muscles. ¡°We can go lie down. You might fall asleep again. You need to rest. Doctor¡¯s orders. My orders too,¡± he said walking to me, his hands grabbing my hips and pulling me to him. I wanted to kiss him but didn¡¯t want to make our two-week prison sentence any worse than it already was. I closed my eyes so I wouldn¡¯t be tempted. ¡°Are you okay? Is your headache back?¡± he asked, concern in his voice. ¡°No. No, I¡¯m just trying to not look at you, so I won¡¯t want to fu ck you. It¡¯s not working. I still want to.¡± I said, smiling but keeping my eyes closed. He cursed in Russian under his breath. ¡°Two weeks. Just two weeks,¡± he muttered as he picked me up and carried me to the bedroom. I kept my eyes closed, as it did make my head feel better. Movement was still sketchy for my brain to process. It also helped me ignore my growing desire to jump on top of him and r*p his clothes off. I felt the bed dip as he got into bed beside me. ¡°Come here,¡± he said, pulling me toward him. I rolled over and felt his arms wrap around me as I rested my head on his na ked chest. His hand found its way under my shirt, lightly running up and down my back. I sighed, loving it anytime his hands were on me. ¡°Two weeks,¡± he muttered as he pulled me closer. I draped my leg over his, as [ started to fall asleep yet again. I heard him curse softly. ¡°Two weeks,¡± was thest thing I heard before falling asleep. A week had passed since Misha and I were attacked. My head felt better, for the most part. I still had bruising of course and my stitches wouldn¡¯te out for another week. I hadn¡¯t left the building since the attack, but I could at least go to the lower floors to visit Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner, as well as hang out with the guys when Adrik was busy. I was starting to feel like the annoying little sister, as I followed them around, but was still unable to do anything. We had the ball in two weeks. Apparently, it was a yearly urrence in the city. The city¡¯s wealthiest people would get together for some kind of fundraising prospect. Adrik told me they changed the recipient every year. This year was a children¡¯s charity. This year was also when Adrik was being given an award from the people of the city, for his work in the city and his devotion to the people, so he had to be there. Which meant the guys also had to be there. Which meant I also had to be there. I was not looking forward to having to wear a formal dress for an entire evening. And heels. I knew I was going to fall at some point. I¡¯d already told all the guys they were going to have to take turns holding me off the floor so I wouldn¡¯t have to walk. They promised they would help me out. I also got a dress that was long enough that I could take my shoes off and no one would know. If this event took too long, I was depositing my shoes in the nearest nt and walking around barefoot. The bright side of all of this was that my three day fast after the attack, as well as my appetite still not returning to normal, meant I had lost the five pounds I was hoping to lose before the event, which was helpful since I wasn¡¯t allowed to run or workout for another week. I was still basically useless. And bored. So bored. I got a call from the shop where I got my dress. They wanted me toe in for a fitting before they sent the dress home with me. Because I was slightly tall for a girl, it meant I needed extra length, so they had to special order the dress for me. Andrei was free, so he was the lucky guy that got to take me. Viktor had been the one to go with me to pick the dress out, which was a hrious sight. This giant Russian bear of a man looking at pretty dresses with his boss¡¯s girlfriend. Viktor offered valuable insight, however. He could tell me what kind of dresses Adrik¡¯s past girlfriends had worn to such events. I was fairly certain that they showed way more skin than I was nning to, but I was also certain they did not have as many imperfections to hide as I did. I decided on a ck halter neck gown that had ace bodice and back, so it covered most of my back. My arms and shoulders were exposed. You could see the faintest bit of my scars, but they were mostly covered. It also had a very high slit in the skirt, so I wasn¡¯t beingpletely prudish. When I came out of the dressing room to show Viktor, he was speechless and told me that Adrik would love it. ¡°You must buy that one, sestrichka. You must. None of his girlfriends have ever worn anything like that. He will love it. You look beautiful.¡± Chapter 63 Chapter 63 Chapter Sixty-Three Sephie On our way to the dress shop, I asked Andrei how things were going with Tori. He exhaled loudly. ¡°Spider monkey, 1 don¡¯t know what she wants. I don¡¯t think she knows what she wants. I keep trying to make her happy, but it seems like I keep failing. Miserably.¡± ¡°Is she mad at you again?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°What for this time? You haven¡¯t even seen her in a couple of weeks?!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why she¡¯s mad.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t shee to the city? She has a car, right? I mean, if we¡¯re not at the house, what is she doing, exactly? He took his eyes off the road to look at me. ¡°That¡¯s exactly what I said!¡± ¡°So¡­? Why won¡¯t shee to the city? She can¡¯t be mad at you for having to work when she¡¯s perfectly capable ofing to see you. That¡¯s a weird power move.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡°Have you specifically asked her? Like literally said, ¡°Tori, I would like it if you came here since I can¡¯t come back to the house right now¡¯ or did you just vaguely hint at it without specifically asking her?¡± He got quiet. ¡°Net. I didn¡¯t ask her like that.¡± ¡°Okay, try that. If that doesn¡¯t work, then you need to move on from her. She¡¯s proving to be very complicated. Is she good in bed at least? Wait, no. Forget I asked that question. I don¡¯t need to know.¡± I sat in silence as heughed. Then I added, ¡°okay, forget I said forget I asked the question. I need to know. There has to be a reason you¡¯re putting up with this.¡± ¡°Da.¡± His cheeks started to turn red, but he didn¡¯t say anything more. I reached over and patted his shoulder as he dr ove. ¡°You go, Bubba.¡± When I tried the dress on, it had been a little snug on me before. Now it was loose. The seamstress went to work, marking where it needed to be taken in. Great, now I¡¯m going to be paranoid about eating too much until this stu pid ball is over. She finished putting dozens of pens in the bodice of the dress and asked, ¡°you want to show your boyfriend?¡± Iughed. ¡°He¡¯s not my¡­oh never mind. Yes, I¡¯ll show him.¡± She pulled the curtains back from the fitting room, revealing me to Andrei. ¡°Spider monkey¡­¡± he said, his mo uth open. ¡°You look like a girl!¡± ¡°I KNOW! It¡¯s crazy right?¡± He rubbed his face with both of his hands, like he was still astonished at the sight of me in a dress. I walked closer, turning so he could see the back. ¡°I did good, huh? You can¡¯t see anything,¡± I said, pointing to my back. He stood up to get a closer look. ¡°Only if you¡¯re close and you¡¯re looking for them. You can¡¯t really see anything.¡± He looked me up and down one more time. ¡°Boss is going to love this dress. It¡¯s perfect for you.¡± ¡°You really think so?¡± I asked as I twirled in front of him. Heughed as he grabbed my hand and twirled me again. ¡°He¡¯s going to spend the whole night dancing with you and nothing else.¡± ¡°Wait, what? There¡¯s dancing involved?¡± Heughed. ¡°It¡¯s a ball, spider monkey. What did you think there was going to be?¡± ¡°Not dancing. I did not bet on dancing.¡± I looked up at him, suddenly even more terrified of having to go to this thing. ¡°Bubba! I don¡¯t know how to dance!¡± ¡°Misha will teach you. It¡¯s simple. He taught me,¡± he said as he ced a hand on my back, keeping my hand in his. He smiled down at me and lifted me slightly off the floor as he stepped around the small area in the dress shop. ¡°See? You don¡¯t even have to do anything,¡± he grinned at me. ¡°I can handle this. I can totally handle this. It¡¯s your job to make sure that he does not break either of his arms before this event. I¡¯m holding you personally responsible,¡± I said, trying to look at him as seriously as I could. He spun me around one more time, then set me down and saluted me. On the way back to the penthouse, Andrei¡¯s phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked at it. I heard him curse under his breath. He threw it on the console and rubbed his face in his hand. ¡°Well, that doesn¡¯t look good,¡± I said. ¡°Tori.¡± ¡°What now?¡± ¡°She¡¯s asking if I¡¯ming to the house tonight for the weekend.¡± ¡°Soooo¡­.why don¡¯t you take this opportunity to ask her toe to the city instead? Make something up for why you can¡¯t go back to the house. me it on me again. She can¡¯t ha te me more than she already does, but then ask her toe here.¡± He hesitated. I picked his phone up and offered to do it for him. He just nodded his head. I can¡¯te to the house this weekend. Boss needs me here. Any chance you cane here instead? I set his phone down and waited. There was silence until we got all the way back to the penthouse. We were in the elevator when she finally texted him back. I wanted to grab the phone from him to see her response, but I refrained. His face told me it was a good answer, anyway. He grinned when he read her response and hugged me. ¡°Rtionship coach spider¡¯monkey, what would I do without you?¡± ¡°Not getid. Clearly.¡± The door dinged, signaling that we had arrived at the top floor. He bent down and spread his arms for me to jump on his back as the doors opened. ¡°Oh, he ll yeah, I totally earned this one,¡± I said as I jumped on his back. The two guards outside the penthouse both gave us funny looks as he walked us down the short hallway to the penthouse. He nodded toward me, ¡°spider monkey,¡± was all he sald to them, like it was a perfectly reasonable exnation. Adrik was in the kitchen when Andrei walked in with me. ¡°Where have you two been?¡± he asked, amused at me on Andrei¡¯s back. ¡°I had to go to the dress shop to get my dress fitted. I made Bubba take me,¡± I said hopping down. ¡°Oh? All is well, then?¡± Adrik asked. He had tried to get me to tell him what the dress looked like, but I wouldn¡¯t do it. He was mostly looking at Andrei when he asked the question. Andrei answered him in Russian, so I couldn¡¯t understand. I saw Adrik¡¯s eyes going wide. I red at Andrei, who put his hands up and took a step back. ¡°I didn¡¯t tell him what it looks like, spider monkey. I promise!¡± He was still walking slowly backward toward the door. I felt Adrik¡¯s arm around my waist and felt his breath on my neck. ¡°He told me I wouldn¡¯t be able to keep my hands off you the entire night once I saw you in that dress,¡± he said quietly against my neck. I sent one more re in Andrei¡¯s direction. He grinned at me and quickly walked out the door. I turned toward Adrik, moving my hands to his neck, running them through his hair. ¡°You promise he didn¡¯t tell you what it looks like?¡± He smiled down at me, kissing the tip of my nose. ¡°I promise, solnishko. He kept me in the dark, as you wish.¡± ¡°Good.¡± I grinned at him. ¡°I want it to be a surprise. I might as well have fun if I¡¯m being forced to attend this thing anyway.¡± ¡°If Andrei is correct and I won¡¯t be able to keep my hands off you, then we might not be staying the whole time anyway. It won¡¯t be so bad,¡± he smiled as he kissed my lips. He pulled back and looked at the stitches over my eye, brushing my curls from my face. ¡°I thought girls like to get dressed up and go out and show off and all that nonsense?¡± ¡°Other girls might like that. This girl thinks that¡¯s a lot of effort for nonsense. But I will do it since you¡¯re the favored son of the city. And somebody has to keep the rest of the women off you in public.¡± ¡°What other women?¡± he asked, smirking. I grinned at him, kissing him. ¡°Good answer.¡±N?velDrama.Org is the owner. Chapter 64 Chapter 64 Chapter Sixty-Four Sephie I woke up that night with a terrible headache. I hadn¡¯t had any issues since the night of the attack, but now it felt like my head was being split open again. I got up, fumbling around in the dark, trying to make my way to the kitchen. I misjudged where the bedroom door was. I ran into a wall and cursed. Adrik must¡¯ve heard it because he was up right away. ¡°Solnishko, what¡¯s wrong?¡± he asked, switching on the light. I squinted at the light. ¡°My head is pounding again. I was trying to make it to the kitchen.¡± He was next to me immediately. ¡°What do you need? Water? You never took any of the pain pills they sent home. Do you want one of those?¡± I nodded, closing my eyes harder, holding my head in my hands. It was starting to feel like my sk ull was being pried open from the inside. He gently walked me back to the bed. ¡°You stay. I¡¯ll get it for you.¡± Iid down and within a minute, he was back with a ss of water and a pill. He set the water on the table and turned the light out. I heard him pick up the remote for the blinds. I knew he was closing them so it would be as dark as possible in the room. I felt the bed dip as he got back in bed. He pulled me onto his chest, his hands running lightly through my hair. Either this pill was stronger than what they gave me at the hospital, or I wasn¡¯t in as much pain as I was the day of the attack, because it knocked me out in a matter of minutes. I woke up sometimeter, not knowing what time it was, or what day it was. I was fully expecting to have slept for multiple days once again, as I felt super groggy. I felt around on the bed for Adrik, but he was gone. The room was dark, so I felt my way toward the bathroom to turn on a light. I closed my eyes before switching the light on. I¡¯d learned it was easier to notpletely shock my eyes. I felt nauseous again, which is why I hadn¡¯t wanted to take any of those pills to begin with. Looks like food is off the table for today. As I opened my eyes, it wasn¡¯t as bright as I was expecting. I left the light on and found a pair of leggings to put on. I left the bedroom to find Adrik. He was again at the kitchen counter, looking over files. He saw mee into the kitchen. He stood up and walked to me. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± His face had a worried look on it. ¡°Better now. Please tell me I didn¡¯t sleep for a day and a half this time.¡± He smiled. ¡°No, just twelve hours this time. It¡¯s only Saturday afternoon.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s progress, I guess.¡± ¡°Are you hungry?¡± ¡°Noooooo. No food. Food is a bad idea right now.¡± He clicked his tongue. ¡°I don¡¯t like that you don¡¯t eat. You¡¯re too skinny.¡± ¡°Trust me, I don¡¯t like it either. I¡¯d like nothing more than to eat a giant sandwich right now,¡± I said. My stomach churned, making me feel like I was going to vomit. I put my hand over my mo uth until the feeling passed. ¡°Bad idea. No food talk.¡± He looked at me, still somewhat concerned, ¡°I think you should take it easy the next few days. Maybe you overdid it with your trip to the dress shop? Is that the only ce you went yesterday?¡± ¡°Yep. We weren¡¯t even gone that long.¡± ¡°You still have another week of bed rest. Maybe you shouldn¡¯t leave. Maybe it¡¯s too much?¡± I sighed. ¡°Boring. But if it keeps me from having another headache like that one, I¡¯ll do it.¡± He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me to his chest. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you must deal with this, solnishko. All of this.¡± He sighed as he held me close. ¡°None of this is your fault. You have nothing to be sorry for. You¡¯ve done nothing but keep me safe and take care of me,¡± I said, hugging him closer and inhaling his intoxicating scent. We stood in silence for a moment, until the buzzing of his phone interrupted the silence. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the kitchen with him. He nced at his phone, looking to me. ¡°Ivan. Would you like to answer?¡± I shook my head, cing my hand on my stomach again. I still felt like I was going to pu ke. He raised his eyebrow, clicking his tongue. As he talked to Ivan, I sat the on the kitchen counter, hoping my queasy stomach would settle down. He set his phone down and stepped between my legs. His hand cupped my face, concern all over his face. ¡°I don¡¯t like this, solnishko. Do you need to see the doctor again? I can call my personal doctor toe here, so you won¡¯t have to leave.¡± I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch. ¡°No, I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything they can do for me. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s much a person can do for a concussion, other than wait it out. I think this is from the st upid pain pill. I don¡¯t want to take another one of those.¡± Before he could respond, I heard the guys walking into the penthouse. Ivan walked in the kitchen, looking somewhat concerned. ¡°Princess, you look terrible.¡± ¡°I feel terrible, Grumplestiltskin,¡± I said with my eyes still closed, still enjoying Adrik¡¯s warm touch against my face. Viktor had walked in behind Ivan. He stood against the opposite counter, his arms folded across his broad chest. ¡°You hit your head harder than you thought. You have another headache?¡± ¡°Not right now. I didst night. I took a pain pill to make it go away and I think that¡¯s why I feel like sh it now.¡± Ivan clicked his tongue. I opened my eyes to see him nod his head to Adrik, who stepped to the side. Ivan stood in front of me and took my hand in his. He motioned for Adrik to look, then he squeezed a spot in between my thumb and forefinger. Initially it hurt, but the longer he squeezed, the better my head felt. I looked at him, my eyes wide. He smirked at me, then moved to a spot just below my wrist, showing Adrik the new spot. This one took a little longer, but as he held the pressure there, my stomach started to feel better and the nausea slowly passed. I looked up at him, my mo uth hanging open in shock. ¡°How did you do that?¡± He smiled at me. Winking, he said, ¡°you¡¯re not the only one that ha tes doctors and taking pills.¡± I wrapped my arms around his neck. ¡°Don¡¯t tell Andrei, but you¡¯re my favorite now.¡± I kissed his cheek. ¡°Thank you.¡± He looked at Adrik and said, ¡°I can show you more spots to help her. Some on her foot too. Acupuncture will help her get relief.¡± ¡°Whatever she needs. I can have someonee here for acupuncture every day if she needs it. Whatever makes her feel better and not have to sleep for days at a time. It¡¯s getting boring without her,¡± he said, winking at me. Viktorughed from across the kitchen. ¡°We all tried to hang out with Tori, since she¡¯s here this weekend. It¡¯s not the same. Not the same at all.¡± I put my hands over my mo uth. ¡°Oh no! Is Bubba okay? Is he in trouble now? Do we need to save him?¡± Viktor chuckled. ¡°When is he not in trouble?¡± ¡°Harsh. But fair. She is wound much tighter than I thought she was going to be. I¡¯m somewhat regretting facilitating that arrangement,¡± I said. Ivan had taken my other arm and was pressing on the acupuncture points on that arm to help give me more relief as we talked. Adrik watched him closely, like he was taking me ntal notes. I thought for moment, then added, ¡°it is a unique situation that you guys are in, though. It¡¯s a lot for someone to walk into.¡± Ivan looked down at me, changing the pressure point to the one below my wrist. ¡°You did just fine.¡± I smiled up at him. ¡°Because I embrace the chaos.¡± Heughed. He let go of my arm. ¡°Better?¡± he asked as he stepped away. 1 patted my stomach. ¡°So much better. I feel like I can eat soon. Maybe.¡± Adrik returned to stand beside me, his arm around my waist. He kissed my cheek. ¡°I¡¯m so happy you feel better, solnishko.¡± He looked genuinely relieved. I leaned into him, resting my head on his shoulder. ¡°I will get you acupuncture. Whatever helps your appetite. You¡¯re too bony now,¡± he said poking my hip bone. ¡°You¡¯re going to start bruising me. I¡¯m very delicate.¡± He smiled down at me, kissing me quickly. ¡°You¡¯re the reason I have to wear a dress in public, so you did this to yourself.¡± Ivan said, ¡°hey hey hey, no fighting you two. You sound like Andrei and Tori. We need one couple that¡¯s happy.¡± Iughed, pulling Adrik in front of me. I turned him to face Viktor and Ivan so he could still talk to them and hung my N?velDrama.Org is the owner. arms over his shoulders, resting my chin on his shoulder. He grabbed both my hands and held them in his. ¡°Have you met me, Ivan? Don¡¯t you know by now that I¡¯m rarely serious?¡± Chapter 65 Chapter 65 Chapter Sixty-Five Adrik Sephie managed to eat a little bit, after Ivan showed me the pressure points to help give her relief. I was hopeful that she would be able to get some sleep without having to take another pill. I¡¯ve been worried about her since the attack. She¡¯s so strong, but she hasn¡¯t beenpletely herself yet. I hated seeing her in pain in any way. Of course, she was still fun to be around and always looking after everyone else, but we could all tell that she was having to make an effort to be that way. Normally, it came so naturally. Now, she was having to force it. At least now I had a way to get her some relief. I felt like I could do something finally. I¡¯ve felt mostly useless throughout this whole situation, which drives me crazy. It only adds to my frustration with everything that¡¯s going on with Salvadori and Anthony. Salvadori had tried his best to get the other bosses to turn against me. There were six bosses under me. Salvadori managed to take two to his side, but the other three came to me immediately when Salvadori approached them. This showed me they were loyal to me. I was working on ways to get more information from Sicily on Anthony and Lorenzo. One of the bosses that was loyal to me, Armando, had extensive family in Italy. His family was powerful in Italy, as well as in the city. He was helping to set up an informationwork from Sicily. We had gotten bits and pieces of information so far. Nothing substantial, but information takes time to collect. It looked like Salvadori wanted to start a war in the city. I was trying to avoid that, at all costs. The people of the city didn¡¯t need to be involved in this petty dispute. I would take the fight to Sicily and strike first before I would let Salvadori unleash chaos on the city like he was nning. I looked down at Sephie, sleeping soundly on my chest. I ran my hand through her hair lightly. She loved it anytime my hands were in her hair, even in her sleep. It would make her snuggle into me, sometimes making the cutest little cooing noises as she slept. It was one of my favorite things to do when she was sleeping. It made me smile every time. She wrapped her body around mine tighter as my hand ran through her curls. I groaned quietly. I wanted her so badly, right now. She still had another week to go for her bed rest. I didn¡¯t want to mess that up, so I was trying my best to refrain. With each day, it got more and more difficult to keep my hands off her. Especially on days when she was feeling well and showed glimpses of being her old self. Her sense of humor, the brightness she would bring to everything she did, was sexy as he ll. At this point, she could smile at me, and I¡¯d be ready to rip her clothes off. Her fingers lightly started to move on my chest. She was still sound asleep. This was something she would do asionally. I¡¯d decided she was ying the piano in her sleep. Her fingers always moved rhythmically when she would do it and she was always sleeping peacefully when it happened. I ran my hand down to her waist, holding her close. I drifted off to sleep as she yed lightly on my chest. The next morning, I woke up to Sephie¡¯s hands running lightly over my back. Her body was pressed against mine, her arms wrapped around me. When she noticed me stirring, she reached up and kissed my lips lightly. ¡°Good morning,¡± she said as I opened my eyes. Her sweet smile the first thing I saw. ¡°Mmm. Good morning, my love. How do you feel this morning?¡± ¡°Better. Ivan is magic, apparently.¡± I heard her stomach growl as she talked. ¡°My stomach agrees,¡± she said, as she smiled bigger. ¡°This is very good news. I will have someonee today for acupuncture. You¡¯ll feel normal again in no time.¡± | pushed her onto her back, folling half on top of her. ¡°Which means I can wake you up the way I really want to once again,¡± I said kissing her deeply. She moaned into my mo uth, making me want her that much more. I kissed her neck, biting softly. I heard her gasp. ¡°Fu ck this week can¡¯t go by fast enough,¡± she groaned. Iughed as I kissed her chest. ¡°You and me both, solnishko. You and me both. I want nothing more than to be deep inside you right now.¡± Her breath caught. ¡°You are not making this any easier.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­that¡¯s a lie. I¡¯m not sorry,¡± I said, grinning at her. She pushed me off her, getting out of bed. ¡°I don¡¯t want another headache. You stay away from me!¡±N?velDrama.Org is the owner. she said,ughing. ¡°Okay, okay. I¡¯m sorry. For real. I¡¯ll behave. I promise.¡± Ivan knew of an acupuncturist, and she was able toe to the penthouse that afternoon. I gave them privacy in one of the spare rooms, but I was close by. I heard a few painful cries from Sephie and wanted to go in the room, but Ivan stopped me. ¡°She¡¯s okay. The pain is short-lived.¡± I refrained from barging into the room. Sephie was quiet the rest of the time. Well over an hourter, the acupuncturist came out of the room, closing the door behind her. ¡°She will be out in a minute. She¡¯s a strong woman. Her body has been through a lot, but she¡¯s healing.¡± She looked at me. ¡°You¡¯re her boyfriend?¡± I nodded. ¡°You¡¯re helping her more than you know. Her qi would spike when she talked of you. You make her even stronger than she already is.¡± I ran my hand through my hair, not knowing what to say. I looked to Ivan and back to the acupuncturist. ¡°What do I do? How do I help her more?¡± She smiled. ¡°Keep loving her.¡± She grabbed my hand and pressed on roughly the same spot as Ivan had used on Sephie yesterday. She closed her eyes while she pressed, then said, ¡°she¡¯s doing the same for you. You two make each other stronger. You each have what the other needs. You are the yin; she is the yang. Together you find bnce.¡± She let go of my hand, still smiling at me. I stood, speechless. Ivan looked at her, ¡°how often does she need acupuncture to help with her concussion? The pain pills they gave her at the hospital make her sleep for days and make her nauseous so that she can¡¯t eat. We don¡¯t want her to take them, but she had a crushing headache the other day after going out,¡± he said. ¡°She¡¯s got blockages, some from the attack, some from her past. I cane everyday for this week, but as she clears, she won¡¯t need it as often. She¡¯ll start to feel better right away, and she should have an appetite again.¡± I extended my hand to her. ¡°Thank you for making her feel better. Whatever she needs she will have.¡± The door to the spare room opened and Sephie walked out, looking more rxed and yet more alert than I¡¯d seen her since the attack. Her light wasing back. She walked to me, tucking herself in my side where she fit perfectly. Ivan looked at me, he had clearly noticed it too. He walked the acupuncturist out, after Sephie had thariked her once again. I looked down at Sephie. ¡°How was it?¡± ¡°Painful at first. But then it was so much better. I don¡¯t know, I feel lighter if that makes sense?¡± I smiled at her. ¡°I can see it. You look more like your old self. It makes me happy. She wille tomorrow again.¡± I kissed the top of her head. ¡°She says you¡¯re very strong.¡± She hid her face in my shoulder. ¡°You¡¯re cute when you¡¯re shy, my love.¡± Chapter 66 Chapter 66 Chapter Sixty-Six Adrik We spent the evening together with the guys and Tori before she went back to the house. She cooked for the house staff when we weren¡¯t there, so she was still needed during the week while they were there. Sephie¡¯s appetite was better than it had been in days, making me happy. Misha was also very relieved to see her eating again. He¡¯s been beating himself up since the attack, thinking about all the alternative things he could¡¯ve done. It¡¯s taken a toll on him. He hasn¡¯t been sleeping well. Of course, Sephie noticed that he was more stressed than usual. She found the perfect moment to go to him when everyone else was busy talking amongst themselves so they could have a semi-private moment. I saw her talk to him, somewhat sternly it looked like, and then he just crumbled. She stood on her toes and wrapped her arms around his neck. He held onto her like he was drowning and she was his lifeline. They both wiped their eyes as they smiled at each other. As always, she knew exactly what Misha needed to help him feel better. She was the only one that could¡¯ve said the words he needed to hear and have him actually hear them. We had all been telling him the exact same thing she likely just said to him, but he wouldn¡¯t listen to any of us. She was the only one that could¡¯ve saved him from his own mind. She walked back to me, that smile that could stop my heart across her beautiful face. I pulled her to me. Leaning down to her ear, I whispered, ¡°I¡¯m in love with you. Completely in love with you.¡± She leaned back, looking at me with wide eyes, her mo uth slightly open. I smiled at her, kissing her gently. ¡°You have my heart, Persephone. It¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°Adrik¡­I¡­¡± she stammered. I smiled down at her. ¡°You don¡¯t have¡­¡± She didn¡¯t let me finish my sentence. Her lips were on mine, her passion for me the only thing I could feel. I knew she felt the same for me. She didn¡¯t need to tell me. I know I surprised her with my deration, but after what the acupuncturist said earlier today, watching Sephie¡¯s light return, and watching her with Misha, I needed to tell her. I¡¯ve loved her since that first night I saw her in the restaurant. I¡¯ve never been more sure about anything in my life. She broke the kiss, pressing her forehead to mine, breathing heavily. ¡°Adrik¡­¡± I loved hearing her say my name. For someone who rarely used it, I loved hearing it roll off her tongue. My name was one thing that not many people knew. Even Tori didn¡¯t know my name and she¡¯d worked for me for a few years now. I preferred to remain anonymous. It allowed me more freedom. But thinking back to that first night in the parking lot of the restaurant, talking to Sephie, I didn¡¯t hesitate to tell her my name. She was the only one I wanted. For as long as she would have me. Sephie The second week of my bed rest went much better than the first. With the daily acupuncture, I felt so much better. I felt stronger, more like myself. My appetite had returned, even though I was still slightly paranoid about eating too much. I still had a week to go before the ball and fitting into that dress. Adrik was on the phone with Armando. He was pacing back and forth in the kitchen as he talked to Armando. Not because he was angry, it was just his habit to walk back and forth on long calls. I watched him from the couch, where I was waiting for the acupuncturist to show up for my session of the day. I smiled, thinking about the events ofst weekend. We had spent Sunday night together with all the guys and Tori. It was a nice time, but I noticed that Misha was struggling. Adrik hadn¡¯t told me that Misha had been beating himself up me ntally about what happened. I managed to catch Misha slightly away from everyone else so we could have a private conversation. ¡°Misha, you look like blo ody he ll. You¡¯re beating yourself up over what happened, aren¡¯t you?¡± He just nodded, without saying a word. ¡°Misha, look at me. Listen to me. Stop it. Stop it right now. Nothing about what happened was your fault. Stop reying it in your mind. Stop keeping yourself in a me ntal prison because you feel responsible. You did everything right. I¡¯m grateful you were there. I¡¯m grateful you were at the hospital with me. I¡¯m grateful for you, Misha.¡± I saw him struggling to keep it together, so I reached up and hugged his neck. Hetched onto me tightly. Poor guy. I didn¡¯t know he¡¯d been struggling all week while I was mostly sleeping. I should¡¯ve had this conversation with him sooner.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± Heughed and stepped back slightly. He wiped his eyes as he stood up, which made me have to wipe my own. ¡°Thank you, gazelle.¡± ¡°Anytime, kiddo.¡± I walked back to Adrik, who was looking at me with even more adoration than usual. He pulled me to him, whispering in my ear, ¡°I¡¯m in love with you. Completely in love with you.¡± I was shocked that he said it. I knew he loved me, just as I knew that I loved him, but he hasn¡¯t said the words yet. Nor had I. Iughed at myself for not knowing what to say to him. It didn¡¯t even bother him that I hadn¡¯t said it in return. I just kissed him with as much passion as I could transmit in one kiss. I think he knew that I loved him, but I needed to tell him. I was just waiting for the right moment to tell him and as always, he was giving me the space to be unapologetically me. That was one thing I adored about him. He was so confident in my love for him. He had five chiseled, handsome men working as his bodyguards that he would leave alone with me regrly and he never once acted jealous. I was allowed to goof around with the guys as much as I wanted and he would just laugh at my antics. I never looked at any of them the same way I looked at Adrik, but not every man would¡¯ve been okay with my goofiness around the guys. He epted me for me, and I loved that about him. He had ended his call and caught me staring at him,pletely lost in thought. He walked to me, leaning down to kiss me. ¡°What are you thinking about, solnishko?¡± I sighed, smiling up at him. ¡°How much I love you.¡± His breath caught. He stared at me intensely for a moment, then pulled me off the couch to stand in front of him. His hands pulled me close, his blue eyes never leaving mine. ¡°Solnishko, you¡¯ve made me the happiest man.¡± ¡°I can say the same. You make me the happiest woman,¡± I said, standing on my toes to kiss him. He kissed me passionately, lifting me off the ground without breaking the kiss. As he spun me around, I smiled against his lips,ughing. I heard Ivane in with the acupuncturist. Adrik set me down, still holding onto me. The acupuncturist smiled broadly when she saw us together. ¡°You¡¯re feeling better, Miss Sephie.¡± I nodded. ¡°Much better, thanks to you.¡± She nodded toward Adrik and said, ¡°not only thanks to me.¡± I looked up at him and grinned, knowing she was right. I kissed him again, quickly, before walking to the spare room with the acupuncturist. Chapter 67 Chapter 67 Chapter Sixty-Seven Sephie Once the session was done, I asked her, ¡°um, do you think it¡¯ll be okay for me to start doing more stuff? Like can I leave the building now?¡± She nodded as she was packing up her things. ¡°You¡¯re much clearer now. You feel stronger, no?¡± ¡°I do. I¡¯m just paranoid about the headacheing back. I also, uh, want to do more physical activities.¡± I was thinking about Adrik when I said that but trying so hard to make it sound like I wanted to workout again. She gave me a knowing look. ¡°Your boyfriend.¡± My cheeks flushed and I nodded. ¡°He will help you heal, Sephie. You two find bnce within each other. You need him as much as he needs you. You¡¯re good for each other.¡± I smiled and hugged her. I couldn¡¯t help it. This was the best news I¡¯d gotten in two weeks. Sheughed and continued to pack up her things. ¡°If your headachees back, you call me. Your boyfriend is paying me extremely well toe here. Even if ites in the middle of the night, I¡¯ll be here to take care of it.¡± She looked at me seriously, handing me her card. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. We walked out of the spare room, finding Ivan and Adrik in the kitchen talking. Ivan stepped toward us so he could walk the acupuncturist out. Adrik thanked her, then looked to me, smiling but slightly perplexed. I couldn¡¯t stop smiling. He raised his eyebrow, looking at me. I walked to him, ¡°is Ivaning back?¡± He shook his head no. ¡°He¡¯s taking care of a few things for me this afternoon.¡± He still had a look of slight confusion on his face. ¡°Good,¡± I said, standing on my toes to kiss him. I kissed him gently at first, having fun keeping him confused. It didn¡¯t take very long and I couldn¡¯t help myself. I deepened the kiss. I tugged at his shirt, untucking it. My fingers fumbling quickly to unbutton it. He pulled it over his head, his lips only briefly leaving mine. He picked me up and set me down on the counter. I could feel the fire in his kiss, like he was incapable of holding back anymore. He ripped my shirt off quickly, his hands roaming over my bare skin, giving me goosebumps everywhere he touched. He pushed me back, grabbing the waistband of my pants. He lifted my hips and pulled them off. His blue eyes darker, as he looked at me with intense desire. I chewed my bottom lip, looking at him standing in front of me shirtless. He stopped and looked at my bottom lip, gently swiping his thumb over it. He leaned down and su cked my bottom lip in between his lips, biting it gently. I moaned in his mo uth, grabbing onto his neck and pushing my hips toward him. He reached behind my back, unhooking my bra, throwing it on the floor. His hands ran down to my hips. He hooked his thumbs in my panties, ripping them off me. I threw my head backughing. ¡°I¡¯ll buy you new ones, solnishko,¡± he said as he kissed my neck. He bit my neck harder than normal, causing me to inhale sharply. My hands found his belt, undoing it with lightning speed. I unbuttoned his pants, pulling on them to unzip him like he always did to mine. His arms wrapped around me, pulling me close. I wrapped my legs around him, as he groaned against my neck. He stopped long enough to rid himself of his pants. He pulled me to the edge of the counter, wrapping my legs around him again. He pulled me close, kissing me deeply as he entered me. I gasped, not realizing how much I had missed this feeling. He stopped for a few seconds once he was all the way in, letting me adjust. His blue eyes dark with lust, he whispered in my ear, ¡°I don¡¯t think I can hold back for very long, love. I don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± I pushed my hips into him slowly, holding onto him. ¡°Then don¡¯t try,¡± I said, nipping at his ear. He groaned against my neck, mming into me. I threw my head back, reveling in the feeling of fullness that came with his intensity. I wrapped my legs around him tighter as he grabbed onto my a ss and started thrusting into me hard and fast. I braced myself with one arm to meet his thrusts, knowing I wasn¡¯t going tost long either. I was already close to the edge. I could feel my body building to explosion, tingles exploding over my entire body. My body exploded into an orgasm. He managed to keep his rhythm until I started toe down and then he exploded in his own orgasm. He stilled, still holding me close, both of us breathing heavily against the other. ¡°I missed you, solnishko,¡± he said kissing my neck gently. ¡°I missed you, my love,¡± I said quietly in his ear. He leaned back so he could look me in my eyes, a small smile on his lips. He kissed my lips, su cking my bottom lip in between his teeth again. *I love you, Persephone,¡± he said, his blue eyes staring intently into mine. I looked into his eyes, feeling like I could get lost. ¡°I love you, Adrik,¡± I said, never taking my eyes off his. The next few days were a blur. Adrik and I would take every opportunity to sneak off by ourselves like we were teenagers. We couldn¡¯t get enough of each other. It had always been that way, but it felt like it was at a new level now. The more time we spent together, the better I felt. We were lying in bed, both sweaty and exhausted, he pulled me to him. ¡°You¡¯re sure this isn¡¯t too much for you? I don¡¯t want to hurt you or have your headachee back.¡± I rested my chin on his chest so I could look at him, my fingers running lightly over his chest. ¡°I feel better, I promise. It¡¯s not too much. My headache hasn¡¯te back and we¡¯ve been screwing like rabbits thest couple of days. If it was going toe back, I would think it would¡¯ve done so by now.¡± He smiled, but still had an air of concern on his face. ¡°Maybe we should get you acupuncture again, just to be safe. Before the ball in two days. Your light shines brighter when you have it done,¡± he said as he lightly ran a finger over the features of my face. ¡°You look even more beautiful.¡± I closed my eyes, enjoying his touch. ¡°I won¡¯t argue. It does make me feel better. But I also feel fine without it, too. And if it makes me prettier, then maybe that will help keep the other women off you at the ball,¡± I said ginning at him. ¡°It will mean the guys will be busy keeping the other men away from you.¡± ¡°What other men?¡± Heughed. ¡°Good answer.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 68 Chapter 68 Chapter Sixty-Eight Sephie I had gone with Ivan the day before the ball to pick up my dress. I needed to try it on one more time, just to make sure all the alterations were good. Ivan was even moreical in the dress shop than Viktor was. Ivan was so serious all the time, he looked like he was mad at all the dresses. I asked him if he wanted to see the dress before we got there. He said he did, so I swore him to secrecy. ¡°You can see it, but Adrik doesn¡¯t know what it looks like, so you¡¯re not allowed to tell him. I want it to be a surprise. I¡¯ll hurt you if you tell him,¡± I said, as threatening as I could. ¡°I saw what you can do. I won¡¯t say a word to him,¡± he said, his hands up in surrender, a small smile on his face. When I came out of the fitting room, he was speechless. He just stood and looked at me for a moment. ¡°Princess¡­¡± ¡°You think he¡¯ll like it?¡± I asked, showing him the 360 view. ¡°He will love it. You look like a princess.¡± Iughed. ¡°Do princesses wear ck?¡± ¡°Maybe not. But Queens of the Underworld do.¡± I raised an eyebrow at him, then smiled widely at him. We dropped the dress off at Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. She was going to help me get ready, as I really had no girlfriends and I had no clue about makeup or how to put my hair up into anything other than a bun, a braid, or a ponytail. Ms. Jackson said she knew exactly what to do, which was 100% more than I knew, so I trusted her. When we walked into her apartment, Ivan surprised us both by asking her, ¡°when¡¯s your next Bingo night, Ms. Jackson?¡± Sheughed. ¡°Are you offering to be my date?¡± ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am. Anytime you want one, you have a standing date.¡± I hung my dress up on the door frame of her spare room, my mo uth open in shock. She cut her eyes to me and just smiled. She walked to him and put her arm through his. ¡°You guys get through the ball and we¡¯ll talk,¡± she winked at him. As we were leaving her apartment, Mr. Turner was walking down the hall toward his door. ¡°Miss Sephie, Mr. Ivan, how are you both today?¡± ¡°Great, Mr. Turner, how are you? How was work?¡± ¡°Oh, it was fine. Fine. They¡¯re getting ready for tomorrow night. You¡¯re all going to be there, right? It is a special night for your boss, after all.¡± ¡°Yes, Mr. Turner. We¡¯ll all be there,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Good, good. You know there¡¯s supposed to be a lot of people attending. I feel better knowing you¡¯ll all be there,¡± he said as he looked from Ivan to me and back to Ivan. Ivan nodded his head and put his arm around my shoulders. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Mr. Turner. She¡¯s going to be safe. We can¡¯t live without her anyway. We¡¯ve got everything covered,¡± he said, a small smile on his lips. ¡°That¡¯s what I like to hear, young man,¡± Mr. Turner said as he tipped his hat to us, continuing to his apartment. Ivan left his arm around my shoulders and walked us to the elevator. I wrapped my arm around his waist when we stepped into the elevator. ¡°Ivan the Squishy,¡± I said, leaning my head against his shoulder. I had more acupuncture the morning of the ball, per Adrik¡¯s request. He said he wanted to make sure I would be okay and able to handle the evening¡¯s event. Since it made me feel so much better, I wasn¡¯t going to argue with him. I skipped breakfast and only ate a few bites here and there at lunch. I was paranoid about fitting into the dress, since it had been taken in. I went to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment in the afternoon. Misha escorted me down. Once I was in the apartment, he left me with Ms. Jackson. He said one of them would be back to get me, but they needed to get ready to go as well. I had to admit, I was looking forward to seeing them all in tuxedos. Ms. Jackson went to work on my hair. She had looked at my dress and said I needed to wear my hair up. I did not argue with her. It took her a while to get my mass of hair contained. She was much more skilled than I was and once she was done, she had braided a few small strands at the front of my head and worked those into an intricate updo in the back. She left a few stray curls around my face, as she said it was somewhat my signature and I didn¡¯t look right without them. Once my hair was done, she got to work on my makeup. She knew I hated wearing makeup, so she kept it very light. She made me look like a ssic movie star. ¡°Makeup is meant to entuate what you¡¯ve got, not make you look like apletely different person,¡± she said as she worked on my face like she was a makeup artist in a former life. ¡°How did you learn how to do all this?¡± I asked, my eyes closed as she applied God knows what to my eyelids. ¡°When I was a spy, my cover was as an American movie star. I had to be morous all the time, so I learned to do my own hair and makeup to y the part. Once you learn a few tricks, it bes quite easy.¡± ¡°Ms. Jackson, you¡¯ve lived such an interesting life. How did I never know this about you?¡± ¡°Well, child, I don¡¯t really broadcast that I used to be a spy to many people. There are probably still Russians out there that are still looking for me. I barely made it out of there alive, but that¡¯s a story for another time.¡± ¡°I would love to hear it. When you get back from Bingo,¡± I said smiling at her. ¡°Have you decided which one you¡¯re taking to Bingo first? Are you going big and walking in with like three of them at once, like you¡¯re the boss, applesauce?¡± She put her hand over her mo uth as sheughed at the thought. Her cheeks flushed. ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought about that option, but now that you mention it, I might as well go big or go home.¡± ¡°Be fierce, Ms. Jackson. You own that fu cking Bingo Hall.¡± She continuedughing as she finished my makeup. She took a step back, to admire her work. ¡°Okay, child. Take a look and tell me what you think,¡± she said holding up a mirror. I checked myself out in the mirror. ¡°Ms. Jackson! You¡¯re a miracle worker! I look like a girl! Like a real girl!¡± I was grinning from ear to ear as I looked at my reflection. It still looked like me, just enhanced.N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°It¡¯s so perfect!¡± She smiled at me, crossing her arms across her chest. ¡°Let¡¯s get you in your dress so I can see the whole picture.¡± She helped me into the dress. I was so nervous she wasn¡¯t going to be able to zip it up, but it fit perfectly. I exhaled, relieved that no additional help was needed to get me into the dress. She handed me my shoes and stepped back to take in the full picture. As I slipped into my shoes, I turned to look at her. She was leaning against the chair I had been sitting in. I could see the tears welling up in her eyes as she looked at me, almost like a mother would look at a daughter. *Persephone, I am so proud of you. You are one he ll of a woman and you¡¯re living up to your namesake.¡± I felt the tears collecting in my eyes. ¡°Oh, Ms. Jackson. I¡¯m going to ruin all your hard work.¡± I quickly dabbed the tears from my eyes so it wouldn¡¯t mess anything up. I walked to her, bending down, and hugging her tightly. ¡°Thank you. For everything. I love you, Ms. Jackson.¡± ¡°Oh, child. You deserve it all. And more.¡± We heard a knock at her door. I stood up, still dabbing my eyes. ¡°That¡¯ll be one of the guys to take me upstairs.¡± She took both of my hands in hers and looked me in the eyes. ¡°I know you¡¯re going to be nervous tonight; anybody would be. But I want you to remember who you¡¯re named for and walk in like you own the da mn ce. Queens don¡¯t bow to anyone but their King. Remember that.¡± Chapter 69 Chapter 69 Chapter Sixty-Nine Sephie I smiled at her as we heard another knock on her door, a little louder this time. She walked toward the door and opened it. All five guys were in the hall outside Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment to escort me upstairs. They all looked incredibly handsome in their tuxedos. My mo uth fell open, looking at each of them. Ivan spoke first. ¡°We couldn¡¯t decide who woulde get you, so we all came to get you.¡± I walked toward them all, as they all stared at me like it was their first time seeing a girl. ¡°I know, I know. Ms. Jackson works miracles, right?¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Ms. Jackson only helped bring out what was already there,¡± Viktor said, winking at me. I felt my cheeks flush. He offered me his arm. I slid my arm through his, thanking Ms. Jackson one more time before I left her apartment. ¡°You boys can show up looking like this anytime you please,¡± she said as she watched us walk down the hall toward the elevator. When the doors opened to the penthouse, the two guards standing outside who usually didn¡¯t pay me much attention, both stared at me as I walked by. Must be something to this whole looking like a girl thing¡­ Before we walked into the penthouse, I suddenly got nervous. I stopped Ivan from opening the door. I looked at all of them, shaking my hands in front of me. ¡°Fu ck, I¡¯m so nervous. Do you guys really think he¡¯s going to like this?¡± ¡°Are you serious right now, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked. I nodded my head, still nervously shaking my hands in front of me. I chewed on my bottom lip. S hit. I have lipstick on. I shouldn¡¯t do that. Oh jeez, I already messed up my makeup. Misha stepped in front of me, both hands on my shoulders. ¡°Gazelle, look at me. We¡¯ve seen every one of Boss¡¯s girlfriends. Not a single one of them can hold a candle to you. Trust us. He will LOVE it.¡± I exhaled and closed my eyes. Ivan opened the door and stepped aside for me to walk through. ¡°We¡¯ll be waiting out here when you¡¯re ready to go, princess.¡± He winked at me as I walked past. I walked through the door, hearing Ivan close it behind me. My shoes clicked on the hard floors, announcing my arrival. Adrik was standing at the windows, looking out over the city as the sun began to set. He hadid his tux jacket over the back of one of the couches. While all the guys had a regr wh ite shirt with their tuxedo, his was ck. I loved him in all ck. There was something so sexy, so dangerous about him in all ck. He turned slowly to look at me, his hands in his pockets. As he turned toward me, I could see he had left the tie off and chose to leave his top two buttons undone. His hair was neatly in ce, his day-old stubble giving his se x appeal an extra edge. I caught my breath as I took in his full picture. As he caught sight of me, that sexy smirk appeared on his face. He slowly looked me up and down a few times. I had stopped walking, so he hadn¡¯t seen the slit in the skirt yet. ¡°Come here,¡± he said, extending his hand to me. As I took a step, revealing almost my entire leg, his eyes widened. He cursed under his breath, inhaling sharply. I took his hand and he twirled me around, so he could see the back. hapter Sixty-Nine ¡°Sephie. I have no words. Beautiful doesn¡¯t begin to describe it. You¡¯re breathtaking.¡± I turned to face him, still nervous. ¡°You really like it?¡± ¡°I love it. You¡¯ve exceeded all my expectations. The guys were right. I won¡¯t be able to keep my hands off you.¡± He pulled me closer, kissing my lips gently. ¡°They¡¯re going to be busy tonight keeping the other men off you.¡± 1 felt my cheeks flush, looking down. ¡°At least there¡¯s five of them. There¡¯s only one of me. You¡¯re going to have to let me have at least three of them to run interference with the women that are going to be vying for your attention.¡± ¡°They can try to get my attention, but none of them are my solnishko. I won¡¯t be able to take my eyes off you.¡± He wrapped his hands around my waist, pulling me close. He put his face close to mine, lightly brushing mine with his facial hair. I giggled as he whispered, ¡°you are living up to your namesake, my queen.¡± I pulled him to me, holding him close to me. As soon as I felt his hands on me, I calmed down. I was going to need his touch tonight to help me keep my cool. He kissed my cheek. ¡°Come, we should go.¡± He walked to the couch, slipping his jacket on. He offered his arm. I slipped my arm through his. He stared at me for a moment, his blue eyes dark, before heading toward the door. As he opened the door, we were met by all five guys, patiently waiting for us. They all had smirks on their faces as they Jooked at me. I smiled at them, knowing they all wanted to tell me ¡°told you so¡± but they were trying to be nice to me. ¡°You guys were right.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, can we get that on a recording, princess?¡± Ivan said, smiling at me. ¡°Don¡¯t push your luck.¡± I said, winking at him. There was a red carpet set up to the side of the entrance of the hotel. I saw it as we dr ove past; my eyes went wide. Adrik smiled down at me, pulling me closer to him. ¡°We¡¯re skipping that. I don¡¯t do press pictures.¡± ¡°This. This is why I love you.¡± He chuckled, kissing my cheek. ¡°I¡¯m so d you¡¯re back. I missed the normal you.¡± The SUVs pulled up to the sidewalk, away from the press and the red carpet. Adrik stepped out, extending his hand to me. I slid over to get out, trying not to sh everyone as I stepped out. Andrei, Viktor, and Misha stepped out with us. Ivan and Stephen would park the vehicles and meet us inside. I looked at the three of them. ¡°You boys clean up well. Eye candy, indeed,¡± I said smiling at them. Viktor and Andrei led the way, with Misha behind us. We were far enough away that no one really noticed us walking toward the entrance. Mr. Turner was there at the door. His smile stretched across his face when he saw us approaching. He took his hat off, bowing to me. ¡°Miss Sephie, you look absolutely stunning tonight, youngdy.¡± I walked to him, reaching up to kiss his cheek. ¡°You¡¯re too kind, Mr. Turner.¡± ¡°I only speak the truth, my dear,¡± he said as he opened the door for us to enter the hotel. The main floor of the hotel had several ballrooms of varying sizes and grandness for such asions. We would be going to thergest one, as this was one of the biggest events the hotel held each year. As we entered the ballroom, there were people everywhere. Adrik pulled me a little closer, whispering in my ear, ¡°you stay with me or within sight of one of the guys tonight, okay?¡± I nodded my head. That would not be a problem. No way was I going to be left on my own with this many people around. We were met with waiters carrying sses of champagne. Adrik waved them away each time. His aversion to alcohol was one of the many things I loved about him. There was a live orchestra ying, with arge dance floor in one area. A stage with tables below it in another area. There were other waiters walking around with tes of food, as well as a bar toward the back of the ballroom. It was a sea of tuxedos and gowns. Almost immediately, people began approaching Adrik. They would speak to him, shake his hand, and inevitably thank him for something he helped them with at some point. Somehow, he managed to remember every person¡¯s name. I leaned over to Andrei while Adrik was talking to yet another person. ¡°How does he remember everyone¡¯s name? I feel like I would fail that test miserably.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± he grinned at me. Ivan and Stephen joined us. They stayed close, always within sight, but they tried to give Adrik and I room to mingle. Well, Adrik room to mingle. I didn¡¯t know anybody. After like the 20th person came to speak to him, he walked to me. I felt his arm around my waist. He leaned down to my ear, ¡°I need a break already. May I have this dance?¡± He stepped back and extended his hand to me. I took his hand, reluctantly. ¡°You know I don¡¯t know how to dance, right?¡± I said quietly as I followed him to the dance floor. He turned to me, holding one hand in his, wrapping his other arm around my waist. ¡°Somehow, I think you¡¯ll be a natural at this.¡± He pulled me close, so that my body was against his. ¡°All you have to do, my love, is look at me and follow my lead.¡± He took a few steps, my legs following his motion instinctively. ¡°And I happen to know for a fact, solnishko, that you are excellent at following my lead.¡± I felt my cheeks flush as he effortlessly guided us around the floor. It felt like we were floating across the floor. Suddenly, everyone else disappeared and it was only he and I in the room with the music in the background. As the song came to an end, he slowed to a stop. We still hadn¡¯t taken our eyes off each other. We heard pping, breaking my daze. I looked around to discover we had been the only couple on the dance floor. The orchestra began a new song while people still pped for us. I felt my cheeks flush. I looked down, not wanting to see everyone looking at me. He leaned into me, kissing my cheek. ¡°You¡¯re the most gorgeous woman they¡¯ve ever seen.¡± I looked at his dark blue eyes, filled with so much love, and couldn¡¯t help but smile at him. His lips to my ear, he quietly said, ¡°why do I want to rip that dress off you every time you smile at me?¡± I coughed, not expecting him to say that. Heughed, pulling me toward the bar. ¡°Let¡¯s get you some water, my love.¡±N?velDrama.Org is the owner. Chapter 70 Chapter 70 Chapter Seventy Sephie The first half of the evening turned out to be quite predictable. Several people woulde talk to Adrik, thanking him for some various business deal or phnthropy, Adrik getting tired of talking to people and dragging me onto the dance floor, only to have everyone else stop and watch us. Lather, rinse, repeat. After the first dance, he never let go of me, which meant I also had to talk to people that I didn¡¯t know. I had to turn on all my charm and act the part, even though I think a little piece of me died each time I fake smiled at someone. I caught each of the guy¡¯s line of sight at some point, doing something ri diculous without anyone else seeing us. They allughed and shook their heads at my silliness. I would make a ri diculous face at one of them, then go back to straight face,pletely engrossed in yet another boring life story. It wasn¡¯t much, but it kept me entertained. Eventually, I needed to visit the little girl¡¯s room. Before someone else could walk up to us, I pulled Adrik as far away from people as I could. I told him what I needed and he was just about to walk with me, when someone caught his arm. He looked to Ivan, who was closest to us, nodding toward me. Ivan was quickly beside me, offering me his arm. ¡°Princess?¡± he asked. I leaned close to him, so I wouldn¡¯t be overheard, ¡°I¡¯ve gotta p iss like a fu cking racehorse and these people won¡¯t give us two seconds alone.¡± Heughed, walking me toward the restrooms. He stood outside the door, looking at his watch. ¡°You have five minutes or I¡¯ming in after you.¡± I rolled my eyes, but then said, ¡°I can make it in three.¡± I heard himughing as I walked into the bathroom. There were two women already in there, talking to each other in the stalls. I tried not to listen, but they were somewhat tipsy and louder than they normally would¡¯ve been. They were. talking about Adrik. ¡°I heard he was g ay because he hasn¡¯t been seen in public with a woman in years,¡± the first one said. ¡°Well, either she¡¯s a beard for him or he¡¯s clearly not g ay. I never believed the g ay rumors anyway. One of my friends knows one of his former girlfriends. She said he was always an as shole to her. He would regrly call her the wrong name,¡± the second one said. Yep, that¡¯s my Adrik. I heard theme out of their stalls, the water in the sinks running. The second one adding, ¡°you know, he never even told her his real name. No one knows his real name. It¡¯s like he¡¯s doesn¡¯t exist.¡± The first one said, ¡°mysterious. And sexy.¡± I heard her sigh. ¡°I¡¯d even settle for one of his bodyguards. Have you seen the men he has protecting him? I¡¯d love a ride on one of them.¡± I was on a tight time schedule here, so I couldn¡¯t wait for them to leave before I came out. I walked to the sinks, looking at both of their shocked faces. As I quickly washed my hands, I looked at both of them. They both looked like the type of woman that Max would regrly go for. The kind that Adrik said he used to date when he was younger. They probably spent hours putting on their makeup each day. I could almost guarantee that none of the guys would find them attractive enough for anything serious. They might sleep with them and then never speak to them again, but I was fairly certain it wouldn¡¯t go beyond that. As seriously as I could, I said, ¡°I could introduce you, if you like, but I know for a fact they appreciate boldness, so you¡¯ll get farther if you introduce yourself.¡± I turned and walked out. I opened the door wide enough to let them see Ivan waiting for me just outside, staring at his watch. He smiled at me as he said ¡°Just under three minutes, princess. Impressive.¡± He offered his arm to me as I nced back at the two women in the restroom, winking at them as I slid my arm into his, just before the door closed. Of course, Ivan noticed. ¡°What was that, princess?¡± I giggled. ¡°So those two were talking about you guys. One of them wants to ride one of you. I told them I could introduce them to you, but that you guys appreciated boldness so they should introduce themselves.¡± He looked down at me, a devilish grin on his face. ¡°You¡¯re a little evil. You know we can¡¯t talk to anybody while we¡¯re working.¡± ¡°I may have known that. That may be why I told them toe talk to you.¡± He squeezed my arm in his and patted my hand. ¡°I¡¯m d you¡¯re back, princess. Life is more fun with you around.¡± I rested my head on his shoulder as we walked to find Adrik. The second half of the evening was the fundraising dinner, so everyone shifted to the tables that had been set up below the stage. I was happy enough to be able to sit down for a bit. Adrik kept me much more active than I was expecting to be in heels. I hadn¡¯t fallen yet, but I think it was more to do with his support on the dance floor than anything. The guys were standing in the shadows, keeping a close eye on literally everything and everyone. There were several speakers and then Adrik was to get his award. He leaned over to whisper in my ear, ¡°you¡¯ll be alone at the table just for a few minutes. They¡¯ve got eyes on you. If anything happens, they¡¯ll be to you within seconds.¡± He looked at me, the intensity in his eyes like he was discussing business. ¡°No matter what, you will be fine.¡± He leaned in to kiss me, surprising me with the passion of the kiss. It felt like he was trying to tell me something with the kiss. They started to introduce him, so he stood to walk to the side of the stage. He kissed me once more quickly, before standing and disappearing from my sight behind the curtains. He had taken his jacket off and left it on his chair. There were only a few other people at our table, as most who had been there earlier were now on the stage, or waiting to go on the stage. The other people were on the other side of the table, turned away from me to watch the speaker at the microphone. I nced behind me, spotting Ivan step just far enough out of the shadows that I could see him. Adrik¡¯s introduction ended and everyone stood to apud. He walked out to ept his award. He was supposed to say a few words after epting his award, then he would be back. The apuse grew louder. Everyone was on their feet. I nced over the crowd, proud that all these people loved Adrik so much. Just as I nced away, there was amotion on stage. I looked back to the stage as I saw Adrik clutch his chest, falling forward. I nced behind me, to see Ivan and Viktor rush to the stage. I froze for a second. Just as I was about to rush to the stage as well, I felt hands. grab me. One arm around my waist, another over my mo uth so I couldn¡¯t scream. I knew immediately this was not one of the guys. I had sparred with all of them. I¡¯d escaped their grips. I knew what their arms around me felt like. This was a stranger. I struggled against their hold on me, bringing my knees up as we approached the back door to the ballroom, hoping to grab the doorframe with my legs. I managed to just catch the doorframe, causing the person holding me to stumble to the side. I stomped on his foot and elbowed him as hard as I could. He bent over, loosening his grip. I was standing on my own, but his arms were still around me, albeit lo oser. I turned toward him, putting both hands together, I swung my arms toward his face, hitting him with both fists. He fell backward momentarily before shaking his head and grabbing me again. I went limp, causing his grip to loosen again and managed to get a few steps away from him when he grabbed me again. This time he threw me over his shoulder and ran from the ballroom. We ran through a kitchen. I tried to grab anything I could to hit him with, but nothing stopped him. I was pounding my fists into his back as hard as I could as he ran with me. We made it outside and he was met by another man. The guy that had me said something to the second guy who ran to a waiting vehicle, grabbed a zip tie and came back to me. Within seconds, he had bound my hands together. They pushed me toward the vehicle and into the backseat. They both jumped in the front seats and the vehicle took off. We were still downtown. They were weaving through the side streets. I sat up, waiting for the next turn. As soon as he slowed to make the turn, I opened the door and jumped out. I rolled down the street, taking longer than I expected to stop. I heard the brakes screech and the vehicle reversed quickly. I got up as quickly as I could and started running. I wasn¡¯t sure where I was. I just knew I needed to get away from them. The vehicle sped up even more, closing the distance to me. I ran as fast as I possibly could, but they eventually caught up to me. The second guy jumped out and grabbed me. He threw me back into the back seat and climbed in beside me. He kept a tight grip on my arms as the vehicle sped off again.N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Chapter 71 Chapter 71 Chapter Seventy-One Sephie We left downtown and d rove away from the city. They pulled up to the small, private airport just outside the city. Sh it. They¡¯re never going to find me. As soon as I saw the jet on the runway, I started to panic. I couldn¡¯t let them get me on that ne. The SUV pulled up beside the ne. Both men jumped out. They tried to pull me out of the backseat, but I kicked one of them in the face. I heard him curse me in Italian, confirming my fears that they were bad news. The other one came to the other side and grabbed me by the shoulders. ¡°Don¡¯t make me hurt you,¡± he said as he dragged me toward the ne. He picked me up and threw me over his shoulder to walk me up the few stairs to the ne. I grabbed the door frame and tried to get free, but he broke my grip and walked me onto the ne. He threw me into a seat toward the rear of the ne. ¡°You, stay. Or I sh oot you,¡± he said, pulling a gun from his boot. He slipped my shoes off before leaving me, his anger clearly visible on his face that I had kicked his buddy. Might be the only perk for wearing heels¡­ I pulled my knees to my chest, burying my head in my arms. All I could think about now was Adrik. I kept reying everything over and over in my head. I had only nced away for a second. When I looked back, he was going down, grabbing his chest. I remember seeing Ivan and Viktor running to him. I couldn¡¯t see the other three guys. Then I was grabbed. What the fu ck happened? And more importantly, how was I going to get out of this situation? There was only one exit from the ne. And it was guarded. Why weren¡¯t we taking off? They were just standing around, like they were waiting for something. I buried my head again, the tearsing full force now. For all I knew, Adrik was dead. How was I supposed to live without him? I was sobbing now. I couldn¡¯t imagine a life without him. My body started shaking uncontrobly. I didn¡¯t care. I didn¡¯t care about anything. The only thing I could feel was the gaping ho le forming in my chest as I reyed the scene of Adrik going down over and over again. I heard vehicles pull up outside the ne. Voices. Doors being opened and sh ut on the vehicles and then the underside of the ne. Footstepsing up to the ne. I didn¡¯t pick my head up. I didn¡¯t care to see who had taken me. Nothing mattered anymore if Adrik wasn¡¯t in my life. I kept my head down, hugging my knees as tightly as I could with my hands bound. I heard another vehicle pull up outside. More voices. More doors opening and closing. More footstepsing up to the ne. I heard someone walk toward me and stop in front of me. I just curled into a tighter ball, expecting the worst. I heard the click of a knife de being extended and flinched. I felt warm hands on mine and then my hands were free. ¡°Princess. You¡¯re very difficult to kidnap. You look like h ell. Boss is going to be pi ssed.¡± I was still so scared that his familiar voice didn¡¯t register. I just kept my head down, my body still shaking, still convinced of my imminent death. I heard him kneel in front of me, his hands on my shoulders. I flinched at his touch, still trying to get away from him. I heard him curse in Russian. ¡°Sephie.¡± He shook me gently. ¡°Look at me, Sephie. You¡¯re safe.¡± I peeked at him. I recognized him. Ivan. My brain still not registering what was happening. I just buried my head again, rocking back and forth, shaking uncontrobly. I heard loud voices outside this time. One sounded familiar. Rushed footsteps up the steps to the ne, toward me. They stopped short of me. His loud voice, ¡°WHAT THE FU CK! YOU WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO HARM HER!¡± The voice that had threatened to sh oot me said, ¡°she fought back. Hard. She jumped out of the vehicle. We barely caught her. You guys didn¡¯t tell us she was so fuc king fast. Or strong. I think she broke Alfredo¡¯s face. She kicked him in the face when we tried to get her out of the vehicle.¡± Footsteps. Hands on me. These hands were different. My body instantly rxed when I felt these hands. I was still too scared to look, still rocking back and forth. ¡°Persephone, love. Look at me.¡± I hugged my knees closer to me, shutting my eyes tighter. That voice. That was the voice I wanted to hear more than anything in the world. The one voice that I would never hear again. The tears started flowing again. I started rocking back and forth. ¡°No, no, no. It can¡¯t be. It can¡¯t be.¡± I said quietly to myself. ¡°Sephie. Look at me, please. Solnishko. It¡¯s me, Adrik.¡± ¡°No, I saw him go down on the stage. This is a cr uel joke.¡± ¡°It was fake. We needed everyone to believe I was killed. I¡¯m very much alive, I assure you. Please look at me.¡± He turned his head, giving orders in Russian. I heard activity outside the ne, more footsteps boarding the ne. My head was starting to pound. I peeked at him while his head was turned. The lights were so bright, but there was something familiar about his profile. I squinted, trying to adjust to the light. I reached out and touched his face lightly.¡± He didn¡¯t move. He just closed his eyes, leaning into my touch. A single tear fell from his eye. ¡°It can¡¯t be you. I saw you go down. I saw everybody run to you.¡± He took a deep breath. He turned his head, his blue eyes filled with tears as he looked at me with nothing but regret. ¡°This was not how this was supposed to go. You were not supposed to get hurt.¡± He tried to find a ce that he could rest his hands, but my road rash was even worse this time. Pro tip: don¡¯t jump out of a moving vehicle ince and satin. It offers zero protection from the hard concrete. As he looked me over, another tear fell from his eye. I reached up and wiped his eye with my thumb. ¡°Please forgive me, solnishko. Please forgive me.¡± His head dropped, resting against my legs. I felt fresh tears welling up in my eyes. I wanted to touch his hair. I wanted to console him. My head was pounding so badly that I could barely think. I lightly touched his hair. ¡°Is it really you?¡± He looked up at me, hopeful, his eyes wet with tears. ¡°It¡¯s really me, solnishko.¡± I stared at him for a few minutes, not saying anything. My brain still struggling to process everything. He never took his eyes off me. I reached out and touched his face again. ¡°You know your old girlfriends are still mad because you never told them your name?¡± Heughed, his smile pulling at something in my chest. The ne moved forward on the runway, taxiing for take-off. I tensed. Before I knew what happened,N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. he had lifted me from the seat to a couch on the other side of the ne. He put me in hisp, his arms wrapped tightly around me. I rested my head on his shoulder. ¡°My head really hurts,¡± I said before closing my eyes and letting the darkness take over. Chapter 72 Chapter 72 Chapter Seventy-Two Sephie I was back in the ballroom, watching Adrik go down, over and over. Each time, I was frozen in ce, like I couldn¡¯t move until I was grabbed from behind. Each time the guy grabbed me, he said something that I couldn¡¯t hear or understand. I heard voices. Familiar voices. ¡°Princess¡­¡± ¡°Gazelle¡­¡± ¡°Spider monkey¡­..¡± ¡°Sestrichka¡­¡± ¡°Solnishko¡­¡± A different voice would pull me briefly out of the ballroom each time, only to return to have to watch the scene again and be frozen in ce again. It felt like I was drowning, watching him go down, not being able to do anything about it. I couldn¡¯t save him. I couldn¡¯t even save myself. I felt arms around me, shifting me, holding me. Warmth that made my body rx. Fingers in my hair. Back in the ballroom, watching him go down again. This time, I found myself crying. I couldn¡¯t watch anymore. I sh ut my eyes. I can¡¯t watch anymore. I can¡¯t take it. I would rather have the darkness than be forced to watch this over again. I hear a voice, calling my name. Everything is darkness. I can only see my body, nothing else. It¡¯s like I¡¯m swimming in the nothing. The voice is still there. Calling me. I try to go toward it. It gets louder. I can hear it clearer. ¡°Sephie, pleasee back to me. I can¡¯t possibly live without you. Please just follow the sound of my voice. Come back to me. I love you.¡± I know that voice. I want to go to that voice. I try to go toward that voice, only to hear a new voice. ¡°He¡¯s lying. He doesn¡¯t love you. No one loves you. No one will ever love you.¡± I know this voice too. I knowN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. those words. Grant would say those words over and over to me as he was beating me. Like he was beating those words into me. No, no, no. It can¡¯t be him. I got away from him. I locked that voice away tight. ¡°You didn¡¯t lock it up tight enough, stu pid girl. I¡¯m still here.¡± Again, the voice calling me. ¡°Sephie, pleasee back to me. Follow the sound of my voice. I love you.¡± The other voice,ughing. ¡°He¡¯s so pat hetic. Begging you toe back to him, like you¡¯re worth a da mn. Sickening.¡± I feel the familiar pull toward the voice calling me. I want to go toward it, but every time I move toward it, the other voicees out. ¡°Solnishko, you have to wake up, my love. You have toe back to me, malishka.¡± I move toward it again. The other voice, yelling now, ¡°YOU THINK HE LOVES YOU? YOU¡¯RE MORE STU PID THAN I THOUGHT. NOBODY WILL EVER LOVE YOU, STU PID GIRL.¡± No, no, no.¡± It can¡¯t be right. He can¡¯t be right. It¡¯s not right. 1 bring my knees to my chest, hugging them tightly. ¡°YOU THINK THAT¡¯S GOING TO PROTECT YOU?! YOU CAN¡¯T GET AWAY FROM ME, GIRL.¡± ¡°Solnishko, I love you. I¡¯ve loved you since the first time Iid eyes on you. You have my heart. You will always have my heart. You¡¯re the only woman who knows my name.¡± Suddenly, I¡¯m in a bathroom, listening to women talk. One of them says, ¡°you know he never even told her his real name? No one knows his real name. It¡¯s like he doesn¡¯t exist.¡± ¡°LISTEN TO HER. HE DOESN¡¯T EXIST.¡± ¡°Sephie, you know my name. I love hearing my name on your tongue. I can¡¯t get enough of you saying my name. I never hesitated to tell you my name that night in the parking lot. You¡¯re the only woman that knows my name.¡± Adrik. Adrik is calling me! I have to go to him. Wherever he is, that¡¯s where I need to be. ¡°YOU CAN¡¯T GET AWAY FROM ME AGAIN, ST UPID GIRL.¡± SH UT UP! You¡¯re not real! ¡°OH, I¡¯M VERY REAL. I¡¯M NEVER GOING AWAY AGAIN NOW THAT I¡¯M OUT.¡± Stop it! You¡¯re not real. I got away from you. You can¡¯t hurt me anymore. ¡°Sephie, I love you.¡± I have to go to him. I need him. I love him. ¡°YOU AIN¡¯T GOING ANYWHERE.¡± I¡¯d had enough. Enough of the doubt, enough of his abuse, enough of carrying him around with me for years, enough of his voice in the back of my head anytime I was unsure of myself. Enough! ¡°YOU CAN¡¯T GET RID OF ME¡± I¡¯m not the same Sephie you knew. This Sephie fights back. This is the Sephie that would drive that knife through your heart instead of slicing your Achilles tendon and not shed a tear over it. I¡¯m suddenly back in the basement. My back is on fire, there¡¯s blood everywhere. My blood. Grant is a few steps away from me, catching his breath. This is my chance to get away from him. I try to get up, feeling the familiar object in my pocket. I discreetly pull it out of my pocket, clicking it open as quietly as possible. He must¡¯ve heard the click, because now he¡¯s walked toward me. I grip the handle tightly, waiting for my chance. He stops beside me, swinging his leg back like he¡¯s going to kick me. I grab his foot as he¡¯s about to kick me and slice as hard as I can across the back of his ankle. He crashes to the floor, screaming in pain. The knife is still in my hand. I stand up as quickly as I can, looking at him writhing on the floor in pain. He rolls onto his back and all I see is red. Without even thinking, I jumped on him, plunging the knife as deeply into his chest as I can get it to go. He sputters, coughing up blood. I stand up once again, watching him struggle to hold onto life. He reaches for me, trying to grab my leg. I raise my leg out of his grasp, letting my heelnd with as much force as I can muster on the knife sticking out of his chest, driving it farther into his chest. I hear him take hisst breath as I¡¯m running up the stairs. I run to my room, grabbing my stuff. I nced at myself in the mirror, realizing that I¡¯m covered in blood. I look for something to cover my back. ¡°Sephie, I love you. Pleasee back to me.¡± I¡¯ming. I have to get away. Please wait for me¡±. I find a jacket and throw it on. When the fabric hits my back, I scream. I¡¯m no longer in my bedroom. Everything is so bright. I feel arms around me and I flinch, trying to get away. ¡°Sephie, it¡¯s me. You¡¯re safe.¡± say something I blink, trying to get my eyes to focus. Everything is still so bright that I can¡¯t see anything. I hear him in Russian and hear movement around me. Sliding. Suddenly it¡¯s darker. I open my eyes slowly. They¡¯re able to adjust better in lower light. I see a face in front of me and hear that voice. The voice that pulled me out of my nightmare. ¡°Sephie, it¡¯s me. It¡¯s Adrik. You¡¯re safe now. Look at me.¡± Chapter 73 Chapter 73 Chapter Seventy-Three Sephie I blink again, this time able to see his eyes. Those blue eyes that I love. I search them, trying to figure out if it¡¯s really him. He looks at me with nothing but concern at first, but when he sees me searching his eyes, he looks at me with nothing but love and adoration. He smiles faintly, ¡°It¡¯s me, Sephie. Pinky swear.¡± I climb into hisp, holding onto him like he¡¯s the only anchor in the middle of a hurricane. Tears fall uncontrobly. He wraps his arms around me, running his hands over my back, trying to calm me down. ¡°Shhh¡­you¡¯re okay now. You¡¯re safe now. No one will ever hurt you again. Especially not Grant.¡± I sobbed harder, clinging to him. ¡°I think I killed him,¡± I said, mumbling in between breaths. ¡°I think I stabbed him in the heart, I think I killed him.¡± He wrapped his arms around me tighter. ¡°I love you, Sephie. Nothing will ever change that.¡± ¡°It¡¯s really you?¡± I asked, leaning back to look at him. ¡°How are you not dead?¡± ¡°Before I went on stage, I put on a bulletproof vest. That¡¯s why I left my jacket at the table. Made it easier to get it on and my shirt back on quickly. We needed everyone to believe I died and you were kidnapped. I¡¯m sorry, solnishko. I should¡¯ve told you. We underestimated how much you would fight back.¡± I suddenly remembered being grabbed in the ballroom and everything that happened after. I reached back and pped him as hard as I possibly could. ¡°YOU LET THEM KIDNAP ME!¡± Suddenly, Ivan was pulling me off hisp. ¡°Easy, princess.¡± He set me down, which was his mistake. I delivered a punch squarely to his nose, causing him to step back, blood gushing from his nose. ¡°AND YOU! YOU LET THEM TAKE ME TOO. YOU WERE THE CLOSEST ONE TO ME. YOU STEPPED FORWARD SO I COULD SEE YOU ONLY TO RUN IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION WHILE THEY FU CKING TOOK ME!¡± I was seeing red at this point. I was so angry; I couldn¡¯t see past that. I felt Andrei¡¯s hands on myN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. shoulders. ¡°Spider monkey¡­¡± I didn¡¯t give him time to say anything else. I grabbed his shoulders and kneed him as hard as I could in the groin. He doubled over in pain. ¡°DON¡¯T FU CKING TOUCH ME!¡± Misha and Viktor both stood in front of me, neither of them touching me, but both trying to calm me down. They both had their hands up, like they were trying to corner a caged animal. ¡°Gazelle, I wanted to tell you. I told them it would end horribly if they didn¡¯t tell you the n. I saw what happened to that guy that attacked you. I knew it was a bad idea.¡± I looked at Misha, ring at him. ¡°What fu cking n. And if you lie to me, so help me, I¡¯ll rearrange your face too.¡± 1 heard Viktor¡¯s deep voice, trying to calm me down, say, ¡°we got word that they were going to try to assassinate Boss at the ball. They were going to kidnap you at the same time, just in case the assassination attempt didn¡¯t work. It would be the only time you were vulnerable. The people they put in ce for the n were loyal to us. The guys that took you work for Armando, not Salvadori. They clearly had no idea what they were signing up for, though. You were not an easy target.¡± I pinched the bridge of my nose, my headacheing back in full force. ¡°Why in the fu ck did nobody tell me about this n?¡± Misha said, ¡°the guy that grabbed you says he told you on the way out, but he thinks it was so loud that you didn¡¯t hear him. You fought back so hard that he just wanted to get you to the ne by any means necessary. That¡¯s why they zip tied your hands. They definitely were not expecting you to jump out of the vehicle. You almost killed yourself.¡± I felt his hand on my shoulder. My eyes were still closed, as my head was still pounding. 1 held a finger up. ¡°Don¡¯t. Touch. Me.¡± ¡°Okay, gazelle. Just breathe.¡± ¡°Why the fu ck did nobody tell me about this n before some random a ss mo therfucker grabbed me? And if you don¡¯t tell me the truth this time, you¡¯re all going down. I will take this fu cking ne down with all of you in it. I have no problem destroying myself in the pursuit of destroying every go ddamn one of you right now.¡± I heard Ivan¡¯s muffledughter from behind me, which only served to make me angrier. I looked at Misha. ¡°TALK. NOW.¡± ¡°We needed everyone to believe the original assassination attempt had been sessful and we needed the kidnap attempt to look believable. The ce was crawling with cameras, on purpose. Salvadori wanted ample proof of what happened. We had to sell it. The only way to sell you being kidnapped was to actually kidnap you. We didn¡¯t expect it to go so¡­. poorly.¡± I looked from him to Viktor. They both looked awful. I nced at Stephen, who was standing behind them. He looked equally as bad. I turned to look at Andrei, who was still in pain, sitting in one of the seats. Ivan wouldn¡¯t make eye contact with me. Adrik was standing behind me. He wanted toe to me, I know he did, but he was scared I was going to hurt him. The look on his face made my heart hurt, but at the same time, I was still so angry they had all agreed to lie to me that I didn¡¯t know what to do. I stood for a moment, pinching the bridge of my nose. I just wanted to cry. I felt so betrayed. I had trusted every one of them with my life and they had all lied to me. I was never going to be able to get the image of Ivan running away from me out of my head. I was never going to be able to unsee Adrik going down on stage. I turned and walked toward the back of the ne. Toward Adrik. For a moment, he looked relieved, until I stepped around him. He went to grab me, but I moved away from his grasp. ¡°Don¡¯t touch me. Don¡¯t fu cking touch me right now.¡± Chapter 74 Chapter 74 Chapter Seventy-Four Adrik We fu cked up. I fu cked up. She almost died because of me. The guy that grabbed Sephie was supposed to get her to the back and tell her it was all fake, but she was fighting so hard that he didn¡¯t have a chance. Nobody expected her to jump from the vehicle and almost k ill herself. Now her headache was back and she was in pain, but I couldn¡¯t do anything. She wouldn¡¯t let anyone touch her. I can¡¯t say I me her for being angry with us. I was furious with myself. I almost told her the n before I went on stage. I tried to warn her, but it didn¡¯t work. The part of the n that involved her didn¡¯t work. In fact, it failed miserably. Now she clearly needed help, but no one could get close enough to her to help her. I¡¯m sure her concussion is back, only worse this time. It took her so long to recognize me. I¡¯m worried she¡¯s really damaged her brain this time. Ivan pressed on her acupuncture points while she was out, but I don¡¯t know how effective it was. She was talking while she was out. She was back in the basement with her uncle. We all heard the whole thing. She was fighting that memory. She was fighting the thought pattern that he¡¯d beat into her. I was terrified I was going to lose her. She¡¯s angrier than any of us had ever seen her. She¡¯s furious with the guys, but when she looks at me, all I see is the pain I caused her. And what¡¯s worse, I have no idea how to make that pain go away. We were still an hour out from Switzend. We wouldnd in Switzend, transfer to a helicopter over the Alps to just inside Italy. We were extremely limited on where we couldnd in Italy without it being known we were there, but Armando had family with a ranch on the border of Switzend where we couldnd a helicopter without being seen. From there, we would drive south to Naples. Sicily was a short boat ride from Naples. Armando¡¯s family controlled Naples, so we could move about in that city freely. The n was to find Anthony and Lorenzo in Sicily and take them both out as cleanly and quickly as possible. Without those two to back him, we doubted Salvadori would continue with his n in the states to start a war. But he would be dealt with in much the same manner if he did decide to go through with it. At this point, they were all under the impression that I was dead and that they had sessfully kidnapped Sephie. Armando¡¯s men were to stage an ¡°escape¡± in two days, to make it seem like she got away from them. They would spend time and manpower looking for her while we executed Anthony and Lorenzo. Now I was more worried about Sephie than I was about Anthony and Lorenzo. I wanted to punch something I was so frustrated with how things turned out. It broke me to see her hurting, knowing I couldn¡¯t do anything to help her. She just sat quietly in the corner, not looking at anyone. Not saying anything. She cries now and then, rocks back and forth. I can see her shaking from across the ne. I¡¯m dying to go to her. To hold her. It always seemed to calm down the shaking when I would touch her. I want nothing more than to be able to go to her now, but she won¡¯t let anyone near her. Andrei, who is usually one of her favorites, tried and the re she gave him was enough to stop him in his tracks. We would bending soon. We had packed clothes for her and wanted her to be able to change before we started the next leg of our journey. We all consulted with each other, trying to decide who should take her clothes to her. We decided that she was less mad at Misha, so he got volunteered. I¡¯ve never seen that kid so scared in his life. He walked slowly to her, talking to her so she wouldn¡¯t be surprised. She had her head down again. We could all hear 1/3 her quietly crying, as she hugged her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth. ¡°Gazelle. Sephie. We brought you some clothes to change into. We should also get you cleaned up. Your road rash needs attention. Adrik can help you. We don¡¯t want anything to get infected. Please, Sephie. We want to help.¡± She looked up at him. Her face was red, her eyes puffy from the constant crying. She reached for the clothes without a word. ¡°You can change in the back. There¡¯s a door that closes so you have privacy. I can get you the first aid kit too.¡± She nodded her head but put her head back down. Sheid the clothes beside her on the seat. Misha came back with the first aid kit for her. She reached for it too, without saying a word. She barely looked at him. But at least she didn¡¯t punch him. I guess that counts for progress. The look on Misha¡¯s face as he went to sit back down was one of utter despair. He looked like he was barely able to keep it together. We were all barely keeping it together right now. She quietly got up and went to the back, shutting the door behind her. We could hear her sniffle now and then. It sounded like she had opened the first aid kit. Then we heard her cursing. She was putting antiseptic on her wounds. By herself. Because of me. I leaned forward, putting my head in my hands. Tears fell from my eyes. I felt so helpless. We should¡¯ve told her the n. I wish I would¡¯ve told her. She could¡¯ve handled it. Fu ck! Why didn¡¯t I tell her before I went on stage? ed for Misha. He I wanted to punch something. I heard her curse louder and cry out. She was quiet and then she walked back to the door. ¡°I need help,¡± was all she said. He walked in, closing the door behind him. I tried not to be jealous. I tried to be grateful that she was at least letting one of us help her, but this was killing me. I heard Misha quietly say, ¡°that one¡¯s deep, Sephie. That doesn¡¯t look good.¡± Then silence. Then, ¡°it¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay. We¡¯ll get it fixed. We¡¯ll get it bandaged right now and we¡¯ll get it looked at once wend. It¡¯ll be okay. Please don¡¯t cry.¡± He came out from the back a few momentster. The look on his face worse than before if that wasThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. even possible. He quietly said to me, ¡°she¡¯s got a wound almost down to the bone on her hip. I packed it as best as I could, but it should definitely be looked at by someone other than me. Soon.¡± As soon as wended, I would call ahead to Armando¡¯s family and ask them to have a doctor waiting for us when we got there. The flight from Switzend to his family¡¯s ranch was a short one. I heard the door open and she walked out in fresh clothes. She was visibly limping now. Her adrenaline rushes were beginning to wear off. I¡¯m sure she was in excruciating pain right now. She walked back to her seat in the back, not looking at anyone. She tried to pull her knees to her chest again but flinched in pain. Definitely in excruciating pain. Goddammit. Chapter 75 Chapter 75 Chapter Seventy-Five Adrik Wended soon after and transferred to the helicopter quickly. She allowed Misha to help her on the helicopter. Progress. She still said nothing to anyone. It was a quick flight to Armando¡¯s family¡¯s ranch, just inside Italy. They took us to the house right away. The doctor was waiting for Sephie. He didn¡¯t speak much English and we didn¡¯t speak any Italian, but he could see she was hurt. Thedy in charge of the house, Isabe, could speak some English. Enough to get by. She went in with the doctor to help trante. I paced in the courtyard of the house, waiting for the doctor to be done with her. He came out, with Isabe. He would speak, she would trante. ¡°He says most cuts not bad, heal soon. But cut on her hip bad. Can¡¯t stitch up. Might need, uh, more skin?¡± she pressed her hands together and ced them over her hip. Skin graft. She might need a skin graft. ¡°He gave her antibiotics. Must take all of them. No infection or it get into her bone. That¡¯s very bad. Also gave her light sedative to help her sleep. She say her head hurt. He gave her pain pills too.¡± Good. And bad. We couldn¡¯t afford to have her sleep for three days again. Ivan spoke up, ¡°what pain pills? Name?¡± Isabe asked the doctor to rify, ¡°Tramadol. Light pain pill. Shouldn¡¯t make her sleepy or make¡­¡± she pointed to her stomach and drew circles around her stomach. It shouldn¡¯t upset her stomach. Good. Hopefully she wouldn¡¯t go for a week without eating again. Ivan looked at me, ¡°that¡¯s different from the one they gave her at home. Hopefully this one won¡¯t knock her out. We¡¯ll adjust the n if it does. We¡¯ll just have to make new arrangements for travel.¡± We hadn¡¯t noticed Sephiee out of the room. ¡°By all means, don¡¯t adjust anything on my ount. I¡¯m not taking them. I¡¯m not risking sleeping for three days again.¡± She had one hand pressing on her hip, the other on her head. I couldn¡¯t help it. I went to her without thinking. She flinched when I touched her, but she didn¡¯t p me this time. My hands went to her hair, trying to give her some kind of relief from her headache. She sighed. She was exhausted. I think that¡¯s the only reason she allowed me to touch her. She didn¡¯t have the strength to fight me right now. At this point, I was so desperate to touch her that I would take any in I could get. I gently took her hand from her hip. I pressed on the spot that Ivan had showed me. She closed her eyes tightly. Ivan walked to her other side, taking her other hand from her head. She didn¡¯t resist. She also wouldn¡¯t open her eyes. He pressed on the spot on her other hand, trying to give her the most relief we could. We both saw the tears falling down her cheeks as she stood there. Isabe showed the doctor out and came back to show the other guys their rooms. Ivan and I stayed with Sephie. If she was going to allow us to touch her, we weren¡¯t leaving until she told us to. Especially not when we could maybe give her some relief. We stood there for twenty minutes before she started to show signs of rxing. She finally took a deep breath and opened her eyes. She didn¡¯t have, as she called it, a murderous aura any longer. She just looked tired. She looked broken. Misha came back to show us to our rooms, as Isabe had gone to prepare dinner. We were staying here tonight, but then we had nned on leaving first thing in the morning to make it to Naples by tomorrowte afternoon. However, it now all depended on Sephie. We were traveling by motorcycle, as they were faster, and we could get through city traffic faster on bikes than in a car. I was worried about her riding that long while her hip was in pain. Misha showed Ivan his room, then showed me where Sephie and I would be staying. I wasn¡¯t sure she would want to share a bed with me, but we really didn¡¯t have a choice. She walked in and sat down on the bed. She looked like a shell of herself. She wouldn¡¯t look at me. She just stared ahead at the wall. ¡°Do you want to shower before dinner?¡± Tears welled in her eyes again. She looked down at the floor, trying to control the tears threatening to fall. I sat down on the bed beside her, pulling her to my side. She rested her head on my shoulder, but she made no attempt to touch me. She usually couldn¡¯t keep her hands off me, just like I couldn¡¯t keep my hands off her. It broke my heart. ¡°Come, we¡¯ll shower. I¡¯ll wash your hair.¡± She didn¡¯t say a word, but she followed me when I pulled her toward the bathroom. It took me a little longer than I thought to get all the hair pins out of her hair. She was right. That¡¯s a lot of effort for nonsense. I found myself thinking back to when I first turned around to see her in that dress. It was absolutely perfect for her. She was modest, so it covered everything she was concerned with strangers seeing, but she showed enough leg that there was no missing her s ex appeal. I thought about that first dance we had. The other girlfriends I¡¯d had were never good dance partners. They were always fighting to lead. Sephie was different. She let me lead,pletely surrendering to me, making the dance magnificent. She trusted mepletely. And Ipletely destroyed that trust.N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Chapter 76 Chapter 76 Chapter Seventy-Six Adrik I was lost in my thoughts in the shower, busy beating myself up over what had happened. I looked down, catching her staring up at me. She had a confused look in her eyes but said nothing. I was grateful for any eye contact, so I held it as long as she would let me. Trying to silently let her know I was sorry and that I loved her more than anything. She¡¯d always been able to read my mind just by looking me in the eyes before. I¡¯d hoped she was capable of doing so now. She stared at me for a few minutes, her eyes searching. Constantly searching. I let her read whatever part of my soul she was interested in. It all belongs to her. A tear fell from my eye as I looked into her sad eyes. She reached up and wiped it away with her thumb, leaving her hand on my face for a moment before dropping it along with her gaze. She allowed me to pull her to me and hold her. Her arms stayed limp at her sides, though. She barely spoke at dinner, but she did eat. She ate a lot, even for her. She¡¯d barely eaten the past three weeks, so it was good to see her appetitee back with a vengeance. The guys were quiet as well, all still feeling ho rrible about everything that had happened. Viktor asked me in Russian, ¡°should we change ns for tomorrow? Do we need to arrange for a car instead? Or do you want to wait a day to leave?¡± N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. I thought for a few moments. ¡°Let¡¯s see how tonight goes and how she is in the morning. The drive to Naples will still be faster if we take the bikes. I don¡¯t know which is worse, extending the trip out or making her ride a bike for 7 hours.¡± ¡°Stop trying to change the ns because of me. I¡¯ll be fine,¡± she said as she stood up and walked slowly back to our room for the night, leaving us all stunned. We cleaned up after dinner and then all retired to our rooms. Sephie wasying on the bed, on top of the covers. She wasying on her good hip, which meant she was facing the door. She had taken her pants off, her road rash on full disy. I took my shirt off and slipped out of my jeans, crawling in bed behind her. I was suddenly exhausted and wanted nothing more than to hold her for a few hours. As carefully as I could, I wrapped my arms around her. I had hoped she would snuggle back into me. She did not. But she made no moves to get out of my grasp, either. This will have to do for now. Sometime during the night, I woke to her struggling in her sleep. She called my name and then she called for Ivan. She was reying the scene in the ballroom. She did it over and over on the ne. She would call out my name, then Ivan¡¯s name, then she would struggle. That¡¯s when I started to talk to her. It seemed like it would help to calm her and it seems like it¡¯s what eventually broke the cycle. I tried it again. ¡°Sephie, I love you, solnishko. Pleasee back to me. I can¡¯t live without you.¡± She sighed and I felt her push her body back into mine. I held her tighter. She was calm for a few minutes. Just when I thought she had fallen into a peaceful sleep, she called out for me again. Then Ivan. Then she began struggling. ¡°Sephie, I love you. I¡¯m here. I¡¯m not going anywhere. I don¡¯t care how many times I need to tell you for you to believe it again, but you¡¯re my everything.¡± Quiet. Instead of waiting for her to start the cycle again, I kept talking to her. ¡°I¡¯ve loved you since the first night I saw you, when you were standing at the bar. Your eyes were so wide when you saw Viktor and Andrei walk in. It was adorable. But then you locked eyes with me and I saw the look in your eye immediately change, giving me that spark that only I can see. Your friend Max had to push you toe show us to the meeting room. You almost tripped on your way to us. I was trying desperately to control myself as you walked closer. You were so cute. When you asked what you could get us to drink and Viktor told you waters for all of us, you cocked your head to the side and said ¡°different.¡± Then you immediately got worried you had offended me. It was all I could do not to kiss you right then. I stepped close to you, able to smell the floral scent of your shampoo. It dr ove me crazy. I sat down at the table and all I could think about was running my hands through your hair and what it would look like not in a braid.¡± She sighed and made the quiet cooing noise she sometimes made when I would run my hands through her hair while she was sleeping. I reached up and ran my hand lightly through her hair. She started to roll over to face me but cried out when she hit her bad hip. She sat up, cursing, but still asleep. I got up and moved to the other side of her so she couldy across my chest, without having toy on her bad hip. She settled onto my chest, my hand still running through her hair. After just a few minutes, her fingers were lightly ying on my chest, and I knew she was having better dreams. I drifted back to sleep, while she yed her favorite songs on my heart Chapter 77 Chapter 77 Chapter Seventy-Seven Ivan We all retired to our rooms for the night. Iid on the bed, trying to sleep. I was physically and me ntally exhausted, but there was going to be no sleep in my immediate future. My mind kept reying the look on Sephie¡¯s face in the ballroom as she saw Boss going down. She looked to us for help and we had to run right past her. I nced over my shoulder as Armando¡¯s man grabbed her. I¡¯ll never be able to forget her face when she felt him grab her. Fear. She was legitimately scared for her life, but I think she was more scared for Adrik. I¡¯ve seen that look before. When the one you love more than life itself is dying in front of you. That¡¯s a look I wish to never see again. When we were on the ne, Sephie had finally passed out from stress, but her mind was reying the nights events too. We¡¯d never heard her talk in her sleep. She¡¯s fallen asleep around all of us at least once and never once had she talked in her sleep. Adrik thought she was awake at first. She would desperately call for him, but then she would desperately call for me. She knew I was the closest one to her before everything happened. She trusted that I would save her and I ignored her. I could hear her voice calling to him, then me, over and over again while we were on the ne. It felt like it went on for hours. My heart broke & little more each time. Now I was stuck reying those scenes. Thinking about how I had let her down. The one woman I had let get close to me again. I knew she and Adrik belonged together, but I couldn¡¯t help but love her too. We all did. After a few hours of staring at the ceiling, I got up to get a ss of water from the kitchen. I stood against the counter, now staring at the floor, my mind still on the loop of everything that had happened. I knew we had fu cked up bad when she wouldn¡¯t look at me on the ne. I was the first one to see her. She was so scared that she couldn¡¯t see past it. She didn¡¯t trust her own brain to recognize me. Or Adrik. We fu cked up bad. I refilled my ss, sighing. I heard footsteps approaching the kitchen. Misha. He looked at me, ¡°you can¡¯t sleep either, huh?¡± I shook my head no. ¡°I can¡¯t stop seeing her, first in the ballroom, then when she was curled up in the seat on the ne when we first got to her, and I can¡¯t stop hearing her calling for Adrik and me while she was out.¡± Misha nodded. ¡°Not gonna lie, I did get some enjoyment out of reying her decking you,¡± he said, his hand on my shoulder. I knew he was just trying to make meugh, but I deserved the hit. I deserved so much more than what she did. He grabbed a ss and filled it. We stood in silence until more footsteps could be hearding toward us. Viktor. ¡°At least I¡¯m not the only one,¡± he said. ¡°Yeah, man. I gave up. It¡¯s not going to happen,¡± Misha said. No sooner had Viktor filled his ss with water than Andrei came into the kitchen. That dude probably got it the worst out of all of us. Hits to your junk are one of the worst spots possible. Stephen walked in shortly after Andrei. We all stood in silence for a few moments. Misha broke the silence. ¡°Well, now that we¡¯re all here, how are we going to fix this?¡± I was proud of that kid. I had no idea how she was doing it but being around Sephie had made that kid step into his own. He was the youngest of all of us, only barely older than Sephie. He had always been good at his job, but hecked confidence. Sephie managed to somehow get that kid to believe in himself. Even after the attack on the sidewalk. I was worried he was going to take a few steps back in his progress. It was a bl ow to his ego, really. She pulled him aside one night and read him the riot act in her subtle way and he turned it around after. None of us knew what she said to him, but she was the only one that could¡¯ve saved him from himself in that situation. 1 was surprised at how well he was handling this situation. He told her the truth on the ne. He had argued with us for hours about telling her the n. He told us he had a bad feeling it would go bad if we didn¡¯t. Turns out the kid was right. We were so worried about making it look authentic that we didn¡¯t stop to consider what it would do to her. Misha was the only one that thought about that, but four against one meant that he was now paying for our poor decision just like the rest of us. Andrei sighed. ¡°We can¡¯t leave today. There¡¯s no way we can move her when she¡¯s like this. I don¡¯t know how long it¡¯s going to take or what it¡¯s going to take to make her better, but she can¡¯t leave like this.¡± Everyone agreed. ¡°So, we stay here a couple of days. Shouldn¡¯t alter the n too much, honestly. We still have eyes on Anthony and Lorenzo. We¡¯ll know what they¡¯re nning. I would prefer to be closer, but we can make this work,¡± I said. ¡°What about Adrik? He wants vengeance for Sephie. He wants Anthony dead. Will he be willing to push pause for a day or two? I know Sephie means more to him than anything, but his taste for blood is unparalleled when ites to those that wrong him. I¡¯ve never seen him give that up,¡± Viktor asked. Viktor had been with Adrik the longest out of all of us. Before I showed up, even. Adrik was very much like his father when he first took over the business. He would personally take care of people that had wronged him. He had as much blood on his hands as the rest of us. Stephen spoke. ¡°We don¡¯t give him a choice. There are things in life that are more important than vengeance.¡± He paused, adding, ¡°if he¡¯s h ell bent on getting revenge, then he can send a few of us to take care of Anthony and Lorenzo. Without him.¡± I considered the options for a moment. I rubbed my face with my hand. My nose still didn¡¯t feel right. She had almost broken my nose. If she had been able to eat and train for the three weeks before, she would have, but she had lost some of her strength. I did have a ck eye from it though, so she still landed a solid hit. ¡°I don¡¯t think it will be that difficult to talk him into staying an extra day or two. Not if she¡¯s not feeling better when she wakes up this time.¡± We stayed in the kitchen talking about variations to the n until the sun came up. In the original n, we were supposed to be leaving shortly. We heard nothing from Adrik¡¯s room. We weren¡¯t sure if he had overslept or if something was wrong. We had ditched our phones before getting on the ne. We had burner phones in our bags, but we hadn¡¯t turned them on yet. I went to his door and knocked quietly. I heard him softly tell me toe in. He was on the bed, in his underwear, on top of the covers, with Sephieying across his chest, sound asleep. She was just in her t-shirt, giving me a full look at the wounds on her legs. It was bad. He put his finger up to his lips, but motioned me toe in. I walked next to the bed, as quietly as possible. The other guys were outside in the hallway, looking in through the open door. I saw the slight reliefe to all our faces when we saw she was sleeping peacefully on him. He whispered, ¡°I can¡¯t move. Anytime I try to leave, she starts crying out for me in her sleep agairt, then she¡¯H call for you. Stuck in that loop that she was in on the ne. Ie back and put her on my chest, and she sleeps peacefully again.¡± He pointed to her fingers, lightly moving on his chest in a rhythmic pattern. ¡°This is how I know she¡¯s in a happy ce. She ys the piano.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile. Seeing her happy made me suddenly happy. He looked down at her, lightly running his hands through her hair. She snuggled into him more, making a quiet whimper noise. He looked back at me pain evident in his eyes. ¡°She wants nothing to do with me when she¡¯s awake, but she won¡¯t let me go when she¡¯s asleep.¡± I sighed. ¡°She wille around. Her subconscious is still clearly attached to you. She just needs time to process everything. It will take her time to forgive all of us.¡± I paused, not really wanting to talk business now. ¡°Boss, we can¡¯t leave with her like this. She needs time. We all discussed it this morning. We don¡¯t think we should leave with her. Either we stay here for a day or two more and give her a chance to recover, or you stay here with her, and we go on with the original n.¡± He was quiet for a moment, thoughtfully running his hands through her long curls. ¡°We¡¯ll stay. Nothing matters more than her. I won¡¯t ever risk losing her for anything again. They can take my empire. I don¡¯t want it if I can¡¯t have her.¡± I stood, cing my hand on his shoulder. I turned and walked back to the expectant looks on the guys in the hall. I closed the door quietly behind me, motioning for everyone to move from the door so we could give her quiet to sleep. We walked back to the kitchen. ¡°He agrees,¡± I said. ¡°He said he won¡¯t risk losing her again for anything and I agree. His empire is receable. She is not.¡± There was a collective exhale. We were all happy to stay a little longer. If she couldn¡¯t go with us, none of us wanted to leave.Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 78 Chapter 78 Chapter Seventy-Eight Sephie I was so exhausted that I fell asleep quickly, despite feeling as awful as I did. Adrik came into the room and climbed into bed behind me. He was trying to be as gentle as he could, which I appreciated. I wanted him to hold me, but I was still so mad at him that I couldn¡¯t tell him that. I had no dreams at first, but eventually I found myself back in the ballroom. I watched Adrik fall to the ground, screaming for him. Then I would look toward Ivan, running away from me. I would scream for him, and the vision would restart. This time, when I screamed for Adrik, I heard his voice. The scene around me faded and I was back to the abyss. The void where I could see my body, but nothing around me. I heard his voice clearly now. ¡°Sephie, I love you, solnishko. Pleasee back to me. I can¡¯t live without you.¡± I tried to go toward the voice. It felt warmer. It was a stark contrast to the cold of the void. The warmth was surrounding me, making me feel safe. I lost his voice though. I couldn¡¯t find it and I was back in the ballroom, screaming for him once again as I watched him go down. ¡°Sephie, I love you. I¡¯m here. I¡¯m not going anywhere. I don¡¯t care how many times I need to tell you for you to believe it again, but you¡¯re my everything.¡± The warmth was back with his voice. I could feel it envelope me. I looked down at my arms and legs. They were brighter. I could see them more clearly. I could see just barely in front of me. N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. ¡°I¡¯ve loved you since the first night I saw you, when you were standing at the bar. Your eyes were so wide when you saw Viktor and Andrei walk in. It was adorable. But then you locked eyes with me and I saw the look in your eye immediately change, giving me that spark that only I can see. Your friend Max had to push you toe show us to the meeting room. You almost tripped on your way to us. I was trying desperately to control myself as you walked closer. You were so different from any woman I¡¯d ever seen. When you asked what you could get us to drink and Viktor told you waters for all of us, you cocked your head to the side and said ¡°different.¡± Then you immediately got worried you had offended me. It was all I could do not to kiss you right then. I stepped close to you, able to smell the floral scent of your shampoo. It dr ove me crazy. I sat down at the table and all I could think about was running my hands through your hair and what it would look like not in a braid.¡± The void no longer felt cold at all. I could see in front of me. I could see where I was going. I could get out of here. There was a path that I followed to a vaguely familiar house. As I got closer to the house, I could hear musicing from inside. Something felt right about this. Like I knew this house, even though I didn¡¯t recognize it. I walked the path to the front door. I pushed on it, opening it slowly. The music was louder now. I knew the song. It was my mother¡¯s favorite song. Who would be ying that song? I walked inside, trying to be quiet so I wouldn¡¯t disturb the person ying. I couldn¡¯t see them yet, but the music was getting louder with each step I took inside the house. I could almost feel my fingers wanting to y the next note before I heard it. I peeked into the first room I came to, revealing a grand piano. A man was sitting at the piano, absorbed by the music. He hadn¡¯t heard mee inside the house, he just continued to y my mo m¡¯s favorite song. I stood, motionless, watching him. Who was he? Why didn¡¯t I feel scared of him? How does he know that song? When the song ended, he sat for a moment and stared at the keys. He sighed. Without turning to look at me, he said ¡°Hello, Sephie baby. It¡¯s been a long time since you¡¯ve seen me.¡± I looked at his back, confused. Just as I was about to speak, he turned around to face me. His face. It looked so familiar, yet not, at the same time. Like I¡¯d looked at his picture for years and now that I was seeing him in person, it wasn¡¯t the same. I gasped. ¡°D-Dad¡­?¡± He smiled, his eyes squinting like mine did when I smiled. He stood up and walked toward me, his arms wide. ¡°Hey peanut.¡± He wrapped his arms around me. ¡°I¡¯ve missed being able to hold you, little one. That¡¯s the one thing I miss the most. But I¡¯m so proud of you. I¡¯ve watched you grow up. I¡¯ve been there the whole time and Sephie, I¡¯m so proud of you.¡± He hugged me tight. ¡°How? How are you here?¡± ¡°Eh, the logistics are a bitplicated. You can say I¡¯m a bit of a guardian angel, if that¡¯s easier for you to understand.¡± I stepped back to look at him, my eyes wide. ¡°You saw¡­everything?¡± He chuckled. ¡°Well, not everything everything. I know when to give you privacy. But every tough situation you¡¯ve been in, I was there in case you needed me.¡± He looked at me thoughtfully, brushing a curl from my face. ¡°You know, you¡¯ve never once needed me, Sephie.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not true. In the¡­basement?¡± my voice cracked as I thought about that ho rrible night. He closed his eyes, sighing. ¡°That was the first time I thought you might need me. I was just about to step in when you saved yourself.¡± He put his hands on both of my shoulders. ¡°Sephie, look at me. What you did that night, it was meant to happen. Sometimes Karma uses you to deliver justice, if you will. You were simply the one that delivered his sentence.¡± I su cked in a breath. ¡°So, I did. I did ki ll him that night?¡± He nodded. ¡°Nobody found him for months. The knife was mysteriously gone.¡± He looked at me, raising one eyebrow. ¡°You?¡± ¡°Okay, maybe I helped just once. But I mean, seriously. Do you know how boring it is being the guardian of such a¡­ capable child? You gotta throw me a bone once in a while, peanut.¡± I smiled at him. Clearly, he was where I got my sense of humor from. ¡°There¡¯s my beautiful girl. You know you can light the way for ships into harbor with your smile? You almost give Adrik a heart attack every time you smile at him. I¡¯m not even joking about that one. We¡¯ve had extra angels on standby because it got close a few times.¡± My smile faded, thinking about Adrik. Chapter 79 Chapter 79 Chapter Seventy-Nine Sephie ¡°You¡¯re still mad at him. You have every right to be mad at him, peanut. He should¡¯ve told you the n, but I know he will never, ever underestimate your strength again as long as he lives. Do you know he hasn¡¯t moved from underneath you for twelve hours now? He got up once to pee and you got su cked back into your nightmare. He hasn¡¯t had anything to eat or drink since then and he won¡¯t move so you can sleep in peace and your body can heal.¡± ¡°No, it hasn¡¯t been that long. It¡¯s only been a few hours.¡± ¡°Peanut, time is different here. He¡¯lly there as long as it takes. I¡¯ve never seen him so determined. And he¡¯s got a bloodlust that is, well, impressive.¡± I just looked at him, dumbfounded. He smiled down at me. ¡°You can remember being in the nothing, the darkness, before you found your way here?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°Do you remember how every time you heard his voice, when he would tell you he loved you, how you got a little brighter and could see further into the darkness?¡± Again, I nodded. ¡°It¡¯s because he can¡¯t exist without you and you can¡¯t exist without him. You¡¯re light, he¡¯s dark. One cannot exist without the other. His darkness allows your light to shine. The brighter your light, the darker your shadows. You figured that part out on your own.¡± He made a fist and pressed it to my chin. ¡°Seriously, chip off the ol¡¯ block, you are.¡± He looked at me, a look of pride on his face. He cleared his throat and continued. ¡°But Adrik hasn¡¯t figured that out yet. Guys are sometimes slower on the uptake. You¡¯re helping to show him that even though he has very dark shadows, he also has a very bright light. And right now, he¡¯s the spark you needed to remember that your light is always within you. You¡¯re the only one that can ever turn it off. You just momentarily forgot that part. Which is understandable. You¡¯ve had a hectic few weeks. Years,¡± he added, clearing his throat again. ¡°But what happened needed to happen. Not just for you, but for all of them. Each of them has something special to offer the world, but it never would¡¯ve happened without the events at the ball. Misha, for example, has a gift that warns him when something isn¡¯t right. He started to believe it more after the attack on you two, but the othersN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. didn¡¯t. Now they do. That never would¡¯ve happened otherwise. There¡¯s always a reason, peanut. It¡¯s your job to figure it out.¡± I stared at him, trying to understand everything he just told me. ¡°You already know everything I¡¯m telling you right now, peanut. You just have to let go of the fear. Sure, he fu cked up. They all did. Big time. You got hurt in the process, but you have yet to quit in situations much worse than this one. Don¡¯t start now. You¡¯ve got a 100% survival rate, remember that. And know that I¡¯ll be there, ready to swoop in when needed. You should see my swoop. I practice a lot, because you know, you never need me. Whatever. It¡¯s magnificent.¡± Iughed at him. I definitely got his sense of humor. He looked down at me, smiling. ¡°You know you need him just as much as he needs you. They all need you and you need all of them. You¡¯re destined for great things. Always have been. Why else would we have given you your name if you weren¡¯t meant for great things?¡± He hugged me once more, then pulled me toward the piano. He sat me down on the bench. ¡°Now, make an old man happy and y me your song.¡± ¡°My song? I don¡¯t have a song.¡± ¡°You do. You call it your mo m¡¯s favorite song, but it¡¯s really your song. I used to sing it to you when you were a baby. I wrote the melody just for you, hoping that one day you would finish it. I didn¡¯t even tell your mother that it was your song. She just thought it was some melody I had picked up somewhere and sang to you, but it¡¯s yours. It¡¯s always been yours.¡± I looked up at him, with tears in my eyes. I suddenly missed all the time I had missed out on with him in my childhood. As if he was reading my mind, he said, ¡°I know, peanut. I miss it too, but can you imagine both of us in the same room at the same time? I don¡¯t think the world is ready for that many emotional support sloths.¡± Iughed, tears falling on my cheeks. He sat down next to me, looking every bit a proud father. ¡°Now, y for your old man, peanut.¡± I yed my song, as he sat next to me watching intently. When the song ended, he leaned his shoulder against mine. ¡°It¡¯s time for you to go back, kiddo. You¡¯ve still got great things to aplish, one of which is to love that man as hard as he loves you.¡± ¡°Will I get to see you again?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m always around. Practicing my swooping,¡± he made a swooping motion with his arm in front of me. He winked at me. ¡°I love you, peanut.¡± ¡°I love you too, Dad.¡± My eyelids fluttered open slowly. I heard Adrik snoring softly, felt his warm body beneath me. I lifted my head to look at him, but the slight movement jolted him awake. ¡°Sephie? Are you okay??¡± I rested my chin on his chest, looking at him. He looked stressed, his blue eyes were now also red. He looked like he hadn¡¯t slept very much, if at all. He sat up a little so he could look at me better. I looked into his eyes, searching. I found what I was looking for immediately. He was looking at me with all the love and adoration as he always had, but now there was fear there. Worry that he had ruined it all. I wasn¡¯t sure what to say to make it go away, but I remembered what my father had said. ¡°You almost give Adrik a heart attack every time you smile at him.¡± I closed my eyes for a moment, remembering my dream. When I opened my eyes, he was still looking at me, clearly worried about what I was going to do or not do. ¡°Sephie?¡± he asked, his voice cracked with worry. I smiled at him. Like I hadn¡¯t seen him in days, like I thought he was dead and now he was underneath me, watching over me while I fought my own darkness, like I loved him more than anything in the world. It took him a moment. He was still concerned and confused, but he couldn¡¯t help but smile back at me. I slowly lifted my very sore body off him, moving so I was sitting on his hips, straddling him. He sat up a little more so he could look me in the eyes. I reached out and ran my fingers lightly over his face, the way I knew he liked. He closed his eyes at my touch, his breath hitched. A single tear fell from the corner of each eye. I leaned into him and kissed him gently. He went to put his hands around me but stopped himself. He was still worried he was going to hurt me or I was going to do something rash. I leaned back so I could look into his eyes again. ¡°I love you, Adrik. I will always love you. I love you more than anything I¡¯ve ever known.¡± I looked into his eyes, relief washing over him. I added, ¡°but if you ever let me think you¡¯ve died when you haven¡¯t again, I will ki ll you myself.¡± He sat up, still wanting to grab me, but uncertain where his hands could go that wouldn¡¯t hurt. He put both hands on either side of my face, looking deeply into my eyes. ¡°I swear I will never leave you out of any n ever again. I will never withhold information from you again. I almost lost you. I¡¯m so sorry, Sephie. Can you ever forgive me?¡± I put my hands on top of his, enjoying the warmth. I closed my eyes, remembering how cold the darkness felt, but how warm it got when I heard his voice. I opened my eyes, his eyes pleading, searching mine. ¡°I forgive you. Besides, you¡¯re my spark. I can¡¯t get rid of you,¡± I said smiling at him again, enjoying the thought of extra angels on standby in that moment. He raised an eyebrow at me, but instead of asking what I meant, he just leaned forward and kissed me. He was gentle, at first. His hands still on each side of my face. I pressed my body against him, timidly, and wrapped my arms around his neck. I deepened the kiss, feeling his body rxing from the stress he¡¯d been under for the past how ever many days. ¡°I love you, solnishko,¡± he said, pressing his forehead to mine. ¡°I will spend every day of the rest of my life trying to make sure you know that and how sorry I am.¡± I kissed his lips once more. ¡°Don¡¯t hang on to this. Don¡¯t keep beating yourself up. You made a mistake. I mean, a big one, but I¡¯m still here. I¡¯ve got a 100% sess rate at surviving hor rible situations so far. But I have been thinking that we should get a whiteboard or something that says, ¡®it¡¯s been this many days since Sephie got seriously hurt. That way we can keep track. You know, data is king and what not.¡± His smile stretched across his face. ¡°There¡¯s my Sephie.¡± Chapter 80 Chapter 80 Chapter Eighty Adrik I can¡¯t even begin to describe the relief I felt when she woke up this time. I had my Sephie back. I would¡¯ve given anything to see her smile again. ¡°How long have I been asleep this time? I know youid here for at least twelve hours without moving, just so I could sleep peacefully,¡± she said, her fingers still running over my facial hair, her unique eyes taking inventory of my face like she still wasn¡¯t sure I was really here with her. ¡°How do you know that, Sephie?¡± I raised an eyebrow at her. She started to say something, but then stopped herself. ¡°Um, it doesn¡¯t matter right now. How long have I been torturing you?¡± I smiled at her. My hand slid up the back of her neck, pulling her to me. I kissed her lips gently. ¡°It wasn¡¯t torture, solnishko. I was happy that you needed me when you were sleeping. Especially since you didn¡¯t want anything to do with me when you were awake. It was killing me.¡± ¡°I was still mad at you,¡± she said, shrugging her shoulders. I chuckled. ¡°You have every right to be mad at me. I fu cked up.¡± N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. ¡°And then I made youy here with no food or water for days. Consider your penanceplete,¡± she said, grinning at me. ¡°It wasn¡¯t days. The second day isn¡¯t over yet. You¡¯ve been out for a little over 24 hours this time.¡± I ran my hands through her hair, as she closed her eyes. Her hands went to my shoulders to steady herself. I loved watching her get lost in my touch. She had no idea how sexy she looked. Her eyes snapped open, ¡°weren¡¯t we supposed to leave though? What happened?¡± I smiled at her. ¡°The guys all came to me yesterday morning when we were supposed to leave and told me they weren¡¯t going anywhere until you were better. I had already made the decision to stay until you were better but hadn¡¯t told them as I couldn¡¯t leave you. They discussed it among themselves and said they weren¡¯t going until you could go too.¡± Her eyebrows furrowed for a moment. I cupped her cheek with my hand, my thumb gently stroking her beautiful face. ¡°They love you, Sephie. They¡¯re fairing almost worse than I have been. At least I¡¯ve been able to hold you while you were sleeping. I don¡¯t think any of them have slept since we got here. Theye in asionally to check on you. They look terrible.¡± She groaned. ¡°Part of me wants to make them suffer for a few more days, but I should let them all know they¡¯re also forgiven. There is a grander n in y here.¡± She pouted, then grinned at me. God, I¡¯ve missed her. She rested her head on my shoulder for a few minutes. I rubbed her back lightly, trying to avoid hurting her. She had road rash over almost her entire body from hitting the ground and rolling. She had to be in tremendous pain. She sighed, sitting up to look at me again. ¡°I need a shower,¡± she said climbing off myp slowly. I didn¡¯t move, as I still wasn¡¯t sure how much she wanted me close to her. I was going to let her have privacy. She stopped at the bathroom door and turned back to look at me. ¡°I need help.¡± I jumped off the bed and was next to her immediately. She wasughing at my exuberance, but I didn¡¯t care. I was so happy that she wanted me near her again that I would do whatever she asked me to. She asked me to help her with the bandage on her hip before she got in the shower. Since she¡¯d been sleeping for a day, she hadn¡¯t taken her antibiotics. I¡¯dpletely forgotten about them. The wound looked red and angry. It looked painful. She held her breath as I tried to peel the bandage off as gently as I could. A single tear ran down her cheek. I knew it hurt. ¡°Since you¡¯ve been sleeping, you haven¡¯t taken an antibiotic. You need to do that when we get done. Do you want to try a pain pill? I don¡¯t want you to be in pain, my love.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take the antibiotic, but I don¡¯t know about the pain pill. Maybe half of one? I hurt, but I also don¡¯t want to go through what the other pain pills did to me again.¡± I pulled her to me, careful of the wound on her hip, and held her close. I rested my chin on the top of her head, my eyes closed. I was relishing having her in my arms again, but I felt so guilty still. She almost died because of me. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, solnishko.¡± I felt her rest her hands on my chest. ¡°If you haven¡¯t figured it out yet, I¡¯m apparently difficult to ki ll. I¡¯ll heal. I can manage in the meantime.¡± Iughed. She was so unpredictable. One of the many things I adored about her. We walked slowly to the kitchen. I offered to carry her, but she said she needed to move her stiff body, or it would get worse. I couldn¡¯t argue with her logic. So, I settled for letting her lean on my arm as she walked. She had a pronounced limp because of her hip. She had deep bruises, along with the wounds. How she didn¡¯t break anything, I¡¯ll never understand. Misha was in the kitchen when we walked in. His face brightened seeing Sephie not only awake but also allowing me to help her. She stopped and opened her arms to him. He rushed to her, but I stopped him with a hand to his chest before he could grab her. ¡°Gentle, Misha.¡± He nodded and gently leaned down to hug her, like she was a live porcin doll. ¡°I¡¯m so happy to see you, gazelle.¡± ¡°Ugh, worst hug ever. We need a do-over once I¡¯m better,¡± she smiled at him. His wide smile spread across his face. ¡°Deal.¡± She looked to me and cleared her throat. ¡°Can I have a moment alone with Misha?¡± I raised an eyebrow but nodded. I went to step away, but she pulled me back and kissed me gently. ¡°I just need a minute,¡± she said, looking at me with that spark that only I could see. I smiled at her, stepping out of the kitchen. The kitchen opened to arge living room area that then opened onto the back patio. The weather was pleasant, which meant that therge sliding doors could be opened, giving the house an open-air feel. Viktor and Andrei were outside on the patio. They both looked surprised to see me up, especially without Sephie. ¡°Everything okay, boss?¡± Andrei asked, concern evident on his face. I nodded. ¡°She¡¯s awake. She¡¯s inside with Misha. She asked for a moment alone with him.¡± Viktor, also concerned, asked, ¡°how¡­is she?¡± ¡°In pain, but she somehow found the strength to forgive me. She did say that she wished she could make you all suffer a little longer, but she¡¯s not going to,¡± I said smirking at them. Both looked shocked. And relieved. But mostly shocked. ¡°Is she, uh, still angry?¡± Andrei asked, crossing his legs, probably remembering her knee in his groin. Chapter 81 Chapter 81 Chapter Eighty-One Adrik Misha walked outside. His face was red and his eyes were misty, but he looked better than he had since the ball. I raised my eyebrow at him. He put his hand on my shoulder, ¡°she¡¯s asking for you.¡± ¡°You good, kid?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah, Boss. Better than good. I don¡¯t know how she does it, but she always knows exactly what to say.¡± I put my hand on his shoulder with a knowing look. I walked inside to find her getting a ss of water in the kitchen. She drank half of it and handed the ss to me. I finished it and refilled it, handing it back to her. I went to grab her antibiotic and gave her one. She swallowed it easily. ¡°What do you think about a pain pill? I can tell you¡¯re hurting. Maybe half? It will at least help to take the edge off the pain, maybe?¡± She thought for a moment. ¡°Do you think they have just regr ibuprofen here? I know that won¡¯t knock me out and it¡¯ll take the pain away. That¡¯s all I took for my back.¡± I cursed under my breath. ¡°Really? That¡¯s all you took?¡± She nodded and shrugged her shoulders. ¡°It worked. It should work on this too.¡± I called for Misha and asked him to find Isabe to ask if they had ibuprofen. It would be time for dinner soon, so she had to be around close. He wasn¡¯t gone long and he came back with a full bottle of ibuprofen. He handed it to me as she said, ¡°see, Misha, this is why you¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± He smiled widely at her. I opened the bottle. ¡°How many do you want?¡± She took the bottle from me and read over thebel. It was all in Italian, but she found whatever answer she needed. ¡°Four. In eight hours, four more. I call it ¡®superprofen,¡± she grinned, popping them in her mo uth. Ivan walked into the kitchen, looking worse than I¡¯d ever seen him. He stopped, surprised to see Sephie awake and upright. She looked at him, her eyes wide at his state. She looked to me quickly, ncing toward the patio. I knew she wanted a moment alone with Ivan, so I turned to Misha and motioned for him to follow me to the patio. We were on the patio longer for Ivan than Misha. Viktor and Andrei were reluctant to go to her. They still felt so awful about everything that happened that they weren¡¯t sure how to approach her. I couldn¡¯t me them. I would be scared if I were them, too. Truthfully, I was still nervous for Andrei¡¯s ba lls and his future ability to have children. I was starting to worry about Ivan¡¯s well-being when Sephie walked out to the patio, leaning on Ivan¡¯s arm. His face was also red, his eyes misty. Two down, three to go. N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Viktor was the first to make a move when he saw Sephie. He stood up and went to her. Ivan made sure she was stable on her feet and walked away. They were still far enough away that we were mostly out of ear shot.- Viktor always towered over her, but he looked so defeated standing in front of her that he appeared shorter. Smaller. We were trying to give them privacy, but we couldn¡¯t help but watch the scene unfold. We saw his shoulders crumble in a single sob 1/4 and herparatively small arms reach up and wrap around his massive shoulders. Ivan broke our silence. ¡°I don¡¯t know how she does it, but she always knows exactly what to say.¡± I knew exactly how he felt. Viktor walked back to us after a few more moments with Sephie. He looked at Andrei, who looked terrified. We heard Sephie say loud enough for everyone to hear, ¡°Bubba if you don¡¯t get over here right now, I¡¯ll make doubly sure you aren¡¯t able to have children.¡± His face went wh ite as he stood up slowly and walked toward heri ¡°Where¡¯s Stephen? He might as well get this over with as well?¡± I asked. ¡°He went to try to get some sleep. None of us have been able to sleep much since we got here. He said he was going to try one more time.¡± I looked back toward Andrei, who looked like he had been sent to the principal¡¯s office. It was much the same scene as with Viktor. She said exactly what he needed to hear to save him from himself. He held onto her gently, but still like she was his anchor in the storm of his own sea of emotions. Andrei turned back toward us, letting Sephie lean on him as they walked toward us. Her eyes found mine. That spark was back as she walked slowly toward me. I felt my heart threaten to stop as she smiled at me. She tucked herself into my arms. She still felt more fragile to me. Like she was apprehensive. I hoped it was because she was in pain and not anything else. She looked up at me, ¡°so what¡¯s the n now? Don¡¯t we need to leave?¡± Ivan spoke first. ¡°It can wait until you¡¯re ready to travel. We still have eyes on Anthony and Lorenzo. Everything is still fine until you can make the trip.¡± ¡°What does the trip consist of?¡± she asked. ¡°We had originally nned on riding bikes to Naples. Now, we¡¯re thinking we should take a different vehicle. It¡¯ll just slow us down,¡± he said. She thought for a moment, leaning against me. ¡°How long is the trip?¡± ¡°Bikes, we should be able to make it in 7 hours or less. Cars, 8 hours or more.¡± ¡°I can probably do that. As long as I can take the superprofen first.¡± Ivan raised his eyebrows. ¡°Superprofen?¡± ¡°She took a high dose of ibuprofen instead of a pain pill. She said that¡¯s all she took with her back and it worked. No ill side effects either,¡± I said. Ivan cursed under his breath. ¡°Really? That¡¯s all you took?¡± She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I guess I¡¯m a weirdo, but it works. Whatever lets me fu cking eat again, I¡¯ll dly do.¡± As if her stomach was waiting to be invited to the conversation, it growled loudly. Everyoneughed. Andrei ran into the kitchen and came back with a partial loaf of bread from earlier in the day. ¡°Here, spider monkey, this will tide you over until dinner.¡± ¡°Bubba. Let¡¯s get married in Naples. I¡¯m tired of waiting,¡± she said ripping a huge piece off the chunk of bread and shoving it into her mo uth. She handed the bread to me, knowing I was likely just as hungry as she was. She was right. Between us both, we finished it quickly. Viktor asked, ¡°you think you can do the car?¡± She shook her head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not what I meant. I can do the bikes with the superprofen.¡± They all looked at her, surprised. ¡°What? This sh it works.¡± Laughing, I kissed her temple. God, we all missed her. She spent almost the entire dinner convincing the guys that she¡¯d be able to travel the next day. They were willing to wait a couple more days until she was better. ¡°Once we get to Naples, what¡¯s the n?¡± she asked, in between bites of food. ¡°Armando is meeting us there. We¡¯ll spend a couple days there before going on to Sicily,¡± Viktor said. ¡°See. I can rest there after the trip. It¡¯ll be fine,¡± she said. ¡°You guys all need to sleep since I¡¯m apparently the only one that¡¯s done thattely. We can leave like lunch time tomorrow and still get to Naples before it gets dark tomorrow.¡± They thought about her suggestion for a few moments. I had to admit, it wasn¡¯t a bad n. I could use some extra sleep right now, as could everyone else, including her. She could time her superprofen to where she could take it before we left and then she¡¯d be able to take it soon after we arrived in Naples. If she said she¡¯d be up for the trip, I wasn¡¯t going to argue with her. She was, after all, apparently difficult to k ill. Ivan looked at her, a serious expression on his face. ¡°If it bes too much, you tell me. We¡¯ll stop for the night before reaching Naples.¡± ¡°I will tell you if it bes too much. I promise,¡± she said. As we were finishing dinner, Stephen appeared in the kitchen, looking just as ho rrible as everyone else had and not at all rested. The guys all saw him before he saw Sephie. We all quickly walked outside to give them their moment alone, without him even realizing she was up yet. Once we were outside, Misha spoke up. ¡°That was kinda mean, but I would¡¯ve loved to have seen his face when he realized he was alone with her.¡± It didn¡¯t take long and we heard her yell, ¡°it¡¯s safe. You cane back in.¡± We filed back into the kitchen. Stephen¡¯s face was red, but he looked relieved. He looked at all of us as we walked in. nupici Ligny-one ¡°You guys are as sholes. I nearly sh it myself.¡± We all grinned at him. Sephie said, ¡°you¡¯re lucky I¡¯m slow right now or I would¡¯ve tested that.¡± Laughter erupted in the kitchen. Everyone needed that little bit ofic relief. I looked at everyone as weughed and they continued to tease Stephen. They were all going to sleep well tonight now that they knew she was back and they were forgiven. I felt that pull in my chest toward her as I watched her bring light back to every one of them. I hadn¡¯t realized how much her light shone on each one of them until it was gone briefly. My breath caught as I looked to her, finding her eyes on me and her smile wide across her face. God, we all missed her, but me most of all Chapter 82 Chapter 82 Chapter Eighty-Two Sephie We all woke muchter than normal the next morning. I spent time walking around the house and the patio behind the house, trying to loosen up my still sore body. Adrik stayed by my side the entire time. I could walk by myself, but it was easier if I could lean on someone. He wouldn¡¯t let me take a step without him there. Always there. Always ready to help me. By mid-morning, everyone was awake. Isabe had left some food out for us, since none of us had made it to breakfast. We were all picking at the food while getting organized to leave in a few hours. Six motorcycles showed up in pairs, Andrei and Viktor moving them from their storage spot to the house. I had to admit, I was slightly nervous about how I was going to feel by the end of the day, but I had spent so much timest night convincing everyone I would be okay that I couldn¡¯t go back now. Misha walked up to us, carrying a leather jacket in one hand. He handed it to me, ¡°here, gazelle, this is yours. Make sure it fits.¡± I took the jacket from him, realizing it was a motorcycle jacket, with extra protection and reinforcements built into it. Where was this thing a few nights ago¡­? It fit like a glove. I looked up to see Adrik¡¯s eyes filled with lust as he watched me. I knew he was struggling. He wanted so badly to hold me tightly, to kiss me with every bit of passion he could muster, but I was so bruised and battered that he had to be gentle with me. As I slipped out of the jacket and handed it back to Misha, I whispered to Adrik, ¡°we might need a bike when we get home just so I can wear that more often.¡± I winked at him as his cheeks flushed. This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Everything was packed up and divided between backpacks that the five guys had. They somehow managed to also fit my few things and Adrik¡¯s into their packs, so I wouldn¡¯t have to wear one. I was both grateful and impressed with their packing abilities. I pulled my hair into a low ponytail to get it out of the way of the helmet. Viktor saw me and walked over to me. ¡°You will regret thister, sestrichka,¡± he said, pulling on my ponytail stic. I looked at Adrik, confused. Viktor just silently started to braid my hair for me. When he was done, I turned to look at him, shocked that my giant Russian bear knew how to braid. He shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I used to have long hair. You would¡¯ve never been able to get the knots out of your hair by the time we get there.¡± I opened my arms to him. ¡°Come on. Bring it in.¡± I kissed his cheek when he bent down to hug me gently. Adrik walked up to me, inspecting Viktor¡¯s handiwork after Viktor had walked away. He was looking at me, but he was also lost in a memory. I knew he was thinking back to the night we met. His finger lightly trailed down the side of my face and my neck, his blue eyes taking in every detail of me. His fingers gently lifted my chin, and his lips were on mine. He was still holding back, afraid he would hurt me still, but I still closed my eyes and enjoyed his touch. ¡°You took your antibiotic and your superprofen, solnishko?¡± I nodded. ¡°An hour ago. It¡¯s kicking in already. I feel a little better.¡± ¡°Good. You should be able to take it again when we get there.¡± He kissed me one more time and handed me my helmet. He climbed on the bike and looked toward me. I didn¡¯t see Ivan walk up while I was putting on my helmet. I just felt his hands under my arms as he lifted me up and set me on the bike. I grinned; thankful I didn¡¯t have to try to step onto the bike with my hip. I signed a ¡°thank you¡± to him as he walked to his bike. Adrik sat up, pulling my arm around him. I heard him in my helmet, ¡°you hold on as tight as you need to, solnishko.¡± ¡°Wait, I can hear you in my helmet. Are we psychic now? Did that just happen?¡± I heard Mishaughing in my helmet too. ¡°Gazelle, they¡¯re all connected so we can talk to each other.¡± ¡°Wait, I can hear all of you? Dam mit. That means I can¡¯t talk sh it about you guys to Adrik the whole way. That¡¯s it. I¡¯m not going.¡± Moreughter. Ivan spoke up. ¡°Remember you promised to tell me if this is too much, princess. I¡¯m holding you to that. We¡¯ll have to stop a few times anyway, but if you need to stop more, tell me.¡± ¡°I promise, Grumplestiltskin.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s arm on top of mine, his fingersced through mine. We started to move, and he leaned down, pulling me with him. We pulled out of the driveway, Ivan and Viktor in front, Misha beside us, and Stephen and Andrei behind. Misha looked over, pointed to me, and gave me a questioning thumbs up after a few miles. I nodded my head as he pumped his fist once in the air. I smiled and shook my head. I spent most of the ride enjoying the scenery as we sped through the countryside. I couldn¡¯t see over Adrik¡¯s body to see how fast we were going, but we weren¡¯t taking a leisurely ride, for sure. We would weave in and out of traffic effortlessly as we passed through small towns. We would only slow down as we entered small towns where people were walking on the side of the road. We had to wait for one man to get his go ats across the road. As soon as we left the towns, it was back to pushing the upper limits of the bikes. I held on tightly to Adrik anytime we elerated. He would feel me squeeze tighter and would ce his arm over mine, lacing his fingers through mine. We finally made it to arger city and stopped for gas. It had been a few hours and I was happy to be able to stand up for a minute. Before I could even attempt to get off the bike on my own, Misha had jumped off his bike and was lifting me off. He set me down gently, making sure I was steady on my feet before he took his helmet off. There were a few customers trying not to stare, but very obviously staring at our little group. There was a car full of what looked like college-aged girls. Their jaws dropped when Misha took his helmet off. He hadn¡¯t noticed as he was busy filling the gas tank on his bike. I walked to his side and asked quietly, ¡°are weing back this way when everything is done?¡± ¡°Maybe? We haven¡¯t decided. We might leave from Naples. Why?¡± He looked puzzled. I discreetly nodded my head in the direction of the car full of girls. ¡°Because you can have an Italian baby in about nine months if you want one.¡± He was still looking at me but cut his eyes toward the car full of girls. His wide smile stretching across his face. He ran his hand through his hair. I heard not so quiet exmations from the group. ¡°You could have all of them, without even trying.¡± I said as I winked at him, walking back to Adrik. He had left his helmet on but took it off when he saw meing toward him. More exmations from the group of girls. While I was more than willing to be a wingman for Misha, they were lusting after the wrong one when it came to Adrik. I nced in their direction to make sure they were watching as I walked to him, wrapping my arms around him, and kissing him. He smiled against my lips, ¡°did you just pu blicly im me, solnishko?¡± ¡°Da mn straight I did,¡± I said with my best devilish grin. He kissed me once more. ¡°You¡¯re allowed to pub licly im me anytime you feel the need, my love.¡± Chapter 83 Chapter 83 Chapter Eighty-Three Sephie We all made a pit stop, with Adrik waiting outside the restroom for me. As I was washing my hands, one of the girls walked into the bathroom. She spoke to me in Italian, but I shook my head no. ¡°English?¡± I asked. She continued in English, ¡°how do you have so many attractive men with you?¡± Without even thinking, I looked at her as seriously as I could, ¡°I¡¯m a movie star. They¡¯re my bodyguards. I can¡¯t believe you don¡¯t recognize me.¡± I smiled to myself as I left her stunned in the bathroom. I was still smiling when I walked out of the bathroom. Adrik looked at me, smiling back at me, looking especially handsome in his leather jacket. ¡°Why are you smiling so big, solnishko?¡± he asked as he wrapped his arm around my waist to help me walk back to the bikes. The more I walked, the easier it got, but I was still grateful for the help. ¡°I¡¯m now a movie star and you guys are my bodyguards.¡± ¡°Remind me to get your autographter.¡± He kissed the top of my head, chuckling. Before we left, the car full of girls pulled out ahead of us, turning in the same direction we were going. I was sure we were going to catch up to them quickly. I put my helmet on and Misha was there to pick me up, putting me on the bike once again. I wrapped my arms around Adrik¡¯s waist. We¡¯re going to need to do this more often when we get home. It didn¡¯t take very long, and we caught up to the car full of girls. Viktor and Ivan pulled beside them, both waving at the girls. Adrik and Misha doing the same. I looked back and Andrei and Stephen had done the same. The girls were so embarrassed that they could hardly look as we passed. ¡°They¡¯re going to remember this day for the rest of their lives, gentlemen. You guys just shaped their future love interests,¡± Iughed as we sped away from them. I heardughter from everyone in my helmet. ¡°We should being into Rome in the next few minutes,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We¡¯re making better time than I thought we would be. You¡¯re a fuc king beast, princess.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about all that. I¡¯m literally just sitting here hanging on to the man I love. This doesn¡¯t feel like a lot of effort on my part.¡± Adrik reached back and grabbed my leg, pulling me closer to him. I squeezed his waist a little tighter. Traffic got heavier as we got closer to Rome, forcing us to slow down. We could split thene with cars, allowing us to jump ahead of slower traffic. I¡¯ve never seen so many cars in the same ce. Driving through Rome was chaos, yet everyone seemed to stay out of the way of other cars. I found myself gasping a few times thinking that one of us was going to be hit, but it never happened. Each time I would flinch, Adrik would squeeze my hand or would talk to me, assuring me it would be okay. The other guys figured out I was nervous and started talking to me as well, telling me stories to take my mind off the traffic or telling me how much longer we had until we were through the city. I could feel the anxietying on. I didn¡¯t think I would be able to ignore it. ¡°Once we get through this clusterfuck, I¡¯m gonna need a minute, if that¡¯s okay,¡± I said. I could feel my legs starting to shake a little. Ivan asked, ¡°do you need to stop now? We can pull over right now if you need it.¡± ¡°No, no. I want to get out of this ce first. It¡¯s making me anxious,¡± ¡°You got it, princess,¡± he said as he elerated through traffic) Andrei said, ¡°close your eyes, spider monkey. It¡¯s easier for you and we can get you out of here faster.¡± I gave him the thumbs up sign, as he was right behind us. I sh ut my eyes tight and held onto Adrik. I felt his hand on my leg again briefly. He put both hands back on the bike as we started to weave through traffic faster. My breaths wereing faster, as my body started to shake a little more with each je rk of the bike. ¡°Three minutes, princess.¡± That three minutes took forever. My legs were shaking, and I felt like I couldn¡¯t catch my breath. We stopped and Misha was pulling me off the bike immediately. Adrik ripped his helmet off as he climbed off the bike, he pulled my helmet off and crushed me to him. His hands running up and down my back, trying to calm my panic. ¡°Shhh¡­it¡¯s okay now. We¡¯re out of the city now. It¡¯ll be smooth from here.¡± I nodded, my head against his chest. ¡°I¡¯m okay. I just need a minute.¡± I heard Ivan say behind me, ¡°you can have as long as you need, princess. Nobody likes driving through Rome.¡± Adrik¡¯s hands continued to rub my back, asionally running over my hair. The longer I stood in his embrace, breathing in his scent, the more rxed I got. I didn¡¯t know what it was about his touch that could calm me down, but I hoped it never went away. I took a deep breath in. ¡°Better?¡± he asked, stepping back to look at me, his face full of concern. I nodded my head. ¡°Sorry. I don¡¯t know what came over me.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. You¡¯ve been through a lottely. Rome is¡­a lot, even for someone who hasn¡¯t been through even a fraction of what you have,¡± he said, tucking a stray curl behind my ear. I leaned against him again, resting my head on his chest. His arms felt so nice around me that I didn¡¯t want to give up that moment just yet. I had a memory of the coldness of the void. Cold that prated down to my bones, down to my very soul. I closed my eyes, thinking about how his voice brought warmth back. A small smile came to my lips, thinking about how much I needed him. How he was always ready to do anything I needed. How they all were. I really was the Juckiest girl. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m ready. We can go again. I don¡¯t want to make uste.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure? We can stay here a little longer,¡± Adrik said, looking in my eyes, searching. ¡°I¡¯m positive. I¡¯m okay. Promise.¡± I stood on my toes and kissed him gently. He nodded, putting his helmet back on. He climbed on the bike. Ivan was next to me, as I was putting my helmet on. He caught my elbow as I raised the helmet to put it on. He looked me in the eyes, seriously, ¡°You did good. You tell me if ites back, okay? We¡¯ll stop again. We¡¯re well ahead of schedule. We can afford to stop as much as you need.¡± I pulled the helmet over my head and tapped it. He chuckled as he lifted me onto the bikeN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Chapter 84 Chapter 84 Chapter Eighty-Four Sephie Outside of Rome were more small towns, which I could easily handle. We stopped one more time before we got closer to Naples, just without the car full of fan girls this time. ¡°This stop was boring. I like it better when you guys have fans,¡± I said as we pulled away from the station. ¡°Nobody tell Tori I said that.¡± ¡°1 Andrei sighed. ¡°That might not be a problem when we get back.¡± ¡°Bubba! What happened now?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t tell her we were leaving. I ditched my phone before we got on the ne. No contact until this is done. I N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. doubt she¡¯ll be waiting for me.¡± ¡°Oh, Bubba. I didn¡¯t even think about that.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but think back to my own anger at the situation. I didn¡¯t mean to, but Iughed. ¡°She¡¯s gonna be SO pi ssed.¡± Stephen spoke up. ¡°We¡¯re all more scared of her than we are of you, if that gives you an idea of what he¡¯s dealing with.¡± ¡°Shu t up.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s true, gazelle,¡± Misha said. ¡°She gets angry at the slightest thing. It¡¯s like we can¡¯t say anything around her. I mean, you had a very good reason to be angry with us. But she gets mad at us for st upid stuff.¡± Andrei said, ¡°she doesn¡¯t have the same confidence that you do, spider monkey. She tends to see the negative before she sees the positive. It¡¯s exhausting.¡± ¡°Bubba, I¡¯m sorry. I feel bad for facilitating this rtionship. Max never keeps girls longer than a few weeks, so I don¡¯t vet them thoroughly enough, apparently.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t apologize, Sephie. Whatever happens will happen,¡± Andrei said. I could hear the sadness in his voice. ¡°Well, if it doesn¡¯t work out with her, I promise to vet the next one thoroughly before I give her my blessing,¡± I said. ¡°We have to get your blessing now?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Um, yes. I can¡¯t believe you would even question that, Grumplestiltskin.¡± I fired back. I was sure he was going to argue with me after saying that. ¡°You realize you¡¯ve set a next to impossible standard for other women to live up to, right? You honestly expect us to be able to find someone that can pass that test?¡± he said. ¡°Ivan the Squishy has entered the chat, gentlemen.¡± I heardughter from everyone, then Viktor spoke up. ¡°He¡¯s right, you know. You¡¯ve made it infinitely harder for us to find a suitable woman now.¡± I was silent for a moment, trying to think of what to say. I started to say something a few times but changed my mind and shu t my mou th. I felt Adrik¡¯s hand on mine, his fingersced through mine. ¡°It¡¯s not her fault she¡¯s amazing, guys. Nor should you be discouraged that she set the bar higher for you. Trust me, it¡¯ll be worth the wait,¡± he said. I squeezed him tighter, resting my head on the back of his shoulder. I quickly got lost in my own thoughts, thinking about how easily I had formed a unique bond with each of them. Wondering if another woman could ever do the same or if I really was ruining their chances of ever finding their own person. I thought back to the conversation I had with my dad and how what had happened was needed, not just for me, but for all of them as well. I could easily see how it was needed for Misha. The guys now gave credit to his gut feeling, which would likelye in handy in the future. I was going to have to wait to see how things yed out to understand why Andrei was going through this with Tori. Not to mention what the other three gained from this whole experience. I spent the remainder of the trip lost in my thoughts. Adrik Sephie had been quiet for thest part of the trip. I kept checking on her, either grabbing her hand or her leg. Each time, she would squeeze me just a little tighter. I was worried she was starting to feel pain, as it was close to time for more superprofen. I was anxious to get to Armando¡¯s vi so she could take more and rest for the remainder of the evening. As we got closer to the vi, I found myself thinking back to our first stop that day. When Sephie had made sure the girls that were eyeing Misha knew that I was off the table. I¡¯ve never been pub licly imed before. I can¡¯t say I disliked it, either. I know I want to make sure that every man knows she¡¯s mine anytime we¡¯re in public. I¡¯m so relieved that she¡¯s forgiven me and still wants me after what happened. I was so sure I had lost her. I had no idea how I was going to live without her. I was so grateful I wouldn¡¯t have to figure out how to. It was like she was reading my mind, because Sephie tightened her grip around me, breaking me free from my thoughts of what almost happened. I found her hand, against my stomach,cing my fingers through hers. Her hands were starting to get cold, as the sun was getting lower in the sky. We still had about half an hour before we reached the vi. I unzipped my jacket halfway and stuck her hands inside my jacket, hoping to keep them warm until we could stop. The early fall air had a bite to it that we weren¡¯t yet used to. As we got closer to the coast, we could smell the sea air and feel the breeze pick up. I was hoping they would have a bath I could run for her once we got there. It would help with her soreness, warming her up in the process. I was looking forward to at least one calm day once we arrived. I¡¯d been so worried about Sephie that I hadn¡¯t thought much about the situation with Anthony and Lorenzo. I was so close to wanting them all dead. I just wanted to be done with it at this point. Lorenzo was looking for a way back to the city. He felt Anthony was his ticket toe back, even though Anthony was also banished. They were using Salvadori to stir the pot, trying to create enough chaos that they could sneak back in without me noticing. Once there, they would take over. Their n was to unleash he ll on the people of the city, causing as much mayhem as possible. With the city a war zone, it would be easier to get to me and the other three bosses that stood loyal to me. Chapter 85 Chapter 85 Chapter Eighty-Five Adrik The only thing working in our favor right now was that they didn¡¯t know for sure I had survived their assassination attempt. Armando¡¯s men had staged an ¡°escape¡± with Sephie and now Salvadori¡¯s men were looking for her in the city. Before we left, I fortified the penthouse, making sure Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner would be safe. I put extra guards to watch them. We had given the diamond bracelet that Salvadori had gifted Sephie to Armando¡¯s men that had gotten their as ses kicked when they tried to kidnap her. They were to take the bracelet and lead Salvadori¡¯s men on a wild goose chase, to keep them busy while we were simultaneously taking care of Anthony and Lorenzo. It would make the story of her ¡°escape¡± more usible if they had hits off that bracelet periodically. We had taken it to the ball with us. The guys would pass it to each other throughout the night, to pick up different conversations. Before I went on stage, Viktor handed it off to Armando¡¯s men so they could ¡°record¡± her kidnapping. Now, they had Salvadori under the impression that she had gotten away from them and they were after her, which freed us up to take care of Anthony and Lorenzo. This was all dependent, of course, on whether ns were still the same on their end or not. Armando had been keeping a very close eye on both Anthony and Lorenzo. He regrly spent time in Naples, so it wasn¡¯t unusual for him to be here. We hadn¡¯t spoken to him since before the ball, however. I wasn¡¯t sure how much he knew about what happened to Sephie, as he wasn¡¯t in contact with his men to protect their cover. As I thought about everything happening, I found myself just wanting it to be over with already. I wanted to take Sephie home. I didn¡¯t care about anything else at this point. I wanted her to be better and I wanted to spend my days trying to love her the way she deserved. This was in stark contrast to my younger years. Before I took over for my father, he used me as an enforcer, of sorts. Once I was given a target, I wouldn¡¯t stop until I ended that person. When Viktor first started working for me, we had a few very close calls where we almost didn¡¯t make it out alive. I was young and reckless. He wasn¡¯t much older, but he¡¯d had much more training than I had. He was more disciplined. He taught me everything he knew and saved my life in the process. Ivan came along almost two yearster,pletely by chance. We had been after a former boss that had stolen from my father. He had fled to the countryside, where he controlled all the roads that led to hispound. The only way in was by air. Ivan was our helicopter pilot. His skills are what got us in and out of that situation alive. I gave him a job the same day. Andrei cameter, then Misha, and Stephen was thest one to join the group. They all had special skills to offer that made the whole stronger. They¡¯d all been with me for years, at this point, and I trusted them with my life. I trusted their opinion and especially their instincts. I was pulled from my thoughts as we neared the vi. We wed and turned down the gravel drive. We were greeted by Armando¡¯s staff when we arrived. They showed us to our rooms where we could change and freshen up. Armando would meet us for dinnerter. Sephie¡¯s teeth were chattering by the time we got there, so I was d to be off the bike for the day. Although I can¡¯t say I hated having her arms around me the entire day. We would definitely need to get bikes once we got back home. I grabbed our things from the guys and closed the door behind me. Sephie was looking around the room, her arms folded tightly across her chest, trying to stay warm. I checked the bathroom and luckily, there was arge bathtub. I turned the hot water on. The house staff had left some waters for us, so I grabbed that and her antibiotics and superprofen. ¡°Here, solnishko.¡± She took the pills and the water, swallowing them quickly. She drank half the bottle of water and handed me the rest. I finished it quickly. I pulled her to me, my hands gently lilting her shirt over her head. ¡°Come, I ran a bath so you can warm up. You¡¯re freezing.¡± I unzipped her jeans and started to push them down. She flinched, so I stopped. ¡°You better do that. I don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± She slowly shimmied out of her jeans, trying to avoid the bandage on her hip. ¡°We should change that too,¡± I said nodding to her bandage. She just nodded as she continued to discard her clothes. She waspletely na ked in front of me, her arms still folded across her, like she was shy. Almost like she was ashamed for me to look at her. She wouldn¡¯t look at me, choosing to look at the floor instead. I lifted her chin, forcing her to look at me. ¡°Even with all your wounds, you¡¯re still the most beautiful woman I¡¯ve ever seen.¡± I kissed her gently. Grabbing her hand, I walked her to the bath and helped her get in. The water was hot, so she rxed almost immediately when she sat down. She leaned against the tub, resting her head on the side. I stood above her for a few moments, just enjoying the look of peace on her face. Never before in my life had I gotten so much satisfaction out of making someone else happy. It¡¯s like my sole purpose in life had be to make her happy. I took a deep breath, lost in my thoughts about how different she was and how different I was with her. She didn¡¯t even open her eyes. She just asked, ¡°are you getting in too or are you just going to stand there and stare at me the whole time?¡± A small smile spread across her face. She heard my clothes hit the floor and she sat up so I could climb in the tub behind her, leaning back against me once I sat down. I wrapped my arms around her. She moaned quietly. ¡°Now it¡¯s warm enough.¡± She still had her eyes closed, her head leaning against my shoulder. ¡°How are you feeling? Are you in pain?¡± I asked, my hands running lightly over her arms under the water. ¡°It¡¯s not too bad. I can manage. I¡¯m more sore than anything.¡± I took one of her arms in mine, trying to be mindful of her cuts and scrapes, and started massaging where I could. After a few minutes, I moved to the other arm. I felt her rx against me, silently enjoying my touch. I massaged every ce I could on her until the water started to cool. ¡°I should get you out of here before you get cold again. That¡¯s not going to help your sore muscles.¡± I made a slight move to have her sit up so I could get out. She didn¡¯t move her body, she just looked up at me, with that small smile on her face still. ¡°I love you, you know,¡± she said, taking my hands and wrapping my arms around her again. This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. I felt a warmth over my body like I had never felt before. It was like this was the first time she had told me she loved me. Or the first time I believed her, maybe. Either way, I held her against me like I was going to lose her for a few moments. She didn¡¯tin, she just kept her arms tight around mine. I kissed her cheek, my lips next to her ear, I said, ¡°I love you, solnishko. More than anything.¡± Chapter 86 Chapter 86 Chapter Eighty-Six Adrik I was looking forward to seeing Armando again. He was always a pleasant man. Honest, ton. He came to me straight away after Salvadori had approached him. Sephie liked him best out of all the bosses, too. She said he was always the most respectful of her. A few times he had even helped her clean up after the meeting was over. She had a feeling it was because he wanted to set her up with one of his sons, but the appreciated the help anyway. She did say his sons were the least obnoxious of all the bosses¡¯ children. He was closer in age to me than he was to the other bosses. Maybe that¡¯s why he felt more loyal to me. He was instrumental in helping to sway the people¡¯s opinions of my organization. He said he didn¡¯t see a need for violence when keeping the peace was so much easier. Most importantly, I asked Sephie what his tell was before we went to dinner. She thought for a moment, as she was getting dressed. I enjoyed watching her lost in thought, still half na ked in front of me. She pulled her shirt over her head, slowly. ¡°He doesn¡¯t have one. He¡¯s the only one. Maybe that¡¯s why I always liked him. I always thought he was honest and genuine. Like you are.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure he doesn¡¯t have one?¡± *I¡¯m sure, but I¡¯ll pay attention at dinner to make sure I just haven¡¯t forgotten something. My brain isn¡¯t exactly operating at peak performance right now.¡± ¡°You do seem better since you started taking the ibuprofen, though. We should¡¯ve done that after you were attacked instead of those pain pills.¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t know why I couldn¡¯t think of it then. Guess I hit my head harder than I thought.¡± I frowned, thinking about the abuse this poor woman had taken over thest few years. She was so flippant about it sometimes, but she had survived very serious situations that any of us would¡¯veContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. struggled to get through. And she was smiling and telling jokes through it all. She caught me frowning and walked the few steps toward me. She still had a limp, but it was better when the superprofen was fresh. She started to button my shirt, leaving the top two open how I liked. She ced her hands on my chest and stood on her toes to kiss me. I wanted to pull her to me. I wanted to kiss her passionately. I wanted to skip dinner and lock ourselves in this room. As if she knew what I was thinking, her hands grabbed mine and she wrapped my arms around her waist. ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt when you hold me here,¡± she said, moving her arms around my neck. I pulled her to me, kissing her. I was still timid at first, but she deepened the kiss, giving me permission. I held her tighter, kissing her like she was the air I needed. She moaned softly in my mo uth, her breathsing quicker. She pressed her body even closer to mine, causing me to groan. I wanted her so badly. She broke the kiss, pressing her forehead to mine, trying to calm herself down. ¡°We should go now. Or we¡¯re not going to leave this room for a few days.¡± I cursed under my breath but grabbed her hand and turned toward the door, knowing she was completely right. Armando was waiting for us when we went out for dinner. The guys had already arrived. They were all waiting for us. Sephie walked in, looking at Armando. ¡°Please forgive us for beingte. I¡¯m a little slow right now.¡± She had that smile that could melt hearts of stone on her face as she said it. ¡°Oh, my dear. You take as long as you need. The guys here told me what happened.¡± His hand went over his mo uth, trying to cover hisughter. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you broke my guy¡¯s face. He¡¯s never going to live that one down.¡± ¡°Tell him to work on hismunication skills next time and that won¡¯t happen,¡± she said, folding her arms across her chest. Her smile fading quickly, reced by a very serious look on her face. She may have forgiven all of us, but she clearly had not forgiven Armando¡¯s men. Armando burst outughing. ¡°I will personally see to it that he gets that message.¡± He walked to her, offering his hand. She took it. He kissed the back of her hand. ¡°In all seriousness, my dear. How are you? Do you need anything? I hear you¡¯ve had quite the time thest few days.¡± She smiled at him once again. ¡°I¡¯m okay. Thank you, though. And thank you for your hospitality. Your house is lovely.¡± He smiled broadly. ¡°Ah, this house is one of my favorite ces. I must show you around after dinner. This is why I spend almost as much time here as I do in the city,¡± he said, winking at her. ¡°I would love that, thank you.¡± Afmando looked to me, extending his hand for me to shake. ¡°Boss, I¡¯m honored to have you here, sir. Come, let us feast!¡± he said, showing us the way. He had a long table outside in the courtyard set up for all of us. His staff waiting to take care of every need. I nced to Sephie. The breeze was light, but almost constant. I was worried about her getting cold again. ¡°Do you want a jacket, my love? I can run get you one.¡± ¡°Yes please,¡± she said, smiling sweetly at me. I excused myself and ran back to our room. When I came back, they were allughing, and her cheeks were flushed. ¡°What did I miss?¡± I asked, holding my jacket open for her so she could easily slide her arms in. Andrei said, ¡°Armando said he had wanted to hook Sephie up with one of his sons, but he didn¡¯t believe his sons were smart enough or strong enough to handle her. I told him what she did to all of us on the ne to really drive his point. home.¡± ¡°A redhead named for the queen of the Underworld is not for the faint of heart, Armando,¡± I said, smiling. ¡°She can walk through he ll unscathed, taming monsters to her will as she goes.¡± Sephie looked up at me, somewhat surprised at my words. I meant every word. Her eyes were searching mine as I smiled at her with every ounce of love I had for her. Armando nced between us. ¡°I see now that my attempts to set her up with my son were futile. She was always meant for greater things.¡± Chapter 87 Chapter 87 Chapter Eighty-Seven Sephie Once we all sat down at the table, Armando¡¯s staff started bringing us food. I¡¯ve never been more excited in my life. I¡¯d been able to eat so little over the past month, I just wanted to eat all the food in front of me. Conversation was optional, as far as I was concerned. I was grateful that the men did most of the talking, allowing me to listen, observe, and most importantly eat. Adrik wasfortable with Armando. Morefortable than I¡¯d seen him with other bosses. He was tense with other bosses, but not with Armando. Maybe it was their closeness in age that made him more rtable Adrik was still barely 30,pared to Armando¡¯s early 40s. Adrik had taken over from his father when he was very young, making it even more impressive that he¡¯d kept order as long as he had. Maybe it was that Armando was just a good human. He was as much a legitimate businessman as he was a mobster. He used the profits from his illegal ventures to fund his legal ones, just like Adrik did. He helped hismunity, he gave back to the people in his area, and he cared about their well- being. He had strict rules that he lived by, which was admirable. This situation with Anthony, Lorenzo, and Salvadori bothered Armando deeply. He looked stressed when talking about it with Adrik. He looked bothered by their actions, bothered that the two other bosses had gone to Salvadori¡¯s side. ¡°I can mostly understand Niko siding with Salvadori. He¡¯s always been a bit of a snake and only looks out for himself. But I was troubled by Vito siding with them,¡± Armando told Adrik. ¡°I think they have something over Vito and that¡¯s why he went with them,¡± Adrik responded. ¡°Vito has never been very strong-willed. They¡¯re likely lying to him about whatever it is, but Vito is easily scared. Therefore, he¡¯s easily controlled.¡± My curiosity was piqued. ¡°Vito is middle-aged, ck hair, clean-shaven?¡± Armando and Adrik both nodded. Armando added, ¡°he always sat closest to the door at the meetings. He insisted on that spot every time. He¡¯s very OCD about these things.¡± I remembered Vito. ¡°He taps his fingers together, like he¡¯s counting, when he¡¯s talking and when he¡¯sN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. listening. Five taps for good oues, three taps for bad oues,¡± I said. ¡°When he¡¯s especially nervous, he taps continuously with one hand and will obsessively scratch his head with the other.¡± Adrik smiled at me, knowing I was right, but also knowing it was something that no one else had likely ever noticed. Armando looked at me, surprised. ¡°How do you know this?¡± Adrik answered before I could. I happily shoved another forkful of pasta into my mo uth. ¡°Her observation skills are next level, Mando. She told me what both Salvadori and Niko do when they¡¯re lying. She was 100% correct.¡± Armando swore under his breath. ¡°I could use your services for my business deals. I¡¯ve been sc rewed by a couple of politicians because I found out toote they were lying to me.¡± Adrik chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ve threatened to give her a job doing just that.¡± I cut my eyes over at him, remembering how I responded thest time he brought it up. I raised my eyebrow, wondering if he also remembered. He added,ughing, ¡°she¡¯s not sure I can afford her, though.¡± I grinned at him, while chewing my next bite of pasta. Armando, his eyes slightly wide, added, ¡°I¡¯ll pay you whatever you want. You shoulde to my business meeting in two days. This project is one that will benefit the city, but it needs approval. I have a feeling they¡¯re going to try and sc rew me over once again.¡± I just looked at Adrik. He looked at me, a question in his eyes. I knew he was wondering if I wanted to do it. I held his gaze but said nothing. It was his decision, as far as I was concerned. I wasn¡¯t sure I would be of any real help meeting someone just once anyway. He looked to Armando, ¡°she doesn¡¯t go anywhere without me.¡± Armando nodded eagerly, ¡°of course, of course. Your men will be there too. I can bring you in as a business partner. It¡¯s a lucrative deal. But I need to know what their intentions are, otherwise, I¡¯m going to lose money again and I don¡¯t want that happening.¡± Adrik nced at me once more. I shrugged my shoulders. He nced at Misha, raising an eyebrow, silently asking for his thoughts. Misha nodded his head, meaning he didn¡¯t have a bad feeling about it. Adrik looked to Armando and agreed. I looked at Misha, who had a look of surprise on his face. I winked at him, grinning. After dinner, I asked Armando to show me around his vi. He was so close to the water you could see the sea from his back patio. I wanted to walk along the beach, but tonight was not the time for that. I felt a moment of sadness at not being able to torture Misha with a run along the beach while we were here. Adrik was by my side the whole time. He was normally quieter around people outside our little group. I noticed it about him early on. The less he talked, the more others would talk. It¡¯s a great strategy to get people to tell you too much. Armando was happy to fill the silence, telling me about his ce, what his ns for this city were, as well as back home. He always seemed like such a genuine man, who clearly cared for the people in his city. It was easy to see why the people loved him. We got back to our roomter. I was exhausted from the ride down as well as the walking after dinner. As soon as he closed the bedroom door, I pulled my shirt off and threw it on the floor. ¡°Give me your shirt,¡± I said. He raised his eyebrow, that sexy smirk on his face. ¡°Please?¡± I added, smiling at him. He walked toward me, unbuttoning his shirt. He slipped it off as he stood in front of me. He held it out behind me so I could slip my arms in it, then he buttoned it up. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m doing this backwards. I¡¯m supposed to be taking your clothes off, not putting them on.¡± I ran my hands over his chest. ¡°This was really just a ploy to get you to take your shirt off. If pants didn¡¯t hurt to wear right now, I¡¯d make you give me your pants too.¡± He clicked his tongue. ¡°Are you hurting, solnishko? Did we walk too much after dinner?¡± He led me to the bed. He unbuttoned my jeans, unzipping them, but then waited for me to carefully slide them over my hip. He pushed me gently onto the bed, carefully pulling them the rest of the way off. He ran his hands lightly over my legs, as he leaned over me. He gently kissed me, his hands in my hair. I really wish I didn¡¯t hurt in every part of my body right Chapter 88 Chapter 88 Chapter Eighty-Eight Sephie He stopped the kiss. His blue eyes found mine. ¡°You might have to start wearing all my shirts, solnishko. This one might be better than my t-shirt.¡± I smiled at him, scooting farther onto the bed so he could get in next to me. He stretched out, opening his arms for me. Iid across his chest, my leg across his. His hands went straight to my hair as I ran my fingers lightly over his chest. He sighed. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re okay with going to Armando¡¯s meeting? You don¡¯t have to go if you don¡¯t want to.¡± I rested my chin on his chest, looking at his handsome face. ¡°I don¡¯t mind as long as you¡¯re fine with it and you go too. And Misha doesn¡¯t have a bad feeling about it. And¡­.¡± I giggled. ¡°I¡¯m kidding. That¡¯s enough stiptions. I don¡¯t know if I can really be useful seeing someone for the first time anyway, but I¡¯ll give it a try. I like Armando. I don¡¯t want to see him get screwed over, so if I can help prevent that, I¡¯m happy to do so.¡± He looked at me, like he was lost in thought for a moment, his eyes taking in every detail of my face. I watched him, watching me. For a brief moment, I saw the sadness in his eyes. He tried to hide it when he saw that I was watching him. He closed his eyes for a moment, taking in a deep breath. I was still watching him when he opened his eyes. I raised my eyebrow at him. He sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not sure I will ever get rid of the guilt for what I did to you. You¡¯re such a bright spot in my life, you¡¯re so different from any woman I¡¯ve ever known, and I almost ruined it all in pursuit of vengeance.¡± He closed his eyes again and leaned his head back. I didn¡¯t respond right away. I wasn¡¯t sure what to say, honestly. I know what he did came from a good ce. A stu pid ce, maybe, but he didn¡¯t mean for me to get hurt. I knew that without a doubt. He meant for the n to go off perfectly and for me to find out it was all fake before we left the hotel. I pulled myself up so I was straddling his hips, so I could see him. He opened his eyes when I moved, sitting up more so he could look at me. I reached out and ran my fingers over his face, causing him toContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. close his eyes again. ¡°Did you mean for me to get hurt?¡± His eyes snapped open as he sat up,ing closer to me. His eyes showed shock and maybe fear as he looked at me, wondering why I would ask him that question. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at his reaction. It was exactly what I was expecting. ¡°Of course not, Sephie. Do you think I could have meant to hurt you?¡± I chuckled. ¡°Not in the least. I¡¯ve never doubted that you didn¡¯t mean for me to get hurt. But it illustrates my point.¡± My fingers went back to his face, trailing down his neck. He stayed sitting up, holding me to him. His eyes searching mine. ¡°You had good intentions when you made the n. The execution of the n is where it got all f**ked up, but your intentions were always pure.¡± I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to decide how to proceed. ¡°I¡¯m notpletely meless in that either. I did the one thing Ivan and Viktor told me to never do in a situation like that. 1 panicked. If I would¡¯ve stayed calm, that a- h ole that took me could¡¯ve exined everything like he was supposed to. Instead, I made that next to impossible. But you never meant for any of that to happen. I remember the anger in your voice when you first saw me on the ne. Some part of me knew it was you, but I was still too scared to believe it. But I remember your anger. Clearly. I¡¯ve seen the pain in your eyes when you look at me, when you look at my body right now. I¡¯ve seen the regret too. I know you never meant for any of that to happen. I know you. I know you love me. I know how good you are.¡± He dropped his gaze at myst statement. I lifted his chin, so he would look at me again. ¡°You might not believe it, but I know you¡¯re good. How can I not? You sent your personal bodyguards to look after me without a second thought when you barely knew me. You¡¯ve made sure I was safe, always. You¡¯ve given me everything I need. And, most importantly, you¡¯ve given me your heart, even though it almost stops every time I smile at you,¡± I said smirking at him. He opened his eyes wider. ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say a birdie told me,¡± I said. His face still showed doubt. ¡°Adrik, when you look at me, you see a person who is good and only good, but that¡¯s not really true. When I was out on the ne, I relived that night in the basement with my uncle. It didn¡¯t go exactly how I told you.¡± It was my turn to look down. I breathed deeply. ¡°I sliced his Achilles tendon, yes, but I had blocked out what came after. He fell to the floor. I stood up, the knife still in my hand. I stabbed him in the heart and stood over him to watch him di e. As he was slowly dying, he reached for my leg, but I just stomped the knife deeper into his chest. I never shed a single tear over him. Even now, I feel zero remorse for that. None. In fact, I¡¯m happy he¡¯s dead. I¡¯m not the saint you think I am. Just like you¡¯re not the demon you think you 1 are.¡± He studied my face for a moment but stayed quiet. I searched his eyes, looking for the change I was always afraid of. He held my gaze like he knew what I was doing. He looked at me with all the love and adoration that he always did. The sadness from earlier was gone, reced by longing. I couldn¡¯t help but smile when I didn¡¯t find what I was afraid of finding. His hands cupped my face, gently pulling me toward him. His lips found mine. He su cked my bottom lip and bit down lightly on it, causing me to deepen the kiss. I didn¡¯t care that I was hurt. I needed him. I pressed my body to his, my hips grinding against his. He groaned. ¡°Sephie. I don¡¯t want to hurt you.¡± Chapter 89 Chapter 89 Copyright ? 2023 Noveljk. All Rights Reserved Disimer: This site Noveljk does not store any files on its server. All contents are provided by non-affiliated third parties.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 90 Chapter 90 Chapter Ny Sephie When Armando said his girlfriend liked to shop, that was an understatement. The room was da mn near an entire shop¡¯s worth of clothing. She even had it on racks like it was at a store. I just stared at all the clothes, wondering to myself why anyone would ever need this much. There¡¯s no way she could¡¯ve worn all these clothes in a year. It seemed like a waste. Once Armando showed us the room, he left us to go through and find what I needed. I looked at Adrik, still somewhat shocked. ¡°Who needs this many articles of clothing? She could¡¯ve worn a different outfit every single day and she still wouldn¡¯t have worn everything in here in a year.¡± He was looking at me, somewhat amused by my astonishment. ¡°And this is why you¡¯re different, Sephie. I¡¯ve had girlfriends that have shopped like this in the past. I told you. Most women that date guys like me and Armando are more interested in the money and the power than they are us.¡± My mou th fell open in shock. ¡°You¡¯ve had girlfriends that wasted this much money before?¡± He looked around the room. ¡°This is nothing. Ask to see her jewelry collection and then let me know how shocked you are. ¡°And you let them??¡± ¡°I thought that¡¯s what you were supposed to do. I thought that¡¯s what love was for a long time, especially when I was younger. It wasn¡¯t until after the guys started working for me and they saw the ¡®other¡¯ side of the women I would date that I started to be able to see them more clearly.¡± ¡°Okay, one. Sad. Very sad. And two. If I EVER spend this much money on something stu pid like clothes, you should get me to a hospital right away. Like I hit my head again or there were complications from thisst time that nobody sawing. Maybe I had a stroke or something, I don¡¯t know. But I¡¯m gonna need medical attention.¡± Heughed, wrapping his arms around my waist. ¡°Thank you for being you, my love. I fall more in love with you each day.¡± ¡°Is it because I don¡¯t spend thousands of dors on st upid things like clothes? Because I would love me for that too.¡± ¡°Among other things,¡± he said, smiling broadly at me. I was still cursing under my breath at the ridiculousness of the situation before me as I started to look through the veritable clothes shop in Armando¡¯s spare room. Adrik just chuckled and shook his head. He was clearly amused at my reaction. I picked out a few hideous outfits, holding them up for his approval. ¡°What about this one? I really feel like neon yellow is my color.¡± He would scrunch his face up in disgust each time, which of course made me want to do it more. There were a few really slutty dresses that she had. Things I would never be caught dead in, but I couldn¡¯t help myself, so I held them up for him. ¡°What about this one? I mean, no way could I bend over or sit down while I was wearing it, but I feel like I could pull it off.¡± He raised an eyebrow, walking to get a closer look. He took the dress from me, looking from it to me. ¡°I could rip that off you and not feel bad about it,¡± he said, smirking. I felt my cheeks blush at his unexpected answer. ¡°We should look for some kind of business suit if you¡¯re going to apany Armando and I tomorrow,¡± he said, looking through a rack of clothes. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what? I have to like look like I¡¯m some sort of professional? Fu ck that noise. I¡¯m not going.¡± Heughed, shaking his head. ¡°You don¡¯t have to.¡± I stopped and looked at him, suddenly very serious. ¡°Thest time I got any kind of dressed up didn¡¯t turn out so great, so you have to promise that you will not leave my side if I wear more than a t-shirt and jeans.¡± I could feel the tears threatening to fall, as I felt a faint shaking in my legs begin. He was standing in front of me immediately, his arms around me. He pulled me to his chest, holding me tightly. ¡°Sephie. I¡¯m so sorry. You wear whatever you like, but I promise I won¡¯t leave your side. No matter what. Pinky swear, even.¡± He stepped back so he could hold out his pinky for me to take. I grabbed his pinky with mine as a stray tear fell down my cheek. He pulled me back to him, holding me tightly. ¡°You know you don¡¯t have to go at all. You¡¯ve been through a lot. Armando will understand. I understand. You don¡¯t have to do this.¡± I was quiet for a moment, trying to get control of myself. I inhaled, stepping back to look at him. ¡°Maybe I canpromise. I¡¯m sure this bougie bi tch has a suit jacket in here somewhere and some fancy pair of jeans that cost more than a month¡¯s worth of tips. Business casual for the win!¡± I said, continuing to look through the racks of clothes. He stood and watched me for a few minutes, then I felt his hand on the back of my neck, pulling me toward him, his fist in my hair. His lips crashed into mine, kissing me passionately. My knees went weak. He caught me, lifting me off the floor while his mou th continued his all-out assault on mine. Finally needing toe up for air, I asked, ¡°what was that for?¡± trying to catch my breath. He smirked at me. ¡°I fuc king love you.¡± I managed to find a suit jacket, nice blouse, and a pair of jeans that would pass for somewhat business attire. I was lucky this cheating girlfriend of Armando¡¯s was roughly the same size as me. The only thing that I couldn¡¯t make quite work was her shoes. She was considerably shorter than I was, which meant none of her shoes fit me. The only options I had were my converse sneakers or the heels I wore to the ball. While I would¡¯ve been perfectly happy in the sneakers, I went with the heels since I was trying to be somewhat presentable. This ispletely overrated. Adrik had borrowed a suit from Armando, as they were roughly the same size. I came out of the bathroom, trying to decide what to do with my hair, to see Adrik in dark grey cks and a ck shirt. My favorite. I hadn¡¯t put the jacket on yet, but I had put the heels on to make sure I could walk in them. I was getting better each day, but I was still quite sore. I wanted to make sure I wasn¡¯t going to regret my choiceter, so I walked around in them while getting ready. I stopped to look him over, just as he did the same for me. As he continued to look me up and down, IContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. asked, ¡°what should I do with my hair? We¡¯re very limited on options since Ms. Jackson isn¡¯t here.¡± ¡°Your hair always looks good, no matter what you do with it.¡± He went to look me up and down one more time, but tried to be discreet about it, as he looked down to adjust the cuff of his shirt. It reminded me of the first time I saw him. ¡°Okay, be right back.¡± I walked back into the bathroom to braid my hair how it was the first night we met. I always left a few curls loose around my face and my hair was long enough that my thick braid fell easily over my shoulder. He brought the jacket to me as I was tying the stic around the end of the braid. His blue eyes went dark as he looked at my handiwork. He didn¡¯t say anything, he just held the jacket open for me to slip it on. I turned around and he raised an eyebrow, ¡°you might have to dress up a little more often. You are very sexy.¡± Chapter 91 Chapter 91 Chapter Ny-One Sephie As Adrik and I walked toward the driveway to leave, Misha was waiting by the front door. He looked at us, his sweet smile stretching across his face. ¡°You guys are going to fu ck some sh it up, aren¡¯t you?¡± I smiled at him, raising my hand for a high-five as I walked past him. They never ceased to amaze me with what they could remember. We arrived at Armando¡¯s office building early, so he could show us the details of the project. If Adrik was supposed to be a business partner, he would at least need a working knowledge of the project to sell it. Armando also told me everything he knew about the men we would be meeting with. His assistant stuck her head in the office, ¡°they¡¯ve just arrived, sir. I¡¯ve shown them to the boardroom.¡± ¡°Thank you, Giana.¡± He looked at both of us, expectantly. Stephen and Andrei were stationed at the front door, checking people as they entered the building. Viktor and Ivan were outside the meeting and Misha was with us. Adrik said he wanted to know immediately if anything felt off, so he wanted Misha close. He wanted to get me out of there right away if Misha had the slightest feeling that it was going to go badly. It definitely made me feel morefortable having both of them with me. The men that Mando was meeting with were much older. They looked like hardened businessmen but werepletely taken aback to see a woman walk into the meeting and sit down across from them. This should be fun. Armando made the introductions. He had given both of us fake names for the meeting. After, they got right down to business. There was awyer, an investor, and a politician in the meeting. Armando was most worried about the politician since he¡¯s the one that had screwed him out of a deal previously. I could see that the politician was nervous even before we sat down. His skin was moist, like he was sweating but trying to hide it. The other two were bigger problems, from what I could see. Thewyer kept looking at me like he was undressing me with his eyes. I could feel Adrik¡¯s temper rising next to me. I slid my hand to his leg under the table, trying to calm him. He nced sideways at me, Yep, he was definitely angry at that man looking at me that way. I could see it all over his face. I squeezed his leg, hoping to reassure him that I was fine. The investor wasn¡¯t much better but was more discreet. I was sure they both had very d irty thoughts running through their minds the entire time. Once Armando had finished his presentation on the project, they had questions for him. This is what I was waiting for, as I could figure out what their intentions were as they spoke. The politician was hiding something, but I couldn¡¯t tell what. It was almost like he feared either Armando or the two men he was with. He would nervously wipe his forehead periodically. The investor was mostly quiet but would smirk when the politician spoke. Thewyer was slimy. As the meeting progressed, he got more tant about staring at me. I could feel the heating off Adrik as he watched this gross old man looking at me. I kept my hand on his leg, trying to keep him calm. After one particrly long stare, Adrik simply reached over and pulled my chair closer to his, cing his hand on my leg across myp. It was so hard not to smile at thewyer¡¯s face. Did he just pub licly im me? I heard Misha clear his throat behind us, knowing that he was struggling to notugh as well. The lawyer¡¯s tone changed after Adrik moved me closer to him. He was being overly nice in the beginning. It wasn¡¯t genuine in the least. He was covering for something. As soon as Adrik stopped the reel of di rty thoughts going through his mind, he not longer tried to y nice. Everyone noticed the change. Armando had missed Adrik pulling me closer, as he was speaking with the investor when it happened. He was somewhat taken aback at the change. Thewyer was suddenly demanding unreasonable percentages of the project, as well as making unreal timelines for construction. Armando was getting frustrated with trying toe up with a solution. Anytime thewyer spoke, Adrik would look at me. 1 shook my head no discreetly, indicating that he was not being entirely forthright. The same for the investor. I leaned over and quietly whispered, ¡°the investor is lying. He¡¯s been lying this whole time. The politician is scared to death and thewyer is a slimeball, but he¡¯s got ulterior motives. I doubt they¡¯re his own. Mostwyers work for somebody and he is most definitely not working for this investor.¡± Armando was getting frustrated trying to find ways to satisfy their demands when Adrik interrupted him. ¡°Gentlemen, let¡¯s cut the bu llshit. This project will help this city. It will create jobs, it will create new tax revenue, it will benefit the people of this city greatly. And yet, you¡¯re more worried about how much money it will make you personally. Judging by your suits, I¡¯d say you already have plenty of money, which means you¡¯re just being greedy.¡± He looked at the investor. ¡°You, sir, haven¡¯t been truthful this entire time.¡± He then looked to the politician, who looked even more nervous that Adrik was addressing him. ¡°And you, sir. You¡¯re scared. Either of the men you¡¯re sitting with or of us. Given that we¡¯re the ones trying to make this city better with this project, I would bet it¡¯s the men you¡¯re with that you¡¯re scared of.¡± Lastly, he looked at thewyer. ¡°You,¡± he paused, trying to contain his anger. ¡°You¡¯re working for someone else, aren¡¯t you? Behind the scenes? Given how you conduct yourself in front of a lady, I¡¯d dare to guess that you¡¯re not the brightest man in the room, so I doubt these demands you¡¯ve come here with today are your own. You can go back and tell whomever it is you¡¯re working for that they can eithere to us themselves or they can find another project to partner on.¡±N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. Chapter 92 Chapter 92 Chapter Ny-Two Sephie There was a visible sh of fear across thewyer¡¯s face for a brief moment, but it quickly changed to anger. The politician looked like he might vomit, and the investor didn¡¯t look much better. They were speechless. Armando looked to Adrik, surprised but thankful for his words. I ced my hand on top of his, as his arm was still protectively across myp as he spoke to the three men across the table. Misha cleared his throat once again behind us, I nced back to him. He shook his head no once. I tightened my grip on Adrik¡¯s hand. He didn¡¯t even look at me, he just stood up, adjusting his suit jacket. He red at the men across the table, causing them to shrink back. ¡°I think we¡¯re done here, gentlemen. My men will see you out,¡± he said motioning toward the door. The three men stood, gathered their things, and walked out quickly. Viktor and Ivan had been listening through Misha¡¯s earpiece the entire time. They were expecting them. Andrei and Stephen were as well. Adrik followed them to the door, keeping the intimidation factor high. He closed the door behind them, cursing under his breath, running a hand through his hair. I knew he was still angry. I stood from my chair, happy to have a moment to stretch. My hip was somewhat sore from sitting. Or from the heels. Or both. Adrik walked quickly to me. As he closed the distance, I could see his eyes searching mine, wondering if I was okay. I smiled at him. He put both hands on either side of my face, his lips crashing to mine. I knew he was trying to calm himself. I smiled against his lips. ¡°You¡¯ve been wanting to do that for like an hour now, haven¡¯t you?¡± ¡°You have no idea, solnishko,¡± he groaned. I heard Mishaugh quietly behind us. We both turned to look at him. ¡°What? I wouldn¡¯t have been able to wait until the meeting was over with that guy looking at you like that. You have more self-control than I do, Boss.¡± Armando was puzzled, as he was blissfully unaware of everything that had happened during the meeting. ¡°Somebody tell me what¡¯s going on here.¡± ¡°The politician was terrified of the other two men. That was the first red g. The investor was lying the entire time, just like Ghost said. And thewyer spent most of your presentation thinking about all the di rty things he wanted to do to me. After Ghostpletely destroyed his fantasies, that¡¯s when he switched to full-on as shole. Lawyers are always working for someone else, so there¡¯s another yer behind the scenes that you don¡¯t know about making all those unrealistic demands. The temperature of the room changed after Ghost called them out, which is why they were escorted out quickly,¡± I said. Armando sat down, somewhat in shock. ¡°I missed all of this. I was so focused on trying to make this project work that I missed everything you just said.¡± He put his head in his hands, thinking about what had just taken ce. Adrik spoke. ¡°I think the investor might be an actor. If you investigate who he is, I doubt you will find someone wealthy enough to be able to afford an investment into this project. The bigger question is why the politician was afraid of them and most importantly, who thewyer is working for behind the scenes.¡± Armando stood and walked to the phone at the other end of the table. He pressed a button and his assistant answered. ¡°Giana, could youe to the boardroom, please?¡± She walked in soon after. Armando was still standing. ¡°Ah, Giana, can you get me everything you can find on the three men that were just here? I want to know everything. Use whoever you need to, but I want to know everything. Who they¡¯re working with now, who they¡¯ve worked with in the past. All of it.¡± ¡°Right away, sir,¡± she nodded to all of us as she left the boardroom, her eyes lingering on Misha as she walked past. I caught his eye, raising my eyebrows several times, and smiling. His cheeks flushed as his broad smile stretched across his face. He just shrugged his shoulders. I thought Misha was insanely adorable, but I found myself both secretly loving it when other women found any of them attractive, but also feeling overly protective of them at the same time. This must be what it¡¯s like to have hot older brothers¡­ Armando walked to me and Adrik. He extended his hand to Adrik, who took it. ¡°Thank you, sir. You¡¯ve saved me quite a few headaches today.¡± He looked to me, opening his arms, ¡°and you, my dear, you have a gift. I¡¯m going to need you for all my important meetings,¡± he said embracing me. ¡°Come, I mustN?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. take you to lunch. It¡¯s the least I can do.¡± ¡°I will happily take you up on that offer,¡± I said, stepping back from Armando, only to feel Adrik¡¯s hand on my back pulling me to him. He whispered in my ear so only I could hear, ¡°tell me if you get tired or you want to go back. You won¡¯t offend him. He understands.¡± He kissed my cheek. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay, as long as we don¡¯t walk too much. My hip is not agreeing with these shoes.¡± He smirked at me, ¡°Ivan has your sneakers with him.¡± ¡°Sh ut up.¡± ¡°He brought them just in case you had issues.¡± As we walked to the front door of the building, Ivan was waiting by the door, holding my sneakers in one hand. ¡°Ivan, you¡¯re not only squishy inside you¡¯re all soft and nougaty too,¡± I said, holding onto his shoulder so I could take the heels off and slip on the sneakers. ¡°I had a feeling something like this would happen, princess. It¡¯s best to be prepared,¡± he said with a wink. ¡°Noted, you giant lovable Russian bear you.¡± Chapter 93 Chapter 93 Chapter Ny-Three Adrik We walked to lunch, as it wasn¡¯t very far from Armando¡¯s office building. The weather was nice and since Sephie had morefortable shoes on, I wasn¡¯t quite as worried about her. Her limp was slightly more pronounced today, I think because of the heels she wore. I somewhat felt guilty about enjoying her in heels again though. I liked having her even taller than she normally was. Armando was busy discussing business matters as we walked through the streets. It was a beautiful city, and the weather was almost perfect, not too hot, not too cool. I listened intently to Armando, responding when needed, but I was also trying to focus on Sephie¡¯s reactions to what she saw as we walked. I loved watching her. She found beauty and wonderment in everything. Strangers walking past us would inevitably stare at her, at her beauty, but also at her obvious innocence. It was like they couldn¡¯t help but feel drawn toward her. The same feeling I had when I was near her, just to a lesser degree. I squeezed her hand, wanting to kiss her instead, but I had to pretend to be listening to Armando. She looked over at me, giving me that smile that threatened to stop my heart every time. As we sat at the restaurant, the topic of the earlier meeting came up once again. Armando was still surprised at how well Sephie could size people up. ¡°Sephie, how did youe across this gift of yours? Have you always been able to read people this well?¡± he asked. She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I guess I¡¯ve always been able to do it. The things I notice seem obvious to me. Like how you missed the subtle cues in the meeting, for example. It doesn¡¯t mean you can¡¯t read people. You were just trying so hard to will that project into existence to help the people of the city even more than you already do that you were. willing topromise on working with sketchy characters to get it aplished. You have a big heart. I wouldn¡¯t say that¡¯s a bad trait to have, but it probably means you get taken advantage of more than you should: You know, by whorish girlfriends who only want you for your money.¡± She winked at him, smiling broadly. He swore under his breath. ¡°You should market your services, my dear.¡± The guys were all chuckling, knowing full well how good Sephie was at saying what needed to be said. Ivan looked at Armando. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen anything yet. Wait until she gets to know you a little better. She¡¯ll find those dark ces that you don¡¯t want anybody to see, and she¡¯ll shine a light directly on them.¡± ¡°But then she¡¯ll show you how it was never a weakness to begin with and how you were beating yourself up for it needlessly,¡± Stephen said. Sephie looked down, blushing. Armando looked to each of the guys who each had a knowing look on their face,pletely in agreement at what Ivan and Stephen just said. He looked to me, nodding. He raised his ss and everyone at the table raised theirs. ¡°To Sephie, the most remarkable woman we¡¯ve ever met,¡± he said. Her cheeks were almost as red as her hair after he toasted her. I leaned over, kissing her cheek, feeling both proud and lucky that she was mine. We spent a few hours in the outdoor courtyard at the restaurant. It was a secluded spot where we could talk freely about business. The guys had a clear line of sight on every entrance and exit and could easily see the road in front of the restaurant as well. Since all the guys had been able to listen to the meeting through Misha¡¯s earpiece, they gave their opinions on what happened. Like me, they were concerned with who was pulling the strings in the background that we didn¡¯t know about, as well as what the politician was afraid of. Viktor asked what I had been worried about. ¡°Do you think Lorenzo or Anthony could be the one behind thewyer? Maybe that¡¯s who the politician is really scared of?¡± I nodded. ¡°I had thought the same thing. I wouldn¡¯t put it past them to try and undermine Armando since he went against Salvadori and stood with me. It would be easier for them to try it here than at home.¡± Sephie turned to look at me, her eyes wide. ¡°If thewyer is working for one of them, then they know now that you¡¯re alive and I¡¯m here and not where they¡¯re looking for me.¡± She turned to Armando. ¡°That also means the guys who took me are likely in trouble once Salvadori finds out they betrayed him.¡± She turned back to me. I could see the fear in her eyes, even though she was trying to remain calm. Ivan spoke up first. ¡°There¡¯s a chance that thewyer won¡¯t divulge the physical description of you and Boss to whomever he¡¯s working for. You gave fake names and he might not even know of your existence. We don¡¯t know for sure yet that he¡¯s working for Lorenzo and Anthony.¡± She looked at him, willing herself to believe his words. Andrei said, ¡°don¡¯t worry, spider monkey. They won¡¯t get you.¡± She nodded but dropped her gaze. Armando picked up the conversation while I pulled her chair closer to mine. She wouldn¡¯t look at me, but I could see her internal struggle she was having. I put my hand on her leg, immediately feeling the shaking. Just as I was about to suggest we make our way back to Armando¡¯s vi, his phone rang. His assistant had found information that she felt he needed to see. ¡°Come, let¡¯s return to the office and hopefully shed some light on this little mystery,¡± he said, standing up and folding his napkin on his te. The guys stood as well. When Sephie went to stand, she flinched, cursing under her breath. Her hand went to her hip, pressing against her wound. I went to help her, but she held a finger up asking for a moment. It took her a second to stand uppletely straight. When she did, she had a clearly pained look on her face. ¡°Solnishko, what¡¯s wrong? What can I do?¡± I asked, trying to help support her. ¡°No idea. That¡¯s never happened before,¡± she said, still pressing on her wound. ¡°What was it? What happened?¡± ¡°It was like a shooting pain through my hip when I went to stand up. I¡¯m okay now. We can go,¡± she said, giving me a tight smile. Andrei stepped in front of her, a small smile on his face. ¡°Spider monkey,¡± he said as he turned his back to her, squatting down to her level and opening his arms. He was offering to carry her back to the office. She put her hands on his shoulders, but then stopped herself. ¡°I don¡¯t think I can jump, Bubba.¡± I walked behind her, lifting her so she could wrap her arms and legs around Andrei. He gently bounced her a little higher and looked back at her. ¡°Good?¡± She nodded to him, then looked at me, mouthing, ¡°thank you,¡± as Andrei walked toward the front of the restaurant with her. I ran my hand through my hair, worried about more than Lorenzo and Anthony. I didn¡¯t like seeing her in pain. When we got back to the house, I would insist she change the bandage so we could look at it. She¡¯d been diligent about taking her antibiotics after that first day she missed because she was sleeping, but that didn¡¯t mean there wasn¡¯t a small infection setting in. I would call a doctor toe to her, if needed. I caught Misha¡¯s gaze as we were leaving. He looked just as concerned as I felt.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 94 Chapter 94 Chapter Ny-Four Adrik We left Armando at the office and took Sephie straight back to the vi. I wanted her to be able to lie down and I wanted to change her bandage. Once we pulled up to the vi, I stepped out of the vehicle, extending my hand to help her out. Once she stepped out, I reached down and picked her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck and shoulders, resting her head on my shoulder. She smiled at me, ¡°I¡¯m okay now. It went away,¡± she yawned as her fingers yed with the cor of my shirt, running lightly over my neck and chest. I walked her to the bedroom,ying her gently on the bed. She stretched while she kicked her shoes off. ¡°Maybe it was just sitting for that long. It was sore when I stood up in the boardroom, too,¡± she said, still stretching her body. I stood over her, unbuttoning her jeans. ¡°I still want to change your bandage just in case. You could barely stand. If there¡¯s a problem, I need to know.¡± She smiledzily at me. She carefully pushed her jeans down over the bandage so I could pull them the rest of the way off. I hadn¡¯t seen the panties she had chosen to wear until that moment. My breath caught as I slid my hands up her legs, running over the thin ckce. She closed her eyes as I leaned down and kissed her stomach. ¡°You¡¯re not making this any easier,¡± I said, my hands still running over her body. She opened one eye, grinning at me. ¡°Maybe it was that pair of jeans. That bougie bi tch might¡¯ve been skinnier than me. Or else she enjoys feeling like she¡¯s being slowly choked by her clothes,¡± she said. She pushed her stomach out, patting it with her hands. ¡°Or maybe I ate so much food that my pants were too tight on my hip.¡± I sat beside her, taking her hands from her stomach, kissing each one. ¡°You¡¯re still too skinny. You¡¯re all bony and sharp. You can afford to eat more, solnishko.¡± I pulled her panties off her hip so I could have ess to her bandage, kissing her stomach just above the waistline. She folded one arm behind her head, so she could watch me. I took the bandage off as delicately as I could, but it still hurt her every time. Her skin was extra sensitive from the adhesive. Her wound still looked mostly normal, but it was getting redder around the edges. ¡°Sephie, I don¡¯t know. I think you should see a doctor, just to be safe.¡± She sat up slightly so she could look at it. ¡°Did we bring anything to clean it with? Maybe it just needs to be cleaned again. I don¡¯t want to see another doctor. I ha te doctors. I haven¡¯t missed my antibiotic. It shouldn¡¯t be infected.¡± She put her hand over it. ¡°It¡¯s not hot like it would be if it were infected.¡± I clicked my tongue at her. ¡°I still think you should see a doctor.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to. I just need to clean it and it will be fine.¡± She had that determined look in her eye that told me I was not going to change her mind on this one. I opted for apromise instead. ¡°We¡¯ll clean it for now, but if that sharp paines back that prevents you from standing, I¡¯m calling a doctor whether you want me to or not.¡± I looked at her sternly. It was all I could do not to smile at her during this standoff. She cracked first, grinning at me. ¡°Deal.¡± When I came back with antiseptic to clean her wound, she was still stretched out on the bed, panties half off, shirt pulled up, exposing her milky whi te, toned stomach,pletelyfortable on the bed. I couldn¡¯t help but grin at her as I walked to the bed. She was sofortable in her own skin around me. Around the guys too. She didn¡¯t care if she looked si lly, in fact most of the time she went out of her way to look si lly to get a laugh out of us. It was refreshing to be around a woman that wasn¡¯t constantly worried about how she looked. Sephie was real. I knew she epted me for me, all the parts of me, good and bad, because she epted all the parts of herself. She had seen real darkness, but she still chose to shine her light on the world. She made peace with those dark parts of her, taking away their power. It gave me hope that I could eventually do the same. She looked at me with so much love, even after reading every part of my soul. I paused, after closing the door,pletely lost in the sight of her. She leaned up on her elbows to look at me, raising one eyebrow. God, she was sexy when she wasn¡¯t even trying to be. ¡°What are you doing?¡± she asked, a questioning look on her face. She broke me from my thoughts. ¡°Just enjoying the view, solnishko. Come, let¡¯s get your wound cleaned so you can put clothes back on before I rip. another pair of panties off you.¡± ¡°Whatever. I have an endless supply of them now, so knock yourself out,¡± she saidughing. She stood up to walk to the bathroom, giving me a full view of her a ss that was barely covered by the ckce. I cursed under my breath, exhaling as I followed her to the bathroom. ¡°You¡¯re a little evil, solnishko,¡± I said, smacking her as s lightly. She looked at me over her shoulder. ¡°You love it.¡± Just to drive her point home, she slipped out of her blouse and tossed it back to me as she walked into the bathroom. ¡°You¡¯re a lot evil, solnishko.¡± I cursed under my breath again. She was clearly enjoying teasing me, as she turned toward me, chewing her bottom lip, as she pulled one side of her panties lower to give me ess to her wound. She leaned against the bathroom counter as I tried to concentrate on cleaning her wound and not bending her over the counter. I could do this. Fu ck. I can¡¯t do this. She¡¯s driving me crazy. I grabbed some gauze to catch the antiseptic as I poured it over her wound and kneeled in front of her. I looked up at her. ¡°You ready?¡± ¡°Nope but do it anyway.¡± I poured out as little as I could. The liquid started to bubble in the wound. She inhaled sharply, clenching her jaw and closing her eyes tightly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, solnishko.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. It¡¯s okay. Just keep going.¡± I poured out more liquid. More bubbles. She pped the counter, cursing. ¡°Again. I¡¯m okay.¡± Once again, I poured more liquid over the wound. ¡°FU CKING HE LL!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, solnishko. You told me to! I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. It¡¯s not you. It fu cking burns. Cursing makes me feel slightly better.¡± She ran her hand through my hair, trying to smile through her pain. ¡°I should give you a minute. It¡¯s still bubbling though. I think we should do it again.¡± N?velDrama.Org: owner of this content. ¡°Easy for you to say,¡± she said. She was fanning her hip with one hand. I leaned closer to bl ow on it, trying to give her relief from the constant burning. ¡°How does Ivan stand there like nothing is happening with this stuff?¡± I chuckled. ¡°He still hasn¡¯t told you?¡± ¡°Told me what?¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t feel much pain. He was born that way. His nerves don¡¯t work the same way. He doesn¡¯t register pain the same way you and I do. Some pain he feels, but other pain doesn¡¯t register. It makes him a very dangerous opponent.¡± ¡°I knew there was something to his inability to feel pain! I could use some of that right about now,¡± she said, chewing on her lip. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, love. One more time, then I put a new bandage on you so you can put your clothes back on.¡± I tried not to look at her chewing on her lip. I couldn¡¯t figure out why that was so sexy to me, but I had trouble controlling myself every time she did it. When I had finished putting the bandage on her, she leaned down cing both her hands on either side of ¡°Thank you,¡± she said, pressing her lips to mine. my face. ¡°We should¡¯ve done this sooner. We should make sure to do it more often. Or else I¡¯m going to call a doctor,¡± I said before she could argue. ¡°If it keeps the doctor away, I¡¯ll happily endure the torture.¡± I shook my head. I¡¯d never met anyone other than Ivan that had such an aversion to doctors. If it meant I could help her, then I¡¯d dly keep the doctor away for now. Whatever made her better. Chapter 95 Chapter 95 Chapter Ny-Five Sephie The next two days were mostly quiet. The guys wereing and going periodically, meeting various people, gathering information. Adrik never once left me. If he needed to go somewhere, I went with him. It might seem excessive, but I was d for it. I was still struggling with the thought of never seeing him again. Having him around right now was helping me keep those thoughts at bay. He was still threatening to call a doctor for the wound on my hip. It was somewhat of a dull, constant pain now, wasn¡¯t going to tell him that. He had plenty to worry about already and I wanted to skip the doctor. I was almost finished with the antibiotics, so I was hoping it would start to feel better soon. but I We were all in Armando¡¯s gym in the morning when Ivan asked me about my hip. I was still limping asionally, despite my best efforts to hide it. He noticed and asked me about it. Before I could even answer, Adrik said ¡°it¡¯s not healing like it should be, but she¡¯s refusing to let me call the doctor. I might do it anyway and deal with the consequencester.¡± I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°It¡¯s fine. I don¡¯t need a doctor.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not fine, princess. You¡¯re limping still when you should be getting better. Let me see it?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°I might be able to help. I have extensive experience with healing wounds without doctors,¡± he added when I looked at him. skeptically. ¡°Ok, you¡¯re going to have to expand on thatter,¡± I said. I looked to Adrik, to make sure he was okay with me basically giving Ivan a view down my pants. He nodded. I pulled Ivan away from everyone, not really wanting to show everyone the somewhat gaping ho le in my hip, even though I could feel their curious eyes on us. I slid my pants low enough that I could peel back the bandage so he could see most of the wound. It was red and there was starting to be some heat to it as well, which usually means infection. I had to admit, I was starting to worry a little bit. Ivan bent down to get a closer look at it. He clicked his tongue. ¡°It hurts you all the time, doesn¡¯t it?¡± I nodded, exhaling. ¡°But please don¡¯t tell Adrik. He has enough to worry about right now and he¡¯s already stressed enough as it is without worrying that my hip is gonna fall off soon.¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°Your hip won¡¯t fall off, princess.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know. It might,¡± I said, raising an eyebrow at him. ¡°What have you been putting on it?¡± ¡°Adrik insists on cleaning it every day. I think he¡¯s starting to enjoy torturing me if I¡¯m being honest. But that¡¯s it. Then we just put a fresh bandage on it. It¡¯s like a dull ache now all the time. I cut back on the superprofen, but I want to start taking more of that again because it¡¯s starting to hurt more.¡± Ivan thought for a moment. I nced toward Adrik to see that he was watching us, a look of concern on his face. I looked back to Ivan, hoping he would figure something out so I wouldn¡¯t have to give in and let Adrik call a doctor. I could see the light bulb moment as he came up with a solution. He nced down at me, the corners of his mou th turning up in a discreet smile. ¡°Come with me,¡± he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the door. ¡°Do you have something that will keep Adrik from calling a doctor? Please tell me you have something,¡± I asked, following behind him. ¡°Potentially. It¡¯s an ancient remedy, but it¡¯s worked for me before.¡± I followed him in silence as he led me to the kitchen. I looked at him, puzzled that we were in the kitchen. He smirked at me. ¡°Just wait, princess. It¡¯ll make sense in a moment.¡± He checked the counters, then stepped into the pantry, looking for whatever he was looking for. He walked out, carrying a ss jar. ¡°Is it snack time?¡± I asked, somewhat confused. He was holding a jar of honey. He handed it to me as he walked to me. ¡°No, this is for your wound. Honey is a very good antiseptic and it has healing properties as well. People have been using it to heal wounds for centuries.¡± He lifted his shirt, showing me a particrly nasty scar across his rib cage. ¡°It healed this,¡± he said as he dragged his finger over the scar. ¡°That looks like it was painful.¡± I looked up him, my curiosity peaked. ¡°How do you know so much about this stuff? And about drugs in general? I remember hearing you quiz the doctor when we were up north.¡± He sighed, folding his arms across his sizeable chest. He leaned back against the counter. I could tell he was lost in a memory and by the looks of his face, it wasn¡¯t exactly a pleasant one. I put my hand on his shoulder, which made him look at me. I could see the pain in his eyes, clear as day. ¡°Ivan, you don¡¯t have to tell me. It¡¯s okay. I can see that whatever it was, it wasn¡¯t good.¡± He nodded his head. ¡°I don¡¯t feel pain like normal people. My mother took me to the doctor as a young boy because I was always getting hurt but never felt any pain. I never cried when I would break a bone. She thought there was something wrong with me. The doctor referred us to another doctor in arger city outside the small vige I grew up in. That doctor was part of a secret military group that was trying to build the perfect soldier. He convinced my mother to turn me over so they could study me. I¡¯m not the only one that¡¯s ever been born this way, but we¡¯re rare. She was reluctant at first, but they told her they would give me an education and they would even pay for my brothers and sister to go to school. We were poor, so school wasn¡¯t really an option. She eventually agreed, because she thought it would be a better situation for me than what she could provide on her own. My father had been killed in a mining ident shortly after my youngest brother was born, so my mother was left with four kids to raise on her own.¡± He paused for a moment, lost in his memory. I shifted my weight back and forth, trying to find afortable position. while I waited for him to continue. He wasn¡¯t even looking at me, but he still reached over and set me on the counter. ¡°At first, the people who were ¡®studying¡¯ me were mostly nice. The original doctor saw to it that I went to school, was fed, and was well looked after. That changed when a new doctor took over the research. I don¡¯t know what happened to the first doctor, but I never saw him again. The new doctor was an as sho le. He didn¡¯t care about school. He just wanted to run tests on me all day, every day. He really didn¡¯t even care if I was fed. When I started to refuse to do some of the tests, he would withhold food from me until I relented. This went on for years. I was 7 years old when I entered the program. I was 9 when the as sho le doctor took over. As I got older and started growing more, they started training me. I knew every kind of martial arts there is by 13. When I was 15, I was transferred to a new facility, where I lived with other boys. None of them were like me, but they all had reasons why they were in the program. It was nice to have other boys my age for a while, but it didn¡¯tst. Around 16, they started making us fight each other. If we refused, we were punished. One of the boys I fought almost died because of me. So, I started refusing because the other boys didn¡¯t have the same kind of training I¡¯d had and they all clearly felt pain, unlike me. They would starve me, lock me up in a room with no windows, sometimes they¡¯d make me stay inplete darkness for weeks on end. Anything they could think of to break me. They were trying to turn me into a killer.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 96 Chapter 96 Chapter Ny-Six Sephie I gasped, putting my hand over my mou th. He continued, ¡°I kept refusing for close to a year. It didn¡¯t matter what they tried to do to me, I wasn¡¯t going to fight any of the boys because they didn¡¯t have training. They changed tactics and brought in military guys. They said if I wouldn¡¯t fight untrained boys, then I could fight trained men. They wanted to see how I would respond to pain and how I would heal from being injured. I finally agreed, mostly because I just wanted to eat again.¡± I held my hand up, saying ¡°amen to that.¡± He chuckled, then continued, ¡°the first couple of fights, I got my as s kicked. They were stronger than me and I was weak from malnourishment. As time went on, though, I got stronger, and the tables turned. I started beating the grown men with ease. I almost killed a few of them, a couple of them probably wish I had killed them, and I eventually did legitimately ki ll one of them. They didn¡¯t stop after that happened, either. They kept sending in more guys, week after week. I realized it was never going to stop. Whatever their research was, it was going to continue, unless I got away from them. One night, right before I turned 18, I broke out. I killed 6 people that night in order to escape. I can still see their faces clearly.¡± He closed his eyes. His shoulders slumped forward. He looked tired and small. 1 hopped down from the counter. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him to me. ¡°Ivan¡­¡± I felt his giant arms around me, holding onto me. He took in a deep breath and held it. I knew he was fighting back tears. Fighting back the memories that had been haunting him all these years. I didn¡¯t know what to say, or if there was anything to say that could make this better. So, I stayed silent. I just held onto him, trying to give him what he¡¯d been missing all those years. A safe harbor. His grip on me tightened as he struggled to get control. Eventually, I felt him rx a little and he loosened his grip on me. I stepped back, looking at him. He looked haunted. I remembered what my father had said to me in my dream. It seemed applicable. ¡°Ivan, look at me.¡± He nced down at me, but wouldn¡¯t hold my gaze for long. I reached up and gently pressed my hands on either side of his face and forced him to look at me. ¡°Ivan, sometimes Karma uses you to deliver justice. You simply handed down their sentences.¡± He looked at me for a few moments. That haunted look slowly started to disappear. As he mulled over my words in his head, he asked, ¡°how do you do that?¡± ¡°How do I do what?¡± ¡°You always know exactly what we need to hear.¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s a gift,¡± I said, grinning at him. He shook his head,ughing quietly. He bent down and hugged me again. When he stood up this time, his face was much softer. ¡°Does anyone else know this?¡± I asked. ¡°Not to this extent. They know about my inability to feel pain and that I ha te doctors because of being experimented on when I was a kid.¡± 1 simply nodded my head. ¡°You¡¯re the only person I¡¯ve told the entire story to,¡± he said, his hands running through his ck goatee. ¡°I¡¯m honored,¡± I said, smiling at him. ¡°And to think, I used to think you wanted to murder me in my sleep. Now you¡¯re all soft and nougaty with me.¡± I poked him in the ribs, as heughed. ¡°I would never hurt you again, princess.¡± ¡°What¡¯s this again, bu llshit?¡± I asked, standing up straight to try and look him in the eye. ¡°The ball. I can¡¯t get the picture of your face out of my head as I had to run past you, and I still hear you calling out for Adrik and then for me when you were out on the ne.¡± ¡°Ivan. Don¡¯t do that. Don¡¯t beat yourself up. I still standby calling it a stu pid n, but mostly because of the execution. Your intentions were always good. I was never meant to get hurt. All of you guys have always done nothing but protect me and keep me safe. I never once doubted that you didn¡¯t mean for me to get hurt in all that. So. Stop that nonsense right now before I kick your as s.¡± Heughed. It made me happy to see him visibly lighter. He grabbed the jar of honey and offered me his arm. ¡°Come, we¡¯ll go get Adrik and I¡¯ll show him how to pack your wound. I don¡¯t want to do it without him there.¡± He looked down at me, one eyebrow raised. ¡°It¡¯s too close to your no-no zone.¡± I slid my arm through his,ughing. ¡°That¡¯s fair. That¡¯s totally fair.¡± When we got back to the gym, Adrik looked worried, but tried to mask it. I smiled at him, as I put my hand on his shoulder and whispered, ¡°I missed you.¡± His handsome smile stretched across his face. He put his arm around me, pulling me to his side. ¡°Ivan has a way to make us both happy,¡± I said, grinning up at him. He looked down at me, surprised, then looked to Ivan, who held up the jar of honey. ¡°I¡¯ll show you how to pack it with this. It should start healing quicker.¡± Adrik nodded his head. Then leaned down to kiss my cheek. ¡°If this doesn¡¯t work, I¡¯m calling the doctor.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah, yeah,¡± I said, rolling my eyes. His hand ran down to my as s, grabbing it forcefully enough that I let out at small yelp. He cursed under his breath as he nodded for Ivan to follow us. We went to our bedroom. Ivan showed Adrik how to pack the wound with honey and enough gauze that I wouldn¡¯t inevitably leak sweet sticky syrup over everything. Once the new bandage was on, Ivan said, ¡°leave this one on for two days. Give it time to calm down. Antiseptic is good, but sometimes makes things worse. It can be too harsh. This will soothe it and help the healing start.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 97 Chapter 97 Chapter Ny-Seven Sephie Adrik looked skeptical. I looked at Ivan and said, ¡°show him the scar you healed this way. He doesn¡¯t believe you.¡± Ivan lifted his shirt, showing Adrik the long scar across his ribs. ¡°I refused to go to a doctor and get stitches. I used honey and packed it, same way as I showed you.¡± Adrik looked from Ivan, then to me, then back to Ivan. ¡°How long until we know it¡¯s working?¡± He was visibly tense. Ivan thought for a minute. ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly. I couldn¡¯t feel this one, so I don¡¯t know if it helped with the pain or not, but you should see it physically start to look better after the first bandage change in a couple of days.¡± Adrik nodded, then looked to me. ¡°If it doesn¡¯t look better when we take that bandage off, I¡¯m calling a doctor. I¡¯m serious this time, Sephie. I need you better,¡± he said, his voice angrier than he probably meant it to be. ¡°Like I don¡¯t? Like I want to be in pain for various reasons for an entire month? Like I want to worry about my hip just falling off from infection? Like I want to worry about not saying anything because I don¡¯t want to worry you with more sh it?¡± He looked somewhat stunned. Ivan smirked at me, nodding discreetly as he turned to leave as quickly as possible. Cow ard. Adrik sat down next to me on the bed. He started to speak, then changed his mind. He leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. He stared at the carpet for a few minutes but said nothing. I sat and watched him trying to find the right words. I wasn¡¯t angry, but I also wasn¡¯t going to take his anger at my aversion to doctors. I had my reasons. He sat up, turning to look at me. His blue eyes were questioning, searching mine trying to find the answer to his silent question. I sighed. ¡°I have a good reason for hating doctors. Can you please just trust me on that one and let me make my own decisions about my body?¡± He opened his mo uth to speak, then sh ut it, then thought for a minute more. Finally, he said, ¡°Sephie, I never meant to¡­¡± I cut him off. ¡°I know you didn¡¯t. I know you want me better just as much as I want to be better.¡± I sighed. ¡°Thest month has been a lot. I have a lot going on in my head. Some days I feel like I¡¯m barely keeping it together. The doctor thing will be the proverbial straw that breaks this gazelle¡¯s back if you force it.¡± His face softened as he reached up to trace the features of my face with his finger. ¡°Okay. How do I make you better without making it worse?¡± ¡°Stop threatening to call a doctor, for one. Let¡¯s try Ivan¡¯s idea. If it doesn¡¯t get better, I promise I will tell you. You just have so much on your mind already that I don¡¯t want to bother you.¡± He exhaled. His blue eyes scanned my face, a small smile on his lips. ¡°You still don¡¯t get it. Nothing else matters. You¡¯re the most important thing to me. If you¡¯re not better, I don¡¯t care about any of the rest of it. That¡¯s why I¡¯m so frustrated and why I came across as angry with you. I¡¯m racking my brain trying toe up with ways to fix you and the only solid solution I can think of, you refuse. I don¡¯t know how else to help and quite frankly, it¡¯s a bl ow to my ego.¡± It was my turn to be stunned. He traced his finger lightly over my face once again, the small smile still present. ¡°You¡¯re always taking care of everyone else. Even today. I¡¯m sure you managed to help Ivan with his demons. It doesn¡¯t take that long to find a jar of honey. All while you¡¯re trying to hide the pain you¡¯re in because you don¡¯t want to worry me. 1 want so desperately to help you, even if it¡¯s only a fraction of the help you give so freely to everyone else. You deserve to be taken care of, Sephie.¡± I dropped my gaze, hearing my uncle¡¯s voice in my head. It was a distant whisper now, but it was still there, almost like an echo. Telling me I wasn¡¯t deserving of anything, that no one would ever love me. I sh ut my eyes, not wanting to hear his voice, not wanting to think about any of this. I felt Adrik¡¯s lips on my forehead. ¡°He¡¯s wrong, you know. Everything he said to you, everything he tried to beat into you. All of it. It¡¯s all wrong. You, above everyone I¡¯ve ever known, are the most deserving of love. The most deserving to be taken care of.¡± My breath hitched as I tried to choke back a sob. I felt the tears falling on my cheeks, despite my best efforts to keep them contained. ¡°Sephie, look at me.¡± I inhaled but didn¡¯t open my eyes right away. I was trying to gain control before opening my eyes. He waited patiently. When I did open my eyes, his deep blue eyes were looking at me as sincerely as I¡¯d ever seen them. He reached up with his thumb and wiped the tears from my eyes. ¡°You¡¯re worthy of everything I can give you and so much more. I love you more than life itself and I will spend the rest of this life and all of the next proving to you that I will always be with you when you¡¯re walking through the shadows of your past.¡± I searched his eyes, always looking, always doubting. Never finding the change I was expecting. He held my gaze, letting me search. I was starting to think he kind of liked it. There was an openness to him now that wasn¡¯t there before, like he knew what I was doing and was inviting me in. I chewed on my bottom lip. ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°How did I know what?¡± ¡°What my uncle used to say to me.¡± ¡°When you were passed out on the ne. You were talking in your sleep. We heard you struggling against what he had constantly told you. It was¡­ haunting.¡± My eyes went wide in shock. I had no idea. And they all heard it. ¡°Sephie, you think that people will think less of you because of what you went through, when the reality is that we all admire your strength and wish we had even an ounce of it. What you went through then and what you¡¯ve been through just since I met you, would have broken many people. Completely broken them. But you keep going, you keep smiling, you keep bringing joy to everyone¡¯s life while doing du mb sh it like not telling me that you¡¯re in pain because you don¡¯t want to bother me.¡± He smirked at me. I couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°You are the most amazing woman I¡¯ve ever known and I will keep trying to prove that to you, as long as it takes.¡± I moved closer to him, resting my head on his shoulder. His arm slid around my waist, holding me close. I closed my eyes, lost in my thoughts, still unsure how I got so lucky to have this man love me so completelyContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 98 Chapter 98 Chapter Ny-Eight Adrik It was early afternoon. Misha had Sephie¡¯s attention, telling her some story. I stood off to the side, watching her as she listened intently to him. Ivan walked up beside me. ¡°Everything okay now, Boss?¡± I knew he was referring to seeing me get angry with Sephie earlier. I sighed. ¡°For now, yes. I agreed toy off the doctor threats, but I don¡¯t know what else to do if she doesn¡¯t start healing.¡± He crossed his sizable arms across his chest, turning to look at me in the eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not telling you what to do when ites to her, Boss, but I recognize the look in her eye when ites to the thought of doctors. She let us take her to the hospital after she was attacked because she didn¡¯t have a choice. It was basically the same when we got to the ranch up north. She was too exhausted and in shock to protest. There¡¯s something there that she doesn¡¯t want any of us to see yet that prevents her from trusting doctors. It¡¯s the same look I have.¡± I thought for a moment. They were very simr in their aversion to doctors. I could easily see that. I didn¡¯t know the whole story on Ivan, but I knew doctors had basically used him as a test subject when he was younger because of his inability to feel pain. I suspected it was not a happy story. I wasn¡¯t sure why Sephie had such a mistrust of doctors, but I was fearful it was also not a happy story. I exhaled. ¡°I know, Ivan. I know you¡¯re right. I know there¡¯s something there. I just want to help her so badly and I can¡¯t think of a way to make that happen without a doctor. I want her to be well again. I still feel terrible about everything that¡¯s happened.¡± ¡°We all do, Boss. Even though she just told me earlier she was going to kick my as s if I didn¡¯t stop it, I still feel terrible about it.¡± I chuckled. At least she was back to acting more like herself, despite her pain. ¡°Let¡¯s just hope your honey trick works so I don¡¯t have to call a doctor and make everything worse.¡± He ced his hand on my shoulder. ¡°It will, Boss. You just have to be patient and give her time to heal herself. She¡¯s been through more than most people I know. I don¡¯t think that girl knows how to quit. Let her use that instead of forcing something on her that she doesn¡¯t want.¡± I ran my hand through my hair, pondering what Ivan had just said. I closed my eyes, exhaling, trying not to stress over it all. I felt Sephie¡¯s arms slide gently around my waist and her lips press gently to mine. When I opened my eyes, she was looking up at me, her sweet smile stretched across her face. ¡°You look like you just had a very serious conversation.¡± I leaned down and kissed her once more. ¡°You¡¯re rubbing off on Ivan. He¡¯s quite good at telling me what I need to hear now.¡± I looked in the direction where Ivan had been standing, only to see that he was gone. She grinned. ¡°Ivan is wise beyond his years. He just doesn¡¯t want anybody to know it. He likes his peace too much.¡± ¡°When we get home, you¡¯reing to work for me.¡± She cocked her head to the side, thinking. ¡°I¡¯ll consider it. Maybe if you offer to pay me in Vinny¡¯s sandwiches, I¡¯ll consider it more seriously, sheughed. ¡°Are you hungry again already?¡± I asked, pulling her closer to me. Sheughed. ¡°No. Well, not yet. Give me twenty minutes and then ask. I am dying to get back just so I can go there. Misha promised me all the Vinny¡¯s I could eat after the ball. I¡¯m holding him to it.¡± She paused, then added, ¡°someone should probably warn that poor man. He¡¯s going to be so busy¡­¡± We were outside, with Sephie¡¯s head in myp, her eyes closed enjoying my fingers running through her curls. I couldn¡¯t quite tell if she was asleep or still awake but it didn¡¯t really matter. I would stay like that for as long as she would let me. Armando came up and sat in one of the chairs opposite the couch we were on. He looked troubled. I looked at him, expectantly, waiting for him to speak. ¡°This project still troubles me. It¡¯s such arge undertaking that I don¡¯t want to fund it entirely myself. I need more investors.¡± Without opening her eyes, Sephie said, ¡°why don¡¯t you crowdsource it? Let the people invest. It¡¯s for their benefit, right? Let them have a piece of it, as well. With arge chunk of the city¡¯s poption behind the project, the politicians won¡¯t be able to not approve it.¡± I looked to Armando, a smirk on my face. Sephie never ceased to amaze me with her ideas. Armando thought for a moment, then eximed, ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re a genius! This could actually work! Even better than my original n. It will give the people even more chances to increase their own wealth, which will inevitably benefit the city too. This could put this city on the worldwide map!¡± he said, pping his hands together. Her eyes still closed, she smiled sweetly, still enjoying my fingers in her hair. Armando quickly stood, taking his phone from his pocket to make a few calls. As he walked away, I leaned down and asked quietly, ¡°so how many sandwiches a day are you thinking you¡¯ll need?¡± She giggled and opened her eyes to look at me. I would never stop wanting to see her smile or the way her eyes shined brighter as sheughed. Armando returned after a few moments, with news from his assistant. ¡°Boss, we have news on the lawyer. My people have been able to uncover some information that they think we¡¯ll be interested in. Since it¡¯s already gettingte, I told them to go home tonight and that we would be at the office first thing in the morning to hear the details.¡± I felt Sephie tense. She opened her eyes. ¡°Where¡¯s Misha?¡± She didn¡¯t look rmed, per se, but she wasn¡¯t rxed anymore. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, solnishko?¡± ¡°Something about the office. I don¡¯t know what. Where¡¯s Misha? I want to see if he notices it too.¡± I called for Misha, exining Armando¡¯s n to him. I didn¡¯t say anything about Sephie¡¯s reaction and she was quiet as well. Misha stood for a moment, contemting, then all at once, his eyes got wide. ¡°Um, Boss, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good n. Something about the office.¡± Sephie sat up, her mind racing. ¡°Misha did you notice anything at the meeting? Like did they leave anything? Were they ever alone in the building? Do you think they could¡¯ve done something while they were at the meeting?¡± He shook his head no. ¡°We had eyes on them the entire time. I don¡¯t know what it is, Boss, but we shouldn¡¯t be at the office building tomorrow.¡± I looked from Misha to Sephie. If they both felt that way, I wasn¡¯t going to argue. I looked to Armando. ¡°Have your peoplee here tomorrow instead. Only those that arepletely necessary. Tell everyone else to stay home. Be as discreet as you can, make up whatever excuse you need to, but make sure they don¡¯t go to the office.¡± Armando looked shocked but nodded his head and left to make the necessary calls. I looked to Sephie, somewhat surprised at her reaction. She looked equally as surprised. ¡°Misha, how does your gut feeling work?¡± she asked. He sat down in the chair that Armando had previously been in, thinking. ¡°It depends, really. Sometimes it¡¯s a bad feeling, uh, like nausea. When we were attacked, it was more like a feeling of impending doom right before it happened. I was just about to stop you when they hit us. This one is different still, like I thought about going to the office and heard something tell me not to.¡± He looked to me, his eyes wide. ¡°I swear I¡¯m not crazy, Boss.¡± I chuckled, but before I could answer, Sephie was asking more questions. ¡°Did you hear a ¡®don¡¯t go¡¯ when you thought about the office?¡± Misha¡¯s eyes got even wider. His mo uth fell open slightly. ¡°How did you know that?¡± ¡°Because I heard it too. That¡¯s why we called you over here. I wanted to see if you had the same feeling.¡± Now, my eyes were wide in shock. Sephie thought for a moment, a small smile appearing as she seemed lost in thought. I ran my hand down her back, not really wanting to interrupt, but curious as to what she was thinking. Just as she looked toward me, a bird swooped down in between the couch we were on and the chair where Misha was sitting. It flew above us, turned, and swooped in between us from the opposite direction. She giggled. ¡°You were right. It is magnificent,¡± she said quietly to herself. When she turned to look at me again, she had tears in her eyes, but she was smiling. She inhaled deeply, ¡°you might think I¡¯m crazy for this, but that¡¯s my dad. When I was asleep when we were up north, I was stuck in that loop at the ball until you pulled me out of it. Once I was free of that scene ying over and over, I was allowed to see my dad again. He¡¯s been watching over me my entire life. He told me that what happened was necessary for everyone, especially when it came to believing Misha¡¯s gut instincts.¡± She leaned into me as I wrapped an arm around her. ¡°He¡¯s the one that told me you¡¯d beenying underneath me for 12 hours so I wouldn¡¯t get su cked back into my nightmare. He¡¯s who warned me about this.¡± Just then, the bird flew down andnded on Sephie¡¯s knee. He looked right at Sephie for a few moments before flying off again. I had never seen anything like it before in my life. I nced to Misha, who was speechless. I looked down at Sephie, her eyes who was still lost in a memory, her sweet smile on her face. She turned to look at me after a moment, questioning as she searched mine. I didn¡¯t give her much time to question. I leaned down and kissed her. ¡°You never cease to amaze me.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 99 Chapter 99 Chapter Ny-Nine Adrik As we were finishing breakfast the next morning, Armando¡¯s assistant walked in, lookingpletely panicked. He went to her immediately. ¡°Giana, are you okay? What happened? You look terrified.¡± ¡°Sir, I went to the office this morning beforeing here. I had forgotten the charger to myptop yesterday and I don¡¯t have a backup. I waste.¡± She looked at him sheepishly, clearing her throat. ¡°As usual, sir. It was 8:15 when I turned onto the street in front of the building. Sir, the building. It.. it exploded.¡± Armando cursed loudly. ¡°Are you okay? How close were you? Did you get hurt?¡± he asked, checking her over. ¡°No, no, sir. I¡¯m fine. I was still far enough away. I got out of there as fast as I could and came straight here.¡± I asked, ¡°are you sure none of your people went to the office this morning, Mando?¡± He looked at me, a look of horror on his face. He immediately tumed to Giana, ¡°we must call everyone to make sure everyone stayed home.¡± They left quickly, to make the necessary calls. I leaned over to Sephie, whispering in her ear, ¡°tell your father that we owe him one.¡± I kissed her cheek. ¡°No sh it,¡± she said, shocked. I looked to Misha, who was equally as shocked, nodding a silent thank you. Were it not for those two, we might¡¯ve been at the office this morning. The relief I felt that we were all safe was quickly reced by anger. This was a direct attack on Armando, but I had a feeling it was also an attack on me. Giana hadn¡¯t told us what she had found out yet, but I could almost guarantee that thewyer was working for Lorenzo and Anthony. Sephie looked to me, like she was reading my mind. ¡°They know you¡¯re still alive. They have to know.¡± I looked in her eyes, expecting to see her fear. Instead, her anger level was matching mine. ¡°They tried to ki ll you. AGAIN.¡± Armando walked back in with Giana, who was still visibly still shaken. She had herptop in her hands. ¡°Did she tell you she connected thewyer to Lorenzo or Anthony or both?¡± I asked. He nodded his head. ¡°Just as we suspected. Thewyer must have told them that you were alive. And that Sephie is here. They must have known that my people connected them. All my people are loyal, but they had to have a tap on someone¡¯s phone. I just ditched mine and Giana¡¯s. All my people are safe. They know how to get in touch with me without the use of phones. Giana is going to stay here, in case they followed her,¡± he said as he looked at her. Given her expression, he clearly did not discuss that with her beforehand, but she didn¡¯t protest. Viktor looked at Armando. ¡°Your people have been watching Lorenzo and Anthony. What¡¯s their n now? Clearly, they wanted to take us out this morning, but then what? What¡¯s their next y?¡± Ivan, stroking his goatee, said, ¡°if it were me, I would use this as a distraction to leave. They know we¡¯ll be looking for them here or in Sicily. Butmunication will be slower because you¡¯ve been compromised. Until you find out where that leak or tap Is, information is going to being slower to us. They¡¯re probably already on a ne to the city. That would be my move.¡± I couldn¡¯t say I disagreed with him. Getting back to the city has always been their goal. They might not have even waited to see if the explosion was sessful before leaving. Either way, we would be dead or so distracted that they get a few days head start. Armando said, ¡°I¡¯ll get in touch with Dario and Massimo. They¡¯re still in the city, watching Salvadori. They can watch for Lorenzo and Anthony in the city.¡± Sephie looked to me, Leaning in, she quietly asked ¡°Dario and Massimo are the other two bosses that are loyal to you? Or those are the guys that took me?¡± ¡°Bosses. You know something?¡± I raised an eyebrow at her. I was beginning to rely on her random bits of information that always seemed invaluableter. ¡°You¡¯re sure they¡¯re loyal to you?¡± she asked. ¡°I believe so. They, like Armando, came to me immediately when Salvadori came to them.¡± Armando added, ¡°Dario would never side with Salvadori. They have bad blood between them. They can barely stand to be in the same room as each other. And Massimo is Dario¡¯s childhood friend. He would never go against Dario.¡± Sephie thought for a moment. ¡°Dario is salt and pepper hair, but clean shaven?¡± she asked. I nodded. ¡°He repeats things you say when he¡¯s lying. He¡¯ll repeat the question back to you, like he¡¯s surprised you even asked him. He¡¯s buying his brain time toe up with an answer. You¡¯ll be able to tell if he¡¯s lying to you over the phone that way. Massimo will be harder. He forgets to blink when he¡¯s lying. He thinks if he maintains eye contact like a psycho that you¡¯ll somehow be more apt to believe him. Massimo is one of the smoothest liars I¡¯ve seen. It took me longer to pick up on hisck of blinking than the rest of them, which makes him more dangerous than the others, if you ask me. I wouldn¡¯t trust that man.¡± Armiando looked at his watch. ¡°It¡¯s still early there. I¡¯ll give them a call now,¡± he said walking out of the room. We sat in silence for a moment, all of us contemting our next move. I agreed with Ivan. I think we should get back to the city as quickly as possible. I would feel better with Sephie at the penthouse where I knew she would be safe. I felt too exposed here. Armando was a gracious host, but he was a little too rxed on his security. I secretly hoped this incident would fix that. I was also worried about them carrying out their original n of unleashing chaos on the people of the city. ¡°Misha. What¡¯s your opinion? Stay here or go back to the city as quickly as possible?¡± I asked, somewhat amused at the surprise on the kid¡¯s face. After this morning, there was no way I wasn¡¯t getting his opinion on our next move from here on out. He thought for a minute, while we all waited for his answer. ¡°City agree with Ivan. I think this morning was a distraction to give them cover to leave. If we get in touch with Armando¡¯s people that have been watching them, I¡¯d bet they lost them this morning.¡± I nodded to him, agreeing with him. I looked to Viktor, Andrei, and Stephen. They all agreed that returning home was the best n. Finally, I looked to Sephie, making sure she was also okay with the n. She nodded slightly, but then turned to all the guys. ¡°Will you guys make me a promise?¡± she asked, looking at Stephen first. ¡°If you don¡¯t pick them off from a rooftop. somewhere, can you keepN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. them alive long enough for me to have a go at Anthony? That mo therfucker is starting to pi ss me off.¡± Everyoneughed but Giana, who just looked mortified. ns were quickly made to leave early the next morning. I caught Viktor alone and asked him to have the bikes sent back as well. Once we were done with all of this, I was going to enjoy a long ride with Sephie. Chapter 100 Chapter 100 Chapter One Hundred Adrik I woke to Sephle¡¯s fingers ying on my chest. I ran my fingers through her hair, causing her to snuggle closer to me. I held her close for a moment. Unfortunately, we didn¡¯t have ample time this morning. I ran my fingers over the na ked skin of her back, feeling every scar that marked her. I was lost in my own thoughts about what she¡¯d been through when I felt her head lift off my chest. She rested her chin on my chest, looking at me with still sleepy eyes. I smiled at her. She was adorable in the mornings, especially when she didn¡¯t want to wake up just yet. I felt a pang of guilt as I might have kept her awake too longst night, but I couldn¡¯t help myself. I was addicted. ¡°Good morning. Mostly,¡± she said as she moved to hide her face in my chest. Iughed, feeling her pain. I think we would both be sleeping on the ne. My hands still roaming on her back, trying to coax her awake. ¡°We have to get up so we can go back and get you all the sandwiches you can eat, solnishko,¡± I whispered to her, kissing the top of her head. She sat up immediately, climbing over me to get off the bed. She grabbed my pants from the night before and threw them at my head. As I pulled them off my head, she was pulling up her panties She walked back to the bed, climbing back on top of me, her smile wide across her face. I grabbed her and rolled over, so I was on top of her, loving her yful side. ¡°I think I might be jealous of Vinny,¡± I said, my fingers lightly running over her neck down to her breasts. ¡°You should be. You definitely should be. I would offer to marry him too, but I feel like Andrei might try to hurt him. Vinny makes phenomenal sandwiches, but he¡¯s no fighter.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to make sure I marry you first, then.¡± I leaned down and kissed her lips, enjoying the surprise in her eyes. ¡°For the sake of keeping the peace,¡± I added, winking at her. She looked at ine for a moment, surprised, but there was a sh of something darker that I caught before she could hide it. She closed her eyes briefly, but when she opened them, it was gone and she was smiling, the colors inN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. her unique eyes dancing in the early morning light. She pulled me to her, kissing me passionately. As much as I wanted to rip those panties off her, we were on a time schedule this morning. I groaned into her mou th. ¡°Sephie, we must go. It¡¯s a long flight back. We should get there as early as possible,¡± I said as I kissed her one more time. ¡°Or you¡¯re going to have to wait until tomorrow for your sandwich.¡± I felt her hands on my chest, pushing me off her as she giggled. ¡°I can be ready in ten minutes. Fuc king hurry up already!¡± She jumped off the bed again, grabbing clothes on her way to the bathroom. I shook my head,ughing at her as I got up. I heard the showere on. I waited until I heard the shower door open and 1 walked in the bathroom, enjoying the view. I had meant to let her shower by herself, but as soon as I saw her, I couldn¡¯t help myself. I joined her. She turned toward me when she felt my hands on her hips. ¡°You¡¯re wasting a lot of time ogling me,¡± she said handing me the soap with an impish grin. ¡°That is not my fault, my love. That is entirely your fault for being so beautiful and worthy of being ogled.¡± Sheughed, standing on her toes to kiss me. ¡°I love you.¡± I grabbed her hips, pulling her to me, stepping back under the water. She gasped, trying to get free. ¡°I can¡¯t get my bandage super wet or we¡¯ll have to change it!¡± I kept my grip on her, turning her so her bad hip was out of the water. Sheughed, putting her hands on either side of my face, kissing me once more before she jumped out of the shower. There might be something to Ivan¡¯s honey trick. Or else I really should be jealous of Vinny.¡± Armando had decided to note back with us just yet. He wanted to find out as much information about his office building as he could before he left Italy. He woulde to the city in a day or two after he had handled things. I was secretly relieved to have a break from him. I enjoyed Armando, but he didn¡¯t appreciate silence as much as the rest of us. It was exhausting after a while. On the ne, we discussed possibilities of what Anthony and Lorenzo were nning. The question remained why Salvadori had gone along with their n. He was a wealthy man now. Wealthier than he had ever been when my father was running the organization. Why would he want to go back to that? It didn¡¯t make sense. ¡°Before the night we met, how involved were you in the organization?¡± Sephie asked me. ¡°I mean, they had beening every month for over a couple of years before I ever saw you, or even heard you existed. I thought the other 6 bosses were the only ones in the city and I have to say I was privy to more knowledge about your organization than most people.¡± Viktor chuckled. ¡°That was mostly my fault, sestrichka. He was in Turkey trying to get me out of a Syrian prison for much of that time.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what? You were in a Syrian prison? What did you do tond yourself in a Syrian prison?¡± she asked,pletely surprised. ¡°Vengeance is not always as worth it as you think it will be. You end up making mistakes that can get you thrown into Syrian prisons,¡± he said, almost embarrassed. ¡°What kind of mistakes? Like oops I burnt the darn muffins? Or more like oh fu ck I didn¡¯t mean to k ill that guy?¡± Heughed, hanging his head. ¡°Eh, more like I did mean to ki ll that guy. I just didn¡¯t mean to get caught.¡± ¡°Viktor. How many times have I told you, we don¡¯t murder people in broad daylight? We wait for the darkness to conceal us. Ivanughed. ¡°I think that¡¯s a lesson he has for sure learned now.¡± ¡°How did you guys get him out of the Syrian prison? I¡¯m guessing you don¡¯t just ask nicely for him to be released,¡± she asked, now even more curious. Misha said, ¡°that depends on your definition of ¡®nice,¡¯ gazelle. I think we asked very nicely.¡± She looked to each of them as theyughed, then turned to me, hoping I would fill in the details. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her enthusiasm for this story. ¡°We might¡¯ve blown a ho le in the wall of the prison to get him out. You¡¯d be surprised at how fast he can run when he needs to,¡± I said, nodding to Viktor. Viktor¡¯s deepugh echoed in the ne. ¡°I think I would pay to see that,¡± Sephie said,ughing along with all of us. I watched each of the guys enjoying her interest in our ¡°adventures¡± as well as the visible relief on their faces that she wasn¡¯t disturbed by our actions. None of us were used to being able to be so open about these things with anyone, really, much less a love interest. She was the first to know many things about us, which meant we all trusted herpletely. ¡°So, you blew up a Syrian prison and Viktor set the newnd speed record, then what did you do? Go to Disney World? Euro Disney?¡± Andrei pointed to me, eximing, ¡°I TOLD YOU IT WAS A GOOD IDEA!¡± That caused another round ofughter from all of us. We ended upughing so hard we were crying. Finally, Ivan got control of himself enough to answer Sephie¡¯s question. ¡°Weid low for a few months. Viktor was in a bad spot from his months in that fine institution. He needed time to recover. We spent time in Eastern Europe in various ces. We had Just returned to the city a few days before we came to the meeting at the restaurant and met you.¡± Sheughed. ¡°You recover well, Viktor. I still remember being shocked when you and Andrei walked in the front door of the restaurant.¡± ¡°We remember too. You made it very difficult to notugh,¡± Andrei said, grinning at her. ¡°I have that effect on people,¡± she said, flipping her braid over her shoulder. She leaned back against me, pulling her knees up on the couch, leaning them against my legs. I put my arm around her, pulling her close. ¡°I¡¯m d you guys know how to ask nicely and got him out,¡± she said, smiling thoughtfully. ¡°We¡¯re a family, solnishko. We don¡¯t leave family behind,¡± I said kissing her temple. Andrei, looking serious, asked, ¡°you don¡¯t think we¡¯re monsters after hearing these things?¡± The other guys looked at her, curious as to her answer as well. I knew what they were thinking. It was tough to share this part of our lives with anyone. She smiled at him, in her perfect way. ¡°Bubba. You think because you can freely walk in the dark that it makes you a monster?¡± He shrugged his shoulders. ¡°No, Bubba. You¡¯re the opposite of a monster, simply because you don¡¯t give in to the darkness. It makes you dangerous, sure. Because you¡¯ve conquered your darkness. Tamed it, even. You each have such a strong light in you, despite the darknessing for you more times than you can remember, most likely. Never forget, that the darkness can be a ce where greatness is created too.¡± I felt the tears welling up in my eyes and I didn¡¯t have to look at the rest of them to know they were in the same state as me. I pulled her closer to me, wrapping my other arm around her. I rested my head on hers, because I couldn¡¯t believe how much I loved her in that moment, and I didn¡¯t want the guys to see the tears threatening to fall from my eyes. My breath caught as I inhaled, thinking about everything that had happened and how lucky I was to have her in my arms right now Chapter 101 Chapter 101 Chapter One Hundred One Adrik With the time difference, wended in the city in the early afternoon. Plenty of time to get Vinny¡¯s. I smiled to myself, still amazed at Sephie¡¯s reaction to us on the ne. I knew it before today, but I could clearly see that each of them loved her almost as much as I did. We would never be the same without her. As we got everything from the ne, I noticed that her limp was barely noticeable today. Ivan caught me watching her as he loaded bags into the SUVs. ¡°Her limp is better today,¡± he said, a sly smirk on his face. I cut my eyes to him. ¡°I was just thinking that. She was practically jumping around the bedroom this morning. I just don¡¯t know if she¡¯s that excited to get a sandwich or if she really feels better today.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s get her a sandwich and then we¡¯ll see if the limpes back. Process of elimination,¡± he laughed. ¡°Solid n.¡± I had to admit that I was also looking forward to stopping by Vinny¡¯s. We¡¯d find out more about her hip tonight when we changed the bandage. I was hopeful that it wasn¡¯t just her excitement over her favorite sandwich. We were greeted by Vinny as we walked in the sandwich shop. ¡°Boss! I¡¯ve never been happier to see you! I told them you weren¡¯t really gone! And Miss Sephie! You¡¯ve never looked more beautiful, amora.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a sight for sore eyes, Vinny. I can¡¯t even begin to tell you how happy you¡¯re making me right now,¡± she said as he walked to her, embracing her in one of his hugs. I remember her apprehension the first time he hugged her. She was nowpletely at ease with him. I might still be slightly jealous of him, but I couldn¡¯t help but love the way everyone loved her. ¡°You want the usual, be?¡± he asked, walking back behind the counter. ¡°You know me so well, Vinny,¡± she grinned at him. Misha leaned into her shoulder. ¡°We¡¯ll have toe back everyday this week, so I can make good on that promise.¡± ¡°You ain¡¯t gotta ask me twice,¡± she said dryly. Once we were all sufficiently stuffed, we went to the penthouse. I had a few things work-rted to take care of that afternoon. I was hoping that Sephie would want toe with me. I could use her opinion, for one. I had also gotten used to always being with her and the thought of being away from her right now did not sit well with me. Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. After the guys got off the elevator at their floor, I pulled her to nie. ¡°How are you? Are you happy now that you¡¯ve had at least one sandwich? Are you tired?¡± ¡°My stomach is so happy right now, but I¡¯m not that tired. What do you need?¡± she asked, cing her hands on my chest. ¡°I need to meet with Dario and Massimo this afternoon. I was hoping I could talk you intoing with me,¡± I said leaning down to kiss her lips. ¡°We can go back to Vinny¡¯s after,¡± I smiled against her lips. ¡°I would do it even without the offer of more Vinny¡¯s,¡± she said as the doors to the elevator opened. ¡°I¡¯ve be very ustomed to being with you the entire day. I¡¯m not ready to give that up yet.¡± She turned to leave the elevator, her hand finding mine. I felt that pull in my chest as I realized she had read my mind yet again. Viktor let Dario and Massimo into my office that afternoon. They were surprised to see Sephle sitting on the edge of my desk. ¡°Are we interrupting, Boss? We cane backter,¡± Dario asked. Sephie stood up and moved behind my chair, sitting on the cabs behind my desk. ¡°She stays.¡± I motioned for them to sit. Viktor caught her eye before leaving, winking at her. She grinned at him. ¡°Gentlemen. Tell me what¡¯s happened in my absence,¡± I said, sitting in my chair. They both looked like they were scared to speak in front of Sephie Shifting uneasily in their chairs, the silencested for an ufortable amount of time. ¡°Now you¡¯re worried about speaking in front of me? I¡¯m sorry, should I serve you a drink so you¡¯ll think less of me and feel morefortable talking then?¡± she asked. I could hear the anger just below the surface in her voice. I was struggling not to smile in front of them. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep fromughing. I knew that Viktor and Ivan were enjoying this just outside the door. They could hear everything, as I had the inte on. ¡°You boys are a littlete to that party, considering I know where the bodies are buried.¡± Both cursed under their breath. I very much enjoyed the looks on their faces. I waited for one of them to speak. Massimo was the first to break the silence. Dario still looked too stunned to speak. ¡°Boss, forgive us. We didn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Clearly,¡± Sephie said quietly. Massimo continued. ¡°Salvadori has been mostly quiet since you¡¯ve been gone. We did have a chance to speak with Vito. It doesn¡¯t make sense that he¡¯s siding with Sal. Vito is an odd man, but he¡¯s usually pretty neutral. Sal is holding something over him, but we don¡¯t know what. We¡¯ve got guys looking into it. If we can get Vito to abandon Sal, that will make him weaker. Vito might not be the strongest boss, but he¡¯s got great men working for him. We think Sal is after Vito¡¯s men more than Vito.¡± I counted the number of times Massimo blinked while he was talking. So far, so good. Dario finallyposed himself enough to speak. ¡°We got word that Anthony and Lorenzo were supposedlying to the city, the day before you got back, Boss. However, they changed their flight ns at thest second. They flew to an airport further south, refueled, then kept flying south. We can¡¯t be sure, but we¡¯re thinking they¡¯re meeting with the Colombians.¡± This was a disturbing twist. I had a good rtionship with the Colombians. We had a very lucrative deal worked out. It was concerning that they would meet with Anthony and Lorenzo without consulting me first, but they might be under the impression that I¡¯m still dead. Even still, I wasn¡¯t sure how far Anthony and Lorenzo would get with the Colombians. Interesting. ¡°Why do you think they¡¯re meeting with the Colombians?¡± I asked. ¡°Why do I think they¡¯re meeting with the Colombians?¡± Dario asked. I raised my eyebrow, waiting for him to answer. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, sir. The existing deal with the Colombians is a beneficial one. None of us have a reason to meet with the Colombians,¡± he said. Interesting. I looked to Massimo, expecting him to answer, waiting to count the number of times he blinked when he answered. ¡°I¡¯m not sure either, sir. I can¡¯t imagine why they would need to meet with the Colombians.¡± Not a single blink. Have you spoken with Armando?¡± I asked Massimo, trying to see if I could get him to blink more than anything. ¡°Not for a few days, no,¡± he said, without blinking. I looked to Dario, who simply shook his head no. I stood up, ¡°gentlemen. You will tell me when you hear anything on Anthony and Lorenzo.¡± Viktor opened the door, waiting for them to exit my office. He and Ivan would escort them out ande back. Once the door was sh ut again, I paced the floor. Sephie was still sitting on the cab, watching me. My anger was threatening toe to the surface. It appeared that Armando was the only one I could trust at the moment, and he was the only one not in the city. I was suddenly worried for his safety. I ran my hand through my hair, exhaling. ¡°Do you think Armando is safe? I suddenly feel like he should¡¯vee back with us,¡± Sephie said, still sitting on the cab, I looked at her, somewhat stunned. ¡°How do you do that?¡± ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°You just read my mind. Again.¡± She smiled, shrugging her shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± Viktor and Ivan walked into the office and sat down in the chairs across from my desk, both looking at Sephie with smirks on their faces. ¡°What? They were rude first,¡± she said, crossing her arms over her chest. Both of them just shook their heads,ughing. She did a great job of keeping us all entertained. Viktor looked to me. ¡°We couldn¡¯t see, but I¡¯m guessing they were lying at the end there? At least about talking to Armando.¡± I nodded my head. ¡°I¡¯m worried for Armando¡¯s safety now. Sephie just said she thinks he should¡¯ve come back with us. We need to contact him immediately and get him here. He never thinks he needs security. He¡¯s too exposed there.¡± Ivan nodded his head. ¡°Agreed. A couple of us could go back and get him. If Dario and Massimo are lying, then Armando is the only one you can trust at this point. You need him here.¡± ¡°Get a fresh pilot and you two get back there. I¡¯ll call him and let him know you¡¯reing. Take Andrei if you need to,¡± I said. ¡°What about the Colombians?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°I have a good rtionship with the Colombians, but they might be under the impression that I¡¯m dead. One call will fix that, but I want to give them time to meet with Anthony and Lorenzo first, if that is indeed where they¡¯re going. I want to know what their next y is.¡± Both Ivan and Viktor nodded. I heard Sephie say, ¡°diabolical¡± quietly behind me. I could tell she was smiling when she said it, without looking at her. Ivan winked at her, grinning. Chapter 102 Chapter 102 Chapter One Hundred Two Sephie ? Viktor and Ivan decided to leave Andrei with us. They felt we might need him more than they did. They were only home for a few hours before they were back on the jet flying back to get Armando. That night, as Adrik and I enjoyed time alone in the penthouse, I asked him, ¡°do you think we could go to the house until Viktor and Ivan get back? I mean, it¡¯s fine if you think we should stay here. It would just be nice if I could go outside without worrying about dying. For at least a day or two.¡± He looked thoughtful for a moment, as he pulled my legs into hisp. My road rash was getting much better, so he could run his hands over my body without causing me more pain. I hadn¡¯t realized how much I had missed that. His hands slowly ran up my legs, then back down. ¡°I don¡¯t see why that would be a problem, my love. We can ask Misha what he thinks. I know Andrei would like to go back to the house to see where things stand with Tori.¡± He looked over at me, with a devilish grin on his face. and added, ¡°although I have to say I love you being able to wear nothing but my shirt around the entire penthouse without worrying about anyone else seeing.¡± ¡°Point for the penthouse. It¡¯s also much closer to Vinny¡¯s. Okay, two points for the penthouse. But it¡¯s very peoplely here, where it¡¯s not at the house. So, one point for the house, two for the penthouse. So far, the penthouse is winning.¡± ¡°We can get Vinny¡¯s, even at the house, solnishko,¡± he saidughing. ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be a deciding factor. I would argue that it¡¯s a point for the house because you won¡¯t be able to physically go to Vinny¡¯s. I¡¯ve decided I¡¯m jealous of him,¡± he tried to look. at me seriously, but failed miserably. I immediatelyughed, as I set up and climbed into hisp, straddling him. ¡°Oh, Adrik,¡± I said as melodramatically as I could, ¡°you have no reason to be jealous.¡± I was still smiling, but added, ¡°you have my heart. Vinny might have my stomach, but we both know she¡¯s easily bought. My heart, on the other hand, beats only for you.¡± I felt his hands slide under his shirt to my lower back, pulling me closer to him. He looked surprised at my answer to his statement, saidpletely in jest. He looked me in the eyes, this time searching my eyes for what he was worried he was going to find. I smiled at him, knowing what he was doing, and held his gaze, allowing him to read any part of my soul he wished to. I ced my hands on his shoulders, my hands lightly running up his neck to his hair. He inhaled, smiling at me. ¡°Every time I think I couldn¡¯t possibly love you any more, you always prove me wrong.¡± He reached up, his hands in my hair, pulling me down to kiss me gently. ¡°And I hope you never, ever stop proving me wrong,¡± he said smiling against my lips. The next morning, in the gym, Adrik asked Misha what his thoughts were about going to the house until Viktor and Ivan got back. He felt like it was a good decision, but poor Andrei looked terrified. That would mean he would have to face Tori. He still hadn¡¯t called her because he was afraid of her reaction. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to face her at some point, Bubba,¡± I said, trying hard not tough at his petrified expression. ¡°I think the fact that you don¡¯t want to call her should tell you everything you need to know,¡± Stephen said. That guy was always so quiet, but he coulde out with serious wisdom randomly. Misha nodded his head, agreeing with Stephen. Adrik walked over, still breathing hard from lifting something heavy repeatedly. Da mmit, he¡¯s sexy. ¡°Everyone needs to learn what they will and what they won¡¯t put up with in a rtionship. This is Andrei¡¯s learning experience. He¡¯s either going to learn what he wants or what he doesn¡¯t want from Tori.¡± Da mmit, he¡¯s even sexier when he says such intelligent things. He caught me ogling him and smirked at me, Andrei, still looking mostly terrified, said, ¡°I might need backup to Jace her the first time.¡± I walked over to the bench he was sitting on, leaning over his back with my arms around his neck. ¡°I will protect you from the scary girl, Bubba. I nted a kiss on his cheek, then Immediately regretted it. ¡°Ugh, sweaty. Why did I think that would be a good Idea? I wiped my mo uth on his shirt,ughing at his objection. A few hourster, we were on our way to the house. A very nervous Andrei in the driver¡¯s seat of the SUV Adrik and I were in. I looked to Adrik, a devilish grin on my face, talking loud enough that I was sure that Andrel could hear me, ¡°do you think we should let Andrei go in first? Have a few momentsThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. alone with Tori before wee in and ruin his alone time?¡± I noticed Andrei¡¯s grip on the steering wheel tighten, as well as his jaw clench. Adrik whispered into my car, ¡°you¡¯re a little evil, solnishko,¡± then said louder, ¡°I think that would be the polite thing to do. I know I would want a few moments alone with you if I hadn¡¯t seen you for a few weeks.¡± Andrei exhaled, his hand running through his short sandy blonde hair. Poor guy was going to have a heart attack before we ever made it to the house¡­ After we parked in front of the house, we all stepped out of the vehicles. Misha and Stephen walked back toward us, as they were in the vehicle ahead of us. ¡°Misha, don¡¯t you think we should let Andrei go in first to have a minute alone with Tori before we¡¯re all there, up in his business?¡± I asked, as innocently as I could, but winking at him. Misha immediately understood the assignment. ¡°I was actually going to suggest that, gazelle. I think it¡¯s only fair.¡± Andrei looked from Misha to me to Adrik to Stephen. ¡°I ha te all of you.¡± Misha and I looked at each other, then said in unison, ¡°we know.¡± Andrei walked up the steps to the front door, his head hung low like he was being punished. He was so nervous; I was starting to feel bad for him. Before he opened the front door, I yelled, ¡°if we hear yelling, we¡¯lle save you.¡± He didn¡¯t even look back, he just flipped me the bird as he walked in the house. We all stood in the driveway, taking serious enjoyment from his predicament. It was quiet for a few minutes and then he walked back through the front door, lookingpletely relieved. ¡°She¡¯s not here right now. She went to the store to restock since she found out we wereing today.¡± He exhaled, visibly looking like he¡¯d barely escaped doom. We all walked up the steps, still enjoying his situation a little too much. I slid my arm through one of his, pretending like I was talking into a microphone. ¡°You¡¯ve escaped death for now, Andrei. What are you going to do now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to Disney World!¡± he said, ying along like he was talking into my pretend microphone. ¡°Who wants to go for a really long walk in like ten minutes?¡± I asked, grinning at him. ¡°Oh, me. Please take me,¡± he said,ughing. Chapter 103 Chapter 103 Chapter One Hundred Three Sephie I ran upstairs and threw on a heavier long-sleeve shirt. The weather was in that weird time of year where you had to add and subtractyers of clothing periodically throughout the day. There was more of a breeze at the house, so it felt cooler. I didn¡¯t want to make Andrei have to give me his shirt while we were avoiding the house¡­ Misha decided toe too. Adrik slid his arm around my waist, leaning down to my ear, ¡°I¡¯d rather have you all to myselfter. I¡¯ll be in my office when you get back.¡± He spun me around to face him, nting a kiss on my lips. It was just enough to get my mind thinking about what his definition of ¡°having me all to himselfter¡± meant. The three of us set out for an adventure, far, far away from the house and the evil stepmother evil chef? Seems urate the evil chef that lived there. I always enjoyed theirpany, but I w just happy to be able to go for a walk. Ivan was a genius. My hip felt better than it had since the night of the ball. My limp was barely noticeable now and the dull ache that had started was now gone too. When Adrik took the bandage offst night, he was surprised at how good it looked. It was no longer red around the edges and was already showing signs of healing. They both noticed I was walking better, as we walked toward the rdens, and I skipped to get a closer sniff of one of the roses. ¡°Your hip must be feeling better, spider monkey.¡± Andrei had a broad smile on his face. I knew they were all still struggling with what happened, so seeing me feel better also made them feel better. ¡°Ivan is a genius. Maybe an evil genius, I don¡¯t know. But a genius, nheless. It does feel better than it¡¯s felt since, you know, I tried to ki ll myself by jumping out of a moving vehicle. 0/10, by the way. Do not rmend.¡± Mishaughed, shaking his head. ¡°You¡¯re so much like us, it¡¯s scary I squinted my eyes at him, putting my hands on my hips. ¡°I¡¯m going to need some rification on that one, my adorable Russian guardian.¡± His cheeks blushed slightly, his handsome smile stretching across his face. ¡°You have a dark sense of humor about cheating death like we do.¡± ¡°Well, what¡¯s the fun of cheating death if you can¡¯tugh about it? I asked. Theyughed, but both were thoughtful. Andrei looked to me as w walked closer to the forest trail. ¡°Ivan was right, you know. You¡¯re really making it difficult for any other girl to have a chance with us.¡± ¡°We¡¯re going topare everyone to you from now on.¡± Misha added. ¡°I mean, no pressure there,¡± I said, scoffing. ¡°We don¡¯t mean it as a bad thing, gazelle. You¡¯ve just showed us how good it can be,¡± Misha said, slinging his arm over my shoulders as we walked. I wrapped an arm around his waist, nearin; the forest trail. I sighed. ¡°It¡¯s not going to be easy for you. The more you ept yourselves and truly own who you are, you¡¯re going to attract all kinds of people who want a taste of what you have to offer. But most people just want to take from you, without ever giving in return. You have to wait for that one special person, or in my case, six of you, that give back just as much as they take. They¡¯re out there, but you¡¯re going to have to eliminate¡­okay, bad choice of word right there. I did not mean eliminate literally,¡± I said, laughing. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to weed out the boil ones to find your special one.¡± I thought for a minute, then added, ¡°it might not be as difficult for you guys. Your murderous as when you¡¯re working will keep a lot of them away.¡± They bothughed. ¡°We don¡¯t really look that mean, do we?¡± Andrul asked. ¡°Well, you two look nicer. Viktor and Ivan are slightly more intimidating. They smile less than you two. Viktor is easier to win over while Ivan is the toughest n ut to crack I¡¯ve ever met. Stephen is the wild card. He¡¯s so quiet that you¡¯re not sure if he¡¯s Just a really nice guy or if he is plotting your murder at any given mag tnt.¡± We came into the clearing by theke. The wildflowers were all fading with the beginning of Fall, but they were still eerily beautiful. Theke was calm and clear, giving us a clear mirror image of the fluffy wh ite clo uds in the sky. I took in the scene, not realizing just how much I had missed this ce. It was one of Adrik¡¯s favorite ces on the property, but it was also one of mine. They both knew my favorite spot to sit by theke and healed straight for it. We all sat down, silently enjoying the scenery, the quiet, the moment. We sat for a long time in silence, both guys looking like they were lost in thought. Andrei picked up a rock and chucked it in the water. ¡°Did you know right away that Boss was the one for you? Like was it love at first sight? I smiled, thinking back to that first night. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I would phrase it exactly like that. You and Viktor walked in and I¡¯m sure my eyes went wide. You¡¯re both giant, very attractive men, bil I felt nervous looking at you both. Then Adrik stepped inside the door so I could see him and there was like a weird calm that came over me. There¡¯s always this pull toward him when I see him. I felt that right away, for sure, but I wouldn¡¯t say that recognized it as love right away.¡± I ¡°He feels that pull when he¡¯s around you. He can¡¯t stay away from you. It¡¯s so different from how he¡¯s always been with his past girlfriends,¡± Misha said. ¡°They were always clinging to him and he would just look like he was miserable and wanted to get away from them,¡± he said,ughing at the memory. I found the me ntal image of him being desperate to get away from his past girlfriends amusing. ¡°We all feel it, though, just to a lesser extent. We all want to be artund you,¡± Andrei said. ¡°You¡¯re like a desert oasis for us.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you darepare me in any way to a camel.¡±Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 104 Chapter 104 Chapter One Hundred Four Sephie We sat by theke for a while longer. I was starting to get sore from sitting on the ground, so I suggested we head back to the house. ¡°I know you don¡¯t want to, Bubba. I promise, for real this time, I won¡¯t leave you alone if you don¡¯t want me to.¡± He stood up and offered me his hand, pulling me up. Probably shouldn¡¯t have sat like that for so long. I put my hand on my hip. pressing just above the wound. It wasn¡¯t excruciating this time, but I could feel it. Misha said, ¡°we sat for too long. Your hip doesn¡¯t like it when we sit for too long.¡± ¡°Ugh, I think you¡¯re right. I¡¯ll be okay. I just need to walk,¡± I said limping toward the direction of the house. ¡°I can give you a ride back to the house, spider monkey,¡± Andrei sald, his eyebrow raised. Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Iughed. ¡°Are you trying to make Tori want to k ill me while I¡¯m sleeping?¡± ¡°I can do it. She can¡¯t say anything about me giving you a ride,¡± Misha offered. ¡°I think I should walk for a minute first. If it doesn¡¯t go away, I¡¯ll take you up on it,¡± I said, smiling at him. Sometimes I felt guilty at how they all liked to spoil me in their own ways. ¡°But give me your arm in the meantime. That helps.¡± Misha was immediately next to me, offering me his arm to lean on as we walked slowly back to the house. I made it to the edge of the forest and then relented. ¡°Okay, Misha, I¡¯m taking you up on the offer. It¡¯s not getting any better.¡± He grinned down at me, stepping in front of me. He squatted down to make it easier for me to get on his back. I looked over my shoulder at Andrei. ¡°Would you mind, Bubba?¡± He picked me up and I wrapped my legs around Misha¡¯s waist, my arms around his neck. He bounced me higher to the right spot and set off toward the house. We wereughing at du mb jokes as we walked into the kitchen. Toji had her back to us, getting something out of the refrigerator. We all stopped and waited for her to turn around. When she did, she gasped. Apparently, she hadn¡¯t heard use inside. She stood, stunned, for a moment. Andrei spoke first. I¡¯m so proud of him. ¡°Hi,¡± he said. He was unsure whether he should go to her or not. I couldn¡¯t me him. I couldn¡¯t tell if she wanted him toe to her or not. Misha still had a hold of my legs and squeezed them both, holding onto me in sympathy for the awkwardness of the situation. I was trying so hard not tough. I knew it was going to pi ss her off if I did. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep fromughing. She smiled tightly at all of us. ¡°I see you¡¯re all still alive,¡± she said, mming the vegetables in her hand down on the counter. 1 flinched. Misha squeezed my legs again, whispering, ¡°I¡¯ll protect you, gazelle.¡± I hugged his neck a little tighter. Andrei walked closer to her, clearly nervous. ¡°I wanted to tell you, Tori, but I couldn¡¯t. We had to go no contact. It was as much for your safety as it was for ours.¡± Tort picked up a knife to cut up the vegetables she had just abused on the counter. Well, this isn¡¯t going to end well. She chopped a few pieces of broli like that particr head of broli had killed her entire family. She stopped and looked at him, ¡°I¡¯m sure you stayed in contact with her though, right? I mean, she¡¯s the special one.¡± I felt Misha tense at her words. This was unexpected. Andrei, trying to diffuse the situation, said, ¡°she was with us, yes, liut it¡¯s not what you think.¡± Tori was back to chopping the broli as savagely as she could. I was starting to worry about the safety of her fingers at this point, ¡°I think I understand the situation perfectly, given that you¡¯re all still carting her around like a go ddamn princess that can¡¯t be bothered to walk on her own.¡± Misha tapped my legs as he squatted down, to indicate that he was going to put me down. I stood up as he walked closer to Tori. Andrei moved closer to me, pushing me partially behind him. ¡°You need to check your fu cking attitude,dy. You have no idea what happened when we were gone. Andrei might not want to make you angry, but I don¡¯t give a fu ck. You can¡¯t see the wounds on Sephie because she¡¯s wearing long sleeves and pants, but it was not a fu cking vacation while we were gone. She almost died. But even if we were on fu cking vacation, you don¡¯t get to ever refer to her like that again. She¡¯s Boss¡¯s girlfriend and you will treat her with respect, or you will leave this house. And aside from that, she¡¯s our little sister, and don¡¯t think for one minute we will allow you to speak about her in that way. I don¡¯t care how angry you are with us, with Andrei; you have no right to talk about Sephie like that. Do it again and I¡¯ll dly drag you to the front gates so you can leave.¡± Ugh. Why are girls soplicated, especially when ites to me? I was mostly hiding behind Andrei at this point. I¡¯d been in simr situations with Max so many times that I knew what wasing next. She was going to force an ultimatum on Andrei. With Max, it usually meant that he would disappear for a few weeks, and I would only see him at work. He would always break up with them ande back to hang out with me. He never apologized for it, but honestly, I just expected it to happen each time, so I didn¡¯t see the need for an apology. She looked stunned at Misha¡¯s words, but she kept violently chopping the broli. Misha turned his back to her, walking back. to me. His face was red with his anger, but he smiled at me hiding behind Andrei. ¡°Come, let¡¯s go find Boss,¡± he said offering his arm to me. I nced at Tori. She nced up, her gaze throwing daggers my way. I held her gaze until she looked down. I nced up at Andrei. ¡°You okay, Bubba?¡± ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m good. Let¡¯s go find Boss,¡± he said, turning to walk out of the kitchen. We heard her still trying to murder the broli as we left the kitchen. As we walked up the stairs, I said, ¡°that was SO much worse than I thought it was going to be.¡± ¡°No sh it,¡± they both said at the same time, causing us to giggle. ¡°Wait, shhh¡­ You can still hear her murdering the broli. That¡¯s crimes against cruciferous vegetables right there,¡± I said. We allughed, probably louder than we should have, but we needed a stress relief after that hot mess Chapter 105 Chapter 105 . Chapter One Hundred Five Sephie As we walked into Adrik¡¯s office, he was smirking. ¡°What trouble Jive you three gotten into now?¡± He opened his arts for me toe to him. I saw him frown as he noticed my limp was back, Misha tried to smooth it over. ¡°We sat by theke for too long. Her hip doesn¡¯t like it when she sits for too long.¡± Adrik¡¯s eyebrows furrowed, but he said nothing. He pulled me onto hisp, sliding his hands over my legs. ¡°Now, what were you allughing about? Have you seen Tori yet?¡± Andrei sighed. ¡°Oh yeah,¡± he looked at Adrik, his eyes wide. ¡°It weit even worse than what we were thinking She¡¯s not only mad at me, she¡¯s mad at Sephie for being with us. Boss, you need to know what she said.¡± I interrupted him, ¡°Bubba, it¡¯s fine. She¡¯s just mad. She¡¯ll eventually get over it and it¡¯ll be fine.¡± I felt Adrik tense. Misha argued, ¡°No, Sephie. I agree with Andrei. He needs to know what she said.¡± I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose. Andrei proceeded to tell Adrik what had happened, what Tori said, and then what Misha said to Tori. I knew he was mad, but he looked at Misha with a smile on his face. ¡°Well done, kid. I couldn¡¯t have said it better.¡± He was quiet for a moment, his hand running up and down my back. Normally I would¡¯ve loved this, but I knew he was trying to keep himself calm. He looked to Andrei. ¡°After this, are you still interested in pursuing a rtionship with her?¡± Andrei didn¡¯t have to think about his answer. He emphatically shook his head no. ¡°Not in the slightest, Boss. This is going to happen again, and I won¡¯t allow it.¡± Adrik nodded, inhaling deeply. He stood up, with me in his arms. He kissed my cheek before gently setting me down. ¡°I want you to lie down for a while. I think you overdid it with your hip. I¡¯ll be back in a few minutes. Andrei, with me. Misha, stay here.¡± They walked quickly out of his office. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at the situation. ¡°I love how he¡¯s so calm with us in here, like he¡¯s not feeling all murdery and sh it on the inside right now.¡± Mishaughed. ¡°I want to sneak down to the kitchen so I can hear what¡¯s going on.¡± ¡°Whatever it is, you know it won¡¯t be pretty. I just hope they take her knife away from her first.¡± I limped over to the couch. lying down. I exhaled, mumbling, ¡°ahh, sometimes I ha te it when he¡¯s right about literally everything.¡± It felt good to lie down.. Maybe I did overdo it with the long walk, but it was worth it. Maybe it was needed to fully show us the extent of Tarl¡¯s anger. After a few minutes, Adrik returned without Andrei. My eyes went wide, ¡°did she ki ll Andrei?¡± He smirked, but shook his head no. He walked to the couch, pulling me up. He sat and pulled me back down to rest my head in hisp. His hands immediately went to my hair. He looked at me for a moment, his eyes smiling at me. He sighed. ¡°Tori will no longer be working here.¡± He looked from me to Misha. I nced at Misha, shocked. He did not look as shocked as I was. He looked thoughtful. ¡°I think that was the best decision, Boss. Who wants to order takeput?¡± he said, grinning, I looked up at Adrik, still shocked. ¡°You fired her? For that? She was just angry.¡± Misha coughed. ¡°She was more than angry, Sephle. She¡¯s always been Jealous of you. It¡¯s clear as day to all of us,¡± Adrik twirled one of my curls around his finger. ¡°That¡¯s the thing about anger, solnishko. What Is said in anger is usually brutal honesty. She just revealed how she really feels about you. I will not tolerate that kind of disrespect of you.¡± My mo uth fell open. I was so shocked at their response. ¡°How does Andrei feel about this?¡± You can ask him when he gets back from escorting her off the property,¡± he said, that sly smirk on his face. ¡°Why is this so difficult for you?¡± his fingers lightly tracing over my face and neck ¡°I¡­ Well¡­ I don¡¯t know. I mean, this happened all the time with Max, But he would choose the other girls over me every time. He¡¯d disappear for a few weeks, then he¡¯d be back once he broke up with them.¡± ¡°I told you, Sephie. Your friend is not a smart man,¡± his smirk turning into a small smile. Misha, sitting on one of the cabs,mented, ¡°Ivan is gonna be so happy when they get back. He hated Tori. Even before her and Andrei got together.¡± Heughed. ¡°He would purposely be extra grumpy around her because he knew she was terrified of him.¡± Adrik smiled. ¡°Ivan has always been a good judge of my previous girlfriends. He was always the first one to see their other sides.¡± ¡°His demons pull their demons out for the world to see. He¡¯s very good at that. He just doesn¡¯t always realize that his demons work for him now, instead of against him,¡± I said. Misha cursed under his breath. I looked at his shocked face. ¡°What?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard him described that way. It¡¯s perfect.¡± ¡°Shall we send for Vinny¡¯s tonight? I have a meeting next week that you¡¯re going to need to be present for. I need to make sure you¡¯re paid up for it,¡± Adrik said, grinning. ¡°I think Andrei needs to pick his breakup dinner,¡± I said,ughing. It¡¯s the least I can do for wrecking his rtionship status.¡± Adrik clicked his tongue. ¡°You didn¡¯t wreck anything, solnishko. You saved him.¡± Andrei came to the office after almost an hour. I was still lying with my head in Adrik¡¯sp, his hands still running through my hair. Misha was still sitting on the cab. We were talking about fandom things, wondering aloud where exactly Viktor and Ivan were in their journey across the ocean, while listening for screaming from downstairs. I was expecting him to look sad, but truthfully, he looked quite happy about his situation. ¡°Bubba, you don¡¯t look as sad as I was expecting you to look.¡± He sighed, as he sat in one of the chairs across from the couch. ¡°I¡¯m not sad at all, spider monkey. This has been building for a -while. She¡¯s always been jealous of you. Like, weirdly so.¡± Misha snapped his fingers, pointing at me. ¡°Told you.¡± ¡°Why would she be jealous of me? I¡¯m the one who got you two talking!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Like I said, it was weird. It never mattered how much I reassured her there was no reason to be jealous, she was still jealous. Like me telling her there was no reason to be jealous actually made her more jealous. I never understood,¡± Andrel said, rubbing his face with his hands. ¡°Why are women soplicated?¡± I groaned. ¡°I¡¯m fairly sure if you could find the answer to that question, you would also be able to solve all of the world¡¯s problems,¡± Andrei saidughing. ¡°But first, let¡¯s order takeout since we just got rid of our chef.¡± ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want some of that incredibly finely murdered¡­. chopped broli downstairs?¡± I asked, turning my head to smile at him. He looked at me, astonished, ¡°I have never seen vegetables so abused.¡± Mishaughed, ¡°Ivan, Viktor, and Stephen are going to be mad they missed this.¡± I got up from the couch and walked over to Andrei. I leaned on his back, hugging his neck. ¡°I still love you, Bubba. Even if she was pretending that head of broli was your face and my face.¡± He patted my arms, looking up at me. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not sure which one of us she ha tes the most right now.¡± I went back to the couch. As my head rested on Adrik¡¯sp, I said, ¡°Ivan. He¡¯s still on top.¡±This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 106 Chapter 106 Chapter One Hundred Six Sephie That night, Adrik was in the closet. I was lost in my thoughts, sitting on the edge of the bed. I didn¡¯t notice him walk into the bedroom, shirtless. I felt his warm hand on my cheek, his thumb rubbing gently. ¡°What are you thinking about, solnishko?¡± ¡°This whole thing with Tori. I feel bad she got fired. She probably thinks I told you to do it.¡± My eyebrows creased as I thought about how much she likely hated me now. Adrik clicked his tongue. ¡°Persephone. You¡¯re used to being tossed aside for a goody.¡± He put his hands on either side of my face, leaning down to look me in the eyes. He had a devilish sparkle to his deep blue eyes. ¡°You are my goody. I¡¯m choosing you over everyone. Every time. Until myst breath.¡± He smirked at me as he pressed his lips to mine. I couldn¡¯t help but smile against his kiss. ¡°I must be a pretty da mn goody, in that case,¡± I said, laughing. ¡°The best,¡± he said, kissing me once more. He stood up, walking to the bathroom. ¡°So good, in fact, that it¡¯s all I think about all Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. day long.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only one,¡± I mumbled under my breath. I remembered I had taken some very skimpy lingerie from Armando¡¯s ex-girlfriend¡¯s clothing shop in his house. I nced toward the bathroom. He was brushing his teeth, so I ran to the closet as quietly as I could to change into it. If he can¡¯t stop thinking about me all day, I might as well give him something new to think about. I waited in the closet until I heard hime out of the bathroom. I heard him turn on themp by the bed and saw the overhead light go off. I knew he¡¯d be on his way back to the bed, st I walked slowly from the closet. My heart was racing like he¡¯d never seen me na ked. He looked at me and stopped dead in his tracks. I heard him curse under his breath. He just stood in the same spot, looking me up and down as I walked toward him. I was trying to not limp as best I could, so slower was easier, which just so happened to add to the effect I was going for. He looked down, then ran his hand through his hair. His eyes were back on me instantly. I smiled at him, chewing on my bottom lip to help calm my racing heartbeat. He closed the short distance between us in an instant. His arms were immediately around me, his lips on mine like he couldn¡¯t get enough of me. I hope he never does. He broke the kiss, looking down at my wardrobe choice once more. He spun me around, cursing again when he saw my a ss. ¡°You know I¡¯m going to rip this off you, right?¡± 1 giggled. ¡°I was hoping so, yes.¡± He groaned against my neck, his Hands roaming down my back. He hooked his thumbs in the flimsy material and easily ripped it. He threw it behind him, making quick work of what was left of it. He wrapped his arms tight around me, bending down to pick me up. I wrapped my legs around him, my arms around his shoulders. His lips desperately found mine, his tongue exploring every inch of my mo uth. His arms remained tight around me, like he had missed holding me tightly just as much as I missed him holding me tightly. In that moment, I never wanted him to let me go. He turned and walked the few steps to the bed, bending down andying me on the bed. He quickly got rid of his pants as 1 scooted up the bed to make room for him. The look on his face when he slowly climbed on the bed, kissing and running his hands up my legs was pure lust. It made me want him inside me right then. My hip was still aching from earlier, but I didn¡¯t want him to know. I sat up, pushing him onto his back. I leaned down to kiss him, straddling him. I could feel his hard co ck between my legs, turning me on even more. I sat up, pulling him up with me. He wrapped his arms around my waist, holding me higher so he could position himself. I felt him slide slowly inside me, grabbing his shoulders to steady myself at the intense pleasure 1 felt every time he entered me. I exhaled loudly, closing hy eyes, enjoying the feeling. He whispered against my neck, ¡°I love when you want this position. I love being able to watch you get lost in the feeling,¡± His arms were once again tight around me as I pushed my hips down and into him harder. I pressed my body to his, my lips crashing into his. Thest time we did this, I was still hurt, which forced him to hold back. Now, I was much better, and he didn¡¯t have to hold back as much. His lips were on my neck, kissing their way down to my corbone. He bit my neck at the same time he bucked his hips into mine, causing me to moan loudly. He exhaled. ¡°I missed you not having to be quiet, solnishko. I love hearing you moan for me.¡± He thrust into me again, once ugain causing a moan to escape. He increased his rhythm slightly. My whole body was nothing but a wave of pleasure. I closed my eyes, my hands on his shoulders, and relished in feeling nothing but him. I felt my body get closer to the edge. I grabbed his shoulders Lighter. He increased his thrusting, holding me even tighter, as I started to orgasm. He continued his unrelenting rhythm, drawing out my orgasm once again. Every time I thought was done, it would start again. I leaned back slightly, pushing my hips against him harder, squeezing his co ck as 1 rode him. He groaned. I knew he was trying to hold on until I was done. I loved teasing him and testing his endurance. I felt myself building once again and wanted him to feel what I felt. I kept squeezing, grinding my hips into him. He grabbed a fistful of hair, crashing his lips to mine. I didn¡¯t stop. I could feel him building, just as I was. We both crashed over the edge together, riding out the euphoria together. His arms stayed tight around me as we both tried to catch our breath. I pressed my forehead to his, lightly running my hands through the back of his hair. ¡°At least I know what you¡¯ll be thinking about tomorrow,¡± Iughed, still breathless. ¡°Definitely. This one is going to stick around for a long time,¡± he said. His blue eyes smiling. I closed my eyes, still feeling nothing but pleasure. I felt his lips gently kissing my neck. I moaned quietly. ¡°I feel like I can¡¯t get enough of you sometimes,¡± I said, slowly moving off hisp.. ¡°Only sometimes? I feel like I can¡¯t get enough of you all the time. He smiled as he stretched out, opening his arms for me toy on his chest. ¡°Okay, maybe all the time,¡± I chuckled as Iid my head on his chest, draping my leg over his. His hand running lightly through my hair. I snuggled closer to him. ¡°I missed you being able to hold me tightly.¡± ¡°Me too, solnishko.¡± He pulled me closer to him. ¡°How does you hip feel tonight? Did we just make it worse again?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. It was just sore earlier. I think I might¡¯ve walked too much today, which is du mb. I need to do it more.¡± ¡°Not so much that you make yourself worse. I didn¡¯t have to hold back as much tonight, but it still wasn¡¯t what I¡¯ve been thinking about for weeks now,¡± he said, smacking my a ss. ¡°Noted.¡± Iughed as he kissed the top of my head Chapter 107 Chapter 107 Chapter One Hundred Seven Sephie The next afternoon, we went back to the penthouse, as Viktor and (van would be back with Armando. He knew about the penthouse, everyone did, but since no one knew about the house, they couldn¡¯t bring him there. I didn¡¯t mind. It meant more Vinny¡¯s for my previously neglected stomach. In the elevator, Misha looked to Andrei, his wide smile across his face. ¡°So, are you going to tell Ivan about what happened, or do I get to? Please say me. I want to be the one to tell him.¡± Andrei justughed, nodding his head. Misha pumped his fist in the air. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°I had no idea Ivan didn¡¯t like Tori that much. He hid it well, at least from me.¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°That¡¯s talent,¡± I said, smiling. We dropped the guys off on their floor. As soon as the doors to the elevator closed, Adrik grabbed me by my waist, pressing me against the wall of the elevator. He pressed his body to mine. He grabbed my hands, pinning them above my head. He held them there with one of his hands. His other hand roaming down my body as his lips crashed into mine. As his hand ran down my hip to my thigh, I raised my leg and wrapped it around him, pulling him even closer to me with my leg. He broke the kiss, breathless, as the doors dinged announcing our arrival. ¡°Fu ck, Sephie,¡± he said nting one more kiss on my lips quickly before the doors started to open. He let my arms down, but kept my hands in his, turning to walk out of the elevator. He walked quickly past the two guards, not even looking at them. He opened the door, pulling me inside, and closing the door behind me quickly. His lips were on mine once again as his hands pulled at my jeans as he walked backward through the penthouse. He bumped up against the kitchen counter. I felt his hands on my hips as he lifted me onto the counter. He stopped the kiss long enough to nce at his watch. ¡°They¡¯ll be here soon. We must hurry,¡± he said with his sexy smirk. He didn¡¯t give me a chance to respond. before his lips were on mine again. He unbuttoned my jeans, sliding them part of the way down. He took a step back, pulling them all the way off. ¡°We should talk about you wearing skirts asionally,¡± he said as he stepped closer toContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. me again. His hands were on my a ss, pulling me to the edge of the counter. I smiled at him, loving his more aggressive sideing out. It was a new level of hot for me. I grabbed his shirt, pulling him toward me roughly. My lips were on his, desperate for him. My hands found his belt, unbuckling it, then unbuttoning his pants. I slid my hands inside his underwear, sliding them and his pants down as far as I could. I wrapped my hands around his co ck. I felt his breath hitch against my mo uth. I held him tightly in my hands, slowly moving up and down his shaft, before positioning him so he could slide inside me. I was not prepared to have him slim into me. I let out a load moan, grabbing onto his shoulders. ¡°OK?¡± he asked, breathless against my neck. ¡°Mmm. Very.¡± ¡°Good.¡± He mmed into me again, this time pulling my hips toward him as he did it, causing him to hit even deeper inside me. I couldn¡¯t control myself and moaned loudly again. He increased his rhythm, not taking it easy on me at all. I loved every second of it. I wrapped my legs around his waist, tightening my grip on him as he kept mming into me. I wanted him to keep going, surprised at my own Just for him in that moment. I hugged him tighter. ¡°Don¡¯t hold back anymore. I can take it,¡± I said. He didn¡¯t hesitate, he just pushed me back so I wasying on the counter, my legs still wrapped around his waist. If I thought he was intense before, he increased his thrusts into me, mming into me with such intensity that I cried out in pleasure each time. He continued mming into me until I thought I couldn¡¯t take anymore, and ! finally felt him release. He leaned over me, lifting my shirt to kiss my stomach. I was a sweaty mess, but I didn¡¯t care. ¡°You¡¯ve been holding back even before I got hurt.¡± I said sitting up to look at him. ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt you,¡± he shrugged. ¡°You won¡¯t hurt me. You might make it difficult to walkter, but you won¡¯t hurt me.¡± He smiled as he leaned over to kiss me. ¡°Come, we only have a few minutes before they get here. Just enough time for another round in the shower.¡± He pulled me to him, picking me up off the counter and walking quickly to the bedroom. When we walked out the door of the penthouse to the elevator, both guards looked like they were holding backughs. It suddenly hit me that they probably heard me earlier. This time, Adrik looked at both of them, getting enthusiastic nods from both. Not awkward in the slightest. Once the elevator doors closed, Adrikughed at my red cheeks. ¡°I¡¯m never going to be able to look them in the eye again,¡± I said, hiding my face in my hands. He just pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around me. Viktor, Ivan, Armando, and Giana walked into Adrik¡¯s office soon after we did. I was sitting on Adrik¡¯s desk while he was seated at his desk, a permanent grin on my face after the proper fu cking Id just had. As soon as I saw Viktor and Ivan walked in, I jumped off the desk and ran to them. ¡°Viktor! My favorite track and field star!¡± I jumped into his arms as I heard Adrik and Ivan bothugh. He picked me up in a giant bear hug. When he set me down, I ran to Ivan. ¡°Squishy! I missed you!¡± I jumped into his arms as well. He picked me up, spinning me around once, before walking further into the office before he set me down. He was smiling when he finally put me down. ¡°Your hip must feel much better, princess.¡± Ivan said as he bent down and kissed my cheek. ¡°You¡¯re a genius, Ivan. Like seriously. It¡¯s so much better now.¡± Still smiling, he said, ¡°that makes me very happy to hear, princess.¡± ¡°Me too,¡± Viktor said, bumping me gently with his shoulder as he walked past and sat down. Adrik stood and walked to Armando. I followed behind him, happy to see Armando again. ¡°Armando. Thank you foring so quickly,¡± Adrik said, extending his hand. ¡°Of course, Boss. I had no idea the situation was so dire. Your men were filling me in on the ne.¡± He shook Adrik¡¯s hand. He nced to me, a small smile on his lips. ¡°Miss Sephie, you look absolutely radiant, my dear.¡± He opened his arms for a hug. 1 happily obliged, catching Giana¡¯s look of surprise. Oh boy. Here we go again Chapter 108 Chapter 108 . Chapter One Hundred Eight Sephie ¡°Thank you foring. Armando. You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± I said, winking at him. Both Viktor and Ivan said. ¡°hey!¡± behind us. Adrik¡¯s arm pulled me to him. I tucked myself into his side, where I fit perfectly. He motioned for both of them to sit as he pulled me back toward his desk. I jumped on the cab behind his desk while he sat in his chair. I caught Ivan¡¯s eye and gave him a devilish grin. I knew Misha was going to be so excited he was back. He knew there was something more to my grin. He raised an eyebrow, squinting his eyes at me. Armandoughed, saying, ¡°I hear Sephie did a good job of putting Dario and Massimo in their ce.¡± Adrik chuckled, nodding his head. I red at Viktor and Ivan, not knowing which one of them told him. It made Armandough more. ¡°They deserved it, Sephie. They¡¯ve always been a little too misogynistic for their own good.¡± I crossed my arms across my chest. ¡°That¡¯s much nicer than how I would¡¯ve phrased it.¡± ¡°Were you able to find anything out about your office building?¡± Adrik asked. Armando exhaled loudly, running his hands through his dark hair. Not much. We have security footage from the days before. the explosion. My people didn¡¯t find anything from the day before the explosion, but they¡¯re continuing to look. It¡¯s possible they avoided the cameras somehow.¡± Ivan said, ¡°given the new information about Dario and Massimo, I would say this was more a direct attack on Armando than on you, Boss. If he¡¯s the only one that¡¯s loyal to you, it would benefit them to get rid of him.¡± Adrik nodded, then looked to Armando. ¡°Would you like to stay here where we can keep a closer eye on you? We can have apartments arranged for both of you.¡± ¡°I was hoping to go to my house, but my security is not up to your standards.¡± Armando said. He thought for a moment. ¡°If it really is just us against the rest of them, is it a good idea to both be in theContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. same ce?¡± Viktor, trying not to be offended, said, ¡°no one is getting in or out of this building without us knowing. We have round the clock security and can increase that at a moment¡¯s notice.¡± I caught Viktor¡¯s eye and winked at him. He was cute when he was all Russian security master. Adrik said, ¡°I think you would both be safer here, but it¡¯s your choice, Mando.¡± Armando looked at Giana, who hadn¡¯t said a word and frankly, looked terrified. I could see his face soften when he looked at her. She looked up at him, her cheeks flushing slightly as he looked at her thoughtfully. ¡°We¡¯ll stay here. Thank you, Boss. I need to keep her safe.¡± Her eyes went wide for a split second before she dropped her gaze. Her cheeks turning another shade of red darker. I smiled at the exchange. Armando was a good man. Adrik made a quick call to have two apartments readied for them. Giana timidly touched Armando¡¯s arm and whispered something in his ear. He looked to Viktor and Ivan, ¡°restroom?¡± I hopped off the cab, walking to the office door. ¡°I can show her,¡± I offered. Arinando indicated for Giana to follow me. I walked out of the office, leaving the door open. I knew either Viktor or Ivan would get up to keep an eye out until we returned. Might as well make it easy for them. I stole a nce at na as we were walking. Poor thing still looked terrified. ¡°How long have you been working for Armando?¡± I asked, trying to help her feel morefortable. ¡°Not even a year yet,¡± she said quietly, ¡°I thought it was going to be a regr assistant job.¡± I tried not tough. ¡°Remind me to tell you how Ghost and I met,¡± said, smiling at her. ¡°There isn¡¯t much that¡¯s regr around here, but you get used to it. Armando Is a good man. He¡¯ll take care of you.¡± I pointed to the bathroom. ¡°I¡¯ll wait here.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± she said, looking somewhat relieved. After she walked into the bathroom, I turned to look back at the office door. Yep, there¡¯s Ivan. I smiled big at him, motioning for him toe to me quickly. He walked to me without hesitation, somewhat confused. ¡°You have to find Misha as soon as you can. He has an epic story for you. I¡¯m dying for you to hear it. Now, quickly, go away. Poor girl is already scared to death.¡± I said pushing him back toward the office. Heughed, shaking his head at my nonsense. Giana came out of the bathroom, looking slightly more rxed. ¡°How long have you, uh, been with¡­ um¡­¡± ¡°Ghost?¡± I asked, smiling. ¡°Unusual, I know. You¡¯ll get used to it,¡± said, smiling at her. ¡°Um, it¡¯s been a few months now. Like 4-5? I actually don¡¯t know the real answer to that question. I¡¯m a terrible girlfriend.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t think so. You can tell you love each other. I expected you to have been together for much longer. And his bodyguards? They¡¯re scary when you¡¯re not around. I like them much better when you¡¯re in the same room.¡± Iughed. ¡°They¡¯re not as scary as theye across. But it is their job to be intimidating and they¡¯re very good at their job, if we¡¯re being honest here.¡± ¡°Very good,¡± she said, wide-eyed just before we met Ivan at the door of the office. He stepped to the side to let us walk in ahead of him. I let Giana walk in first as I grabbed Ivan¡¯s arm and wrapped it around my shoulders. I slid my arm around his waist as we walked into the office. Adrik smirked at me when we walked into the office. Giana sat beside Armando, smiling shyly at me with Ivan as we walked past her. I felt bad for her. I knew Ivan enjoyed intimidating people, but I also recognized there was a deeper purpose for his gruff exterior. He was aplicated man, but I adored him despite his prickly exterior. I trusted his demons to expose Giana¡¯s bad side, if there was one. I wasn¡¯t going to stand in the way of that. If Armando was interested in her the way I thought he was, he deserved to have someone love him for him, not for his money and power. It wasn¡¯t long and someone knocked on the office door, dropping off two keys for Armando and Giana, telling them where their apartments were located. They were on the 5th floor, not far from Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner. I hadn¡¯t seen them since we got back. ¡°I can show them where their apartments are. I haven¡¯t seen Ms. Jackson or Mr. Turner since we got back anyway. I want to stop by and say hi,¡± I said. Adrik looked to me, smiling. He nodded his head, then looked to Viktor and Ivan. ¡°One of you go with her.¡± He stood and pulled me to him, kissing my lips gently. ¡°I¡¯ll be here when you¡¯re done.¡± He kissed my cheek, then whispered, ¡°don¡¯t be too long.¡± I felt my cheeks flush. I smiled at him, noticing the spark in his ey I looked to Viktor and Ivan. ¡°Who¡¯sing with me?¡± I said dramatically. They looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders and both walked toward me. ¡°We haven¡¯t seen Ms. Jackson or Mr. Turner either,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Aww, Viktor. You¡¯re all soft and nougaty too. I love it.¡± We stepped off the elevator, turning in the opposite direction from Ms. Jackson and Mr. Turner¡¯s apartments. Armando was talking, as usual. Giana was quietly listening to him. I think she was the only one who was listening to him. It made me smile. ¡°Here you are. Do you guys need anything? Are you hungry? We can have someone grab you some food,¡± I asked. Armando looked to Giana, who nodded her head. I smiled at her. ¡°What are your feelings on sandwiches that will change your life?¡± Viktor and Ivan chuckled behind me. Armando looked at me, his eyebrows raised. I looked surprised. ¡°Tell me you know about Vinny¡¯s, Mando?¡± He shook his head no. I turned to Viktor and Ivan. ¡°You guys don¡¯t share the gift that is Vinny¡¯s?¡± my hands on my hips, trying to fake outrage. ¡°Well, uh, no. No, we don¡¯t,¡± Viktor said. ¡°That¡¯s fair. That¡¯s totally fair. I¡¯ll allow it.¡± I turned back to Armando and Giana. ¡°Given this is a special circumstance, you¡¯re about to be allowed ess into the inner sanctum of gastro-intestinal heaven. Prepare yourselves. This will, in fact, change your lives.¡± Ivanughed. ¡°You should head up Vinny¡¯s next marketing campaign.¡± Chapter 109 Chapter 109 Chapter One Hundred Nine Sephie We left Armando and na to rx. Viktor made arrangements for someone to pick up sandwiches for them. They could eat and rx the rest of the evening. We walked to the other side of the floor to Mr. Turner¡¯s apartment. I knocked on his door and waited. No answer. I knocked one more time. I looked at Viktor, ¡°What time is it?¡± ¡°5:50,¡± he said. ¡°He should be home by now,¡± I said, somewhat perplexed. I walked across the hall to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment and knocked bij her door. We heard movement inside, then she opened the door. ¡°Oh, my! Either I just died and you boys are here to escort me to the other side or you¡¯re really standing there!¡± she eximed, clutching her chest. Iughed. ¡°It¡¯s really us, Ms. Jackson. We¡¯re real.¡± I walked to her, hugging her. I missed this woman. ¡°Get in here. You¡¯re a sight for sore eyes. And I¡¯m happy to see you too, child.¡± Sheughed as she ushered us all in her apartment. When we walked in, Mr. Turner was sitting at her table. ¡°Miss Sephie! It¡¯s better than wonderful to see you again!¡± He stood up to give me a hug. I always felt like he was the grandfather I never knew. I hugged him tightly. He offered his hand to Viktor and Ivan. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you both as well. I knew there had to be something to the reports that your boss had died. I just couldn¡¯t believe it.¡± Ivan nodded, cutting his eyes to me. ¡°It did not gopletely to n, but ultimately it worked out.¡± He slid his arm around my shoulders as he was talking. I leaned my head against his shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t make me have to kick your a ss in front of them,¡± I said under my breath. He coughed but held it together. Ms. Jackson asked, ¡°where have you guys been? You had to go somewhere toy low for a while, I¡¯m sure. Did you need people to believe he was dead?¡± N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Viktor nodded, surprised at her response. They still didn¡¯t know about her past. I would let her tell them about that, when and if she was ready. Even without her past as a spy, she was still a very astute woman. There wasn¡¯t much that got past her. ¡°But everyone is fine and alive? We haven¡¯t lost any eye candy, have we? I have big ns for Bingo, you know.¡± We allughed. Ivan looked very seriously at her. ¡°Name the time and ce, Ms. Jackson. We will dly apany you.¡± Viktor nodded in agreement. She blushed,ughing. ¡°Lord, I don¡¯t think you¡¯re ready for the number of heart attacks you¡¯ll be responsible for.¡± We spent a few more minutes visiting with them both before taking our leave. I knew Viktor and Ivan had to be exhausted. I also knew Adrik would be d for the interruption when I went back to his office. Almost as d as I would be to deliver that interruption. We stepped onto the elevator and were immediately hit with the strongest perfume smell. I coughed as the doors closed, barely able to breathe. As I pulled my shirt over my nose, I had a sh of the sidewalk by the hotel where Mt. Turner worked. I could see Misha one step in front of me, looking back to me just as we were both hit. Why am I thinking about that day? I shook my head, trying to let go of those thoughts My brain shifted to the night of the ball, in the bathroom, when I verheard the two women talking about Adrik. Something felt familiar. I looked at Viktor and Ivan, who were looking at each other, knowingly. The elevator doors couldn¡¯t open fast enough for them. Ivan took my hand in his as he led me toward Adrik¡¯s office quickly. The smell of perfume was getting stronger, the closer to the office we got. When we walked through the door to his office, I was not emotionally prepared to find another woman sitting on the edge of his desk. He had pushed his chair to theplete opposite end of his desk, like he was trying to get away from her. He looked angry but was trying to control it. Ivan nced at me, a look of concern on his face. I felt his grip on my hand tighten slightly. I smirked at him, knowing he was worried I was about to lose my shi t on this woman. As soon as Adrik saw us, he stood, walking around the opposite side of his desk to stay as far from her as he could. He held his arm out for me, a look of relief on his face. I went to him, tucking myself into his side. He looked worried, like Ivan did. He held me against him tightly. ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± I tried to be as calm as possible, but I know they all heard the slight edge of anger to my voice. She had turned to face us when we walked in the office. She was barely wearing any clothes. Her skirt was so short and so tight. that it barely covered her. She had what basically amounted to a bra on that only covered her breasts. Her stomach and shoulders werepletely bare. Doesn¡¯t she ever get cold? She looked like she shopped at the same store that Armando¡¯s ex- girlfriend shopped at. She had long ck hair that fell almost to her barely covered a ss. Her olive skin was on full disy. She was short, thin. She likely watched what she ate, to keep her thin frame, but she¡¯d definitely never picked up a weight. There wasn¡¯t a muscle on her. Ivan took one step toward her, causing a look of fear toe across her face. ¡°Vanessa,¡± he said. I could hear the hatred. dripping from his voice as he said her name. It didn¡¯t help that he looked like a giantpared to her diminutive frame. ¡°You¡¯re not leaving until you give us that key fob back.¡± She looked angry, but tried to mask it. ¡°I don¡¯t have a key fob. The elevator was open.¡± Chapter 110 Chapter 110 Chapter One Hundred Ten Sephie ¡°If you¡¯re going to lie, you need to at least be smart about it. I¡¯ve lived here for months and that elevator has never once been open. Don¡¯t be stu pid,¡± I said, with as much pleasantness as I could muster. Which, admittedly, was not much. The guys were caught off guard and all of themughed. She lookedpletely surprised, but I couldn¡¯t tell if it was from what I said, or the fact that Ivan wasughing. It could go either way, really. Obviously, this was a former girlfriend, if she had a key fob. I didn¡¯t even have a key fob for the elevator. Granted, I never needed one as one of the guys was always with me. But still. My head was starting to ache from smelling the entire bottle of perfume in one application. How does she smell anything other than that? She looked at me, clear hatred on her face. ¡°You might be living here now, but you won¡¯t be for long. He¡¯ll get rid of you just like he did all the rest. He probably can¡¯t even remember your name.¡± ¡°See, that¡¯s where you¡¯re wrong. He knows my name. He screams it often,¡± I stepped in front of Adrik, crossing my arms over my chest. I raised one eyebrow, daring her to continue this fun little conversation. She looked flustered and looked toward the floor. I nced at Ivan, who winked at me, a look of pride on his face. I felt Adrik¡¯s hands on my hips, pulling me back against him. ¡°You think I¡¯m in the same category as you. That was your first of many mistakes, Vanessa. You probably came here with the intent of either trying to get him back or at the very least to stir some shi t up and make us fight. But what you don¡¯t know is that I know him better than you could ever dream of knowing him. It was in as day that he wanted nothing to do with you. I¡¯d be willing to bet you tried to hug him or touch him and he moved away from you before you could, right?¡± Her eyes went wide. I didn¡¯t give her time to respond. ¡°You see, Vanessa, you probably think that your body is what will snag a man, which is why you put it on full disy for the world to see. You think that¡¯s all that men are interested in and will get you everything you want out of life. You might get attention from boys, but you will never keep a man¡¯s attention. Try covering up a little bit. Maybe use only half the bottle of perfume instead of the whole bottle. Try working on yourself so that you have something to offer other than your heavily made-up face, a ss, and ti ts. Oh, and maybe stop trying to steal taken men.¡± I took one step toward her, to really drive my point home. ¡°You¡¯re going to leave here of your own ord this time, only because these three would pull me off you. But if I ever see your face this close to me again, I¡¯ll make sure your a ss and ti ts will be the only thing you have to offer going forward. Now, and I mean this in the nicest way possible, so please listen to my words, hand over the key fob and get the fuc k out of here.¡± I walked toward her with my hand out, waiting for her to ce the key fob in my hand. She looked at me like she wanted to say something. I raised my eyebrow and stared at her, daring her to speak. She looked past me toward Adrik. ¡°You¡¯re going to let her speak to me like that?¡± she asked. Still trying to stir some shi t, I see. My patience was wearing thin. My head was starting to pound.. I heard him chuckle. ¡°You say that like I would want to stop her.¡± She scoffed at him, mumbling something under her breath. My patience had officially run out. ¡°You¡¯re testing my level of give a fuc k, Vanessa. Key fob. NOW.¡± I let my anger slip out. Viktor and Ivan took a step back, causing Vanessa¡¯s eyes to go wide. She reached into her purse, pulling out the key fob. She timidly handed it to me. ¡°Oh look. It does exist,¡± I said, rolling my eyes. ¡°Remember, lies need to be believable, sweetheart. Now, and I cannot stress this enough, get the FUC K out of my sight.¡± I turned to look at Ivan, who was trying hard not tough. He moved to escort her out of the building. I handed the key fob to Viktor, who also looked highly amused. Adrik opened his arms for me. I walked back to him, as he wrapped his arms around me. I rested my head on his chest. Once Ivan and Viktor had walked her out of his office, I looked up at him. ¡°My God, how long did it take your sense of smell toe back after breaking up with her? Like seriously. How could you smell anything after five minutes in the same room as her?¡± Heughed. ¡°It has gotten much worse since I dated her. That was one reason I never let her live here, though.¡± I cocked my head to the side. ¡°She didn¡¯t live here? Why did she have a key fob then?¡± He smiled at me. ¡°None of my girlfriends ever lived here. That¡¯s why she had a key fob, so she could come here without someone having to fetch her. My guys never stayed with any of my girlfriends, either. Frankly, it never crossed my mind. You¡¯re the only one that they watch over. And the only one to live here. And the house too. No one else knows that ce exists.¡± He gently ran his fingers through my hair, pushing a few curls back from my face. I closed my eyes, enjoying his touch, as well as trying to get some relief from my pounding head. I sighed. ¡°I love you, Adrik.¡± I felt his lips gently on mine. ¡°And I love you, Persephone.¡± Viktor and Ivan walked back in soon after, both looking more amised than I¡¯d ever seen them. ¡°Sephie,¡± Viktor started, but paused. ¡°You¡¯re just¡­ fuc king awesome.¡± Ivan said, ¡°you should¡¯ve seen the tantrum she threw on her way out of the building. She was pi ssed. I have to say I¡¯ve been wanting to be able to throw her out of the building for a long time now. Thank you for that.¡± He looked at Adrik, smirking. ¡°Let me guess, you hated her from pretty much the beginning?¡± I asked, smiling at Ivan. He nodded. ¡°She showed up a few times when Boss was busy and couldn¡¯t see her. She would throw major tantrums, like that was going to make him want to see her. She never did it in front of him though, but she would scream and yell at me. It never once worked, but she kept trying.¡± I looked at Adrik. ¡°I¡¯m beginning to question your choices in women.¡± He shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I didn¡¯t even date her for that long. I think she was only a couple of months. She was very¡­ Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. boring.¡± I held my hand up. ¡°Don¡¯t expand on that. I don¡¯t need to know. Now, can we get out of here? My head is seriously pounding. from having to smell the entire bottle of perfume at once.¡± Adrik held me closer, his hands in my hair to try and give me some relief. ¡°Of course, solnishko. I¡¯ll have someone fumigate the office too.¡± ¡°And the elevator. We smelled her when we left the 5th floor,¡± I said. I leaned into him, sniffing his clothes. ¡°And we should. burn these clothes. It¡¯s on everything. Burn the key fob too, I don¡¯t even care.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want your own key fob, princess?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Why would I need one? I have six of them already,¡± I said, winking at him Chapter 111 Chapter 111 Chapter One Hundred Eleven Sephie The four of us got in the elevator, me trying to breathe as little as possible. I looked at Ivan, grinning at him. ¡°You guys should shower and change and then grab the other three ande upstairs. We¡¯ll order food. Being bitchy makes me hungry.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure? I thought your head was hurting?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°I mean, it is. But I want to see the look on Ivan¡¯s face when Misha tells him about what happened while you guys were away. I think not smelling this God-awful perfume anymore will help my headache go away. Seriously. I should¡¯ve punched her just to see if I could restart her olfactory senses.¡± I heard Viktor¡¯s deepugh as I pinched the bridge of my nose, closing my eyes. The doors dinged for their floor. Ivan said, ¡°give us 20 minutes, princess.¡± As the doors closed, Adrik wrapped his arms around me. ¡°How bad is your headache, solnishko?¡± ¡°Not excruciating, but it¡¯s not getting better either. I can¡¯t get away from this smell though. I feel like I can taste it.¡± He chuckled, kissing my temple. ¡°We have just enough time to shower,¡± he whispered in my ear. I opened my eyes, looking up at him, knowing full well what he meant. ¡°You like it when I get all bitchy,¡± I saidughing. ¡°Surprisingly hot,¡± was all he said as the doors opened for the penthouse. He grabbed my hand, pulling me quickly toward the door. The guys were already on the couches when we came out of the bedroom. At least Adrik had closed the bedroom door before ripping my clothes off. ¡°How¡¯s your headache, princess?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°So much better now that I can smell again,¡± I said grinning at him. ¡°You¡¯re getting headaches again, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked, a look of genuine concern on his face. Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Ivan looked to Andrei. ¡°Vanessa.¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± Andrei and Misha both said at once. Viktor said, ¡°do you remember how she said she ¡®lost¡¯ the key fob for the elevator? Well, apparently she found it and used it this evening. She was in Boss¡¯s office when we got back from the 5th floor.¡± ¡°And¡­ how did that go?¡± Misha asked, his wide smile across his face. Ivanughed. ¡°We knew it was Vanessa as soon as we got on the elevator. She always wore the same perfume. I was more worried about Sephie seeing her and jumping to a wrong conclusion.¡± He looked to me, somewhat apologetically. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I worried about that. I should¡¯ve known you¡¯d see through whatever she was pulling right away.¡± I winked at him, shaking my head. He continued, ¡°when we got to the office, Vanessa was sitting on the edge of his desk. He was all the way at the other end of the desk, like he was trying to get away from her. He stood up and walked all the way around the other side so he wouldn¡¯t be anywhere near her to get to Sephic.¡± Adrik added, ¡°I was a little worried about how Sephie would read this situation too. I wanted to hold onto her, you know, just in case.¡± Heughed, looking at my shocked expression. Viktor picked up the story. ¡°We were all worried but had no reason to be. Of course, Sephie saw through the bu llsh it right away. Ivan told her to return the key fob. She lied and said the elevator was open. Sephie told her if she was going to lie that it needed to at least be believable. She said she¡¯s been living here for months and the elevator has never once been open. You should¡¯ve seen the look on Vanessa¡¯s face when Sephie said she¡¯s been living here. She made a snarkyment about Boss not. even knowing her name.¡± He startedughing and couldn¡¯t finish. Both Ivan and Adrik had started laughing too and couldn¡¯t speak. Misha, Andrei, and Stephen looked to me to finish the story. I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°I just told her she was wrong and that he knows my name. He screams it often.¡± I could feel my cheeks flush slightly. ¡°OH SH IT!¡± Misha said, all of them nowughing too. In betweenughs, Ivan managed to say, ¡°but that¡¯s not all. She kept going. She called out Vanessa and what she was trying to do, then told her that all she had to offer to a man was her body. She told her that because the three of us were there that she wouldn¡¯t rearrange Vanessa¡¯s face, but if she ever sees her again, she will. She told her to give the key fob back and then to fu ck off.¡± ¡°I meant it in the nicest way possible,¡± I said,ughing. Adrik said, ¡°but it still gets better. Vanessa asked me if I was going to let Sephie speak to her that way. I saw the exact moment that Sephie¡¯s patience ran out. She turned back to Vanessa, telling her as much and letting her anger slip out. The three of us all know that tone of voice. We all took a step back at the same time. Vanessa went wh ite, but she da mn sure produced the key fob and handed it to Sephie.¡± ¡°And then Sephie reminded her that lies needed to be believable and told her to get the fu ck out of her sight,¡± Ivan finished, stillughing. Misha, Andrei, and Stephen were stunned for a moment, but they all three stood at once, pping. I bowed as dramatically as I could. ¡°Who wants pizza? Being bitchy works up an appetite.¡± I patted my stomach,ughing. They all agreed and a call was made.. ¡°Now, while we wait, it¡¯s Misha¡¯s turn for story time.¡± Misha¡¯s wide smile crept over his face. Poor Andrei¡¯s cheeks went red, having to relive it all again. I walked behind Andrei and climbed over the couch to sit behind him while Misha told the story. I was wedged in between his sizeable frame and the back. of the couch, my legs and arms around him. ¡°I¡¯ll be your emotional support spider monkey for this, Bubba.¡± He patted my legs. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, spider monkey. Chapter 112 Chapter 112 Chapter One Hundred Twelve Sephie Misha looked to Ivan. ¡°You¡¯re going to be so happy when you hear this story, man. So, we went to the house the morning after you guys left. Sephie wanted to. We get there and poor Andrei is scared shitless because he hasn¡¯t spoken to Tori since we got back. So, of course Sephie devises a n to let him go in the house alone for a few moments with her before we all walk in.¡± I hugged Andrei a little tighter. ¡°Yeah, so about that, that was a di ck move. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Heughed. ¡°It was a di ck move, but I forgive you.¡± Misha continued, ¡°turns out Tori wasn¡¯t there when we got there. She¡¯d gone to the store for more food. Sephie wanted to go for a walk, so Andrei and I went with her. I wanted to go for a walk. Andrei wanted to put off the inevitable.¡± Andrei nodded his head,pletely unashamed of his actions. ¡°We were gone for a few hours. We sat by theke almost the whole time, which made Sephie¡¯s hip sore. Andrei offered to carry her back to the house, but she refused because of Tori. I offered instead and she refused at first, but took me up on the offer before we got to the house. We walked into the kitchen and Tori had her back to us. We just stopped and waited for her to turn around and see us there. Not gonna lie, I was just as scared as Andrei at this point.¡± Stephen interjected, ¡°any of us would have been. She¡¯s scary.¡± ¡°So turns around and Andrei speaks first. Tori is immediately bitchy and makes ament about us still being alive. Andrei tried to exin that having to go no-contact was as much for her safety as ours. Then she looks at Sephie and makes ament about us remaining in contact with her. Andrei tried to smooth it over by telling her she was with us, but it wasn¡¯t what she was thinking. That¡¯s when it all went to he ll. She made ament about us carrying around Sephie like a ¡®go ddamn princess that can¡¯t be bothered to walk or something to that effect,¡± Ivan interrupted him, looking to me. ¡°She really said that?¡± he asked,pletely shocked. I nodded my head. ¡°I should also add that she was abusing this one head of broli during this entire exchange. Like she mmed it on the counter and then had this giant knife that she was just murdering the broli with while this was. happening.¡± I made a dramatic motion like I was stabbing something with one hand. Ivan clicked his tongue. I could see the anger starting toe to the surface. Misha picked the story up. ¡°I saw red when she said that, so I set Sephie down and walked toward Tori. I told her she was never to speak about Sephie like that again, not only because she¡¯s Boss¡¯s girlfriend but because she¡¯s our little sister and if she ever said something like that again I would drag her to the front gate s she could leave.¡± Andrei squeezed ne a little tighter when Misha referred to me as their little sister. I caught Adrik¡¯s gaze from the couch opposite to us, his sexy smirk on his face. He winked at me, causing me to smile at him. Viktor asked, ¡°what did Tori say after that?¡± ¡°Nothing. We didn¡¯t give her a chance to say anything. We left the kitchen and went upstairs to the office. I told Boss what she said right away, even though Sephie didn¡¯t want me to,¡± Andrei said, looking sideways at me. Ivan clicked his tongue again, looking at me. ¡°Why would you not want him to tell Boss that?¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°She was just mad. People sometimes say things when they¡¯re mad. I figured she would calm down and feel differently.¡± Ivan looked at Adrik, who nodded his head once. Ivan looked back at me. ¡°What¡¯s said in anger is the truth, princess.¡± I know, I know. That¡¯s exactly what Adrik said,¡± I said smiling at Adrik. ¡°So, what did you do?¡± Ivan asked Adrik. ¡°I made sure Andrei didn¡¯t want to pursue anything further with her and then I fired her,¡± he said, smiling. Ivan stood up, both hands in the air, ¡°YES!¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at his excitement. Even Andreiughed. ¡°I¡¯m going to enjoy going to the house so much more now,¡± Ivan said, smiling. ¡°I told you he was going to be excited about this,¡± Misha said to me. ¡°You were totally right. I had no idea that Ivan hated her that much. Why did you ha te her that much, anyway?¡± I asked Ivan. He thought for a minute. ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly. There was just always something about her that irritated me. She acted like she was scared of us, but I never felt like she really was. There was something always underneath the surface with her that didn¡¯t sit right with me. It changed once you got here, too. I don¡¯t think anyone else caught it, but I caught her looking at Sephie a few times when she thought no one was looking. It was pure hatred, especially when Boss couldn¡¯t keep his hands off her. I think that¡¯s where her jealousy really came from. She really wanted Boss and was mad because he never looked twice at her.¡± Who doesn¡¯t want that sexy a ss man. I mean, look at him. LOOK AT HIM,¡± I said, pointing at Adrik. He just shook his head,ughing at my silliness. Andrei said, ¡°now that you mention it, she did talk about him a lot. She seemed astounded that we were all so different after Sephie came. Like she couldn¡¯t understand it.¡± ¡°She asked me what my secret was like the day after I got you two to talk. Spoiler alert: I have no secret.¡± Stephen got up to get a drink from the kitchen. ¡°You¡¯re unapologetically you, Sephie. It allows us the same freedom. She¡¯s still trying to pretend she¡¯s someone she¡¯s clearly not, therefore she doesn¡¯t know how to act and doesn¡¯t understand why we act differently around you.¡± I just looked at him, somewhat shocked. ¡°You¡¯re like Yoda, just taller. And less green. You¡¯re so quiet all the time and then you just drop a giant truth bomb on everyone, then don¡¯t speak again for 5-7 business days.¡± ¡°My ears are nowhere near that big,¡± he said, pretending to be offended. ¡°Valid point. Completely valid,¡± I said, smiling at himN?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. Chapter 113 Chapter 113 Chapter One Hundred Thirteen Adrik We talked andughed for hours that evening. I can¡¯t remember thest time I had this much fun. We told Sephie stories about our crazy adventures, which usually involved at least one of us almost dying. She was always so curious and enthusiastic to always know more. I found myself enjoying telling her stories and enjoying her reaction just as much. I knew the guys all felt. the same way. There weren¡¯t many people that we could talk to about the things we¡¯d done in our past without fear of them leaving. She epted uspletely, past and all. Every time I think I can¡¯t possibly love her more, she proves me wrong yet again. Before they left for the night, Ivan asked about Sephie¡¯s hip. ¡°Tine to change the bandage today or tomorrow?¡± ¡°I was going to do it tonight. It¡¯s been two days since thest one. She¡¯s been walking much better, until she overdid it with walking at the house and sitting by theke too long. You can take a look at it, too. Make sure it looks right. You know more than I do about what it should look like.¡± He nodded his head. Sephie wasughing about something with Viktor. She nced over to me like she could feel my gaze on her, smiling at me. I felt my heart jump in my chest when I saw her smile stretch across her face as she looked at me. Even still. I motioned for her toe to me. She hugged Viktor, kissing his cheek, then walked quickly to me. ¡°We should change your bandage while Ivan is still here so he can see it and make sure it really is getting better,¡± I said, kissing her temple as she wrapped her arms around my waist. ¡°d you remembered, because I forgot that was a thing that was supposed to happen today.¡± She smiled at both of us. ¡°Where do you want to gaze upon my hip bone, gentlemen?¡± She was so much happier since we hade home. She was starting to act like she felt better in Italy, but I could tell she was still in so much pain. She was healed enough now that she felt better. It was easier for her to be her normally happy self. ¡°Everything is in the bathroom,¡± I said, shaking my head at her. I loved her silliness. I loved that she constantly made meugh. ¡°To the loo!¡± She walked toward the bedroom, Ivan and I following her, both equally amused at her. When I peeled the bandage off, she flinched. Her skin was still so sensitive to the adhesive, but that was really the only thing bothering her now. The wound looked even better than thest time we changed the bandage. Ivan really was a genius. He bent down to get a closer look at it. ¡°It¡¯s healing now. No more red around the edges and it¡¯s starting to get smaller. See?¡± he stood up, pointing to it for me to look. I took a closer look and noticed what he was referring to. She was still likely going to have a big scar there, but at least it was starting to heal. It looked like I wouldn¡¯t need to call a doctor, after all. We re-packed it with more honey and put a fresh bandage on it. The other guys were waiting for us to come back out before they went downstairs. They all had looks of concern on their faces, waiting to hear the status of her wound. Ivan put them at ease. ¡°It¡¯s healing. It looks much better now.¡± They all visibly rxed when they heard the news. They, like me, were still carrying some guilt over what had happened to her. Hearing that she was feeling better and finally starting to heal made it easier to cope with. They loved seeing her happy just as much as I did. I knew, without a doubt, that if anything were to happen to me, she would still be well taken care of. They would make sure of it. I foundfort in that thought, especially since it was starting to feel like the calm before the storm with everything going on. They each took turns hugging her good night and headed downstairs. I knew Viktor and Ivan were likely exhausted, but they were having too much fun to want to leave. Once we were alone, she caught me gazing thoughtfully at her, a small smile on my lips. ¡°What are you thinking about, love?¡± she asked me as she cleaned up pizza boxes. There were no leftovers to worry about. The nice thing about having to feed so many men. ¡°How wonderful it is to be able to talk so openly about our past. There aren¡¯t many people that would be sofortable with it. We told stories tonight that we¡¯ve never told anyone,¡± I said, pulling her to me. ¡°I¡¯m d you told me. I love hearing your stories. I love learning about your past. I find it fascinating.¡± She looked up at me, a small smile on her lips. She looked at me with that spark in her eye that only I could see. I still found it so easy to get lost in her eyes. I pressed my lips to hers, wanting to make her mine. Officially. When this mess with the other bosses was over, I decided I was going to marry her. I had never considered marriage before. It just wasn¡¯t something that was important to me. I never wanted children. With Sephie, I found myself indifferent to the idea. I wouldn¡¯t care if it happened, but I also wouldn¡¯t care if it didn¡¯t. I need to have that conversation with her at some point. But I wanted to make her mine. I knew she loved me. I knew she wasn¡¯t going anywhere. But I still wanted to marry her. I looked at her, loving the look in her eyes when she looked at me. ¡°I¡¯m d you¡¯re feeling so much better, too. You¡¯ve been yourself again since we got home. The guys see it too. It makes them feel better too.¡± I keep threatening them with an a ss kicking if they don¡¯t let it go, but I know you all still feel guilt over it. I see the relief on your faces when I don¡¯t limp. It¡¯s unnecessary, but I understand it. I would still feel guilty if the roles were reversed.¡± I smiled sweetly at her. ¡°How did I ever get so lucky to find you? You never cease to amaze me, solnishko.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Especially with the Vanessa situation. I was worried that was going to go very differently.¡± Sheughed, pressing her hands to my chest. ¡°If you wouldn¡¯t have made it sopletely obvious you wanted nothing to do with her, I might¡¯ve felt more jealous. But you¡¯re so obvious anytime another woman looks at you. From the beginning, even. When we went to the restaurant so I could see Max. You wouldn¡¯t even look at another woman that night. You¡¯ve never changed. It¡¯s like they don¡¯t even exist in your world. While I love that about you, the evil side of me secretly also loves it because it makes the women so angry that you won¡¯t even look at them. I might love that part a little too much,¡± she said, looking down. She chewed on her bottom lip. I swiped my thumb over her bottom lip so she would stop chewing it. ¡°You need to know what it¡¯s like to be chosen. Over and over again, solnishko. For me, you¡¯re the only choice. Forever and always. The only choice.¡± Her breath caught, her eyes showing the surprise at my words. I looked at her, knowing she would need to search my eyes. Constantly searching for what she would never find. It was amusing to me now, but I would allow her to do it as many times as she needed to convince herself that I was never going to not choose her. She eventually smiled, convinced once again. She stood on her toes and pressed her lips to mine, pulling me closer to her. God, I love this womanThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 114 Chapter 114 Chapter One Hundred Fourteen Adrik I woke sometime during the night to an empty bed. I was admittedly exhausted by the time we finally went to sleep. I just couldn¡¯t get enough of her right now, especially now that I wasn¡¯t having to hold back as much. She was amazing. She would match my intensity every time, sometimes surprising me with her own intensity. She would regrly test the limits of my endurance and I fu cking loved that about her. I stretched, moving to get up and immediately regretted it. I was sore. I bet she¡¯s sore too. I should calm down for a bit or else she¡¯s going to end up hurt again. I found a pair of pants and slipped them on, getting up to go see where she was. It wasn¡¯t like her to get up in the middle of the night unless something was wrong. It worried me. I found her standing at the windows, a mug in her hand. She heard me walk out and turned toward me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, did I wake you? I was trying to be quiet.¡± She was wearing my shirt from earlier that day and nothing else. There was nothing sexier than seeing her in one of my shirts. I wrapped my arm around her waist from behind her. ¡°Your absence woke me, solnishko,¡± I said, kissing her shoulder. ¡°Are you okay? Did your headachee back?¡± She put one arm on top of mine that was around her waist,cing her fingers through mine. ¡°No, it didn¡¯te back. I can¡¯t get my brain to sh ut off. I made myself some tea hoping it would help me rx and go back to sleep.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on in your brain? Did you have a nightmare again?¡± was concerned she had gotten stuck in the never-ending. loop of the ball again and I didn¡¯t hear her to pull her out of it. That thought was one that terrified me. It seemed like my voice was what could pull her out of that and I was terrified that she would be stuck in that loop and I wouldn¡¯t be there to pull her out of it, leaving her stuck reying that scene endlessly. ¡°No. Well, yes. But not the loop at the ball. When we got on the elevator and I smelled Vanessa¡¯s perfume, my mind. immediately went to the day that Misha and I were attacked. I could see Misha a step ahead of me and I saw him turn back to look at me just as we were both hit. I closed my eyes and tried to not think about it at the time, but my mind jumped. immediately to the night of the ball.¡± I tightened my arm around her, cursing quietly under my breath. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. I was thinking about when I went to the bathroom, Jvan waited outside for me. There were these two women in the bathroom and they were talking about you. I could hear their whole conversation. They were talking about how there were rumors that you were g ay because you hadn¡¯t been seen in public with a woman in years. But then one of them said she knew one of your ex- girlfriends. She said you were always an as shole and would call her the wrong name. That¡¯s when I knew for sure they were talking about you,¡± she giggled. ¡°She made ament about how you never told anyone your real name. Then the other one mentioned the guys and said how much she¡¯d like to take a ride on one of them. Ivan told me I had five minutes, but of course I told him I could be out in three, so I couldn¡¯t wait for them to leave. I walked out and told them I could introduce them to the guys, but that I knew for a fact they appreciated boldness so they should introduce themselves as I washed my hands.¡± I clicked my tongue. ¡°You know they can¡¯t talk to people when they¡¯re working.¡± She giggled. ¡°Why do you think I told them to introduce themselves?¡± I kissed her neck. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit evil, solnishko.¡± I smiled against her neck, biting gently. I felt her sigh as she was lost in her thoughts. ¡°Those two scenes are what you¡¯ve been thinking about instead of sleeping?¡± She nodded her head, sipping the tea. ¡°I can¡¯t get rid of the feeling that something is familiar about those two scenes and can¡¯t figure out why smelling her perfume in the elevator made me think of that. I¡¯ve never seen her before today. At least, not that I know of.¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°We can ask Stephen about it tomorrow. He has experience with hypnosis and how certain things can trigger memories. He might be able to help you connect it.¡± ¡°Why am I not surprised that he¡¯s the one that can mindfuck you?¡± Iughed. ¡°I know, right? You don¡¯t know if he¡¯s just really quiet or if he¡¯s thinking of 50 different ways to ki ll you.¡± Sheughed, leaning her head back against my shoulder, giving meplete ess to her neck. I kissed down her neck as she said, ¡°I said almost the exact same thing to Misha and Andrei the other day.¡± We stood in silence for a few minutes while she kept sipping her tea. She finally yawned and I felt her body rx. ¡°Better?¡± I asked. She nodded. ¡°I¡¯m sleepy again. I made that tea like triple strong, so I apologize in advance if I sleep until noon now.¡± I took the mug from her, setting it down on the coffee table. I picked her up, her head resting against my shoulder. ¡°You can sleep as long as you need to, my love. You¡¯re so much better now hut your body still needs time to heal. It doesn¡¯t help that I¡¯m practically addicted to you now.¡± I kissed her forehead as we walked back to bed. She sighed, making the quiet cooing noise that she only made when she was super sleepy and happy. ¡°I don¡¯t mind that part. I love that part, actually. You take all the pain away for a bit.¡± Iid her down on the bed. She moved over so I could climb in behind her. I wrapped my arms around her as she snuggled back into me. I loved that feeling of having her in my arms, wanting to be as close to me as possible. I held her tightly, knowing she was asleep again almost immediately. I smiled to myself, thinking about how much I loved her as I drifted off to sleep once again as well.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 115 Chapter 115 Chapter One Hundred Fifteen Adrik I woke upte the next morning. Sephie was still sound asleep on my chest. It never seemed to matter how we fell asleep each night, that¡¯s inevitably where she would end up. It seemed to be her favorite spot and I was not going to deny her. I ran my hands through her hair, expecting her to start to wake up. She didn¡¯t move. Guess triple strength tea really does do the trick. Iid under her for a while longer, running my fingers through her hair and over her body, enjoying the peace. I didn¡¯t have anything scheduled until after lunch, so I could afford to spend extra time with her this morning. I felt her fingers start to y on my chest. I smiled, knowing she was having happy dreams, at least. My mind wandered to our conversation earlier and her experience after smelling Vanessa¡¯s perfume. As far as I knew, she hadn¡¯t thought about the attack or the night of the ball for at least a week, if not longer. Once she was able to kick her uncle¡¯s voice out of her head and she broke the loop of the night of the ball, she hadn¡¯t given it much thought. It seemed strange that both incidents woulde back over somethingpletely unrted. Why had Vanessae back? Sephie waspletely right, Vanessa did try to touch me when she came into my office. I¡¯ve never felt so repulsed in my life. The thought of any woman other than Sephie touching me makes my skin crawl. I couldn¡¯t get away fast enough from her. She sat on the edge of the desk and all I could think about was how she was in Sephie¡¯s spot. I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about Sephie sitting on my desk. I wasn¡¯t even listening to what Vanessa was saying. Her voice was always annoying to me on a good day. And my God, the smell. Her perfume was strong when worn correctly. It was unbearable when she wore it. I didn¡¯t even tell Sephie, but I threw out the clothes we were both wearing that night. Somehow, I don¡¯t think she¡¯ll mind. I did eventually catch a few things that Vanessa was saying before Viktor and Ivan walked in with Sephie. She said she¡¯d heard I was back and wanted to make sure I was okay. She said she cried for days when she heard I had been killed. Right. Where would she have heard I was back from? As far as I knew, she wasn¡¯t connected to anyone else in my organization. I always checked out a woman¡¯s background before I dated them. Except for Sephie. I didn¡¯t care when it came to her. My usual rules were thrownpletely out the window when it came to her. I should have one of the guys put somebody on Vanessa for a few days. Something doesn¡¯t feel right about her just ¡°randomly¡± showing back up, after dost two years. I felt Sephie snuggle into me more, still sound asleep, making her tooing noises. I held her tighter against me, d that she had broken me from my own thoughts. Regardless of whether she was aware of it or not. I checked the time. I¡¯d beenying there watching her and thinking about everything for over an hour. I needed to get up so I wouldn¡¯t bete to my meeting with Armando and a few other business owners in the city. We were all working toward the same goal, so I didn¡¯t feel like Sephie¡¯s presence was imperative. All the business owners that wereing were close associates of either Armando or myself. They knew we could help them make even more money. I wasn¡¯t worried about deception with them. Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. I gently picked Sephie up off my chest enough that I could slip out from under her. She stirred just slightly, making me hopeful she would wake. My hopes were dashed when she rolled over and curled up in a new position. I smiled at her, pulling the nket over her so she wouldn¡¯t get cold without me. She always said I kept her warm at night. I carefully crawled back onto the bed and kissed her cheek before leaving to get dressed. I wasn¡¯t looking forward to being away from her, but I wanted her to sleep. Clearly, she needed it. I would have one of the guyse up and wait for her to wake up so she wouldn¡¯t bepletely alone. She still wasn¡¯t awake when I was ready to leave. I left her a note, hoping that she would see it and put pants on before walking out of the bedroom. Not that I didn¡¯t trust my guys, but some things were reserved only for me and I liked it that way. I kissed her once more before quietly leaving for my meeting. I met Viktor and Ivan in my office. ¡°Where¡¯s the princess?¡± Ivan asked, a look of slight concern on his face. She had trouble sleepingst night. I want her to talk to Stephen (oday. She said smelling Vanessa¡¯s perfume took her back to the day of the attack on her and Misha, as well as the night of the ball,¡± I said. Both tensed, looking seriously worried now. ¡°I know. I had the same reaction. She said it wasn¡¯t that loop she was stuck in on the ne. She said it triggered a memory of listening to two other women in the bathroom earlier in the evening.¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°Did she tell you what she did to those women?¡± Iughed, nodding my head. Ivan just shook his head. Viktor looked lost, ¡°what happened?¡± Still smiling, I said, ¡°she overheard these two women talking about me and the rumors about me. One of them apparently knows an ex of mine, so she confirmed the rumors were untrue, but did say I was an as shole that couldn¡¯t remember my girlfriend¡¯s names. That¡¯s how Sephie knew for sure they were talking about me.¡± I paused tough. ¡°The otherdy apparently wanted to take a ride on one of you. They didn¡¯t know Sephie was in there, but because Ivan was waiting for her, she didn¡¯t. want to wait for them to leave, so she came out and offered to introduce them to you guys.¡± ¡°But then she told them that she knew that we appreciated boldness so they should introduce themselves instead,¡± Ivan finished,ughing. Viktor, still somewhat confused, asked, ¡°doesn¡¯t Sephie know we can¡¯t talk to people while we¡¯re working?¡± ¡°Oh, she knew. That¡¯s exactly why she told them to introduce themselves,¡± I said. Viktor cursed under his breath,ughing along with us. ¡°She¡¯s a little bit evil,¡± he said,ughing his deep bellyugh. ¡°That¡¯s why she couldn¡¯t sleepst night. She said she just kept going back to those two scenes, so she got up and made herself some tea. She said she made it triple strength, so it¡¯s not surprising that she¡¯s still sound asleep upstairs. One of you go upstairs and wait for her to wake up. Or send one of the other guys,¡± I said ¡°And I want someone on Vanessa for a few days. It doesn¡¯t make sense that she came back after all this time. That wasn¡¯t random. I need to know who told her toe back.¡± Viktor nodded, ¡°already on it, sir. We had her followed when we tossed her from the building.¡± He pulled his phone from his pocket to send a text, presumably to one of the other three to go wait for Sephie. ¡°Well done. Thank you.¡± ¡°I told Misha and Andrei to battle it out and decide who would go upstairs. Stephen is in the lobby waiting for your associates for the meeting.¡± ¡°Perfect. I know she¡¯s safe up there, but I haven¡¯t been away from her in a few weeks and quite frankly, I don¡¯t like it,¡± I ran my hand through my hair. I knew they would understand my obsessive need to make sure she was always protected. ¡°Honestly, Boss, I¡¯m surprised you were able to leave without her waking up. She¡¯s just as attached to you as you are to her,¡± Ivan said. ¡°If it were anyone else, it might make me want to pu ke, ut you two are fu cking adorable.¡± He grinned when he said it. I red at him butughed. ¡°We are fu cking adorable.¡± We were stillughing when Stephen stuck his head in my office. ¡°Everyone is here, Boss. They¡¯re all in the conference room. Where¡¯s Sephie? Is she okay?¡± I nodded, still asionally surprised at their concern for her. ¡°She¡¯s fine. I want you to talk to herter, though. Vanessa¡¯s perfume triggered memories for her of the day she and Misha were attacked, as well as the ball. We can¡¯t figure out why.¡± He looked surprised. ¡°She didn¡¯t have nightmares again, did she? ¡°No. Well, not the same one as she was in on the ne. Different memories. The fact that she¡¯s thinking about the day she and Misha were attacked is strange to me. She never seemed like that bothered her, at least me ntally, like the ball did. And I have no idea why smelling perfume would trigger the memories.¡± Stephen exhaled. ¡°Could be a number of things, honestly. We¡¯ll talk about itter and get to the bottom of it.¡± I put my hand on his shoulder as I walked out of the office, on my way to the meeting. My mind was on Sephie, not at all on This meeting I was walking into. Chapter 116 Chapter 116 Chapter One Hundred Sixteen Sephie I woke up curled up under the covers. I didn¡¯t even need to check the bed to know that Adrik was gone. I only needed covers when he wasn¡¯t in bed with me. He was like having a personal heater next to me all night long, to covers were never needed. It¡¯s partially why I lovedying across his chest so much. It was the warmest option. Bonus points that he always ran his fingers through my hair when I was on his chest. I stretched my legs out, feeling the soreness from our night before. The day before too. The two days before. I was beginning to lose count, honestly. We couldn¡¯t get enough of each other right now. I hoped it never ended, honestly. I loved every second of it, especially now that he didn¡¯t feel like he had to hold back as much. I was surprised at how much his need for me and his absolute lust for me turned me on. I rolled over, noticing the closed bedroom door. He left me a note. Sephic, Triple strength tea works better than expected. I¡¯m sending one of the guys to wait for you to wake up, so maybe put on pants before leaving the bedroom. I have a meeting this afternoon. You know where to find me. I miss you already. Love you, A Iughed, grateful that he told me to put on pants. Definitely would not have thought of that. I got up, found appropriate clothes. and went to the bathroom to ssh some water on my face. It was just past noon. Triple strength tea really does work. I walked in to find Andrei and Misha both sitting on the couches, discussing something that sounded very serious. ¡°Let me guess, you guys had a draw and couldn¡¯t decide on who woulde up here, so you both came?¡± They bothughed, nodding their heads. I looked at Misha, ¡°we¡¯re going to need to work on your strategy, young grasshopper. You¡¯re too predictable, but at least you switched it up just enough that you forced a draw this time.¡± I winked at him. ¡°How are you feeling, spider monkey? Did the nightmarese backst night?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°No. Well, not exactly. Not the same one as you¡¯re thinking of,¡± I slid, sitting in between them on the couch. ¡°When I first smelled Vanessa¡¯s perfume on the elevator, I had a shback to the day that Misha and I were attacked.¡± I looked to Misha. ¡°I could clearly see you a step ahead of me and the moment when you looked back to stop me right before we were both hit from opposite directions.¡± He looked puzzled. ¡°Why would you think about that moment aft smelling her perfume, gazelle?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. It¡¯s that same weird familiar feeling that I had about the guys that attacked us. Like there¡¯s some connection there that I¡¯m not seeing. When I was on the elevator, I tried to no think about that day. So, instead, my brain jumped to the night of the ball.¡± Both guys cursed under their breath. I smiled at them. ¡°No, not what you¡¯re thinking. Adrik had the same reaction. Ivan had escorted me to the bathroom earlier in the evening. He told me I had five minutes, or he wasing in atter me. Of course, me being me, I told him I could be out in three. When I was in one of the stalls, there were two women who came out and were at the sink. They were talking about Adrik and about the rumors he was g ay. One of them said she knew one of his exes, that he was an as shole, and that he never remembered her name. That¡¯s how I knew for sure they were talking about him. One of them, the one that knew his ex, made ament about him never telling anyone his real name. The other one made ament about you guys and how much she¡¯d like to take a ride on any one of you. I was hoping they would leave before I came out, but of course, they lingered. I wasn¡¯t going to let Ivan win, so I came out. They immediately recognized me. I just smiled and told them that I could introduce them to you guys, but that I happened to know that you guys appreciated boldness so they should Introduce themselves. It was just under three minutes, in case you were wondering.¡± Iughed. Spider monkey, you know we can¡¯t talk to anyone when we¡¯re working, right?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°Of course I know. That¡¯s why I told them to introduce themselves.¡± They both startedughing. Misha gave me a high five. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit evil, gazelle.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think any of you would¡¯ve been interested, if i¡¯m being honest. They both looked like the type to look like apletely different person without makeup. Somehow, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the type of girl any of you go for. I could be wrong though. It¡¯s happened like once before.¡± They both turned up their noses, shaking their heads no. I crossed my arms over my chest. ¡°I rest my case,¡± smiling at them both. ¡°Why would smelling Vanessa¡¯s perfume make you think of those two instances?¡± Misha asked, puzzled. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Adrik wants me to talk to Stephenter, because OF COURSE he¡¯s the one that would know how to mindfuck someone.¡± We allughed. Poor Stephen really was just a nice guy, but he was so much quieter than the rest of them that it made him stand out. ¡°Are you hungry, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°Don¡¯t ask st upid questions, Bubba. Of course I¡¯m hungry. And of course I want someone to bring me some Vinny¡¯s,¡± I looked at him, a devilish grin on my face. Misha pulled his phone out of his pocket. He gave orders, in Russian, then ended the call, putting his phone back in his pocket. ¡°They¡¯ll be here shortly.¡± His wide smile stretching across his face. His ck hair was getting longer on top, so it would fall over his eyes frequently, causing him to brush it back out of his eyes. ¡°You guys are so good to me.¡± I got up to get some water from the kitchen. ¡°Anybody else want some water?¡± Both hands shot up. I grabbed three water bottles from the fridge and returned to the couch. ¡°Who knows what the meeting Adrik has today is about?¡± ¡°He¡¯s meeting with business associates of his, Armando, and a few business associates of Armando¡¯s as well. They¡¯re all people. he regrly does business with. They¡¯ve been working on a project for a while now,¡± Andrei said. N?velDrama.Org holds text ? rights. ¡°Sounds exciting,¡± I said, sarcastically. ¡°That¡¯s probably why Adrik left a somewhat open invitation for me to interrupt the meeting.¡± Andrei chuckled. ¡°You can interrupt any meeting he¡¯s in. He won¡¯t care if it¡¯s you.¡± I grinned at him. ¡°Just because I can, doesn¡¯t mean I should.¡± Misha¡¯s phone rang once in his pocket. He looked at it. ¡°Food is downstairs. I¡¯ll be right back,¡± he said getting up to go fetch our lunch. 1 ¡°Misha, I can¡¯t even begin to describe how much I love you in this moment,¡± 1 called after him. I just heard himugh as he opened the door. ¡°What am I? Chopped liver?¡± Andrei asked, faking outrage. ¡°Bubba, you know I love you. Besides, I still have to make it up to you over the whole Tori situation. That did not go as I had nned.¡± He shook his head no. ¡°You didn¡¯t know she would ultimately turn out to be like that. You were just doing what you always do trying to make everyone else happy. There¡¯s nothing to make up for. You¡¯re still my favorite spider monkey.¡± Chapter 117 Chapter 117 Chapter One Hundred Seventeen Sephie We ate lunch and decided to pass the time in the gym. I still wasn¡¯t 100 percent but was getting stronger with each day. I¡¯d worked out a few times since getting hurt, with Andrei¡¯s guidance, and didn¡¯t make anything worse. So far, so good. Besides, working out harder meant I could eat more. It was a win-win for me. Andrei still wouldn¡¯t let me work out like normal and he insisted that I keep it short. Today was no different, but at least it was something. It also helped me pass the time until Adrik was out of his meeting. After I was done in the gym, we went back to the penthouse so I could shower and change. It was middle of the afternoon by the time I was done with all that, so I decided to check on the status of the meeting, thinking it would be done. When we got to Adrik¡¯s office, Ivan was sitting in the office. ¡°Boss is still in the meeting, princess, but I¡¯m sure he will be happy for you to interrupt,¡± he said when we walked in. He had at knowing grin on his face, like he knew Adrik would be missing me as much as I was missing him. ¡°How are they still going? Hasn¡¯t it been a couple hours already? Is this meeting that serious?¡± I asked, surprised they weren¡¯t done yet. Ivan shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s not serious. Justplicated. Go interrupt. He¡¯ll be grateful you did. Trust me,¡± he winked at me. ¡°Are you trying to get me in trouble, Grumplestiltskin?¡± ¡°Not at all. I promise you can punch me in the nose again if he¡¯s mad that you interrupted the meeting.¡± He sounded sincere. I squinted my eyes at him, but decided to test it. I walked to the meeting room, cracking the door open quietly. I stuck my head. in, seeing Viktor standing by the door. He grinned at me and motioned me inside the room. As I stepped around the door, he cleared his throat. Adrik immediately looked to Viktor, his eyes finding mine. He smirked, motioning me toe to him. No oneThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. else in the meeting had noticed me step inside the room. I initially resisted, but he raised his eyebrow at me, looking at met sternly. I felt a gentle push from Viktor as I walked sheepishly towiird him. As I got closer, I noticed an empty chair on the opposite side of him. He pulled it closer to him, making it obvious that it was there for me, in case I decided to disrupt the meeting. I sat down quickly, ncing at the other men in the meeting. Most of them were so engrossed in what was being said that they still hadn¡¯t noticed me. Adrik put his arm across myp, his hand on my thigh. I held onto his arm, smiling at him shyly, happy to be able to see him and touch him again. This was the longest we¡¯d been apart in a few weeks and as si lly as it sounds, I missed him. He squeezed my thigh, like he was reading my mind. Armando noticed me and nodded his head at me. I smiled at him, listening to what was being said and looking at the other men more closely. They all lookedfortable in the meeting and they were all very upied with whomever was speaking. A few of them nodded along to things being said. A few would make a face at something that was said, but would add their two cents, and the conversation would continue. I looked at Adrik to find him. watching me, watching everyone else. He raised an eyebrow at me, silently asking if I caught anything out of the ordinary. I smiled at him and shook my head no. I heard him exhale quietly. I smiled to myself at how much he was starting to rely on my assessment of people. I squeezed his arm. He squeezed my thigh in response. The meeting kept going, the subject changing several times. They were very thorough in their nning. The project was a simr one to Armando¡¯s project in Naples, but to arger scale. The building would be a multi-purpose building, with restaurants, office space, as well as apartments. There were a few njen who expressed concern over getting restaurants on board with leasing space in the building. Before I realized I said it out loud, I said, ¡°why would you be worried about that? They have a built-in customer base if they lease space in this building. They don¡¯t even need to do outside advertising. They can sustain their business strictly on the people in the building. That¡¯s a restaurant¡¯s wet dream.¡± Everyone stopped and looked at me, most of them shocked to see me, as they still hadn¡¯t realized I was in the room. ¡°Oh, sh it. I said that out loud, didn¡¯t I?¡± I put my hand over my mo uth, my eyes wide. I looked to Adrik, who was simply smiling at me. He squeezed my thigh, his thumb rubbing circles. She makes a great point, gentleman. If we present it like that, I don¡¯t see how any restaurant would be wary of leasing space in this building,¡± he said. Armando winked at me. ¡°I agree. I think we should present it as a restaurant¡¯s wet dream, even,¡± he saidughing. The whole room startedughing, helping me to feel somewhat relieved I opened my big mo uth. I chewed on my bottom lip, still embarrassed. I looked to Adrik again, his eyes darkened as he looked at my bottom lip, his grip on my thigh tightening. Soon after, the rest of the room collectively decided that they had gotten through all the points they wanted to. Everyone stood to indicate the end of the meeting. They were talking amongst themselves, shaking hands, getting updates on various other projects, and continuing smaller points about the meeting that just concluded. Adrik stood and pulled me up. My hip was sore from sitting for so long, but I was able to stand without flinching. Armando walked to me, opening his arms for a hug. ¡°Sephie, I¡¯m so d you joined us.¡± I hugged him as he asked quietly. ¡°anything off?¡± I stepped back, smiling at him. I shook my head no. ¡°All good, Mando. How¡¯s Giana? Is she still mostly terrified?¡± He chuckled. ¡°Mostly, yes, but she¡¯s getting better. It¡¯s been a crazy few days for her, admittedly.¡± He had a faraway look in his eye as he thought about her. A small smile crept across his lips as he was lost in thought. ¡°She seems like a sweet girl.¡± I said. He nodded, still clearly thinking of something else. Or someone else. A few of the other men walked up to Adrik, then spoke to me, stillughing at myment. ¡°You should consider a job in marketing¡± a few of them said, still amused. They started filing out of the meeting room. The guys were escorting them down to the lobby as they left the meeting. I felt Adrik¡¯s arm around me, his lips on my temple. ¡°I¡¯m very happy you decided to join me.¡± I turned to look at him. ¡°I almost didn¡¯t, but Ivan said I could punch him in the nose again if you were mad that I interrupted the meeting. I decided to test that.¡± I grinned at him as heughed at me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you won¡¯t get to punch him in the nose, but I¡¯m still happy you joined me. I missed you,¡± he said quietly. I looked around the room to see who was left and if any of them were paying to attention to us. There were only a few men left in the room, along with Armando, and nobody was looking at us. I kissed Adrik quickly. ¡°I missed you too. That¡¯s really why I interrupted. I mean, punching Ivan would¡¯ve just been an empty perk for not being able to see you.¡± He pulled me closer to him, kissing me again, this time more passionately. ¡°You shoulde to all my meetings, solnishko. You offer valuable insight,¡± he said. Iughed. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you put up with me and my inability to control my mo uth.¡± Chapter 118 Chapter 118 Chapter One Hundred Eighteen Adrik I was lost in my own thoughts about whether Sephie was awake yet when I heard Viktor clear his throat. I looked toward him, immediately catching her eye. My breath caught when I saw her. She had a wh ite, long-sleeved blouse on. Her wounds were much better, but still visible, so she preferred long- sleeves when she was around anyone else but us. She paired that with a pair. of ck jeans. I was still in awe of how she could make a pair of jeans look so sexy so consistently. She wasn¡¯t one to put a ton of effort into her appearance and yet she was still the most beautiful woman in the room. I could tell that she¡¯d showered and applied the smallest bit of makeup that she would wear. She still made my heart threaten to stop when I saw her. I motioned for her toe to me. She nced around at everyone else, nervously. She hesitated to come to me. I looked at her more sternly and motioned again for her toe to me. Viktor gently pushed her toward me. He knew I had made sure there was a chair for her, in case she decided to join the meeting. I wanted to get up and show her how much I missed her at this moment, but that might be too much of a distraction. Most of the men weren¡¯t even paying attention and hadn¡¯t noticed her walk in and sit down next to me. I put my arm across herp, happy to be touching her once again. ¡°Why would you be worried about that? They have a built-in customer base if they lease space in this building. They don¡¯t even need to do outside advertising. They can sustain their business strictly on the people in the building. That¡¯s a restaurant¡¯s wet dream.¡± I tried to notugh too loudly at what she just blurted out. ¡°Oh sh it. I just said that out loud, didn¡¯t I?¡± She was so adorable that I almost couldn¡¯t take it. I loved it when she said what was on her mind. She always had very valid points. Everyone else in the meeting was shocked at her presence, more than they were at what she said. While these guys were all seasoned businessmen, they¡¯ve said much worse in meetings before. This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. I was going to have to convince her toe to all my meetings, if for no other reason than heric relief, as well as her superb observation skills. After talking with Stephen extensively about what happened when she smelled Vanessa¡¯s perfume in the elevator, he decided that there was some unconscious connection between both events that her subconscious had picked up on, but she wasn¡¯t necessarily aware of in her conscious mind. He tried to walk her through the day of the attack on her and Misha, asking her to think about every detail she could remember including sounds and smells that she might not have noticed the first time around. Not exactly a hypnosis but trying to pull more detailed memories out of her. She did well until she got to the moment that the guy hit her and took her to the ground. We could all see her body start to shake as she relived that moment. It was clearly still traumatic for her, so Stephen stopped. He nced to me and nodded his head toward her. I immediately went to her, wrapping my arms around her, pulling her into myp. She sighed and rxed as soon as she felt my arms around her. She opened her eyes, looking at me. I saw fear in her eyes. She had done such a good job of hiding it from me when it happened that I thought she was handling it well. I felt a pain in my chest thinking of how I¡¯d let her down. I kissed her forehead, holding her closer to me. She was still shaking, but it wasn¡¯t as bad as I¡¯d felt it before. She inhaled. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know this was going to happen.¡± ¡°Shhh. Don¡¯t ever be sorry for this. Ever,¡± I sald, looking her in the eyes. ¡°This is your body¡¯s way of processing the trauma, Sephie. Do you know what rabbits do when they get away from a predator?¡± Stephen asked. She shook her head no. ¡°They go to their den and do this very thing. They shake to process the trauma of narrowly escaping death. They let it happen, then pop up like nothing happened. If you don¡¯t let this happen, then you¡¯ll remain stuck in the moment of the trauma, if you will. Your body knows what it¡¯s doing. You¡¯re smart for not fighting it. You processed the night of the ball more than you ever did with the attack on you and Misha, but I doubt you¡¯re donepletely with either.¡± ¡°So, I have more of this to look forward to in my future?¡± she asked him. ¡°Don¡¯t sho ot the messenger, but yeah. More than likely,¡± he said. He looked at her with a look of sympathy on his face. ¡°Awesome,¡± she said. She tried to put on a brave face, but I could still see the fear behind her smile when she looked at me. ¡°I¡¯ll be right here with you, solnishko.¡± I tightened my arms around her as she rested her head against my chest. ¡°Maybe next time if you¡¯re here with me, we won¡¯t have to stop.¡± She looked up at me, like she was asking me if I would be willing to. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her. ¡°Of course, my love. Like I would turn down an opportunity to have you in my arms.¡± She smiled at me, the fear dissolving for a moment. ¡°Let¡¯s give it a few days and then we can try it again. There¡¯s a connection between everything, we just have to find it,¡± Stephen said. He looked to Misha. ¡°Did you notice any strong smells the day you two were attacked?¡± Misha thought for a moment. ¡°No, I was focused on what I was feeling and the number of people that were suddenly around us. I don¡¯t remember anything else.¡± ¡°Did you smell her perfume when she was here?¡± I asked. He shook his head no. ¡°Go to the closet in the bedroom. There¡¯s a trash bag all the way at the back. It has the clothes we had on that day. You¡¯ll be able to smell it on the clothes. Just leave the bag where it is and close it back tight so Sephie can¡¯t smell it. I forgot to grab it this morning to throw it out. Guess that¡¯s a good thing.¡± Sephie looked at me, surprised. ¡°I was only kidding when I said we needed to burn those clothes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only one that ha tes that smell, solnishko.¡± I kissed her forehead. Misha returned, a look of nausea on his face. ¡°God, I forgot how much I hated that smell.¡± ¡°More importantly, does it bring anything up for you?¡± Stephen asked. Chapter 119 Chapter 119 Chapter One Hundred Neen Adrik Misha sat back down, exhaling. He was deep in thought for a few moments. I felt Sephie¡¯s fingers on my neck and chest, ying with my cor the way she did when I would carry her anywhere. Her head still resting on my chest. She sighed, her body. continuing to rx the longer we sat there. ¡°I get that familiar feeling that Sephie was talking about and I feel the same feeling of impending doom that I felt that day on the sidewalk right now,¡± Misha finally said. ¡°But I don¡¯t know if the familiar feeling is because we were all forced to smell that perfume for a few months or if it was something to do with the day of the attack. I did not see her on the sidewalk. At least I don¡¯t remember seeing her.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible she was there, just ahead of you, or she was a part of the sea of people that were suddenly around you two. It would¡¯ve been difficult to pick her out of the crowd. The bigger question is whether she was there by chance or by design. And we still need to figure out the link to the ball. None of us saw her that night. We would¡¯ve remembered that,¡± Stephen said, scratching his chin. ¡°Maybe one of the women in the bathroom wore the same brand of perfume? If they said they knew one of Adrik¡¯s exes, then maybe it was Vanessa. Maybe they wear the same perfume? Although I don¡¯t know why you would double up on that hot mess of a scent,¡± Sephie said, her fingers still lightly running over my neck, down my chest where my shirt was open. I wasn¡¯t sure if she knew she was driving me crazy and was enjoying it, or she had no idea. Either way, she was driving me crazy. ¡°That¡¯s entirely possible. That would exin why you remembered that exact moment in the elevator,¡± Stephen said. ¡°That¡¯s a satisfactory exnation for the night of the ball. There were a lot of people there, but we definitely would¡¯ve seen Vanessa if she were there. I also can¡¯t see her getting an invitation to that event. It¡¯s, uh, a little above her,¡± Stephen said, somewhat sheepishly. Ivan chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s a lot above her, let¡¯s be honest.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure she¡¯s a perfectly nice girl. You know, when she¡¯s not trying to seduce other women¡¯s boyfriends,¡± Sephie chuckled. She sat up straighter, stretching her back. I had pulled her sideways into myp. I turned her so she could lean back against my chest and wrapped my arms around her waist. She held onto my arms around her, crossing her legs in between mine. Ivan shook his head no. ¡°You haven¡¯t seen her other side, princess. She¡¯s definitely not a nice girl. She¡¯s the opposite of a nice girl, especially with me.¡± Sephie looked at Ivan, ¡°that¡¯s because your demons irritate her demons. That¡¯s your superpower, Squishy. Your demons bring out the worst in everyone, those parts that they try so hard to cover up, so others can see them the same way you do. You just need to remember that your demons work for you now instead of the other way around.¡± Ivan looked stunned. He thought for a moment, then a sly smile appeared on his face. ¡°I feel vulnerably diagnosed, but you¡¯re right.¡± He winked at her. She giggled. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± In unison, everyone else said, ¡°hey!¡± I was worried how Sephie would sleep that night, but she slept through the night with no issues. She spent the entire night on my chest, which may or may not have helped her avoid nightmares, but I wasn¡¯tining. I woke up several times, worried about her, and each time, she was still sleeping soundly on my chest. I wasn¡¯t going to risk moving her, so I would run my hands through her hair or over her back and would feel her snuggle into me more, which would help me drift back to sleep. Three Days Later Sephie was sitting in between my legs, leaning back against me, with my arms wrapped around her as Stephen tried once again to walk her through the day she and Misha were attacked. He put her into a deep meditative state, then walked her through the events leading up to the attack. This time, however, when they got to the moments just before they were both hit, her body stayed rxed, allowing her to continue. ¡°Sephie, you see Misha just in front of you. He looks back to you, then what happens?¡± Stephen prompted her. ¡°I feel arms around me, pushing me to the ground. I feel my face smash against the concrete. I¡¯m stunned, but I feel the arms loosen around me, so I flip over like Viktor showed me and get the person off me. I can see his eyes. There¡¯s something weird. about his eyes. He smells weird too. It doesn¡¯t match. He¡¯s wearing di rty clothes, like he might be homeless, but he smells like expensive perfume. I toss him off me. I can¡¯t find Misha at first, but then I see him punch the guy who attacked him. I see red at this point. It¡¯s like I¡¯m not entirely in control of my body. I didn¡¯t think about jumping on the guy and punching him. I just did it. I was so angry that I wanted him dead in that moment. I feel someone pull me off, but I still can¡¯t see anything but red. I feel a hand on me, but this one doesn¡¯t make me mad. I can hear familiar voices, but it takes me a minute to snap out of it and see Misha in front of me. I realize it¡¯s his hand on me. That¡¯s why it didn¡¯t make me mad. Once I snap out of it, I start to feel the pounding in my head. I¡¯m only vaguely aware that I¡¯m bleeding. Misha keeps his hand on me. It¡¯s like a lifeline to reality. I close my eyes and I can smell that god awful perfume again. I open my eyes, but I can¡¯t see very clearly. All I can really focus. on is Misha¡¯s hand on me. It¡¯s keeping me here. I can see the darkriessing. I¡¯ve seen it before many times. I know what it is. and what it does, but it stays back as long as Misha¡¯s hand is on me.¡± I nce in Misha¡¯s direction and his eyes are red. He had no idea he had this much of an effect on her that day. His jaw is clenched. I can tell he¡¯s fighting back breaking down. None of us knew she was struggling this much to stay conscious when it happened. It¡¯s a testament to her strength that she remained conscious as long as she did. I tighten my hold on her waist as I think about how incredibly strong she is for everything she¡¯s been through. ¡°I can vaguely remember the ride back to the penthouse. We got out and I was walking next to Ivan when the darkness took over. I reached for him, but I don¡¯t know if I made contact or not. Everything went dark. I feel really cold.¡± She inhaled. I felt her tense and felt her body lightly shake, but it never got worse. ¡°Sephie, you did good. You¡¯re safe now. No one will hurt you like that ever again. Do you understand?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°I understand. Does Misha understand it wasn¡¯t his fault either? Does he understand that I would¡¯ve killed that guy if he hadn¡¯t pulled me off him? Or how he kept the darkness away for so long?¡± Misha put his head down, cursing. We saw his shoulders heave as the sobs racked his body. ¡°He knows now, Sephie. I want you to count backward from ten and when you get to one, you¡¯ll open your eyes and remember everything.¡± She counted and opened her eyes when she reached one. She looked to me first, but immediately searched for Misha. He still had his head down, still struggling with everything she had just sail. She jumped up and went to him, wrapping her arms around him. He held onto her as he sobbed. I felt the tears in my own eyes. None of us knew. She was whispering to him, so that only he could hear. He would nod his head, then grab onto her tighter. They stayed like that for several minutes before he finally got control. She wiped his tears and kissed his cheek before walking back to me. She wiped. her own eyes once she turned away from Misha. I pulled her back down in myp, holding her closely, and kissing her temple. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, solnishko. I didn¡¯t know. You hid it so well that we all thought you were handling it well. I had no idea.¡± She didn¡¯t say anything, she just put her arms on top of mine and pulled my arms tighter around her. ¡°So, the connection to the smell was on the actual guy that attacked you. That means that he was close to either Vanessa or someone else that wears that exact brand and wears so much of it that it lingers on others. That narrows down the list of potential suspects to, well, Vanessa,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Now we need to figure out whether she was there by chance or by design,¡± Ivan said. ¡°The tail we put on her hasn¡¯te up with anything useful so far. She still loves to shop. That¡¯s all we know so far.¡± ¡°Keep it on her. We know she¡¯s not the brightest. She might be trying to be careful right now, but that won¡¯tst. She¡¯ll slip up and give us something useful,¡± I said. ¡°Did you at least tell whoever is following her to stay upwind from her?¡± Sephie asked. Right on time, she made us allugh and forget about the growing conspiracy we were uncoveringContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 120 Chapter 120 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Sephie After Stephen helped me connect everything the day of the attack, I was mostly quiet for the rest of the evening. Adik kept me close, either in hisp or with his hands on me. It helped me stay calm. I really hadn¡¯t thought much about the attack after it happened. The concussion and resulting headaches took precedence over everything else. I didn¡¯t have much time to process It. before the ball and everything that happened there. I didn¡¯t want anyone to know how badly I had wanted to ki ll the guy that hit me in that moment. Maybe that¡¯s why I didn¡¯t think about it or talk about it very much. I was worried they were going to look at me differently. I still hadn¡¯t remembered that I killed my uncle that night in the basement until the night of the ball when I was on the ne. I was struggling with my own feelings. Once Adrik and I were alone, he looked at me thoughtfully. His fingers ying with the curls around my face. He loved to push them back from my face, only to have them return shortly after. He was fascinated by my hair having a mind of its own. I loved it. It would make meugh that he thought he could tame my hair. I¡¯d been trying for years now. It was a losing battle. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t know you were struggling so much with the attack on you and Misha. I let you down, solnishko.¡± I smiled at him, looking into his deep blue eyes that were filled with regret. ¡°You didn¡¯t know. How can I be mad at you for not knowing something I didn¡¯t tell you? That doesn¡¯t make sense.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell anybody?¡± I sighed. ¡°I didn¡¯t want anyone to know that I really wanted to ki ll that guy that day and that I would have if Misha hadn¡¯t pulled me off him. I was worried that you all would look at me differently if you found out.¡± I had looked down at the floor, not wanting to see his eyes right away when 1 admitted that. I felt his hand under my chin, lifting my gaze to look at him. ¡°Sephie, you know who we are, right? Of all the people in the world to understand that feeling, the six of us can understand that feeling. We don¡¯t think less of you because of that. It makes you more of a ba dass than you already are.¡± He smiled at me, his blue eyes had that knowing look that he got every time I needed to search them. I looked for what I was always afraid of finding, but never did. He waited patiently, still fighting the losing battle with my curls, amusing himself at their persistence. He pressed his lips to mine. ¡°It¡¯s also sexy as f uck,¡± he said, smiling against my lips. I couldn¡¯t help butugh at him. I climbed back into hisp, wanting to be close to him again. He willingly opened his arms for me, wrapping me in his embrace. I loved the feeling of safety I had whenever I was in his arms. With him, it didn¡¯t feel like he was keeping the darkness away. It was more like hemanded the darkness. It was there, but it was bent to his will, allowing me to stay safe anytime I was surrounded by it. I could feel his warmth stay with me anytime I felt the cold void try to take over. ¡°I love you, Adrik. Always and forever.¡± My fingers were running over his neck and down his chest where his shirt was open. I felt his breath hitch as he held me tighter. ¡°I love you, solnishko. I will always be here for you. No matter what happens.¡± Two Weeks Later We were in Adrik¡¯s office. He was working on things at his desk, while I had found a book to read on the couch. The guys were busy on various tasks, so it was just the two of us. I would catch him looking at me every so often. Each time, it would make me smile and I could almost see his heart skip a beat. Armando walked into the office with Giana. ¡°Ah, Sephle, I was hoping you would be here too,¡± I stood up to greet his open * Makh, to are you today? How are you, Giana? Settling in the better?¡± I asked. Armando vald. That¡¯s what I was hoping to talk to you about. I was hoping maybe you two could go for a girl¡¯s day or something thet be out of the building for a while, maybe? d thought tot a minute, ncing toward Adik, who looked slightly used. He already knew that I had no idea what a girl¡¯s day meant. I suckdenly had an idea, though. W course, we can. I just neest to find one of the guys.¡± Altik cleated his throat. I looked toward him. ¡°AL borst box, preferably three,¡± he said, a stern look on his face that told me there was no use arguing with him on this. I simply nodded my head. He picked up his phone, spoke in Russia, then hung up. ¡°They¡¯ll be here shortly.¡± He stood up, walking toward me. He pulled his wallet from his pants, handing his credit card. ¡°Use this on whatever you like.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell me that. I¡¯lle back with a pony. Don¡¯t tempt me,¡± said,ughing. Heughed, kissing my forehead. ¡°We¡¯ll find a ce for it. Don¡¯t worry.¡± But then he looked at me with the same stern look on hisce ¡°I want you to spend money on clothes, if you need then He leaned down, his lips to my car, ¡°you should think about getting a few skirts. Easter ess.¡± He winked at me, leaving mepletely flustered. Ivan, Misha, and Andrei showed up a few minutester, ready to escort us to wherever we wished to go that day. When we were in the elevator, I hit the button for the 5th floor. I looked at Gianja, grimming. ¡°I¡¯m going to be honest here, I generally fail miserably at the whole being a normal girl routine. I¡¯m going to need help on what to do here, but I have just the right secret weapon for this.¡± The guys all startedughing, knowing exactly what I was talking about. ¡°Giana, what are your feelings on Bingo?¡± Misha asked her, his wide smile across his face. Her cheeks flushed slightly when he smiled at her. She looked flustered for a moment, but eventually admitted that she didn¡¯t know what Bingo was. I surprised all three of them by telling them, in Russian, to be nice. Ms. Jackson had been secretly teaching me Russian and I¡¯d been picking it up along the way, anytime they spoke it in front of me. I was nowhere near fluent in it, but I could pick up and say small phases. Their eyes went wide. Ivan grinned at me, ¡°you ever cease to amaze us, princess.¡± We knocked on Ms. Jackson¡¯s door. I hadn¡¯t told her we wereing, but I had a feeling she would be up for an adventure, especially with these three in tow. ¡°Oh my! Is it my birthday already? It feels like my birthday,¡± she did when she opened the door. Even Gianaughed at her response. ¡°Ms. Jackson, would you be interested in a girl¡¯s day out with us?admittedly have no idea what that means and I¡¯m really hoping you do, so please say yes,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Oh, child, you don¡¯t have to ask me twice. Let me get my purse.¡± She walked into her apartment. We heard her say loudly, ¡°can we swing by Edith¡¯s ce this time?¡± The guys justughed. ¡°Wherever you like, Ms. Jackson,¡± Ivan said. ¡°It¡¯s time we test her pacemaker.¡±Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 121 Chapter 121 Chapter One Hundred Twenty One Sephie Ms. Jackson assured us that we would need manicures and pedicures before starting the day out. This was going to Be a first. I mean, I painted my toes. It was like the one girly thing I did, but I¡¯d never had someone else do it. She asked Giana if she needed to do any shopping. She nodded toward me. ¡°I know that one ha tes shopping, but I get the sense that you might enjoy It. You know, like a normal girl.¡± Gianaughed and nodded her head. Ms. Jackson nodded her head toward me. ¡°I know just the spot. We¡¯re going to have to force that child to look at clothes, but between the two of us, we can do it.¡± I caught Ivan¡¯s gaze in the rear-view mirror. ¡°I thought she was going to help me, not torture me. Save me.¡± He shook his head, shifting his gaze back to the road. They were going to enjoy watching me be tortured today. Ms. Jackson became the activities coordinator for the day. She knew exactly where to go for everything and gave the orders like she had been born into this role. First stop, the nail salon. She told the guys where to drive us, assuring me we would not need an appointment. ¡°Honey, they know me there and you don¡¯t even know it, but they know you too. Trust me, Giana is going to get the royal treatment there today.¡± She looked at Ivan, saying, ¡°and it¡¯s easily protected, so you fine gentlemen will be happy.¡± He chuckled, ¡°much appreciated. The princess is enough to handle on her own, much less you and her together. Thank you for making our job slightly easier, Ms. Jackson.¡± ¡°ttery will get you everywhere, Ivan.¡± I wasn¡¯tpletely sure, but I think I noticed Ivan blush. Ms. Jackson walked into the nail salon first. She scanned the room, finding the person she was looking for. Just as Ms. Jackson said, ¡°there she is¡± the woman looked up to see her. The woman get up from her seat,ing to Ms. Jackson immediately. ¡°Ms. Jackson! I wasn¡¯t expecting you for another week. What bring you here early?¡± ¡°Oh, Anna, I have a treat for you today. I finally managed to get Sephie here, with her friend Giana,¡± she said, looking to me. 1 was surprised, as I had no idea this ce even existed before today. How was this a ¡°finally managed to get me here¡± situation? Anna looked right at me, her warm smile putting me somewhat at ease. ¡°You must be Sephie. My husband has told me so much. about you. I¡¯m going to have to yell at him though. You¡¯re even more beautiful than he said.¡± She offered me her hand to shake. ¡°Your husband?¡± I asked,pletely confused, but still taking her hand to shake it. ¡°Vinny,¡± she said, smiling. ¡°Oh! Oh my God, bring it in. Come on. You¡¯re practically family at this point. Your husband changed my life. Seriously.¡± I hugged her, not even caring if she wanted to be hugged or not. I already knew I loved this woman, simply by her choice in a husband. Surprisingly, na spoke up, beside me. ¡°THE Vinny? The sandwich Vinny?¡± she asked. Anna laughed, nodding her head. Giana said, rather seriously, ¡°you¡¯re a very lucky woman.¡± Anna¡¯s cheeks Jushed as she smiled at us. ¡°He¡¯ll be so happy to know that you all think so highly of him. And that I finally got to meet you, Miss Sephie. He speaks fondly of you often. You¡¯re one of his favorite customers. And, of course, we¡¯re still so grateful to your boyfriend. He¡¯s a saint.¡± It was my turn to have flushed cheeks. It always made me happy to know that people loved Adrik. ¡°Turns out, we¡¯re both very lucky women,¡± I winked at Anna. Anna insisted on getting us in right away and taking care of our every need. Giana knew exactly what to do and what was happening next, but they both had to fill me in on the process. I was so clueless. This is going to be a long day. When we were close to being finished, Anna tried to refuse payment. She said the same deal applied here as at Vinny¡¯s sandwich shop. I caught Ivan and quietly told him to go to the front and buy whatever he could and leave a very substantial tip with Adrik¡¯s credit card. He understood and disappeared immediately. He showed up a few minutester and simply nodded his head. I signed a ¡°thank you¡± to him and continued listening to Ms. Jackson and Giana talk about where we were going next. ¡°Sephie, child, don¡¯t you want some different clothes?¡± Ms. Jackson asked. I looked at Ivan, who was closest to us. ¡°Is she implying that there is something wrong with the way I dress? I think she is.¡± He chuckled, shrugging his shoulders. ¡°Oh, child. You dress fine. For a high school student. You need to branch out from jeans, dear. I feel like today might be my only chance to get you in a skirt or some dress pants, at the very least,¡± she said. Iughed. ¡°I can¡¯t argue with your points, Ms. Jackson. But in my slight defense, I never needed to worry about my wardrobe as a waitress.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re not one anymore, so it¡¯s time you start dressing the part. You have a namesake to live up to, child.¡± I just shook my head. I knew she was right, but I never really gave it any thought. I also tried to dress in a way that wouldn¡¯t garner extra attention from people. I was slightly nervous about what Ms. Jackson had in mind, but I trusted her. Mostly. At least Adrik will be happy. The longer we were out, the more animated and open Giana became. She was funny in her own right, and we ended upughing with Ms. Jackson about many things throughout the day. I found myself enjoying being around her, which was a new experience for me. I¡¯d always struggled to be friends with girls. I was curious about her feelings about Armando, as I¡¯d watched her staring at Misha every chance she got throughout the day, but I didn¡¯t want to ask in front of the guys. Leave it to Ms. Jackson to ask the perfect question when we were out of earshot of the guys. ¡°Giana, dear, you¡¯re going to stare holes in the back of Misha¡¯s head if you don¡¯t give it at least a little bit of a rest. I mean, I understand. He¡¯s a gorgeous human. But we¡¯re going to need to work on your subtlety.¡± Giana¡¯s cheeks immediately went red. ¡°Oh my God, I didn¡¯t realize it was that obvious.¡± Iughed, remembering her in the conference room in Italy. ¡°He¡¯s been aware of it since we were inThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Italy, Giana.¡± I didn¡¯t think her cheeks could get any redder, but they proved me wrong. She covered her face with her hands,pletely embarrassed. ¡°What about Mando, though? I¡¯ve seen the way he looks at you,¡± I said, trying to feel her out. She sighed, a small smile crept across her face. ¡°He¡¯s my boss though. If it didn¡¯t work out, I would be out of a job, and I really need this weird job.¡± ¡°But be¡¯s such a nice guy, he would still make sure you were taken care of. As long as you don¡¯t sleep with other men while you¡¯re with him. If you do that, he¡¯ll let other women wear your clothes,¡± I said. She flinched Chapter 122 Chapter 122 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Two Sephie She thought for a few minutes, Ms. Jackson watching her lost in her thoughts. ¡°Child, when you think about Misha do you get butterflies and your heart rates?¡± Ms. Jackson asked her. na thought for a moment, then nodded her head. ¡°He¡¯s really Jndsome.¡± Ms. Jackson chuckled. ¡°They all are. Now, when you think about the Armando, do you get butterflies and does your heart race?¡± na thought for a moment more, but this Time she shook her head no. ¡°No, Armando is different. I think because he¡¯s my boss, I¡¯ve never let myself think about him like that. I just think him as my boss.¡± ¡°Were you intimidated by him when you first started working for him? You had to have known who he is when you took the job, right?¡± I asked. I was almost certain I knew where Ms. Jackson was going with her line of questioning here. ¡°No, he¡¯s always been so nice to me. Like overly so. He never says anything when I¡¯mte either and I¡¯mte all the time,¡± she said. Ms. Jackson looked at her, somewhat sternly. ¡°That¡¯s a sign that your body is giving you that Misha is not the one for you. Everyone gets it backward and goes for the butterflies and racing pulse, but the ones we¡¯re meant to be with will bring you calm. A familiarity, if you will. You¡¯ll feel like you¡¯ve known them for years after just a few days.¡± na thought for a moment, then looked to me. ¡°Is that how it happened with you and Ghost?¡± I nodded. ¡°The first time I saw him, I saw Viktor and Andrei walk in first. I mean, they¡¯re giant and they¡¯re both very attractive men, but I felt nervous looking at them. When I saw Ghost walk in and even more so when he looked at me, I felt a weird calm.e over me. There¡¯s a pull between us too that has always been there. Like anytime we¡¯re apart, there¡¯s a pull toward the other until we¡¯re together again.¡± Giana¡¯s eyes got wide. ¡°I couldn¡¯t figure out why I missed him when he was away for a few days. I felt like a weirdo for it.¡± ¡°I bet if I asked him about his time away, he would likely say the same thing,¡± I said. Iughed, ¡°what¡¯s your opinion of Ivan now that you¡¯ve spent more time around him?¡± ¡°He still scares the shi t out of me, and I like him much more when you¡¯re around, but he¡¯s not as scary as I originally thought. I can see he¡¯s just doing his job, which he¡¯s admittedly very good at, she said. I raised my eyebrow. This one might have potential. Ms. Jackson crossed her arms across her chest. ¡°You¡¯ve just said everything you need to know, my dear. If Sephie sees that Armando looks at you differently, then there¡¯s something there on his end too. Not much, if anything, gets by Sephie.¡± She Jooked at me proudly. ¡°But I can¡¯t make the first move on my boss!¡± na said. ¡°Oh, leave it to me. I¡¯ll drop a hint and he¡¯ll do the rest,¡± I said, smiling at her. We were walking to thest shop of the day. Thank God, my feet hurt and my hip is starting to really hurt. How do women shop like this all the time? Ms. Jackson and Giana were busy talking about something fashion rted as we walked down the sidewalk. I was busy daydreaming about getting back to Adrik soon. I was trying to hide it, but my limp wasing back. Giana and Ms. Jackson were having such a good time that I didn¡¯t want to rain on their parade by having to go back to the penthouse. Ivan was on one side of us, Misha on the other, with Andrei following behind. I heard him say something to Misha in Russian, so Giana wouldn¡¯t understand. Misha, who was next to me, looked down as we continued walking. He leaned closer to me, quietly saying, ¡°I can give you a ride, gazelle. Boss will ki ll us if we bring you back broken.¡° ¡°Holy shi t, I love you so much right now.¡± I looked over my shoulder, pointing to Andrei. ¡°You too, Bubba. I know this was your idea. We stopped, Misha squatted down for me, and Andrei was behind me to pick me up. The other three didn¡¯t even notice we had stopped and we were back beside them, just with me on Misha¡¯s back. Ivan looked over, raising an eyebrow. I mouthed. ¡°hip.¡± He nodded his head and continued on. I whispered into Misha¡¯s ear, ¡°I am the go ddamn princess right now.¡± Heughed loudly, causing the two girls to look our way. I hugged his neck a little tighter, enjoying our inside jokes. I looked at Ms. Jackson and Giana. ¡°What? I don¡¯t see how women do this regrly. It¡¯s excruciating.¡± Bothughed at me, but I didn¡¯t care. I was happy to not be limping right now. I felt Misha squeeze my legs a little tighter. ¡°They clearly don¡¯t know that I¡¯m the go ddamn princess,¡± I whispered in his ear. I was so tired by the time we got to the shop that I sat on a bench with Andrei while the other two girls did their shopping. Ms. Jackson was pulling out clothes for me. I didn¡¯t want to try on anything; she knew my sizes and was shopping for me. At this point, I didn¡¯t care anymore. I¡¯d already bought more clothes in one day than I had in thest three years,bined. I had plenty. Armando must¡¯ve also given Giana his card because she was going crazy. I sighed, resting my head on Andrei¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You okay, spider monkey?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get women. I feel like I¡¯m aplete weirdo when ites to being a woman. None of this interests me in the least. I don¡¯t get it, either. Like we all know they¡¯re putting this much effort into looking good for other women, not men. Most guys don¡¯t care this much what women wear. Or don¡¯t wear. It¡¯s more for other women, so we can all judge each other on superficial attributes and pretend rules that we somehow silently agreed upon as a gender centuries ago.¡± Heughed. ¡°That¡¯s one reason why we all love you so much. You don¡¯t y by their rules. It¡¯s also what makes most women ha te you, for the record. They don¡¯t know they don¡¯t have to y by the rules, and it irritates them that you don¡¯t.¡± I slid my arm through his, squeezing his giant bicep. ¡°You¡¯re so smart, Bubba. Don¡¯t let anybody tell you you¡¯re just a pretty face.¡± He looked at me sideways. ¡°Who said I had a pretty face?¡± Iughed. It was the exact response I was expecting. I winked at him. ¡°You do have a pretty face. Tori doesn¡¯t know what she messed up. You deserve so much better.¡± I felt his other hand on top of mine. He leaned over and kissed the top of my head. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, spider monkey.¡± ¡°You¡¯re mine. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± Heughed, knowing by this point that I said that to all of themContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 123 Chapter 123 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Three Sephie Ms. Jackson and Giana finally had their fill of shopping, so we headed back to the penthouse, I was exhausted at this point. I rarely took baths, but I found myself wanting to take a very long bath when we got back. We had a short distance to walk to get back to the vehicles. Andrei offered to carry me this time. I was enjoying taking in the scene ahead of us from my new, higher perspective. They were all several inches taller than me. The air fell different up here. We were almost to the vehicles when I spotted a familiar face ahead of us. ¡°Hey, that¡¯s Max!¡± I said, watching as he was standing outside a shop, on his phone. He hadn¡¯t seen us yet. I asked Ivan if I could go talk to him. He thought for a moment. ¡°Boss wants us back.¡± He said the word for news in Russian, with his eyebrow raised to see if Iprehended. I nodded, but still wanted to see Max. I hadn¡¯t seen him since before the ball. He saw my face and said, ¡°Misha, stay with Sephie and Andrei. I will take them to get a vehicle ande back and get you so we can pick the other vehicle up. Boss was adamant that we return soon, so be quick,¡± he looked to me, a stern look on his face. ¡°Squishy, if I had control of my legs right now, I would hug you. You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others,¡± I said,ughing. He just shook his head as he ushered Ms. Jackson and Giana toward the vehicles. We got closer to Max, who still wasn¡¯t paying attention and hadn¡¯t seen us. I tapped Andrei¡¯s shoulder for him to set me down. I walked up to Max, before he saw me, and said, ¡°are you going to give me a hug or are you just going to stand there and stare at your phone like a weirdo all day?¡± He looked up,pletely surprised to see me. ¡°Gingersnap! I haven¡¯t seen you in literally forever! Where have you been?¡± He wrapped his arms around me, hugging me tightly. I felt Andrei and Misha both step closer to me when Max¡¯s arms were around me. They were good at their job, da mmit. ¡°That¡¯s too long of a story. I only have a few minutes before I have to go, but I saw you and wanted to say hi. I miss you, Maximus. You good? Everything good?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m good.¡± He nodded toward Andrei and Misha. ¡°I see your trained killers are still with you. That¡¯s good. We like that. Nothing to see here, fes,¡± he said as he started petting my head. Iughed, smacking his hand away. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. ¡°How¡¯s the restaurant?¡± ¡°It¡¯s good. Mostly the same. It su cks without you there, though. We got a new cook. A chick. She¡¯s actually pretty cool. She¡¯s in that shop, actually. I got bored, so I came out here. I don¡¯t get how women love to shop so much,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°I don¡¯t either, Max. I don¡¯t either. Are you dating a coworker now? What¡¯s her name?¡± I asked, surprised. ¡°I mean, I guess so? Weird, right? She¡¯s only been there a couple weeks, but she¡¯s been cool. Granted, I¡¯ve had Kim to deal with since you left, so it might be that my standards have lowered significantly.¡± We bothughed. He continued, ¡°but Tori is cool.¡± I heard Andrei curse under his breath behind me. I suddenly wanted to leave very quickly. I saw Misha move to block me, visually, from the shop we were standing in front of. I knew what he was doing and appreciated it. I felt Andrei¡¯s hand on the small of my back, ready for anything. ¡°Um, odd question, Max. but does Tori know you know me? Have you ever mentioned me to her?¡± I asked. I had no idea where that question came from, but I almost feltpelled to ask it. ¡°I think so? I probably told her some hrious story about you because I have a million of those,¡± ¡°Before or after you started dating her?¡± I¡¯m not sure. Why is this important?¡± ¡°Max, you have to break up with her. I¡¯ve nevere between you and any girl in the past, but this one is bad news. Please trust me. She doesn¡¯t have good intentions toward you if she knows you¡¯re friends with me. If you¡¯ve ever listened to anything I¡¯ve ever told you, please listen to this.¡± Just then, Ivan pulled up to the curb. Max was still looking at me, stunned. Andrei grabbed me around the waist lifting me off the ground, not giving me a choice to stay. He climbed into the front seat, pulling me into hisp. Misha jumped in the back, next to Giana. As soon as the doors closed, Ivan pulled away. I looked at Andrei, still somewhat shocked. Ivan knew there was something wrong, asking Andrei what happened in Russian. His cheeks were red, he was still angry at her. I looked at Ivan and said, ¡°Tori.¡± He cut his eyes toward me but didn¡¯t ask anything further. He would wait until we were alone to ask more questions. Instead of going to get the other vehicle, he dr ove back to the penthouse. ¡°Boss has called three times in thest half hour. We need to get back.¡± I was starting to worry about why he wanted us back so badly. ¡°Is everything okay? Why does he want us back so quickly?¡± Ivan cut his eyes to me, a smirk on his face. He didn¡¯t need to answer. I knew the answer. He missed me. We dropped Ms. Jackson and Giana off on the 5th floor. They both turned toward Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. It made me happy that they had each found a friend today. Once the elevator doors closed, I leaned back against the wall, trying to find some relief for my hip. ¡°FU CK I HA TE SHOPPING.¡± Everyoneughed. Ivan slid his arm around my shoulders. ¡°This is why we love you, princess.¡± I cleared my throat, looking at Misha. ¡°Go ddamn princess to you, thank you very much.¡± Through hisughter, Ivan asked, ¡°what¡¯s this about Tori today?¡± I looked at him, deadpan. ¡°She¡¯s dating Max. Apparently, she got a job as a cook at the restaurant where I met you guys. I asked Max if she knew that he was friends with me. He said he probably told her some story about me but couldn¡¯t remember if it was before or after they started dating. My best guess is that it was before. Max doesn¡¯t have many rules, but not dating coworkers. was one he always followed. Always. This is Tori going after him, if they¡¯re dating. Maybe it¡¯s just a rebound for her, but I can¡¯t help but be worried she¡¯s going to try to do him di rty to get back at me.¡± He blew his breath out loudly while pulling on his goatee. ¡°Yikes. Did you see her today?¡± I shook my head no, but looked to Misha. ¡°Did you see her in the shop?¡± He nodded. ¡°She didn¡¯t see us while we were talking to Max. She might¡¯ve seen us leaving, but that¡¯s it.¡± The doors pinged. I groaned as I stood up to walk out of the elevator. I didn¡¯t get more than one step and Ivan had scooped me up, carrying me to Adrik¡¯s office. ¡°Come on, you go ddamn princess, your go ddamn prince awaits.¡± Chapter 124 Chapter 124 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Four Sephie Adrik looked concerned when he saw us walk into his office. He immediately stood and came toward us. Ivan set me down, so Adrik could have ess to me. ¡°Solnishko, what happened? Are you okay?¡± He put his hands on my shoulders, holding me at arm¡¯s length to look me over. I chuckled. ¡°Please say no the next time someone wants me to go shopping or anything closely rted to a girl¡¯s day out. Just t out tell them I¡¯m not allowed to go. I promise I won¡¯t argue. I licking ha te shopping. It was endless. They wouldn¡¯t stop. They¡¯d still be going if you hadn¡¯t called. It was torture. My hip is hicking killing me now.¡± He cursed under his breath as he bent down and picked me up. He walked me to the couch, sitting with me in hisp. I sighed. as I leaned against him, happy to be sitting and happier to be in his arms. The guys were still mostly amused at my response to shopping. Ivan looked at Viktor and Stephen. ¡°You should¡¯ve heard her in the elevator when we got rid of the other two. She really ha tes shopping.¡± ¡°The Devil invented shopping. That was the forbidden fruit. I know it. Eve fu cked us all with her weird need to try on every article of clothing known to man.¡± They allughed. Adrik kissed my cheek, a somewhat surprised lock on his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I should¡¯ve put a time limit on how long you could stay gone.¡± ¡°Yes. Give me a curfew next time. Twenty minutes, tops. Then I have to be back. This is a good n. You¡¯re a genius.¡± I grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him. They were all stillughing at my anger over shopping all day long It was funny, admittedly, but I was going to pay for it tomorrow. I looked at Adrik. ¡°Did you really have news or you just said that to get us back here? Either way, bless you.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I do have news, but I¡¯ll keep that in mind the next time I need you back here quickly.¡± He winked at me. ¡°I spoke with the Colombians today. Trino called me not long after you guys left.¡± I looked at him, curiously. ¡°Have they met with Lorenzo and Anthony?¡± Heughed. ¡°They did, but not before making them wait for two and a half weeks.¡± ¡°Seriously? Have they been in South America waiting since they left Sicily?¡± Ivan asked, surprised. ¡°It appears so,¡± Adrik said, still chuckling. ¡°Trino said they had heard about the attempt on my life at the ball, but he didn¡¯t believe it. He was contacted by Anthony a few days after, wanting to have a meeting about a new deal with him, Lorenzo, and Salvadori. Trino told them toe to Colombia, then made them wait while he investigated whether I was still alive or not. He couldn¡¯t confirm it until we came back to the city, which is why he made Lorenzo and Anthony wait that whole time. Once Trino knew I was still alive, he knew Lorenzo and Anthony were up to no good. He met with thern, under the pretense that I was dead. He said either they don¡¯t know for sure either, or they were trying hard to sell it to him, because they acted as if 1 was dead. They gave him a story about another boss being killed overseas, as well, which meant the city was in chaos and they were trying to restore order, which is why they wereing to him. They¡¯re trying to align with him, hoping he can help them restore order.¡± ¡°He¡¯s going to help them?¡± I asked. ¡°He¡¯s going to make them belleve he¡¯s helping them. Trino is a very smart man. He¡¯s trying to be as legitimate of a businessman as Armando and me. He would¡¯ve seen through their story even without doing his due diligence to see if I was still alive or not. Tring has people throughout the city. That was part of the deal he made with me. He said there were a few bosses that he didn¡¯t trust and wanted his people to be able to keep an eye on them. I agreed to it and made very lucrative terms for him so he would remain loyal to me. No one knows the actual terms of our deal, so Lorenzo and Anthony didn¡¯t come close to matching It with the deal they offered him. He told them he would consider and get back to them. They¡¯re still down there.¡± ¡°Do they really think Armando is dead too?¡± I asked, not totallyprehending how sloppy they were being. ¡°I¡¯m not sure on that one. They likely didn¡¯t wait around to see if the explosion was sessful or not. I¡¯m also not convinced thewyer told them about you and I. Trino seemed pretty convinced that they believed I was dead, and you were in the wind.¡± He had started ying with the curls around my face as he talked, wrapping and unwrapping them lightly around his finger. I closed my eyes, feeling exhausted, but still wanting to hear the details. ¡°How long does Trino have to give them an answer?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°He said he¡¯s supposed to give them an answer by the end of the week, so three days,¡± Adrik said, still wrapping and unwrapping. ¡°I think we should create a bit of our own chaos, Boss.¡± Ivan said. ¡°How so?¡± Adrik asked, genuinely intrigued. ¨C ¡°I wonder if Dario and Massimo know that they¡¯re meeting with the Colombians. It doesn¡¯t make sense to me that Dario is working with Salvadori. Armando was right those two ha te each other and have for years. I think Dario and Massimo are quietly trying to form their own faction, if you will. Let¡¯s see if they contact Trino, after they find out that Lorenzo and Anthony are down there. Maybe we can get them to take care of each other, Ivan said, his hands running over his dark goatee. ¡°Or at the very least, take one faction out, so we have less to worry about!¡± ¡°Squishy, if I haven¡¯t told you thistely, I¡¯m telling you now, I fu cking love your brain. You, sir, are diabolical and I am fu cking here for it. I would high five you but you¡¯re so far away and I¡¯m a go ddamn princess that can¡¯t be bothered to walk on my own.¡± They allughed. Ivan got up and came to the couch, just to give me a high five. Viktor¡¯s deep voice interjected over theughter. ¡°I don¡¯t know, sestrichka, you¡¯re extra funny when you¡¯re cranky from having to go shopping all day. You might have to do it more for our benefit.¡± ¡°Viktor, we don¡¯t use that kind ofnguage in this house.¡± I looked at him as sternly as I could, before laughing. Moreughter, as they enjoyed not being the targets of my anger this time around. As theughter died down, Adrik was deep in thought. ¡°I think that¡¯s a good n, Ivan. Armando can nt the seed with Dario and Massimo, then we¡¯ll see what they do with the information.Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 125 Chapter 125 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Five Sephie When Adrik and I went to the penthouseter that evening, all the items I¡¯d been talked into buying had been delivered. There were quite a few bags just inside the door. Adrik smiled when he saw them. ¡°I¡¯m d you bought a few things. I hope you bought more panties,¡± he said, his eyebrow raised. ¡°Well, if someone would stop insisting on ripping them off, I wouldn¡¯t have to rece them in bulk.¡± I went to pick up the bags. to take them to the closet. Instead, he picked me up and carried me to the bedroom. ¡°Leave those. You need to soak in a bath. I don¡¯t like that your limp is back.¡± ¡°You read my mind. Don¡¯t we have to change my bandage tonight anyway?¡± He nodded his head as he put me down on the bed. ¡°Ivan told me to leave the bandage off for a few hours this time. He said to let it dry out and then put the regr honey and bandage back on it. It¡¯s healing well still, but it¡¯s still slow. He said this might help speed it up,¡± he said as he went to turn the water on in the bathroom. ¡°I¡¯d be fine with leaving the bandage off for longer than a few hours. The adhesive is really irritating. That hurts worse than the ho le in my hip most days.¡± ¡°I think you will be able to do that soon, solnishko. Maybe a few more days of the bandage and it¡¯ll be small enough that you can go without the bandage.¡± He pulled my shirt over my head, as yawned. I was so tired. I fell back on the bed, not wanting to make any more effort than absolutely necessary for the rest of the night. I heard him chuckle as he unbuttoned my jeans. ¡°It was really that bad today?¡± Iughed. ¡°No, Well, yes. But I am being a tad overdramatic about it all. I think I¡¯m so cranky because my hip hurts so much. If that didn¡¯t hurt, I probably wouldn¡¯t have cared to keep going.¡± He pulled my jeans off, pulling me up to undo my bra. ¡°I saw Max today,¡± I said as he pulled me up from the bed. ¡°Oh, yeah? You guys went to the restaurant?¡± He asked, surprised. ¡°No. God, no. He was on the sidewalk as we were walking back to the vehicles. Well, everyone else was walking. I was being carried like the go ddamn princess I am,¡± I saidughing. He pulled my panties down, making sure that I noticed he didn¡¯t rip them off, which made meugh more. ¡°How is Max?¡± he asked as he scooped me up to take me to the bathroom. He set me down on the counter so he could remove my bandage as the tub continued to fill. ¡°He¡¯s good, but you won¡¯t believe this.¡± He stopped to look at me smiled at him, ¡°he¡¯s dating Tori now.¡± ¡°What?!¡± he eximed,pletely surprised. ¡°That was my first reaction as well, but something seems fishy about it. Until I met you, I spent the most time with Max. Well, when he wasn¡¯t seeing anyone seriously. He was probably the best friend I had at the time. He told me that Tori got a job at the restaurant, which isn¡¯tpletely out of the realm of possibility. She¡¯s a chet. It¡¯s a restaurant. Makes sense, right?¡± He nodded as he picked me up from the counter and took me to the tub. He set me down so I could sit in the hot water. I waited for him to get in behind me as I continued my thoughts, ¡°but Max and I have a bu nch of stu pid, hrious stories from working together for so many years. I would be willing to bet he told her a story about me. Max has very few rules, but not dating coworkers was always one that he stuck to. Religiously. If they¡¯re dating, she would¡¯ve had to initiate it. I just don¡¯t think she has good Intentions toward him.¡± ¡°Did you see Tori today?¡± he asked as he sat down behind me, pulling me back against him. The bath got instantly warmer as soon as I leaned back against his chest. I sighed, feeling my body rx at the warmth, as well as at his touch. ¡°I didn¡¯t see her. Misha said he saw her in the store, but doesn¡¯t think she ever saw us. Poor Andrei was so angry after we left.¡± ¡°Did you tell Max that you knew her?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t have much time to talk. Ivan left Misha and Andrei with me, and he took Ms. Jackson and Giana to get one of the vehicles. He was on his way back, so I had time to ask a few questions about whether she knew that he was friends with me and if she knew before or after they started dating. I toldText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. him to get rid of her, that she was bad news, but he¡¯s literally never listened to any advice I¡¯ve given him on girls. Ever. I don¡¯t see why he would start now.¡± He was quiet for a moment. ¡°I know he¡¯s your friend and I know I keep saying this, but he¡¯s not a smart man, Sephie. If he can¡¯t see that you have his best intentions in mind, then he deserves everything that Tori does to him.¡± I sighed. ¡°I know you¡¯re right. I guess I¡¯m just worried that this is going to be the one time he doesn¡¯t come back. Every time he would choose another girl over hanging out with me, I always worried it would be thest time. At some point, he¡¯s going to find asting rtionship and then he¡¯ll forget all about me. It doesn¡¯t hurt as much now that I have you and the guys, but it still hurts.¡± He wrapped his arms around my waist, as he kissed my neck. ¡°Some people are in our lives forever, some for just a few chapters. Maybe his chapters areing to a close,¡± he said, holding me tighter. I wrapped my arms around his,cing my fingers through his. ¡°At least I have six more that will be there until thest page.¡± ¡°Always. We will always choose you. Chapter 126 Chapter 126 ¡± Chapter One Hundred Twenty Six Adrik I woke the next morning to find Sephle in her favorite spot. She was snoring softly, her fingers ying on my chest. I ran my hand over her back. She simply snuggled into me more, without waking. She was exhausted after shopping all day the day before. She was also adorable when she was cranky from shopping all day long. We all got more enjoyment out of her crankiness than we probably should have, but we couldn¡¯t help it. She was hrious, especially when her crankiness wasn¡¯t directed at any of us. I kissed the top of her head, picking her up slightly so I could get up. It was rare for her to not wake up when I moved, so I knew she needed the sleep. I quietly went about getting ready. I needed to meet with Armando this morning. He needed to let It slip to Dario and Massimo that Anthony and Lorenzo had indeed met with the Colombians and had gotten their support. Then we would wait and see what Dario and Massimo did with that information. If Ivan was correct, they would likely try to meet with the Colombians as well. I would make a call to Trino to inform him of this move as well, so he¡¯d be ready. I trusted him, but I found myself wishing that Sephie could see him to get her opinion of him. Right now, that was out of the question, but perhaps we could arrange for her to meet him at some point. I was ready to leave and Sephie still hadn¡¯t woken up. I left her a note, as usual, and leaned down to kiss her, as well as cover her up so she wouldn¡¯t get cold. The weather was starting to get cooler outside. She liked sleeping in my long-sleeved shirts. more now. I met Viktor in my office. ¡°Sephie¡¯s still tired from shopping, isn¡¯t he?¡± he asked, stillughing about the evening before. I looked at him, amused as well. ¡°She didn¡¯t even need triple strength tea this time. She really was exhausted. Can you have one of the guys go up and wait for her to wake up again?¡± He nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He typed a few words, then put it back in his pocket. Ivan walked in with Armando. ¡°Good morning, Boss,¡± Armando said as he walked in. ¡°Is Sephie not with you? I need to thank her for yesterday. Giana was so happy when she got backst evening.¡± Ivan and Viktor both chuckled, knowing Sephie did not share the same sentiment. ¡°She¡¯s still upstairs, but I will make sure she gets the message,¡± I said. ¡°Giana introduced me to Ms. Jackson, as well. She said she spent the day with them as well. She¡¯s quite the woman,¡± he said, running his hand through his hair. I smiled at him. ¡°Did she threaten your life?¡± He nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, that means she likes you,¡± I said, putting my hand on his shoulder. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to figure out how you surround yourself with such interesting women,¡± he said, laughing. ¡°It¡¯s not me. Ms. Jackson came with Sephie. It¡¯s all her.¡± I smiled to myself, thinking about how lucky I was to have her in my life. We quickly got down to business, discussing Anthony and Lorenza meeting with Trino. I exined Ivan¡¯s n to see if we could pit those two against Dario and Massimo, using the Colombians as the bait, basically. ¡°I like that n,¡± Armando sald, nodding toward Ivan. ¡°It¡¯s possible they¡¯ll take care of each other for us. Exactly,¡± Ivan said. ¡°I can make a call to Dario and Massimo and ask them to meet, see if they¡¯ve heard anything from their guys, and tell them my guys found out about the deal they made with Trino. I still can¡¯t imagine that Dario is working with Sal. I could be wrong, but those two have hated each other for so long. I can¡¯t see them putting that to rest. What did Sephle say they do again when they¡¯re lying?¡± Armando asked. ¡°Dario will repeat the question back to you, like he¡¯s buying himself time to think of an answer. Massimo doesn¡¯t blink. At all,¡± I said. He nodded. ¡°She¡¯s like having a secret weapon. She should meet Trino too, just to be safe.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I had thought of that, yes. Not right now, but it¡¯s a possibility in the future.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll set something up and meet with them today,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ll send a few of my people with you. They all know my guys, but I can send other security with you that they won¡¯t recognize as mine, just to make sure you¡¯re safe. We need to work on getting you your own security detail. Viktor can help you set that up and get guys trained,¡± I said. ¡°Thank you, Boss. I was going to ask you about that. I have admittedly been very rxed about that over thest few years. It was just me to worry about, so I didn¡¯t worry. Now I want to make sure Giana is safe,¡± he said. I raised an eyebrow, remembering what Sephie had told me about Gianast night. He had a faraway look in his eye, like he was lost in thought. I remained silent, allowing his mind to drift wherever it wished. He slowly drifted back to reality, realizing that we were all looking at him. I¡¯m not sure I¡¯ve ever seen his cheeks so red. ¡°You don¡¯t need to exin the need to protect someone to me,¡± I said, a small smirk on my face. He exhaled, still slightly embarrassed. He stood, mumbling something about calling Dario and Massimo. ¡°I¡¯ll let you know the ns to meet with them so we can arrange security.¡± He extended his hand to me, saying, ¡°I also want to thank you for letting us stay here, so Giana is safe and I don¡¯t need to worry about her, didn¡¯t realize how worried I was about her since the explosion. And, please, give my thanks again to Sephie for yesterday. Giana was very happyst night. She had a great time. She loves Sephie and she even said Ivan is slightly less scary now.¡± He said,ughing. He walked out of the office to make the necessary arrangements. I looked to Ivan, my eyebrow raised. ¡°Giana is alright. She¡¯s funny in her own right. She¡¯s a very quiet girl, but she has potential. It¡¯s pretty obvious Armando is practically in love with her, and I¡¯d be willing to bet very good money that she feels the same way about him.¡± ¡°Interesting.¡± I said. Sephie would be happy to hear of Armando¡¯s reaction to Giana¡¯s safetyContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 127 Chapter 127 Chapter One Hundred Twenty Seven Adrik I made a call to Trino, Informing him about our n to see if Darid and Massimo would also contact him. He agreed that it was a good n. He was still making Anthony and Lorenzo wait for an answer for another few days. ¡°I know it¡¯s a di ck move, but it¡¯s really fun, man. They just wait like little puppy dogs for me to talk to them. I made them wait for weeks, Jefe!¡± He wasughing so hard on the other end of the phone that he couldn¡¯t speak. I enjoyed Trino. He was a typical Spanish man. Very mboyant with his wealth and just as likely to cuss you out as he was to help you out. He was passionate in everything he did, but he loved his family, and he took care of his city, Rules were different in South America. They yed a little dirtier than we did, but he had brought order to the chaos once he took over the cartels in Colombia. They¡¯d enjoyed many years of peace under him. The people loved him because of it. ¡°The longer you make them wait down there, the longer they¡¯re out of my hair, so it¡¯s much appreciated. I¡¯m sending you a gift, to show you just how much.¡± ¡°Jefe, you send the best gifts, but watching these pendejos squirm is a gift in itself,¡± Trino said. ¡°And now you¡¯re sending me two more? I should be sending you the gift, Jefe.¡± Iughed. Trino was a good guy. He enjoyed his evil side as much as I did. I had a few minor meetings the rest of the day. Armando had made ns to meet with Dario and Massimo that evening. Viktor organized a security detail to escort him. He would apany them, but stay out of sight so neither Dario nor Massimo could spot him. It was admittedly difficult for my guys to blend into a crowd. It was the middle of the afternoon, and I still hadn¡¯t seen Sephie. I was trying not to be worried about her. I didn¡¯t know if she was still asleep. It wasn¡¯t like her to sleep quite this long, unless something was wrong. I called Misha, assuming he was the one waiting on her to wake up. He answered on the first ring. I could hearughing in the background. ¡°Where are you?¡± ¡°Boss, she¡¯s fine. She¡¯s been awake for a while. Ms. Jackson called her down a little while ago.¡± He moved so he was out of earshot, since Ms. Jackson could understand Russian. ¡°She¡¯s been trying to leave for thest 20 minutes, but Ms. Jackson and Giana just keep talking to her. Giana has said more today than I¡¯ve ever heard her say. Shopping is the way to that girl¡¯s heart.¡± ¡°Tell her I need to see her and you, then. You can always use that xcuse, anytime you see her trying to get away, I will always confirm that.¡± He sighed. ¡°Thanks, Boss. We¡¯ll be right there.¡± I ended the call, smiling at the thought of Sephie trying to get away from them but not being able to. She might be cranky again¡­ I didn¡¯t have to wait longer than two minutes and she rushed into my office. I barely had time to stand up before she literally jumped into my arms, wrapping her legs and arms around me tightly. ¡°Oh my God, you saved me. You have no idea how much I love you right now.¡± She was clinging to me like she¡¯d barely escaped death. Misha walked in,ughing. ¡°They were making ns to go shopping again,¡± he said, trying not tough. She leaned back enough that she could look me in the eyes. ¡°They ha te me. They must ha te me. Why else would they want to torture me like that? I mean, na I don¡¯t know very well, but Ms, Jackson? I thought she loved me.¡± She put both of her hands on either side of my face, looking at me very seriously. ¡°I was wrong. I was so wrong.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at her, making herugh as well. ¡°I can give you¡¯n curfew this time, solnishko.¡± She wrapped her arms around my neck again, hugging me Ughtly ¡°See? You clearly love me.¡± ¡°I do love you, solnishko. I¡¯m also working on getting Armando his own security detail. Gna can go shopping as much as she wants, and she¡¯ll be safe once that detail is in ce.¡± She leaned back to look at me again. I was expecting her to say something funny, but instead she kissed me. Hard. I was caught off guard by her passion, but found myself very turned on by it. MishaContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. cleared his throat, reminding her that he was still in the room. She broke the kiss, pointing at him, but not looking away from me. ¡°Don¡¯t be rude, my adorable Russian guardian.¡± Heughed as she unwrapped herself from me. She stood on her toes, kissing me one more time and turning to re at Misha, beforeughing. She leaned back against me, which I appreciated as I heeded to adjust my punts otherwise. Her excitement to see me was unexpectedly arousing. She pulled my arms around her waist, wondering out loud, ¡°so if they get their own security detail soon, does that mean we can go to the house for the weekend?¡± 1 pulled her close, knowing she felt exactly what she had done to nie, poking her in her back. I rested my chin on the top of her head. ¡°Of course, solnishko. Do you like it better there? I thought you were happy here?¡± She squeezed my arms. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m happy here. I¡¯m happy whenever you are. I was actually missing the piano,¡± she said quietly. She was still somewhat shy about ying in front of us. loved it and I knew the guys did too. She had a real talent for it and we all got to enjoy it when she would y. I suddenly had an idea on how to surprise her. Can¡¯t believe I hadn¡¯t thought of this before now. ¡°We can go to the house whenever you like, Sephie. We have enough security to leave with Armando and Giana that they¡¯ll be fine for a couple of days. He¡¯s meeting with Dario and Massimo in couple of hours. I¡¯m sending a detail with him, along with Viktor.¡± ¡°Won¡¯t Dario and Massimo recognize Viktor, though? I mean, I know they know that Armando is loyal to you, but that might be a bit too obvious,¡± she asked. I pulled her toward the couch, keeping my arms around her as I sat down so she would sit in myp. She kicked her shoes off and crossed her legs in between mine. Mishaughed. We both looked at him. ¡°Ivan was right. You two are fuc king adorable.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because I¡¯m the go ddamn princess and he¡¯s the go ddamn prince. Thank you very much,¡± she said. She tried to get that outpletely beforeughing. She almost made it, but startedughing before she could finish itpletely. I shook my head at both of them, moving Sephie¡¯s hair off her shoulder, exposing her neck. ¡°Viktor is very good at staying out of sight, solnishko.¡± ¡°Really? There are some Syrian prison officials that might disagree with that statement,¡± she said. Mishaughed loudly. Even Iughed at that one. She wasn¡¯t wrong there. ¡°He¡¯s improved since his time there,¡± I said, stillughing. ¡°He¡¯s gonna love that one,¡± Misha said. ¡°Did you talk to Trino about Dario and Massimo?¡± she asked. ¡°I did. I think you need to meet him at some point. I think he¡¯s a good guy, much like Armando, but I would like to get your opinion on him as well,¡± I said, my face brushing lightly against her neck. I felt her push her hips backward into me slightly. I knew feeling my facial hair on her neck dr ove her crazy. I was just returning the favor for the way she greeted me earlier. ¡°Has he given Anthony and Lorenzo an answer yet?¡± she asked, trying to control herself. Iughed. ¡°Not yet. He¡¯s really enjoying making them wait. I think he called them puppies? I told him I was sending him a gift. for keeping them out of my hair for a little longer. He said that making them wait was the gift because he was enjoying it so much. And now I¡¯m trying to send two more to him.¡± Sephie chuckled. ¡°I like him already.¡± We were eventually joined by Ivan, Andrei, and Stephen. Viktor had left already for the meeting with Dario and Massimo. We would wait until he and Armando returned to get the news. ¡°Bubba, they want to go shopping AGAIN. They want to drag me with them. Help me,¡± she said as they walked into the office. They allughed at her tant hatred for shopping. ¡°Boss told me I could use him as an excuse to get Sephie away from anything she didn¡¯t want to do from now on. Just tell them he needs to see her,¡± Misha said, smiling broadly at Sephie. She leaned her head back, kissing my cheek. ¡°You really do love me.¡± She smiled sweetly at me. I¡¯m not sure if it was her smiling at me or the fact that she was starting to believe that I really did love her, but I felt my cheeks blush slightly. My entire body suddenly felt warmer, too. ¡°I really do love you, solnishko.¡± ¡°Fu cking adorable,¡± Ivan and Misha both said in unison, which made everyoneugh. Sephie just hugged my arms to her a little. tighter as she sighed. She always seemed happy anytime she was in my arms, which made me happy. When she wasn¡¯t in my arms, I always felt an invisible pull toward her until I was touching her again. I¡¯d never experienced anything like it before, but I loved it. I was completely addicted to her now and I hoped that feeling never went away Chapter 128 Chapter 128 Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Eight Adrik Viktor and Armando returned a few hourster. We were still in the office, Sephie still in myp, talking about anything and everything. Somehow every conversation was more entertaining when she was with us. Not just because of her sense of humor, but because of her genuine interest in all of us, in our pasts, in everything that made us who we are. We were allughing as Viktor and Armando walked in. ¡°Looks like I got the short straw today,¡± Viktor said, smiling. ¡°It¡¯s your own fault for being so da mn good at your job, my giant Russian security master,¡± Sephie said, grinning at him. ¡°How did the meeting go?¡± I asked Armando. He sat in one of the chairs across from the couch. ¡°I think it went well. Dario and Massimo were already thinking that Anthony and Lorenzo were trying to meet with Trino, but they weren¡¯t able to get confirmation that they actually had met with him. I think those two are up to something on their own. I don¡¯t think they¡¯re with Sal.¡± He looked at Sephie, smiling. ¡°I don¡¯t think Massimo blinked once the entire meeting. He must have very dry eyes.¡± I felt her shiver once. ¡°That guy creeps me out, not gonna lie.¡± Armando chuckled. ¡°He¡¯s always been a bit of an odd bird. Dario too. They always present it as Dario being the one in charge and Massimo is just going along with it, but I think in reality it¡¯s the other way around. There have been stories about Massimo¡¯s savagery for years, but no one ever speaks against him pu blicly and no one knows where he dumps the bodies, 50 they stay rumors.¡± ¡°I do.¡± Sephie said. We all looked at her, shocked. ¡°Yeah, that wasn¡¯t an idle threat. I really do know where he hides the bodies. I also wasn¡¯t kidding about them thinking less of me when I was their personal servant. There were a few meetings when they would stay after everyone else would leave. I¡¯d be cleaning up, trying to get out of there, while they were having their own. meeting. Fu cking mo rons never realized I can understand Italian. They would act like I didn¡¯t exist the entire time I was in the room. I used to stay longer on purpose, just to get more of their conversation. I don¡¯t know why I felt like it was important to have information on Massimo, but I guess I¡¯m d I did,¡± she said shrugging her shoulders. We all just stared at her, in silence. Armando asked her, in Italian, you can really understand Italian?¡± She nodded, but answered in English. ¡°I¡¯m just not the best at speaking it, so I don¡¯t. Unless I absolutely have to, which rarely happens. We all just continued to stare at her,pletely stunned. ¡°What? Max¡¯s grandmother is Italiam. We spent a lot of time with her. She taught me how to make pasta.¡± ¡°Does anyone else, outside this room know you can understand Italian?¡± Ivan asked. I knew where his mind was going. While this was beneficial to us, it also made her a target of Massimo¡¯s now too. ¡°Max and his grandmother, but that¡¯s it. It¡¯s obviously not something I make known,¡± she said. ¡°I think we need to have a conversation with Max about you,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Why?¡± she asked. ¡°He needs to keep his mo uth sh ut about you from now on. Not just because of Tori, either,¡± he said, a look of concern on his face. I felt her tense, but she didn¡¯t say anything. She simply nodded her head. We discussed a few more things between all of us. Armando looked at his watch. ¡°I should get some dinner for Giana,¡± he said, running his hand through his dark hair. ¡°When are you going to ask her out, Mando?¡± Sephie asked. I could hear her smiling when she asked the question. He looked at her, shocked. ¡°Don¡¯t y du mb. We all see the way you two look at each other.¡± He was flustered for a moment. ¡°But¡­ she¡¯s my assistant. I¡¯m her boss.¡± ¡°She said the same thing. I feel like that¡¯s just an excuse to keep ignoring your feelings for each other,¡± Sephie said. He looked at her, mo uth open, for a few moments. Finally, he realized what she had really just said. ¡°Wait, she feels the same?¡± ¡°Well, I can¡¯t answer that definitively, but there¡¯s attraction, as well as interest there. It¡¯s up to you two to figure the rest out. Unless you want to keep ignoring it and pretending it doesn¡¯t exist, which is fine with me, because honestly, it¡¯s entertaining for me.¡± The guys were trying to hold back theirughter. ¡°She¡¯s a good girl, Armando. I already told her you would let someone else wear all her clothes if she sleeps around. She was mortified at the thought. That¡¯s a good sign,¡± she said,ughing. He chuckled, standing up. ¡°Well, then, I should go have a conversation with her, I guess.¡± Sephie stood up to give him a hug before he left. As soon as she stepped into his arms, I could see her body tense. She sniffed his shirt, then stepped back from him. ¡°Mando, were there any women at the meeting with Dario and Massimo?¡± She took another step back from him, like she was trying to get away from him. He shook his head. ¡°None at the table with us. There was a woman at the bar in the restaurant.¡± She looked to Viktor. ¡°Could you see inside the restaurant?¡± ¡°No, not at all. I was listening, but I was down the street so no one would see me,¡± he said. ¡°Vanessa was there. Or else she¡¯s with either Dario or Massimo. Did you hug either one of them, Mando?¡± He shook his head no. ¡°No, I shook their hands, but that¡¯s it.¡± ¡°How close were you to the woman at the bar? Do you remember her perfume?¡± she asked. ¡°It was very strong, yes. I ordered a drink, but I wasn¡¯t that close to her. As close as you are to me now. She reminded me of the ex-girlfriend that had issues with fidelity. She was not someone wished to speak to,¡± he said. I looked to Ivan. ¡°Have you spoken to the tail you put on her today?¡± He pulled his phone from his pocket and left the room. ¡°Who¡¯s Vanessa?¡± Armando asked, puzzled. I stood up, moving to pull Sephie back to me. I sat down and pulled her back in myp, hoping to clear her nose of that smell. ¡°She¡¯s an ex-girlfriend of mine. I broke it off with her years ago, but she showed up recently. It doesn¡¯t make sense. We¡¯re trying to figure out why.¡± Sephie leaned her head against my shoulder, inhaling deeply like she was trying to rece the perfume smell with my scent. ¡°You think she¡¯s working for Dario and Massimo?¡± he asked. ¡°We don¡¯t think, we know,¡± Ivan said, walking back into my office. She was at the restaurant and she left-with them. I told the tail to cautiously follow her, so if he ever felt like anyone she was with was trying to evade him, he was to lose them on purpose. He doesn¡¯t know where they went after the restaurant, but she got into the vehicle with them after the meeting.¡± I sighed, thinking about how this wels of conspirators just kept gwing. knew I should¡¯ve punched her in the nose when I had the charice,¡± Sephte sighed. Right on time. EveryoneughedThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 129 Chapter 129 Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Nine Ivan Sephie came to me the next morning in the gym. Everyone else was preupied with other things, so she snuck over to me, a look of worry on her face. ¡°I kind of fu cked it up with Massimo and Dario, didn¡¯t I?¡± she said. I could see the look of genuine concern in her eyes. I tried not tough at her, as I knew she was really worried. ¡°No, princess. We just need to take extra precautions when ites to you. Salvadori¡¯s people are still actively looking for you and now I¡¯th sure that Massimo¡¯s people will be too. We just need to be more careful. You¡¯re not to leave with any less than three of us, okay?¡± I put my hand on her shoulder, trying to offer somefort, but also to make sure that she wasn¡¯t going to argue with me either. She nodded her head, chewing on her bottom lip like she did when she would worry. ¡°I think we also need to have a conversation about exactly what you know about all the other bosses, too. Especially Massimo. There have been a lot of perle after that man for a lot of years. If any one of them find out you know what you know, they coulde for you too.¡± ¡°Awesome. Let¡¯s just set the whole city onto me. I mean, go big or go home, right?¡± Iughed, shaking my head at her. ¡°You know we won¡¯t let anything happen to you, princess. There¡¯s a reason we work for your go ddamn prince and why no one ever gets close to him,¡± I said, asly smile on my face. She grinned at me. ¡°I¡¯ve heard stories, yes.¡± Andrei called for her from across the gym. She smiled at me, turning to go. ¡°My giant trainer beckons me to lift heavy sh it!¡± she said, as she jogged across the gym. Her hip must be getting much better if she can handle more than walk. After we were done in the gym and ready for the day, I caught Boss alone in his office. ¡°I¡¯d like to go have a conversation with Max about keeping his mo uth sh ut about Sephie. And not just because of Tori, either. This new situation with Massimo has me a little worried.¡± He looked at me with an intensity that I instantly recognized. He was just as worried about Massimo, but there was something else there. ¡°That kid makes me so angry, but she still feels loyal to him, so I can¡¯t tell you to have as serious of a conversation with him as I¡¯d like to,¡± he said. Ah, there it is. This might be the first time I¡¯ve seen him jealous. I chuckled. ¡°Listen, I¡¯ve wanted to punch that kid since that night in the restaurant when he shook her too hard and then basically abandoned her for some mediocre woman at the bar.¡± Adrik¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°It¡¯s not just me, then? I keep telling her that he¡¯s an id iot. To the point that I¡¯m actually starting to feel bad about it. He¡¯s like her one friend her own age.¡± ¡°She¡¯ll see him for how he really is in her own time, Boss. He was the only friend she had after a difficult time in her life. That kind of life experience can make you ignore things you shouldn¡¯t just to keep from beingpletely alone. I understand her connection to him, but I don¡¯t think it willst that much longer, nless he starts to realize what he¡¯s doing to her every time he chooses another temporary woman over her.¡± He looked lost in thought for a moment, but then smiled at me. ¡°Sephie was right. You are wise beyond your years.¡± Heughed. then added. ¡°She also said you just don¡¯t want anyone to know it because you value your peace too much.¡± I chuckled, shaking my head. ¡°She hasn¡¯t been wrong yet, Boss.¡± ¡°Let me know how it goes with Max. Do you need anyone to go with you?¡± he asked, still smiling. I shook my head no. ¡°Andrei told me that he called them ¡®trained killers¡¯ when they saw him yesterday. He¡¯s plenty scared of us and I can be very convincing when needed.¡± He nodded his head. ¡°Be as convincing as you need to be without hurting him.¡± We¡¯d had Max followed since the night we first met Sephie, just to make sure he stayed safe and that no one would try to get to her through him. We saw him try to hide her behind him in the parking lot that first night when Boss went back to give her money, so we knew there was at the very least a friendship there. Cioing back to give her money was Adrik¡¯s excuse, anyway. He really just wanted to see her again. We all kniew it, but we all yed along. We¡¯d never seen him act like that around a womanThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. before, so we were all somewhat fascinated by it. I knew his schedule, so I knew where to find him. He¡¯d be at the gym, then he¡¯d go home, shower and change in time to get to work just before the happy hour crowd hit. I waited outside the gyn until he came out. I hated smoking, but it was a reasonable excuse to be standing outside, so I smoked a couple of cigarettes while I waited. All of us had smoked off and on for years, Boss included. We¡¯d all stopped since Sephie came to us, but none of us actively decided to quit. We just did. She never said a word about the habit to any of us. Whatever benefit we were getting from smoking asionally was no longer worth it. Max walked out, his head down. Man, this kid is never aware of his surroundings. I followed him to his car, where he finally spotted me in the reflection of his car¡¯s window as he went to open the door. ¡°Holy shi t, what are you doing there?¡± he said, turning to face me. He pressed himself against his car, like he was trying to get away from me. ¡°We need to have a chat, kid,¡± I said. I put out my cigarette, looking at him seriously the entire time. ¡°A chat about what?¡± he asked, even more nervous now. ¡°Sephie.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Did something happen? Is she okay? I just saw her yesterday.¡± ¡°She¡¯s fine. I would like to keep it that way. I¡¯m going to be very clear here, kid. You are no longer going to mention anything about her to anyone. That includes Tori. Especially Tori. No one is to know that your grandmother taught her to understand Italian. No one is to know any details about her from this point forward.¡± I cracked my knuckles, knowing it would make him even more nervous. ¡°If I hear that she¡¯s in danger because someone found out that bit of information, I¡¯ming for you first. Are we clear?¡± ¡°Ye¡­ yes. We¡¯re clear. Is she in danger?¡± he asked, his fear overtaken by concern. I looked at him for a moment. ¡°She¡¯s been in danger since we first met her, but you¡¯ve been too busy choosing other women over her to notice.¡± I walked away from him before he could respond. He was still leaning against his car,pletely stunned, when I nced back before walking out of sight. Good Chapter 130 Chapter 130 Chapter One Hundred Thirty Non Two Weeks Later We hadn¡¯t been able to go to the house for a few weeks. Adrik wanted me to take Sephie to the piano gallery so she could y. While we were there, he wanted me to arrange to have a piano sent to the penthouse, hopefully without her knowing. I grabbed Misha and Andrei to go with us. Boss was disappointed that he couldn¡¯t go. Listening to her y was bing one of his favorite things, so Misha promised to video her so he could watchter. Fu cking adorable. Sephie wasn¡¯t privy to where we were going. We just told her toe with us and that she¡¯d be happy about it. ¡°I swear on all things holy, I¡¯m punching you all in the nose if you¡¯re forcing me to go shopping,¡± she said, trying not tough. Weughed at her in the elevator, on the way to the parking garage. ¡°Princess, I can¡¯t believe you would think we would do such a thing to you. It hurts me,¡± I said, putting my hand over my heart. ¡°Which is saying a lot, since I can¡¯t feel pain.¡± ¡°Oh, dear God, you¡¯ve juste up with the ultimateeback. The finaleback. Like, how do I top that one? It¡¯s theeback of allebacks. Conversation-endingeback. Mic drop. We¡¯re done here.¡± She grinned at me. We pulled up in front of the gallery and her eyes went wide. ¡°This is where you guys are taking me?¡± I nodded. ¡°Adrik feels bad we haven¡¯t gotten to the house yet. He knows you miss the piano, so he wanted you to have some time. Stay as long as you want, princess.¡± She got out, with me, while Andrei and Misha parked the vehicles. She turned to me and jumped into my arms, almost catching me off-guard. ¡°Thank you thank you thank you!!¡± Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. When we walked in, the salesmen knew her immediately. ¡°Sephie: You¡¯re back! We haven¡¯t seen you in forever!¡± ¡°Hi, Craig. How are you?¡± she said, hugging him as he walked up. ¡°I¡¯m good, Sephie. Please tell me you¡¯re here to get some ying time in. We have a couple of potential customersing in just about 15 minutes and you¡¯re going to sell pianos today for us if you y,¡± he smiled widely at her. Andrei and Misha walked in, standing next to me. Craig looked nervously at us, but tried to remain calm. ¡°I am here to y, if you don¡¯t mind,¡± she said. Without even looking at us, she added, ¡°and don¡¯t mind the giant men. They¡¯re with me. I¡¯m experimenting with having my own audience now.¡± Craig cocked his head to the side, not sure if she was serious or not, but heughed. ¡°Pick any piano you like, even though I have a feeling I know which one you¡¯re going for.¡± She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I like what I like, Craig.¡± She walked toward one of the pianos toward the back of the showroom. Misha and Andrei followed, while Igged behind to speak to Craig, who looked slightly terrified that I wanted to speak to him. ¡°We¡¯d like to arrange for her own piano, but it needs to be delivered to a penthouse. Is that possible?¡± I asked. ¡°And I¡¯m assuming you know which one she will like best?¡± ? He looked at me, smiling, tears welling up in his eyes. I looked at him, puzzled. ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for this moment since her mother passed. Her mother was a dear friend of mine, Sephie had to sell her piano to pay for funeral expenses, I¡¯ve kept it safe in the back of the store, without her knowing, In the hopes that this day woulde. The piano she always ys in the showroom is the exact model that her mother had. That¡¯s why she always chooses it. She¡¯s trying to get as close to her mo m¡¯s piano as possible.¡± I felt a pang in my chest as he talked. This is beyond fu cking adorable. ¡°Can we get it moved to the penthouse? Money is no object. Whatever needs to happen to get it there, we¡¯ll do it.¡± ¡°As long as your elevator is freight-sized, we should be fine. We move nos to high-rise apartments all the time. If we have to use the stairs, we have to use the stairs.¡± He thought for a moment, then added, ¡°once we used a crane. I¡¯ve never been so nervous in my life.¡± I nodded my head. I handed him my card, ¡°I¡¯ll be the contact for the arrangements. Please, try to keep this between us. We¡¯d like for it to be a surprise.¡± Before he took my card, he looked at me like he was gathering every ounce of courage to stand up to me, ¡°I will only agree to this if I¡¯m allowed to be there when she sees the piano. Her mother was incredibly dear to me and I made a promise to her that I intend to keep.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have it any other way,¡± I said, sliding my card into his shirt pocket as I patted his shoulder. I walked to the back of the showroom to Andrei and Misha. Andrei raised his eyebrows at me, silently asking if arrangements had been made. I leaned closer to his ear, telling him. everything I¡¯d just learned. When I finished and looked at him, he had tears welling up in his eyes too. ¡°She¡¯s going to be so happy,¡± he said. I nodded,pletely understanding what he was feeling in that moment. Sephie was happily ying when a few people wandered into the store. There were a few other salesmen, other than Craig, that spoke to them. The customers couldn¡¯t stop themselves from walking closer to Sephie as she yed. They were mesmerized. Craig eventually walked up beside us, a small crowd had now formed around her. She seemed oblivious to it, as she just kept ying. Craig smiled. ¡°This always happens when shees in. I differed to pay her for doing this on a regr basis, but she wouldn¡¯t take it. The pianos sell themselves when she¡¯s here.¡± Sephie yed for a few hours, before finally deciding she¡¯d had her fill. They sold three pianos while she yed, so they were sorry to see her go. Misha got plenty of video for Adrik forter. He sent a few of the shorter ones to him already. Fu cking adorable. Misha and Andrei pulled the vehicles around to the front of the building. Misha jumping out of the second one, getting in with Andrei. I got into the driver¡¯s seat, Sephie was in the passenger seat with me. We made our way back toward the penthouse, through afternoon traffic. Andrei dr ove through an intersection and the next thing I knew, I heard metal crunching on my left side and we were going sideways, I looked to Sephie, turning toward her to try and shield her from the impact. Everything was in slow motion. I couldn¡¯t be sure, but it looked like there were wings surrounding her as bits of shattered ss flew through the air around her. She looked at me, clearly worried, but all I could see was the feathers. Were they¡­changing? Chapter 131 Chapter 131 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-One Sephie We were following Andrei and Misha back to the penthouse when suddenly we were hit from the side. The truck that hit us wasrge, like a delivery truck, so it forced us sideways into parked cars on the side of the street. I looked to Ivan. He was bleeding from his head and was unconscious. Sh it. The truck that hit us backed up, and moved so that it was blocking most of the street. That¡¯s not normal. This was no ident. I reached over, trying to shake Ivan awake. I remembered Misha and Andrei making it through the intersection before us. Surely, they saw us get hit. They¡¯d be here any second. Gunfire. Double sh it. ¡°Ivan! Ivan, I really need you to wake up right about now.¡± I tried shaking him, but he was non- responsive. How hard do you need to get hit to knock you out if you don¡¯t feel pain? I tried to unbuckle my seatbelt, but it was stuck. I couldn¡¯t get it to release. I stretched over to Ivan, who always had a knife on him, usually more than one, and grabbed it from the holster on his leg. I made a me ntal note that I could also reach his gun. I cut myself out of the seatbelt, moving closer to Ivan so I could assess the damage. He had hit his head hard. He also had a pretty nasty wound on his shoulder and his upper left arm, probably from the ss breaking. The gunfire was continuous at this point and now I could hear shoutinging closer to the vehicle. I watched as one man provided cover for a second to run toward us. It was definitely not Andrei and it was definitely not Misha. I heard the first guy yell in Italian, ¡°make sure you get the girl alive,¡± News sh, boys. You¡¯re going to have to work much harder than you thought to get this girl alive. I waited until the second man got closer to the vehicle. I had taken Ivan¡¯s gun out of the holster, safety off, waiting. He ran up to the driver¡¯s side window, trying to see if the door was open. Our vehicle was smashed against a parked car, so there was no getting out that way. He got frustrated when the door wouldn¡¯t open. He moved so that he was clear of Ivan, and I took the shot. He fell to the ground without realizing what hit him. As it turns out, having a gun fired right next to your head will, in fact, bring you back to reality. Ivan jolted awake, looking at me wide-eyed, ¡°Ivan, they¡¯reing for us. We have to get out of here. I haven¡¯t seen Misha or Andrei, but there¡¯s been gunfire for a few minutes now. Hold this,¡± I said, handing him the gun. I cut him out of his seatbelt. ¡°Can you feel your legs? How badly are you hurt? Please tell me you¡¯ll be able to walk, because there¡¯s no chance I¡¯m gonna be able to carry you.¡± He thought for a moment, still trying to get his bearings. ¡°I¡¯m okay, princess. I can walk. The glove box. Open it.¡± I did as he said, finding another gun, along with a small round disk. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked. ¡°Press on it. They¡¯ll get a signal and know where we are. Put it in your pocket. They¡¯ll be able to find you as long as you keep that on you, Sephie, look at me.¡± I pressed the disc, putting it in my pocket, then looked at him. ¡°We¡¯re getting out of here. No matter what it takes.¡± ¡°Um, I ha te to break it to you, but my body count is already higher than yours today, sooooo¡­.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but grin at his stunned expression. I just pointed to the window. ¡°Outside your door.¡± He leaned over enough to see the body of the guy I shot. He looked back at me, a small smile on his face. ¡°Beast mode activated.¡± ¡°He tried to open your door. They¡¯re trying to get me. I heard them yelling,¡± I said. He nodded. ¡°We should be able to get out the back. Are you okay? You can run?¡± I nodded my head. He climbed to the back, still talking. ¡°Ever stolen a car before?¡± ¡°Negatory, good buddy.¡± ¡°Today is your lucky day, princess. We¡¯re getting you out of here and marking that off your bucket list.¡± He utched the back door, but held it so it wouldn¡¯t raise all the way. He checked the surroundings, making sure there was no one visible, before jumping quickly to the ground. Still holding the door, he checked again and then nodded for me to jump down. As soon as we were out of the vehicle, he closed the back door. One hand on me, the other on his gun, he kept us both as low as possible to avoid attention. The gunfire was still steady behind us as we quickly ran down the street, using each parked car as cover. ¡°What kind of car are we looking to steal today, Squishy? I mean, do I get to pick?¡± We ran to the next car, ducking behind it and waiting. As we ran to the next car, he saw a bike parked two more car lengths away. ¡°As it turns out, we aren¡¯t stealing a car today. We¡¯re stealing that,¡± he pointed to the bike. ¡°Easier to hotwire. Faster too.¡± ¡°I like these options. I approve these options.¡± I noticed him breathing heavier before we made a run for the next car. ¡°Ivan, look at me. You might not be feeling pain, but you¡¯re hurt. You have to tell me what else is going on in your body. You¡¯ve already lost a lot of blood.¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay. I¡¯ve been here before. We need to get out of here quickly, though,¡± he said, making a run for the next car. The bike was in front of us. He pointed back in the direction we just came from. ¡°Point your gun in that direction and if you see anyoneing this way, sh oot.¡± ¡°Got it,¡± I said, turning to watch the street while he hotwired the bike. In seemingly under a minute, I heard the bike¡¯s engine turnover. He climbed on the bike, whistling once. I ran to jump on the bike behind him. We sped away down the street.Content ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. Chapter 132 Chapter 132 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Two Sephie Because we were still close to downtown, there was still traffic that we had to weave in and out of. I wasn¡¯t sure how he was managing to stay conscious, but he was navigating through traffic like it was easy. We made it to the freeway and he elerated up the entrance ramp. I had a moment of relief, thinking we were safe now. Boy, was I wrong. We hadn¡¯t been on the freeway for two minutes when three bikes appeared behind us. They got closer, one of them attempting to push us over. As he got closer to us, I reached out and tried to kick him. He faltered but didn¡¯t crash. He came back for more, still trying to push us over. I waited until he was close enough that I could almost touch him and shot through his heart. Push us over now, bi tch. I looked back at the other two bikes. They fell back, but were still following us. ¡°Ivan, they¡¯re still behind us. I can sho ot them, but there¡¯s too many cars. I¡¯m not going to be responsible for shooting an innocent person today.¡± He nodded his head once, elerating. ¡°Hold on.¡± I gripped him tighter as we sped away from the group of cars. His shirt was wet with his blood. Sh it. The road was mostly clear ahead of us. The two bikes following us also sped up, keeping the same distance. We pulled farther away from the cars. I looked back, trying to aim at one of them, but didn¡¯t feel like I had a clear shot. I couldn¡¯t see well enough looking backward to feel like I could actually hit one of them. ¡°Ivan, I can¡¯t get a clear shot. I¡¯m gonna ki ll someone else,¡± I said, starting to panic. ¡°Do you trust me, princess?¡± ¡°Of course. I trust you with my life. I know what you¡¯re fighting right now to get me out of here.¡± ¡°Hold on and when I say, you sho ot left, I¡¯ll sho ot right. Got it?¡± ¡°Got it.¡± ¡°Use the gas tank to brace against. I¡¯m not sure I can hold us both.¡± I put my hand that was holding onto him on the gas tank. I felt him brake hard, pushing against the gas tank with all my strength to keep myself off him. As we slowed even more, he spun the bike around, facing the opposite direction. We were now facing the bikes that had been following us. ¡°Now!¡± I aimed at the rider on the left as he aimed right. We shot at the same time, watching as both riders fell to the ground, their bikes and their bodies sliding across thenes of the freeway. ¡°I¡¯m gonna have to give Stephen a high-fiveter for teaching you how to sho ot, princess.¡± ¡°Me too, Squishy. Me too.¡± He spun the bike back around and took off quickly. He was flying down the freeway. I checked behind us frequently, but there was not a single car behind us. I¡¯m sure we stopped trafficpletely, which was advantageous. Weissed the exit for the penthouse, but Ivan kept going. I knew he was on his way to the house. He¡¯d been quiet. 1 worried about his losing consciousness again ling in your body right now?¡± ¡°My heart is racing. Keep talking to me, please. It helps keep me focused. We¡¯re almost there.¡± I started rambling about anything I could think of, to keep him focused and more importantly, conscious. We made it to the exit for the house and I felt slight relief. I was running out of things to talk about, and I blurted out, ¡°do you think Adrik wants kids? Because that¡¯s not possible with me. That¡¯s why I hate doctors. A doctor took that choice from me.¡± He was starting to nod, so I wasn¡¯t even sure he heard me. We pulled into the driveway. Just a little farther, Squishy. He made it to the front of the house. I jumped off the bike and helped him off. I threw his arm around my shoulders, to help him walk up the steps. As we reached thending after the top step, he stopped. He looked at me, with a serious look in his eye. ¡°He loves you no matter what, Sephie. We all love you no matter what.¡± I don¡¯t know if it was this giant man, clearly battered, clearly struggling to remain conscious, stopping to reassure me or if it was him admitting that he loved me or if it was my adrenaline wearing off, but I felt hot tears just fall freely down my cheeks. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, princess.¡± He pulled me to him, hugging me briefly. I felt him falter and then he slowly lost his grip on consciousness. ¡°Ivan, no. Not yet. Sh it.¡± I said as I tried to keep him from crashing to the ground. I managed to get behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist. I used every ounce of strength I had left to help him to the ground as gently as I could manage. It meant that he was basicallyying on top of me, but at least he didn¡¯t hit his head again on the way down. ¡°This looks like a good ce, Ivan. I agree. I feel like we should wait here.¡± I checked his wounds, since there was really not much else I could do. The cut on his head was pretty good, but the one on his arm was concerning. ¡°I¡¯m notpletely convinced honey is going to take care of that one, Squishy.¡± It was still bleeding profusely. Jesus, how much blood has he already lost from that? He¡¯s like a superhuman if he stayed conscious this long. Super Squishy. I tried to push him off me enough that I could get to my belt. I ended upughing. He didn¡¯t move in the slightest. I looked down. ¡°Okay, so I¡¯m just gonna borrow your belt for this. It¡¯s not awkward in the least.¡± I reached down to unbuckle it, singing to myself, ¡°not date rapey vibes here, not at all.¡± I managed to pull his belt off and get it around his shoulder. I pulled it as tight as I could, trying to stem the bleeding. In the process of all that, his head had fallen over to the side. ¡°That looks really ufortable Super Squishy. Let me help you with that.¡± I moved his head so he was leaning back on my shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They¡¯re going to be here any minute.¡± I was quiet for a few minutes, trying to think of what to do. I didn¡¯t have a phone. I had that disc thing from the glove box in my pocket, but that was it. I couldn¡¯t get my legs out from under Ivan¡¯s almost 300 lbs of pure muscle dead weight, so I was stuck here until someone else got here. He started to twitch, mumbling quietly. I felt his body tense. I felt a pain in my chest, as I knew what he was going through. The darkness. ¡°Super Squishy, I¡¯m still here. I won¡¯t leave you, I promise. I¡¯m right here, buddy. Just walk toward my voice.¡± His body stilled, his breathing calmed down. I exhaled, starting to worry that they wouldn¡¯t make it to me in time. He had lost a lot of blood. There was a puddle underneath us. I had slowed it with his belt, but not stopped it. He started to jerk again, slightly, Ivan, I¡¯m here. I¡¯m always here. I¡¯m always going to be here. I just kept repeating that to him untill I finally heard a v coming up the drive. I was half afraid to look to see who it was. I was mostly sure it would¡¯ve been one of the guys, but it didn¡¯t sound like their vehicles, so I couldn¡¯t be sure. I took Ivan¡¯s gun from the waistband of his pants, safety off, and held it against him so they wouldn¡¯t see until it was toote. My back was to the driveway, so they would¡¯ve seen me grab the gun I had, as I had put it in the small of my back in the waistband of my pants. I heard the vehicle stop and the door open. ¡°Okay, Ivan, this is either going to be really good or really, really bad. Wish me luck. I might be quiet for a minute, but I¡¯m still here. Don¡¯t go anywhere, buddy.¡± Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Three Sephie I heard footsteps, then the voice I was dying to hear. ¡°Sephie! Are you hurt?¡± ¡°Turns out it was really good, buddy. The day just took a turn for the better,¡± I whispered in his ear, squeezing him just a little tighter. Adrik¡¯s arms were around me in seconds. I took a deep breath, finally safe. ¡°Ivan¡¯s really hurt. He sacrificed himself to get me here. Don¡¯t tell him I said this, but I think he needs to go to the hospital. He¡¯s lost a ton of blood. I can¡¯t lift him by myself. And I don¡¯t know what happened to Andrei and Misha. They got separated from us. There was gunfire but that¡¯s all I know.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s lips on my temple. ¡°They¡¯re fine. Andrei was shot, but non-lethal. Viktor is right behind me.¡± Just as he said that, I heard the normal sound of the SUV pulling up the driveway. ¡°We¡¯ll get Ivan to the hospital. Andrei is already on the way there. Misha is okay. Are you hurt?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m okay. Ivan took the worst of it. And by that, I mean he took all of it.¡± I had a sh of when the truck hit us. I could clearly see Ivan turn his body toward me, using his body as a shield from the impact. He looked me in the eye as we came to rest against the parked car. I clearly remember the look on his face. It was like he was seeing something else. At first, he was confused, then he was in awe. ¡°He used his body to shield me, Adrik. He sacrificed himself.¡± I wasn¡¯t even aware of the tears falling down my face until Adrik reached down and wiped them away. Viktor ran up the steps and helped Adrik lift Ivan off me. They carried him to the SUV. I got up quickly and climbed into the back with him, leaning him in myp again. Adrik climbed in the front with Viktor, and we sped away from the house. I talked quietly to Ivan the whole way to the hospital. I felt like I needed to warn him that we were taking him there. I didn¡¯t think this was going to go well, but we didn¡¯t have a choice. We were met by Misha and Stephen when we pulled up to the hospital. ¡°Where¡¯s Bubba?¡± I asked as Misha opened the door to grab Ivan. He looked at me, a small smile on his face, ¡°surgery, gazelle. He¡¯s okay. They¡¯re just getting the bullet out.¡± They were met by nurses with a bed for Ivan just outside the doors to the emergency room. They loaded him onto the bed. I tried to go with him, but they wouldn¡¯t let me into the room. I felt Adrik¡¯s arms around me from behind, his face against mine. ¡°We should get you checked out to make sure you¡¯re okay too. You said you¡¯re fine, but you have cuts of your own. Your head is bleeding, solnishko.¡± ¡°It is? Are you sure it¡¯s my blood? Ivan was bleeding profusely.¡± He gently turned me so that I was facing him. A small smile on his face. He pushed a few curls out of my face. ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s yours, solnishko. Will you let them look at you? Ivan and Andrei are in good hands. They¡¯re tough. They¡¯re going to be fine. I need to make sure you¡¯re also fine. They already checked out Misha.¡± He pressed his lips gently to mine. He was so calm right now that it made me calm. I inhaled, closing my eyes. He pulled me closer to him, walking us toward another room where a nurse was waiting to check me over. She also had a pair of scrubs for me to change Into. My clothes were covered in Ivan¡¯s blood. And maybe a little of mine. I did have a few cuts that I hadn¡¯t even noticed. I got more stitches because I hadn¡¯t had enough stitches at this point in my life. I had a deep cut on my hairline and one on my arm that both required stitching up. Otherwise, my other cuts were mostly from broken ss and would heal on their own. We waited in the hallway for them to give us word on Andrei and Ivan. While we waited, they asked questions about what had happened, so I recapped what I could remember. I got to the part about shooting the guy in the face and stopped, not wanting to say it out loud as there wore people walking up and down the hallway. I knew the word for ¡°sho ot¡± in Russian, so I said that and pointed to my face. Their eyes went wide. Adrik pulled me against him as I continued to tell them about Ivan waking up getting out of the vehicle and to the bike. Then about the chase on the freeway with the other three bikes, the first one that had shot, and what Ivan had done to give us a clear shot for thest two. Once I told them about me going left, him going ri I walked to Stephen. I high fived him once. ¡°That¡¯s from me for teaching me how to sho ot. Ivan said he owes you one, as wel Stephen laughed quietly. I then told them about making it to the house and Ivan falling by the front door. I looked to Misha. ¡°What happened on your end? I heard gunfire almost immediately. I assumed it was you and Andrei, but we couldn¡¯t see anything. The truck that hit u blocked the street.¡± ¡°We saw you guys get hit. Andrei stopped immediately, but there were guys waiting. They knew we had two vehicles and were trying to separate us. We got out to try to get to you guys, but they started firing immediately. We both took cover, slowly making our way toward you, but it wasn¡¯t fast enough. We saw the guy you hit run toward you. Andrei made a run after him. and that¡¯s when he got hit. They just hit his shoulder, but he was forced to take cover behind a parked car. Viktor and Stepher showed up soon after. They said they got the signal from your beacon, but you guys were already well on your way to the freeway by the time they got to us. They knew Ivan would take you to the house, which is when Adrik left the penthouse for t house.¡± I remembered that he had showed up alone to the house. ¡°That reminds me, how did you get to the house again?¡± I asked, looking at Adrik. He smirked. ¡°I know how to drive. I just choose not to most of the time.¡± Heughed at the face I made. ¡°I have a sports car, solnishko. I rarely take it out anymore, but it came in handy today.¡± He wrapped his arms around me tighter, kissing my temple. I was happy for his warm body next to mine. The scrubs I was wearing were not-the warmest clothing choice for a cold hospital ¡°And did you four just ki ll everyone or did you leave unfinished business?¡± I asked Viktor, one eyebrow raised. Heughed his deep bellyugh. ¡°No unfinished business, sestrichka. Misha and Stephen got Andrei to the hospital, and I left for the house.¡± ¡°Good game, everyone. Seriously. I feel like teamwork really made the mo therfucking dream work this time,¡± I said, as they allughed at me.This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 133 Chapter 133 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Three Sephie I heard footsteps, then the voice I was dying to hear. ¡°Sephie! Are you hurt?¡± ¡°Turns out it was really good, buddy. The day just took a turn for the better,¡± I whispered in his ear, squeezing him just a little tighter. Adrik¡¯s arms were around me in seconds. I took a deep breath, finally safe. ¡°Ivan¡¯s really hurt. He sacrificed himself to get me here. Don¡¯t tell him I said this, but I think he needs to go to the hospital. He¡¯s lost a ton of blood. I can¡¯t lift him by myself. And I don¡¯t know what happened to Andrei and Misha. They got separated from us. There was gunfire but that¡¯s all I know.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s lips on my temple. ¡°They¡¯re fine. Andrei was shot, but non-lethal. Viktor is right behind me.¡± Just as he said that, I heard the normal sound of the SUV pulling up the driveway. ¡°We¡¯ll get Ivan to the hospital. Andrei is already on the way there. Misha is okay. Are you hurt?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m okay. Ivan took the worst of it. And by that, I mean he took all of it.¡± I had a sh of when the truck hit us. I could clearly see Ivan turn his body toward me, using his body as a shield from the impact. He looked me in the eye as we came to rest against the parked car. I clearly remember the look on his face. It was like he was seeing something else. At first, he was confused, then he was in awe. ¡°He used his body to shield me, Adrik. He sacrificed himself.¡± I wasn¡¯t even aware of the tears falling down my face until Adrik reached down and wiped them away. Viktor ran up the steps and helped Adrik lift Ivan off me. They carried him to the SUV. I got up quickly and climbed into the back with him, leaning him in myp again. Adrik climbed in the front with Viktor, and we sped away from the house. I talked quietly to Ivan the whole way to the hospital. I felt like I needed to warn him that we were taking him there. I didn¡¯t think this was going to go well, but we didn¡¯t have a choice. We were met by Misha and Stephen when we pulled up to the hospital. ¡°Where¡¯s Bubba?¡± I asked as Misha opened the door to grab Ivan. He looked at me, a small smile on his face, ¡°surgery, gazelle. He¡¯s okay. They¡¯re just getting the bullet out.¡± They were met by nurses with a bed for Ivan just outside the doors to the emergency room. They loaded him onto the bed. I tried to go with him, but they wouldn¡¯t let me into the room. I felt Adrik¡¯s arms around me from behind, his face against mine. ¡°We should get you checked out to make sure you¡¯re okay too. You said you¡¯re fine, but you have cuts of your own. Your head is bleeding, solnishko.¡± This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. ¡°It is? Are you sure it¡¯s my blood? Ivan was bleeding profusely.¡± He gently turned me so that I was facing him. A small smile on his face. He pushed a few curls out of my face. ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s yours, solnishko. Will you let them look at you? Ivan and Andrei are in good hands. They¡¯re tough. They¡¯re going to be fine. I need to make sure you¡¯re also fine. They already checked out Misha.¡± He pressed his lips gently to mine. He was so calm right now that it made me calm. I inhaled, closing my eyes. He pulled me closer to him, walking us toward another room where a nurse was waiting to check me over. She also had a pair of scrubs for me to change Into. My clothes were covered in Ivan¡¯s blood. And maybe a little of mine. I did have a few cuts that I hadn¡¯t even noticed. I got more stitches because I hadn¡¯t had enough stitches at this point in my life. I had a deep cut on my hairline and one on my arm that both required stitching up. Otherwise, my other cuts were mostly from broken ss and would heal on their own. We waited in the hallway for them to give us word on Andrei and Ivan. While we waited, they asked questions about what had happened, so I recapped what I could remember. I got to the part about shooting the guy in the face and stopped, not wanting to say it out loud as there wore people walking up and down the hallway. I knew the word for ¡°sh oot¡± in Russian, so I said that and pointed to my face. Their eyes went wide. Adrik pulled me against him as I continued to tell them about Ivan waking up getting out of the vehicle and to the bike. Then about the chase on the freeway with the other three bikes, the first one that had shot, and what Ivan had done to give us a clear shot for thest two. Once I told them about me going left, him going ri I walked to Stephen. I high fived him once. ¡°That¡¯s from me for teaching me how to sh oot. Ivan said he owes you one, as wel Stephen laughed quietly. I then told them about making it to the house and Ivan falling by the front door. I looked to Misha. ¡°What happened on your end? I heard gunfire almost immediately. I assumed it was you and Andrei, but we couldn¡¯t see anything. The truck that hit u blocked the street.¡± ¡°We saw you guys get hit. Andrei stopped immediately, but there were guys waiting. They knew we had two vehicles and were trying to separate us. We got out to try to get to you guys, but they started firing immediately. We both took cover, slowly making our way toward you, but it wasn¡¯t fast enough. We saw the guy you hit run toward you. Andrei made a run after him. and that¡¯s when he got hit. They just hit his shoulder, but he was forced to take cover behind a parked car. Viktor and Stepher showed up soon after. They said they got the signal from your beacon, but you guys were already well on your way to the freeway by the time they got to us. They knew Ivan would take you to the house, which is when Adrik left the penthouse for t house.¡± I remembered that he had showed up alone to the house. ¡°That reminds me, how did you get to the house again?¡± I asked, looking at Adrik. He smirked. ¡°I know how to drive. I just choose not to most of the time.¡± Heughed at the face I made. ¡°I have a sports car, solnishko. I rarely take it out anymore, but it came in handy today.¡± He wrapped his arms around me tighter, kissing my temple. I was happy for his warm body next to mine. The scrubs I was wearing were not-the warmest clothing choice for a cold hospital ¡°And did you four just ki ll everyone or did you leave unfinished business?¡± I asked Viktor, one eyebrow raised. Heughed his deep bellyugh. ¡°No unfinished business, sestrichka. Misha and Stephen got Andrei to the hospital, and I left for the house.¡± ¡°Good game, everyone. Seriously. I feel like teamwork really made the mo therfucking dream work this time,¡± I said, as they allughed at me. Chapter 134 Chapter 134 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Four Sephie A nurse finally came down the hallway toward us. We all looked at her expectantly. ¡°The gunshot wound is out of surgery. He¡¯s stilling out from under anesthesia, but you¡¯ll be able to see him soon. The vehicle ident victim¡­¡± she paused, and I felt my heart drop. She cleared her throat. ¡°He¡¯s proving to be a difficult patient. We¡¯ve given him three times the normal anesthesia and he keeps waking up and trying to leave the table. He¡¯s got a terrible fracture in his arm that we¡¯re trying to fix, along with repairing the soft tissue, but it¡¯s proving to be next to impossible.¡± ¡°You have to let me in there. I can keep him calm.¡± I said, as urgently as I could. She looked at me like I was crazy, but I think the look on my face told her that I was serious. ¡°I don¡¯t know what else we can try without killing him, soe on.¡± I followed her quickly to the surgery room. She hurriedly put a sterile gown over my scrubs. I walked in the room ahead of her. Everyone in the room was surprised and protested. I stopped, looking at all of them, showing my anger on full disy. ¡°If you don¡¯t let me near him, he will wake up and ki ll you all. I can keep him calm so you can fix him. Your choice as to which option you want.¡± They stepped back. I ran to Ivan¡¯s side. They had tried to tie him to the bed, he was struggling, half- awake, half-asleep, but fighting with everything he had left. As soon as I put my hands on his chest, he stopped struggling. I leaned down to whisper in his ear. ¡°Hi, Super Squishy. These fuc king mo rons wouldn¡¯t let mee in with you, but they¡¯ve learned their lesson. I¡¯m not leaving you again. Promise. They need to work on your arm. It¡¯s broken. You¡¯ve lost a lot of blood. I¡¯m going to be here the whole time. I won¡¯t leave you.¡± His body rxed and he leaned his head back. As he inhaled deeply, I looked at the doctors and nurses and nodded my head. ¡°You can do what you need to do. He won¡¯t resist.¡± They stood frozen for a moment,pletely shocked at what they just witnessed. The nurse that had allowed me in there. snapped out of it first and brought me a chair to sit in, so I could stay by his head without being in the way. I nodded in appreciation as I sat down, never taking my hand off him. The doctor got back to work on his arm. Ivan stayed still, his breathing steady. I kept my hand on his chest, my thumb rubbing back and forth gently. He raised his good arm, putting his hand on top of mine and everyone jumped back from the table. ¡°He¡¯s waking up again!¡± I felt him squeeze my hand slightly. I looked at the doctor. ¡°He¡¯s been awake since I got in here. Your drugs don¡¯t work on him. Get back to work before his patience runs out.¡± He squeezed one more time. It took them over an hour longer to fix his arm. The break was the easiest thing to fix. It was all the soft tissue damage that took the longest to repair. He cut a lot of veins, as well as his brachial artery, which is why he bled so much. They finally got everything repaired and all the bleeding stopped. Once they were done stitching him up, the nice nurse looked at me. ¡°He can go to a recovery room now. You can go back out and walt for him to be transferred to the room with the gunshot victim.¡± ¡°You must be crazy to think I¡¯m leaving him again. Do you ha te your coworkers? Do you want them all to di e tonight, because that¡¯s what¡¯s gonna happen If you don¡¯t keep me with him.¡± She looked shocked but didn¡¯t argue. ¡°Come on, then. We¡¯re going to the recovery room.¡± He squeezed my hand harder this time. The mass amounts of drugs they gave him wearing off. I bent down closer to his ear, ¡°told you I wasn¡¯t going to leave you again. These people are nu ts anyway.¡± He took one short breath, in between a cough and augh. I flipped my hand over andced my fingers through his, so I could squeeze his hand. I won¡¯t leave you to the darkness, Ivan. Ivan was in and out of the recovery room in record time. He had all the nursespletely baffled at how he reacted to anesthesia. They were talking loud enough that I knew he could hear them. He still had an oxygen mask over his mo uth and nose, so he couldn¡¯t talk, but his eyes were open. I knew he waspletely awake and aware now. I leaned closer to him, so they couldn¡¯t hear me. ¡°They¡¯ve never seen a superhuman before, Super Squishy. You¡¯re the first one. They¡¯ll have your babies, if you want. I¡¯ll get their numbers. You can decideter.¡± This time he actuallyughed. Both nurses came back to check on him. He looked at me, his eyes smiling. He hadn¡¯t let go of my hand and I wasn¡¯t about to let go of his. I looked at the nurses. ¡°Does he still need the mask? He¡¯spletely awake now. He has been since we got in here, if I¡¯m beingContent ? N?velDrama.Org 2024. honest.¡± ¡°How is that even possible? He had like three times the normal amount of anesthesia,¡± one of the nurses asked me,pletely shocked. ¡°I mean, some people are just superhumans. You should see him leap tall buildings in a single bound,¡± I said, trying not tough. He couldn¡¯t hold it in and startedughing again. ¡°Okay, we can switch out the mask. He¡¯s definitely awake,¡± she said, taking the mask off his face and recing it with the tube that just went under his nose. ¡°Yeah! Now you can feel like the oxygen is trying to pick your nose. That¡¯s so much better!¡± He spoke to me in Russian, so the nurses wouldn¡¯t understand. ¡°Thank you. For staying with me. You¡¯re what pulled me through that.¡± I smiled at him, answering him in Russian, ¡°I¡¯m not leaving you until they let you out of here. For their safety.¡± I winked at him. The nurses were looking at us curiously, but remained silent. ¡°We¡¯re going to move him to the room with the other guy that came in ahead of him.¡± I nodded, standing up. I suddenly felt very tired. I looked down at Ivan, knowing he wasn¡¯t feeling anything, and said, ¡°stop hogging the bed, as shole. I want to ride along to the room.¡± He sat up and moved over for me sit beside him on the bed beforeying back down. Both nurses just stood there, mo uths. hanging open. ¡°That¡¯s incredible,¡± one of them said. I acted like I was discreetly pointing at him, but made it overly obvious. ¡°Superhuman. He also has x- ray vision, in case you were wondering what we were talking about earlier.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at their shocked faces. ¡°I¡¯m just fu cking with you. Inappropriate humor is how I deal with trauma. It¡¯s been a long day.¡± Another nurse showed up to wheel us to the room where Andrel was, and I assumed everyone else was too. Once we left the recovery room, Ivan pulled me over toward his face. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit evil, princess,¡± he said, quietly. Iughed. ¡°Maybe just a little, but it¡¯s so fun. Save me from myself I begged. He quietly wrapped his giant arm-around my shoulders as they wheeled us down the hallway Chapter 135 Chapter 135 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Five Sephie We were stillughing when we were wheeled into the room with Andrei. Everyone turned to look at us. Misha¡¯s wide smile across this face. ¡°Ivan, you¡¯re the only one I know that would beughing after coming out of that long of a surgery.¡± He sat up farther and the nurse adjusted the bed to support him. ¡°It¡¯s not me. It¡¯s her. She¡¯s evil in the best way possible.¡± Adrik looked at me sternly, his hands on his hips. ¡°Persephone, what have you done now.¡± He cracked a smile, opening his arms for me. I hopped off the bed and went to him,ughing. ¡°I did nothing except save their lives. They should be thanking me. Ivanughed. ¡°She¡¯s not kidding there. I traumatized that one doctor, I¡¯m sure of it. But then she showed up and started cracking jokes. Those two nurses in the recovery room didn¡¯t know what to think.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift,¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders. I walked to Andrei, who didn¡¯t look too bad considering he was shot earlier. I leaned down and kissed his cheek. ¡°How you doin¡¯, Bubba?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve had worse. This wasn¡¯t so bad. They just had to dig the bullet out,¡± he said. I made a motion like I was going to vomit. ¡°It sounds so pleasant when you say it like that.¡± He chuckled. ¡°Don¡¯t pu ke on the guy that got shot trying to run to save you.¡± Heughed, then added, ¡°although it turns out I didn¡¯t need to. You took care of it like a boss, spider monkey.¡± ¡°I took care of it like the go ddamn princess,¡± I said,ughing. Everyoneughed and for a moment, we had all forgotten what had happened that day. I knew it was going to hit us allter, but for now, we were alive, we were together, and I was grateful for each one of them. The doctor came inter to check on the patients. He told them both he saw no reason why they couldn¡¯t go home the next morning. He wanted to monitor both of them through the night, but as long as everything went well overnight, then they could go home in the morning. He asked to speak to me inText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. the hallway once he was satisfied with both Ivan and Andrei. Adrik looked concerned and got up toe with me, but I motioned for him to stay, I said, ¡°I¡¯ll be okay,¡± quietly as I followed the doctor into the hallway. ¡°Youngdy, I don¡¯t know what kind of special powers you have over that man, but it¡¯s unlike anything I¡¯ve ever seen. I¡¯ve never had a patient that resistant to heavy sedatives before. We gave him enough to sedate a horse and it barely touched him. But you walked in, whispered something to him and he as perfectly still. I don¡¯t understand it, but I¡¯m in awe of it. I was just about to call It and let him bleed to death on the table when you walked in. I wasn¡¯t going to let him ki ll one of my nurses or me.¡± ¡°Oh, he would¡¯ve killed all of you,¡± I said, sincerely. I believe you.¡± He offered me his hand. ¡°Thank you. For helping me save his life today and for saving mine and those of my hand at him. ¡°He¡¯s not a monster, but doctors are the reason he is like he is, so he¡¯s not exactly a fais of e had an experience with a doctor that he can store in the good column for once, He looked surprised at my words, the gravity of the situation fully hitting him. Without thinking, I hugged him. He needed it. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I asked him, as I stepped back from him. ¡°Charlie. Charlie Williams.¡± ¡°If we¡¯re ever in this situation again, and there¡¯s a solid chance we will be, Dr. Williams, can I have them call you in to take care of him? It¡¯ll help him to know who¡¯s working on him.¡± He smiled nervously at me. ¡°As long as you¡¯re there, of course.¡± ¡°As long as I¡¯m alive, I will always be there for him. He¡¯s the reason I¡¯m standing here right now.¡± I smiled sweetly at him, trying to hold it together until we finished this little chat. ¡°Deal,¡± he said. ¡°Thank you, Doctor.¡± I said, still smiling through the pain I knew was about toe gushing out. ¡°No, thank you,¡± he said as he turned to leave. I checked the hallway. It was empty, the floor was mostly quiet. I exhaled loudly, putting my hands on my hips as I walked across the hall and leaned against the wall. I just needed a minute before going back in. I put my hands over my eyes, my head leaned back against the wall. The tears started toe. I couldn¡¯t stop them. I felt warm hands around my waist, pulling me to him. He didn¡¯t say anything, he just held me close as his hands ran up and down my back. I was fighting to get control as I lost the battle and sobbed against his chest. ¡°It¡¯s okay, solnishko. Let it out.¡± I cried for a few minutes, but finally regained control enough that I could look at him. ¡°Was it the doctor? What happened?¡± he asked, concern on his face. 1 shook my head no. ¡°No, the doctor thanked me for saving his life today. They had Ivan strapped to the bed and he was still managing to get up to go after them,¡± I su cked in a breath as I thought of the sight of Ivan strapped to the bed. I could only imagine how many times in his life he¡¯d been strapped to a medical bed. ¡°As soon as I touched him and talked to him, he didn¡¯t move anymore.¡± I smiled, remembering how they all jumped away. ¡°Well, not exactly. He grabbed my hand and they all jumped away from the table at once.¡± Iughed, feeling more tearsing. I looked up at Adrik, tears streaming down my face. ¡°He almost died today. Because of me. Andrei got shot today. Because of me.¡± He looked at me, a flood of emotionsing over his face at once. He pulled me to him, resting his chin on top of my head. ¡°No, Sephie. Not because of you. You did nothing, you hear me? None of this is your fault.¡± He put his hands on my shoulders, pushing me back enough that he could look me in the eyes again. ¡°None of this is your fault.¡± ¡°I opened my big mo uth and told Massimo I know where he hides the bodies. I¡¯m sure it was his men that came after us today. I heard them yelling. They wanted me alive.¡± He pulled me back to him, sighing. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who it was that came after you today. They¡¯re going to pay. I¡¯m tired of being nice. They¡¯re all going to fear me after today.¡± He was running his hands up and down my back the way he did when he was trying to keep himself calm. I wrapped my arms around his waist, holding onto him tightly. Part of me didn¡¯t want what 1 knew was about to happen. The other part of me, wanted to unleash He ll. At that moment, I wasn¡¯t sure which part would win Chapter 136 Chapter 136 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Six Sephie Well after dark, one of the nurses came in and informed us that visiting hours were ending soon and that we would need to leave. I couldn¡¯t help it. Iughed. ¡°I think you should call Dr. Williams and ask him if it¡¯s a good idea for me to leave.¡± She looked at me like I was a petnt child. I mean, I partially couldn¡¯t me her. I was too tired to have any sort of tact at that moment. She tried to cop an attitude with me. Everyone but Andrei and Ivan stood up. I took a step toward her, crossing my arms across my chest. ¡°Call Dr. Williams.¡± She left the room in a huff and I returned to the side of Ivan¡¯s bed. I felt slightly guilty about torturing him with having to share a bed, but I knew he didn¡¯t feel anything. He didn¡¯t seem to mind. The nurse came back a few minutester, her attitude visibly different. She was now overly nice and clearly frightened. She asked us if we¡¯d be needing an extra bed. I put on my best fake smile as I nodded my head yes. She left as quickly as she could. The guys allughed when she left the room. ¡°You don¡¯t even need us anymore, gazelle. She¡¯s more scared of you than she is us,¡± Misha said, yawning in his chair. ¡°She doesn¡¯t know I¡¯m the go ddamn princess.¡± I mumbled, crossing my arms again across my chest. A different nurse came inter with an extra bed. I looked at Misha and nodded my head toward the bed for him to lie down. ¡°You¡¯re clearly tired. You can have the first shift. We¡¯ll be quiet.¡± He looked at everyone else, who all agreed. Viktor, Stephen, and Adrik were fairing better than the rest of us. I was happy making Ivan share, for now. Misha got up and stretched out on the small bed, his legs dangling off the end of the bed. Iughed. ¡°This is going to be the best night¡¯s sleep you¡¯ve ever had, my giant adorable Russian guardian.¡± We were quiet so Misha could sleep. Andrei fell asleep quickly as well. I looked over to find Viktor and Stephen with their eyes/ closed, their heads leaned back against the wall. Adrik was still concerned about me, and would check on me every so often, but would close his eyes in between. Ivan wasThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. awake next to me. I looked over at him, whispering, ¡°you should sleep, Squishy. I won¡¯t leave. I promise.¡± He looked at me, the fear in his eyes clearly visible. ¡°Promise?¡± he asked. He sounded more vulnerable in that moment than I would have ever imagined he could be. ¡°Pinky swear, even,¡± I said, holding my pinky up. He looked at me, puzzled. ¡°Right. Let me introduce you to the pinky swear. It¡¯s the holiest of swears there is. Likepletely trumps swearing on all things holy, on your mother¡¯s grave, on your life, all of it. It¡¯s the holiest of holy swears. Like the pope himself can¡¯t even make a pinky swear because he¡¯s not holy enough. He chuckled and held his pinky up. I grabbed his pinky with mine. ¡°I plnky swear I will not leave you.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± he said, a look of relief on his face. He leaned his head back, closing his eyes. I looked over to Adrik, catching him watching our exchange¡­ I smiled at him, trying to let him know I was okay. He just mouthed ¡°I love you¡± and closed his eyes again. I leaned my head onto Ivan¡¯s shoulder and closed my eyes. Nobody got much sleep during the night, but it was better than nothing. The nurses would have to come in every few hours to check on Andrel and Ivan. Whoever was on the extra bed would get up and let someone else have a chance to be down. Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Six Ivan eventually fell asleep, but had troubled dreams throughout the night. He would fall asleep for a bit and I would rx and start to drift off to sleep, only to feel his body start to je rk. I would just lean close to his ear, whispering to him to let him know I was still there, and he would calm down. I tried to be as quiet as I could, but Viktor caught me calming him down. Viktor looked at me, with a knowing look. ¡°You¡¯re the only one that¡¯s ever been able to do that. This isn¡¯t the first time we¡¯ve been in the hospital with him. It¡¯s never gone this well. Being here brings up whatever is in his past and every time before, he¡¯s struggled for days with it. They can¡¯t sedate him either. We¡¯ve had to hold him down before to keep him from hurting anybody.¡± I sighed. ¡°He has reason to be this way. He told me what happened to him. We should all be seriously impressed that he didn¡¯t turn into a real monster.¡± Viktor looked surprised. ¡°He told you? Everything?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°He¡¯s never told anyone.¡± He thought for a second, before smiling. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t be surprised.¡± I smiled at him, looking from him to Ivan sleeping soundly. I sighed again, ¡°everyone has demons. My demons recognize a few of his and his demons recognize a few of mine. He feltfortable enough to tell me, I guess.¡± The doctor was back early the next morning to check on them both. I think he wanted to release them as soon as possible just to get them out of the hospital more than anything, but I wasn¡¯t going to comin. I didn¡¯t want to be there any longer than absolutely necessary. They both got the green light to leave. Both were instructed to take it easy for a few days. Both had their arms in slings. I¡¯m sure it helped Andrei¡¯s arm feel slightly less painful, but for Ivan, it kept him from overusing his arm and ripping the stitches out. He¡¯d already tried to use it once because he forgot he wasn¡¯t supposed to. It didn¡¯t seem to matter that he was heavily bandaged. He still ¡°forgot¡± that arm was currently under construction and not usable. Viktor and Stephen pulled the vehicles to the door. The nurses showed up with two wheelchairs for Andrei and Ivan. I couldn¡¯t help myself again. Iughed at them. ¡°You guys wasted a trip,¡± I said, as both guys stood up behind me and walked out of the room. Yep, they were a different breed. Ivan got in the passenger seat, while I climbed in the back, moving over so Adrik could slide in beside me. His arms were immediately around me, pulling me closer to him. He whispered in my ear, ¡°I appreciate why you did it, but I don¡¯t ever want to be apart from you for that long again.¡± He kissed my temple. I felt my cheeks blush. We dr ove to the house, to give Andrei and Ivan a few quiet days. I was happy to be going to the house as well. After I took a nap, I was looking forward to a long walk. My hip was finally feeling almost back to normal, with only slight soreness now and then if I overdid it. I leaned against Adrik, closing my eyes. Happy to be next to him. Happy that Ivan and Andrei were okay. Happy that we were all together still. Knowing that the storm wasing. The guys all dispersed to their rooms, but not before I made sure that Andrei and Ivan would be okay on their own. Ivan slid his arm around my shoulders, saying quietly, ¡°I know you barely sleptst night because you were busy keeping me calm. You need to sleep for at least a few hours, princess. I¡¯ll be fine.¡± I looked at him skeptically. He just held up his pinky and grinned. ¡°Go. Your go ddamn prince misses you.¡± He nodded to Adrik and walked toward his room. I caught Viktor and Misha before they went to their rooms, on either side of Ivan¡¯s room. ¡°If you two hear him struggling again,e get me. I won¡¯t let him fight this alone this time. I don¡¯t care what time it Is,e get me. He needs to keep that arm still anyway. If he messes up the doctor¡¯s handiwork, he could bleed to death. Understood?¡± They both nodded their heads. Viktor wrapped his nt arm around me. ¡°Ivan is lucky to have you this time. We¡¯re all lucky to have you.¡± He kissed the top of my head and continued to his raam. I felt Adrik¡¯s arms around me. ¡°How are you feeling, solnishko? Are you sore? Do you want a bath or a show n¡¯s blood on you and I would much rather not see you in hospital scrubs,¡± he had a small smile on Chapter 137 Chapter 137 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Seven Sephie We crawled into bed around 8:00 that morning. He had a few things to take care of that afternoon, so he made sure to set an rm. I didn¡¯t want to sleep the entire day and then be awake the entire night again either. As Iid across his chest, finally feeling warmth after an entire night of being freezing in that hospital, I felt my body rxpletely. My hair was still wet, so I wrapped it into a bun to keep it from soaking everything it touched. I felt Adrik¡¯s hand slowly running up and down my back, under his shirt that I was wearing. It felt like less than a minute and I was sound asleep. I found myself on a familiar path, in front of that same house where I saw my father thest time. This time, instead of cautiously entering the house, I ran inside. He was at the piano again and stopped when he heard mee into the room. ¡°Peanut!¡± he said, standing and opening his arms to me. ¡°Dad! I was wondering when I was going to see you again!¡± ¡°Well, technically, this is the second time in as many days. Ivan even saw me yesterday, too, although once again, I wasn¡¯t really needed. Ivan had it covered.¡± I looked at him, confused. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°The ident. I wrapped my wings around you right before the truck hit you, but then Ivan turned to use his body as a shield. for you. Do you remember seeing his face, peanut?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°Yes. He looked confused and then he looked like he was in¡­awe?¡± ¡°urate. What he was seeing isn¡¯t usually seen by many people, but once again, it needed to happen. He got his wings yesterday, peanut.¡± I felt the tears starting to burn my eyes. ¡°What do you mean. Is he leaving?¡± I asked, very seriously. ¡°He can¡¯t di e yet. He¡¯s fine. The doctors fixed him. He said he was fine.¡± I started to panic. My father grabbed me and pulled me to him. ¡°No, Sephie. He¡¯s not going anywhere. He proved that he¡¯ll give his life to save yours yesterday. He¡¯s not allowed to go anywhere now. He has a job to do.¡± I inhaled deeply, feeling a flood of relief that Ivan wasn¡¯t dying. ¡°But I still don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°It¡¯s quite a long story, but the short version is that Ivan¡¯s special gift, his inability to feel pain, is what was needed to protect you from what¡¯sing. It¡¯s no coincidence that you¡¯re the one that could calm him down yesterday. You two have been tied together your entire lives, you¡¯re only just now realizing it.¡± He cleared his throat, seeing the look of confusion still on my face. ¡°Sephle, people have many different forms of soulmates in their lives. You and Adrik? You¡¯re the lovers. You two were always supposed to meet and fall in love. Youplete each other, which is why he feels like home to you. You¡¯ve fallen in love with him over and over through lifetimes. But there are other kinds of soulmates, too. You and Misha? You¡¯re here to teach Misha how to fully embrace his gift. You and Andrei? You¡¯re both here to push the other to be better. That¡¯s why he readily took on the job of being your trainer and why you keep reminding him how great he is all the time. You and Viktor? You¡¯re giving him his confidence back. There¡¯s more to the story of how he ended up in a Syrian prison. You¡¯re helping to correct that. And you and Stephen?¡± He paused, smiling at me. ¡°You¡¯re showing him how to be himself. He¡¯s got a secret no one knows about yet, but you¡¯re pushing him to befortable enough to share it. Now, you and Ivan. You two have a special bond. This isn¡¯t the first lifetime you two have spent together and I¡¯m guessing it won¡¯t be thest, either. He¡¯s your protector, Sephle. He basically stole my job yesterday. I¡¯m not even mad at him, either. His wings are way cooler than mine. His swooping is going to be marvelous tually.¡± He looked down at me, realizing he¡¯d been rambling. He grinned. ¡°Ivan will always protect you. He feels compelled you. Everything he went through in his life prepared him for what¡¯s about toe. The Powers That Be still have big ns for you, so they brought out the big guns to make sure those ns are seen through to completion.¡± He whispered, ¡°Ivan is the big guns, in case you were wondering.¡± ¡°But Misha didn¡¯t see this oneing. How did that happen?¡± I asked. ¡°No one saw this oneing, until it was almost toote. They saw an opportunity and they took it, which ultimately worked to your advantage. They weren¡¯t as coordinated as they would have been had they had more time to n. You guys were outnumbered, 4 to 1, peanut. Clearly, they should¡¯ve doubled that if they were to have any shot at taking you.¡± I thought for a moment, remembering the chaos of the day, but knowing that Ivan and I missed the majority of it. I sighed, still feeling grateful that we all made it out rtively unscathed. ¡°How are his wings cooler than yours, Dad?¡± I asked, smiling. I felt like watching him talk was like watching myself talk sometimes. ¡°Oh, Ivan got a special deal. Ivan¡¯s spent so much time walking amongst demons that he can now freely walk between both Heaven and He ll. My wings are wh ite. I want no part of He ll. His wings are wh ite and then they fade to ck on the ends and because he¡¯s the big guns, they¡¯re crimson on the very tips. WAY cooler than mine.¡± Iughed. ¡°Can I tell him this?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°He won¡¯t believe you at first, but he saw them in the ident. He just has to remember.¡± ¡°How did he see them in the ident?¡± I was curious. I clearly remembered the look on his face before he lost consciousness. ¡°He saw my wings wrapped around you, but when he turned to shield you from the impact, that¡¯s the moment that he got his. He watched theme from behind him to shield you and even cover mine.¡± ¡°Are you sure he¡¯s not going to di e anytime soon? I can¡¯t take knowing he¡¯s going to sacrifice himself again to protect me.¡± ¡°Sephie, it won¡¯t be easy and what¡¯sing will be bad. Very bad. But you can pull him back. Adrik showed you how when he pulled you from the darkness. You can do the same for Ivan. You will do the same for Ivan.¡± He had both hands on my shoulders, looking me in the eyes, almost like he was searing the information onto my brain. ¡°See? Everything happens for a reason, peanut.¡± I smiled at him. ¡°Now that you¡¯re out of a job, you¡¯re not leaving, are you?¡± ¡°No, not for good. I still keep an eye on you, but now that Ivan has stepped fully into his role, I¡¯m needed even less than I was before. I¡¯m thinking of joining an aerial acrobatics troop. Learn some new swooping techniques,¡± he said, making a swooping motion with his arm. ¡°We can still talk like this sometimes, then?¡± ¡°Of course, peanut. I¡¯m always around. Swooping.¡± We both heard a noise outside the house. ¡°It¡¯s time for you to go, Sephie. That¡¯s Adrik¡¯s rm. Remember, you can pull Ivan back. You, too, can walk freely between Heaven and He ll.¡± The scene in front of me faded quickly and I felt Adrik¡¯s hand on the back of my neck. He was talking softly to me, trying to wake me up. I opened my eyes, still smiling at the memory of seeing my dad once again. I lifted my head to rest my chin on his chest. He smiled at me, running his finger lightly over my cheek. ¡°Good morning again, solnishko, You had a good dream, I take it?¡± closed my eyes, nodding my head. I put my head back on his chest and hugged him tightly, I always spected there wasText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 138 Chapter 138 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Eight Sephie When we came downstairs, all the guys were in the kitchen, foraging for food. We hadn¡¯t had a chance to hire a new chef yet, and honestly it had slipped everyone¡¯s mind since we hadn¡¯t been to the house in a few weeks. It was close enough to lunch time, though, so I said, ¡°can we tell someone that I¡¯m extra cranky when I¡¯m hungry and I need Vinny¡¯s for everyone as soon as possible?¡± ! Misha walked to me quickly, hugging me tightly. ¡°This. This right here is why I love you so much.¡± Andrei was still in his room, but Ivan appeared shortly after we walked into the kitchen. I went to him, sliding my arm around his waist gently. ¡°How you feeling? Do you feel like you can eat?¡± He nodded, as he stung his good arm over my shoulders. ¡°Good. We¡¯re getting Vinny¡¯s. Has anybody checked on Andrei in a while?¡± They all looked somewhat guilty. I chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m taking those looks as a no. I¡¯m going to check on him, since you all clearly ha te him.¡± I got all the way to his room, but then stopped myself from opening the door. I walked back into the kitchen. ¡°He doesn¡¯t sleep in the nude or anything does he?¡± They allughed. ¡°You¡¯re safe from seeing anything extra, sestrichka.¡± Viktor said in between his deep bellyughs. I sighed in relief, then walked back to Andrei¡¯s room. I knocked softly just in case he was awake. I heard nothing, so I quietly opened the door and peaked in. He was sprawled out on the bed, in his underwear. Thank God he left those on. I walked over to the bed, grabbing the nket from the end of the bed and covering him up with it. He didn¡¯t stir. I walked back to the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of water and took it back to his room, leaving it on his table for him. They¡¯d given him pain pills at the hospital, so I was sure he was going to sleep for a while. When I walked back in the kitchen this time, I walked to Adrik, tucking myself into his side, his arm pulling me closer. ¡°Food will be here shortly, gazelle.¡± ¡°I can take inventory of what¡¯s in the fridge ande up with something to feed everyone tonight. Or maybe I can send someone to the store with a list?¡± I looked at Adrik, not sure if I could do that or not. He smiled at me. ¡°You¡¯re the go ddamn princess. You can do whatever you please, solnishko.¡± Iughed, loudly. That one caught mepletely by surprise. I leaned up and kissed him. ¡°I fu cking love you.¡± We heard Ivan and Misha across the kitchen. ¡°Fu cking adorable.¡± He smiled against my lips, as he said quietly, ¡°we are fu cking adorable.¡± Adrik needed to leave to go back to the penthouse for a few meetings that afternoon. He wanted to leave Stephen with me, but I insisted that he take both Viktor and Stephen with him. ¡°There¡¯s like 40 guards around this property and at least as many dogs. And I¡¯ll have my adorable Russian guardian and like half an Ivan and half an Andrel. That¡¯s equal to at least 30 more guards. Clearly, I have the advantage here,¡± I said, grinning at my math. Adik smiled at me, leaning down to press his lips to mine, ¡°I won¡¯t be gone long, solnishko. Let Misha know If you want someone to go to the store for you, I¡¯ll add finding a new chef to the top of the list. my arms around him tightly, ¡°Please be extra careful. He kissed my forehead. ¡°We are, solnishko. The helicopter will be here soon. I¡¯m not taking any chances.¡± I sighed, feeling relief that they wouldn¡¯t be driving anywhere. I was going to have to find something to upy my time with to keep from worrying all day until he returned. Misha, Ivan, and I were on the couchesughing about something absurd that had juste out of appeared. ¡°Bubba! How do you feel?¡± He gave me a half-smile. ¡°Mostly like I got shot.¡± my mo uth when Andrei ¡°Your ability to paint a picture with words never ceases to amaze nie, Bubba.¡± He sat on the couch next to me, pulling me to him in a rough hug with his good arm. ¡°Are you hungry? How¡¯s your stomach?¡± He thought for a minute. ¡°I could eat.¡± I leaned back from him, looking offended. ¡°Why am I the only one that has to starve when on pain meds?¡± I was mostly just making light of the situation, but Ivan answered me seriously. ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re a redhead, princess. You react differently to drugs and anesthesia than non- redheads.¡± ¡°I do?¡± I asked, now curious. He nodded his head. He started to speak but stopped himself. He nced nervously at Misha and Andrei. ¡°I knew a couple redheads when I was younger. I felt worse for them than I did me, if you get my drift.¡± My mo uth fell open, my eyes wide. I was horrified at the thought that there were boys treated worse than he was. ¡°Loud and clear.¡± I noticed Misha and Andrei looked at us curiously, but this was not my story to tell and I could tell Ivan did not want to get into it. I quickly stood up. ¡°Bubba, I got you a sandwich, just on the off chance that your stomach was made of steel and you could eat when you woke up.¡± I walked to the kitchen to grab it for him, coming back with water for everyone too. Once Andrei had finished eating and I was satisfied that he was not going to vomit it up, I asked, ¡°now, who wants to go for a walk with me?¡± They all three stood up. I was still sitting on the couch, looking at all of them above me. ¡°Unexpected, but I¡¯ll take it.¡± Andrei smirked at me. ¡°I got shot in my shoulder, not my entire body.¡± Ivanughed. ¡°I can¡¯t feel anything anyway, so it won¡¯t matter what I do.¡± I just shook my head, moving them around so I could grab each of their good arms as we set off on our adventure. I wasn¡¯t nning on walking too far, as I didn¡¯t want to tire them out too much, but they kept insisting they were fine. We walked all the way to theke, all of them heading to my favorite spot and sitting down. The reason it was my favorite spot is because It had several seating options avable. There was aProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. fallen tree to lean against, a rock to sit on or lean against, as well as arge log as a third optian. It was perfect for the two invalids to find a mostlyfortable spot to sit. a sat in silence for a few minutes. 1ughed, looking at Andrel and Misha. ¡°Thest time we were here was the day t orld found out I was the go ddamn princess.¡± I wander hardly see him anymore?¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°Maybe he still talks about me a lot? I don¡¯t know. We do have a ton of hriously stu pid stories, because, well, have you met me? I do stu pid shi t all the time. Maybe he talked about me enough that she thought we were still closer than we are.¡± I looked down, tracing my finger through the dirt at my feet, making random designs. I was lost in thought. over Max. He was my best friend for a long time, but we barely spoke anymore. Most of that was my fault. I couldn¡¯t tell him everything anymore, but he also didn¡¯t push to see nie very hard. I sighed, trying to push him from my mind. ¡°You met Max after a really difficult time in your life, Sephie. It¡¯s easy to ignore things about people when you¡¯re traumatized and trying to not bepletely alone. He hasn¡¯t been as good of a friend to you as you have to him,¡± Ivan said. He was looking at me thoughtfully, almost sympathetically. I smiled at him. ¡°You sound like Adrik.¡± Iughed. ¡°I think he secretly ha tes Max.¡± Ivanughed as well. ¡°It¡¯s not that secret, princess.¡± Chapter 139 Chapter 139 Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Nine Sephie ¡°I KNEW IT!¡± We were allughing now. ¡°Ivan¡¯s right. We all watched him ditch you that night in the restaurant, after not seeing you for a week, for some random girl who¡¯s name he probably can¡¯t remember,¡± Misha added. I shrugged my shoulders again. ¡°That¡¯s just Max, though. He always did that.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s an as shole, spider monkey. As sholes do that,¡± Andrei said. I snapped my fingers at him, pointing at him. ¡°Language, mister. Language.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t try to change the subject just because we¡¯re right,¡± Andrei said quietly. I thought for a moment, inhaling deeply. I loved the smell of the meadow, the dirt, the trees, the grass, theke. Everything felt fresh here. Alive. It helped me recharge toe here. I looked at all three of them, smiling. ¡°You are right. You¡¯re all right. I¡¯ve been hanging on to him because I was scared to be alone without him. That was the hardest part about losing my mo m and being sent to my uncle. I felt completely alone. Even though I had a mostly sober uncle for the first year or so, it was still living with a stranger, so it was almost the same as beingpletely alone. When I met Max, I suddenly didn¡¯t feel so alone anymore.¡± I was staring at the dirt at my feet, still tracing patterns with my fingers, but I heard one of them get up. As soon as he sat down next to me, I didn¡¯t even have to look. I knew it was Misha. ¡°You¡¯re not alone anymore, gazelle. You¡¯ll always have us to annoy the shi t out of you,¡± he said, his wide smile across his face. I heard the other two get up ande closer to me. Andrei sat in front of me while Ivan sat next to me, leaning his good shoulder into mine. Andrei looked at me, more seriously than I¡¯d ever seen him, ¡°we¡¯re not going anywhere, spider monkey. You¡¯re never going to be alone again.¡± He reached out and grabbed my ankle, squeezing it. Ivan didn¡¯t say anything, he just leaned over and kissed my cheek. I had tears in my eyes at their response to me thinking out loud. I leaned my head over to Misha¡¯s shoulder, then to Ivan¡¯s, smiling at Andrei the whole time. ¡°I love you guys.¡± All at once, they said, ¡°we love you too, Sephie.¡± We sat and talked for a while longer until my bu tt started to get sore from sitting on the ground. We stood up to walk back to the house. When Ivan stood up, he swayed back and forth before catching himself. I held on to him, as best I could, somewhat panicked that he was going to go downpletely again. He stood for a moment, waiting for the feeling to pass. ¡°You okay, Squishy? What¡¯s going on in there?¡± I asked, concerned that we¡¯d overdid it with him. He lost a lot of blood yesterday. He looked at me and I could see a sh of fear before he masked it and got control again. ¡°I¡¯m okay. I just stood up too fast. ¡°Li ar. Are you okay to walk back?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°Okay, when we get back, you¡¯re taking a nap. No arguing. You didn¡¯t sleep this morning when we got to the house, did you?¡±. He shook his head no. I saw the fear sh on his face briefly and knew why he didn¡¯t want to sleep. I grabbed his good arm, putting it around my shoulders, and wrapping my arm around his waist. I looked at him, smiled, but said as seriously as I could, ¡°If you start to feel yourself slipping, tell me. When we get back, you can nap on the couch.¡± He started to protest. ¡°With me, Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Nine Squishy,¡± I said quietly, so the other two wouldn¡¯t hear. He looked down at me, a look of relief on his face. We walked slowly back to the house. I was once again proud of Ivan for making it back, mostly on his own. He went to his bedroom to change into morefortable pants. ¡°Bubba, how¡¯s your shoulder feel now? When do you take your next pain pill?¡± I asked when we got back to the house. He looked at the clock. ¡°Not for a few hours. My shoulder is sore, but it¡¯s fine. I think I¡¯m doing better than Ivan, honestly.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not wrong. He lost so much blood yesterday.¡± My eyes went wide, lost in the memory of the puddle of blood under us while we waited for Adrik and Viktor to find us. I looked back to Andrei. ¡°IThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. literally don¡¯t know how he¡¯s still alive.¡± ¡°You¡¯re both very difficult to ki ll,¡± Andrei said, smiling. We waited for Ivan toe back from his room, but after ten minutes, we still didn¡¯t see him. I started to worry, so I went to find him. I knocked on his door but heard no response. I opened it slowly, hoping that he was decent. The scene before me was not one I thought I would ever see. Ivan was sitting on the end of his bed, his head in his hand, sobbing. I quietly walked in the room, closing the door behind me. I sat down next to him, wrapping my arms around him. I rested my chin on his good shoulder. I knew I didn¡¯t have the words to make his pain go away, but I could at least give him the one thing he¡¯d never had since he left home. Comfort. We had been sitting in silence, while Ivan quietly sobbed when I heard the door open. Misha stuck his head in just enough to make sure we were okay. I smiled at him but made it clear that he should leave. He nodded, understanding. The door closed and I rested my chin on Ivan¡¯s shoulder once again. I just sat with him, rubbing his back while he let out what was probably years of pent-up emotion from everything he¡¯d been through. He finally got enough control that he could speak. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, princess. I shouldn¡¯t do that.¡± I chuckled. ¡°Says who?¡± He sat up straighter, so he could look at me. His eyes still showing nothing but pain. ¡°Says me.¡± I thought for a moment, trying to find the perfect words. ¡°Ivan, do you know how special you are?¡± He looked at me questioningly. He wasn¡¯t sure how to take my question, as being special had gotten him experimented on, so that wasn¡¯t necessarily a good thing. I smiled at him, understanding his confusion. ¡°Okay, bad phrasing. What do you remember from the moment of the crash?¡± He thought for a moment. ¡°I heard the metal crunching and I turned toward you.¡± He su cked in a breath, clearly remembering what he saw. He turned to me. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know how to say it without you thinking I¡¯m crazy.¡± ¡°You saw wings around me, didn¡¯t you?¡± His eyes went wide in shock, as he nodded his head. ¡°But that¡¯s not all you saw, is it?¡± He looked at me, like he wasn¡¯t sure he trusted his memory. My hand was rubbing his back gently. Iughed quietly at him. ¡°Ivan, I already know what you saw, so you can tell me.¡± ¡°You saw it too??¡± He was clearly shocked at this point. head no, bringing back confusion to his face. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t see what you saw. What you saw. everyone to see. Just you.¡± I reached and grabbed his hand. ¡°Ivan, those were your wings you saw. Well, not at first. They changed color on you, didn¡¯t they?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°The first pair of wings were my dad. He¡¯s been watching over me for my entire life, but after yesterday, I have a new protector.¡± I squeezed his hand. ¡°Those were your wings, Ivan,¡± I said, quietly. Trying to get him to realize exactly what I was saying. ¡°But, how? I¡¯m not dead,¡± he asked, clearly still confused. Chapter 140 Chapter 140 Chapter One Hundred Forty Sephie I couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, that one was hard for me to grasp too. I¡¯m still not entirely sure about how it works. We¡¯ve been tied together since we were born. We were always supposed to meet, and you were always meant to be my protector. You proved that you¡¯re ready for the role yesterday when you used your body to shield mine from the impact. At least, that¡¯s what my dad told me.¡± He stayed silent, still thoughtful, but he had a tight grip on my hand. I smiled at him. This is a lot. I¡¯m impressed he¡¯s not fre aking out. ¡°But they¡­my¡­they were ck. Does that mean I¡¯m evil?¡± ¡°No, Ivan. You¡¯re not evil. And they¡¯re not entirely ck. ording to my dad, who is jealous of your wings, for the record, they¡¯re wh ite and then they fade to ck and because you¡¯re extra special, they¡¯re crimson on the tips. He called you the big guns.¡± I grabbed his bicep, trying to wrap my hands around it. ¡°I can see where they would get that idea.¡± Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. Heughed but was still shocked. He was quiet for a moment longer, then looked at me. ¡°Sephie, I still don¡¯t understand. How do you know all this? How do you know what I saw?¡± ¡°When we first got to Italy, at the ranch house, when I was asleep for like ever. I was still stuck in that same nightmare loop that I was in on the ne.¡± He closed his eyes, flinching at the memory. I hated to bring it up, because I knew it affected him almost as badly as it did Adrik. ¡°Adrik could pull me out of that loop. When he finally pulled me out for thest time, I was able to talk to my dad. He told me he¡¯s been watching over me my whole life and that everything that¡¯s happened to this point was for a reason. Like the way the kidnap n at the ball went so horribly wrong? It was meant to happen that way so that you guys would take Misha¡¯s gut feelings seriously. He¡¯s the only one that was adamant about that being a bad n, but nobody listened to him. Now, you all listen to him.¡± He stayed quiet, still mulling over everything I was telling him. ¡°Everything that has happened to me, everything that has happened to you, it¡¯s all for arger purpose. I don¡¯t know what yet, but my dad told me that you¡¯ve spent so much time walking among the demons that you can now walk freely between Heaven and He ll.¡± I thought for a moment, remembering thest thing he told me before I woke up. ¡°He also told me I could do the same. I don¡¯t know what that means yet. But he said you¡¯re my protector and that you¡¯ve always feltpelled to protect me.¡± Heughed. ¡°How do you know that¡­¡± he said, almost to himself. ¡°He exined it to me like this: there are different kinds of soulmates. Adrik and I were always meant to meet and fall in love, probably over and over again through lifetimes. You and I have apparently been together in a different capacity over lifetimes too. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re always my protector, but it wouldn¡¯t surprise me if you were. You¡¯re so darn good at it.¡± He smiled, squeezing my hand. ¡°I have always feltpelled to protect you. Even when I wasn¡¯t convinced you were different from the other girls, despite Boss putting us on you to make sure you stayed safe, which he¡¯d never, ever done before. When you stitched me up in your kitchen? I tried to make you angry to see if you would turn into a different person. You just put me in my ce in front of everyone and went about helping me,pletely unaffected. Anytime I would be grumpy or angry around his other girlfriends, it was almost like it would pi ss them off and they¡¯d turn into another person. People act differently when they¡¯re afraid or angry. Especially those people that are being fake or pretending to be someone they¡¯re not. It¡¯s like they can¡¯t keep the act up when they¡¯re angry too, so they show who they really are. But you? You turned into my emotional support sloth,¡± he saidughing at the memory. I couldn¡¯t help butugh, too. That was definitely one of my finer moments. ¡°Even calling you a princess didn¡¯t phase you. He ll, you adopted it right then and now you¡¯re the go ddamn princess.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you forget it, either,¡± I said, poking him in the arm. ¡°When you stitched me up, despite me being an as shole to you, I knew you werepletely different. I started to see what Adrik saw in you the first time he looked at you. That¡¯s when I knew I would always protect you.¡± He Inhaled deeply. ¡°When that truck hit us, all I could think about was making sure you were okay, even if it was thest thing I did I felt the tears burning my eyes, threatening to fall. I sniffed, trying to hold them back. I leaned my head on his shoulder, grabbing his hand again. ¡°Well, if we¡¯re connected, you¡¯re not allowed to leave me. The princess says so. You have to listen to the princess.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s how it¡¯s going to y out, anyway. My dad said what ising is bad. Very bad, even. But there¡¯s a grander n for all of us. No idea what that n is, but it¡¯s grand.¡± We sat in silence for a minute. ¡°Ivan, I want you to know that I can pull you from your darkness, the same way Adrik pulled me from mine. You don¡¯t need to be scared of it ever again.¡± He didn¡¯t say anything, he just put his giant arm around me and pulled me to him. He kissed the top of my head as he held me close. I could feel him trembling as he fought back the tears. He sniffled, then said, ¡°I do a good job of keeping it away, but hospitals¡­¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to exin anything about that to me. I share your hatred of those ces.¡± He squeezed my shoulders. ¡°I remember what you told me before we got to the house, princess. He really will love you no matter what. We all love you no matter what.¡± Chapter 141 Chapter 141 Chapter One Hundred Forty-One Sephie It was my turn to fight back the tears. Iughed, trying to smile through the pain. ¡°It seems like a small thing,paratively. But most normal people want to reproduce at some point. I look at all the other bosses and it¡¯s like they¡¯re single-handedly trying to boost the world¡¯s poption they have so many kids. I assume Adrik would be the same, which makes me worry that he¡¯s not going to want me when he finds out. Or worse, he¡¯ll keep me around while he has a child with someone else.¡± He cursed under his breath. ¡°He would never do that, Sephie. We wouldn¡¯t let him do that. And he doesn¡¯t even like kids. You should hear what he says about the other bosses and their affinity for procreation.¡± I sat up straighter to look at him. ¡°Really?¡± He nodded. ¡°He won¡¯t care that you can¡¯t have kids. He might try to ki ll the doctor that did it to you. I¡¯m assuming it was not a happy situation if it made you ha te doctors in general. But it won¡¯t make him love you any less.¡± I chewed on my bottom lip for a minute. ¡°Ivan, I¡¯ve literally never told anyone about this. Even Ms. Jackson doesn¡¯t know. It happened before I met her.¡± ¡°You can tell me, Sephie. Sometimes it¡¯s good to get stuff out. I felt better after I told you my secret.¡± I took a deep breath. ¡°When my uncle would beat me, his favorite thing to do was kick me in the stomach. He thought that because all the women he hung out with were, uh, easy, that I would be too. He would scream at me, calling me a wh ore, and tell me that he would make sure I wouldn¡¯t have a little brat to feed as he was kicking me in my stomach. As I¡¯m sure you can feed figure out, he did a lot of damage there. I started hemorrhaging blood one night. I tried to hide it from him, but all I could do was sit on the toilet and bleed. It was bad. There was so much blood. Of course, he was drunk, so he couldn¡¯t take me to the emergency room and he wouldn¡¯t call an ambnce. He called one of his buddies who ¡®knew a guy¡¯This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. that would do back-room. abortions and procedures for the seedier side of town. He was a respected doctor during the day, but would perform procedures for extra cash at night. My uncle was convinced I was pregnant and was having a miscarriage, so he got his buddy to take us to this ¡®doctor.¡¯ That guy did an ultrasound and found a bu nch of scar tissue on my uterus from my uncle¡¯s repeated beatings, but my uncle just knew it was because I¡¯d been pregnant and didn¡¯t tell him. He told the doctor to take my uterus. I was still 16 at the time, so not legally an adult. My uncle had legal rights over me, so the doctor performed the surgery, despite me trying to tell him it was because my uncle had kicked me so many times.¡± I felt the tears falling. I wiped my nose on my sleeve, not even slightly concerned what I looked like in front of Ivan. ¡°I never really thought much about kids until I met Adrik. I assumed he was like the other bosses and would want like his own army of children at some point. It¡¯s thest thing that scares me. I¡¯m terrified he¡¯ll leave because I can¡¯t give him children.¡± He pulled me closer to him, his giant hand rubbing my arm lightly. ¡°You have to tell him, Sephie. He won¡¯t look at you any differently.¡± He kissed the top of my head again. ¡°Sephie, we all think you¡¯re the strongest woman we¡¯ve ever met. This only- adds to that. You¡¯ve endured things that would cripple most men and you¡¯ve done it all on your own. I just want you to know that you¡¯re not alone anymore. We¡¯ll always be here for you. No matter what.¡± The tears wereing full force now. There was no stopping them. I couldn¡¯t talk. I just rested my head against his giant shoulder. I su cked in a breath, trying to talk a few times, but couldn¡¯t get the words out in between sobs. I just held up my pinky,pletely giving in to the pain when he readily grabbed it with his. Adrik 1 I tried to hurry my meetings up as much as possible so I could get back to the house. It made me nervous to be away from Sephle right now. I had wanted her toe with me, but I knew she wouldn¡¯t want to leave Andrel and Ivan. So, I was left to rush through meetings. Myst meeting of the day was with Armando. At least he would understand my desire to get back to Sephie, Viktor walked in with Armando and Giana. I was surprised to see na with him but greeted her warmly. Sephie seemed to get along with her and Ivan didn¡¯t totally ha te her, so that was all I needed to know. She smiled shyly at me. ¡°Is Sephie not with you?¡± Armando asked, sitting down across from my desk. ¡°No. We had a, uh, situation yesterday,¡± I said. Armando looked shocked. ¡°Is she okay? What happened? You didn¡¯t tell me!¡± ¡°They tried to grab her in the city. She had Ivan, Andrei, and Misha with her, but they separated them. Ivan almost died but managed to get her to safety. Andrei got shot, but he¡¯s also okay. She¡¯s safe. She wanted to keep an eye on Ivan and Andrei today.¡± Armando looked shocked. I looked at Giana, who lookedpletely terrified. She surprised me by speaking up. ¡°Why do they want her so bad?¡± 1 exhaled. ¡°Various reasons, depending on who you¡¯re talking about. She¡¯s been privy to more information about the organization than pretty much anyone else, including me. That makes her a target now.¡± Giana looked down at her hands in herp. ¡°Ig norance really is bliss,¡± she mumbled. Sephie was right. She is funny in her own right. Chapter 142 Chapter 142 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Two Adrik I looked at Armando, preferring to get to business. ¡°Any news on Dario and Massimo?¡± He nodded. ¡°They¡¯ve made ns to visit Trino at the end of this week. I¡¯ve got people within Trino¡¯s organization that are keeping tabs on Lorenzo and Anthony for me. With Trino¡¯s blessing, of course. They¡¯re still down there, with no immediate ns to leave. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s a good thing if they all end up there together, or if it¡¯s a bad thing.¡± I rested my head in my hand, thinking of the potential oues. I guess we¡¯ll know more by the end of the week. After yesterday, I¡¯m daring them to join forces. It¡¯ll give me more reason to ki ll them all. I¡¯m beginning to wonder why I need any of them, at this point.¡± Armando looked thoughtful, instead of shocked like I was expecting. ¡°You know, Boss. I¡¯ve thought the same thing recently. Why can¡¯t you run the city yourself? Why do you need them? The people of the city love you much more than any of the other bosses. They¡¯ll stand with you, if ites to it.¡± ¡°You¡¯re just as popr with the people, Mando. And I still need you, as well. But the rest of them? My patience is growing dangerously thin with every single one of them, I said, running my hand through my hair. ¡°Do you think it warrants you taking a trip to see Trino? I think it¡¯s important that Sephie meets him now, if he¡¯s meeting with all the other bosses. We need to know we can count on him, in this n,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s not a bad point. Just not while everyone else is down there.¡± I looked at my watch. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to him tomorrow, I need to give Ivan and Andrei some time to heal before we go anywhere. I can¡¯t afford to have any holes in my security right now¡± ¡°Agreed. What happened exactly?¡± ¡°They hit the vehicle that Ivan and Sephie were in, then blocked them in, cutting Andrei and Misha off from them. They tried to get back to Ivan and Sephie, but were under gunfire immediately. Ivan and Sephie managed to escape, but I¡¯m d Stephen taught Sephie how to sh oot. She took out more men than Ivan did yesterday.¡± Giana¡¯s eyes went wide. Armando saw the fear on her face and reached over, grabbing her hand. His thumb rubbing circles lightly on the back of her hand. I looked from Armando to Giana, then back to Armando. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to teach her how to sho ot too. I don¡¯t know how bad it¡¯s about to get, but I have a feeling it won¡¯t be pretty. How¡¯s it going with putting together your own security detail?¡± Armando looked at Giana, likely unsure about teaching her how to use a gun. ¡°We¡¯ve got more interviews lined up this week. Viktor has been invaluable in this process. We¡¯ve already hired 10 men that are highly skilled, so they won¡¯t need much training. They can start almost immediately. We¡¯re hoping to hire 10 more, at least. I can return to my house once that happens.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wee to stay here as long as you need, Mando. It¡¯ll keep Giana closer to other people, too. You¡¯re all she has if you go to your house. I hear Ms. Jackson is helping to keep you both entertained here, at least.¡± Giana smiled at the mention of Ms. Jackson. ¡°She¡¯s a remarkable woman. Did you know she used to be a spy?¡± I raised my eyebrow, but stayed silent. Sephie never mentioned that, if she knew. It would exin how Ms. Jackson knows Russian though, I quickly did the math in my head. The Cold War. Likely the end of the Cold War, If my estimate of her age was correct. I smiled to myself. I knew I liked her. Armande looked surprised, swearing under his breath. ¡°She is a fascinating woman. I¡¯ll consider your offer. It would be nice to maybe have a few quiet days away at the house, but be able to return here when needed.¡± ¡°Those apartments are yours, for as long as you want them. I¡¯ll let you know what I find out from Trino tomorrow. Keep me informed if anything changes with Dario and Massimo.¡± I stood up, offering him my hand. He stood and grasped my hand firmly in his. ¡°Will do. And as always, thank you for everything, Boss.¡± I looked to Giana. She looked like she wanted to hide behind Armando, but was trying to be brave. I gave her a half-smile. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again, Giana.¡± She took a deep breath and extended her hand to me. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too, sir. And thank you again for everything you¡¯ve done for us while we¡¯ve been here. Please give my well wishes to Sephie, Ivan, and Andrei.¡± I took her hand, amused at her chutzpah. ¡°I will. Hopefully they¡¯ll be back here in a few days.¡± Viktor escorted them out while I finished up some minor paperwork before we could leave for the day. I was anxious to get back to the house. Stephen and Viktor walked into my office a few minutester. ¡°The helicopter will be here in 10 minutes, Boss.¡± ¡°Have you heard how Andrei and Ivan are doing today?¡± I asked. Viktor sighed. I felt a twinge of panic as I knew he wasn¡¯t going to have good news. ¡°Andrei is fine. He¡¯s been off and on sleeping, like he usually does when he¡¯s seriously hurt. Misha said they went for a walk this afternoon, once Andrei had gotten up. He said it was fine until they left theke to go back to the house. Ivan was unsteady on his feet when he stood up, but managed to make it back to the house, with Sephie¡¯s help. She was going to force him to take a nap on the couch, so she could stay with him, when they got back. He went to his room to change, and Misha thinks he ended up breaking down. Sephie went to check on him when he didn¡¯te out, but then she didn¡¯te out, so Misha stuck his head in the door. Ivan was losing it. Sephie was trying tofort him. Misha said they stayed in Ivan¡¯s room for almost an hour, but when they finally came out, they both looked like they¡¯d been crying the entire time. He knows Ivan won¡¯t talk about anything in front of them, but he suspects he¡¯s told Sephie everything. Sephie told me in the hospital that he had, so Misha¡¯s right. Boss, she¡¯s the only one that¡¯s¡¯ been able to pull him out when he¡¯s haunted by his past because he has to go to the hospital. I saw her do it in the middle of the night when everyone else was asleep. It was just like you did for her when we were on the ne. I¡¯ve never seen anything like it, with either of them. She told me in the hospital that their demons recognized each other,¡± he said, chuckling. ¡°I suspect their shared hatred of doctors has something to do with that. She broke down in the hospital, after she talked to the doctor in the hall. She told me that Ivan sacrificed himself to keep her safe. She said when the truck hit them, she clearly remembers him turning toward her to use his body as a shield to protect her. She thinks it¡¯s her fault that they got hurt.¡± ¡°How could any of that be her fault?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. She feels responsible because they¡¯re trying to get to her. I told It wasn¡¯t her fault, but I¡¯m not sure she belleves me yet. It makes me want to ki ll the other bosses and just be done with it. I¡¯m done with her being put in danger. ¡°We all are,¡± Viktor said as he pulled his phone out, typing a message, then putting his phone back in his pocket. ¡°I ordered food. If she¡¯s been looking after Ivan all afternoon, she likely hasn¡¯t had time to do anything else. I know how he gets when he has to go to a hospital, It¡¯s¡­a lot.¡± This is why her favorite nt Russian security master, Stephen said, smiling.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 143 Chapter 143 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Three Adrik As wended, I thought back to the first time I left in the morning without waking her. She was so excited to see me that night. I smiled to myself, thinking about that night. The first night she¡¯d given herself entirely to me. I still couldn¡¯t get enough of her¡­ It might be worse now, even. I couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly disappointed when she wasn¡¯t at thending pad to greet me this time, but I knew she was busy looking after Ivan and Andrei. I wasn¡¯t jealous when she spent the night next to Ivan in the hospital, but I desperately missed her. I knew she needed to be there for him. I didn¡¯t realize how much she needed to be with him until Viktor told me what she was able to do for Ivan earlier. It made me happy that she could help him. But it didn¡¯t make me miss her any less that night. We walked into the house to the sound ofughter from the kitchen. This is a good sign. We stepped into the doorway and her eyesnded on mine. She gave me that smile that threatened to stop my heart every single time and immediately ran to me. She jumped into my arms, wrapping her legs around my waist. Her lips found mine immediately, kissing me passionately. I loveing home to this woman. She broke the kiss, looking deeply into my eyes. ¡°I missed you.¡± I reached up and pulled her back to me, kissing her even more passionately than she had kissed me. ¡°I missed you more,¡± I said, smiling against her lips. She giggled as she unwrapped herself from me. She turned around to walk back to the counter, but I caught her and pulled her back toward me. I needed a moment to calm down before she was allowed to move from in front of me. I pressed myself into her. She just grabbed my arms and wrapped them around her waist, with her arms over mine. I leaned down to her ear and whispered, ¡°thank you, solnishko.¡± She squeezed my hands, grinning at me. Viktor looked at her, surprised. ¡°You managed to cook dinner, sestrichka?¡± ¡°I had plenty of help from Misha and the two invalids. I would just like to calm everyone¡¯s nerves, though. No broli was murdered in the making of this meal.¡± We allughed. Viktor looked at her, ¡°I owe you an apology, then! I ordered food, thinking you wouldn¡¯t have had time to make. dinner.¡± This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. ¡°No apology needed, my giant Russian bear. You haven¡¯t tried it yet. It could su ck. It¡¯s good that you brought back-up,¡± she smiled at him, causing him to smile broadly back at her. ¡°Also? Between all of us, food does not go to waste in this house. We can all have second dinnerter. It¡¯ll be fine.¡± I turned her around to face me, brushing the curls back from her face. She put her hands on my chest, smiling warmly at me. I could see that her eyes were a little puffy, but otherwise, there was no trace of her tumultuous afternoon. I pressed my lips to hers. ¡°I¡¯m so lucky,¡± I said quietly, kissing her forehead. ¡°How was work? Anything fun happen?¡± she asked as she went back to the counter to finish up what she had been working on when we got home. ¡°Actually yes,¡± I said, following her and posting up on the opposite counter, after stealing a bite of the bacon she was chopping up. She looked at me, with her eyebrow raised, but continued chopping. 1 crossed my arms across my chest, looking at all the guys. I couldn¡¯t help the small smile that came across my face, I knew I was going to enjoy this conversation. ¡°Did you know Ms. Jackson is a former spy, solnishko?¡± She stopped chopping and looked to me. She knew. ¡°Did she finally tell you?¡± she asked. The guys were all shocked to hear the ell me ne Mana told ne,¡± I said. I scanned everyone¡¯s scanned everyone¡¯s faces, knowing they all knew how ¡°What? Giana told you? Really??¡± She continued to chop for a minute, then stopped. ¡°Really? Does that girl not understand how being a spy works? She¡¯s going to tell the Russians that she barely knows that Ms. Jackson used to spy on their country and expect it to go well?¡± ¡°Well, she didn¡¯t go into detail, so technically you just told the Russians that Ms. Jackson used to spy on our country,¡± I said,ughing. I was prepared to run as fast as necessary to avoid flying knives. She turned and looked at me, a serious look on her face. ¡°Sh it.¡± We allughed. Her cheeks turned almost as red as her hair. I walked to her, sliding one arm around her waist, the other slid the knife away from her toward Andrei. He passed it further down the counter. That was all it took for Sephie to finallyugh. ¡°G*ddammit I¡¯m an id iot,¡± she said in betweenughing. I kissed her temple. ¡°You have nothing to worry about, solnishko. There¡¯s a reason we live here and not in Russia. Ms. Jackson¡¯s secret is safe with us.¡± She looked at me and I saw the sh of pain in her eyes before she quickly masked it, smiling to hide everything from me once more. She finished up what she was doing, making conversation with everyone, like everything was normal. She gave Misha instructions on how to finish, saying she needed to run to the restroom. She disappeared quickly. As soon as she was out of the kitchen, Ivan looked at me. ¡°You¡¯re gonna want to go check on her. It¡¯s been a rough day. She¡¯s not as okay as she¡¯d like us all to believe.¡± I took the back stairs, expecting her to be in our bedroom, but it waspletely dark. I noticed the bedroom across the hall was open. The balcony, I walked in, feeling the cool airing in. When I stepped onto the balcony, I startled her. She was standing at the railing. She wiped her face, smiling. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯m okay. I just needed a minute. I¡¯m okay, I promise.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not okay, Sephie and you don¡¯t need to pretend that you are for my benefit. What¡¯s wrong?¡± I went to her, wiping the few tears that were still escaping down her cheeks. ¡°We don¡¯t have that kind of time right now.¡± She sighed. ¡°But I can¡¯t seem to keep my mo uth sh ut and I keep putting others in danger.¡± She bit her bottom lip, trying to hold back the tears I knew were threatening to fall. I pulled her to me, holding her close. ¡°None of this is your fault, Sephie.¡± ¡°But it is. It has been from the beginning. I mouthed off to Anthony in the hallway, which pi ssed him off and made him choke me. That¡¯s what started this whole mess and I just keep digging myself in deeper with these people. I should not be allowed around dangerous people. They all seem to want to ki ll me for various reasons that I caused. You should get out while you can. I¡¯ll make you want to ki ll me soon enough.¡± She took a step back from me, crossing her arms across her chest. She wouldn¡¯t look at me. I was too stunned to react right away, which only made it worse. The tears started to fall. She put her hands over her face, sobbing. When I went to pull her to me, she tensed. ¡°Can I just have a minute, please? I just want to be alone right now.¡± I didn¡¯t know what to do. I stood there a moment more, trying to decide what to do. ¡°Please? Just leave me alone right now,¡± she said, this time with an edge to her voice. be downstairs, I said, squeezing her arm. Chapter 144 Chapter 144 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Four Adrik I walked back in the kitchen, looking straight at Ivan. He looked at me with a knowing look. ¡°That doesn¡¯t look good. Come with me,¡± he said as he walked into the next room. ¡°Where is she?¡± he asked once we were out of ear shot of everyone else. ¡°On the balcony.¡± He nodded, walking to the front door. He walked down the front steps, into the middle of the driveway before he stopped. ¡°Boss, I¡¯m going to tell you what she told me this afternoon, but only because she¡¯s going to try to sabotage your rtionship if I don¡¯t. She trusted me with this secret and it was one I intended to keep. She¡¯s so terrified that this will make you not want her anymore, that she¡¯s going to do everything in her power to see that through to fruition before she tells you.¡± ¡°Whatever you¡¯re about to tell me won¡¯t make me love her any less.¡± ¡°I told her that, but she won¡¯t believe me. She¡¯s probably not going to believe you at first, either.¡± He sighed, running his usable hand through his goatee. ¡°Boss, she can¡¯t have children. That¡¯s why she ha tes doctors, too. She was forced to have a hysterectomy when she was 16 by a d irty doctor that her uncle paid.¡± I felt a rage build inside me. ¡°WHAT?¡± ¡°She said when her uncle used to beat her, he would kick her repeatedly in her stomach. He thought that since he hung out with wh ores that Sephie was just like them. He would kick her, call her names, and tell her she wasn¡¯t going to ever bring home another mo uth to feed. She hemorrhaged one night and started bleeding profusely. It was likely due to the repeated kicks to her stomach that he gave her. He took her to this doctor who did an ultrasound and found extensive scar tissue. Any reasonable human would¡¯ve known it was from the beatings, but her uncle thought she had gotten pregnant without him knowing. He told the doctor to take her uterus. She pleaded with him not to do it and told him it was because of her uncle¡¯s beatings, but she was 16. Her uncle had guardian rights over her still. The doctor performed the procedure against her will.¡± I was so angry that I could barely see straight, but I saw the tears in Ivan¡¯s eyes as he told me this story. Just when I thought her past couldn¡¯t get any worse, I find this out. I didn¡¯t even care about children. That part, the part she thought was the most important, was the least important to me. ¡°She¡¯s terrified that you¡¯re going to get rid of her because she can¡¯t give you children. Or, and this one was really fu cked up that her mind would even consider it, that you would keep her around while you had children with another woman.¡± I suddenly felt like I had been punched in the gut. ¡°How? How could she even think I would do such a dis gusting thing to her?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not her thinking that, Adrik. It¡¯s what he beat into her. It¡¯s his programming that she¡¯s still struggling to get free of. We all know how much she loves you. You know how much she loves you. This isn¡¯t her. It¡¯s him. It¡¯s thest hold he still has on her.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a good thing she already killed him or I would find him and k ill him myself.¡± ¡°She did what now? She killed him?¡± He looked Impressed, Proud, even. was part of the nightmare loop she was stuck in when we were on the ne. She had blocked it out hol e night. The whipping, all of it. Instead of just slicing his Achilles tendon; she said she stood over him and watched him d ie. He reached for her Into his heart. She sal could remen that¡¯s impressive.¡± ¡°Right? I¡¯ve honestly never been more proud of her. That fu cker got off easy, as far as I¡¯m concerned,¡± I said, starting to pace back and forth. I was still trying to control my anger over the doctor forcing a procedure on her against her will. I stopped in front of him, looking at him in the eyes. ¡°How do I make her believe that I don¡¯t give two shi ts about her not being able to have children? He ll, it actually makes her more attractive to me now. All the se x I could ever want with literally none of the consequences? Who doesn¡¯t want that? How do I fix this? She asked me to leave her alone, which is why I came back downstairs without her.¡± He thought for a moment. ¡°You pulled her out of her darkness on the ne and at the ranch house. She told me you did. She did it for me when I was in surgery and the entire night in the hospital. You can pull her out of this, but you¡¯re fighting old. programming that has literally been beaten into her. It¡¯s not going to go away quickly. You¡¯re going to have to be patient and reassure her a lot, I think. It takes a lot of time and repetition to break old programming and form new. But I have no doubt you can pull her out of this. It¡¯s part of the reason you two were meant to be, I think.¡± ¡°What if she doesn¡¯t want to talk to me when I go back up there? She had that voice, man. You know the one.¡± I was suddenly worried that she would slip back to where she was at on the ne where she wouldn¡¯t let anyone touch her. ¡°What if she won¡¯t let me touch her again?¡± ¡°She¡¯s going to try to push you away, because that¡¯s the easiest thing for her to do right now. She¡¯s dealt with a lot. She just had more put on her yesterday. But there¡¯s a reason this came up now. This is the final hurdle you have to get over before she can. really believe you¡¯re not going anywhere. Adrik, she¡¯s terrified to be alone. She might be telling you to leave her alone right now, but that¡¯s thest thing she really wants. She talked to all of us about it at theke today. That¡¯s why she holds onto Max. Being alone got her beat by her uncle, a forced medical procedure, and almost killed. It makes more sense why she can¡¯t let go of him if you look at it like that. You can¡¯t listen to her right now. It¡¯s not Sephie talking anyway. We all know she can¡¯t keep her hands off you.¡± I was staring at the gravel on the driveway as I listened to his words. Sephie was right. Wise well beyond his years. I nodded my head. ¡°If she refuses to talk to me, I¡¯m sending you in with her. I know you two share something that the rest of us can¡¯t understand. Maybe you can get through to her if I can¡¯t.¡± He chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s good to have a backup n, but you won¡¯t need it. You¡¯ll get through to her.This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 145 Chapter 145 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Five Adrik I walked quickly up the steps to the front door, not sure I believed his words, but hoping that he was right. I took the steps, two at a time, and walked back to the balcony, hoping she hadn¡¯t disappeared while I was talking to Ivan. My mind was racing, my heart was racing, but most of all I just wanted to hold her. And maybe find that doctor and put a bullet in his head, but I¡¯d save that forter. Right now, she needed me more than I needed revenge. She was sitting in the chair, her knees pulled up to her chest, her face buried in her arms. I could hear her softly crying as I walked out onto the balcony. It was starting to get much cooler. Fall nights meant the sun set much earlier. There was barely any daylight left. I was worried about her getting cold. Without thinking, I scooped her up from the chair and went to the bed. Thankfully, she didn¡¯t protest. Or punch me. I sat with her in my arms, her still curled up in a tight ball rocking back and forth slightly, for a few minutes, trying to find the right words to say. ¡°Sephie, can you look at me?¡± She just shook her head no. At least she¡¯s responding. ¡°Sephie, Ivan told me. I know.¡± She froze. ¡°Sephie, I don¡¯t even like kids. I think it¡¯s dangerous to bring children into my world. They¡¯re a vulnerability and it¡¯s also not fair to the children. I was 7 the first time someone made an attempt on my life to get to my father. No kid should have to deal with that. I decided long ago that I never wanted to bring children into my world and I haven¡¯t looked back.¡± As I talked, I ran my hands down her arms, trying to coax her to look at me. The more I talked, the more of her eyes I started to see. I leaned over and turned themp on beside the bed. I knew she was going to need to search. I was just hoping it would be sooner rather thanter. ¡°Sephie, I love you. I¡¯ve loved you from the moment I saw you in the restaurant. I loved you before I knew you existed. There was a part of me that longed for what we have even before I knew you were real. I was beginning to lose hope that I would ever find it. And then I met you. You¡¯ve made my life infinitely better, Sephie. All our lives infinitely better. I love you. Always and forever.¡± She slowly raised her head to look at me. I could clearly see the doubt written all over her face, her eyes searching mine. She held my gaze, looking for what she was always worried she would find, but never did. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re never going to find what you¡¯re looking for. It doesn¡¯t exist.¡± She dropped her gaze and my heart sank. I was worried I had ruined the moment, but she lifted her eyes again, stopping at my chest. She moved like she was going to touch me, but stopped herself. I could see the internal struggle she was going through clearly on her face. Her eyebrows furrowed. ¡°You really don¡¯t care?¡± she asked. She still wouldn¡¯t look me in the eye. She was still staring at my chest. Her hands started to fidget. ¡°Sephie, this makes you more attractive to me, if I¡¯m being honest. We can have all the se x we want and never have to worry about any of the consequences. I assumed you were on birth control or something, which is why I¡¯ve never brought this up before, because you never had a period. I should¡¯ve had this talk before. You wouldn¡¯t have been terrified this whole time that I was going to leave you.¡± I hooked her fidgeting fingers into mine. She dropped her knees, crossing them in front of her. She held my hand in both of hers, staring at it, turning it over, anything to upy her hands. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her because she was so focused on this making her mean less to me, when, in reality, it made her mean more to me. ¡°Sophie, I want to marry you. When all of this is over with the bosses and things calm down, I want to make you mine. This doesn¡¯t change that. Nothing will ever change that.¡± I reached down and lifted her chin gently so she would look at me again. Her eyes were softening, but there was still doubt there, still fearful. I leaned in and pressed my lips to hers, trying to think of any way I could to convince her to believe my words. Her hands quieted and I felt the tiniest of pulls on my hand as I kissed her. I put both of my hands on either side of her face, deepening the kiss. She let me, but didn¡¯t respond right away. I kept going anyway. Finally, I felt her hands on my shirt, gently pulling me toward her. I stopped, kissing her forehead, and looked in her eyes again. Softer. Less doubt. Less fear. ¡°I love you, solnishko. I will always love you. will always want you with me, by my side. Always.¡± Her breath caught and I could see the tears forming in her eyes. In the dim light, it made the colors of her eyes dance. I smiled at her, kissing her once more. ¡°You¡¯re still beautiful even when you cry.¡± She reached up and lightly traced her finger over my cheek, along my jawline. She loved running her fingersText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. through my stubble. I was happy that she wanted to. She leaned over and sed me gently. She kept her face close to mine. ¡°You really don¡¯t care?¡± she asked again, her eyes still searching. ¡°I really don¡¯t care. I really do love you,¡± I said, smiling at her. Finally. Finally, a small smile crept across her face. Her eyes were softer. The doubt and fear almostpletely gone. ¡°I really do love you too,¡± she said, her smile growing. ¡°Enough to marry me instead of Andrei?¡± I asked, my head cocked to the side. She grinned at me. God, I love her. She dropped her gaze, taking my hand back in both of hers. She sighed. ¡°Don¡¯t tell Andrei,¡± she said as she looked back at me, ¡°but he never had a chance. Chapter 146 Chapter 146 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Six Adrik We stayed in the extra room for a few hours. While she was mostly better, I knew she was still overwhelmed with everything she¡¯s had to deal with. To be honest, I was enjoying the extra time with her all to myself. I loved that the guys loved her and she loved them. I loved that I didn¡¯t have to worry as much when I was away from her because I knew they would protect her. But I also loved these moments when it was just the two of us together. We hadid down on the bed, with her across my chest in her favorite spot. As we were talking, my stomach interrupted the conversation, growling loudly. Sheughed. ¡°At least it wasn¡¯t mine for once.¡± She sat up, pulling me up with her. ¡°We should get you some food.¡± She paused for a moment. ¡°Do you think the guys are all in their rooms now?¡± ¡°Probably. Why?¡± I asked. ¡°Not in the most social mood,¡± she said dismissively. As we got to the bottom of the stairs, I stopped her. ¡°Wait here. I¡¯ll see who¡¯s around,¡± I said, kissing her cheek. I went to the kitchen, checking to see if they were still there or if they had all gone elsewhere for the evening. Ivan was in the kitchen, but he was alone. He looked at me, somewhat nervously, since I was alone. ¡°It¡¯s okay now. She just doesn¡¯t want to talk to everybody right now. She¡¯s waiting on the stairs for me to check to see who¡¯s around.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I can give you guys privacy. I just wanted to make sure all was good.¡± ¡°No, stay. I think she¡¯ll want to see you,¡± I said, walking back to the stairs to get her. I grabbed her hand. ¡°Ivan is the only one in the kitchen.¡± She sighed, relieved. ¡°He¡¯s the only one I wanted to see right now.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I literally just said that to him.¡± He stood up as we walked into the kitchen. He looked almost worried. She walked to him, wrapping her arms around him. He was clearly relieved. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said to him. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. ¡°You¡¯re not mad I told him?¡± he asked. That¡¯s why he was worried. She shook her head no. ¡°I don¡¯t think I could¡¯ve told him. I¡¯m d you did it for me.¡± She pulled him closer, resting her head on. his chest. She always looked so tiny next to him, but even more so when she was upset. It made her look fragile, even though I wasn¡¯t sure fragile was in her vocabry. Ivan kissed the top of her head, a small smile on his face. ¡°I was right, wasn¡¯t 17¡± he asked her, not letting her go. She groaned quietly. ¡°Yes, Ivan. You were right.¡± She poked him in the ribs, making himugh. She walked back to me, tucking herself into my side as I held her close to me. Ivan went to the refrigerator and pulled out two tes of food. ¡°I had to fight them for these, but I saved you some dinner. This is all that¡¯s left. Viktor¡¯s backup meal was not needed. Sephie looked surprised that they had eaten everything else. Seriously? I made enough for like 10 people. That¡¯s impressive.¡± We bothughed at her. ¡°I don¡¯t know why this is surprising for you. You know how we like to eat,¡± I said. I grabbed both tes to warm them. She shook her head, chuckling to herself. ¡°You¡¯re right. I should¡¯ve known. Maybe I¡¯m more surprised that they liked it enough to eat all of it.¡± ¡°We all agreed that it was better than anything Tori ever made,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Shu t up.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true. Viktor said he¡¯s going to drag his feet on finding a new chef just so you¡¯ll cook more.¡± I walked back to her, waiting on the food to warm up still. ¡°I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s fair. Sephie can cook when she wants to. Not because she has to.¡± I kissed her temple, pulling her close to me again. She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t mind. I like to cook.¡± ¡°We like when you cook,¡± Ivan said, smiling at her. We talked a little more as she and I ate. The guys were right. It was definitely better than anything Tori had ever made us. Maybe I was okay with Viktor dragging his feet a little bit¡­. Sephie looked at Ivan, a serious look on her face. ¡°You haven¡¯t slept yet, have you?¡± He looked down, but shook his head no. She clicked her tongue, walking to him. She slid her arm across his shoulders, resting her chin on his good shoulder. He was so tall that she barely needed to bend over, even when he was sitting at the counter. ¡°Your body needs rest, Squishy. You¡¯re still trying to catch up from losing so much blood and you¡¯re just going to make it harder on yourself if you don¡¯t sleep. Your body can¡¯t do both at the same time. It can¡¯t recover and try to keep you going for days on end. You¡¯re going to crash.¡± He sighed. She was right, but I could clearly see the worry on his face when he thought about sleep. She leaned over and whispered something in his ear that I couldn¡¯t hear. He smiled, but once again shook his head no. She thought for a moment, her chin still resting on his shoulder. She stood up suddenly. ¡°I have an idea. Be right back.¡± She walked toward the guys¡± rooms. We heard her knock on a door, but couldn¡¯t tell whose door she knocked on. We could hear hushed voices, but that was, it. She returned with a phone in her hand. She grabbed Ivan¡¯s good arm and pulled him toward his room. I shook my head, as I cleaned up the rest of the kitchen while I waited for her to return. While she was gone, I looked through the cabs, hoping to find the same kind of tea she had made herself at the penthouse. I didn¡¯t think triple strength was necessary this time, but I figured it might help. As luck would have it, I found a box of the very same tea. I had just put the tea bag in the hot water when she returned to the kitchen, without Ivan. I looked at her, my eyebrow raised, hoping she would let me in on her n. As she got to me, I handed her the tea. ¡°Drink this.¡± She took it from me, but stopped to Inspect it first. ¡°It¡¯s not triple strength, is it?¡± Iughed. ¡°Single strength only. But I think you could use a little extra help tonight.¡± She sipped It, smiling at me over the mug. Are you going to tell me what you just did to Ivan?¡± ¡°Ivan got stuck in his darkness much the same way 1 did on the ne, I think. Anytime I was quiet for too long, he would start fighting again. I remembered that Misha had recorded me ying at the no gallery, so I asked if I could borrow his phone so Ivan could listert to that while he slept. That way he¡¯d know that I was always there. I turned it on and stayed with him for a few minutes. He¡¯s so exhausted that he was asleep in like two minutes. I walked to her, brushing a curl from her face. ¡°That¡¯s a brilliant n, solnishko. I was beginning to worry I would have to spend another night away from you, just so Ivan could sleep.¡± She cut her eyes at me as she took another sip of tea. ¡°I¡¯m hoping this will satisfy all parties involved. Chapter 147 Chapter 147 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Seven Adrik Sometime in the middle of the night, Misha came into the bedroom. Sephie was asleep, across my chest as usual. Misha urgently shook me to wake me. ¡°Boss, wake up. We need Sephie.¡± I moved to sit up, which woke Sephie up. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± she asked, still half asleep. ¡°Sephie, we need you. Ivan¡­¡± he didn¡¯t even finish, and she was out of the bed, on her way to the door. She didn¡¯t even stop to put pants on. Good thing my shirts are so big on her. I got up to follow them. She ran to Ivan¡¯s room. Ivan was struggling, with Viktor and Stephen trying to hold him down. He clearly wasn¡¯tpletely with it, or he would¡¯ve known he was fighting Viktor and Stephen and not the demons of his past. Sephie didn¡¯t hesitate. She ran to him, getting in between Viktor and Ivan. She ced both her hands on his chest, pushing him down. ¡°Ivan, I¡¯m here. You¡¯re fine, Squishy.¡± As soon as he heard her voice and felt her touch, he copsed on the bed. She leaned over to his ear, whispering to him. He sighed and we all watched his body rx. Viktor looked at me. ¡°See, Boss. Never seen anything like it. We all know how difficult it is to break him out of his bwn head when he¡¯s like this. She does it instantly.¡± She looked over her shoulder at him, smiling at him, but still talking in Ivan¡¯s car. She kept one hand on Ivan and reached over to the table next to his bed. She picked up Misha¡¯s phone, holding it in the air for him to take. ¡°I drained your battery, Misha. I¡¯m sorry.¡± He took his phone from her. ¡°It¡¯s okay, gazelle. That must¡¯ve been what started this. He was quiet until just a few minutes ago and we all heard him yell. Viktor and I rushed to check on him and Stephen heard us trying to keep him from hurting his arm again.¡± ¡°Andrei¡¯s still asleep, then?¡± she asked. This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. ¡°Yeah, pain meds knock himpletely out. He¡¯s dead to the world when he takes those things,¡± Misha said. ¡°Good,¡± she said. She still had her hand on Ivan¡¯s chest as she talked to Misha. Ivan was clearly asleep still, but he reached up and grabbed her hand, holding it in his. She smiled, turning back to him, whispering something to him. He took in a deep breath, his bodypletely rxed. She looked back to all of us. ¡°You can go back to sleep now. He¡¯s fine,¡± she said to everyone. She looked at Misha, ¡°thank you foring to get me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re the only one that can calm him,¡± he said. ¡°We would still be fighting him. He¡¯s gone for hours like that before.¡± She had a pained look on her face. ¡°It¡¯s not my story to tell, but he has good reason to act this way.¡± Misha leaned over and kissed the top of her head. ¡°We¡¯re just d you can save him, gazelle.¡± He walked out of the room. Viktor walked over and kissed the top of her head as well. ¡°Thank you, Sephle,¡± he said as he left the room. Stephen had quietly alipped out as well. I walked to her, not sure of what to do now, She looked at me, clearly not sure of what to do either. ¡°I can¡¯t leave him, or he¡¯ll start struggling again.¡± you would¡¯ve put pants on before running down Her eyes went wide. ¡°Shi t.¡± Iughed at her. ¡°I¡¯ll go get you pants. He never struggles with his demons for more than a few days after he has to go to the hospital. I can manage until he¡¯s okay.¡± She pulled on my arm so I would lean down to her. She pressed her lips to mine. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said. J eventually managed to fall back asleep without Sephie, but it took three times as long as normal. I could always fall asleep almost immediately when she was either next to me orying across my chest. When I woke for the second time of the morning, she was curled up next to me, her body pressed to mine. I rolled over, putting my arm over her. She rolled over to face me, a small smile on her face. ¡°When did youe back?¡± I asked, my hands running through her hair. ¡°Not that long ago. Ivan woke up on his own and kicked me out. He said he promised he wasn¡¯t going to sleep again for a few hours, so that I could try to get some sleep. I tried to protest, but he might be more stubborn than me, so he won¡­this round,¡± she said, grinning at me. ¡°How was he when he woke up?¡± I asked, smiling back at her. ¡°Still troubled. I couldn¡¯t keep him quiet for longer than a few minutes if I stopped talking to him. I haven¡¯t figured out the right thing to say to him to break himpletely out of it. I¡¯m going to try to get more details about what he¡¯s seeing, if he can even remember,ter. I just have to find the right words to get him to rx for longer than a few minutes.¡± She looked tired. She also looked just as troubled as she just described Ivan as being. ¡°What time is it?¡± I asked, still ying with her curls. ¡°Not even 5 yet, I don¡¯t think. He woke up a little after 4, like aplete psycho,¡± sheughed as she snuggled closer to me, putting her leg over the top of my legs. ¡°What time do you have to get up today?¡± I groaned quietly, pulling her hips closer to mine. ¡°I have a few meetings this afternoon, but nothing this morning.¡± She moaned quietly, her face just under mine, against my neck. ¡°Mmm, so you can sleep with me for a little while?¡± I kissed her forehead. ¡°I can sleep with you for a little while, even though sleep is thest thing on my mind right now.¡± ¡°Technically, I didn¡¯t say anything about the activities I had in mind before the sleeping,¡± she said as she slid her hand into the waistband of my pants, grabbing my a ss. I didn¡¯t need any further encouragement. I pulled her on top of me, her lips finding mine immediately. I loved it when she took control, but she felt almost desperate for me. I grabbed my shirt that she was wearing, ripping it open. Sheughed against my lips. ¡°Now you ha te your own shirts too? What do you have against clothing?¡± ¡°Only the clothing that¡¯s on you. And it¡¯s my shirt. I can ruin it If I want to.¡± My hands explored her body while she continued tough at me. I hooked my thumbs into her panties, ripping them off too, as I smirked at her. She grabbed my hands ced them back on her hips, encouraging me to keep them roaming over her body. your tou she said, still gulding my hands over her body Her breath caught every time and it was almost my undoing each time. Once she was adjusted to having me inside her, she moved her hips against me. She was still desperate for me, like she couldn¡¯t get close enough to me. Her mo uth was on mine, her kiss unrelenting. Like she was asking me to match her. It suddenly hit me. She needed assurance. She needed to know that she was the only one for me and would always be the only one for me. I let go. No more holding back. Ever again. I was always worried I would hurt her, but I think she could feel me holding back and took it for something else. She was trying to connect thest part of my soul that was holding back with thest part of hers that was scared to show itself. I grabbed her, rougher than I¡¯d ever grabbed her before. I expected her to tense, but she did the opposite. Shepletely surrendered. In one motion, I pushed her on her back and I was on top of her. My mo uth was on every inch of her body, like I would never be able to get enough of her. I kept the rhythm slower, but I didn¡¯t hold back. I mmed into her roughly with each thrust. At first, she held onto my shoulders, but she let go and put her arms over her head. She waspletely lost in the feeling, and she never looked more beautiful. She had her eyes closed, fully taking in every sensation I was making her feel. I couldn¡¯t stop watching her. It made me want to keep going forever. I felt her getting closer to her orgasm. She opened her eyes, looking me in the eyes as she got closer and closer. She was driving me crazy, without even trying. My lips found hers for a moment before she threw her head back, moaning loudly as her entire body spasmed inplete pleasure. I kept going, trying to draw it out as long as possible. She was the only woman I¡¯d been with that was able to do that. It was impressive. It was also an ego boost for me, so I did it as often as possible. She did not disappoint. As soon as I thought she wasing down, I thrust harder into her and she would crash over the edge again. She kept going until I knew I wouldn¡¯t be able tost much longer. As soon as I felt her starting to build again, I let myself finish with her. I copsed on top of her,pletely out of breath. I felt her hands in my hair, lightly running over the back of my head and my neck. I wrapped my arms around her, rolling onto my back so she would be lying on top of me. She was just as out of breath as I was. She quietlyid on top of me until her breathing normalized, her fingers tracing random patterns on my chest. I kissed the top of her head and heard her make the cooing noise she made when she was sleeping. I knew she was falling asleep, if not asleep. already. I lightly ran my hands over her back and through her hair. She snuggled into me, her fingers starting to lightly y her song on my heart Chapter 148 Chapter 148 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Eight Ivan Thest thing I remember was seeing tears streaming down Sephie¡¯s face as we stood by the front door of the house. I pulled her to me, trying tofort her. Everything started to go ck, but I could still hear her voice. I felt calm when I heard her voice. This has never happened before. I knew I was hurt badly. I couldn¡¯t feel anything, but I knew enough to know that it never turned out well when my heart was racing that much or when it was that difficult to catch my breath. I knew I was going to end up in the hospital. Fu ck. I lost her voice. I started to panic. I knew what wasing. I knew what I was going to have to live through again. I¡¯m so tired. I don¡¯t know if I have the strength to go through it again. Just when I start to vaguely see the outline of the as shole doctor that used to torture me, I hear her voice again and he disappears. She¡¯s talking to me like I¡¯m there with her, but I can¡¯t see anything but darkness around me. Better that than the as shole doctor. Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. I can feel her hands trying to move me, then sheughs. I want tough with her. She has no idea what herugh does for me. Herugh is a reminder to keep going. It seems si lly. It¡¯s such a small thing, but she literally radiates joy when she smiles. Even though she¡¯s been through more than most. Herugh is what gives me the strength to keep going. If for no other reason than to make sure she¡¯s always safe enough to keep smiling. Keepughing. I can hear another voice talking to her. She sounds upset now, but the other voice is one I vaguely recognize. She¡¯s worried for me. This must be worse than I thought. I can feel movement. I lose her for a minute, but then she¡¯s back, talking again. As long as I can hear her voice, she keeps the doctor away. She¡¯s telling me they¡¯re taking me to the hospital, but she promises she won¡¯t leave me. More movement, more voices. Some familiar, some not. I can feel her next to me. She¡¯s raising her voice, she sounds frantic. Suddenly she¡¯s gone. I can¡¯t hear her. It can¡¯t feel her. She¡¯s gone. I start to see the outline of the as shole doctoring into view. He always looked like he enjoyed seeing me suffer. It didn¡¯t matter how long he kept me from eating, how long he left me inplete darkness, he would always look happy to see me miserable. Si ck fu ck. I can see him leaning down to get a closer look at me. I grab his throat, but my arm doesn¡¯t work right. That must be the one I hurt. I make a me ntal note to use the other one next time. He keepsing back. I keep trying to get to him. It never seems to matter how many times I try to ki ll him, he keepsing back. I fear I¡¯ll never be rid of him. They try to tie me to the bed, but I¡¯m stronger now. They must¡¯ve made the mistake of letting me eat. It makes me stronger. It makes me dangerous. I like being dangerous. I feel myself wanting to take pleasure in watching the doctor fight for his life in my hands. I can see the doors open and I can see the outline of a woman. I can¡¯t see the details of her face, but I can clearly see that she has red hair. The doctor yells at her, telling her to get out. I don¡¯t remember a redheaded nurse. She¡¯s not safe here. They¡¯ll experiment on her too. Redheads are special too. She sounds angry. I recognize that anger. That doctor better cover his nose. I feel hands on my chest. Her hands. It¡¯s her. She¡¯s here. ¡°Hi, Super Squishy. These fu cking mo rons wouldn¡¯t let mee in with you, but they¡¯ve learned their lesson. I¡¯m not leaving you again. Promise. They need to work on your arm. It¡¯s broken. You¡¯ve lost a lot of blood. I¡¯m going to be here the whole time. I won¡¯t leave you.¡± She came back. She didn¡¯t leave me. She came back. Everything went back to ck in front of me. I could hear her voice. It made me feel calm. I hear her tell the doctor that I won¡¯t resist. She keeps talking to me, telling me that they need to fix my arm and that I need to hold still. I can feel her hand on my chest. I reach up with the arm that apparently works and put my hand over hers. I want to make sure that she stays with me this time. I hear the doctor yell and hear amotion. She tells them that I¡¯ve been awake the whole time and to hurry up before I lose my patience. That doctor¡¯s nose is still in danger. I squeeze her hand again, this time hoping to keep her from breaking anyone¡¯s nose. She talks to me the whole time, keeping the doctor away. The darkness is peaceful. It¡¯s quiet here. I like it when I¡¯m here. I¡¯ve never spent this much time here before. Her voice keeps me here, Her voice brings me peace. She quiets my demons. By the time they¡¯re done with whatever it is they¡¯re doing to my arm, the drugs they tried to sedate me with wear off enough and I can see clearly now. I¡¯m in a room for surgery. I¡¯ve been in plenty of these rooms in my life. They¡¯re all the same. They all sti nk. They¡¯re all cold. They all have the same fluorescent lighting overhead. I see a nurse walk up and tell Sephie she isn¡¯t needed anymore. Just as I start to panic, Sephie tells the nurse in her very direct but funny, way that she¡¯s not leaving me. She leaned down to me, whispering, ¡°told you I wasn¡¯t going to leave you again. These people are nu ts anyway.¡± I tried tough, but it came out more like a cough. I heard herugh softly. There it is. I have to keep going. Chapter 149 Chapter 149 Chapter One Hundred Forty-Nine Ivan They eventually take me to a room with Andrei. Everyone else is in there, as well. Sephie wouldn¡¯t let go of me. She even made me scoot over so she could share the bed with me. The nurses looked at her like she was in sane for making me move. They don¡¯t know she¡¯s the go ddamn princess. I¡¯m exhausted, but I don¡¯t want to risk falling asleep. I know what happens when I go to sleep when I¡¯m in the hospital. They¡¯re going to have to hold me down to keep me from hurting myself or someone else. It always takes all of them to hold me. They¡¯re a man down, which worries me. I don¡¯t want to put Sephie in danger from my demons. A new nursees in and informs Sephie that visiting hours are almost over and she¡¯ll have to leave soon. I was dreading this moment. I knew she would have to leave again and my He ll would begin. Sephie justughed at the nurse. She told the nurse to call the doctor and ask whether he thought it was a good idea for her to leave. The nurse tried to intimidate Sephie into leaving. She better cover her nose, too. Sephie just stood up, which made Adrik, Viktor, Stephen, and Misha all stand up behind her. Sephie didn¡¯t even look at them, she knew they were behind her, ready for whatever she needed. She took one step toward the nurse. Crossing her arms across her chest, she said calmly, but firmly, ¡°call Dr. Williams.¡± This nurse doesn¡¯t know the danger her nose is in. She¡¯s fighting a losing battle. Misha was settled onto the small bed they brought in for him. Viktor and Stephen were trying to get some sleep, the best they could, in the chairs they were in. Adrik was too, but he was still clearly missing Sephie and worried about her. He would open his eyes every so often to check on her, then he would close his eyes again. It¡¯s probably killing him to be apart from her right now. Sephie looked at me and whispered, ¡°you should sleep, Squishy. I won¡¯t leave. I promise.¡± I had a sudden feeling of panic at the thought of trying to sleep right now. ¡°Promise?¡± I asked. I would try if she was going to stay with me. ¡°Pinky swear, even,¡± she said, holding her pinky up. I looked at her, having no clue what she was talking about. ¡°Right. Let me introduce you to the pinky swear. It¡¯s the holiest of swears there is. Like completely trumps swearing on all things holy, on your mother¡¯s grave, on your life, all of it. It¡¯s the holiest of holy swears. Like the pope himself can¡¯t even make a pinky swear because he¡¯s not holy enough.¡± One of the best things about Sephie was her child-like innocence. She was a grown woman, tougher than any other woman I¡¯d ever known, but she was still taking things like pinky swears seriously. Very seriously, apparently. I¡¯d heard her and Adrik talk about It before, but never knew what they were talking about, until now. Her ability to bring light to even the worst situations was astonishing. I hoped she never stopped. I grabbed her pinky with mine. She said, ¡°I pinky swear that I will not leave you.¡± I belleved her. It was, after all, the holiest of holy swears. As long as I could hear her voice, it kept the as shole doctor away. I didn¡¯t worry that I would turn into him. I didn¡¯t have to fight him or the memories that came with him. Her voice kept me in the darkness, where I wanted to be. Where I could rx. Where it was quiet, I would asionally lose her voice and each time, the doctor¡¯s face would start to appear in front of me. Like he was waiting for her to disappear so he coulde back. Can he get to her? Is he making her go away? Each time, I start to struggle, worried that he¡¯s gotten to her too. I would hear her voice come back and the scene in front of me would disappear. Once we got back to the house, I could tell that Sephie was exhausted. I knew she didn¡¯t get much sleep the night before because she was busy keeping my demons at bay. I assured her I would stay awake so she could get at least a few hours of sleep. ¡°Go. Your go ddamn prince misses you.¡± I knew Adrik was fine with Sephie being around all of us. He trusted us and none of us would ever do anything to betray that trust. We¡¯d been through too much together to ever jeopardize that. It was obvious, anyway, that Sephie only had eyes for Adrik. She looked at him very differently than she looked at the rest of us. She loved us, for sure, but not in the same way. Misha nailed it when he called her our little sister. That¡¯s how we all felt about her. The sometimes bratty, sometimes spoiled, but mostly adorable and always hrious little sister. The go ddamn princess. While everyone else was asleep, I took the opportunity to set up having Sephie¡¯s piano delivered to the penthouse. I knew we¡¯d be away from the penthouse for a few days, so it would be the perfect time for it to be delivered, without fear of her seeing it. I spoke to Craig, telling him that something hade up and we were away for a few days, but that I would let him know when we wereing back so he could be there for the reveal. I promised he¡¯d be there, and I was always good on my word. With everything that happened, I hadn¡¯t had a chance to tell Adrik about the surprise. He¡¯d be happy to know how well it was going to turn out. I¡¯d never seen him try so hard to make someone else happy before he met Sephie. With the few girlfriends he¡¯d had before her, it was almost like they were an afterthought to him. If they asked him for something, he¡¯d give it to them, but otherwise, I never got the impression that he thought about them very much, if at all. This was not the case with Sephie. He thought about her constantly. Worried about her constantly. Anytime he was away from her, he was almost grumpy until he could get back to her. And it had been like this since the first night he met her. As soon as Viktor and Andrei pulled Anthony off her in the hallway of the restaurant and Adrik picked her up that first time, he¡¯s never been able to keep his hands off her since. She can¡¯t stay away from him either. She mighte to one of us for a bit, for whatever reason, but she always finds her way back to him. I couldn¡¯t exactly exin it, but I felt a deep need to make sure that she was always able to find her way back to him. I was left alone with my thoughts for a while before everyone woke up. Most of the time, this wasn¡¯t the ideal scenario. I preferred to keep busy. It was easier when I was busy and distracted. Not being able to do much meant I couldn¡¯t distract myself and had to sit with the memories that alwayse back when I¡¯m forced to go to a hospital. I would get angry with myself for still being haunted by it. It was over. It was done. I got myself out of there. 1 did what Thad to do. That was the one good thing that came from that situation, at least. I learned that I never needed to rely on anyone ever again. I could get myself out of any situation that I had also gotten myself into. It had been ten years since that night when I broke out of the hospital. I didn¡¯t have much contact with any of the other boys in the program, as they would keep me away from everyone else as punishment. But I talked to one of the nurses. I think she took pity on me. She would sometimes sneak me food when they had taken it away from me because I refused to do whatever they told me. She was nicer than the other nurses, too. She always looked genuinely concerned. The night I broke out was her night off. I wanted to make sure I didn¡¯t do anything to harm her. I knew she would try to stop me and I was determined to leave, no matter what. It wasn¡¯t much, but she was nice to me when no one else was. I didn¡¯t see to harm her. happened to her. I al to her. I always felt a little guilty because it It at I stole doors. They would find out and think she helped me, I¡¯m sure. I hoped she didn¡¯t get hurt. The only sce I could take was that it wasn¡¯t directly from my hands if she did get hurtText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 150 Chapter 150 Chapter One Hundred Fifty Ivan Everyone eventually woke up and started to reappear in the kitchen. Nobody ate yesterday, which usually means eating twice as much as normal when we do get to eat. Sephie came downstairs and saved the day, as usual. She said to tell one of the guards. that she¡¯s extra cranky when she¡¯s hungry, so they needed to bring us Vinny¡¯s. Even the outside guards, who didn¡¯t usually interact with her, had heard stories of her temper. They all knew that she had kicked all of our as ses at some point. A few of them had seen her sparring with us months earlier. The weather was nice, so we went outside for her training. Andrei was sparring with her, while Viktor was coaching her technique. The rest of us were watching, impressed with how quickly she could pick things up and how well she could anticipate Andrei¡¯s next move. Her observation skills were next level. It made it look like she was reading his mind, perfectly countering each one of his moves. Viktor recognized that she was holding herself back though; she was ying defense when she needed to be ying offense. He pulled her aside and said something to her, trying to get her to go harder. She needed to know what it felt like, should the situation ever arise. Andrei knew what Viktor was doing, but Andrei also knew how to get it out of her. He said something smart to her, which made her angry. I¡¯m still not sure how he knew the exact button to push with her to get her angry, but it worked. She kicked his a ss. To the point that Viktor stepped in and pulled her off him. It took her a few minutes to calm down after. Andrei was fine,ughing that he¡¯d finally gotten it out of her. He really was a good trainer for her. He knew if she could learn how to channel that anger that she¡¯d be unstoppable. That was the first time he got a true glimpse of what she was capable of. Of course, we all knew she was incredible, but that was the first time the outside guards had seen that much of her. They were allpletely shocked. And a little afraid of her from that point on. When we stood up to walk back to the house, I felt the darkness closing in on me again. Sephie saw me sway as I tried to get my bearings and helped me stay steady on my feet. She was worried IThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. wouldn¡¯t be able to make it back to the house, so she helped me walk. It did make it easier, not gonna lie. She was adamant that I should sleep more when we got back to the house. Even though she kept the demons away in the hospital, I was still panicked about sleeping again. She promised she wouldn¡¯t leave me again, but I was avoiding having to go through it. It¡¯s one of life¡¯s cr uel jokes that the more you avoid dealing with something, the more you¡¯re forced to deal with it. Everything flooded in at once when I was alone in my room. I¡¯d kept it all back the entire day, but I was tired. So tired. It hit me all at once. I heard a soft knock on my door, but didn¡¯t answer. I was trying to get control of myself. I knew it would be either Sephie or Misha and I didn¡¯t really want either of them to see me like this. Before I knew it, I felt Sephie slide her arm around my shoulders. She rested her head on my shoulder and just stayed there. She didn¡¯t say anything, she just kept rubbing her hand over my back while I finally broke down. I never really paid much attention to how much I needed that kind of physical touch. I did just fine without It, but since Sephie hade into our lives, she showed me how much I never knew I was missing It. Especially now. That empty feeling that usually came with feeling this way wasn¡¯t so bad when she was next to me. Sephie always knew just what to say, or what not to say in this case. I didn¡¯t need to hear about how sorry through what I went through. It¡¯s not going to change anything. She knew that. She just sat with me and alone anymore. That was worth more than anything she could¡¯ve said to me in that moment. She was like an anchor in the middle of the storm. It didn¡¯t matter how bad it got, how much I got tossed around, I knew she would be there. Holding onto me, keeping me from getting lost in my dark sea. I¡¯ve spent so much time with my demons that I¡¯m really not scared of them anymore. She was right. If you stop fighting them, they lose their power over you. But I¡¯m still afraid I¡¯m going to get lost and not be able to find my way back when I¡¯m in my own darkness. It¡¯s so peaceful. So quiet. I can feel myself not wanting to leave. I know what happens if I decide to stay there. She gives me a reason toe back. Chapter 151 Chapter 151 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-One Sephie It felt like I had just gotten to sleep when I felt Adrik stir underneath me, I was stillpletely on top of him. He probably needed to get up, but I really didn¡¯t want to move. I felt like I could sleep the rest of the day and still be tired. I groaned as I rolled off him onto my back, lying next to him. I heard himugh quietly as he rolled over with me. I felt his fingers lightly on my face, tracing down my neck. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at his touch. ¡°Good morning, solnishko,¡± he said as he left a trail of kisses where his finger had just traced. I finally opened my eyes, finding his smiling eyes watching me fight having to wake up. I ran my hand through his messy hair. I adored the way he looked at me, but after everything that had happenedst night, I found myself relieved that he was still looking at me with such love in his eyes. I¡¯d been terrified that finding out I couldn¡¯t give him children was going to make him leave. It still worried me, because people change their minds all the time, but for now, he assured me he wasn¡¯t going anywhere. And I finally felt like he proved it once I came back to bed this morning. He¡¯d been holding back, but he finally let go this morning. I finally felt like his words matched his actions. It was everything I needed. I smiled at him. ¡°You stopped holding back,¡± I said, my fingers running through his facial hair. ¡°I was worried I was going to hurt you, physically. But I think I ended up hurting you emotionally by holding back instead. I know you felt it. You feel everything, you notice everything, my little secret weapon,¡± he said, grinning at me. Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. I looked at him smiling at me, his hands on me, his body above mine, and in that moment, I couldn¡¯t imagine ever being without him. There was still that small part of me that was worried I would lose him at some point, but with each day, that part got smaller. Afterst night, I knew he loved me just as much as I loved him. With everything he had. Always and forever. I pulled him down to me, wrapping my arms around his neck. Heid his head on my chest, my fingers running through his hair. I felt him take a deep breath in. I said quietly, ¡°It was everything I needed.¡± He propped himself back on his elbow, looking into my eyes. I knew he was still worried that I was okay afterst night. He looked as sincere as I¡¯d ever seen him when he said, ¡°I love you, Sephie. I will always love you and I will always want you by my side. Forever.¡± I could feel the tears welling in my eyes, but this time, they were happy tears. I smiled at him, putting my hands on either side of his face, pulling him to me and pressing my lips to his. ¡°I love you, Adrik. More than anything.¡± When we came downstairs, it was approaching noon. Everyone but Andrei was in the kitchen, either making food or finishing up what they had just eaten, Viktor looked up from washing a te in the sink. ¡°Good morning, sestrichka. Are you hungry? There¡¯s still some back-up dinner left fromst night, although it¡¯s not as good as what you made.¡± Iughed at him. ¡°I still can¡¯t believe you guys ate all of It. I thought I made too much.¡± Heughed. ¡°We were hungry, but it was also very good. You can cook for us anytime,; he said, winking. ¡°Maybe I will. It keeps me upied and out of trouble, which I clearly need help with.¡± I sat down next to Ivan at the counter He cut his eyes over to me, but said nothing. ¡°Where¡¯s Andrel? Is he still sleeping?¡± I asked, no one in particr ated the question, he walked into the kitchen. ¡°You rang spider monkey?¡± He grinned ntil rioan lookood probably the most like me in his love for, well, fuckery. I smiled at him, looking forward to finding out what he was thinking. Adrik took Viktor and Stephen with him again for his few meetings that he had that afternoon. He assured me he wouldn¡¯t be gone long, I still couldn¡¯t help but worry about him while he was gone, but I knew he would be safe with Viktor and Stephen. Misha caught me alone after they had left. Andrei had gone to take a shower and Ivan had taken a phone call. ¡°I have an idea, gazelle. I think it could work, but I need your help.¡± ?? ¡°An idea for what?¡± I asked. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at him. He was handsome, just like the others, but he had a boyish look that made him extra adorable anytime he was excited about something. His green eyes would always get an extra spark to them anytime he was being devious. It was contagious. ¡°How to help Ivan sleep through the night. I didn¡¯t think about the battery running outst night, but even still, I only got a few hours of you ying at the gallery, so it would¡¯ve stopped eventually anyway. But, and this is where youe in, I have an extra phone that we can use to record as much of you ying as possible. That way, he can sleep for longer without you having to be there to keep him calm. We just plug in the phone and I can create a ylist that will y continuously for him. It worked until the phone diedst night.¡± ¡°I like this n. I approve this n. I¡¯m still trying to figure out what I need to say to him that will break him out of his loop for good. Adrik was eventually able to break me out of mine, but I can¡¯t seem to find the right words to say to Ivan to break him out.¡± I looked down at the counter, lost in thought for moment, trying to figure out the right words to say to him. ¡°You always know the right things to say to us, gazelle. You¡¯ll figure it out. But this will take some of the pressure off, in the meantime,¡± he grinned at me as I looked up at him. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, my adorable Russian guardian. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± Chapter 152 Chapter 152 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Two Sephie Misha disappeared for a bit, keeping Andrei busy for me as well, so that I could have a little time with Ivan. I was hoping he would want to talk about what he sees when he¡¯s stuck in his memories. I was still trying to figure out the right thing to say to him to break him out of the loop, so he could sleep peacefully. Ivan walked in from the back patio. I was the only one on the couches, so he stretched out next to me. ¡°You still look tired,¡± he said. He looked apologetic. ¡°You do too, Squishy. You¡¯re also the one that needs the sleep more than I do at this moment, too.¡± He thought for a moment, staring at the ceiling. He sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay. I can usually get a handle on it after a couple of days.¡± ¡°Do you want to tell me what you see when it happens? I¡¯m still trying to figure out the right thing to say to you that will break you out of itpletely, like Adrik did for me. I can keep you quiet for a while, but I can¡¯t seem to break you out of itpletely. You¡¯re not helping my self-esteem issues, for the record.¡± I gave him a half-smile, so he would know I was mostly joking. It really was bothering me that I couldn¡¯t seem to break him out of the prison of his mindpletely. He was quiet for a few minutes. He looked at me. ¡°Where¡¯s Misha and Andrei?¡± ¡°They went outside to talk to the guards.¡± He nodded. ¡°Before you, I would see the doctor that used to torture me. It¡¯s always him that I¡¯m fighting. It doesn¡¯t matter who¡¯s actually in front of me, I can only see that as shole doctor and hear his voice in my head. That¡¯s why it takes all of them to hold me down. I¡¯m determined to ki ll him each time. But he alwayses back, no matter what I do. He alwayses back.¡± I gave him a knowing look. My uncle had been living in my head for years now. ¡°But when you talk to me, he disappears. I can hear your voice every time and everything fades to ck. I can¡¯t see anything, but I can clearly hear your voice. If your voice disappears, the doctores back.¡± I shivered. I remembered the void I was in. ¡°Can you see your own body, but nothing else? Like you¡¯re swimming in the ckness?¡± He nodded, somewhat surprised. ¡°It happened to you loo?¡± ¡°Adrik¡¯s voice pulled me there, out of the loop from the ball. Or that night¡­with my uncle. I could hear my uncle¡¯s voice there for a while, until I finally let myself remember everything from that night.¡± I looked at him, apprehensively. ¡°He told me what you did that night, Sephle.¡± He smiled. ¡°I told him that I had thought your beast mode was activated when you shot that guy in the face, but it turns out your beast mode has always been activated.¡± He winked at me. I gave him a small smile. ¡°I still don¡¯t feel any remorse over it. I think I might be a monster for it, but I feel nothing when I think about what I did.¡± not a monster, princess. You saved yourself. You proved to yourself that you can get yourself out of any Not everyone would¡¯ve made it out of that house alive that night.¡± He sat up and toe out of me breaking out of the facility was in. 1 proved to myse I looked at him,ughing. ¡°S¨¦riously. Death is obsessed with us. Like, give it a rest, bro. I¡¯m embarrassed for you.¡± Heughed. He pulled me toward him and hugged me. ¡°You have no idea what yourugh does for me, princess.¡± I raised my eyebrow. ¡°Please tell me it¡¯s not like fingernails on a chalk board for you.¡± Heughed again. ¡°No, the opposite, really. I think part of the reason that it takes me days to get over a trip to the doctor is that I inevitably end up in the darkness. I like it there, Sephie. It¡¯s quiet. It¡¯s calm. I find myself wanting to stay there.¡± He paused, inhaling deeply. ¡°I¡¯m tired of fighting sometimes. I know if I decide to stay, there¡¯s noing back. Yourugh gives me a reason toe back. You radiate joy when youugh and smile. It¡¯s a reminder that I can keep going.¡± I didn¡¯t even try to hold back the tears that were streaming down my face at his words. I curled up next to him, pulling his good arm around my shoulders, my head on his shoulder. ¡°Ivan, I understand. I understand the tired. I understand not wanting toe back. But I need you. If you ever can¡¯t find a reason toe back for yourself, then know that I need you here. I will always need you here.¡± Fle didn¡¯t say anything, but I felt him lean down and kiss the top of my head as he held me a little tighter. We sat in silence for a few minutes. I remembered Misha¡¯s n to help him get some sleep without needing me to babysit him. ¡°What aboutst night when you were listening to me ying at the gallery? What happened then?¡± ¡°It was basically the same as hearing your voice. As long as I could hear you ying, I stayed in the darkness. It was nice, actually. But when the music stopped, the doctor came back, same as when I lose your voice.¡± ?? ¡°So, you think if we made a longer recording or like a ylist of nie ying, you could sleep for longer?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why not. It workedst night until the phone died.¡± ¡°Yeah, that was my bad. I don¡¯t know why I didn¡¯t think about plugging the st upid phone in.¡± I said. He chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re sleep-deprived because you¡¯ve been trying to take care of me, princess. It was still a good idea.¡± ¡°I will happily take care of you, if it means you heal faster. Your one-armed hugs su ck,¡± I said, poking him in the ribs. ¡°Do you know what happened to the facility? Like, is it still there?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I tried to investigate it a few years ago, but I kept running into dead ends. I think it was a top-secret level operation, so there¡¯s not much information on it avable. There were a lot of boys there still when I broke out. I sometimes wonder what happened to them. There was one nurse that I would talk to. I sometimes wonder what happened to her too.¡± ¡°Can you remember her name?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need to. I stale her key card to get out. I still have it,¡± he said: ¡°Have you tried looking her up?¡± He shook his head no. ¡°I thought about it, but I was too scared. She was the only one that was ever nice to me. I don¡¯t know if I could handle knowing that something happened to her because I took advantage of her niceness and stole her card to get out.¡± Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. ¡°That¡¯s fair. But don¡¯t forget that she was choosing to work there. Day after day, knowing what was happening there. She¡¯s your Max. You¡¯re ignoring her red gs because she was all you had at the time.¡± He was quiet for a moment, then pulled me closer to him. He kissed the top of my head again. ¡°Sometimes I ha te it when you use my advice on me. I ha te it even more that you¡¯re right.¡± Iughed. ¡°It¡¯s good advice. Fcan¡¯t keep it all to myself.¡± Chapter 153 Chapter 153 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Three Sophie Once Misha and Andrei came back, I spent a little time ying the ne, so Misha could add to the recordings he already had. 1 had a new melody in my head for a new song that I thought of while staying awake for Ivan. I started to y with it and a new song started to form. I wasn¡¯t sine il I got it from my dad, since he was the one that nted the melody of my song into my head and then let me tunish it. That was how I usually wrote songs. I would just think of the melody and the more I yed with it, the more the song would form around it. My dad has probably been nting melodies in my head my whole life without me knowing. Once I was done, Misha said, ¡°that¡¯s not one you¡¯ve yed before, is it?¡± 1 shook my head no. ¡°I just thought of that one the other night. It¡¯ll change a few more times before I figure it out.¡± ¡°You just made all of that up? Right now?¡± I nodded,ughing at his expression. ¡°That¡¯s amazing. It sounds like a finished song.¡± ¡°Only because you can¡¯t hear it in my head. It¡¯s not finished yet.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell if you don¡¯t tell. No one will ever know.¡± We walked back through the kitchen to find van passed out on the couch. He finally gave up and fell asleep. I looked quickly to Misha, who ran to his room to get a charger. He rushed back as quietly as he could, plugging the phone in close to Ivan. He turned it on and turned the volume up loud enough that Ivan could hear it. He pulled me back toward the kitchen, saying quietly. ¡°It¡¯s not set up to y on repeat yet. I have to mess with it and the videos I took at the gallery to make one long recording, but if we stay close, I can just start it over when it reaches the end.¡± I looked at the time. ¡°I think it¡¯s perfect. I was going to start on dinner right about now anyway, so it works out. You can help me. Whether you want to or not.¡± I grinned at him. ¡°Are you kidding? I will dly help you. My stomach was so lucking happyst night. I¡¯ll do whatever you want. What are you going to make this time?¡± ¡°I was thinking of making ravioli. It¡¯s one of my favorite recipes that Max¡¯s grandmother taught me. I haven¡¯t made it in a while.¡± He just stared at me for a long moment. ¡°I love you so much right now,¡± he said as his broad smile stretched across his face. I couldn¡¯t help but smile back at him. ¡°I know,¡± I said as I winked at him. I was still finishing up dinner with Misha when Adrik, Viktor, and Stephen got home. Misha and I were busy talking andughing quietly as I ordered him around the kitchen. Ivan was still passed out on the couch. Misha had it timed perfectly. He would run in and restart the recording just as it finished each time. He had just walked back in the kitchen and I said, ¡°we¡¯re going to have to wake him eventually so that you can stop having to restart the recording and make it longer for him. But so far, it¡¯s working smashingly well.¡± Adrik, Viktor, and Stephen walked into the kitchen. I smiled at them, putting my finger up to my lips to ntake sure they stayed quiet. They walked over to the counter before talki ¡°Ivan is finally asleep on the couch. I don¡¯t want to wake him up just yet. He needs it,¡± I said. Adrik walked to my side, his arm sliding around my waist. ¡°So, heating you y works just as well as you talking to him?¡± He pressed his lips to mine when I looked up at him to answer his question. I smiled against his lips as I nodded my head. ¡°Misha got more recordings today and he¡¯s going to put them all together so it will y continuously for him. Then we just have to remember to plug in the phone, so he and Viktor don¡¯t need to wake up in a panic again.¡± Viktor sighed. ¡°I¡¯d prefer to not have to fight him in the middle of the night, but I¡¯ll do it if necessary. It usually takes all of us to hold him down. He¡¯s a beast on a good day, but when he¡¯s like that, he¡¯s out for blood. It¡¯s hard not to take it personal sometimes.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t see you guys when he¡¯s like that. It doesn¡¯t matter who is in front of him, he can only see his memories. He¡¯s not fighting you guys. He¡¯s fighting his past,¡± I said, looking at him sympathetically. The fallout of trauma. It affected everyone. ¡°But he sees you when he¡¯s like that,¡± Viktor said, somewhat perplexed. I thought for a moment. I didn¡¯t want to say too much, because I know Ivan didn¡¯t want them to know and I didn¡¯t have the best track recordtely with keeping my mo uth sh ut. Adrik still had his arm around me, I fell him run his hand up my back. He knew I was trying to find the words. ¡°I think it¡¯s because he and I go to the same ce. What he described to me today was exactly the same as what I experienced on the ne and when we were at the ranch.¡± I looked at Adrik, suddenly curious as to how he could pull me into the darkness. ¡°Like I said before, his demons recognize mine.¡± I shrugged my shoulders, not really knowing how else I could exin it. ¡°Well, whatever it is, I¡¯ve still never seen anything like it. I¡¯ve known Ivan for over ten years now and he¡¯s never snapped out of it as quickly as he has with you. I¡¯m d. For him. And maybe a little bit for me, too, because I don¡¯t have to fight him,¡± he said as he grinned. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t want to fight him, that¡¯s for sure,¡± I said, as I winked at him. ¡°What¡¯s for dinner, sestrichka? It smells amazing,¡± he said, rubbing his stomach. Misha said, ¡°she made mushroom ravioli. And bread. Bro. She made bread. And she made the ravioli from scratch. Like everything you¡¯re about to put in your mo uth was made by her.¡± ¡°To be fair, the chicken was not made by me. I just cooked it. And also, Misha helped with everything. He¡¯s quite the sous chef.¡± I said smiling at him. Ivan walked into the kitchen, looking better than he had earlier. He still looked tired, but nowhere near as tired as he did earlier- in the day, ¡°Princess, that smells like it¡¯s going to make my stomach happier than it wasst night, which is saying a lot.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile at him. ¡°Squishy, you look better. You slept okay? It worked?¡± He nodded, ¡°Was that one a new one?¡± Misha answered for me. ¡°Can you believe she just like sat down and yed that for the first time today? She was like I have this melody in my head. Ban?. Here¡¯s a song. The End.¡± Iughed. ¡°It¡¯s not finished yet. It¡¯ll sound better when it¡¯s finished.¡± Ivan said, ¡°I like It. It might be my favorite one so far.¡± As I stood in the kitchen, looking at Ivan tell me he liked that song, I knew without a doubt that my dad had put that melody in my head specifically for Ivan. I thanked him silently. ¡°Oh, Boss. I have news,¡± Ivan said as he indicated for Adrik to allow him to the next room. Adrik kissed my temple and whispered, ¡°be right back, love,¡± as he walked into the next room with Ivan. ¡°Viktor, would you mind seeing if Andrei is awake yet? He told us to make sure and wake him up for dinner.¡± ¡°If I say no, can I get his portion?¡± he asked, his eyebrow raised like he was legitimately considering saying no. ¡°Do you want me to smack you with this wooden spoon? Because I¡¯ll do it,¡± I said, pointing at him with the spoon. Heughed loudly, walking out of the kitchen. Adrik and Ivan walked back into the kitchen, both looking like they were trying to keep it together. That was serious news. Adrik walked back to me, pulling me to him. He wrapped his arms around me tightly, his face in my hair, inhaling deeply. ¡°I missed you, solnishko.¡± I stepped back, looking at him, but saw only happiness in his eyes. I stood on my toes and kissed him gently. ¡°I missed you more,¡± I said smiling against his lips.This content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 154 Chapter 154 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Four Sephie I made sure to make even more food this time, thinking there would be leftovers they could eat the next day, Wrong. They just ate more. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to start rationing you guys. Or you¡¯re all going to have to start running with me.¡± I said, as they all went back for seconds and thirds, Mishaughed. ¡°This kind of delicious death will be worth it.¡± They all agreed with him. ¡°I ha te running, but I¡¯ll do it if it means I can eat more of this, Stephen said. ¡°It¡¯s not so bad, once you get used to it,¡± Misha said. ¡°Just never think you can run faster than her and you¡¯ll be fine,¡± Adrik sard, winking at me. ¡°I haven¡¯t sup in so long, you have a good shot at beating me now.¡± I grinned at him. We stayed in the kitchen, talking, well after all the food was gone for a second day in a row. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. ¡°Have Dariu and Massimo made it to meet with Trinu yet?¡± Ivan asked Viktor nodded. ¡°Armando is in contact with some of Trine¡¯s people. They confirmed that Dario and Massimonded this morning. Trine is making then wait, just like he did with Lorenzo and Anthony,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°I like his style,¡± Iughed. Adrik looked at me thoughtfully. ¡°I think it would be a good idea for you to meet him, solnishko. Mando and I were talking about it. I don¡¯t want to count on him without you meeting him first.¡± I smiled to myself at how reliant he had be on my observation skills. He was just as good as I was, to be fair, but I kind of loved how he included me in his business. ¡°How funny would it be for him to come here to meet with you while the other bosses are waiting on him in Colombia?¡± I said, mostly joking at the absurdity of it, Adrik looked at me, then looked to Ivan, then to Viktor. ¡°That¡¯s not a bad n, solnishko. I didn¡¯t want you to go down there while they were still there. It appears he¡¯s going to keep them there forever because he¡¯s having such a good time making them wait.¡± Viktor asked, ¡°how much time do you need to figure out whether he can be trusted, Sephie?¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°Not long, unless he¡¯s aplete psycho like Massimo. He took me longer. Everyone else I¡¯ve been able to figure out almost immediately.¡± Viktor looked to Adrik. ¡°We could meet him in between here and there. It would likely get back to the other bosses if he cante all the way here, but we can meet him halfway without them knowing. We can get in and out of your usual meeting spot with Trino quickly. It¡¯ll give Sephle enough time to meet him and he can get back before the other bosses catch on that he¡¯s meeting with you.¡± Adrik thought for a few moments. ¡°It might be nice to get away for a couple of days. We can take Mando and na as well. want Sephie to see everyone together. She¡¯ll be able to tell me if anyone is lying. I trust Mando. I mostly trust na, but I don¡¯t know her well. And I trust Trino so far, but I want Sephie to confirm that.¡± He looked to Misha, raising an eyebrow, silently asking for his thoughts on this n. Misha thought for a few minutes. We could see him working through various scenarios in his head, but he ultimately gave the green light. Adrik then looked to Andici and Ivan. ¡°How long before you two are up for travel?¡± Andrei spoke first. ¡°I¡¯m good, Boss. Whatever you need. I should be able to use it almost fully in the next couple of days.¡± Adrik nodded, then looked to Ivan, who was quiet for a moment. He looked conflicted. ¡°Ivan¡¯s wound is more serious than Bubba¡¯s. He won¡¯t be back to normal as quickly, but he¡¯s still more lethal with one arm than most people are with two, so there¡¯s that,¡± I said, winking at him: ¡°I¡¯ll be okay to travel, Boss. She¡¯s right. I won¡¯t have lull use of my arm for a while, but I¡¯m good. There¡¯s no way I¡¯m not going,¡± he said, looking right at me. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at liim. He¡¯s taking his new role very seriously. Adrik was quiet, thinking about this n. ¡°I¡¯ll speak with Mando and Trino tomorrow. Trino still hasn¡¯t given Lorenzo and Anthony an answer on their proposed deal,¡± Heughed. ¡°He¡¯s really enjoying stringing them along. This will give him reason to make them wait even longer, so I can¡¯t see him not agreeing to meet with us,¡± Finally, he looked to me. ¡°Are you up to a quick trip to ineet him?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°I¡¯m curious to meet him. Especially after hearing how he¡¯s been treating the other bosses. Just promise me that you won¡¯t let Giann go shopping at any point while we¡¯re gone.¡± They allughed. ¡°Deal,¡± Adrik said, smiling at me. Misha had time after dinner to splice together the videos so they would y continuously for at least 8 hours. ¡°It should restart. when it gets to the end, but I haven¡¯t tested that out yet, so I don¡¯t know for sure if that will work.¡± I looked to Ivan. ¡°You were good on the couch earlier, right?¡± I was worried about leaving him alone again overnight. I didn¡¯t want him to have to go through it again, it we could avoid it. If I needed to sacrifice another night of sleep, I would dly do it to keep him from having to relive it. ¡°Yeah, it worked well. Just like it didst night, only it was still ying when I woke up.¡± I looked to Misha again. ¡°Okay, we can try it again, but if you hear anything, youe get me right away again. Understood?¡± Misha nodded, handing Ivan the phone. ¡°It¡¯s all ready to go. You just have to plug it in and hit y.¡± ¡°Thanks, kid,¡± Ivan said. He put his good hand on Misha¡¯s shoulder. Misha just nodded and left for his room. 1 looked to Ivan. ¡°Want me to make sure you fall asleep okay before leaving?¡± I felt si lly asking a grown a ss man if he wanted me luck him in, but I wanted to make sure he was okay. He smiled at me, pulling me to him and hugging me. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay, princess. Thank you. For everything.¡± ¡°You know I love you, Squishy. I just want to make sure you¡¯re good, I need you around and what not,¡± I said, grinning at him. ¡°And also, your one-armed hugs still su ck.¡± ¡°Technically, I can give you a normal hug. It¡¯s not like I¡¯d feel the difference,¡± heughed. ¡°Touch¨¦, But then I¡¯d have to yell at you for using your bad arm and It would just get ug ly.¡± He covered his nose and leaned away from me. I couldn¡¯t help but tough at him. He was so different from when I first met him, and I adored this Ivan. He pulled me back to him, giving me another one- armed hug and kissing the top of my head. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in the morning, princess.¡± ¡°You know where to find me if you need anything.¡± I looked at him seriously. He chuckled, nodding his head as he walked toward his room Chapter 155 Chapter 155 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Five Sephie I walked back to the kitchen to find Adrik waiting for me with another cup of tea. I smiled at him, taking the cup from him. ¡°Honestly, I¡¯m so tired I don¡¯t think I even need this, but thank you. You¡¯re so good to me.¡± I kissed his cheek, turning so I could lean my back against him while he wrapped his arms around me from behind so I could still sip the tea while in his arms. He moved my hair oft my neck, lightly brushing his stubble against my neck as he gently kissed my neck. I closed my eyes, enjoying his touch. ¡°Are you still happy here, solnishko? You don¡¯t mind staying here another day or two until Ivan and Andrei are better?¡± he asked. ¡°Of course not. Why? Are you nning on noting back one night?¡± I asked, looking at him sideways. Heughed. ¡°Why would I ever want to torture myself like that? I just want to make sure you¡¯re not missing seeing other people.¡± ¡°You¡¯re very sweet to think about that. With everything that¡¯s happened, I kind of don¡¯t want to see other people right now. Other people are different from you and the guys,¡± I said, taking another sip of tea. He turned me around to face him, a curious look on his face. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure how to exin it. I didn¡¯t even realize it was happening until I spent more time with you and the guys. Other people, other than you guys, take from me without ever giving anything in return. Lake Giana, for example. That girl is so insecure with herself that she¡¯stched onto me anytime she¡¯s around me. Thankfully, she alsotched onto Ms. Jackson so I can have a break. I mean, I¡¯m not mad at her for it, but it¡¯s exhausting to be around for very long. Max is that way, too. I just never realized it until I was apart from him for a while. Ils of talking about them, lots of me solving their problems, lots of me giving them support. Rarely the other way around. Normally, it doesn¡¯t bother me, but with everything that¡¯s happened the past couple of days, all the extra I have to give is reserved for Tyan and to a lesser extent, Andrei. So, now that I¡¯ve gone into way more detail than you were expecting. I¡¯m perfectly happy hiding here for a few more days.¡± I finished my cup of tea and set it on the counter. Adrik looked at me, thoughtfully. He grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the stairs. I was happy to go to bed, hopeful I would get to sleep through the night tonight. I was already feeling the effects of the tea. ¡°I can leave Mando and Giana here when we go meet Trino,¡± he said, as we walked up the stairs. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. I think you¡¯re right. I need to see him with Trino as well. I didn¡¯t say all that to mean that I don¡¯t want to be around Giana ever again. She¡¯s a nice girl. I¡¯m just happy to have a break right now to get past thest couple of days.¡± As we walked into the bedroom, he turned and pulled me to him, his hands finding their way under my shirt. ¡°I¡¯ll make ns for the middle of next week then. You can have the rest of the week and weekend here. That¡¯ll give Andrei and Ivan more time too.¡± I smiled at him. ¡°Deal. Although I think Andrel won¡¯t need that much time. He¡¯s healing much faster than Ivan is. He looked much better today. But I think if Ivan can sleep tonight, he¡¯ll start to feel better too,¡± ¡°You¡¯ll feel better if you can sleep tonight as well, my love,¡± he kissed my forehead as he pulled my shirt over my head and threw it on the floor. He untucked his shirt, unbuttoning it, and sliding it off. He held it up behind me so I could slide my arms In the sleeves, then he buttoned it up. The sleeves were always too long, so he took the time to roll each one up, before moving to my jeans. ¡°We should change your bandage before we go to bed. I think we were supposed to do thatst night and I forgot,¡± he said. ¡°Clearly, I did ton. It hasn¡¯t bothered me muchtely, though. Maybe I can leave the bandage off overnight. I¡¯m tired of bandages. I¡¯m going to have a square scar from the stu pid adhesive on the bandages.¡± He clicked his tongue. ¡°I¡¯m surry, solnishka. I know it¡¯s irritating. Cone, we¡¯ll look at it.¡± He bent down and picked me up. carrying me to the bathroom. He set me down on the counter. I pulled his shirt up far enough that he could peel the bandage off. I flinched. This was always the worst part now. My skin was so sensitive where the adhesive stuck to it. Adrik always looked so apologetic when he took the bandage off. He inspected my shrinking wound. ¡°It¡¯s much smaller now. Do you want to try to leave the bandage off overnight?¡± I nodded. ¡°Yes, please. If no other reason than to give my skin a break from the world¡¯s strongest adhesive.¡± He chuckled. ¡°We¡¯ll leave it off, then. But tell me if it starts to bolher you. I¡¯ll repack it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m secretly hoping that nothing will bother me tonight,¡± I said, putting my hands on his shoulders. I wrapped my legs around him, pulling him closer to me. ¡°Nothing? Nothing at all?¡± he asked, a devilish grin on his face. I ran my hands down his chest and his stomach. ¡°Presentpany excluded, of course,¡± I said as I unbuckled his belt. He smiled, his lips immediately finding mine. I woke the next morning to Adrik¡¯s warm hands on myck. His shirt did not stay on me for very long last night. As long as I couldy across his chest while I slept, I never seemed to get cold. It never seemed to matter how we fell asleep, I inevitably ended upying across lus chest. He never seemed to mind, but I sometimes felt guilty for keeping hum hasically trapped underneath me. He felt me begin to stir and his hand ran up to the back of my neck. This was a new spot that he found rather recently. I made the mistake of telling him that it turned me on when he would leave his hand there, partially in my hair, partially on my neck. Of course, that made him want to do it more. I secretly loved it. I moaned softly, not wanting him to stop. Not wanting to have to wake up yet. ¡°Good morning, solnishko,¡± he said. I could hear him sinuling without having to look at him. I rested my chin on his chest, smiling back at him. ¡°You look a little more rested this morning,¡± he said as he pushed a lew curls back from my face. ¡°I¡¯m guessing that Misha¡¯s brilliant n worked the entire night. Either that, or Ivan has been awake for hours and will be exhausted when we go downstairs.¡± ¡°Nobody came to get you, so let¡¯s hope that the n worked.¡± 1 rolled off him, stretching before I gotText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. up. ¡°How does your hip feel this morning after leaving the bandage off overnight?¡± I sat up enough that I could look at the almost-gone ho le in my hip. It had dried and formed a scab overnight. It also didn¡¯t hurt any at all. ¡°I think it¡¯s fine. I want to leave the bandage aff today. See what happens.¡± He rolled on top of me, to get a closer look at it. He kissed my hip, just above the shrinking wound. ¡°It does look better. As long as it doesn¡¯t hurt you again, maybe you can leave the bandage off for a while.¡± ¡°One less thing to worry about It fine by me,¡± I sald, grinning at him. He frowned briefly, then kissed me. He looked at me thoughtfully, his fingers running lightly through my hair. ¡°I promise things will get better soon. You won¡¯t have to worry about anything ever again.¡± I smiled at him. ¡°As long as I have you, I can handle anything.¡± I paused, then added, ¡°okay, maybe the guys too. They can stick around too.¡± Chapter 156 Chapter 156 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Six Sephie Both Ivan and Andrei made considerable progress the rest of the week and chiring the weekend. Amtrei stopped wearing his sling a few days aftering home from the hospital. He said being able to move his arm and shoulder felt better than keeping it still all day long. I would still yell at him for trying to use it too much too soon, but he really was healing remarkably fast. Ivan was slightly slower, but his wound was also considerably worse. He was still heavily bandaged because of the extensive stitches. Before he left the hospital, they told him to have his bandage changed and the stitches checked over the weekend. Clearly, that was going to be an issue for him. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Ivan. I can change your bandage, but I¡¯m a little paranoid about checking your stitches. You had so much damage. What if I miss something important?¡± I asked, trying to figure out if he could handle seeing a doctor one more time, Heughed. ¡°Says the girl that misses nothing.¡± I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°You¡¯ll be able to tell if there¡¯s something going on in there that needs to be looked at. If it looks bad, I¡¯ll go to a doctor,¡± he said, reluctantly. He paused, then added, ¡°as long as you go with me.¡± Smiling, I rested my chin on his good shoulder. ¡°I¡¯ll always go with you, Ivan He rested his head gently on mine. ¡°Do we have everything we need to wrap you back up again? I don¡¯t think you need to go without a bandage and sling like Bubba quite yet.¡± He nodded. ¡°Viktor made sure to pick up everything. He knew there was a very slim chance I would go back to see the doctor, like instructed.¡± I grinned. Viktor was like the father of the group. He quietly went about making sure everyone had everything they needed. He oversaw all the security, kept Adrik¡¯s schedule, and was even helping Armando create his own security force. Papa Bear. Ivan¡¯s stitches looked quite good once I got his bandage removed. ¡°Dr. Williams did a much better job on your arm than I did on your back,¡± I said,ughing as I inspected his arm. ¡°Your stitches kept me from having to go to the hospital, so I¡¯d say they were infinitely better as far asThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. I¡¯m concerned,¡± he said, cutting his eyes at me. ¡°Squishy logic for the win,dies and gentlemen.¡± I sighed, ¡°I think you¡¯re going to live, Super Squish. Everything looks good from what I can tell. I would tell you to let me know if anything starts to hurt, but I don¡¯t think that would do any good.¡± ¡°I can feel it when it starts to heal. It itches,¡± he said. ¡°Really? That¡¯s surprising. So, it¡¯s just the pain that you don¡¯t feel? Like you can feel everything else?¡± I asked, curious how it worked. He nodded his head. ¡°Some pain I can feel. Like when you poke me in the ribs. I feel that. Severe pain, I don¡¯t feel. Everything else, I can feel. Pleasure I can feel¡± ¡°I was Loday years old when I learned that I was secretly curious about that,¡± I said, grinning at him. ¡°Now I know,¡± I said, working on bandaging his arm again. He looked around, making sure we were alone. ¡°Redheads are simr, you know. You guys have an insanely high pain tolerancepared to other people. The few redheaded boys I knew in the program were put through he ll to see how much they could handle. It was almost as much as me. They had weird reactions to drugs too. One boy had it the worst. The pain meds didn¡¯t work on him at all. Like ine, but he could feel all the pain. I really felt bad for that aid.¡± My heart hurt for that poor child, ¡°I didn¡¯t know redheads were that different. I¡¯ve only had the one surgery and I don¡¯t remember much about it. They said I was out for a long time, but I don¡¯t remember anything else about it. I wasn¡¯t in the best state of mind when I woke up, so I think 1 blocked it out.¡± ¡°Understandable. They probably had to give you more drugs than normal to keep you under. That¡¯s what would happen to the boys in the program. They would take at least double the amount of drugs to knock them out. It would always take them twice as long to wake up too.¡± I shook my head. ¡°Those poor kids.¡± I finished his bandage in silence, thinking about everything he had to endure in his early life, but also how I found myself silently grateful for it, as it led him to this moment. I smiled, remembering Adrik had said basically the same thing to me on the balcony so many months ago, after learning about my scars. ¡°Ivan, I don¡¯t think anything I can say to you about your past will make it any easier to deal with, but I¡¯m grateful that the path you were forced to walk led you here. I can¡¯t imagine my life without you in it.¡± He looked stunned. I just smiled at him while I put away the bandage supplies, I went to throw away the old bandage. When I came back, he just pulled me to him, hugging me tightly. I rested my head against his chest, hugging him back just as tightly. Knowing he would always keep me safe. We were finishing tip dinner on Sunday night. Adrik looked to Ivan, raising his eyebrow, asking a silent question. Ivan nodded his head, a small smile on his face. I looked to Adrik, who also had a smile on his face. ¡°I think we should go back to the penthouse until we leave to meet Trino,¡± he said, holding my gaze. There was something in his tone that told me it had already been decided, but there was clearly another reason he wanted to go back to the penthouse before we left. We¡¯d spent almost the entire week at the house, so I was happy to go back to the penthouse, even though I was enjoying the routine we¡¯d all settled into at the house. I was enjoying cooking dinner for everyone each night. Stephen told me that Viktor hadn¡¯t even put the word out that we needed a chef yet. Clearly, they were also enjoying my cooking. ¡°Why do I feel like the decision has already been made on this?¡± I asked, smiling at Adrik, He gave me his boyish grin that told me there was definitely more to going back to the penthouse. I couldn¡¯t help but laugh at him. Viktor asked, ¡°what do we have to do to get you to cook at the penthouse too?¡± He leaned back in his chair, pulling his shirt up and patting his stomach. He¡¯d pushed it out to make himself look like he had a belly. Iughed at him, knowing he had a six- pack like all of them. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do anything, Viktor. I like it. Wait until it gets colder and I don¡¯t want to go outside. I¡¯ll start baking. Your stomach might actually look like thate spring.¡± ¡°Worth it,¡± he said, smiling broadly at me Chapter 157 Chapter 157 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Seven Sephic We spent the morning at the house, like usual. When it was time for Adrik to leave for work, we all left. All of them had been practically giddy all morning long, like they had a secret that I wasn¡¯t in on. I was hoping by their smiles that whatever it was, it was going to be good. On the elevator up, I finally asked, ¡°are you guys going to let me in on the secret you¡¯re all clearly very happy about?¡± Adrik kissed my temple. He looked at his watch, then back to me. ¡°In approximately 15 minutes, you¡¯ll know everything.¡± Instead of going to the penthouse, we went to his office first. Except Ivan. Ivan stayed on the elevator, waving bye to me as I looked at him, confused, while the doors closed. ¡°Where¡¯s he going?¡± I asked. Now I was getting even more curious, They all looked at me, devious grins on their faces, but no one answered my question. 1 felt myself starting to get slightly nervous about what they were nning. It didn¡¯t seem like we were in the office for more than 5 minutes and Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He answered it, listened, then hung up. He looked to Adrik, ¡°ready, Boss.¡± Viktor looked to me, his broad smile stretching across his face. Adrik grabbed my hand, leading me back to the elevator. Everyone followed us. No one said a word. They just had their shi t- eating grins on their faces. Once in the elevator again, Adrik pulled me to him. I tucked myself into his side, looking at him, silently questioning what was going on. He just pushed the curts hick from my face. ¡°You¡¯ll see,¡± he said, that smile still on his face. Once we arrived at the top floor, I saw Ivan as the doors opened. He was grinning like a mo ron just like the rest of them. ¡°Okay, you guys are starting to creep me out. For real,¡± I said, starting to get frustrated they wouldn¡¯t say anything. They all that each piano has its own feel. The keys respond differently, they feel differently. You can adjust your ying to each piano, usually easily, but each pianist has that one piano that will always be their favorite. This piano was that for me. I¡¯d yed plenty of others, but this piano was always my favorite. Once I was older, my mother managed to buy a new piano. It wasrger than this one, which she loved, but I did not, I hated it. It was all wrong. This one was perfect for me. Once she got the second piano, I always told her this one was mine. It crushed me to have to sell it. I thought I would never see it again. I took a deep breath and started to y, Craig had taken care of it all these years and it had been tuned since they moved it. It sounded perfect. It felt perfect. It was perfect. As I yed, I was lost in thought. I knew Adrik had put this together. Clearly Ivan had a hand in it as well. I¡¯m sure they all knew about it. That¡¯s why they¡¯ve been grinning like idi ots all day long. I couldn¡¯t help but think about how they were all so different from the people I¡¯d had in my life until I met them. Since losing my m om, I¡¯d never really had anyone that I was that close to. Ms. Jackson was great. I loved her, but she didn¡¯t know everything about me. She kept an eye on me, she helped me, but I also kept my distance from her on many things. She didn¡¯t know i yed. Max was the same way. He kept an eye on me, but he would ditch me more often than not. I¡¯d had other friends, but they never lasted lung. I¡¯d only dated once or twice before I met Adrik. Everyone in my life up until I met Adrik know as little about me as possible. I felt safer that way. But then, these six men hade into my life and shown me not only what love was, but also what loyalty was, I knew that even if something were to happen In Adrik, the rest of them would make sure that I was never alone and was always looked after: My mind went back to the day we went to the house after returning from Italy, when we were avoiding the house because of Tori. Misha had told me that I was so much like them it was scary, but I think I can now say the same thing about them. They were looking for ways to make me smile, to make me happy. Their future girlfriends better thank me. I smiled, thinking about how I went from beingpletely alone to having six men willing to d ie for me. I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude that our individual paths had led us all to this moment. The song ended and I sat for a moment, still in shock over having my m om¡¯s ns back. I felt the tears threatening to fall once again, but I didn¡¯t care. I got up and turned toward where they were all standing, watching me. It was my turn to grin like an Idint as I walked quickly to Adrik. He opened his arms for me, still smiling at me. As soon as he opened his arms for me, I ran to him and jumped into his arms. I wrapped my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you could make me any happier than you already do.¡± I leaned back, holding his face in my hands. ¡°I was wrong. I was so wrong,¡± I said, smiling as my happy tears fell freely down my face. I pressed my lips to his, I felt his arms hold me Lighter. I unwrapped myself from him, going to Ivan next, ¡°I know you had a very big hand in this, Super Squish,¡± He grinned as he pulled me to him with his good arm, hugging me lightly. I went to each one of the guys, thanking them each individually for making this happen, feeling incredibly grateful for each one of them. Adrik pulled me close, looking at me thoughtfully. ¡°You¡¯ve been quieter than usual tonight. I just want to make sure you¡¯re really happy?¡± He was in his usual battle with the curls around my face, trying to get them to obey his commands. ¡°I¡¯m really happy.¡± I said, smiling at him. ¡°I don¡¯t have the words to tell you how much. You gave me a piece of my childhood back. I don¡¯t know how to tell you how much that means to me.¡± I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes as I looked at him, still smiling. I was surprised to see tears forming in his eyes. Ele pressed his palm to my cheek. ¡°I would give you the world, solnishko.¡± Trino had a vi on one of the Caribbean inds where Adrik would sometimes meet with him. It was faster, and in this case, safer, than going all the way to Colombia. None of the other bosses knew of this meeting ce and Trino wanted to keep it that way. He agreed to let Armandoe, simply because Adrik asked. Adrik had told Trino that he felt better meeting with him in person, given the circumstances, than speaking over the phone. He wanted to make sure their deal was still solid. Trino, of course, agreed toProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. meet with Adrik right away. It appeared that Trino respected Adrik as much as Adrik respected him, but I was still to be the deciding factor. Giana was excited to be going to the Caribbean. It was starting to get cooler in the city; she preferred the warmer climates. She had to go shopping again to buy winter clothes, but thankfully, she took Ms. Jackson and her own guards while we were at the house. I¡¯ve never been more relieved in my life to have missed something. I had to admit to looking forward to a few days on a tropical ind. I¡¯d already been to more ces since I¡¯d met Adrik than I had for my entire life. Misha felt like it was a good idea, so I tried to feel less nervous about going Chapter 158 Chapter 158 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Eight Adrik Sephie was right. Giana wastched onto her anytime she was around. We all thought Gluna was quiet, but it turns out she¡¯s only quiet until you take her shopping and then she won¡¯t stop talking. I caught myself wondering what conversations between her and Mando were like. They both like to talk so much, how did that work? Did they have to take turns talking? Was there ever silence? The guys noticed it too, all giving Sephie sympathetic looks. We were on the ne, on the way to Trino¡¯s vi. For once, Armando was quiet. Maybe he had figured out how nice silence was now that he¡¯d been with Giana for a short time. It was clear that he cared for her. We were all waiting for her to prove herself. No one had made a definitive decision on whether she was a keeper or not yet. Sephie had said that she was insecure with herself. I think we could all tell that she was still pretending to be someone she wasn¡¯t. We were waiting for her to just be herself around us. I could tell Sephie¡¯s patience was starting to wear thin, but we couldn¡¯t figure out how to get her out of the situation, as we were all basically stuck together for the next hour. I was trying to have silent conversations with the guys to see if anyone coulde up with a n to save her. Ivan stood up, faking a pain in his arm. Armando and Giana had no clue that he couldn¡¯t feel a thing and he took full advantage of that. He told Sephie that he had a weird pain and asked her if she could look at it to make sure one of his stitches hadn¡¯t popped. Sephie stood up, lookingpletely relieved, and Giana stood as well, oftering to help. Just when I thought Sophie was going to lose it, Ivan turned to look at Ginna with his murderous aura on full disy. She quietly sat back down. The rest of us had to look away to keep fromughing as Sephie and Ivan walked to the back of the ne so she could ¡°Inok¡± at lean¡¯s stitches. Sephie¡¯s Russian was getting better and since she let us know that she was learning it, we had been speaking it more around her. She was getting more fluent in it, which came in handy in situations like this. They were speaking quietly, but we could still hear most of their conversation. She told Ivan that he saved her just in time. She was contemting jumping out of the ne, just for some quiet. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. I tried to hide it by coughing, but the guys heard her too. They were all lighting back their ownughter. Armando and Giana both looked at us, fully aware something was going on. Stephen saved us all. He said,pletely straight-faced, ¡°It¡¯s never not funny when she threatens his life.¡± Armando chuckled, hut Gjana looked mortified. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Ivan and Sephie stayed in the back for a while longer, their conversation minimal. I was sure she was trying to stay back there as long as possible. Giana moved closer to Arntando, those two quietly talking. Sephie likely heard them talking and felt like it was safe toe hack out. She looked apprehensive when she slid open the door from the back. She saw that Giana was upied and she walked quickly to me, curling up beside me on the couch, ¡°All good?¡± I asked, to try and help them maintain their cover story. She nodded. ¡°Stitches are still good. I think the bandage caught one of the stitches and pulled on it slightly.¡± She rested her head on my shoulder, whispering, ¡°maybe if I pretend to sleep, it¡¯ll be okay,¡± I chuckled, kissing her forehead. ¡°I see what you were talking about before,¡± I said to her, speaking Rusn. She sighed. I pulled her closer. We were almost to the ind, where she could get a little time to herself, hopefully. Armandu and na were still talking to each other quietly. Giana was speaking Italian. I¡¯m not sure Armando had told her that Sephie could understand Italian. Sephie was clearly listening to their conversation as she mumbled ¡°sh it¡± under her breath. I looked at her, raising my eyebrow. She smiled at me, whispering, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m mostly just an as shole.¡± Wended soon after. Trino had arrived shortly before us and was there to greet us when we arrived. He surrounded himself with just as many trusted guards as I did. He¡¯d also had the same ones for years, so they were all familiar faces. There was a mutual respect between his men and mine, as well between Trino and me. ¡°Jefe, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± Trino said, walking up to me with his hand extended. I grasped his hand firmly. ¡°Trino. It¡¯s been a while, my friend.¡± Sephie was standing next to me. Trino¡¯s attention quickly shifted to her. ¡°And who is this beautiful senora, mi amigo?¡± he asked. She smiled at him, offering him her hand. ¡°Sephie,¡± she said as he took her hand and kissed the back of it. ¡°Sephie? That¡¯s an unusual name,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s short for Persephone,¡± I said. Elis eyes widened in understanding. ¡°Dios mio.¡± She grinned at him. ¡°Clearly you understand the reference.¡± He looked to me, still somewhat surprised, but smiling. ¡°You two were clearly meant to meet, Jefe.¡± ¡°You have no idea, Trino,¡± I said. Armando and Giana stepped off the ne behind us. Trino greeted Armando and Giana as warmly as he greeted me and Sephie. We made small talk while the guys got everyone¡¯s bags loaded onto the vehicles that Trino had brought to take us the short distance to his vi. It was a short drive from the runway to the house. The ind was much smaller than the cities we were used to, but it still had everything we needed. And Trint¡¯s vi had its own private beach, which made it secluded and perfect for us to meet without anyone ever finding out. I knew we were here on serious business, but I was also looking forward to a few days of not having to worry so much about Sephie¡¯s safety. It only helped that the setting was so beautiful. Trino showed us to our rooms and left us to freshen up. Sephie copsed on the bed. ¡°Do you want to tell me why you think. you¡¯re an as shole, solnishko?¡± I asked,ying next to her. I propped myself up on my elbow so I could look at her. She smiled at me. ¡°Giana was talking about how nervous she was to be with us. Armando was trying to calm her down. That¡¯s probably why she was so talkative on the ne. She was just overly nervous and trying to calm herself down.¡± I chuckled. ¡°It still doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re in charge of calming her down, Sephie.¡± I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers. ¡°And you¡¯re not the only one that was contemting jumping out of the ne for some peace,¡± I smiled against her lips. She giggled. ¡°You guys heard that?¡± I nodded, which made herugh more. She rolled into me, hiding her face in my shoulder, ¡°I¡¯m such a ho rrible person.¡± I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her on top of me as I rolled onto my back. ¡°You¡¯re not a ho rrible person, solnishko. You¡¯re just a little bit evil. But I happen to love that about you, as I¡¯m a lot evil,¡± I said, grinning at her as I pulled her to me to kiss her. Chapter 159 Chapter 159 Chapter One Hundred Fifty-Nine Adrik Sephie was somewhat retreshed alter a little time away from her new Italian shadow. We ventured out to find Trino. I needed her to spend as much time around him as she could, to get a feel for whether I could trust him or not. We found Ivan almost immediately when we lett on room. He had been sleeping better, with the recording of Sephee ying, so he was looking much more like himself, aside from still having his entire arm bandaged and in a sling. Andrei was almost back to normal. He could use his arm lightly and only had a small bandage over the wound the bullet left when it hit him. ¡°Super Squish the savior.¡± Sephie said with a grin on her face as we met van. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I needed to tell you to keep all hands and feet inside the ne until the ride hade to aplete stop,¡± he said as he cut his eyes down at her, a small grin on his face. I was still surprised at how much funnier he was after being around Sephie for a rtively short amount of time. He had always been so quiet before she came into our lives. We all were. But now, because of her, we saw the tighter side of everything. I found myself thinking about watching her at her piano a few days ago. She really had brought out the best in all of us. I¡¯d never cared about making anyone happy before her. We all saw how much effort she put into making everyone around her happy. It was contagious. She did such an amazing job of it that we wanted to do the same for her. We were so excited for her to get her piano back. Every single one of us, men who had killed without a second thought, were wiping tears from our eyes watching her get her piano back. She was so happy and in turn, we were all happy. She was incredible, Trino¡¯s ind house was spacious, with just as much outdoor space as indoor, given the perfect climate most of the year. We found him outside, with his second inmand, Martin, Good. Sephle will be able to meet lum as well. ¡°Tefe,e and sit,¡± Trino said, motioning for us to sit on the couches next to him, ¡°I have to say I¡¯m not sad about you bringing Sephic with you. She¡¯s much nicer to look at than your men.¡± Sephie didn¡¯t say anything, but she made sure she sat in between me and Ivan. I put my arm across herp, my hand on her thigh. I nodded toward Martin. ¡°Good to see you again, Martin.¡± He returned the nod. Martin was generally a very quiet man, which I appreciated. I looked to Trino, asking, ¡°have you met with Dario and Massimo yet?¡± Both Trino and Martinughed. ¡°No, man. It¡¯s too much fun to make them wait. I would¡¯ve thought they would have caught on by now, but they¡¯re still down there waiting for me to see them. They call Martin every day to see if I can see them that day. Every day he says something came up. I¡¯m a very busy man, as you can clearly see,¡± Trino said, opening his arms and gesturing around him to the emply ind house. We all couldn¡¯t help butugh at his games with the other bosses. ¡°Honestly, I wouldn¡¯t mind not meeting with Massimo at all. That cabron¡­¡± He trailed off, but didn¡¯t finish his thought. He looked to Martin as Martin cursed under his breath. ¡°What has Massimo done to you to make you ha te him so much?¡± Sephie asked Tring looked at her, clear disgust on his face as he said, ¡°we could never prove it, but we¡¯re certain that Massimo killed my nephew. Or had him killed. I sent him to the city to keep an eye on Dario and Massimo. There were¡­discrepancies in their profits versus the product I was sending them. I knew they were stealing from me but needed someone closer to keep an eye on their operation I sent my nephew. He grit close. He let me know he was going to get the proof we needed the next day. heard from him again. No one knows what happened to him. Or more like no one will say what happened to him¡± ¡°What¡¯s your nephew¡¯s name?¡± Sophie asked. It was an innocent enough question, but I knew she was only asking might be able to give him a definitive answer. because she ¡°Mateo.¡± I felt her squeeze my hand, still resting on her thigh, but she said nothing further about his nephew. I knew she would tell meter. I didn¡¯t want to tell him too much until Sephie had a chance to ¡°approve¡± Trino. I would wait to tell Tring about the information Sephie had on the other basses until after she gave him the okay, not before. Trina continued, ¡°it¡¯s only out of respect for you, Jefe, that I don¡¯t put a bullet in his head when I eventually see him.¡± I scoffed. I caught Ivan shift his position as well. We¡¯d gotten confirmation that it was Massinu¡¯s men that had tried to get lo Sephir when they left the piano gallery that day. ¡°You¡¯re free to put a builet in his head, Trino. It you don¡¯t, I will,¡± I said. I felt Sephie squeeze my hand again. She mumbled, ¡°amen to that,¡± causing Ivan to chuckle. Trino looked at me, surprised at my reaction and curious as to what Sephie had said as well. She looked at him, frankly saying, ¡°Massimo is the reason that Ivan almost died and Andrei got shot a few days ago Lying to keep me safe. Massimo can choke on a bag of di cks for all I care.¡± Trino looked to me again, trying to contain hisughter. He was clearly not expecting that toe out of her mo uth, Ivan and I bothughed at her. She never ceased to surprise us with herical creativity. Even Mutin, who was normally quiet was trying to hold in hisughter. She looked at both Trino and Martin. ¡°It¡¯s okay tough. You know you¡¯re thinking about the image of him choking. You can admit it.¡± That was all it took. They both erupted intoughter. We all did. Ttino, still chuckling, said, ¡°I can see why she¡¯s so special, fefe. You better keep her or I¡¯ll convince her to move to Colombia.¡± Before I could answer, Ivan said, ¡°good luck getting her to do anything she doesn¡¯t want to. The day that Massimo¡¯s men tried to grab her? She killed more men on her own than the rest of us did that day.¡± ¡°Dios mio. Really? Trine asked Sephle. She just shrugged her shoulders, leaning closer into me. I put my arm around her and pulled her closer. Trinn, now curious, asked, ¡°why did Massinu try to grab her? To get to you, Jefe?¡± ¡°Possibly, yes. Right now, we just know that it was his men,¡± I sau. We continued to talk about business, the other bosses, and what had been going on recently. Trino wasn¡¯t happy with any of the bosses, except Armando and I. Considering Trino controlled the pipeline that delivered all the product we needed to fund nur Illegal enterprises, it was important to keep him on your good side, I drn¡¯t feel like this was a difficult task, but clearly the other bosses were struggling withProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. it. Armando and Giana joined us eventually. Armando seemed at case with Trino. Giana seemed slightly terrified, but at least she was being quieter than on the ne. I watched Sephie watching Trino and Martin carefully, as well as how Armando and Trino interacted. Eventually, Trino¡¯s men showed up, as well as Andrei, Misha, Viktor, and Stephen. Sephie stayed mostly quiet and watched everyone for most of the evening. I would catch her eye asionally, but each time she would smile sweetly at me, indicating that there was nothing to worry about on my end. After dinner, I pulled her aside and asked her what her thoughts were. I was almost positive I knew her answer but wanted to make sure before I went into any more details with Trino. ¡°I don¡¯t see anything weird with Trino. Martin is a little harder to get a read on, because well, he never says anything, but 1 don¡¯t feel like he¡¯s got any hidden agendas. I get a good feeling from both. From what I¡¯ve seen so far, you can trust him. It¡¯s obvious he respects you and to a lesser extent, Armando. He has zero respect for the other bosses, especially Massimo.¡± ¡°I¡¯in seriously considering letting him put a bullet in his head for me,¡± I said, pushing a stray curl from her face. She looked at me seriously, then quickly looked around to see if anyone was close enough to hear. She stood on her toes, her mo uth next to my ear, ¡°I know what happened to Mateo. I heard them talking about him after one of the meetings when they stayedter than everyone else. I¡¯d never heard Mateo¡¯s name mentioned before, so It plqued my interest. Massimo had him killed. I also remember Dario yelling at him for it. He was stated., More seared than I¡¯d ever seen him. I didn¡¯t know about Trino at the time. I don¡¯t know if he was scared of Trinn or you. Or Massimo. Or all three.¡± I looked at her as she stood in front of me. I could see the fear in her eyes. Knowing so much information about Massimo had already brought one kidnapping attempt on hei, almost killing Ivan in the process. She was scared to tell anyone about what she knew. I inhaled deeply, trying to think of options. On one hand, Tines would be even more in debt to me for knowing what happened to his nephew. I could also get him to take care of Massimo lor me. On the other, it put Sephie in danger for others. to know just how much she knew about the organization. I kissed her forehead, ¡°We¡¯ll sleep on it. We can discuss it with the guys in the morning. As far as I¡¯m concerned, being able to trust Trino is the main concern right now.¡± She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She silently nodded her head, leaning into me, testing her head on my chest. Chapter 160 Chapter 160 Chapter One Hundred Sixty Adrik Trino and his men enjoyed partying just as much as they enjoyed business. Every time I met him on the ind, he would go to a popr nightclub until the early morning hours. He usually had friends flown in to party with him, along with plenty of girls for his friends and his men. Before Sephie, I would go to the club with him. It was never a bad time. It also gave the guys a chance to rx slightly. Now that Sephie was with us, I wasn¡¯t sure she would want to go. Giana was very excited about going. I found it amusing that Giana was a few years older than Sephie, but acted like she was the younger of the two. ¡°We don¡¯t have to go if you don¡¯t want to.¡± I told her, as we were changing clothes. She stopped and looked at me, half-serious, half-joking. ¡°You know as well as I do that Tring will take it personally if we don¡¯t go with him. At least for a little while. It¡¯ll be tine. It¡¯s not something I regrly look forward to, but I can manage for a bit. Hopefully.¡± She paused, then added, ¡°I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m more curious about how much a drunk Giana is going to talk or if I¡¯m dreading it.¡± I cursed under my breath. ¡°I didn¡¯t think about that. At least the music will be loud,¡± I said, smirking at her. I walked behind her, sliding my hands around her hips. ¡°At least it gave you a reason to wear a dress. I¡¯m notining about that.¡± I slid iny hands down her legs to the hem, pushing it up higher on her thighs as my hands roaited over her legs. The dress was short, but not so short that she needed to worry about bending over. It had long sleeves and a high neckline, covering all her scars. It fit her like a glove, though, which is what made it Incredibly sexy. She leaned back against me, catching my hands and wrapping them around her waist. ¡°You¡¯re going to distract me,¡± she said, smiling up at me, while she pulled the skirt of the dress bark down on her legs. ¡°Giana offered to help me tame my unruly hair and I¡¯m trying to be nicer, so she feels morefortable around so much testosterone, She¡¯s supposed to be here in a minute.¡± ¡°But I love your unruly hair. It¡¯s one of my favorite things,¡± I said as I turned her to face me so I couldThis content ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. push her rebellious curls from her face. It had be a game for me to see if I could get her curls to du what I wanted. I lost every single time, but I still loved the game. We heard a soft knock on the door. Sephic reached up and kissed me quickly. ¡°I just love you,¡± she said as she went to open the door for Giana. Giana came with equipment. I wasn¡¯t sure Sephie¡¯s hair was going to win this round. Clearly, Giana was some kind of professional hair tamer. ¡°I¡¯ll leave you two to it,¡± I said, kissing Sephie on the cheek, ¡°Hopefully this won¡¯t take long, but don¡¯t hold your breath,¡± she said. I heard Giana tell her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Sephic, I know what to do. My sister has curly hair. I¡¯ve been doing her hair since we were kids,¡± as I left the bedroom. Definitely some kind of professional. It didn¡¯t take very long and both Sephie and Giana came out to find us. Giana had straightened Sephie¡¯s hair and put it in a high ponytail. She almost looked like a different person without her loose curls around her face. My breath still caught when 1 saw her. She was gorgeous no matter what she did or wore. But straight hair made her look different. She caught me staring as she walked to me, a small smirk on her face. ¡°It¡¯s weird, right?¡± she asked. She was smiling but I think she really was uncertain about my opinion. I clicked my tongue. ¡°You¡¯re beautiful no matter what, solnishko.¡± I ran my hand through her ponytall. It feltpletely different than her normal hair. I couldn¡¯t help butugh, somewhat astonished at the difference. ¡°It¡¯s so different.¡± I looked down at her, grinning. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I feel about this. I feel like I¡¯m cheating on you. With you.¡± Sheughed, nting a kiss on my lips. I reached up and ran my hand through her ponytail once more, then grabbed the whole ponytall and pulled gently. I leaned down, brushing her neck with my facial hair. ¡°I could get used to this once in a while, though. Her breath hitched, ever so slightly and her cheeks were definitely flushed when she turned to look at me, a knowing look in her eye. She wrapped her arms around my waist, looking me in the eye for a few moments. I saw a sh of uncertainty in her eyes. She didn¡¯t hide it like she normally did. Instead, she just asked, ¡°you¡¯re not going to leave me at any point tonight, are you?¡± I felt a pain in my chest, knowing she was still struggling to process everything that had happened since the ball. I put both hands on either side of her face, pressing my lips to hers. ¡°I pinky swear I will not leave you the entire time we¡¯re there.¡± The club was packed, as it was every time we had been here before. Before we left Trina¡¯s vi, a few of the girls tried to get the attention of Misha and Andrei, but neither seemed very interested. I think the girls were scared of Viktor and Ivan. Stephen was making himself scarce, as usual. He was not one for socializing. Even with us, he would disappear on his own regrly. I wasn¡¯t normally one to dance, but I found myself eagerly following Sephie to the dance floor. I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off her. It didn¡¯t seem to matter what she did with her hair or what she wote, she was the sexiest woman in the room to me. Now, with the difference in her straight hait, plus the new clothes, plus her willingness to get outside herfort zone and evene to the club, it was like I was seeing apletely different side to her that I hadn¡¯t seen yet. I was intrigued. The music was so loud, you could feel the bass vibrating your body. There were people everywhere. Sephie was following Giana, who had Armando in tow. Giana nuanaged to find a spot in the sea of people. Sephir pulled my arms around her, still facing away from me, us she started to move to the music. She was slightly tense and I could tell she was watching the people around us carefully. I turned her to face me, pulling her tight against me. ¡°Just focus on me, solnishko,¡± I said to her, my mo uth close to her ear. She leaned her head against mine and nodded slightly, She eventually rxed a little, as long as I kept my arms around her. She eventually pulled me off the dance floor, indicating she needed a drink. With so many people, so close together, it was warm in the club. I nced toward Armando and Giana, but they werepletely wrapped up in each other and duln¡¯t notice us leave. I got water for Sephie. She drank hall, then handed it to me to finish. She was still watching everyone around us carefully. I pulled her closer to me, tracing my finger down her face. ¡°You¡¯re not worried, are you?¡± She looked at me, puzzled. ¡°You¡¯re watching everyone around us like you¡¯re expecting someone to do something.¡± Her beautiful smile stretched across her face, making my heart jump in my chest. ¡°No, it¡¯s not out of worry now. It was when we first got here, but now I¡¯m used to it. I¡¯ve never been a fan of big crowds, but less so now,¡± she said, looking down. I felt that pull in my chest as I knew she had been fighting to remain calm. She looked back up, a mischievous grin on her face. ¡°It¡¯s out of curiosity now. I don¡¯t go to clubs very often, but when I do, I always try to pick out the couples that are still going to be together by the end of the night and the ones that will get together by the end of the night. It¡¯s like my own game that I y.¡± 1 caught sight of one of Trino¡¯s men, talking to a girl at the bar. I nodded my head toward the couple. ¡°What about those two?¡± 1 asked. She watched them for a few minutes, then shook her no. ¡°Not gonna happen. He¡¯s way too intense for her. He hasn¡¯t stopped talking about whatever it is he¡¯s talking about since you pointed them out and she¡¯s quickly losing interest. Ten bucks says she ditches him in the next 15 minutes,¡± ¡°You¡¯re on, I say It¡¯ll be at least 25.¡± I said, motioning for the bartender to refill our water, Ivan and Viktor walked up to the bar. ¡°You two look like you¡¯re stirring up trouble,¡± Viktor said. Chapter 161 Chapter 161 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-One Adrik ¡°Sephie just made a bet that the girl behind you will ditch Trino¡¯s man in the next 15 minutes,¡± I said. Both Viktor and Ivan looked at the couple discreetly. ¡°And you bet against her?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Oh, no. I¡¯m not that stu pid. We¡¯re betting on the time limit. She says 15. I say 25,¡± I said,ughing. Ivan looked back at the couple. ¡°I give it 10.¡± Sephieughed at us. ¡°Bet pool it is, gentlemen! Viktor, do you want to get in on this too?¡± Viktor watched the couple for a moment. ¡°He ll yeah. I¡¯ll go 20.¡± We stood at the bar, watching the first couple as best we could without being too obvious. Sephie picked out three more couples to add to the bet pool while we were waiting on the first couple. At the 10-minute mark, they were still talking. ¡°Sorry, Super Squish. You¡¯re out,¡± Sephie said, grinning. At the 15-minute mark, he bought her another drink. Sephieughed, then looked to me. ¡°You might win this one. Now it¡¯s down to how fast she finishes that drink.¡± Andrei and Misha walked up to us as we wereughing about yet another couple that Sephie had added to the bet pool. Ivan had made ament that he didn¡¯t know he should¡¯ve brought a wh ite board with him to keep track of everyone. We exined our game to Andrei and Misha, who of course wanted in on the action as well, making Ivan¡¯sment about the whiteboard all the more relevant. At the 25-minute mark, the first girl walked away from Trino¡¯s man. Sephie gave me a high-five. ¡°I¡¯m impressed,¡± she said, her wide smile stretching across her face. We quickly moved on to the next couple and kept track of who bet what. We spent most of the time we were there at the bar, watching other people. We also enjoyed watching girlse up to Andrei and Misha and try to get their attention. As the night progressed and the alcohol flowed more freely, there were even a few girls who were brave enough to approach Ivan and Viktor. Ivan got plenty of sympathy for his bandaged arm. If he had wanted to, he could¡¯ve milked that. None of the guys were especially interested in any of the girls. They would leave for a song or two, but they always came back. I knew it was because it was more fun to see the results of the bet pool than it was with any of the increasingly drunk girls in the club. Drunk people are generally only fun to interact with if you¡¯re also drunk. When you¡¯re the sober one, they¡¯re fun to watch, but not so much try and talk to. I never allowed my guys to drink while they were working, but it was really a useless rule at this point. They chose not to more often than not. Tonight, they could if they wanted to, but not a single one of them wanted to. At one point it was just me and Sephie at the bar again. I had turned to get the bartender¡¯s attention and a drunk guy approached Sephie, offering to buy her a drink. Because of the loud music, I didn¡¯t hear him talking to her. When I looked back to her, she was politely declining his offer, but he wouldn¡¯t take no for an answer. He reached out to try and touch her leg, as she was sitting on a bar stool. She moved her legs toward me, just as I stepped in front of her to stand between them. I didn¡¯t even have to say anything. I just nced down at the guy and he clearly understood that there would be no drinks with her in has future. I felt her grab my hand as he walked away. She stood up and wrapped my arm around her waist. Since she was weating heels, at didn¡¯t need to stand on her toes to kiss me. She leaned up and pressed her lips to mine ¡°Thank you,¡± she said against my ¡°Are you ready to leave yet, love?¡± I suddenly found myself wanting to be alone with her. She eagerly nodded her head, a smirk on her face that told me she knew exactly what I was thinking. Apparently, the guys also read my mind about leaving because they all showed back up at the same time. I nced at my watch. ¡°It¡¯s not toote yet. You guys are wee to stay if you like, but I think Sephie and I are ready to leave.¡± They all nced at each other and agreed that it was time to go. ¡°Has anyone seen Stephen?¡± I asked. I felt Sephie grab my arm. She whispered in my ear, ¡°he¡¯s not ready to leave, but don¡¯t ask anyone to look for him. I¡¯ll exinter.¡± I quickly told the guys to forget about it. If he was still somewhere in the club, that likely meant he was having fun. Sephie stepped away from the bar, sliding her arms through mine and Viktor¡¯s arm, saying, e, let us be gone from this ce.¡± It was a beautiful night and Trino¡¯s vi was only a short distance away, so we opted to walk. Halfway to the vi, Sephie stopped and took her heels off. ¡°I don¡¯t know how women walk in these things all day long.¡± She kept walking, barefoot, then looked to me and asked, ¡°why are you so reliant on my observation skills when you¡¯re the one that was more urate than everyone else in the bet pool tonight?¡± Iughed. ¡°Different set of skills, solnishko. You¡¯re excellent at knowing what someone is going to do before they do it and when they¡¯re trying to hide something. If I know what someone is going to do, I can predict the timing of it. I have a hard time telling what someone is going to do before they do it, though.¡± I pulled her closer to me, adding, ¡°this is why I need you. Always.¡± She grinned at me. ¡°And together, we shall rule the world!¡± I picked her up against my hip, spinning her around as she giggled. ¡°Nothing can stop us!¡± I said, joining in with her. ¡°I love a goodte night world domination n,¡± she said, still grinning at me. We basically had the vi to ourselves once we got back, as everyone else was still at the club. We talked with the guys for a few minutes, made ns to get up and workout the next morning, but then we all went our separate ways. As we walked to our bedroom, Sephie took her hair down, scratching her head and letting her hair fall down her back. When it was straight, it was a good 2-3 inches longer than when it was curly. It fell almost to her bu tt. I closed the door behind us quickly, then grabbed her and pulled her to me. She squealed as she wasn¡¯t expecting it. I looked at her, my hand running through her hair. I couldn¡¯t get over how different it felt. ¡°I love your hair when it¡¯s wild and unruly, because that¡¯s you and that will always be you. But this version of you cane to visit every once in a while.¡± ¡°So, you can cheat on me, with me?¡± she said,ughing.Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 162 Chapter 162 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Two Adrik ¡°Exactly.¡± I grinned at her. She was still smiling as she lifted her hair and turned away from me, asking me to unzip her dress. I happily obliged and watched her shimmy out of the dress in front of me. I hadn¡¯t seen her choice of lingerie when she got dressed, I inhaled sharply watching her bend over to step out of the dress. She exaggerated pushing her a ss back toward me, knowing she was driving me crazy. As soon as she stood up, my hands were on her, pulling her hack against me. I pressed my face against her neck, knowing it would drive her crazy. She leaned her head back against my shoulder and lifted her arms. behind her to wrap them around my neck, giving me full ess to her body. My hands roamed freely over her entire body. Always feeling like I could never get enough of her. She turned to face me, her lips finding mine while her hands quickly unbuttoned my shirt. She pushed it off my shoulders, letting it fall to the floor behind me. She immediately went to work on my belt and pants, also letting them fall to the floor. She stepped back from me, a sly smile on her face as she walked to where she had thrown her heels when she walked into the bedroom. She put each one back on, then walked back to me. She ran her hands over my chest, but then turned away from me, once again pressing her a ss into my hips. She nced over her shoulder, ¡°this might¡¯ve been all I could think about while we were dancing earlier.¡± I exhaled loudly. ¡°You and me both.¡± I grabbed her hip with one hand, pulling her tight into me while I pushed her, torso forward with my other hand. She still had her lingerie on, but I couldn¡¯t be bothered to even rip it off. I simply pushed it to the side, granting me ess and mmed into her from behind. She was the perfect height with the heels and thebination of her being in a short dress all night, plus her striptease meant I was struggling to contain myself. She moaned loudly when I first entered her, which was all it took for me to lose control. I had stopped holding back long before this, but this might be a new level of arousal for me. I loved the way she kept surprising me with new ways to turn me on and make me want her even more. I wanted to show her what she did to me. Her intensity matched minepletely. I was holding on to her hips, but she was pushing back into me with each thrust. The harder I went, the louder she moaned. I felt her getting closer to the edge and I felt my own body respond to hers. I tried to draw out her o*gasm as long as possible, but I was so turned on that I eventually exploded inside her, groaning when I came. We were both out of breath. She stood up and leaned back against me. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her close. I brushed her neck with my stubble as she moaned quietly. ¡°You might have to have s ex like that with the other version of me too. She might get jealous,¡± she said,ughing. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Iughed, picking her up off the floor and walking to the bed. I fell onto the bed with my arms wrapped around her. She kicked her shoes off and curled up in my arms. She rolled over to face me, her fingers running through my facial hair. I looked at her. ¡°There¡¯s only you, Sephie. It never matters what you do with your hair or what you wear, you¡¯ll always be the most beautiful woman in the room to me. I can¡¯t take my eyes off you. Ever.¡± She looked surprised at my words, but leaned in and kissed me gently. ¡°I love you, Adrik.¡± I pulled her closer, returning her kiss. ¡°And I love you, Sephie. Always and forever.¡± She snuggled in closer to me as my hands ran through her hair. ¡°What about Stephen? What do you know that likely no one else has figured out yet?¡± 1 asked, curious about what she had told nu before we left the club. it She She chuckled. ¡°I am surprised it took me so long to figure it out and I¡¯m also shocked that no one else has picked up i raghed. ¡°Steprni is g ay I just don¡¯t think fars conidiatable telling anyone yet. When I was watching veryane in the club, } noticed tam talking to tow of Trunda guya sadly on. As Ita progressed, they put close. They wais trying to be illusteet abwaya puan? vul couples away tram them komp posi and I think thay mats trying to fude, that I saw them a fem pay? diatracted But i dont tuna angesa alcould say anything to hem It¡¯s his secret n unting ang sa the guys absit & villet I thought for a minute. It did make several things make more sense. He never spoke of girlfriends, he was the least likely to want to spend time with Sephie in the beginning, and he tended to keep to himself more than the other guys did. I chuckled. ¡°It does make sense.¡± I kissed her forehead. ¡°What would I do without my little secret weapon?¡± ¡°Not rule the world. Clearly.¡± There were people passed out around the entire house when we got up the next morning. Instead of trying to find a ce in the house, we went to the beach. Trino didn¡¯t have a gym in his house, but we had all agreed that we could do some light sparring on the beach after what Viktor liked to call his Syrian workout. It was how he passed the time in his jail cell, when they weren¡¯t trying to torture information out of him. Sephie¡¯s hip was much better. She was almostpletely back to normal. She¡¯d stop bandaging it and it was still healing. She was weaker on that leg still, but that was the only thing noticeable now from the night of the ball. Each time I saw her workout, she seemed stronger. She was enjoying learning how to defend herself before the ball, but since then and especially since Massimo¡¯s attempt to grab her, she¡¯d poured herself into training with the guys. She was more driven than I¡¯d ever seen her. They all enjoyed sparring with her. Viktor, Ivan, and Stephen would take it easy on her, but Andrei and Misha would push her buttons each and every time. They¡¯d push her to the point of anger and then they¡¯d have an all-out fight on their hands. I think they wanted to challenge themselves as much as they wanted to challenge her. Viktor and Andrei had been working on teaching her new moves. Andrei still wasn¡¯t 100%, so Misha was sparring with her. while Viktor and Andrei coached her technique. Ivan was standing next to me, watching. Stephen had opted for a solo run around part of the ind. ¡°She¡¯s getting stronger since the night of the n gone wrong. Her hip doesn¡¯t seem to bother her much at all anymore,¡± Ivan said, running his good hand through his goatee. ¡°She¡¯s been leaving the bandage off ittely, but it still looks good. It¡¯s still healing. She was so happy to be rid of the bandage.¡± I said, chuckling. ¡°I know how she feels,¡± he said, smiling. Chapter 163 Chapter 163 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Three Adrik We watched as Misha said the exact thing that would flip the switch with Sephie. She went from defense to offense in a second. We bothughed. ¡°I think he wants to challenge himself more than he wants to challenge her,¡± I said. ¡°I think you¡¯re right, but I must admit that I like seeing it. She needs to know her power, should she ever need it. What was her opinion on Trino and Martinst night? I mean, before everyone was drunk at the club,¡± Ivan asked. ¡°She felt like I can trust him. She knows what happened to his nephew though. She¡¯s ¡®understandably worried about telling him that she knows,¡± I said, looking at him to gauge his reaction to that news. He chuckled. ¡°I was pretty sure she knew something when she asked him what his nephew¡¯s name was. She only ever asks questions like that when she already knows the answer.¡± We watched her push Misha back toward the water. She was smaller than him, but that also meant she could be faster than him. When she was on offense, she was relentless. She wouldn¡¯t give you a second to think. She could read you as well and know what you were thinking, perfectly countering any strike you might be able to sneak in. Once she had you on the move backward, you were just about done for. Misha had more room here, so we were letting it go on longer than we would have in the gym. Once you hit the ropes, that usually meant you should give it up, especially if you¡¯d made her angry. She wasn¡¯t going to stop. I think Viktor and Andrei were curious to see how long Misha couldst. Misha tripped on a piece of driftwood that had washed ashore. He stumbled but didn¡¯t go down completely. She didn¡¯t take him down, like we were all thinking she was going to. Instead, she stopped, clearly out of breath. Misha was even more out of breath. It had been cool when we got to the beach that morning, so everyone had long sleeve shirts on. Now, it was warming up. If you weren¡¯t moving much, it was still pleasant, but those two had definitely worked up a sweat. Misha pulled his shirt off. He clearly made a sm art-a ss remark to her. They were far enough away that we couldn¡¯t hear him, but we could see the smirk on his face. She surprised me byProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. pulling her shirt off as well. She had a sports bra on. She¡¯d taken her shirt off around us before, as we¡¯d all seen her scars, but I was surprised she would do it here. Maybe that means she feels more comfortable in her own skin now. They talked for a minute, but then picked up the fight where they left off. Only instead of pushing Misha toward the water, he turned so she was pushing him back toward us. Viktor and Andrel had joined me and Ivan to watch the free entertainment. ¡°I¡¯m really surprised he¡¯s still going. I don¡¯t think I would¡¯vested this long.¡± Viktor said. ¡°He¡¯s clearly having fun pi ssing her off,¡± Andrei said, ¡°I mean, not gonna lie, that¡¯s why I do it. And she¡¯s also a he ll of a challenge when you pi ss her off.¡± As we stood and watched theming slowly back toward us, we were joined by Trino and Martin, then Armando and Giana. Some of Trino¡¯s men wandered out to join us, as well. Everyone was speechless watching Misha and especially Sephie. ¡°Jefe,¡± Trino said, his eyes wide watching her. I looked over to him, expecting him to finish the thought, but he just stood there with his mo uth open. Viktor, like a proud older brother, said, ¡°everyone thinks that they¡¯ll have to deal with us if they hurt her, which is true. But they don¡¯t know they¡¯ll also have to deal with her.¡± Armandoughed. ¡°She broke one of my guys¡¯ faces. He¡¯s still notpletely over it* Ivan looked at Armando and said seriously, ¡°she isn¡¯t either. She¡¯t still pi ssed at that guy¡± I could hear the slight edge to his voice. That night was still a sore spot for all of us. Armando chuckled, shaking his head, still amused at the thought of Sephie breaking his guy¡¯s face. Trino spoke up, ¡°remind me to never pi ss her off. Or you, for that matter, Jefe. I don¡¯t want to have to deal with her bad side. Ever.¡± Andreiughed. ¡°She¡¯s finally living up to her namesake. I¡¯m not sure how much longer she¡¯s going to need us.¡± We saw Misha and Sephie stop. They were still far enough away that no one could see her scars and Misha was doing what he does best. He made sure to keep his body between Sephie and the rest of us, so she would be shielded from view. He pulled her to him to hug her, so I knew the round was over. I walked to them, pulling my shirt off to give to her. I was happy she wasfortable enough around all of us to take her shirt off, but I didn¡¯t want her to feel ufortable around everyone else. I also liked that she was as modest as she was. I found myself really enjoying that there were things she would only share with me. ¡°See, this is why I love you,¡± she said as she took my shirt and pulled it over her head. I couldn¡¯t help it. Every time I saw her in one of my shirts, I struggled to control myself. ¡°Are you ready for a shower yet, solnishko?¡± I asked in her ear, knowing she would know exactly what I was thinking about. I walked back to the rest of the group, as Giana walked up to talk to Sephie and Misha, looking forward to having her all to myselfter. They were telling Trino and Martin that Sephie had kicked all their as ses at one point or another when I walked up. Trino was still astounded, but impressed. Martin¡¯s phone rang as we were talking. He stepped away for a quick moment, but then came right back. He had a frustrated look on his face as he walked back to us, cing his phone back in his pocket. ¡°Que pasa, Martin?¡± Trino asked. Martin said, not sure whether he should be mad or amused, ¡°one of the guys at home said that Massimo¡¯s girlfriend is stinking up the ce. Like the entire house smells like her now.¡± We all looked at each other, trying to hold in ourughter. Viktor said, ¡°add her to the list of people that have witnessed Sephie¡¯s anger.¡± Trino looked at Viktor, wide-eyed, likely thinking that Sephie broke her face too. Viktorughed. ¡°Sephie verbally annihted that girl when she showed up unannounced in Boss¡¯s office, trying to start some sh it.¡± ¡°Jefe, I¡¯m starting to get jealous of you. I thought I was having all the fun with the other bosses, but it sounds like you take the fun with you wherever you go,¡± Trino said,ughing. Misha and Sephie walked up to us, just as we wereughing at Trino. He looked to Sephie and Misha, now clearly friends again after what likely looked like an all-out fight to everyone else. She handed me my shirt back as Trino said, ¡°Ah, I¡¯m d to see you two don¡¯t really ha te each other. It was difficult to tell earlier.¡± Misha justughed. ¡°That¡¯s not even possible.¡± We all exchanged knowing looks with each other. Chapter 164 Chapter 164 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Four Sephie I¡¯d been working on trying to get control of my anger anytime I felt it take over. Viktor and Andrei had both told me that I could use my anger to my advantage, but I had to get control over it. Instead of seeing nothing but red, I was trying to focus on the person in front of me. Misha, in this case. Misha and Andrei both enjoyed making me angry when we sparred together. They said I was more of a challenge when I was angry. I didn¡¯t mind, as it helped me practice getting control of it. I was starting to see what Viktor and Andrei had been telling me. It felt like I had a clear advantage when they pushed me to the point of anger. I felt stronger, somehow. I could read Misha easily, so I knew what his default counterattacks were. Like his paper, rock, scissors game, he was fairly predictable. I wasn¡¯t going to tell him yet that he was so predictable. I needed the practice for now. But eventually, I was going to have to tell him he needed to switch his game up. We both stopped when he tripped. I waspletely out of breath and so was he. He pulled his shirt off, telling me that he hadn¡¯t nned on working this hard this morning. I thought for a moment. I was sweating. It was hot in this long-sleeve shirt. I knew my cheeks were likely red at this point. Fu ck it. I pulled my shirt off too and threw it beside his. They¡¯d all seen me with my shirt off when we were at home. They¡¯d all seen my scars. I kept them covered if there was a chance anyone else would be around, however. Misha grinned at me, knowing that I wasn¡¯t done yet either. ¡°Gazelle, you¡¯re getting better at focusing through your anger. I know you¡¯re still angry, but you¡¯re controlling it, which is making me have to work harder.¡± ¡°Maybeter I¡¯ll thank you. You know, when I¡¯m done kicking your a ss,¡± I said, smiling at him. He was right. I was getting better. I always had fun when I sparred with them, once I got the basics, but there was a hint of nervousness in the beginning. I felt overwhelmed, trying to constantly fend them off. The first time Andrei pi ssed me off, all I could see was red. Now, I was beginning to learn how to use my anger to my advantage and I had to admit, it was fun. It was like they woke the beast, but I was learning to control the beast. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. We hadn¡¯t been paying attention to the growing crowd that was now forming by the other guys. Armando and Giana had gotten up ande outside to find us. Trino and Martin had also gotten up and wandered to the beach when they noticed we were out there. A few of Trino¡¯s men were also making their way to the beach, as Misha and I continued. I was starting to wear down and I knew Misha was too. He was starting to get slower. I had to pull a few punches so they wouldn¡¯tnd, as he was too slow to dodge them. I didn¡¯t really want to hurt him. He rallied and managed to push me back a few steps. As he wasing at me, he said, ¡°I think we should stop, gazelle. I¡¯m hungry, anyway.¡± I could see him smirk. He likely knew that telling me he was hungry was going to make my stomach join the party. ¡°You¡¯re just trying to wake my stomach up so she¡¯ll take over and you¡¯ll get a break,¡± I said, dodging and blocking his hands. ¡°Maybe a little. But there¡¯s lots of people behind us now too. I don¡¯t know how much of a show you really want to give them,¡± he said. I slowed, remembering my shirt was somewhere on the beach at this point. ¡°Solid point, my adorable Russian guardian.¡± We were both out of breath. He reached out and pulled me in for a sweaty hug. ¡°Eww gross, how did you get so sweaty?¡± I asked,ughing. Adrik had walked over to us when he saw us stop He pulled his shirt off and handed it to me, knowing I would want to cover up before going any closer to the rest of the people. I smiled at him, taking his shirt ¡°See, this is why I love you,¡± I said, pulling his oversize shirt over my head. He leaned in and whispered in my bar so Misha couldn¡¯t hear, ¡°are you ready for a shower yet, solnishko?¡± He had that sexy smirk that I loved on his face, as he walked back toward everyone else. I was sure my cheeks got even redder, thinking about showering with him. Giana walked up to us, leaving Armando talking with Trino and Martin. ¡°Wow, Sephie, I had no idea you were such a ba dass,¡± she said, her caramel eyes wide as saucers, as she tried not to stare at Misha¡¯s shirtless torso. Mishaughed, shaking his head as he jogged off to grab our shirts. ¡°You guys missed a good partyst night. Why didn¡¯t you guys stay?¡± ¡°Eh, it¡¯s not really my thing, but I¡¯m d you had a good time,¡± I said to her. Misha walked up, handing me my shirt. Giana continued, quietly saying, ¡°why do you cover up, Sephie? Your body is amazing. You should show it off more. I would totally show it off if my body was like yours.¡± Iughed. ¡°Some things are meant to only be seen by a very select group of people. And your body can also be like mine. You just have to work at it. I wasn¡¯t born this way. Just like Misha wasn¡¯t born looking like that either.¡± ¡°Hey, you speak for yourself, gazelle. I came out incredibly handsome. My m om told me so,¡± Misha said,ughing. He purposely left his shirt off, because he knew it was making Giana all hot and bothered. I grinned at him. I held up my shirt, asking him ¡°do you mind so I can give Ghost his shirt back?¡± He nodded and stepped between me and Giana, providing a visual barrier so I could change back into my shirt. Giana, still puzzled, asked, ¡°are you like super religious or something? You act like my grandmother about some things.¡± I was about to answer as I walked from behind Misha, but instead he asked, ¡°why is it so difficult to understand that she doesn¡¯t want everyone to see her body? You realize she¡¯s got way more to offer than just her body, right? Do you want men to only think about your body or would you prefer they respected your mind too?¡± I leaned into Misha as he was talking. He just slung his arm across my shoulders as he continued asking Giana questions. Giana was flustered for a moment, not sure of how to respond. I smiled at her. ¡°Much like the partyst night, showing off my body is not really my thing either. But I can talk to Andrei about finding you a trainer when we get back if you want yours to look like mine. It¡¯s not a bad idea for you to know how to defend yourself anyway, whether you stay with Armando or not.¡± She was quietly contemting what I had said to her as Misha pulled me away, toward Adrik. He said, in Russian, as we walked away, ¡°Ten bucks says she won¡¯t do it.¡± I cut my eyes up at him, ¡°that¡¯s an unfair bet, my adorable Russian guardian. We both know that¡¯s the only oue of that situation. There¡¯s only a very slim chance she¡¯s going to work that hard. If only she could get fit by shopping. If we could figure out a way to make that happen, we¡¯d be rich!¡± I said, laughing. We walked up to Adrik and the rest of the group. I traded Misha for Adrik, handing him his shirt back. Trino spoke when we walked up. ¡°Ah, I¡¯m d to see you two don¡¯t really ha te each other. It was difficult to tell earlier.¡± Misha chuckled. ¡°that¡¯s not even possible.¡± Adrik pulled his shirt back on, then opened his arm for me to tuck myself into his side. He leaned his head down and kisses my forehead as I leaned against him. I looked up to notice Trino watching us. He had a serious look on his face, but his eyes were smiling, almost like he was lost in thought. Giana joined us, walking up to Armando, who grabbed her hand. They were still a new couple and unsure about showing affection in front of people. She shyly looked at him but stepped closer to him. If that moment hadn¡¯t been so awkward between them, it might¡¯ve been sweet. Adrik asked, in Russian, if I was ready for that shower yet. I grinned at him, nodding my head. He turned to everyone and excused us for a few while we showered and changed. He told Tring he had more business to discuss once he was fully awaketer. The guys all came with us, as they needed showers as well after our morning Syrian workout on the beach. Once we were closer to our rooms, ! motioned for them all to follow us into our ipuin Chapter 165 Chapter 165 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Five Sephie Once inside, with the door closed, I said to all of them, ¡°I know what happened to Trino¡¯s nephew, but I¡¯m scared to tell him. I don¡¯t want to bring even more attention to me, but it could also keep Trino in debt to Adrik, which could be quite useful, so I don¡¯t know what to do.¡± I noticed Adrik raised an eyebrow when I mentioned keeping Trino in debt to him, but he waited for the guys to think it over before speaking. It was one of the many things I admired about him. He always took their thoughts, opinions, and suggestions into consideration before making decisions. Especially if those decisions affected all of us. He was, after all, the King of the Underworld. He didn¡¯t need to take anyone¡¯s opinion into consideration, but it was clear that he trusted the guys and sought out their opinions regrly. Viktor asked, ¡°what are your thoughts on Trino after spending time with him?¡± ¡°I think he¡¯s trustworthy. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s holding anything back from us, except maybe the extent of his hatred for Massimo. He¡¯s trying to be respectful of Adrik, so it¡¯s understandable. From what I¡¯ve seen of Martin, he¡¯s also trustworthy, but he¡¯s slightly more difficult to gauge because he rarely talks. They both respect Adrik and Armando, although not as much. I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s because they know Armando doesn¡¯t have as much power or if they just don¡¯t know him as well. I didn¡¯t get the feeling it was anything bad. It felt like they were awkward because they didn¡¯t know each other well. There¡¯s clearly no love lost between Trino and the other bosses, however,¡± I said, smiling. They were all silent for a few more minutes. I could see Misha running through scenarios in his head, checking out each possibility. I think the others were waiting for him to speak first, honestly. Ivan spoke up. ¡°you¡¯re positive you know what happened to him?¡± ¡°Well, as positive as I can be. I overheard Massimo and Dario talking after one of the meetings. Massimo told Dario that he had ¡®that nuisance Mateo taken care of and dumped in his usual spot. I¡¯d never heard the name Mateo before, so it piqued my interest. I found a reason to stay in the room. It was one of the only times I saw Dario get angry with Massimo. He wasn¡¯t only angry though, he was scared. I just don¡¯t know who he was scared of. I didn¡¯t know about Trino or Adrik at the time.¡± Ivan thought for a few moments. ¡°This might prove to be useful. It might be a way to turn Dario and Massimo against each other. Create more chaos,¡± he said, looking to Adrik. Misha had finished running through possibilities in his head. ¡°I don¡¯t see a problem with you telling Trino what you know. If you feel like we can trust him, I think it¡¯s a good move. I agree with you and Ivan that it might be useful to keep him in debt to us, so to speak, and can possibly create more chaos.¡± Adrik looked to Viktor, who nodded, then Andrei and Stephen, who also nodded their heads. He pulled me to him, holding me close. ¡°You ultimately get the final say, solnishko. If you¡¯re too worried about telling him what you know, then we¡¯ll keep it between us right now¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy to tell Trino what I know, if you give him permission to take care of Massimes That¡¯s one less we have to worry about,¡± I said Adrik was massaging my shoulders. chitty kissed my neck while the water from the shower ran over may already soK¨¦ macies. He spun for arund so I was facing fine holding me against him he had a small anche on his face, as he booked at me ¡°If I haven¡¯t told youtely I think you¡¯re the oust uredible we ever sat bwrything about you pee 1 in ka would have made list of everything I wanted in a womati, i would still taller short of petest h a i I couldn¡¯t trip but saule at b around his neck, just wanting to hold him close to me. He held me even tighter, as we stood in silence for a few moments, just the two of us. As we were getting dressed, he said, ¡°you look like you¡¯re doing a better job of getting control of your anger. Misha looked more tired than you did by the end this morning.¡± I smiled. ¡°I had to pull a few punches because I misjudged how slow he was getting. I¡¯ll never hear the end of it if I wreck his pretty face.¡± Adrikughed. ¡°No. No, you won¡¯t. But I think watching you with Misha this morning somehow gained me brownie points with. Trino. He was quite impressed.¡± He walked to me, pulling me into his armsText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. again. ¡°I mean, we all know you¡¯re impressive, but I have to admit to secretly loving it when I see other people realize it for the first time. I hid my face in his shoulder. I still struggled with him telling me I was impressive in any way. He chuckled and kissed the top of my head. ¡°Come, we should go find Trino. You can tell him the story about how you ¡®verbally annihted,¡¯ as Viktor put it, Vanessa in my office.¡± He saw the shock on my face and added, ¡°She¡¯s with Massimo. Martin said one of his guys called toin that she was stinking up the ce this morning while we were on the beach.¡± Iughed loudly. ¡°If Trino takes care of her too, do you think the perfume maker that makes that particrly hellish scent will go out of business after losing their best customer? I mean, we could be doing the entire world a favor here.¡± Chapter 166 Chapter 166 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Six Sephie Adrik spent most of the afternoon talking with Trino, Martin, and Armando. They discussed options for how to take care of the other bosses, as well as how to restructure the organization to get rid of the need for the other bosses. The more that they talked, the more that I liked Trino. He was cut from the same cloth as Adrik. Massimo¡¯s name came up in the conversation. I looked at Adrik, who gave me a slight nod, I took a deep breath and looked at Trino. ¡°Trino, I know what happened to Mateo.¡± I started to fidget with my hands as I continued. ¡°All of the bosses used to meet once a month at the restaurant I used to work at. They always requested me to serve them, so I would overhear, well, everything. Regrly, Dario and Massimo would stay after everyone else was gone and have their own meeting. I overheard them talking about Mateo and I was curious, because I¡¯d never heard that name before. Massimo told Dario that he¡¯d had Mateo taken care of and dumped in the normal spot. For what it¡¯s worth, it was the only time that I ever saw Dario get angry with Massimo. He was scared. At the time, I didn¡¯t know about you or even Ghost, so I don¡¯t know if Dario was scared of Massimo, you, or Ghost. Or all of you.¡± Trino was silent for a few moments. I could see the emotions as he felt them. He went through all of them, quickly. He stood up, walking straight to me. I tensed, as I didn¡¯t know him very well. He offered me his hand, as he knelt in front of me. ¡°Sephie. I can¡¯t even begin to thank you for the closure you¡¯ve just given me. And his mother, my sister. The not knowing was eating her.¡± He took my hands in his and kissed each one. When he looked at me, there were tears in his eyes. I couldn¡¯t help it. I leaned forward and hugged him. Adrik broke the silence. ¡°Not many people know of her knowledge about the organization, but Massimo and Dario both do. That¡¯s why Massimo¡¯s people tried to grab herst week. I would like to keep it to not many people knowing about her knowledge of the organization.¡± Trino stood up and looked at Adrik very seriously. ¡°Jefe, you have my word. No one will know how I came across this Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. information outside this room.¡± ¡°If you keep Sephie out of it, you¡¯re free to do whatever you like to Massimo,¡± Adrik said. ¡°I kind of think this will separate Dario and Massimo, if you tell Dario that you know Massimo killed Mateo. Dario isn¡¯t as bad as Vito, but he¡¯s got a fragile psyche. You could easily shatter it. And there¡¯s a weird dynamic between Massimo and Dario. Massimo is the one that runs the show between those two, but somehow, I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll be as bold without Dario as his cover,¡± I said. Trino, now returned to his seat, looked at me thoughtfully, then looked to Adrik, then back to me. ¡°Please tell me you have a sister that loves Colombian men.¡± Iughed. ¡°Sorry to disappoint. I¡¯m an only child. But I can offer my vetting services if you¡¯d like me to interview potential girlfriends for you.¡± Armando said, ¡°I can vouch for her professional skills. I¡¯m going to pay her to be at as many of my important meetings as possible.¡± Trinoughed, but that serious look came back over his face that he had while we were on the beach, like he was lost in thought, I caught Adrik¡¯s eye, to see if he noticed it as well. He nodded discreetly, pulling me closer to him. Viktor walked into the room, looking very serious. ¡°Boss, we¡¯ve got a problem.¡± Adrik We found Trino and Martin, as well as Armando, and found a quiet spot to discuss business that afternoon. Most important, was trying toe up with a n for how to handle the other bosses in the city. I was beginning to think that I didn¡¯t need any of them, other than Armando. They were bing more of a headache than they were a help to the organization. ¡°What do the people of the city think of the other bosses, Jefe?¡± Trino asked. I thought for a moment. ¡°It depends on which one, really. Armando is well liked, as he does a tremendous amount of work for the people in his area of the city. Up until recently, most of the other bosses were mostly the same, but I¡¯m hearing reports now that Salvadori¡¯s area of the city is not happy with him. Same for Dario and Massimo¡¯s areas. Vito¡¯s people seem to be happy with him, but I¡¯m not sure they¡¯ll stand behind him if a war breaks out in the city like they¡¯re nning. Niko¡¯s area of the city is mostly quiet now, but same as Vito. I¡¯m not sure his people will stand behind him. ¡°Trino, the people of the city favor Ghost over the other bosses. Hands down. If ites down to it, they¡¯ll stand with Ghost over any of the other bosses,¡± Armando said. I felt Sephie squeeze my hand that was across herp, resting on her thigh. ¡°This is good. If you have the support of the people, that goes a long way. That¡¯s how I inevitably took over in Colombia. The people loved me. They helped me fight the other guys that were trying to take over. There¡¯s something to be said for the popr vote, if you will,¡± Trino said, a small smile on his face. ¡°What about the police? Are they with you or against you?¡± he asked. ¡°Most of the precincts in the city are with me. I¡¯ve made sure that the other bosses maintain order in their areas, keeping crime- to a minimum. Given that we¡¯re still heavily involved in illegal businesses, the city is quite peaceful, which makes the cops¡¯ jobs incredibly easy. Violent crime is kept to a minimum. They get their cut, of course, but I have a good rtionship with themissioner. They¡¯ve come to me before with funding issues and the like that I¡¯ve helped them solve,¡± I said. ¡°Just you or the other bosses as well?¡± Trino asked. ¡°Mostly me, when ites to themissioner. The other bosses deal with the local police chiefs in their areas,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯ve never had a conversation with themissioner, but I have a great rtionship with the police chief in my area of the city. They would back us, I think, if it was needed,¡± Armando added. ¡°I got the impression that Anthony and Lorenzo were nning something big in the city as a way to get back in. They were trying to convince me that there was already disorder in the city, with you being gone. They also tried to convince me that Mando had been killed overseas. I knew for sure that you were still alive when I met with them, lefe, but I didn¡¯t get word on Armando until a few dayster when my people saw him back in the city,¡± Trino said. I noticed Armando was slightly surprised at this revtion. He didn¡¯t know that Trino had people in the city. None of the other bosses knew. Trino was never concerned about Armando, but he was about the other bosses, so I agreed to let him have people in the city. He was also in regrmunication with some of my people. It¡¯s one reason that he¡¯s stayed so loyal to me. I¡¯m as transparent with him as possible. I recognize his value and he recognizes mine. Mutual respect goes a long way. I sighed. ¡°We think they¡¯re nning on creating chaos in the city. They had a test run where they gave two guys brawn and sent them on Sephie and Misha. They¡¯ve been working on a new formtion that increases the violence even more.¡± Trino and Martin both cursed under their breath. ¡°I do not like this new drug, brawn. It¡¯s dangerous. It¡¯s also lethal if you take too much. Why would you want to ki ll your customer base? That¡¯s bad business,¡± Martin said. ¡°Most of the bosses had cut it out of the city. It hasn¡¯t been around for a few years now. The dealers were forbidden to make it. Apparently, Salvadori has been quietly working on this new formtion undetected. Or maybe Anthony was working on it. That kid is off the talls,¡± Armando said. ¡°Is it true he¡¯s been trafficking girls? Trino asked. I nodded my head. ¡°It took me a while to get confirmation on it, but he has been for some time now. He was smart about it and very discreet about it, so I didn¡¯t find out right away. He runs that operation from outside the city, with help from Lorenzo in Sicily. Apparently, when my father banished Enzo, he went to Sicily and that¡¯s how he made money and built his fortune back up. He¡¯s gotworks throughout Europe.¡± Both Trino and Martin looked disgusted. It was a big problem, worldwide, but they wanted no part of it. ¡°It fits Anthony¡¯s profile, if I¡¯m being honest. He needs topensate for a very significant shoring. He can feel powerful when he¡¯s determining someone else¡¯s fate,¡± Sephie said Chapter 167 Chapter 167 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Seven Adrik We all turned to look at her, not entirely sure what she meant. She looked at all of us, like she was trying to get us to understand what she meant, silently. ¡°Oh, you¡¯re gonna make me say it? For real?¡± she said, her cheeks slowing turning red as we kept looking at her. She sighed. ¡°He¡¯s got a tiny d ick. There, I said it.¡± I raised an eyebrow, demanding more of an exnation. She clearly saw my anger rise to the surface quickly, which made her shrink back from me slightly. ¡°He, uh, pressed himself against me when he was choking me in the hallway that night in the restaurant,¡± she said quietly. She quickly looked at the floor, her hands starting to fidget. I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her to me. I kissed her temple. Trino looked surprised. ¡°He did what to you?¡± he asked. I held Sephie tighter, answering for her. ¡°At thest meeting at the restaurant that Sephie used to work at, Anthony dared toy his hands on Sephie in the meeting. He saw my anger when it happened. It was the first time I¡¯d seen Sephie, but I knew I loved her from the first moment. Anthony caught her in the hallway aler and tried to touch her, but she resisted. He choked her. Viktor and Andrei pulled him off her and beat him senseless.¡± I could feel my anger threatening to take over. Sephie, of course, felt it. She reached over and grabbed my other hand, holding it with both of hers. Her fingers lightly fidgeting with mine. ¡°And you didn¡¯t ki ll him right there?¡± Trino asked, shocked. ¡°I wanted to, but I still had an ounce of respect for his father, Salvadori, at the time. I wish I would have now. We might not be in this mess now,¡± I said, sighing. Armando spoke up. ¡°I¡¯m really beginning to question whether he needs the other bosses at all, at this point. I say get rid of all of them. Ghost can run the city on his own.¡± Sephie looked up at me, somewhat surprised. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d thought of that option yet. ¡°It makes sense. The city loves you,¡± she said, pulling her knees up so her feet were on the couch. She leaned her legs in myp. ¡°They have their rightful King and Queen. What more do they need?¡± Trino said, smiling. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Please tell me you have a sister that loves Colombian men,¡± Trino said, after Sephie had given her insightful opinion on how to separate Dario and Massimo using the information she had just given him. ¡°Sorry to disappoint. I¡¯m an only child. But I can offer my vetting services if you¡¯d like me to interview potential girlfriends for you,¡± she said,ughing. Armando shifted in his seat. ¡°I can vouch for her professional skills. I¡¯m going to pay her to be at as many of my important meetings as possible.¡± Trino still looked like he was both lost in thought and alsopletely captivated by Sephie when Viktor walked into the room. He looked directly at me ¡°Boss, we¡¯ve got a problem¡± I felt Sephie sit up a little straighter next to me, all of us waiting for Viktor to borate ¡°I just heard from Andy One, he needs us to get him out. Two, he said he can fill us in on Salvadori¡¯s n. He wouldn¡¯t say much over the phone, but he said he saw it with his own eyes and it has the potential to be very bad¡± My mind was busy thinking through possibilities when Sephir asked, ¡°who¡¯s Andy ** ¡°He¡¯s one of Sal¡¯s most trusted men. He¡¯s the one that informed Boss about Anthony¡¯s EA giving us information when he can, but Sal sa to him now. Sal¡¯s been suspect rricr activities. He¡¯s bett month Andy has been able to cate him, but he started asking too many questions about the details of the n and he thinks Sal has caught on to him. He knows Andy is feeding info either to Boss or Armando at this point. Neither of which is good for Andy,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Where¡¯s Misha?¡± Sephie asked, before I could. ¡°I think he¡¯s outside. I¡¯ll go fetch him,¡± Viktor said. Before he left the room, Sephie added, ¡°Ivan too, please.¡± chuckled, causing her to look at me. ¡°You read my mind again, solnishko. I don¡¯t know why it surprises me at this point, but it still asionally does.¡± Misha and Ivan walked into the room, followed by Viktor, Andrei, and Stephen. Misha Immediately looked to me. ¡°Viktor told me. Leaving Andy with Sal is a very bad idea. We have to get him out. It won¡¯t end well for him if we don¡¯t.¡± I nodded, not surprised in the least at that conclusion. I looked at Viktor, ¡°where is Andy now?¡± ¡°He¡¯sying low, but he¡¯s still in the city. He said Sal is having him watched right now, so he has to be careful,¡± Viktor said. I looked between Viktor and Ivan. ¡°How many of you will it take to get him out safely?¡± Ivan spoke up. ¡°There¡¯s no way to know without knowing how many guys Sal has on him. It¡¯s completely dependent on that.¡± ¡°I made a call already to have someone try to find out how many guys are on Andy.¡± Viktor said. ¡°How far is he from the penthouse? Can he get himself there?¡± Sephie asked. Viktor shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I¡¯m also not sure I want whoever is following him to know he¡¯s going straight to Boss¡¯s building. That¡¯s going to bring extra attention there.¡± She smiled sweetly at Viktor. ¡°This is why you¡¯re the Russian security master.¡± He gave her a half smile and winked at her. Misha looked at me, ¡°I think it¡¯s better that Andy isn¡¯t obviously linked to us right now. I have a bad feeling about anyone knowing it¡¯s us that gets him out.¡± ¡°How do you guys get him out without anyone knowing it¡¯s you then? It¡¯s not like you giants blend into a crowd,¡± Sephie said. She then added, ¡°and don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re going to ask nicely.¡± We allughed. Ivan said, ¡°we have our ways, princess,¡± giving her a wink and a coy smile. We were quiet for a few moments, all contemting the best course of action. I finally said, ¡°we¡¯ll go back. If he can tell us exactly what Sal is nning, maybe we can stop it before it happens. Viktor, can the pilot be ready to leave this afternoon? He pulled his phone from his pocket, stepping out of the room to find that answer. I looked to Trino and Martin. ¡°While I ha te to cut this short, it appears we are needed elsewhere.¡± They both nodded in understanding. Trino said, ¡°I can keep Anthony and Lorenzo busy as long as possible, but from what my people are saying, those two are starting to get restless. Dario and Massimo haven¡¯t caught on to the game yet. And with everything that Sephie told me, I¡¯m going to enjoy meeting with those two now Viktor walked back into the room. ¡°We¡¯ll be ready to leave at 4, Boss.¡± Chapter 168 Chapter 168 Chapter One Hundred Sixty-Eight Adrik Trino and Martin came with us to the ne. Trino assured me he would keep me informed of Anthony and Lorenzo¡¯s whereabouts, as well as the oue of the Dario and Massimo situation. ¡°Jefe, you and Sephie muste to Colombia soon,¡± Trino said, offering me his hand. I shook it, nodding. He opened his arms. to Sephie. She hugged him as he said, ¡°Miha, I am forever in your debt. I cannot thank you enough.¡± He kissed both of her checks. She smiled sweetly at him. ¡°Be careful with Massimo. He¡¯s an evil man.¡± She tucked herself back into my side, where she fit perfectly. I pulled her close, kissing her temple. Trino looked at us thoughtfully. ¡°I may have to take you up on your girlfriend vetting services. If you can find me a woman that¡¯s as perfect for me as you are for Jefe¡­¡± He didn¡¯t finish his sentence, once again lost in thought. I chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s 100% worth it, my friend.¡± Sephie¡¯s wide smile stretched across her face as she looked up at me, causing my heart to skip a beat once again. Giana was nervously talking on the flight back, just like she was on the flight down. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was because she was nervous to fly or if she was nervous about being around all the guys. I eventually got my answer when I overheard her asking Sephie about her rtionship with each of the guys. ¡°Were you intimidated by them when you first met them? You seem sofortable with them now and they all call you different nicknames, but you weren¡¯t like intimidated by them when you first met them?¡± she asked, quietly, but still loud enough that we all heard her question. Ivan ¡®caught my eye, grinning. He said, ¡°Sephie might not know what that word means.¡± Sephie grinned at him. She couldn¡¯t help butugh when Giana looked frightened that he had answered her question. Ivan continued, ¡°Sephie put me in my ce in her kitchen after knowing me for what, like 12 hours?¡± He looked at everyone for confirmation. Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°If that,¡± Andrei said. Giana, her curiosity overtaking her fear, asked, ¡°what happened? How did she put you in your ce?¡± Ivanughed. ¡°She was trying to help me and I gave her sh it for it. She gave me more sh it in return and helped me anyway.¡± He looked to Sephie, a broad smile across his face. I had heard the story of how he tried to intimidate her before she stitched him up and how she didn¡¯t back down. It was the first real glimpse we had of how truly amazing she is. Basically, everyone is scared shitless of Ivan when they meet him and he uses that to his advantage. ¡°That¡¯s notpletely urate though. I did think you wanted to murder me in my sleep for a few days there,¡± she said,ughing ¡°And yet, you still gave us the emotional support sloth,¡± Misha said,ughing. We allughed, remembering her antics. Sephie¡¯s cheeks flushed slightly as Giana looked to her for an exnation. She just shrugged her shoulders. Giana, still curious and trying to be bolder, asked, ¡°how did you get all the nicknames they have for you?¡± Mishaughed. ¡°I call her gazelle because she tried to ki ll me the first time I went running with her.¡± He looked at Giana very seriously. ¡°I almost died. It was very touch and go.¡± Andrei spoke next. ¡°I call her spider monkey because she jumps on my back to hitch a ride whenever she can.¡± Viktor said, ¡°I call her sestrichka. It¡¯s a term of endearment for a little sister in Russian.¡± Ivan said, ¡°princess, because she is the go ddamn princess.¡± We allughed. I added, ¡°solnishko. Because she¡¯s the light to my dark and she lights the way for all of us.¡± Sephie turned to me, her eyes slightly wide. I could see the tears forming as she got up and came to me, curling up next to me. I pulled her close, kissing her lips. Ivan and Misha both said, ¡°fu cking adorable.¡± S Sephie just grinned at both of them, but then looked to Giana. ¡°Armando is getting his own team of guys set up. You¡¯ll have your own list of nicknames soon.¡± Giana just looked at her skeptically. Once wended, a few of the men that Armando had hired met us at the airport with vehicles. I hadn¡¯t met any of the men Viktor had approved for Armando to hire, but I hadplete faith in Viktor¡¯s ability to pick solid men. They weren¡¯t as physically intimidating as my guys, but not many people were. Viktor walked over with one of the men, introducing me and Sephie to him. ¡°Boss, this is Mike. He¡¯s the head of Armando¡¯s security,¡± Viktor said. Mike extended his hand, ¡°nice to meet you, sir. Viktor¡¯s told me great things.¡± Sephie elbowed Viktor in the ribs lightly. ¡°He¡¯s the American security master to your Russian security master. Shall we have a Cold War 2.0, gentlemen?¡± Sephie always managed to get the loudestughs out of Viktor. It was always nice to see. Mike looked to her, clearly surprised, but quickly extended his hand to her. ¡°You must be Sephie. Viktor has also told me great things about you.¡± She looked to Viktor, ¡°da mmit, am I going to have to be on my best behavior now? Because that¡¯s really going to put a damper on my ns.¡± Heughed loudly again, wrapping his giant arm around her shoulders, dwarfing her. He said, in Russian, ¡°don¡¯t worry, sestrichka. He knows you¡¯re a little bit evil, in the best way possible.¡± Her wide smile stretched across her face as she leaned in closer to him. She looked back to Mike, who was watching her with an unreadable expression on his face. She nced around quickly. ¡°Let me know when you have issues with Giana. I¡¯ll run interference.¡± He looked at her, puzzled. I put my hand on his shoulder. ¡°Just file it away. She¡¯s never wrong,¡± giving him a half smile, as we walked to the vehicles. ¡°Yes, sir,¡± he said, following us. Chapter 169 Chapter 169 One Hundred Sixty-Nine Adrik As soon as we got to the penthouse, we all met in my office. Armando¡¯s men were there, along with all of us. Giana chose to stay behind in the apartment that she now shared with Armando, but Sephie came with us. I think she was curious to meet Armando¡¯s new guys, which I was thankful for. I always appreciated her opinion of new people. Sephie was sitting on the arm of the couch, next to Ivan. I saw her lean down to ask him a question, but she said it quiet enough that no one else could hear. As she asked him the question, I could see the coy smile creep across his face. He caught my eye. In Russian, he said ¡°Sephie brings up a great point that we can use the new guys to get Andy out. Nobody knows them yet. They won¡¯t be recognized and it¡¯ll also give us a chance to really test them in a real situation.¡± I found myself feeling proud once again that she was mine. Sephie looked to Misha, a questioning look on her face. He thought for a moment, then nodded. Mike looked to Armando, somewhat confused, ¡°why do I feel like they just decided on the n and we¡¯re just waiting to hear what it is?¡± Sephie looked to Armando, saying something in Italian, which surprised us all. Armando chuckled. She looked at me, saying in Russian, ¡°I told him Viktor makes good choices. That¡¯s why he¡¯s my giant Russian security master.¡± Viktor winked at her from across the room. ¡°Gentlemen, we do have a situation where we need to get Andy safely away from Sal¡¯s reach. He¡¯s got very valuable information that we can use to our advantage. Unfortunately, Sal also knows this, so his people are watching Andy. My guys are all well- known, so it would be obvious if they were to be seen with Andy that he¡¯sing to me. You¡¯re all new faces that no one knows yet, so it¡¯ll be less obvious that he¡¯sing to us,¡± I said, talking to Mike and the other two guys that Armando had hired, Chris and Keith. Mike nodded in agreement. ¡°Where is he now? And how many people are watching him? How difficult is this going to be?¡± Ivan spoke up, ¡°we¡¯re gathering that information now. We¡¯ve had people watching Andy¡¯sst known location since we got the call from Andy earlier today.¡± Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°He knows we¡¯re watching his watchers, so he¡¯s trying to be a little more active than he would normally be in this situation, to help us out,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Communication with him is almost impossible now. He took a big risk contacting us earlier.¡± ¡°Do you know his location?¡± Mike asked. ¡°He has several spots he can move between that are easy for him to defend by himself. I know where each one is. We¡¯ve sent people to all of them to find out exactly where he is. I expect news soon,¡± Ivan said, ¡°How is he going to take three strangersing in after him, though? I agree that nobody knows us, which is a good thing, but this guy doesn¡¯t know us either. Depending on how well armed he is, that could be very bad for us,¡± Chris asked. ¡°That won¡¯t be a problem. We¡¯ve got a code to give you. He¡¯ll know you¡¯re with us,¡± I said. ¡°Please tell me it¡¯s something rid iculous like ¡°mayonnaise,¡± Sephle said,ughing. Andreiughed. ¡°It¡¯s not, but I¡¯m going to keep that one in mind for the future,¡± ¡°Right? How awesome would it be to break down the door and just yell the name of a random condiment? Mayonnaise! Oh, thank God, they¡¯re here to save me,¡± she said,ughing more now, Right on time. Everyone in the room started tough and we all forgot for a few minutes that we were nning a dangerous operation with the potential of not everyone making it back. Armando¡¯s men looked surprised at Sephie¡¯s random thoughts, but they appreciated theugh as much as the rest of us. I caught her eye, her wide smile making my heart jump in my chest. I was just about to motion for her toe to me, when she got up and walked toward me, I pushed my chair back and opened my arms for her. She settled in on myp and held her arms across my arms that were wrapped around her. Ivan¡¯s phone rang. He left the office to take the call, leaving us to wait for news. When he walked back in, I could tell by the look on his face that he did not have good news. Sephie ¡°Oh, that¡¯s a bad look,¡± I said, as Ivan walked back into the office. I knew Adrik knew what that look meant too, as I felt him tense when he saw Ivan¡¯s face. ¡°We¡¯ve got a bigger problem, Boss,¡± Ivan said, walking back to the couch. ¡°That was one of the guys in Vito¡¯s part of the city. He said they¡¯re trying to start a riot, but it¡¯s not a normal mob. He said he¡¯s seen people on brawn before and he¡¯s sure everyone that¡¯s out is on it, from what he can tell. The police are responding, but he said they keep getting pushed back.¡± Adrik started to run his hand up and down my back, like he always did when he was trying to keep himself calm. Armando looked to Adrik, asking, ¡°why Vito¡¯s part of the city, though? I thought Vito was with Sal?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense. Maybe something happened, or maybe this is just part of hisrger n. It means we need to get Andy. as quickly as possible to figure out what they¡¯re nning. Trino said Anthony and Lorenzo were starting to get restless in Colombia, maybe they¡¯re nning on returning and this is the distraction they need toe back,¡± Adrik said. ¡°Well, unless they¡¯ve changed this form again and we don¡¯t know about it, the mob will pass out in under an hour. They just need to wait them out,¡± I said. This time, Viktor¡¯s cell phone rang. He walked out of the office to take the call. I looked to Misha, who was clearly running through scenarios in his head. He would get a faraway look in his eyes anytime he was thinking about possible oues. I waited to see if he would finish or if Viktor would walk back into the office first. Viktor won that round. He walked in, saying, ¡°we have Andy¡¯s location. He¡¯s got at least 7 guys watching him at various points. It¡¯s not going to be easy, but it¡¯s doable.¡± He looked to Mike. ¡°We can provide backup, as long as we stay out of sight. I know for sure there are at least three guys that Stephen can take out without them seeing anything.¡± The mood turned very serious, as they nned out Andy¡¯s extraction. They decided to take him to a safe house well outside the city first, in the event they were followed. They would get all of the information from him there. Because Ivan still only had the use of one arm, he was going to stay behind. Andrei was mostly functional again, but still not 100%, which meant he also had to stay behind. Misha, Viktor, and Stephen would go with Mike, Chris, and Keith to get Andy. I caught Misha as they had finished their nning session. ¡°You¡¯re sure this is still a good idea?¡± I asked, trying not to worry. His wide smile crept across his boyishly handsome face. He just pulled me to him, kissing the top of my head. ¡°It¡¯s still a good idea, gazelle. We¡¯ll be fine. As it stands now. The faster we get to Andy, the better, I think.¡± I wrapped my arms around his waist, sighing. ¡°I don¡¯t disagree. I just want you guys to be careful.¡± ¡°Always,¡± he said, squeezing me to him. He picked me up, spun me around once, then set me back down. ¡°Otherwise, who would be here to constantly annoy you the way I do?¡± He didn¡¯t even give me a chance to answer. He quickly added, ¡°nobody, that¡¯s One Hundred Sixty-Nine who.¡± ¡°Boring,¡± I said, dramatically. Chapter 170 Chapter 170 Chapter One Hundred Seventy Sephie They got organized, went over the n once more, then headed toward the elevator. I felt Ivan¡¯s giant arm around my shoulders on one side and Andrei¡¯s sizeable frame appear on the other side. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, princess. We¡¯ve done this more than once. Same for Mando¡¯s guys. They¡¯ve all got experience, which is why Viktor gave them the okay,¡± Ivan said. I sighed. ¡°I know. But I can¡¯t help but worry a little bit.¡± I thought for a minute. ¡°How long is this gonna take? Are you guys hungry? Do you want toe upstairs and help me make dinner for when they get back? Cooking helps prevent me from worrying about everything that could go wrong.¡± They both looked at each other, over the top of my head and said in unison, ¡°Yep.¡± Iughed. I walked back to the office where Adrik and Armando were still talking. I walked to Adrik, who simply opened his arm for me while he finished his sentence. I sat in hisp once again, waiting for them to finish their conversation before I told him my n. He kept talking, running his hand up and down my back lightly. Once they were finished, I looked at both of them. ¡°I¡¯m going upstairs to cook. I¡¯m hungry, so I¡¯m sure everyone else is also hungry and I think the guys will be extra hungry when they get back.¡± I looked to Armando, ¡°you and Giana are wee toe up and join us. I can make enough to feed this army.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll check with Giana. She was admittedly tired after staying up sotest night and traveling today. She might be asleep by now, for all I know,¡± Armando said. ¡°No pressure. She probably has a hangover, huh?¡± I asked. He smiled and nodded his head. ¡°She did get quite drunkst night after you guys left.¡± He looked somewhat embarrassed at the admission. ¡°Uh oh. Is she a fun drunk or a mean drunk?¡± I asked, now curious. He sighed. ¡°Neither. She¡¯s a sappy drunk.¡± ¡°Ohhhh, that¡¯s the worst kind. We¡¯re going to have to learn her hard line,¡± I said. ¡°What¡¯s that, solnishko?¡± Adrik asked, his hand lightly running up my back to the back of my neck, letting his fingers linger just on my hairline where he knew he could drive me crazy. It was innocent enough, but I wasn¡¯t expecting it and I was suddenly hit with a warm tingle over my entire body. It took me a second to answer his question. ¡°It¡¯s what Max used to call the number of drinks someone could have before they switched from fun drunk to high maintenance drunk. Hard line for a hard no, don¡¯t serve them anymore drinks than this or you¡¯re crossing the line into dangerous territory,¡± 1 said, still trying to keep myposure as Adrik kept his hand on the back of my neck. I caught his eye. He knew exactly what he was doing and he was clearly enjoying it. Armando, thankfully unaware,ughed. ¡°That¡¯s very good information to have for the future. I¡¯ll pay attention next time.¡± ¡°Was she drinking the same drink all night or did she switch it up?¡± I asked, moving so that I was leaning back against Adrik¡¯s chest, hoping to make it more difficult for him to reach my neck. ¡°She kept the same drink for most of the night, but switched it up at the end of the night,¡± Armando said, ¡°She¡¯splicated. That makes the hard line more difficult to predict. You have to keep her on the same drink to get urate numbers. Once she switches, the data goes out the window and you have to start over,¡± I said, grabbing Adrik¡¯s arms and wrapping them around my waist, trying to safely trap him. Instead, he just discreetly slipped his hands under my shirt, tracing circles on my bare skin. I took a deep breath, trying to maintain control. Armandoughed again. ¡°Sephie, you always have the most valuable insight.¡± I smiled at him and shrugged my shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± I thought for a moment, then added, ¡°you know she¡¯s very insecure with herself, right? She¡¯s a nice girl, but she¡¯s worried no one likes her, which ironically makes people not like her. The more you can reassure her that she¡¯s great and doesn¡¯t need topare herself to others, the less she¡¯ll feel the need to drown her anxieties in alcohol.¡± Armando looked stunned. ¡°I had no idea. She has no reason to be insecure. She¡¯s a beautiful woman. Why would she be insecure?¡± ¡°Eh, women areplicated. She has no reason to be insecure, but she doesn¡¯t believe that. She¡¯s trying to live up to an unrealistic ideal in her head, like most women. She needs to understand that you love her for the her she is right now. Not the her she thinks she needs to be,¡± I said. He exhaled loudly. ¡°You should seriously start charging for your services.¡± Andrei said from the doorway, ¡°that¡¯s why she¡¯s my rtionship coach spider monkey.¡± Once upstairs, I got to work on preparing enough food to feed our small army. Ivan and Andrei helped me while Adrik finished up a few things in his office. Armando had gone to check on Giana and promised toe up at least for a minute, with or without het. ¡°Viktor is going to be so happy when he gets back,¡± Andrei said, as he was washing a pan I needed to reuse. He turned to look at me, grinning. ¡°He loves it when you cook. I mean, we all do, but he loves it loves it.¡± I had tough. Ivan was sitting at the counter on the ind. ¡°Are we starting a bet pool for how long Armando and Giana are going tost, princess? I can go downstairs and get a wh ite board.¡± I exhaled loudly. ¡°I mean. Yes. We should. But I also think Armando can save it. He¡¯s clearly infatuated with her. He¡¯s clearly been so since we were in Italy. I noticed the way he looked at her when she first came into his office that day of the meeting with the scummywyer. It wouldn¡¯t surprise me if she wasn¡¯t at all qualified for that job and he hired her anyway, just to be close to her. It doesn¡¯t always happen, but sometimes someone else¡¯s love is enough to break those dark thought patterns. The bigger question will be whether Armando is strong enough to pull her up or whether she¡¯s going to pull him down.¡± Adrik walked into the kitchen, asking, ¡°who¡¯s pulling who?¡± Ivan answered. ¡°We were just discussing whether we should start a bet pool on how long Armando and Giana will stay together. Sephie thinks Armando might be able to save it. We can all see that he likely loves her. She said the bigger question is whether he¡¯ll pull her up or she¡¯ll pull him down.¡± Adrik walked to me, standing behind me. He gently pulled me back against him as I was standing at the stove, waiting for a sauce to thicken. He moved my hair from my neck, kissing my cheek and lightly brushing my neck with his facial hair. I smiled, knowing he was still enjoying torturing me. He moved beside me, leaning against the counter, so he could look at Andrei and Ivan. ¡°Armando is a strong man,Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. but has always been unlucky with women. He¡¯s been married at least twice, I think, and neithersted very long. He had children with both of them, but it wasn¡¯t enough to make itst.¡± ¡°Children are never the thing that will save a marriage,¡± Ivan said. I picked the sauce pan I was stirring off the stove and moved it to the center ind. ¡°Armando has a bit of a saviorplex. 1 mean that in a good way, but it inevitably means he¡¯s going to pick damaged people. He wants to fix them. He has to learn that not everyone wants to be saved.¡± Chapter 171 Chapter 171 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-One Sephie Andrei, done with the dishes, sat next to Ivan. ¡°How did you get to be so urate at reading people, spider monkey? Like every time you say something about someone, it¡¯s alwayspletely urate and makes me feel du mb for not noticing it before.¡± I smiled at him. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t feel du mb for not noticing these things, Bubba. I always thought I was a weirdo for doing so. You¡¯re the normal one. Most people don¡¯t notice these things.¡± Ivan, now curious too, asked, ¡°what were you like as a kid? Like did you drive your m om crazy just constantly diagnosing her?¡± Iughed. ¡°No. My m om is probably where I get this from. When I was little, she would teach piano lessons from the living room in our house. I was a quiet kid, so she would always keep me in the room so she could keep an eye on me while she taught. Sometimes I would y with whatever toy I had, but I would soon get bored with that, so I¡¯d watch her interacting with her students. They would get frustrated because they couldn¡¯t get the hang of something and she would always stop the lesson and talk to them about the rest of their life. She knew it was never about piano. It was always something else that was on their mind. Teachers are part psychologists, I think. I guess that¡¯s why I notice the small details about people. It seems so obvious to me because I¡¯ve been doing it for so long. As I got older, I would do my homework in the room that her students would wait in for their lesson. I started to be able to tell when something was off when they walked into the house. As they walked into the living room for their lesson, I would cough to let my m om know they needed to talk. Pretty sure most of her students just thought I was asthmatic or something. I coughed a lot,¡± I said,ughing. Adrik crossed his arms across his chest. ¡°Those students probably still have no idea how lucky they were to have your m om as a piano teacher.¡± I smiled. ¡°A few of them do. I asionally run into her former students. They recognize my hair and ask if it¡¯s me. The few I¡¯ve run into told me how she changed their life for the better.¡± Ivan¡¯s phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out, walking away from the kitchen so as not to interrupt our conversation, but we all waited to hear who it was. We were all anxious to hear from Viktor. He walked back quickly, visibly rxed. ¡°They got Andy and they¡¯re at the safe house. The extra guards were already there, so they¡¯re just finding out everything Andy knows and then they¡¯ll be back. I told him Sephie was cooking, so he¡¯s going to hurry now,¡± he said, a sly smile across his face. We all audibly exhaled, relieved that it had went well and was over. ¡°How long does Andy have to stay at the safe house?¡± I asked. ¡°Just for a day or two until things quiet down and we know for sure that Sal¡¯s guys didn¡¯t manage to follow him,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Then what? Hees here?¡± I asked. Ivan nodded his head. ¡°It¡¯s easier to keep him safe here. He can be an asset about other aspects of Sal¡¯s operation as well.¡± ¡°He can join Team America with Armando¡¯s guys,¡± I said,ughing. Viktor, Misha, and Stephen walked into the penthouse just as I was finishing up dinner. Mike, Chris, and Keith were behind them. Armando hadn¡¯te up yet, but had sent Adrik a message that he would be up shortly. Giana was asleep and he was finishing up some work he needed to get done, then he¡¯d be up. ¡°Sephie, that smells like I love you,¡± Viktor said, his broad smile stretching across his face, as he walked into the kitchen. ¡°My giant Russian bear of a security master!¡± I said, running to him. He opened his arms to catch me as I jumped into his arms. ¡°I¡¯m so happy you¡¯re back safely,¡± I said to him as he put me down. ¡°It went well?¡± I asked, moving immediately to Misha and wrapping my arms around his neck. ¡°It went well. A hup or two, but Keith is quick on his feet, so it¡¯s all good,¡± Viktor said. ¡°I might be quick on my feet, but it wouldn¡¯t have turned out so well were it not for Stephen,¡± Keith said. I caught Stephen¡¯s cheeks flush slightly as I hugged him too, Stephen, were you showing off again?¡± I asked, hugging him tightly. Heughed. ¡°Maybe just a little,¡± he said, putting his hands in his pockets. ¡°That¡¯s my tiny cared Yoda,¡± I said,ughing. keith looked at Stephen curiously, but said nothing. I caught Stephen stealing a nce at Keith, but then looking away like he was somewhat shy. I nced to Adrik, who was also watching the exchange. He nodded discreetly, indicating he had seen it too. While the guys shoveled the food into their mouths, we discussed what Andy had told everyone about Sal¡¯s ns. Viktor said, ¡°Boss, it¡¯s like we were thinking after we got the info from the guys that attacked Misha and Sephie. But it¡¯s even worse.¡± He paused to take a bite of food, so Misha picked up, saying, ¡°Sal is nning on causing chaos in every part of the city but his own. He knows the people in his part of the city aren¡¯t happy with him, so he¡¯s killing two birds with one stone in this n. He¡¯s going to unleash chaos on the rest of the city, but keep his area safe, in an attempt to win back his people.¡± He paused to take another bite of food, so Stephen finished the n, ¡°in those parts of the city that belong to bosses that are with him, he¡¯s only distributing the brawn to those who are already users. He¡¯s trying topletely rece the supply of all other drugs in those parts of the city with his new formtion of brawn, so they¡¯re getting it whether they want to or not. However, and this is truly evil, in Armando¡¯s area of the city, he knew he couldn¡¯t get to those dealers without Mando finding out. So, he¡¯s bought the guy at the water district.¡± Adrik didn¡¯t say a word, but he pulled his phone out and dialed Armando. ¡°Get up here. Now.¡± He promptly hung up and ced his phone back in his pocket. ¡°Did Andy have an idea of how close Sal was to recing the drug supply? Clearly, he¡¯s already been sessful in Vito¡¯s area of the city, since they¡¯re rioting. What about the other areas?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°He¡¯s been kept out of the loop somewhat, since Sal was already beginning to suspect him, but he said he had to deliver a package to a warehouse for one of the other guys and he saw the brawn operation. It takes a specific setup to make and he remembered it from when they first started making it years ago. He said the warehouse was full of pallets. But they¡¯re not just making it in pills. They¡¯re shipping it out in powder form too, for those people that prefer snorting or injecting. He said he asked one of the guys at the warehouse why they had powder and the guy told him they¡¯re packaging it to look like other drugs. The dealers are going to sell it like their normal product,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Andy thinks that the riotingThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. going on in Vito¡¯s area right now is a bit of a test run. He hasn¡¯t started to distribute the brawn, as far as Andy knows, yet.¡± ¡°Can you even inject that stuff and expect to live?¡± I asked. I knew my uncle had taken the pills, but I wasn¡¯t sure if he had ever gotten it into his system via another route. ¡°It¡¯s very dangerous when you do. You can overdose on it even when you take the pills, but it¡¯s even easier to overdose on it when you try and inject it. He¡¯s going to inevitably ki ll a lot of people with this n,¡± Ivan said. Armando walked into the penthouse, with Giana. He had a worried look on his face. Adrik skipped the pleasantries, asking right away, ¡°who¡¯s in charge of your water district?¡± Chapter 172 Chapter 172 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Two Sephie He thought for a moment. ¡°A guy named Brian Tucker, if I¡¯m not mistaken. Why? What¡¯s wrong?¡± he asked. Adrik looked at him seriously, saying, ¡°Sal¡¯s n. It¡¯s worse than we originally thought. He got to your water guy and he¡¯s going to try to put the brawn into your water supply. He knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to get to your dealers without you finding out, but he got to Brian somehow.¡± ¡°He¡¯s going to do what??¡± Armando asked, running his hand through his hair. Ivan said, ¡°this is the chaos they¡¯re trying to create to give cover for Anthony and Lorenzo toe back to the city. In every other area of the city, he¡¯s going through the dealers, recing their normal supply with his new formtion of brawn. He couldn¡¯t do that in your area of the city, without you finding out, so he went through Brian. How well do you know Brian?¡± ¡°Not that well, honestly. I hardly have reason to speak to him. I know I have a file on him at my house. I keep a file on all the city¡¯s employees in my area at the house. I¡¯m not sure I have it with me, though.¡± He looked to Giana like he was silently asking if she knew whether they had the information with them or not. She looked at him, then at all of us, somewhat bewildered. Ivan, noticing her fear, did what he does best, saying, ¡°that information is important. We need it as soon as possible.¡± He said it with an edge to his voice that was clearly meant to intimidate Giana. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. She looked like she didn¡¯t know what to say for a moment, but then she looked at Armando and squared her shoulders. ¡°I¡¯ll go check myputer. If we have it, it¡¯s there. I¡¯ll be right back,¡± she said as she quickly left the penthouse. I caught Ivan¡¯s eye, raising my eyebrow at him, knowing she had just passed that test. He just smirked at me, winking. Mike, who I was discovering was quite observant of me, noticed our exchange. He gave me a curious look, but said nothing. ¡°Did Andy have an idea of when they¡¯re going to make this happen?¡± Armando asked. ¡°If we don¡¯t have the info with us, we can go to the house tonight to get it.¡± Viktor shook his head. ¡°No, he¡¯s been kept mostly in the dark on what¡¯s happening because Sal was already suspicious. He happened on the warehouse where they¡¯re making the brawn somewhat by ident. He started asking questions after, to try and get as much information as possible and that¡¯s when Sal really got suspicious of him. That¡¯s when he called us. I¡¯m not sure how much Sal thinks he knows, but he knows Andy knows enough to sc rew up his ns.¡± We were all silent for a moment. ¡°What happens if we can¡¯t find Brian?¡± I asked no one in particr. They all thought about the question, but nobody coulde up with an answer. We sat in silence for a few more minutes, which was impressive given that Armando was with us. ¡°Why not expose Sal¡¯s n to the people of the city? Not just the people in Mando¡¯s area, but the entire city. Let them know what¡¯s coming, so they can be prepared. Chaos isn¡¯t as chaotic when it¡¯s expected,¡± I said, thinking out loud. ¡°Like Trino said, the popr vote goes a long way. If you can expose Sal and the other bosses for what they¡¯re trying to unleash, then the people can help us. It¡¯s not as much of an insurmountable situation when we have the entire city against the few people that are with Sal.¡± ¡°Goddammit I love your brain,¡± Ivan said. ¡°That could work. Hold a press conference outlining all of Sal¡¯s ns, asking themunity¡¯s help in trying to find him. Same for Anthony and Lorenzo, if they¡¯ve come back. He ll, same for the other bosses too. Might as well round them all up at once and be done with it.¡± ¡°I agree with rounding them all up at once, but I¡¯m not sure I want the entire city to know I¡¯m rounding them up, because I¡¯m going to put a bullet in each of their heads,¡± Adrik said. I could see the anger oozing out of him at this point. He stood up, to take his te to the sink and remained standing. I got up as well and walked to him, tucking myself in his side, knowing I could keep him calm. He immediately started to run his hand lightly up and down my back. ¡°Okay, so don¡¯t reveal who¡¯s behind the n, but you can still reveal the n, right? Like warn everyone?¡± I asked, looking up at him. He took a deep breath, pulling me into him. I rested my head on his shoulder, trying to at least help to keep him calm so he could think clearly. ¡°I think that¡¯s a goodst resort n of action. I would still prefer to take care of this while the public is still as blissfully unaware as possible. I¡¯ve worked hard to keep the dealings of my organization out of the public eye. I would like to keep it that way, if possible.¡± Giana walked back into the kitchen. She still looked frightened, but she had a few printed pages with her. She handed them to Armando, who immediately began reading them. ¡°This is all I have on Brian Tucker in myputer. I haven¡¯t seen the file you have at your house, so I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s everything you have on him or not.¡± Armando flipped through the few pages quickly. He looked to Mike as he said, ¡°this isn¡¯t nearly everything. It¡¯s just the most basic information on him. I have much more on him at the house. We¡¯re going to need to go get it.¡± Mike nodded, but then suggested that Armando stay at the penthouse and send them instead. ¡°They¡¯re likely watching the building now, after we grabbed Andy. They might take advantage of you leaving tonight.¡± ¡°I appreciate the thought, but no one else can get into my safe at my house. It requires my fingerprint as well as my retinal scan,¡± Armando said. ¡°Holy Mission Impossible, Batman,¡± I said, which caused everyone to stop for a moment andugh. I couldn¡¯t help but enjoy the moment¡¯s break as well. I felt Adrik pull me in front of him, holding me close to him. ¡°I fu cking love you,¡± he said quietly, as he pressed his lips to mine. Once the moment was over, Adrik, looking serious again, said to Armando, ¡°go get that file. I¡¯m going to call Trino. If they¡¯ve been working on the dealers, he should¡¯ve known. Many of those dealers belong to him, so either they know which dealers are his, or they aren¡¯t working on as big of a scale as we¡¯re thinking.¡± Team America, Armando, and Giana promptly left the penthouse. The guys started to help me collect the dishes from around the kitchen. ¡°We should get an actual table at some point. Especially if Team America is going toe over regrly,¡± I said, thinking out loud. Misha, his wide smile across his face, said, ¡°you¡¯re bing very domestic, gazelle. Are you nesting? Isn¡¯t that what pregnant women do?¡± I tried to give him my best smile, saying, ¡°that is what pregnant women do, but I will never be a pregnant woman, so there¡¯s that.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s arms around me, pulling me to him. Misha knew immediately that he had unknowingly said something he shouldn¡¯t have. His smile faded quickly, looking nothing but apologetic. I said to Adrik as he held me tightly, ¡°it¡¯s okay. I¡¯m okay. They¡¯re going to find out eventually.¡± Before I could tell them the story, Ivan said, ¡°the reason Sephie ha tes doctors as much as me is that we both had things done to us against our will by doctors.¡± ¡°Sephie, I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to¡­¡± Misha said, trying to smooth things over. 1 genuinely smiled at him. ¡°It¡¯s okay, my adorable Russian guardian. I can¡¯t be mad at you for something you didn¡¯t know. Mark it down as another reason I¡¯m notpletely normal, I guess.¡± Viktor looked at me. I could see the tears in his eyes, as he said, ¡°I ha te to be relieved about this, Sephie, but I am. My wife was pregnant when she was killed because of me. Ever since you came into our lives, I¡¯ve been terrified of letting that happen again. Chapter 173 Chapter 173 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Three Viktor ¡°That is what pregnant women do, but I will never be a pregnant woman, so there¡¯s that,¡± Sephie said, in response to Misha¡¯sment about her being pregnant. As soon as she got the words out of her mo uth, I felt a huge relief, then promptly felt guilty for feeling that way. Adrik pulled her closer to him, trying tofort her, but she assured him that she was okay. ¡°They¡¯re going to find out eventually,¡± she said to him. Ivan looked at all of us. He had gotten closer to Sephie since the day that Massimo¡¯s men tried to grab her and he ended up in the hospital. He was always protective of her, but that had increased significantly since his time in the hospital. The rest of us weren¡¯t sure what had happened between those two, but we could all inly see that they shared something the rest of us likely couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°The reason Sephie ha tes doctors as much as me is that we both had things done to us against our will by doctors,¡± he said. Misha¡¯s face immediately fell. This was going to eat at him for a while. Poor kid was sensitive. Andrei was too, to an extent, but I think he could turn it off better than Misha could. I had a feeling that¡¯s part of the reason Misha enjoyed pi ssing Sephie off when they sparred. He needed the practice dealing with his emotions in tough situations just as much as she did. ¡°Sephie, I¡¯m so sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to¡­¡± Misha said to her. Yep, this one is going to stick with him for a while. She gave him a big smile, trying to let him know that everything was okay. Clearly, Adrik and Ivan knew, but the rest of us had no idea. I suspected this is what happened that night at the house when she got upset and disappeared upstairs. It was obvious that was a rough day for both her and Ivan. Before I knew I was saying it out loud, I said, ¡°I ha te to be relieved about this, Sephie, but I am. My wife was pregnant when she was killed because of me. Ever since you came into our lives, I¡¯ve been terrified of letting that happen again.¡± The guys all knew I was married when I first started working for Adrik. They also knew what happened to my wife. My revenge thatnded me in a Syrian prison was for my wife. I hadn¡¯t told Sephie yet. It simply hadn¡¯te up, but I had legitimately been worried about trying to protect her and any children they had in the future. I knew Adrik didn¡¯t care for kids, really, but he was so different with Sephie that I could see him changing his mind easily if she wanted children. It¡¯s a difficult thing to admit that you¡¯re relieved when someone isn¡¯t able to have children. I felt guilty about admitting it out loud. Sephie looked at me, not as surprised as I thought she would be, and said, ¡°that¡¯s whatnded you in a Syrian prison, isn¡¯t it?¡± The other guys just looked at her, with the surprise that I expected from her. I nodded my head. ¡°I ended the cycle of vengeance, but I was so focused on ending it that I got sloppy and got caught.¡± ¡°And you¡¯ve been struggling with the guilt ever since she was killed, which is why you pour yourself into making sure we¡¯re all safe, as well as making sure we have everything we need always,¡± she said. I could feel the tears welling even more in my eyes. I nodded as she walked toward me. She slid her arm around my shoulders, saying quietly, ¡°Papa Bear, you¡¯re the best security master there is. You take care of everything like no one else and if you decide in the future to give it another try, you¡¯re going to make the most amazing father. In the meantime, you can keep practicing on us.¡± I felt the tears fall as I thought about what could have been. My life would look very differently if my wife were still alive. I¡¯m not sure I would be at the same ce I¡¯m at now. I¡¯de to terms with it years ago, but I still had moments where it was almost like I was missing the life that would¡¯ve happened. Even though I didn¡¯t know what it would¡¯ve been like. Or if I still would have been with my wife. We were young and got married probably before either of us were really ready. There are so many what ifs that I used to obsess over. I¡¯d finallye to a point where I put that almost life to rest, but asionally, like now, I would remember the life that didn¡¯t happen. Sephie hugged my shoulders tighter, just offering herfort for a moment. I wrapped my arm around her, pulling her in for a hug, as I tried to get control of myself. ¡°I know you¡¯re still going to worryProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. sometimes, but you can feel confident in knowing that you¡¯re doing a fantastic job of keeping us all safe,¡± she said. I¡¯m still not entirely sure how she knows exactly the thing that we all need to hear, at exactly the moment that we need to hear it, but she¡¯s quite possibly psychic. I was so driven to constantly make sure every detail was always taken care of, for fear of something slipping through the cracks and someone getting hurt. Since Sephie hade into our lives, I had many sleepless nights trying to find the holes in my security that allowed the attacks to happen. I was constantly worried about it. Each attack on her was a bl ow to my confidence. I¡¯d been me ntally spiraling out of control because I thought the same fate that had happened to my wife was inevitably going to happen to Sephie and there would be nothing I could do about it. I tried to hide it the best I could around everyone else, but Sephie notices everything. Of course, she would notice this too. ¡°I¡¯m beginning to think you¡¯re psychic, sestrichka,¡± I said, trying to lighten the mood. She kissed my cheek, squeezing my shoulders once more. ¡°Nah, I¡¯m just that weirdo that notices everything,¡± she said, giving me her wide smile that always made the room a little brighter whenever I saw it. ¡°I¡¯m still getting you a crystal ball for Christmas,¡± I said, smiling at her. ¼× ¡°YES! I can side hustle the sh it out of that. I¡¯ll read your palms too,¡± she said, throwing her arms up in the air like she¡¯d just. won a prize. She had impable timing with her silliness. She always knew when we needed a break from serious matters and she would always do or say something hrious to make us allugh, effectively making us forget for a moment the gravity of a situation. Chapter 174 Chapter 174 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Four Viktor She walked back to Adrik, who opened his arm for her to step into. It¡¯s like she fit perfectly next to him, like they were made for each other. He kissed her temple pulling her closer. He was so different around Sephie. For the better, really. In his younger days he was more of an as shole to the girls he would date. It always seemed like he was trying to get away from them. He was never outright mean to them, but he never thought about them the way he does Sephie. He¡¯s consumed with Sephie. I knew he was in love that very first night at the restaurant when we walked outside the restaurant to find her after Anthony had smacked her a ss so hard. After Adrik ripped Anthony a new one in front of everyone, he got up and walked to the back of the restaurant. He walked through the kitchen, like he owned the ce. One of the cooks tried to stop him, but Adrik just red at him. He was imposing in his own right. He was just as tall as the rest of us and only slightly smaller. I think he stayed leaner because it was easier to find suits that fit him that way. As soon as he told Sephie his name, I knew she was the one. He never told anyone his name. He¡¯d had girlfriends that he dated for a year or more that still don¡¯t know his name. He knew Sephie for under two hours and he told her his name. I saw what he saw in her the next morning at her apartment. She was so funny, but so genuinely concerned that we were taken care of, even though her neck was a shade of purple that I¡¯d never seen on a human and she was hoarse from Anthony trying to crush her windpipe. I knew she was special and that Adrik would do whatever it took to keep her around for a very long time. Once he made his mind up on something, there was usually no going back. We were all grateful that she was in our lives and that he had seen her for who she is right away that night so many months ago. She¡¯d changed him for the better, but she¡¯d also changed all of us. There was no doubt that we would do whatever it took to make sure she was always safe and always looked after, no matter what happened. Adrik kissed her temple again, then said, ¡°I need to call Trino. I want to see if Anthony and Lorenzo areThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. still down there or if they got tired of waiting and left.¡± He walked away from the kitchen to make his phone call. Sephie started to wash the dishes from dinner as she asked, ¡°how did it go with Team America? Did they pass the test?¡± I chuckled. ¡°They did. Mostly. They¡¯re still getting used to working with each other. It takes a while to learn how each guy operates in situations. Stephen really did save Keith¡¯s a ss.¡± She looked to Stephen, her eyebrow raised. He just shrugged his shoulders. ¡°It was an honest mistake, but I fixed it.¡± ¡°He said the wrong code word, huh? He said mayonnaise instead of whatever code you guys gave him, didn¡¯t he?¡± she said, grinning. Stephenughed, just shaking his head at her. ¡°So, that¡¯s one for Team Russia, zero for Team America because you saved his a ss? I feel like this should make it to the wh ite board, along with the bet pool for Armando and Giana. We should have a running tally of how many times you guys have to save their as ses before they get their sh it together.¡± Moreughter from all of us. Most women would¡¯ve avoided this conversation. They would¡¯ve avoided training with us, learning how to defend themselves, learning how to sh oot. Not Sephie. She poured herself into training with us. Iughed to myself as I remembered her telling me early on that the more she trained, the more she could eat. She was starting to get good enough that she killed more of Massimo¡¯s guys that day they tried to grab her than the rest of us. It helped me worry about her less. It also made me wish I had taught my wife a few things. She might¡¯ve had more of a fighting chance. Adrik walked back into the kitchen. We all looked expectantly at him, wondering what he had found out from Trina. ¡°Trino met with Anthony and Lorenzo today, just to keep them down there a little longer, to help us out. He tried to get more information out of them on what their n is, as well. Dario and Massimo are still waiting, but he assured me Massimo will no longer be a problem once he meets with him.¡± ¡°What other info did he get from Tony and Enzo?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°We have time. Not much time, but we have time. They¡¯re still working on producing enough brawn to completely rece the supply. Then they have to distribute it. They conveniently left out the part where they were recing the entire supply with it when talking to Trino. Many of the dealers in the city are loyal to him. That¡¯s how he gets his information on the bosses. He¡¯s making calls to find out if they¡¯ve been approached or not,¡± Adrik said. ¡°What if they¡¯re just going to rece the product and not tell the dealers? Maybe they don¡¯t know. Didn¡¯t Andy say they were trying to package it like other drugs?¡± Sephie asked. She was a smart girl, who caught on very quickly. It used to surprise me in the beginning that she could catch on as quickly as she does, but now I¡¯vee to expect it from her. Adrik walked back to her, standing beside her as she continued to clean up from dinner. We all noticed how he couldn¡¯t stand to be apart from her. It was like there was an imaginary force pulling them to each other at all times. He had to he next to her, but he was also fine with her goofing around with all of us. It was like they were in orbit around each other. Each one could leave, but they always came back to each other. He was always confident she would come back to him, so he never minded when she would leave to show affection to one of us. ¡°That¡¯s a possibility. Trino said he would check with his dealers and get back to me as soon as he knew something,¡± Adrik said. She turned the water in the sink off, grabbing a towel to dry her hands as she moved closer to him. She looked lost in thought for a moment, then grinned and looked at Ivan. ¡°We also need to add potential oues for Dario and Massimo to the wh ite board. I vote on some dramatic ending for Massimo, like Trino lights him on fire and throws him off a cliff. I feel like Trino has a ir for the dramatic.¡± Once again, we were allughing in the kitchen as we were discussing very serious, life-threatening topics. Chapter 175 Chapter 175 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Five Viktor We were stillughing and joking, throwing out possible ho rrific oues for Massimo when Armando came back with Giana and his men. He had a muchrger file in his hands than what Giana hade upstairs with earlier. ¡°Any problems?¡± I asked Mike as they all walked to the kitchen. He shook his head no. ¡°We didn¡¯t notice anyone following, even. Either they stayed very discreet, or they have no idea we¡¯re the ones that took Andy tonight.¡± Armando walked to Ivan and handed him the substantial file he had on Brian. Ivan immediately got to work looking through the pages. One of Ivan¡¯s greatest strengths was finding a person¡¯s weakness. He almost had a sixth sense about it. It was partly why most of Adrik¡¯s former girlfriends always hated him. We knew they wouldn¡¯tst long if Ivan could make them mad. He had a way of uncovering a person¡¯s true nature. It was one more reason we all knew Sephie was special. She never once changed around him. Misha said she was initially scared of him when she first saw him in her kitchen, but she was initially scared of Misha too. She was expecting me and Andrei when she woke up, not Ivan and Misha. That fear was completely gone when he came back and she noticed he was hurt. She was determined to help him, even though he didn¡¯t make it easy for her. Sephie, always curious, walked to Ivan. She stood behind him, reading over his shoulder as he flipped through the file. If anybody could find how they got to him, those two could. We were all quietly waiting for them to find the answer we needed. I watched as they both came to the same conclusion, at the same time. She looked at him while he said to her, in Russian, ¡°that has to be it.¡± She nodded her head in agreement, Ivan looked up, finally noticing all of us watching him. ¡°Brian has a sister. Single m om, struggling financially. Her kid was just diagnosed with a rare form of ca ncer. I would bet good money that Sal is offering to pay for the kid¡¯s medical treatments in exchange for ess to the water system. It looks like Brian has been supporting her financially for a while.¡± As he talked, Sephie continued to look through the pages over his shoulder. She was leaned over his back, reaching over his shoulder flipping the pages like that¡¯s exactly where she was supposed to be. ¡°So, do I fire the guy? I can¡¯t fire the guy if he¡¯s supporting his si ck nephew,¡± Armando said, clearly worried about this situation. I looked to Misha, who had that faraway look in his eye that meant he was running through scenarios in his head. His gut instinct was unparalleled. He was right about our n at the ball. He was the only one that was right about that n. He also saved all of us by keeping us from going to Armando¡¯s office when we were in Italy. We were reliant on his gut instinct now. Just as he made a face that I knew meant something was off, I heard Sephie say, ¡°sh it¡± under her breath. We all looked to her, as she looked to Misha, looking for confirmation of what she¡¯d just discovered. She saw the look on his face. ¡°Double sh it,¡± she said. We all knew this was not good, but Armando¡¯s guys were a little clueless. ¡°Care to expand on what ¡®sh it¡± and ¡°double sh it¡¯ actually mean?¡± Mike asked. Ivan nced at him, a serious expression on his face, that caused Mike to add a ¡°please¡± to his question. Sephie didn¡¯t see Ivan¡¯s expression, but she knew it had happened. She just wrapped one arm around his shoulders, as she answered Mike. ¡°The father of Brian¡¯s nephew is none other than Anthony.¡± None of us were expecting that answer. She looked to Adrik, a puzzled look on her face. ¡°Didn¡¯t you tell me Sal had given you some bracelet with a tracker in it when you banished Anthony? Andy told you it was for a former girlfriend, right? One that Anthony was suspecting of cheating?¡± Adrik nodded. We were all putting the pieces together. ¡°I think we found the cheating girlfriend,¡± he said. ¡°In her defense. I¡¯d cheat on that, too. I¡¯m honestly impressed she even got pregnant,¡± Sephie said. It was a funny statement, but we all recognized that edge to her voice. She was getting angry. Mike, still notpletely connecting the dots, asked, ¡°what does that mean?¡± Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. We¡¯d all heard about her revtion about Anthony when they were talking to Trino and Martin, so we were all trying not tough. We all looked to Sephie, who stared at all of us, clearly not amused with us forcing her to say it one more time. ¡°You¡¯re all going to pay for making me say this out loud yet again,¡± she said, ring at all of us. She sighed, then looked to Mike. ¡°Anthony has a tiny d ick, which he felt the need to press against me when he was choking me in the hallway of the restaurant I used to work at.¡± Ivan reached up and held onto her arm that was still wrapped around his shoulders, trying tofort her. Mike looked surprised. ¡°Okay, I¡¯m going to need to hear that story at some point. But why is she financially struggling if she¡¯s got his kid? Cheater or not, that¡¯s still his kid, right?¡± Adrik said, seriously, ¡°you don¡¯t know Anthony.¡± Sephie kissed Ivan¡¯s cheek, then walked back to Adrik, tucking herself into his side as he wrapped his arm around her. ¡°He¡¯s right. Anthony is¡­. Well, he¡¯s a bit of a psycho. He gets off on inflicting pain on others. One of the things he said to me as he was choking me was that he loves it when they fight back. It¡¯s likely why he got into the flesh trade, as well. It gives him a sense of power to determine someone else¡¯s fate. The change in finances for the mother of his child is likely from Sal, not Anthony. And is only happening so they can have ess to the water in Armando¡¯s part of town,¡± she said. ¡°Or Lorenzo. Sal seems to make excuses for Anthony. He might even be scared of his own son,¡± I said, remembering the meeting that Adrik had with Sal when he banished Anthony. ¡°Would Andy have more insight into that dynamic?¡± Sephie asked. I nodded my head. ¡°Likely. We¡¯ll keep him at the safe house through tomorrow for sure. If there¡¯s no one lurking around the building, it might be safe to move him here sooner than we originally thought.¡± Adrik looked at me, seriously. ¡°Sephie meets him when he moves here. We need to know we can trust him.¡± ¡°Agreed,¡± I said. Mike looked surprised. ¡°Why does that matter? I mean no disrespect, of course. You¡¯re obviously a smart girl. Are you a human lie detector or something?¡± She smiled at him, but it was a tight smile, shrugging her shoulders. ¡°More or less.¡± Armando interjected, ¡°Sephie¡¯s observation skills are next level. I¡¯m going¡­¡± She cut him off, ¡°he knows, Mando. He¡¯s observant in his own right. He¡¯s just confused as to why I have so much input when I¡¯m just the girlfriend.¡± She crossed her arms across her chest, almost daring him to argue with her. He stammered for a moment, trying to find the words to say. She saw that she essentially had him on the ropes, so she went in for the ki ll, taking a few steps toward him. ¡°You thought when I said to let me know when you have problems with Giana at the airport that I meant she was going to be the problem, didn¡¯t you?¡± She chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s because you have a hard time with women in any kind of an authority position. We can discuss what happened to make you this way at a later time, but I told you to let me know when you had problems with her so I could tell her how to handle it, not you. You see, Mike, I can read people like a book, so yes, as a matter of fact, I am the deciding factor on whether Andy is trustworthy or not. Anymore questions?¡± We were all trying to hold in ourughter, as we watched Mike¡¯s face turn even more red than Sephie¡¯s hair. He wasn¡¯t going to live this one down for a while. I nced at Giana, who waspletely shocked at this revtion. Given Mike¡¯s reaction, we all knew that she was right. She had called him out and he wasn¡¯t sure how to handle it. Adrik walked behind Sephie and put his hand on her waist. He looked at Mike, with every ounce of intimidation he had in him. ¡°That¡¯s the first andst time you will question either my decisions or Sephie. Understood?¡± Mike nodded his head, ¡°yes, sir.¡± Ivanughed and said to us, in Russian, ¡°make that two for our team, zero for their team.¡± We couldn¡¯t help butugh as Armando and his guys looked at us, confused. We were definitely getting that wh ite board set up. Sephie might have to learn how to read Russian before this was all over with. Chapter 176 Chapter 176 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Six Sephie While I felt slightly bad for calling Mike out in front of everyone, it was also needed. The longer he went without being checked, the more he would question anything rted to me, and in turn, anything rted to Giana. While I could stick up for myself, she would struggle with that. I saw her shocked expression, along with Armando¡¯s, after I called him out. Once we were all doneughing at Ivan¡¯sment, I said to Giana, in broken Italian, ¡°don¡¯t worry, he¡¯ll likely do an even better job now, just to prove me wrong.¡± I smiled at her. Armando winked at me, telling Giana in Italian that I could understand it, but I didn¡¯t speak it very well. It didn¡¯t help her shocked expression. We continued to talk about options for dealing with Brian from the water department for a while longer. Mike was noticeably quieter during that conversation. Eventually, we decided to call it a night. Adrik was expecting to hear from Trino the following morning, after he had time to get in touch with most of his dealers in the city to find out what, if anything, they knew about Sal¡¯s n. Team America, Armando, and Giana left while all the guys stayed for a few more minutes in the penthouse. As soon as the door closed and they had enough time to get on the elevator, the guys all d iedughing like little kids that had been forced to hold it in during some serious event. ¡°I didn¡¯t think a man¡¯s cheeks could turn that red,¡± Andrei said, wiping tears from his eyes fromughing so hard. Adrik, gaining control of himself, turned me to face him. ¡°Is he going to continue to be a problem? Should I have Armando get rid of him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. That¡¯s what I told Giana. I said he would likely do an even better job and be nicer to her now, just to prove me wrong. Most guys like that push until someone pushes back. That¡¯s what I get from him. He¡¯s not a di ck, I don¡¯t think. He¡¯s just a tester. He needs to know his limits. Now that he knows, we¡¯ll likely never have to have that conversation again,¡± I said, smiling at the genuine concern on his face at the thought of Mike bing a problem. I had to admit that I adored the side of Adrik that wanted to destroy anything he deemed to be a threat to me. Ivan looked at Adrik, a serious expression on his face. ¡°We¡¯ll keep an eye on him. If he needs to be checked a little more forcefully next time, I¡¯m happy to do so.¡± I turned to look at Ivan, grinning. ¡°Add it to the wh ite board!¡± I said, causing another round ofughter from everyone, Viktor said, ¡°we¡¯re going to need a bigger wh ite board. I¡¯ll have someone get a giant one. We¡¯re going to have to teach you how to read Russian now too, sestrichka.¡± ¡°Challenge epted,¡± I said, smiling at him. Once the guys all went back to their apartments for the evening, Adrik pulled me closer to him, his hands finding their way underneath my shirt. He ran his hands lightly over my bare skin. He had a slight smirk on his face, but just looked at me for a moment, without saying a word. I raised an eyebrow, looking at him questioningly. He started ying with the curls around my face as he continued to look at me thoughtfully. ¡°You know you¡¯re not just the girlfriend, right?¡± he finally asked. I smiled at him, unable to contain myughter. ¡°Of course, I know, I said that to illustrate my point, not because I think that.¡± He continued to y with the curls around my face as he looked like he was lost in thought. Instead of telling me what he was thinking, he simply leaned down and kissed me. I woke up sometime during the night, under the covers, which meant that Adrik had gotten out of bed. He rarely got up at night, so I knew something wasn¡¯t right. I walked down the hallway toward the kitchen and living room and saw him standing at the windows, looking over the city. He hadn¡¯t seen mee down the hallway, so I knew he was lost in thought. ¡°Is it time for triple strength tea?¡± I asked as I wrapped my arms around him from behind, resting my head between his shoulder des. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I woke you, solnishko,¡± he said as his arms covered mine. ¡°Technically, it was your absence that woke me. Having trouble getting your brain to sh ut off?¡± He sighed, but didn¡¯t respond right away. He¡¯s struggling with whatever it is. I walked in front of him, putting his arms around my waist and cing my hands on his bare chest. He looked down at me, his blue eyes looked troubled. For a moment, I searched his eyes, trying to find what it was that was bothering him. Since he¡¯d figured out my trick, he was more open with me whenever I would try to ¡°read¡± him. I think he enjoyed it, honestly. ¡°You¡¯re worried you¡¯re going to turn into your father, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked. He chuckled, giving me a half smile. ¡°One day you¡¯re going to have to tell me how you do that.¡± ¡°It works best on you. Everyone else is my best guess. You¡¯re the only one I¡¯m sure of,¡± I said. I ran my fingers lightly through his facial hair trying to get him to rx. He closed his eyes and leaned into my touch. ¡°You¡¯re not your father. I don¡¯t know the man, but I¡¯ve heard plenty of stories. You¡¯re nothing like him.¡± He opened his eyes. His gaze was intense. ¡°You only say that because you haven¡¯t seen the side of me that emtes my father. Since I met you, it¡¯s like that part of me went to sleep. Especially after what happened after the ball.¡± He closed his eyes again, his voice cracking as he continued, ¡°I was so terrified that I had lost you and it was all my fault. That part of me, the part that seeks revenge and won¡¯t stop until it¡¯s finished, it just vanished.¡± He sighed. ¡°Until now.¡± ¡°Adrik, look at me,¡± I said. His eyes opened again. I could see the rage just below the surface, but I could also inly see he was afraid. He looked at me like he was searching for what I was always scared I would find. ¡°I know that part of you exists. Even though you say it¡¯s been asleep, it¡¯s still there. Honestly? It¡¯s one of the countless things I love about you.¡± He looked at me, puzzled. ¡°Because in the back of my mind, I know without a shadow of a doubt, that if something were to happen and anyone did manage to get to me, you would not stoping for me. You would burn this city to the ground if it meant getting me back.¡± I saw his smirk start to creep across his face as he knew I was right. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at him. I reached up. cing my palm against his cheek. ¡°Everyone has darkness in them, Adrik. It¡¯s what you choose to do with it that matters.¡± I stood on my toes to kiss him gently. This situation with the other bosses is going to mean that a lot of people could potentially di e. If waking up that side of you that seeks vengeance against the other bosses means that a lot of people don¡¯t di e, I fail to see how that¡¯s a bad thing.¡± He looked at me, his eyes now a little softer, but there was still worry there. He yed with my curls around my face. He looked like he was trying to find the right words to say. We stayed like that for a moment, with him struggling against his own thoughts. I finally said, ¡°you can¡¯t have light without dark, Adrik. The brighter your light, the darker your shadows. You¡¯re so focused on your darkness that you fail to see how brightly your light shines, but you¡¯re what saved me when my darkness threatened to consume me. Your light was the spark I needed to remember my own light. Darkness will always be here. In everyone. Waiting for the light.¡± I could still see the slightest bit of uncertainty in his eyes. ¡°I will always be here. Waiting for you.¡±This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Chapter 177 Chapter 177 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Seven Sephie He leaned down, his face buried in my neck, wrapping his arms tightly around me. He clung to me, almost desperately, for several minutes. I finally felt his body start to rx as he stood up. When he looked at me this time, his eyes were the soft blue I was ustomed to, with maybe a hint of rage just under the surface. He resumed his battle with my curls, that s**y smirk reappearing on his face. ¡°Ivan isn¡¯t the only one that¡¯s wise beyond his years. I think you showed him how it¡¯s done and just don¡¯t want to take credit for it,¡± he said, smiling at me. Iughed. ¡°That¡¯s the great misconception of life, that years make you wise. Trauma makes you wise. Hardship makes you wise. I¡¯ve met some old people who never fa ced any adversity in their entire lives and they were f**king st upid.¡± He smiled. ¡°Diamonds are formed under pressure, as they say.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t go so far as topare myself to a diamond. Do they have ck diamonds? Maybe that. You know, to match my soul,¡± I said, grinning at him. He looked at me, his s**y smirk on his face, but still like he was lost in thought. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure what I¡¯ve done to deserve you, but I¡¯m grateful for it. I can¡¯t imagine my life without you in it,¡± he said as he pressed his lips to mine. I pressed my body to his, needing him to know how much I loved him. To know how I had been waiting my entire life for him. To know that my life was iplete without him in it. To know that I would always be by his side. No matter what. His desperation from earlier returned, tenfold. He pulled me to him, almost forcefully. His hands frantically pulled his shirt off me. Before I knew it, he¡¯d ripped my panties off too. It never failed to make me giggle when he did it. I pulled at the drawstring of his pants, letting them fall to the floor. He walked backward toward one of the couches, pulling me with him, his lips never leaving mine. His kiss was passionate and unrelenting. He sat on the couch, pulling me onto hisp. His strong arms were holding me tightly, like he didn¡¯t want there to be any unnecessary space between us. He held me up so he could position himself. I might¡¯ve been on top, but he was definitely in control. He pushed me down slowly onto him, enjoying the look of extreme pleasure on my face every time he entered me. I couldn¡¯t help but moan every time, which turned him on even more. This time was no different. He stilled for a moment, his breaths were fast and heavy against my neck. His hands ran up my back, rougher than usual, but I found myself loving it. One hand stayed on the back of my neck, just at the point of my hairline. Where I couldn¡¯t react earlier when he did it, I was free to show him just how much I loved it when his hand was there now. I moaned loudly, leaning my head back into his hand. His lips found my neck, kissing me roughly, then biting in the spots he knew dr ove me crazy. I started to slowly grind my hips against him, loving how deep he could go when I was in his lap. He wrapped one arm around my hips, pushing me down further on him. I gasped, my body exploding in nothing but pleasure. I couldn¡¯t help but getpletely lost in the feeling as he dr ove his hips into me. I leaned back, using my hands to brace against his knees, while I kept grinding against him. He kept one hand on my hips, the other roaming over my body. I could feel the warmth from his hand over my entire body, like he was leaving a trail of fire wherever he touched. His hand ran up my stomach to the space between my breasts. He lingered, just over my heart, and 1 felt my body explode into-an o*gasm like I had never felt before. My entire body was on fire in the best way possible. I was thankful there were no neighbors to hear my passionate moans as I rode out the intense pleasure. Of course, Adrik knew just what to do to make my o*gasmst as long as possible, I had no idea how he could do that almost every time, but I loved it. It was so intense that I almost couldn¡¯t handle it. Just when I thought I was done, he would thrust hard into me and my body would respond with another wave of pleasure. I could feel him building. I knew my extended o*gasms would always push him over the edge as well. He went to move his hand from my chest, but I caught it and put it back, holding my hand over his while I felt another wave of pleasureing on. I bit my bottom lip,pletely lost in the feeling, as I looked at him. He cursed under his breath as he saw me bite my bottom lip and I knew it was his undoing. His deep blue eyes darkened as he watched me. I held his gaze, knowing he was close. His breath got louder and he pulled me down on him harder. My lips crashed into his, as he wrapped both arms around me, his rhythm increasing. I matched his movements, trying to make his o*gasm just as intense as what he¡¯d just done to me. He broke the kiss, needing air. ¡°F**k, Sephie. I can¡¯t get enough of you.¡± In one quick motion, he had me on my back on the couch. He h**ked his arm under one of my knees, pulling it up to my shoulder. He was driving into me, fast and hard, and I loved every second of it. I wrapped my arms around his neck,pletely surrendering to him. I felt myself building again and I knew he was trying to make me o*gasm one more time before he did. I crashed over the edge, unable to quiet my loud cries of pleasure as he exploded in his own o*gasm. We were both sweaty and breathing heavy. He copsed on top of me as I wrapped my arms and legs around him, trying to catch my breath. ¡°I¡¯m going to make you get a soundproof door so I can continue to look the guards outside in the eyes,¡± I said,ughing. My hands ran lightly over the back of his neck and through his hair. He didn¡¯t even lift his head, but heughed. ¡°I secretly love that they can hear you, solnishko. Because while many men want to make you sound like that, I¡¯m the only one that actually can.¡± He ran his hand down my thigh and squeezed my a ss, causing me to squeal. ¡°It¡¯s a bit of a turn on for me, if I¡¯m being honest.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re telling me I shouldn¡¯t be trying to stay quiet when we¡¯re out here or in the kitchen?¡± He lifted his head to look at me, clearly curious. ¡°You were trying to be quiet?¡± ¡°Not at the end there. You f**ked it out of me,¡± I said, grinning at him. He s**y smile stretched across his face, his blue eyes smiling at me. ¡°I love you, Sephie. Always and forever.¡± ¡°And I love you, Adrik. Always and forever,¡± I said as he moved beside me, pulling me to him. He moved my leg over his, wrapping his arms around me. I always felt so safe and warm in his arms that I knew I would be asleep in a matter of minutes. I moaned quietly as I snuggled closer to him, his arms squeezing me just a little tighter, protecting me even while I slept Chapter 178 Chapter 178 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Eight Adrik I woke the next morning, still tangled up with Sephie on the couch. The first light of the morning was beginning toe in the windows. She had her face buried in my chest; she was still sleeping in darkness. I ran my hand lightly through her hair. She didn¡¯t stir, which meant she was extra tired. I was in a predicament, however. I couldn¡¯t leave her na ked on the couch and send one of the guys up to wait for her to wake up. She always woke up right after I did, unless she was exhausted. I hated to wake her now, knowing she needed the sleep. It was still early, so I chose to stay on the couch with her for a little while longer. Maybe she would wake on her own¡­ I spent time just holding her, thinking of how lucky I was to have her. She always found a new way to make me fall even more in love with her. Our conversationst night was one such way. She was insanely good at reading me. I think Viktor was right. She¡¯s a little bit psychic. My mind reyed the conversation from the night before, still in awe of her words to me. She was so sure of the good she saw in me that it made me believe her. She was so adept at seeing everyone else for who they truly were, why would I be any different? Maybe she did see something in me that I couldn¡¯t see in myself. ¡°I will always be here. Waiting for you.¡± almost the same reaction to those words as I did the first time she told me she loved me. With everything that was going on with having her meet Trino, finding out more details about Sal¡¯s n, along with watching her stand up to Mike, I was worried that she was going to reconsider wanting to be with me if she saw the side of me that really could burn the city to the ground to teach the other bosses a lesson. She was such an incredible woman. And the best part was that I think we were only just now beginning to see glimpses of what she was truly capable of. There was more in there that she hadn¡¯t discovered yet. I was fearful that she would change her mind after seeing my dark side fully exposed. Of course, she knew my dark side was there, even though it had been quiet since meeting her. She notices everything. Of course she noticed it. And she loves me more because of it. I inhaled deeply. I felt her snuggle into me more, making her cooing noises when she was happily sleeping. I held her tightly for a few more minutes. I would give anything to stay on the couch with her for the entire day, but I needed to speak to Trino this morning. I carefully got up from the couch and picked her up, I was sure she would wake up when I moved her, but as soon as I ced her on the bed, she rolled over and curled up, still sound asleep. I covered her up, knowing she would know I was gone when she woke up with the covers on her. I got ready as quietly as I could, but still secretly hoped she would wake up. I left her a note, as usual, and closed the blinds part of the way in the bedroom so she could sleep as long as she needed. It seemed like she needed a day every so often to sleep until noon. I wished I could stay with her. I met Viktor and Ivan in my office. Both were surprised, as usual, that Sephie wasn¡¯t with me. ¡°I might¡¯ve kept her up tootest night. She didn¡¯t wake up this morning when I got up.¡± They both looked at me, smirking. Viktor pulled his phone from his pocket, typed in a message, then put it back. He knew the routine and was already sending one of the guys up to wait on her to wake up. On paper, it seemed like such a si lly thing to do. She was protected up there. No one could get to that floor without my approval and there were two armed guards posted outside my door always. But I still needed to know that one of the guys would be there when she woke up, if I couldn¡¯t. I looked to Ivan. ¡°Do you know any jewelers in the city?¡± His coy smile crept across his face. ¡°Depends on what you¡¯re looking for, but I know of a couple that might fit the bill.¡± ¡°I want a ring designed for Sephie,¡± I said as I looked at both of them. I walked to my desk. ¡°Close the door.¡± They both looked at me, surprised, I only ever asked for the door to be shu t on very serious matters. Viktor closed the door, then they both sat down in front of my desk. ¡°What¡¯s going on, Boss?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Did something happenst night?¡± He had a look of worry on his face, but I could also see his temper just under the surface. He had be extremely protective of Sephie since he was in the hospital. I think he would take me out if he thought I had wronged her. I couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°No. Well, yes. I couldn¡¯t sleepst night, so I got up. I thought maybe pacing around the penthouse would make me rx enough I could go back to sleep. I¡¯ve been worried that she¡¯ll look at me differently if she sees the other side of me. The side that my father used as his personal assassin when I was younger. It¡¯s why I¡¯ve been hesitant to really put an end to this whole situation with the bosses,¡± I said, sitting in my chair. I ran my hand through my hair. ¡°Ever since the ball and how horribly that n turned out, I¡¯ve been terrified of losing her.¡± Ivan spoke first. ¡°Um, Boss, I¡¯m fairly certain she knows that side of you exists already.¡± Iughed, looking at Viktor. ¡°I think you were rightst night when you said she might be psychic. I haven¡¯t said a word to her about my father or that I was worried about turning into him. She nailed it after 30 seconds of looking at me in the middle of the night. And then, of course, proceeded to tell me exactly what I needed to hear.¡± They both smiled, knowing how spot on she could be when it really counted. I sighed. ¡°In the course of that conversation, I got an idea of the ring I want to give her. I have a rough sketch in my head, but I need to talk to a jeweler to see if it¡¯s possible.¡± ¡°Usually, anything is possible for the right price,¡± Viktor said with a smile on his face. Ivan, now curious, asked, ¡°what¡¯s the idea?¡± ¡°Ipared her to a diamond, but she said she would onlypare herself to a diamond if it were ck. She said to match her soul. We all know she has the whitest soul of anyone on the, but it¡¯s still funny.¡± I grabbed a pen and roughly sketched out my thoughts to show them. ¡°Onerge ck diamond, like her soul, with five smaller diamonds surrounding it, since you¡¯re all basically a package deal.¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°Make the smaller ones red.¡± I raised an eyebrow at him. I liked the idea, but I wanted to know his reasoning behind it. Heughed again, ¡°I can¡¯t tell you that without sounding like apletely crazy person to you both, but just trust me. Figure out a way to work in smaller red and even wh ite diamonds. She¡¯ll get it.¡± I nodded my head. I knew he and Sephie shared something that the rest of us couldn¡¯t necessarily understand. I didn¡¯t need to know everything. Just knowing it would make her happy was all I needed to know. ¡°You can find someone that can work this out?¡± I asked Ivan. He nodded his head. ¡°Right away.¡± My phone rang. I looked at the caller ID. It was Trino. I put him on speaker, so they could hear the conversation as well. ¡°Trino, what did you find?Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Chapter 179 Chapter 179 Chapter One Hundred Seventy-Nine Adrik ¡°Jefe, none of my dealers know anything about this. Either they¡¯re nning on recing the supply without telling the dealers or they know which dealers are mine and have avoided telling them. Do you have any other dealers that you can talk to without raising too much suspicion?¡± he asked. I looked to both Viktor and Ivan. Neither had an answer right away. ¡°We¡¯ll find someone,¡± I said. ¡°What about Anthony and Lorenzo? Still there?¡± ¡°Si, Jefe. They¡¯ve got a renewed sense of hope since I met with them yesterday,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°Now that they know you¡¯re alive, they¡¯re being slightly more aggressive with their offer. It still doesn¡¯t come close to yours, but it¡¯s fun to make them work for this.¡± ¡°What about Dario and Massimo?¡± He was quiet for a moment. ¡°Jefe. Your woman is a gift from the angels.¡± He paused. ¡°She was exactly right about both of them. I think Dario might need a psych ward before this is all over. I met with them separately. I told them both that I knew they had my nephew killed. Dario immediately went on the defense, telling me everything he knew about what happened, where they dumped him, and he threw Massimo all the way under the bus. I¡¯ve seen fear before, but that man is terrified of Massimo. Dario asked me if I could protect him. There¡¯s something deeper there.¡± ¡°Feel free to find out as much as you can on what else Dario knows. What did Massimo do when you told him?¡± Heughed. ¡°He threw Dario under the bus and tried to me everything on him. Sephie was right. He is a truly evil man. He kept his cool during the entire conversation.¡± ¡°Did you happen to notice that he never blinks when he¡¯s talking to you?¡± ¡°I did notice that. He maintains eye contact like he¡¯s trying to send you messages telepathically,¡± Trino said,ughing. ¡°That¡¯s his tell for when he¡¯s lying. Sephie picked up on all their tells during the meetings they used to have at the restaurant. Dario will repeat the question back to you when he¡¯s lying, like he¡¯s trying to buy himself time to answer. Massimo never blinks.¡± Trino cursed in Spanish. ¡°Jefe, how did you find her? I need a woman like her by my side. I¡¯m going to take her up on her offer,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°She amazes me, even still. I constantly question what I did to deserve her,¡± I said, ¡°What¡¯s your n for Massimo?¡± Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. ¡°I haven¡¯tpletely decided. I might light him on fire and throw him off a cliff. I have them separated and heavily guarded for now. I sent that woman that¡¯s with Massimo home. I¡¯ve had the house fumigated twice now and we can still smell her,¡± Trino said, the disgust apparent in his voice. We all looked at each other,pletely surprised and trying not tough. Viktor said quietly, ¡°Sephie is going to love this.¡± *Trino, I¡¯ll find a dealer to talk to and let you know what I find out. All your guys are aware of what¡¯s being nned now, correct?¡± ¡°Si, Jefe. I talked to all of them personally, but I told them to keep it between ourwork for now. They don¡¯t have much contact with the other dealers anyway, but I didn¡¯t think you wanted it getting out just yet that we know what¡¯s going on.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, I don¡¯t. Thank you, Trino. And if you do light Massimo on fire and throw him off a cliff, maybe get video. I¡¯d like to see that.¡± Laughter on the other end of the line. ¡°I will.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll let you know what I find out on my end. Keep me posted on Tony, Enzo, and Dario.¡± Of course, Jefe.¡± As I ended the call, we all erupted inughter. ¡°How?? How does she know these things??¡± Viktor asked. ¡°We¡¯re getting that wh ite board today,¡± Ivan said, stillughing. ¡°Have flowers sent to the penthouse too,¡± I said. Viktor nodded. ¡°As appreciation for not smelling like Vanessa?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± They bothughed. Viktor said, ¡°I¡¯ll make sure they¡¯re there before she wakes up. I can¡¯t wait to see her face when she hears what Trino said. She¡¯s not a little bit psychic. She¡¯s a lot psychic.¡± I busied myself with the pile of work on my desk. I had a few short meetings that morning that went quickly. Before I knew it, it was early afternoon. Just as I looked up, wondering to myself whether Sephie was awake yet or not, she walked into my office. Her smile lit the room. She walked to my desk, as I pushed my chair back. Instead of climbing in myp, she gathered the papers that I was working on and put them aside. She sat on my desk in front of me, pulling my chair back toward her. It was a surprisingly hot move. She was above me now. She leaned down, cing her hands on either side of my face as she pressed her lips to mine. The kiss started sweetly, but I could feel her struggling to control herself. She clearly lost the battle as she deepened the kiss. I felt her hook her feet around the back of my chair, pulling it as close to the desk, and her, as she could. I sat up straighter, sliding my hands up her thighs. I grabbed her a ss, pulling her toward me as sheughed against my lips. She kissed me passionately, making my mind return to the night before with her on the couch. Now, I was the one struggling to control myself. She stopped the kiss, looking at me briefly, then pressing her lips to mine one more time. She smiled at me, making my heart threaten to stop. ¡°Hi,¡± she said, breathlessly. ¡°I¡¯m very d you¡¯re awake now, solnishko,¡± I said, returning her smile. ¡°Have I mentioned that I love you even more for letting me sleep longer asionally?¡± she asked as she ran her fingers through my short facial hair. ¡°You only do it when you need it. It makes me happy that you can. Although it always makes me wish I could stay with you, That¡¯s why I send one of the guys up to wait on you to wake up. If I can¡¯t be there when you wake up, at least I know one of them will be,¡± I said. Her smile grew. I found myself lost in her bright eyes. She leaned down and kissed me once more. ¡°Thank you for the flowers. How did you know I¡¯d been missing the gardens at the house?¡± Iughed. ¡°I didn¡¯t. I got lucky on that one. The flowers were more in appreciation for not smelling like Vanessa,¡± I said. I couldn¡¯t help but grin at her. Sheughed. ¡°You must¡¯ve talked to Trino this morning. Is his sense of smellpletely gone yet?¡± ¡°He said he had the house fumigated twice already and they can still smell her. He sent her home,¡± I said,ughing at the situation. ¡°That must mean that he¡¯s talked to Dario and Massimo. How did that go??¡± she said, her unique eyes wide, but with a hint of wickedness. I couldn¡¯t answer forughing. ¡°Wait, Viktor and Ivan need to see this.¡± I grabbed my phone, calling Viktor and telling him to bring Ivan to the office right away. Chapter 180 Chapter 180 Chapter One Hundred Eighty Adrik ¡°Oh, this must be good. What did he find out from his dealers?¡± she asked, now curious, Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°He spoke with all of his dealers personally, but none of them know about the n. You might be right in that they¡¯re nning on recing the supply without letting the dealers know. I need to find a dealer outside of Trino¡¯swork that I can trust to find out if they know anything.¡± I said. Viktor, Ivan, Misha, Andrei, and Stephen walked into my office as I was talking. Sephie smiled at all of them, while saying, ¡°I can talk to Chen. You can trust him. He owes me big time, anyway.¡± I raised an eyebrow at her. ¡°Who is Chen and why does he owe you?¡± ¡°Chen used to live across from Ms. Jackson. He¡¯s a dealer. He¡¯d sell out of his apartment on the weekends. He made sure all his customers were respectful and because they were only there on the weekends, we never said anything about him dealing out of the apartment. When he first moved there, he was living there full-time. He had a girlfriend that lived with him for a while. At the time. Chen had a real job, so he¡¯d be gone during the day on weekdays. I don¡¯t think she worked at all, or at least not during the day, so she was always there. I caught like six different guys leaving his apartment on various days over the course of a couple of weeks. She was either hooking on the side or she¡¯s just a straight up wh ore. Ms. Jackson said she was always in her underwear when the dudes left, so it wasn¡¯t like she was ying video games with these dudes. Chen used toe to the restaurant asionally after work because I¡¯d hook him up with cheap food. I told him about his girlfriend¡¯s extra-curricr activities.¡± She paused, clearly remembering the conversation. ¡°He was devastated. He had been nning on asking her to marry him. He had no clue.¡± She flinched, still caught up in the memory. ¡°It didn¡¯t end well for that girl. I mean, he didn¡¯t ki ll her, but he made sure she ended up with absolutely nothing and sent her on her way. He caught me on my way home a few dayster and told me he was forever in my debt for saving him from making that mistake.¡± She still looked somewhat troubled. ¡°You¡¯re sure we can trust him, solnishko? You look troubled.¡± She smiled, saying, ¡°I¡¯m sure. I was remembering the fight they had that we all clearly heard. I¡¯m admittedly not a fan of yelling. It stuck with me.¡± I ran my hands over her thighs, feeling the light shaking, knowing she was once again fighting demons. ¡°I don¡¯t know if Chen belongs to Trino or not, but I can talk to him and find out what he knows. He knows other dealers too, so he might know someone that doesn¡¯t belong to Trino. It¡¯s Friday, he¡¯ll be at the apartment, if he still uses that ce, that is.¡± I looked to Misha. ¡°Your thoughts on her going to that ce again?¡± He thought for a moment, then nodded his head. I looked to Ivan and Viktor. ¡°I don¡¯t care how many guys you think you need, double it.¡± Sheughed. ¡°We don¡¯t need him to think we¡¯reing to ki ll him. That might make him run,¡± I looked at her, seriously. ¡°Then we¡¯ll find another dealer. I don¡¯t care. Your safety is more important than anything ¡± Ivan spoke up. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, princess. We can keep most of the guys out of sight. He won¡¯t even know they¡¯re there.¡± She smiled at me. She¡¯d barely taken her eyes off me since she walked into my office. She leaned down and kissed me gently, whispering, ¡°I love you,¡± against my lips. She used her legs to push my chair back enough that she could stand up. She turned to face the guys, sitting in myp, wrapping my arms around her waist. ¡°Now. What happened when Trino talked to Dario and Massimo? I could hear her smiling when she asked the question. By the looks on Viktor and Ivan¡¯s faces, I knew she was clearly anxious to hear. Both Ivan and Viktor startedughing. ¡°This is gonna be so good,¡± Ivan said,ughing. ¡°Trino said he met with Dario and Massimo separately and told them both that he knew they had his nephew killed. He said Darin immediately went on the defense and threw Massimo under the bus. He also said Dario asked for Trino¡¯s protection, like he was terrified of Massimo,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Didn¡¯t Trino say Dario might need a psych ward after this is over?¡± I asked. I felt Sephie¡¯s grip on my arms tighten slightly. Ivan shook his head. ¡°Yep. He said there¡¯s definitely more there between those two. He said that Massimo tried to me it all on Dario. He also noticed that Massimo didn¡¯t blink once during the entire conversation.¡± ¡°So, I asked him what his ns for Massimo were. He said he didn¡¯t know, at first,¡± I said,ughing. Viktor and Ivan were both trying to hold back theirughter as well. ¡°Then he added that he might light him on fire and throw him off a cliff.¡± ¡°Sh ut up,¡± Sephie said. We were allughing at this point. ¡°He didn¡¯t really say that, did he?¡± ¡°He really said that,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Me and Viktor were both here for the conversation. Boss put it on speaker. We all heard him.¡± ¡°Sh ut up.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a lot psychic, sestrichka,¡± Viktor said. ¡°I knew he had a ir for the dramatic,¡± she said,ughing. I wrapped my arms around her tighter as we allughed. ¡°We got a giant wh ite board, too. It¡¯ll be hereter today,¡± Ivan added, grinning at her. ¡°You guys are kind of the best,¡± she said, sweetly. Sephie When I woke up, I was once again under the covers in bed. I knew Adrik had put me back to bed at some point, although I hadn¡¯t a clue when that happened. I would have to ask him if we slept the rest of the night on the couch or if he moved me back to bed after I fell asleep. I stretched my legs out, my joints popping and my muscles gloriously sore from the night before. I nced to the table beside the bed, knowing there would be a note. I grabbed the remote for the blinds to open them so I could see without turning on a light. It was just before noon, but the room was dark enough with the blinds partially closed. that it felt like it was early morning. I got up and turned the shower on, walking to the closet to grab some clothes for the day. I put my unruly hair up into a bun, not wanting to take the time to wash it. The warm water felt amazing on my sore muscles, helping me to wake up. Once I was ready, I walked out to find out who got toe up to wait for me to wake up. When I walked down the hallway toward the kitchen, I could smell the floral scent. It reminded me of the gardens at the house. I¡¯d been missing themtely. When I got closer to the living room, I could see six differentrge bouquets of flowers spread across the kitchen and living room. Misha and Andrei were on the couches, talking quietly. ¡°You guys got me flowers?¡± I asked, smiling at them. They both gave me their best, most handsome smiles in return. Chapter 181 Chapter 181 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-One Sephie ¡°There¡¯s one from each of us, spider monkey. You have to figure out who sent which one,¡± he said, a mischievous grin on his face. ¡°Challenge epted, Bubba,¡± I said, looking over the bouquets. There was one bouquet with red, wh ite, and ck roses. Clearly, that one was from Ivan. One bouquet with roses that were a mixture of pink, orange, and yellow. Andrei. One bouquet with nothing but the deepest blue and purple violets I¡¯d ever seen. Hmmm, this feels like Viktor. One bouquet with bright yellow roses. Misha. One lone orchid. Yep, that¡¯s Stephen. And finally, thergest bouquet of ck and red roses. Each rose was both ck and red. It was beautiful. Adrik. I pointed to each bouquet as I said the name of who sent it, as their mouths fell open. ¡°How do you do that, gazelle?¡± Misha asked. Iughed. ¡°This one was actually pretty easy. Andrei¡¯s bouquet, for example, are his favorite flower. Of course, he would send that because he¡¯s trying to send a piece of himself to someone he cares about. Your bouquet, my adorable Russian guardian, signifies you take your responsibilities of annoying me as much as possible very seriously, as well as our friendship,¡± I said as I winked at him. ¡°What about the other ones?¡± Andrel asked, now curious. ¡°Ivan¡¯s is the color scheme. Those three colors are very important to him and I¡¯m the only one that knows why. I almost had Viktor and Stephen¡¯s switched. The violets that Viktor sent are a sign of faithfulness. Of course, my security master would want me to know that. Stephen¡¯s orchid is him. He¡¯s the loner of the group, but orchids are also a symbol of good luck, which is also him, since he¡¯s the one that saves the day from his sniper nest. And finally, the ck and red roses are Adrik. He¡¯s worried I will change my mind if he fully shows his dark side, but I told him I love him more because of itst night,¡± I said, as I sat on the couch next to Andrei. Both Andrei and Misha were still surprised, but smiling at me. ¡°You¡¯re wicked smart, spider monkey,¡± Andrei said, pulling me into a hug. ¡°The other guys are going to be slightly disappointed it didn¡¯t take you longer to figure it out,¡± Misha said,ughing. ¡°We can tell them they stumped me for at least five minutes. I mean, I don¡¯t want to shatter anyone¡¯s confidence here.¡± I smiled to myself, loving the thought that they put into such a sweet gesture for me. ¡°And thank you, for making the ce smell uh- mazing. It¡¯s one of the things I miss about the house when we¡¯re not there.¡± ¡°Once these flowers are gone, we¡¯ll go back to the house so you can enjoy the gardens there,¡± Misha said, winking at me. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at him and how much they catered to everything I loved and wanted. ¡°What¡¯s Adrik¡¯s schedule today? Is he super busy?¡± I asked. Not super busy. He should be finishing up thest meeting of the morning by now, but you know you can always Interrupt his meetings if you want to, spider monkey,¡± Andrel said, ¡°Maybe I will. I am the go ddamn princess, after all,¡± I said, as I stood up. I grabbed Andrel¡¯s hand on the way up, pulling him up with me. ¡°Come, my adorable Russian guardians. Let us be gone from this ce.¡± I flipped my hair over my shoulder as I walked as aristocratically as I could toward the door. I stopped at the door, waiting for one of them to open the door for me, my nose obnoxiously high in the air. They bothughed. Misha grabbed the doorknob and opened the door, with a mboyant bow. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. I grabbed both of their arms as we walked toward the elevator. ¡°You guys spoil me by ying along with my absurdity,¡± I said, as we stepped onto the elevator. ¡°We love it,¡± Misha said. ¡°You make even the most ho rrific situations hrious. I don¡¯t know how you do it, but please never stop, gazelle.¡± I smiled widely at him.. As the doors of the elevator opened, both guys moved at the same time. ¡°We¡¯ll be around if you need anything, spider monkey,¡± Andrei said as he started to walk off the elevator. I grabbed his arm, pulling him back for another hug. ¡°Thank you. For always being so thoughtful and being so fu cking awesome,¡± I said, squeezing him tightly. He picked me up, squeezing me, then set me back down. I walked to Misha, wrapping my arms around his neck. ¡°And thank you for annoying me as much as possible. I love it and I hope you never stop either,¡± I said. Heughed as he squeezed me tighter. I walked quickly toward Adrik¡¯s open office door. It felt like I couldn¡¯t stop smiling, even if I wanted to. I was so anxious to see him that I had to stop myself from running to his office. Be cool, S¨¦phie. I took a deep breath, as I walked into his office. His eyes met mine almost immediately, like he had been waiting on me to walk in at that exact moment. He pushed his chair back from his desk, expecting me to climb into hisp. Instead, I stacked the few papers that were in front of him and moved them out of the way, sitting in their ce. I pulled his chair back toward the desk, leaned down and kissed him. Thoughts ofst night were still running through my head. I was struggling to keep control of myself as I held his face in my hands, my lips. on his. I felt his hands slide up my legs and that was all it took. I deepened the kiss. I used my feet to pull his chair as close to the desk as it would go. He grabbed my a ss, pulling me toward him as he sat up straighter, matching my passion in his kiss. I stopped the kiss, even though I didn¡¯t want to. I looked at him, kriowing he was also reying the previous night in his head. I kissed him once more. ¡°Hi,¡± I said, trying to catch my breath. 1 stared into his deep blue eyes. The fear that was therest night waspletely gone, reced by lust from my kiss. ¡°I¡¯m very d you¡¯re awake now, solnishko,¡± he said, his wide smile spreading slowly across his face. After they told me about the conversation with Trino, I had to admit to being shocked at myself. I had come up with the lighting Massimo on fire and throwing him off a cliff out of nowhere. At least, that¡¯s what I thought at the time. I¡¯d never been so spot on with someone I didn¡¯t really know. This was new. ¡°We got a giant wh ite board, too. It¡¯ll be hereter today,¡± Ivan added, grinning at me. ¡°You guys are kind of the best,¡± I said, thinking about how much I loved each of them in their own waysProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. Chapter 182 Chapter 182 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Two Sephie We spent more time in Adrik¡¯s office that afternoon. They made ns for taking me to talk to Chen that evening. I wasn¡¯t sure he was still in the same apartment, but I knew he used to be therete afternoon to start dividing up histest shipment to sell over the weekend. He had streamlined his process and he had very regr customers. He was always sold out by Sunday, and we generally wouldn¡¯t see him again until the following Friday. Every now and then, he would stick around for a day or two, but it was rare. You could just about set a clock to Chen¡¯s movements on the weekend. Ivan and Viktor got into an argument over whether Ivan should stay at the building or go with us. Viktor said he should stay, Ivan said there was no way he wasn¡¯t going. They both had valid arguments, but neither was going to budge. Andrei was somewhat nervously watching the argument, as Viktor could also make him stay behind as he wasn¡¯t technicallypletely healed yet either, although he was much closer than Ivan. ܇ I caught Andrei¡¯s worried eye, winking at him. ¡°Viktor?¡± I said as sweetly as I possibly could, to help diffuse their growing anger with each other. Both he and Ivan turned to look at me. ¡°Why don¡¯t you let Ivan and Andrei drive. They can do that much, at least, right?¡± Viktor thought for a moment, then relented. ¡°Fine. They drive, but nothing more. I won¡¯t risk it.¡± I looked to Misha, who was also watching this entire exchange with an amused look on his face, for confirmation that it would be fine. He nodded his head. I walked to Viktor, reaching up and hugging his neck. I said quietly, so only he could hear me, ¡°thank you, Papa Bear, for always worrying about me.¡± He kissed the top of my head, holding me closer for a moment. The n was Stephen would leave first, with two other guys and set up across the street from my old apartment building. They could cover all the possible ways to the apartment building from above. It seemed a little overk ill for a conversation with my old neighbor, but after Massimo¡¯s attempt to grab me, I was happy to be over-prepared. Andrei and Ivan would drive. Misha and Viktor would stay withThis belongs to N?velDrama.Org. me at all times. There were also three other guys that normally stayed at the building, but that Viktor trusted, who were going with us, just in case. They reasoned it would be harder to separate us with three vehicles, rather than just two. I did try to argue that someone should stay behind with Adrik, but I got sh ut down very quickly. Apparently, Team America was running backup for his security since Armando was also at the building. Adrik and Armando were nning to meet while we were gone anyway, so Team America would be with him. Adrik pulled me close. I could see the worry in his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll find out everything I can. As quickly as I can, so I don¡¯t give you a heart attack,¡± I said, smiling up at him. He was in his usual battle with the curls around my face. ¡°Stay with Viktor and Misha, please. If anything feels off, you leave right away,¡± he said. I nodded my head. He leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. He surprised me by wrapping one arm tighter around my waist, the other hand ran through my hair to the back of my neck as he deepened the kiss. My knees went weak, but he had such a tight hold on me that I didn¡¯t move. Just as 1 felt myself starting to lose control, he stopped, kissing my forehead. He pressed his forehead to mine for a moment, as he caught his breath. ¡°I love you, solnishko.¡± I looked up at him, kissing him once more. ¡°I love you the most. Plus infinity. Plus one,¡± I said, grinning at him. Heughed as he loosened his grip on me. Ivan walked up with my jacket In hand. ¡°Come on, princess. He¡¯ll never let you leave If we don¡¯t go now.¡± I took my jacket from him,ughing. As I turned to leave, Adrik pulled me back to him for one more kiss. Iughed against his lips. ¡°I¡¯ll hurry back. I promise.¡± We pulled into the parking lot of my old apartment building. It looked so run down now that I hadn¡¯t seen it everyday for thest few months. It made me realize just how much my life had changed since I¡¯d met Adrik. Chen¡¯s car was in the parking lot. I pointed it out to Ivan and Misha. ¡°That¡¯s Chen¡¯s car. He should be here.¡± There was one other car in the parking lot, but someone was walking toward it as we pulled in. I walked to Chen¡¯s apartment, followed closely by Viktor and Misha. I knocked three times, waited, then knocked twice more. Chen opened the door,pletely surprised to see me standing there. Or maybe he was more surprised by Viktor and Misha standing behind me. Either way, he was surprised. ¦£ ¡°Sephie! What¡¯s the word, my girl?¡± he asked, raising his hand for me to grab it. When I did, he pulled me in for a hug, causing Viktor and Misha to take a step closer to me. Iughed to myself. They ha te it when I hug people they don¡¯t know. ¡°Where you been, girl? I haven¡¯t seen you in forever. I stopped by the restaurant a few weeks ago. Max said you haven¡¯t worked there for a minute.¡± ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s kind of a long story. How was Max? He looked well?¡± Lasked, suddenly curious about how he was doing. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s good, but I think his girlfriend might be driving him in sane. She¡¯s a cook there. You know Max. He flirts with all the girls. That¡¯s how he makes his money, you know? If I had a face as pretty as his, I¡¯d be working it all day long too,¡± he said, smiling. His smile faded and he added, ¡°she don¡¯t like that. Yo, she¡¯s got jealousy issues or some sh it. She came out the back like 20 times while I was there to check and make sure he wasn¡¯t flirting with anyone. He said he¡¯s going to go into debt soon. because his tips have basically fallen off. He was talking to me about dealing because he needs the money.¡± 1 suddenly felt terrible. I hated it for Max. Misha noticed my mood shift and said, ¡°serves him right,¡± as he coughed, trying to cover up what he said. I nced over my shoulder at him. He just shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Chen, I¡¯m actually here to see if you¡¯ve heard anything about your supply being reced with brawn?¡± His face fell. ¡°Are you fu cking serious, Sephie? I don¡¯t fu cking touch that stuff. Why would I want to k ill my client base? That¡¯s a terrible business decision.¡± Chapter 183 Chapter 183 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Three Sephie ¡°Sooo¡­you haven¡¯t heard anything, then?¡± I asked. I was relieved that he wouldn¡¯t sell it, if he knew that¡¯s what his supply was. The problem was that it was shaping up to look like they weren¡¯t going to tell the dealers they were switching out the supply. He thought for a moment. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard anything about it. I can talk to the other dealers I know and see if they¡¯ve heard anything. Why are you asking? Are you dealing now? Is that why you have quite possibly the biggest security force I¡¯ve ever seen behind you?¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Not dealing. But the biggest security force is with me all the time now. What boss do you deal for, Chen? I never asked you that.¡± ¡°None of them. This is kind of like no man¡¯snd. I¡¯m small time, anyway. This is just a side hustle to help fund my legit business I¡¯m starting. I¡¯ve been contracting for a few years now, trying to build a customer base for that. I have a couple guys working for me now. The dealing helps pay for that.¡± ¡°Chen, you never told me that. I knew you had a real job somewhere, but I didn¡¯t know you had your own business. That¡¯s awesome, man. I¡¯m proud of you,¡± I said, giving him a high-five. He smiled at me, like he¡¯d never had anyone tell him they were proud of him before. His eyes lit up as he said, ¡°wait, hold on. I have a business card. Wait here.¡± He ran back into the apartment and came back with a card. He handed it to me like it was a prized possession. ¡°If you ever need anything, you call me. I got my contractor¡¯s license and everything. It¡¯s totally legit. My guys do great work too. If you need anything, I¡¯ll hook you up. I still owe you for all the cheap food you used to hook me up with and for preventing me from making the biggest mistake of my life,¡± His face got dark for a second, as he remembered his ex-girlfriend. ¡°I¡¯ll keep you in mind, for sure. Would you mind asking the other dealers you know? Do you know what bosses they work for, by chance?¡± I asked. ¡°Uh, one of them works for that Vito. One for Sal. And the third guy is loyal to some guy in Colombia. I still haven¡¯t figured out how there¡¯s a Colombian running things in the city, but whatever, I guess he is.¡± Iughed. ¡°You can leave the dealer that works for the Colombian out. He¡¯s already been talked to by his boss. He¡¯s a nice guy, for the record.¡± Chen¡¯s eyes went wide again. ¡°How do you know that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably best that you don¡¯t know. There are some very bad people that are trying to rece the entire drug supply with brawn. That¡¯s what¡¯s important. We need to know what they¡¯re nning so we can stop them. How often do you talk to the other dealers?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll see them all on Sunday. I get my supply from them, so I pay them on Sunday when I¡¯m sold out. I¡¯ll ask them both If they know anything. How can I get in touch with you?¡± His question actually stumped me. I hadn¡¯t had a cell phone for months. I never needed it. I had six of them at my disposal, so I just never bothered carrying mine. Since Max had started dating Tori, he¡¯d fallen off the face of the earth and he was the only one I ever talked to outside the building. Viktor handed Chen a card. ¡°Call this number.¡± Chen looked skeptical as he took the card from Viktor. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, they¡¯re always with me. Just think of him like my very nt secretary if that makes it easier,¡± I said grinning at him. ¡°I promise I¡¯ll call on Sunday. I want to know what¡¯s going on. I¡¯m not selling brawn, that sh it is fu cked up. I won¡¯t touch it. And if someone is trying to fu ck with my side hustle, I want to know about it. I bet the other dealers will be pi ssed too. I don¡¯t think I know any of them that will sell that sh it. It¡¯s too risky. That¡¯s bad business,¡± he said. He was clearly angry at the thought. of being given brawn instead of his normal supply. ¡°We¡¯re trying to stop it, Chen, but it¡¯s good to know that the other dealers that you know won¡¯t be happy to know what they¡¯re trying to pull. That gives us an advantage,¡± I said. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll see what I can find out and I¡¯ll call your giant secretary,¡± he said, looking over my shoulder as another car pulled into the parking lot. ¡°We¡¯ll get out of here, so we don¡¯t scare your customers. Thank you for your help, Chen. I¡¯m d you¡¯re doing well still. And thank you for the card. I¡¯ll pass along your info to anyone that needs it,¡± I said, raising my hand first for him to grab. He grabbed it, pulling me in once again for a hug. Text ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. ¡°Sephie, you look great, as always. I¡¯m d you stopped by, my girl. Whatever you¡¯re doing looks good on you,¡± he said, smiling. We heard the car door open on the car that had pulled into the parking lot, so we made a quick exit. I¡¯m sure Viktor and Misha weren¡¯t exactly the type of marketing Chen was looking for with his clientele. As we dr ove back to the penthouse, my mind was racing about what Chen had said about Max. Instead of thinking about him, I tried to distract myself by asking Misha and Ivan questions. ¡°Doesn¡¯t it sound like they¡¯re going to rece the supply without telling the dealers anything?¡± I asked from the backseat. They both nodded. Misha said, ¡°I didn¡¯t know that the dealers were so against it. Either new dealers or there weren¡¯t as many selling it before as we thought. Or that whole story is incorrect.¡± ¡°When does Andye to the building? Maybe he knows more?¡± I asked. ¡°We were talking about getting him tonight, after we get back. Team America can go fetch him and bring him back,¡± Ivan said. ¡°You trust them to get him by themselves?¡± I asked, somewhat surprised. Heughed. ¡°No. No I do not. I meant Team America could go with Viktor, Misha, and Stephen again.¡± I exhaled loudly. ¡°Oh, thank God. That was totally going to mess up the wh ite board bet pool. We have the integrity of the data to consider now, boys.¡± They were still bothughing as we pulled into the parking garage beneath the building. Chapter 184 Chapter 184 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Four Sephie As we all walked to the elevator, Andrei slid his arm around my shoulders. He looked down at me, a smile across his face. ¡°If I haven¡¯t thanked youtely for both introducing me to Tori and also for being the catalyst that got her out of my life, thank you.¡± Iughed. ¡°Mostly for being the catalyst to get her out, though. Jesus. I had no idea she was that crazy.¡± Misha looked at me, seriously. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t feel bad about Max though, gazelle. You warned him and he didn¡¯t listen. Now he has to live with the consequences of that.¡± I sighed, holding Andrei¡¯s arm that was still around my shoulders, leaning against him as we rode the elevator up to Adrik¡¯s office. ¡°I know. I know. I can¡¯t help but feel bad about it, even though I know he¡¯s doing it to himself. It¡¯s just so much worse than I thought it would be. Chen wasn¡¯t joking when he said Max uses his face to get tips. He practically had a fan club he was so good at it. I mean, I saw him clear a couple grand in a weekend just in tips a few times. If she¡¯s preventing that from happening, no wonder he¡¯s thinking about dealing. He has a nice apartment to pay for.¡± ¡°Well, he could break up with her. Problem solved,¡± Ivan said, raising an eyebrow at me. I looked at him, wide-eyed. ¡°She might stab him. You didn¡¯t see what she did to broli.¡± Andrei squeezed my shoulders. He leaned his head down and rested it against mine. ¡°We¡¯re gonna add this to the wh ite board,¡± he said wistfully, making everyoneugh as we got off the elevator. Armando and Team America were in Adrik¡¯s office when we walked in. Andrei still had his arm around my shoulders and I was still holding on to his arm. I noticed the look from Mike as we walked in, but he said nothing. Adrik was standing, looking for a file on one of his bookshelves. He turned as we walked in, a clear look of relief on his face. I couldn¡¯t help but smile as soon as I saw him. Andrei squeezed me once then lifted his giant arm off my shoulders so I could go to Adrik. ¡°How did it go?¡± he asked as he slid his arm around my waist, pulling me to him. He gave me a quick kiss, his blue eyes softening as he looked at me. ¡°Chen is still there, but he said he doesn¡¯t know anything. He¡¯s going to talk to two of the other dealers he knows. The third is one of Trino¡¯s guys, so I told him not to bother. He¡¯s mad though. He said he won¡¯t touch brawn and he¡¯s da mn sure not selling it if he knows about it. He also said he doesn¡¯t know any other dealer that would sell it either. They have to be recing the supply without the dealers knowing. It all seems really weird.¡± I nced at Andrei and Ivan, across the office, then added quickly, ¡°and Max is miserable and going broke most likely. The end.¡± Adrik raised his eyebrow at thest revtion. He thought for a moment, then looked to Viktor. ¡°When are you bringing Andy here?¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°Princess already asked that on the way back.¡± He then said, in Russian, ¡°fuc king adorable.¡± Adrik nced down at me, his eyesughing. Viktorughed, then said, ¡°I think we can get him tonight. Mike and his guys can go fetch him. Misha, Stephen, and I will assist, but stay out of sight again, Just in case.¡± Adrik nodded his head. ¡°I think we need to find out everything he knows after Sephie approves him.¡± He looked to Misha, who nodded his head in agreement. Viktor looked to Mike; they quickly made a n to bring Andy back from the safe house. This time, Ivan and Andrel were quite happy to stay behind. I thought back to that first week at the house, when I thought I was torturing the guys by forcing them to stay with me. Adrik was right. They preferred it. Once they left for Operation Fetch Andy, Ivan quietly asked me in Russian, ¡°did you catch Mike¡¯s look when you walked in with Andrei?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure of what he thinks is happening, but it definitely makes me want to be even more affectionate with you guys just to see what kind of reaction I can get out of him. Maybe I was wrong about him,¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders. Ivan gave me a coy smile. ¡°You were thinking what I was thinking.¡± ¡°To the wh ite board, Super Squish!¡± I said,ughing. Adrik and Armando were still discussing business while we all waited on Andy to arrive. Ivan andProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. Andrei took the opportunity to start to teach me the Russian alphabet, which was admittedly harder than I thought it was going to be. I was in between them on one of the couches, both of them leaned toward me so they could write different letters on the notepad in myp, when the extraction team came back. We might have nned it that way, just to see Mike¡¯s reaction. It did not disappoint. He was clearly shocked when he walked into the office and saw the three of us so close together on the couch, but he masked it quickly. Ivan said quietly, in Russian, ¡°he¡¯s definitely going to need to be checked more forcefully next time.¡± Andrei said, ¡°I didn¡¯t notice it before, but I noticed it then for sure.¡± As Andy walked into the office, I handed the notepad to Ivan, winking at him. I stood up and followed Adrik as he walked toward Andy. ¡°Andy, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± he said, offering him his hand to shake. Andy grabbed his hand, saying, ¡°it¡¯s good to see you too, sir. Thank you for getting me out.¡± He was clearly relieved to be here. I realized that I recognized Andy. ¡°I remember you,¡± I said. ¡°You used toe with Salvadori to all the meetings.¡± his He extended his hand to me, saying, ¡°hello, Sephie. It¡¯s good to see you again, too.¡± I shook his hand. He had a genuine look in eye. I had a flood of memories of him at the meetings once I saw his face. Andy never once said a word at the restaurant, but his face spoke volumes. In the beginning, when I was still learning to understand Italian well, I would watch his reactions when I couldn¡¯t understand what they were saying. Adrik noticed my silence. I felt his hand on my back as he said, ¡°please, Andy, sit. We have much to discuss.¡± Once Andy walked past us, Adrik looked down at me, a concerned look in his eye. I whispered, ¡°I think it¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll let you know.¡± He nodded once, walking us toward his desk. I hopped up on the bookshelves behind his desk as he sat down in his chair. Partly because I wanted to be able to fully concentrate on Andy, partly because I wanted to confuse Mike. I nced at him to see his reaction to me not sitting with Adrik. Mission aplished. Chapter 185 Chapter 185 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Five Sephie Adrik started, ¡°tell me what you know about Sal¡¯s n.¡± Andy sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know everything. Sal has been suspecting me for months of working with you. Ever since that bracelet was a dud, he¡¯s been using me of not being loyal. Well, he was right, but still. He would keep other guys with him more than me. I was rarely in the room when he would talk to Anthony or Lorenzo, but I still overheard parts of his heated conversations with them. Italians,¡± he said shrugging his shoulders. Adrik remained silent, allowing Andy to continue. ¡°I happened on the warehouse where they¡¯re making the brawn somewhat by ident. One of the other guys was supposed to make a delivery there, but he got called to go with Sal somewhere else. They needed that delivery at the warehouse to continue production that day, so he found me and asked me to do it instead. Sal didn¡¯t know, I didn¡¯t know what I was delivering, but as soon as I walked into the warehouse, I knew what was going on. Sal was one of the biggest producers of brawn a few years ago when it first came out. It takes a very specific setup to make. I remembered the setup and recognized it immediately. They¡¯ve greatly increased the scale this time, though.¡± As Andy talked, I could see he was somewhat nervous, but it wasn¡¯t directed at Adrik. He was at ease with Adrik. There was another reason for his nervousness that I couldn¡¯t ce yet. ¡°I knew a couple of the guys guarding the warehouse, so I asked them a few questions. Told them that Sal had brought me in to oversee things, but he got called away before he could properly brief me on the operation. Most of those guys were unaware that Sal had been distancing himself from metely, so they were happy to fill me in.¡± He stopped to rub his face with his hands. He leaned forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his knees. ¡°They¡¯ve revamped it. Made it even more dangerous.¡± ¡°They wanted to increase the aggressiveness with this form. That¡¯s what the guys that attacked Misha and Sephie said,¡± Ivan said. Andy nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right. They¡¯ve been quietly working on it for more than a year, from what I could tell. A few test runs here and there. A few people died. Those guys that were sent on Misha and Sephie, we never heard from again, so we didn¡¯t know how sessful that test was.¡± ¡°Sephie broke one guy¡¯s face. That¡¯s what happened to them,¡± Misha said, winking at me. All the guys couldn¡¯t help but smile, like proud older brothers. I nced at Mike, who was visibly surprised. Andy looked at me, a look of surprise on his face as well. ¡°Really?¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°The thing about this edition of brawn is that it initially makes you aggressive, but it¡¯s so lethal that your body is fighting to stay alive after a short period and that¡¯s all you can focus on. It¡¯s really only effective for a very short window and then the person either dies or passes out because they¡¯re trying not to d ie. That makes you slower and gives chances for the victim to get away. Or break your face. You know, whichever. The old edition was actually much more effective. While it kept the aggression to a lower level, it was a sustained aggression over a much longer period. More damage that way.¡± Adrik turned his chair toward me and opened his arm for me. He was still looking at Andy. I got up and climbed into hisp, facing Andy so I could keep watching him. There was still something he hadn¡¯t told us yet that I was trying to figure out. Adrik wrapped his arms around my waist as I leaned back against him. Andyughed, shaking his head. ¡°That would¡¯ve been valuable information to them. From what I can tell, their n is to rece the supply of all the other drugs with this formtion of brawn. They used to make it in pill form, but now they¡¯re packaging it in powder form too, to pass it off as other drugs.¡± ¡°What happens when you inject it?¡± I asked. My fingers were starting to fidget with Adrik¡¯s as this conversation was bringing up all the things I didn¡¯t want to talk about normally. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen it, but apparently it makes the person highly aggressive for a longer period of time before their body shuts down. It¡¯s a quicker reaction time. Zero to rage in a minute or two. When they take the pills, it takes about half an hour for it to kick in. Those guys that attacked you had taken the pills,¡± Andy said. He almost looked apologetic, like it was somehow his fault for the attack on me and Misha. ¡°What about the n to put it in the water in Armando¡¯s area? How is that going to work?¡± Ivan asked. Andy exhaled loudly. ¡°Much of the product that¡¯s at the warehouse is for Armando¡¯s area, from what they told me. They¡¯re nning on dosing that whole area with as high of a dose as possible to get the most chaos.¡± I said quietly, ¡°they¡¯re nning on giving it to women and children then?¡± Andy nodded his head. ¡°One of the guys at the warehouse was against that part of the n, but he said Sal almost killed him when he objected. He said if everyone died in Armando¡¯s area of the city, all the better. Sal¡¯spletely lost it. I¡¯ve never seen him like this. He¡¯s turned into Anthony. Anthony has always been off the rails, even as a kid. He was a mean little fu cker and it just got worse as he got older. But Sal has never been like that, until recently. I don¡¯t know what changed, but it wasn¡¯t good, whatever it was.¡± We all sat in silence as we absorbed what Andy had just told us. I felt Adrik¡¯s anger, without even needing to look at him. I kept fidgeting with his fingers, lightly, trying to keep him as calm as possible. ¡°What about the dealers? Do they know what¡¯s going on?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I think they¡¯ve talked to a few of them in certain areas, but not many. I think they¡¯re nning on just recing the supply, thinking no one will notice. The warehouse is at the docks, where the normal shipmentse in. They¡¯re nning on hijacking the normal shipment and recing it with theirs. They have it packaged to look like the normal shipment so no one will be the wiser,¡± Andy said. ¡°What else is around the warehouse?¡± Adrik asked. He had moved one hand partially under my shirt, where no one could see, and his thumb was lightly rubbing back and forth on my bare skin, trying to keep himself calm. ¡°Not much that¡¯s being used, from what I saw. It¡¯s in a mostly abandoned section. The thing about manufacturing brawn is you need to be isted. Part of the process produces a unique smell that¡¯s unmistakable, but it¡¯s also highly vtile until the process isplete,¡± Andy said. Adrik looked to Ivan at the same time that Ivan looked to Adrik. I knew they had the same thought. I looked at Ivan, then turned to look at Adrik. ¡°You boys are going to ask nicely, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked them both, in Russian. All the guysughed while everyone else looked confused. Andy still looked like he was holding something back. While the guys were somewhat distracted, I looked at Andy, ¡°there¡¯s still something you¡¯re not telling us, isn¡¯t there?¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Andy looked at me, then looked at the floor. The mood suddenly shifted in the room, as Ivan sat up straighter and so did Adrik. ¡°That day that you think Massimo¡¯s guys tried to grab you? It wasret Massimo¡¯s guys. They were Sal¡¯s guys, made to look like they belonged to Massimo. I was part of that operation. Chapter 186 Chapter 186 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Six Sephie Adrik held me a little tighter as it was my anger that was threatening toe to the surface now. Ivan almost died that day and I still wasn¡¯t over it. I looked at Andy, my anger oozing out, as I said, ¡°you better start talking and if you lie to me, your face isn¡¯t the only thing I¡¯m gonna break today.¡± Adrik held onto me, but pushed his chair back slightly from his desk, putting the slightest bit of distance between me and Andy. Misha and Andrei also got up and moved in between me and Andy. Ivan stood behind Andy, Viktor and Stephen moved to the door. Andy¡¯s eyes went wide, as he knew he wasn¡¯t going anywhere. He took a deep breath. ¡°Sal is somewhat obsessed with getting you, Sephie. He found out that you know all of Massimo¡¯s secrets.¡± ¡°HOW.¡± Adrik¡¯s anger was nowpletely present in the room, which only served to feed mine, as well. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Sal has been quietly talking to Dario, trying to get him away from Massimo for a while. The rumor about Sal and Dario hating each other isn¡¯t true. It¡¯s really Sal and Massimo that ha te each other. I don¡¯t know how much you know about the rtionship between Dario and Massimo, but it¡¯s truly fu cked up. Massimo is a psy chopath of the highest order. He¡¯s been controlling Dario since they were kids. Sal knows it, as he knew both of them when they were younger, which is why he and Massimo don¡¯t get along. They all went to school together. I don¡¯t know if you know, but Dario¡¯s parents died when he was younger. He went to live with Massimo¡¯s family after that happened. The story was that it was a car ident that killed them. It wasn¡¯t. Massimo killed them. He was 12 at the time. Dario found out yearster, but Massimo had already done so much damage to Dario that he couldn¡¯t leave. He¡¯d convinced Dario that his parents were evil and he saved Dario by killing them. So, when you met with Dario and Massimo and Sephie let it slip that she knew where the bodies were buried, Dario is the one that told Sal. Since then, Sal has been waiting for a chance to grab you. He needs your help to end Massimo,¡± Andy said. ¡°Keep talking,¡± I said, my anger still fully visible. ¡°That day that we tried to grab you, we saw a chance and we took it. We weren¡¯t organized, really, which is why it was so easy for you to get away. But we also weren¡¯t expecting you to be so lethal, Sephie. We didn¡¯t ount for your marksmanship,¡± he said. I nced to Stephen, giving him a wink. He nodded his head discreetly. Andy continued, ¡°I was watching the whole thing from a rooftop. When you dropped the guy at the vehicle, I knew the n was a bust. I was supposed to ki ll Ivan that day, if you tried to escape, but I lied and said I could never get a clear shot. I had a clear shot, I just didn¡¯t take it.¡± He looked at the floor again, clearly nervous at how we were going to react. He nced up at me, a look of regret on his face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I sighed. ¡°Thanks for not taking that shot, but you still almost killed Ivan and that¡¯s going to take me a while to get over.¡± My anger was still clearly at the surface. I surprised everyone by getting up and walking out of the office. I walked to the other side of the floor, trying to calm down. I could feel my legs starting to shake and I didn¡¯t want to be in there if it got worse. I was standing at the window, not really looking at anything, trying to get control of myself so the shaking wouldn¡¯t get any worse. I felt Adrik¡¯s arms slide around my waist as he pulled me close. He didn¡¯t say anything, he just pulled me back against him, holding me tightly. I knew he felt my legs starting to shake when we were still in the office and he could feel the faint shaking in my body now. ¡°I¡¯m okay. I just needed a minute,¡± I said, turning my head to look up at him. ¡°I did too,¡± he said, as he pressed his lips to mine. We stood in silence for a few moments. ¡°Aside from wanting to hurt Andy for the kidnapping attempt, what are your thoughts?¡± ¡°I could tell he was hiding something when he walked in. I think the kidnapping attempt was what he was hiding, but I need to be sure,¡± I said. ¡°I just didn¡¯t want to be in there if the shaking got worse, which is why I left.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about leaving. I had to stop all the guys froming after you.¡± He turned us both so I could see his office door. ¡°They¡¯re all there, making sure you¡¯re okay,¡± he said. I looked toward his office and sure enough, all five guys were lined up outside the office door watching me. I couldn¡¯t help but smile. He turned me around to face him. That fear from the night before was back. ¡°I have a solution, but it means people will d ie.¡± ¡°No, it means the monsters that are manufacturing the brawn will d ie. They know what they¡¯re doing. I won¡¯t feel sorry for them if they get blown up,¡± I said. He smiled at me. ¡°I didn¡¯t even say it out loud and yet you still know just by looking at me and Ivan.¡± ¡°Well, I mean, this one was kind of obvious. Andy said it was vtile and then you two look at each other like it¡¯s pyromaniac¡¯s Christmas,¡± I said. Heughed loudly. I nced toward his office and saw all the guys visibly rx. ¡°Are you going to tell any of the rest of them your n? I¡¯m still notpletely sure about Andy. I need to make sure this is the only thing he¡¯s holding back, but he¡¯s pretty easy to read. And I¡¯m still not totally sure about Mike either. That dude has women issues that he¡¯s projecting onto me. It makes me want to fu ck with him, if I¡¯m being honest.¡± I looked at Adrik, a wicked glint in my eye. ¡°You¡¯re the go ddamn princess, solnishko. You can do whatever you please,¡± he said, his eyes mirroring the same wickedness he saw in mine. Chapter 187 Chapter 187 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Seven Adrik I felt a pull in my chest as my heart swelled listening to Sephieugh in front of me. It was one of my favorite sounds, especially when it helped my anger subside. I was very happy that she had gotten up to leave the office after Andy¡¯s admission. It gave me a reason to do the same. I think the guys also needed a reason, as they all went after her as well. I noticed the looks ¡°on Armando¡¯s guys¡¯ faces as we went after her. They don¡¯t understand the special rtionship we all have with her and it was clear that at least Mike was struggling with it. Of course Sephie already knew and I fully supported whatever she wanted to do to make him even more ufortable about it. When it came to my guys, I never had a moment of jealousy or doubt regarding them and Sephie. I trusted her and I trusted them. I knew she looked at me differently than she looked at them. It was clear that she had a role in each of their lives. She was helping each of them to fully realize their potential, just as she was helping me to realize mine. I wasn¡¯t going to stand in the way of that. My guys were my family. We¡¯d been through he ll together. I was closer with them than I was with anyone. It made me happy to see them with her and to know that she was safe when I wasn¡¯t around, because they would be there. I could see how someone on the outside of our little family might struggle to understand the dynamic, but that was their problem, as far as I was concerned. ¡°We should probably go back. At least so the guys don¡¯t get anxious and murder Andy to make me happy,¡± Sephie said, her fingers lightly running over my facial hair. She still had a wide smile on her face. I sighed. I really could use a minute or two longer away from them. ¡°Not yet, but I¡¯ll make sure they don¡¯t murder him just yet,¡± I said. I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her off the floor and walking to the elevators. I set her down and looked at the guys. I jerked my head toward us to indicate they shoulde to us. They all quickly walked to us. I knew they were waiting by the office door toText ? 2024 N?velDrama.Org. make sure no one decided to leave. This way, we could still ensure no one would leave, but we could have a moment to ourselves. I valued their opinions, always. Especially if it involved Sephie. I knew they had her best interests in mind always, just like I did. Once they were all standing next to us, I said to them in Russian, ¡°Sephie was worried you were going to murder Andy just to make her happy before we went back into the office.¡± ¡°Say the word, Sephie,¡± Stephen said, his voice dripping with anger. It took me by surprise, as he was usually the quiet one of the group, but I could clearly see his anger. She stepped away from me to give him a hug. ¡°Aww, Stephen. You¡¯re all soft and nougaty now too,¡± she said as he held onto her tightly. I knew he was using her to calm down. I¡¯d honestly only ever seen him that angry a handful of times and it never ended well for the other person. Stephen was a dark horse. He was the shortest out of all of us. He was still tallparatively, but at 6¡¯2, he was visibly shorter than the rest of us. Compared to the other guys, Stephen looked like the weakest link, but he was anything but. He could be a monster, just like the rest of us. I¡¯d seen him get pushed past his limit before. It wasn¡¯t pretty. He admittedly took the longest to warm up to Sephie, but those two had gotten closertely. I think she recognized that he was the loner type and let hime around when he was ready. Clearly, he was just as attached to her now as the rest of us. She stepped back from him, smiling sweetly at him. It made his cheeks flush slightly. She moved back to my side, as I pulled her to me. ¡°Now,¡± she said, still speaking Russian in case we were overheard, ¡°I still don¡¯t fully trust Andy. He was definitely holding back when he first got here, but I don¡¯t know if it was only the kidnapping attempt or If there is something more. He¡¯s genuine in everything he says. His face is an open book. I just want to make sure he¡¯s not holding anything else back from us, because that¡¯s the biggest feeling I get from him. He¡¯s telling us the truth when he speaks, but I don¡¯t think he¡¯s giving us everything.¡± She paused, but then added, ¡°and I¡¯m still notpletely sure about Mike either. I thought checking himst night would solve it, but he still seems to have a problem with me, especially when he sees me with you guys versus my boyfriend who happens to be the Lord King Boss of the underworld. There¡¯s a lot to unpack there, if I¡¯m being honest.¡± I chuckled at her description of me. Stephen spoke up again, ¡°I have some insight into that, but we can talk about itter. 1 think the more important situation is what Andy just told us and what to do about the warehouse.¡± ¡°Noted, but follow-up question: is it worthy of an appearance on the wh ite board? Because we¡¯re gonna need to know about that right now if it is,¡± Sephie said, grinning at him. We allughed. Stephen shook his head no. ¡°Not wh ite board worthy. It really can wait,¡± he said. ¡°Priorities, people,¡± Sephie said like she was conducting a business meeting. It made us allugh even more. Ivan said, ¡°I think, as Sephie put it, asking them nicely to stop distributing is the way to go.¡± I nodded. ¡°I agree. But I don¡¯t necessarily want to let the others in on that n just yet. Mike isn¡¯t making me happy right now. I don¡¯t know how much I trust that guy.¡± Viktor looked apologetic. ¡°He wasn¡¯t like that when I interviewed him.¡± ¡°Papa Bear, it¡¯s not your fault. He has some weird women issues that he¡¯s projecting onto me. It wouldn¡¯t havee up in an interview. I¡¯m not even sure it would¡¯vee up if he just had to deal with Giana. It seems directed at me. Maybe he ha tes redheads, I don¡¯t know,¡± Sephie said as she went to Viktor, wrapping her arms around his waist. She rested her head against his chest as he kissed the top of her head, his giant arms engulfing her. ¡°How does anyone ha te redheads? You¡¯re all feisty and shi t,¡± Misha said, grinning at her. ¡°It¡¯s a real thing, my adorable Russian guardian. It¡¯s a clear love/ha te situation. Men either love us or ha te us. There¡¯s very rarely an in between. I just figure the ones that ha te me are descended from the men who burned my kind hundreds of years. ago, so I don¡¯t want to be around them any da mn way,¡± she said, walking back to me. Armando came out of the office, looking somewhat concerned. He walked up to us, ¡°everything ok, Boss?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°We were justing back in. We just needed to discuss a matter privately first.¡± I knew Armando wouldn¡¯t question me. I felt a slight pang of guilt for taking advantage of that. I would tell him the n, if my mind was changed about Mike, but not before. Chapter 188 Chapter 188 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Eight Adrik ¡°Is Andy trustworthy?¡± Armando asked Sephie. ¡°I haven¡¯tpletely decided yet. I want to say yes, but I need to make sure before I make up my mind definitively,¡± she said, her sweet smile on her face as she talked to Armando. She really did like him, but she also knew not to say too much. It was a tricky situation. Armando ran his hand through his hair. ¡°What a mess. We still need to ask about my water district guy and what he knows about that. I¡¯m really concerned about that. I can¡¯t have the people in my area exposed to that much brawn.¡± ¡°I would like to know if he knows anything about Anthony¡¯s ex-girlfriend, as well,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Come, let¡¯s go find out,¡± I said, as I pulled her toward the office. When we walked back in, Andy was clearly worried. I remained silent, as did Sephie, as I sat in my chair. She hopped onto the bookshelf behind my desk once more. I looked to Armando, giving him the lead for questions about his water district. ¡°Andy, what do you know about the guy in my water district that they approached?¡± Armando asked. He was clearly stressed about this situation. He looked like he hadn¡¯t been sleeping very well. I caught myself wondering if Giana was as good atforting him as Sephie was atforting me. Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°That guy¡¯s name is Brian, I think?¡± Andy asked. Armando nodded. ¡°Brian¡¯s sister used to date Anthony.¡± Andy looked at me. ¡°That bracelet Sal gave you the day you banished Anthony?¡± I nodded. ¡°That bracelet was made for Brian¡¯s sister. Jennifer is her name. Anthony was sure she was cheating on him, so he gave her that bracelet so he could listen in on her conversations. She was pregnant at the time, too. Turns out she was cheating, but she swore the baby was Anthony¡¯s. She could never get him to submit to a DNA test to prove it, but she always remained constant that it belonged to him. When Sal was looking for ways in, he remembered that Brian was Jennifer¡¯s brother and that he worked at the water district in Armando¡¯s area of the city. He went to Jennifer and agreed to have his DNA tested against her kid. If the kid was Anthony¡¯s, it would share DNA with Sal. Once it was proven that the kid belonged to Anthony, Sal went to Brian and agreed to take care of the medical expenses for the kid and to support Jennifer as well, but Brian had to give his people ess to the water supply. He didn¡¯t tell him why, but he said the deal waspletely dependent on that. Brian was in a tough spot. He¡¯d been supporting his sister and now with the kid being diagnosed with ca ncer, he was struggling to keep up with medical hills. He agreed,¡± Andy said. ¡°How much do you know about the rtionship between Anthony and Jennifer when they were dating?¡± Sephie asked. I could still hear an edge to her voice, as could the guys, but she was trying to control it. Ivan looked at her, still concerned. I assumed she smiled at him, as I saw his expression soften slightly and he winked at her. ¡°Anthony is much like Massimo. I would more readily believe that Massimo was Anthony¡¯s father than Sal, to be honest. Anthony is a psycho. Like It didn¡¯t surprise any of us one bit what he did to you at the restaurant, Sephie. That was just the first time he¡¯d gotten caught and suffered the consequences of it. Jennifer would show up with fresh bruises regrly. She would have choke marks on her, too. One of Sal¡¯s underbosses was concerned for her. He thought maybe her father was beating her. It never urred to him that it could be Anthony. He¡¯s the one that started a rtionship with her while she was still with Anthony,¡± Andy said. I could see the fear sh across his face again. ¡°Did Anthony ki ll him or did Sal?¡± I asked. ¡°Sal did. Once they found out she was seeing him, Sal called him into his office and shot him point nk. Anthony had convinced Sal that he was trying to steal his woman and child from him. But after the underboss was dead, Anthony abandoned Jennifer and his kid. Completely cut her off. She had nothing.¡± ¡°S ick fu cks,¡± Sephie mumbled under her breath behind me. I was the only one that heard her. ¡°I couldn¡¯t agree more,¡± I said quietly, in Russian, so that only she could understand me. ¡°What do you know about Anthony¡¯s ns once he gets back to the city?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°What¡¯s the end goal here?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, but I know he can¡¯t stand Ghost since that night at the restaurant when he got his as s handed to him multiple times in one night. Anthony is a petnt child in a grown man¡¯s body. He doesn¡¯t take reprimands well. Even worse that they were public. I¡¯ve seen the look on his face that he had when Ghost yelled at him for pping Sephie in front of everyone. He won¡¯t stop until he destroys her to get to Ghost,¡± Andy said. ¡°What¡¯s Sal¡¯s rtionship like with Anthony? I got the impression he¡¯s scared of his own son,¡± Viktor asked. Andy nodded. ¡°He¡¯s definitely scared of him. He always has been. Even when Anthony was young. He learned as a small child that he could throw a fit and he¡¯d get anything he wanted. It¡¯s only gotten worse as he¡¯s gotten older. I¡¯ve seen him choke Sal before. Sal basically does whatever he wants. Even Anthony going to Sicily was Anthony¡¯s idea. He just didn¡¯t expect you to banish him there. He was expecting to go there, take care of business with Lorenzo, and then be able toe back. In his mind, he¡¯s untouchable.¡± That was good. When you get cocky, you get sloppy. He¡¯d be an easier target that way. ¡°What do you know about their talks with the Colombians?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about it, but if the Colombians don¡¯t y ball with Anthony and Lorenzo, they¡¯ve been making their own ns topletely bypass the Colombian supply. They¡¯ve been talking to the Mexican cartels in secret,¡± Andy said. Sephieughed behind me, causing everyone to look at her. I knew where she was going before she said anything. ¡°Do those du mb fu cks not know the Colombians are the ones that supply the Mexican cartels with product? They can try and bypass the Colombians all they want. They¡¯ll just cut off the supplypletely. No nothing. You can¡¯t even make brawn that way. Jesus these people are stu pid.¡± I felt the smile creeping across my face as I watched the rest of the room, outside of our group, realize what she had just said. Clearly, no one else had thought about that except the Russians in the room and Sephie. I couldn¡¯t help but feel proud that she was mine. ¡°How do you know that, Sephie? I didn¡¯t even know that,¡± Armando asked, clearly surprised. ¡°I thought everyone knew that it takes the specific climate of Colombia to grow the nts. You can grow it further south, as well, but the yields aren¡¯t as high and the quality isn¡¯t as good. Colombia is the prime location for growing the nt that makes the drugs,¡± she said, somewhat flippantly. Ivan grinned at her, saying in Russian, ¡°they were today years old when they learned that you could run the organization better than they can.¡± Sheughed, hopping down from the bookshelves and going to him. She sat down in between him and Misha, so she¡¯d be on Ivan¡¯s good side. He put his arm around her shoulders, letting her curl up beside him. He kissed the top of her head. I nced in Mike¡¯s direction, who had a strange expression on his face. I couldn¡¯t tell if he was shocked or angry or both. I nced back toward Sephie and caught Misha¡¯s eye, who had also seen Mike¡¯s expression change. Without a word, he reached over and grabbed one of Sephle¡¯s legs and stretched it across hisp, keeping his hand protectively on her leg. ¡°This is definitely going on the wh ite board,¡± she said in Russian. ¡°This might rece the creative ways to d ie as my favorite wh ite board addition, even. Of course, we allughed, forgetting for a moment about the severity of the situation. Chapter 189 Chapter 189 Chapter One Hundred Eighty-Nine Adrik We continued to talk with Andy, but it was starting to gette. Armando wanted to leave to go check on Giana, who had been alone most of the day, as she still felt intimidated by being in the same room with so many men. We set Andy up in a spare apartment, close to Armando¡¯s guys. Viktor gave strict orders to all the security that Andy was not to leave the building unless he was with one of us, under any circumstances. They had orders to sh oot him if he tried. I was somewhat relieved for it to be just us once again, so we could rx somewhat. Sephie got up from between Ivan and Misha, dering, ¡°I need a change of scenery. Everyonee upstairs. We¡¯re ordering food.¡± She had a grin on her face. I think she enjoyed giving us orders once in a while. Stephen pulled his phone out of his pocket. ¡°Chinese or Thai?¡± We all looked at each other, then looked at Stephen as we all said ¡°Thai¡± at once. ¡°Done and done,¡± he said as he walked out of the room to make the order. Once upstairs, we continued the conversation about what to do. ¡°I¡¯m going to call Trino in the morning, but I want to keep Armando in the dark for now. I don¡¯t think Trino knows Anthony has been talking to the Mexicans. They have a very strained rtionship, at best. I don¡¯t like dealing with them at all. This could start a war between the Colombians and the Mexicans if we¡¯re not careful,¡± I said. ¡°I think Trine is on your sidepletely. I think Armando is too, but I don¡¯t trust Mike at the moment, until we figure out what his issue is,¡± Sephie said. She thought for a moment. ¡°What does asking nicely entail, exactly?¡± Andrei chuckled. ¡°We need more details about the building, so we know where to ce the charges. And if we can gain ess inside or if we have to do it from the outside.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡± she asked. ¡°Inside is a cleaner demolition. Outside makes a bigger boom, basically,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Bubba, I had no idea you enjoyed blowing things up this much,¡± she said, grinning at him. ¡°Who do you think blew the ho le in the wall of the Syrian prison to ask nicely if Viktor coulde out and y?¡± he said,ughing. ¡°I did not bet on you, I¡¯ll be honest. You don¡¯t strike me as that turbulent,¡± she said. Heughed. ¡°I¡¯m not. But I really enjoyed chemistry ss.¡± ¡°Ne rd alert!¡± she said,ughing, causing everyone to join her in yet moreughter. Right on time. ¡°So how do you guys get the details of the warehouse that you need to make it go boom?¡± she asked, clearly curious about this n. Viktor exhaled loudly. ¡°That might be the mostplicated part. I¡¯m sure they¡¯re going to have the ce surrounded and watched constantly. If It¡¯s at the docks, that could work to our advantage or disadvantage, depending on the exact location. If it¡¯s on the water, that could work in our favor.¡± Sephie thought for a moment. ¡°Andy said the area was mostly abandoned. What if we make it not abandoned, so there¡¯s a reason for people to be down there?¡± We all thought for a moment, nodding in agreement. ¡°That could work. We¡¯d need a lot of people to make it work well, though,¡± Viktor said. ¡°How many dealers are in the city? If Chen was right and most of the dealers aren¡¯t down with selling brawn, I would bet good money they would help. There¡¯s a hierarchy of dealers, apparently, too. Like, I don¡¯t even think the bosses know all the dealers in the city. The dealers have dealers who have their own dealers,¡± Sephie said. We were quiet for a moment, all thinking about her idea. It was a good one. Set up a fake warehouse for a few weeks to give people a reason to be there while they collected information on the building. Ivan said, ¡°that¡¯s not a bad idea. If we can set up a fake warehouse next to the one they¡¯re using, it would give us a reason for electricians and the like to be close to their warehouse and maybe even in their warehouse.¡± Sephie¡¯s face lit up. ¡°Chen is a contractor too. He can help us get real¡­whatever we need to make it look as legit as possible. I¡¯m sure he knows electricians too.¡± She pulled a business card from her pocket and handed it to Viktor. ¡°I know Chen will help us, for sure. He¡¯s the mostid-back dude I¡¯ve ever met, so for him to be angry about something means he feels very strongly about it. He was not happy about the possibility of being forced to unknowingly sell brawn. If he¡¯s right about the other dealers, they¡¯ll help us out as well.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll start checking it out tomorrow and see what we cane up with,¡± Ivan said. Stephen¡¯s phone rang. He took it out of his pocket, looked at the screen, then put it back. ¡°Food¡¯s here. I¡¯ll be right back,¡± he said, walking toward the door. ¡°When you get back, I want to hear your insight into the Mike problem,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Deal,¡± he said, walking out of the penthouse. Sephie caught me smiling to myself, happy that those two seemed to be getting as close as she was with the other four guys. It took me a while to warm up to Stephen as well, but he was an integral part of the team at this point. While we were all eating, Stephen enlightened us with his insight on Mike. ¡°I Was in the gym at the same time as Keith the other night. We were just shooting the sh it. I asked a lot of questions, curious about where they all came from. Keith used to work with Mike, you know.¡± He looked at Viktor, who nodded his head. ¡°They told me when I was interviewing them that they knew each other,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Right, well they worked together in a really small town. They were both on the police force. It was the town they grew up in, too. Mike climbed the ranks quickly after joining the force. He was a very big fish in a very small pond, basically.¡± He paused to take a bite of food. I nced at Sephie. I could tell she was beginning to put pieces together. Stephen continued, ¡°Keith says he¡¯s always been that stereotypical alpha male type, but not in a good way. He takes the aggression to an extreme, things like that.¡± ¡°Do you know what made him leave that small town?¡± Sephle asked. ¡°Keitia said he made it as far as he could make it without someone above him dying. He got tired of waiting. He¡¯s big on titles. He likes authority, Keith said. My best guess, and you might tell me I¡¯m completely wrong, Seph, but I think he almost feels threatened by you. He operates by the rules of the animal kingdom, if you will. He sees all of us and we¡¯re clearly a formidable opponent, so he respects that automatically. But then he sees Seph and at least in his mind, she¡¯s clearly inferior, but then he sees us deferring to her, protecting her, and well, following her around like puppies, because let¡¯s be real, we do that. But I mean, it¡¯s by choice. We all want to be near her. But for someone like Mike, who isn¡¯t necessarily smart enough to see past the ck and wh ite of big male equals strength, small woman equals weak rules, it¡¯s likely disturbing.¡± We all chuckled when he called us puppies. Guilty. But I didn¡¯t see any of us changing that anytime soon. ¡°Has the man ever beenid?¡± Sephie asked. Stephenughed. ¡°I don¡¯t know the answer to that question. That¡¯s not really information I was interested in.¡± Stephen looked at all of us, somewhat nervously, adding, ¡°Mike really isn¡¯t my type.¡± I caught Sephie¡¯s eye, knowing she knew what that meant, but waited to see if any of the other guys picked up on it. Theyughed, thinking he was joking. Sephie looked thoughtfully at Stephen, trying to figure out if he really wanted to have this conversation or not right now. He looked at her, realizing that she picked up on his hint. They had a silent conversation, then Sephie asked, ¡°but Keith is your type, isn¡¯t he?¡± Stephen blushed, slightly, but a small smile crept across his face. Sephie said, ¡°he¡¯s way hotter. Good choice.¡± The other four suddenly realized what he had meant. Andrei looked at him, smiling. ¡°This makes so much more sense. I thought you were a monk, dude. You¡¯ve never once been interested in a girl. I was beginning to worry there was something wrong. I¡¯m so relieved.¡± Misha¡¯s broad smile stretched across his face. ¡°Me too, bro. And I agree with Sephie. Keith is definitely the better choice. Now I understand why he¡¯s been staring at the back of your head so much.¡± Stephen looked surprised. ¡°He has?¡± ¡°Yeah, dude. We¡¯ve all noticed it. We thought he was just awkward after you saved his a ss when you guys went to get Andy. You know, some dules have a problem saying thank you. I put him squarely in that category. Turns out I was wrong.¡± Ivan said,ughing. Stephen suddenly looked like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. ¡°You guys don¡¯t care?¡± Viktor looked at him, seriously. ¡°The only thing I care about is that you kept it from us for so long. You could¡¯ve told us before now. It wouldn¡¯t have changed anything. But I have to say I¡¯m impressed you hid it so well. We had no clue.¡± I cleared my throat. They all looked at me. ¡°Well, it shoulde as no surprise to anyone, but Sephie knew. She just wanted. Stephen to feelfortable enough to tell you guys himself.¡± They all said, ¡°of course¡± at the same time. Stephen, curious, asked, ¡°when did you figure it out, Seph?¡± ¡°Not that long ago, honestly. When we were at the club with Trino. I saw you talking to one of his guys while we were making bets at the bar. He was also very attractive. You like them pretty,¡± she said, grinning at him. Stephen stood up and went to her, pulling her into a hug. ¡°Thank you. For letting me tell everyone in my own time. And thank you for showing me how much more awesome it is to just be yourself all the time,¡± he said. She hugged him tightly. He walked back to his seat, visibly lighter, I smiled to myself thinking about how Sephie had brought out the best in all of us. I remembered Ms. Jackson¡¯s words from so many months ago. She¡¯ll show you the best parts of yourself, if you let her. I hoped she¡¯d never stop. Stephen said, as he cleared his throat, ¡°back to Mike. You add in that she¡¯s affectionate with all of us, while usually in the same. roon as her boyfriend and Mike just assumes that something else is going on with Seph and all of us, which proves to further his original assessment that she¡¯s the weaker of us and using s ex to gain favor.¡± Ivan looked to Stephen, ¡°so how do we check Mike more forcefully, so he learns his ce?¡± This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Stephen thought for a moment. ¡°I only have one idea so far, but I¡¯m not sure you¡¯re going to like it.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s hear it,¡± Sephie said. ¡°I think you¡¯re going to have to kick his a ss,¡± Stephen said. Chapter 190 Chapter 190 Chapter One Hundred Ny Adrik I watched Sephie¡¯s reaction at Stephen¡¯s solution to the Mike problem. She thought for a minute, clearly unsure about it. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I feel about this,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s one thing for you guys to spar with her. I know you guys won¡¯t hurt her. I don¡¯t know that I can say the same for Mike. If he hurts her, he¡¯s a dead man.¡± She leaned into me, smiling sweetly at me. She had that spark in her eyes that only I could see. I felt my heart jump in my chest as I looked at her. ¡°Mike doesn¡¯t have the same training as Sephie does now,¡± Viktor said. ¡°This could actually work out really well. I was going to have them start training with us starting Monday anyway.¡± ¡°Sephie can be his first test. I heard him trying to convince you that he didn¡¯t need any training. Tell him if he can best her, then he can skip it,¡± Ivan said, a sly smile stretched across his face. ¡°But what if he really can best me?¡± Sephie asked. Misha and Andrei looked at each other,ughing loudly. ¡°Gazelle, you don¡¯t need to worry about him besting you. We need to worry about being able to pull you off him, so you don¡¯t seriously injure him.¡± ¡°But he¡¯s not you and Bubba. He¡¯s not going to know what to say to pi ss me off. I don¡¯t know how to just summon the anger,¡± she said. She still had a worried look on her face. ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re for,¡± Andrei said. ¡°We¡¯ll get you to see red and throw you in there with him.¡± Stephen had been quietly contemting this n, as he was want to do. He looked at Sephie, ¡°from the impression I got from talking to Keith, Mike is more talk than anything. He likely did well on the force in the small town, but it¡¯s not saying much when you¡¯re King Turd on a pile of shi t.¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Okay, one, it¡¯s going to be extremely difficult for me to not call him that to his face from now on, so thank you for that. And two, he¡¯s still a dude and bigger and stronger than I am. Biology can¡¯t be ignored,¡± she said. ¡°He¡¯s bigger and stronger, but you¡¯re lighter and faster. That¡¯s always your advantage, spider monkey. That¡¯s how you keep all of us on our toes. We have brute force, sure. But it¡¯s harder to move that much mass as quickly as you can move your lighter, smaller body. And when you¡¯re angry?¡± He scoffed, ¡°you¡¯re like lightning fast. That¡¯s why me and Misha enjoy pi ssing you off so much. You¡¯re a serious challenge when you¡¯re angry,¡± Andrei said. ¡°If you fight him like you did Misha on the beach, Mike won¡¯t know what hit him. That¡¯s the best I¡¯ve seen you look, princess,¡± Ivan said. ¡°If Keith is right and Mike never really took his training seriously, it¡¯s going to be painfully obvious very quickly. And something tells me that you don¡¯t need to worry about being able to summon your anger with him. I don¡¯t even think you¡¯ll need Andrei and Misha as backup to make you angry. I¡¯m fairly certain Mike is going to inevitably say something to pi ss you off, even more than we¡¯re able to.¡± Stephen said, ¡°I feel like this definitely needs to make it to the wh ite board. Both for how long it takes her to take him down and for how long it takes him to say something that will unleash the fire we all know is in there.¡± They all ended up looking at me, as they knew it wouldn¡¯t happen if I didn¡¯t want it to. I looked to Sephie. ¡°This only happens If you¡¯re okay with it and want to do it. I have zero doubts that you¡¯ll be able to handle him. He does strike me as more bark than bite, but we don¡¯t know that for sure either.¡± She looked at me for a moment. I could still see the uncertainty in her eyes. She then looked at each of the guys. ¡°You¡¯ll all be there?¡± Everyone nodded. She looked down, her hands fidgeting in herp. She took a deep breath, then said, ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± The guys all erupted in ted yells. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. I knew Sephie would be able to handle herself. My guys were trained by the best and they trained her. I¡¯d seen what she could do and I knew she was still holding back. This might even be good for her. I was worried, however, about controlling my own temper in the event she got hurt. It would take all five of the guys to pull me off Mike and Ivan still only had the use of one arm. The odds were in my favor and I knew it. That didn¡¯t bode well for Mike, if it came down to that. Sephie couldn¡¯t help but smile at the guys¡¯ reactions to her agreeing to this. The more I thought about it, the more I thought it could be good for her. She was holding back, but only because she didn¡¯t believe in her abilities 100%. Facing someone she knew nothing about could be a major confidence boost for her. I called Trino the next afternoon. I waited until after noon, to give him time to recover from his night of partying that ! assumed happened. When he answered his phone, he sounded like he had just woken up. ¡°Jefe, que pasa, amigo?¡± he said, the sleep still evident in his voice. ¡°Trino, I have more information that you¡¯re going to want to hear,¡± I said. I filled him in on what we¡¯d found out about Dario. and Massimo, as well as what Salvadori, Anthony, and Lorenzo had been nning. When I got to the part about them negotiating with the Mexican cartels, Trino¡¯s anger erupted over the phone. ¡°THEY DID WHAT??¡± he yelled into the phone. I could hear him move the phone away from his face, cursing loudly. He gained control, but he was still cursing in Spanish as he said, ¡°do those pendejos not know that I supply the Mexican cartels? I do. ME. There¡¯s no bypassing me.¡± I had tough. ¡°Sephie is actually the one that informed everyone else of that fact. Mando didn¡¯t even know that, nor did his guys, or Sal¡¯s guy that¡¯s giving us this information.¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t marry her, I¡¯m going to steal her, Jefe. I respect you, but I¡¯m telling you right now, I will risk it all to get her. She can learn to love Colombian men,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°I might actually like to see you try, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± I said. ¡°That hurts, Jefe. I¡¯m a sensitive man,¡± he said, stillughing. ¡°We¡¯re working on getting more information on the warehouse where they¡¯re manufacturing the brawn. We¡¯d like to have New Year¡¯s fireworks early. How much longer do you think you can keep Anthony and Lorenzo down there?¡± I asked. He exhaled. ¡°I can keep them as long as I possibly can if it¡¯s helping you out. I¡¯m enjoying toying with them. It might be concerning how much I¡¯m enjoying toying with them. They still don¡¯t know that Dario and Massimo are down here. I¡¯ve kept them separate from each other. I can let that slip and watch them fight each other for at least two weeks. It¡¯ll give Massimo hope that I¡¯m going to let him live. Makes it that much sweeter when I throw him off that cliff.¡± Iughed. ¡°Have you picked out which cliff? I vote for the highest one you can find. Draw it out as long as possible. He¡¯s truly a slek fu ck, Trino. He killed Dario¡¯s parents when he was just 12 years old. Then he convinced Dario that he did him a favor by killing them.¡± There was silence for a moment on the other end. ¡°That¡¯s evil, Jefe. That¡¯s true evil. I mean, you and I are ¡®no saints, but we¡¯ve got rules.¡± ¡°If you were wavering at all about ending him, there¡¯s your motivation to stick with your original n. You¡¯re doing the world a favor,¡± I said. I could hear him cursing in Spanish. ¡°What about the warehouse? Do you need help with that? My dealers weren¡¯t too happy to find out they were trying to rece their supply without telling them. None of them want to sell brawn. That¡¯s going to ki ll at least half their customer base. That¡¯s a terrible business decision.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re finding on our end, too. When brawn originally surfaced, the story was that the bosses were the ones that forbade the dealers from making it and selling it, but I¡¯m not sure I believe that story anymore. Something else went on. Or the city has entirely new dealers, which isn¡¯t likely.¡± While this wasn¡¯t a priority, I was curious to find out what really happened when brawn had originally appeared in the city. Somehow the story wasn¡¯t adding up now. ¡°I can have my dealers get in touch with your guys. A few of them already offered to help. The rest of them will help if I tell them to. La zy cabrons¡­¡± he said, trailing off. ¡°That would be great, Trino. We¡¯re gathering information right now to find out the best course of action. The warehouse is in an abandoned area, so we¡¯re going to try to set up a fake warehouse next to it to gather intel. Gives us a reason to be there without arousing suspicion,¡± I said. ¡°Good n. But as every good Colombian knows, a car bomb will work in a pinch,¡± he said. I chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind, Trino.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll keep you posted on the mo rons down here. If you hear anything more about the Mexican cartels, I would appreciate a heads up. Our rtionship is strained, at best.¡± ¡°Will do, Trino. I¡¯m trying to avoid a war between you and them. I¡¯ll keep you informed. And on the off chance you talk to Armando, he doesn¡¯t know of our n for the warehouse yet. We¡¯re still unsure of one of his security guys, so I haven¡¯t brought him in on the n yet.¡± ¡°You have my word, Jefe.¡± Chapter 191 Chapter 191 Chapter One Hundred Ny-One Adrik The weekend seemed to fly by. We spent most of Saturday finding information about the area of the docks where the warehouse was located. Andy had given us the exact location, so we were looking at the surrounding buildings to see what our options. were. It takes time to track down who owns what building and what that building was used for when it was upied. If we were going to move into one of the buildings, it needed to be for a believable excuse. The guys spent most of Sunday morning trying to calm Sephie¡¯s nerves about the following morning¡¯s n for Mike. She was still okay with the n, but she was still worried about it. Giana had asked Sephie if she wanted to go to lunch with Ms. Jackson on Sunday over a week ago. I sent Viktor, Misha, and Stephen with her. Armando sent Mike and Keith with Giana. When Sephie got back, she was ready for the following morning. ¡°Yep, I feel good about kicking his a ss now,¡± she said as she walked back into the penthouse with Viktor, Misha, and Stephen. They were allughing. Ivan and Andrei had been with me, still trying to find more information on the buildings at the docks. We all looked expectantly at Sephie as she walked in and sat down next to me on the couch. Her cheeks were slightly flushed. I couldn¡¯t tell if it was because it was colder outside or if she was angry. ¡°Did something happen, solnishko?¡± I asked as she sat next to me on the couch. She exhaled loudly. I could see her frustration clearly on her face. ¡°You know it¡¯s bad when Ms. Jackson says he¡¯s not allowed at Bingo,¡± Misha said,ughing. Viktor, stillughing, said, ¡°he¡¯s going to need that extra training. He might¡¯ve embellished on his experience level.¡± Sephie looked at Stephen. ¡°King Turd,¡± she said,ughing. Stephen just nodded,ughing with her. ¡°I thought they did an okay job getting Andy?¡± I asked, somewhat confused. ¡°They did. Apparently when you add women, Mike turns into an as shole. Sephie had to check him again when he got a little too harsh with Giana,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Tomorrow is going to be a very hard day for him,¡± Sephie said, leaning into me. She held onto my arm as I stretched it across herp, leaning her head onto my shoulder. ¡°Bad day for him, but a good day for the rest of us,¡± Misha said, grinning at her. ¡°What happened?¡± Ivan asked, curious. ¡°Giana is used to you guys, at this point. You know what you¡¯re doing and you kind of guide those of us that are mostly clueless along without saying anything and usually without us even realizing you¡¯re doing it. You¡¯re all very good at your Jobs, which means you can quietly do your jobs. Mike is not that way. He yelled at Giana for going the wrong way, so I yelled at him. It waspletely unnecessary and now she¡¯s scared of him even more than she¡¯s scared of you guys,¡± Sephie said. Ivan cursed under his breath. ¡°Tomorrow is Indeed going to be rough for him.¡± Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. Sephie was awake bright and early on Monday morning. She woke up before the sun even really started to rise. I felt her stir, moving off my chest. She stretched next to me, her joints popping like normal. I rolled over, wrapping my arms around her and burying my face in her neck. ¡°You¡¯re up early, my love,¡± I said. She turned toward me, draping her leg over mine, her hand running lightly over my back. ¡°Yeah, I can¡¯t sleep anymore. My brain won¡¯t stop.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still worried about Mike?¡± I asked. I moved so that I could look at her. ¡°Yes, but not just him. I just keep thinking about everything happening, really. I¡¯m even worried for Trino now that we know just how si ck Massimo really is.¡± Her fingers started to lightly y with my facial hair. Iughed. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯m going to skip telling him that. He told me he was going to steal you yesterday. I don¡¯t want to give him any more hope that you can learn to love Colombian men.¡± She looked at me wide-eyed, her fingers frozen in ce. ¡°I told him I¡¯d like to see him try,¡± I said, grinning at her. ¡°He was kidding though, right? Please tell me he was kidding,¡± she said. I could feel the faint shaking in her leg start as she thought about the possibility of having to worry about Trinoing for her as well. ¡°He was kidding, Sephie. He would never. He wasughing when he said it. He¡¯s made it clear that he¡¯s fascinated by you, but he has too much respect for me to try anything. And besides, you¡¯ve seen Trino. You could snap him in two without breaking a sweat. He¡¯s thest person you need to be worried about.¡± I wrapped my arms around her tighter, pulling her closer to me, trying to keep the shaking from getting worse. I felt her sigh and her body rx as I held her. I kissed her forehead. ¡°Come, I¡¯ll make you breakfast. You need fuel for Mike¡¯s big day.¡± I grabbed my phone as we got out of bed. I had a feeling that the guys were all awake too. They were like children on Christmas morning about this training session with Mike. I sent Viktor a text telling him toe up for breakfast. ¡°Who are you texting so fre aking early?¡± she asked as she was putting her hair up into a bun on top of her head. I grinned at her. ¡°I told the guys toe up for breakfast too. I¡¯m sure they¡¯re all awake by now. They can¡¯t wait for Mike¡¯s big, day, either.¡± ¡°I mean, no pressure,¡± she said, rolling her eyes. A small smile crept across her face, though. We barely had time to get dressed and the guys were walking into the penthouse. We had just walked into the kitchen when they all walked in. Yep, they were excited about this. Ivan walked to Sephie, sliding his good arm around her shoulders. ¡°Good morning, princess,¡± he said, squeezing her shoulders. He kissed the top of her head as she leaned into him. ¡°I think you¡¯re all more excited about this than I am,¡± she said, smiling at each of them. ¡°Maybe a little,¡± Misha said, grinning back at her. ¡°You¡¯re going to be fine, spider monkey. We were trained by the best and we trained you, which means you were trained by the best too,¡± Andrei said, as he made her a cup of coffee. She still looked slightly unsure, but she didn¡¯t say anything more about it. She looked up at Ivan, ¡°we need to change your bandage again. It should be close to time to get an x-ray to see if the bone is healed enough you can take that stu pid sling off.¡± ¡°Not looking forward to that and also looking forward to that,¡± Ivan sald, winking at her. ¡°I¡¯ll be there the whole time. I¡¯ll make sure it¡¯s quick,¡± she said, smiling broadly at him. We could see him rx as she smiled at him. There was definitely a stronger connection between those two since Ivan almost died. The rest of us could see it, but we didn¡¯t necessarily understand it. Chapter 192 Chapter 192 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Two Adrik Mike, Chris, and Keith were on time to the gym, which was a good sign. It was obvious that Mike didn¡¯t think he needed to be there, however. Chris and Keith seemed happy enough to be there. Keith even more so when he caught Stephen¡¯s eye. I couldn¡¯t help but smile to myself as I watched those two be awkward with each other. Viktor informed them that they needed to have their skills assessed so he could see where their training needed to start. ¡°I told you the training I had, Viktor. You already know this,¡± Mike said, a slight edge to his voice. Sephie folded her arms across her chest, raising an eyebrow. Her hackles would go up anytime anyone was the slightest bit rude to one of us. It was, in fact, adorable. ¡°And I could tell you that I¡¯m the Queen of Ennd. Doesn¡¯t necessarily make it true,¡± Sephie said. We all heard her tone of voice. We all instinctively took a step back from her. Mike red at her for a moment, but realized a second toote what he was doing. I stepped behind her, my gaze fixed on him. He quickly looked down. Ivan, who was really enjoying this exchange, said, ¡°make you a deal, Mike. If you can pass the test today, you don¡¯t have to continue with the training. If you can¡¯t, you get to start at the beginning.¡± While Chris and Keith knew that something felt a little off about Ivan¡¯s offer, Mike jumped at the chance. ¡°Deal. This should be easy,¡± he said. Keith looked at him, surprised. ¡°You don¡¯t even know what the test is yet, Mike.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need to. I¡¯m sure I can pass it,¡± he said with as much bravado as one man can have.. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Sephie looked at Stephen. I couldn¡¯t see her expression, but he was smiling at her. They both said, ¡°King Turd¡± in Russian, making each otherugh. Viktor said, ¡°if you can best Sephie in the ring, you can skip training, Mike. If you can¡¯t, then I don¡¯t want to hear another word out of you about training. Understood?¡± We all nced at Viktor somewhat surprised. He rarely lost his cool, but we could hear the anger in his voice, even. Mikeughed loudly. ¡°You¡¯re not serious, right? You¡¯re really going to sacrifice your precious woman?¡± Ivan looked at Mike, threateningly. ¡°We¡¯re sacrificing you, you du mb fu ck.¡± That made Sephieugh. She said, in Russian, ¡°Super Squish, I kind of love you right now.¡± Mike still thought he had the clear advantage. He climbed into the ring, ¡°alright, let¡¯s get this over with, but don¡¯t be mad at me when I mess up her pretty face and she¡¯s got nothing else going for her. I can¡¯t believe you guys are du mb enough to let me wreck her face.¡± We ail saw it. The switch flipped. We knew that look. Mike was in trouble and didn¡¯t even know it. Even Chris and Keith saw it. Their eyes went wide as they watched her climb into the ring with Mike, I nced at all the guys, who had stepped closer to the ring. They were all angry as well. Whatever happened, this was not going to end well for Mike today. It might be Mike¡¯sst day. Viktor stepped in the ring, exined the rules to Mike, then moved to a corner to be out of the way. He stayed in to be able to pull her off Mike when needed, because we all knew that wasing. Mike, still cocky as ever, walked toward Sephie. He thought his size was a clear advantage over her, which meant this was likely going to be over with quickly. She waited for him to throw the first punch, which she dodged easily. She didn¡¯t return a punchi either. He threw another, she dodged it, but waited. She¡¯s ying with him. My heart might¡¯ve swelled in my chest a little as I felt pride watching her. The third time Mike threw a punch, she dodged it, then returned a quick hit to his ribs. She was controlling her anger better than we¡¯d ever seen her. Mike coughed once, but tried to y it off. ¡°Is that all you got, sweetheart? It¡¯s going to take a lot more than a cheap shot to my ribs to take me down.¡± ¡°Careful what you wish for, mo therfucker,¡± Sephie said. Hereback only served to make him angrier. We watched as he lost control of it and his true side came out. He went on the offense once again, but she easily dodged most of his punches, never letting himnd a square punch, making him even angrier that he couldn¡¯t get to her. She was still ying defense, but I got the sense that she was learning his moves and what to expect from him. She allowed him to think he was getting to her, testing his strength, but on her terms instead of his. She would let his punchesnd, but would deflect them enough that she really wasn¡¯t hurting from them. ¡°You seem to do a lot of running, little girl. This isn¡¯t really that much of a challenge,¡± Mike said. While he said it wasn¡¯t a challenge, he was breathing heavier than she was. She wasn¡¯t even making a real effort yet. ¡°You seem to think you can hang with the big boys, so why don¡¯t you fight like one?¡± he said, moving closer to her to begin his next assault. She didn¡¯t give him time toprehend what was happening. She switched to offense so quickly that it was hard to keep track of her movements, even for those us watching. Shended so many hits in such a short amount of time that he was stumbling. backward before he knew what was happening. He did manage to gain his footing and tried to stand his ground. He threw a punch that I thought for a split second was going tond squarely on her jaw. She moved at thest second, grabbing his arm, using it as leverage to lift herself higher. Shended a kick on his thigh, effectively taking his knee out from under him. She still had a hold of his arm as he went down. She bent his arm backward behind his back, making it almost impossible for him to get out of her hold. Any normal man would¡¯ve realized he was beaten, but this was Mike and his ego couldn¡¯t let go yet. His adrenaline kicked in, giving him a surge of energy. He jumped to his feet. Sephie let go of him as he jumped up, a smile on her face. Her cheeks were flushed, her breathinging faster now. She walked to Viktor, pulling her shirt off and handing it to him. We saw Viktor say something quietly to her as he took her shirt. She simply nodded her head and walked back toward Mike. Misha said, loud enough for Mike to hear him, ¡°you better be careful, Mike. She¡¯ll fu ck you up if you don¡¯t tap out next time.¡± Mike just red at Misha, but said nothing. I nced at Chris and Keith. Their jaws dropped when they saw Sephie¡¯s scars. I knew Mike had brought all her anger to the surface, if she was willing to show them her scars. I was d to see it. She needed to know that her scars made her stronger, not weaker. Mike looked at Sephie, now just in a sports bra. He was sweating, his breathing was heavy. He was clearly struggling more than she was. ¡°You¡¯re taking your shirt off now to try and distract me? You can¡¯t spread your legs and use your sexual charms to get me to do your bidding like you do the rest of these guys. Unlike your harem of men, I don¡¯t want to take a ride on the vige bike, little wh ore.¡± Chapter 193 Chapter 193 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Three Adrik I felt my angering to the surface now. I made a move toward the ring. I don¡¯t know how Sephie knew, because she couldn¡¯t see me, but she looked to me immediately and put her hand up, signaling she was fine. I nced to Ivan, who was just as angry as I was. This was going to be Mike¡¯sst day, regardless of how this turned out. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. Misha, always the instigator, said to Sephie in Russian, ¡°I warned him, gazelle. If you don¡¯t end him, we will.¡± She turned to look at Misha. One side of her mo uth curled up into a half-smile and she winked at him. She was in total control. Mike used her momentaryck of focus tounch his next attack. He rushed her, grabbing her, trying to take her to the ground. She used his momentum to flip him over and off her. He scrambled to his feet quickly, looking somewhat surprised. She didn¡¯t give him time to get his bearings. She was a flurry of hits and kicks, pushing him back toward the ropes. Shended every single punch and every single kick on him. His nose was likely broken at this point. He was going to have at least one ck eye, maybe two. Shended one kick on his ribs and we all heard the crack. She heard it too and she focused on that area,nding multiple kicks, inflicting the maximum amount of pain. At this point, he could barely see. He could only try to protect his head and his torso as best he could. He still wouldn¡¯t give up, though. She took out his knee again, causing him to go down once more. She paused, asking him, ¡°wanna reconsider your opinion of me yet?¡± He spit out blood toward her. ¡°Fu ck you, wh ore.¡± He mumbled something after that I didn¡¯t quite catch, but Sephie clearly did. She delivered a kick straight to his head, causing him to crash to the mat as he lost consciousness. He might¡¯ve been dead. I found myself not caring. Viktor walked to her with a towel to wipe Mike¡¯s blood off her with and handed her shirt back to her. I walked into the ring, standing next to her, looking down at Mike. I looked to Viktor, ¡°he¡¯s done here. If he wakes up, make sure he understands he won¡¯t next time if I ever see him in this city again,¡± I said. Sephie looked at me. I could still see the anger in her eyes. It was almost like they had changed color. The brown in her eyes was more prominent and darker. The soft green and blue rings were almost non-existent. She looked intimidating. I found myselfpletely turned on by it. She looked to Viktor, then back at me. She said, in Russian, ¡°he¡¯s done on this earth. He¡¯s not going to let this go, ever. He¡¯ll either spend the rest of his life trying to get to me or he¡¯ll run to Sal to tell him everything he knows about us. Or both. He can¡¯t walk out of this building.¡± Viktor looked at her, the look of a proud older brother on his face. ¡°You both are assuming he¡¯s going to wake up. Ten bucks says he¡¯s already dead.¡± Chris and Keith walked into the ring. Chris went to check Mike¡¯s vitals as we were still standing over him. Keith looked at Sephie, saying, ¡°I had no idea he had that much hatred for you, Sephie. He¡¯s always been a d ick to women, but this was a new level, even for him. He deserved every bit of that. He never would¡¯ve stopped.¡± Chris looked at Sephie. ¡°I hated that guy.¡± She raised an eyebrow. ¡°Hated? As in past tense?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°No pulse. I think thatst kick to the head did him in.¡± 1 She stood frozen for a moment. Her expression was nk. She then looked at Viktor, saying in English, ¡°I guess I owe you ten bucks, Papa Bear.¡± Ivan, Andrel, Stephen, and Misha stepped into the ring as well. While they were trying to be somber, as they weren¡¯t sure how Sephle was going to handle knowing she just killed a guy, I could clearly see the pride on all their faces, She looked at them, still in shock. Ivan, ever the wise one, said, ¡°Sephie, he sealed his fate the second he called you a wh ore. If you hadn¡¯t ended him, we would have. There was no walking out of here alive for him today. You just delivered his sentence, Princess.¡± His face softened when he said thatst sentence. It was exactly what she needed to hear as we watched the switch flip back. She walked quickly to him, wrapping her arms around his waist, burying her face in his good shoulder. He held her against him tightly with his good arm, whispering something to her that only she could hear. She took a deep breath and nodded her head, but kept her face in his shoulder. He had a small smile on his face as he said one more thing to her quietly that made herugh. She looked up at him, tears in her eyes, but smiling. She reached up and kissed his cheek. ¡°Oh God I¡¯m using my sexual charms again!¡± she said, dramatically. ¡°Somebody please stop me.¡± We all erupted inughter as we stood over Mike¡¯s body. A strange scene, for sure. Misha caught her as she was walking back to me. He wrapped his arms around her, picking her up. ¡°Please never stop, Gazelle. Never ever,¡± he said. She giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck. ¡°I promise, my adorable Russian guardian,¡± she said as he set her down. I took Sephie upstairs while they guys dealt with everything in the gym. I took her straight to the shower, knowing she would want to get any and all traces of him off her as quickly as possible. She was quiet. I pulled her to me, the warm water running over both of us. I looked at her, trying to figure out what she was thinking. She looked at me, a questioning look in her eye. ¡°What does it mean that I don¡¯t feel bad for what just happened? I felt the same standing over Mike as I did standing over my uncle. Completely void,¡± she said. I could see the hint of fear in her eyes as she contemted what she was capable of. ¡°Ivan was right, Sephie. He sealed his fate with ine when he said your pretty face was all you had going for you. Ivan too. It just kept getting worse as he got angrier. Do you believe me now that what¡¯s said in anger is someone¡¯s true feelings?¡± I asked, running my fingers through her wet hair. She smiled sweetly at me, nodding her head. ¡°He really didn¡¯t know when to sh ut up,¡± she said. She turned around, leaning hack against me. She held her hands up, looking at the bruises that were already bing visible. I massaged her shoulders, running my hands down her arms to grab her hands. I looked them over. The skin on her knuckles was broken in a few ces and they were starting to swell and change colors as the bruising settled in. ¡°I have a trick to help this,¡± I said, holding her hands gently in mine. ¡°From all those punching bags you used to break?¡± she asked, looking up at me. I raised an eyebrow at her. ¡°How do you know about that?¡± ¡°Tori told me about it. She said they thought you had anger issues because you were constantly breaking punching bags. That one was hard for me to believe, honestly,¡± she said. She pulled my arms around her waist, leaning her head back against my shoulder. ¡°She was right. They used to have to keep an extra supply of bags because I went through them so quickly. I think I¡¯ve only broken one bag since I met you, though.¡± She looked up at me again, surprised. I smiled at her. ¡°I told you, solnishko. You made that side of me go to sleep.¡± She chuckled. ¡°Not entirely, though, I could feel your anger when Mike made thement about my sexual charms, I looked at her, now surprised. ¡°Seriously? I did wonder how you knew I had made a move toward the ring noticed it the other night when we were talking to Andy about the kidnapping attempt. It¡¯s like your anger feeds mine. 1 don¡¯t know how to describe it, but I could feel it then and I could feel it today.¡± She turned to face me again, her eyes searching, worried I was going to think she was crazy for saying it out loud. ¡°You do read my mind already. I don¡¯t know why it would be any different that you can feel what I feel,¡± I said, smiling at her. ¡°It¡¯s one of the many things I love about you.¡± Chapter 194 Chapter 194 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Four Andrei I¡¯ve never seen Sephie get that angry and be able to control it so well. I knew she was going to be lethal once she learned how to control her anger and she proved it today. Mike didn¡¯t know what hit him. We all knew she¡¯d been holding back, but I think it surprised everyone just how much she¡¯d been holding back. I nced at Chris and Keith a few times, trying to gauge their reactions to watching their team member get obliterated by her. I knew there was a chance this could cause problems with them, and I wanted to be ready in the event it did. I caught Misha looking toward them too. I raised an eyebrow, silently asking if it would be okay once the inevitable happened. He got that faraway look in his eye, but quickly nodded his head. He said quietly, ¡°I don¡¯t think they like him, either.¡± The greatest part of watching Sephie finally realize her potential was watching her improvise with Mike. She was ying with him for the first half, trying to make him think she was weaker than she is and keep him convinced he had the upper hand. It made me proud. Not only was she a formidable opponent physically, she was a formidable opponent me ntally as well. I had to say, I was happy to see her messing with his mind as much as possible. And I couldn¡¯t help but smile as I watched her try new things that we hadn¡¯t even taught her as she fought him. Sephie¡¯s strength came from her legs. While she was quick with her punches, she was a woman. She¡¯d never be able to deliver the same kind of punch that I could. It just wasn¡¯t physically possible. She knew that, which is why she¡¯d started relying on her legs to deliver the most amount of damage when she¡¯d train. Her kicks were just as fast as her punches, but with four times the power behind them. When she delivered the final kick to Mike¡¯s head, I knew he was done for. I¡¯d been kicked by her when she was still holding back. I knew the power she could deliver even then. She was exponentially more powerful right now that she wasn¡¯t holding back. Adrik walked into the ring, as Viktor walked to her with a towel. Mike had spat his blood on her at the end. We all made a move to jump in the ring as we saw her kick him. If she wouldn¡¯t have delivered thatst bl ow, we would¡¯ve been on him. You don¡¯t get away with calling her a wh ore with all of us standing there. I noticed Chris and Keith walk into the ring. Chris went to check the vitals on Mike. Keith said something to Sephie, but I was watching Chris. I could see the look on his face when he couldn¡¯t find a pulse. He looked up and told Sephie that he¡¯d hated that guy. ¡°Hated? As in past tense?¡± she asked. ¡°No pulse. I think thatst kick to the head did him in,¡± Chris said. I looked to Misha. We both walked into the ring at the same time Iyan and Stephen did. None of us were sure how she was going to take this, but we were all incredibly proud of her. Ivan and Sephie had grown infinitely closer since he was in the hospital. It was difficult to not be slightly jealous of their rtionship now. She did a great job of spending equal amounts of time with all of us, but I always felt like she was slightly closer to me than the other guys. Now, Ivan had taken that spot. I felt si lly for feeling jealous, but I sometimes did. He looked at her, saying, ¡°Sephie, he sealed his fate the second he called you a wh ore. If you hadn¡¯t ended him, we would have. There was no walking out of here alive for him today. You just delivered his sentence, Princess.¡± The one good thing about he and Sephie growing closer is that Ivan was now just as good as Sephie at saying exactly what you needed to hear, exactly when you needed to hear it. I never knew that guy was so wise. He said exactly what she needed to hear, as we could see the switch flip back off and her face softened. She walked to him as he wrapped his massive arm around her. She always looked extra small next to one of us when she was any kind of upset. ile whispered something to her that we couldn¡¯t hear. She just nodded her head, but kept her face hidden in his shoulder. He smiled and said something else to her, causing her tough. We all know if we could make herugh, It would generally make everything better. He knew the right thing to say to make herugh. She reached up and kissed his cheek. Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°Oh God I¡¯m using my sexual charms again!¡± she said, dramatically, ¡°Somebody please stop me.¡± We allughed loudly. This one was going to stick around for a while. Somehow, we found ourselves standing over a dead man,ughing like it was apletely normal Monday morning. Once Adrik and Sephie left, we got to work taking care of Mike¡¯s body. It wasn¡¯t the first dead body we¡¯d had to dispose of. It wouldn¡¯t be thest. I caught Viktor away from Chris and Keith. ¡°What about Chris and Keith? Are you worried they¡¯ll be a problem after today?¡± Viktor shook his head no. ¡°I got the impression that both of them were happy about the oue. Chris, especially. It might be a little more difficult for Keith, since he grew up with Mike. I think we should ask Stephen if he has any insight into that. And Misha.¡± ¡°I already asked Misha when Sephie was still in the ring. But it might¡¯ve changed now that he¡¯s dead,¡± I said. ¡°I think those two will be fine. I¡¯m a little more worried about Armando. Mike was his guy. I don¡¯t want to cause friction between him and Boss,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Mando loves Sephie. We just have to tell him what Mike said to her and he won¡¯t care,¡± I said. ¡°Once we get the body out of here, I think we all need to have a talk. Sephie is likely going to need some support after this too. I know this isn¡¯t the first person she¡¯s killed, but I want to make sure she¡¯s okay with what happened today,¡± he said, a look of genuine concern on his face. ¡°Whatever Ivan said to her definitely helped. He should know how to best help her until we can talk to Boss.¡± My mind was racing, thinking about the morning¡¯s events. I had so many ideas for her training now, but Viktor was right. We needed to make sure she was okay with everything that happened. It could go one of two ways. Either she was going to be fine and her training could reach a new level of seriousness, or this was going to set her back a little as she struggled to deal with it. I would need to talk to Ivan to find out how to make sure the former option happened. Chapter 195 Chapter 195 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Five Andrei Having to deal with dead bodies on a semi-regr basis meant we had a cleaning crew on standby. Not your normal cleaning crew, either. They coulde in and make a ce look as if nothing happened in under half an hour. It was one of the most amazing sights I¡¯d ever seen, to be honest. They erased all traces of Mike from the gym in record time. While the cleaners worked, we all gathered on the other side of the gym. It helped that Viktor and Misha weren¡¯t worried about Chris and Keith, but I still couldn¡¯t help but worry. I didn¡¯t want this to cause problems in the future, so I was d Viktor wanted to talk to them right away. My fears were put to rest almost immediately. Keith looked at Viktor, asking, ¡°did you guys train her?¡± Viktor nodded. ¡°And that¡¯s how you want to train us?¡± he asked. Viktor nodded again. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m all the way in for that. She¡¯s unreal. But please don¡¯t make me fight her. I already know. I need to start at the beginning.¡± His eyes were slightly wide, at the thought of going against Sephie. Chris nodded his head in agreement. ¡°Start me at the beginning too. I will happily admit that she can easily kick my a ss. I¡¯ve never seen anything like that in my life. Where did you guys find her? Like, clearly that girl has been through some shi t, but holy he ll it¡¯s just made her stronger. Is she immortal? Can she be killed? Because I don¡¯t think she can be.¡± He looked up at all of us, looking at him seriously at the mention of her dying. ¡°Oh shi t. I ramble when I¡¯m nervous. It¡¯s a real problem. Like I can¡¯t stop talking sometimes and I say stu pid shi t out loud. Please don¡¯t ki ll me. I didn¡¯t mean anything by it.¡± Ivan chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s a legitimate question, if you knew what she¡¯s been through.¡± ¡°Our job is to make sure we never find an answer to that question,¡± I said. ¡°Which also means your job is to make sure we never find an answer to that question. If there¡¯s a problem with that, we need to know now.¡± ¡°Not in the slightest,¡± Keith said. ¡°I¡¯ve only seen a glimpse, but I¡¯m starting to understand what you all see in her.¡± ¡°Nope, no problems here,¡± Chris said. He looked to Viktor, a curious look on his face. ¡°What are we going to do about recing that as shole though?¡± Viktor sighed. ¡°I haven¡¯t decided yet. One of you can have his position.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . Keith said, ¡°if I may, and I don¡¯t want to speak for Chris, but it¡¯s painfully obvious to me now that my training is severelyckingparatively. I would be fine with deferring to you guys for the time being until I catch up.¡± Chris again nodded in agreement. ¡°Same for me too. I realized today that I have major ho les in my training. But at least I can admit it, unlike that poor ba stard.¡± ¡°I did warn him she was going to fu ck him up. People don¡¯t listen,¡± Misha said, shaking his head in dramatic disgust. It made meugh. ¡°I¡¯ll talk to Boss about it. We¡¯lle up with a solution for Mando¡¯s security,¡± Viktor said, ¡°You guys are free to go. I know ¨CMando has meetings soon. He¡¯s going to need you.¡± They both nodded and left the gym. The rest of us stayed, needing to talk about what to do for Sephie. We stood in silence for a moment. Ivan looked at the rest of us. ¡°I think at this point she won¡¯t care that I told you guys. Sephie killed her uncle the night she got those scars. She had blocked it out until the night of the ball. When she was out on the ne, she relived that night. All of it. The beating, the whip, all of it. But this time, her memory let her remember everything. She sliced his Achilles¡¯ heel like she told all of us, but she stabbed him in the heart once he went down. She says she remembers standing over him and watching him di e. He reached for her leg as he was struggling, but she picked her leg up out of his reach and stomped the knife further into his heart.¡± He paused to look at our faces, Ivan enjoyed shocking us, so he wanted to drink this in for a moment. ¡°I told Adrik that I had told Sephie her beast mode was activated that day she shot the guy in the face when they were trying to grab her. But then I said her beast mode has always been activated once he told me about her uncle. I think I was wrong both times. I think we just watched her beast mode activate for real today. I¡¯ve never seen her so angry and yet so in control as she was today. We woke the beast and the beast is now fully under her control.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but feel excited about how her training would progress, assuming she handles the day¡¯s events well. ¡°I have so many ideas on how to progress her training from here. Not even going to pretend I¡¯m not excited about that.¡± Viktor smiled, but in his true reasonable fashion, said, ¡°while I share in your excitement, we need to make sure she¡¯s okay with what happened today too. It could set her back and we don¡¯t want that.¡± I looked to Ivan. ¡°You seem to know what she needs to hear about this. How do we help her through this?¡± ¡°I think she¡¯ll handle it better than you guys think. When I said that she just delivered his sentence? She said that to me when I told her about my past. She said, ¡®sometimes Karma uses you to deliver justice. You just handed down their sentences.¡¯ I think the more she hears that Mike wasn¡¯t walking out of here alive today, the more she¡¯ll ept it. I also reminded her that what¡¯s said in anger is the truth. Then I told her how thankful I was no broli was harmed today,¡± he said, chuckling. Misha and I looked at each otherughing, remembering that awkward day with Tori in the kitchen at the house. ¡°I think she knows on some level that Mike never would¡¯ve stopped. Before you guys walked into the ring, Boss had told me that Mike was done, but he was going to let him live. Sephie disagreed. She said he was never going to let this go and that he¡¯d spend the rest of his life trying to get to her or that he¡¯d run straight to Sal and tell him everything he knew. She was right. That¡¯s when I told her I bet her ten bucks he was already dead,¡± Viktor said. ¡°She told me that day at the house that she felt nothing about killing her uncle. I think that might be the case here, too. We all know how emotional she can get when something is really bothering her. She feels her emotions very strongly. She waspletely void of emotion standing there looking at him,¡± Ivan said. ¡°She shouldn¡¯t feel anything about killing her uncle. Or Mike. They both had iting,¡± Misha said. Stephen said, ¡°we all heard her on the ne struggling against what her uncle used to call her. I think he and Mike were cut from the same cloth.¡± Ivan looked at him, his anger visible. ¡°That¡¯s not even the half of it. He used to kick her in the stomach, calling her a wh ore. He would tell her he was making sure she wouldn¡¯t bring home another mo uth to feed. One night, she hemorrhaged and couldn¡¯t stop bleeding. Her uncle thought she was having a miscarriage so he took her to a di rty doctor that would do back-room procedures for cash. The doc did an ultrasound and found scar tissue in her uterus from her uncle¡¯s repeated kicks to her stomach. Her uncle was convinced she had gotten pregnant, so he told the doctor to take her uterus. She pleaded with him not to, but she was 16. Her uncle had guardian rights over her, so the doctor did it anyway.¡± I felt my anger rise, as I cursed under my breath. I could clearly see the anger an everyone else¡¯s faces too. Misha said, ¡°I still feel ho rrible about bringing that up. I was just trying to tease her. I had no clue that it would be that ho rrific.¡± He ran his hand through his hair, his face turning red as he struggled to control his own emotions. ¡°You didn¡¯t know, Misha. She¡¯s not going to hold it against you,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m going to hold it against me,¡± he said as he walked away from us. I started to go after him, but Ivan stopped me. ¡°Give him a minute. This is a lot and we all know he mes himself first,¡± he said. ¡°Does anybody know who this doctor is?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°I haven¡¯t been able to find anything so far, but I¡¯ve been looking into it. I haven¡¯t asked Sephie for specifics on where she lived with her uncle, but from what she¡¯s told us about her story, I¡¯ve sectioned off a few areas of the city. I¡¯ve got people trying to find out in each area if they know of a doctor that used to do those kinds of procedures. So far, I can¡¯t find anything,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But I¡¯m not stopping until I find him.¡± ¡°Good,¡± we all said at once. Chapter 196 Chapter 196 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Six Andrei A couple of hours had passed and Sephie still hadn¡¯te back down from the penthouse. Viktor called Adrik to check on her. He told us toe up to the penthouse. We weren¡¯t sure what to expect when we walked in, but she was curled up, half on Adrik, half beside him on the couch, sound asleep. He put his finger up to his lips, indicating we should be quiet, but he motioned us toe and sit. ¡°She didn¡¯t sleep wellst night and after we showered, she said she was really tired. I think her adrenaline wore off. We came in here and it didn¡¯t take long at all before she passed out. I don¡¯t want to move and risk waking her up right now.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not having nightmares, is she?¡± I asked, suddenly concerned. He shook his head no. ¡°Not so far.¡± He pointed to her fingers, which were lightly moving on his chest. ¡°She only does this when she¡¯s dreaming happy dreams. I think she¡¯s ying the piano, it¡¯s always thythmic when she does it,¡± he said. He couldn¡¯t help the smile that crept across his face as he watched her sleeping against him. ¡°That¡¯s quite possibly the most adorable thing I¡¯ve ever seen,¡± Misha said. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°How was she when you guys came upstairs?¡± Viktor asked. Before he could answer, Ivan said, ¡°I told them about her uncle. They know.¡± Adrik nodded. ¡°She said she feels much the same now as she did with her uncle. Completely void, I think were her exact words.¡± We all looked at Ivan, who gave us all a smirk. Viktor spoke first, ¡°what does she need from us? We want to make sure that she¡¯s okay with what happened today. I don¡¯t want it to set her back at all, either in her training or otherwise.¡± Adrik looked to Ivan and said, ¡°what Ivan said to her seemed to do the trick. I think we might need to remind her of that a few times, but I also think she knows this was the only oue today.¡± He looked back to Viktor. ¡°Did you tell them what she said right after?¡± Viktor nodded. ¡°I think she knows, too. I just want to make sure she believes it. We want to make sure she¡¯s okay.¡± Misha spoke up, ¡°she said she missed the gardens at the house when we got her flowers the other day. Maybe she needs a day or two at the house. She seems like she can rx there. I think being able to go to theke helps her recharge somehow.¡± Adrik nodded. ¡°We can go after tomorrow for the rest of the week. My schedule is empty the rest of the week. We can still keep working on the warehouse situation from there. Did we ever get a chef?¡± Viktorughed, but looked at the floor. ¡°Nope. That¡¯s my bad.¡± We allughed quietly. He really did love it love it when she cooked for us. Even Adrikughed. ¡°What about Armando?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°I don¡¯t want this to cause problems between you and him. Mike was his guy, after all.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t. Armando won¡¯t question me and as much as I don¡¯t want to take advantage of that, I¡¯ll use it if I have to in this case, Adrik said. ¡°I¡¯m more worried about Chris and Keith. How were they?¡± Ivan said, ¡°I don¡¯t think either one of them will be a problem. They both readily admitted that they weren¡¯t at the same level as Sephle. Both said to please start them at the beginning because they both knew Sephle could kick their as ses easily.¡± Viktor said, ¡°neither of them wanted Mike¡¯s position, either. At least not yet. They said they were happy to defer to us until they caught up in their training. We can have that discussion with Armando and find out what he wants to do about filling Mike¡¯s position.¡± Adrik ran his hand through Sephie¡¯s curls as he thought about what Viktor and Ivan had just said. She made a muffled noise and snuggled into him closer. He looked down at her. ¡°She¡¯s probably going to be here a while.¡± He looked at Viktor, ¡°can you reschedule my meetings this afternoon for tomorrow? I¡¯m not leaving her today.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile at their rtionship. My mind drifted off, wondering if I would ever find that kind of love in my lifetime. I¡¯d never seen anything like it before, but I knew I wanted the same kind of love. Sephie Mike was on his knees in front of me. He could barely see. I think I broke his nose, based off the amount of blood gushing down his face. He still wouldn¡¯t give up. ¡°Wanna reconsider your opinion of me yet?¡± I asked, giving him one more chance. He took a shallow breath. I know I broke his ribs. I heard the crack when I kicked him. He used all his breath to spit blood at me. ¡°Fuc k you, wh ore.¡± I knew it was Mike that said those words. I was looking right at him when he said them. But my brain heard my uncle¡¯s voice. He was coughing up his o own blood, in between trying to take shallow breaths because of his broken ribs. He looked at me and said onest thing, so quietly that I almost didn¡¯t hear him. ¡°Sicario.¡± I don¡¯t even remember moving to kick him, but I know I did because now I was standing over his motionless body. It didn¡¯t even look like he was breathing. I just stared at him,pletely numb. I nced at my knuckles. They were sore. There was blood on them. Was it mine or his? Viktor walked to me, handing me a towel to wipe Mike¡¯s blood off nie. He also handed me my shirt. I only vaguely remembered taking it off. Guess Chris and Keith are in the club now. I felt Adrik next to me, but I couldn¡¯t see much except what was directly in front of me. I felt like I did the day that Misha and I were attacked, like I was waiting for the darkness toe. I knew Mike hadn¡¯tnded a square hit, so I didn¡¯t know why I felt like that. I heard Adrik tell Viktor, ¡°he¡¯s done here. If he wakes up, make sure he understands he won¡¯t next time if I ever see him in this city again.¡± I stared at Mike¡¯s body. He still hadn¡¯t moved. It still looked like he wasn¡¯t breathing, but nobody was checking to see if he was still alive. I looked at Adrik. I saw the surprise in his eyes when his eyes met mine, but it quickly turned to¡­lust? He held my gaze for a moment before he forced himself to look away. I looked to Viktor, then back to Mike¡¯s motionless body. ¡°He¡¯s done on this earth. He¡¯s not going to let this go, ever. He¡¯ll either spend the rest of his life trying to get to me or he¡¯ll run to Sal to tell him everything he knows about us. Or both. He can¡¯t walk out of this building,¡± I said, in Russian, since Chris and Keith were still around. Viktor looked at me, every bit the proud older brother. A slight smile crept across his face, like he wanted to beam at me, but was trying to hide it. ¡°You both are assuming he¡¯s going to wake up. Ten bucks says he¡¯s already dead.¡± I noticed Chris and Keith walk into the ring. Chris was the one that finally went to check Mike¡¯s vitals. He seemed to be the only one concerned with that, but he walted several minutes, so he clearly wasn¡¯t that concerned. Keith said something, but ! honestly wasn¡¯t paying attention. I was watching Chris. ¡°I hated that guy,¡± Chris sald, looking up at me. ¡°Hated? As in past tense?¡± I asked. He nodded his head. ¡°No pulse. I think that final kick to the head did him in,¡± he said. Huh. So, I just killed a man and I felt strangely fine about it. Maybe it would hit meter, but right now, I felt very much the way I did when I killed my uncle. Completely void of everything. I feel nothing- 1 I looked to Viktor. ¡°I guess I owe you ten bucks, Papa Bear.¡± I could see that the guys came into the ring, but I was still struggling to see correctly. I kept staring at Mike, like I wast expecting him to get up and curse at me for kicking his a ss. He¡¯s not getting up. He¡¯s never getting up again. 1 heard Ivan¡¯s voice, but it took me a second to find him. ¡°Sephie, he sealed his fate the second he called you a wh ore. If youI hadn¡¯t ended him, we would have. There was no walking out of here alive for him today. You just delivered his sentence, Princess.¡± His voice softened when he said thatst sentence, like he was trying to coax me out of the log he knew I was in. It worked. I could see more clearly. I walked quickly to him, just wanting to hide. I buried my face in his good shoulder as he held me tightly against him. He kissed the top of my head and whispered, ¡°do you believe us now that what¡¯s said in anger is the truth?¡± I nodded my head, but kept my face hidden. I felt the tearsing now. He squeezed me tighter, then whispered, ¡°I¡¯m just d no broli was harmed today.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh. I looked up at him, his handsome smile across his face, clearly relieved that I hadughed. They knew if they could make meugh, it was generally going to be okay. I stood on my toes and kissed his cheek, thankful he knew what to say to snap me back to reality. Then I remembered what Mike had said to me. ¡°Oh God I¡¯m using my sexual charms again!¡± I said as dramatically as possible. ¡°Somebody please stop me.¡± And just like that, we were standing over a dead body,ughing like it was the most normal thing ever, forgettingpletely the severity of the situation. ¡°Normal ispletely overrated anyway. * Chapter 197 Chapter 197 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Seven Sephie Adrik took me upstairs, straight to the shower. My muscles were starting to feel sore already. My hands hurt, too. I had blood on my hands, literally and figuratively, but I didn¡¯t know if it was mine or his at this point. Adrik pulled me under the warm water, which helped my muscles rx. I looked at him, thinking about what had just happened and how confusing it was to not feel how I thought I was supposed to feel. ¡°What does it mean that I don¡¯t feel bad for what just happened? I felt the same standing over Mike as I did standing over my uncle. Completely void.¡± I watched his eyes as I talked. No change. He looked at me the same as always. He ran his finger over my face, saying, ¡°Ivan was right, Sephie. He sealed his fate with me when he said your pretty face was all you had going for you. Ivan too. It just kept getting worse as he got angrier. Do you believe me now that what¡¯s said in anger is someone¡¯s true feelings?¡± 1 smiled up at him. I knew he hadn¡¯t heard Ivan tell me that in the gym, but I know I needed to hear it a second time. ¡°He really didn¡¯t know when to sh ut up,¡± I said, turning around so I could lean back against him. I looked at my hands under the water. Turns out some of the blood was mine, some was his. I had split my knuckles in a few ces. They were starting to swell, too, and turn pretty colors that knuckles shouldn¡¯t disy. Adrik ran his hands down my arms, grabbing each of my hands in his. He inspected both, then said, ¡°I have a trick to help this.¡± I looked up at him, curious. ¡°From all those punching bags you used to break?¡± I still found it amusing when I thought about what Tori had told me about Adrik that first weekend at the house. He looked surprised. ¡°How do you know about that?¡± ¡°Tori told me about it. She said they thought you had anger issues because you were constantly breaking punching bags. That one was hard for me to believe, honestly,¡± I said, still remembering how surprised I was at Tori¡¯s revtion. I pulled his arms around my waist, loving the extra warmth that his body provided when it was against mine. ¡°She was right. They used to have to keep an extra supply of bags because I went through them so quickly. I think I¡¯ve only broken one bag since I met you, though.¡± He smiled at me when I looked up at him again,pletely surprised. ¡°I told you, solnishko. You made that side of me go to sleep.¡± I remembered feeling his anger when I was in the ring with Mike. Iughed. ¡°Not entirely, though. I could feel your anger when Mike made thement about my sexual charms,¡± Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. It was like it was almost a living thing that I could feel almost envelope me. He looked surprised. ¡°Seriously? I did wonder how you knew I had made a move toward the ring.¡± ¡°I noticed it the other night when we were talking to Andy about the kidnapping attempt. It¡¯s like your anger feeds mine. I don¡¯t know how to describe it, but I could feel it then and I could feel it today.¡± I realized how crazy what I had just said out loud sounded. I turned to face him again, slightly worried. I searched his eyes, but he just smiled down at me. *You do read my mind already. I don¡¯t know why it would be any different that you can feel what I feel. It¡¯s one of the many things I love about you.¡± I stood on my toes, pressing my lips to his. I wanted more, but my body felt like it had been hit by a truck. I felt like I just wanted to sleep the rest of the day. I turned around again, leaning back against him as it was both warmer and easier to remain standing when I was leaning against him. ¡°I¡¯m really tired,¡± I said. ¡°Come, let¡¯s get you dressed then,¡± he said, turning the water off. He talked me into resting on the couch for a bit with him before he had to go back downstairs for his meetings that afternoon. Iid down between him and the back of the couch,ying across his chest so I¡¯d be plenty warm. I tried to stay awake as long as I could, but I think Isted all of one minute once his fingers started ying with my still damp curls. I woke upter, stillying across his chest. He was snoring softly, his arms wrapped around me. I lifted my head to look at him, which caused him to wake up. He looked down at me, smiling. ¡°Feel better after your nap?¡± he asked. I looked out the windows, noticing it was sometime in the afternoon. I nodded. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you¡¯ wake me up? What about your meetings this afternoon?¡± I asked. ¡°The guys came up to check on you after you fell asleep. I had Viktor push everything to tomorrow. I didn¡¯t want to leave you,¡± he said, pushing a stray curl back from my eyes. ¡°They came up here and I didn¡¯t wake up?¡± I asked, surprised. He chuckled. ¡°They were here for like an hour or more and you didn¡¯t wake up.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said,pletely surprised that I had slept through that. ¡°Adrenaline crashes are no joke, solnishko. We¡¯ve all been there. They were concerned about you, then they were concerned you were going to have nightmares when they found out you were sleeping. I showed them how you y piano on my chest when you¡¯re happy sleeping.¡± He had one of my curls and was twirling it around his finger as he talked. ¡°I do what?¡± ¡°You y piano on my chest. Your fingers move in a rhythmic pattern, like you¡¯re ying songs, when you¡¯re happy sleeping. You also make a cooing noise when I run my fingers through your hair. It makes you snuggle into me more every single time. Not gonna lie, I do it a lot,¡± he said, running his fingers through my hair, making goosebumps rise over my entire body. ¡°It¡¯s probably because you give me goosebumps when you do it,¡± I said, grinning at him, ¡°It¡¯s one of my favorite things,¡± he said, kissing my forehead. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite thing,¡± I said, wrapping my arms around him tighter, resting my head on his chest again. I heard him inhale deeply. My stomach chose that moment to announce that she was feeling ignored. We bothughed at how obnoxiously loud my stomach was. ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten since this morning. It¡¯s also a side effect of the adrenaline crash. You feel like you could eat a house,¡± he said as we got up from the couch. I stretched, my stomach growling loudly again. ¡°Or two, apparently,¡± I said,ughing. He grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the kitchen. ¡°Come, we got you Vinny¡¯s.¡± This really is true love. It¡¯s official,¡± I said, hugging him tightly as we walked toward the kitchen. Chapter 198 Chapter 198 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Eight Sephie ¡°Are you up for somepany?¡± Adrik asked after I inhaled my sandwich. ¡°The guys are still worried?¡± I asked, smiling. ¡°All of them but Andrei. He¡¯s probably got a new training n made out for you already, but he does want to make sure you¡¯re okay with everything before he starts it.¡± He couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Bubba loves being my trainer. He¡¯s good at his job, too.¡± I smiled to myself thinking about Andrei being excited for starting new things in my training. ¡°Tell them they cane over. I don¡¯t want to be responsible for any of them sleeping poorly tonight.¡± It wasn¡¯t five minutester and they all walked into the penthouse. ¡°You guys have been waiting for me to wake up, haven¡¯t you?¡± I asked as they walked into the kitchen. ¡°Maybe,¡± Stephen said, wrapping his arms around my shoulders from behind. He squeezed my shoulders, surprising me by kissing my cheek. Stephen was the least affectionate of the guys, normally. He took a while to warm up to me, but it seems like since he was able to tell the guys what¡¯s he¡¯s been holding back all this time, he¡¯s gotten morefortable in his own skin. I was happy to see it. ¡°Did you eat yet, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°If by eat, you mean inhale, then yes. Yes, I did. My soul is now returning to my body,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°I can already tell I¡¯m going to be hungry again in like an hour.¡± Adrik looked at me, smirking. ¡°Told you you¡¯d want to eat a house.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a real thing,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We¡¯ve all been there.¡± Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, looking at the number. He clearly didn¡¯t recognize the number, so he stepped away to answer the phone. ¡°Super Squish, we should do your bandage while I¡¯m awake and not eating. It¡¯s a very small window today, we should take advantage,¡± I said. He nodded,ughing. He walked to the door to go get the bandage supplies from downstairs. Viktor walked back toward where I was sitting, handing me the phone. ¡°It¡¯s Chen,¡± he said. ¡°Oh!¡± I took his phone and put it on speaker so they could all hear. ¡°Chen, what¡¯s going on, man?* ¡°Hey my girl. Sorry I didn¡¯t call yesterday like I said I would. I didn¡¯t get done until superte and forgive me for not wanting to disturb your giant secretary at like 2 am.¡± ¡°No worries, Chen. He appreciates that. What did you find out?¡± I asked. He sighed. ¡°It¡¯s Interesting.¡± He paused, which made me look up at all the guys. ¡°You know I told you one of my dealers works for Vito, right? Well, he didn¡¯t know anything about it. He was also pi ssed off to find out they¡¯re nning on trying to rece the entire supply with that sh it. He won¡¯t touch it either. That fo ol is hot-headed, too. He was ready to sh oot somebody when I talked to himst night. That¡¯s partly why I got done sote. I was calming him down.¡± ¡°Thank you for not allowing him to sho ot anyonest night. The public thanks you for your service, Chen,¡± I said, trying not tough. Heughed on the other end. ¡°I¡¯m a public servant, Sephie. We know this.¡± Moreughter. ¡°So, then I go to my guy that works for Sal. I¡¯m careful with both of them, like you can¡¯t juste out and ask them what they know like you did with me, I hint around, trying to find out if he knows anything about brawn and that mo therfucker thinks I know about the n and he proceeds to talk about how fu cked up the entire deal is.¡± ¡°So, the guy that works for Sal knows everything, but the guy that works for Vito doesn¡¯t?¡± I asked. ¡°Right. The guy that works for Sal not only knows everything, but they¡¯re getting a heads up when it¡¯s going down, so they know not to sell in Sal¡¯s area of the city. He said they¡¯re supposed toy low for the weekend when it happens. Sal is paying them all to stay off the streets when it happens.¡± ¡°Does he know when it¡¯s going to happen?¡± I asked. I nced up to see if any of the guys had anything to add, only to find a sea of clenched jaws. ¡°He didn¡¯t know. He just said they¡¯ll get the word and then the next weekend they¡¯re supposed to stay off the streets in Sal¡¯s part of town. No selling anything in that part of town that weekend.¡± ¡°How good of a rtionship do you have with this guy? Like, do you think he would tell you when he gets the word?¡± ¡°I mean, he already thinks I know about everything to begin with, so probably.¡± I was quiet for a minute. ¡°What about the guy that works for Vito and your other guy that works for the Colombian? Do you know how connected they are to other dealers in the city?¡± He was quiet for a minute, exhaling loudly. ¡°The guy that works for the Colombian is pretty high up. He likely knows a lot of other dealers. The guy that works for Vito, I don¡¯t know. Like I said, he¡¯s really hot- headed, so I keep my time with that guy short, if you catch my meaning.¡± ¡°You¡¯re good with the guy that works for the Colombian?¡± I asked. If he could get word to Trino¡¯s people, that was arge portion of the dealers in the city. ¡°Yeah, that dude is cool. Superid-back as long as you y by his rules. Break one of his rules, he breaks you,¡± he said. Iughed. ¡°That¡¯s not him, that¡¯s his boss.¡± I looked at Adrik, who nodded in agreement. ¡°I still want to know how you know that, and yet, I don¡¯t want to know how you know that,¡± Chen said. ¡°Chen, do you think there are enough dealers that are against selling brawn that would also be willing to help us try to stop this n?¡± I asked. ¡°Hmmm. I don¡¯t know. I can put feelers out. The guy that works for Vito is down to ki ll some people, but I don¡¯t know how helpful that will actually be to your cause. I¡¯m not vouching for his aim, in other words. The other two, I don¡¯t know about. He ll, you seem to know more about the guy that works for the Colombian than I do,¡± he said,ughing. I was still looking at Adrik, who quietly said, ¡°Trino¡¯s guys will help us.¡± ¡°Yeah, that guy will help. What about Sal¡¯s guy? What were his thoughts on the n?¡± He sighed again. ¡°I couldn¡¯t get a good read on him. It was like he was excited about it, but I think he was more excited for getting paid to do Jack sh it over one weekend. I don¡¯t know what his thoughts are on selling brawn in general.¡± ¡°Chen, I ha te to ask more of you, but can you find out how many more dealers would be against this? Any of the dealers that work for the Colombians will be against it and should be helpful to you. Tell them you know Trino, if they give you sh it. If it goes any farther than that, drop my name and have them check with Trino. You¡¯ll be fine when ites to them. If they¡¯re working for Armando, you¡¯ll be fine. If they¡¯re working for any of the other bosses, do not under any circumstances say my name. Got it?¡± ¡°My girl. What the fu ck are you into now,¡± Chen said, seriously. ¡°Eh, we don¡¯t have that kind of time. I¡¯ll exin one day. Just remember, Colombians are fine, Armando is fine, anyone else means you don¡¯t know me. Call this number if you get in trouble. Okay?¡± ¡°Got it. I¡¯ll call you in a couple days once I have time to talk to more people.¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Be careful, Chen.¡± ¡°Always, my girl.¡± He ended the call. I got up, handing Viktor his phone. Ivan hade back in during my conversation with Chen. I grabbed the bandage supplies from him and pulled him toward a vacant spot on the kitchen counter. I took his sling off and started to cut his bandage off, thinking about everything that Chen had said. ¡°I can tell Trino to let his dealers know that Chen is a friendly. I¡¯m more worried about him saying your name around one of the other dealers than any of Trino¡¯s guys,¡± Adrik said. ¡°Chen is smart. He knows I wouldn¡¯t have said anything if it wasn¡¯t important. It also took Chen a solid year before he would even tell me his name. I told him about his cheating girlfriend before he had told me his name. I think that¡¯s why he eventually told me his name. He knows the importance of being anonymous,¡± I said, inspecting Ivan¡¯s stitches. I looked at Ivan. ¡°Want to let them air for a bit? That bandage has to be getting old by now.¡± ¡°You are not kidding,¡± he said. He stretched his arm gingerly. ¡°We should make you an appointment for an x-ray this week to see how healed you are. The stitches look really good. Those might be able toe out at the same time,¡± I said, watching him to make sure he didn¡¯t idently use his arm too much. ¡°We thought you might want to go to the house this week, gazelle. You said you were missing the gardens the other day.¡± Misha said. ¡°I did say that,¡± I said, smiling at him. They surprised me sometimes with how much they could remember about what I said and did. ¡°When were we nning on going to the house?¡± ¡°After tomorrow, we can go. Since I pushed everything from today to tomorrow, I have a long day. But we can go Wednesday and stay through the weekend, if you like,¡± Adrik said. I walked to him, feeling guilty for keeping him trapped underneath me on the couch for the afternoon, since it meant his day would be even longer tomorrow. ¡°Totally my fault. I wasn¡¯t nning on trapping you on the couch,¡± I said, as I tucked myself into his side. He looked down at me, holding me close. ¡°I could think of much worse ways to spend the afternoon, solnishko.¡± He smiled at me, as I looked up at him. I looked to Ivan, ¡°we should get you x-rayed tomorrow then. Make it easy while we¡¯re still here. I ha te to take advantage of the trauma that pool hospital is likely still experiencing, but I think we can convince them, nicely, to work you in tomorrow.¡± Adrik said, ¡°that hospital gets veryrge donations from one of mypanies. They¡¯ll do whatever you need, solnishko,¡± ¡°I love it when a nes together,¡± I said, smiling up at him. Chapter 199 Chapter 199 Chapter One Hundred Ny-Nine Sephie Stephen and Viktor came to the hospital with me and Ivan the following morning to get Ivan¡¯s arm x- rayed. Dr. Williams was expecting us, probably with an extra dose of anxiety meds for his entire staff. Ivan was quiet on the ride there. I knew he was nervous. I slid my arm through his good arm when we walked in. Since they knew we wereing, a nurse took us to see Dr. Williams immediately. ¡°Dr. Williams, thanks for working us in,¡± I said, somewhat ironically, since I knew he basically had no choice. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you again. I can¡¯t tell you how relieved I am to see you, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± he said, shaking my hand. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. The trauma was still fresh, clearly. He got to work quickly, as I¡¯m sure he wanted to get us out of there as quickly as possible. Viktor and Stephen had walked into the room with us, but both stepped out once the doctor started to take Ivan¡¯s bandage off. I looked at Ivan, curiously, but he just winked at me. They were working on something else, obviously. I didn¡¯t let go of Ivan¡¯s hand the entire time the doctor was looking at his arm. ¡°It looks like it¡¯s healed really well. The stitches cane out. We just need to x-ray the arm to see how the bone has healed, but the break in the bone was the least of your worries that day,¡± Dr. Williams said. He looked to me, a puzzled look on his face. ¡°I¡¯m not sure how to do this x-ray. You can¡¯t be with him.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± I asked. I could feel my anger starting to rise. ¡°Women need to limit their exposure to x-rays as much as possible. Especially if there¡¯s a possibility you could be pregnant. It¡¯s dangerous,¡± he said. I justughed. ¡°No worries there, Doc.¡± He looked at me, still concerned. ¡°You still could be without knowing. It¡¯s too big of a risk.¡± I could feel my anger starting to rise. Ivan squeezed my hand tighter. I looked at the good doctor, very seriously. ¡°I don¡¯t have at fu cking uterus, doc. There¡¯s no go ddamn chance. Can we get the x-ray now, please?¡± He looked stunned, but his medical curiosity got the better of him. ¡°You¡¯re so young. Why?¡± Ivan said, his voice strained, ¡°it was not by choice. One of your kind took it against her will.¡± I almost laughed when Tvan said ¡°your kind¡± to the doctor, like he and all other doctors were apletely different species. In his mind, they likely were. The doctor looked at both of us, his face dropped. He nced to the open door. ¡°Are those other two mening back?¡± ¡°Eventually, yes,¡± Ivan said. Dr. Williams got up quickly and sh ut the door. He sat down in front of us again. ¡°Tell me what happened. It was a back-room procedure for cash, no? I¡¯ve been hearing stories like this for years. I¡¯ve been trying to find this doctor, but he moves around to different parts of the city, so it¡¯s been impossible to track him down. He has an entire unit of police dedicated to finding him.¡± I looked at Ivan, my eyes wide. He squeezed my hand, his face softer. He nodded toward the doctor, indicating I should tell him what happened. I sighed. i told the doctor the short version of the story about my uncle and what happened that night. When I finished, Dr. Williams had tears in his eyes. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°I remember you told me that doctors were the reason for his reactions in the operating room. I had no idea that you also had reason to ha te us. It makes what you did that day even more poignant,¡± he said, looking at me with pure sympathy in his eyes, ¡°To be clear, I did it for him, not you,¡± I said. Ivan let go of my hand and wrapped his good arm around my shoulders. ¡°Do you remember anything about the doctor? Where he was when this happened? A name? A physical description? It¡¯s hard for most of the people he¡¯s worked on to remember what he looks like. I¡¯m not sure what cocktail he uses on people, but it seems like he wipes their memory,¡± he asked. ¡°Oh, I remember,¡± I said. Ivan looked at me, then at Dr. Williams. ¡°Whatever drugs he used on her likely didn¡¯t work the same on her as other people. Redheads are different. She said she remembers being out for a really long time after the procedure. He probably had to change his cocktail for her.¡± Dr. Williams looked at Ivan,pletely surprised. ¡°How do you know that redheads are different? There are doctors that don¡¯t even know that.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to know, Doc. Trust me,¡± I said. He nodded. ¡°We¡¯ll abandon that line of questioning, no problem. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the doctor¡¯s name. I don¡¯t think they ever said his name. They just called him ¡°doctor¡± the whole time. But I¡¯ll never forget what he looks like,¡± I said. I shuddered, thinking about his face. ¡°Can you give a description to a sketch artist you think? I¡¯ve talked to hundreds of people that have been traumatized by this man over the years and not a single one of them can remember his face. You are the only one I¡¯ve found so far,¡± he said. I looked at Ivan. He could see the fear inly on my face. He said to me, in Russian, ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for this guy, too. Ever since you told me what happened. That¡¯s why Stephen and Viktor left. They¡¯re asking the other doctors what they know about this guy. It might be useful to find out what the police know about him, but you don¡¯t have to do anything you don¡¯t want to do.¡± I felt the shaking start in my body as I looked at him, answering in Russian, ¡°I¡¯ll do it, but we need to get on with this or won¡¯t be able to walk out of here.¡± Ivan pulled his phone out of his pocket, called a number, let it ring once then ended the call. Within two minutes, Viktor and Stephen were back in the room with us. Ivan looked at the doctor. ¡°Give us the information for the police unit you¡¯re working with. We¡¯ll make sure she gives the description of him, but we need to get that x-ray so we can get out of here. If she goes, I go and nobody wants that,¡± he had a sense of urgency to his voice that made it clear to Dr. Williams that we needed to move fast. He nodded his head. He stood up, ¡°follow me.¡± As we walked to the x-ray room, Ivan exined what was happening to Viktor and Stephen. I still had a hold of Ivan¡¯s hand, but Viktor reached down and grabbed my other hand as we walked down the hallway. Dr. Williams set Ivan up in front of the x- ray machine. He had a lead vest that he gave me to put on so I could stand next to Ivan. He took a few x-rays, then walked back and adjusted Ivan¡¯s arm to get a different perspective. The entire process was over in just a few minutes. ¡°It takes around 10 minutes to get the films, but I¡¯ll hurry it along as much as I can,¡± Dr. Williams sald as he led us back to the original room we were in. He left us, telling us he would be back as quickly as he could be. I still had a hold of Ivan¡¯s hand, both of our hands in myp. He could feel the shaking in my legs starting to get worse the longer we stayed. He looked to Stephen, asking, ¡°any tricks to help make this better until we get out of here?¡± Chapter 200 Chapter 200 Chapter Two Hundred Sephie Stephen thought for a moment. ¡°Boss is the only thing I¡¯ve seen stop it for her. His touch seems to calm it down.¡± I looked at both of them. ¡°I¡¯ll be okay. It goes away after a while, but I never know how bad it will get first. Sometimes I lose control of my body when it gets really bad. That¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to avoid.¡± Viktor moved behind me, his giant hands on my shoulders. He didn¡¯t say a word, he just calmly stood there like he was willing my trauma to calm down. I took a deep breath. It did actually help. Dr. Williams walked back into the room with the x-ray films in his hand. He handed Stephen a card, as well. ¡°That¡¯s the police unit I¡¯m working with. Each time I hear of a new person who¡¯se in contact with that doctor, I send them there,¡± he said as he clipped the films on the wall to look at them. He looked at them, looked at Ivan, then looked at the films again. He scratched his head, then turned to look at Ivan. ¡°Your break ispletely healed. Not only that, but I can¡¯t even tell where it was to start with. That¡¯s virtually unheard of except in very young children.¡± He looked to me, grabbing scissors from a drawer at the side of the room. He sat on a stool and rolled himself to Ivan. ¡°Let¡¯s get the stitches out so you can leave.¡± He worked quickly, telling Ivan that he still needed to be careful with his arm. ¡°Have you had any pain in your armtely?¡± 1 couldn¡¯t help butugh. I looked at lvan, asking in Russian ¡°have you had any pain in your arm ever?¡± Viktor squeezed my shoulders as heughed quietly behind me. Ivan grinned at me, but looked at the doctorpletely straight-faced, ¡°nope, Doc. It¡¯s felt great. You do great work.¡± As he pulled out thest of Ivan¡¯s stitches, he said, ¡°okay, well take it easy for another week or so and then you can start to use it more. It¡¯s healed. It¡¯s healed better than I¡¯ve ever seen an injury like that heal in such a short time, so I think you¡¯ll be fine.¡± He looked to me. ¡°And please, give the police unit a call. You¡¯re the only one that knows what he looks like. We¡¯ve been trying to get him for over ten years now.¡± I nodded my head. I went to say something, but Viktor answered for me. ¡°We¡¯ll make sure it¡¯s taken care of, Doc.¡± His giant hands were still gently resting on my shoulders. He was the calming presence I needed to keep the shaking from getting too bad. Ivan squeezed my hand as he pulled us both up. ¡°Thanks, Doc,¡± Ivan said as we all quickly walked out of the room. In the hallway, Ivan looked down at me, ¡°you okay, princess?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°Papa Bear helped in there. He kept the shaking from getting worse.¡± I felt Viktor silently grab my other hand as we walked quickly down the hallway to the exit. We were back to the penthouse in record time. Once in the elevator, Viktor told me he was taking me to Adrik¡¯s office. I looked to Ivan, still worried about him. ¡°No, Papa Bear, I¡¯m okay. I promise. I screwed up his schedule yesterday. I don¡¯t want to sc rew it up two days in a row. We can go to the penthouse. I¡¯ll be okay, it¡¯s getting better. I promise,¡± I said, trying to convince him not to interrupt Adrik. He looked at me skeptically, but relented. ¡°Then you¡¯re stuck with us for a little longer until I¡¯m sure you¡¯re okay. You¡¯ve had a rough couple of days, sestrichka.¡± ¡°I¡¯m surprisingly okay with what happened yesterday. Like, I might be a ps ychopath I¡¯m so okay with it,¡± I said. I looked at all of them, gauging their reactions to what I said. Stephen started to say something, but the doors dinged and started to open. He was waiting until we were in the penthouse before he said anything. Before he could speak, I said, ¡°wait a minute, there¡¯s something I need to do.¡± I still had a hold of Ivan¡¯s hand. I stopped him and opened my arms for him to give me a real, two-armed hug. ¡°I fre aking need this,¡± I said quietly as I wrapped my arms around his waist. He wrapped both of his giant arms around me and held me tightly as 1 rested my head on his chest. I inhaled deeply, feeling my body rx a little more. I stepped back from him, unexpected tears in my eyes. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you guys how nice it is to feel safe with you. Like life- changing and that¡¯s not just me being overly dramatic, even though I do enjoy that,¡± I said, trying tough to keep the tears from falling. I felt Viktor¡¯s giant arm around my shoulders, pulling me to him. Once again, he said nothing. He just held me tightly for a moment. Stephen said, ¡°Sephie, you realize you do the same for us, right?¡± 1 tried to peak over Viktor¡¯s shoulder at Stephen, who was still behind Viktor, but he was too tall. I turned him so I could see Stephen without letting go of Viktor. ¡°I do not realize that, Yoden. What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°Yoden?¡± he said, looking at me skeptically. ¡°Yoda and Stephen. Yoden. Come on, not all nicknames stick the first time. Give me a break here. I¡¯m just throwing things out there, seeing what sticks,¡± I said,ughing. He just shook his head as he said, ¡°we give you physical security, but you give us emotional security. It¡¯s the ssic masculine/ feminine dynamic. We give you a space where you feel safe physically which allows you to give us a space where we feel secure emotionally. So, while you¡¯re grateful to us for making you feel safe, we feel exactly the same toward you.¡± My eyes went a little wide as he was talking. I stepped back from Viktor to look at him and Ivan. They both nodded in agreement with what Stephen said. I thought for a moment, chewing on my bottom lip, not knowing how to respond. I looked at Stephen sideways, ¡°so you¡¯re telling me, this whole time, it wasn¡¯t my sexual charms?¡± Heughed. ¡°You know those things don¡¯t work on me, right? I have immunity.¡± I looked at him, in feigned disbelief. ¡°My milkshake does not bringeth all the boys to the yard?¡± That got a loudugh out of all of them. Stephen walked to me, pulling me into a hug. ¡°Seph, you¡¯re just the best.¡± Viktor and Stephen stayed with me and Ivan in the penthouse for a while longer. I think they were enjoying the break. Eventually, Viktor¡¯s phone pulled them away, leaving Ivan and I alone. He looked at me, a serious look on his face. ¡°Uh oh, Super Squish. Shi t¡¯s about to get real,¡± I said, grinning at him. ¡°About this doctor that did your procedure. I¡¯ve run into nothing but dead ends. If you can give me a description of him, I can see if that helps jog people¡¯s memories. People have heard of him, but no one knows details,¡± he said. ¡°What about the police?¡± I asked. ¡°We should talk to Adrik about that. He¡¯s close with the policemissioner. He should be able to get us the information this unit has on this guy, but they¡¯re going to want that description in exchange.¡± He thought for a moment, looking at me. ¡°We can do things the police can¡¯t, princess, but they don¡¯t give up information for free. They need to still feel important,¡± he said, chuckling. I nodded in understanding. ¡°Have you talked to any prostitutes or their pimps? I¡¯m almost certain that¡¯s how my uncle knew about this guy. I think he mostly does abortions for prostitutes. My uncle¡¯s friend that knew about the doctor was a pimp. He woulde to the house asionally, but I would always leave when he was there. He gave me the creeps.¡± ¡°Do you remember that guy¡¯s name? We might be able to find him, Ivan asked. He reached up with his previously bandaged arm to run his hand over his goatee like his arm hadn¡¯t been in a sling for weeks. ¡°Only his street name. His girls used to call him Chucky and that¡¯s all I ever heard my uncle call him. I don¡¯t think that was his real name though,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s a start,¡± he said. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re up for talking to the police about this?¡± I looked down, my hands starting to fidget in myp. I thought for a moment, then looked back up at his concerned face. ¡°I can do it if it means finding this guy. There¡¯s no telling what else he¡¯s done to other people.¡± I paused, then added, ¡°but you guys are gonna have to go with me. I might not be able to avoid screwing up Adrik¡¯s schedule that day.¡± ¡°His schedule is the least of his worries when ites to you, princess. He¡¯s going to be mad at us for not bringing you to his office today once he finds out. He¡¯s told us all before, nothing else matters without you.¡± ¡°Sh ut up.¡± He thought for a moment. ¡°I think the first time he told us that was when we were at the ranch house in Italy. When you were passed out and he couldn¡¯t leave you or you¡¯d get su cked back into your nightmare. I went into the room the morning we were supposed to leave and told him we¡¯d all decided we couldn¡¯t leave. He agreed and said nothing was more important than you. His empire is receable, princess. You are not.¡± I sat, somewhat stunned, for a moment. I didn¡¯t know how to respond. Luckily, Misha came into the penthouse and saved me from having to. ¡°Gazelle, are you hungry yet? Because I¡¯m starving and we can¡¯t decide what to get for lunch, so you¡¯re the deciding vote,¡± Misha said, his broad smile stretched across his face. He sat down next to me, his arm around my shoulders. ¡°What are the choices? Do any of them involve a burrito the size of my head? Because if they do, that¡¯s what gets my vote,¡± I said. He leaned over, kissing my cheek, ¡°this is why you¡¯re the best, Sephie. Be back shortly with a burrito the size of your head.¡± My stomach growled loud enough for them to hear. They both looked at me, pretending to be shocked. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°What? Sometimes my stomach feels neglected and needs to be included in the conversation. She has a mind of her own,¡± 1 said,ughing. Chapter 201 Chapter 201 Chapter Two Hundred One Sephie Everyone came to the penthouse for lunch, including Adrik. I wasn¡¯t expecting him to have a break in his day. He clearly enjoyed my excitement to see him, holding me in front of him long enough to calm down so the guys wouldn¡¯t also see how much he enjoyed my excitement. He looked down at me, concern inly in his eyes, ¡°what¡¯s this about you going to the police, salnishko? Are you sure you want to do that?¡± I chewed on my bottom lip, but nodded. ¡°Ivan thinks it would be helpful to get the information the police have on that guy. It might help find him. Apparently, nobody else can remember what he looks like, but I can clearly remember his face.¡± | shuddered again, seeing his face sh in my memory. Adrik pulled me closer, feeling it. ¡°I¡¯ll call themissioner this afternoon and find out what he knows about this police unit that¡¯s trying to find the doctor. We can have theme here. I don¡¯t like the idea of you going to a police station,¡± he said, kissing my forehead. I heard Viktor¡¯s deep voice behind us. ¡°That¡¯s a better idea. You¡¯re going to need to be there with her, Boss. We had to rush out of the hospital before her shaking got too bad.¡± Adrik clicked his tongue. ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe to me when you got back?¡± I looked up at him. He looked almost angry, ¡°I was okay. Viktor helped keep it from getting worse when we were at the hospital. I screwed up your day yesterday. I didn¡¯t want to do it two days in a row,¡± I said, apologetically. His eyes softened. ¡°My schedule doesn¡¯t take priority over you, solnishko.¡± Ivan said, ¡°told you.¡± I didn¡¯t even look in his direction, I just snapped my fingers and pointed in his direction. I could hear himughing. He looked over my head to Viktor. ¡°You really helped?¡± Viktor shrugged his shoulders, a somewhat worried look on his face. ¡°I don¡¯t think it was the same as you, but it kept it from getting worse, which is what we were worried about.¡± Adrik took a deep breath and visibly rxed. Viktor looked at him, puzzled. ¡°You¡¯re not mad?¡± Adrikughed. He looked down at me as he answered Viktor. ¡°No, the opposite, really. It makes me worry less to know that she has someone else who can help if needed.¡± I smiled up at him, watching as he tried to hide his heart skipping a beat. We were in Adrik¡¯s office at the end of the day, waiting for someone from the police department to show up so I could give them a description of what the doctor looked like. Adrik had called themissioner after lunch. He knew about the doctor and said they¡¯d been trying to catch the guy for a decade. He said the same thing as Dr. Williams; no one could remember what he looked like. Adrik told him that I could remember and themissioner said he would send someone out that night. He also told Adrik that they could have all the information the police had on the guy. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°He told me that we had free rein to find this guy. He said his people have been looking for him for a decade and they¡¯d only run into dead ends. He was still operating in the city, as they met new victims regrly. Apparently, he¡¯s gotten worse as the years have progressed. He¡¯s moved on to even darker things,¡± Adrik said as we were waiting Misha asked. ¡°He¡¯s into organ harvesting row. The hospitals are reporting people showing up with missing organs, with no memory of how it happened,¡± Adrik said. ¡°For real? I thought that was just an urban legend,¡± I said. ¡°ording to the policemissioner, it¡¯s real. He hasn¡¯t released that info to the public yet, but he said it¡¯s been happening more frequentlytely,¡± he said. ¡°Just when I thought things couldn¡¯t possibly get any worse,¡± I said, mostly to myself. Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He got up, walking out of the office. He returned a momentter with one uniformed police officer, one in clothes officer, and a third with a sketch pad in his hands. Adrik stood, walking toward them. He extended his hand to all three. ¡°Thank you foring on such short notice,¡± he said. He motioned for them to sit. ¡°We should be thanking you, sir. We¡¯ve been chasing this guy for years and never found anyone that can remember what he looks like. We still haven¡¯t been able to figure out what drugs he uses to wipe memories. They¡¯re out of the victims¡¯ systems quickly, which makes it impossible for us to test them,¡± the in clothes officer said, taking a seat across from the couch I was 1. When Adrik got up to greet them, I moved closer to Andrei, who was on the other side of me on the couch. I was scared. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders while I curled up next to him, wanting to hide. He held me against him tightly. ¡°You¡¯ll be okay, spider monkey. We¡¯ll protect you,¡± he whispered to me. The in clothes officer looked at me. ¡°You must be Sephie,¡± he said. I nodded. Adrik sat back down on the couch, but sat closer to me so I wouldn¡¯t have to move from Andrei. The officer nced at Andrei and at Adrik, then back to me. ¡°I¡¯m Jason,¡± he said. He looked at the uniformed officer. ¡°That¡¯s Ryan. And that¡¯s Will,¡± he said pointing to the guy with the sketch pad. ¡°We¡¯re really grateful to have found you, you know. You seem to be the only one that can remember what this guy looks like. Can you tell us what happened?¡± I looked up at Andrei, who gave my shoulders onest squeeze before I moved so I was sitting between him and Adrik. I had my hands pulled inside my sleeves so the officers couldn¡¯t see my bruised knuckles. I didn¡¯t need them asking questions about anything else today. Adrik stretched his arm across myp as I started to recount the story of my uncle and what had happened the night he took me to this doctor. I gave the sketch artist, Will, asplete a description as I could of what the doctor looked like. He would ask me questions as I described the guy, trying to get a better idea of what he looked like. He was working on his sketch pad the entire time we were talking. Finally, he said, ¡°okay, tell me if this looks like him. We can change anything that might be off.¡± He turned his sketch pad and I saw the face of the doctor that had taken my uterus. I stared at it for a moment, then felt like I was going to vomit. 1 jumped off the couch, racing to the bathroom, which was across the floor from Adrik¡¯s office, not wanting to use his private bathroom to spare everyone from having to listen to me vomit. I wasn¡¯t going to make it. Thankfully, everyone had gone home for the day and I spotted a trash can. I grabbed it and emptied what was left of the burrito I had for lunch that day Into the can. I felt Adrik¡¯s warm hands on my back. I was still bent over, not sure if I was going to vomit again or not. I groaned. I hated vomiting and I hated it worse when it happened in front of people. He didn¡¯t say anything, he just gently rubbed my back until I stood up. When I did, he ushered me toward the bathroom. When he came into the bathroom with me, I couldn¡¯t help myself. I looked at him, saying, ¡°under any other circumstances, this would be kinda hot.¡± He smirked at me. ¡°I¡¯ll remember that,¡± he said as I turned on the water in the sink. I washed my hands then sshed water over my face. He handed me a paper towel when I was done. I nced at myself in the mirror. I could inly see the Bar on my face. I knew everyone else would be able to as well, I caught sight of my hands as I was drying my face, I quickly pulled my sleeves back over my hands to hide them. Adrik noticed. I just looked at him and said, ¡°I should¡¯ve worn gloves and told the was a germophobe or something ¡°It will be fine, solnishko. Don¡¯t worry,¡± he said as he pulled me to him. When we walked out of the bathroom, all five of the guys were lined up outside the office, waiting to make sure I was fine. I couldn¡¯t help but smile to myself. ¡°They worry almost as much as you do,¡± I said. He clicked his tongue. ¡°More, I think. Which is saying a lot.¡± Chapter 202 Chapter 202 Chapter Two Hundred Two Sephie I smiled at them as we walked closer, watching them rx knowing I was okay. ¡°Hope you guys didn¡¯t want burritos again anytime soon. It¡¯s going to be a while before I¡¯m okay with that idea,¡± I said as we walked back into the office. This time, Adrik sat on the couch and I sat in between his legs, his arms wrapped around me. Jason looked sympathetic when he said, ¡°I ha te vomiting. Ha te it worse than anything in the world. But I¡¯m guessing by that reaction, we nailed what he looks like?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°That¡¯s him. He¡¯s probably older now, though. It was 8 years ago when it happened.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that,¡± Will said. ¡°We¡¯ve got software that can digitally age a person. We¡¯ll make a few variations of how he might be aging to see if people recognize him.¡± Jason looked at me, a serious look on his face. ¡°Sephie, where is your uncle now? You know you can press charges against him. right?¡± I froze. I felt Adrik hold me tighter. Jason noticed, adding, ¡°you said he used to beat you. He needs to be brought to justice, Sephie. He shouldn¡¯t get away with that.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t,¡± I said, matter-of-factly. Jason looked at me, somewhat confused. ¡°He¡¯s dead. I killed him,¡± I said as I stood up. I lifted my shirt over my head, turning my back to them. ¡°I had to, or he would¡¯ve killed me.¡± I heard all three of them curse as they looked at my back. Ryan, who hadn¡¯t said a word the entire time, finally quietly said, ¡°charges brought.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh quietly as I pulled my shirt back on, careful to keep my hands covered. I turned and sat back in Adrik¡¯sp, his arms once again holding me tightly. Jason, who was still somewhat speechless, was trying to find words. Ivan spoke up, asking ¡°themissioner said you would share the information you had on this doctor?¡± Jason was once again snapped back to reality. He looked to Ivan, nodding his head. ¡°We brought a few boxes with us, but there¡¯s more at the station. Ten years¡¯ worth of information on this guy, to be exact. You can look through all of it. Themissioner made it clear we were to cooperate fully with you guys.¡± He looked at Adrik, leaning forward in his chair. ¡°Look, I know you guys can operate outside the law, where we can¡¯t. I don¡¯t care anymore. I want to see this guy in jail, but if he ends up dead, I won¡¯t shed a tear over it.¡± Will said, ¡°there are countless other stories, just like yours and some that are worse. He has to be stopped.¡± Adrik simply nodded. Ivan stood up and asked to make a copy of the sketch so he could get it out to his people right away. Will readily handed it over. ¡°We¡¯ll send the ag ed version to you, as soon as we have it. I¡¯ll get this to the IT department as soon as we get back. They¡¯ll age him and we can send over that one.¡± They were getting ready to leave. Adrik looked to Andrei, and said in Russian, ¡°hold onto her until they¡¯re gone.¡± Andrei nodded once, reached over, and pulled me to him again. I curled up against his side, with his nt arm over me protectively. Adrik stood up, as well as Misha, Stephen, and Viktor. Those three stood In front of me while Adrik talked to the officers. Andrel looked down at me, somewhat curious. ¡°Why are you so worried, spider monkey?¡± he asked me quietly, still speaking Russian. Misha, who was close enough to hear the question, nced down at us, curious as well. I pulled my hand out of any shirt sleeve far enough that he could see my bruised knuckles, quickly pulling my hand back inakde. Recognition spread over his face. ¡°No unnecessary questions,¡± I said, quietly. Viktor and Stephen escorted the officers back downstairs. Misha turned to me and said, ¡°you were born for this shi t, gazelle.¡± 1 While Adrik¡¯s schedule had mostly been clear, the morning filled up quickly with a few meetings. Ivan and Viktor also needed time to get the doctor¡¯s picture out to their people. Will had sent over the ag ed version of the doctor the previous evening, as promised. They gave both versions to their people, hoping that someone would recognize him. Misha and Andrei were with me. We stopped by Adrik¡¯s office on our way back from the gym, just because I had a feeling his schedule had changed yet again. Not long after we walked into his office, Andy walked in. He nodded to Andrei and Misha, then walked to Adrik, his hand extended. As he went to sit down across from Adrik¡¯s desk, he noticed the picture of the doctor that Ivan had left on the coffee table. Instead of sitting, he walked to it, picking it up. He looked at it, then looked to Adrik, confused. ¡°Why do you have Dr. Moretti¡¯s picture?¡± he asked. We all stood at the same time. ¡°What did you just say?¡± Adrik asked. He was trying to remain calm, but only barely keeping it together. I nced to Andrei, who quickly pulled his phone out. He called a number, let it ring, then hung up. Within seconds, Viktor, Stephen, and Ivan were in the office as well. Andy didn¡¯t even have time to respond to Adrik¡¯s question before they were there. ¡°Dr. Moretti¡¯s picture. Why do you have it?¡± Andy asked again. Ivan, who wasn¡¯t even trying to control his anger, walked up to Andy. He towered over him. ¡°How do you know him?¡± Ivan asked, his voice heavy with anger. Andy, who was nowpletely terrified, sat down. He didn¡¯t respond right away, like he was trying to figure out how best to proceed. I looked at the guys, who all looked ready to ki ll something, then looked at Andy, who was pretty sure he was the thing about to be killed. I walked quietly to the door of the office, closed it, then walked toward Andy. The guys were aware of my movements, but hadn¡¯t taken their eyes off Andy. Andy, however, was watching me. I put my hand on Ivan¡¯s arm, which caused him to look at me. I pushed him to the side, gently, so I could stand in front of Andy. Once Ivan moved, I leaned against, Adrik¡¯s desk, trying to be less threatening toward Andy, This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. ¡°Andy, this man took something from me. Something important. Something I¡¯ll never be able to get back. How do you know who he is?¡± I said, trying to remain as calm as possible, even though I could feel my anger just below the surface. I could also feel Adrik¡¯s anger getting stronger, the longer it took Andy to answer his question. Andy looked at me, still wide-eyed. I could see him struggling, trying to find the right thing to say. He finally took a deep breath. ¡°Fu ck it. I¡¯m already a dead man if Sal ever finds me. Not like he can ki ll me twice.¡± I nced up at all the guys, who were still standing, ready to pummel something. I gave them all a tight smile and made a motion for them to sit. They begrudgingly took a step back and sat down. I looked to Andy again, trying to smile as genuinely as possible at him. ¡°What does that mean, Andy?¡± Chapter 203 Chapter 203 Chapter Two Hundred Three Sephie ¡°This is the guy that originally created brawn. He works for Sal.¡± I didn¡¯t need to see him. I knew Adrik was about to explode behind me. I put my hand up, trying to at least buy me another minute to find out more. I heard him exhale, but his fist still made contact with his desk. Andy flinched. ¡°How much do you know about this doctor?¡± I asked. ¡°In case you couldn¡¯t tell, this is very important, so it¡¯s worth your while to tell us everything.¡± Andy took another deep breath, ncing around the room. He had the look of a cornered animal. One that knows it¡¯s caught and is about to give in. He continued, ¡°I¡¯m not sure how Sal found this guy, but he¡¯s been paying him for years. He does back- room abortions for Sal¡¯s prostitutes mostly, but since Anthony got into human trafficking, he¡¯s branched out into, um, other stuff.¡± He nced at me, still nervous. ¡°Organ harvesting.¡± I said, tly. Andy¡¯s eyes went wide. He nodded. ¡°It¡¯s huge on the ck market, especially overseas.¡± ¡°And you said he¡¯s the one that created brawn? How do you know that?¡± I asked. ¡°Years ago, Sal¡¯s dealers weren¡¯t making him the kind of money he wanted. Sales had dropped off in his area and he didn¡¯t like it. He was on the phone with Lorenzo when Dr. Moretti walked into his office. Sal kept talking, telling Lorenzo about the dip in sales. Dr. Moretti suggested they formte a new drug. A designer drug, I think he called it. He said, ¡®people like new things, right? Give them something new and sales go back up.¡¯ Sal liked the idea and paid Dr. Moretti to formte it. He experimented for a few weeks and came up with brawn. The first edition was really popr. While aggression was a definite side effect, it got the users high as fu ck, basically.¡± ¡°They didn¡¯t realize the dangers untilter, did they?¡± I asked. He shook his head no. ¡°No, it took almost a year before they realized that continued use was killing people. The dealers are the ones that first noticed it. Other areas of the city had already stopped selling it. The dealers are the ones that stopped it, not the bosses. They said they weren¡¯t going to ki ll their customer base. Sal¡¯s dealers were the only ones selling it at thest, but they eventually stopped too.¡± ¡°Is this doctor the same one that came up with this new formtion of it as well?¡± I nced at the guys again, who were still visibly tense. Adrik had started pacing back and forth behind me, trying to remain calm. I wanted to go to him, but I also didn¡¯t think Andy would keep talking if I wasn¡¯t close to him. He knew I was standing in the way of the guys. ¡°I think so, although I can¡¯t be sure. I know Sal still pays him,¡± he said, watching Adrik pace behind me. ¡°Do you know how to find him?¡± I asked. He thought for a moment. ¡°Yeah, unless he¡¯s moved. Sal lets him use one of his houses just outside the city. He used to be a doctor at one of the hospitals in the city, but he had his license revoked after too many medical misconduct cases. When he was still working at the hospital, Sal would pay him under the table only when he needed him. Once he had his license revoked, Sal put him on the payroll and he started roving clinics around the city. People woulde to him for various things, pay cash, and he¡¯d do whatever, no questions asked, as long as the cash was flowing. When he created brawn, he initially made Sal a lot of money, so fal let him have that house as thanks.¡± ¡°We¡¯re gonna need to know where that house is,¡± I said. ¡°Yeah, of course. I don¡¯t know if things have changed now or not, but he never has security with him. Sal always offered, but he said he didn¡¯t need it because no one could remember his face that he worked on. He said he would see people all the time that he worked on. He would purposely go and talk to them because there was always the faintest hint of recognition there, but they could never ce him. He liked to mess with their heads.¡± Andy said. I felt like I almost had the wind knocked out of me listening to Andy speak. ¡°What the actual fu ck,¡± I said, louder than I meant to. Adrik stopped his pacing, as well. We all just stared at Andy for a moment, completely du mbfounded at how evil this man really was. I suddenly had a thought. I looked at the guys and turned to look at Adrik, saying in Russian, ¡°we need to make sure the police don¡¯t release his picture. He¡¯s going to run if it gets out that we know what he looks like. Sal will get him out of the city.¡± Ivan nodded. He got up and walked out of the office, his fingers dialing a number on his phone as he walked out. Andy had a renewed sense of worry on his face, since he couldn¡¯t understand what just happened. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Andy. Your life is safe,¡± I said. I couldn¡¯t muster a smile, but I tried to say it softly enough that he wouldn¡¯t hear my anger. We were silent for a moment as we waited for Ivan toe back into the office. If the police had already released his picture, we would have to move quickly. If they hadn¡¯t, we had a little more time. If Dr. Moretti believed he was anonymous still, he would be easier to catch. Ivan walked back into the office, somewhat relieved. He said, still in Russian, ¡°we¡¯re good. They haven¡¯t released it. They¡¯re not going to now, either. Jason asked if he and Ryan coulde with us when we go get him, though.¡± He had a small smile on his face. We all audibly exhaled. I looked at the guys. ¡°Guess we¡¯re not going to the house today, after all.¡± They all chuckled while Andy still looked like he was barely keeping control over his dder. I looked at him, curious. ¡°What did you need before this revtion, Andy?¡± I asked him in English. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. He looked at me, a deer in the headlights look. ¡°It¡¯s not important. It can wait.¡± Normally, I would have gotten that information out of him, but right now, I didn¡¯t care. I nodded, standing up. I walked around Adrik¡¯s desk. He was still standing in one spot. I could see he was fighting to keep control. His jaw was clenched, his hand in a tight fist at his side, his shoulders tense, every muscle in his body flexed. I found myself oddly turned on as I walked to him. I chewed on my bottom lip, without realizing what I was doing. He nced at me, clearly recognizing the look on my face. It was what he needed to calm down. He smirked at me as he pulled me to him quickly. Viktor had called Andy to him, finding out the location of the house and any other details he knew about, so they weren¡¯t necessarily paying attention to me and Adrik. I saw Adrik nce in their direction briefly, then one arm pulled me to him by my waist, the other hand on the back of my neck as his lips crashed into mine. He kissed me so passionately that I just about couldn¡¯t breathe. He stopped, pressing his forehead to mine. His breath was heavy as well. ¡°I needed that. I need you, solnishko,¡± he said, still trying to catch his breath. ¡°To keep me from destroying everyone.¡± Chapter 204 Chapter 204 Chapter Two Hundred Four Sephie Andy told the guys everything he knew, then hurriedly left the office. He looked like he didn¡¯t want to be in the office any longer than he needed to be, given the reaction we all had when he identified Dr. Moretti. The guys were in deep discussion about a n for what to do about Dr. Moretti. Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He answered it, a puzzled look on his face. He looked at me, now on the couch in Adrik¡¯sp to try to help him remain calm. He ended the call, saying, ¡°someone is here to see you, sestrichka. They¡¯re in the lobby.¡± I looked at him,pletely confused. ¡°Who is it? Nobodyes to see me.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s arms tighten around me. ¡°He said it was a guy, Tall, blonde hair. He said he knows you.¡± Viktor said. ¡°It has to be Max. He¡¯s the only guy, outside of this room, that would know me and know where to find me. Although I don¡¯t know why he would be here, unless he broke up with Tori,¡± I said. Misha and Andrei stood up. ¡°We¡¯ll take you down to see him,¡± Andrei said. This wasn¡¯t going to end well. Neither of them had any love for Max. Adrik, who was already struggling to keep his cool, let his hatred for Max finallye out as he said, ¡°I don¡¯t want him up here, but I won¡¯t keep you from seeing what he wants.¡± I tried not tough. I turned to look at him. He saw the amused look on my face, which caused him to soften just a bit. ¡°What? That guy is a fu cking mo ron. There. I said it.¡± I couldn¡¯t keep it in. Iughed. ¡°I mean, you¡¯re not entirely wrong,¡± I said, kissing his lips. On the elevator down to the lobby, I pulled my hands inside my sleeves again. I sighed. ¡°As if this week couldn¡¯t get any weirder.¡± I leaned back against the wall of the elevator. I felt Andrei¡¯s hand pulling me off the wall so he could wrap his sizeable arm around me. I leaned against his shoulder, thankful for the comfort as I watched the numbers on the elevator descend. Right before we got to the lobby, 1 looked at them both. ¡°Just promise me you won¡¯t ki ll him in front of everyone, because I can almost guarantee there¡¯s going to be some du mb shi t thates out of his mo uth.¡± They both smirked at me. ¡°We¡¯re not savages, spider monkey. He won¡¯t see iting when it happens,¡± Andrei said, his mischievous grin across his face. As we walked off the elevator, I could see Max surrounded by three guards. He looked ho rrible. He also looked pi ssed, which surprised me. ¡°Huh,¡± I said as we walked closer. Misha picked up on it as well and stepped closer to me. ¡°Hi, Max,¡± I said as we walked up. Andrei nodded to the guards that were standing with Max, indicating that they were free to go. ¡°Was that really necessary? Like I can¡¯t juste see you? Don¡¯t they know we¡¯re friends?¡± he asked, a clear edge to his voice that I didn¡¯t appreciate. Misha and Andrei both tensed next to me. ¡°Are we though, Max?¡± I said, my anger from earlier still right at the surface. ¡°How many times have you fallen off the face of the earth because thetest girl you¡¯re fu cking was jealous of me, even though she had no reason to be? Is that why you¡¯re here now? You finally broke it off with Tori and you remembered that exist again?¡± Andrel and Misha both nced down on me, surprised at my response, but both trying to hold in smiles. Max was slightly stunned at my response. I crossed my arms across my chest, waiting for him to answer. He nced at Andrel and Misha, then looked to me. ¡°Do they have to be here?¡± he asked ¡°YES,¡± we all said at once. He took a small step back. ¡°What do you want, Max?¡± I asked, now losing patience. ¡°I saw Chen the other day. He said you came to him asking questions. I just wanted to make sure you were okay,¡± he said. Iughed. ¡°That¡¯s not why you¡¯re here, Max. Don¡¯t y the protective friend card when you haven¡¯t bothered to reach out since you started dating Tori, not even after I warned you about her. Now, what do you want?¡± Misha nced down at me, recognizing the look on my face. ¡°You better get on with it, dude. She¡¯s losing patience, which means I¡¯m gonna lose my patience, which means Andrei¡¯s gonna lose his patience and the rest of the people in the lobby aren¡¯t ready to see that happen today. Help them out by getting the fu ck on with it.¡± Max looked at him, wide-eyed, then looked at the floor. ¡°You were right,¡± he said, quietly. My anger wouldn¡¯t let me feel sorry for him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, what was that?¡± I asked. He took a deep breath in, exhaling loudly. ¡°You were right. About Tori. She¡¯s almost destroyed me. I¡¯m going broke because of her. I can¡¯t pay my rent. She doesn¡¯t seem to understand that I need to flirt with the women at the bar to get tips and that¡¯s all it is. I might be an as shole when ites to women, but I don¡¯t cheat.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°Have you broken up with her?¡± I asked. He shook his head no. ¡°I¡¯m scared to. I don¡¯t know what she¡¯s going to do. She¡¯s gonepletely unhinged a few times at the restaurant. Like the rest of the kitchen staff ran away because they were scared of her.¡± ¡°Has the owner seen this?¡± I asked, trying to get him to see the solution himself. ¡°No. You know he rarelyes in,¡± he said. ¡°He¡¯s noticed your sales have dropped at the bar though,¡± I said. He nodded his head. ¡°Talk to him. Tell him what¡¯s going on. He¡¯s going to side with you in this situation. You bring in more money than Tori. You¡¯re the asset, not her. Get him toe to the restaurant and then goad her into exploding. He¡¯ll see it and fire her on the spot. He¡¯s a reasonable man. Use that to your advantage.¡± I could see the pieces click into ce in his head. He looked at me. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re a genius. I knew you would know how to fix this.¡± He moved like he was going to hug me, but Andrei and Misha both stepped further in front of me, preventing him from getting closer. Andrei looked at Max, crossing his arms across his chest. ¡°She warned you months ago this was going to happen and you didn¡¯t listen. You chose a crazy woman over your friend. You¡¯ve always chosen other women over Sephie. You¡¯re going to live with those consequences from this point forward. The next time youe here, you¡¯ll be escorted out of the building.¡± Max looked to me, a hurt expression on his face. ¡°Sephie¡­¡± he said, his mo uth open in shock. He was expecting me to argue with Andrei. When I didn¡¯t, he was shocked. I sighed. ¡°Max, you can¡¯t keep treating me like this. I¡¯m not going to continue to give you solutions to all your problems when I get nothing in return from you. I can¡¯t. I have too much else going on right now. If you want to be a real friend to me, one who doesn¡¯t ditch me for thetest fu ck, then we can talk. Until then, I can¡¯t keep doing this. I won¡¯t keep doing this. Andrei is right. You need to live with the consequences of your choices or you¡¯re never going to learn.¡± Max went from shocked to angry in a split second. It surprised me how quickly he changed. ¡°You think you can ditch me now that you¡¯re giving it up to some rich guy? Like you¡¯re somehow better than me now?¡± ¡°You mean the same fu cking way you¡¯ve ditched me over and over again? Now that the tables have turned, you don¡¯t like it so much do you? You¡¯re not going to just wait until Ie back around the same way I¡¯ve waited for you how many fu cking times?¡± I said. My anger was now fully present. ¡°You think you cane here, interrupt my day, get the answers you need to fix the problem that I warned you about only to have you ignore it until it became a major problem and just continue to treat me like shi t and have me take it?¡± I had stepped between Misha and Andrei as I was talking. Max was surprised at my outburst. He¡¯d never once scen me angry. As soon as he took a step back, it fueled my anger. I knew I had him on the run and my anger wouldn¡¯t stop. I kept walking toward him as I was talking, knowing he was scared. ¡°You seem to forget who the fu ck I¡¯m giving it up to, Max. You will leave this building and you will never return if you want to remain alive. You¡¯ll be lucky if I can convince him not to have you killed after he finds out about this and he will find out about this. You did this to yourself. You will live with it.¡± I stopped, knowing Andrei and Misha were right behind me. They were both prepared to pull me off him, if necessary. Max was lucky that my hands still hurt. I wanted to punch him. Without taking my eyes off Max, I said to Andrei and Misha, in Russian, ¡°can you please get him out of my sight?¡± ¡°dly,¡± they both said as they stepped around me, grabbing Max and pushing him roughly toward the doors to the building. I watched as they shoved him out of the building. I was trying to breathe deeply to help myself calm down, but I knew I was about to lose it. Everything from this week was about to catch up to me all at once. Andrei and Misha walked back in, both smiling. I knew they were happy they finally got to throw him out of the building. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at their expressions. Misha wrapped his arm around my shoulders as I turned to walk back to the elevators. I managed to keep it together until the elevator doors closed. I felt the angry tears start to fall on the ride back to the office. Both Andrei and Misha noticed, looking at me concerned. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, gazelle. It¡¯ll be okay,¡± Misha said, as he squeezed my shoulders. I tried tough, but it came out more like a cough as I was trying to hold back the tears. ¡°I¡¯m not upset. I¡¯m fu cking pi ssed. I wanted to punch him, but my hands still hurt,¡± 1 said, pulling my hands out of my sleeves, reminding them of my bruised knuckles. They tried to hold in theirughter, but they couldn¡¯t. I looked at the relief on their faces and couldn¡¯t help butugh with them. I sighed. ¡°You guys helped me finally see him for who he really is. I don¡¯t want to put up with that anymore,¡± I said, pulling my hands back in my sleeves. Andrei pulled me to him, wrapping his giant arms around me, holding me tightly. ¡°I¡¯m so proud of you, Sephie.¡± I stayed quiet for a moment, trying to rx, trying to keep the shaking that had started from getting worse. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, Bubba. Don¡¯t tell the others,¡± I said. He chuckled. I noticed that Misha didn¡¯t argue, as the doors to the elevator opened. That¡¯s new. I slid my arm through Misha¡¯s as we walked back into the office, knowing there was something bothering him. Chapter 205 Chapter 205 Chapter Two Hundred Five Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Adrik Sephie walked back into the office with Andrei and Misha, the rest of us looking at them expectantly. She walked straight to me, taking her ce in myp once again. I could tell by the look on her face that it did not go well. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her tightly, wanting to protect her from anything that could make her anything but happy. Instead of asking her for the details, I looked to Andrei and Misha for the recap of what happened. They were both trying to hold in theirughter. Andrei spoke first. ¡°I would just like to take a moment to state once again how happy I am that Tori is not a part of my life any longer. But the good news of this week is that Max won¡¯t being here ever again.¡± Viktor, Ivan, and Stephen all looked to Sephie, surprised. My expression matched theirs. Misha looked to me, a sly smile on his face. ¡°It was impressive. Max was mad that he was made to wait in the lobby, so it didn¡¯t start well. It went downhill from there, basically.¡± ¡°What did he want?¡± Ivan asked, watching Sephie¡¯s face. I could almost watch his anger envelope him as he looked at her. She was clearly upset, which meant Ivan was ready to end whatever or whomever was the cause of her being upset. ¡°He wanted Sephie to fix his life like always. He said Tori is destroying his life, but he wasn¡¯t smart enough to figure out how to get rid of her on his own,¡± Andrei said. He looked to Sephie,pl¨¨tely flustered, adding, ¡°I mean, the solution was so fu cking obvious and he had no clue until you gift- wrapped it for him.¡± ¡°Solution for what? Getting rid of Tori?¡± Viktor asked. for asked Misha nodded his head. ¡°She asked him if he¡¯d broken up with Tori yet, after he told her that he can¡¯t afford to pay his rent right now. He said no because he was afraid of her. Apparently, she¡¯d scared the kitchen staff a few times after she¡¯d lost it.¡± Ivanughed. ¡°I knew she had it in her.¡± ¡°No joke, man. Sephie told him to get the restaurant owner to fire her and evenid out exactly how to do that. The owner has to know something is off because Max isn¡¯t pulling the numbers he normally does. He¡¯ll likely happily fire Tori once he knows what¡¯s happening.¡± Andrei said. *Max got all happy once she spelled it out for him like he was a fu cking child and wanted to hug her, but we stepped in front of her. I fully expected her to stop us, but she didn¡¯t. So, Andrei told him to leave and nevere back. He made it clear that he¡¯d chosen crazy over Sephie for thest time. Of course, he was bu tt-h urt. He looked to her like she was going to argue with Andrei. She didn¡¯t. She tried to be nice though, but she told him he couldn¡¯t keep treating her like this,¡± Misha said. She pulled my arms around her tighter, folding her legs up inside mine. ¡°He switched to angry real quick.¡± Sephie interrupted him. ¡°That even surprised me. I¡¯ve never seen him that angry before.¡± Her voice was t. ¡°Right? I was actually worried he was going to make a scene,¡± Andrei said. Misha looked to me. ¡°You¡¯re about to get mad again, but walt until you hear how she handled it,¡± he said. He even put his hands up like he was trying to keep me from flying off the handle already. ¡°Max said, and I quote, ¡®you think you can ditch me now that you¡¯re giving it up to some rich guy?¡±¡± Misha was right, I was livid. Sephie felt it, leaning her head back against my shoulder so she could somewhat see me. She stretched up and kissed my cheek. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I owned him. Right before I threatened his life,¡± she said quietly. nced toward Ivan, Viktor, and Stephen. All three of their faces were red. They were just as Misha continued, ¡°this part was beautiful to watch, Boss. You would¡¯ve been so proud of her. Andrei and I were still standing in front of her, partially blocking her from him. She stepped in between us and got right in his face. She turned it back on him and asked him if he meant she was ditching him how he¡¯s always ditched her. He took a step back. That was a big mistake,¡± Misha said, starting tough. ¡°I nced at Misha when it happened. We both knew what wasing. She started pushing him backward, still just verbally ughtering him. We were worried we¡¯d have to pull her off him. She told him to leave and nevere back. Then she said he¡¯d clearly forgotten just exactly who she was giving it up to and that he¡¯d be lucky if she could convince Boss not to have him. killed after he finds out,¡± Andrei said. ¡°And he will find out, she added,¡± Misha was stillughing, unable to hold it back any longer. ¡°You should¡¯ve seen his face,¡± he said. He could barely get the words out he wasughing so hard. ¡°She told him he did this to himself and that he was going to live with it. Then she asked me and Misha to get him out of her sight,¡± Andrei said, now alsoughing along with Misha. ¡°I¡¯ve never been so happy to throw someone out of this building.¡± I found myself feeling incredibly proud of her. Not just for owning Max and not taking his shi t, but for finally starting to see her worth. It meant she was starting to see in herself what I¡¯d always seen in her. I felt my heart swell as I knew that her confidence was growing. Ivan got control of himself afterughing with Andrei and Misha, saying, ¡°yep. We woke the beast, but she¡¯s inplete control of the beast now.¡± He looked at Sephie, clearly proud of her. ¡°It¡¯s because of you guys. You¡¯ve all shown me what love and loyalty really are. What I had with Max doesn¡¯te close. I don¡¯t want people around me that are only going to take from me,¡± she said, quietly, her hands fidgeting with mine. She took a deep breath, then added, ¡°he¡¯s just lucky my hands still hurt. I wanted to punch him.¡± I could hear the smile in her voice. ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to deal with him, especially this week, solnishko. But I can¡¯t say I¡¯m sad he won¡¯t be around anymore,¡± I said. She shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Not like he was around that much to begin with, really. But he won¡¯t be around again. Not unless he has a death wish.¡± Chapter 206 Chapter 206 Chapter Two Hundred Six Adrik ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . Sephie and I were alone in the penthouse that afternoon. She had her hands soaking in a bowl of very hot Epsom salt water to try and help the bruising calm down. She was staring at her hands as they soaked. Her expression was somewhat nk, but I knew she likely had more going on in her head than what I could see on the surface. I found myself just watching her, my own thoughts drifting in and out. I had set a timer for her soak. I was jerked back to reality as it went off. I grabbed ice from the freezer and filled another bowl with ice water, switching it out with the hot water in front of her. She looked worried about sticking her hands in the ice water. She hated it the first time we did this, too. ¡°Trust me, it won¡¯t feel as cold as you think. You don¡¯t have to leave them in very long, either,¡± I said, smiling at her. She sh ut her eyes tightly and held her breath as she shoved her hands into the ice water. ¡°Nope, ha te it,¡± she said as she pulled them out quickly. She wouldn¡¯t leave them in the ice water for longer than a few seconds the first time we soaked her hands. I think I got her tost ten seconds that time. ¡°You didn¡¯t even give it a chance, love.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at her, but I knew she really did ha te to be cold. ¡°Don¡¯t need to. Ha te it.¡± I grabbed a towel and walked to her side. I soaked the towel in the ice water, then took her hands and wrapped them in the towel. She sighed. ¡°Slightly better, but still ha te it,¡± she said as she tried to pull her hands away. ¡°Only for a little bit. It will help, I promise,¡± I said. She scoffed. ¡°Fine,¡± she said. I took the towel off after a minute and inspected her hands. They were still swollen and her poor knuckles were not the color that knuckles should be. I looked at her, concerned. ¡°Maybe we should¡¯ve x-rayed your hands when you went to the hospital with Ivan. Maybe you broke something.¡± ¡°Nope. Ha te that too,¡± she said. She grinned at me when I looked at her sternly. She pulled her hands from mine, making a fist with each one. ¡°I can still make a fist. I can still move all my fingers the way I¡¯m supposed to. It just hurts when I do,¡± she said, showing me she could still use her hands normally. ¡°We¡¯ll do this againter, then,¡± I said, kissing her forehead. She looked at me,plete surprise on her face. ¡°You¡¯re not going to argue? Or threaten to call the doctor? I know she saw the pain sh across my face when I thought about everything she¡¯d been through with doctors, now that I knew the whole story. I wasn¡¯t about to make her go to a doctor unless it was life or death, ever again. ¡°You¡¯ve had enough of doctors this week, solnishko,¡± I said, grabbing the bowl of ice water to empty it in the sink. She watched me walk away, not knowing what to say. She got up and followed me to the sink, hopping up on the counter next to me while I washed the bowl that had the salt in it. When I was done, I stepped between her legs. She wrapped her legs around my waist, her hands on the back of my neck in my hair. She didn¡¯t say anything, she just looked at me for a moment, She miled softly, then wrapped her arms around me hogging me tightly. I pulled her cloner to me, relieved to have a moment with her. I tried to step back from her so I could go get the arnica cream for her hands. She just clung to me tighter. ¡°Nope. Ha te that too,¡± she said, giggling. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°You¡¯reing with me, then,¡± I said, picking her up off the counter. I walked to the bathroom in our room, setting her on the counter in between the sinks. She let go so I could get the cream once we were in the bathroom. She had a wide smile on her face. I think she enjoyed trying to be bratty just to see if it would get a reaction. She would asionally do it with the guys too. It never worked. I don¡¯t think she¡¯d caught on that I loved it. Honestly, I loved everything about her. I stood in between her legs, holding out my hand for one of hers. She ced her bruised hand in mine. I started rubbing the cream into her knuckles, trying not to hurt her. She had been quiet since Max had come to the lobby. She seemed okay with it, but it had to be bothering her. Anytime you have to part ways with a friend you¡¯ve had for years is difficult. Even more so when it¡¯s in a dramatic fashion. She watched me put the cream on one hand, then the other. I would steal nces at her periodically. Her eyes were always on me. It made me think of the first night I was in her apartment, when we were in much the same position, just with me putting cream on her neck instead of her hands. I¡¯d like to see Anthony try to put his hands on her now. I couldn¡¯t help butugh at the thought. She looked at me, curious. ¡°I was thinking back to the first night I was in your apartment, when I set you on your kitchen counter so I could put cream on your neck. I had a thought that I¡¯d like to see Anthony try to put his hands on you now,¡± I said, grinning at her. She smiled, but she also looked troubled before she closed her eyes to mask it. Sheughed, looking at me again with no trace of anything but happiness. ¡°I might actually break my hands in his case.¡± She looked up at me, smiling. My phone rang in my pocket. I leaned down and kissed her gently as I pulled the phone from my pocket. It was Trino. I put him on speaker so Sephie could hear as well. ¡°Trino, what¡¯s up, my friend?¡± I said. ¡°lefe, I¡¯m sorry to bother you, but I want to check on something and make sure everything is good. I don¡¯t know who we can trust and who we can¡¯t trust at the moment,¡± he said. Sephie looked at me, slightly worried. Chapter 207 Chapter 207 Chapter Two Hundred Seven Adrik ¡°No bother, Trino. What happened?¡± ¡°One of my top dealers said there¡¯s a guy asking a lot of questions about brawn. He thought he was a cop at first, but then he said he confronted him about asking so many questions and he dropped your sweet angel¡¯s name and told the dealer to check with me,¡± Trino said. Sephie said, ¡°that¡¯s Chen, Trino. He¡¯s asking around for me. He used to be my neighbor. I told him that any of your dealers would help him, but told him to drop my name if they gave him shi t. I hope you don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°Miha, it¡¯s good to hear your voice. I don¡¯t mind at all,¡± he said. Sephie smiled at me. Trino added, ¡°you¡¯re a smart girl, miha. That was a good move telling him to use your name. I would definitely check that. I don¡¯t want to ever be on your bad side.¡± Heughed. Sephieughed as well. ¡°Chen knows that your dealers are not with this n. He¡¯s trying to find out more info for me. Did he tell your guy what he knows?¡± ¡°No, not yet. He found out more info?¡± Trino asked, clearly curious ¡°Yeah, I was going to call you tonight, Trino. None of the dealers he¡¯s talked to except one guy that works for Sal knows anything. Sal¡¯s guy said they¡¯re getting a head¡¯s up before they switch the shipment. The dealers in his area of the city are supposed toy low that weekend and not sell. Sal is trying to keep his area quiet that weekend to gain favor back from his people,¡± I said. We could hear Trino cursing in Spanish. ¡°No shi t? Did he know when it¡¯s happening?¡± ¡°No shi t. He didn¡¯t know, but that guy thinks Chen is in on the n already, so we¡¯re hoping he gives Chen a head¡¯s up. Chen is trying to find the right person in yourwork to pass the info to,¡± I said. ¡°And you found this guy through Sephie?¡± Trino asked. ¡°Yeah, I used to live in the same building as him. I saved him from marrying a wh ore, basically, so he owes me,¡± she said. Her eyes went wide and she shook her head like she couldn¡¯t believe she just said that out loud. ¡°Miha, I know Jefe is right there, but I love you. Come to Colom, mi amor,¡± he said, stillughing. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°I¡¯lle to Colombia, but only to find you the perfect woman who already loves Colombian men. I seem to have a thing for Russians,¡± she said, grinning at me. ¡°Deal,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m guessing the dealer that Chen talked to is a good contact if he does get a head¡¯s up?¡± I asked, trying to steer the conversation away from talk about Trino and Sephie together. While I knew I had nothing to worry about, it still didn¡¯t mean I wanted to think about that happening. ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s one of my top guys. I talk to him regrly. He can get the word out to all my guys quickly, too. Any progress on the warehouse or are you going to take my advice and go with the car bomb?¡± he asked. I chuckled. ¡°We¡¯re still working on it, but I do like your idea, not gonna lie. I¡¯m beginning to enjoy your dramatic le, Trina I smiled at Sephie. ¡°Speaking of, have you picked out the cliff for Massimo yet?¡± ¡°Oh, I have the perfect one, Jefe. I was considering a different one, but you¡¯re right. It needs to be the tallest one I can find. I have the perfect spot. He¡¯s going to be falling for a solid five minutes before he hits the ground. On fire the entire time,¡± he said. We could hear the slight edge of anger to his voice as he talked about Massimo. ¡°Can you video that? That guy has always been a di ck to me,¡± Sephie said. Trinoughed. ¡°Jefe asked the same thing. Okay, okay. You¡¯re perfect for each other. I won¡¯t try and steal you, miha. But pleasee to Colombia and help me find a woman as perfect as you.¡± ¡°Deal,¡± she said. ¡°Thanks for checking, Trino. Chen¡¯s been helpful to us. I¡¯d like to keep him around,¡± I said. ¡°De nada, Jefe. Thank Sephie for her brilliant idea to drop her name. You two are bing unstoppable,¡± he said, seriously. ¡°That¡¯s the n, Trino. Keep me informed on your end. I¡¯ll do the same here,¡± I said. ¡°Will do, Jefe.¡± I ended the call. Sephie was still looking at me, a little surprised. ¡°You weren¡¯t kidding. He wants to kidnap me,¡± she said, smiling. ¡°And to think, you used to think there was no reason to kidnap you. Now everyone wants to,¡± I said, smirking at her. ¡°You are not wrong. The list of people who don¡¯t want to kidnap me? Very short. The list of people who do want to kidnap me? Very long. Do normal people have this issue?¡± she asked, her eyes still wide. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. She smacked my arm. ¡°This is not funny! Wait, no. It¡¯s a little funny,¡± she said as she couldn¡¯t keep her ownughter in any longer. I leaned in and pressed my lips to hers. There were times where I felt overwhelmed with how much I loved this woman. This was one of those times. We were beingpletely ri diculous about a serious subject, but I found myself feeling lighter any time Iughed with her. About anything. It felt like there were no limits to how happy she could make me, regardless of what was going on. Just as I deepened the kiss, my hand moving to the back of her neck, my phone rang again. I groaned against her lips as 1 looked down to see who it was this time. I looked at her, smiling up at me, her lips fuller from my kiss. I groaned again. ¡°I need to take this, solnishko. I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said, answering the phone. It was a business associate I¡¯d been waiting to hear from. I stayed in front of her, one hand on her thigh, as I had the conversation. She reached up and started to run her fingers lightly over my neck, down my chest where my shirt was unbuttoned. She was making it hard to concentrate. She reached up and kissed my neck lightly, letting her teeth graze my neck just barely. I cleared my throat to keep from making a different noise. She leaned back, a devilish grin on her face. I looked at her sternly as I was talking. Her fingers continued to run lightly over my neck and chest. I had to catch her hand and stop her. I had asked my associate to repeat a sentence twice already because 1 couldn¡¯t concentrate. I heard her giggle quietly as she pushed me back so she could hop off the counter. She gave me onest kiss to my cheek as she walked out of the bathroom. Chapter 208 Chapter 208 Chapter Two Hundred Eight Adrik It was only slightly easier to concentrate after she left. All I could think about was her. I don¡¯t know how I managed to get through the rest of the conversation, but I couldn¡¯t end the call fast enough. I stepped out of the bathroom, looking for her. She was curled up on the bed, smiling at me when I walked into the bedroom. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit evil, solnishko.¡± I said. I unbuttoned two more buttons on my shirt, pulling it off over my head as I walked toward the bed. I couldn¡¯t get enough of the look on her face as she watched me walk toward her after I took my shirt off. She chewed on her bottom lip, her eyes filled with lust as I unbuckled my belt, then my pants, walking out of them as I continued toward her. I grabbed her ankle, pulling her to the edge of the bed, as she squealed. I pulled her up, so she was standing in front of me. ¡°You appear to be over-dressed. Let me help you with that.¡± I pulled her shirt over her head, then unbuttoned her pants, pushing them down her hips. I pushed her back on the bed quickly, making her squeal again, thenugh. I grabbed her legs, pulling her jeans all the way off, along with her panties. She made quick work to get rid of her bra, as well. I stood over her for a moment, just drinking in her na ked body. She had gotten so skinny before the ball that she almost looked si ck. She¡¯d been so hurt after the ball that it took her a long time to put the weight back on. But once she felt better and Andrei started really getting serious with her training, she¡¯d put on muscle too. She was still soft in all the right ces, but her body had changed. I found myself very fond of the changes. I ran my hand lightly up her leg. I loved to watch her react to my touch. She never disappointed. She closed her eyes, a small smile on her lips. I could see the goosebumps rise on her skin as my hand ran over her stomach. I crawled onto the bed over her, leaning down to kiss her stomach lightly. I felt her hands softly run through my hair. I looked up at her, seeing nothing but desire on her face. My lips were on hers instantly. She responded by wrapping her legs around my waist tightly. She surprised me by grabbing my co ck and positioning me, pushing my hips toward her with her legs. She put her arms around my neck as 1 slid inside her. She couldn¡¯t help but moan each time. I loved it. She pulled me toward her, but instead of kissing her lips, I kissed her neck as I started to move in and out. I needed to hear her. It was the best stress relief I had. She must¡¯ve known because she moaned loudly right away. She put her head back against the bed, helping her to push her hips harder into me. I had shes of thest time we had s ex on the couch. I ran my hand down her body to her thigh, pulling her leg from my waist. I h**ked my arm behind her knee, pushing it to her shoulder. She moaned approvingly. That was all it took for me to lose control. I wanted to hear her scream. She grabbed onto my shoulders as she gotpletely lost in the pleasure. I could feel and hear her building. I kept my unrelenting rhythm, knowing it would be amazing when I finally pushed her over the edge. I felt her nails dig into my skin and I knew she was close. I felt her o*gasm as it happened. Her whole body responded to mine, pushing me closer to the edge. I couldn¡¯t get enough of her. I would never get tired of her. How she felt. How she sounded. How she made me feel. I was so lost in what she was making me feel that I ended up exploding into my own o*gasm as she wasing down from hers. I copsed on top of her, apologizing. ¡°Why are you apologizing?¡± she asked. Her hands were lightly running over my back. It was one of my favorite things. I was still riding high from the o*gasm, so her touch was extra sensual right after we had s ex. ¡°I meant for that tost a lot longer,¡± I said, smiling sheepishly at her. ¡°Don¡¯t apologize. I think you would¡¯ve broken me if itsted longer.¡± She grinned up at me. ¡°Did I hurt you, solnishko?¡± I asked, concerned. ¡°No, not at all. It was really intense, though.¡± Her fingers moved to my facial hair. I leaned down, kissing her passionately. She smiled against my lips. ¡°You felt it too.¡± ¡°I did. It was different this time. I got lost in the feeling,¡± I said, ying with the curls around her face. She giggled. ¡°Wee to my world. That¡¯s what you do to me every time.¡± I leaned down and kissed her once more. ¡°I might get addicted to that.¡± Sheughed. ¡°You will. I definitely am,¡± she said, her smile making my heart jump in my chest. Sephie Adrik was stillying on top of me when his phone interrupted us for the third time that afternoon. He seemed to be increasingly frustrated with the interruptions, but I understood. There was a lot going on. I was just happy to have a few hours alone with him right now. I needed it. I didn¡¯t realize how much I needed it. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org. He groaned as he got up to go check his phone that he had left in the bathroom. It was Viktor. I could tell by the way he answered the phone. He was quiet for a minute, then he told him we¡¯d be down in half an hour. Viktor must¡¯ve had news that Adrik needed to hear. 1 propped myself up on my elbows, waiting for him toe back. When he walked out of the bathroom, he cursed under his breath as he looked at me. ¡°Don¡¯t do that,¡± he said, a smirk on his face. ¡°Do what?¡± I asked, legitimately confused. ¡°Be that s**y. We only have time to shower and get dressed or have s ex again. I¡¯m very torn about whether I want you going downstairs smelling like s ex when I know you¡¯re going to be in a room full of men.¡± He sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. ¡°You make life veryplicated sometimes, solnishko.¡± He looked at me, grinning when he saw I was trying not tough at him. I stood up, putting my hand on his shoulder as I stood on my toes to whisper in his ear, ¡°you know we canbine those options, right?¡± I walked toward the bathroom, looking over my shoulder just in time to see him smile and run to me. He scooped me up and continued into the bathroom as Iughed at him. I definitely needed this. Chapter 209 Chapter 209 Chapter Two Hundred Nine Sephie On the elevator ride down to his office, I could tell he felt much better. I caught him looking down at me, a curious look on his face. I raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was thinking. ¡°You look like you feel better?¡± He phrased it like a question, like he wasn¡¯t totally sure. I nodded my head,ughing. ¡°I was just thinking the same thing about you. I think we both needed a few hours away.¡± He pulled me to him, holding me tightly against him. ¡°I definitely did, solnishko. I don¡¯t think you fully realize just what you do for me,¡± he said, kissing my forehead as I looked up at him. Before I could say anything, the doors pinged, signaling our arrival. He wrapped his arms around my waist, picking me up, as he walked off the elevator. He stopped, just outside. ¡°Kiss me,¡± he said sweetly. I leaned down and pressed my lips to his, still feeling the euphoria from our break time activities. ¡°I love you, A¡­¡± I said, quietly. I started to say his name, but I forgot to check to see who was around first. He set me down, smiling down at me. I nced around quickly, relieved no one was around. ¡°I love you, solnishko,¡± he said, grabbing my hand,cing his fingers through mine. All the guys were in his office when we walked in. Ivan said, ¡°Armando should be here shortly.¡± ¡°Uh oh, is it serious?¡± I asked. Ivan smiled at me. ¡°Depends on your definition of serious, princess.¡± ¡°Sarcastic answer equals not that serious,¡± I said, winking at him. Armando and Giana walked in the office, followed by Chris and Keith. Her arm was through his. I was surprised to see her. She was usually shy abouting to Adrik¡¯s office. I was d to see her finally gaining some confidence. She looked relieved to see me. I smiled at her, greeting her in my broken Italian. She smiled at me, answering in Italian as well. Misha, who knew that he could make her all hot and bothered without much effort, looked to me and said in Russian, ¡°I don¡¯t like this, gazelle. You¡¯re only allowed to speak foreignnguages to us. Otherwise, you could be talking about how adorable I am and I wouldn¡¯t know it.¡± Iughed, making na nervous, I told her, again in my broken Italian, that Misha was jealous. Her cheeks flushed, but she smiled as Armando wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her to one of the chairs by Adrik¡¯s desk, I walked by Misha, on my way to my usual spot on the cabs behind Adrik¡¯s desk. I said quietly, ¡°don¡¯t scare her.¡± I tried to look at him sternly, but failed miserably. I caught myself wondering how his mother ever disciplined him as a child. He must¡¯ve gotten away with murder because he was so adorable. It was physically impossible to be mad at that face. I walked around Adrik¡¯s desk, but he caught my arm as I walked by, pulling me to him. He pushed his chair back and pulled me into his Jap, so I was leaned back against him. He put his lips close to my ear and said, ¡°I still need you close, solnishko.¡± I felt the goosebumps rise over my whole body. I pulled his arms around me, secretly happy when he slid his hand under my shirt. ¡°What have you found?¡± Adrik asked. Viktor and Ivan proceeded to tell us, mostly Armando who had been kept in the dark, what we knew about the warehouse so far. They¡¯d been unable to get into any surrounding warehouses, as those were all owned by one of Sal¡¯spanies. ThereProperty ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. would be no legitimate reason for someone outside of Sal¡¯swork to be moving into one of those warehouses. ¡°We¡¯ve got guys trying to run surveince, but it¡¯s difficult. Sal has people everywhere around that warehouse,¡± Ivan said. He was clearly frustrated with the situation. ¡°From what we can tell so far, it¡¯s going to be next to impossible to get into the building. It¡¯s going to be difficult to get ess to the outside of the building without drawing attention.¡± I leaned my head back and whispered to Adrik, ¡°Trino¡¯s idea might be the way to go. Nothing wrong with dramatic ir asionally.¡± Heughed, catching everyone else by surprise. They all looked to us, but Adrik said nothing, so I also kept my mo uth shu t. Once everyone¡¯s attention was elsewhere once again, he kissed my cheek, smiling at me. ¡°Do we have any idea of when this is happening, yet?¡± Armando asked. Viktor shook his head no. ¡°Not yet, but Sephie¡¯s friend has a way to give us a head¡¯s up potentially.¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t heard from him in a couple of days,¡± Ivan said, looking somewhat worried. ¡°No, it¡¯s okay. Trino called earlier. Chen¡¯s alive. He dropped my name to Trino¡¯s guy and told him to check it, so he did. Trino called right away. Chen found one of his top guys, so he can get the word out quickly,¡± I said. Ivan looked relieved. ¡°From what Andy said earlier, if the dealers know what¡¯s going on, they¡¯re not going to go along with the n. They¡¯re the ones that stopped it before.¡± Armando looked to me, puzzled. Adrik said, ¡°Sal has been behind brawn from the beginning. He¡¯s the one that paid to have it created, he¡¯s the one that distributed it originally. The dealers are the ones that stopped selling it because it was killing too many people. The other story was a lie.¡± ¡°How do you know this?¡± Armando asked, clearly surprised. ¡°We found the doctor that created it,¡± Viktor said. He paused, then added, ¡°we found him for other reasons, but Andy recognized him and told us everything.¡± ¡°Do I want to know the other reasons?¡± Armando asked. ¡°No,¡± we all said in unison. Armando simply nodded his head, crossing his leg as he shifted positions in his chair. He nced at Giana, who seemed less nervous than usual. He reached over and grabbed her hand, his thumb lightly rubbing the back of her hand. I suddenly had a thought, about the doctor and the warehouse. I looked to Misha, who had that faraway look in his eye that meant he was thinking about possibilities too. I said, in Russian, we need to grab the doctor and take care of the warehouse at the same time.¡± As soon as I said it, Misha looked to me, grinning. ¡°How do you do that, gazelle? I was just about to say that, I have a bad feeling about grabbing the doctor too far ahead of taking care of the warehouse. Sal is going to know it¡¯s us on both, but if we do them at the same time, he won¡¯t be able to strike back as quickly.¡± He then said in English, See? You were made for this sh it. His broad smile stretched across his face, giving him an extra dose of boyish charm. I couldn¡¯t help but grin at him. I nced at the other guys, who were in agreement. I happened to nce at Giana, who was trying to not stare at Misha, I couldn¡¯t help but smile. Yep, he got away with murder as a kid. Chapter 210 Chapter 210 Chapter Two Hundred Ten Sephie We continued talking for another hour or so, running through possibilities on how to handle the situation. We went through every what if scenario we could think of for what would happen if the shipment did get out. We were going to have to trust that the dealers wouldn¡¯t sell it if they were sessful in getting the shipments switched. ¡°Of course, that brings up another problem,¡± I said, as we were discussing their sess at switching the shipments. They all looked to me, waiting for me to borate. ¡°Withdrawals,¡± I said. The guys caught on quickly, but Armando and Giana were still confused. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Giana asked. ¡°When you¡¯re a regr drug user, your body needs that drug to function. When you don¡¯t give it that drug, your body revolts and makes it painful until you give it that drug. Depending on the drug you¡¯ve been using, the withdrawals can be, well, dramatic,¡± I said. ¡°How do you know so much about this?¡± she asked, her tone had a hint of usation behind it. Adrik caught it. I felt him tense. Before I could answer, Ivan said, ¡°everyone knows this.¡± His tone was harsh, but it was exactly what was needed to end that conversation. He continued, ¡°so, we¡¯re going to need to give the police and the hospitals a head¡¯s up as well, should they be sessful with switching the shipments. That¡¯s going to create its own chaos in the city.¡± He rubbed his face with his hands. ¡°Fu ck,¡± he said. ¡°It might be worth having a conversation with a few doctors to find out what¡¯s needed to be able to handle that scenario.¡± ¡°I know a guy. He should be able to keep his mo uth shu t,¡± I said, winking at Ivan. I turned to look at Adrik. ¡°But can we bring him here this time?¡± He smiled softly at me, nodding his head. ¡°I¡¯ll make a call in the morning,¡± he said. I nced back to Ivan, who was clearly relieved. We finally ran through all the possibilities that we could think of for the evening. It was beginning to get late, so Armando and na took their leave. Chris and Keith got up to go with them, but Keith asked Viktor if they coulde back once Armando and Giana were safely in for the night. Viktor nodded his head. I caught the small smile that crept up one side of his face as they walked out. ¡°They¡¯re eager to learn,¡± he said. ¡°They¡¯ll be back once Armando and Giana are taken care of.¡± Ivan said, in Russian, just in case, ¡°I did not like her tone.¡± He was clearly still angry about Giana thinking my knowledge of drugs was because I was a user. ¡°I did not like her tone, either,¡± Adrik said. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Normal people don¡¯t know these things. She¡¯s likely led a very sheltered life up until she met Armando. It¡¯s not necessarily her fault,¡± I said. I looked to Ivan, grinning, ¡°but I¡¯m very grateful you shu t that conversation down as quickly as you did. I¡¯m starting to love your demons, Super Squish.¡± His handsome smile stretched across his face. They¡¯re useful,¡± he said, winking at me. Keith and Chris walked back into the office. ¡°What did we miss?¡± Chris asked. ¡°Oh, we changed subjects and we¡¯re talking about demons now,¡± Stephen said,pletely straight- faced. While it wasn¡¯t a lle, his delivery made it seem like he was joking. Chris and Keith just stared at him, not knowing how to respond. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. Once I startedughing, I couldn¡¯t stop, which made all the guysugh as well. I wiped the tears from my eyes, saying, ¡°Yoden for the win,dies and gentlemen.¡± A few more laughs made it out before I finally gained myposure. ¡°Ah, shi t. I don¡¯t know why that was so funny, but holy he ll it was hrious.¡± Stephen spoke in his usual calm and quiet manner, ¡°we¡¯re all a bit stressed, Seph. It was needed.¡± Keith looked at me, his face suddenly very serious. ¡°Sephie, is it okay if I ask you a personal question?¡± The guys all straightened up, curious as to what he was going to ask. ¡°Sure,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯ve clearly been through some shi t in your life. Armando and Giana don¡¯t know about that, do they?¡± he asked, timidly. He nced around at the guys, making sure he wasn¡¯t overstepping his bounds. ¡°No, they don¡¯t know. Very few people outside this room have seen my back and I¡¯d like to keep it that way. Why do you ask?¡± ¡°I noticed the tension it brought up when she kind of implied your knowledge of withdrawals was because you¡¯d been a user,¡± he said. He was trying to be careful and choose his words wisely as he spoke, as he could tell it was a sensitive subject. ¡°I wasn¡¯t a user. I was forced to live with one for a few years though. I have a feeling that Giana has led a sheltered, mostly privileged life. Her brain struggles toprehend that everyone doesn¡¯t live like she does. She has her own set of problems thate with that, though. It¡¯s neither better nor worse than what I¡¯ve dealt with. In her mind, her problems are just as bad as what I¡¯ve had to deal with. Doesn¡¯t make her a bad person. Life will eventually find a way of opening her eyes to other possibilities. Or it won¡¯t and she¡¯ll be even more close-minded and judgmental. It could go either way, really,¡± I said, shrugging my shoulders.N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Keith was quietly contemting my answer. Stephen looked at Keith. ¡°You¡¯lle to find that Sephie¡¯s assessment of people is always spot on. It¡¯s why we rely on her to tell us if we can trust someone or not,¡± he said. His cheeks flushed slightly when Keith looked at him as he was talking. ¡°That¡¯s why Mike hated her,¡± he said. I could see him putting pieces together in his mind. ¡°People who carefully craft a persona only want the world to see what they want the world to see. People like Sephie and to a lesser extent, me, can see past that persona and see people for who they really are. It generally angers them because they know they¡¯ve been caught and their whole house of cards is in danger of crashing down,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Don¡¯t sell yourself short, Super Squish,¡± I said, grinning at him. We spent a little while longer in the office, talking through more possibilities, Keith and Chris were full of questions that they didn¡¯t want to ask in front of Armando. I couldn¡¯t me them for wanting to appear completelypetent in front of Armando, but I had tough to myself. Armando was so rxed about his security that he likely wouldn¡¯t have known the difference. I had gotten up and pulled Adrik to one of the couches at one point so I couldy down. I was starting to get tired, but didn¡¯t want to interrupt the discussion until it was done. They continued to talk as Adrik ran his hands through my hair, my head in hisp. I found myself drifting between being awake and asleep. I would still catch parts of the conversation, here and there, but I eventually gave in and fell asleep. Some timeter, I felt Adrik gently, but urgently, shaking me to see if he could wake me up. He had a worried look on his face when I opened my eyes. I looked at him, confused. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked, sitting up. You were talking in your sleep, solnishko. You don¡¯t remember?¡± he asked, now clearly worried. Chapter 211 Chapter 211 Chapter Two Hundred Eleven Sephie ¡°You were talking in your sleep, solnishko. You don¡¯t remember?¡± he asked, now clearly worried. I thought for a moment. ¡°I don¡¯t remember anything. What did I say?¡± ¡°You were pleading with the doctor, trying to convince him not to do the procedure,¡± he said. His face looked almost haunted. ¡°Shi t. I¡¯m sorry,¡± I said, ncing around the room. Chris and Keith were gone, but the guys were still there. ¡°Why would you ever apologize for that, princess?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Because I saw what hearing me on the ne did to all of you. You guys don¡¯t need to carry the burden of all my trauma.¡± I nced at Misha, who was clearly struggling. It suddenly hit me why he was struggling. ¡°Especially Misha, who¡¯s still beating himself up for teasing me about being pregnant, even though he had no idea when he said it.¡± His face turned red as he tried to control his emotions. He was staring at the floor, his elbows on his knees, trying to maintain control. I quietly got off the couch and leaned over his back. ¡°Don¡¯t make me bring back the emotional support sloth,¡± I said, as I draped myself over his upper body, I whispered to him, so only he could hear, ¡°I still love you, my adorable Russian guardian. You didn¡¯t know. I can¡¯t be mad at you. I couldn¡¯t be mad at that face anyway. Like it¡¯s physically impossible you¡¯re so adorable.¡± He reached up and held onto my arms that were around his neck as heughed. I kissed his cheek. ¡°Promise you¡¯ll stop beating yourself up?¡± He nodded. ¡°Good. Because my hands still hurt, so I don¡¯t want to beat you up for real over this.¡± Adrik stood up from the couch, holding his hand out for me, e, we should go soak your hands again.¡± He still had a look of worry on his face, but he was trying to mask it. I walked back to him, still feeling guilty for what I¡¯d clearly just put them all through. He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me, almost urgently, toward the door. ¡°Sorry for the unnned andpletely unnecessary entertainment everyone,¡± I said as we walked quickly out of his office. I was a little taken aback by Adrik¡¯s behavior. Once we were on the elevator, I looked up at him. ¡°Is everything okay?¡± He was silent for the short ride up to the penthouse, his jaw clenched. He still hadn¡¯t said a word as we walked into the penthouse. I followed him to the kitchen. ¡°Adrik?¡± He finally sighed and looked at me. He looked hurt. ¡°It¡¯s not okay, Sephie. How long have you been struggling with these memories?¡± ¡°I mean, since it happened? What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°You try to carry all of this¡­ this hurt by yourself. It¡¯s not fair that you only share the best parts of yourself with me, but shu t me out when you¡¯re hurting. I love you, Sephie. All of you. The best parts of you, the worst parts of you, the parts of you that like to be bratty just to get a reaction. I love all of you. You can¡¯t keep shutting me out except when you¡¯re happy.¡± he said. He was tense. He was leaning on the counter, gripping the edge of it with both hands like he was trying to crush the granite. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was talking in my sleep. I don¡¯t remember anything. I didn¡¯t intentionally shu t you out,¡± I said, quietly. I was confused by his reaction, which meant I didn¡¯t know how to react. I just stood there, for once, not having the slightest clue on what to do. I didn¡¯t realize that I hadpletely zoned out until Adrik was standing in front of me. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°You¡¯re doing it again,¡± he said. His voice was softer, but there was still a look of concern In his eyes. ¡°Doing what?¡± I asked,pletely confused. ¡°Where was your mind just then?¡± he asked, looking more concerned. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It was nk. I told you I didn¡¯t intentionally shu t you out, then I had no clue what to do, then you were standing in front of me,¡± I said. I was starting to feel anxious. I could feel myself getting more upset by the second. He cursed under his breath. ¡°Sephie, it¡¯s been five minutes. Youpletely zoned out. I had to touch you to get you to snap out of it.¡± I suddenly felt like he was mad at me, like he thought I was doing this on purpose. I took a step back from him. ¡°I didn¡¯t know!¡± I said, the tears started to fall. ¡°I¡¯m not doing it on purpose.¡± I crossed my arms across my chest, shutting my eyes to try and keep the tears from falling. I felt his arms around me, his lips on my forehead. ¡°Sephie, has this ever happened before? Can you remember ever losing time before?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°Did it happen after that night in the basement with your uncle?¡± His voice was much softer now. His hands running lightly over my back, trying to comfort me. I nodded my head again. ¡°Did it happen after the forced procedure?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember. Maybe. That¡¯s when things got really bad at my uncle¡¯s house. I don¡¯t remember a ton of extra details,¡± 1 said quietly. ¡°Makes sense,¡± he said as he pulled me further into the kitchen. ¡°What makes sense?¡± I asked. I was stillpletely lost. He nced at me as he turned the hot water on, pouring Epsom salt into the bowl. His face softeningpletely as he looked down at me. ¡°You¡¯re extra cute when you¡¯re confused, just so you know. You get this doe-eyed look that practically makes you irresistible,¡± he said, his sexy smirk on his face. ¡°I don¡¯t know about that, but I¡¯m definitely confused,¡± I said. He walked to the other side of the ind and grabbed one of the chairs and brought it back to where I was standing. ¡°Sit,¡± he said, as he grabbed the bowl and set it in front of me. He remained in front of me, his fingers ying with my curls. while I looked at my hands in the bowl of hot water. ¡°Your brain zones out because it¡¯s trying to protect you from reliving those memories. I¡¯ve caught you doing it several times since Monday, but I didn¡¯t think you were truly zoning out until just now. Your brain rarely stops, so I just assumed you were deep in thought.¡± ¡°You have?¡± I asked, surprised. He nodded. ¡°Earlier today, even. When we were soaking your hands thest time. Then when you fell asleep in my office, you started talking. You only ever talk in your sleep when something¡¯s wrong. You started to struggle and I was worried you were back in the same nightmare loop, but you started pleading for them not to take your uterus. You were screaming at one point.¡± I felt the tears falling. I kept looking at my hands. ¡°I¡¯m really sorry. I didn¡¯t mean to.¡± I could remember being in the clinic, begging for the doctor not to do the procedure. He waspletely indifferent to my pleas. He acted like he didn¡¯t even hear me. Chapter 212 Chapter 212 Chapter Two Hundred Twelve Sephie ¡°Don¡¯t apologize, Sephie. I want to be here for you. If you¡¯re struggling with your past because you¡¯re being forced to relive it right now, I want to be here to help you through it. You don¡¯t have to go through it alone this time. The guys, too. They also want to help.¡± He lifted my chin so I would look at him. ¡°You¡¯re not alone anymore, Sephie.¡± The tears were streaming down my face at this point. I still didn¡¯t know what to do. He already had so much on his shoulders, they all did, that I didn¡¯t want to bother them with what had happened in the past. I¡¯d be ustomed to keeping my past locked up tight. When it came down to it, I was still worried he was going to look at me differently. ¡°I won¡¯t look at you differently, Sephie. You¡¯re never going to find what it is that you¡¯re constantly searching for. Don¡¯t get me wrong, I kinda love when you search, but it¡¯s pointless. What you¡¯re searching for doesn¡¯t exist. It will never exist,¡± he said. I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°How did you do that?¡± Heughed. He leaned down and kissed my lips. ¡°You were searching, love. It was easy to guess what you were thinking.¡± The timer on his phone went off. He leaned down and kissed me once more, then walked to the freezer and grabbed ice. He didn¡¯t bother trying to get me to put my hands in the ice water this time. He just soaked a towel and wrapped my hands up. ¡°Still ha te it, for the record,¡± I said, trying to make myself not pull my hands away from the cold towel. Heughed, but he wouldn¡¯t let me take my hands away, either. He stood in front of me, his arms crossed across his chest, watching to make sure I kept them in the towel until he was satisfied. ¡°Sephie, do you know how reliant I¡¯m bing on having you around?¡± he asked. I shook my head no. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°You¡¯re what¡¯s kept me from ordering the destruction of half the city in the pursuit of destroying the other bosses.¡± ¡°Maybe that¡¯s not a good thing. It would be over with by now that way,¡± I said, ¡°Not necessarily. I would¡¯ve unleashed my own chaos on the city. Chaos is loud. It¡¯s disordered. There¡¯s always coteral damage. Usually more than necessary. You don¡¯t want chaos in these kinds of situations. Chaos is unpredictable, too.¡± He unwrapped my hands from the cold towel, pulling me down from the chair. He kept my hand in his as he led me to the bathroom. ¡°Violence, on the other hand. Violence is quiet. It¡¯s effective. Because it¡¯s quiet. No one sees iting until it¡¯s toote. You can control the coteral damage with effective violence. You can predict the oue when you use calcted violence. Without you, there would¡¯ve been chaos. With you, there¡¯s going to be calcted violence. See the difference?¡± he asked as he grabbed my hips and lifted me onto the counter in the bathroom. ¡°I think so,¡± I said. I was still somewhat puzzled. He started to rub the amica cream on the knuckles of one hand as he continued. ¡°When I was younger, my anger couldn¡¯t be controlled. I left a path of destruction wherever I went. Viktor helped me rein it in, but it¡¯s never been truly controlled until you came into my life.¡± I was watching his face as he was talking. He was watching what he was doing, but he would nce at me periodically. ¡°You don¡¯t even realize what a savage monster you¡¯ve tamed, without even trying.¡± He chuckled. ¡°He ll, you don¡¯t even need to see me or be near me to know that I¡¯m about to lose control now. When you were in the ring with Mike? As soon as those words came out of his mo uth, I was ready to ki ll him. There would¡¯ve been no stopping me, either, and I knew it. I wanted it. I¡¯ve gotten to that point before and it took all five guys to pull me off the guy. Ivan was still an arm down, so they had no chance. I knew that. I was basically salivating at knowing I was going to beat him to death for saying that to you. Then you turned and looked at me.¡± He paused, to switch hands. He stole a nce and couldn¡¯t help but smile when he saw I was still looking at him. ¡°That¡¯s all It took. I was still angry, sure. But that bloodlust that has never been controble before, it just disappears when you look at me. I have no idea how you do it, but I know that I will d ie trying to protect you because of it.¡± He looked in my eyes for a moment. A faint smile on his face as he lightly pushed a few curls back from my face. ¡°Part of protecting you, Sephie, is helping to keep you safe from your own darkness and the demons you think live there. You¡¯ve taught all of us how to be friends with our demons. Let me help you learn to be friends with yours.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but remember Ms. Jackson¡¯s words from so many months ago. ¡°You offer him something that he¡¯s never had before. He¡¯ll d ie to protect it. To protect you. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Adrik I kept my usual battle with Sephie¡¯s curls going as I watched her think about what I¡¯d just told her. She would nce at me periodically, so I knew she wasn¡¯t zoning out again. I was trying to think of the right words to say to her. I knew she kept her past locked up and she¡¯d been forced to open it all up since meeting me. It¡¯s one thing when you can somewhat control when and how you tell someone about your past. It¡¯s quite another when you¡¯re forced to divulge information before you¡¯re ready. Sephie hadn¡¯t been able to control telling us about any of her past, because of circumstances outside her control. That alone can be traumatic. Then you add in having to relive her trauma and I was worried it was bing too much for her. She looked at me and I felt my heart skip. She still had that half-confused, doe-eyed look on her face that just made her irresistible. ¡°Ms. Jackson told me months ago, when you first moved her to the building, that I offered you something you¡¯d never had before, and you¡¯d d ie to protect it.¡± She had a small smile on her face. ¡°How did she know?¡± I chuckled, brushing another curl back from her face. ¡°She¡¯s had me pegged since the first night I came to your apartment. She saw me get out of the vehicle and look at your apartment building. She told me she could see it inly that I was in love with you then.¡± I twirled her curl around my finger, looking at her innocence. ¡°She¡¯s right, you know.¡± I could see the smile creep across her face. ¡°She told me you were in love with me when we got home from the grocery store that day. I didn¡¯t fully believe her until you moved them downstairs.¡± Her gaze dropped to her hands. Her fingers started to fidget, first on her pants, then she moved to my shirt and the buttons as she lifted her gaze slightly. I could see that her mind was going a mile a minute. She sighed, then looked me in the eyes again. ¡°I¡¯m not keeping you out on purpose.¡± She dropped her gaze again, still fussing with the buttons on my shirt. ¡°The stuff that¡¯s happened to me¡­ It¡¯s just¡­ It¡¯s a rough story and I can clearly see how it affects everyone that finds out about it. It¡¯s like having my own trauma reflected back to me. Then I feel bad and want tofort the other person because I just traumatized them with my story. Meanwhile, my wounds just got deeper.¡± I started to say something, but she stopped me. She ced her hand on my chest, looking at me again. ¡°You¡¯re different, though. And I didn¡¯t realize it until just now. I don¡¯t know how you do it, but you don¡¯t reflect it back to me. Ivan, too.¡± She thought for a moment, then almost whispered, ¡°I think my dad was right.¡± ¡°Your dad was right about what, solnishko?¡± Chapter 213 Chapter 213 Chapter Two Hundred Thirteen Adrik She looked up at me, like she was considering whether she should tell me something. She finally shrugged her shoulders. ¡°Pretty sure you already know I¡¯m mostly crazy. Remember when I told you I talked to my dad in a dream when we were at the ranch house in Italy?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°It happened again alter we got home from the hospital when Ivan almost died.¡± ¡°And what did he tell you this time?¡± I asked, now curious, I think she was worried I would think she was in sane, but her father helped save our lives when we were in Italy. I owed him. ¡°He told me that we¡¯re soulmates, for one. That we¡¯ve met each other and fallen in love again and again over lifetimes.¡± She peaked up at me, half afraid that I wasn¡¯t going to believe her. ¡°No offense to your father, I still owe him one, but I feel like that¡¯s obvious, Sephie,¡± I said, grinning at her. Her gorgeous smile stretched across her face. ¡°He also told me that the rest of us are linked in simr ways. Like there¡¯s a reason we¡¯re all together. Ivan, especially.¡± Her gaze dropped once more, like she wasn¡¯t sure how much detail she should give 1. ¡°Linked how?¡± I asked, still battling with the curls around her face. ¡°Like with Misha. My dad said I¡¯m helping him to hone his gift of being able to tell when something is or isn¡¯t going to go right.¡± ¡°Ipletely believe that, especially after what happened at the ball and then Italy. I won¡¯t make a serious decision without consulting him ever again. Although I¡¯m still confused how he missed that day that you went to the piano gallery when they tried to grab you,¡± I said. My finger traced lightly down her face as she talked. ¡°I asked the same thing. He said no one saw it until it was almost toote. It was the first time my dad had to intervene, but then he said he really didn¡¯t need to because Ivan had it covered.¡± She paused for a minute, then looked up at me. That was a very important day for Ivan. He took my dad¡¯s job. He officially became my protector.¡± She said it quietly, like she was almost scared to say it out loud. ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked, now even more curious. ¡°Just like you and I are connected over many lifetimes, so are Ivan and 1. My dad said we¡¯ve spent many lifetimes together too.¡± I thought for a minute. I could feel her eyes on me as I thought back to the first time I met Ivan. He saved me and Viktor and got us into and out of a very difficult situation safely. I remember feeling like I had known Ivan for much longer than a couple of days when I offered him a job. In contrast, I waited a few weeks minimum, usually a few months, to offer a job to the rest of the guys. Even with not knowing everything about Ivan¡¯s past, I still felt closer to Ivan more quickly than the other guys. ¡°The same way you and I have spent lifetimes together? Because I can tell you right now, this lifetime doesn¡¯t involve sharing.¡± I said. I couldn¡¯t help but smirk at her as I sold it. Sheughed loudly. ¡°Nooooo. No sharing. Not like that, you perv. I¡¯m pretty sure Ivan has always been my protector In some way. My dad said he feelspelled to protect me. Ivan sald that was true. Even before he knew I was different, he feltpelled to protect me.¡± I wrapped my arms around her, smiling at herughter. I leaned down and kissed her lips gently. ¡°Ok, no sharing. We¡¯ve all seen how much closer you and (van have be since the kidnapping attempt. I think Andrel might even be a little Jealous of it sometimes, if I¡¯m being honest. I meant to make her laugh, but instead she looked troubled. ¡°He is?¡± she asked. I nodded my head. ¡°He liked being your favorite in the beginning. You know Andrel and Misha are the sensitive ones. It was a confidence boost for Andrei when you got close to him before anyone else. Now that you¡¯re close with all of them, he doesn¡¯t feel as special anymore.¡± ¡°How do you know this? Has he talked to you about it?¡± she asked. She was clearly worried about it. I couldn¡¯t help but smile at her. ¡°No, solnishko. It¡¯s not a problem for him, either. I¡¯ve just seen his face fall a few times when he thought you wereing to him and you went to one of the other guys instead.¡± She looked lost in thought for a moment. I leaned on the counter so I could be eye level with her, forcing her to look at me. ¡°They all love you, Sephie. But they also know there¡¯s one of you and five of them. They¡¯re big boys. They¡¯ll manage.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t want to cause problems. I did get close to Bubba first. He¡¯s just so easy to talk to and trying to help him get with Tori probably helped me get closer to him too. I don¡¯t want him to be sad about me being close to Ivan though. Ivan and I are bonded over trauma. I¡¯m not sure that¡¯s something to be jealous of,¡± she said, chewing on her bottom lip. I chuckled, which made her look at me again. ¡°This isn¡¯t something you should worry about, love. But it illustrates my point from earlier perfectly. You¡¯re worried about making Andrei sad when you¡¯ve had quite possibly the most stressful week since I¡¯ve known you and your brain is trying to find creative ways to help you silently cope so you don¡¯t feel like you¡¯re burdening anyone else with your past. Andrei being a little jealous of your special rtionship with Ivan should not be anywhere on your list of things to worry about right now.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . She looked down at her hands, which started to fidget again, as she continued to chew on her bottom lip. I put my hand under her chin, gently lifting it so she would look at me again. ¡°Do you know why Ivan and I are different when we hear what¡¯s happened to you, Sephie?¡± She shook her head no. ¡°Because we know what real darkness is. We¡¯ve been living in it for years. It doesn¡¯t scare us like it does other people. I think that¡¯s what you¡¯re seeing reflected back to you on other people¡¯s faces. They realize that you¡¯ve survived something they couldn¡¯t. That alone makes you stronger than most people you will meet in your life. That¡¯s a scary realization for some people. They can¡¯t handle knowing that you can walk among real monsters and survive.¡± 1 paused. ¡°Not just survive. It¡¯s clearly made you stronger, the same way it has for me as well as Ivan. I don¡¯t know what happened to Ivan in his past, but I know it wasn¡¯t good. He doesn¡¯t know everything that happened to me in my past either, but it¡¯s also not good. But we both recognize the look in each other. We¡¯ve both seen it in you, as well. It¡¯s the look you get when you¡¯ve stared evil in the face. It¡¯s why your past doesn¡¯t scare us. We can recognize that you¡¯re a survivor, just like us.¡± She was looking at me, curiously, the way she would when we would tell her stories about our past. I took her arms and put them around my neck, pulling her to me so I could pick her up off the bathroom counter. I walked us back out to the couch, keeping her in myp as I sat down. I continued my battle with the curls around her face as I continued. ¡°I knew you were the one for me that first night, when I told you my name.¡± I felt that pull in my chest toward her when her wide smile stretched across her face. ¡°That was before I knew everything you¡¯d been through. Every single new thing I learn about you makes me love you more and confirms what I¡¯ve always thought about you. You¡¯re the most extraordinary woman I¡¯ve ever met and I¡¯m eternally grateful that you¡¯re in my life. Ms. Jackson was right when she said you give me something I¡¯ve never had before, but it¡¯s so much more than she knows. You¡¯ve brought bnce back to my world. You¡¯ve reminded me of the good, not only in me. but in everyone you see.¡± ¡°Well, maybe not everyone everyone,¡± she said, grinning at me. ¡°Fair enough. Almost everyone you see,¡± I said. I brushed her hair back from her shoulders, leaving my hand on her neck, my thumb rubbing gently along her jawline. She leaned into my touch, closing her eyes for a moment. A single tear fell from her eye. I reached up and wiped it away with my thumb. She opened her eyes, looking at me. The tears that were threatening to fall were enough to make the colors of her eyes swirl in the low light ¡°I needed you to remind me that I¡¯m good.¡± She closed her eyes again, causing more tears to fall, Chapter 214 Chapter 214 Chapter Two Hundred Fourteen Adrik ¡°Sephie¡­¡± I said, almost breathlessly. I was silent for a moment, trying to find the right words to say, but I kept my hand on her neck as she was still leaning into my hand. ¡°That night that Ipared you to a diamond and you said you would onlypare yourself to a ck diamond to match your soul? Remember that?¡± I asked. She nodded her head slightly, but didn¡¯t open her eyes. The corners of her mo uth were starting to curl in a smile as she thought about it. ¡°I told Viktor and Ivan about that part of the conversation the next morning while you were still sleeping. I believe my exact words were ¡®we all know she has the whitest soul of anybody ever, but it¡¯s still funny.¡±¡± She kept her eyes closed, but she had a small smile on her lips now. She thought for a moment, then opened her eyes. ¡°I think you can have both,¡± she said. ¡°Both what?¡± I asked. ¡°Both whi te and ck on your soul. Ivan does for sure. He saw it We probably do too,¡± she said. She suddenly looked like she¡¯d just solved a puzzle that had been perplexing her, but she immediately looked at me like she didn¡¯t mean to say it out loud. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me, but I can¡¯t deny I¡¯m very curious to know how that happened.¡± She chewed on her bottom lip, torn between wanting to tell me and not sure she should. She sighed, then whispered, ¡°whatever. You already know.¡± Iughed at her, which seemed to put her at ease. ¡°When that truck hit us, I saw Ivan turn toward me. He was using his body to try and shield me, but I can clearly remember the look on his face. I could see the worry on his face when he looked at me, but then he was looking at something around me that I couldn¡¯t see. The look on his face clearly changed to one of wonderment. The truck was pushing us into the parked cars on the side of the street. When we hit those cars, I shu t my eyes. I think that¡¯s when I hit my head. He was unconscious when I opened my eyes.¡± She paused again, not sure she should continue. She started to fidget with the buttons on my shirt again, focusing on that instead of looking at me as she continued. ¡°My dad told me what Ivan saw. When I was with Ivan in his room that day that he broke down at the house and then I broke downter, he told me what he saw, after I assured him he wasn¡¯t crazy.¡± She was still for a moment, then looked at me. ¡°Ivan got his wings that day. My dad said he wrapped his wings around me right before the truck hit us, but when Ivan turned toward me, that was the moment that he got his and he saw them wrap around me and even my dad¡¯s wings.¡± She dropped her gaze, chewing on her lip, not sure how I would take what she had just told me. As she was talking, I felt goosebumps rise over my entire body. ¡°But¡­ How? He¡¯s still here,¡± I asked. She cut her eyes to me, grinning. ¡°We both said the same thing. I still don¡¯t fully understand it, but he¡¯s not allowed to go anywhere now. My dad said he¡¯s fully stepped into his role as my protector now that he proved he would give his life to protect me. He also said Ivan¡¯s wings are way cooler than his. They¡¯re wh ite, but fade to ck on the ends and apparently he¡¯s the big guns, so he has red on the tips too.¡± Ivan¡¯s statement about Sephie¡¯s ring design suddenly made perfect sense. ¡°That¡¯s why¡­¡± I caught myself before I said anything further. I didn¡¯t want Sephie to know about that yet. She, of course, caught it. ¡°That¡¯s why what?¡± she asked. I smiled at her. ¡°If I tell you that, it will ruin the surprise,¡± I said, reaching up and pulling her down to me. I pressed my lips. against hers. She sat up, needing to search my eyes. ¡°You don¡¯t think I¡¯m crazy for saying all this?¡± ¡°Not even a little bit. Ivan has spent so much time in He ll, but despite everything, he still has a heart of gold when ites to ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . the people he loves. It makes sense. And honestly, I couldn¡¯t think of a better protector for you. His inability to feel pain gives him a unique advantage,¡± I said. She was running her finger lightly over my face and neck as I talked. She looked surprised. ¡°That¡¯s exactly what my dad said.¡± ¡°He¡¯s bing the secret weapon of my secret weapon.¡± I smiled at her, happy to see her opening up to me and rxed about it. She looked at me seriously. ¡°I don¡¯t think Ivan is the only one among us that¡¯s spent so much time in Hel l that he can walk freely between Heaven and He ll. My dad told me I could too and since you¡¯re the one that pulled me out of my nightmare, I¡¯m guessing you can too.¡± I sighed. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong. When you were in your nightmare loop and my voice pulled you out of it, did you go to a dark ce? Like you couldn¡¯t see anything, almost like you were swimming in darkness?¡± Her eyes got wide. ¡°You¡¯ve been there too. That¡¯s how you pulled me there. That¡¯s how I pulled Ivan there.¡± I shu t my eyes, nodding my head. I felt her fingers lightly running through my facial hair. She leaned down, her lips lightly brushed mine. ¡°You don¡¯t have to tell me if you don¡¯t want to. I did wander how you pulled me there, especially after I did it for Ivan and found out he goes to the same ce.¡± ¡°I was a kid the first time someone tried to get to my father through me. They ran the car we were in off the road. It killed the driver instantly and the bodyguard that was with me had severe injuries. I was small enough that I somehow survived, although I still don¡¯t know how. I heard them walk up to the car, to see if there was anyone still alive. I knew enough to y dead. They thought they had seeded, so they left. They wanted our bodies found, thankfully. I climbed out of the car and ran for help. My father was a cold man, but I distinctly remember him picking me up when he got there. He held me all the way to the hospital. It¡¯s one of the only times I saw him worried. I passed out on the way to the hospital. I remember feeling relief that my father was there and I felt safe, so I let go. It took me three days to wake up. Those three days were the first time I remember the darkness. I was scared at first. I cried. I screamed. I fought. Nothing worked. I finally gave in and got quiet. When I did, 1 realized I could vaguely see and I could barely hear voices. I was hearing my father¡¯s voice. He never left the hospital room those three days. The man who I barely saw when I was awake wouldn¡¯t leave me when I was out. It was his voice that I followed to find my way out. His face was the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. It was one of the few times he told me he loved me and that he was proud of me.¡± I had opened my eyes when I started to tell the story. I¡¯m d I did. Sephie¡¯s expression was all I needed to see to keep going. She was always so curious. I loved her interest in anything I wanted to tell her, but I also loved that she didn¡¯t want to pry. ¡°See, even your father has some good in him. It might not have been very much, but it was there for those three days,¡± she said, smiling sweetly at me. ¡°And he taught you how to save me, so I¡¯m grateful for that, if nothing else.¡± ¡°I never knew it was a skill I would need to use. It never crossed my mind with Ivan. We¡¯ve been in the hospital plenty of times with him and never once did I think about it with him.¡± ¡°Because you were never meant to pull Ivan out. You¡¯re not the only one that doesn¡¯t want to share in this lifetime,¡± she said, grinning at me. ¡°Sometimes you surprise me, solnishko. You constantly find new ways to make me love you even more,¡± I said,ughing. She looked at me, a smile still on her lips, but her eyes were serious. ¡°Thank you. For knowing what I need before I do, for reminding me of what I needed to hear, for trusting me enough to tell me that, and for not thinking I¡¯m crazy. Although thatst one might still be up for debate,¡± she said,ughing. She was trying not to worry, but I could tell she was legitimately worried. I held her gaze as long as she needed, letting her search for what she wasn¡¯t going to find. She finally satisfied herself, her wide smile stretching across her face once more. ¡°I love you, Sephie. Plis Infinity. Plus one,¡± I said, pulling her to me ¡°I love you, Adrik,¡± she said, smiling against my lips. Chapter 215 Chapter 215 Chapter Two Hundred Fifteen Adrik ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . I woke the next morning with Sephieying across my chest. I ran my hand through her hair, causing her to snuggle closer to me. I loved her close to me, even more so after our long conversationst night. She never failed to make me feel like I was even more in love with her anytime we had a serious conversation, butst night was even more than usual. She¡¯s had quite possibly the roughest week since I¡¯ve known her, which is saying quite a lot. Her light was starting to dim again, but not because she was physically hurt this, time. After she gave the description of the doctor to the police, I could tell she was struggling to close the door once again on that part of her life. It might¡¯ve been easier had she not had to also deal with the Mike situation and trying to close the door on that part of her life at the same time, on top of dealing with Max unexpectedly showing up. She was dealing with more than most people would be able to handle and yet she was still concerned about Misha and Andrei. When I finally woke her up out of her nightmarest night, she almost immediately went to Misha tofort him. I never minded her going to the guys, but my patience was shortst night I knew the forced procedure had affected her, but hearing her scream and plead for it not to happen made it more real. She was devastated. We could all inly hear the despair in her voice as she pleaded for them not to do it. I wanted to help her, to make her feel better. But not even one minute after she wakes up, she¡¯s consoling him. That¡¯s who she is and that¡¯s one of many things I love about her, but I do find myself wishing she would be a little more selfish sometimes. Maybe I¡¯m being selfish for wanting that, as her light is brighter after she takes care of herself. I need her light. I need her. I inhaled deeply, pulling her close to me. She started to stir as I ran my hand lightly over her back. She lifted her head, resting her chin on my chest as she smiled at me. ¡°Good morning,¡± she said, sleepily. I would never tire of how sexy she looked in the mornings. Her hair was always even more out of control than usual, which gave her a wild look that made it hard to control myself. ¡°Have you been awake long?¡± she asked, rubbing her eyes. I pulled her to me and rolled us both over so she was on her back and I was on top of her. ¡°Not long. I could watch you sleep for days anyway,¡± I said, gently pressing my lips to hers. She smiled at me, reaching for my face. I closed my eyes as she lightly ran her fingers through my short stubble. I remembered something else Ms. Jackson had said to me that night that I had asked her to move here. I smiled thinking back to that conversation. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Sephie asked. I opened my eyes to find her looking at me, a curious smile on her face. ¡°The night I went to ask Ms. Jackson if she would move here. I asked her to keep it a secret so I could surprise you. I think she said something like ¡®you¡¯re in deep boy. Hope you know how to swim,¡±¡± I said, in my best impression. Sephieughed. ¡°That sounds just like her. I think she even said something like that to me when she was trying to convince me you were in love with me.¡± I ran my fingers lightly over her face, taking in how she looked this morning. Her light was brighter. She felt better after our long conversationst night, She caught me staring at her and raised an eyebrow, still wondering what was going on in my mind. ¡°Your light is brighter again. You feel better after our talk last night, no?¡± She smiled sweetly at me, nodding her head. ¡°I feel lighter again.¡± I leaned down, kissing her quickly. ¡°Good. Now, will you make me a promise?¡± ¡°Depends on the promise?¡± she asked, curious. ¡°Promise me you¡¯ll talk to me. Or Ivan, if you¡¯re worried that I¡¯m too busy. We will always be able to handle it, but you have to start being selfish more and taking care of you before you take care of everyone else.¡± Her smile faded slightly, but her eyes were still happy. ¡°That¡¯s why you pulled me out of the office so quicklyst night. Because I went to try and make Misha feel better.¡± I nodded. ¡°We all heard the despair in your voice when you were sleeping, then I finally got you awake and within one minute you were trying to make him feel better. Not that I mind you making them feel better. It¡¯s not that. But you need the same, Sephie. I need you.¡± ¡°I still didn¡¯t know I was talking in my sleep¡¯st night, but I promise I will talk to you and Ivan more about what I¡¯m dealing with.¡± She looked at me sincerely. I squinted my eyes at her, not believing her fully yet. She smiled as she raised her pinky for me to grab. I couldn¡¯t help but grin at her as I grabbed her pinky, knowing she was serious. She leaned up and kissed my gently. ¡°Does Ivan know what you just volunteered him for?¡± She had a mischievous grin on her face. ¡°I can¡¯t imagine he¡¯ll mind. He loves you, Sephie. Almost as much as I do,¡± I said, smiling at her. ¡°Besides, it¡¯s his job to protect you. In all the realms. And in all lifetimes.¡± I felt my heart threaten to stop as her gorgeous smile crept across her face. She giggled and wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me down to her. ¡°I love you, Adrik. More and more each day,¡± she said as she pressed her lips to mine. Chapter 216 Chapter 216 Chapter Two Hundred Sixteen Sephie Adrik stepped out of the bedroom while I finished getting dressed to make a few phone calls. He was trying to get Dr. Williams toe to his office so Ivan and I wouldn¡¯t have to go back to the hospital. We wanted to make sure that the hospitals could be prepared if we weren¡¯t able to stop Sal from switching the supply. We were trying to put in ce as many fail safes as we could to make sure his n didn¡¯t work like he wanted it to. When I walked out of the bedroom, Ivan was in the penthouse. He and Adrik were having what looked like a serious conversation, although I couldn¡¯t hear what was being said until I got closer. They both looked at me as I walked down the hallway. Ivan smiled at me, opening both of his arms to me. I walked quickly to him. ¡°Super Squish. I didn¡¯t know how much I really missed your regr hugs. No more one-armed hugs,¡± I said as I wrapped my arms around his waist. He held me tightly, kissing the top of my head. ¡°You only have yourself to me for that one. I kept telling you I could¡¯ve given you a normal hug that whole time, but you wouldn¡¯t let me. So, really, it¡¯s entirely your fault.¡± I heard Adrikugh behind us. I poked him in the ribs as Iughed too. ¡°Where¡¯s everyone else?¡± I asked. Adrik said, ¡°I wanted a few minutes with Ivan. I told him about our conversationst night, solnishko. I also told him about your pinky swear this morning.¡± He looked at me seriously, but I could see the concern on his face. ¡°I¡¯m serious about this, Sephie. I want to make sure you¡¯re always okay. Selfishly, I need you at your best. I need your light to always be this bright. I need to make sure you¡¯re always good. So, we¡¯re holding you to your pinky swear.¡± Ivan¡¯s giant arm slid across my shoulders. He gave me a stern look, in the way that only he could. I couldn¡¯t help butugh at him. We¡¯de a long way from me being convinced he wanted to murder me in my sleep. I looked at both Ivan and Adrik. They were both so concerned about me that I couldn¡¯t help but feel loved by them both. It was still a new feeling for me. I remembered feeling loved when my m om was alive, for sure, but when I went to live with my uncle, it went to the other extreme. There was no love in that house. It was so dark in that house that it made me question whether love really did exist. Then I met Adrik and the guys. They¡¯ve shown me that it does exist, that there is light in the darkness, all while telling me I¡¯ve been doing the same for them. I knew both of these men would do everything in their power to make sure I was always protected, always safe, and always loved. ¡°I pinky swear to both of you that I wille to you more. And I love you both. That is all.¡± I said, smiling sweetly at them. Ivan kissed the top of my head, squeezing my shoulders once more, before pushing me gently toward Adrik. He opened his arms for me, a small smile on his face. ¡°You do look better, solnishko. I can see when things get too heavy for you. You¡¯re obviously lighter this morning,¡± he said as he wrapped his arms around me. ¡°I can see it too, princess. It¡¯s obvious when you¡¯re trying to hold things in too long. At least to us,¡± Nan said. ¡°You can both tell me when I zone out, then. Because I didn¡¯t know I was doing that. I really didn¡¯t know I needed to talk about anything until we started talking about itst night. I¡¯m very ustomed to holding everything in and not telling anyone anything So please feel free to tell me when you notice these things,¡± I said. ¡°Deal,¡± they both said. ¡°I know you¡¯re used to taking care of everyone else, princess. Like you were made for that role, honestly. Just let us do the same for you. Because apparently, we were made for that role,¡± Ivan said, winking at me. I felt Adrik pull me closer. ¡°Super Squish, you¡¯re really getting good at these mic drop moments where I can¡¯t think of any sort of comeback, either serious or snarky. I¡¯ve got nothing here,¡± I said, grinning at him. We heard the door to the penthouse open as the other four guys came into the penthouse. They looked slightly wary, like they weren¡¯t sure what they would be walking into. I could see their faces immediately rx when they saw me smiling at Ivan. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for putting you all through thatst night. I didn¡¯t mean for any of you to have to hear that,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t apologize, spider monkey. We just don¡¯t know how to help. It¡¯s frustrating,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Aww, Bubba. Don¡¯t get frustrated.¡± I walked to him, as he opened his arms for me. ¡°You guys just have to keep loving me the way you always do. That¡¯s a bigger help than you could ever imagine.¡± I hugged him tightly, resting my head on his chest. His giant arms held me just as tightly as he rested his chin on the top of my head. ¡°We¡¯re always here for you, gazelle,¡± Misha said. ¡°We n on keeping you around for a very long time, Seph. Life is really boring without you,¡± Stephen said, grinning at me. It made me so happy to see him start to reallye out of his shell, I couldn¡¯t help butugh, but I didn¡¯t want to let go of Andrei just yet. I think he figured out what I was doing, because I felt him squeeze me just a little tighter as I wasughing. Andrei sighed, then I felt his arms rx around me. He leaned down, whispering so only I could hear, ¡°I needed that, spider monkey. You¡¯re my favorite.¡± He kissed my cheek, his handsome smile stretching across his face. Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, looking at the caller ID, then he looked to me. ¡°It¡¯s Chen,¡± he said, as he handed me the phone. I answered it, putting it on speaker so they could all hear. ¡°Hey Chen, what¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Sephie, my girl. I hope I¡¯m not calling too early?¡± he said. ¡°Not at all, Chen. Did you find more info?¡± ¡°I did. I think you¡¯re going to want to hear this,¡± he said. I nced up at the worried faces around me. ¡°The dealers are organizing against Sal. Word got out that they were nning on recing the supply with brawn and, well, they¡¯re pi ssed.¡± ¡°Organizing how?¡± I asked. ¡°They¡¯re nning on trying to stop Sal¡¯s n, by any means necessary. They¡¯re scouring the city now, trying to find where they¡¯re making the brawn.¡± ¡°How many dealers are we talking about here, Chen?¡± + ¡°All of them, Sephie. Every single dealer that has found out about this is refusing to go along with the n. They¡¯re all still mad about thest time brawn was around. It killed a lot of people. There was a lot of tension between the dealers and the bosses during that. The bosses kept pushing it, especially Sal from what I¡¯ve heard, but the dealers eventually refused to sell it anymore,¡± he said. Ivan said quietly, in Russian, ¡°we can use this to our advantage.¡± Everyone nodded In agreement. ¡°How organized are the dealers? Are there clear leaders we can work with?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah, they organized quick. There¡¯s a few guys that are taking the lead. They belong to different bosses, an there¡¯s no clear loyalty to any one boss,¡± he said. Adrik¡¯s phone rang in his pocket. He looked at it, mouthing ¡°Trino¡± as he stepped away to take the call. I looked at Ivan and Viktor, knowing what they were already thinking. ¡°Chen, do you think we can set up a meeting with these guys? We can work together to stop this. We¡¯ve got the information they¡¯re looking for already, but we need more manpower.¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s possible. One of Trino¡¯s guys, the one that I had to drop your name to, is one of the guys in charge. After he called Trino and he vouched for me, that guy has weed me into the inner circle, if you will. He¡¯s the one that the other dealers defer to, so I¡¯ll ask him if he¡¯s willing to work with you guys,¡± he said. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°Ask him, please. I can already tell you the answer will be yes, but ask him. We need to set up a meeting. This could be beneficial for both parties,¡± I said. I nced at Misha, waiting for confirmation. He nodded his head, which made me smile. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll see him tonight and I¡¯ll get back to you.¡± ¡°Chen, you¡¯re the best,¡± I said. ¡°Public servant, my girl,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°I¡¯ll call you again tonight or in the morning.¡± We ended the call and I handed Viktor his phone back. We waited for Adrik toe back from his call with Trino. I was assuming that Trino would¡¯ve told Adrik the same information that we just got from Chen. While we waited, I took the opportunity to check on Misha. He put his arm around my shoulders as I slid my arm around his waist. I looked up at him, as sternly as I could. ¡°Better, my adorable Russian guardian?¡± He smiled his million-dor smile as he nodded his head. ¡°I mean, I still feel bad about it, but less bad.¡± I reached over and pinched his ribs hard with my free hand. He jumped. ¡°Okay, okay! No bad. I feel no bad, I swear.¡± Chapter 217 Chapter 217 Chapter Two Hundred Seventeen Sephic ¡°Good,¡± I said, leaning my head against his shoulder. Heughed as he hugged me tightly while we waited on Adrik. We could hear himughing with Trino, so we knew it couldn¡¯t be all bad news. He walked back to us soon after. ¡°Did Trino tell you what Chen just told us?¡± Viktor asked, slightly amused. ¡°He did. He thought he was going to tell me something I didn¡¯t know yet. You should¡¯ve heard the cursing when he found out I already knew. Then I told him it was through Sephie that we found out and he went on like a 5-minute rant about how he couldn¡¯t find a woman like her in Colombia. He¡¯s consideringing up here to see if he can find one. He said he¡¯s getting desperate,¡± Adrik said, laughing. ¡°Just as long as he didn¡¯t bring up his kidnapping n again,¡± I said, walking to Adrik. Ivan clearly bristled. ¡°His what now?¡± Adrik couldn¡¯t help butugh more, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ivan. He won¡¯t really go through with it, but he did say he was going to actively try and steal Sephie. He¡¯s tried to convince her toe down there in front of me, too. I think he¡¯s lonely.¡± Adrik put his hands on my hips and pulled me back against him so I could still look at everyone while we talked. Ivan cursed under his breath, which made meugh. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Super Squish. It worried me too. The list of people who¡¯d like to kidnap me seems to be growing, rather than shrinking. I just wish I knew how to be less awesome,¡± I said, dramatically. I ended up making myselfugh with that one, which made everyoneugh. ¡°So, Trino knows the dealers are organizing and want to stop this n as much as we do?¡± Viktor asked. Adrik nodded his head. ¡°He said one of his guys is one of the ones in charge. He¡¯s going to tell him to meet with us. We have a much better chance of stopping this if we all work together.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile at the smiles on the guys¡¯ faces as they knew I had said the same thing to Chen. ¡°It¡¯ll help the dealers feel loyal to you, as well. Once this is all over, you want them to want to work for you,¡± I said. Adrik wrapped his arms around me, holding me closer. Misha caught my eye and grinned at me. ¡°Made for this shi t, gazelle.¡± We were in Adrik¡¯s office that afternoon, waiting for Dr. Williams. Viktor¡¯s phone beeped, alerting him that the good doctor was in the lobby. He stood up. ¡°Be right back,¡± he said as he left the office. He walked back in a few minutester with Dr. Williams behind him. Adrik stood to greet him, extending his hand to him. ¡°Dr. Williams, thank you foring on such short notice.¡± ¡°No problem, sir. It sounded serious.¡± He nced around, nervously. His eyesnded on mine and a slight smile crept across his face. Adrik motioned for him to sit as he sat at his desk. I got up from beside Andrei and moved to the cab behind Adrik¡¯s desk. I smiled at the confused expression on Dr. Williams¡¯ face when I moved. I¡¯m not entirely sure if he had figured out which guy I technically belonged to yet. I was enjoying keeping him confused, His confusion was short-lived as his curiosity got the better of him. ¡°Did you talk to the police and give them a description of the doctor yet, Sephle?¡± He sounded hopeful when he asked, but his face fell when he saw the serious expression on my face at his question, ¡°Not only that, but we¡¯ve got his name and where he¡¯s at. He¡¯s being watched around the clock for now,¡± Viktor said. I gave Viktor a small nod for answering for me. ¡°Really? You know who he is? Are they going to arrest him?¡± he asked, his hope returning once more. ¡°He¡¯ll get what he deserves, doc,¡± Stephen said. I could see the anger on his face, which surprised me. Stephen was always so quiet, but this one seemed to really get under his skin for some reason. Dr. Williams ran his hand through his blonde hair. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you found him so quickly. We¡¯ve been looking for him for at least ten years now.¡± ¡°He does have a specific cocktail that he uses that wipes people¡¯s memories. He tests it regrly. He likes to go up to his victims to see if they remember him. It¡¯s why no one has been able to remember what he looks like until Sephie,¡± Ivan said. ¡°What an evil son of a bi tch,¡± Dr. Williams said. ¡°That¡¯s not even the half of it, doc. He¡¯s responsible for so much more,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s why we had youe down here today. I¡¯m assuming that you know all about brawn?¡± Adrik asked. The disgust was clear on his face. ¡°Unfortunately, yes,¡± Dr. Williams said. ¡°We¡¯ve uncovered a plot to rece the entire city¡¯s supply of drugs with brawn, except in two areas of the city. In one of those areas, they¡¯re nning on putting a massive amount of brawn into the water supply. In the other area, they¡¯re nning on withholding all drugs for the weekend they¡¯re nning this.¡± Adrik paused to let Dr. Williamsprehend what he¡¯d just told him. The shock was evident on his face. ¡°We¡¯ve got the dealers of the city working with us, so even if they¡¯re sessful in recing the supply, the dealers won¡¯t sell it. However, this brings up another problem.¡± ¡°Withdrawals,¡± Dr. Williams said. Adrik nodded. ¡°How possible is it for the hospitals to deal with widespread withdrawals throughout the city?¡± ¡°Do you know when this is happening?¡± he asked. ¡°Not yet, but worst case, we¡¯ll have a few days¡¯ notice before it happens. We¡¯re working to stop their n altogether. We¡¯re just putting backup ns in ce just in case,¡± Adrik said. ¡°There¡¯s the potential for a lot of people to be affected. We want to make sure they¡¯re covered in the event we¡¯re not able to stop it from happening.¡± Dr. Williams exhaled loudly as he considered the possibilities before him. ¡°Advance notice will make it easier for hospitals to prepare, but I¡¯m not sure we can handle the entire addict poption of the city going through withdrawals at once. Nor could we handle that same poption having their drug of choice reced by brawn, either. That¡¯s a nasty drug, he said. Armando and na walked into the office as Dr. Williams was talking. They quietly sat on one of the couches. ¡°Oh, they¡¯ve changed it too. This formtion amps up the aggression, but it¡¯s shorter lived. You know how the original brawn could make someone aggressive for a few hours before their body started to shu t down on them?¡± I asked. Dr. Williams nodded his head. ¡°This new form cuts that time down considerably, but it amps up the aggression In that shorter window.¡± I looked to Misha, asking, ¡°it was what, like 20 minutes before they started to struggle to remain conscious?¡± might¡¯ve been longer. We don¡¯t know how long in between them taking it and when they actually attacked us. But I¡¯d say around 20 minutes is a good estimate,¡± Misha said, I happened to dance at na, who had a slight look of disgust on her face at this conversation. That¡¯s odd.Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°You were attacked?¡± Dr. Williams asked, looking between me and Misha. We both nodded. ¡°It was a test run of this formtion. They gave a couple of homeless guys the drug and then sent them to attack me and Sephie when we were out for a run,¡± Misha said. Dr. Williams looked back to me. ¡°But you¡¯ve had experience with the old form, too?¡± I nodded, looking to the floor. Adrik turned his chair toward me, opening his arm for me. I sighed, getting up and moving to hisp. ¡°My uncle,¡± I said as I sat down. Dr. Williams held up his hand. ¡°That¡¯s all I need to hear, because that is clearly not a fond memory. It¡¯s valuable information, in the event that people get a hold of this new form. I still remember when the original form hit the streets. We were scrambling for quite a while until we figured out how to care for the people on it.¡± ¡°What kind of support do the hospitals need? In either scenario. If they get their hands on the new form or if they have to suffer withdrawals,¡± Ivan asked. Dr. Williams thought for a moment. ¡°Honestly, neither situation is going to be easy. Not if we¡¯re talking about the entire city¡¯s addict poption. And I can only answer for my hospital. Other hospitals might not be as well-staffed as mine. I can, however, go back and try toe up with a n of action for both scenarios. I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s going to take all hands-on deck to deal with either scenario.¡± ¡°What about their n to put it in the water supply? What¡¯s going to happen to children who drink water that¡¯s beenced with brawn?¡± Armando asked. He was clearly worried about the people in his area of the city. I nced at Giana again, who caught me looking at her. She immediately looked down when she caught my eye. I decided to stop looking at her for the rest of this little meeting. Chapter 218 Chapter 218 Chapter Two Hundred Eighteen Sephie ¡°I don¡¯t know for sure, but I can tell you that it won¡¯t be good. It¡¯s so easy to overdose on the old form, and from what Sephie has said about the new form, it will likely be even easier to overdose on this form. That¡¯s really bad news for children,¡± Dr. Williams said. We sat in silence for a moment. Adrik wrapped his arms around me tighter. I knew he could feel the faint shaking in my legs. Dr. Williams looked at Adrik again, his curiosity piqued again. ¡°Does the doctor factor into this as well?¡± I felt Adrik nod his head as I nodded mine. ¡°He¡¯s the one that created brawn originally. He¡¯s also believed to be the one that made this new form,¡± Adrik said. Dr. Williams slumped down in his chair, like the wind had been knocked out of him. He was silent for a moment before he looked up at me, a serious look in his eye. ¡°I feel like I should thank you once more for what you did in the emergency room that day. You had every reason to ha te me and my nurses, but you¡¯re the reason nobody got seriously hurt that day.¡± ¡°Oh, she¡¯s the reason you¡¯re not dead, doc. Ivan would¡¯ve killed you,¡± Stephen said,pletely straight-faced. His delivery was always so serious that it almost made meugh. I think, like Ivan, he enjoyed the shock value. I caught his eye, winking at him, trying not tough. He waited until the doctor was no longer looking at him, then he grinned at me, winking back. Dr. Williams looked back to me. ¡°I still have no idea what kind of special powers you have over that man, but I remain in awe of them. And I¡¯m forever grateful for what you did that day, especially knowing the evil you¡¯ve had to endure with that doctor,¡± he said, sincerely. I simply smiled at him, nodding once. I nced at Ivan, who grinned at me. ¡°How long do you need to figure out some sort of n and have an idea of what you¡¯ll need to handle the fallout if we can¡¯t stop the n?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°I should know within a day or two. I¡¯m going to need to have some serious discussions with the doctors, nurses, and administration of the hospital. We can get an idea of what we¡¯ll be able to handle and can apply that to the other hospitals in the city,¡± Dr. Williams said. ¡°It¡¯s best if this is kept as quiet as possible, doc,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Understood,¡± Dr. Williams said. ¡°I¡¯ll be vague with details. I might be able to pass it off as a training exercise.¡± Viktor stood up, signaling to the doctor that it was time to go. He stood up as well, walking the few steps toward Adrik¡¯s desk to shake his hand once more. I stood up so Adrik could also stand. Dr. Williams shook Adrik¡¯s hand, then extended his hand to me. ¡°Thank you again, Sephie,¡± he said, a very sincere look in his eye. I kept a hold of his hand for a moment, saying, ¡°thank you for giving us both a good experience with doctors.¡± He smiled at me, squeezing my hand before letting go. While Viktor escorted him out, Adrik pulled me toward one of the couches. Armando and Giana were talking quietly. She got up quickly and left the office. We all looked at Armando, curious as to what just happened. He looked somewhat flustered, but tried to cover for her. ¡°She said she¡¯s feeling ill, so she wanted to go back downstairs.¡± Ivan said, ¡°embarrassment will do that.¡± Everyone looked to Ivan, expecting an exnation as Viktor returned to the office. Ivan had a smirk on his face. ¡°na left herest night convinced Sephie knew about withdrawals because she was a user. She found out today that wasn¡¯t the case and now she¡¯s embarrassed about it, but she¡¯s not mature enough to own up to her mistake yet, so she ran instead.¡± Armando looked at Ivan. ¡°You¡¯ve been hanging around Sephie, haven¡¯t you? How did you know that?¡± Ivan just shrugged his shoulders. Adrik pulled me closer as I smiled at Ivan. ¡°Ivan has a very special set of skills,¡± I said. Armando said, ¡°Sephie, I want to apologize on behalf of Giana. We argued for several hoursst night. She was convinced that you¡¯d been on drugs because you have so much knowledge about them.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°And if she was? What then? Does that mean Giana gets a license to be a b itch to her? It changes nothing about who Sephie is today if she was or wasn¡¯t,¡± Misha said. He was clearly angry. ¡°I said the same thing to her, Misha. I don¡¯t know where any of it wasing from,¡± Armando said. Ivan caught my eye. I could tell he was making sure I was okay before he spoke. I nodded once. He said, ¡°I do. She¡¯s still so insecure with herself that this is her way to tear Sephie down to make herself feel better. You need to be careful with her, Mando, She¡¯ll eventually do the same to you, if you don¡¯t stop it. She wouldn¡¯t havested five minutes in Sephie¡¯s life over thest few years. She doesn¡¯t know what happened, but on some level, she knows Sephie is stronger than she could ever be and instead of letting it inspire her to be better herself, she lets it make her more insecure about herself. She¡¯ll drag you down to her level if you don¡¯t demand she rise to yours or get lost.¡± Armando looked between me and Ivan, thoughtfully. ¡°How did you two get to be so wise?¡± he asked. ¡°Trauma is a he ll of a teacher, Mando,¡± I said. ¡°Ivan is right though. You¡¯re either going to pull her up or she¡¯s going to pull you down.¡± We heard Misha curse in Russian under his breath, still angry at Giana. Armando couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°I don¡¯t have a clue what you just said, Misha, but I can guarantee I likely said the same thing last night. Repeatedly.¡± Adrik kissed my cheek, brushing his cheek against mine lightly. I squeezed his arms around me tighter. ¡°With all due respect, Mando, you need to handle this before we do,¡± Stephen said. I looked back at him, surprised to see him just as angry as Misha. It was that moment that I realized just how much they all loved me in their own ways. They were so angry because a girl was bitchy to me that they were ready to kick her out for good. I smiled to myself at how cute they all were in this moment. I took a deep breath. ¡°She¡¯s probably grown up privileged and somewhat sheltered. Now that she¡¯s been thrown into the real world, she has no real coping mechanisms. She can onlye from her ce of understanding, which is made from her life experiences.¡± Armando nodded his head. ¡°She¡¯s from a prominent family in Naples. She¡¯s never wanted for a thing in her life.¡± ¡°When you live a life of extremefort, your understanding of good and bad gets skewed. When there really isn¡¯t any bad, the good reces the bad. People need both. There can be no good when there is no bad. Her bad consists of slightly less good, so the really good doesn¡¯t feel right. Her soul knows that, which is why she¡¯s wanting for something more. But she¡¯s looking in the wrong ces for that something. It has toe from within her. She¡¯s the only one that can decide to be happy. Nobody else will ever be able to make her happy if she can¡¯t make herself happy. That¡¯s what you need to try to get her to see, Mando. She¡¯s choosing to be miserable and insecure. No one else is making her feel that way. No one is going to be able to make her stop Teeling that way. It¡¯s all on her,¡± I said. Armando raised his eyebrow looking at me, He asked, in Italian, ¡°do I want to know how much trauma you¡¯ve had to endure to be this wise?¡± I chuckled. ¡°No you do not,¡± I responded in English. ¡°I think I¡¯ll take her to my house for the rest of the week and weekend. Maybe a change of scenery will do her good. It¡¯ll also keep her away from you guys, so I won¡¯t need to worry about you guys handling this before I can fix it,¡± Armando said. He had a smile on his face when he said it, but he was legitimately worried as well. Knowing that even Stephen was angry meant that he had good reason to be worried. Chapter 219 Chapter 219 Chapter Two Hundred Neen Misha I could see something was different about Giana when she and Armando walked into the office while the doctor was talking to Sephie. Giana had a look of contempt on her face watching Sephie talk that she¡¯d never had before. I didn¡¯t like it. I could feel myself starting to get angry as I watched her watching Sephie talk to the doctor about brawn. When the doctor asked Sephie how she had experience with the original form of brawn, her entire demeanor changed. It was obvious. She immediately looked at the floor and her shoulders slumped. Adrik didn¡¯t even need to see her to know it happened. He just turned his chair toward her and extended his hand toward her. She got up, her eyes still on the floor, and moved to hisp. Before she sat down, she just said ¡°my uncle.¡± This week has been rough on her. We¡¯ve all seen it. She¡¯s looking like she looked after she and I were attacked, just without the concussion. How she looked after the ball, just without the ho le in her hip. She was struggling. Adrik and Ivan seemed to know how to help her best, which was good, but Andrei was right. It was frustrating for the rest of us. We wanted to help her too, we just didn¡¯t know how. It was even making Stephen angry and that guy rarely gets angry. I noticed Giana¡¯s eyes went wide when Sephie mentioned her uncle. Armando looked at her, a stern look on his face, almost like he was silently saying ¡°I told you so.¡± I waited for her to look at me. I knew she would. She was practically incapable of not staring at me at some point anytime she was around me. I¡¯d caught her staring so many times it should¡¯ve been embarrassing for her, but she kept doing it. Even after she got with Armando. It was soical that I¡¯d discussed adding it to the wh ite board bet pools. How many times I could catch her staring in one day. When she did finally look at me, I made it obvious that I¡¯d seen her look of disgust and I gave her my own look of disgust in return. It did not matter to me if she was with Armando or not, she was going to find out that when it came to Sephie, all bets were off. She quickly looked to the floor, but I kept watching her until the doctor got up to leave. Once the doctor was out of the office, Adrik moved Sephie to one of the couches, but I kept my eyes on Giana. She was arguing with Armando, but they were speaking Italian and talking quietly. I¡¯m assuming so Sephie couldn¡¯t hear what was being said. Giana got up quickly and rushed out of the office. We all looked to Armando. Clearly something had just happened. He looked frustrated, and maybe a little angry, but he made an excuse about her not feeling well. That¡¯s bu llshit. If she didn¡¯t feel well, he would¡¯ve gone with her. In the way that only Ivan can, he called her out. ¡°Embarrassment will do that.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . Everyone was waiting for him to expand on that when Viktor walked back into the office. Ivan smirked, enjoying the moment, then said, ¡°na left herest night convinced Sephie knew about withdrawals because she was a user. She found out today that wasn¡¯t the case and now she¡¯s embarrassed about it, but she¡¯s not mature enough to own up to her mistake yet, so she ran instead.¡± Nailed it. I knew Ivan was wise before the attempted kidnapping of Sephie, but somehow that experience made him infinitely more so. Or he¡¯s finally just letting us all see it. Ivan has always been insanely private, but it¡¯s clear that he¡¯s opened up to Sephie. They share simr trauma. It can be comforting to find someone who can rte, even if it¡¯s just a little bit, to what you¡¯ve been through. I know Ivan has been through serious trauma. He talks in his sleep when he¡¯s troubled, just like Sephie does. He has ho rrible past experiences with a doctor, just like she does. I don¡¯t know the details, but I know I likely don¡¯t want to know the details. It¡¯s hard enough knowing what happened to Sophie. Armando looked to Ivan, surprised. ¡°You¡¯ve been hanging around Sephie, haven¡¯t you? How did you know that?¡± Sephie smiled her smile that could light up the room at Ivan. ¡°Ivan has a very special set of skills,¡± she said. Armando nodded his head in agreement. He looked thoughtful for a moment, then looked at Sephie and said, ¡°Sephie, I want to apologize on behalf of Giana. We argued for several hoursst night. She was convinced that you¡¯d been on drugs because you have so much knowledge about them.¡± I felt my anger rise to the surface. This bi tch. How could anyone think that about Sephie? She doesn¡¯t even drink alcohol! And what does it matter if she was on drugs at one point? She¡¯s clearly not anymore, so who the fuc k cares? Doesn¡¯t she know that people can change and improve their lives? Before I really thought about it, I said, ¡°and if she was? What then? Does that mean Giana gets a license to be a bi tch to her? It changes nothing about who Sephie is today if she was or wasn¡¯t.¡± I was angry, but I shouldn¡¯t have said that to Armando. Surprisingly, he agreed with me, telling me he¡¯d said the same thing to her the night before. He also said he wasn¡¯t sure where any of it wasing from in respect to Giann. I saw Sephie and Ivin having a silent conversation. I think he was checking to see if she was okay. She¡¯s had to deal with so much, this week especially. We were all worried that her nightmares were going toe back. Sephie nodded once to Ivan, letting him know she could handle it. He looked at Armando, his face serious. ¡°I do. She¡¯s still so insecure with herself that this is her way to tear Sephie down to make herself feel better. You need to be careful with her, Mando,. She¡¯ll eventually do the same to you, if you don¡¯t stop it. She wouldn¡¯t havested five minutes in Sephie¡¯s life over thest few years. She doesn¡¯t know what happened, but on some level, she knows Sephie is stronger than she could ever be and instead of letting it inspire her to be better herself, she lets it make her more insecure about herself. She¡¯ll drag you down to her level if you don¡¯t demand she rise to yours or get lost.¡± Armando looked somewhat surprised at Ivan¡¯s words, asking how he and Sephie got to be so wise. When you¡¯re forced to live a life full of hardship, you learn more lessons about life in general. This was true of both Sephie and Ivan. Sephie, in her own always sarcastic way, told Armando as much. I¡¯ve always been the youngest of the group, until Sephie came into our lives. I was excited at first, because I finally felt like I wasn¡¯t the baby. Then I realized that she might be younger than me in years, but she¡¯s much older than I am in terms of experience. Sure, I¡¯ve got experiences that she doesn¡¯t have, but that woman has been through more in her young life than I¡¯ll likely experience in the rest of mine. I find myself looking up to her. Just like Ivan pointed out, Sephie inspires me to be better. All of us to be better. I don¡¯t know how she¡¯s done it, but she¡¯s brought the best out of all of us. Even Stephen. None of us knew that guy was carrying around his secret for that long. We were bing used to the idea that he may or may not be a serial killer and we were all strangely fine with that fact. Turns out he was just ufortable to tell us that he was g ay. But because of Sephic, he¡¯se out to us and now he¡¯sing out of his shell around us. That guy is fucki ng hrious and none of us knew it because he was afraid to be himself around us. Sephie showed him how much better life can be when you just decide to always be yourself. I constantly question whether that would¡¯ve ever happened if Sephie hadn¡¯te into our lives. I question whether a lot of things would have happened if she hadn¡¯te into our lives. And now this insecure bi tch is trying to tear Sephie down because she¡¯s too scared to put in the work to make herself better. I didn¡¯t realize I said it out loud, but I cursed in Russian, my anger taking over for a moment. Chapter 220 Chapter 220 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty Misha Armandoughed, telling me he wasn¡¯t sure what I¡¯d said, but he¡¯d likely said the same thingst night. I couldn¡¯t help but feel some relief that Armando was also angry and frustrated with this situation. If he was blindly siding with Giana over this, we would have bigger issues. ¡°With all due respect, Mando, you need to handle this before we do,¡± Stephen said. I could hear the anger in his voice, as well. Somehow his anger justified mine. I knew if he was mad, it was a big deal. Sephie looked at Stephen, as well as the rest of us. I think she was just as surprised as the rest of us to hear the anger in his voice. He waited until Armando looked away, then he grinned at Sephie. She was thoughtful for a moment. I watched her pull Adrik¡¯s arms tighter around her. Just like she was an anchor for all of us, he was that for her. She got stronger when she was with him, just as he got stronger when he was with her. Theyplimented each other in a way that I¡¯d never seen before. She sighed and said, ¡°she¡¯s probably grown up privileged and somewhat sheltered. Now that she¡¯s been thrown into the real world, she has no real coping mechanisms. She can onlye from her ce of understanding, which is made from her life experiences.¡± While she wasn¡¯t wrong, I did notice that Sephie tended to give people the benefit of the doubt a little too much. Sometimes a bi tch is just a bi tch. While she was hardly ever wrong about people, I found myself angry at herck of anger at Giana. I knew she would get there eventually, if things didn¡¯t change. I¡¯d seen what she said to Max and I knew how long it took her to get to that point. I wasn¡¯t sure I¡¯d be able to handle it if it took her that long to get to that point with Giana, if this situation wasn¡¯t resolved quickly. After Armando confirmed that Giana was, in fact, a spoiled rich kid, Sephie said, ¡°When you live a life of extremefort, your understanding of good and bad gets skewed. When there really isn¡¯t any bad, the good reces the bad. People need both. There can be no good when there is no bad. Her bad consists of slightly less good, so the really good doesn¡¯t feel right. Her soul. knows that, which is why she¡¯s wanting for something more. But she¡¯s looking in the wrong ces for that something. It has to come from within her. She¡¯s the only one that can decide to be happy. Nobody else will ever be able to make her happy if she can¡¯t make herself happy. That¡¯s what you need to try to get her to see, Mando. She¡¯s choosing to be miserable and insecure. No one else is making her feel that way. No one is going to be able to make her stop feeling that way. It¡¯s all on her,¡± I smiled, knowing that Sephie was exactly right, and that had Giana heard what Sephie just said, she likely would¡¯ve been crushed until she coulde to terms with it. Armando asked Sephie a question in Italian, which annoyed me. I enjoyed being the one that could keep everyone else in the dark when we spoke Russian in front of others. Sephie tried tough, but I saw the pain sh on her face quickly as she answered him. My mind was wandering while Armando was still talking. Sephie had said that she wanted to go to the house a few days ago and we hadn¡¯t been able to go yet. Maybe I should bring it up again, after Armando left. I didn¡¯t know what it was about being- able to go to theke that helped her recharge herself, but it was obvious every time it happened. I could literally watch the stress melt off her as we sat and talked by theke. My gut instinct was getting stronger, the more I used it. Before, I would just get a feeling when something wasn¡¯t going to go right. I would feel nauseous or feel like there was Impending doom coming to indicate that an oue was going to be negative. But now, I was starting to get indicators on good oues as well. Completely different Indicators, thankfully, so I could tell the difference. As I thought about going to the house for a few days, I got goosebumps down my arms and across my upper body. It had only happened once or twice before, but I knew this was my gut instinct telling me we needed to go to the house. I would wait until Armando left and then suggest it. I found myself looking forward to a long run with Sephie, too. She used to almost ki ll me when we went for a run at the I¡¯d been running with her long enough now that I could almost keep up with her at the house. I still gave out well before getting better. It had been a while since we¡¯d been able to run anywhere. I knew if I missed it, she was 1) definitely missing it. Armando talked for a while longer, telling us that he was purposely leaving Giana alone for as long as possible. He made ns. to go to his house for the weekend, which made me happy to know I wouldn¡¯t have to see her for a few days. He finally stood to leave. I couldn¡¯t help but feel relieved. I liked Armando, but I wanted him gone right now. I was having trouble getting my anger under control. Once he was out of the office, I looked to Adrik and said frankly, ¡°we should go to the house.¡± I might¡¯ve said it a little too frankly, as both he and Sephie looked at me, clearly surprised. Sephie, however, grinned at me almost immediately. She turned to look at Adrik, a question on her face. He looked at her for a moment, like he was lost in thought. I¡¯d never seen him look at anyone the way he looks at her. A small smile crept over his face. He looked back to me, silently asking again for confirmation. I nodded my head. He looked down at his watch, then back to Sephie. ¡°We should order food before we leave so it¡¯s waiting on us when we get there. I¡¯m hungry,¡± he said. Sephie had leaned her head back on his shoulder so she could see his face. The smile that stretched across her face was enough to make all of us immediately feel better. Suddenly my anger was dissipating and I was now excited to go for a long run with her tomorrow. ¡°Gazelle, do you want to go for a run in the morning?¡± I asked. I had switched from struggling to contain my anger to now struggling to contain my excitement. Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°Don¡¯t ask st upid questions, my adorable Russian guardian,¡± she said as she looked at me seriously. For a moment, I thought she didn¡¯t want to and that I had offended her. She saw the look of surprise on my face and diedughing. ¡°Misha, I¡¯m sorry. You¡¯re too easy sometimes. Of course I want to go for a run and of course I love you for suggesting we go to the house. You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± She winked at me, her wide smile still making the room brighter. The guys were allughing at me and I couldn¡¯t help butugh with them. I think we all needed a break. Chapter 221 Chapter 221 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-One Misha ¡°Can we take the long route today?¡± I asked Sephie as we were stretching for our run the following morning. She looked at me, a serious look on her face. ¡°Misha, is something wrong? You¡¯re volunteering to torture yourself now? Is there something I need to know?¡± I chuckled, then shrugged my shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve been able to go for a run. I didn¡¯t realize how much I¡¯ve grown to enjoy it.¡± She slid her arm around my waist. I was so much taller than she was that her head fit right in my armpit. I would usually try to get her to sniff my armpit whenever I could to annoy her, but this time | surprised her by wrapping my arms around her and picking her up. It always made herugh and I really needed to hear herugh right now, When I set her down, she was stillughing. ¡°We can go for as long of a run as you like, my adorable Russian guardian. But we should maybe tell someone that you¡¯re going to need two lunches instead of one.¡± ¡°Maybe three,¡± I said, contemting how far it was around the entireke. We didn¡¯t usually talk when we ran until the end when we were walking back to the house to catch our breath. It was actually one of the things I liked about running with Sephie. By myself, I would always listen to music because I didn¡¯t like the quiet. But with her, it waspletely different. We were quiet, but it wasn¡¯t the same quiet. It wasn¡¯t a lonely quiet. I found myself thinking through lots of things when I would run with her where I couldn¡¯t when I ran by myself. It didn¡¯t make sense, really, but I felt like she was a calming force anytime she was around. I managed to keep up with her the entire time, which was a huge confidence boost for me. I had struggled to make it the entire way thest time we took the long route, but this time felt easier. Maybe it was because I was missing it more. As we neared our stopping point for the walk back to the house, Sephie looked at me, grinning. Her smile was infectious. ¡°Misha, I¡¯m so happy that you suggested wee to the house. And I¡¯m even happier you wanted to take the long route this morning. I didn¡¯t realize how much I needed this,¡± she said as she turned toward me with her arms open for a hug. Seeing the smile on her face made me so happy. I bent down and picked her up into a bear hug, making herugh again. ¡°It makes me happy to see you happy, gazelle. This week has been rough for you. I¡¯m really d I could give you at least a little bright spot,¡± I said, spinning her around. I loved hearing herugh. As I set her down, she said, ¡°it¡¯s been a rough week for everyone, not just me. I clearly saw the pain on your face after I fell asleep in the office and started talking in my sleep. Misha, I never meant to put that on you, or any of the other guys.¡± Her smile faded and she looked at me seriously as we walked back to the house. I was trying to find the right words to say to her, I knew she didn¡¯t like to open up. I understood. Her story was not a happy one. ¡°Sephie¡­¡± I started to speak, but she cut her eyes over to me. ¡°Uh oh, it¡¯s serious. You used my name Instead of culling me gazelle,¡± she said smiling. I cleared my throat, looking at her as seriously as I could manage, which arguably wasn¡¯t that serious, ¡°Sephie,¡± I said, trying not to smile. I put my hand on her shoulder to stop her. I wanted to get this out before we got back to the house. I wanted to capitalize on my alone time with her. She looked at me, surprised, but she stopped and turned to face me. I continued, ¡°Sephie, I look up to you. Maybe more than I¡¯ve ever looked up to anyone in my life. You might be younger than me, but you¡¯re leaps you keep us allughing, you catch on to things so quickly, and you bring the brightest light into my life. Now that I know what you¡¯ve been through and that you¡¯re still, well, you? It makes me want to work harder to be worthy of your friendship. To be even half the person you are. I look at you and Boss and I¡¯ve never seen anything like what you two have, but I know I want my owry version of it. You do so much for all of us. I just want to be able to give back and be able to be the same for you that you are for me¡± I could see the tears welling up in her eyes as I talked. I felt my own tears threatening to fall, but I needed to say this. I needed her to know how much she meant to not just me, but to all of us. Guaranteed, every single one of the guys had thought about having this conversation with her, if they hadn¡¯t had it already. Now that I¡¯d started to tell her what I¡¯d been thinking about, I wasn¡¯t sure I could stop it. ¡°It¡¯s hard for us to hear about what happened to you in your past, not because we can¡¯t handle it, per se. Although I must admit that I¡¯ve wondered if I could¡¯ve survived everything you have and still been able to see the humor in the world. I can¡¯t imagine what it was like to go through everything you¡¯ve been through, but it hurts knowing you had to endure it. Simply because you mean so much to me, to all of us, and we want nothing but the best for you, always. Hearing that you¡¯ve had to go through what you have is frustrating, like Andrei said, but only because we know there¡¯s nothing we can do to take that pain away from you. What I can do, however, is always be here when you need someone to talk to. Or not talk to. Or to take the long route with. Whatever you need, Sephie. Whenever you need it. I¡¯ll be here. So will the other guys. I love you and want to always see you happy, if only because of the joy you bring to my life when you are happy. I know the other guys feel the same way, if they haven¡¯t already told you,¡± She had a few tears falling down her face as she listened to me. For once, she looked like she didn¡¯t know what to say. She just smiled and wrapped her arms around me, resting her head on my chest. She took a deep breath, but didn¡¯t let go, so I kept my arms around her. ¡°Misha, you only ever have to worry about being you. Each of you has a special role to y in my life, just as I have a special role to y in yours. You bring your own uniqueness to my life and I couldn¡¯t imagine my life without that now. It seems si lly to say. I haven¡¯t even known you for a year yet, but I can¡¯t imagine my life without you and the other guys in it. You guys always say I¡¯ve brought so much to your lives, but I can say the same for you. You¡¯ve all brought so much to my life. I can¡¯t even begin to tell you what it means to me to always feel safe with all of you. That right there is worth more than anything to me. But you¡¯re so much more than that. You love the fuckery as much as I do and quite frankly that¡¯s my favorite thing about you. Your Intuition is quickly bing unparalleled, too. I saw your faraway look right before you ordered Adrik to.e to the house,¡± she said as she looked up at me, grinning. ¡°It¡¯s starting to work on positive oues too, isn¡¯t it?¡± I just shook my head. ¡°Of course you would notice.¡± I grinned down at her. She kept one arm around my waist and I kept one arm around her shoulders as we started walking toward the house again. ¡°It hasn¡¯t happened as much, but I get different feelings when it¡¯s a positive oue. It¡¯s helpful, really. It makes it clear so I can tell the difference.¡± ¡°So, negative oues are still like a feeling of dread or nausea?¡± she asked. I nodded my head. ¡°What are positive oues then?¡± ¡°So far, it¡¯s been goosebumps over my arms and upper body,¡± I said. She stopped. She looked lost in thought for a moment before she looked up at me. ¡°That¡¯s a powerful sign, Misha. My m om used to tell me that was the way to know a universal truth. Did you get goosebumps when you thought about using to the house yesterday?¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Yep.¡± ¡°Were you just thinking abouting to the house or was there something more specific?¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°I was thinking about how you¡¯ve been looking like you did after the attack on us, just without the concussion. And then how you looked after the ball, just without the ho le in your hip. I thought about howing here and being able to go to theke always seems to recharge you somehow. Then I thought I should suggest wee to the house and that¡¯s when it happened.¡± She giggled. ¡°That¡¯s why you were so frank abouting here. You never give orders, but you sure as sh it gave Adrik an order. Chapter 222 Chapter 222 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Two Misha I felt my cheeks blush. ¡°I honestly didn¡¯t mean for it toe out like that,¡± I sald, somewhat sheepishly. Sheughed again. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my adorable Russian guardian, he thought it was funny. He appreciated your frankness because he knew it was ultimately for my benefit.¡± We walked a few more steps, then she stopped again. ¡°I want you to pinky swear that you will always be that frank when you get that reaction,¡± she said, holding her pinky up to me. ¡°What does that mean?¡± I asked,pletely confused. ¡°Jesus, what do you people do in Russia as children? Not pinky swear, I know that.¡± She sighed. ¡°Okay, so the pinky swear is the holiest of holy swears. Like so holy that legend has it Jesus only used it once then promptly had his pinkies removed so he could never use it again. It¡¯s that serious,¡± she said. She was trying not tough at her own exnation, but she ended up giggling through most of it. ¡°Okay, so how do I do the holiest of holy swears?¡± I asked, clearly amused at her. This felt like a secret that only she and I had, even though I¡¯d heard her and Adrik talking about it before. That was one of the things we all loved about Sephie. She had little things that she did with all of us that clearly meant something to her, not even caring a little bit that it was sil ly and childish. She lifted her hand, with her pinky out. ¡°Give me your pinky,¡± she said. I held my hand in front of me, matching hers. She grabbed my pinky with hers and said, ¡°you pinky swear you will always be frank when you get the goosebumps reaction.¡± She looked at me like she was waiting for me to say it too, so I repeated it back to her. She grinned at me,pletely satisfied in our holiest of holy swears. Strangely enough, I feltpelled to always honor it. It might¡¯ve been si lly and childish, but when it comes to Sephie, all bets are off. Sephie Misha and I walked the rest of the way to the house,ughing, but he kept his arm around my shoulders and I kept mine around his waist. I loved that they all humored me and my silliness. I hoped they never stopped. As we got to the doors of the house, Viktor met us with his phone in hand. ¡°Chen,¡± he said, motioning us to follow him. He walked quickly back to the kitchen, everyone else waiting for us. I nced at Misha, trying not tough at feeling like we were somehow in trouble. Viktor put his phone on speaker and handed it to me. ¡°What¡¯s up, Chen? Sorry to keep you waiting,¡± I said. ¡°No worries, my girl. I know how you are when you go for a run. I was expecting to wait for another hour, minimum, so technically you¡¯re back early,¡± he said,ughing. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. Apparently, I¡¯m slightly more predictable than I thought. ¡°What did you find out?¡± N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°I talked to Trino¡¯s guy. Gus is his name. He said he wanted to meet with you and your giant security people and then he said Trino called him and told him he had to, so that¡¯s happening. Gus also talked to the couple other guys that are kind of running things with him. They want in as well. And, uh, when were you going to tell me that you datin¡¯ Ghost? Like THE Ghost? Like THE man that runs the whole da mn city?¡± he said. He sounded like he was trying to be mad, but he was likely scared as he just now realized how big this really was. I nced to Adrik, who just smirked at me as he walked the few steps to me and the phone. He asked Chen, ¡°that¡¯s not a problem, is it?¡± ¡°Oh, fuc k me that¡¯s him, isn¡¯t it? No, sir. No problem at all, sir,¡± Chen said. I could hear the nervousness in his voice now. I couldn¡¯t help butugh. Adrik was clearly enjoying this as well. ¡°Chen, rx. You¡¯ve done nothing but help us in all of this. You have nothing to worry about,¡± I said, trying to help calm him 1 down. He was quiet for a moment. I thought he had hung up. ¡°Chen? You okay, man?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay, but holy sh it this is way bigger than I thought,¡± he said. We could all hear the fear in his voice now. Adrik took the phone from me with one hand and wrapped his other arm around my waist. ¡°Chen, you can get out now and no harm done. Sephie was right. You¡¯ve done us a massive favor. You¡¯ll be safe as long as you¡¯re in the city, you have my word. You can always call us if you¡¯re in trouble, too. This is big. Really big. No harm if you want out now.¡± Chen was quiet for a moment again. He was struggling with what to do. ¡°I appreciate your offer, sir. But I wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep at night knowing this was going on and I didn¡¯t try to help stop it. I¡¯m still in. I¡¯ll do whatever I can to help.¡± Adrik said, ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that, Chen. Are you up for being the liaison between us and the dealers for now? I prefer to stay as anonymous as I can, but Sephie trusts you, which means I can trust you.¡± ¡°Yes, sir. I can do that.¡± ¡°Good, Chen. We¡¯ll get back to you with a ce to meet on Monday and a time. Can you make sure Gus and the other guys that have taken charge are there?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°Absolutely, sir.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be in touch,¡± Adrik said, ending the call. I couldn¡¯t help butugh a little at how scared poor Chen was. I think his reaction surprised me, honestly. Adrik could be intimidating, for sure, but I just didn¡¯t think of him that way. It was a new experience to see the fear firsthand. ¡°I had no idea that your reputation was so ominous,¡± I said, grinning up at him. He just smirked down at me, ¡°Who do you want meeting with them and where?¡± Viktor asked. Adrik was quiet for a moment. He looked at Misha as he said, ¡°all of us.¡± I didn¡¯t need to look at Misha to know that he was checking oues. Adrik¡¯s face softened slightly, so I knew he¡¯d gotten approval. Misha said, ¡°it needs to be all of us.¡± His voice was serious enough to know that he was honoring his pinky swear. I turned around to look at him, smiling. He was standing with his hands on his hips. He winked at me, tapping his pinky finger against his hip. ¡°Good. I need Sephie to be there to make sure we can trust the other dealers,¡± Adrik said. He pulled me closer to him. ¡°Where do you want this to happen? I¡¯m not sure your office is the right ce. It¡¯s not being watched, but it would be obvious should anyone see them there,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Agreed. I don¡¯t necessarily want them at the building until we know we can trust them.¡± Adrik said. ¡°What about my old apartment? Chen said it was basically no man¡¯snd there. Like that part of the city doesn¡¯t really belong to any one boss. They¡¯re likely not watching it. And it was easy enough to secure when I went to talk to Chen, right?¡± I asked, looking between Viktor and Stephen. Stephen agreed. ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s got a couple great vantage points where we can see everyoneing and going.¡± Adrik looked to Misha, who had that faraway look in his eyes as he was checking oues. ¡°It¡¯s good,¡± he said. ¡°Let Chen know. Monday night. I prefer to do this well after dark, if possible,¡± Adrik said. He leaned down, pressing his lips to mine. He smiled against my lips, saying, ¡°it helps perpetuate my ominous reputation.¡± Chapter 223 Chapter 223 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Three Adrik wasying across the bed, lost in thought as he waited for me to finish drying my hair. 1 hader¡¯s nned on washingt after Misha and I got back from our run this morning, but since Adrik couldn¡¯t keep his hands off me in the dyr, my hair was washed and now needed to be dried. It was getting colder outside and he knows how much I ha te to be cold, so he Insisted. I walked to the bed, climbing on top of him. His hands immediately went to my neck and my hair as 1 fald down on top of him. He clicked his tongue. ¡°Your hair is still wet, solnishko. I don¡¯t want you to catch a crid ¡° Iughed. ¡°I¡¯d be in there for like another hour if you want me to dry my hairpletely. It¡¯s dry enough. I won¡¯t catch cold¡± 1 snuggled into him. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me close. ¡°Especially not if I have you to keep me warm.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make you wear a hatter,¡± he said. It sounded like a threat, so I picked my head up to look at him. Heughed at my expression. ¡°I¡¯m leaving my phone with Viktor this afternoon and you and I are going to theke. For as long as you¡¯d like to stay,¡± he said, fighting his usual battle with the curls around my face. He looked more amused than usual with my hair. He smiled, adding, ¡°your curls are even more out of control when you use the hair dryer. I didn¡¯t think that was possible¡± Iughed. ¡°It¡¯s why I don¡¯t usually use the hair dryer. My hair revolts, which is a situation hobody wants.¡± I loved watching the wonderment on his face as he tried to get my hair to obey his wishes. ¡°You¡¯re really going to ditch work this afternoon?¡± ! asked. He nodded his head, taking a deep breath. ¡°I could use a break, too, and I can¡¯t think of a better way to spend the afternoon than with you, away from everyone.¡± I couldn¡¯t stop the smile that spread across my face. I couldn¡¯t think of a better way to spend an afternoon than with him, either. He pulled me down to him, pressing his lips against mine. We were sitting in silence by theke. It was one of the many things I loved about Adrik. His ability to befortable in the silence was unmatched. I had a feeling he loved it about me too. We had talked on the way to theke. He kept his fingersced through mine the entire way. He would steal nces at me as we were walking and talking, like he enjoyed watching me more than the scenery around us. We were sitting on the ground, leaned up against an old tree that had fallen years ago. He finally broke the silence, saying, ¡°this has always been my favorite spot toe to when I needed a break from everything. It¡¯s why I bought this house.¡± I leaned my head over on his shoulder. ¡°It was a good purchase. There¡¯s something magical about this ce. Even Misha knows it, without knowing it. It¡¯s why he ordered you to bring me here,¡± I said, giggling. Heughed too. ¡°That kid has never given an order in his life.¡± Heughed harder thinking about it. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°I made him promise to do it more if he gets the response he did abouting here. It¡¯s a powerful reaction that he gets now and I made him pinky swear he would always tell us,¡± I said. Adrik reached over and put his arm across my legs, pulling them toward him. I held onto his arm as we talked. ¡°Is it the same reaction he¡¯s always had or it¡¯s a new one now?¡± he asked. ¡°New. He used to only get a reaction when something was going to go wrong. He said since he¡¯s been using it more, now he can get a reaction when something is going to go right. It¡¯s a different reaction to each, so he can tell the difference. When he thought abouting here, he wasn¡¯t just thinking about the house, and he got goosebumps. My m om used to tell me goosebumps were how you know universal truths. Like when someone tells you something and you get goosebumps on your body? It¡¯s a universal truth and your body recognizes it,¡± I said. Adrik was quiet for a moment, then chuckled. ¡°You¡¯ve given me goosebumps when you¡¯ve told me things before, solnishko.¡± He leaned down and kissed the top of my head. ¡°What was Misha thinking about when he thought abouting here?¡± ¡°He said he was looking at me when we were talking about na, thinking about how I looked like I did after we got attacked, just without the concussion, and how I looked after the ball, just without the ho le in my hip. He knows thating to theke recharges me, if you will. He said he got goosebumps when he thought about it, so he waited until Armando left and that¡¯s when he basically ordered you to come here,¡± I said, stillughing at his delivery. He moved to look at me, surprise on his face. ¡°Misha saw that too?¡± ¡°Saw what?¡± ¡°That your light had dimmed again.¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°He didn¡¯t say it exactly like that, but he noticed.¡± ¡°Maybe I underestimated the rest of them,¡± he said. I looked at him, expecting him to finish his thought, but he stayed quiet. The wind had picked up slightly as we were sitting by theke. We both heard a loud p of thunder that sounded like it was almost above us. I sat up and looked behind us to see that a storm had blown in quickly while we were at theke. Adrik saw it too. He stood up, pulling me up with him. ¡°We should head back. That doesn¡¯t look like it¡¯s going to bl ow over,¡± he said, watching the sky. Just as he said that, a streak of lightning stretched across the sky, followed quickly by another loud p of thunder. I felt the first few raindrops start to fall. I looked at him, trying not tough. ¡°What gives you that impression?¡± He grinned at me, grabbing my hand as we started to walk quickly back to the house. The trees in the forest kept us from getting rained on, but once we got to the other side of the forest by the backwn of the house, it had started pouring. There was no way to avoid getting wet. The temperature was dropping with the storm, as well, making the rain cold and biting. Despite running back to the house, we werepletely soaked and I was shivering when we made it to the back door. The guys were all on the couches when we got back, mostly amused that we¡¯d gotten soaked. Ivan and Misha were especially excited. Apparently, they¡¯d all seen the storming, so they made a bet to see whether we would make it back before the storm hit. Ivan and Misha said we wouldn¡¯t, so they were the winners. ¡°You¡¯re wee!¡± I yelled as we ran upstairs to change into dry clothes. Adrik turned the hot water in the shower on, puling me inside before I even had a chance to take any clothes off. I couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°And you were worried about my hair earlier,¡± I said, grinning at him. He peeled his shirt off before doing the same to mine. He pulled me under the water as he worked on getting my pants off. I was still shivering, despite the hot water. 1ughed at our pile of wet clothes in the corner of the shower. Adrik seemed concerned about getting me warm, but he was also amused at how our afternoon turned out. He bent down and picked me up, wrapping my legs around his waist as he made sure I was under the water, trying to get me warm. He flinched when I wrapped my legs around him. ¡°Your legs are so cold, solnishko,¡± he said, running one hand up and down my leg rapidly to try and warm me up. He looked up at me, stillughing about our situation. ¡°It might not have ended the way I wanted, but I¡¯m so happy I got to spend time with you this afternoon. Hopefully your phone didn¡¯t drive Viktor crazy while we were gone,¡± I said. ¡°You look even lighter, solnishko. Who knew getting caught in the rain was so healthy?¡± he said, still laughing. I unwrapped my legs from his waist and stood in front of him, but stayed under the water as I was still cold. ¡°I owe Misha one for ordering you to bring me here,¡± I said, grinning at him. ¡°I needed this break, I think.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s maybe not let him know that he can order me around so easily,¡± he said, smiling at me. He leaned down and kissed me. ¡°I needed a break, too. I was happy he ordered me toe here. But let¡¯s keep that between us for now.¡± Chapter 224 Chapter 224 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Four Sephie I put on the warmest clothes | had at the house and was still cold, even after the hot showwer Adrik walked out of the closet with a sweatshirt. ¡°Here, solnishko. Put this on. It will help. Let¡¯s go get you something warm to drink, ton,¡± he said. He waited for me to pull his sweatshirt on, then grabbed my hand pulling me toward the door. ¡°Do you want some tea?¡± he asked on our way down the stairs. ¡°The only tea I really like is what I use to sleep and I don¡¯t want to sleep right now. Coffee sounds good, though. If nothing else, it might make me hyper enough that I warm myself up from not being able to sit still,¡± I said as I jumped down the stairs behind him,ughing. ¡°That seems like a good life choice for you right now,¡± he said, shaking his head at my shenanigans. ¡°I will make you some coffee, love.¡± He stopped at the bottom of the stairs, pulling me to him to kiss me. ¡°This is why you¡¯re my favorite,¡± I said, smiling against his lips. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about not telling the others, though. They already know, trust me. It¡¯s not a secret.¡± Heughed, wrapping his arms around me. ¡°I love you, Sephie.¡± ¡°Is it because you¡¯re looking forward to me having endless energyter? Because I¡¯d love me for that too,¡± I asked,ughing He cursed under his breath. I could see where his mind was going ¡°I¡¯m going to make your coffee extra strong,¡± he said, a devilish grin on his face. ¡°Challenge epted.¡± Viktor was in the kitchen when we walked in. Adrik asked him what he¡¯d missed while we were at the lake As they were talking business and Adrik was making coffee, I walked to the back room to see who was there. The storm was still going strong outside and I wanted to watch the lightning as well. The back room had the best windows in the whole house, Ivan and Misha were on the couches when I walked in. ¡°Where¡¯s Bubba and Yoden?¡± I asked as I walked to the windows to watch the storm clo uds outside. I pulled my hands in the too-long sleeves and crossed my arms across my chest, trying to stay warm. I heard Ivan click his tongue, but he didn¡¯t say anything, he just got up and walked toward their rooms. Misha answered, ¡°they¡¯re ying video games. They¡¯re ying against Keith and Chris right now.¡± I looked at him, grinning. ¡°Do I need to ask who is winning?¡± ¡°Only if you¡¯ve hit your head recently and have no clue what¡¯s going on around you,¡± he said,ughing. Ivan walked back in with a beanie in his hand. He walked up to me, pulling it on my head. ¡°Princess, you have to keep your head warm if you expect the rest of you to stay warm¡± I had braided my hair when we got out of the shower, because I just didn¡¯t feel like dealing with having to dry it again. Ivan picked my still damp braid up and said, ¡°especially if your hair is still wet.¡± He smacked me lightly with my braid as he went to the couch again. Adrik walked in with a steaming cup of coffee, handing it to me. He had one in his hand as well, which made me smirk at him. He couldn¡¯t help but grin at me as he took a sip. I felt my cheeks flush. In an effort to distract myself from thoughts of what was going to happenter, I asked, ¡°how bad was your phone while we were gone?¡± ¡°Not terrible, but I do have a couple of phone calls I need to return. It shouldn¡¯t take too long,¡± he said. He was looking over the beanie that Ivan had put on me. ¡°Are you still cold, solnishko?¡± he asked. His eyes were still amused. ¡°How are you not?¡± I asked, surprised that he wasn¡¯t cold in the feast. He clicked his tongue. ¡°Drink your coffee. It will help. I¡¯ll be back soon,¡± he said. He leaned down, his lips close to my ear. ¡°I have an idea to make you warm again. Several ideas.¡± He lightly brushed his short facial hair against my cheek, then kissed my cheek, making my mind race about what exactly he had nnedter. He saw me bite my bottom lip and smirked at me before. leaving with Viktor. I stood by the windows, watching the storm and drinking my extra strong coffee for a few minutes. The lightning was almost constant. It was beautiful to watch. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make you nervous to be standing by the window while the sky is basically on fire, gazelle?¡± Misha asked. I turned toward him, already feeling the effects of the caffeine boost. ¡°Nope. My m om told me I was born in the middle of a storm like this. I¡¯ve always been fascinated by them.¡± Ivan looked surprised. ¡°My m om told me the same thing.¡± ¡°It¡¯s why you¡¯re both all feisty and shi t,¡± Misha said, looking between Ivan and me. His wide, handsome smile stretched across his face. ¡°Did your m om tell you that children born in storms should never fear the dark because the light is always with them?¡± I asked Ivan. ¡°She did not. She did, however, tell me to stop breaking bones. She did that quite a lot,¡± he said. ¡°I can imagine you were barely contained as a child, Super Squish.¡± I looked at Misha, who was still smiling. ¡°And you, my adorable Russian guardian, I¡¯m convinced you got away with murder because you were so adorable. Your poor mothers,¡± I said, shaking my head, but smiling at the thought of both of them as rowdy little kids. I turned back to look out the windows. A giant streak of lightning stretched across the sky, immediately followed by a second, even brighter streak across the sky and a loud crack of thunder. It was so loud that I didn¡¯t hear Misha get up from the couch. I felt his hands on my shoulders pulling me back from the windows. ¡°You make me nervous, gazelle. Maybe don¡¯t stand so close to the windows while the sky is angry,¡± he said. He walked back to the couch, sitting once more. ¡°Which one of you is warmer?¡± I asked, walking closer to the couches. ¡°Never mind. I¡¯ll run my own experiment,¡± I said, sitting beside Misha. I curled up next to him as he threw his arm over my shoulders. ¡°Are you still cold, gazelle?¡± he asked. I just put my cold hand on his face,ughing at his reaction. Andrei and Stephen walked in as I was stillughing at Misha. ¡°Spider monkey, you look like you¡¯re frozen,¡± Andrei said, plopping down on one of the couches. Stephen, in his normal quiet way, walked to the kitchen. ¡°Notpletely frozen. Slightly thawed, but not room temperature yet,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m currently conducting research to find out which one of you is the warmest. Misha¡¯s data set is looking like the low end so far.¡± He wrapped his other arm around me and then threw one of his legs over me as well, trying to help me warm up. He stayed like that for a few minutes, with meughing. trapped underneath him. ¡°Not helping.¡± I pushed him off me and moved next to Ivan. He threw his giant arm over my shoulders as I curled up next to him. ¡°Warmer than Misha.¡± ¡°Hey, I warmed you up by making youugh. It should count,¡± Misha said, feigning outrage. ¡°I¡¯ll make mention of it in the results section of my report,¡± I said, grinning at him. I looked at Andrei, asking, ¡°did Keith and Chris get tired of getting virtually killed by you and Yoden?¡± He chuckled, nodding his head. Stephen walked to one of the couches, saying, ¡°I¡¯m going to be saving their as ses for a while.¡± ¡°That bad, huh?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say it¡¯s a good thing it was a video game and not real life,¡± Stephen said. Property ? 2024 N0(v)elDrama.Org. ¡°Ouch,¡± I said. Ivan really was much warmer than Misha. I found myself moving closer to him, trying to finally get warm. Andrei noticed me moving and opened his arms to me. ¡°Come here, spider monkey. I¡¯m always hot.¡± I grinned at him as I got up and moved next to him as he threw his giant arm around my shoulders. ¡°Warmer than Ivan. This exins why you¡¯re totally fine in a t-shirt right now,¡± I said. ¡°Told you. I¡¯m always hot,¡± Andrei said, ¡°Me ntal note taken, Bubba,¡± I said as I moved closer to Andrei. I finished my coffee and was almost warm again. Almost. We stayed quiet for a few minutes, listening to the thunder rumble outside. It was still loud. It sounded like the storm was sitting directly above us, not moving. Andrei really was quite warm and I finally felt my body start to rx next to him. My mind. wandered back to the week we¡¯d all had. I nced at each of them, asking, ¡°how do you guys cope after you¡¯ve killed somebody?¡± Andrei¡¯s giant arm held me tighter. They all looked at me, knowing looks on their faces. Chapter 225 Chapter 225 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Five Sephie Ivan sighed. ¡°It¡¯s different each time, princess. Some I still regret. The first ones,¡± he said, knowing I would know what he was talking about. ¡°Why those? Those are the ones I would think you felt the least regret about, Squish. They clearly had iting,¡± I said. He thought for a minute. ¡°Yes and no. I still think a few of them were mostly innocent. They were just in the way.¡± I could tell that Misha and Stephen were curious about what we were talking about, but trying to be respectful of Ivan¡¯s privacy. Andrei just kept a tight hold on me. Stephen looked at me, his usual serious look on his face. ¡°It might be disturbingly easy for me, since I¡¯m usually nowhere near my targets. I think about that sometimes and worry that I might be a serial killer.¡± Misha caught my eye, trying not tough. I looked at Stephen, ¡°Yoden, if I¡¯m being honest here, we¡¯ve all wondered about that as well.¡± I tried not tough, but I couldn¡¯t contain it when he startedughing as well. ¡°I mean, I am like the textbook personality for it. Quiet, keeps to myself, never had many friends.. ¡°Until now,¡± Misha said. Stephen looked at Misha, clearly surprised, Ivan and Andrei both nodded in agreement. I watched as Stephen¡¯s cheeks flushed. ¡°You¡¯re part of the family, man. You know that, right?¡± Andrei said. Stephen was speechless for a moment. ¡°I mean, I guess so,¡± he said, still clearly surprised. ¡°You just never believed it until it was said out loud?¡± I asked. He looked at me, smiling. ¡°Clearly not.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll say it again, so you get it through that giant brain. You¡¯re family,¡± Ivan said. Ivan and Stephen were simr in their delivery methods. While Ivan was heavy on the intimidation factor when needed, Stephen could say virtually anything with a straight face. Ivan went easy on the intimidation in this case, but his tone was very serious. He wanted to make sure Stephen believed him. I got up and moved next to Stephen. I knew he wasn¡¯t as affectionate as the other guys, so I just hooked my arm through his. We could clearly see him actively working to keep his emotions in check. I just said quietly to him, ¡°life wouldn¡¯t be the same without you in it.¡± He looked over at me, with tears in his eyes. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer. I stayed next to Stephen for a few minutes, but then jumped up and ran back to Andrei. ¡°You¡¯re colder than Misha!¡± I said as I curled up next to Andrei again. They allughed at me, while Andrei moved so I could lean back against his chest, helping me warm up again. ¡°Plot twist, Stephen¡¯s not a serial killer. He¡¯s a vampire.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t those things essentially be the same though?¡± Misha asked. This sparked an entire debate on whether vampires could be considered serial killers. We were still heavily debating the topic when Adrik and Viktor walked in. ¡°You guys are very serious about whatever you¡¯re talking about,¡± Viktor said. Stephen, as only he could, said, ¡°oh, we¡¯re discussing whether or not I¡¯m a vampire and then whether or not that also makes me a serial killer.¡± The looks on Viktor and Adrik¡¯s faces were enough to make us all erupt into a fit ofughter. Adrik looked at me, amused. ¡°How do I already know that you¡¯re behind this conversation?¡± Andrei wrapped his arm around me like he was protecting me. ¡°In her defense, it started as a very serious conversation about how to cope after killing someone. We just got distracted. It¡¯s not her fault,¡± he said like he was the older brother taking the heat for his favorite little sister. Adrik sat on the other end of the couch from me and Andrei. His face showed clear amusement at Andrei¡¯s defense of me, as well as his protective arm around me. I could tell he wanted me toe to him, but I also wanted to be bratty to see how long I could make him wait, so I stayed next to Andrei. He was warm enough. I could manage for a little longer. Five minutes. Isted five whole minutes before I had to move to Adrik. Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. Adrik It was still early Monday morning when I woke. Sephie had moved off my chest, for once, and was curled up next to me under the covers. She so rarely needed the covers when she was on my chest, but it was getting colder outside. She woke me up when she moved. I was so used to having herying across me while I slept that not having her there felt weird. I rolled over and pulled her hack against me. She was still sleeping, but she hugged my arms tightly. My mind was reying the whole weekend. I was grateful for Misha¡¯s order toe here. It was exactly what all of us needed. We had a chance to rx over the weekend, but Sephie actually opened up and talked to all of us throughout the weekend. About everything. Past and present. And in turn, the guys opened up. We were close before Sephie came into our lives, but it usually took one of us almost dying before we had a serious. conversation with each other. I don¡¯t know why we couldn¡¯t just talk to each other without the threat of imminent death, but we didn¡¯t. We waited. We held it in. I was probably more guilty than the rest of them at holding things in. I¡¯m the boss. Never weak. As is her way. Sephie shined a light on all our darkest ces, showing us that what we¡¯d been protecting from the world for fear of being seen as weak wasn¡¯t a weakness at all. It made us stronger. Sometimes seeing your own traits in someone else makes you realize that what you¡¯ve been silently dealing with for years has made you infinitely stronger. Sephie has done that for all of us, but I think most of all, me As I watch her step into her true potential, her true power, I can see the same traits in her that I¡¯ve had for years. She has a mind for my businesses. All of my businesses. Whether legal or not. One of the reasons my father stepped aside and put me in charge when I was still barely 20 years old was because of my business sense. He saw that I was smart enough and mature enough to handle the business side, even though I was still young. I doubled many of his businesses in the first few years and started a few of my own that ultimately became highly sessful. It¡¯s what¡¯s allowed him to still live like a king since he put me in charge. The other bosses have all hesitated to put their sons in charge, despite being many years older than my father. With good reason, for most of them. Their sons are id iots. Or in Salvadori¡¯s case, they¡¯re just in evil. While everyone needed to have a capacity for evil to make it in the underworld, Anthony took that to the extreme. He made me look forward to his death. That bothers me now that Sephie is in my life. My bloodlust was never something that I thought much about before her. It was needed. It was necessary. People needed to fear me, especially when I first took over. My bloodlust made that possible. But since Sephie hade into my life, that part of me has taken a back seat. I worried that she would look at me differently once she saw the full extent of that side of me. I worried that it would be too much for her. Like she was reading my mind, Sephie rolled over to face me. She was still asleep, but she sessfully broke me from my worried thoughts. I smiled to myself, watching her sleep. I ran my hand over her back and through her hair, causing her to bury her face in my chest. I felt the pull in my chest as I thought about just how much I loved her. Every little thing about her made me love her more. Talking about the possibility of Stephen being a vampire and whether that also made him a serial killer in the middle of a thunderstorm made me love her more. The way she tried to stay next to Andre to make me think she was somewhat angry with me for ming her for the si lly conversation made me love her more. The fact that she couldn¡¯tst longer than five minutes reminded me that she¡¯s the only one for me. Sephie moved her arm around my waist, pulling me closer to her in her sleep. I still don¡¯t understand how she can read my mind, even when she¡¯s sleeping, but I love it about her. She knows what I need before I do when she¡¯s not even conscious. It makes me try harder to figure out what she needs. I ran my hand down her back to her thigh, pulling her leg over mine so she would be even closer. She inhaled deeply, making her cooing noises. Knowing she was peacefully sleeping after the week she¡¯d just had was one of the best feelings I¡¯d ever experienced. I would give my entire empire, everything I had, to make sure she was safe and happy and knew she was loved. Nothing was worth it without her. Chapter 226 Chapter 226 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Six Adrik ¡°Are we taking bets on whether Chen is going to pi ss himself tonight?¡± Stephen asked as we were preparing to go to Sephie¡¯s old apartment to meet with the dealers in charge. ¡°I think he¡¯s ruined at least three pairs of pants since he had to talk to Boss the other day,¡± Ivan said. We all got a little too much enjoyment out of Chen¡¯s fear. ¡°You guys better be nice to him. He¡¯s helped us out,¡± Sephie said, trying to make sure they weren¡¯t going to haze him in some way during the meeting. ¡°We¡¯re always nice, princess,¡± Ivan said, pretending to be offended. Stephen left first, with two other guys, to set up across the street from the apartment building. They had good vantage points and could see everyoneing and going. I did not like surprises, especially when Sephie was involved. It helped to ease my worry to see Stephen growing closer to Sephie. I knew he would do whatever was necessary to make sure she was protected. She¡¯d helped hime out of his shell over the past few months. Like Ivan, he was so much funnier after having been around Sephie. I was convinced we¡¯d allughed more since Sephie showed up than we had our entire lives. I never wanted it to end. On the elevator down to the parking garage, I pulled Sephie closer. She looked up at me, her eyes smiling at me. ¡°You stay close to either me or Ivan the entire time, got it?¡± She smiled her sweet smile up at me, causing my heart to skip in my chest. ¡°I promise,¡± she said. She¡¯d told us all over the weekend, a couple of times even, that she was eternally grateful to all of us for making her feel safe. It was a feeling she¡¯d been missing in her life since her m om had died. She said she never realized how much she had missed it until she had us to make her feel safe once again. I could see it inly on every guy¡¯s face that they would do whatever it took to make sure she always felt safe with us, in any situation. She stood on her toes, her lips finding mine. It was these little moments, the ones that seemed insignificant, that I found myself enjoying more and more. These moments made me think I¡¯d never get enough of her, never get tired of her, never want to be without her. We pulled into the parking lot of Sephie¡¯s old apartment building. We were early, but Chen was already there. Sephie giggled. ¡°Stephen, you might be right. He might pi ss himself tonight,¡± she said. She knew that even though he wasn¡¯t physically with us. he could hear us through his earpiece.. ¡°Stephen said he was here even before they got here. He¡¯s worried. He¡¯s been checking outside constantly,¡± Ivan said. ¡°If he¡¯s only worried about Boss, that¡¯s one thing. But if he¡¯s worried about something else, I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll talk to him. If he¡¯s checking outside, he¡¯s probably looking for us,¡± Sephie said. I extended my hand to her to get out of the vehicle. She put her hand in mine, climbing out. I pulled her to me, looking at her seriously, ¡°with Ivan. Then bring him up. I¡¯d like to speak to him before everyone else gets here.¡± I leaned down and kissed her gently. ¡°Consider it done,¡± she said, grinning at me. Ivan walked around the vehicle, his game face on. He put his hand on the small of her back, directing her toward Chen¡¯s apartment. I caught Misha¡¯s eye, ¡°go with them,¡± I said nodding toward Ivan and Sephie. He couldn¡¯t keep the smile from his face as he jogged to catch up to them. Viktor walked up the stairs first, with Andrei behind me. Sephie¡¯s old apartment was just how she left it, just without her clothes and mementos. All her furniture was still there. I kept the apartment in the beginning, just in case she ever decided she didn¡¯t want to be with me and wanted to go back. I knew now that was highly unlikely, but I still kept the apartment and kept it cleaned regrly. It was proving to be useful tonight. We could hear Sephie¡¯s conversation with Chen through the earpieces. Poor guy was terrified to meet me. Sephie was trying to calm his nerves before they came upstairs. She eventually got him calm enough toe up. His eyes went wide when he walked into the apartment to see me standing with Viktor and Andrei. ¡°Is there like a height and weight requirement to be a part of this? Because I feel inadequate,¡± Chen said to Sephie. He tried to say it quietly, but we all heard him. Sephie had her own earpiece. Before she could answer him, I stepped forward, extending my hand to Chen. I was trying to put him at ease. He had done us a huge favor by gathering information and I wanted to make sure he knew I was appreciative. ¡°Chen, it¡¯s nice to meet you in person. Thank you for everything you¡¯ve done so far,¡± I said. He looked scared, but he shook my hand firmly, looking me in the eye. That was a good sign. He was trying to be bold. ¡°Yes, sir. Uh, happy to help, sir,¡± he said. ¡°What can you tell me about the other dealers? I¡¯m not worried about Trino¡¯s guy. He¡¯ll take care of him should his loyalties waver. But what of the other two? Three?¡± I asked. Chen looked shocked about my statement about Trino. He looked at Sephie. ¡°You told me the Colombian was a nice guy,¡± he said. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°He is. Super nice guy. Has a ir for the dramatic, which I greatly appreciate. Just don¡¯t cross him or he¡¯ll use that dramatic ir in ways you don¡¯t want to see,¡± Sephie said. Chen cursed under his breath. ¡°Alright then. Gus is Trino¡¯s guy. He¡¯s the one that the other dealers defer to, so he¡¯s kind of in charge of everything. The other three guys are DJ, Smith, and Chucky.¡± Ivan and Sephie looked at each other. They both said, ¡°shi t¡± at the same time. I could see Ivan bristle. Chen was about to pi ss himself. ¡°Tell me about Chucky. Is he an older guy? Is he a dealer or a pimp?¡± Ivan asked. His voice had an edge to it, but I could tell he was trying to rein in his intimidation as much as possible. 1 nced at Sephie, who was clearly worried, her entire body tense. I waited for Chen¡¯s answer before I asked more questions. ¡°He¡¯s both. He works for Niko. Been working for him for a long time, too. I¡¯m not sure about that guy. The other two dealers are good, as far as I can tell, but I think Chucky might be a little off, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± Chen said. ¡°He¡¯s more than a little off,¡± Sephie said. She looked at me, her anger now clearly visible on her face. She said, in Russian, ¡°he¡¯s the one my uncle called the night of my forced procedure. He was a pimp back then, but he could¡¯ve been my uncle¡¯s dealer and I just didn¡¯t know it. I never stayed around when he came to the house. He looked at me like he wanted me to be one of his girls. He could¡¯ve changed his ways, but I doubt very seriously he has. I wouldn¡¯t trust him. He¡¯s the one who took me and my uncle to the doctor.¡± She said thest sentence quietly, her gaze dropping to the floor. I was immediately angry. It seemed like she couldn¡¯t escape having to relive her pasttely. ¡°Oh, shi t. You can speak Russian too? Shi t just got so real.¡± Chen said quietly. Ivan was also clearly angry. Chucky might not make it out of the apartment tonight. Stephen asked, ¡°what does he look like. Seph? I can happily take care of him before he ever sees you.¡± She looked to me, almost like she was asking permission. I nodded my head. Not only did I not want him to even see Sephie, I would never be able to trust him. She looked at Chen. ¡°Does he still keep his hair longer? Like the doll he took his name from?¡± ¡°No shi t? He for real named himself after a murderous doll?¡± Chen asked. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I never pieced that one together, but he totally has the same hair as that fuck ed up doll.¡± She asked, in Russian, ¡°do you know what doll I¡¯m talking about, Stephen?¡± ¡°Yep. Is his hair red too?¡± he asked. ¡°Net. It was ck thest time I saw him,¡± she said. She looked to Chen, asking in English, ¡°is it still ck?¡± ¡°Yeah, but he¡¯s going gray too. Still same haircut though. Can¡¯t believe I never caught that reference,¡± Chen said, shaking his head. Stephen said, ¡°I¡¯ll take care of him.¡± Chapter 227 Chapter 227 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Seven N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Adrik I looked to Chen. ¡°Chucky will not be joining us tonight, but tell me about the other two.¡± His eyes went wide. ¡°I mean, I just said he¡¯s a little off. I didn¡¯t mean anything by it.¡± ¡°No, Chen. I know Chucky. I¡¯ve known Chucky since I was 16. He was friends with my uncle. Chucky is not to be trusted,¡± Sephie said. Chen looked at Sephie like he suddenly understood a little more. I didn¡¯t know how much Chen knew about Sephie, but her exnation was all he needed to hear. ¡°If you say he¡¯s not to be trusted, then he¡¯s not to be trusted,¡± he said. Chen looked at me, saying. ¡°DJ works for Armando. He¡¯s got a girl and two kids. He¡¯s worried about keeping them safe, should the entire city get a hold of brawn. He¡¯s kind of like me. The dealing helps fill in the gaps. He¡¯s got a regr job, but dealing helps him make ends meet. Smith works for Massimo. I think he¡¯s okay, but he¡¯s really quiet. Like serial killer quiet, so I can¡¯t get a good read on him.¡± We heard Stephen say, ¡°someone is here.¡± Ivan stayed with Sephie while Andrei and Viktor moved to the door. I looked at Chen, confirming, ¡°you told them toe alone?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°I told them multiple times toe alone. It¡¯s not my fault if they¡¯re too stu pid to listen.¡± We waited for Stephen to give us more information. ¡°One male, alone. Not Chucky,¡± he said. Viktor and Andrei stepped outside. closing the door behind them. Misha moved to the door, as backup should they need it. We heard them talking outside the door, then one knock on the door. Misha opened it, revealing one nervous man with Andrei and Viktor. He walked into the apartment. I looked to Chen, hoping he would address this person. He caught on quickly. ¡°DI. good to see you, man,¡± he said, walking up to him. They shook hands, then Chen stepped back. Ivan and I were on either side of Sephie. standing just in front of her, mostly shielding her from view. D] looked at us, nervously. I took a step toward him. ¡°DI, thank you foring,¡± I said. I stepped back even with Ivan, partially in front of Sephie once more. I felt her hand in mine. I knew she was struggling with the revtion that someone else from her past was involved in this. Iced her fingers through mine, holding her hand firmly. I heard her sigh quietly behind me. ¡°Next,¡± Stephen said. We waited to hear more details. ¡°Two, actually,¡± he said. ¡°Neither is Chucky. Promptness is not his strong suit,¡± he said. Viktor and Andrei stepped out once more. Chen looked past me and Ivan to Sephie, ¡°how do they do that? Do they have bionic hearing and can hear when people get here?¡± he asked. Sephieughed. ¡°Something like that,¡± she said. Smith and Gus walked into the apartment momentster. I greeted both the same as DJ. Gus looked at Sephie, a small smile on his face. He looked to me, then said, ¡°I mean no disrespect, sir, but Trino has talked very highly of her. I can now see why.¡± ¡°Tell Trino I love him, but he still has no chance,¡± Sephle said, smiling shyly. Gusughed loudly. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯ll skip telling him that. But he thinks very highly of you, Sephie.¡± She had put her hand in mine once again after I shook hands with Gus and Smith. I squeezed her hand, nry thumb tracing circles on hers. ¡°He¡¯s here. I¡¯ve got a clean shot,¡± Stephen said. Both Ivan and I looked down at Sephie. She looked up at both of us, the fear was evident on her face. Ivan said, ¡°take the shot,¡± in Russian. Silence for a moment, then ¡°done. Guys are moving in to get him out of the way. All clear.¡± Sephie quietly said, ¡°thank you.¡± I looked to Ivan, who understood immediately. He put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her to him as I looked to the three dealers. ¡°Gentlemen, let¡¯s begin,¡± I said. ¡°There¡¯s still one other guy, sir. He should be here soon,¡± Smith said. ¡°He will not be joining us,¡± I said firmly. The dealers all looked at Chen, like he had something to do with it. ¡°It was my decision. Chen had nothing to do with it. Chucky was not to be trusted,¡± I stated, tly. I did not like to be questioned, but I entertained this one. I needed them to trust me. ¡°How did you know he couldn¡¯t be trusted? You didn¡¯t even meet him,¡± Smith said. He was nervous, but he struck me as the type to not back down from a fight, no matter how outgunned he was. His type was useful, given he could control his temper. It was evident that he was not happy with this situation, even without knowing what happened to Chucky yet. His tone was short. A little too short. I felt Sephie step beside me. Just like she had told me that she could feel my anger before, I could now feel hers even before she was beside me. I didn¡¯t need to look at her to know that she was seething at Smith¡¯s tone. ¡°He didn¡¯t need to meet him. I¡¯ve known Chucky for years. I¡¯m the one that decides who we trust and who we don¡¯t, so if you¡¯re smart, you¡¯ll watch your tone when addressing Ghost because I do not care for it and I¡¯d ha te to see you meet the same fate as your pal Chucky.¡± She had crossed her arms across her chest as she began talking to him. She had taken a few steps closer to him as she noticed him. shrink back slightly, which meant that every single one of us had also taken steps closer to him as she did. It didn¡¯t matter what she did, she knew we were always standing behind her. It gave her confidence. I was proud to see her stand up and fully realize her power. She¡¯d fa ced demons much worse than this punk and she was bing aware of just how strong she really was. She knew we would always be with her. Just to get her point across with an extra exmation point behind it, I stood directly behind her and stared down Smith until he dropped his gaze. As soon as he did, she simply said, ¡°smart man,¡± and walked back to stand next to Ivan. She nced at me. as she turned, her eyes were dark again. Like they were the day she fought Mike. I was thankful for just a brief glimpse of them It was an unexpected turn on thest time I saw her eyes go dark. I didn¡¯t need to deal with that on top of everything else right now. We all heard Stephen say quietly, ¡°if I wasn¡¯t g ay, that probably would¡¯ve been super hot.¡± I had to clear my throat to keep fromughing at him. I don¡¯t know how the other guys and Sephie managed to notugh, but ! didn¡¯t hear a peep out of them. Gus caught my eye, then nced quickly to Smith then back to me. He shook his head discreetly. Sephie caught it too. She said quietly, in Russian, ¡°let it y out. I want to know why he doesn¡¯t trust him.¡± ¡°Sir, if I may, on behalf of all the dealers we¡¯ve talked with, we want you to know that we¡¯re not down with this n to rece the city¡¯s supply with brawn. Most of us remember thest time brawn was in the city. I know that the bosses took the credit for stopping it thest time, but it was us. We all refused to sell it, so the bosses had no choice but to stop pushing it. We¡¯re not down with selling it again and we¡¯ll do whatever it takes to make sure it doesn¡¯t happen,¡± DJ said. ¡°Tell me what you know of the plot and what you¡¯ve found so far,¡± I said, looking between all three of them. Smith was quick to object. ¡°We¡¯ll tell you what we know after you tell us what you know.¡± We heard Stephen chuckle. ¡°Ivan, Sephie, take one step to your left. Boss, take one step to your right.¡± We immediately did as he said. As soon as we were out of the way, a very obvious red dot appeared on Smith¡¯s forehead. Ivan said, ¡°you talk a big game for someone who¡¯s squarely in the cross hairs.¡± Chapter 228 Chapter 228 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Eight Adrik Smith looked to Ivan, somewhat confused. Stephen moved the red dot to Smith¡¯s chest so he could see it. Ivan pointed to Smith¡¯s chest. ¡°You got a little something there¡­¡± Smith looked down, then immediately back up. He was speechless. I knew Stephen would keep his sight on him for the rest of the meeting, just to prove a point. Gusughed quietly. ¡°You du mbass,¡± he said, shaking his head. ¡°Sir, we¡¯ve been scouring the city trying to find where they¡¯re making the brawn. I¡¯m sure you know it takes a specific setup to produce, so they can¡¯t produce it just anywhere. To get enough to rece the whole city¡¯s supply of regr drugs, they¡¯re going to need a massive operation. We¡¯ve found two smaller operations. One in Vito¡¯s area of the city, one in Niko¡¯s. Neither of those arerge enough, in my opinion, to produce enough to fully rece the supply, but they¡¯ve been running non-stop since we found them. It¡¯s possible, I guess, if they¡¯ve been working at this for a while.¡± ¡°The one ce we¡¯re having difficulty getting near is the docks. It¡¯s in Sal¡¯s area of the city and it¡¯s crawling with his men. My guess is they have arger operation there, but we can¡¯t get close enough to confirm that,¡± DJ said. ¡°You have the exact location of the smaller operations?¡± I asked. ¡°Yeah. We¡¯ve got guys watching it all the time, since we don¡¯t know when they¡¯re going to try and rece the supply. We¡¯re not depending on Sal to give his dealers the heads up. If they start moving their supply, we want to know,¡± Gus said. ¡°We¡¯re going to need the location of those two. The third is at the docks. We¡¯ve confirmed that one. It is large enough to rece the whole city¡¯s supply. The other two are likely backups,¡± I said. ¡°How many dealers do you guys know for sure will help us?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a couple hundred in the city, at least. I¡¯ve only talked to like 50, DJ talked to another like 40- 50. Chen? How many have you talked to?¡± Gus asked. ¡°At least 40, maybe more. I did not realize there would be a test on thatter, so I wasn¡¯t keeping track. But I¡¯ve talked to at least 40, Chen said. ¡°That¡¯s most of the city¡¯s dealers. You¡¯re sure the ones that work for Sal, Niko, and Vito are with you and against selling brawn?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Yeah, no question. Sal¡¯s dealers are actually the most angry about this. There¡¯s a couple that are happy at the thought of getting paid for a weekend of not selling, but most of them are pi ssed off that he would try to bring it back. It almost started a war between the dealers and Sal thest time. We might sell drugs, but we¡¯re not tryin¡¯ to ki ll nobody. We¡¯ll facilitate bad habits, but we have standards on what we sell. Most dealers know the really bad addicts and we purposely rip them off so they don¡¯t overdose. The dealers talk between each other in most areas of the city, too. We know who buys from who and I¡¯m not selling to someone who¡¯s already bought from another dealer to keep them from overdosing. It¡¯s all about making money, but we¡¯re also not in the habit of killing our customers. Addicts are mostly misguided people, man,¡± Gus said. Smith scoffed. ¡°Speak for yourself,¡± he said, under his breath. We all looked to him, expecting an exnation. ¡°Some of us don¡¯t have a choice to sell,¡± he said. ¡°You work for Massimo, right?¡± Sephie asked. Smith nodded his head. ¡°Does he have something he¡¯s holding over you to make you sell for him or does he just force you to sell?¡± she asked. ¡°The first. Other dealers that work for him are just forced to sell,¡± Smith said. ¡°Does Massimo know anything about this n? About the dealers revolting?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Not that I know of. I haven¡¯t seen him in a few weeks, maybe longer. Word is he¡¯s in Colombia right now, but nobody knows why and nobody has heard from him since he¡¯s been down there.¡± Smith anid. Sephie nced between me and Ivan. She then nced at Gus to see if he knew anything. He looked like he might¡¯ve known something, but we didn¡¯t know how much. I sighed. I needed the dealers once this was all over. I needed them to want to work for me. The fastest route to loyalty was honesty. ¡°Massimo and Dario are in Colombia trying to negotiate a new deal with Trino. They¡¯re trying to overthrow me, along with Sal and the other basses.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°Even Armando? I thought you two were close?¡± DJ asked,pletely taken aback. ¡°No, Mando is good. He¡¯s the only boss that stayed loyal to me. The rest of them have their own agenda right now,¡± I said. DJ was thoughtful for a moment. ¡°This makes everything make so much more sense,¡± he said. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Sephie asked. ¡°The city, by andrge, isn¡¯t happy right now. It¡¯s divided up, right? So, each part of the city has its own boss, except the area around Ghost¡¯s building. That¡¯s kind of no man¡¯snd, if you will, which is why I assume we¡¯re meeting here. This is no man¡¯snd, but we all consider it to be Ghost¡¯s territory. The people here and the people in Armando¡¯s area are happy. Like almost obliviously happy. They don¡¯t realize there¡¯s anything happening in the rest of the city. But in every other area of the city, the people are bing increasingly unhappy. The people in Sal¡¯s area have it the worst right now. They¡¯re talking uprising against Sal and his people. They¡¯ve already gone to the cops to ask for help, but Sal has most of the force on his payroll,¡± DJ said. ¡°It¡¯s only a matter of time before the other areas of the city follow suit with Sal¡¯s area, if you ask me.¡± ¡°Why are Sal¡¯s people not happy with him? Because of his increase in business taxes?¡± I asked. ¡°That¡¯s most of it, but crime has increased in his area. Much of that crime is because of his people, too. The guys he has working for him are all thugs and mostly out of control. It doesn¡¯t take anything to set one of them off. The people who live in his area have been living in fear for a while now, but they¡¯re reaching their limit. They¡¯ve started fighting back. A couple of his guys got shot a few weeks ago. It¡¯s caused a truce. For now. But tension is high in that part of town,¡± DJ said. ¡°How do you know so much about Sal¡¯s part of town when you work for Armando, D[?¡± Sephie asked. ¡°I have family in Sal¡¯s part of town. I grew up there. I have a big extended family, so they have a good idea what¡¯s going on in different areas of the city. We¡¯re everywhere, basically, and we really like to talk,¡± DJ said, chuckling. Sephie looked at me. I already knew what she was thinking. I said, in Russian, ¡°I know. I think your idea of using the people is still a good one. We might not be able to do this as quietly as we thought. It appears the people are aware of more than we originally thought. At least in other areas of the city.¡± ¡°If nothing else, you can get word that we¡¯re taking care of their problem,¡± Viktor said, still in Russian. ¡°If you get rid of all the bosses but one, you¡¯re going to need the people to be loyal to you. We can¡¯t take on the entire city too. You take care of their problem, they continue to love you.¡± ¡°It was a good option before, it¡¯s still a good option. I¡¯d still like to do this as quietly as possible, but it¡¯s looking more and more like that might not be possible,¡± I said. We were quietly contemting our options for a moment when Smith asked, ¡°so, are you gonna take theser sight off me or what?¡± Just for emphasis, Stephen moved it to his chest once more. We watched as two more sights showed up beside Stephen¡¯s. Sephie, without cracking a smile, said in Russian, ¡°I can¡¯t even begin to tell you how much I love you right now, Yoden.¡± The great thing about the Russiannguage is that it¡¯s harsh. So, even when you were saying something funny or sentimental, to anyone that didn¡¯t speak thenguage, it still sounded quite severe. Smith waspletely convinced that she had just threatened his life once again. He swallowed, hard, and kept his mo uth sh ut. I simply raised my eyebrow at him, looking at him as sternly as I could. ¡°Tell us where the smaller brawn operations are,¡± Viktor said. He opened a map andid it out on the kitchen counter. It was exactly the distraction needed to give me a moment alone with Sephie. I pulled her away from everyone to ask her thoughts on everyone. Truth be told, I also needed to touch her. She knew what I was wanting without me asking her. She stepped close to me, her hand finding mine once again. It was such a habit for me that I reached up and resumed my ongoing battle with the curls around her face as she quietly talked to me in Russian. ¡°I like DI. A lot. He¡¯s very much like Chen. Gus, too. I¡¯m not getting anything bad from those two. Smith, on the other hand, I don¡¯t get a good feeling from. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s necessarily trying to undermine anything, but he doesn¡¯t have good reasons to be here. The other two legitimately want to be here. He does not. I can¡¯t figure out why he is, but I don¡¯t trust him. However, I don¡¯t know how to get rid of him at this point either. If he¡¯s being forced to sell for Massimo, he could easily be forced to tell him everything about our n. I don¡¯t like it, but I don¡¯t think him meeting the same fate as Chucky is necessarily fair, either. I don¡¯t think he has a choice in this matter,¡± she said. I could see the concern on her face as she talked. She¡¯d been weighing the options this whole time. ¡°There¡¯s a third option, spider monkey,¡± Andrei said from across the room. He looked like he was speaking to Misha, who was standing next to him. No one had figured out we could all hear each other yet and we liked to keep it that way. Misha responded, ¡°we just lock him up until this is over. You¡¯re right, he may not have a choice in the matter, but he definitely doesn¡¯t want to be here. Locking him up is a good solution. He gets to live and we don¡¯t have to worry about him betraying us. He goes free once this is over.¡± ¡°And Massimo is taken care of, so he¡¯ll be free of whatever he¡¯s got over him,¡± Sephie said. ¡°You¡¯re giving this the official approval, my adorable Russian guardian?¡± ¡°Da. Officially,¡± Misha said. She looked to me. She still had a question on her face. Stephen chimed in. ¡°We¡¯ll have a team grab him after the meeting. Seph.¡± She looked surprised, not sure how he knew what she was thinking. ¡°What? You¡¯re standing right by the window. It was obvious,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°And that¡¯s also a question I¡¯ve had to ask before. I mean, it seems obvious now, but it was not obvious the first time it happened to me either.¡± Her gorgeous smile spread across her face as she nced out the window, making the room just a little brighter. Chapter 229 Chapter 229 Chapter Two Hundred Twenty-Nine Adrik We wrapped up the meeting with Gus, Smith, DJ, and Chen. They gave us all the information we had on the brawn operations they¡¯d found, as well as the surveince they¡¯d already put in ce. Gus and DJ were smart men. They would prove to be useful. Chen, too. Smith left the meeting first, which was advantageous. Stephen had a team grab him a couple blocks from the apartment building and take him to a safe house. He would stay there, under constant guard until this was all over. I agreed with Sephie that we wouldn¡¯t be able to trust him. Before Sephie, I would¡¯ve just killed him and called it a day. She was right though, it likely wasn¡¯t his fault he was caught up in everything if he¡¯d been forced to deal. Now, he would sit this one out and get a second chance once it was over. Or he would get shot if he was du mb enough to try and escape. Before we left the apartment, I informed the other three what we had decided on Smith. I needed them to trust me, so I made extra effort to be honest with them. It¡¯s what had made my rtionship so strong with Trino in the beginning. I was as transparent as possible with him and he¡¯d stayed loyal to me, even through the other bosses¡¯ attempts to undermine me. ¡°Smith will no longer be a part of this,¡± I said. Chen¡¯s jaw dropped. He looked to Sephie immediately, shocked. ¡°Please tell me you knew him before too and he wasn¡¯t to be trusted either,¡± Chen said. Sheughed quietly. ¡°No, Chen. He¡¯s being held until this is over. I don¡¯t trust him, but if he¡¯s being forced to deal by Massimo, it¡¯s not necessarily his fault. He¡¯ll go free once this is all over with. Chen audibly exhaled. Gusughed at Chen, shaking his head. ¡°You would neverst in Colombia, man.¡± ¡°Which is exactly why I do not live in Colombia,¡± Chen said. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Gus looked to me, a serious look on his face. ¡°I appreciate your discretion, sir. I¡¯ve had a hard time trusting him since this started. Hemands a certain respect from a small group of dealers, but I think it¡¯s because they¡¯re afraid of him. The rest of us want to be here. I never got the same feeling from him. I think it¡¯s better if he¡¯s not running anything through this.¡± ¡°The dealers are very loyal to Gus, sir,¡± DJ said. ¡°He¡¯s well-known in his area of the city, too. He¡¯s got a good rep with the people.¡± ¡°I would expect nothing less from one of Trino¡¯s guys,¡± I said. Gus simply nodded to me. ¡°I¡¯ll be frank with you all. This is likely going to get messy. Very messy. But once the other bosses are taken care of, I¡¯m going to need people I can trust throughout the city. I¡¯m very generous to people who are loyal to me.¡± They all nodded in understanding. ¡°We¡¯re going to check on everything you¡¯ve given us tonight, to see what ns we cane up with. We¡¯ll be in touch soon after. If anything changes on your end, let us know. Chen knows how to get in touch with me.¡± They all shook my hand once more, then took their leave. Once we were alone in the apartment, I looked at Sephie to make sure she didn¡¯t have more insight. ¡°I think those three are going to prove to be very valuable throughout this, as well as after everything calms down. I get the same feeling from them that I did about Trino. Good guys, trying to make good come from not so good activities. It would not surprise me one bit if Gus and DJ had their own businesses they were using the dealing to fund, just like Chen is,¡± she said. ¡°Does anyone else find it weird that this whole time we¡¯ve been told it was the bosses that stopped the first wave of brawn years ago, but it was really the dealers?¡± Andrei asked as we were walking to the elevators in the parking garage. ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering about that this whole time. Maybe they were trying to keep me from finding out that Sal is the one that had it created. The story the whole time has been that the dealers were the ones making it and selling it.¡± I said ¡°Maybe it was to protect the doctor that made it, so Sal could keep using him,¡± Ivan said. We heard Stephen¡¯s SUV pull into the garage as we waited for the elevator, so we all stored waiting for him to catch up to us outside the elevator. As he walked toward us, Sephie met him hathway. I knew she was still struggling with what had happened earlier that night. Once again something from her past resurfaced, forcing her to face it He set his bag down on the concrete, opening his arms to her as the got closer to him. She ran thest few steps to him, her arms wrapping around his neck. He held onto her tightly. Everyone still had their earpieces in, so we could hear their conversation. ¡°Thank you, Stephen. You¡¯re my favorite vampire,¡± she said as he held her. ¡°Seph, you don¡¯t have to be scared of your past anymore. Those people they can¡¯t hurt you ever again. We¡¯ll make sure of that. You survived it oncepletely on your own, but you have us now. We will never let another bad thing happen to you,¡± he said. She was quiet for a moment. I¡¯m positive she was fighting back tears. Finally, she sighed, saying, ¡°squishiest vampire ever.¡± We heard himugh as he picked her up and hugged her tighter for a moment. It made me happy to see them so close. It was a long timeing. I had my doubts in the beginning of whether Stephen would ever warm up to her, but it was evident that he loved her just as much as the other guys. Almost as much as me It was quitete when we finally made it to the penthouse by ourselves. Sephie was sitting on the counter in the bathroom, brushing her teeth. She had taken my shirt almost immediately when we got to the bestroom. I had to admit to loving it when she demanded 1 hand over my shirt when we were finally alone. As much as I hated putting clothes on her instead of taking them off, I did enjoy taking my shirt off and putting it on her for the night. ¡°So, you know how you said you could feel my anger without having to look at me now?¡± I said. She looked at me curiously as she jumped down to rinse her mo uth out. ¡°I could feel your anger tonight when Smith got a little too short with me. I knew you were seething before you stepped beside me.¡± Her eyes went wide. ¡°Was it like a living thing that you could feel around you?¡± I thought for a moment. ¡°That¡¯s a good way to put it. I didn¡¯t have a chance to nce at anyone else, but I¡¯m sure it was visible on your face that you were pi ssed. Except I didn¡¯t see you or the guys. I was looking at Smith when I felt it. And then there¡¯s the matter of your eyes,¡± I said, smirking at her. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± she asked, pulling me into the bedroom. ¡°It happened that day with Mike. It¡¯s the only other time I¡¯ve seen it and 1, uh, found myselfpletely turned on by it,¡± I said, climbing into bed so she couldy across my chest. She climbed on top of me instead, her legs straddling me. ¡°Well now you have to tell me more,¡± she said, a mischievous grin on her face. I sat up more so I could look at her. ¡°Your eyes go dark, solnishko. Like the green and blue rings disappear and the brown gets dark. Really dark that day with Mike. Not quite as dark tonight, but it was a noticeable change.¡± She thought for a moment, as her fingers lightly traced over my chest. ¡°I remember you looking at me and being confused at what I saw.¡± Sheughed quietly. ¡°I had forgotten about it until now.¡± ¡°Yeah, uh, super hot,¡± I said. I could feel my cheeks flushing. I wasn¡¯t sure she would want to hear how turned on I was in that moment. ¡°I was d I only caught a nce of it tonight. I didn¡¯t need to deal with that on top of everything else.¡± She put her hands on either side of my face, her gorgeous smile across her face. ¡°I¡¯ll try to remember not to look at you the next time I get angry in front of other people,¡± she said, giggling. She leaned down to kiss me, stillughing. ¡°Youugh, but I¡¯m seriously considering pi ssing you off when we¡¯re alone just to see what happens,¡± I said. Sheughed. harder, hiding her face against my shoulder. Herughter was infectious. I found myselfughing along with her, but I was serious. I really had weighed my options on pi ssing her off just to see if I could make her eyes go dark again. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her body against mine. She was stillughing, which I loved. ¡°I just love you so much, Adrik,¡± she said, trying to contain her fits ofughter. I held her close, enjoying the pull in my chest that happened so frequently now when I thought about how much I loved her. Chapter 230 Chapter 230 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty Adrik The first half of the week went by quickly. It was filled with reports from the smaller brawn operations that Gus¡¯s people had found, nning sessions, and endless meetings. By the end of Wednesday, I was very grateful we had spent the previous weekend at the house, away from everyone. I was already looking forward to being able to go back. I finished up myst meeting of the day, looking forward to finally being done and able to go upstairs to Sephie when Viktor walked in with Armando and na. Fuc k. They¡¯d been gone most of the week. He took Giana to his house after her ¡°episode¡± the week before where she thought Sephie had been an addict. I had to admit to enjoying some time away from them. Mostly her, but Armando was still such a talker that it was nice to have some peace and quiet without him around. Otherwise, he was tolerable. She was still very hit or miss. Mostly miss after her behaviorst week. I was so tired that I was questioning my ability to be diplomatic. I hoped this was going to be short. ¡°Armando, what can I do for you?¡± I asked. I didn¡¯t even bother to address Giana. On purpose. I kind of liked it when she was so nervous she couldn¡¯t talk. I was hoping that would happen if I purposely ignored her. ¡°Boss, I was hoping for a minute to discuss something with you,¡± he said. I nced at my watch, then looked back to him. ¡°I only have a few minutes. Talk.¡± ¡°We had a very long discussion over the weekend, Giana was hoping she could apologize to Sephie, but she also owes you an apology for the way she behaved thest time you saw her,¡± he said. I couldn¡¯t help the smirk that I was sure was clear on my face. This felt like such a childish thing to make a grown woman apologize to someone. ¡°Let me stop you right there, Armando. I still have plenty of respect for you, but I won¡¯t ept any kind of forced apology from anyone. If she wants to apologize, then she cane to me on her own. If she wants to apologize to Sephie, which she should. then she should go to her of her own ord. It¡¯s entirely up to Sephie on whether she epts that apology, as well.¡± I looked directly at Giana, finally forced to acknowledge her. ¡°You have no clue what that woman has been through in her short life. You make assumptions about her life based on her extensive knowledge about certain subjects, never considering that she might just be that much smarter than you are. Your insecurity with yourself is no excuse to try and use a falsely perceived fault as a way to bring her down to your level. You have no idea how angry every single one of my men, as well as me, werest week. You hurt her, you deal with us.¡± She had held my gaze until the veryst, but then her gaze dropped to the floor. ¡°Sephie has been nothing but nice to you since you¡¯ve been here. She put herself through torture just to go shopping with you when she was injured. She could barely walk at the end of that day, but she smiled through it to make you feel morefortable. She¡¯s listened as you talk endlessly about ri diculous things because you¡¯re nervous. She¡¯s protected you from Mike. She facilitated getting you and Mando together. And you turn around and believe she¡¯s a former addict because she has extensive knowledge about drugs? Did you ever stop to consider it¡¯s because she had to learn how that drug affects its users to survive? No. No, did not. You chose to think the absolute worst of her to make yourself feel better. So, you¡¯ll forgive me for not wanting your apology right now. When you can grow up and act like a mature fuck ing woman, then I¡¯ll consider it. But not before.¡± I could feel my anger rising to the surface as I talked to Ginna. I¡¯m sure she was terrified. I hoped she was terrified. you I heard Viktor¡¯s phone ring. He answered it quietly, which meant it was one of the guys. I heard him say, in Russian, , he¡¯s okay. We¡¯ll be up in a minute. Tell her she doesn¡¯t need toe down.¡± He ended the call and slipped the phone back in his pocket. He nced at me, a look of surprise on his face. Armando looked to Giana, who was staring at the floor, then looked at me. I did feel slightly bad for him. He was in an awkward spot. He inhaled deeply while looking back at Giana stare at the floor. ¡°He¡¯s completely right, Giana. You can¡¯t expect everyone to cover for you for the rest of your life. Your parents fixed everything when you were younger, but that taught you nothing. You must learn to be your own person now. I told you this would happen,¡± he said. His tone was stern, but soft. I got the impression that he was trying to get her to finally hear his words. She was likely trying to hold back tears. She couldn¡¯t talk, she simply nodded her head, but kept her gaze on the flow. He nced at me, a look of apology on his face, then guided her toward the door. They were going to have more ufortable conversations tonight. Viktor and I gave them time to get back to their floor before leaving my office. Once we heard the elevator doors close, he said, ¡°Sephie knew you were angry. From upstairs. Ivan had to call me or she would¡¯vee running down here.¡± He was clearly stunned at what he¡¯d just told me, but it made me laugh. ¡°You¡¯re going to think we¡¯re crazy, but it¡¯s been happening regrly for a while now. This is just the first time we haven¡¯t been in the same room when it¡¯s happened. It¡¯s like we can feel each other¡¯s anger. I don¡¯t know how to exin it. It¡¯s not just the anger, either, but that seems to be the strongest one,¡± I said. Viktor thought for a moment. As we walked to the elevator, he said, ¡°honestly, it makes sense. I¡¯ve never seen two people so in sync as you two are. She seems to be able to read your mind the best. You also know what she¡¯s thinking better than I¡¯ve ever seen with anyone else. And she¡¯s the only one that I¡¯ve ever seen be able to get your bloodlust to calm down. I almost didn¡¯t believe my eyes the first time I saw it happen.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I tried to tell her, but I¡¯m not sure she fully understands what a feat that is. And she did it without even trying.¡± I said, shaking my head. The doors to the elevator opened. We were stillughing at our conversation when we walked into the penthouse. As soon as Sephie saw me, she ran to me. ¡°What happened?¡± she asked, concerned. She was searching my eyes, trying to answer her own question before I had a chance to answer. I nced to Viktor to make sure he was watching. I wanted them to see this. I looked back at her and let her search my eyes without saying a word. She let out a small gasp. ¡°Giana tried to apologize but you made her cry, didn¡¯t you?¡± I smiled down at her, then nced back to Viktor. His mo uth was open in shock. I nced quickly at the other four guys looked just as surprised. ¡°To be fair, I didn¡¯t see her crying. She wouldn¡¯t look at me at the end there,¡± I said, smirking. ¡°She was crying,¡± Viktor said. He was stillpletely shocked at what he¡¯d just witnessed. ¡°Da mmit, I miss all the fun!¡± Misha said. ¡°Sephie, how did you know he was angry from up here? I mean, you were right. He was hot, but how did you know?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°You felt it, didn¡¯t you?¡± I asked her, before she could answer. She grinned at me, nodding her head. I looked at Viktor, saying. ¡°told you. I don¡¯t know how it works, but it does.¡± The other guys were now curious. ¡°She felt what? She can feel when you¡¯re angry now?¡± Andrei asked. She turned back toward the kitchen, grabbing my hand and pulling me with her. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s the only way I know to describe it. It¡¯s happened a few times now, but we¡¯ve never not been in the same room before. This one was different,¡± she said as she went back to finishing dinner. ¡°Does it only happen with anger, or can you feel other emotions too?¡± Stephen asked. I looked at Sephie, who was thinking. I knew she likely didn¡¯t want to get too detailed on our s ex life, but the truth was it was happening with other emotions too, especially when we had s ex. It felt like it was getting more intense every time. I think she¡¯s been feeling it longer than I have, but I¡¯m finally feeling what she feels. She nced up to see me looking at her. She couldn¡¯t hide the smirk on her face. I knew she wasn¡¯t going to answer, either. I looked to Stephen, saying, ¡°the anger seems to be the strongest and therefore the easiest one to feel, but it¡¯s happening with other emotions as well.¡± ¡°How long has she straight up been reading your mind?¡± Misha asked.ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . Chapter 231 Chapter 231 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-One Adrik Iughed. ¡°That one has been happening for a while. But that shouldn¡¯t surprise any of you. She does it to you guys too,¡± I said. ¡°Not like what she just did to you. Although, I¡¯d be willing to het she probably could do it to one of us If we tried it,¡± Misha said. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It works the best with Adrik. He¡¯s the only one I know for sure. The rest of you is usually my best guess,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Christmas isn¡¯t that far away. What size crystal ball were you thinking you¡¯ll need to get this side hustle off the ground?¡± Ivan asked, causing Sephie to grin at him. ¡°It does make sense that you two would be sopletely in sync. I¡¯ve never seen two people as connected as you two are. It makes sense that you two feel what the other one feels, but not even being in the same room is pretty impressive,¡± Stephen said. Out of all the guys, he was the most scientifically minded, especially when it came to psychology and matters of the mind. I¡¯m sure he was constructing an experiment to carry out to prove that what he¡¯d just seen was real. ¡°Surely you¡¯ve seen something simr in your 900 years on this earth?¡± Andrei asked Stephen. ¡°Once before,¡± Stephen said,pletely straight-faced. We allughed. Sephie had set out the food on the ind as we were talking andughing. She walked to me as the guys helped themselves to food, tucking herself into my side where she fit so perfectly. I looked down at her, reveling in her smile. ¡°This is exactly what I needed, solnishko,¡± I said, brushing a curl from her face. She just smiled her sweet smile and stood on her toes to kiss me. Suddenly the stress from the day waspletely gone. ¡°So, tell us what happened with Giana,¡± Misha said after we had all started eating. Viktor couldn¡¯t hide his amusement. ¡°You missed a good one, Misha. You would¡¯ve been so happy, especially after you were so angryst week,¡± he said. Misha looked at me, clearly still angry as he thought about Giana¡¯s behaviorst week. ¡°I hope you made her feel terrible.¡± I shrugged my shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know if she actually heard anything I said, that¡¯s the issue. It seemed like Armando had said the same thing to her over and over and she¡¯s still not hearing it. He was almost trying to force an apology out of her, like she was a child. I question whether she¡¯s really heard anything that¡¯s been said to her if she can¡¯t even apologize on her own,¡± I said. ¡°Thankfully, Boss didn¡¯t ept it. Honestly, I was shocked that Armando did it,¡± Viktor said. ¡°I do feel bad for Mando. He¡¯s in an awkward spot with this one,¡± I said. ¡°What did you say to her?¡± Sephie asked. ¡°I told her she shoulde and apologize on her own, first and foremost. Then I think I told her you were smarter than she was and that her insecurity with herself was no excuse to try and use a falsely perceived fault to tear you down to make herself feel better. Then I listed everything you¡¯ve done for her since she¡¯s been here and tried to make her feel bad for thinking the worst of you. I also might¡¯ve thrown in a veiled threat about how angry we all were with herst week,¡± I said thatst sentence quietly. I wasn¡¯t sure how happy Sephie was going to be with that one. Misha, on the other hand, was ecstatic. ¡°Oh, please tell me you told her how angry I wasst week. She can¡¯t keep from staring at me. Like literally all the time. I hope it crushes her to know I was pi ssed,¡± he said. ¡°Not just you, Misha. I told her all of us were angry with her,¡± I said. ¡°He told her that if she hurts Sephie, she deals with us,¡± Viktor said. Misha threw his fists in the air, ¡°YES! Please tell me she was scared.¡± ¡°Serves her right,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Sometimes you have to learn lessons the hard way. This is definitely one of those times for her.¡± ¡°I think Sephie was right about her leading a sheltered life up until recently. Armando made ament about her parents fixing everything for her but teaching her nothing or something like that after Boss ripped her a new one,¡± Viktor said. ¡°So, her parents have been covering for her?¡± Sephie asked, ¡°That¡¯s what he made it seem like, but I don¡¯t know anything else about it,¡± Viktor said. ¡°This kind of has spoiled rich kid vibes, don¡¯t you think?¡± Sephie was quiet for a moment. I could tell she was thinking about things; she chewed on her bottom lip, lost in thought. ¡°Ok, so who here thinks she¡¯s going to want to go back to Italy in the next week?¡± she asked, a devilish grin on her face. Four of us raised our hands. Stephen, one of the ones that didn¡¯t raise his hand, said, ¡°I think she¡¯ll try, but I think this is the pivotal moment where Armando forces her to grow up. I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll let her go back to Italy right now. Not without him and I don¡¯t think he¡¯s du mb enough to think it¡¯s a good idea to leave the city right now.¡± ¡°We¡¯re adding this to the wh ite board in the morning.¡± Andrei said. Sephie was still lost in thought as we cleaned the kitchen up from dinner. We¡¯d settled into a routine where she would cook, with the help of whoever was around to help her, but we all pitched in to clean up after, so she didn¡¯t have to. The guys would happily wash dishes if it meant she cooked more. Viktor still hadn¡¯t even advertised that we needed a chef. At this point, I was convinced he wasn¡¯t going to until Sephie told him she was tired of cooking. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. We would order takeout regrly, just to give her a break. I didn¡¯t want her to feel like she had to cook. Only when she wanted. to. We were just incredibly lucky that she wanted to cook more often than not. She was still sitting at the ind in the kitchen, lost in thought, as we cleaned up and kept chatting about everything going on. Ivan noticed her nk expression before I did. He called her name to try to get her attention, but she didn¡¯t respond. The other guys noticed she didn¡¯t respond right away too, so we all stopped. Ivan walked to her, cing hisrge hand on her shoulder. ¡°Princess?¡± he asked. As soon as she felt his hand on her, she looked up at him. She was almost surprised that he was standing next to her. ¡°Sh it. I did it again,¡± she said. He chuckled at her as he slid his arm around her shoulders. ¡°Tell me what¡¯s going on, princess,¡± he said quietly. I stood and watched this giant bear of a man that could strike fear into any person he chose to be gentle and soft with her. I had never seen him be this way until Sephie. I didn¡¯t know it was possible. He generally never liked being touched and from what little I know about his past, with good reason. She knew he needed it the most, I think. Ivan had very thick walls, but they were no match for Sephie. She knocked them down faster than I thought possible. Chapter 232 Chapter 232 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Two Adrik He pulled a chair up next to her, his hand still on her shoulder. He was trying to keep her here. The rest of the guys quietly went back to what they were doing, trying to give them as much privacy as they could, but I was sure they were all eavesdropping as much as possible. She sighed, looking up at him. She nced at me as well, then back to Ivan. ¡°I was thinking about everything that¡¯s happened thest week or so. Mostly about the na thing I feel like it¡¯s my fault, somehow. Like I should¡¯ve been nicer to her and this wouldn¡¯t have happened. Then I started to think about Chucky and my mind went nk and you were standing next to me,¡± she said. While the guys had tried to appear busy when she started talking, they were now tantly listening to what she was telling Ivan. It made me smile that they were all so concerned about her. ¡°Your mind is going nk, Seph?¡± Stephen asked her. She nodded her head. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was doing it until Adrik pointed it out.¡± ¡°Does it happen often?¡± Andrei asked. He gave Stephen a knowing look, which surprised me. ¡°She¡¯s done it a few times since Mike. It¡¯s been a few days since it happenedst, I think. It didn¡¯t happen at all when we were at the house, did it?¡± Ivan asked, looking at me. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t catch her doing it at all when we were there,¡± I said. I looked at Stephen, asking. ¡°do you have more insight into why she¡¯s doing it or what we can do to help her? It seems that talking about things helps her not do it for a while.¡± but it In his usual calm, serious manner, he thought for a few minutes. While he was thinking, Andrei said, ¡°it¡¯s happened to me before. After a bad concussion. Sephie¡¯s had at least two bad concussions fairly recently. It eventually went away for me, took a while. I think her brain is still healing. It doesn¡¯t help that she has to deal with everything else on top of it.¡± Ivan looked at me, then back at Sephie. ¡°Maybe the acupuncture will help again. It helped before. You might need it again.¡± Sephie looked at me, silently asking my thoughts. She still wasn¡¯t used to believing that she could do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted. She still felt like she needed permission. I found it amusing, but very endearing. I smiled at her, trying to tell her that she didn¡¯t need my permission. She looked back to Ivan. ¡°I think I still have her card somewhere. It did help me feel betterst time.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve got her number, I¡¯ve been going to her for years,¡± Ivan said, a smirk on his face. She raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°What? It¡¯s not like I can feel when something is screwed up. Sometimes I need an outside opinion,¡± he said. Sephieughed, leaning over, and resting her head on his shoulder. ¡°Did this ever happen before to you, Seph?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°I think so. I would lose time after that night in the basement with my uncle for a while after I got away from him. It mostly happened when I was alone, so I¡¯m not sure if it¡¯s the same thing. I¡¯m not exactly aware when it¡¯s happening, but I would realize that the movie was over and I had no recollection of anything that happened. Things like that,¡± she said. ¡°Any idea how long itsted after you got away from him?¡± Andrel asked. ¡°I don¡¯t really remember. How long was it for you?¡± she asked. ¡°I think Itsted around six months for me, but it was a nasty concussion,¡± he said.Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. How did you get it?¡± she asked. ¡°Car ident. My buddy was a little too drunk. He swerved to avoid an animal in the road, lost control and hit a tree. I got thrown through the windshield,¡± he said. I nced at Sephie, who¡¯s eyes were wide in shock. I never knew about this story, either. ¡°When did this happen?¡± I asked. ¡°Just after high school. I was a sh it in school. Always did what I wasn¡¯t supposed to do. My friend was worse. It was good though. The ident was the wake up call I needed,¡± Andrei said, ¡°What happened to your friend?¡± Misha asked. ¡°He walked away from the ident. You know how they always say the drunk people survive the idents? It was true in this case. He had a couple of bumps and scrapes, but they had to life-flight me to the hospital. They thought I was going to d ie. I haven¡¯t touched alcohol since that ident. I don¡¯t think my friend can say the same. Last I heard, he was spiraling out of control. He couldn¡¯t deal with the guilt,¡± Andrei said. I felt Sephie¡¯s eyes on me. I knew she was connecting something, but wasn¡¯t sure what just yet. She looked to Ivan with the same look on her face before she looked back to Andrei. ¡°Bubba, were you unconscious when you were in the hospital for the first however long?¡± He nodded. ¡°I think I was out for four days.¡± That¡¯s what she was connecting. I caught Ivan¡¯s eye as he realized where she was going with this as well. ¡°Do you have any memories of when you were out?¡± she asked. There was a sh of immediate recognition on his face, but he looked like he was ufortable talking about it. She quietly got up and went to him. ¡°You don¡¯t have to talk about it, Bubba. But I have a feeling I know exactly what you remember,¡± she said as she put his giant arm around her shoulders so she could hold onto his waist. He looked down at her, curious. ¡°Was it like swimming in the nothing? Like you could see your own body but nothing else?¡± she asked. Andrei¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°How did you know that? Did you just do that mind reading thing to me? Get out of my head!¡± he said as he put his hand over her eyes. Sheughed, taking his hand from her eyes. ¡°No, Bubba. It happened to me too. When I was on the ne, that¡¯s what was happening. Adrik¡¯s voice pulled me out of my nightmare and pulled me there. His voice is eventually what helped me find my way out.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what happened when I was at the hospital. Sephie¡¯s voice pulled me there out of my nightmare where I¡¯m trying to ki ll the doctor that experimented on me when I was a kid,¡± Ivan said. ¡°That¡¯s what happened when I was a kid the first time someone tried to get to my father through me. My father¡¯s voice is what pulled me out of it,¡± I said. Sephieughed softly at the shocked expression on Andrei¡¯s face. She then looked to Misha, Stephen, and Viktor. ¡°Have you three had simr experiences too?¡± They all had equally shocked expressions on their faces, but they just nodded their heads. Sephie smiled, looking at me. ¡°That¡¯s why we¡¯re all here together. We¡¯ve always been connected.¡± Chapter 233 Chapter 233 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Three Sephie ¡°I just never thought the darkness is what would connect us,¡± I said, mostly to myself. I had walked back to sit next to Ivan, so he heard me. My mind was racing trying to understand what we¡¯d just discovered. I knew we were all connected in some way, but I didn¡¯t expect it to be the same, somewhat otherworldly experience. ¡°Doesn¡¯t that happen to everyone?¡± Misha asked. He was clearly still surprised at finding out we¡¯d all been in the same ¡°ce¡± within our heads when seriously injured. For some reason, we all looked at Stephen. If anyone had the answer to that question, it had to be him. He looked surprised at everyone looking at him. ¡°I have a lot of answers to a lot of questions, but that question is not one of the ones I have an answer to. I¡¯ve never heard of this many people essentially sharing an experience. In all my 900 years,¡± he said. I had no idea how he managed to keep a straight face all the time, but I found myself admiring him for it. It was impressive. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. We were all quiet for a few minutes, everyone¡¯s mind racing, trying toprehend our conversation. Andrei leaned onto his elbows on the counter. He was staring at his hands. ¡°We¡¯re all evil, aren¡¯t we?¡± he asked. I think he meant it as a joke, but I could also hear the legitimate worry in his voice. ¡°Bubb¨¢¡­¡± I said. -Ivan interrupted me before I could say any more. ¡°I don¡¯t know about the rest of you, but I enjoy it when I¡¯m in the darkness It¡¯s difficult to leave it sometimes. I¡¯m arguably the most evil out of all of us, so you might be on to something there, Andrei.¡± I hooked my arm through his and leaned my head against his shoulder. ¡°I don¡¯t think any of us are evil. And I think you enjoy the darkness because you know nothing can hurt you there. You¡¯ve found peace in your darkness, both literally and figuratively. You and Adrik both. You¡¯re both fine with the fact that you might be a little evil. You understand that people can be both. Most people are both. The world is both. The point of life is to find the bnce between the two.¡± Ivan squeezed my arm that was still hooked through his. ¡°Mine was necessary to remind me of something important,¡± I said. I was finally starting to understand why things had happened the way they had. ¡°You all know how much I ha te being cold. My darkness is cold. Like bone-chilling cold. At first, I couldn¡¯t see anything at all, not even my own body. I started to hear Adrik¡¯s voice and I could faintly see the outline of my body, but nothing beyond it. That¡¯s also when I started to hear my uncle¡¯s voice. Every time I would hear his voice, it would get darker. When I would hear Adrik, the opposite. It would get lighter. Eventually, it started to get warmer too. You all heard my fight with my uncle. Once I finally kicked him out of my head, I could see. I needed that reminder that my lightes from me. Adrik was the spark to make me remember.¡± I nced over at Adrik. I¡¯d never exined what had happened when I was stuck in the nightmare loop to him before now. I don¡¯t think he realized how much of an effect he had on me when I was trapped in my own mind. ¡°That¡¯s simr to how it happened for me when I was in the hospital. Every time I¡¯m in the hospital, I see the same doctor¡¯s face that used to delight in torturing me when I was a kid. I¡¯m trying to ki ll him when I fight whoever is in front of me. It doesn¡¯t matter who the person is, I can¡¯t see them. I can only see the doctor,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But you see Sephie. She¡¯s the only one you don¡¯t fight,¡± Viktor said. Ivan looked down at me. We knew why he could see me when he couldn¡¯t see anybody else. I could see it clearly on his face that he didn¡¯t want to share that information with everyone, just as I didn¡¯t want to share it either. ¡°The only thing we can figure out is their shared hatred of doctors. Like Sephie said, their demons recognize each other, if you will,¡± Adrik said. I nced at him, thankful for stepping in so we didn¡¯t need to borate. I nced around to see if the rest of the guys were looking at us. When I was satisfied they weren¡¯t, I signed a ¡°thank you¡± to Adrik. ¡°Bubba, how did you get out of your darkness after your ident?¡± I asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I just woke up. I don¡¯t remember specifics about it. I remember being in it and only able to see my body, but I don¡¯t have memories of any sounds. I just woke up in the hospital a few dayster. It took me a little bit to remember what had happened after I woke up,¡± Andrei said. ¡°That¡¯s how it was for me, too,¡± Viktor said. ¡°I have a memory of being in it, but nothing further.¡± ¡°And you just woke up out of yours, too?¡± I asked. He nodded. ¡°Same for me,¡± Misha said. ¡°Me too,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Interesting,¡± I said. I remembered my dad telling me that Ivan could walk between worlds and that I could too. It felt lik had something to do with the difference between our experiences and the other guys¡¯ experiences, but | sn¡¯t sure how. I was sure, however, that it was one more way we were all connected. It wasn¡¯t by chance that they all found each other, and by chance that they found me. The next afternoon, I was in Adrik¡¯s office while he finished up work. I had a book, stretched out on the couch. I could see Adrik peek at me now and then while he was working. He loved it when his schedule was clear and I woulde to his office while he worked, just so he could be near me. I had to admit to loving it as well. I always worried I was going to distract insisted that I was the best distraction there was, whether I was there or not. He admitted to his mind wandering more when I wasn¡¯t there and he couldn¡¯t see me. Andy stuck his head in the office door, knocking on the door frame lightly. We both looked toward the door. ¡°Do you have minutes, Boss?¡± Adrik nodded his head, then nced at me as Andy walked into the office. Adrik was surprised to see him which meant he was unsure of what was about toe out of Andy¡¯s mo uth. I understood his look and quietly got up from couch, taking my usual spot behind Adrik¡¯s desk so I could see Andy as he talked to Adrik. the office Adrik stayed quiet, as usual, Andy sat across from Adrik¡¯s desk. He looked a little nervous, but thest time be had been intense for him. ¡°I was hoping to discuss something with you, sir. I¡¯m not 100% sure on it yet, but I¡¯ve also run in somewhat of a dead end on it now. I think it¡¯s important enough that you know.¡± I was now curious what he was going to tell us. I could feel Adrik¡¯s anger start to rise. He hated surprises. Andy nced at Adrik, then to me. He took a deep breath and continued, ¡°I overheard Mike on the phone a few times. Once the night they got me out, once after I was moved here. I don¡¯t know for sure who he was talking to, but he used a code that I¡¯ve heard Anthony use for years.¡± I stood up and grabbed Adrik¡¯s phone from his desk, calling Viktor. I let it ring, then ended the call. They were all in the office within seconds. Andy went pale when they all walked in. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Andy. I just want them to hear this as well. Tell the what you just told us.¡± He looked at the guys, who were still standing, and repeated what he¡¯d just told us. He was still nervous, but he was trying to keep himself composed. ¡°What¡¯s the code?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°It¡¯s one word. Anthony got it from an old movie when he was younger and he¡¯s been obsessed with it ever since. He always wanted to be the stereotypical gangster you see in movies. He has all his guys call him sicario¡¯ when they talk to him,¡± Andy said. I felt like I¡¯d been punched in the stomach. I stumbled backward toward the cab to catch myself. I was immediately back in the ring with Mike, right before I kicked him thest time. ¡°Do you want to adjust your opinion of me yet? ¡°Fu ck you, wh ore.¡± Then thatst word he said to me. The one I almost didn¡¯t hear. ¡°Sicario.¡± My mind was racing. Why would he say that? Why would he basically be telling me he was working for Anthony? Why would Andy be telling us this now? Why not earlier? Was Andy also working for Anthony? I felt my anger rising to the surface as I tried to make sense of who we could trust and who we couldn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t hear Adrik get up from his chair. I was snapped back to reality when I felt his arm around my waist. I looked up at hin He was clearly concerned. ¡°Are you okay? What¡¯s going on? Talk to me.¡± I nced quickly at Andy, who was still nervous, but appeared to be concerned as well. The guys were all still standing, but they¡¯d moved to surround Andy. I responded in Russian. I wasn¡¯t sure we could trust Andy at this point, and it was making me angry. ¡°That¡¯s thest word he said to me in the ring. I doubt any of you heard it. I almost didn¡¯t hear it because he was having trouble talking and he mumbled it. I didn¡¯t think anything of it at the time. I thought he was calling me a hitman.¡± ¡°Why would he call you a hitman, gazelle?¡± Misha asked, still in Russian. ¡°That¡¯s what that word means, my adorable Russian guardian. I didn¡¯t think anything of it then. But why would Andy be tellin us this now? Why not earlier? Why does he sit on this information before telling us?¡± I asked. Adrik¡¯s anger was also starting rise to the surface, but he was running his hand over my back, trying to keep himself calm. ww Ivan, who was also clearly angry, looked to Andy, asking in English, ¡°why are you just telling us this now?¡± He might¡¯ve had a threatening edge to his voice that may have made Andy clench a little Chapter 234 Chapter 234 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Four Sephie ¡°I was trying to catch Mike talking to Anthony again so I could confirm it, but I haven¡¯t seen him around for a few days. I know Armando was gone over the weekend, so | figured he was with them, but I haven¡¯t seen Mike since they got back. I¡¯m worried he went back to Anthony. And if I¡¯m being honest, you guys always seem like you want to ki ll me anytime I give you Information,¡± Andy said, running his hand through his hair. ¡°And yet, you¡¯re still alive. It¡¯s like magic, really.¡± I said, crossing my arms across my chest. ¡°Don¡¯t be a pu ssy, Andy. You¡¯ve been in this world long enough, for fu ck¡¯s sake. They saved your a ss, gave you a safe ce to live, and everything you need. If they wanted to ki ll you, you would¡¯ve been dead a long time ago. Cut the bu llshit.¡± Adrik cleared his throat quietly beside me and I knew it was because he was trying not tough. I felt his hand slip under my shirt, his thumb tracing circles on the bare skin of my back. Andy looked to me, surprised at my words. He thought for a moment. Ivan was losing patience and said, ¡°you realize if she¡¯s losing patience with you that mine was gone before I even walked into the office. It¡¯s in your best interest that you start talking.¡± Andy started to say something, then stopped himself. He took a deep breath, then said. ¡°I was trying to work it into a job here. Either with your security or Armando¡¯s. I knew if I could catch Mike working for Anthony, it would look good for me and you¡¯d be more willing to trust me, so I waited to try and get hard proof, But then I haven¡¯t seen him for a few days, so I got worried.¡± I looked at Viktor to gauge his reaction. The look on his face said he was not the least bit interested in hiring Andy at this moment. He said, in Russian, ¡°he¡¯s not working for us. I can talk to Armando and see if he wants him.¡± ¡°Only after all this is over. Not before,¡± Adrik said. Viktor nodded his head in agreement. Adrik nced down at me, like he was asking my opinion on it as well. ¡°I don¡¯t trust him. It was shaky at best before this, but this would¡¯ve been good information to have weeks ago,¡± I said. Adrik looked at Andy. In English, he said, ¡°next time you have information that directly affects us, you tell us right away. We¡¯ll consider the job after all this is over. Until then, nothing changes,¡± I could feel Adrik¡¯s anger, but I could also feel that he was trying to contain it. It was almost like I could feel him struggling against it. Each time it happened, I could feel more than the time before. It felt almost like I could feel what he was feeling in his body and it was mirrored in mine. Andy nodded and took his leave quickly. As we watched him walk out of the office, I turned toward Adrik, putting my hands on his chest. I could feel his anger fade away as he looked at me. I felt the calm return as he wrapped his arms around my waist. I smiled up at him. ¡°That was different,¡± I said. He leaned down and kissed me quickly. ¡°We¡¯ll talk about itter,¡± he said, winking at me. He pulled me with him to his chair. Viktor had followed Andy to the door, closing it behind him as he left. Andy had his own guards assigned to make sure he didn¡¯t leave the building without permission, so there was no need to follow him any farther. Everyone moved to find a ce to sit. Adrik pulled me into hisp as he sat back at his desk. We all sat in silence for a few minutes, trying to wrap our heads around this new bit of information. I was frustrated with how difficult it was bing to know who we could trust and who we couldn¡¯t trust through all this. ¡°Do you think this means that Keith and Chris are in question as well?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s worth having a very serious conversation with both of them to find out,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Call one of them up here. I want to get to the bottom of this right away, but I want to talk to them separately,¡± Adrik said. While he had a moment of calm, I could feel his anger rising again. I could also feel that he wasn¡¯t fighting it this time. He wanted to be angry to talk to Chris and Keith. If I¡¯d learned anything since being with Adrik, it was that anger was a very useful emotion once you learned to control it. Especially if you needed to intimidate someone into telling you the truth. I smiled to myself. While I usually tried to keep him calm, I found myself enjoying being able to feel his anger because I knew it was needed. We heard a knock on Adrik¡¯s office door. Viktor opened the door, letting Keith into the office. He walked in, somewhat curious as to what was going on, but he seemed quite calm. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked as he sat across from Adrik¡¯s desk. ¡°We need to know everything you know about Mike,¡± Ivan said. He was still clearly angry, which caught Keith off guard. ¡°Yeah, man. Can I ask why? Seems kind of like a moot point now,¡± Keith said. ¡°Did I ask for your opinion?¡± Ivan asked, a clear edge to his voice, Keith looked quickly to Stephen. It was obvious that he was confused by what was happening. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you anything you want to know, but I kind of need a direction here. Why are you asking about him? Like what are you looking for?¡± While the guys were all quickly bing angrier because it felt like Keith was trying to avoid the question, I could see that he was being honest and was trying to figure out how to appease them. ¡°Let¡¯s start with when he left the police force in the small town you guys grew up in. Did he leave before or after you left the town?¡± I asked. ¡°He left before I did. He was gone for a couple years before I decided to leave. Honestly, we lost touch until we both showed up for this job. I didn¡¯t really like him when we worked together before, so I wasn¡¯t exactly jumping at the chance to catch up with him,¡± he said. He looked at Stephen again, this time it was obvious that he was unsure how much he could say. ¡°He didn¡¯t know you¡¯re g ay?¡± I asked. Keith turned back to me, his eyes wide. Stephen chuckled. ¡°They know, Keith.¡± ¡°Oh. Okay. Well, no. He didn¡¯t know. He was not as observant as you.¡± He cleared his throat. ¡°Clearly.¡± The guys couldn¡¯t help butugh quietly. I¡¯m sure they would¡¯v given him a hard time if this conversation was a little more light hearted ¡°Did he ever say anything about what he¡¯d been doing in the couple years between him leaving and getting this job?¡± I asked. ¡°Not much. He said he¡¯d worked security here and there. Mostly odd jobs. He tried to get onto the police force in the city, but he failed the psych test,¡± Keith said. ¡°He never really went into details, but I also never really asked. I almost didn¡¯t take this job. because of him, if I¡¯m being honest. It was so much better after he left,¡± he said. ¡°Why did you leave then?¡± Misha asked. ¡°Basically, the same reason that Mike left. It was such a small town that there was no room for advancement. I¡¯d pretty much topped out early on in my career. There, uh, also wasn¡¯t much of a dating scene in town. I knew Mike had initially moved to the city, but like I said, we lost touch, so I never dreamed I would meet him at the first job I applied to after moving here,¡± Keith said. ¡°How long were you here before you applied for this job?¡± I asked. ¡°A week. This was the first jub 1 applied for, too. I¡¯m pretty sure I got lucky, but this conversation is making me wonder, not gonna lie,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re doing fine, Keith. Just rx,¡± I said. He gave me a tight smile, but did not rx. ¡°After you two started, did you ever notice him making calls that he wouldn¡¯t tell you about or did he ever disappear with no exnation? Did you notice anything weird?¡± Viktor asked. Keith thought for a moment. ¡°A couple of hushed phone calls. Or like he would end the call very quickly if he saw me. I never noticed him disappear, but once Armando was done for the day, I didn¡¯t keep track of Mike. I was usually looking forward to getting a break from him by the end of the day, so I didn¡¯t pay attention to what he was doing or not doing.¡± ¡°Do you remember when those phone calls happened?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Not precisely, no,¡± Keith said. ¡°Can I ask why this is important now? I mean, he¡¯s not really an issue now, right?¡± The guys looked to me before saying anything further. I said, in Russian, ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s lying. I don¡¯t think he knows anything. I think he likely stayed away from him as much as possible. If Mike had that much of an issue with me, I can only imagine how ho rrific he would¡¯ve been toward Keith if he found out. He¡¯s nervous because we¡¯re all here grilling N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. im, but I don¡¯t feel like he¡¯s hiding anything.¡± While we were talking with Keith, I knew Adrik had been staring him down. It was a very effective strategy for him, as he could be extremely intimidating when he wanted to be. I saw Keith catch his gaze once or twice and immediately regret it. Once I told them that he was telling the truth, I felt Adrik rx slightly. His anger level lowering, but only slightly. Chapter 235 Chapter 235 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Five Sephle ¡°We have reason to believe that Mike was working for Anthony,¡± Adrik said. ¡°We needed to make sure he¡¯s the only one.¡± Keith looked stunned. He looked at the floor for a moment. ¡°Now it makes sense.¡± ¡°What makes sense?¡± Ivan asked. Where he had started to calm down, he was now right back to the anger level he was at when Keith walked in. ¡°A couple of things, actually. I was with Mike when we went in to get Andy. There was clear recognition between those two when Andy first saw us. I admit I don¡¯t have extensive experience with those types of situations, but I did enough work with informants that I recognize the look when you know someone but you¡¯re trying to act like you don¡¯t know someone. Andy had seen Mike before, but I¡¯m sure Mike gave him a look when he said the code word you gave us,¡± he said. Adrik, who had also started to rx, was no longer rxed. I could feel his anger, which was feeding into my anger. I stood, knowing he would want to pace. ¡°He¡¯s a dead man,¡± Adrik said quietly, but dripping with anger, as he stood up. Keith¡¯s eyes went wide once again. ¡°Tell us what else makes sense, Keith,¡± I said, giving him a tight smile. The scene in front of him did not help him to calm down. I¡¯m sure my anger was written all over my face, as Adrik paced behind me like a raged animal just waiting for his chance to escape. He looked too stunned to speak for a moment. His mo uth was open, but his brain had clicked off as he just stared at Adrik. ¡°KEITH,¡± Stephen said, firmly enough that it snapped him back to reality. ¡°Right. Uh, when we went to get the documents from Armando¡¯s house. When we got back and Mike said that no one was watching us or following us? Yeah, he was lying. I don¡¯t think Armando caught it, but both Chris and I noticed we were being followed. Mike was basically in charge and I knew how he was about being questioned, so I didn¡¯t say anything. I should¡¯ve said something.¡± He looked up, his eyes even wider than before. ¡°It was a mistake. It will never happen again,¡± he pleaded. He was in genuine fear for his life at this point. ¡°Anything else? Now would be the ideal time toe clean with everything, Keith,¡± I said. He swallowed hard, but shook his head no. ¡°That¡¯s everything I can remember. Just those two instances. I didn¡¯t notice anybody when we went to pick Andy up and bring him here and I haven¡¯t noticed anything since. Why wouldn¡¯t they be following us now that Mike is gone?¡± he asked. It dawned on me the same time it dawned on Ivan. He caught my eye and we both said ¡°Andy¡± at the same time. They didn¡¯t need to follow anyone when they had someone on the inside. I felt my level of anger rise higher than I¡¯d ever felt it. I vouched for that son of a bi tch. I gave him the okay. I ran interference for him when the guys wanted to pummel him on multiple asions. He tried to ki ll Ivan. That mo therfucker. I felt Adrik¡¯s arm slide around my waist. He leaned down so his lips were next to my ear. ¡°Take a breath, solnishko. We need to be smart about this. I want to talk to Chris first before we deal with Andy.¡± I looked up at him, somewhat surprised that he was the one calming me down. I immediately recognized the lust in his eyes when he looked down at me. I shu t my eyes, trying to get control of myself and to keep him from thinking about ripping my clothes off. When I opened them, I looked at him again. I raised my eyebrow slightly, silently asking if my eyes were normal again. He just smirked at me and kissed my temple. ¡°Normal again,¡± he said quietly. Adrik looked to Viktor. ¡°Call Chris. Put him in a room until we¡¯re done with Chris.¡± Viktor walked Keith out of the office. A few minutester, he returned with Chris, who was already so nervous he could barely keep it together. ¡°Tell us what happened the night you guys went to get Andy,¡± Ivan said in his very authoritative tone. ¡°Keith probably knows more than I do. I wasn¡¯t with him and Mike when they actually went in to get Andy. I stayed outside, in the hall, to make sure no one surprised us. I didn¡¯t hear anything, other than Mike tell Andy the code word you guys gave us, then they came back out. You guys know what happened on the way out of the building, right?¡± he asked. ¡°What about what happened the night you went to Armando¡¯s house to get the documents?¡± Viktor asked. Even he sounded angry. ¡°Oh sh it. Well, Mike lied to you guys, for one. I don¡¯t know why. I think he was trying to save face, but we were followed. He told you guys we weren¡¯t,¡± he said. ¡°Did you notice anything weird with Mike other than that instance?¡± I asked. I was trying to keep my cool, but I was certain I was failing miserably at it, as Adrik pulled me closer to him. I felt his hand slide under my shirt, his thumb on my skin. ¡°Honestly, I tried to stay away from him as much as possible. He was a di ck.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°And you didn¡¯t feel it was important to tell us that he lied to us?¡± I asked, maybe a little louder than I meant ¡°Please don¡¯t hurt me. He made it clear that he was in charge. He also made it clear that he could fire me and Keith at will. I need this job, even though it might cost me my life in like two minutes,¡± he said. Adrik flexed his arm around my waist, causing me to look at him. He wanted to know my opinion of Chris before he said anything. ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s lying, but I also vouched for that piece of sh it Andy, too, so I don¡¯t know how much you want to trust me right now,¡± I responded in Russian. Adrik clicked his tongue at me, but said nothing. He turned to Chris, saying, ¡°Mike was working for Anthony. If we find out you or Keith are also working for anyone else, you¡¯ll meet the same fate as Mike. Only it won¡¯t be so quick.¡± He looked at Chris with every ounce of hatred he could muster. ¡°I¡¯m not working for anyone else, I swear. Look, I really need this job. I wouldn¡¯t do anything to jeopardize it. My m om, she¡¯s si ck. This job is paying her medical bills. She raised me and my sister on her own, working 2-3 jobs. She means the world to me. There¡¯s no way I would put her or being able to take care of her in danger,¡± Chris said. His emotions were right on the surface when he talked about his mother, making me want to believe him, but I was so frustrated with myself for believing Andy that I wasn¡¯t sure I should believe Chris. I closed my eyes, pinching the bridge of my nose. My head was starting to pound. I heard Adrik tell Viktor quietly to put Chris in a room as well. I opened my eyes and looked at Adrik, who was clearly concerned about me. When his eyes met mine, he looked surprised. ¡°Blink, love,¡± he whispered, his sexy smirk on his face. ¡°Sh it, sorry,¡± I said, closing my eyes once more. I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I was almost afraid to open my eyes again. When I did, I looked quickly to Adrik, who smiled at me. ¡°Normal again,¡± he said, kissing my forehead. He stepped in front of me, ncing at the guys. ¡°Apologies, but I need to do this,¡± he said to them as he wrapped his arm tightly around my waist. He pulled me against him firmly, his lips finding mine forcefully. His anger quickly turned to passion as he kissed me deeply. I felt my knees go weak. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pressing my body to his even tighter. Just when I felt my lungs objecting to theck of air, he stopped the kiss, his forehead pressed to mine as he regained control. He pressed his lips to mine gently once more then pulled me to one of the couches to sit. Usually, kissing me like that would calm him down, but I felt like he did that for me this time. It was effective. I found myself wanting more, no longer so angry I was having trouble seeing. ¡°I picked the worst person to be wrong about, it seems,¡± I said, as I felt Adrik¡¯s arms slide around me. ¡°We don¡¯t know for sure you were wrong yet, spider monkey. He could still be telling us the truth, just maybe not the whole truth. That seems to be what he does,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Not telling us that he knew Mike before was a big fu cking omission,¡± I said. ¡°Just like not telling us that Sal was the one behind brawn all along was a big fu cking omission.¡± ¡°Maybe he¡¯s trying to y both sides,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Essentially, that¡¯s what he¡¯s always done. He worked for Sal, but fed you information. The big question is whether he¡¯s feeding Sal information while he¡¯s here.¡± ¡°We took his phone. He has no way of contacting anyone outside the building. The guards that are assigned to him are always with him and have reported nothing. I¡¯m going to speak to every single one of them, however,¡± Viktor said. He was just as frustrated as I was with this situation. He felt like it was his responsibility to keep us safe and this was a potential breech of his airtight defenses. Viktor usually stayed calm and we rarely saw him angry, but he was angry over this one. He felt directly responsible for missing that Mike had worked for Anthony. ¡°What about Chris and Keith?¡± I asked. ¡°I think they¡¯re both telling the truth, but now I¡¯m not sure I trust myself, so I don¡¯t know if you guys should trust me.¡± ¨C ¡°As far as I can tell, they¡¯re telling us the truth now,¡± Misha said. ¡°If Andy recognized Mike, that means they¡¯d seen each other before. Not necessarily that they¡¯d worked together before. And we were expecting them to be followed when they went to Armando¡¯s house that night. I thought it was weird that they weren¡¯t. It might not be as bad as we think it is.¡± I hoped Misha was right. Not just for us, but for the people of the city. We were trying to do this quietly, with as little fallout as possible. I didn¡¯t want to reach the point where chaos was necessary. Chapter 236 Chapter 236 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Six Adrik While the information we¡¯d just discovered was important, I was having trouble keeping my mind from thinking about Sephie and how much I could feel her anger feed into mine. But also, how much control she had over hers,pared to me. My anger always felt like a ticking time bomb, just under the surface. I would have to struggle to keep it contained when it reached a certain point. I had learned over the years to keep it just under that point, so I could use it to my advantage when I needed to intimidate someone. Sephie, however, could raise and lower her anger at will. I¡¯d seen her get so angry that her eyes went dark a few times since I noticed it in the ring with Mike that day. But the few times it happened before, she was visibly angry. Tonight, she looked and felt like she was calming down, but when she opened her eyes after Chris left the office, they were as rk as I¡¯d ever seen them. It surprised me. It was like her anger was cloaked. She didn¡¯t look like she was about to lose control, but her eyes told a different story. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . While we waited on Keith, I let my anger rise to the point where I knew it was still easily controlled. I needed it to intimidate Keith into telling us everything. Before, Sephie would feel me get angry and would try to help keep me calm. I¡¯d learned that it actually helped me increase the level of anger since I knew I had her to help mitigate it. But tonight, she didn¡¯t try to keep me calm when she felt it. I could feel her anger feeding mine, but also controlling mine. I was at a level that it would have been difficult to control previously when Keith walked into the office, but with Sephie by my side, I felt a mastery of it that I¡¯d never felt before. We¡¯re going to need to discuss thister. I squeezed Sephie just a little tighter in myp, as she was worried that she¡¯d made a huge mistake. I knew she was going to worry over this for a while. ¡°I don¡¯t think Chris and Keith are a problem either. I will admit to wanting to just ki ll Andy and be done with it, but he seems to provide valuable information periodically, so I¡¯m torn on wasting that resource. Maybe we should restrict his movements in the building until this is over, just to be safe. Either keep him in his apartment or keep him in room,¡± I said. ¡°Room¡± was a nice way of saying holding cell. It was my own psychological trick I yed on people. ¡°I will say that Keith has talked extensively about his hatred for Mike since he¡¯s been gone. I¡¯ve heard a few stories about when they worked together before moving here and they weren¡¯t pleasant stories. There is clear hatred there,¡± Stephen said. ¡°And Chris has talked to Keith about his m om being si ck. I might¡¯ve checked that one out already. It¡¯s legit.¡± We all looked to Stephen, somewhat surprised that he¡¯d checked Chris¡¯s story already. ¡°What? I have trust issues,¡± he said, shrugging his shoulders. ¡°Okay, so Keith and Chris check out, which actually makes life easier. That means less work for us with Armando¡¯s security and it also means I don¡¯t have to look at Giana as much, which makes me happy. I vote for putting Andy in a room. He can still get messages outside the building with ess to windows. If he is getting messages outside,¡± Ivan said. One of Ivan¡¯s strongest traits was being able to think like the enemy. He could put himself in their shoes, think like them, and be able to predict what they would do next. It was a useful skill to have. ¡°Agreed. Have him moved right away. Chris and Keith can go back to their apartments,¡± I said. Viktor stood up to take care of the arrangements, his phone in hand as he left the office. Keith stopped by the office on his way by. He looked visibly relieved. ¡°Um, sir, in the interest of full transparency, there is one more thing.¡± He noticed the look on my face and immediately put his hands up in defense in front of him. ¡°No, no. Not about Andy or Mike. This one is about Giana.¡± Chris walked up beside him as he was talking. ¡°What about her?¡± Misha said. He was still harboring extreme anger toward her, so it didn¡¯t take much to set him off when her name was mentioned right now. ¡°She does feel bad about what happened and she wants to apologize, but she thinks you all are really Intimidating. We overheard her talking to Armando at his house this past weekend, Keith said. Misha cursed under his breath while Sephie justughed. ¡°Keith, I appreciate you trying to help her out and put in a good word for her, but she needs to learn how to be an adult and realize that we¡¯re not intimidating. She¡¯s just Intimidated. If she would grow a pair, she might get some respect, but having the men in her life speak for her is not going to gain her any favors. Not with me and I feel fairly confident in saying not with any of these guys either,¡± she said. ¡°Definitely not with me,¡± Misha said. He looked disgusted to even be talking about this. ¡°I basically told her as muchst night, 1. She knows what needs to happen to get back in our good graces. She will either choose to do it or she can continue to live in the H ell she¡¯s created for herself,¡± I said. My tone was short, in hopes that it would end the conversation. I was growing tired of any extra drama that affected Sephie. ¡°She will eventually realize that she¡¯s made this into an even bigger issue by acting the way she has,¡± Ivan said. ¡°She¡¯s the only one that can correct it.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll do her a bigger favor by telling her that than you will by trying to smooth things over for her,¡± Andrei said. ¡°She¡¯s chosen to learn this lesson the hard way, so get out of her way and let her learn it.¡± Even Andrei¡¯s tone was short. We were all stressed and this topic seemed ri diculous and trivial comparatively, Keith simply nodded his head and turned to leave. Chris, who was still visibly nervous, followed quickly behind him. Sephie waited until she heard the elevator doors close, then groaned. ¡°Is it just me or is this Giana thing the stupidest thing ever now? How Is she ying the victim card in this?¡± She looked at Ivan, who was grinning at her. ¡°Make it stop.¡± She paused for a moment, then added, ¡°wait, no. I didn¡¯t mean that in the permanent way. Just make her stop being stu pid. Don¡¯t make her stop forever more.¡± She couldn¡¯t help butugh at the absurdity of it all, which helped the rest of us rx slightly. I pulled her back against me. I moved her hair off her shoulder, rubbing my facial hair against her neck lightly. I felt her body rx as she took a deep breath. She hugged my arms tighter around her, whispering, ¡°thank you.¡± Chapter 237 Chapter 237 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Seven Adrik Later that night, Sephie and I were finally alone in the penthouse. I didn¡¯t wait for her to demand my shirt. I took it off as soon as I closed the door behind us. I pulled her to me, pulling her shirt off and throwing it on the floor so I could put my shirt on her. She had a sly grin on her face as she watched me button up my shirt after putting it on her. ¡°You¡¯re getting better at reading my mind,¡± she said. ¡°Maybe. Or maybe there¡¯s something to seeing you in just my shirt that helps me rx,¡± I said as I unbuttoned her pants, sliding them over her hips. ¡°Well, seeing you rx helps me rx, so who am I to deny you?¡± she asked. She had a mischievous grin on her face. ¡°Could you deny me even if you tried, my love?¡± I asked, picking her up and walking toward one of the couches. She giggled. It was exactly what I needed to hear. ¡°Okay, so I¡¯ve proven to fail miserably at that pretty much every time I¡¯ve tried.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same reason I don¡¯t even try,¡± I said, setting her down. I smiled down at her, taking her hand and pulling ber into myp as I sat down. She was stillughing when she straddled myp. ¡°I needed to hear yourugh, solnishko.¡± She leaned in and pressed her lips to mine gently. ¡°I needed tough,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯m d we got to go to the house this past weekend. I find myself wanting to go back. Each day seems to bring some new drama that makes me want to punch something.¡± ¡°You and me both,¡± I said, resuming my eternal battle with the curls around her face. This was one battle I would never tire of losing. She was quiet for a moment, so I decided to bring up what I¡¯d felt in the office. ¡°I think we should talk about what happened in the office. It was definitely different this time.¡± I said, my fingers lightly running down the side of her face and neck. She closed her eyes, leaning into my touch. ¡°I could feel you struggling against your anger when Andy was in the office. Like you were trying to contain it,¡± she said without opening her eyes. ¡°But then you rxed like always when I put my hands on you after Andy left.¡± She opened her eyes and looked at me. ¡°It felt different for me when we were waiting on Keith toe to the office. I could feel your anger, but I could also feel that you had it contained and that you were doing it on purpose. Your anger has never scared me or intimidated me or anything like that because I know it¡¯s not directed at me, but I found myself kind of liking being able to feel it while we waited on Keith.¡± She had a sly smile creep across her lips as she admitted to liking it. ¡°I¡¯ve always struggled to contain my anger, solnishko. There¡¯s a certain level I can let it get to where I can easily contain it, but still intimidate the he ll out of anyone who needs it. I¡¯ve learned that I can increase that level dramatically when you¡¯re with me, because you help me keep it contained, if you will. But when we were waiting on Keith, I knew that you knew what I was doing. It was at the highest level it¡¯s ever been at when he walked into the office without me beating someone to death. And I have no idea how you made that happen,¡± I said, smirking at her curious expression as I told her what I had felt. ¡°What about when I got mad when Keith was in the office? You had to calm me down instead of the other way around,¡± she Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. asked. ¡°That¡¯s where it gets interesting. You knew how angry I was because you got up so I could pace before I said anything, but as soon as I felt you lose control, mine vanished and all I could think about was you. But I felt you lose control. That¡¯s the weird part. We¡¯ve been saying for months now that you have a switch that flips when you get angry. We can see it happen on your face when Andrei or Misha says something to get you angry when you¡¯re training. We can also see it switch back off after. But I felt it tonight before I saw it happen.¡± I continued my battle with the curls around her face. She looked lost in thought, chewing on her bottom lip. ¡°A switch flipping is probably the best way to describe it. That¡¯s pretty much what it¡¯s always felt like. I¡¯m getting better at being able to control it when it happens, but I was so angry tonight that I didn¡¯t realize it had flipped until I felt your hand on me. I was surprised you were having to calm me down.¡± ¡°Your eyes went dark again, too. Darker than I¡¯ve ever seen them,¡± I said. She smiled at the clear look of lust that I¡¯m sure was evident on my face as I thought about it. ¡°I will admit to being angrier about being wrong about Andy than I have been about anything in a long time. But I don¡¯t know about my eyes changing colors. That one still escapes me. I don¡¯t know when that¡¯s happening or why it happens. The second time it happened, I thought I was calming down but you told me to blink again. I was almost scared to open my eyes again,¡± she said,ughing. ¡°I thought you were calming down too. I didn¡¯t feel your anger at all when it happened. It was like your anger was in stealth mode. Still fully present butpletely under the surface. That¡¯s why I kissed you. That always helps me make my angerpletely dissipate, so I tried it with you, hoping it would work with you too.¡± ¡°It worked.¡± She grinned at me. ¡°I was left wanting more instead of thinking about wanting to break Andy¡¯s face.¡± ¡°Good. At least I know I have a ki ll switch,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°This is going to make my street cred go through the roof.¡± She had pressed her body to mine, her head on my shoulder, She sat up again, looking at me, her eyes stillughing. ¡°You really feel like you have more control when I¡¯m with you?¡± ¡°Absolutely. My anger has always felt like barely contained chaos. But when you¡¯re with me, it¡¯s more like controlled chaos. It¡¯s there, but I don¡¯t have to struggle as hard against it to make sure it stays contained.¡± She was chewing on her bottom lip again. her mind was clearly racing. ¡°Even Viktor has noticed it. Out of all of them, he knows my bloodlust the best. He¡¯s seen mepletely out of control more than any of the other guys. He noticed the first time you stopped it with just a look.¡± Her eyebrows furrowed. ¡°But what if it¡¯s a bad thing that I¡¯m stopping it? I mean, even I¡¯m losing patience with this whole situation. It might be over with already if I hadn¡¯t stopped it.¡± I was surprised that she admitted she was losing patience with everything going on. I knew she was stressed. We all were. But I didn¡¯t realize she was to the same point I was already. It was my turn to get lost in my thoughts for a moment. I felt her fingers lightly running over my facial hair, but she stayed quiet. It was one of the many things I loved about her. She was just asfortable in silence as she was talking. I was I had been worried this entire time that I would somehow lose her because of my bloodlust. If she saw that side of me, terrified she wouldn¡¯t want to be with me any longer. I¡¯d been trying to keep that side of me as quiet as possible. But with each day, with each new piece of this puzzle, it was getting harder and harder to keep that side of me quiet. I felt her fingers under my chin, lifting it so I would look at her. She was smiling sweetly at me. She leaned down, pressing her lips gently to mine. ¡°I will never not want to be with you, Adrik.¡± I felt a huge wave of relief. I smiled at her, putting my hands on either side of her face, kissing her once more. ¡°I don¡¯t know why it surprises me when you read my mind at this point,¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re going to make it very difficult to surprise you.¡± -¡°Wait until I get that crystal ball. You¡¯re all toast!¡± she said,ughing. All the stress of the day seemed to melt away as weughed together on the couch. I still wasn¡¯t sure how she could do it, but I knew I waspletely addicted to her magic Chapter 238 Chapter 238 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Eight Adrik Sephie was still getting dressed the next morning when I called the guys to the penthouse. She was moving a little slower than I was, which waspletely my fault. I might¡¯ve kept her awake and incredibly active for most of the nightst night. She didn¡¯t want to wake up this morning. I was somewhat surprised that she didn¡¯t stay asleep, but she woke as soon as I did this morning. Being able to feel what she¡¯s feeling was making our s ex life phenomenal. I waspletely addicted to the feeling now. She had told me that she¡¯s been feeling it for a while. It got much stronger for her once I stopped holding back, but it took me longer to tap into her. She¡¯s said all along that I¡¯ve been able to read her mind when ites to s ex, which is true. She rarely has to give me directions and she still always seems to be lost in the euphoria. Now, however, it seems like she can bring me into that euphoria. I¡¯ve felt things I didn¡¯t even know were possible and I¡¯mpletely addicted. I¡¯m an addict for her. ¡°Who wants breakfast?¡± Sephie asked as she walked into the kitchen, her smile making the room brighter. Even though she wa tired, she looked bright this morning. She had an extra glow about her that made her look even more beautiful. She caught me open-mo uth staring at her when she walked into the kitchen. Her cheeks flushed as she walked to me, a devilish grin on her face. She had long ago gotten over being shy about kissing me in front of the guys, but she still only did it asionally. I didn¡¯t mind. I liked having parts of her that werepletely reserved for me. She surprised me by kissing me deeply, then continuing on to the refrigerator, her devilish grin still evident on her face. It took all of my self-control not to follow her to continue that kiss. She took a quick inventory of the refrigerator, her back to us now. She turned around, looking between me and Viktor, asking ¡°how much time do we have before you¡¯re all needed downstairs?¡± ¡°His first meeting isn¡¯t until 11, sestrichka,¡± Viktor said. Her smile returned. ¡°Raise your hand if you want syrniki for breakfast.¡± All of our hands shot up. Syrniki was a type of pancake that was popr in Russia for breakfast. We¡¯d all grown up eating them for breakfast, but it was difficult to find outside of Russia. Sheughed as she started pulling the ingredients out of the refrigerator and setting them on the counter. ¡°When did you learn to make symniki, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked. She giggled. ¡°Today. Right now. You¡¯re all my test subjects.¡± Her beautiful smile stretched across her face. She pulled a book from one of the cabs. ¡°I found an old cookbook at the house and I figured you guys might be okay with being test subjects for my foray into making Russian dishes.¡± ¡°Just when I thought I couldn¡¯t love you any more than I already do, here we are,¡± Misha said. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to add cooking sses to the list of things to teach your future girlfriends and Stephen¡¯s future boyfriend,¡± she said,ughing. The guys all looked at each other, then looked back to Sephie. ¡°YES!¡± they all said in unison. While Sephie worked on making breakfast, we all pitched in where we could and helped as we talked about thetest information. Sephie remained quiet through most of the conversation, but she was actively listening to us while she focused on breakfast. I was still worried about her zoning out, so I found myself keeping a closer eye on her than normal. I caught Ivan doing the same, as he had also noticed she was quieter than normal. I made her coffee just the way she liked it and walked to her side. The guys were deep in discussion about Andy, so I had a chance to quietly make sure she was good. I handed her the cup of coffee, my eyebrow raised. ¡°You¡¯re okay, solnishko? You¡¯re quieter than normal.¡± Her gorgeous smile stretched across her face. ¡°I¡¯m trying to make sure I don¡¯t fu ck this up,¡± she said pointing to the bowl of batter in front of her. Iughed, leaning down to kiss her forehead. Ivan had caught the exchange as well and visibly rxed when he heard her answer, She stood on her toes to kiss me quickly. ¡°You and Ivan can rx,¡± she said winking at me. Both Ivan and I looked at her, surprised. She hadn¡¯t seen Ivan, as he was behind her. ¡°I can feel him watching me,¡± she said quiet enough that only I could hear. She giggled at my surprised expression. ¡°You never cease to amaze me,¡± I said, kissing her forehead one more time. The penthouse quickly filled with the aroma of the syrniki frying, causing all of our stomachs to growl in appreciation. Our mo uths were watering in anticipation. Sephie turned around with the first batch and saw the looks of hunger on our faces. ¡°I¡¯m suddenly painfully aware that I should¡¯ve made more,¡± she said as she set them down in front of us. While we had been talkative while she was cooking, we were nowpletely silent as we all ate. She continued to cook the rest of the syrniki, but our silence had made her nervous. ¡°Is the silence good or you¡¯re all trying to find a way to politely tell me they su ck?¡± she asked as she set more pancakes down in front of us. Not a word was spoken, but we all grabbed more pancakes from the te. Sheughed. ¡°Taking that as a good sign.¡± ¡°Seph, these might be better than my m om¡¯s. Let¡¯s keep that between us though. She¡¯ll smack me,¡± Stephen said as he took another bite of pancake. As we finished up cleaning the kitchen after quite possibly the best breakfast ever, Misha¡¯s phone beeped. He pulled it from his pocket, looking at it, then looking at Sephie. ¡°Ms. Jackson asked if you¡¯re free toe to her apartment this morning?¡± he asked. ¡°Oh, sure. I can go see her for a bit. I haven¡¯t seen her sincest week, now that I think about it,¡± she said. ¡°At least one of you go with her. Preferably two,¡± I said as I pulled her to me. Her smile threatened to stop my heart. She said quietly, ¡°you¡¯re feeling extra protective.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t help it. You don¡¯t know what you do to me,¡± I said, holding her tightly against me. ¡°Oh, I know exactly what I do to you,¡± she said,ughing. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Misha and Andrei interrupted our exchange by announcing they would both go with her to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. Those two were always ready for an adventure when it came to Sephie. ¡°Good. Stop by the office when you¡¯re done. My afternoon isn¡¯t that busy,¡± I said, kissing her lips. I couldn¡¯t help myself and I deepened the kiss. I felt her knees go weak, so I held her tighter against me, which only served to make her kiss me more passionately. ¡°Kiss me like that and I¡¯d stop by even if your afternoon was busy,¡± she said, her cheeks flushed. ¡°Why does it kind of feel like watching your parents make out now?¡± Andrei asked to nobody in particr, causing all of us tough. Sephie grinned up at me, but pointed in Andrei¡¯s direction. ¡°Nobody said you had to watch, Bubba,¡± she said, trying to keep a straight face. It caused another round ofughter from everyone. We all got on the elevator together, stillughing and joking, generally in a great mood after such a fantastic morning just the seven of us. I pulled Sephie in for another kiss before I stepped off the elevator. She quickly said, ¡°close your eyes, Bubba,¡± before leaning in to kiss me. It was not the kiss I was hoping for, simply because I wasughing too hard. God, I love her. Chapter 239 Chapter 239 Chapter Two Hundred Thirty-Nine Sephie Andrei, Misha, and I were stillughing at each other when we walked up to Ms. Jackson¡¯s door. I half- expected her to hear using down the hallway, but I still had to knock. She opened the door, just as excited as always that I¡¯d brought eye candy for her. ¡°Oh my, you brought me two today. You really do love me, child,¡± she said as I hugged her. She stepped back to let us into her apartment. That¡¯s when I noticed Giana sitting at her kitchen table. One nce at Ms. Jackson told me that Giana had put her up to this. Misha cursed under his breath beside me. This should be lun. I felt both Misha and Andrei put their hands on the small of my back, like they were ready for Giana to attack me. I could barely keep fromughing at that thought. I knew they were just being protective. They really were quite good at their jobs. They looked down at me, both had questioning looks on their faces. ¡°We don¡¯t have to stay, gazelle,¡± Misha said in Russian. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . Ms. Jackson looked at Misha, answering in Russian, ¡°at least give her a chance. She¡¯s trying to make things right, at least give her a chance to do so.¡± She crossed her arms across her chest and gave him a stern look that dared him to argue with her. He cursed under his breath, but didn¡¯t argue. I did notice that both Andrei and Misha stayed closer to me than they normally would have in Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. I smiled to myself knowing they felt so protective of me in such a minor situation. We walked further into her apartment. Both guys stepped in front of me, partially shielding me from Giana. I wasn¡¯t quite sure if they thought she was going toe at me or if they were worried I was going to have a go at her. It could go either way, really. We walked to the kitchen table, but I didn¡¯t make a move to sit. I was happy to hear her out, but I also wasn¡¯t going to go out of my way to be nice to her. I¡¯d already tried that route and it got me here. Giana looked up at both Andrei and Misha. I couldn¡¯t see their faces, but I was sure it was obvious they were angry. Giana asked, ¡°do they both need to be here?¡± Iughed. ¡°You¡¯ve been around long enough, Giana. You know I don¡¯t go anywhere without them,¡± I said, tly. She took a deep breath, then surprised me by speaking Italian so they couldn¡¯t understand. Ms. Jackson, who didn¡¯t know I could understand Italian, looked to me then back at Giana then back to me. Misha had to tell her quietly that I could understand Italian. ¡°Sephie, I do want to apologize to you. I unfairly judged you. You had so much knowledge about that drug and what it does to the people who take it that I thought you were an addict. You don¡¯t understand. In my family, addicts are the sc um of the earth. I automatically assumed you were one and thought the worst of you instead of finding out the truth,¡± she said, I answered her in English. I wasn¡¯t going to make this easy on her. ¡°Are you asking me for the truth now? Or are you just sorry that you got caught judging me unfairly?¡± I could feel my anger starting to rise. Her apology was weak and she was still not taking ownership of her actions. ¡°Or are you sorry that having Armando, then Keith, and now Ms. Jackson try to apologize for you isn¡¯t working in your favor?¡± ¡°I want to know the truth,¡± she said quietly, in Italian. ¡°You better be sure about that, because the truth won¡¯t make you feel any better about this situation,¡± I said. The guys both recognized the edge to my voice and tensed. Giana didn¡¯t say anything, she just nodded her head. ¡°The truth is that I was forced to live with my uncle after my m om died suddenly. He was the addict, not me. I learned about the effects of that drug to survive his repeated beatings. I learned how to wait it out long enough that the drug would make him pass out so I could lock myself in my room, hoping desperately that I would survive the night. I know all about the signs to look for when someone is on that drug because it literally meant life and death for me. I learned how to avoid him until he nattad zoo hot it didn¡¯t slu ve work and he would estch me when I cama hama dalharina s fresh bustina ¨C It¡¯e alen the raston T don¡¯t show my body to just anyone. My back is covered in scars because of the effects of that drug. Yet, you assume it¡¯s because I was the addict and instead of owning your mistake, you pretend you¡¯re the victim in this situation, ming your family for your false judgment. You assume that I¡¯m prudish or ultra religious because I don¡¯t want people to see my scars so they can judge me unfairly the same way you have. You see, I¡¯ve dealt with people like you since I was a teenager. Those who find out the truth still find ways to look at me differently, but it¡¯s not because of me. This isn¡¯t on me, Giana. This is all on you and why you feel the need to try and tear me down to make yourself feel better, because that¡¯s exactly what you¡¯re doing. You just haven¡¯t realized that there¡¯s nothing bad you can say to me that hasn¡¯t already been said. You¡¯re allowed to think whatever you need to about me to make yourself feel better, but do not, under any circumstances, expect me to continue to be nice or friendly toward you until you can own your actions and apologize like a fu cking adult, without the help of anyone else.¡± Her eyes were wide as I talked. Misha had quietly reached down and grabbed my hand as I was talking. He knew I was angry. but he also knew I never wanted to have this conversation in the first ce. Giana was too stunned to talk when I finished. Andrei looked at her, saying, ¡°that¡¯s not even half of what she¡¯s been through in her life. She¡¯s survived things that I¡¯m not sure I could¡¯ve survived. She¡¯s also been nothing but nice to you since you¡¯ve been here. She¡¯s the reason you and Mando are together now and this is how you choose to think of her? I hope you feel bad about this, Giana, I really, truly do. Because while Sephie is too nice to tell you how much you¡¯ve hurt her over this, I don¡¯t give a fu ck. You hurt her again and I can promise you, we won¡¯t be able to hold back next time.¡± There was an urgent knock at Ms. Jackson¡¯s door that interrupted our conversation. Misha and Andrei looked at each other, surprised. Andrei moved to the door, while Misha put himself between the door and me. Andrei looked through the peep ho le, then back to us, a small smile on his face. He opened the door to reveal a worried Adrik at the door. He walked into the apartment immediately, searching for me. Misha had stepped aside once Andrei started to open the door, so Adrik found me almost immediately. He was by my side in seconds. I couldn¡¯t help the smile that crept across my face. ¡°You felt me get angry, didn¡¯t you?¡± I asked, in Russian. He nodded, pulling me to him. He looked at Giana at the table, a new look of worry on her face since he arrived. He looked back to me, saying, ¡°well, at least I know why you were angry now. I did not expect her to be here.¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t either,¡± Misha said. I could still hear the anger in his voice too. Adrik nced at both of them, then to Ms. Jackson who was also stunned at what she¡¯d just witnessed. He looked back at me, then finally to Giana. ¡°We¡¯re done here,¡± he said in English as he pulled me with him toward the door. Andrei, who was still standing close to the door, opened it for us, following behind us and Misha. As the elevator doors closed, Adrik said, ¡°close your eyes, Andrei.¡± His lips crashed into mine as he pressed me against the wall of the elevator. We could hear both of themughing at us, but I didn¡¯t care. This time, I didn¡¯t realize how angry I was until he kissed me and I felt it subside. The doors dinged, signaling our arrival to his office floor. He broke the kiss, catching his breath. Andrei and Misha both stepped off the elevator to give us a moment. ¡°Shi t,¡± I said. He looked at me, a curious look on his face. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was that angry until you kissed me,¡± I said, quietly. He grinned at me. ¡°Your control is impressive, solnishka. It also exins why your eyes are now normal again,¡± he said, kissing my forehead. ¡°Come, you can keep mepany while we wait for my 11 o¡¯clock meeting that, luckily, waste today.¡± He grabbed my hand, pulling me toward his office. ¡°They weren¡¯t normal when you got to me?¡± I asked as we walked to his office. He shook his head no. ¡°I want to ask Andrei and Misha if they noticed it.¡± We walked into his empty office. He stuck his head outside the door, calling for Andrei and Misha. They both walked in and took a seat. ¡°Did either of you notice anything different about Sephie¡¯s eyes when she was down there?¡± Andrei said, ¡°Net, I was staring down na the whole time, to be honest. I was standing close enough to Sephie that I could feel her, so I didn¡¯t need to look at her.¡± Adrik nodded once, then looked to Misha. ¡°I nced at her when she was listening to Giana¡¯s initial apology. They looked darker, but I thought it was just because of the lighting in Ms. Jackson¡¯s kitchen. I knew she was angry though, so I grabbed her hand to try and help calm her down while she told Giana more than she ever wanted to.¡± I could feel myself getting upset and I heard the elevator ding, likely bringing Adrik¡¯s meeting with it. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about this.ter.¡± They all looked at me with concern on their faces. ¡°Please?¡± I said, smiling to try and let them know I was okay. Chapter 240 Chapter 240 Chapter Two Hundred Forty Sephie Just as histe meeting walked into the office, he looked at Andrei and Misha and said, in Russian, ¡°take her upstairs. Stay with her. I¡¯ll be up after this meeting is over. Get Ivan on your way up.¡± He pulled me to him for a quick kiss. ¡°I love you, solnishko. I¡¯ll be up as fast as I can,¡± he said, nodding to Andrei, who was standing behind me now. I felt Andrei put his hand on my back, guiding me toward the door. Once we were outside his office and out of sight of the meeting, Andrei stopped me. He stepped in front of me and turned away from me. He squatted down, opening his arms for me to jump on his back. I giggled, hopping on his back. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, Bubba,¡± I said. I hugged his neck tightly as we walked to the elevator. When the doors opened, Ivan was in the elevator. Misha had texted him from the office. ¡°You guys want to tell me what happened? I¡¯m guessing something happened if you¡¯re back this early from Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment,¡± Ivan said. I sighed, trying to make sure I didn¡¯t get angry again. I didn¡¯t want to interrupt Adrik¡¯s meeting and have him rush up to the penthouse because he was worried about me. Thankfully, Misha answered for me. ¡°Giana was waiting for her when she got to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment.¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. I could see Ivan¡¯s anger rise as he cursed in Russian. ¡°Does she not know she¡¯s an adult now?¡± ¡°Clearly she does not,¡± Andrei said. I could still hear the edge to his voice. I hugged his neck a little tighter. He squeezed my legs in response. ¡°We do have to be careful with how much we talk about this or Adrik is going toe rushing upstairs because he knows I¡¯m mad,¡± I said, trying to keep my smile under control. Ivan¡¯s mo uth fell open, which caused Andrei and Misha tough. ¡°He came to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. He knew she was angry from his office. I¡¯m honestly proud of him for not breaking the door down, but he walked in, basically grabbed Sephie and walked out. You should¡¯ve seen the look on Giana¡¯s face when he showed up,¡± Misha said, nowpletely amused by the situation. As we walked into the penthouse, Ivan asked, ¡°so he can now feel when you¡¯re angry even when you¡¯re not in the same room just like you can feel he¡¯s angry?¡± ¡°Yeah. And what¡¯s weird this time is that I didn¡¯t know I was that angry when I was talking to Giana. I mean, I certainly wasn¡¯t happy with her, but he said my eyes went dark, which they only do when I¡¯m like nuclear level angry. Except I didn¡¯t feel like I was that angry.¡± I looked sideways at Andrei as he ced me on the kitchen counter. ¡°That¡¯s also why he told you to close your eyes in the elevator. That makes it go away for both of us. I¡¯m really sorry for that, by the way. Nobody wants to watch us make out.¡± ¡°Spider monkey, don¡¯t apologize for that. I was teasing you this morning. It¡¯s clear as day you two can¡¯t keep your hands off each other. I¡¯m not standing in the way of that,¡± Andrei said,ughing. ¡°Your eyes go dark?¡± Ivan asked, clearly curious. ¡°I saw it this time, but I thought it was the lighting in Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment,¡± Misha said. ¡°They go from three colors to just One.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Brown, I think. But not the normal golden brown that¡¯s there all the time. Like really dark brown,¡± Misha sald. Ivan looked to me, clearly curious about this bit of information. I just shrugged my shoulders. ¡°I clearly don¡¯t know anything about it. Not like I can see them. Adrik said he noticed it that day with Mike. He¡¯s seen it a couple times since then. That night in his office when Andy told us Mike was working for Anthony. It happened a few times that night, actually. He tells me to blink and I can usually make it go away.¡± I looked at Ivan, not able to hide my smile. ¡°Maybe my demons are taking over now. This is my viin origin story.¡± Ivan grinned at me, shaking his head as heughed. Ivan looked to Andrei. ¡°You¡¯ve never noticed it when you¡¯ve sparred with her?¡± ¡°No. We can all see the switch flip when she gets angry, but if her eyes have changed, I haven¡¯t noticed them. But I usually don¡¯t have a lot of chances to gaze thoughtfully into her eyes,¡± he said, grinning at me. ¡°I¡¯ve never noticed her eyes changing when we¡¯ve been training either,¡± Misha said. ¡°I think it¡¯s different. You guys can make me angry, but it¡¯s still you and I know it¡¯s still you. We train, yes, but I don¡¯t really want to hurt either one of you. Like, you guys pick at surface level stuff to get me angry. When I¡¯ve gotten so angry that my eyes changed, it¡¯s much deeper wounds those people are poking at, I said, looking at the floor. I could feel myself getting upset again, so I tried to distract myself by staring at my feet dangling over the side of the kitchen counter. ¡°Princess¡­¡± Ivan said as he moved next to me. ¡°Yep, still here. Just trying to not be upset right now,¡± I said, trying to smile through the pain. Ivan didn¡¯t say anything further, but he hopped onto the counter next to me. I felt his substantial arm slide gently around my shoulders and pull me toward him. I leaned my head on his shoulder. I took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. ¡°Like, it¡¯s not just me, right? I¡¯m not being unreasonable here? Please tell me if I am. I¡¯ll admit I was an as shole right now just to make this st upidity stop.¡± ¡°I think you nailed it with everything you said to her, spider monkey. I¡¯m proud of you,¡± Andrei said. I smiled at him. ¡°Um, can we talk about how ri diculously cute you were when you threatened her life though? Because that¡¯s a thing.¡± Ivanughed, causing me to look at him. ¡°It happened.¡± I pointed at Andrei. ¡°Adorable.¡± We were stillughing and trying to find more things tough at to keep me from getting upset when Adrik, Viktor, and Stephen walked in. Adrik still had a worried look on his face, but rxed slightly when he saw usughing. Ivan jumped off the counter so Adrik could have ess to me. ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± I said, as he stepped between my legs, his hands on my thighs. He searched my eyes for a minute, then clicked his tongue. ¡°Li ar.¡± I chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m mostly okay,¡± I said, smiling at him. ¡°Tell me what happened,¡± he said. He was looking at Misha and Andrei when he said it. ¡°Giana was waiting for us when we got to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment. I don¡¯t know how much Ms. Jackson knows about what happened, but Giana definitely put her up to calling us down there. I told Sephie we didn¡¯t have to stay, but I got reprimanded by Ms. Jackson,¡± Misha said, sheepishly. ¡°Giana tried to get rid of me and Misha too. Sephie justughed at her. Why does everyone want to get rid of us, spider monkey? It hurts my feelings,¡± Andrei said, his handsome smile stretching across his face. ¡°What did she say to you when she was speaking Italian?¡± Misha asked. I scoffed. ¡°She said she owed me an apology, that because I knew so much about brawn, she just assumed I was an addict, then she told me I didn¡¯t understand and that in her family, addicts are the sc um of the earth and she assumed I was one before finding out the truth.¡± They all looked at me, somewhat stunned. ¡°I¡¯m even more impressed with the restraint you showed when you responded to her, then,¡± Andrei said. ¡°That¡¯s quite possibly the weakest apology I¡¯ve ever heard,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Was it her first time? Feels like her first time,¡± Stephen said. ¡°This exins why she wanted everyone else to apologize for her. She su cks at it,¡± Ivan said. I couldn¡¯t help butugh at their responses. ¡°Are you guys saying this just because it¡¯s me and you all love me and want to protect me? You can tell me if I¡¯m being the bi tch here.¡± ¡°Noooo, Seph. That¡¯s a terrible apology. She¡¯s deflecting all responsibility on to her family, who has nothing to do with this. She¡¯s old enough that she should be able to think for herself at this point in her life and make her own decisions about people. ming them is zy. Quite frankly, I¡¯m offended by her lack of imagination,¡± Stephen said. ¡°What was your response?¡± Ivan asked, looking at me. I took a deep breath again, trying not to get upset by having to retell it. Misha answered for me. ¡°In normal Sephie fashion, she verbally annihted her. She asked if Giana was asking for the truth now. She even made Giana say yes twice before she told her about her uncle and how he was the reason she had so much. knowledge about brawn. It went downhill for Giana from there.¡± I could feel Adrik¡¯s anger starting to rise, which wasn¡¯t helping mine stay quiet. I put my hands on his chest. ¡°It¡¯s okay. Andrei threatened her life after I got done. That¡¯s when you showed up and rescued me,¡± I said, grinning at him. Chapter 241 Chapter 241 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-One Sephie ¡°Judging from what I felt in my office, it¡¯s a good thing for Giana that I did. It was so strong and so sudden,¡± Adrik said, his eyes showing nothing but concern. ¡°I didn¡¯t know I was that angry,¡± I said, looking down at my hands. ¡°When I got to you, it changed. There was a calm to you, but I could still feel it. It felt like mine, when I¡¯m using it to intimidate someone. Like it¡¯s just under the surface, only yours is much less chaotic than mine. Yours is focused,¡± he said, his finger lightly ying with the curls around my face. ¡°But your eyes were dark. That¡¯s one of the reasons I pulled you from the apartment.¡± ¡°There was more than one reason?¡± I asked. He nodded. ¡°I¡¯m si ck of things that stress you out and make you relive your past before you¡¯re ready. Especially when it¡¯s as trivial as this is,¡± he said. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°So, it¡¯s not just me then,¡± I said, smiling. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him to me so I could kiss him. He leaned back, smiling at me. ¡°It¡¯s not just you, solnishko. This is a ri diculous matter. I¡¯m thinking of telling Armando to just keep her away from us for the time being. We have enough to worry about without having to worry about 12-year-old girl drama,¡± he said. ¡°I think that might make him mad. He¡¯s in an awkward spot and you need him. I don¡¯t have an issue with Armando. I wouldn¡¯t have an issue with Giana if she would act her age. Maybe wait on talking to him. Let¡¯s see what today does for her,¡± I said. ¡°She might keep herself away from us on her own. No need to put Armando into an even more awkward spot.¡± Viktor¡¯s phone rang. He checked the number, then walked toward me. ¡°It¡¯s Chen,¡± he said, handing the phone to me, I put it on speaker. ¡°What¡¯s up, Chen?¡± ¡°Sephie. How are you, my girl?¡± ¡°Good, Chen. How are you? Everything okay?¡± I asked, somewhat concerned as to why he was calling. ¡°Yeah, everything is fine for now, but it might not be for long. DJ has some info from his extensive networks through the city. Dude knows everything that¡¯s going on in the city, I swear. The people in Sal¡¯s part of the city are about to revolt. They¡¯re organizing to fight back against Sal. Word has it that Anthony and Sal¡¯s long-lost brother areing back, too.¡± ¡°Well, shi t.¡± ¡°urate response. DJ seems to think that if Sal¡¯s area starts to revolt, then other areas of the city will follow,¡± he said. ¡°Double shi t. If that happens, they won¡¯t even need the brawn. There will be chaos in the city without it. Does DJ happen to know if there¡¯s clear leaders in this organization of the people in Sal¡¯s area of town?¡± I asked. ¡°He didn¡¯t say for sure, but I¡¯d bet good money the answer is yes. DJ knows everyone. Everyone knows DJ. He¡¯s like a rockstar of drug dealers,¡± Chen said,ughing. ¡°Can you see if he can find out that information? We can meet with them, same as we met with you. We¡¯re trying to keep innocent people from getting hurt. If they revolt, I¡¯m worried that there will be mass casualties,¡± I said. I nced up to Adrik, who had a smirk on his face. ¡°I will get that info for you and get back to you.¡± ¡°Sooner is better, as I¡¯m sure you know,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my girl. This public servant offers prompt service,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°Thank you, Chen. You¡¯re the best,¡± I said, ending the call. I handed the phone back to Viktor, then looked at Adrik curious as to why he was smirking at me. ¡°You¡¯re a natural at this, solnishko. I don¡¯t even need to tell you what to do. You¡¯re already three steps ahead in any situation,¡± he said, smiling down at 1. ¡°Told you. You were made for this shi t, gazelle,¡± Misha said, his broad smile stretched across his face. Adrik spent as much time in the penthouse with me and the guys as he could before returning to his office for the rest of his meetings that day. He promised he would make everything as quick as possible so he could get back to me. He also made sure that Ivan, Andrei, and Misha knew to stay with me the rest of the afternoon. ¡°They can help me cook dinner,¡± I said, grinning at Adrik as he pulled me to him before leaving. ¡°I¡¯ll do anything you want after that breakfast this morning,¡± Misha said, rubbing his stomach. I couldn¡¯t help but giggle at his response, which helped Adrik rx too. He was still worried about me. He leaned down and kissed me gently, telling me once more he would be back as quickly as possible and that he loved me. It made me feel all soft and nougaty inside that they were all so worried about me. And that they all felt so protective of me. I was starting to get used to it, but it was still a new phenomenon in my life. I was so used to being on my own and dealing with everything by myself. Used to having my closest friend ditch me for histest bedroom conquest. Used to only telling people the bare minimum about me for fear they would run away. We moved to the couches after Adrik left with Viktor and Stephen. Ivan pulled me against him once more, his giant arm holding me close. I looked up at him. ¡°I think I need the acupuncturedy again,¡± I said. He just grinned at me. ¡°I was just about to say that, princess. I can give her a call and see when she cane,¡± he said as he got up from the couch, pulling his phone from his pocket. When he got up, I got a chill, so I ran back to the bedroom to grab one of Adrik¡¯s sweatshirts. When I came back out, Andrei saw the sweatshirt and just opened his arms. ¡°Come here, spider monkey.¡± I grinned at him, running to the couch. He moved so I could lean back against him for maximum warmth. Ivan walked back to the couches,ughing at me curled up next to Andrei under a newyer of clothing. ¡°She¡¯ll be here in two hours, princess. It might help you getting cold so muchtely too. I had that problem before and she fixed it,¡± he said. ¡°She did? No wonder you¡¯ve kept her a secret for so many years,¡± I said. Ivanughed. ¡°I would¡¯ve shared, but nobody else was interested.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know it was a thing that people did until Sephie¡¯s concussion,¡± Misha said. ¡°It seems painful. Why would you want to be stabbed repeatedly? I¡¯ve been stabbed twice. I didn¡¯t enjoy it,¡± Andrei said. Iughed. ¡°Bubba, it¡¯s not like getting stabbed. They¡¯re like tiny little needles. It¡¯s more annoying than anything when she first puts them in, but then it all goes away and it makes everything feel better. The first time hurt the worst, but after that, it didn¡¯t hurt much at all.¡± ¡°The first time, I had to keep Adrik from going In to save you,¡± Ivan said, smirking at me. I sighed. ¡°If I haven¡¯t told yoittely, I adore how protective you all are of me. Going from being completely on my own to now having you guys ready to punch a bi tch because she was rude to me is a very nice change in my life.¡± ¡°You deserve it. gazelle. You deserve to have people around you that love you and want to take care of you,¡± Misha said. Andrei tightened his grip around me, pulling me closer. I suddenly felt much warmer as I smiled at Misha and Ivan. I grabbed Andrei¡¯s. arm and held on to it as we talked. Chapter 242 Chapter 242 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Two Sephie I felt Andrei gently shake me. ¡°Spider monkey, it¡¯s time for your acupuncture.¡± I didn¡¯t realize I had fallen asleep while we were talking. I was still tired from Adrik keeping me up toote the night before, plus having to deal with Giana unexpectedly, I must¡¯ve just passed out. Andrei was warm enough that I was sound asleep when the acupuncturist got there. I rubbed my eyes, still notpletely awake. ¡°Sorry, I didn¡¯t mean to fall asleep, but thank you for keeping me warm,¡± I said. ¡°You only fall asleep when you really need it, spider monkey. You¡¯ve had to deal with a lot. I¡¯m d you got a quick nap,¡± Andrei said. Ivan walked in with the acupuncturist as I stood up from the couch, stretching. The acupuncturist looked at me, then looked at Ivan. ¡°You should¡¯ve called me sooner,¡± she said, almost chastising him. He looked down at her, surprised by her reaction. He looked to me, somewhat worried. She walked to me, taking my hand and leading me to one of the spare bedrooms. Poor Ivan just stood there, still stunned as we disappeared into the bedroom. ¡°It¡¯s not Ivan¡¯s fault. He¡¯s the one that suggested we call you again,¡± I said. She looked up at me while she unpacked her bag, arge smile on her face. ¡°Sometimes I like to give Ivan a hard time. It keeps him on his toes,¡± she said,ughing. ¡°But I can tell you¡¯re carrying more than you need to right now.¡± She took my hand, pressing on the spot that Ivan and Adrik use when I have a headache. She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them and looked at me, ¡°How are things with your boyfriend?¡± she asked. ¡°Good. Really good,¡± I said. I could feel my cheeks flush as I thought about the night before. She smiled slyly at me. ¡°You two are very good for each other. But you¡¯re unbnced. He¡¯s avoiding a piece of him, which is making it grow stronger in you. You¡¯re strong, Sephie, which is why it hasn¡¯t caused a huge problem yet. It will, though, if you, let it go on too long.¡± I chewed on my bottom lip while I digested her words. ¡°He¡¯s worried I¡¯ll love him less,¡± I said. I knew she was talking about his darker side. ¡°He thinks he¡¯s a monster because of it. They all do, if I¡¯m being honest. I don¡¯t know the right words to say to them.¡± As she got started stabbing me, as Andrei would say, she said, ¡°monsters choose evil for evil¡¯s sake. I don¡¯t know your boyfriend, but I know Ivan. Ivan is not a monster. There¡¯s a difference between a dangerous man and a monster. A dangerous man has looked in the face of evil and chosen to be good. A dangerous man knows he has arge capacity for evil, but he chooses to control that side of him. Ivan is dangerous. I¡¯m thinking your boyfriend is also dangerous.¡± I nodded my head in agreement. ¡°He¡¯s been fighting that side of him that is needed to take care of the situation we¡¯re facing at the moment, because he¡¯s worried that it will change my opinion of him.¡± ¡°Will it?¡± ¡°Not in the least. I love him. All of him,¡± I said. She was quiet as she continued stabbing me. She finally looked at me watching her. ¡°I can talk to him. He listened to mest time. It¡¯s obvious he wants to do what is best for you. By him avoiding that side of himself, he¡¯s transferring it to you. You can control it now, but it will ultimately be too much for you to bear. You two have a special rtionship. It¡¯s been getting more so, hasn¡¯t it? More Intimate?¡± she asked. I couldn¡¯t help the smile on toy face, I didn¡¯t even need to answer. She saw the look on my face and knew the answer. ¡°It will be more so once he restores bnce,¡± she said. She had finished cing the needles where they needed to go. She patted my arm. saying. ¡°I will go tell Ivan I need to see your boyfriend. I¡¯ll be right back.¡± She left me to my own thoughts about how much more intimacy I could handle. In addition to being able to feel each other¡¯s anger, we were starting to feel other emotions just as strongly. Mostly when ites to s ex, but I was noticing it other times now too. It seemed like I would notice these things first, then Adrik would be able to feel the same thing soon after. While I¡¯d been able to essentially read his mind from the beginning, he was now beginning to be capable of doing the same to me. My mind wandered to the dream I had where my dad had told me that Adrik and I were always meant to find each other. Were we able to do these things because we¡¯d spent so many lifetimes together or was this the first lifetime we¡¯d discovered the ability to do it? I wasn¡¯t sure I would ever get the answer to that question, but it made me smile to think about falling in love with him over and over again. I knew what we had was special and there wasn¡¯t a day that went by that I wasn¡¯t incredibly grateful for it. We finished the session. Just as we walked out of the spare bedroom, Adrik walked through the penthouse looking for me. He had a wide smile across his face as his eyesnded on mine. He closed the distance between us quickly. ¡°You feel better, solnishko,¡± he said as he pulled me to him. He kissed my cheek, leaning down to my car to add, ¡°I could feel it too.¡± His smile widened once more when he stood up and saw the look of surprise on my face. He pushed a curl from my face. ¡°You look lighter again.¡± I giggled. ¡°You do too. There¡¯s some weird acupuncture by osmosis going on here.¡± The acupuncturist took the opportunity to motion us back into the spare bedroom. ¡°I can offer some insight into that. Please,¡± she said, motioning us to the room. Adrik grabbed my hand,cing his fingers through mine as we followed her into the bedroom. Adrik was curious once she closed the door. He looked from me to her, a sly grin on his face. ¡°You offered valuable insightst time. I can¡¯t deny I¡¯m very curious to hear what you have to offer this time.¡± She smiled at him. ¡°You two are very special. A bond like yourses around very rarely.¡± She looked at both of us, a serious look on her face. ¡°You realize this isn¡¯t the first lifetime you¡¯ve spent together, right?¡± I smiled, nodding my head. Adrik just put his arm around me, pulling me to him. She smiled at both of us. ¡°I told youst time that you each find bnce within the other. In Chinese medicine we call it the yin and the yang. There are parts of each in the other, but one is more masculine while the other is feminine. Together, you find bnce.¡± She looked directly at Adrik, even more serious than before. ¡°Right now, you¡¯re fighting your masculine, which is causing it to show up more in Sephie. She¡¯s very strong, so she¡¯s been able to handle it, but it won¡¯t always be this way. It will eventually cause problems.¡± She held her hand out, asking for his hand. He ced his hand in hers. She pressed on the same spot between his thumb and forefinger that she had pressed on me while she closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes, she looked more determined and slightly surprised. ¡°She¡¯s stronger than I thought. You¡¯re very strong, but she¡¯s able to handle it.¡± ¡°What do you mean? Are you talking about my anger?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s part of it. Anger can be very useful when used correctly. Your anger is only a piece of it, though. That part of you that wants to protect her is very strong, but you¡¯re fighting the very thing that will resolve your problems. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on. I don¡¯t need to know what¡¯s going on, but it¡¯s big. It¡¯s only going to get bigger the longer you keep trying to suppress the side of you that can take care of it. Sephie told me earlier that you¡¯re worried you¡¯re a monster because of it. I will tell you the same thing I told her. The same thing I¡¯ve told Ivan, too, for the record. There is a difference between being a monster and being dangerous. A dangerous man knows how capable of evil acts he truly is, but he epts that part of himself and chooses good. A monster will give in to the evil side of himself every time. You¡¯re incredibly strong. You¡¯ve already fa ced more evil in your short life than most will in their entire lives. Your hesitancy to use that side of you, even though you¡¯re using it for good, will continue to upset the bnce you two find in each other.¡± He looked at me, his eyes were now wide with worry. Sheughed. ¡°You¡¯re not hurting her. She can handie It. Have you ever tried to ignore an emotion before?¡± she asked. He nodded his head. ¡°Have you noticed how that emotion never really goes away? It just gets bigger. Or sometimes it will appear to have gone away, but it alwayses back as something else and ten times worse. This is what¡¯s happening now. But because of the bond you two share, she¡¯s showing you what you¡¯re ignoring.¡± She looked at me. ¡°You¡¯ve had more angertely, haven¡¯t you?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°But you¡¯ve also been getting cold more?¡± I nodded again. She thought for a moment. ¡°Can you calm his anger when it happens?¡±N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Chapter 243 Chapter 243 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Three Sephie ¡°Like no one else has ever been able to,¡± Adrik answered. She inhaled, thinking more before she responded. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re meant to help him control his anger, but not take it on as your own. The increased cold is a sign from your body that you¡¯re taking too much of his fire, if you will. Your body is trying to rebnce itself.¡± She then looked to Adrik. ¡°You¡¯re meant to be her fire, but to also let her soothe the mes when needed. The more you fight against your fire, the bigger the inferno will get. She¡¯s trying to help you control it, but subconsciously, she knows you¡¯re fighting against it so she¡¯s taking more of it than she needs to. True power lies in surrender. You are who you are and she loves you for that, just as you love her for who she is. The more you fight against epting that for a universal truth, the bigger this problem you¡¯re facing will get. By surrendering to who you are, who you¡¯ve always been, but consciously choosing good, you¡¯ll realize your true power.¡± Adrik was somewhat stunned, as was 1. She smiled at both of us, moving to get her bag that was sitting close to the window. As she stepped into the sunlight streaming through the window, I could clearly see the outline of a pair of wings behind her. My breath caught, but the vision was gone just as quickly as it appeared. I looked to Adrik to see if he had seen it, but he was curious about my surprise. I decided to keep my mo uth sh ut for the time being about what I¡¯d just seen. She turned back to us. ¡°It would help if I worked on both of you next time, if you¡¯re up for it?¡± she asked, looking at Adrik. He nced down at me, a sh of nervousness on his face, but agreed to it. ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt,¡± I said, smiling sweetly at him. He looked like he wanted to believe me, but he was still very unsure about it. I extended my hand to her. ¡°Thank you, once again, for helping me feel better. You¡¯re an angel.¡± She took my hand and winked at 1. We walked out to find all the guys in the penthouse, waiting for us. Ivan got up to take the acupuncturist back downstairs. He smiled at me when he saw me. ¡°Lighter,¡± he said, following the acupuncturist to the door. ¡°Sestrichka, you look much better. I didn¡¯t know it would be such an obvious difference,¡± Viktor said. He looked at Andrei. ¡°You should try it, Andrei. It might make you prettier too. You could use the help.¡± ¡°Shots fired, Viktor,¡± I saidughing. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to him, Bubba. You¡¯re very pretty. You¡¯re a pretty, pretty princess.¡± I grinned at him as heughed at us both. ¡°Sh ut your mo uth, Viktor. She said I was a pretty, pretty princess,¡± Andrei said, pouting like a kid. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Adrik pulled me closer, his broad smile across his face as he leaned down and pressed his lips to mine. ¡°I fu cking love you,¡± he said, smiling against my lips. ¡°And I fu cking love you. Are you done for the day now?¡± I asked. He nodded his head, kissing my forehead. ¡°Who wants to help me with dinner?¡± I asked everyone. They all stood at once and started filing toward the kitchen. I looked at Adrik. ¡°They¡¯re all so eager,¡± I saidughing. ¡°You had them wrapped around your finger even before you started feeding them, but now that you¡¯re feeding them, you¡¯ll never get rid of them.¡± As we fell into the routine of cooking dinner and talking about the day¡¯s events, Viktor told me that my presence had been missed during one of Adrik¡¯s afternoon meetings. ¡°Oh yeah? Did you meet with Mando?¡± I asked, curious. Adrikughed. ¡°No, it was one of the businessmen that¡¯s in on the project I have with Mando, Neal is his name. He¡¯s stillughing about your wet dreamment. We¡¯re all meeting with a few restaurants on Monday to gauge interest and to see if we can secure upancy even before the project begins. He requested your presence on Monday,¡± he said, smirking at me. ¡°Sh ut up.¡± Viktorughed. ¡°It¡¯s true. He was disappointed you weren¡¯t around today. He said he hasn¡¯tughed that hard in a business meeting in a very long time.¡± ¡°What did you say, gazelle?¡± Misha asked. ¡°They were worried that restaurants wouldn¡¯t want to lease space in their building. I told them it was basically a restaurant¡¯s wet dream because they didn¡¯t even have to do outside marketing. Their customer base was the building.¡± I said. ¡°But then she said, ¡®oh shi t I just said that out loud didn¡¯t l¡¯ as she covered her mo uth,¡± Adrik said, laughing. He stepped closer to me, but I pushed him back, yfully. ¡°In my defense, I wasn¡¯t supposed to be in that meeting,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Your inability to control your mo uth is one of the best things about you, sestrichka. You did warn us about it that first day. I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re surprised by it,¡± Viktor said. His deepugh filling the penthouse. I got caught up in the pure joy that wasughing and joking with the guys. I knew our strange family dynamic was misunderstood by just about everyone else, but I loved it. We spent the weekend at the penthouse so that I could keep getting acupuncture. She felt it would be helpful for a few days in a row. She also worked on Adrik while she was there. He was somewhat terrified at the thought of it the first time, so he watched while she worked on me first. ¡°This isn¡¯t helping me feel better about this process, solnishko,¡± he said as he watched her putting the needles where they needed to go. She asked for him to put his hand out in front of hini. He reluctantly did so. She flipped his hand over and ced one needle in his wrist, then she did the same on his other wrist. Without a word, she continued cing needles on me where they needed to go. I could feel the anxiety disappear from Adrik as it happened. I picked my head up and looked at him, to see his reaction. His eyes were wide. ¡°What kind of ck magic is this, he saidughing. Sheughed, but continued working. Adrik protested a few times as she worked on him, just as I did. Once he got past the initial pain, it started to feel better and he rxed. The first time was the worst for both of us. Each time she worked on us got better. He was more rxed than he¡¯d been in a long time by the time Monday rolled around. 1, however, was slightly nervous about being included in this meeting for his building project with Armando. ¡°At least it gives me a reason to wear the clothes Ms. Jackson talked me into buying,¡± I said as I got out of the shower. Adrik raised his eyebrow at me. ¡°What did you have in mind, malishka?¡± he asked as he watched me wrap a towel around my na ked body. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t you like to know¡­¡± ¡°Cr uel and unusual punishment is what that is,¡± he said, smacking my a ss as he walked out of the bathroom. I decided on a grey pencil skirt and a wh ite blouse. The best part of the outfit, in my opinion, were the red heels. I usually avoided wearing heels. I was tall enough on my own, but being surrounded by literal giants meant that I was always the short one, even with heels. I didn¡¯t have to worry about towering over anyone. Adrik had gone to the kitchen to return a phone call as I finished getting dressed. I braided my hair, putting on minimal makeup. I heard him end the call as I walked down the hallway to the kitchen. He turned to look at me, his mo uth open slightly. He groaned. ¡°I¡¯m not going to be able to take my eyes off you during the meeting,¡± he said, his sexy smirk slowly appearing on his face. ¡°Is it too much? I don¡¯t want a repeat of the scummywyer in Italy,¡± I asked. He pulled me to him, holding me tightly. ¡°I¡¯m not giving anyone a moment of hesitation that you¡¯re mine this time,¡± he said. He grabbed my a ss for emphasis, making me squeal. He took my hands and put them around his neck, wrapping his arms. around my waist. ¡°You look beautiful, Sephie. You always look beautiful, even when you just wake up and have hair that screams I¡¯ve just been properly fu cked.¡¯ That might be my favorite, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± he said, smiling down at me. ¡°So, every morning, then?¡± I asked,ughing at his faraway look that broadcasted his di rty thoughts. Chapter 244 Chapter 244 Two Hundred Forty-Four Adrik I couldn¡¯t keep my eyes off Sephie even on the elevator down to my office. This is going to be the longest meeting ever. ¡°Am I expected to remember everyone¡¯s names? Because that¡¯s not a thing I do,¡± she asked, chewing on her lip. Iughed. ¡°No, love. You have me. That¡¯s a thing I do. You don¡¯t need to.¡± She cut her eyes up at me, a mischievous look in her eye. ¡°I knew I kept you around for a reason,¡± she said as the doors opened. She walked off the elevator like she owned the ce. I¡¯ve never been more turned on in my life. Armando was already in my office when we walked in. He had a habit of being extra early torge meetings to make surest- minute details were taken care of. I appreciated it about him, as it meant fewer details for me to have to worry about. He looked up from the papers in his hand as Sephie walked in. ¡°Sephie, my dear. You look beautiful as always, cara mia,¡± he said, opening his arms for her. She walked to him. ¡°Mando. It¡¯s so good to see you,¡± she said as she hugged him. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°It¡¯s been too long. I¡¯ve missed you, but I¡¯m very happy you decided toe today,¡± he said, kissing both her cheeks. Sephie right. Giana had kept herself away from us so far. Armando had taken her to his house over the weekend again, so it had been a few days since I¡¯d seen him, even. Things seemed calm, for the moment, so I wasn¡¯tining. She stepped back, looking between both Armando and me. ¡°What are the specifics of this meeting again?¡± she asked. She already knew the answer to that question. She was giving Armando a reason to talk to her. I turned so he couldn¡¯t see me and winked at her as Armando began filling in details about the meeting. Armando was still talking 20 minutester when Viktor stuck his head in the office. ¡°Everyone is in the conference room,¡± he said. He gave Sephie a high-five as she walked by. ¡°You look like you¡¯re about to run this meeting, sestrichka,¡± he said in Russian as we walked to the conference room. ¡°I am the go ddamn princess,¡± she said, her gorgeous smile across her face as she walked into the conference room. I saw her hesitate once she nced around the room. She turned to me, saying in Russian, ¡°second man from the end on the other side of the table owns the restaurant I used to work at,¡± she said. I could feel she was still calm. I think it surprised her to see him here more than anything. I still stopped her before we walked any further. ¡°Is that a problem? I can get rid of him if it is,¡± I said. She smiled shyly at me. ¡°He¡¯s fine. He¡¯s a nice guy. I just didn¡¯t expect him to be here,¡± she said. ¡°But thank you for always being willing to destroy anything that might be a threat to me.¡± I kissed her temple as we continued to the table. ¡°Always, my love.¡± I kept my eye on the man she had pointed out. He was clearly surprised to see Sephie walk into the meeting. Even more surprised that she sat down next to me. I pulled her chair next to mine, stretching my arm across herp. I nodded to Armando, who started the meeting. We were pitching the idea of the building to several restaurant owners, hoping they would sign a contract signifying they would lease space once the building was finished. There was space for at least five restaurants, with the potential for splitting the space up into smaller restaurants il necessary. The location was in a great part of town, so it should¡¯ve been an easy sell. A few of the restaurant owners were hesitant, however. The owner of the restaurant where Sephle used to work was one that was hesitant. ¡°What kind of guarantees do you have that the building will be full? And what kind of taxes are we going to be hit with if we lease space in this building?¡± he asked. The tax question was more about which boss that part of the city belonged to. The building was in Armando¡¯s ared of the city, thankfully, so we didn¡¯t need to go into details about how that wouldn¡¯t matter very soon. Two of the other restaurant owners nodded in agreement to his question. I wasn¡¯t sure what areas of the city they were from, but I imagined they were being charged extra taxes right now. ¡°We already have 30% of the office space leased, as well as 50% of the apartments sold or leased. We haven¡¯t even broke ground on the project yet. The building will be full by the time it¡¯s finished. As for taxes, I don¡¯t charge unfair taxes in my area of the city,¡± Armando said. Sephie stood up, going to a map showing the location of the building. ¡°Gentlemen, I don¡¯t know the location of all of your restaurants, but I do know where yours is, Kevin. You¡¯ve got at least 15 other restaurants within a 5-block radius of your restaurant. Those are just the ones I could remember off the top of my head. I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s a simr situation for the rest of you, give or take.¡± She pointed to the map. ¡°This building will be here.¡± She ran her finger over an entire block of buildings on the map. ¡°These buildings? Apartments. There¡¯s one bodega, but no restaurants.¡± She moved to the next block. ¡°These buildings? Office space. Two more bodegas and one coffee shop. No restaurants.¡± She continued for three more blocks around the location of the new building. ¡°So that makes 5 restaurants total in this 5-block radius, not counting the restaurant space this building will provide. I¡¯m not the best at numbers, but even I know those are pretty fu cking good odds. You¡¯d be id iots not to jump at this chance, but by all means, keep hesitating if you ha te making an easy profit.¡± I heard Viktor clear his throat at the door. I knew he was trying not tough. I had casually rested my chin in my hand to hide my smile when she got up because I knew whatever she was about to do was going to be great. I nced at everyone¡¯s faces as she walked back to sit down. My business associates were all trying not tough as well. The restaurant owners who were on board originally were also trying not tough. The ones who were hesitant all had the look of being fo olish across their faces. Armando caught Sephie¡¯s eye as she sat down, winking at her. The meeting continued. All restaurant owners were on board by the end of the meeting, all signing contracts to lease space in the building once the building was finished. As the meeting concluded and everything was being finalized with thewyers in attendance, several of my business associates, including Neal, came up to me and Sephie. ¡°Can she pleasee to every meeting?¡± Neal asked, finally able tough. The others agreed with him, making her blush. They keptughing amongst themselves as they talked with each other and the restaurant owners. The owner of the restaurant she used to work at, Kevin, walked up to her as well. ¡°Sephie, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± he said, extending his hand to her. ¡°Hi Kevin. How are things at the restaurant?¡± she asked. I knew she was likely curious about Max. ¡°They¡¯re good. We had a rough patch after you left, but we¡¯re recovering now. Staffing issues,¡± he said, dismissively. ¡°Chef issues, you mean?¡± she asked. Heughed. ¡°Of course you¡¯d know. Yes, chef issues. It¡¯s been taken care of now and business is picking back up. Numbers at the bar are almost back to normal now,¡± he said. ¡°Good. That makes me happy to hear. I hope no one died while you resolved the chef issues,¡± she said. ¡°Oh, you know know. It was very dicey, not gonna lie,¡± he said, chuckling. ¡°I¡¯m d to see you doing so well, Sephie. I was very sorry to see you leave the restaurant, but clearly you were meant for bigger and better things. Mostly convincing stubborn restaurant owners to take advantage of great offers in front of them.¡± ¡°Oh that? That¡¯s just a normal Monday, Kevin,¡± she said sarcastically. One of thewyers interrupted their conversation, pulling Kevin back for more signatures and paperwork, leaving Sephie and I alone. I stepped closer to her. ¡°I¡¯m d you decided toe, my love.¡± ¡°You¡¯re just saying that because you can¡¯t stop looking at my as s in this skirt,¡± she said as she turned away from me. ¡°Seriously. Look at it. It looks amazing.¡± she said. I stepped closer to her, my lips close to her ear. ¡°Careful, love. I¡¯m not above bending your over the desk in my office before everyone has a chance to leave.¡± I heard her breath hitch. ¡°Shi t. That backfired.¡± She turned to face me, her eyes showing a mix of lust and worry. ¡°You¡¯re so much better at this than I am,¡± she said. She nced around the room, then quickly pressed her lips to mine. Iughed quietly, brushing my cheek against her neck. I knew that feeling my facial hair on her neck turned her on, but this. time I felt her response. I groaned under my breath, causing her to look at me, somewhat surprised. She searched my eyes for a just a moment, then let out a small gasp. ¡°You felt that too?¡± I nodded. ¡°We are in so much trouble,¡± she said, giggling. Chapter 245 Chapter 245 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Five Adrik My business associates began leaving the conference room, leaving just a few, along with Armando. Sephie noticed Armando having an impassioned conversation with another associate, in Italian. I nced at her and she immediately made herself look busy to get closer to them. I watched her get closer so she could hear, but she stayed out of sight of even Armando. The man he was talking to was more of an associate of Armando¡¯s than mine. This was the first project I¡¯d worked with him on, so I didn¡¯t know him as well as the other men in the meeting. Armando trusted him though, so I allowed him to be brought on as an investor. He was a very wealthy man. Armando said his family had done business with him here as well as Italy. It sounded like they were arguing, but Italians were a passionate lot, so what sounded like arguing might¡¯ve just been normal, everyday conversation. It was the same for Russians. What sounded like us threatening your life was most likelypletely benign. Sephie continued to listen to their conversation until they were finished. She had gathered up some papers and walked away from them, so as not to arouse suspicion when Armando and the other man left the conference room. She walked back to me. She looked slightly tense. I went to ask her what was said and she simply shook her head. ¡°Not here,¡± she said in Russian. It must¡¯ve been a serious conversation, then. That didn¡¯t make me happy. She must¡¯ve felt my anger, because she ced her hand on my chest. ¡°Not yet, either. It might be nothing.¡± She smiled sweetly at me, then turned to walk toward Viktor, motioning for me to follow her. ¡°Viktor, can you make sure the guyse to the office once everyone is gone? And can you also make sure Armando stays away for a bit?¡± she asked him sweetly, still speaking Russian. I always had the impression that she thought of Viktor like a father. figure. He was the oldest of our little family, as he was a few years older than I was. She would tell the other guys what to do. She would even tell me what to do sometimes, but she always asked Viktor like she would a parental figure. It was always sweet to witness. He never denied her. None of us did. But you could see his heart melt every single time she went to him with a request. ¡°Of course, sestrichka. I¡¯ll have Chris and Keith distract him,¡± Viktor responded. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, Papa Bear,¡± she said, grinning at him. It took a few minutes for everyone to finish their conversations and leave the conference room. It took longer for them to leave the building, which meant Sephie and I had a few minutes alone in my office. While I had my own thoughts about how we could spend that time, I somehow managed to control myself. As we waited for the guys to show up, I asked her about the conversation between Armando and his associate. She knew I didn¡¯t like surprises, so she told me what she¡¯d overheard, taking her normal spot on the edge of my desk. ¡°I never caught the other man¡¯s name, but he was asking Armando about the Mexicans. He made it sound like Anthony and Lorenzo had reached a new deal with them. They still think they can bypass Trino, clearly. He also sounded like he was trying to talk Armando into switching sides, basically. That¡¯s what they were arguing about when we first heard them. Armando resisted at first, but by the end of the conversation, I couldn¡¯t tell if he was just agreeing with the guy to sh ut him up or if he was actually considering it. I couldn¡¯t see his face. I need to see a face to be able to get more information, but it¡¯s Armando, so I want to give him the benefit of the doubt. He doesn¡¯t like any kind of confrontation, so it¡¯s possible he was pretending to consider it just to be done with the conversation,¡± she said. As she was talking, she had taken her heels off and stood to ce them on the floor by my desk. When she stood up from bending over, I grabbed her and kissed her passionately. I felt her knees go weak, so I pulled her tighter against me, holding her up. I was almost desperate for her. My tongue forcing its way into her mo uth, not giving her a chance to resist. She was momentarily surprised, but then I felt her match my passion. She knew that she could quiet my demons like no other and she was always willing to do so. My lungs finally began to protest theck of oxygen and I had to stop. As I caught my breath, I leaned my forehead against hers. ¡°I need help controlling the chaos,¡± I said. She put one hand on my cheek, her eyes searching mine. ¡°I think I can help. I have an idea,¡± she said. The guys walked in, preventing her from saying more. They all had serious looks on their faces. Sephie rarely asked for all of them at once, so they knew this was important. They walked in and all took a seat. She kissed me gently once more, then walked to the door and closed it. The guys knew it was definitely serious then. ¡°That¡¯s not good,¡± Misha said. ¡°It¡¯s potentially very bad, yes. Or it might be nothing. We don¡¯t know yet,¡± she said as she walked back to me. ¡°Sephie overheard Armando talking to one of his associates after the meeting. They were speaking Italian, thinking that no one could overhear them, but Sephie got close enough to hear their conversation,¡± I said. ¡°I couldn¡¯t see Armando¡¯s face though, and that¡¯s a big missing piece of whether this is potentially very bad or not bad at all,¡± she said. ¡°What were they discussing?¡± Ivan asked. He was tense, just as they all were. Armando was already on thin ice with the guys because of Giana. ¡°I heard them talking about the Mexicans,¡± she said. A couple of them cursed under their breath. ¡°It sounded like Anthony and Lorenzo have struck a deal with the Mexicans, still trying to bypass Trino. I don¡¯t know the Mexicans, but they don¡¯t seem terribly smart. The other man, I don¡¯t know his name, was basically trying to convince Armando to switch sides. At first, he resisted, but by the end of the conversation, it sounded more like Mando was considering it.¡± More cursing from the guys. ¡°Before you get all murdery, this is where not being able to see his facees in. We know Mando ha tes confrontation, so it¡¯s possible he was just pretending to agree with the guy to end the conversation. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt here, but I don¡¯t know,¡± she said, crossing her arms. ¡°Are we going to wait to see if Armandoes to you with this one?¡± Viktor asked. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°I do want to see if hees clean, but I¡¯m not willing to give him very long to do it,¡± I said. I pulled my phone from my pocket. ¡°I think Trino needs to hear about this.¡± I put my phone on speaker and leaned against my desk. Sephie moved next to me, doing the same. ¡°Jefe, que pasa?¡± Trino answered on the first ring. Chapter 246 Chapter 246 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Six Adrik ¡°You¡¯re not going to like this, Trino,¡± I said. ¡°I love it when you get straight to the point, lefe,¡± Trino said,ugh ¡°Sephie overheard Armando talking to one of his business associates. They were speaking Italian so they thought no one could hear them,¡± I said. ¡°Doesn¡¯t Armando know she can understand Italian? I mean, he was there when she told me and Martin that she understands Italian. Does he have memory issues?¡± Trino asked. Sephieughed. ¡°I stayed out of his line of sight, Trino. I can be invisible when I need to be,¡± she said. He chuckled. ¡°Miha, your talents are endless.¡± Content protected by N?v/el(D)rama.Org. ¡°Apparently the Mexicans have reached a new deal with Anthony and Lorenzo. They¡¯re still trying to bypass you and have convinced people that¡¯s possible,¡± I said. ¡°The other man was trying to convince Armando to switch sides.¡± We all waited, trying not tough too loudly, as Trino went on a cursing tirade. He was nice enough to pull the phone away from his mo uth, but we could still clearly hear him. When he finally got himself under control, he asked, ¡°and what of Armando?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the answer to that one, Trino. He resisted at first, but by the end of the conversation, he made it seem like he was. considering it. But it¡¯s Armando. He doesn¡¯t like confrontation. I also couldn¡¯t see his face, so I can¡¯t say for sure what he was thinking,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Puta,¡± Trino said, which made Sephieugh. She looked up, realizing I didn¡¯t understand. ¡°He called him a bi tch,¡± she said. quietly, stillughing about it. ¡°Are Anthony and Lorenzo still there, Trino?¡± she asked. ¡°Si, Miha. I just met with them yesterday. They must be negotiating with the Mexicans over the phone. They haven¡¯t left Colombia. Not even while I was gone to meet with you. I have people watching them around the clock. The Mexicans wouldn¡¯t dare set foot in Colombia either, so they have to be speaking over the phone. Who makes a deal like this over the phone?¡± Trino said. We waited for another cursing tirade to finish. Sephie giggled. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong, Trino, but I think we¡¯ve clearly established that we¡¯re not dealing with the best and brightest here. I don¡¯t even know the Mexicans but I can tell they¡¯re mo rons if they think they can bypass you.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t even been in this world for very long and you already recognize this. These people were raised in this world and they think they can go around me,¡± Trino said. ¡°I¡¯m more worried about what this will mean for the Mexicans. I don¡¯t want to start a war between you and them,¡± I said. ¡°It could give Trino a reason to get rid of Anthony and Lorenzo, though. Trino finds out they¡¯ve been making deals behind his back, rightfully loses his shi t and impresses all of us with his dramatic ir when ites to the death of his enemies,¡± Sephie said. She was smiling as she said it, as I¡¯m sure she knew how much she was stroking Trino¡¯s ego. ¡°It also se nds a message to anyone else that tries to bypass Trino,¡± she added. Trino was quiet for a moment. ¡°You haven¡¯t been in this world very long and you can run shi t better than I can, Miha. You¡¯re right, though. It can take care of the problem with Anthony and Lorenzo, but I might need help with the Mexicans. They¡¯ve been looking for a way around me for years. I wouldn¡¯t put it past them to dere war, with or without Anthony and Lorenzo,¡± he said. ¡°We will help you as much as we can, Trino. You¡¯ve been a huge help to us through all of this. My list of people I can trust is dwindling. You remain loyal to me, I remain loyal to you,¡± I said. ¡°I feel the same, Jefe. And also, I¡¯m scared of your girlfriend¡¯s wr ath,¡± Trino said,ughing. ¡°I knew you were a smart man, Trino,¡± Sephie said. We ended the call shortly after. Ivan chuckled, shaking his head. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re bing a genius at strategy.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t hear her in the meeting, Ivan,¡± Viktor said,ughing. ¡°Strategy and marketing,¡± he said, looking proudly at her. ¡°Okay, the building project one was obvious, so I don¡¯t get credit on that one. I just spelled it out inly for them,¡± she said. ¡°And the other matter is more because my patience is wearing thin. I also may have wanted to send a message to Armando in the most passive-aggressive way possible,¡± she said. A sly smile came across her face as she watched all the guysprehend what she¡¯d just said. ¡°I rest my case,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But it may not be the best fix, either. If Trino takes care of all the bosses that met with him, that might send the message that he¡¯s the one that really has the power and is running things,¡± she said, chewing on her bottom lip as she contemted alternative scenarios. ¡°Not if we take care of the bosses here at the same time,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Everyone knows that Boss and Trino have a great rtionship. This only serves to strengthen that. Essentially, they¡¯re trying to oust both Trino and Boss with this move. Everyone in the city, with the exception of maybe Mando, will go along with Anthony and Lorenzo. It¡¯s a move against Boss, but it¡¯s a move against Trino if they make a deal with the Mexicans.¡± ¡°Trino takes care of the bosses down there, we take care of the ones up here, then everyone gets the message never to try this again,¡± Viktor said. ¡°You have a solid n, Sephie. Don¡¯t doubt your first instinct.¡± ¡°Add in the doctor and the brawn operation to this equation. The people of the city also get the message that Boss won¡¯t stand for that and is doing everything he can to protect the people of the city. Win-win,¡± Stephen said. 1 nced at Sephie, who met my gaze, but we both immediately looked to Misha for confirmation. He had the faraway look in his eye, but looked at both of us shortly after. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s a go.¡± His upper body shuddered. ¡°Yep, definite go.¡± Sephieughed at Misha¡¯s response. ¡°I like it when it¡¯s strong enough I can see it, Misha.¡± ¡°I might also have the cherry on top for all this,¡± Stephen said. He was trying not to smile when he said it, but a devious grin stretched across his face. We all looked toward him, curious as to what else he could add. ¡°I was in the gym with Keithst night when they got back from Armando¡¯s house. It seems Giana has a problem,¡± he said, tapping the side of his nose. ¡°How does Keith know that?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°He¡¯s been suspecting she has a problem for a while now. She dropped her bag at some point, spilling the contents, and a very suspicious vial of wh ite powder fell out. Keith saw it as he was helping her gather her things from the ground. She grabbed it from his view quickly. He didn¡¯t say anything about it, but he¡¯s been keeping an eye on her since. She¡¯s not supposed to go to the lobby by herself, but he said she has been. He started to suspect that she was. He said she would say she was going to Ms. Jackson¡¯s apartment, then she would sneak to the lobby. He caught her once, but she didn¡¯t see him. He asked the guys in the lobby to let him know anytime she was down there and what she was doing. Apparently, she meets a guy in the lobby, gets at package from him or a food container or something that looks innocent enough and would need to be paid for, then goes back upstairs. Since the guys downstairs didn¡¯t know she wasn¡¯t supposed to be in the lobby by herself, they never paid super close attention. After Keith started asking questions, they went back over the security footage She ditches whatever container she gets before she gets on the elevator, after she removes something from it. You can¡¯t tell what I is on the footage, but it¡¯s small enough to put it in her pocket. She meets this guy like clockwork, wice a week. Always the same guy. Always the same time,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Okay, so for one? RUDE. But it exins why she would use me of being an addict. People always use others of what they¡¯re doing. And two? Just to y Devil¡¯s advocate here, what if it¡¯s not just drugs she¡¯s getting from this dude? What else could she be getting from him? What else could she be giving him? Why do I sound like apletely paranoid person right. now?¡± Sephie said, chewing on her lip. Ivan cracked his knuckles. ¡°I love a good mystery,¡± he said, grinning. ¡°This could actually be fun.¡± ¡°I¡¯m almost scared to ask where your mind is going on this one, Super Squish,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Pickpocketing is a highly underrated skill, princess. He doesn¡¯t even need to know we know who he is. She doesn¡¯t need to know we¡¯re on to her, either. We get our answers and they¡¯re not any wiser,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Devious. Efficient. Orchestrated. Choreographed, even. I¡¯ll allow it,¡± she said, grinning at Ivan. He simply looked at Misha, who thought for a minute, then nodded in agreement. ¡°Yoden, do you know when that guy will be here next?¡± she asked. I feel like this is going to be a present for me. I need to know how long I have to wait for it.¡± Iughed at her, putting my arm around her, and pulling her to me. ¡°Keith said the guyes every Tuesday and Friday. Always in the afternoon, because na uses the excuse of having tea with Ms. Jackson in the afternoon as her cover,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Puta,¡± Sephie said quietly. I couldn¡¯t help butugh now that I knew what that word meant. ¡°Ipletely agree. I wonder if Ms. Jackson knows she¡¯s being used?¡± I asked. ¡°Let¡¯s find out what¡¯s going on for sure and then I¡¯m happy to put a stop to that,¡± Ivan said. ¡°I can¡¯t believe she would use her as a cover for this.¡± He was visibly angry. ¡°Super Squish. You¡¯re going to break so many hearts at the Bingo Hall once they find out about this,¡± Sephie said. Right on time. Chapter 247 Chapter 247 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Seven Sephie Ivan, Viktor, and Misha went to the lobby that afternoon to look at the security footage of Giana meeting with the mystery man. They were hoping to be able to formte a n to grab everything the next afternoon so we could get answers as quickly as possible. ¡°You really think you can make it happen that quick?¡± I asked Ivan before they went downstairs. ¡°People are creatures of habit, princess. My guess is she does the same thing each time because it¡¯s worked for her before. We just have to learn the pattern so we know where to interrupt it to get what we need,¡± he said, I squinted my eyes at him. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I feel about loving your devious side this much,¡± I said. Adrik asked me to stay for his first meeting of the afternoon. ¡°You¡¯re going to be happy you did,¡± he said, smirking at me. He wouldn¡¯t give me anymore details than that. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°That means I have to put shoes back on. Is it going to be worth that?¡± I asked. ¡°I think so, but I promise to rub your feetter if you think it¡¯s not,¡± he said, his eyebrow raised. ¡°You have excellent negotiation skills,¡± I said. Stephen walked in the office as I slipped my heels back on. Vinny was behind him, along with his wife, Anna. Adrik caught my eye, with a clear ¡°I told you¡± look on his face. ¡°Vinny!¡± I said. ¡°Ciao, be!¡± he eximed as he opened his arms for a hug. ¡°And you brought your lovely wife too! How are you, Anna? It¡¯s so good to see you again,¡± I said, hugging her after I hugged Vinny. ¡°I¡¯m good, Sephie. It¡¯s good to see you again, too,¡± she said, her sweet smile on her face. Adrik looked at me. ¡°You¡¯ve met Anna before?¡± he asked me in Russian. I nodded. ¡°She owns the salon where Ms. Jackson gets her nails done. We went there first before they tortured me with shopping,¡± I said, still in Russian. He smiled at the memory of that day as he extended his hand to Vinny. ¡°Vinny, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± he said, now in English. ¡°And you as well, Anna. Please,e. Sit,¡± he said, after shaking her hand as well. He sat behind his desk, while I chose to lean against the cab behind his desk. One downside of wearing a skirt. I couldn¡¯t hop up on the cab like normal. ¡°How¡¯s your father, Vinny? I¡¯ve heard his treatments have been sessful and they¡¯re seeing some improvements. Is that still the case?¡± ¡°He¡¯s doing great, thanks to you, sir. I¡¯m still so grateful to you for everything you¡¯ve done for our family. I almost didn¡¯te today. I don¡¯t want to bother you with one more thing, sir, but it¡¯s¡­¡± Vinny trailed off, scratching his head. He looked stressed, as well as frightened. Anna also looked stressed. ¡°What¡¯s going on, Vinny? You¡¯re both clearly stressed out. Did something happen?¡± I asked, now concerned. ¡°It¡¯s Anna¡¯s salon, sir. It¡¯s in Vito¡¯s area of the city. He¡¯s increased the taxes so much that we can¡¯t afford to pay them and still be able to pay her employees and everything thates with running a business,¡± Vinny said. He looked almost embarrassed about it. I could feel Adrik¡¯s anger rising. I hadn¡¯t had a chance yet to tell him my trick that I figured out for controlling mine. It helped me to not feel like I was struggling against it. His anger level was rising quickly enough that I knew he was going to be struggling in exactly 2 seconds. I stood and walked behind his chair, cing my hand on his shoulder. When I needed to control my anger, I thought about it like a living thing, almost. Smoke was the easiest thing topare it to. I learned to visualize it first, then I learned I could control it that way. I could easily increase or decrease the amount of smoke, or anger, at will. I also knew if mes showed up, then people should generally run. I tried thinking about Adrik¡¯s anger the same way I thought about mine. The acupuncturist said I could take his anger, so instead of risking scaring the he ll out of poor Vinny and Anna, I tried to control his anger the same way I controlled mine. It took just a second after I put my hand on his shoulder, for him to feel calmer to me. He looked up at me, a clear look of surprise on his face for just a moment before he masked it and looked back to Vinny and Anna. ¡°Have Vito¡¯s guys hurt anybody? Did they damage your shop?¡± he asked. His anger level increased as he thought about these wonderful people being victimized by Vito¡¯s thugs. I felt it and tried to visualize containing it the same way I did mine. He took a breath, rxing slightly. ¡°They smashed a few windows this past weekend. I gave them everything I had, but it still wasn¡¯t enough. Business has been down because crime is increasing in the area. The police can¡¯t keep up. It¡¯s not their fault, I know. People are bing scared to go out for fear of getting mugged. Or worse,¡± Anna said. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t let her open the shop after that happened, so we¡¯re losing more money, but I don¡¯t know what else to do. My sandwich shop is still doing well. This area of the city seems to be unaffected,¡± Vinny said, scratching his head again. ¡°Do you know of other businesses around your shop that are in the same position as you, Anna?¡± I asked. She nodded her head. ¡°Almost all of them. They all had windows smashed over the weekend. They threatened worse next time if we didn¡¯t pay. The other businesses closed as well. The amount of money they¡¯re demanding ispletely unreasonable. There¡¯s no way we can stay open and afford to pay what they¡¯re asking,¡± Anna said. Vinny cleared his throat. ¡°Sir, themunity members¡­¡± He looked unsure about whether he should continue. ¡°They¡¯re talking about revolting against Vito, aren¡¯t they?¡± I asked. Vinny looked at me, his eyes wide. ¡°You already know?¡± Adrik said, ¡°we¡¯re aware. This is happening in Sal¡¯s part of town already. We heard there was potential for Vito and Niko¡¯s areas. of the city, but haven¡¯t gotten confirmation about them yet.¡± He sighed. He looked straight at Anna. ¡°I¡¯m sorry they vandalized your business. I¡¯ll pay for the repairs for all the businesses, but I want you to remain closed for the time-being. I know it¡¯s going to be hard and I apologize for that, but I need a little time to take care of this problem. I can assure you, however, that it will be taken care of.¡± ¡°Vinny, do you know if the people in Vito¡¯s area are organizing?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, they are. Because Anna¡¯s shop is in that part of town, they contacted both of us. They¡¯re talking about revolting against Vito, just like you said, Sephie,¡± Vinny said. ¡°Do you know who¡¯s organizing it? Are there clearly a few people in charge?¡± I asked. Vinny looked at Anna. They had a silent conversation about whether they should give us that bit of information. I could see the struggle on both of their faces. They were fighting against a boss in the underworld and now the King of the underworld was asking them for information about their uprising. ¡°Vinny, Anna, we want to help stop this. To stop Vito. We¡¯re on your side here. I know how difficult this must be for both of you. We¡¯ll get the information on who is in charge if you don¡¯t feelfortable telling us. It¡¯ll just be a slower process. We just want to meet with them. We¡¯re trying to make sure there are minimal casualties in all of this. If a war between the bosses and the people breaks out, they¡¯ll capitalize on that chaos. You don¡¯t know what they¡¯re already nning and believe me, you don¡¯t want to. We want to work with the people to make sure you¡¯re all safe while this problem is addressed,¡± I said. Vinny still looked unsure, but Anna looked determined. ¡°I can give you the names of the people in charge,¡± she said. ¡°It would help even more if you can find out if they¡¯d be willing to meet with us,¡± I said. I had a thought. I looked at Adrik, asking for his phone. I texted Viktor, asking for Chen¡¯s number. I wrote it down on a piece of paper and handed it to Anna. ¡°He¡¯s working for us. He¡¯s trying to help us set up a meeting with the people in Sal¡¯s part of the city. It¡¯ll be better if ites from you that we¡¯re trying to help, rather than Ghost showing up and intimidating the he ll out of everyone,¡± I said, smiling. I had returned my hand to his shoulder after handing Chen¡¯s number to Anna. He simply ced his hand on top of mine,ughing softly. ¡°I¡¯ll let him know what¡¯s happening and that you¡¯ll hopefully be getting in touch with him soon. He has a direct line here and can set up a meeting. Like I said, we want to help and we want to keep the people of the city safe.¡± They both looked at each other, then looked at me, then Adrik. ¡°Thank you both. For everything.¡± Vinny said. ¡°Thank you foring to me, Vinny. Like Sephie said, we want to help. I¡¯m trying to ensure this happens as quietly as possible, which is why it¡¯s taking so long. My apologies for that, but I¡¯m trying to minimize casualties, to be frank,¡± Adrik said. Vinny stood up, Anna standing after him. ¡°We¡¯re going to get in touch with the people organizing in Vito¡¯s area. We¡¯ll convince them to call this number, sir. You have my word,¡± Vinny said, extending his hand to Adrik, who was also now standing. Anna moved to thank Adrik and shake his hand. As we walked from behind Adrik¡¯s desk, Vinny stopped, opening his arms for me. *Sephie, my dear. You muste to the shop again. It¡¯s been too long. Business has gotten slow because people aren¡¯t guaranteed a beautiful woman when theye in,¡± Vinny said,ughing. ¡°I promise I wille soon, Vinny. But you should be careful what you wish for. I¡¯ll make sure Anna is there at the same time and you¡¯ll be so busy you won¡¯t be able to see straight,¡± I said. Anna rolled her eyes at her husband¡¯sment, but smiled. sweetly at me. ¡°Thank you, Sephie. And please doe to the shop. If my shop is going to be closed, I¡¯ll probably help out there more. It¡¯ll be good to see you again,¡± she said. Adrik slid his arm around my waist. ¡°We will visit soon, Vinny. She gets cranky if it¡¯s been too long since she¡¯s had one of your sandwiches,¡± he said, making meugh. He hugged my waist tighter, kissing my temple. ¡°Um, that¡¯s true. It¡¯s a thing,¡± I said, stillughing. Vinny and Anna said their goodbyes and Stephen was at the office door to escort them back to the lobby. Chapter 248 Chapter 248 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Eight Sephie When Stephen returned, Viktor, Ivan, and Misha were with him. Andrei joined us in the office as well. ¡°Why did you need Chen¡¯s number?¡± Viktor asked Adrik. ¡°It was me. I needed it. I gave it to Anna so that the people who are organizing Vito¡¯s area of the city against him can get in touch with Chen. I figured it was easier to just have one liaison for now,¡± I said. ¡°They¡¯re starting to revolt in Vito¡¯s area of the city now too?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°They¡¯ve raised taxes so high that the businesses can¡¯t keep up and now they¡¯re smashing windows because nobody can afford to pay,¡± Adrik said. ¡°Papa Bear, can I borrow your phone pretty please?¡± I asked, making the ¡°please¡± overly sweet on purpose. He took his phone from his pocket, dialing Chen¡¯s number for me and putting it on speaker before handing me the phone. ¡°You spoil me, my gigantic secretary,¡± I said. ¡°God help me, I hope this is Sephie,¡± Chen said when he answered the phone. It made meugh. ¡°It¡¯s me, Chen. Do you have a minute?¡± I asked. ¡°For you, my girl? I¡¯ve got at least 5,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°You¡¯re a generous public servant, Chen. So, I gave your number to someone from Vito¡¯s area of the city. They¡¯re trustworthy. They came to us to tell us that the same thing is happening there that¡¯s happening in Sal¡¯s area of the city. We¡¯re trying to get in touch with as many of the leaders of this brewing revolt as we can. We want to make sure they know we¡¯re on their side and want to help. We also want to make sure they don¡¯t fu ck up our ns, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± I said. Chenughed. ¡°I heard that, my girl.¡± ¡°I also figured it would be easier if we had just one liaison right now, but if this gets to be too much for you, then we can like you an assistant or something. I¡¯ll even see if I can find a cute one for you,¡± I said, hire ¡°It¡¯s all good, Sephie. I can handle it for now. I¡¯m supposed to hear from DJ today about who¡¯s running the resistance in Sal¡¯s area of town,¡± he said. He made sure to pronounce ¡°resistance¡± with an obnoxious French ent. ¡°Laissez le bon temps rouler, Chen,¡± I said,ughing. Heughed loudly. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you remember that. I¡¯ll let you know when these new people call me and what I hear from D]ter.¡± ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°Thanks, Chen. You¡¯re the best,¡± I said. I could still hear himughing when I ended the call. I handed the phone back to Viktor. ¡°How manynguages do you speak, gazelle?¡± Misha asked. ¡°I don¡¯t actually speak French, so that one doesn¡¯t count. Same for Spanish, I just know a few random words in bothnguages,¡± I said. ¡°What did you say to him?¡± Andrel asked, curious. ¡°Laissez le bon temps rouler means ¡®let the good times roll.¡¯ Chen is his surname and is short for Cheney. His family is French. He speaks it very poorly. Even worse than my Italian. But he told one of his girlfriends that he could speak French to try and impress her when they first started dating. He said he would speak gibberish to her in a French ent and then he¡¯d always end with issez le bon temps rouler.¡± I startedughing. ¡°He told her it meant that she was beautiful. She believed him, too. His terrible French got himid. It became a joke between us after he told me about it. I just told him he was beautiful, basically,¡± I said, stillughing. The guys allughed with me at my si lly story. I hadn¡¯t realized how stressed I was getting until we all had a moment¡¯s relief. I loved these little moments when we could all have a reprieve, fleeting as they were, from everything piling on us right now. ¡°What did you guys find out downstairs?¡± I asked. ¡°Just as I suspected, princess. She¡¯s very much a creature of habit. So is the guy she meets each time. It will be easy to get what we need,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Won¡¯t she notice the missing product, though?¡± I asked. I was very curious about this whole process. ¡°You can take what you need as well as drop off a recement at the same time, gazelle.¡± Misha said. ¡°But how do you know for sure you¡¯re dropping off the same stuff? You guys aren¡¯t nning on letting her snort something she thinks is her drug of choice that¡¯s gonna ki ll her, are you?¡± Ivan pointed to Viktor, ¡°I told you it was a good idea!¡± His response caused another round of much- needed uncontrobleughter. ¡°Are you guys going to get it from her or have someone else she doesn¡¯t know do it?¡± I asked once we gained ourposure once again. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m definitely doing this one,¡± Misha said. He was clearly still very angry with Giana over this whole mess. Maybe even more so after this revtion about her. ¡°I can use her inability to keep herself from staring at me to my advantage. You know how easy it is for me to make her all hot and bothered just by looking at her.¡± I giggled. ¡°I do know that. I¡¯m embarrassed for her because of that. What about the guy she meets? Who gets to pick his pockets?¡± ¡°He¡¯ll be easy. He¡¯s just a punk kid. We can catch him on his way out of the building,¡± Ivan said. I couldn¡¯t help but grin. ¡°It¡¯s like an early Christmas!¡± I said, pping my hands. ¡°Although, this could be Armando¡¯s unraveling, now that I think of it.¡± ¡°What do you mean, spider monkey?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°If she¡¯s doing drugs, I don¡¯t know how Armando is going to handle that news. He clearly loves her, but as more time goes by, I think we¡¯re seeing the answer to the question of whether he¡¯s going to pull her up or she¡¯s going to pull him down. It might be too much for him at once, or it might be the wakeup call that he needs right now. I don¡¯t know,¡± I said, chewing on my bottom lip. ¡°We should add it to the whiteboard,¡± Andrei said, grinning at me. Chapter 249 Chapter 249 Chapter Two Hundred Forty-Nine Sephie I felt Adrik stir next to me the following morning. I had moved from his chest at some point during the night and gotten under the covers. I was noticing that it happened anytime I dealt with trying to keep him calm. I was usually colder than normal the T next day. He had rolled over with me and had wrapped his arms around me, pulling me tight against him. I ran my fingers. lightly over his arm that was holding me tightly. He kissed the back of my shoulder. ¡°Good morning, solnishko,¡± he said. He was still sleepy, so his voice was especially s*xy. I rolled over to face him, his eyes finally opening when I kissed his lips. ¡°You look almost as excited as I am that it¡¯s morning again,¡± I said. He groaned, pulling me closer to him. He moved my leg over his hips, his hand rubbing my thigh lightly. I snuggled closer to him, my face in his chest. ¡°You¡¯re not helping me want to wake up,¡± he said, moving his hand under his shirt I was wearing to my back. I suddenly felt an intense desire for him. He was working on talking me into morning s ex, granted. It also usually didn¡¯t take much convincing, but this was so immediate and sudden that I knew it wasn¡¯t mine. I leaned my head back so I could look at him. He opened his eyes, a smirk on his face. ¡°That was me, if you were confused.¡± ¡°Is that how you normally feel or is there something special about this morning?¡± I asked, curious. ¡°It¡¯s normal. It¡¯s probably not even half of what I usually feel for you because I¡¯m still tired from yesterday,¡± he said. He had closed his eyes again, his hand running up and down my back still. ¡°Jesus, how do you keep your hands off me?¡± I asked. Heughed loudly, pulling me closer to him. ¡°Sometimes I can¡¯t,¡± he said. He opened his eyes, revealing their dark blue color. He only gave me a moment before I felt that same intense desire again, only magnified this time. I couldn¡¯t fight it. Not that I wanted to. My lips desperately found his. His > hands were leaving a trail of fire across my body already. I moaned, enjoying the warmth returning to my body. He stopped to look at me, a questioning look on his face. ¡°Your hands. It feels like they¡¯re on fire. It¡¯s amazing. Especially when I¡¯m colder than normal,¡± I said. He rolled onto his back, pulling me on top of him. His palm rested against my cheek, sending waves of warmth down my neck to my chest. I leaned against his hand, closing my eyes. He sat up, his lips finding mine once again. Instead of ripping his shirt off of me, like he usually did, he took his time unbuttoning his shirt while he kissed me, almost softly. Every time he touched me, I felt myself get more turned on. I couldn¡¯t fight his intense desire that I could feel, but it somehow allowed him to take his time. Where he usually felt almost frantic about needing me, he was patient with his touch. His kiss was slow, but building. He slowly slid the shirt off my shoulders, his hands covering every inch of my bare skin. ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you¡¯re doing to me, but please don¡¯t stop,¡± I said, breathlessly. My body was nothing but pleasure, just from his touch. I¡¯d never felt anything like it before. I felt him h*ok his thumbs in my panties, ripping them off. His hands slowly slid down my thighs, then back up toward my hips. My breaths wereing faster as my body temperature increased beneath his hands. I felt his lips on my neck, causing me to moan loudly. He pushed my hips up so he could get his pants off. Instead of lowering me down on to him immediately, he kept me up so his hands could roam over my entire body. Where his hands didn¡¯t go, his mo uth did. I waspletely lost in the feeling. I was putty in his hands. His mo uth left a trail of fire down my neck, following his hands. He was kissing, licking, and biting his way over my body. Each time I felt his skin against mine, it was like a new fire was started in that spot on my body. It felt like I was already almost over the edge and about to o*gasm. I was desperate to feel him inside me. ¡°Please,¡± I said, trying to catch my breath. ¡°I need you.¡± I was sure he was going to be quick about it, but he grabbed my hips and pushed me down on him slowly, like it was the first time and he didn¡¯t want to hurt me. As soon as he was all the way inside me, I felt my o*gasm start. I pushed my hips, down onto him hard, trying to ride the intense waves of pleasure I was feeling. I leaned my head back, grabbing onto his shoulders, unable to do much of anything except writhe in pleasure in hisp. He slid his hand between my breasts and left it there, bringing on a new wave of pleasure. It was so intense that I dug my nails into his shoulders. I felt like I couldn¡¯t hang on, even though he was barely moving. I heard him Inhale sharply when I dug my nails into his shoulder. His hand slid up my chest to the back of my neck. He grabbed a fistful of hair and pulled me to him. His lips crashed into mine. He was now desperate for me. His restraint was quickly disappearing. He wrapped one arm around my hips, pushing me down onto him harder while increasing the rhythm. I could feel his pleasure building with each thrust, just as mine was building once again. I kissed him hard, pressing my body to his, my arms tight around his shoulders. He exhaled loudly and I knew he was close. My hands roamed over his muscled back and shoulders. I was trying to make him feel the intense pleasure that his hands were still giving me as I explored his body. I leaned back slightly so my hands could roam over his chest as I continued to ride him hard. I caught a look of surprise as my hand passed over his chest, in the same spot that made my o*gasms so much more intense. I left my hand there, feeling his heart rate increase, as well as his breathing. I knew it was his undoing. He pushed me over the edge onest time before I felt him explode inside me, his arms pulling me tightly against him, desperate to keep me as close as possible. He held me tightly for a few minutes, like he was almost afraid to move. I clung to him just as tightly, trying to catch my own breath. ¡°Holy shi t, Sephie, is that what you feel every time?¡± he asked. ¡°Which part?¡± I asked, giggling. ¡°The end.¡± ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s mostly normal, although it was way more intense this time. The beginning was not normal. I¡¯ve never felt that before. I¡¯m guessing it was good for you?¡± I asked, leaning my head back to try and see his face. He loosened his grip on me enough that I could lean back slightly. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . He took a deep breath in. ¡°That was amazing. I¡¯ve never felt anything that intense before.¡± I kissed his lips gently. ¡°I can say the same thing. You made me almost have an o*gasm just by touching me.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yeah, you probably would have if I hadn¡¯t gotten greedy,¡± I said, grinning. He ran his hand up to the back of my neck, grabbing my hair and kissing me deeply. ¡°I like it when you¡¯re greedy. You¡¯re always allowed to be greedy,¡± he said, smiling against my lips. He inhaled again, moving toy down. He opened his arms for me so I couldy across his chest. ¡°Aren¡¯t we supposed to be getting up?¡± I asked as I settled in on his chest. ¡°Not after that. I¡¯m still not convinced my legs are going to work if I try to stand up right now,¡± he said, his hand running through my hair. I could feel the goosebumps rise over my entire body. I snuggled closer to him,ughing. ¡°I might not be able to think about anything else for the rest of the day,¡± he said. ¡°I have no regrets,¡± I said, resting my chin on his chest so I could look at him. His handsome smile stretched across his face, which made me smile back at him. ¡°I love you so much, Persephone. I told you that you have my heart, but I think that wasn¡¯t exactly true,¡± he said. He brushed a stray curl from my face. ¡°You are my heart. For without you, I would cease to exist.¡± Chapter 250 Chapter 250 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty Sephie After falling asleep again for a short time, we finally managed to drag ourselves out of bed. I was happy to stay in bed for as long as possible today, but his meetings and my early Christmas present beckoned to us. Adrik¡¯s schedule was quite full that afternoon, so while Viktor, Ivan, and Misha set about to ruin Giana¡¯s day, I stayed in the penthouse with Andrei while Stephen was in charge of Adrik¡¯s meetings. ¡°Why are you not in on the pickpocketing party, Bubba?¡± I asked him as I curled up next to him to keep myself warm. I was on my third cup of coffee of the day. It helped keep me warm as well, but I also needed help staying awake. Turns out having mind-blowing s ex first thing in the morningpletely zaps all my energy. He stretched his giant arm around my shoulders so I could lean against his torso. Since my research confirmed he was, in fact, the warmest of all the guys, he took his heating pad duties very seriously. He would happily offer his body heat anytime I needed it when Adrik wasn¡¯t around. I think he was happy to have something that the other guys didn¡¯t have once again. Adrik was right. Andrei loved being the closest one to me in the beginning. He¡¯s been much happier since he was put on heater duty. ¡°I¡¯m not good at it. I¡¯m actually quite terrible at it, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± he said, seriously. I sat up, turning to look at him. He was serious. ¡°I can¡¯t imagine you being terrible at anything, Bubba,¡± I said, settling back against him once more.N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°No, it¡¯s true. I am. I get nervous and it makes it obvious that I¡¯m trying to steal something every single time. Pickpocketing is an art,¡± he said. ¡°Why do you get nervous?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t really like touching other people unless I have to.¡± Iughed, trying to move away from him. ¡°You should¡¯ve told me this earlier. I didn¡¯t know I¡¯ve been torturing you.¡± Heughed, pulling me back against him. ¡°Don¡¯t be st upid, spider monkey. You¡¯re different. If it¡¯s someone I know, it¡¯s fine. You¡¯ve always been fine. I¡¯m not like super weird about it. I just don¡¯t like touching strangers.¡± ¡°Whew. d I made the cut,¡± I said, giggling. ¡°I know how you feel though. I¡¯m not a fan of it either. It makes me secretly happy I¡¯ll never be able to get pregnant. Have you seen how many people just randomly touch a pregnant woman¡¯s stomach? It¡¯s disturbing. The body count would be so high¡­¡± I said, taking another drink of coffee. His whole body shook with hisughter, which shook mine too. I almost spilled my coffee. ¡°Sephie¡­¡± ¡°Uh oh. This is serious.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°You used my name instead of calling me spider monkey. You guys only use my name when it¡¯s serious. I feel like I¡¯m in trouble. Don¡¯t ever use my full name. I¡¯ll have a panic attack,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Spider Monkey Sephle,¡± he said. I could hear the smile in voice. ¡°I know that humor is the way you deal with your trauma and I appreciate it. But I want you to know that I¡¯ve never met anyone that I admire as much as you. It actually used to be Ivan, but you took the top spot.¡± ¡°It used to be Ivan?¡± I asked, curious. I felt him nod his head. ¡°Ivan doesn¡¯t know this, but he was talking in his sleep one time after he got hurt. He didn¡¯t have to go to the hospital, but years ago, even just getting hurt and having to be bandaged would send him back to fight his past. He wasn¡¯t struggling, so the other guys didn¡¯t wake up, but I couldn¡¯t sleep, so I heard everything. It was just like when we were all on the ne and heard you struggling against your uncle and everything he beat into you. I don¡¯t know all the details, obviously, but I know Ivan¡¯s m om sent him away to some facility when he was a kid. And I know he was tortured there. But I also know it made him stronger because he got out. Just like it did for you. You¡¯re both survivors.¡± ¡°Ivan told me his story when we were in Italy. You¡¯ve got the basics of it. Why did you never tell him that you know?¡± ¡°Ivan¡¯s private. He¡¯s opened up more since you¡¯ve been around. All of us have, really. But he was always so quiet before you. I wasn¡¯t sure if it would make him angry to know that I knew, so I kept it to myself. It¡¯s why his fighting at the hospital never bothered me. It would take all of us to hold him down. Viktor struggles with taking it personally. The other guys do too, just not as much. Adrik doesn¡¯t. I think he knows what happened to Ivan too. But I heard the pain in his voice that night when I heard him talking in his sleep. He¡¯s haunted by it, but he still shows up every single day. If that¡¯s not the definition of courage, I don¡¯t know what is.¡± He sighed. ¡°You¡¯re the same. You¡¯ve been through so much and you still show up every single day, making sure everyone around you is happy, despite carrying the enormous pain of your past. I don¡¯t know how you do it, honestly, but I admire the he ll out of both of you for it,¡± he said, pulling me back against him and kissing the top of my head. bba, you¡¯re gonna make me all weepy,¡± I said, sniffling. ¡°I just wanted you to know, Sephie,¡± he said, hugging me tighter to him. We heard the door to the penthouse open and close. I¡¯ quickly wiped the stray tears from my eyes, looking to see who was coming in. It was Misha, Viktor, and Ivan. Misha and Ivan both had shi t-eating grins on their faces. ¡°Oh, this is gonna be good,¡± I said, unable to contain my excitement. Viktor had a small kit with him that he set down on the coffee table. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± I asked, as 1 leaned forward to put my now empty coffee cup on the table. ¡°It¡¯s a drug test kit. It¡¯ll tell us for sure what she¡¯s on,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Scientific,¡± I said, leaning back against Andrei once more. ¡°And what about the guy? Does she give him anything other than money?¡± Andrei asked. Ivan pulled a roll of money out of his pocket. It was rolled tight, so it would be easy to hand off. ¡°Let¡¯s find out together,¡± he said, smiling, as he started to unroll the money. As he did that, Misha handed the small vial of powder to Viktor, who had set up his experiment on the table. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m in science ss again,¡± I said, waiting for the results. Viktor put a small amount of the powder into another container with liquid already in it. He swirled it around. ¡°What¡¯s it supposed to do? Should I duck?¡± I was curious how this worked. Viktorughed. ¡°No explosions. Andrei is the expert at that anyway, so you¡¯re safe. It changes color,¡± he said as he held it up to the light. As he did, the once clear liquid turned a dark blue, almost purple color. Does that mean it¡¯s a girl or a boy?¡± I asked, not able to contain myughter. They allughed. ¡°It means she¡¯s a coke addict, sestrichka,¡± Viktor said, stillughing. Ivan pulled a small sheet of paper from in between two of the hundred-dor bills in the roll. He looked at it, but then handed it to me. ¡°It¡¯s in Italian, I think,¡± he said. I nced at the note, chewing on my bottom lip. I got up and went to the kitchen. I kept a small notepad in one of the drawers to write the grocery list on. I grabbed it and walked back to the couch. The note didn¡¯t make sense at first nce. It was four sentences that didn¡¯t necessarily belong together. I tranted them, exactly like they were written on the note. Safe impossible, but all documents there Walls clean in north, west, and south rooms Fourth window from the east corner Top of the stairs, third door on right ¡°Any guesses as to what she¡¯s talking about?¡± I asked, after reading them what the note said. Ivan picked up the notepad, studying the sentences for a moment. ¡°Safe impossible. Is she talking about Armando¡¯s safe at his house?¡± Misha asked. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought too. Nobody is getting in that thing without Armando¡¯s permission,¡± I said. ¡°Have you guys been to his house? Do you know what any of the rest of it could mean?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been a while since I was there. I think we should ask Keith about this,¡± Viktor said. Ivan, who was still deep in thought, looked to Viktor. ¡°Does Armando have expensive artwork at his house?¡± ¡°He does at his house in Italy, that¡¯s for sure,¡± I said, remembering beingpletely awestruck at some of the paintings he had on his wall. ¡°I think she¡¯s nning on robbing him,¡± Ivan said, running his hand over his goatee. Chapter 251 Chapter 251 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-One Sephie ¡°But why though? She has all the money she could ever want from him. Her family as well. Didn¡¯t Mando say she¡¯s from a wealthy family? That doesn¡¯t make sense,¡± I said. They all thought for a moment, then Viktor stood up. ¡°I have an idea,¡± he said. ¡°But I need aputer so we have to go downstairs.¡± I jumped up from the couch. ¡°Permission slips signed. We¡¯re going on a field trip! Everybody make sure you grab your buddy¡¯s hand and stay with the group.¡± They were all stillughing at my caffeine-fueled absurdity when we walked off the elevator. The office was still busy, even though it was getting to beter in the day. Adrik¡¯s office door was closed, so I knew he was in a meeting. Stephen was waiting outside his office and gave us all a curious look as we walked off the elevator. I looked to Viktor. ¡°I¡¯ll go fill Stephen in. You guys go do whatever the he ll it is you¡¯re about to do,¡± I said. ¡°Just don¡¯t lose your buddy. I¡¯m trusting you guys to be mature on this field trip. Remember, look with your eyes, not your hands,¡± I said, pointing to my eyes and then to all of them. They all shook their heads as they walked toward their desks. They each kept a desk on the floor. It made taking care of their individual responsibilities easier. Stephen¡¯s devilish grin greeted me. ¡°Why do I have a feeling whatever you¡¯re about to tell me is going to make me very happy?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re a vampire and you likely read my mind as I was walking over here. Get. Out. Of. My. Head,¡± I said, smacking his shoulder with each word. ¡°What did you guys find?¡± he asked in Russian, since there were still plenty of people milling around the office. It¡¯s ¡°Well, she¡¯s a coke addict, so there¡¯s that. Honestly, I don¡¯t feel as ted as I was hoping I was going to feel about that one. just sad, really.¡± I looked down at the floor for a moment, thinking about how empty she was to turn to drugs to try and fill whatever void she was feeling in her life. Stephen cleared his throat quietly, snapping me back to reality. ¡°Anyway, moving on. She also slipped her dealer a note with the money. We¡¯re trying to figure out what the hel l it means, but we think she¡¯s nning on robbing Armando¡¯s house.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t shee from money?¡± Stephen asked. His brow furrowed like it always did when he was deep in thought. ¡°That¡¯s the confusing part. Viktor said he had an idea, which is why we¡¯re taking a field trip down here. I¡¯m not sure what he¡¯s thinking. We also might need to talk to Keith about thister. She was weirdly specific on locations. We think she¡¯s talking about Mando¡¯s house, but the guys said it¡¯s been a while since they were there and don¡¯t really remember theyout,¡± I said. Stephen¡¯s watch beeped once. He looked at it, then looked at me. ¡°Meeting is almost over, but I¡¯ll be back.¡± ¡°Does he have anything directly after this one? Can I surprise him?¡± I asked. Before he opened the door, he smiled at me. ¡°That would be exactly what he needs today,¡± he said quietly. I moved a few steps away from the door, in case Adrik followed the person he was meeting with to the door. I waited until Stephen walked out with the person and walked past me. I heard the door to Adrik¡¯s private bathroom open and close, 50 I knew I could sneak into his office without him seeing me. I walked in quickly, shutting the door behind me and sat down in his chair as quietly as I could. For once, the chair didn¡¯t squeak. I propped my legs up on his desk and crossed my arms, waiting for him to come out of the bathroom. I nced at the few papers oh his desk, as I heard the water in the sinke on. They were rough sketches, different variations on the same theme. I couldn¡¯t tell what it was, but my attention was directed at the door to the bathroom as I heard the water turn off. He opened the door, not exactly paying attention. He lookedpletely lost in thought and somewhat stressed. His gaze lifted as he took steps toward his desk andnded on me. He stopped in his tracks, his wide smile across his face. He just pointed to me and then pointed to the floor in front of him. I jumped out of his chair and ran to him, jumping into his arms and wrapping my legs around him. I couldn¡¯t help the squeal that came out when he caught me. He held me tightly, his face buried in my neck. ¡°You have no idea how much I needed this, solnishko,¡± he said, inhaling deeply. I felt his body rx as I hugged him tighter, running my hand through the back of his hair. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°Anything wrong or just a long day?¡± I asked. ¡°Just a long day. I¡¯m exhausted. I don¡¯t know how you have so much energy right now. I think you su cked all my energy out this morning,¡± he said. I could feel his smile against my neck as he kissed my neck sweetly. ¡°I¡¯m on my third cup of coffee today. That¡¯s how. It¡¯s fake energy. I¡¯m still not entirely sure what we did this morning, but it took a lot out of both of us, I think.¡± ¡°Worth it,¡± he said, leaning back to look at me. His handsome smile pulling at my chest. ¡°I could not agree more,¡± I said, unwrapping myself from him so he wouldn¡¯t be forced to hold me up. ¡°And also, I¡¯ll go get you some coffee before your next meeting.¡± He leaned down and kissed me, his hand on my cheek. His thumb rubbing across my cheek lightly as his lips were on mine. He could make my knees go weak with his kisses, and he did regrly. I think he enjoyed it. But the sweet, tender kisses almost always caught me off-guard and made my insides melt completely. I couldn¡¯t help but moan quietly as I wrapped my arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. ¡°I just love you, Adrik,¡± I said. ¡°Now, let me go get you coffee before your next meeting. How much time do I have?¡± I asked. He looked at his watch. ¡°Ten minutes,¡± he said,ughing at me. ¡°I can do it in seven,¡± I said, turning to quickly walk out. Misha was almost to Adrik¡¯s office door when I opened the door. ¡°Gazelle, I was justing to get you. You need to see what we found,¡± he said. I grabbed his arm, pulling him with me. I knew Adrik wouldn¡¯t be happy about me going anywhere by myself, so since Misha was the closest one, he got nominated toe with me. I also still refused to keep track of a key fob to the elevator, so 1 needed one of the guys to operate it. ¡°Um, where are we going?¡± he asked as we got on the elevator. ¡°To get more coffee before his next meeting. I¡¯m on my third cup today and I¡¯m still exhausted. He hasn¡¯t had any since this morning, so he¡¯s dying. I only have seven minutes to make this happen. Really, ten, but I¡¯m an overachiever and I told him I could do it in seven,¡± I said. Misha justughed at me. The doors opened and I practically ran into the penthouse. Luckily, Adrik had a top-of-the-line coffee machine that made it quickly, so I was hopeful I could make this happen. Misha filled me in on what they¡¯d found as I waited. ¡°Viktor decided to look up na¡¯s family In Italy. I didn¡¯t even know he knew her family name, but I shouldn¡¯t be surprised. He knows everything. About everyone. Anyway, her family was wealthy,¡± he said. He paused for a moment, a grin on his face. ¡°Was? As in past tense?¡± He nodded. ¡°They¡¯ve hit hard times recently. Apparently Giana¡¯s father is not the businessman her grandfather was. It looks like bad investments, even more st upid investments, and generally wasteful spending have significantly depleted their fortune.¡± ¡°That exins why Giana needs a job,¡± I said. Misha looked at me, a confused look on his face. ¡°Giana told me when her and Armando first got here that she needs this job. It was before I knew she came from a wealthy family, so I didn¡¯t think anything of it.¡± I chewed on my bottom lip as I poured coffee into two thermoses. Might as well make it four cups of coffee today, since it looks like it¡¯s going to be an extra long day. I finished making Adrik¡¯s coffee just how he liked it, as well as mine and walked toward the door. Misha opened the door for me. We were both still deep in thought as we waited for the elevator. Once on the elevator, with the doors closed, I said, ¡°I wonder if she¡¯s nning on robbing him for herself or for her family? It still doesn¡¯t really make sense. I mean, all site would have to do is talk to Armando and tell him that her family is in trouble. He¡¯s so stinking nice that he would help them. Why is she choosing to go this route?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure about that one, either. There¡¯s probably more that we haven¡¯t found yet,¡± Misha said. ¡°I¡¯ll be over in a minute, once I drop this off,¡± I said, walking toward Adrik¡¯s office. Misha walked back toward the other three guys. Stephen had just walked out of his office as I got to the door. ¡°Shi t, is his meeting already here?¡± I asked. Stephenughed. ¡°Yes, but he¡¯s early. You can still go in, he won¡¯t care.¡± I sighed, thinking I took longer than seven minutes. ¡°Hold this. I¡¯ll be right back.¡± I handed my coffee to Stephen and walked. into the office. Adrik smiled at me, looking at his watch. ¡°Six and a half minutes,¡± he said in Russian. ¡°Really? I thought for sure I took longer since your meeting was already here,¡± I said, ncing at the man who had taken a seat. in front of Adrik¡¯s desk. Adrik stood up, walking to me. He dly took the coffee from me, kissing my forehead. ¡°Thank you, solnishko. You¡¯re a lifesaver.¡± I grinned at him, excusing myself quickly so he could get on with his meeting. Chapter 252 Chapter 252 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Two Sephie When I walked back outside, Stephen was waiting, my coffee still in hand. ¡°Can youe to Viktor¡¯s desk or you have to wait here?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way I¡¯m noting. My watch will tell me when the meeting is almost over. Plus, the door is open, so I can see if they get done early.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so efficient, Yoden,¡± I said as we walked to the rest of the guys. ¡°Somebody fill in Yoden while I shove more caffeine into my system,¡± I said, taking a drink of yet more coffee. They filled in Stephen on everything we knew so far. Viktor had continued to dig while Misha and I were upstairs getting liquid energy for me and Adrik. ¡°It looks like one of the deals her father made that lost him a substantial amount of money was with Armando,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Do you know what happened? Like why the deal went wrong?¡± I asked. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°No, I can¡¯t tell from this. It¡¯s in Italian, so we need you to trante,¡± he said, turning hisptop toward me. It was a news article from years ago, showing a picture of a much younger Armando, along with three other men. One of the men was Giana¡¯s father. I didn¡¯t recognize the names of the other two, but one of the men looked vaguely familiar. I scanned the article, loosely tranting as I went. My poor tired brain was having trouble tranting from Italian to English back to Russian. ¡°Um, it says¡­development deal¡­housing¡­four investors¡­ approval still pending¡­three investors backed out¡­ unknown reasons¡­final investor was Giana¡¯s father. It looks like he tried to fund the project all on his own and it fell through. He couldn¡¯t recover his money and lost a substantial amount.¡± ¡°I would be willing to bet she¡¯s nning on robbing Armando to try and recoup some of the money her father lost in that deal. Especially if what we¡¯re thinking about the artwork is true,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Artwork?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°There was a line in the note she slipped her dealer about clean wills in three locations of the house. Sephie remembered his extensive art collection at his house in Italy. If he has the same here, she¡¯s likely giving them instructions on which pieces to take,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Keith would know,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Armando is always done for the day well before Boss is. He¡¯ll be free once Boss is done and we can ask him.¡± ¡°How many more meetings does he have today?¡± I asked. ¡°Two more after this one is done.¡± ¡°He might need more coffee,¡± I said, mostly to myself. ¡°Are you two not sleeping at night?¡± Andrei asked, a devilish grin on his face. ¡°Wait, no. I don¡¯t need to know.¡± Iughed. ¡°We are sleeping, thank you very much. It¡¯s this weird shi t that¡¯s happening with being able to feel each other¡¯s emotions. I¡¯m notining. It¡¯s amazing. But it zapped us both this morning. Likepletely.¡± ¡°One mystery at a time,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But I can call the acupuncturist if you need her again.¡± ¡°We might,¡± I said thoughtfully. Stephen¡¯s watch beeped, signaling the end of the meeting. I walked back to the office with him, hoping to take Adrik¡¯s mind off everything in between hisst few meetings of the day. He looked even more stressed than he had earlier when I walked in his office this time. ¡°Whoa. What happened in that meeting?¡± I asked. He smiled, rxing slightly. ¡°It¡¯s okay, love. Just lots of details. It¡¯s more difficult when I¡¯m tired.¡± I walked to his chair, leaning over his shoulder to put my coffee on his desk. ¡°Feeling your breasts on my shoulder does not hurt, though,¡± he said, cutting his eyes up at me. ¡°I¡¯ll juste in here between your meetings and put my boobies on your shoulder, then leave when your next meeting arrives.¡± I said,ughing. I stood behind him, rubbing his shoulders. He was tense. He leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. ¡°That feels amazing,¡± he said. I worked on getting his muscles to rx while he had a moment of peace. He opened his eyes, looking up at me, curious. ¡°Why are you all down here? 1 didn¡¯t expect to see you until I got done for the day,¡± he asked. ¡°As Ivan put it, we¡¯re working on a mystery,¡± I said, chuckling at his expression. ¡°They got interesting information on their afternoon excursion in the lobby. We¡¯re trying to figure it all out, but you don¡¯t need to worry about any of it until you¡¯re done for the day.¡± I leaned down, pressing my lips to his gently. I heard the elevator doors ding, knowing his next meeting was arriving. ¡°Let me know if you need more coffee to get through yourst two meetings. I¡¯ll happily be your personal barista,¡± 1 said, grinning at him. He grabbed my hand, kissing the back of it. ¡°What would I do without you,¡± he said wistfully as his next meeting walked into his office. Viktor and Ivan kept trying to dig up information on Giana¡¯s family while we waited on Adrik to finish his last meeting of the day. I turned to Stephen. ¡°Give me 20 minutes after hisst meeting is done and then have Keithe to the office. He has a very short fuse right now, so he needs at least a short break before we throw more shi t on the pile.¡± Stephen nodded, smiling slightly. As thest meeting ended, I walked into Adrik¡¯s office while Stephen escorted the man downstairs. I walked in quietly, closing the door behind me. He raised an eyebrow at me and sat back in his chair. I could feel his di rty thoughts. ¡°I asked them to give us 20 minutes. We both know that¡¯s not nearly enough time for what you¡¯re thinking about right now,¡± I said. ¡°Don¡¯t shatter my dreams,¡± he said,ughing at me. He stood up and met me halfway between his desk and the door. He pulled me to him. His hands were gentle, but firm, like he was fighting giving in to his true desires in that moment. I could feel the same intense need for him that I felt that morning. It came on just as suddenly, so I was sure it was him this time. I wrapped my arms around his neck as he buried his face in my neck once again. ¡°I¡¯m going to need soooooo much coffee, aren¡¯t I?¡± I asked him. Heughed quietly. ¡°I have been telling you I was addicted to you, so you shouldn¡¯t be surprised,¡± he said. He stood up straight so he could look at me. His fingers resumed the evesting battle with the curls around my face. He looked more rxed as we stood there, ¡°Fair point. I¡¯m notining either, for the record. I love what¡¯s happening. I don¡¯t understand it, but I fu cking love it. And I fu cking love you,¡± I said. His handsome smile stretched across his face. He rested his hand against my cheek, looking at me for a moment before leaning down to kiss me. ¡°You always know exactly what I need to hear, my love,¡± he said. I felt a strong pull In my chest as he smiled at me. ¡°Do you get like a pull in your chest when I smile at you?¡± I asked. He chuckled. ¡°Every single time,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s where that¡¯sing from,¡± I said, thinking out loud. I looked up at him once more, grinning. ¡°I really had no clue of the effect I¡¯ve had on you this whole time. Now that I can feel what you feel some of the time, it makes me admire your high levels of self-restraint. It¡¯s really felt like this for you since the beginning?¡± I asked. Chapter 253 Chapter 253 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Three Sephie N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. He nodded his head. ¡°Since the first time I touched you, I¡¯ve felt a pull back toward you every time we¡¯re apart. When you smile at me, I either feel that pull in my chest that I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re feeling right now or it feels like my heart stops. When you¡¯re sad or upset, sometimes I feel that pull in my chest too. Sometimes it¡¯s stronger when you¡¯re upset, like my heart is demanding I destroy whatever is making you upset.¡± His eyes got darker and I saw his jaw tense. I was suddenly hit with a wave of sadness. He closed his eyes, preventing me from finding out why. He sighed. ¡°It was especially bad after the ball, when we were on the ne and you wouldn¡¯t let anyone touch you. That pull toward you was so strong, because I just wanted to make you feel better and I couldn¡¯t. I also knew you were upset, on top of being hurt. It felt like there was a ho le in my chest until you allowed me to touch you again.¡± He opened his eyes and I saw the regret he still carried over that whole situation. I felt the tears welling in my eyes as I saw him struggling with the memory of what happened. ¡°Adrik,¡± I said. I put both of my hands on either side of his face, so he would look at me. ¡°You don¡¯t need to keep carrying this guilt over what happened. It ultimately worked out for the best and I got a kickass scar out of it, to boot,¡± I said smiling. I was hoping to make himugh, but he flinched at the memory of me being hurt. I stood on my toes kissing him gently. I sighed, taking a new approach. ¡°I think it needed to happen the way it did, Adrik. If I hadn¡¯t gotten hurt, I wouldn¡¯t have remembered everything about my uncle and I would¡¯ve kept a very big part of me locked away forever. Until we were on that ne, I would still regrly hear my uncle¡¯s voice in my head. Like he was standing next to me, still telling me all the same things he used to scream at me when he was beating me. There was a very large part of me that was terrified he would find me again and ki ll me. Remember the first night I spent at the house? When I had a nightmare and started shaking so bad I couldn¡¯t control myself?¡± | asked. He nodded. ¡°That was a regr urrence. I¡¯ve had that same nightmare so many times Ist count. It just ended differently that night because of Anthony. Do you know how many times I¡¯ve had that nightmare since the night of the ball?¡± He looked at me curiously, resuming all efforts to tame my curls. ¡°Zero Limes. So, while you¡¯re beating yourself up thinking that you put me through He ll, I¡¯m eternally grateful to you for saving me from it. It was you, Adrik, that showed me the way out. If that night hadn¡¯t happened, I never would¡¯ve gotten out.¡± I could see the tears forming in his eyes as he listened to my words, While he felt a pull in his chest, I felt a fire building throughout my entire body. I felt that warmth building as he looked at me, looking at me withplete love in his eyes. Just to see what would happen, I concentrated on what I was feeling and then tried to push it to him. I heard his breath hitch as his eyes widened and I knew he felt it. I grinned at him. ¡°That¡¯s what it¡¯s been like for me since the beginning,¡± I said. ¡°No wonder you¡¯re freezing when I¡¯m not around,¡± he said, his sexy smirk on his face. ¡°That struggle is ridiculously real,¡± I said. We heard a soft knock on his office door. I stood on my toes again and pressed my lips to his. ¡°That¡¯s Stephen, I¡¯m sure. He¡¯s the only one with enough finesse to be able to knock that softly. You need to hear what we found out about our dearest Giana today.¡± I walked to the office door to open it. Stephen was there, looking somewhat unsure about whether he should¡¯ve disturbed us or not. Iughed. ¡°It¡¯s good, Yoden. You guys cane in.¡± He turned and motioned to all the guys toe to the office. I walked back to Adrik, who walked us both to one of the couches. He pulled me into hisp and leaned me back against his chest. I crossed my legs in between his as he wrapped his arms around me. Both Viktor and Ivan walked in with theirptops. ¡°We need more trantions, princess,¡± Ivan said, handing me hisputer. Andrei and Misha walked in behind them. Stephen said, ¡°Keith will be here shortly. He said Armando had ate meeting, so he asked Keith to grab dinner for him and na.¡± I looked to Stephen, who had a knowing look on his face. ¡°I agree. Weird move.¡± His phone beeped. He looked at the text, saying, ¡°he¡¯s on his way.¡± It was barely one minuteter that we heard the elevator doors ding to signal Keith¡¯s arrival. He walked into the office, looking slightly nervous. I¡¯ll give it to him. Thest time he was summoned before all of us was slightly ufortable for him. ¡°Shu t the door, Keith,¡± Adrik said. I could feel that he was enjoying fu cking with Keith¡¯s head and was not mad in the slightest. It was all I could do to notugh. I hugged his arms tighter around me. ¡°What¡¯s up?¡± Keith asked, sitting down in one of the chairs. He looked like he was trying to not be nervous. He was failing miserably. ¡°We did some investigating into Giana and her frequent excursions to the lobby unattended,¡± Ivan said. Keith looked surprised, but intrigued. He nced around the room, looking at all of our faces. His face dropped slightly. ¡°Why do I feel like this is so much worse than a drug problem?¡± Chapter 254 Chapter 254 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Four Sephie ¡°So, you really confirmed she¡¯s buying drugs when she goes to the lobby?¡± Keith asked. It was almost like he was expecting us to tell him his suspicions were false. ¡°She¡¯s apparently got a nasty little coke habit,¡± Misha said. He held up the vial he picked off Giana earlier that day. Keith¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡°That¡¯s what fell out of her purse that day!¡± he said, pointing to the vial in Misha¡¯s hand. ¡°If she¡¯s buying that much coke twice a week, she¡¯s got to be staying high almost constantly right now. It¡¯s likely why we haven¡¯t seen much of her. That kind of habit eventually gets difficult to hide.¡± Ivan said. ¡°I wonder if that exins her nervousness around you guys from the beginning. I¡¯m positive she caught on to how observant we all are right away. She¡¯s never liked being in the same room as all of us. He ll, she¡¯s never really liked being around us much at all, unless there¡¯s shopping involved,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s easier to hide when shopping. She can be more animated without arousing suspicion,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Have you noticed her having nosebleeds?¡± Ivan asked Keith. ¡°She¡¯s had a coupletely. She mes the weather. She says she ha tes it when it gets cold,¡± Keith said. ¡°Have you seen Armando questioning her about anything? Not that he would do it in front of you, but I just wonder if he¡¯s noticing any of this,¡± I asked Keith. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen anything. Ever since they got into a fight about her basically using you of being an addict, which is really ironic now, they¡¯ve had a strained rtionship. I think they even slept in separate rooms this past weekend at least one night.. I¡¯ve heard them arguing, but they¡¯re always arguing in Italian so I can¡¯t understand what they¡¯re saying,¡± he said. ¡°It¡¯s Italian. They could be confessing their love for each other and it would probably still sound like a heated argument,¡± Adrik sald sarcastically. ¡°I¡¯ve heard Armando arguing on the phone several timestely too. Again, always in Italian. There was one argument that got really heated, so I recorded part of it,¡± Keith pulled his phone out of his pocket. We all looked at him, somewhat surprised. ¡°I don¡¯t like not being able to understand what¡¯s going on. I¡¯m not being nosey, but if I¡¯m supposed to be keeping this dude safe, then I need to know what¡¯s going on,¡± he said. ¡°Fair point,¡± I said. He found the recording on his phone and turned the volume all the way up. It wasn¡¯t the best recording, so I couldn¡¯t hear it well enough from across the office. He tossed his phone to me so I could put it closer to my ear. It was just Armando¡¯s voice, so he wasn¡¯t on speaker. Not that I could¡¯ve understood the other person on this recording. I listened to it a couple of times to make sure I was hearing it correctly. ¡°He¡¯s talking in very vague terms. Saying things like ¡®I¡¯ll take care of it¡¯ and ¡°you have to give me time. At the end he says, ¡®I told you that wasn¡¯t going to work but you wouldn¡¯t listen to me.¡±¡± ! tossed the phone back to Keith. Adrik pulled me back against him again, hugging me tightly. He put his lips close to my ear, saying quietly, ¡°if I haven¡¯t told you how grateful I am to have youtely, just know I¡¯m incredibly grateful to have you.¡± I felt my cheeks flush slightly. He left his cheek against mine for a few moments. ¡°What do we know of his business dealstely?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°He could be talking about a business deal that isn¡¯t working out the way it¡¯s supposed to. I would like to stick with that option rather than the other option my mind came up with.¡± ¡°Do we want to know the otlier option?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°If he¡¯s really considering switching sides, that could exin the first two statements. The third could be in reference to either. the ball or the explosion in Italy. Or the failed kidnapping attempt,¡± Ivan said. He had a habit of rubbing his hand over his goatee when he would worry, ¡°I see why you¡¯d prefer to stick with the first option,¡± Andrei said. Adrik felt me tense at the mention of those three events. His hands found mine and heced his fingers through mine, keeping my arms on top of his that were wrapped around my waist. ¡°What else did you find out about Giana this afternoon? You guys have been down here all afternoon, it can¡¯t be just that she¡¯s the addict among us,¡± Adrik asked. I was both surprised and impressed that he was remaining as calm as he was right now. His fingers lightly yed with mine, sending waves of warmth up my arms as we talked. ¡°She slipped a note to her dealer. We¡¯re thinking it¡¯s all in reference to Armando¡¯s house, but none of us have been there recently,¡± Viktor said. He produced the note that I had tranted earlier and handed it to Keith. ¡°Can you make sense of any of that, in reference to his house?¡± he asked. Keith studied the note. ¡°Well, I¡¯m sure you all know his safe is impossible. You have to have Armando to get into that thing, so that checks out.¡± He read the other three sentences and then read them again. ¡°Top of the stairs, third door on the right is Armando¡¯s room.¡± ¡°Does he keep anything special in there or is he the special thing?¡± I asked. ¡°He has a second safe in there, but it¡¯s just like the bigger one in his office. You have to have Armando to get into it,¡± Keith said. He thought for a few minutes more, studying the note. ¡°Armando had some very pricey art on his walls in his house in Italy. Do you know if that¡¯s the case here as well?¡± I asked. I could see the light bulb turn on in Keith¡¯s head. ¡°That¡¯s what that means. Look, I don¡¯t know art. I couldn¡¯t tell you how much these paintings are worth or even what the paintings are of, in a couple of cases, but he has the majority of paintings in these rooms on the first floor. He has a few upstairs as well, all in his room. Maybe that¡¯s why his room is specifically pointed out. It¡¯s really the only one with any kind of paintings in it upstairs.¡± ¡°It sounds like she¡¯s nning an art heist,¡± Ivan said. ¡°If she¡¯s looking for maximum profit, that¡¯s the way to go if you can¡¯t ess the safe. But stolen art is very hard to sell. Given that her family used to be wealthy, she might have connections on how to move it, but this seems well above her level of Intelligence.¡± ¡°Her family is no longer wealthy, then?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°Viktor figured it out. It didn¡¯t make sense that she was nning on robbing Armando if she came from a wealthy family. She has all the money she could want with Armando. Why would she be trying to rob him, if not for arger reason? When she ¡®apologized¡¯ to me, it was clear that her family still controls her,¡± I said. ¡°Her father has made some terrible business decisions since he took over from Giana¡¯s grandfather. They¡¯re virtually penniless now.¡± He pulled up the first article he found and walked over to show Adrik. ¡°One of the biggest deals that cost him a substantial amount of money was with Armando.¡± Adrik looked at the pleture for a moment. I could suddenly feel his anger rising quickly. up and turned to look at him. He was still looking at theputer screen. He pointed to the man that looked vaguely r in the picture, then looked to me. ¡°That¡¯s who he was arguing with yesterday after the me ¡°What does this article say?¡± he asked me. ¡°It was originally a huge business deal that they started before they got approval. Three investors pulled out, but it doesn¡¯t give a reason why, and thest investor, Giana¡¯s father, tried to fund the project on his own. He lost a ton of money. It also doesn¡¯t give a reason why approval wasn¡¯t granted either,¡± I said. ¡°What about the other article you haven¡¯t seen yet?¡± Ivan asked, pointing to hisputer. I pulled that article up and scanned it. ¡°This one is about a fire that demolished an entire apartment building. Three people died in the fire. Firefighters were unable to put the fire outpletely for three days. Um, gory details nobody wants to know about. Ah, Giana¡¯s father owned the building,¡± I said. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°Could be insurance fr aud,¡± Ivan said. ¡°It¡¯s an old scam.¡± I searched for more articles about that building. Most were just reporting the incident, but I eventually found one that reported the ruling on the insurance im. ¡°I think you¡¯re right, Super Squish. He filed an insurance im, but they did an investigation and concluded the fire was deliberately set. ording to this article, they never found who set the fire.¡± ¡°Sounds very simr to Armando¡¯s exploding office building in Italy,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Do you think Armando was behind his own building exploding? Is he trying the same scam?¡± I asked. Stephen just shrugged. his shoulders. ¡°Follow-up question: did they have these kinds of insurance scams in the 1500s when you were just a wee vampire of 400 years?¡± Chapter 255 Chapter 255 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Five Sephie ¡°Technically, I was the insurance scam. Lots of viges burned trying to get rid of me. I have a strong dislike of fire because of it,¡± Stephen said,pletely straight-faced. We allughed loudly. I started laughing even harder when I saw the look of confusion on Keith¡¯s face. He was just staring at Stephen, his mo uth open inplete shock. ¡°I love how you just have a ¡®strong dislike¡¯ of the thing that could ki ll you,¡± I said, stillughing. ¡°If you can¡¯t find inner peace in 900 years, are you even trying?¡± Andrei said, which caused another round ofughter from all of us. I wasughing so hard I was crying by the time I finally gained control of myself. ¡°Shi t, I needed that,¡± I said. ¡°Okay, back to serious matters. Seriously, focus people.¡± I was making myself want tough again. I got up and handed Viktor¡¯sputer back to him. ¡°Can you please find out if Armando is also in financial trouble like you did Giana¡¯s family?¡± I asked. I always feltpelled to be extra sweet when it came to asking Viktor for anything. I think it was the look on his face every time I did. He practically melted every time I asked him for anything. He got busy looking up information as I returned to Adrik¡¯sp. ¡°So, let¡¯s just say, for the sake of argument, that Armando is having financial difficulty. He blows up his own office building for the insurance money. Why would he depend on us to stop everyone from showing up to that building that morning? He was the one that set that meeting at his building, with all his people there. We were the ones that stopped people from dying,¡± Misha said. ¡°Well, when you say it like that, it makes no sense,¡± I said. ¡°Unless that was also the n all along. If he didn¡¯t show, but everyone else did¡­¡± Ivan said, trailing off. ¡°Assuming he hasn¡¯t found a way to alter his records, Armando is doing fine financially,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Does he own that office building?¡± I asked. ¡°I mean, I would assume so, but let¡¯s check just for fun.¡± Viktor started a new search as we all waited for the results. I leaned my head back, looking sideways at Adrik. ¡°He hasn¡¯t said anything about the discussion he had yesterday after the meeting?¡± ¡°Not a word,¡± he said. ¡°He has until tomorrow toe clean before I confront him about it.¡± ¡°Sestrichka, you might be a genius,¡± Viktor said. He stood up, bringing me hisputer. ¡°Make sure I¡¯m reading this correctly, but I think this says the owner of Armando¡¯s office building is Giana¡¯s father.¡± I looked at the screen, reading through everything listed. ¡°You¡¯re right, Viktor. He wasn¡¯t the owner. That hrings us back to insurance scam.¡± ¡°So, Giana¡¯s own father tried to ki ll her?¡± Keith asked. ¡°That¡¯s some family drama.¡± ¡°Eh, maybe not. He likely knew she was habituallyte. It¡¯s also possible he knew Armando is habitually early. ording to Giana¡¯s story, the building exploded sometime between 8:00-8:15 that morning. Early enough that she wouldn¡¯t be there. Late enough that he would,¡± I said. ¡°But you are correct on the family drama.¡± ¡°This likely exins why Armando hired her to begin with. He likely feels guilty about the business deal and wanted to help her out by giving her a job. You were right, Sephie. She probably wasn¡¯t qualified In the slightest for the Jab but he hired her anyway, Ivan said. *Maybe they yed on that guilt to get her closer to him,¡± Stephen said. ¡°She¡¯s been a nt all along.¡± ¡°I think the more pressing issue is whether Armando is loyal or if he¡¯s ying both sides,¡± Adrik said. He looked to Keith. ¡°Can you get more recordings of his conversations, especially when he¡¯s speaking Italian? He¡¯s more likely to slip up in front of you because he knows you can¡¯t understand him.¡± ¡°Absolutely. He¡¯s nning on going back to his house in two days for the weekend again. It¡¯s easier to record him there. He also has more meetings there than he does here,¡± Keith said. ¡°Can you get pictures of who he¡¯s meeting with?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°Between me and Chris, we should be able to,¡± he said. ¡°I can send it all to you nightly so I can delete it from my phone.¡± ¡°Keith, you stay loyal to me and you¡¯ll have a job no matter what happens to Armando,¡± Adrik said. ¡°Chris, too. I reward those who stay loyal to me. You¡¯ve seen the alternative firsthand, so I don¡¯t need to borate.¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Keith said. He stood up to leave, understanding that he was free to do so. He shot a quick nce toward Stephen before he walked out of the office. ¡°What happens if Armando doesn¡¯te clean by tomorrow?¡± Misha asked. ¡°I haven¡¯t decided yet. I also haven¡¯t decided how I want to tell him about this information about Giana. I would have assumed he would know about it by now. She¡¯s spending a hefty amount of money, with nothing to show for it,¡± Adrik said. Iughed. ¡°He¡¯s not going to notice that. I saw his ex-girlfriend¡¯s wardrobe. He doesn¡¯t pay attention to the money spent by his girlfriends.¡± ¡°Maybe not in the way you¡¯re thinking, love. But if she¡¯s spending that much money each week, there should be new clothes showing up regrly. Or something showing up in exchange for the money. She can¡¯t go buy clothes on top of spending that amount of money because it would be too obvious. That money has to be going somewhere,¡± Adrik said, ¡°Didn¡¯t his first wife also have the same problem?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Uh oh,¡± I said. ¡°Uh oh what?¡± they all asked at once. ¡°That means this is a pattern and Mando is themon denominator,¡± I said. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°You think he¡¯s getting them hooked? Or they¡¯re turning to it as an escape from him?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°That¡¯s the million-dor question,¡± I said. ¡°The other million-dor question is what are we ordering for dinner? I¡¯m starving.¡± Andrei asked. I caught Andrei before they all left the penthouse after dinner was over and we¡¯d thoroughly discussed all possibilities. ¡°I promise to make your favorite meal tomorrow for suggesting we order takeout tonight. You saved me so much work and I love you for it, Bubba.¡± He pulled me into a hug. ¡°I know you¡¯re tired, spider monkey. We¡¯re all tired right now. Maybe I¡¯ll see if Misha can order Boss back to the house this weekend. I think it does all of us good to go there now,¡± he said. ¡°Devious. I love it. I¡¯ll allow it.¡± 1 announced as I hugged him tighter. Chapter 256 Chapter 256 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Six Sephic Once we were alone, I grabbed Adrik¡¯s hand and pulled him back to the bedroom. He was exhausted. He looked exhausted. He felt exhausted. I turned the hot water on in the bathtub. ¡°I know you only ever take baths when I¡¯m hurt, but I think you should make an exception tonight.¡± He pulled me tight against him. ¡°I will dly take one, as long as you join me.¡± ¡°One of us has to make sure we don¡¯t fall asleep and drown in the tub.¡± Once the tub was full, I ordered him in. I also managed to talk him into letting me be the big spoon, which literally never happened. ¡°But I can¡¯t hold you if you¡¯re behind me, solnishko,¡± he protested. ¡°I know. But I can hold you. You need a break, Adrik. Even if I couldn¡¯t feel what you feel now, it¡¯s written all over your face. You¡¯re exhausted. Let me take care of you the same way you¡¯re always taking care of me,¡± I said. He cursed under his breath as he stepped into the tub, but he moved so I could get in behind him. I tried not tough at him, but I couldn¡¯t help myself. ¡°You¡¯re pretty adorable when you¡¯re tired and cranky,¡± I said as I wrapped my legs around him. I leaned him back against me, letting him rest his head on my shoulder. My hands were running lightly over his muscles, trying to get them to rx. It took just a few minutes for him to take a deep breath and I felt him start to rx. ¡°Okay, so maybe you were right. This feels amazing,¡± he said. ¡°I know,¡± I said kissing his neck lightly. He ended up rxing so much that I really was worried he was going to fall asleep, so I had to keep talking to him to keep him. awake. ¡°I never got a chance to tell you my idea on how to contain your anger,¡± I said. I felt him turn his head and look at me. ¡°You didn¡¯t tell me, you showed me.¡± I turned my head to look at him, surprised. ¡°When you put your hand on my shoulder while Vinny and Anna were in my office. I could feel what you were doing. It was almost clear as day. I wanted to close my eyes to see if I could actually see what you were doing, but I didn¡¯t because they were there. I tried it tonight when we were talking about Giana and Armando. I¡¯m thinking it worked, because I¡¯m pretty sure you thought I was calm that whole time,¡± he said. His smirk was undeniable on his face. My mo uth fell open. ¡°I¡¯m so impressed right now I don¡¯t even have words to describe how impressed I am.¡± I thought back to earlier that evening when we were all in his office. I felt his anger just briefly, but not once after that. He really did learn how to control it so well that even I couldn¡¯t detect it. ¡°I thought you were calm the whole time. I was actually a little worried about you, because I was sure you would be angry and then when you weren¡¯t, I thought there might be something wrong. Like maybe you were getting sic k instead of just being exhausted,¡± I said. He chuckled, grabbing my legs and wrapping them around his waist tighter. ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it too much because I know I¡¯ll get mad again, but I¡¯m livid over this whole Armando thing. I don¡¯t take betrayal weil and Giana has already betrayed you, now with Armando¡­¡± he trailed off, not wanting to finish his thought. ¡°What did we do this morning?¡± I asked quietly. He justughed at me. The water was starting to cool, so he tapped my legs Indicating he wanted to stand up. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly, but I don¡¯t ever want it to stop,¡± he said as he turned toward me and extended his hand to help me stand up. As soon as I was standing, he leaned down and kissed me gently. ¡°The kind of connection we have is something I never thought was possible, but always dreamed of. You understand me on a level that no other person has,¡± He paused, pulling me tight against him. His blue eyes were searching mine for a moment, then he added, ¡°I¡¯ve been seriously thinking about getting rid of everyone. Armando included. With you by my side, I can run the entire city myself.¡± As he said those words, I felt goosebumps rise over my entire body. I know my eyes went a little wide, which worried him, but I was surprised by the reaction, not his statement. I lifted my arm to show him the very clear sign that he was on the right path. The smile that spread across his face was enough to stop my heart this time. He reached down, picking me up and carrying me out of the tub. ¡°You just proved my point,¡± he said. The following morning, I had an idea about how to get a little more information on Giana. I knew she¡¯d been spending a lot of time with Ms. Jackson, not just using her as a cover story. When we came back from the gym, I asked Adrik if he¡¯d be okay with Ms. Jacksoning to the penthouse so I could talk to her without the possibility of Giana showing up, ¡°I¡¯d be willing to bet Giana has madements about Armando around Ms. Jackson. Because of Ms. Jackson¡¯s history, she knows when to keep her mo uth sh ut, but she might tell me what¡¯s been said. She might not. She might feel closer to Giana at this point, but it¡¯s worth a try anyway,¡± I said. ¡°I don¡¯t have a problem with hering up here, as long as it¡¯s just her and nobody else,¡± he said. ¡°Just her and just this once. I happen to love your love of privacy,¡± I said, grinning at him. He had just pulled his shirt on as we were talking, so I walked over and buttoned it up for him. I looked up at him, my own di rty thoughts racing through my head. ¡°I¡¯m doing this wrong.¡± ¡°You can fix itter,¡± he said, a devilish grin on his face. Chapter 257 Chapter 257 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Seven Sephie Viktor and Stephen were busy with their normal Master of the Schedule duties, as Adrik had another busy day. I recruited Misha, Ivan, and Andrei to help me get Ms. Jackson up to the penthouse, hopefully without Giana knowing. Since na used the excuse of having afternoon tea with Ms. Jackson, I wanted to have a chance to talk to her early enough in the day that she would be home should Giana stop byter. Ivan and Andrei volunteered to go fetch her while Misha stayed in the penthouse with me. ¡°I have to admit that I¡¯m still angry with Ms. Jackson for setting up Giana¡¯s ambush of you,¡± Misha said as we waited. ¡°I know, my adorable Russian guardian. I¡¯m hoping that she simply wasn¡¯t aware of what was going on when she set it up, but I do n on asking. You know how quick she is, she might¡¯ve caught on when you told me we didn¡¯t have to stay,¡± I said. Heughed, shaking his head. ¡°What?¡± I asked, ¡°You always do that.¡± ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Give people the benefit of the doubt, second chances, third chances, 500 chances in the case of Max,¡± Misha said, rolling his eyes. I thought for a moment. ¡°I know I do. Sometimes I think it¡¯s a fault, but I refuse to see how thinking the best of someone is a bad thing. It¡¯s gotten me hurt and taken advantage of plenty of times in my life. You¡¯d think I would¡¯ve learned by now, but I just can¡¯t help myself. I still see the good parts of people. Most people.¡± The door to the penthouse opened and Ms. Jackson was escorted inside by Ivan and Andrei. ¡°Child, you have fully realized your power if you¡¯ve reached a point of summoning people to you now,¡± she said,ughing. ¡°She didn¡¯t want to risk being ambushed again,¡± Misha said. He had an edge to his voice that wasn¡¯t usually there, especially around her. He was definitely still angry with her. She picked up on it right away. ¡°I do owe you an apology for that. I had no idea there was an issue between you and Giana. She made it seem like she just wanted to spend time with you. As soon as you saw her, I knew there was an issue.¡± She looked right at Misha. ¡°Then when you told her she didn¡¯t need to stay, I figured out Giana must¡¯ve done something. She put me right in the middle, which is not somewhere I like to be, but I was trying to make the best of it.¡± She looked between me and Misha. ¡°I owe you both an apology. Child, I wouldn¡¯t have called you down there if I knew that was going to happen. And you, sir, you¡¯re much too handsome to ever chastise like that. It nearly broke my heart.¡± It did make me feel better that she was just as ambushed as we were that day, but Misha was still mad. Slightly less mad, but still mad. Didn¡¯t detract from how adorable he was, though, so my working theory that he got away with murder as a child was still a good one. ¡°What happened after we left?¡± Andrei asked Ms. Jackson. Ms. Jackson sighed. ¡°I might¡¯ve read that poor girl the riot act. I still don¡¯t know exactly what happened, but I gather she used Sephle of using drugs. Spend any amount of time around that child and It¡¯s obvious she¡¯s got giant demons in her past. Those kinds of demons only show up when there¡¯s drugs involved or abuse and Sephle had both. na is a nice enough girl, but if I¡¯m being honest, she¡¯s an idi ot. She can¡¯t see past her own nose. I don¡¯t have a way to prove it, but I¡¯d be willing to bet she used Sephie of doing the exact thing she¡¯s doing.¡± We all looked at each other. Ms. Jackson, of course, noticed. ¡°So, I¡¯m right then? She¡¯s the one on drugs?¡± she asked. Ivan ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . nodded his head. ¡°We got confirmation of it yesterday,¡± he said. ¡°There would be a lot less drama in the world if people would just figure out that others will always use you of what they¡¯re afraid of you finding out they¡¯re doing.¡± Ms. Jackson said. She thought for a moment, then looked to me. ¡°I¡¯m guessing there¡¯s more to it than just her killing herself slowly? I can¡¯t imagine you needing to summon me for just that.¡± I smiled at her. She really was a very sharp woman. ¡°Has she talked to you much about Armando?¡± ¡°Little bits here and there. Their rtionship hasn¡¯t been that greattely. She said he¡¯s been arguing with her a lottely, but I¡¯m guessing it has to do with her needing to apologize to Sephie. Armando, to his credit, has been trying to help her grow up. She did tell me that her father lost a substantial amount of money because of Armando. She said it happened years ago, but Armando still feels bad about it. It¡¯s why she got the job as his assistant. That girl can barely assist herself. She said she didn¡¯t even know how to use aputer when he hired her. He¡¯s taught her everything.¡± I looked to Ivan. Stephen was right. She¡¯s likely been a nt all along. Since Ms. Jackson could understand Russian, I couldn¡¯t say anything, so I chose to curse in Italian instead. ¡°That reminds me, child. Since when do you know Italian?¡± she asked me. ¡°It¡¯s not important,¡± Ivan said abruptly. Maybe Misha isn¡¯t the only one still slightly angry with Ms. Jackson. ¡°What about her family? Does she talk about them at all?¡± I asked, trying to steer the conversation away from me. ¡°She¡¯s mentioned them a few times, but never in a good light. She told me her family was wealthy, but they¡¯re controlling. She said her father still tries to control her life, even though he¡¯s in Italy and she¡¯s here. Not much else that I can remember. She¡¯s been unhappy since she got here. She wants to go back to Italy, but it also sounds like she was unhappy when she was in Italy,¡± she said. ¡°She¡¯s going to be unhappy wherever she goes until she learns that she¡¯s the one responsible for her own happiness,¡± I said. ¡°Are they making any ns to go back to Italy? Has she said?¡± Ms. Jackson nodded her head. ¡°She told me at the end of the month, that she would be gone for a few weeks. She said she finally talked him into taking her back to Italy. She apparently ha tes the cold and wants to go somewhere warmer.¡± We all exchanged nces. If she was nning on robbing Armando, that must be when she was nning on doing it. ¡°Do you spend much time with Armando?¡± I asked. ¡°I do see him asionally. We sometimes have dinner together with Mr. Turner,¡± she said. ¡°Do you get the impression he knows she¡¯s on drugs?¡± I asked. I was still trying to figure out if Armando was choosing to ignore it or if he really was that stu pid. ¡°If he doesn¡¯t at least suspect it, then he might be the du mbest man I¡¯ve ever known. Even Mr. Turner picked up on the fact that she was on drugs. Thest two times we¡¯ve had dinner, she¡¯s been so high she can either barely function or she won¡¯t shu t up the whole time. There¡¯s not a lot of in between with her. Mr. Turner said there¡¯s a kid who¡¯s a dealer thates to his hotel frequently. He¡¯s seen the kid in the lobby here a few times, but never with Giana, so he can¡¯t say he¡¯s her dealer.¡± ¡°He¡¯s her dealer,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Ms. Jackson, I want you and Mr. Turner to be careful with Giana. This is much bigger than just a drug problem. I know you both know how to take care of yourselves, but a little distance between both Armando and Gna is probably a good thing right now. She¡¯s been using you as cover to get away from her security guys, too,¡± I said. ¡°I knew she did it once, but I didn¡¯t know she was still doing that,¡± she said. She thought for a moment. ¡°The perks of getting older mean I can fake an illness as much as I want and nobody will question it. I feel a colding on the next time they want to have dinner,¡± she said, matter-of-factly. ¡°If you hear of anything else that seems out of the ordinary when ites to either one of them, will you tell me right away?¡± I asked. ¡°I know you default to keeping your mo uth shu t, but this has the potential to be bad.¡± ¡°Of course, child. You know I¡¯ll never turn down a reason to call one of your eye candies.¡± Chapter 258 Chapter 258 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Eight Adrik I found my mind wandering during the afternoon¡¯s meetings. I slept great the night before, thanks to Sephie forcing me to take a bath with her before bed. I still couldn¡¯t get over her reaction to me telling her that I was thinking of getting rid of the other bosses and running things on my own. It was something my father had tried when I was much younger. It t was one of the reasons I had multiple attempts made on my life before the age of 10. My father eventually relented and divided the city between the six bosses that were now trying to usurp me. Rtions had been mostly good throughout the years between my father and the other bosses. Then, when I took over, things had been quiet until this year. The city was thriving and the bosses were thriving, so it didn¡¯t make sense that they were trying to grab more power from me. Greed does strange things to people. My mind kept returning to the thought of running the entire city with Sephie by my side. I would finally realize what my father had tried to do so many years ago. And do it in a way that would ¡®save the people of the city, rather than sacrifice them as coteral damage. Myst meeting of the day was over. When Stephen returned to my office, I could tell by the look on his face that I was not going to like what he was about to tell me. ¡°Boss, I just heard from Keith. Armando left early for his house, with Giana. Keith said he moved all his meetings there for tomorrow instead of staying here.¡± I inhaled deeply. While it didn¡¯t make me happy that he had chosen to note clean with me, it did mean that we would get a chance to listen to more of his meetings, since Keith would have an easier time recording him at the house. Viktor walked into the office. ¡°Chen called. I told him Sephie would call him back in 5 minutes. Do you want to go upstairs or should have here down here?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go up. I need a change of scenery. She promised Andrei she would cook his favorite meal tonight since he saved her from having to cook yesterday. She¡¯s likely busy anyway,¡± I said. My stress from the day already starting to subside at the thought of having her in my arms. Viktor¡¯s smile made it clear he was happy about this news. He really did love it love it when Sephie cooked. We all did, but for some reason, it was an extra special treat for Viktor. ¡°Apparently, I owe Andrei one,¡± Viktor said as we walked to the elevator. I raised an eyebrow at him. ¡°Andrei¡¯s favorite happens to be mine as well,¡± he said. He was practically drooling as he thought. about it. We really had be quite spoiled with her cooking for us. Even takeout didn¡¯t taste as good anymore. As soon as we opened the door to the penthouse, we could smell her cooking. My stomach growled in anticipation. Viktorughed, as he¡¯d heard it. ¡°At least I¡¯m not the only one overly excited about this,¡± he said as we walked in. Sephie saw us, her eyesnding on me quickly. Her smile made the room even brighter. She had her hands full, so she couldn¡¯t drop everything ande to me the way I¡¯d grown to adore. Instead, I went to her, standing behind her while she finished what she was doing. I leaned down, pressing my cheek to her neck, my hands on her hips, kissing her lightly. She freed up one hand and pressed her palm to my cheek for a moment before returning to what she was doing. ¡°Sestrichka, Chen called earlier. I told him you¡¯d call him back in a few minutes. Can you talk now or should I tell him a few more minutes?¡± Viktor asked him. ¡°If someone can hold the phone for me, I can talk to him now. These raviolls aren¡¯t going to stuff themselves, Papa Bear,¡± she said smiling at him. He dialed the number, putting it on speaker, then handed me the phone to hold for her. ¡°Yay, teamwork,¡± she said giggling as we waited for Chen to pick up. ¡°How did you call exactly 5 minutester? Like were you guys Just fu cking with me and making me walt 5 minutes for no good reason?¡± Chen asked when he picked up the call. Sephieughed at him. ¡°No, Chen. They had to find me. Sometimes I y hide and seek to keep them on their toes. You know, ongoing training and what not,¡± she said. We allughed quietly. ¡°For real?¡± Chen asked. He clearly believed her. ¡°Oh, totally. I once climbed out one of the windows onto the ledge. Took them 6 hours to find me. Most peaceful day I¡¯ve had in a long time,¡± she said. There was silence on the other end. She couldn¡¯t contain herughter any longer. ¡°No, Chen. I¡¯m only messing with you.¡± ¡°At this point, I put nothing past you,¡± he said. ¡°What do you have for me, my favorite French person?¡± she asked. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! ¡°I did hear from the people in Vito¡¯s area of the city. They¡¯re down to meet. They said name the ce and time and they¡¯ll be there. DJ finally got back to me. He apologized for the dy, but he said one of his kids has been really si ck. The people in charge in Sal¡¯s area of the city are also down to meet. I don¡¯t know if you guys want two separate meetings or you want tobine them, but let me know when and where. I¡¯ll make sure everyone knows,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re such a professional public servant, Chen.¡± She nced at the guys, then tried to turn around far enough to look at me. I surprised her by kissing her cheek. I looked at Ivan, who was holding up one finger, as was Viktor. I nodded in agreement and looked to Misha, who confirmed meeting with everyone at once would be fine. Sephie saw everything and responded to Chen. ¡°We can meet with everyone at once. Same asst time, we¡¯ll get in touch about when and where. Thank you, once again, for being our go-between,¡± Sephie said. ¡°You got it, my girl. Hey, I talked to Maxst night. I stopped by the restaurant. He told me what happened. Well, most of it. I¡¯m pretty sure his du mbass left out some important details. I don¡¯t know everything about your rtionship with him, but you did the right thing. Sephie. You were always a way better friend to him than he was to you,¡± he said. It took her a second to respond, but she thanked him and the call ended. I handed Viktor his phone back, my hands once again moving to her hips. I felt her sigh quietly as she continued what she was doing. I kissed her neck, whispering ¡°I love you¡± in her ear. She leaned her body back against me, leaning her head on mine. ¡°It¡¯s less likely that anyone will recognize civiliansing to meet with you. That¡¯s a normal urrence. Should we have theme here?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°If we do, it needs to be while Armando is gone, I want him left out of all ns for the time being, until we have a chance to find out more on him,¡± I said. ¡°Is he still leaving tomorrow?¡± Sephie asked. ¡°He left today. Keith let me know he had changed ns. He¡¯s moved all his meetings tomorrow to his house,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Hmm. That¡¯s weird,¡± she said. ¡°Did Ms. Jackson have any insight about Giana?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Not much, but she did say she was just as ambushed as we were that day when Giana pretended to apologize to me. She¡¯s also been suspecting that Giana¡¯s been on something for a while now and she feels like Armando has to know. She said they¡¯ve had dinner with her and Mr. Turner a few times and it was really obvious she was blitzed out of her mind,¡± she said. ¡°She also said na told her that they were nning on going to Italy at the end of the month,¡± Misha said. ¡°So, either Armando is nning on leaving, or that¡¯s when Giana is nning on robbing him. Or both, I don¡¯t know yet.¡± ¡°He¡¯s really not doing himself any favors by leaving early and he¡¯ll essentially be cutting himself off from any favor if he thinks going back to Italy right now is a good move,¡± I said. Sephie hade to a stopping point and wiped her hands. She turned to face me, smiling at me. ¡°Have you talked to them. about what you told mest night yet?¡± she asked me quietly enough that only I could hear her. When she turned to look at me, I felt her warmth spread over my body. I leaned down, kissing her quickly. I stood up, still looking at her gorgeous smile. ¡°I think you should,¡± she urged. She held her arm up in between us, showing me the goosebumps that were clearly visible. I kissed. her once more, ovee with just how much I loved her. I looked to the guys. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking I should do away with all the bosses, Armando included, and run the city myself. With Sephie and you 5, I think it¡¯s possible,¡± I said. They were silent for a few moments as they thought about what I¡¯d just said. I was most curious about how Misha would react, honestly. As was Sephie. She turned to look at him so she could see his reaction. He had his faraway look in his eye, but then we all saw his upper body shudder as he shook off the reaction. Sephieughed at him. ¡°Same, Misha. Same,¡± she said. Ivan¡¯s sly smile spread across his face. ¡°Trino called this one, you know.¡± The other guys looked to him, curious as to what he was talking about. Sephie must¡¯ve told him what Trino said when we were at his ind house, because I don¡¯t remember mentioning it to anyone. I felt Sephieugh quietly. Ivan said, ¡°This was suggested when we were at Trino¡¯s ind house. Trino said the city already had their rightful King and Queen and didn¡¯t need anything else. I happen to agree with him.¡± Chapter 259 Chapter 259 Chapter Two Hundred Fifty-Nine Adrik We set a meeting with the people organizing in the different areas of the city that we knew about so far. Since Armando was at his house, I had everyonee to the building to make it easier. I regrly met with groups of people from all areas of the city, so it wouldn¡¯t raise suspicion. It wasn¡¯t the same as having known drug dealers walk into the building to meet with me. After the meeting, we had nned to go to the house. I knew the guys were just as stressed as I was. Being away from everything, if only for the weekend, helped everyone rx to make it through the week. The meeting went well and Sephie was happy with the people that showed up as well. ¡°It¡¯s obvious the people love you. It¡¯s always been obvious to me. You¡¯re so popr that I still can¡¯t believe I¡¯d never heard of you before the night I first met you at the restaurant. Not once did any of the other bosses mention you when they were meeting at the restaurant,¡± she said. We were in the backseat, on the way to the house. ¡°I do try to stay as anonymous as possible. The other bosses wouldn¡¯t necessarily need to mention me unless there was a problem. That¡¯s why I showed up that night,¡± I said. ¡°Was it just Anthony¡¯s side hustle or was there something more?¡± she asked me, as curious as always. ¡°That and I was already hearing rumors of increased taxes in a few areas of town. Not as bad as it is now, even. Anthony made sure that conversation didn¡¯t happen, so the bosses took advantage and raised taxes on everyone quickly.¡± ¡°At least the people are smart enough to know it wasn¡¯t you. Now they know they can count on you to help solve the issue, too.¡± She leaned her head on my shoulder. ¡°You¡¯re a good King,¡± she said wistfully. Our conversation on the way to the house made me start to wonder if Anthony had been put up to doing what he did that night at the restaurant specifically so I wouldn¡¯t call the other bosses out about raising taxes. They couldn¡¯t have known I woulde to Sephie¡¯s defense. I¡¯d never shown any favor to any woman in public, well, ever. At this point, I was starting to question everything and everyone around me. Later that night, I brought it up to Sephie again. ¡°How well did the other bosses know you, solnishko?¡± ¡°I think you¡¯d have to ask them that question, but Armando is the only one I ever really spoke to. Even with him, it was rare. He asked me questions a few times about whether I had a boyfriend and things like that, but he made it seem like he was trying to set me up with one of his sons. He would always say ¡®my son is about your age¡¯ and then he¡¯d tell me what his son did or was going to do about whatever we were talking about. I just let him talk, same as I do now,¡± she said. She thought for a minute, then added, ¡°I got free help out of him when it would happen, so I never really minded. But I kept the details about my life to myself. I didn¡¯t like the idea of him having more information about me than I wanted him to, regardless of whether he was nice to me or not.¡± N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°Maybe he was trying to gauge your interest in him, not his son,¡± I said. I hadn¡¯t given it much thought, but Armando was very affectionate toward Sephie, even from the very beginning. Sephie looked at me and scrunched up her face. ¡°Eww.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh. I never had to question her love for me. I would be more worried about her leaving me for one of the guys than I ever would about her leaving me for someone else. And I never worried about her leaving me for one of the guys. ¡°I mean, Armando is a nice-looking man. He takes care of himself much more than the other bosses. Those dudes have been letting their money attract women for years now. Armando still has some self- respect and tries to keep in shape. He looks good for his age, although now that I think about it, I really have no clue how old he is,¡± she said. ¡°He¡¯s roughly ten years older than I am,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s young to be a boss. I know how you became the world¡¯s youngest boss, but how did he manage it? And how long has he been a boss?¡± she asked as she climbed into bed, waiting for me to turn the overhead light off. ¡°Armando was the underboss of the man he took over from. That man only had one daughter and she was never interested in anything rted to business. He handed everything over to Armando when he became too ill to run things.¡± I stretched out on the bed, waiting for Sephie toy across my chest. ¡°And has he done a better or worse job than that guy?¡± she asked, settling in. She rested her chin on my chest, so she could look at me. ¡°Mostly better. He¡¯s made a few deals that have gone bad, as you know. Overall, he¡¯s tried to win the favor of the people in his area. He¡¯s quite generous, has a good rtionship with the important people, and looks out for the people in his area.¡± ¡°Did he be boss before or after you did?¡± she asked. I could see her mind trying to make a connection, but I wasn¡¯t exactly sure where she was going with this line of thinking. ¡°Before. Until I took over, he was the youngest boss the city had ever seen,¡± I said. She chewed on her bottom lip, lost in thought. I stayed quiet, curious where her mind was going. I also loved watching her when she was deep in thought. It was almost as adorable as when she was confused about something. ¡°What if he¡¯s been ying both sides this whole time?¡± she asked. She thought for a moment longer. ¡°He always had a good rtionship with the other bosses, from what I could tell at the meetings. He was always the one that would get everyone toe to an agreement when they¡¯d argue over something. He would work the problem out. Eventually, the other bosses started to look at him for direction. Like they would defer to him, almost.¡± She sat up, crossing her legs, so she could fidget with her hands. I sat up farther as well, so I could see her better. ¡°Let¡¯s just pretend for a minute that he got it in his head that he was going to run the city, because the other bosses had been giving him more respect. Add in that he might¡¯ve been trying to feel me out,¡± she shuddered at that thought. ¡°Still gross, for the record,¡± she said, smiling at me. ¡°You were gone for a few months prior to the night I met you. Maybe Mando started thinking he could run the city himself, without you. Then youe back and in one night, take the city back and take me from him. Remember that first night at his house in Italy? How weirdly thoughtful he was about trying to set me up with his son and how that didn¡¯t work out because I was meant for bigger and better things? And then again when we were at the restaurant after the meeting with the scummywyer?¡± she asked. I nodded my head. ¡°I let those go because I thought he was just being a creepy old dude. You guys made me all squishy inside talking about me anyway, but Mando¡¯sments made me tense. It was just covered up by what you guys said about me. Mando doesn¡¯t know me well enough to say things like that about me. He still doesn¡¯t. He might think he does. He might wish he does, but he doesn¡¯t. I would take ament like that from Trino better than I would Armando. At least Trino is honest about his intentions.¡± Her fingers were nervously picking at the waistband of my pajama pants. She had taken the drawstring. rolled it up, unrolled it, twisted it around her fingers, and now she¡¯d moved on to the waistband as she talked. I thought about what she¡¯d just said. ¡°I knew Armando had a good rtionship with the other bosses, but I didn¡¯t realize they had put him in any kind of leadership position, if you will,¡± I said. ¡°I did miss out on some very important details while we were gone trying to get Viktor back.¡± I ran my hand through my hair. That period of my life was one of the roughest times I¡¯ve been through. Trying to get Viktor out, without getting the rest of us caught was quite possibly the hardest thing we¡¯ve ever done. I was more nervous walking into that meeting at the restaurant that night than I¡¯d ever been. I¡¯d been away for months. A lot can happen in that amount of time. Everything faded away when I walked in and saw Sephie staring at me. 1 felt her fingers lightly running over my cheek and through my short facial hair. ¡°Penny for your thoughts,¡± she said quietly. I looked at her, smiling at me. Her hands had quieted and she was waiting for me to think through what was going through my mind, just as I had waited for her. It was one of the many things I loved about her. ¡°I was thinking about being gone, trying to get Viktor out. It was a rough time. I rarely get worried about business, but I was nervous walking into that meeting that night at the restaurant. I¡¯d been gone longer than I had wanted to be. I didn¡¯t know what to expect. Then I walk in and find you staring at me,¡± I said, smiling at her. ¡°Everything else seemed inconsequential from that point on.¡± The smile that spread across her face made my heart threaten to stop. Chapter 260 Chapter 260 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty Adrik Misha and Sephie left for a run the next morning while the rest of us went to the gym. Where Misha had dreaded having to run with Sephie in the beginning, he now looked forward to it. After the attack on them, they rarely went for a run in the city anymore. They would use the treadmills in the gym, but they both said they hated it. When we were at the house, though, they would be gone for sometimes two hours. Sephie had told me that Misha was now wanting to take the long route each time they went for a run. It made her happy to not feel like she was killing him any longer. I discussed what Sephie and I had talked about the night before with the other four guys while we were in the gym. ¡°It should surprise no one that Sephie made a great observationst night.¡± The guys all stopped and turned toward me to hear what she¡¯de up with this time. Iughed at their curious, but not surprised in the least expressions. ¡°We were talking about Armando and how well he and the other bosses knew Sephic before she met me. She said Armando was the only one that would ever talk to her like a person, but she always got the feeling he was trying to set her up with one of his sons, because he would mention he had a son her age frequently.¡± ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t think it was for his son. I think it was for him,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Sephie ended up saying the same thingst night, but I¡¯m curious to hear how you came to that conclusion,¡± I said. Ivan never ceased to amaze me with his observation skills. They were almost as good as Sephie¡¯s. ¡°I caught him looking at her a few times, but I don¡¯t think I would¡¯ve noticed had he not made a few comments about her when we were at his house in Italy. He doesn¡¯t really know her, so they seemed very out of context. They came across as mostly harmless at the time and they would¡¯ve been, had he known her better, but she told me that none of the bosses knew much, if anything about her. Including Armando. It just felt wrong, so I started paying attention. It¡¯s calmed down somewhat since he and Giana got together, but much like her inability to not stare at Misha, he¡¯s incapable of not staring at Sephie when he thinks no one is watching.¡± I thought about his words for a minute. What Sephie had saidst night was starting to make more sense. ¡°That makes the rest of what she saidst night seem more usible,¡± I said. ¡°What else has she known all along that none of us caught on to until she pointed it out?¡± Andrei asked. I chuckled. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say she¡¯s known all along. She¡¯s just seeing Armando in a bit of a different light with everything going on and remembering things in the past that seemed benign at the time that didn¡¯t age well. She told me that the other bosses were starting to put Armando into a bit of a leadership role among them before I came back. She said Armando would help settle disputes and would get them all to agree, She¡¯s also said all along that she never even knew of my existence until that night at the restaurant. She said she never heard the other bosses mention my name. Not once.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why she calls you the Lord King Boss,¡± Viktor said,ughing. ¡°She didn¡¯t know who you were or what to call you when she found out you wereing to the meeting.¡± ¡°It¡¯s authoritative,¡± I said, causing moreughter from everyone. I think they enjoyed the lighter side that Sephie had brought out in all of us, but especially me. I hardly ever joked about anything before Sephie, but now we could find the lighter side of just about anything. It was a wee change. *So, you think Armando is ying both sides to see which side will win? That way, If you lose, he can still keep favor with the other bosses?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°It¡¯s entirely possible. Given that he didn¡¯te clean about his argument with his associate after the meeting on Monday, I¡¯m rethinking his loyalties. You all know how well I take betrayal of any kind,¡± I said. ¡°Sephie saidst night, just to y Devil¡¯s advocate, that Mando might¡¯ve gotten it in his head that he could run the city while I was gone. If you add in that he might have been feeling Sephie out for himself instead of the story about his son like he said and her point was that I basically came back and in one night took it all away from him. He might be ying both sides out of spite.¡± ¡°Sephie didn¡¯t give him any hope that he had a chance with her before she met you, did she?¡± Stephen asked. I could tell he was perplexed over Armando¡¯s behavior, if this really was true. ¡°No. She said that thought was gross. Given the convulsions she has thinking about it, I believe her. She said he used to stay 1 after asionally and would help her clean up after the other bosses had left. He would ask her questions about her life, like he was trying to find more information out about her. She said she never told him anything important and that she didn¡¯t like the idea of him knowing things about her. We know how private she can be. I doubt he got anything useful out of her,¡± I said, ¡°In all my 900 years, I¡¯ll never understand people getting upset about losing things that don¡¯t even belong to them in the first ce,¡± Stephen said. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°You and me hoth. It¡¯s still just a working theory about Armando, but it seems to be making more sense, the more I think about it. We should hopefully be able to get some answers if Keith and Chris can record his meetings. He¡¯s never taken his security seriously. I¡¯m hoping that remains the case and they¡¯re able to record him easily,¡± I said. ¡°But, for now, I want Armando left out of everything.¡± ¡°We might be able to test his allegiance, Give him false information and see what he does with it,¡± Ivan said. ¡°I agree. We just need to be careful and time that right. We don¡¯t want to scare him into hiding too soon if he finds out we¡¯re on to him,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Agreed. We definitely need to time everything just right. I¡¯m not doing anything without Misha and Sephie,¡± I said. 1 remembered something Ivan had said the night before, while Sephie was still cooking dinner and we were all standing in the kitchen together. ¡°You know who originally suggested that I do away with the other bosses?¡± I asked, looking at Ivan. He shook his head no. ¡°Armando.¡± ¡°That kind of an ideaes up in conversation because you¡¯ve already been thinking about it,¡± Ivan said, his hand running over his goatee. Viktor did some digging on who the man was that we overheard arguing with Armandote morning. He had to rely on Sephie for trantion, as many of the articles were in Italian, but he manag ed to find a few that were in English since he spent part of the year in the city. She was curled up next to him on the couch, so he could search for information and she could trante what he¡¯d found. ¡°It appears he and Armando are rted, but distantly. They¡¯ve been business partners since Armando was much younger, however. I¡¯ve found quite a few business deals going back decades,¡± Viktor said, ¡°I can¡¯t find any indication that he¡¯s involved in the illegal side of Armando¡¯s business. At least not directly. It doesn¡¯t make sense that he would be urging him to switch sides if he¡¯s not involved.¡± ¡°Do the other bosses make business deals with each other like you and Armando?¡± Sephie asked me. As soon as she said it, a lightbulb went off in Viktor¡¯s head and he started down an entirely new rabbit ho le, digging for more information. ¡°Minor stuff, mostly. The other bosses tend to rely heavily on the illegal side of things. They have a few legitimate businesses set up, mostly mattress stores, but they¡¯re mostly a front and a way tounder money. They don¡¯t make very much money off of those businesses. Their wealthes from the illegal side almost exclusively. Armando is the only boss other than me that invests in legitimate ventures,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe that¡¯s why they¡¯re getting greedy. I would think there¡¯s a finite number of addicts in the city. That¡¯s a fixed ie supply.¡± She was still reading an article that Viktor had given her to trante while she talked out loud. ¡°Plus, a significant portion of your customer base dies every year. If you¡¯re an idi ot like Sal and push brawn on your customer base, then you¡¯re going to lose more customers than you gain.¡± She looked up at me, a smirk on her face. ¡°I don¡¯t even know anything about business and I know that¡¯s a terrible model for trying to stay wealthy.¡± ¡°You do make a good point though, love,¡± I said. ¡°It would exin why they¡¯re getting greedy. The commissioner instituted a drug prevention program for at-risk youthst year. He talked to me before he started it. Most of the addicts in the city are adults, so taking the younger people out of the supply chain, if you will, shouldn¡¯t have made a significant difference. Maybe it was more sessful than the other bosses expected. I would expect nothing less than for them to not see thating.¡± ¡°Commissioner 1, Bosses 0,¡± Sephie said, going back to tranting for Viktor. Chapter 261 Chapter 261 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-One Sephie N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°Are we taking the long route again, my adorable Russian guardian?¡± I asked Misha as we got ready for our morning run. ¡°I¡¯m down if you¡¯re down. It¡¯s colder this morning than I thought it was going to be, so I don¡¯t know how long you want to stay outside. I don¡¯t want to be the reason you stay cold the rest of the day,¡± he said. ¡°As it happens, running warms me up,¡± I said, grinning at him. ¡°But I love you for thinking about that. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve noticed, but I ha te being cold.¡± ¡°I might¡¯ve noticed. I¡¯m very observant,¡± he said, sarcastically. As we set off on our run, my mind was still reying the conversation with Adrik from the night before. I couldn¡¯t shake the feeling that I¡¯d missed something about Armando and now we were in trouble. Even though I felt like I¡¯d missed something, I still couldn¡¯t see what it was I¡¯d missed. I was still having trouble believing that Armando could be ying both sides. He¡¯d seemed so upfront and honest about everything from the beginning. The great thing about running with Misha is that he enjoyed the silence. I¡¯d tried running with Max a few times and he always tried to talk to me while we ran. I hated it. I liked to be left alone to my thoughts. It was a great way to work through problems in my head. Or not. Sometimes I didn¡¯t think about anything and just enjoyed the break. Either way, Misha was there, silently ensuring I was safe. It took us almost two hours to go the long route. Misha used to struggle to make it all the way, but he looked like he could keep going this morning. Once we slowed to a walk, we usually talked about anything and everything on our way back to the house. I enjoyed my alone time with each of them and I think they enjoyed it with me as well. ¡°I needed that,¡± he said. ¡°I did too. I think we¡¯ve all been extra stressedtely. Have you been having trouble sleeping?¡± I asked. It was a random thought that just popped into my head, which I had learned was usually an indication that the other person was thinking it, but didn¡¯t necessarily want to say it. Heughed. ¡°Yeah. I haven¡¯t said anything to anybody yet, but it¡¯s been happening for a bit. Since Giana used you, I think.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still mad at her, aren¡¯t you?¡± I asked. While it was adorable and heartwarming that he had gotten so angry at her usation, I was starting to get concerned at his inability to let it go. ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever been so angry at a chick for something she didn¡¯t even do to me,¡± he said. I stopped walking. We were both still catching our breath. ¡°Misha, you have to let it go. Not for her, but for you. It¡¯s one of the hardest things to do, but trusting that she¡¯ll get her own Karma will make you feel much better.¡± He looked at me, then looked at the ground, like he knew I was right, but he still didn¡¯t want to let go. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve noticed this one, my adorable Russian guardian, but Karma tends toe down harshly on those that want to harm me,¡± I added, quietly. ¡°You just have to be patient.¡± He raised his gaze, a sly smile stretching across his face. He put his arm around my shoulders as we continued our walk back to the house. ¡°I should listen to my own advice. I¡¯m having the same problem, just with Armando,¡± I said. ¡°I can¡¯t figure out what the deal is with him either,¡± Misha said. ¡°I want to like him, but he said a few things when we first got to his house In Italy that I didn¡¯t like.¡± ¡°Like what?¡± I asked. He¡¯d never talked about this, so I was clueless as to what he was referring to. ¡°That first night, when it took you and Boss a little longer toe to dinner. We all knew it was because you could barely walk and told him as much. He made a rudement about your se x life with Boss being the reason you couldn¡¯t walk.¡± I stopped walking again. ¡°What did he say exactly? Do you remember?¡± ¡°Not exactly. It was something like if you were his girlfriend, you wouldn¡¯t be able to walk much anytime. He said it quietly and I think only me and Ivan heard it. The other guys were standing far enough away that they missed it.¡± ¡°Shi t. Sometimes I ha te being right,¡± I said. Misha looked at me, confused, but also a little concerned. ¡°Have you heard him say anything else that was weird like that?¡± ¡°That was the worst one, but then there was that really awkward toast he made to you. I didn¡¯t think he knew you well enough to talk about you like that,¡± Misha said. I smiled at him. ¡°I just said the same thing to Adrikst night. That didn¡¯t sit well with me, but it was covered up by the things that you guys said about me. Armando doesn¡¯t know me well enough. He might wish he did, but he doesn¡¯t.¡± When I had stopped walking, Misha removed his aim from my shoulders so he could look down at me while we talked. I grabbed his wrist and put his arm back around my shoulders to continue walking once again to the house. ¡°Armando used to stay after the other hosses had left and he would help me clean up. I always thought he was trying to set me up with his son. He would ask me questions about my personal life, trying to find out if I was single, h h h. I never told him anything of importance and I never really thought anything of it. I was just happy to have some help. When Adrik and I were talking about thisst night, he pointed it out that he wasn¡¯t asking for his son. He was asking for him,¡± I said. I looked up to see Misha¡¯s reaction. His face scrunched up much like mine had the night before, I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°I had the same reaction. But if you take that into consideration and you also take into ount that the other bosses had put Armando into somewhat of a leadership role while you guys were gone trying to get Viktor hack, it gives Armando a motive to be ying both sides right now. Adrik came back and basically in one night took back the city and took me away from Armando. Not that there was EVER a chance of that happening. For the record. I felt like that needed to be said out loud. Because gross.¡± Mishaughed. ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone is worried about you leaving Boss anytime soon, gazelle. It¡¯s obvious to anyone who sees. you two with each other that you belong together.¡± As we walked up the steps toward the back door, Ivan was walking by toward the kitchen. He stopped and opened the door for us. ¡°Once you guys get cleaned up, Boss wants everyone in his office,¡± he said. ¡°This sounds serious,¡± I said. ¡°We had a conversation about Armando while we were in the gym,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We had a conversation about Armando while we were walking back to the house,¡± Misha said. ¡°Which reminds me, why didn¡¯t you tell me about the grossment he made about me when we first got to Italy?¡± I asked Ivan as I smacked his shoulder. Heughed, but tried to look apologetic. ¡°I didn¡¯t tell Boss what he said yet. I don¡¯t know if I should tell Boss what he said. He might want to ki ll him immediately.¡± Ivan pulled me toward him, hugging me to him. ¡°And I didn¡¯t tell you, princess, because you were already handling all you could handle at the time. You didn¡¯t need to worry about pervy old men on top of everything else.¡± I sighed, resting my head against his sizeable chest. ¡°I ha te that I can¡¯t argue with you sometimes.¡± I felt his chest vibrate as heughed at me. ¡°Go get cleaned up, princess. Boss is going to need you to keep him from getting all murdery once he finds out what was said,¡± Ivan said pushing me toward the back stairs. Chapter 262 Chapter 262 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Two Sephie I walked through the bedroom into Adrik¡¯s office to find him at his desk. He was engrossed in the papers in front of him, so he didn¡¯t notice me. I stopped at the doorway. We¡¯d been able to feel each other enoughtely that I wanted to experiment with it, just to see what would happen. He had a hatred of shirts when we were at the house that I happened to love. I stood in the doorway, watching him contemte whatever he was thinking about, my own thoughts turning to just how much I loved him. I felt the warmth start to spread through my body that was present anytime I thought about him and I pushed it to him, seeing if he would notice, He inhaled sharply, then immediately looked up to find me. He noticed. I was still leaning against the doorway, a small smile on my lips while I experimented. As soon as he looked at me, the warmth grew to an intense desire for him, which I also pushed toward him. His sexy smirk told me he could feel it, loud and clear. He stood up, closing the distance between us quickly. ¡°Why do you pick right now to do this to me?¡± he asked. One arm went around my waist, as he pulled me with him. He closed his office door behind him as he walked us quickly to the bathroom. I couldn¡¯t help but giggle. ¡°I don¡¯t like time constraints with you,¡± he said, his voice husky. ¡°But I do like any chance I have to see you na ked.¡± N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°We¡¯ve already established that I¡¯m terrible at denying you,¡± I said as I pulled my shirt over my head. He cursed under his breath as I continued to shed my clothes. He walked to the shower, turning it on for me. ¡°How was your run, love?¡± he asked as he jumped onto the bathroom counter to watch me. ¡°Good. We both needed it, I think,¡± I said, stepping into the shower. ¡°Yeah? How so?¡± ¡°Misha¡¯s still mad at Giana and I¡¯m mad at Armando. We needed the stress relief,¡± I said. ¡°It surprises me how angry Misha got with Giana. He¡¯s normally such a happy guy, but he¡¯s clearly still angry with her. He¡¯s very protective of you, solnishko,¡± a sly smile creeping across his face. ¡°Are you still angry with Armando because of what we talked aboutst night or is there something more?¡± I sighed, but didn¡¯t answer right away. Instead, I put my face under the water. When I finally turned to look at him, he said, ¡°there¡¯s more, isn¡¯t there? Did Misha tell you about his inappropriatements in Italy?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°How bad was it?¡± he asked. I could tell he was trying not to get too upset. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make me like him any more at the moment. I¡¯m sure there have been worse things said Hit me before, but it does make the theory that he was thinking he had a chance with me seem more usible,¡± I said. I turned the water off and was met by Adrik who had a towel for me once I stepped out of the shower. He wrapped the towel around me, saying, ¡°new technique to keep my anger in check. All bad news must be delivered while you¡¯re na ked from now on.¡± ¡°That¡¯s going to make it awkward in a meeting, but okay. If you insist,¡± Iughed. The guys were waiting in his office when we walked in. Ivan looked at me curiously, wondering if I¡¯d told him exactly what Armando said. I shook my head no. ¡°Co ward,¡± he said,ughing at me. I readily agreed with him. Adrik had a hold of my hand and pulled me toward one of the couches. He sat down and then pulled me into hisp, so I could leon back against him. It seemed to be one of his favorite ways to have me near him. I wasn¡¯t going to argue as he kept me WASTIL. ¡°I think it¡¯s time we stop all this nonsense for good. We have good intel on the brawn operations, so we know how to hit them. I want to do away with all the bosses, as well. Armando included. I haven¡¯t decided how exactly I¡¯m going to run the entire city by myself, but I¡¯ll figure that outter. But I¡¯m done dealing with these children,¡± Adrik said. As he said it out loud, I felt the goosebumps rise over my entire body once again. I nced at Misha quickly, curious how he would react as well. I saw his upper body shudder slightly. I squeezed Adrik¡¯s arms around me, knowing this was what needed to happen. ¡°I love a good nning session in the morning,¡± Ivan said. We spent the next few hours nning and talking about every possible scenario we could think of. We talked through Armando still being loyal, Armando not being loyal, and everything in between. I spent most of the rest of the morning and into the afternoon listening to the guys talk about how they were going to hit the brawn operations. I was curious how everything was going to work, but I was also worried where I fit into those ns. I¡¯d gotten so used to never being alone. At least one of the guys was always with me. Now, I was fa ced with the very real possibility of having to be alone while they took care of the brawn operations. My mind was so focused on that and the sudden fear of being alone that I didn¡¯t notice my legs start to shake until Adrik pulled me closer to him. ¡°Solnishko, what¡¯s wrong? I can feel your fear, my love. What¡¯s going on?¡± he whispered in my ear. I was so lost in my thoughts that it jarred me back to reality. I heard himugh quietly as I nced around the room. The guys were talking amongst themselves and not paying attention to us. ¡°Talk to me,¡± Adrik said as he leaned down and kissed my neck gently. I shifted in hisp so I could more easily see him. As soon as I looked at him, I saw the concern grow on his face. He searched my eyes for a moment, then a small smile spread across his face. ¡°You won¡¯t be alone, love. I haven¡¯t figured out the details yet, but I know for sure you won¡¯t be alone,¡± he said as he kissed me gently. ¡°You¡¯re getting better at that,¡± I said quietly. My fingers moved to the cor of his shirt, then to his neck. He closed his eyes briefly, enjoying my touch. When he opened them again, his deep blue eyes were sincere. ¡°This one was easy. I have the same fear. In case you hadn¡¯t noticed, I¡¯m afraid to leave you alone,¡± he said. I felt the pull in my chest that he feels as I smiled at him. I rested my forehead against his as the relief washed over my body. ¡°Sestrichka, can you trante this for me?¡± Viktor asked, handing me hisputer. The conversation had shifted from nning to gathering more information on Armando and his associate that I¡¯d overheard him arguing with. Viktor was trying to find as much information on his associate as possible, but that meant much of the information was in Italian. ¡°Of course, Papa Bear,¡± I said as I moved next to him on the couch. I scanned over yet another article, trying to find the valid information in it. We¡¯d spent much of the afternoon looking for information on Armando. Viktor was now also looking to see if he¡¯d made deals with any of the other bosses. ¡°This one is about a housing project outside Naples. Um, looks like possible vacation rentals, as well as residential. Mando seems to keep the same investors around him. Giana¡¯s father is on this one.¡± I kept reading and came across a new name. ¡°Oh, well, that¡¯s interesting,¡± I said. I looked up from the computer to find everyone waiting for me to finish. ¡°It seems Salvadori is branching out into Italian real estate.¡± There was a collective groan, along with quiet cursing as they all tried to contain their anger at finding out Armando had made at least one deal with Salvadori. ¡°If they¡¯ve made one deal, there¡¯s a good chance there¡¯s more,¡± Viktor said. I handed hisputer back to him. ¡°If anyone can find more deals, it¡¯s you, Papa Bear.¡± Stephen¡¯s phone beeped, then beeped again, then beeped again. He looked at the iing messages. ¡°It¡¯s Keith. He¡¯s sent over what he was able to get today at Armando¡¯s house,¡± he said. He got up to hand me his phone, along with a pair of earphones. *Here, these might help you hear the conversation better,¡± he said. ¡°You know, since your human hearing is Inferior to mine.¡± ¡°This is why you¡¯re my favorite senior citizen,¡± I said as I moved to the table so I could write more easily., I went through all the recordings, listening to each one multiple times to make sure I was hearing everything correctly. I listed all the projects that Armando spoke about on the recordings and gave the highlights about what was said to Adrik. He knew about all the projects. None of the conversation that was recorded raised any red gs. There were two meetings that Keith wasn¡¯t able to record, because Armando shu t the door, but Chris was able to get a picture of the men he met with. One of them was the man we now knew as Ricardo, the man that I¡¯d overheard Armando arguing with. ¡°Viktor, what if Ricardo is the missing link?¡± I asked. Viktor looked at me, somewhat puzzled. ¡°What if he¡¯s the go-between. Can you find any deals he¡¯s made with the other bosses? Like what if he¡¯s the silent partner in all this? It might not look like he has a hand in the illegal side of things, but he invests so much in the legitimate side that he has a say in the illegal side.¡± Viktor just raised his eyebrow as he thought about the question, then returned to hisputer and started yet another search. Chapter 263 Chapter 263 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Three Sephie Adrik had stood up from his desk and pulled me up from my chair to go outside for a bit before the sun went down. We both needed a break, but I had the idea about Ricardo and wanted to ask before I forgot. ¡°Come, we¡¯ll resume thister,¡± Adrik said as he pulled me from his office. We stopped at the closet so I could grab a jacket, then continued downstairs. He held my hand in his, his fingersced through mine. As soon as we were outside and mostly alone, I felt the stress melt away. I took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air. ¡°I needed this break,¡± I said. ¡°Me too. You¡¯re the best excuse for getting me out of the office,¡± he said. ¡°Especially now that I can feel what you¡¯re feeling more. I know when you¡¯re getting stressed. I can ignore my own stress, but I¡¯m incapable of ignoring yours. I want to make it stop as soon as I feel it.¡± I moved closer to him, my other arm holding on to his arm as we walked hand-in-hand. ¡°I do love that you¡¯re so protective of me. It might seem over the top to someone else, but Ipletely lost the feeling of safety when I lived with my uncle. Even after I got away from him, I never really got it back. That feeling of constantly being on edge, constantly looking over my shoulder, or waiting for the next attack to happen never went away until I met you.¡± He let go of my hand so he could put his arm around me. He stopped, pulling me closer to him. ¡°It¡¯s kind of si lly when I think about it. I know I can survive things most people wouldn¡¯t, because I¡¯ve done it. I¡¯m still here. But the hypervignce gets exhausting after a while. You¡¯ve brought peace back to my life and now I never want to be without it again,¡± I said. He inhaled sharply. ¡°Sephie, I never want you to worry. About anything. You¡¯re a very big reason that I made the decision to get rid of the other bosses. I don¡¯t want to have to constantly worry about one of them trying to hurt you to get to me. I want you and Misha to be able to run through the city again without worrying you¡¯re going to be attacked. I want to be able to walk to Vinny¡¯s to get you your favorite sandwich in the middle of the day without worrying someone is going to try and grab you. I want you to always know that you¡¯repletely safe with me. And if I¡¯m not with you, I want you to know you¡¯repletely safe with whichever one of the guys is with you.¡± ¡°Or three,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Or three. Safety in numbers, solnishko,¡± he said,ughing with me. I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my head on his chest. His arms held me tight against him, causing me to feel deliciously warm throughout my entire body. ¡°I love you, Adrik,¡± I sighed. ¡°I love you, Sephie. More than anything.¡± he said, kissing the top of my head. After we left the office, the guys moved everything downstairs. They were spread out on the couches when Adrik and I came back as the sun was setting. I had a feeling they did it so they could be closer to the kitchen. They¡¯d all grown to love me cooking for them, especially now that I was trying to make more traditional Russian dishes, but it felt like they enjoyed helping just as much as they enjoyed eating. I never had to wash a dish when they were around and they were always willing to jump in and help. It gave us a chance to talk about things, just the seven of us. It was a strange dynamic, our weird little family, but it was one that I adored. ¡°I have more for you to trante, sestrichka,¡± Viktor said as we walked in. ¡°Your idea that Ricardo is the missing link between the other bosses and Armando seems to be a good one, but I need you to trante to know for sure.¡± I scanned the articles that he¡¯d found while Adrik and I were gone as I walked to the kitchen. They all got up and followed me, sitting around therge kitchen Ind so they¡¯d be ready to help and we could all still discuss the day¡¯s topic of choice. ¡°It looks like Armando has deals with Niko and Vito as well. The only names I¡¯m not seeing are Darlo and Massimo, as far as the bosses go.¡± I clicked to the next article, scanning it briefly. ¡°And there¡¯s Lorenzo,¡± I said, looking up at Adrik. ¡°So, Armando has deals of varying sizes with everyone. Except maybe Dario and Massimo, but that could be because we just haven¡¯t found them yet.¡± Adrik did not look happy. ¡°So, it looks like the theory that he¡¯s ying both sides is a solid one,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Now the question is how much has he told the other bosses about our ns.¡± ¡°This makes me worry about Trino, too. He has all of them down there against just him and Martin,¡± I said. ¡°I need to have another conversation with Trino,¡± Adrik said as he walked to me. He put his hands on my hips as he stood behind me. ¡°But after dinner. I¡¯m starving,¡± he said as he leaned down to kiss my cheek. ¡°Say no more. I can fix that,¡± I said as I pulled his arms around me tighter. ¡°This might be one of many reasons why I love you so much,¡± he said, kissing my neck. As the guys were cleaning up after dinner, Adrik called Trino. He put him on speaker so we could all hear the conversation. I had hopped on the counter, so he was standing in between my legs, but with his back toward me, so everyone could hear. ¡°Jefe, que pasa?¡± Trino picked up on the first ring. ¡°I¡¯m beginning to get used to these frequent calls. It makes me feel loved, if I¡¯m being honest.¡± Adrik chuckled. ¡°You might change your mind after you hear what I¡¯m about to tell you.¡± ¡°Are you going to tell me that Armando has turned against you and now he¡¯sing down here to meet with me also?¡± he asked. His tone was jovial, like that was the most oundish scenario he could think of. ¡°Well, you¡¯re half right,¡± Adrik said. There was silence on the other end of the phone for a moment. ¡°For real, Jefe? He¡¯s turned against you?¡± While Trino had been joking, he was now very serious. His voice had an edge of anger to it. ¡°We don¡¯t know for sure yet, but the more we uncover, the more it looks like he¡¯s been ying both sides. He¡¯s made deals with three of the other bosses. Dario and Massimo are the only two he apparently hasn¡¯t made deals with. But because he¡¯s definitely made deals with Salvadori, Niko, Vito, and even Lorenzo, I¡¯m not sure how much information he¡¯s given to them about our ns. I want you to be careful, Trino,¡± Adrik said. ¡°You¡¯re free to do whatever you feel is necessary when ites to the bosses that are still down there.¡± Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! Trino thought for a moment. ¡°If Armando is giving Information to Anthony and Lorenzo, that would make them the world¡¯s best actors. I didn¡¯t think they had that in them. I could be wrong, but they¡¯ve alwayse across as, well, idi ots.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re right about Anthony, at least,¡± I said. ¡°He¡¯s definitely an idi ot, but he does have a certain level of cunning to him. I think it¡¯s from Lorenzo more than anyone. He¡¯s the only one I¡¯ve never seen in person. He¡¯s the one that was mentoring Anthony on his side gig into human trafficking. If there¡¯s an evil mastermind among those two, it has to be him. Anthony can barely spell his name on a good day.¡± ¡°Miha, have I mentioned how much I love your Inability to mince words?¡± Trino said,ughing. ¡°My father banished Lorenzo years ago. There¡¯s a reason he banished him instead of handing down another punishment. I think Sephie is right. He¡¯s the brains behind Sal and Anthony¡¯s ns. I just don¡¯t know where Armando fits into their ns and I don¡¯t know how much Information he¡¯s given them about what we¡¯re nning. I know you take your security seriously, but extra careful with all of them down there. You can send them back at any point, too. We¡¯ll take care of all of them Adrik Chapter 264 Chapter 264 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Four Sephie ¡°lefe, I¡¯m still having too much fun fu cking with them. I did get Anthony to admit they were trying to make a deal with the Mexicans. Lorenzo wasn¡¯t with him, so that theory tracks. You know how well I take betrayal. I¡¯m looking forward to sending a message to anyone in the future that even considers betraying me like this. I¡¯m still letting Massimo believe that I¡¯m going to let him live. I¡¯m really working up to crushing his soulpletely right before I light him on fire.¡± Trino was silent for a moment. We all tried not tough too loudly. We were still more amused than we should¡¯ve been at Trino¡¯s choice of how to end Massimo. ¡°Dario, though,¡± he said. He sighed. ¡°I actually feel bad for that guy. It¡¯s clear that he¡¯s been me ntally broken by Massimo all these years. He¡¯s losing his grip on reality some days. Other days, he¡¯s still with it. Those days, he asks if he can get out. He says he¡¯ll disappear and no one will ever see him again. He just wants to be left alone and to never see Massimo again.¡± ¡°You can send him back here. Not that I doubt your assessment of him, Trino, but I trust Sephie¡¯s more. She gets the final say on whether he can disappear or not,¡± Adrik said. Trinoughed. ¡°I won¡¯t argue with you on that one. Mostly, I won¡¯t argue with her. On anything.¡± 1 I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°When all this is over, I promise toe to Colombia to help you find a suitable girlfriend, Trino. You don¡¯t have to sweet talk me.¡± I said as I wrapped my legs loosely around Adrik¡¯s waist. ¡°Miha, you¡¯re wee here whenever you like,¡± Trino said. ¡°I¡¯ll send Dario back to you so you can see his me ntal state. It¡¯s just like Sephie said it would be, Jefe. And I¡¯ll be extra careful with Anthony andN?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Lorenzo now. It¡¯s possible their ns with the Mexicans are much worse than we originally thought. I have spies throughout Mexico, I¡¯ll see what I can find out. In the meantime, I¡¯ll get extra security.¡± ¡°Let me know what you find out. We¡¯ll help with the Mexicans once we take care of the other bosses here,¡± Adrik said. ¡°We¡¯ll see if ites to that,¡± Trino said. ¡°Keep me informed on Armando, too. I¡¯ve never had any problems with that guy, but, he¡¯s always been too nice for me. I don¡¯t trust anyone who¡¯s too nice.¡± ¡°I think you just implied that I¡¯m a bi tch, Trino,¡± I said, trying to hold in myughter. He was silent, as I¡¯m sure he was trying to figure out a way to answer without offending me further. ¡°That¡¯s fair. Totally fair,¡± I said,ughing finally. I heard the sigh of relief on the other end of the line. ¡°Miha¡­¡± he said,ughing. They ended the call after a few more minutes of discussion. Trino was going to send Dario back to the city within a few days. Massimo was never leaving Colombia again. Anthony and Lorenzo were free to leave, should they attempt it, but Trino had ns for taking care of both of them as well. Adrik inhaled deeply once the call was over. He turned to face me, his hands running up my thighs. He was stressed over this entire situation and legitimately worried about Trino¡¯s safety. He caught me smiling at him. ¡°What?¡± he asked, his smirk slowly appearing on his face. ¡°You¡¯re worried for Trino¡¯s safety. That¡¯s not very Lord King Boss of you, but I happen to like it. Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t tell anyone,¡± I said. Heughed quietly. ¡°Trina has always been honest with me. He¡¯s a good guy. He had a rough rise to power, but things have bees great since he took over. I don¡¯t want to see him lose that.¡± He sighed. ¡°And it seems like he might be the only one 1 can trust now.¡± I just wrapped my arms around him, not really knowing the right thing to say. At least I could give him somefort in the moment. I hadn¡¯t mentioned anyone yet, but I was starting to feel a sense of impending doom. I just didn¡¯t know exactly what it was about yet. But I knew the storm was almost upon us. The weekend was over all too soon and we had to move back to the penthouse to face reality for another week. I was starting to enjoy our weekend getaways where no one really knew where we were and we could just rx, enjoying being together. Adrik. and I always managed more alone time at the house than the penthouse, which I was never going toin about. I knew he was busy, but I was grateful for any chance I got to have him all to myself. Viktor, Stephen, and Ivan had left for the private airport, leaving Andrei and Misha with Adrik and I. Dario was set to arrive. from Colombia shortly this evening. Adrik wanted him brought to the penthouse right away, so no one would know he was back in the city without Massimo. He knew Salvadori had been trying to get Darin away from Massimo as well. We were waiting in Adrik¡¯s office for them to bring Dario to the building. Of course, we were talking about everything we¡¯d learned over the weekend while we waited. ¡°We have to remember to add the end of the month to the whiteboard tomorrow. I think Giana is going to rob him and disappear at the end of the month,¡± Misha said. We¡¯d talked about his anger toward Giana a few more times after we finished a run in the mornings at the house. He was starting to feel less angry toward her, but there was still no love for her with him. ¡°I think that¡¯s a safe bet, my adorable Russian guardian. The bigger question is whether Armando will disappear with her or not,¡± I said. ¡°And what he¡¯s going to do to her when he finds out she¡¯s stolen from him,¡± Andrei said. I looked to Adrik, curious. ¡°What was Armando like with his ex-wives?¡± I asked. Adrik thought for a minute. ¡°I¡¯m not really sure. Once he ended the rtionship, I never really heard much about any of them. He moves on quickly to the next woman and his focus is on her.¡± I suddenly felt a sense of dread when he said those words. Something didn¡¯t feel right, but I couldn¡¯t figure out what. Adrik and Misha both noticed. Misha also felt something was wrong, but wasn¡¯t sure what yet, either. Adrik had been at his desk while I was on one of the couches. He moved to the couch with me as soon as he felt my mood change. ¡°What is it, love? What¡¯s wrong? I can feel something is wrong,¡± he said as he sat down next to me. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I just got this weird feeling of dread when we were talking about Armando,¡± I said. I chewed on my bottom lip. trying to figure out what it was that made me feel this way. ¡°I did too,¡± Misha said. ¡°But I don¡¯t know why.¡± We didn¡¯t have time to analyze what had happened, as the doors to the elevator opened. Viktor was back with Dario. Adrik looked at me, concerned. I smiled at him, my palm resting on his cheek. ¡°It¡¯s okay. It can wait untilter,¡± I said. He leaned in and quickly kissed me before standing to meet Dario as they walked into his office. Chapter 265 Chapter 265 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Five Sephie Viktor walked in first, with Dario behind him, and Ivan and Stephen behind Dario. ¡°Any problems?¡± Adrik asked Viktor. ¡°None. Everything was quiet. Only your people at the airport. They put a different flight path on the paperwork, so no one will know that ne came from Colombia,¡± Viktor said. He walked past Adrik to sit down with Andrei, Misha, and I. I stood up quietly to hug him. They were only gone for a short time, but I was always relieved when they came back safe. The smile on Viktor¡¯s face when I went to hug him told me that he felt the same relief. He hugged me tightly, kissing the top of my head, before sitting down. Ivan and Stephen had walked around Dario, who was talking to Adrik. Each of them hugged me before finding a seat as well. Stephen whispered, ¡°it¡¯s bad,¡± in my ear as he hugged me. I looked at him, surprised, but said nothing. I took my usual spot behind Adrik¡¯s desk so I could see Dario as he talked. He looked like he¡¯d ag ed at least ten years since thest time I saw him. His once salt and pepper hair was now much more salt than it was pepper. Dario had always been clean-shaven before. He was an older man, probably in his 60s, but I never thought he looked bad for his age. Now, however, he looked much older than 60, especially with his wh ite facial hair growing in. He had a nervous look to him, like he was legitimately afraid for his life. Dario had been a quiet man in the meetings. He rarely argued with the other bosses, but they rarely argued with him. I was never sure if it was because they were scared of him or Massimo. He exuded a quiet confidence in the meetings. The man sitting before us now was in no way confident. His eyes darted around the room like he was waiting for something to happen.N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Adrik noticed the change in him and caught my eye as I walked past his desk. My eyes went wide as I walked past him, knowing no one else could see me. He gave me a knowing look as he looked back toward Dario. Adrik usually liked to make people nervous by staying quiet, but he chose to speak first this time, trying to put Dario¡¯s nerves at case. ¡°Dario, Trino tells me you¡¯d like to get out,¡± he said quietly, Dario looked to Adrik, then nced around the room again. His eyes never stayed on one thing for very long. He looked to me, then back to Adrik, then the door, the couches, each one of the guys, back to me. He nodded his head, his eyes still darting around the room. ¡°I just want to be left alone. I won¡¯t bother anyone. I can disappear. I¡¯ve been nning it for years. No one will find me,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯ve been nning it for years?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°How do you know no one else knows about it if you¡¯ve been nning it that long?¡± Adrik¡¯s tone of voice was simr to one he¡¯d have with a young child. ¡°I haven¡¯t told anybody where I¡¯m going. They can try to look for me, but they won¡¯t find me,¡± he said. ¡°But you¡¯ve told people you¡¯re going to disappear?¡± Adrik asked. Dario nodded his head. ¡°I told Sal. My kids don¡¯t want any part of the business. They¡¯ve been estranged from me for years. After they found out what Massimo did to my parents and that I stayed with him after I found out, they left. I haven¡¯t spoken to them in years. I don¡¯t even know where they are now,¡± he paused, like the weight of what he¡¯d just said was hitting him. He started to speak, but stopped himself. Instead, he just sighed. ¡°I was going to turn my part of the city over to Sal and disappear. ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe to me or my father about what Massimo did to you?¡± Adrik asked. Darlo¡¯s eyes darted to Adrik. He looked scared. ¡°Massimo would¡¯ve found out. Sal told me that you wouldn¡¯t do anything anyway. He was very adamant that I shouldn¡¯te to you. He told me you would punish me.¡± He looked to the floor quickly. He stared at the floor for a few moments. ¡°Apparently Massimo isn¡¯t the only one that¡¯s been fu cking with his mind,¡± I said in Russian. ¡°Dario, I wouldn¡¯t have punished you. You did nothing wrong. Massimo is the one that killed your parents. Why would you get punished for that?¡± Adrik said. ¡°Sal was very adamant,¡± Darlo said quietly. ¡°Did Sal threaten you againsting to me, Dario?¡± Dario¡¯s eyes darted up to Adrik. He didn¡¯t need to answer. The look on his face told us everything we needed to know. I heard Adrik curse quietly under his breath. I knew exactly how he felt in that moment. ¡°Dario, do you know anything about what Sal has been nning in the city?¡± Ivan asked. While Ivan usually sounded like he was low-key threatening you with his words, his voice was soft when he spoke to Dario, He sounded like he did when he would talk to me, especially when I was upset. Dario was quiet for a moment. He looked like he was having an internal struggle. His leg started bouncing up and down. He chewed on his nails. I knew he was anxious, but I honestly didn¡¯t know how to give him anyfort right now. I stood up and moved closer to him. I thought maybe the fact that I was the only woman in the room, it might help him to feel at ease. I moved to the front of Adrik¡¯s desk, in front of Dario, but still so Adrik could see him. ¡°We can protect you, Dario. We can give you a safe ce. No one knows you¡¯re here. Not even Sal. We know that Massimo hurt you. He¡¯s a very bad man. Sal, too. They¡¯re both bad men. We want to protect you from them,¡± I said. I felt like I was talking to a child, but by the looks of him, he couldn¡¯t handle much more. His bouncing leg slowed. His gaze was fixed on a spot on the floor beside me, but I considered it progress that his eyes weren¡¯t darting around the room. He slowly lifted his gaze to me, like he was seeing me for the first time since he came into the office. ¡°I remember you. You were always at the restaurant. Sal and Armando were fighting over you when Ghost came back,¡± he said. I tried to keep my own anger from rising to the surface at the thought of Sal and Armando thinking they had any kind of right or ess to me. ¡°The delusions of Sal and Armandu thinking they ever had any kind of chance with me aren¡¯t important right now, Dario. Do you know anything about Sal¡¯s ns? What he¡¯s nning with Anthony and Lorenzo?¡± I asked. I nced behind Dario at the guys. They were all tense at this new revtion. Dario nodded his head. ¡°Yeah, I know. Sal brags a lot. Almost as much as Massimo,¡± he said. ¡°Will you tell me what his ns are?¡± I asked, still trying to be as soft and quiet as I could. Dario looked at me once more. This time, he actually looked at me. He studied my face, my hair. For a few minutes, he just looked at me. I felt Adrik getting tense behind me. He was not a fan of other men looking at me, but I didn¡¯t get the feeling that Dario was having any kind of Inappropriate thoughts. It felt like he was stuck in a memory as he looked at me. I discreetly motioned to Adrik to stay calm and to let it happen. ¡°You remind me of my daughter. She doesn¡¯t have red hair, but she¡¯s about your age. She¡¯s beautiful like you though. At least she was thest time I saw her. You know, I¡¯m d she got away. I¡¯m d she¡¯s not in this life. Sal was starting to look at her, too. You know he traffics girls, right? He med it on Anthony, but it was his idea. Lorenzo got him into it. Sal is a di rty old man. Anthony is just like him. Sal puts on a show In front of people, but he¡¯s just as bad as Massimo. That¡¯s how he knew about Massimo all these years. They recognize the evil in each other. Sal wants to take over the city. The only good thing about his n is that he wants to get rid of Massimo. All the other bosses are helping him. You know that, right?¡± Dario asked. He was looking at me the whole time he was talking. I wanted to keep him talking as much as I could, ¡°Even Armando? He¡¯s helping Sal?¡± I asked. Chapter 266 Chapter 266 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Six Sephie ¡°Yeah, they¡¯ve been in business together for a few years now. Armando was trying to position himself as a leader for a while there too. I thought he and Sal were going to get into a war with each other, but then Ghost came back. It all kind of went to he ll that night at the restaurant with Anthony. Nobody expected Ghost to react that way over you. Half of us lost a substantial amount of money that night because we thought the rumors of him being gay were true. We knew he wasing back to stop the tax increase. Anthony was supposed to make a scene so that didn¡¯t happen. He just got carried away once Ghost yelled at him in front of everyone. Nobody expected the oue and nobody expected him to banish Anthony. It made Sal mad. He started trying to turn the other bosses against Ghost immediately. It was that same night that he met with the other bosses after we all left the restaurant. He called us all to his house and convinced us all we could overthrow Ghost.¡± ¡°All the bosses were there?¡± I asked. ¡°You¡¯re positive?¡± ¡°Everyone but Ghost. Everyone agreed. We got used to his absence. The bosses that wanted to raise taxes were irritated that he was going to try and stop them, so they readily agreed. Armando took the most convincing. He didn¡¯t want to. He felt like there was another way. He didn¡¯tpletely agree that night, but he didn¡¯t disagree either, if you know what I mean.¡± Dario¡¯s eyes were still on me, like I was the only person in the room. The guys were all quiet. It almost felt like they were scared to move or speak. They didn¡¯t want to break whatever spell he was under that was making him talk to me. ¡°What happened when Ghost banished Anthony?¡± I asked. ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org . ¡°That¡¯s when the brawn operation went into motion. He needed chaos to get Anthony and Lorenzo back into the city. They made the n for the assassination attempt at the ball, too. I assume that Armando tipped you off, since you¡¯re all still here. Then we got word that you were in Italy, at Armando¡¯s ce. Sal tried to get all of you when he blew up Armando¡¯s office. It was a warning to Armando, too. Sal knew he was trying to y both sides. Armando is a pu ssy, but he¡¯s notpletely stu pid. He has Sal¡¯s goddaughter.¡± ¡°Giana is Sal¡¯s goddaughter?¡± I asked. ¡°You know her?¡± Dario asked. ¡°I¡¯ve met her, yes.¡± ¡°Sal was close to her grandfather. When she was born, they made Sal her godfather. Her father has made some poor business decisions, but Sal and Armando have been trying to help him get his fortune back. I heard Armando was sleeping with her, just to make Sal angry. She¡¯s just insurance though. Armando has everyone fooled. Everyone thinks he¡¯s the nice guy. Ask him where his first wife is and then tell me how nice he is,¡± he said. He crossed his arms across his chest, his gaze once again falling to the Boor ¡°Oner Sal takes over the city, do you know what his ns are?¡± I asked. I was worried I was going to lose him, so I wanted to keep the conversation going, despite feeling like I needed a minute to process what he¡¯d just told us ¡°He¡¯ll get rid of the other bosses, I¡¯m sure. He¡¯s hungry for power. He was close to taking over the city when Vitaliy was still charge. That¡¯s what made him divide the city up. That¡¯s also what made him banish Lorenzo. It was punishment for Lorenzo, sure, but it was more to stick it to Sal for trying to overthrow him. Lorenzo and Sal were always really close. Vitally knew it would cause more damage to separate them than anything, so he banished Lorenzo to Sicily. For once, I agreed with Vitaliy I always hated Lorenin* angry with Vitally over that and then Ghost banished Anthony as well, so he¡¯s doubly ma to me once more. ¡°He¡¯s angry with you now, You¡¯re appvetly very ki ll or kidnap. His goddaughter was supposed to get close to you to make it easier to grab you, but even that proved impossible. Armando is the one that tipped them off that day they tried to grab you, you know?¡± ¡°Sal isn¡¯t the only one angry in this situation,¡± I said, somewhat under my breath. Dario still heard me. He chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard Sal so mad as I did when he found out you shot three of his guys that day. He managed to get one guy onto Armando¡¯s security detail, but that guy disappeared. Nobody knows what happened to him.¡± ¡°I killed him too,¡± I said. My anger was now fully present, so holding my tongue was next to impossible for me. Dario just looked at me, a sly smile on his face. ¡°I would like to see the look on Sal¡¯s face if he ever finds that out. You should be careful. He wanted to ki ll you before, but he¡¯s angry enough now that he might try to sell you to highest bidder.¡± ¡°I would like to see him try,¡± I said. I stood up from the desk, not caring to keep this conversation going any further. I barely had a chance to take two steps away from Dario and Adrik was by my side. ¡°Take a breath, solnishko. You know we won¡¯t let anything happen to you,¡± he said as he put both hands on my hips. He looked down at me, concerned, but I could also see the look in his eye that meant my eyes had gone dark. I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to regain control of myself. Ivan moved closer to Dario. ¡°What makes you think that Sal won¡¯t know where to find you?¡± His voice had more of an edge to it this time, but he was still trying to be as calm as he could be. ?? I have property around the world. I can move from ce to ce. I bought each ce under a different name. The people in each town know me as a different person. It¡¯s virtually impossible to follow me from ce to ce. Sal isn¡¯t smart enough to link it all together.¡± He paused, like he was lost in thought again. He looked at Ivan, then looked at Adrik. ¡°I want out. I¡¯ve lost so much because of this life. I just want to be left alone. You will never hear from me again if you let me leave.¡± He sighed, looking at the floor. He knew that people rarely got out of this life alive. He knew more than most, as well, which made him dangerous. It also put him in danger. Adrik looked down at me, his eyes searching mine. I was still angry, but I was trying to control it. Instead of waiting for my opinion, he said, ¡°I don¡¯t have a problem with you getting out, but I can¡¯t let you leave until I¡¯ve taken care of the other bosses. You¡¯ll be safe here. No one knows you¡¯re here. You¡¯ll be protected until this is over, then you can leave, but not before. If you try to leave, my men will have orders to ki ll you. Understood?¡± Dario nodded his head. He looked to the floor, almost like he was defeated, but then his eyes shot back to Adrik. ¡°Wait, you¡¯ll really let me leave once this is over?¡± Adrik nodded his head. ¡°You can leave, with the understanding that if I ever hear of you trying to move against me, you¡¯ll be swiftly dealt with. If you want to disappear, I won¡¯t stand in the way of that. It¡¯s time you had something to look forward to in life, Dario. You can leave once this is over,¡± he said. I nced down at Dario. There were tears in his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you anything you want to know if it means I can leave. Right now, I don¡¯t even care that there¡¯s a chance you¡¯ll ki ll me after I tell you everything. You¡¯ve given me hope that there¡¯s a chance I can get . I haven¡¯t had hope since my parents died,¡± he said, quietly. ¡°As long as you stay loyal to me, you have my word that no harm wille to you. You¡¯ll be able to leave. Betray me and I will ki ll you, Adrik said tly. ¡°You¡¯ll protect me until this is over?¡± Darlo asked. ¡°It won¡¯t be the most luxurious of amodations, but we have somewhere to hide you that no one knows about. You¡¯ll be here, You¡¯ll have guards. You¡¯ll have everything you need until this is over,¡± Viktor said. tears that were threatening to fall were now flowing down the old man¡¯s face. He looked relieved. Haunted, but relieved. ¡°Thank you,¡± he said, looking at Adrik and me. Adrik simply nodded his head toward Dario, while he pulled me a little closer, holding me just a little tighter. Chapter 267 Chapter 267 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Seven Sephie Viktor and Ivan left with Dario to get him set up in a room, where he would stay until we were sure it was safe for him to leave. I knew they had holding cells on the other side of the floor. It¡¯s where Andy currently was. But apparently, there was another set of ¡°rooms¡± that even 1 didn¡¯t know about. Dario would remain there,pletely out of sight of anyone who came to this floor. Armando knew about the holding cells where Andy was, but he didn¡¯t know about the ones where they were taking Dario. Once Viktor and Ivan were back in the office, we decided to move to the penthouse. Suddenly, we weren¡¯tpletelyfortable having a conversation in the office anymore. We wanted as much privacy as possible. No one was allowed at the penthouse without permission from Adrik, which meant we were the only ones that ever went up there. It helped ease my mind that we always had guards outside the door, as well. It was looking like us against the world, ¡°Trino needs to know that Sal and Armando have been working together,¡± Ivan said as we walked toward the kitchen. I might as well make dinner while we talked. It would help me stay calm and I¡¯d grown to love being able to take care of the guys. They meant everything to me. Being able to feed them was a small way of showing them just how much. ¡°Agreed,¡± Adrik said. He caught my arm as I was walking to the refrigerator, pulling me back to him. ¡°Let¡¯s call him first. I don¡¯t think this can wait,¡± he said as he pulled his phone from his pocket. We all stood close so that we could hear the conversation. I felt myself getting nervous. The feeling got worse with each ring. Trino wasn¡¯t picking up. Trino always picked up. Something wasn¡¯t right. 1 nced at Misha, who had that faraway look in his eye. When he came back to the present, he nced at me. He looked worried, but not as worried as I felt. ¡°Something¡¯s happening, but it doesn¡¯t feel like it¡¯s all bad,¡± Misha said. I walked to Misha, grabbing his hand. ¡°Did you see anything specific or you just have a general feeling?¡± As soon as he looked down at me, I could see what he saw. This is new. I know my eyes went wide, just as his did. He saw Trino, in trouble, but he also saw him get out unharmed. ¡°How did you just do that, gazelle?¡± Misha asked,pletely shocked. ¡°Do what?¡± everyone asked at once. We nced at the other guys, who looked worried, but curious. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°She just looked in my head and saw what I saw,¡± Misha said. He was still holding my hand tightly, like he was afraid to let go. ¡°What did you see?¡± Ivan asked. I could hear their voices. I was present for the conversation, but it was also like I wasn¡¯t totally there. I was still watching Trino somehow. Misha kept ncing at me. He knew I was still watching because he could still see it too. I felt Adrik step closer to me, but he was apprehensive about touching me. I could feel that he didn¡¯t want to interrupt whatever the he ll was happening. I felt Misha grab my other hand and hold it tightly as well. I was watching Trino trying to get out of his house. He was under heavy gunfire. His men were deadly, but they were outnumbered. Martin was with him, too. I could see outside the house. I could see the men that had surrounded the house. ¡°Where¡¯s Massimo, Anthony, and Lorenzo?¡± I asked in my head. I didn¡¯t think I said it out loud, but Misha answered me. ¡°He keeps them at a different location,¡± he said. I surveyed the scene again. There was a way to get out at the back of the house, but they were going to need help getting there. There were sections to the house. Trino, Martin, and their men had made it as far back as they could, but they were cut off from the exit. ¡°They need help,¡± I thought. As soon as I had that thought, there was an explosion that made me jump. I still felt Misha¡¯s hands gripping mine tightly and I heard him say, ¡°no, don¡¯t. She¡¯s okay, just startled.¡± The explosion was exactly what Trino and his guys needed to make a quick exit. The explosion put a barrier between them and the men that were trying to get to them. I could see them make it safely to their exit, not wasting any time. They ran down hill, to waiting vehicles. Once they were in the vehicles, speeding away, everything went nk and I could see Misha standing in front of me again. He was still holding both of my hands tightly in his. I looked up at him, mostly confused at what just happened. His expression mirrored what I felt. ¡°What the fu ck was that?¡± I asked. Mishaughed at me. ¡°I was hoping you¡¯d know, gazelle,¡± he said. ¡°I feel like you just hijacked my brain.¡± I felt Adrik¡¯s hand on my back, no longer apprehensive to break whatever spell I was under. Now I felt his concern. ¡°Solnishko¡­¡± he said, tentatively. ¡°I¡¯m okay. Pretty sure, anyway. Trino¡¯s okay, too. But if you really want to fu ck with his head, send him a text telling him to call you when he makes it to safety,¡± I said, giggling. Misha pulled me to him, hugging me tightly. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit evil, gazelle.¡± I stepped back from Misha, looking at the very surprised and very concerned faces of the guys. Adrik pulled me to him, a questioning look on his face. ¡°I have no idea what just happened, but I saw Trino under attack, basically. They had him. surrounded in his house. Then there was an explosion and they maile it out. You saw all that too, didn¡¯t you?¡± I asked Misha. He nodded his head. ¡°But you left out the part where you caused the explosion,¡± he said grinning at me. ¡°I did no such thing,¡± I said. ¡°I saw it, gazelle. You clearly said, ¡®they need help¡¯ and then then kitchen exploded.¡± ¡°We all heard you say it,¡± Ivan said. ¡°You guys heard that? I just thought that in my head. I didn¡¯t think I said it out loud,¡± I said, feeling even more confused. ¡°1 could still hear Misha, but I didn¡¯t hear anybody else.¡± ¡°Do you know who it was that was after Trino?¡± Ivan asked, looking at Misha. ¡°Not for sure, no. My best guess is that it was the Mexicans. There was a whole lot of Spanish being spoken that I didn¡¯t understand,¡± he said. They all looked to me. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me. I only know curse words in Spanish. There were plenty of those being thrown around, but that doesn¡¯t give us any valuable information here.¡± Misha, who shared my love ofedy probably more than any of the others, said, ¡°does this mean you¡¯re going to drop in my head regrly? That could prove to be awkward. Can you give me a warning or something? Make sure I¡¯m wearing pants, at least? I¡¯m very shy.¡± He crossed his legs and crossed his arms over his crotch like he was blocking me from seeing something I shouldn¡¯t. We allughed. Adrik looked down at me, his deep blue eyesughing as he let me search his eyes. ¡°I think she needs to touch you to make It happen, anyway. It started as soon as she grabbed your hand,¡± Stephen sald. ¡°It got stronger when you grabbed her other hand. So just wear gloves when you want her to stay out of your head. You¡¯ll be fine,¡± he said,pletely straight fa ced, which caused us all tough again. Adrik¡¯s phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket, putting it on speaker for us all to hear. ¡°Trino, what happened?¡± he asked. ¡°Jefe¡­ Trino still sounded almost out of breath. ¡°I almost didn¡¯t make it out. Guys from one of the Mexican cartels tried to take me out. The only reason I¡¯m talking to you right now is because my kitchen exploded. It gave us enough cover to make it out the back. The entire house blew as we were running down the hill. I don¡¯t know what happened or what faulty gas line caused it, but I¡¯m thankful for whatever that was.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sure it was the cartels?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°Positive. This has to be Anthony and Lorenzo.¡± ¡°Where are they?¡± ¡°I¡¯m still holding them at a different location. This house was one I only use asionally, but I¡¯ve met with Tony and Enzo there a couple times. They had to have given the information to the cartels on where it was,¡± he said. ¡°They¡¯re dead men.¡± ¡°Looks like war ising. If you take care of Tony and Enzo, do you think the cartels will stop?¡± Adrik asked. ¡°Oh, they¡¯ll stop. They¡¯re all going to d ie, too. We had an agreement that they would stay out of Colombia and I would stay out of Mexico. Since they didn¡¯t stay out of Colombia, I¡¯m not staying out of Mexico. They suffered greatly on my rise to power. They¡¯re going to get a reminder of what happened thest time they tried to cross me.¡± Trino¡¯s voice was dripping with anger. ¡°Once the situation here is under control, we¡¯re here to help you as much as you need,¡± Adrik said. ¡°Jefe, thank you. I might need some help. How are things there? Did you find out more about that puta Armando? What about Dario? What did you decide on him?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t trust Armando. He¡¯s in deep with Sal and has been for years. Giana is Sal¡¯s goddaughter, even. It¡¯s a giant mess. It¡¯s easier to just get rid of all of them. As for Dario, he¡¯s being held until this is all over. I¡¯m fine with letting him go once the other bosses are out of the picture. That guy needs a happy ending to his fu cked-up life,¡± Adrik said, sighing. There was silence for a moment on the other end of the line. Trino took in a deep breath, exhaling loudly. ¡°Jefe, I¡¯m d you decided that. I would¡¯ve supported whatever decision you made on him, but you¡¯re right. He needs something good for once.¡± Trino¡¯s voice had softened as he talked about Dario. I could clearly hear the sympathy he had for that old man. ¡°The others, though? I¡¯m going to have to get creative on how I want to end them.¡± ¡°If anybody can wow us, it¡¯s you,¡± Adrik said. Chapter 268 Chapter 268 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Eight Adrik Once Trino and I ended the call, we all stood in stunned silence for a few moments. Not only had Dario dropped heavy information on us, but Sephie and Misha had seen what happened to Trino, seemingly as it was happening. How? Sephie was still standing next to me, tucked into my side like she was made for that spot. I had a tight hold of her, feeling even more protective than usual of her. I¡¯d lost count of how many times I¡¯d told her that she was the most amazing woman I¡¯d ever known, but she continued to raise the bar on that standard. I found myself curious to see what else she could do. I nced at Misha, who was still stunned at what had happened. He had his hands on his hips and was staring at the floor in front of him like he wasn¡¯t sure what to do or say. ¡°Misha, how does your gut instinct usually work? Can you normally see things as they happen?¡± I asked him. He snapped back to reality when I called his name. He looked to me, then to Sephie, then back to me. ¡°I get snapshots of what¡¯s going to happen, but it¡¯s like still pictures. When Sephie was holding my hands, it was a full-on movie. In real-time, apparently.¡± He still looked stunned and almost baffled at what had happened. We all were, really. I looked down at Sephie, who looked back at me. ¡°Don¡¯t look at me. I have no exnation,¡± she said. She looked just as stunned as Misha did. I caught Ivan¡¯s eye, then looked back at Misha. ¡°If I¡¯ve learned anything from Sephie, it¡¯s that she shows you what your potential is,¡± I said. ¡°She shows you how to get to the next level, if you will. Think of her like the Game Master.¡± Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! She looked up at me, smiling. ¡°Calling me the Game Master implies I know what the he ll this game is that¡¯s happening with all of us. I¡¯m in the dark just as much as the rest of you.¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re selling yourself short, spider monkey. You might not bepletely conscious of what¡¯s happening, but you feel literally everything around you. I could tell you were anxious before Boss called Trino. It got worse when he didn¡¯t answer. It got worse still when Misha had the same reaction. You know more than you think you do, Sephie,¡± Andrei said. Sephie looked at Andrei, but didn¡¯t know how to respond. She was chewing on her bottom lip; her hands were starting to fidget as well. ¡°I saw her eyes go dark this time when she was talking to Dario, too,¡± Ivan said. Stephen nodded beside him. ¡°I did too,¡± he said. I felt her anger rise quickly at the mention of the conversation with Dario, but she had it under control just as quickly as it appeared. She looked at Ivan. ¡°Holy sh it, I see it now,¡± Viktor said. Sephie looked to me quickly, confused. ¡°Blink, love,¡± I said, kissing her temple. Her eyes were as dark as I¡¯d seen them, but she feltpletely calm to me. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. I got hit with a sudden feeling of panic that I knew wasn¡¯t mine. When she opened her eyes and looked to me for confirmation they were normal again, I could see the fear in her eyes. ¡°What the f**k is happening to me?¡± she asked quietly. Her feeling of panic was growing. She was an expert at controlling her anger, but her fear was clearly a different story. She was losing control quickly. I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her tight against me. She clung to me like I was her lifeline to reality. ¡°Princess, you joked that your eyes going dark was your viin origin story, but I think it¡¯s exactly the opposite. I think it¡¯s your hero origin story. We may not know what happened just now, but you¡¯re doing what you always do- making sure that people you care about are taken care of. That¡¯s hero behavior,¡± Ivan said. She took a deep breath, but didn¡¯t loosen her grip on me. Her face was still buried in my chest. ¡°Didn¡¯t your dad tell you that you were here to help each one of us with something important?¡± I asked her, trying to coax her head away from my chest. Not that I minded her body pressed against mine. I just didn¡¯t want her to be scared. She nodded her head. ¡°He did?¡± Misha asked. She nodded again, but this time she looked up at me. The look of fear was slowly disappearing. She turned so she could look at Misha, but she kept my arms wrapped tightly around her. ¡°He told me I was supposed to help you develop your gift, my adorable Russian guardian,¡± she said, looking at Misha. She then looked at Andrei. ¡°Bubba, we¡¯re apparently here to make each other better. It¡¯s why you¡¯re so good at pushing me and training me to be better and why I¡¯m constantly reminding you of how awesome you are.¡± Andrei¡¯s wide smile stretched across his face. She looked at Stephen and said, ¡°Yoden, I was supposed to show you how much better life can be when you just decide to be yourself.¡± Stephen¡¯s cheeks blushed, as he ran his hand through his hair. ¡°And Papa Bear,¡± she said, looking at Viktor. ¡°I was supposed to help you get your confidence back. You do a very good job of hiding it from everyone else, but I know how debilitating it was bing for you since you lost your wife.¡± Viktor looked at her, smiling. She really had helped him feel much more confident since she¡¯d come into our lives. I hadn¡¯t noticed it much before Sephie, but Viktor was back to the way he was when I first met him. He¡¯d lost his light before Sephie, but she was the spark he needed to remember who he was and how great he was at his job. ¡°What about Ivan?¡± Misha asked. Sephie looked at Ivan. I could tell by the look on his face that she was smiling at him. His face always got softer when she smiled at him. She nced up at me and held my gaze. She was silently asking my thoughts on whether she should tell them everything. I nodded once. She sighed, then walked to Ivan. ¡°Ivan and I have a special deal. My dad exined it like this: there are different types of soulmates. Adrik and I are meant to find each other and fall in love over and over again in many lifetimes. I don¡¯t think any of you are surprised by that,¡± she said,ughing. ¡°I don¡¯t know how many lifetimes I¡¯ve spent with the rest of you, but Ivan gets the role of my protector in each one. He proved he was ready the day Sal¡¯s guys tried to grab me when he used his body to shield me from the impact of the truck that hit us.¡± She had put her arms around his waist as she was talking, with her head resting on his shoulder. He held her tightly, kissing the top of her head. ¡°I nominate Stephen to document each future version of us that he meets in his one extremely long lifetime,¡± Misha said. The smile that Sephie gave him was enough to make the room twice as bright. She squeezed Ivan then ran to Misha,ughing. He picked her up and swung her around. Her squeal was music to my ears. ¡°I love that you¡¯re as much of a dork as I am, Misha,¡± she said as he set her down. ¡°He definitely wasn¡¯t this much of a dork before you came along. You brought it to the surface,¡± Andrei said,ughing. ¡°Just like you did with the rest of us.¡± ¡°I mean, I¡¯ll apologize if you don¡¯t like it, but I happen to love it. You¡¯re all much more entertaining this way,¡± she said, walking back to me. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare apologize for it,¡± I said, pulling her to me forcefully causing her to giggle as she wrapped her arms around my neck. She pressed her lips to mine, stillughing against my lips. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll get started on dinner,¡± she said, pulling me back toward the kitchen. ¡°We can order takeout, sestrichka. It¡¯s been a long day for everyone.¡± Viktor said. ¡°Papa Bear, if you haven¡¯t figured out by now, feeding you is how I show all of you just how much I love you,¡± she said, her swert smile on her face. Andrei pushed his stomach out to give himself a belly. ¡°So Much Love,¡± he said, as he rubbed his pretend belly. Chapter 269 Chapter 269 Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Nine Adrik The next morning, the guys were back in the penthouse early. We had agreed the night before that we didn¡¯t trust anyone else. so all conversations between us were to be had in Russian and in the penthouse when possible. Sephie struggled to wake up this morning. She was so exhaustedst night that she was sound asleep almost immediately afterying across my chest. I can¡¯t take the me for her tiredness this morning. Whatever happened between her and Mishapletely zapped her energy. Not to mention dealing with the stress of everything Dario told us. When I came out of the bedroom without her, the guys were noticeably concerned. I smiled at their concern for her. ¡°She¡¯s awake. She¡¯s still getting ready. She was exhaustedst night and struggled to wake up this morning,¡± I said. ¡°Same,¡± Misha said as he walked to the coffee maker. ¡°I¡¯m starting to understand why you both needed extra coffee the day after whatever happened between you two that zapped you both. I feel like I could sleep for three days right now,¡± ¡°It onlysted a day for me. Hopefully, you¡¯ll be the same,¡± I said,ughing at his exhausted expression. He looked like he could barely keep his eyes open. Viktor pulled his phone from his pocket, typed a short message, then put his phone back in his pocket. ¡°Breakfast will be here shortly,¡± he said. ¡°Although I can tell you right now that I¡¯m not going to enjoy it as much.¡± We allughed at his crankiness over not getting Sephie¡¯s cooking. Sephie walked into the kitchen just as Misha was pouring her a cup of coffee. ¡°Perfect timing, gazelle. You¡¯re going to need this,¡± he said as he handed her the coffee mug. ¡°I might¡¯ve made it a little strong. Apologies if it¡¯s too strong.¡± ¡°Are you as exhausted as you look and I feel, my adorable Russian guardian?¡± she asked. He nodded. ¡°What the f**k happened yesterday,¡± she whispered as she sipped the coffee. ¡°I can¡¯t answer that yet, but I did get more recordings from Keithst night. Armando is back from his house as oftest night. Keith sent over what he had from this weekend. He said Armando met with Ricardo, but didn¡¯t close the door this time. Keith thinks Armando wasn¡¯t aware that he was there. After what Dario told us, I¡¯m not sure I believe the bumbling id iot persona of Armando anymore, so it might¡¯ve been intentional. It¡¯s possible he¡¯s caught on to Keith recording his meetings somehow and now he¡¯s feeding us false information, but we won¡¯t know until we get them tranted,¡± Stephen said. Sephie sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll get started after I finish breakfast,¡± she said. ¡°Breakfast is on its way, spider monkey. Viktor already took care of it. You need a break this morning, Game Master,¡± Andrei said, grinning at her. She looked at Viktor, her sweet smile that made him melt on her face. ¡°Papa Bear, you¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± Sephie listened to everything Keith had sent over from Armando¡¯s meetings over the weekend after breakfast. She had a serious look on her face listening to one of the recordings. She kept reying it over and over again like she was trying to hear something else on the recording. Stephen had given her headphones again to help her hear more clearly. She finally looked at Stephen, then looked to Viktor. ¡°There¡¯s not much that¡¯s useful from Armando¡¯s meetings, but in this one recording, I can hear Giana talking in the background for just a minute, like she¡¯s walking by on the phone or something. It sounds like she asks when she can go back to Italy, then it sounds like she says it wasn¡¯t her fault. She must walk too far away because I lose her voice for a few minutes, but shees back through. She¡¯s still talking, but it¡¯s too jumbled for me to be able to hear what she says clearly when shees back through.¡±N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°There¡¯s a way to separate the voices on the recording.¡± Viktor said, ¡°I¡¯ll be right back,¡± he said, walking quickly toward the door. ¡°What about his meeting with Ricardo this time?¡± Stephen asked. ¡°Um, let¡¯s see. They talked about Ricardo needing to see a doctor for his knee. They talked about the weather, then they talked about how nice it would be to go to a tropical ind because it¡¯s getting colder here, then they talked about Ricardo needing to pick up his clothes from the cleaners. Oh, f**k me they¡¯re talking in code aren¡¯t they?¡± she said, putting her hand on her forehead as she realized what she¡¯d been listening to. We couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at her. She really was tired. Normally she was very quick to catch on to such things. ¡°It¡¯s likely it was code, solnishko. Can you tell me exactly what they said?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m gonna need more coffee,¡± she said as she put the earphones back in and started the recording again. She started writing the conversation out right away. Viktor came back with hisputer to try and separate Giana¡¯s voice from the others on the recording. She handed Stephen his phone back once she was done, then handed me the trantion from the meeting with Ricardo. Ivan got up to move closer to me so he could read the trantion as well. Andrei got up and made Sephie another cup of coffee while everyone was busy. It didn¡¯t take Viktor and Stephen long to get Giana¡¯s voice separated from the others, so we could hear her more clearly. Sephie went to listen to what she previously couldn¡¯t understand. ¡°I was right on the first two. She asks when she can go back to Italy, then says it wasn¡¯t her fault. She sounds angry on thest part. She says, ¡°I¡¯m not a child. You¡¯re lucky I¡¯m still here. The longer you leave me here, the more likely I¡¯m going to disappear.¡± # ¡°If she¡¯s been a nt all along, she might be tired of the game. Armando has been using her, he may or may not have gotten her hooked on coke, and we all ha te her now, so maybe her n to rob him is really her n to get away from Armando and her family,¡± Stephen said. I looked to Misha, to see if he had any thoughts on potential oues, but he was still so tired that there was little to no chance he¡¯d be able to see anything. Sephie saw me look toward Misha, then saw the look on his face and giggled. ¡°I don¡¯t think it will work on her. Not with the level of hatred Misha has for her. That¡¯s going to cloud the oue,¡± she said, smiling at him. ¡°She deserves whatever she gets,¡± Misha said tly. Ivan, who had been looking over Sephie¡¯s trantion from Armando and Ricardo¡¯s conversation, said, ¡°I think Stephen was right. The persona of Armando as a bumbling id iot is exactly the opposite of how he really is. He fooled all of us. Unless they¡¯ve changed their codes, they¡¯re talking about a hit on Trino, although I can¡¯t tell who ordered the hit from what they said. They¡¯re just discussing it.¡± ¡°Shi t,¡± Sephie said. ¡°Could they be referring to what happenedst night? When did Keith record this one?¡± she asked Stephen. He checked his phone. ¡°It was before they got to Trino, so that adds up. They wouldn¡¯t have known it was unsessful at this point,¡± he said. I felt my own anger rising to the surface, but I immediately felt Sephie¡¯s almost overtaking mine. I nced to her, worried she was about to lose control, but once again, she lookedpletely calm. She looked to me, her eyespletely dark. ¡°I know,¡± she said, indicating that she was in control and was aware her eyes were likely dark. ¡°I¡¯m still not over Dario¡¯sment about Sal and Armando fighting over me before you came back. I need a minute to be angry about thatplete and utter bu llsh it, as well as being wrong about Armando.¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at her response. The guys did too. Stephen looked at her,pletely straight- faced and said, ¡°maybe your milkshake really does bring all the boys to the yard, Seph.¡± That was all it took to make herugh and I felt her anger subside. When she looked at me again, her eyes were back to their normal three colors. I was bing more and more impressed with her level of control of her anger. Her eyes only changed colors when she was a raging inferno internally, but from the outside, she lookedpletely calm and in control. I could only tell she was angry because I could feel it, not because she looked it. Other than her dark eyes. My Game Master was showing me how to increase my own anger to in sane levels while remaining in control of it. I felt her cool hand on my face, breaking me free from my thoughts. She searched my eyes for a moment, finding the answer to her silent question of what had me distracted, She just grinned at me, standing on her toes to kiss me. God, I love her. Chapter 270 Chapter 270 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy Adrik I had Sephie call Chen before we moved down to my office for my schedule to begin that day. We had also decidedst night that we were going to move quickly on shutting down the brawn operations, as well as grabbing Dr. Moretti. Those two things needed to happen at once. After that, I was going to move against the bosses that were in the city before they had a chance to realize what had happened. I¡¯d been quiet up to this point on purpose. It made me look weak and unsure of making a move against the other bosses. I was trying to lull them into a false sense of security. It was exactly the opposite of what my father would have done. My father was brutal in his rule. He made rash decisions and unleashed chaos quickly. He was effective only because he¡¯s a smart man, but he was more like a tyrant than a king. I took a different approach. I gave my opponents time and enough rope to hang themselves usually. I wanted to know their ns. All of their ns, because when I ended them, I didn¡¯t want to have to deal with tying up any loose ends. I had endedplete family lines before. When I made a move, it was utterly devastating. But it was focused devastation. With my father, there was always plenty of coteral damage. I always tried to keep that to a minimum. Innocent people didn¡¯t need to get hurt in the process. It was time to unleash my own brand of chaos on the other bosses. We¡¯d decided days ago on how to hit the three brawn operations in the city. We needed the help of the dealers, though. It was arge enough operation that we couldn¡¯t do it ourselves. Not if we wanted it to happen simultaneously, anyway. We decided it was best to recruit the dealers to help us, especially with the two smaller warehouses that were producing brawn. Now, we needed to fill them in on the n. ¡°Sephie, you¡¯re calling early, my girl. Should I be happy you¡¯re thinking of me so early or worried you¡¯re delivering bad news?¡± Chen asked when he answered the phone. Sephieughed. ¡°I guess it depends on your definition of bad news, Chen.¡± ¡°What¡¯s up, my girl?¡± he asked as he wasughing at her response. ¡°We need to set up another meeting with Gus and DJ. We¡¯re going to need help taking out the warehouses,¡± she said. ¡°We also need to move quickly. Do you think you can get them to the same ce tonight? Sorry for thete notice, but things are escting.¡± ¡°Oh, we heard about the attempt on Trino. Gus called him for something else and found out about it last night. I¡¯ve been expecting you to call, actually. I can get them both there tonight. In the absence of Smith and Chucky, there¡¯s been a new guy that¡¯s stepped up to help. He¡¯s one of Trino¡¯s dealers. Do you want him too or just Gus and DJ?¡± ¡°Bring the new guy, please. I need to meet him. It¡¯s likely okay if he belongs to Trino, but I want to make sure,¡± she said. ¡°I think you¡¯ll be alright with him. He¡¯s like Gus¡¯s number 2 guy, but I¡¯ll make sure he¡¯s there too. See you and your gigantic security force tonight, my girl,¡± he said. ¡°Thanks, Chen. You¡¯re the best,¡± she said, as she ended the call. She looked slightly apprehensive as she gave Viktor his phone back. ¡°I¡¯m nervous about new people now,¡± she said, chewing her bottom lip. ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous, spider monkey. You still have one of the highest sess rates I¡¯ve ever seen when ites to figuring people out. Armando is a special case. Don¡¯t dwell on that one,¡± Andrei said as he stretched his massive arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder. She sighed, looking up at him. She was upset with herself for being wrong about Armando. She looked tiny standing next to Andrei. ¡°Thanks, Bubba. It wasn¡¯t just Armando, though. Andy, too. I was wrong on two of the most important yers in this,¡± she said. Misha, who was on his third cup of coffee, was finally starting to act like a human again. He looked at her, almost like he was angry with her. ¡°Now is not the time to start doubting yourself, gazelle. You¡¯ve been right more times than you¡¯ve been wrong. And, technically, you weren¡¯tpletely wrong on Andy. You never gave him the okay all the way. There¡¯s a reason those two were in your blind spot. We just have to figure out what your blind spot is so we can correct it going forward. But this doubting yourself shi t stops right now.¡± We all turned and looked at him, surprised with the tone that he took with her. If it wasn¡¯t Misha, I might¡¯ve been angry with him. However, I knew she needed to hear what he said. Andrei, always the protective older brother, pulled her closer to him, but he agreed with Misha. ¡°He¡¯s right, Sephie. You can¡¯t start doubting yourself now. We need you.¡± ¡°You two are no longer allowed to hang out with Ivan. I like to be able to argue with you and it irritates me when I can¡¯t,¡± she said, grumpily. Stephen left first with two other guys that night to set up before we arrived to meet with the dealers. Sephie¡¯s old apartment made it easy to cover all entrance and exit points. While I knew she didn¡¯t pick that apartment for that reason, I was still grateful she chose that apartment as it was making our lives easier right now. Chen was in his apartment early once again, but Stephen said he was much less nervous this time. ¡°He¡¯s only checked outside a couple times since we got in position. Last time, he was checking every 15 seconds,¡± he said,ughing quietly. kind of feel bad for him. He didn¡¯t know what he was signing up for,¡± Sephie said. She took Ivan and Misha and picked Chen up on her way upstairs. He was much more rxed this time. We could hear him joking andughing with her on their way up to her old apartment. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°Chen, it¡¯s good to see you again,¡± I said when he walked into the apartment. I extended my hand to him. He grasped it firmly, giving me a small smile. ¡°You too, sir,¡± he said. ¡°Tell me about this new guy,¡± Sephie said. ¡°His name is Oscar. He¡¯s been working with Gus for a few years now. They knew each other in Colombia; Oscar just came up here a few months ago. Gus trusts him and he says that Trino trusts him as well, but since I don¡¯t know Trino, I can¡¯t vouch for that statement,¡± he said. ¡°What about DJ? He gets along with Oscar ok?¡± Sephie asked. ¡°Yeah, DJ likes him, but DJ generally likes everyone. He¡¯s been mostly quiet around you guys, but that dude has never met a stranger in his life. It¡¯s no wonder he knows everything going on in the city. He talks to literally everyone.¡± Sephie smiled at Chen, but was quietly contemting meeting the new guy. She was still worried about being wrong. Misha noticed her look. He simply clicked his tongue at her, which caused her to look at him. He gave her a stern look. He had his hands on his hips and was tapping his pinky against his hip. It was exactly what she needed to break that thought pattern. She smiled widely at him, rxing her shoulders. ¡°First up, DJ,¡± Stephen said in our earpieces. Andrei and Viktor walked outside to greet him and pat him down, while Misha moved to the door. Ivan and I stood in front of Sephie. As we were waiting on D] to make it upstairs, Stephen announced the arrival of the other two. ¡°Gus is here and I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s Oscar with him.¡± Ivan and I instinctively moved closer to Sephie, given that we didn¡¯t know this new person. I would feel better once Viktor and Andrei checked him for weapons. We heard Viktor knock once. Misha opened the door for Gus and Oscar. Gus, as usual, found Sephie first, smiling at her before acknowledging anyone else in the room. I felt her hand find mine, timidly. She was still worried. ¡°Do I want to know what Trino has said about me this time?¡± she asked Gus after seeing his smile. Gusughed. ¡°He sings your praises anytime he hears your name.¡± He looked at me. ¡°Yours too, sir. Trino doesn¡¯t like many people, but he likes both of you. It¡¯s very obvious to anyone who¡¯s known him for very long.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that. I¡¯m also very thankful that he made it out okay yesterday. That¡¯s one reason why we called you here. We need to move quickly. I¡¯m worried that the Mexicans are going to start a war with Trino and I¡¯d like to be able to offer my help. if that happens. I need to take care of the other bosses here first, though,¡± I said. I nced to Ivan who put his arm around Sephie¡¯s shoulders. I squeezed her hand once before walking toward Gus, DJ, and Oscar. ¡°I¡¯m assuming you guys already have a n for how to take out the warehouses?¡± Gus asked. ¡°Indeed. We¡¯d like to hit them all at the same time, which makes it problematic for us. We need your help to make this simultaneous,¡± I said. ¡°What are we talking about here? How are we ensuring the warehouses won¡¯t be a problem any longer? Fire? Raining bullets? Bombs? Flood of Biblical proportions? What¡¯s the catastrophe of choice?¡± Oscar asked. Chapter 271 Chapter 271 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-One Adrik I heard Sephie chuckle quietly behind me. I could feel her rxing more now that she¡¯d seen him speak. Andrei spoke up to answer his question. ¡°Bombs. The two smaller warehouses are easily essed. You guys will take care of those. The warehouse at the docks is crawling with Sal¡¯s people. It¡¯s going to be harder to get close enough to that one to nt explosives, so we¡¯ll take care of that one.¡± Oscar looked at Andrei. ¡°You can make them all go boom at once. We can still nt the explosives on the smaller warehouses, but then be avable to help at the docks. I¡¯ve seen firsthand how many of Sal¡¯s guys are at the docks. That¡¯s a big job. You¡¯re going to need extra help there.¡± ¡°Remote charges aren¡¯t as reliable as I¡¯d like,¡± Andrei said. ¡°You can confirm with Trino, because you shouldn¡¯t take my word for it, but I figured out a reliable system in Colombia for remote charges. Worked like a charm every time. I¡¯ll show you how. That¡¯s why Trino sent me here,¡± Oscar said. ¡°Then, we can set the smaller warehouses to go boom at exactly the same time as the one at the docks. Maximum chaos. That strategy is what helped Trino rise to power in Colombia.¡± ¡°Of course Trino would send us his explosives expert,¡± Sephie said in Russian. ¡°If it turns out I was wrong about him, I¡¯m going to ki ll him myself for making me like him so much.¡± We allughed, which put the dealers at ease. ¡°We¡¯ll check with Trino. No offense, of course,¡± I said to Oscar. ¡°None taken, lefe. He told me to tell Sephie that my ir for the dramatic was almost as good as his should you question whether I was telling the truth,¡± he said. ¡°Point in your favor, Oscar,¡± Sephie said in English. I grabbed her hand, pulling her to the bedroom while I called Trino to confirm Oscar was telling us the truth. This time, he picked up on the first ring. ¡°Jefe, que pasa?¡± ¡°Trino, did you send your explosives expert up here?¡± I asked. ¡°Si, Jefe. Oscar. He¡¯s been one of my trusted guys for years. He was instrumental in my rise to power, too.¡± ¡°Trino, if it turns out I was wrong about you and you¡¯re not this awesome in real life, I¡¯m going to k ill you myself for making me like you so f**king much,¡± Sephie said. She sounded serious, but she had a wicked glint in her eye when she said it. ¡°Miha. I would never lie to you. I¡¯m really this awesome. Maybe not as awesome as Jefe, but I need a goal to aspire to,¡± he said,ughing. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re moving forward on your ns to get rid of the brawn if you¡¯ve met Oscar?¡± ¡°Yeah, I want to move quickly. I¡¯m worried you¡¯re facing a war and want to be avable to help. We should be able to move quickly. Brawn first, bosses next.¡± ¡°Good. I could use Oscar when he¡¯s done there.¡± We ended the call soon after. Sephie looked more rxed than she had when we first got to the apartment. ¡°Your thoughts on Oscar so far?¡± I asked. ¡°I feel like he¡¯s telling the truth, but not just because Trino confirmed It for us. I think he can be trusted.¡± she said. She was stillN?velDrama.Org owns all content. feeling unsure, but I could also tell that she was trying to be confident. I pulled her to me, holding her tightly. ¡°Misha and Andrei were right, love. You¡¯ve been right more times than you¡¯ve been wrong. I¡¯ve come to rely on your unique set of skills and I still haveplete confidence in them. When you can¡¯t feel confident in yourself, you can borrow mine,¡± I said. I felt her inhale deeply and her bodypletely rxed. She looked up at me, that spark that I love so much evident in her eyes. ¡°Thank you,¡± she said sweetly. She stood on her toes, pressing her lips to mine. She wrapped her arms around my neck, burying her face in my neck. She stayed there for a few moments before finally rxing her hold on me. ¡°We should get back,¡± she said, reluctantly. ¡°One more minute,¡± I said, pulling her back to me as she giggled at me. She didn¡¯t resist. She just rested her head against my chest as I held her close. The guys had been working on revising the n while Sephie and I were in the bedroom. They heard Trino¡¯s confirmation on the phone through their earpieces, so they knew Oscar could be trusted. He was giving Andrei a tutorial on how he set up remote detonation to work reliably when we walked back out to the living room. Oscar looked to us, expectantly. Sephie smiled at him. ¡°We appreciate you being here, Oscar. Especially given what Trino¡¯s facing at the moment. We promise to get you back to Colombia as quickly as possible. He¡¯s going to need you again,¡± she said. While Oscar had seemed rxed the entire time he¡¯d been in the apartment, he was visibly relieved that he got Sephie¡¯s approval. ¡°Trino told me how important your opinion of me was. I¡¯m d I¡¯m in,¡± he said, smiling broadly at her. ¡°Knowing Trino, he also told you what will happen if you ever betray us. Whatever he told you, I can guarantee it was not an embellishment,¡± she said. She crossed her arms across her chest, looking at him seriously. Oscarughed. ¡°He did tell me. I¡¯m not that stu pid. You have nothing to worry about,¡± he said as he went back to the conversation with Andrei about how to set up the detonators. We eventually came to an agreement on a new n for the three warehouses. The only variable we weren¡¯t entirely sure on yet was Sephie. Ivan and I had discussed it briefly before, but neither of us liked the options we came up with. We had discussed leaving Ivan with her at the penthouse, but that left them vulnerable and we needed him at the warehouse. He briefly discussed bringing her with us, but I wasn¡¯t happy about that n either. I didn¡¯t like the idea of putting her in danger just to keep her close to me. She hadn¡¯t brought it up again, but I knew she was still worrying about it. After the dealers left the apartment, Ivan brought the subject up once more. We needed to make a decision. ¡°The biggest question now is what to do with the princess during this,¡± he said. She nced nervously at him, then to me. ¡°What are the options?¡± she asked. She was definitely still worried about it. We could all see it written all over her face. ¡°So far, we¡¯ve onlye up with two options. I stay at the penthouse with you or youe with us. I can¡¯t say I¡¯m happy about either option,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But they need you. You can¡¯t stay behind,¡± she said immediately. It was no surprise that she was thinking of the guys before she was thinking of herself. She started to chew on her lip as she tried to come up with a solution. ¡°What if you took me to the house and left me there? No one will know where I am. There are plenty of guards. I¡¯ll be safe there.¡± ¡°Absolutely not. I¡¯m not leaving you alone,¡± I said. ¡°Then that only leaves one option,¡± she said. Stephen, in his quiet way, said, ¡°this might be a big help to us. She¡¯s a he ll of a shot. She¡¯s fast and she can easily defend herself. It¡¯s not like she¡¯s going to be deadweight if shees with us.¡± ¡°I was just thinking the same thing,¡± Andrei said. ¡°I would be more worried about her if she wasn¡¯t with us. With us, we all know she¡¯s going to do just as much damage as we could do and we know where she is at all times.¡± Viktor also agreed with Stephen and Andrei. ¡°You know I don¡¯t like anyone to be distracted. We would all be distracted if she wasn¡¯t with us,¡± he said. ¡°She¡¯s been training with us for long enough now. She can handle herself and we¡¯ll be able to keep an eye on her, the same as we keep an eye on each other.¡± I inhaled deeply. They were right. I just didn¡¯t want to put her in danger because I couldn¡¯t leave her alone. I ran my hand through my hair, looking at the floor. I was still struggling with the decision. I felt her hand in mine. ¡°Misha, what do you think?¡± she asked. I watched as he ran through possibilities in his mind. He clearly looked nauseous. ¡°What was that one? That was a definite no whichever one it was,¡± she said. ¡°That was you and Ivan staying at the penthouse. I think you¡¯reing with us, gazelle,¡± he said. Just to make sure, he ran through that possibility in his head, that faraway look in his eye once more. He ran his hands quickly over his arms, his upper body shuddering with the goosebumps he was obviously feeling. That settles that. I looked down at Sephie. She looked unsure, but she wasn¡¯t arguing with the decision either. She had the same look when the guys were trying to talk her into going up against Mike. She easily dominated in that situation. I had faith in her abilities. They were right; it would be better to know she was safe with us rather than worrying about her while we were away from her. I smiled to myself thinking about how protective they¡¯d alle to be of her. She meant so much to all of us. We would do everything in our power to ensure she was always safe Chapter 272 Chapter 272 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Two Stephen We were in the penthouse going over the n onest time before we left the building. Our nerves were on edge, but Sephie¡¯s more so than the rest of us. We were trying to reassure her as much as we could, but I knew that adrenaline was going to prove useful once the chaos started. She could sho ot better than a majority of the guards we had on staff. She was he ll in the ring. She also had six attack dogs ready to rip anyone apart that dared to look at her the wrong way. I found myself thinking about just how much she¡¯de to mean to metely. I¡¯d never been close to anyone my entire life. I didn¡¯t have many friends growing up. I was always the quiet kid. That carried over into my adult life. When I figured out I was g ay, I retreated even further into my shell. It took me years to tell my parents. There were members of my family that still didn¡¯t know. It was much more epted now, but my family was very traditional. It was just easier toe up with reasons. why I wasn¡¯t married with kids yet than it was to have the conversation with them about the truth. I had resigned myself to keeping that secret from the other guys forever. They were all alpha males. I expected them to have a huge problem with it. I was worried they would see me as weak. My perspective changed when Sephie came along. She was always unapologetically herself and the other guys loved her more because of it. It took me a long time to warm up to her, simply because I was worried she would figure out my secret and tell the others. But the more I tried to put distance between me and Sephie, the more she found ways to show me that being myself was the best way to be. In her own special way, she coaxed me out of my own darkness that I¡¯d put myself in.. As it turns out, she did figure out my secret before the other guys, but she didn¡¯t tell anyone. She even swore Adrik to secrecy when she told him. She let me tell them in my own time. And they epted me even more than they already did once I told them. Secrets kept in the dark can destroy you, but secrets brought to the light have no power over you anymore. We were gearing up, almost ready to leave. I saw Viktor catch Sephie alone. It looked like he was giving her a pep talk. He¡¯d been worried about bringing her with us, as he ultimately felt responsible for all of us, all the time. But he didn¡¯t like the idea of leaving her behind, either. I was sure she was going to be an asset, so I was happy she wasing along. Andrei was right, we¡¯d all be worried about her if she wasn¡¯t with us. We knew our individual roles. Sephie was to stick with Ivan or Adrik if something was to happen to Ivan. The rest of us would step in, when and if needed. Misha was certain that it was going to work out for the best. Our n was solid. Oscar had provided valuable information on how to make the original n even better, so we were expecting things to go smoothly. We walked off the elevator toward the vehicles. We were taking abination of SUVs and bikes, just in case we needed options. It would also be more difficult to separate us if we had more vehicles. The dealers that were helping us were going to meet us at Sephie¡¯s old apartment. Chen hade to the building, with instructions on how to get to the parking garage underneath the building without anyone seeing him. He was taking another SUV, just to add more vehicles to the party. He was waiting on us when we exited the elevator. ¡°Who¡¯s ready to have New Year¡¯s celebrations early?¡± he asked as we got closer to him. He had a good sense of humor, and like Sephie, tended to make jokes when he was nervous. We were all in mission mode, however. His face fell when nobodyughed. ¡°Right. Jokester,¡± he said, clearing his throat. Viktor had brought a few guys from the building security team on as well. They were all guys that had been working for us for years. We¡¯d used them before for various things. They knew how to handle themselves and we could trust them. We knew that the two smaller warehouses should be easy to get to, but the warehouse at the docks was covered with armed guards. Even with all the extra people, we were going to be outnumbered. I had scouted the warehouse at the docks and found a suitable nest where I could even the ying field as much as possible. They wouldn¡¯t see using, hopefully. The dealers were waiting at Sephie¡¯s old apartment when we got there. The security detail guys had already gone ahead to the two smaller warehouses to get eyes on them. We grabbed the dealers and went to the first warehouse. Conversation was minimal. Our guys had earpieces, like usual, but the dealers didn¡¯t. We pulled up a few blocks from the first warehouse. This was the smallest of the warehouses. They were running the operation 24/7, but there weren¡¯t that many people in the warehouse. Only enough to make the brawn along with a handful of guards and that was it. Our n was to get the explosives attached to the building in strategic spots and get out without being seen. Because this one was an easier job, only a few guys were needed to get everything in ce. Andrei and Oscar went with two other guys. The rest of us waited as backup if needed. Before they left, Sephie had to hug Andrei. She was trying to be tough, but she couldn¡¯t help herself. If anything, it was motivation for him to make it back. While the rest of us didn¡¯t have a romantic rtionship with her like Adrik, there was still a special rtionship between her and the five of us. If ever there was unconditional love, Sephie was it. She was something. special in our lives and not a single one of us wanted to give that up. Andrei, Oscar, and the other two guys jogged toward the warehouse. It was approaching midnight, so we had the cover of darkness to help conceal our movements. We could hear everything through the earpieces, but there wasn¡¯t much to listen to. Communication was kept to an absolute minimum. It took maybe 20 minutes and the four guys were jogging back to us. We all chuckled when Sephie exhaled loudly as soon as she saw Andreie into view. Ivan put his arm around her shoulders, smiling down at her. It was nice to have someone worried for your safety. We loaded up quickly and dr ove to the second warehouse. It was much the same as the first. In and out with no problems. We were ahead of schedule on our way to the warehouse at the docks. I was going to set up in my nest, silently taking out as many of the guards around the perimeter as I could. When I was scouting, I counted at least 10 that I could easily pick off. Once the first line of defense had been neutralized, the rest of the guys were going toe in on foot. This warehouse was almost three times the size of the other two. It was going to need. more explosives to bl owpletely. I could only cover one side of the warehouse from above. Two sides were on the water. The third wasn¡¯t essible without announcing our presence. That made me nervous. I liked having a better vantage point, but I¡¯d covered worse. I would make this work. I found myself feeling overly protective, not only of Sephie but of the other guys too. We really were a family. I was going to make sure we all made it out. It only took me a few minutes to get into position. ¡°Ready.¡± ¡°Ready when you are,¡± Viktor said.N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Chapter 273 Chapter 273 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Three Stephen While it was somewhat macabre, I got enjoyment from counting out loud whenever I took out one of the guards. ¡°One¡­two¡­ three¡­¡± So far no one else in the warehouse had noticed. ¡°Four¡­five¡­¡± Still business as usual in the warehouse. ¡°Six, seven, eight¡­thatst group shouldn¡¯ta been f**king around on duty, but I appreciate them making my job easier.¡± I heard quiet.ughter over my earpiece. ¡°Aaaaand¡­nine. Almost to a personal best, folks.¡± Moreughter through my earpiece. ¡°Oh, number ten found number nine. That¡¯s not helpful, number ten. But wait, there¡¯s more. Eleven¡­twelve¡­go. Now.¡± I could see everyone moving from my vantage point. The people inside the warehouse were slowly bing aware that something was going on. I was trying to pick them off as they came out of the building. Andrei and Oscar were systematically moving around the building, setting up the explosives. The two guys that went with them for the first two warehouses were moving in the opposite direction around the building. Everyone else was providing cover for them. I kept an eye on as much as I could through the scope of my rifle. Things were happening quickly, I caught sight of one guy that had taken cover as he came out of the warehouse. He was on the phone. His call ended abruptly, thanks to me. ¡°We may have a problem. Someone made a call. Everybody watch your 6.¡± ¡°One wall to go,¡± Andrei said. The people inside the warehouse had barricaded themselves inside, thinking that was going to save them. I took a moment to find Sephie. She was between Adrik and Ivan, her gun pointed at the warehouse like she belonged here. She was one of us now. I checked the alley leading to the warehouse. Quiet, so far. I could hear gunfire at the back of the warehouse, where Andrei and Oscar were. ¡°Remind me to thank Trino for sending Oscar. He just saved my a ss,¡± Andrei said. ¡°All charges set. On our way back.¡± I did another sweep of the perimeter. This time, there was movement up the alley. ¡°We¡¯ve gotpany. Their backup just arrived. Don¡¯t know how many yet, but I¡¯ll try to get as many as I can. They¡¯reing up the alley,¡± I said. I counted five guys trying to quickly make it to the warehouse. They were being smart about moving up the alley, so I couldn¡¯t, get a clear shot. Whoever made the call must¡¯ve warned them I was here. ¡°They¡¯re on to me. It¡¯s difficult for me to get a clear shot on any of them.¡± I looked further down the alley to see more guysing. ¡°More guysing too. I count 15 total. So far. I need help drawing them out so I can get a clean shot. They¡¯re using cover as much as possible. Oops. Make that 14.¡± Misha and Viktor moved closer to the alley, along with several of the security detail guys to try and keep the new group from advancing any closer. The alley was the easiest entrance point. The pressure from Misha and Viktor caused the new arrivals to make mistakes, which gave me a clear shot. ¡°Down to 11. I haven¡¯t seen anymoreing yet. I also haven¡¯t checked the other ess points. Be careful down there.¡± As soon as I said that, I heard Ivan say, ¡°we¡¯ve got moreing from the west side.¡± Shi t. That¡¯s directly beside where Ivan, Adrik, and Sephie were. ¡°How many? Can you tell?¡± I asked. ¡°Looks like just a handful. We should be able to hold them off. Andrei¡¯s back,¡± he said. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. There was steady gunfire in both directions now. I was slowly working on picking off the guys in the alley. I checked on the grouping from the other direction, toward Ivan. I couldn¡¯t get a clear shot on any of them. I went back to the alley just in time to see more guys arrive. ¡°Shi t. We¡¯ve got more iing up the alley. At least 20 this time.¡± ¡°Almost clear this way, but I don¡¯t like that more are showing up. We need to get out of here,¡± Ivan sald. ¡°We can go around the warehouse,¡± Andrei said. ¡°I can¡¯t cover you that way,¡± I said. ¡°You won¡¯t need to. I can bl ow the building as soon as we¡¯re clear. Bait the rest of the guys toward the building, we won¡¯t have to worry about being followed,¡± Andrei said. ¡°We¡¯ll do it. Ivan, get Sephie out of here. Stephen, cover Ivan and Sephie as far as you can. The rest of us are going around the warehouse. Andrei will detonate as soon as we¡¯re clear,¡± Adrik said. No one had time to object. Ivan grabbed Sephie¡¯s hand and was moving quickly toward the exit to the west. It was clear. There was a bike close, so they¡¯d be able to leave quickly. Misha and Viktor were falling back toward the rest of the group, drawing the guys in the alley toward them. Everyone moved together, slowly, toward the back of the warehouse. I covered Ivan and Sephie until they got on the bike, then I lost sight of them. I went back to covering the alley. I managed to get a few more guys, but I would need to move soon or I¡¯d be caught in the st. ¡°Stephen, get out of there,¡± Adrik said as they neared the back of the warehouse. ¡°You ain¡¯t gotta tell me twice,¡± I said,ughing to myself. It went quiet as I broke down my rifle. It took me exactly 45 seconds to get it broken down and ready to move. I was on my way down the stairs within a minute. As soon as I hit the ground floor, my bike was waiting on me. I¡¯d pulled it inside the building to hide it from sight. ¡°Clear,¡± I said as I pulled out of the building. I was one block over from the warehouse, so the street was quiet. I still didn¡¯t waste any time getting out of there. ¡°3¡­2¡­1¡­¡± Andrei said. I felt the explosion when it happened. I expected it to knock out our earpieces, given that there were explosions throughout the city at the same time, so I wouldn¡¯t know that everyone made it out until we were back at the penthouse. The n was to regroup at the building, then we were going to grab Dr. Moretti in the wee morning hours, so he wouldn¡¯t know what hit him. This was the worst part of any n. The waiting. The not knowing. I expected Ivan and Sephie to be waiting on me when I got to the building. Then we¡¯d wait for the rest of the group to show up. I tried not to be nervous, but I always failed miserably. I pulled into the parking garage. No bike. Shi t. Ivan and Sephie should be here. Where the f**k are they? I only had to wait a few minutes and the rest of the group showed up. ¡°We¡¯ve got a problem. Ivan and Sephie aren¡¯t here,¡± I said as they pulled up. Adrik went nuclear right away. ¡°They should be here already. Where the f**k are they? Did you see anything before you left?¡± he asked, His anger, much like my own, turned him into a beast. He wasn¡¯t Adrik anymore. He was his anger personified. I knew his anger wasn¡¯t directed at me, but he was still a sight to behold. The dealers were visibly apprehensive. They¡¯d never seen this side of Adrik. He looked like he was ready to snap at any moment. Every muscle in his body was flexed, every vein engorged with blood. If I really was a vampire, I¡¯m sure I¡¯d be able to hear his heartbeat loud and clear. His eyes had an intensity to them when he was angry that made you feel a sort of primal fear. You felt like he was a predator and you were definitely the prey. ¡°I covered them until they got on the bike. I lost sight of them after that. The explosion knocked out the earpieces so I didn¡¯t hear anything either,¡± I said. Viktor pulled his phone from his pocket. ¡°I gave Sephie a tracker just in case,¡± he said as he checked his phone. ¡°I¡¯ve got a location. She¡¯s moving ¡± Misha had gone to one of the SUVs to grab new earpieces for everyone. ¡°What direction?¡± he asked as he handed us all new earpieces. It was easier than waiting for them, all to reset themselves. Faster, too. We didn¡¯t have time to waste. ¡°They¡¯re headed to the north end of the city,¡± Viktor said. ¡°That¡¯s Sal¡¯s area of the city,¡± Andrei said, a clear look of worry on his face. ¡°He¡¯s a dead man.¡± Adrik said as he grabbed a helmet and climbed on a bike. We all followed quickly. Even the dealers jumped into two SUVs, ready to help us out once more. Looks like taking care of Salvadori was getting bumped up on the schedule. Chapter 274 Chapter 274 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Four Stephen We followed Sephie¡¯s signal. As we got closer, it was obvious that she had stopped moving. It was going to take all of us to keep Adrik from rushing into whatever was waiting for us. It was highly likely that they were going to use Sephie to set a trap for Adrik. We got within half a block of Sephie¡¯s signal and Viktor stopped us. ¡°She hasn¡¯t moved for a few minutes. I think it¡¯s best we see what we¡¯re walking into first. We don¡¯t know if Ivan is still with her or how many guys they have.¡± ¡°You and Andrei go check it out. I won¡¯t be able to hold myself back if I go,¡± Adrik said. Viktor nodded and he left with Andrei on foot to get a better look at where Sephie was. They were only gone a few minutes. The looks on their faces when they returned made us all panic. Viktor held up the tracker he¡¯d given Sephie, along with the helmets they were wearing when they left the warehouse.¡± ¡°Hopefully this means Ivan is still with her, at the very least,¡± I said. We could all tell that Adrik was slowly losing control of his anger. I¡¯d seen him when he¡¯d lost control a few times. The carnage that he left in his wake was impressive. He wouldn¡¯t hesitate to burn this city to the ground if it meant finding her. Lord help the people of the city if something happened to Sephie. There would be no survivors. Adrik looked toward Misha. ¡°Anything?¡± he asked, almost desperately. Misha got that faraway look in his eye that meant he was running through scenarios in his head. ¡°They¡¯re still alive as far as I can tell, but that¡¯s all I¡¯ve got right now,¡± he said. ¡°F**K,¡± Adrik said. ¡°She could be anywhere.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll find her. Ivan will protect her, as long as he¡¯s with her. They don¡¯t know who they¡¯re dealing with when ites to both Ivan and Sephie. Ten bucks says they escape before we can find them,¡± Viktor said, trying to put Adrik at ease. ¡°We¡¯re going after Dr. Moretti right now. I need to beat someone within an inch of their life right now,¡± Adrik said, getting back on his bike. Might be a change of ns for the doctor, too. We had nned on holding him until the bosses were taken care of and then turning the doctor over to the police. They would get the credit for capturing him and he would have a very public trial for his crimes against the city. We might be improvising on that n now. It didn¡¯t take long to make it across town to the doctor¡¯s house. The house was quiet. He was being watched 24/7 to make sure he didn¡¯t try to escape. The guys watching him said he¡¯d gotten home about an hour before we arrived and had been in the house since. There were a few lights on in the house. The rest of the block was quiet. We waited to see if we could see movement in the house. He walked by an open window eventually, giving us the confirmation we needed it was him. Adrik didn¡¯t say a word, he just moved quickly toward the house. Even when he was so angry he couldn¡¯t see anything but red, he was still a skilled assassin. He moved silently and quickly to the house. He was inside in seconds, moving like a ghost through the house. The doctor didn¡¯t know what hit him. His face was unrecognizable by the time we got in the house. It took all four of us to pull Adrik off the doctor. We managed to push him to the next room while the other guys that were with us got the doctor secured and removed him from the house. They would take him back to the building and put him in a room. Adrik started to calm down, but only slightly, after the doctor was removed from the house. We walked back outside, back to the bikes. He was slowly bing distraught as his mind yed out every scenario around Sephie being captured. We needed to find her quickly or there was going to be tremendous fallout when he fully unleashed his chaos. I caught Misha on the way back to the bikes. I took my earpiece out and clicked it off, motioning for him to do the same. He did, but had a concerned look on his face. ¡°I have an idea, but I need your help,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m listening,¡± he said, puzzled. ¡°It involves the high strangeness we¡¯ve all witnessed with Sephie and well, all of us. We have to convince Boss that he can find Sephie on his own. He can feel her. I know he can. We just have to convince him he can. I need your help to do that,¡± I said. Misha thought for a minute, then a small smile crept over his face. ¡°Stephen, you might be a genius.¡± Sephie ¡°We¡¯ll do it. Ivan, get Sephie out of here. Stephen, cover Ivan and Sephie as far as you can. The rest of us are going around the warehouse. Andrei will detonate once we¡¯re clear,¡± Adrik said. I didn¡¯t even have time to object to leaving him before Ivan had grabbed my hand, pulling me away from Adrik. There was no time to say anything to him before we were gone, I knew I would see him in a few minutes, but there was a gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach about leaving him. I didn¡¯t like it. We were moving so quickly that I didn¡¯t have time to say anything to Ivan either. I just went with Ivan, knowing he would keep me safe until Adrik could make it back to the building. We ran to the bike that was waiting for us and were leaving in under two minutes. It was quiet on the route we took. We were out of sight of Stephen now, so we were on our own until we made it back to the building. I was still nervous, even though I was trying not to be. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°At least you¡¯re not bleeding profusely this time,¡± I said, as I held onto Ivan just a little tighter as we were speeding through the streets weaving our way back to the building. He chuckled, patting my leg. He slowed to make a turn onto a new street and we were suddenly surrounded. There was an SUV in front of us, blocking the turn, and two more quickly blocked us from behind and the side. Ivan made a move to drive down the sidewalk to get away, but the vehicle in front of us moved at the same time, blocking our path. It gave them just enough time for two guys to jump out of the SUV behind us and catch up to us. One of them grabbed me from behind, ripping me off the bike. ¡°Ivan!¡± I screamed as they grabbed me. He stopped immediately and jumped off to try and get to me. I had screamed on purpose, to make the guy that grabbed me think I was helpless. I felt his grip on me rx slightly as he assumed he could easily manage me. I was still wearing my helmet, so I leaned forward as far as I could, then crashed my head into his as hard as 1 possibly could. He stumbled backward, his grip on mepletely loose now. I got free, turned to face him, and promptly shot him in the face. There were more guys on us. I turned to see Ivan fighting three guys. I pulled my helmet off to see better, but I couldn¡¯t get a clear shot of any of them without risking shooting Ivan. I did consider trying it, since I knew he wouldn¡¯t feel anything, but I decided against it. I ran toward him to help. Two more guys rushed me when I got closer to Ivan. They both mmed me into a parked car. One of them put a gun to my head, which made me freeze. The other guy grabbed my gun. The guy that had the gun to my head whistled loudly, which caused Ivan to look toward me. He stopped as soon as he saw they had a gun to my head. He¡¯d still managed to ki ll two of the guys that were on him, though. ¡°Hands where I can see them or she dies,¡± the guy with the gun said to Ivan. He put his hands up immediately. They searched hini, taking his weapons from him. ¡°Get in,¡± he said, motioning to one of the SUVs. They picked me up off the car and searched me as well. They found the tracker in my pocket and took it. They threw me in the SUV with Ivan; they zip tied both of our hands in front. The guy that held a gun on me looked at me and said, ¡°you try anything and he dies.¡± He then looked at Ivan. ¡°You try anything and she dies.¡± They all got back in their vehicles and started driving. Once we were moving. Ivan reached over and pulled me closer to him. He looked over at me, saying quietly in Russian, ¡°we¡¯re going to get out of this. Don¡¯t worry, princess.¡± Chapter 275 Chapter 275 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Five Sephie I felt strangely calm when I looked at him. I could see the look of surprise on his face and raised an eyebrow at him. I was confused as to why he would be surprised. ¡°Your eyes are almost ck, princess. Keep that. It¡¯s going to prove useful,¡± he said, winking at me. Game on, motherf**kers. I held onto Ivan as best I could, with our hands zip tied, as the vehicle we were in sped through the city. While Ivan had been driving south, toward the penthouse, we were now driving north. I wasn¡¯t sure who¡¯s part of town we were headed to, but I was sure it wasn¡¯t going to be good. The vehicle made a stop several blocks from where they had grabbed us. One guy got out and left our bike helmets on the ground. I saw him toss the tracker Viktor had given me before we left the building in between the helmets. We continued our way north. Despite our situation, I was still able to remain calm. I wasn¡¯t sure if it was Ivan¡¯s doing. He looked almost happy about getting grabbed. I knew he would be able to withstand whatever they put him through. I also knew that Adrik would not stop until he found me and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he would find me. I didn¡¯t know how. I just knew he wasing for me, along with the other four guys. Whoever had made the du mb decision to grab me was going to regret that life choice. We eventually pulled into a parking garage of an older building. It was non-descript. It looked like every other building in the city. The garage was mostly empty, which likely meant the building was mostly abandoned. This doesn¡¯t bode well for us. It would take Adrik a year to search every abandoned building in the city to find us.N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. They pulled us from the vehicle, ushering us to the elevator. Well, at least that still works. We went up to the 5th floor. It looked like it was an office building in a previous life. They took us across the floor to a room on the opposite side of the floor as the elevator. I saw Ivan taking me ntal notes of our surroundings as we walked. He was silently calm beside me. He made sure to stay close enough to me that I could feel his presence as we were led through the maze of desks that had been left behind. They opened the door to the room and I instantly recognized it. Shi t. It was the same room, exactly, that I was in when I had the nightmare my first night at the house. It felt like a lifetime ago. I was afraid I knew what was going to happen. Ivan nced at me, noticing a change in my expression, but he said nothing. I knew he would wait until we were alone to ask me anything. The only difference between the room before us and the one in my dream was there were now two chairs, instead of just one. They put each of us in a chair and cut the zip ties off our hands, only to zip tie us to the chair instead. Ivan watched everything. like a hawk, I knew he was looking for weaknesses. If anyone could find a way out of this, it was him. The men that had grabbed us walked out of the room, leaving us alone. Ivan scooted his chair closer to mine. ¡°What is it about this room, princess? I saw the look on your face when we walked in,¡± he said quietly, in Russian. ¡°I¡¯ve been here before,¡± I said. He raised an eyebrow, shocked. ¡°No, not like that. I had a nightmare the first night I was at the house, after Anthony choked me at the restaurant. It started at my uncle¡¯s house, then faded to this room. I was tied to a chair and everything. Anthony came in. Of course I said something smart to him and he punched me. That¡¯s when he told me he was going to use me as bait. I screamed and woke up, so I don¡¯t know anything past that.¡± ¡°Well, at least we know who grabbed us,¡± he said. ¡°I should be able to grab a knife when theye back, if I can get them close enough to me. Princess, look at me.¡± I turned my head to look at him. ¡°They¡¯re going to use me to scare you. To intimidate you into doing whatever they want you to do. They¡¯ll likely torture me to try and break you. I¡¯ve been in this situation before. I¡¯m going to have to pretend that I can feel what they¡¯re doing. They can¡¯t know that I don¡¯t feel pain, so I have to put on a show. It¡¯s just a show. Got it?¡± he said, winking at me. ¡°This is why you¡¯re my protector, Super Squish,¡± I said. ¡°Just like you screamed when they grabbed you, we need them to continue thinking they have an advantage over us. They¡¯ll get sloppy at some point. We just have to oust them. I can handle whatever they¡¯re going to do to me. I need you to do the same, princess,¡± he said. I felt my anger getting stronger. I looked over at him again, only to see surprise in his eyes once again. Iughed. ¡°How dark are they now?¡± I asked. ¡°You look scary, princess. Keep it up.¡± They left us alone for what seemed like forever. Ivan and I talked quietly to pass the time. Ivan picked ri diculous subjects to help me stay calm. We still inevitably ended up talking about how long it would take the others to find us. ¡°I realize we have no whiteboard here and we really don¡¯t even have a way to tell how much time is passing, since they took your watch. Di ck move, by the way, but how long do you think it¡¯s going to take them to find us?¡± I asked. We kept our conversations to Russian only, even though it didn¡¯t really matter at this point. Ivan chuckled. ¡°I say no longer than a day and a half.¡± I contemted his answer. I would¡¯ve liked a shorter prediction, but I decided to take the over instead of under. ¡°I say three days.¡± Ivan clicked his tongue at me. ¡°Princess, you¡¯re not being pessimistic on me now are you?¡± ¡°I like to call it being realistic. It¡¯s a big city and they have no way to find us.¡± ¡°You underestimate your bond with your go ddamn prince. He¡¯ll find you.¡± As I was about to answer, the door to the room opened. I kept my mo uth shu t, now feeling nervous to see who was going to walk through the door. I fully expected Anthony to walk through the door, just like he had in my dream. Two of the guys that had grabbed us walked in and closed the door behind them. Given that we¡¯d killed three of their buddies, they didn¡¯t seem to be terribly happy with us. They didn¡¯t say a word, they simply leaned against a table across the room and watched us. Ivan said, in English, ¡°are you boys going to stare all night or are you going to tell us what you want with us?¡± The two men looked at each other, then looked back at Ivan, but still didn¡¯t say a word. They¡¯d been speaking Italian when they grabbed us, so it made me wonder if their English wasn¡¯t that great. I tranted what Ivan had said to Italian. Both men were surprised to hear me speak Italian. ¡°Yeah, I know, right? It means I understood everything you as sholes were saying when you grabbed us. I don¡¯t forget easily. When we get out of here, and we will get out of here, I¡¯m going to enjoy sending you to meet your dead friends,¡± I said. I could feel my anger rising as I thought about what they said about me when they grabbed me. They actually had a discussion about whether they could get away with having their way with me before they brought us to the building. They only decided against it because Ivan was with me and they¡¯d have to exin killing him. They had orders to bring us both alive. One of them, a clear smirk on his face, said, ¡°strong words from someone who¡¯s tied to a chair.¡± ¡°Ask your buddy how much stronger my actions are than my words, Oh, wait. You can¡¯t. I shot him in his go ddamn face,¡± I said. I had to admit, I was actually enjoying this little exchange. They had grossly underestimated me when they grabbed me. Chapter 276 Chapter 276 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Six Sephie ¡°Princess, careful. I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re saying, but I know you¡¯re verbally owning them right now,¡± Ivan said to me in Russian. He said it quietly, so the two guys barely heard him. Ivan was right. I was supposed to be making them think they had the upper hand with me, so I tried to show restraint. ¡°You never answered his question. What do you want with us?¡± I asked in Italian. ¡°We¡¯re just following orders. Our boss is very interested in you and the men you keeppany with,¡± one of them said. ¡°Who¡¯s your boss?¡± I asked. ¡°Patience, dear. You¡¯ll find out soon enough.¡± With that, they both got up and walked out of the room, closing the door behind them. Ivan looked at me, waiting for me to tell him what had just been said. Before I could tell him, he said, ¡°your Italian is better when you¡¯re angry.¡± His wide smile spread across his face. Iughed. ¡°You didn¡¯t understand what they were talking about when they grabbed us. They were trying to decide if they had enough time to pull over and take turns raping me. They decided against it because they would¡¯ve had to ki ll you and they couldn¡¯te up with a reason to cover. I told them when we get out of here, I would enjoy sending them to meet their dead friends.¡± I nced at Ivan, his anger visible on his face where not two seconds ago, his smile had been. ¡°I asked them again. what they wanted with us. They said they were following orders and whoever they¡¯re working for is very interested in the men I keeppany with. It¡¯s gotta be Sal or Armando.¡± ¡°Agreed. It could be both of them, for all we know.¡± ¡°That wouldn¡¯t surprise me either. They said we¡¯ll find out soon enough,¡± I said. Ivan sighed. ¡°They really are using you as bait. I would rather get out of here before that happens, but I also want to see who is behind this. If we leave now, we won¡¯t know for sure who ordered this.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m all for waiting for the big reveal. If it¡¯s Armando, I want to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that he deserves to d ie.¡± I heard Ivanugh quietly again. ¡°Misha was right, you know. You¡¯re so much like us now that it¡¯s scary.¡± Iughed this time, too. ¡°He told you about that, huh?¡± ¡°Yeah, except for Stephen and the really big stuff like my past, there aren¡¯t many secrets among us. And now that Stephen told N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. us, there aren¡¯t many secrets with him either.¡± ¡°That guy. I used to think he was a serial killer and I was still strangely fine with that possibility. Now that I know he¡¯s just a vampire, it all makes sense,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°We all thought that and we were all hine with it. Have you heard about him when he gets pushed too far?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°Stephen? He can be pushed too far? Really?¡± ¡°He¡¯s simr to your go ddamn prince. The bloodlust is almost as bad in Stephen. I¡¯ve only seen it happen a couple of times, but there was no stopping him when it happened. I¡¯m counting on it happening when they find us. They could just send him and your go ddamn prince in here and nobody would walk out of here alive. Doesn¡¯t matter how many people are in this building with us.¡± ¡°I might enjoy seeing that,¡± I said. We kept talking quietly for a while longer, just trying to pass the time. I needed to pee, after what I assumed to be a few hours of sitting in this chair. I groaned. ¡°Shi t, I need to pee. Think they¡¯ll let me use the bathroom?¡± ¡°If they do, use the opportunity to get a feel for where everything is. I know where the stairs are, where the elevator is. Look for things that can be used as weapons and distractions. Like fire extinguishers and paper towel dispensers in the bathroom, if they¡¯re metal.¡± ¡°If they let me use the bathroom, then they¡¯ll be more likely to let you use it too. Can you lift a knife off one of them if they let you out of the chair?¡± ¡°Possibly. You can too, princess. Use a distraction, like tripping and bumping into them to grab what you need.¡± I chewed on my bottom lip, nervous about trying to lift something off of one of them, worried about what would happen to me or Ivan if they caught me. It wasn¡¯t very much longer and the same two men came back into the room. I told them that I needed to pee. They both walked to the chairs we were tied to. One of them pulled a gun and pointed it at Ivan. ¡°You try anything and he dies,¡± he said, tly. The other guy cut my restraints and pulled me out of the chair. He kept a tight hold of my arm the entire way to the bathroom. There was no way I was going to be able to grab anything off of him, so I looked around while we were walking. There was a fire extinguisher on the opposite side of the floor from the room we were being kept in. It was by the elevators. Luckily, the guy didn¡¯t follow me into the bathroom, so I had a chance to be alone for a minute. I took note of everything in the bathroom that we could possibly use to our advantage. I heard a beep in my ear. My earpiece. They missed it when they searched me. I pulled it out of my ear. I had no clue how it worked, but there was a blue light blinking on it. Normally, there was a blue light that remained on when they would hand it to me. It was never blinking. I looked it over, pressing the only button on it, just to see what would happen. It beeped quietly three times in a row, then went silent, but the blue light was still blinking. No idea what that means. I put it back in my ear, just in case. The guy that escorted me to the bathroom stuck his head inside the door and yelled at me to hurry up. I quickly finished up and walked out of the bathroom. He grabbed my arm once more and practically drug me back to the room with Ivan. When we walked into the room, Ivan was bleeding from a cut above his eye. ¡°What the f**k? I didn¡¯t do anything wrong. Why did you hurt him?¡± I asked, trying to appear as frightened as possible, rather than showing the extreme anger I was feeling. ¡°He has a smart mo uth,¡± the guy with the gun said. ¡°Almost as smart as yours.¡± I nced to Ivan as they shoved me back in the chair. He was totally fine. He didn¡¯t look it, but I knew he wasn¡¯t feeling like he just got hit with the bu tt of a gun. They zip tied my wrists back to the chair once more. The guy with the gun put it back in its holster once I was secured to the chair again. He looked at me then punched Ivan once more before walking out of the room, once again leaving us alone. ¡°Are you going to tell me what your smart mo uth said to him?¡± I asked, trying not to smile. ¡°I asked him how good his English was. When he didn¡¯t answer, I asked him if he wanted to d ie quickly or if he was okay with me dragging it out,¡± he said. ¡°Then he hit me with the bu tt of his gun.¡± ¡°Rude. I knew their English was better than they were letting on,¡± I said. ¡°I bet that was a test to see if I really could speak Italian.¡± ¡°Which means it¡¯s likely Sal that we¡¯re waiting on. Armando knows you can understand Italian.¡± ¡°Is it wrong that I¡¯m slightly disappointed it¡¯s not Armando? I really want a definitive decision on that f**ker,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe Sal just didn¡¯t believe that I could understand Italian so he tested it just to be sure. It could still be both of them.¡± We heard voices outside the door. More than just the two guys that had been watching us. ¡°Looks like we might find out the answer sooner rather thanter,¡± Ivan said. Chapter 277 Chapter 277 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Seven Sephie The door opened once more. The two guys who grabbed us walked in first, followed by Salvadori, followed by Armando. Oh, he¡¯s dead. They nced at Ivan, who had blood that was drying on his face, then looked to the two guys who had grabbed us. They just shrugged their shoulders like it wasn¡¯t their fault. Sal walked toward me. The look on his face was difficult to read. He looked happy, but he also looked angry. ¡°You, my dear. You can¡¯t keep yourself from killing my men. That¡¯s not verydy like of you,¡± he said as he ran a finger down the side of my face and my neck. I felt nauseous at his touch. I could feel Ivan¡¯s anger, much the same way I could feel Adrik¡¯s, but it wasn¡¯t quite as strong of a feeling. But I didn¡¯t need to look at him to know he was not happy that Sal was touching me. ¡°Your men are anything but gentlemen toward me. Maybe if they weren¡¯t constantly trying to harm me, I would be nicer to them,¡± I said, trying to move away from his hand as far as I could. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! Salughed, turning to look at Armando. ¡°You were right, Mando. She is a firecracker.¡± ¡°What do you want with me?¡± ¡°Well, my dear, it started out innocently enough. You were going to be the bait to draw out Ghost so we could ki ll him,¡± he said. I tensed at him mentioning Adrik. ¡°But now that you¡¯ve killed so many of my men, I can¡¯t let that go unpunished. There¡¯s the matter of my son, as well. You¡¯ve made him look like a fo ol. You seem to be in my debt, you see,¡± Sal said. His fingers were still running down my neck. He caught the zipper of my shirt, unzipping it as far as it would go, which thankfully was only halfway down. He stood and stared at my bra for a moment, like it was the first time he¡¯d seen a woman¡¯s breasts. ¡°Is this your first time seeing bo obs?¡± I asked. I didn¡¯t expect him to p me, but he did. Hard. My head jerked to the side with the impact of his hand. Ivan threatened him, but Sal ignored him. ¡°You do have a smart mo uth. You¡¯ll learn to keep it shu t,¡± Sal said. ¡°I told your idi ot son the same thing. School really wasn¡¯t my thing. I¡¯m probably not going to learn that anytime soon,¡± I said, looking at Sal with every ounce of hatred I could muster. His fist made contact with my face once more. This time, it was exactly like it had been in my dream. He punched me so hard that my chair tipped over backwards. I heard Ivan yell at him and I could hear him struggling in his chair. The two guys that grabbed us came over and set me back upright. ¡°You punch like a weak old man,¡± I said as soon as I was upright once again. ¡°I bet you can¡¯t even get it up. How many di ck pills do you have to take to even have s ex?¡± Ivanughed loudly beside me, which caused Sal to focus his anger on Ivan instead of me. Sal punched Ivan, squarely across the jaw, but Ivan¡¯s massive frame barely budged. He stayed quiet for a moment, looking at Sal. He turned his gaze to me, saying, ¡°you were right. He punches like a weak old man.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough!¡± Armando said sternly. He had been quiet since they walked in the room. He looked ufortable. Good. He should be ufortable. His time ising. ¡°You¡¯re not going to get anything for her if you wreck her face,¡± Armando said. So, Dario was right. Sal was nning on selling me to the highest bidder. My anger was a raging inferno inside, but that thought made meugh. This du mb f**k. Armando walked to stand next to Sal. He hadn¡¯t looked me in the eyes since walking into the room, but he did once he stood next to Sal. The look of surprise on his face was evident. Clearly, my eyes were still dark. I held his gaze, letting even more of my angere to the surface, secretly hoping that my eyes would go still darker. I said, in Italian, ¡°You¡¯re both going to d ie. Slowly. Painfully.¡± I maintained eye contact with Armando until he looked away. He looked more nervous than when he¡¯de into the room. Even Sal looked uncertain about what to say. They looked at each other and walked out of the room without another word. Once they were gone, ivan asked in Russian, ¡°how¡¯s your face, princess?¡± ¡°I mean, it¡¯s felt better, but I¡¯m okay. Lucky that he really does punch like a weak girl.¡± Ivanughed. ¡°What did you say to them?¡± ¡°I told them they were both going to d ie slowly and painfully. I¡¯m guessing by the look on Armando¡¯s face, my eyes are still dark?¡± I asked, looking at Ivan. ¡°Um, yeah. Every time you look at me, they get darker. They¡¯re going to be ck by the time this is over with.¡± ¡°Or I¡¯m going to spontaneouslybust. It could go either way, really,¡± I said,ughing. ¡°Judging by that interaction, I would guess Sal is in charge and Armando is going along with him for whatever reason. Maybe Sal has something over him?¡± ¡°Yeah, but remember who Armando is sleeping with. I don¡¯t think he¡¯s as innocent as he¡¯s trying to get us to believe. He only came to my defense because Sal beating me further would¡¯ve meant a lower price for me. I¡¯m done with him. There¡¯s no getting out of this for him, as far as I¡¯m concerned,¡± I said. ¡°I agree. We might be able to y them off each other, though. If we can get them fighting each other, it might give us a chance to get out of here. You¡¯re doing great, princess. I¡¯m proud of you,¡± he said, winking at me. ¡°I would not be doing this well if you weren¡¯t here with me, Super Squish. You¡¯re my favorite. Don¡¯t tell the others.¡± Chapter 278 Chapter 278 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Eight Adrik I was pacing up and down the sidewalk opposite Dr. Moretti¡¯s house. I was so angry that I almost couldn¡¯t think. I needed Sephie to help keep me calm and she was missing. We had no idea where she and Ivan were or how to even begin looking for them. ¡°I have the info from when they left the warehouse to where they were grabbed and then where we found their helmets and the tracker. Let¡¯s retrace their movements. We¡¯re bound to find something,¡± Viktor said. That was a weak n, but right now, it was the only n we had. They could be anywhere in the city now. We didn¡¯t even know for sure if Ivan was still with Sephie. They would have to ki ll him to get him away from her, I knew that, but there was a very real possibility that he was already dead. 1 caught Stephen looking at Misha, then he looked at me. ¡°Boss, you can find her. You don¡¯t need the tracker. The connection you two have, that¡¯s your tracker. I don¡¯t know how it works when you two feel each other, but you can find her. Misha can help,¡± he said. I stopped, thinking about what he¡¯d just said. ¡°It¡¯s never worked when we¡¯ve been this far apart before. We¡¯ve always been rtively close,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe I can amplify it the same way Sephie did for me when we saw Trino in trouble,¡± Misha said. ¡°I don¡¯t have a clue how she did it, but I¡¯m willing to try everything I can to see if it works.¡± ¡°We should go to where they were grabbed. Misha might be able to see something there,¡± Stephen said. I simply nodded once and headed to my bike. It was still very early in the morning. Most of the city was asleep, which made it easier for us to move through town. We made, it to the corner where Sephie¡¯s tracker had stopped for a few minutes. As we got closer to the spot, we could see bodies. My heart immediately dropped into my stomach. Please don¡¯t let one of them be Ivan. Stephen pulled ahead and checked the bodies. He shook his head no and I exhaled, momentarily relieved. Misha got off his bike and looked over the scene. Ivan¡¯s bike was still there, but it wasn¡¯t wrecked. There were tire marks on the street in front of the bike, as well as behind. They blocked them in. Misha walked to Ivan¡¯s bike, turning to look at the one dead body well behind the bike. He pointed to the body, saying, ¡°he grabbed Sephie. She got loose and shot him.¡± He looked back toward the bike. There were two more bodies closer to the bike. ¡°Ivan,¡± he said, pointing to the bodies. He stared at the bike for long enough that I thought he¡¯d lost whatever it was he was seeing. Just when I was about to say something, he turned to look at a car parked on the street. He bent down to look at the front fender of the car. It was slightly dented, like the car had hit something at some point. He put his hand on the car and inhaled sharply. We could tell by the look on his face that he was seeing something we couldn¡¯t see. ¡°She went to help Ivan and they rushed her, pushing her into the car. They held a gun to her head to stop Ivan. They took het tracker and all the weapons and put them in their vehicle.¡± He pointed up the street. ¡°They went that way,¡± he said. At least we knew that Ivan was with her, for now. I was now worried about her being hurt, though. ¡°Is she hurt? Can you tell?¡± I asked Misha. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! ¡°I think she¡¯s okay. Or her adrenaline is masking it. She walked to the vehicle okay, even after they shoved her into the car really hard,¡± he said. ¡°Let¡¯s go where we found the belmets. Maybe Misha can give us the direction they went after ditching the tracker,¡± Stephen said. We all climbed back on the bikes, following Viktor to where we found their helmets earlier. It only took a few minutes to reach the spot where we found their helmets. Misha got off his bike again, surveying everything the same as he did before. He stood for a few moments, looking at everything. He finally looked to me, clearly frustrated. ¡°I can¡¯t see anything this time. I know they went north when they left here, but that¡¯s all I can see this time. Sorry, Boss.¡± ¡°North means Sal¡¯s area, which means it was likely Sal that grabbed them,¡± Viktor said. Stephen climbed off his bike. ¡°Boss,e here. I have an idea,¡± he said as he walked toward Misha. At this point, I was ready to try anything. Just because we¡¯d narrowed down the area of the city they were headed to didn¡¯t make it any easier to find them. ¡°So, when Sephie touched Misha, his visions amplified. What happens when you do it while you¡¯re thinking about trying to feel Sephie?¡± It was worth a shot. I inhaled, extending my hand to Misha. It was easy to think about Sephie and finding her. I was already desperate to feel her in my arms again. I felt Misha squeeze my hand tighter. ¡°They took them to an old building, but it¡¯s so dark that I can¡¯t see an address. Keep thinking about her,¡± Misha said, then added, ¡°they¡¯re in a room. It¡¯s an old office building. I can¡¯t see very much clearly, but they¡¯re both alive.¡± ¡°So, the north side in an abandoned office building. That narrows it down,¡± Andrei said, somewhat sarcastically, but with apparent frustration in his voice. We stood in silence for a few minutes. Viktor looked at Misha, a look of hope on his face. ¡°Misha, when they took the tracker from Sephie, did you see them take her earpiece?¡± ¡°No. Ivan¡¯s either. They still had them when they got in the vehicle,¡± Misha said. Viktor then looked to me. ¡°The range on the earpieces aren¡¯t as strong as the tracker, but we might be able to pick them up if we can get close enough.¡± ¡°How close do we need to be?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°Those things have about a two-mile radius,¡± Viktor said. ¡°It¡¯s worth a shot,¡± I said. ¡°I also suggest waiting until daylight. If they¡¯re holding them in an abandoned building, having people drive by at this time of the night is going to be obvious. They¡¯ll see using. For once, the darkness won¡¯t provide the cover we need. We should wait until daylight so there are other people out and about,¡± Viktor said. ¡°We divide that part of town up into a grid and work it until we get a signal. We can get the dealers to help on foot, too. They¡¯ll blend in easier.¡± ¡°F**k! I know you¡¯re right, Viktor, but pausing the search does not make me happy,¡± I said, trying to control my anger. ¡°You¡¯re not the only one, Boss. We all want to find her, but we need to be smart about it. We don¡¯t want them moving her. Or worse,¡± Andrei said. ¡°We¡¯re gonna find her, Boss. Now that we know Ivan is with her, that helps. I don¡¯t feel like she¡¯s dead, either,¡± Misha said. He paused to look at me, then added, ¡°add that to the list of sentences I never thought I¡¯d say in my life. Seriously, though, you would feel it if something happened to her. I know it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think she¡¯s dead either. There¡¯s a pull in my chest that I feel anytime I¡¯m away from her until I get back to her. It¡¯s still there and it¡¯s getting stronger,¡± I said. ¡°We might be able to use titat to help find her,¡± Stephen said. ¡°How strong does it get?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I haven¡¯t been this far away from her, ever. It gets stronger when she¡¯s hurt though. I told her it feels like my heart is urging me to destroy whatever caused her pain.¡± I ran my hand through my hair. I was definitely not expecting to be having this conversation in the middle of the street at 3 am. ¡°She¡¯s told us about that before. She feels it, too, and we all feel it with her, just to a lesser extent than you,¡± Andrei said. ¡°Let¡¯s head back to the penthouse. I think if you can focus on that pull, it¡¯ll help us know where we should start looking once. the sunes up,¡± Stephen said. I nodded once. As we dr ove back to the penthouse, I caught myself thinking about how surprising it was that it was Stephen that hade up with this n. I would not have bet on him to take charge of this situation before Sephie. Just like with Misha, she was slowly bringing out the absolute best in Stephen. He had talked more since she came into our lives than he had in the previous few years that he¡¯d been working for me. We were all somewhat relieved and admittedly slightly disappointed to learn that he wasn¡¯t a serial killer. Chapter 279 Chapter 279 Chapter Two Hundred Seventy-Nine Adrik Viktor stopped by the office and grabbed a map before meeting the rest of us in the penthouse. Andrei started making coffee for everyone. We were all quieter than usual, worried about finding her. I was having trouble controlling my thoughts. I kept thinking about them hurting her, which would cause my anger levels to rise even more. It was taking every bit of control I had to keep my anger in check, using the trick that Sephie had showed me. Viktor put the map on the kitchen ind, marking the spots where they were grabbed and where we found their helmets. Sal controlled the north side of town. It had been a booming area years ago, but had seen a decline in the past few years. There were plenty of abandoned buildings in his area, which would not make our search any easier. As I looked at the map, feelingpletely overwhelmed at where to start looking, Stephen said, ¡°Boss, focus on that pull you feel. Close your eyes if you have to, but focus on the pull you feel toward her.¡± My anger was at such a level that paying attention to anything else was proving to be difficult. The pull in my chest was a normal feeling when I was away from her. It had be so normal that I didn¡¯t pay much attention to it when I was away from her. Stephen could tell from the look on my face that I was struggling. ¡°Think about her, then. Think about finding her, specifically. Think about how relieved you¡¯re going to be to see her once again. Think about feeling her in your arms when you find her,¡± Stephen said. His words were helping my anger subside enough that the pull in my chest grew stronger. My demeanor must¡¯ve changed, because Stephen nodded to Misha, who grabbed my hand again. Misha¡¯s eyes went wide as soon as he touched me. ¡°Keep thinking about her, Boss. Feel that pull in your chest. Focus on that,¡± Stephen said. Misha said, ¡°I know the area. I still can¡¯t see the address on the building, but I know the area. They¡¯re not that far from the docks.¡± He let go of my hand and pointed to an area on the map. ¡°They¡¯re somewhere in here.¡± Viktor marked it on the map, taking a closer look at the area. ¡°This makes it easier than having to search the entire north end of town, but there¡¯s more abandoned buildings than not in this area.¡± ¡°How easy is it going to be for us to search the area without being seen?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°Not as easy as I was hoping. There won¡¯t be many people in this area. We¡¯re going to need Gus and his guys to help us search. They¡¯ll be able to blend in with the few people that are going to be out and about better than we can,¡± Viktor said. ¡°What if we use a distraction? Drop another building in the area. It might make them nervous enough that they move them, then we can catch them as theye out,¡± Andrei said. We all thought for a moment on Andrei¡¯s idea. ¡°I want to make sure we¡¯re not dropping the building they¡¯re in first, but I¡¯ll level that end of town if it means getting her back,¡± I said. Once the sun came up, Viktor called Chen ¡°Any word on Sephie?¡± he asked as he picked up the phone. ¡°We¡¯re narrowing down where we think they took her. We need your help. We have a way to search for them, but the part of town they¡¯re in is mostly abandoned buildings. We¡¯re going to stick out. We need you to get Gus and his guys to help us search,¡± Viktor said ¡°How many guys do you need?¡± ¡°As many as you can get,¡± Viktor said. ¡°We¡¯ll meet at the apartment building. Two hours.¡± The parking lot of Sephie¡¯s old apartment building was full when we showed up two hourster. Chen had gathered 20 willing to help us search. ¡°How did you get this many guys on such short notice?¡± I asked Chen. guys N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°They¡¯re all grateful you stopped the brawn operationst night. They want to help,¡± he said. ¡°Most of them are Trino¡¯s guys. Apparently that guy will sing her praises to anyone who will listen.¡± He gave me a tight smile. ¡°But we all want to find her and stop the other bosses, especially Sal.¡± Viktor took over andid out the n for the search. The earpieces would connect to each other automatically when you were within range. All the guys had to do was be close enough to Sephic and Ivan¡¯s earpieces and their earpiece would beep to connect. No connection, no beep. It was as simple as that. The city was already a grid, so Viktor just assigned groups of guys to each section of the grid. All they had to do was walk down the street, waiting for the beep in their ear that told them which building Sephie was in. Without getting caught, of course. ¡°Everybody¡¯s packing, right?¡± Gus asked when we were ready to leave. Everyone nodded their heads yes. ¡°If anyone stops you, you¡¯re there to make a deal. Find a homeless person if you have to. Whatever you need to do to make it believable, but try to stay under the radar as much as possible.¡± While they were searching, we couldn¡¯t do anything but wait. I paced. My adrenaline was still going full force. There was no chance on me being able to sleep until we found Sephie and Ivan. At one point, Andrei got up and looked through the cabs in the kitchen. We had left all her dishes and kitchen appliances when we moved her stuff from her apartment. He found her coffee maker, then found some coffee still in the pantry. He sniffed it, then shrugged his shoulders and set about making coffee. ¡°This is probably going to su ck, but I need something and I¡¯m sure you all do too,¡± he said as he poured himself a cup of coffee. We watched as he took the first sip. ¡°I¡¯ve definitely had worse.¡± Chapter 280 Chapter 280 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty N?velDrama.Org owns all content. Adrik Everyone else grabbed a cup after Andrei was the guinea pi g. I really didn¡¯t need the caffeine boost, but I wasn¡¯t going to turn it down either. It was another two hours before guys started returning to the apartment. The first ones back had no luck. Viktor marked off their areas on the map, further narrowing down where they were holding them. Gus returned with Chen and Oscar. ¡°We got them,¡± he said walking to the map, showing Viktor where they had picked up the signal from Sephie and Ivan¡¯s earpieces. Chen looked at me, saying, ¡°I heard them, sir. They were speaking Russian, so I don¡¯t know what they were talking about, but I heard both of them when the earpiece connected. I talked to Sephie very briefly. I wasn¡¯t sure if she could speak English where they were, so I just asked her to clear her throat if they were okay. She did. I told her you¡¯d be there soon to get her.¡± The flood of relief that washed over me almost made me stumble to the ground. Chen grabbed my arm to help keep me steady. He looked sympathetic. ¡°I understand, sir,¡± he said quietly. ¡°We have it narrowed down to two blocks and those two blocks don¡¯t have quite as many abandoned buildings as the rest of the area,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Andrei¡¯s idea might work.¡± ¡°Is his idea to bl ow another building as a distraction, because that¡¯s the kind of idea I fully support,¡± Oscar said. Andrei just nodded his head, a small smile on his face. Oscar pped his hands once, rubbing his palms together. ¡°Building demolition is. my lovenguage. When can we get started?¡± ¡°We need to make sure the building we choose isn¡¯t where they¡¯re keeping them, first,¡± Viktor said, somewhat sternly. ¡°Of course, of course. Do you know how quickly I¡¯d be dead if I harmed a hair on that woman¡¯s head? I¡¯m not that du mb. What do you guys need us to do?¡± Oscar said. ¡°Searching the buildings on those blocks will be a little easier, since it¡¯s more popted, but it still won¡¯t be easy,¡± Gus said. He looked to DJ, then asked, ¡°D], I know you know people in this part of town. Can you find out if anyone has seen anything suspicious on these two blocks? Somebody might¡¯ve seen them bringing Sephie and Ivan to the building. If it¡¯s Sal that took them, they might¡¯ve seen him showing up to the building.¡± We heard Stephen¡¯s phone beep. He took it out, reading the text message. His eyes went wide, then he walked to the map. He pointed to a building. ¡°They¡¯re here,¡± he said. ¡°How do you know?¡± I asked urgently, walking to look at the map. ¡°It was Keith. He said Armando has been acting weird. He left the house really early this morning, wouldn¡¯t tell Keith where they were going, just gave him an address. He made Keith and Chris wait in the vehicle while he went in the building. Keith said he has a bad feeling about whatever Armando was doing,¡± Stephen said. ¡°And for the record, Keith and Chris don¡¯t know about Sephie being taken.¡± The building he took Armando to was in between two upied buildings. There was, however, another abandoned building at the end of the block. Andrei¡¯s n could work. ¡°Tell Keith to keep us informed of Armando¡¯s movements to that building. Don¡¯t tell him why. We still don¡¯t know if Armando is on to Keith and is feeding him information He might still be trying to y both sides,¡± | said. Stephen texted Keith, then got an immediate reply. ¡°He said Armando is scheduled to go back to the building tomorrow morning again, but again won¡¯t tell Keith and Chris why.¡± I looked to Andrei. ¡°How quickly can we make this happen? If we can catch Armando at the building, we can take care of him right then.¡± ¡°I just need a few hours and Oscar¡¯s help setting everything up.¡± Andrei said. ¡°It¡¯ll be ready by tonight,¡± Oscar said. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s just Armando that set this up either. I have a feeling Sal is behind this too,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Maybe we can catch both of them at the building.¡± ¡°Agreed. I need to let Trino know we have a good shot of taking Sal out, which means he should take care of Anthony and Lorenzo at the same time,¡± I said. ¡°Gus, Oscar, does Trino know Sephie was taken?¡± ¡°Si, Jefe. We called him to let him know the warehouses were taken care of. We told him they grabbed her. He said to tell you he¡¯d do whatever you needed,¡± Gus said. I nodded, taking my phone from my pocket. I walked to the bedroom to have a private conversation with Trino. Now that we had confirmation that Sephie was alive, I was quickly bing ovee with emotion. My anger had receded to a manageable level, but I was now feeling every single other emotion all at once. I didn¡¯t trust myselfpletely to keep it together right now. ¡°Jefe, tell me you found her,¡± Trino said when he picked up the phone. ¡°We have her location, but it¡¯s going to take a little longer to get her out. We know for sure Armando is behind it, but they¡¯re in Sal¡¯s part of town, so it¡¯s likely he¡¯s behind it as well.¡± ¡°What do you need? I ha te to ask this question, but are you sure she¡¯s still alive?¡± ¡°She is. We had the dealers that helped us with the warehouses search that part of the city. The guys that grabbed her and Ivan didn¡¯t get their earpieces. The dealer that Sephie has known for years, Chen, is the one who found her. He heard her and Ivan talking. They¡¯re okay. He told her I wasing to get her.¡± My voice cracked when I said I wasing to get her. I was fighting back tears. Trino let out a long exhale. ¡°Jefe, this is good news. What¡¯s the n?¡± ¡°We have word that Armando is scheduled to go back to the building tomorrow morning. We¡¯re going to drop a nearby building to create a little chaos, hoping to flush them out. My hope is we¡¯ll catch Armando and Sal at the building. They won¡¯t make it out,¡± I said, my anger level now rising once more. ¡°I¡¯ll take care of Anthony and Lorenzo at the same time. I have them locked up for safe keeping. After the attempt on me by the Mexicans, I¡¯m not f**king around. I grabbed them right away. They¡¯ve been waiting for their sentencing ever since,¡± he said. ¡°Sounds good, Trino. Even if we can only get Armando tomorrow morning, Sal will panic when he gets word that you¡¯ve taken care of Anthony and Lorenzo. He¡¯ll be easier to take out then if he¡¯s not at the building in the morning.¡± ¡°Let the dominoes fall, Jefe.¡± Chapter 281 Chapter 281 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-One Sephie Ivan and I were left alone after Sal and Armando left the room. We had no way to know how long we¡¯d been in there, as there were no windows in the room. It must be daylight outside by now. I had a dull headache starting from headbutting the guy that grabbed me off the bike and Sal¡¯s weak punch to my face. Ivan, however, looked much worse than I did with the dried blood down one side of his face. ¡°How¡¯s your head, Super Squish?¡± I asked in Russian. ¡°Do you ever get headaches?¡± He chuckled softly. ¡°Nope. Well, let me rephrase that. I might get them, but I don¡¯t know it when I do.¡± I sighed. ¡°That¡¯s so useful.¡± ¡°Do you have a headacheing on, princess?¡± N?velDrama.Org copyrighted ? content. I nodded my head. ¡°It¡¯s not bad. I think it¡¯s more from when they grabbed us than Sal¡¯s weak sauce punch. They mmed me into the car pretty hard,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m starting to feel it.¡± ¡°Starting to feel what? Should I be worried?¡± ¡°No, I think it¡¯s okay. Just sore. I¡¯m probably turning pretty colors. I like to live life in technicolor.¡± Ivan justughed, shaking his head at me. ¡°If I haven¡¯t told you thistely, your sense of humor makes life so much better.¡± I smiled at him. Just as I turned my head, I heard a beep in my ear. I looked at Ivan, asking. ¡°is your earpiece still working?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°Did you just hear yours beep? And follow-up question, why would they beep like that?¡± I asked. ¡°Mine beeped. They do that when they connect. It means another earpiece just connected to ours,¡± he said. ¡°Sephie? If you can hear me, it¡¯s Chen. Don¡¯t say anything, just clear your throat if you¡¯re okay,¡± Chen said in my ear. I cleared my throat and heard him exhale. ¡°Good. We¡¯re looking for you. Ghost is coming for you soon. We¡¯ll be back,¡± he said. We could hear Chen talking to Gus and Oscar as they walked away and then the earpieces beeped once more, indicating they¡¯d lost the signal. ¡°So, now the question is how long has it been? A day and a half? Or three days? This is important information,¡± I said. ¡°We do have the integrity of the data to consider,¡± Ivan said. It felt like days before someone came back into the room. Ivan and I had been quietly talking almost the entire time, mostly to keep each other awake and calm. The two guys that had grabbed us walked back in the room. They walked straight to me, cutting the restraints off my wrists, and pulled me up roughly. I felt Ivan¡¯s anger go through the roof when they pulled me to a standing position. ¡°What are you doing? Where are you taking her?¡± Ivan asked. I could hear the anger in his voice. Everyone could hear the anger in his voice. The guy that had hit Ivan before punched him once more, only this time he was wearing brass knuckles. The damage was immediately visible on Ivan¡¯s face. ¡°What the f**k?¡± I yelled, trying to get free from the guy holding me. I managed to get one arm free and punched him in his nose. He stumbled backward, holding his nose. The guy that had gone after Ivan went to punch me, but Ivan surprised him by standing up, still attached to the chair, and using his body to m the guy into the ground. The guy I had punched had recovered and had pulled his gun. Once again, he pointed it straight at my head, whistling loudly at Ivan. ¡°If you don¡¯t sit back down, she dies,¡± he said, coldly. He looked at his buddy, who got up from the floor and grabbed my arms. He pulled them both behind my back, putting another zip tie tightly around my wrists. He pushed me toward the door, then turned to look at Ivan. ¡°I¡¯ll be back for you,¡± he said. His voice had a threatening tone to it. I don¡¯t like this. They pushed me out the door, down a short hallway to another room. Armando was waiting for me when we walked in. This isn¡¯t good. Armando looked pi ssed when he saw the blood on the one guy I¡¯d punched. ¡°Are you even capable of not hurting people?¡± he asked me.. ¡°You seem to think that I¡¯m the one that starts it. Tell your guys not to throw the first punch and I won¡¯t break their nose,¡± I said. Armando groaned, but nodded to the two men and pointed to one wall of the room. It was at that moment that I saw the ankle shackles connected to a chain that was bolted to the floor. I definitely do not like this. The two guys walked me quickly toward the shackles, shoving me into the wall. One guy kept me pressed against the wall while the other one attached the shackles. Once they were attached, they let go of me and left the room. I knew they were going back for Ivan. My heart sank thinking about what they were going to do to him. I turned toward Armando, to see him holding a knife. He was looking at the knife, not at me. Turning it over in his hands, like he was seriously contemting what to do next. Finally, his gaze lifted and he looked at me. ¡°You¡¯re going to solve a lot of my problems,¡± he said as he walked to me. He grabbed my shirt, despite my best efforts to move away from him. My hands were still tied behind my back and now my legs were chained. I didn¡¯t have many options. He pulled my shirt away from my body and used the knife to cut it off of me. He then did the same to my pants, leaving me in my bra and panties. ¡°Do you know what happens when a girl is sold?¡± he asked as he was cutting my clothes off. He didn¡¯t wait for me to answer. ¡°We take pictures of them so the bidding can start. Your bidding is about to start,¡± he said as he stepped back to look at me. He was visibly angry when he looked me up and down. ¡°They were told not to harm you when they grabbed you,¡± he said. I looked down at my stomach, which was a really pretty shade of blue, with a hint of deep purple from where they¡¯d shoved me against the parked car. ¡°Oh no. Is that going to cut into your profits?¡± I asked as sarcastically as possible. He didn¡¯t answer me. but he did re at me. Iughed. ¡°If you think this is bad, wait until you turn me around. Spoiler alert: your problems are not going to be solved today,¡± I said. Curiosity got the best of him and he turned me around, finally seeing my scars. His grip on my arm tightened as the realization that I wouldn¡¯t fetch top dor set in. ¡°You mean to tell me that damaged goods won¡¯t fetch top dor? I¡¯m shocked, Armando. SHOCKED,¡± I said, still trying to provoke him to anger. I couldn¡¯t do anything to defend myself, but I was hoping for a miracle here and my anger hadpletely taken over. ¡°Sal isn¡¯t going to be too happy with you when he finds out. You might¡¯ve been able to sell me with just a front picture, but now all the angles are just totally f**ked up so I¡¯m worthless. What¡¯s he going to do to you when he finds out you f**ked this up? What¡¯s he going to think when I tell him you¡¯re the one that gave me these bruises?¡± I saw the sh of uncertainty across his face before it quickly changed to anger. He stood for a moment contemting what to do next. Chapter 282 Chapter 282 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Two Sephie I could hear them beating Ivan in the other room in my earpiece. He was provoking them as well. I trusted him to have a good reason for doing so, but it was looking more and more like we really were at the disadvantage here. Then, I heard it. My earpiece beeped. They¡¯re close. Armando had been contemting his next move. He clearly decided that violence was the answer. He walked to me, angrier than I thought was humanly possible for him. ¡°Do you know how long I¡¯ve waited to do this?¡± he said as he punched me in the stomach. ¡°Women are meant to be seen, not heard, but you can¡¯t keep your f**king mouth shut. EVER.¡± His voice was just below a scream when he punched me a second time. I couldn¡¯t do anything but take it, since I couldn¡¯t even move my arms to protect myself. ¡°So, I¡¯m guessing no pictures then?¡± I asked, just to pi ss him off more. Armando was stronger than Salvadori, but I¡¯d definitely endured much worse. I could take this. Armando backhanded me, forcing me to take a step to the side to keep from falling down. ¡°My first wife didn¡¯t know when to shut up either. Do you know what happened to her?¡± he asked as he punched me in the stomach another time. ¡°I beat her to death when she wouldn¡¯t shut up.¡± ¡°Did you get her h ooked on coke like you did Giana?¡± I asked. He paused for a moment. He didn¡¯t know we knew about Giana¡¯s little habit. ¡°You know cocaine is a stimnt, you dumb motherf**ker. If you want them to be quieter, you should¡¯ve gone with heroin. Or got them h ooked on another opioid.¡± I had him confused for a second. Clearly, he didn¡¯t know the differente. ¡°Seriously? This is news to you? How have yousted this long in the business? You¡¯re too f**king st upid to be a criminal mastermind. Who¡¯s pulling your strings, puppet?¡± Okay, I might¡¯ve gone a little overboard there, judging by his reaction. I also knew that whoever was connected to my earpiece would be able to hear this, so I was trying to get as much information out of him as I could. Armando had lostplete control and was just beating me as severely as he could manage. He finally hit me so hard that I fell to the floor. That opened the door for him to kick me. I tried to curl up as tight as I could, but it wasn¡¯t easy with my hands behind my back and my ankles chained to the floor. I felt my left shoulder dislocate after one of his kicks and I screamed. I had been able to stay silent, as I didn¡¯t want to give him the satisfaction, but I couldn¡¯t hold it in when my shoulder came out of its socket. Armando delivered a second kick to the same arm and I felt my bone break. He had taken a step back from me when we both heard an explosion. It rocked the building. He cursed under his breath. I justughed at him. ¡°You¡¯re a dead man,¡± I said, coughing up blood. I was still on the floor, now trying not to move or think about the severe pain in my arm. ¡°Sephie?? Can you hear me?¡± I heard Adrik¡¯s voice in my ear. I just cleared my throat, hoping he understood. ¡°I¡¯ming.¡± he said. ¡°Fifth floor,¡± I said in Russian. Armando heard me and turned to me once more, delivering yet another kick to my torso. We could clearly hear gunshots now. The two guys that had been beating Ivan in the next room now came to the room where Armando was beating me. ¡°A building at the end of the block just exploded. The guys downstairs went to check it out. They found us,¡± one of the guys said. ¡°Are you excited?¡± I asked, trying to sit up just a little. I was starting to have trouble breathing. I think he broke my ribs. They looked down at me, confused. ¡°Excited to see your buddies we killed? Because you¡¯re about to see them again.¡± ¡°If you can answer, how many are on the floor with you?¡± Stephen asked in my ear. Since Ivan was alone now, he said, ¡°Armando is with Sephie and the two guys that were with me are likely there now too. I haven¡¯t seen anyone else, but we¡¯ve been kept in a room the whole time. Princess, cough once if that¡¯s all you¡¯ve seen.¡± I coughed once. ¡°Got it, Seph. We¡¯reing. Stephen said. Ivan said, ¡°across the floor from the elevators are offices. I don¡¯t know where they took Sephie, but there¡¯s a short hallway to the side of the front offices. I¡¯m guessing that¡¯s where she is.¡± I coughed once more. ¡°Thanks, Seph.¡± While Stephen and Ivan had been talking, Armando was trying to formte a n with the two guys. He pulled his phone out to make a call. Whoever he called didn¡¯t pick up, which forced him to m his phone down to the floor, ¡°I would suggest running now if you¡¯re going to do it. They¡¯reing for you. Run to the roof and jump. Otherwise, you¡¯re going to have a long, slow, painful death,¡± I said. ¡°Especially you, Armando. Once Ghost sees me like this, you¡¯re going to know pain like you¡¯ve never known it before.¡± I heard all the guys cursing quietly in my earpiece. I said, in Russian, ¡°his bu tthole just clenched a little.¡± I couldn¡¯t keep fromughing a little, but it made my ribs hurt to do so, so I ended up cursing loudly. ¡°What are we going to do with her and the guy in the other room?¡± one of the guys asked. ¡°Kill him. Bring her with us,¡± Armando said. One guy came to take the shackles off my ankles, while the other left the room quickly to take care of Ivan. As soon as my legs were free, I kicked the guy in the face as hard as I could. He went tumbling backward. ¡°Oh, for f**k¡¯s sake,¡± Armando said as he walked toward me to grab me. He grabbed the arm that he¡¯d broken to pull me up, causing me to scream. He pped me and told me to shut up. My arms were still tied behind my back, so once again, I was forced to just take it. We heard one gunshot from the other room. My heart dropped. ¡°Ivan!¡± I yelled. Armando pped me again, yelling, ¡°I told you to shut up!¡± I heard Ivan in my earpiece. ¡°Princess, you know I wouldn¡¯t leave you alone.¡± ¡°We¡¯reing in now,¡± Stephen said. ¡°Move to the left when youe through the door. Stay along that wall. They won¡¯t be able to see you. You¡¯lle to the room where I am. Move quickly. Armando will be expecting his guy back,¡± Ivan said. I looked at Armando. ¡°You know, I said months ago that you had a saviorplex. You like to pick damaged people because you think you can save them. I was only partly wrong. You pick damaged people because they¡¯re easier for you to control. You don¡¯t have a saviorplex; you have a superiorityplex. I just haven¡¯t figured out if your bumbling idiot persona is an act or if you¡¯re actually this st upid. Not gonna lie, I¡¯m leaning hard toward you¡¯re just this st upid.¡± I was trying to keep him focused on me to make it easier for the guys to surprise him. I could feel Adrik¡¯s anger now that he was closer, but I was in so much pain that it was difficult for me to feel anything other than that. I heard Ivanugh in my earpiece. ¡°Which brings up my earlier question of who is pulling your strings? Is it Giana¡¯s father? Ricardo? Both?¡± I asked. Armando had been looking toward the door while I talked to him, but he spun around to look at me when I mentioned Ricardo¡¯s name. Bingo.N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. Chapter 283 Chapter 283 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Three Sephie He walked toward me again and I braced myself for another blow. ¡°I¡¯m going to tape your f**king mouth shut,¡± he said. If I thought I overdid it before, I was mistaken. The look on Armando¡¯s face when he walked back to me actually made me fear for my life this time. He was so angry that I¡¯d figured out who was controlling him that he might actually kill me this time. I saw movement over his shoulder and the other guy in the room dropped to the ground. I could barely hear the gun with the silencer attached. Armando turned when he heard the guy hit the floor, Adrik and Stephen were standing in front of him. ¡°Boss, I¡¯m d you¡¯re here. Sal had them kidnapped. I¡¯ve been trying to get her out of here,¡± Armando said, switching wlessly back to the persona that he was a friend to Adrik. He said it so smoothly, that it was almost believable. It might¡¯ve been if they hadn¡¯t heard him beating me earlier through my earpiece. Ivan walked into the room behind Adrik and Stephen. He pulled his earpiece from his ear and held it up for Armando to see. I couldn¡¯t see Armando¡¯s face, but I¡¯m sure he knew he¡¯d f**ked up. ¡°Oh, by the way, she has one too,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We heard everything.¡± Adrik said. He took his jacket off, never taking his eyes off Armando. He walked slowly to me, taking a knife from one of his pants pockets and cutting the zip tie off my wrists. I tried to hold in the scream when my arm fell limp to my side. I saw Adrik flinch, but he stayed quiet. Even through my pain, I could feel his anger. It was to a level I¡¯d never seen before, but he looked like he was inplete control. He wrapped his jacket around me, then put his fingers under my chin. ¡°Can you give me five minutes, my love?¡± he asked as he pressed his lips to mine gently. I smiled at him. ¡°Take as long as you need.¡± I said. He kissed me tenderly once more, then turned back to Armando. ¡°Ivan, stay with her,¡± he said in Russian. ¡°Stephen, with me.¡± He grabbed Armando¡¯s arm, twisting it behind his back painfully as he walked to the other side of the room, farther away from me and Ivan. I looked at Ivan as he stood next to me. He looked like Hell. ¡°You look terrible, Super Squish,¡± I said. ¡°You do too,¡± he said. He might¡¯ve winked at me, but one of his eyes was so puffy, I wasn¡¯t sure he could even see out of it. Ivan did his best to keep me distracted while Adrik beat the ever-loving shi t out of Armando on the other side of the room. He noticed me holding my arm and lifted Adrik¡¯s jacket to look closer at it. ¡°He dislocated your shoulder, didn¡¯t he?¡± I nodded my head. ¡°I think he broke my arm, too. I heard it snap,¡± I said, coughing. My ribs were really starting to hurt and I ended up coughing up more blood. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. ¡°Did he break your ribs too?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°I think so.¡± The more I talked, the harder it was to breath. Ivan heard me wheezing. ¡°Guys, we gotta get her to the hospital. I think her lung might be punctured,¡± Ivan said. He looked to Adrik, who was still on Armando ¡°Andrei, Misha, Viktor¡­¡± Before he could finish, I put my hand on his arm. ¡°I can stop him,¡± I said I walked toward Stephen, who looked unsure Adrik had Armando un the ground, straddling him, just letting his fists fly in Armando¡¯s face. If he wasn¡¯t dead, he was definitely unconscious, and definitely was wishing he¡¯d taken my earlier advice. I walked closer and put my hand on his back ¡°Adrik I need you,¡± I said quietly His fist stopped muda. He immediately turned to me, jumping to his teet Iuniled at him, but I was struggling to breathe and just walking the short distance made the start taki picked me up, walking out at the ch made it even harder to Stephan ad¨® b?n bull, l He leaned down and ¡°What¡­about¡­Armando¡­¡± I said, in between breaths. ¡°I¡¯ll send someone up to get him and take him back to the building.¡± Viktor said in my earpiece. I heard the elevator doors ding Viktor, Andrei, and Misha were in the elevator. ¡°You guys¡­are a¡­sight¡­for¡­sore¡­eyes¡­¡± I said, trying to smile at them. ¡°Don¡¯t talk, princess. We¡¯ll catch upter. If your lung is punctured, you need to breathe as quietly as possible. Talking will make it worse,¡± Ivan said. He noticed my dislocated and broken arm dangling at my side and picked it up gently. He ced it in myp. Adrik nced at Ivan, who said, ¡°it¡¯s dislocated. She thinks it¡¯s broken too.¡± Adrik just held me tighter in his arms. Viktor had called ahead to the hospital. Thankfully, Dr. Williams was there and was aware that his two least favorite patients. were on their way. Iughed to myself thinking about the panic attack he was likely having knowing me and Ivan wereing. in. I was in the backseat with Adrik, still in his arms. I looked up at him, worried about Ivan having to go to the hospital. ¡°Ivan¡­¡± I whispered. He looked down at me, searching my eyes. A small smile crept over his face. ¡°Ivan will be fine. We need to get you taken care of first,¡± he said. I was suddenly very tired. I just nodded and rested my head on his shoulder. I was only vaguely aware when we got to the hospital. I could feel the darkness trying to take over. I was too tired to fight it. I felt them lift me out of the SUV and felt them ce me on a bed. I felt Adrik¡¯s hand in mine once they put me on the bed, but that¡¯s when everything wentpletely dark. Chapter 284 Chapter 284 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Four Adrik ¡°What the f**k happened?¡± Dr. Williams asked as we pulled Sephie from the backseat of the SUV. He immediately started to look her over as we transferred her to the hospital bed. ¡°She and Ivan were kidnapped,¡± Misha said. Ivan had walked up. ¡°Her left shoulder is dislocated and that arm is likely broken too. She has broken ribs on that side and I¡¯m almost positive she has a punctured lung. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s more, but that¡¯s all I know for sure,¡± he said. Dr. Williams nodded as we walked quickly down the hallway. He looked to Ivan, ¡°and what about you? You also look like holy hell, but I¡¯m not gonna lie, I¡¯m terrified to look at you without her.¡± ¡°I can manage until she¡¯s fine, doc,¡± Ivan said. ¡°We need to get her x-rayed to find out what we¡¯re dealing with. I can hear her wheezing. She¡¯s having trouble breathing. I know she reacts differently to anesthesia. Anything else I should know about?¡± Dr. Williams asked Ivan. ¡°Yeah, she doesn¡¯t go anywhere without him,¡± he said pointing to me. ¡°He is to her what she is to me. Keep him with her.¡± ¡°Noted.¡± We walked onto an elevator while the guys stayed behind. Dr. Williams looked at me, then looked at my hands. ¡°I¡¯m hoping the guys that did this to her are in much worse shape than she is?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m just getting started,¡± I said. ¡°Good. What about the brawn situation? 1 heard about the explosions throughout the city. I¡¯m hoping it had to do with taking care of that?¡± he asked. N?velDrama.Org owns all content. ¡°Taken care of. They grabbed her when Ivan was getting her to safety before we blew the warehouses,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯s a small relief,¡± he said as we exited the elevator. The nurses gave me funny looks as we walked into the x-ray room. ¡°Make a note in her chart that this man stays with her, no matter what. There¡¯s also five more downstairs that are to stay with her overnight. I don¡¯t want any problems from any of the nurses.¡± The nurses looked puzzled, but didn¡¯t argue. Dr. Williams liked to talk while he worked. ¡°What about Ivan? He doesn¡¯t look so good. I¡¯m not sure I believe him that he can.st until she gets well enough to work her magic on him. Do you have any other way for me to look at him without him killing me?¡± I felt Sephie squeeze my hand faintly. When she did, the memory of Misha recording her ying the piano came into my head. I knew Sephie put it there. Even unconscious, she was still trying to help Ivan. ¡°I have one idea that might work. He¡¯s generally okay with minor stuff. If it¡¯s something that would require anesthesia on a normal person, that¡¯s where the real problem is. She¡¯s the only one that¡¯s ever been able to calm him like she does.¡± I¡¯ve never seen anything like it in my life. What¡¯s your idea, if you don¡¯t mind me asking?¡± ¡°She ys no. She¡¯s incredibly talented. Ivan gets stuck in his memories when he has to go to the hospital. He¡¯ll wake up fighting like he did with you regrly. It¡¯s a waking nightmare for him. In his mind, he¡¯s back in his past, lighting for his life. In reality, he¡¯s fighting us and we¡¯re just trying to keep him from hurting himself or someone else. She can break him out of it, but it means she can¡¯t sleep while he sleeps. One of the guys recorded her ying the piano and that¡¯s enough to keep him from getting sucked back into his nightmare. He knows she¡¯s close by as long as he can hear her ying,¡± I said. Dr. Williams had continued to take x-rays of Sephie¡¯s entire body while I was talking. He stopped briefly to look at me. ¡°That¡¯s incredible.¡± He motioned toward Sephie. ¡°I need to turn her onto her side,¡± he said, indicating for me to help him. Her body was covered in bruises already. When he saw her back, he gasped. ¡°Holy shi t,¡± he said, looking to me again. ¡°Her uncle,¡± I said. ¡°F**ck,¡± he half-whispered as he continued taking x-rays. Once he was done, he let me know what needed to happen next. ¡°Her left shoulder is definitely completely dislocated. Her humerus is also fractured. She has five broken ribs and one of them has punctured her left lung. It¡¯s difficult to tell from the x- ray, but she does have some blood in her lung and air is escaping into her thoracic cavity. Fortunately, her right lung looks fine.. Unfortunately, she¡¯s going to need to stay in the hospital for a few days to make sure her lung doesn¡¯t copse. She¡¯ll need a chest tube to help give the air a ce to go, so her lungs can re-expand, and oxygen to help her breathe easier. She¡¯s going to be in a lot of pain for a day or two,¡± he said.. ¡°Pain meds knock herpletely out and make it so she can¡¯t eat for days at a time,¡± I said. ¡°Thest time she got seriously hurt, she took ibuprofen. When she got those scars on her back, she said she just took ibuprofen then too.¡± ¡°Seriously?¡± ¡°Yeah. We couldn¡¯t believe it either, but apparently that shi t works for her,¡± I said, smiling at her. I still had a hold of her hand, not wanting to be apart from her. We left the x-ray room and went to a surgery room so they could fix her arm. ¡°We¡¯re going to need to sedate her to fix her shoulder. That¡¯s going to be painful if she¡¯s awake. I¡¯ll let the anesthesiologist know about her reaction to normal pain meds. Redheads really do react differently to drugs than everyone else. That¡¯s a real thing,¡± he said. It took them a while to put her shoulder back and set her arm. She would have to wear a cast for a few weeks while her bone healed. They put a chest tube in, which made her breathing quieter. She¡¯d been on oxygen since we got to the hospital, but 1 could still hear her wheezing. Once the chest tube was in, she started to breathe quietly again. My own anxiety started to calm down once she started to breathe quieter, too. We went to a room once they were done. ¡°I¡¯ve sent a nurse down to get the other guys. I¡¯d like to take a look at lvan, if that¡¯s possible. He looked rough before,¡± Dr. Williams said. Once the guys walked into the room, they all looked exceptionally worried. I said, in Russian, ¡°she¡¯s okay. She¡¯s going to have to stay here a few days, but she¡¯s okay.¡± I looked to Misha, then to Ivan. ¡°Misha, do you have the recordings of her ying on your phone still? The doctor wants to look at Ivan, but Sephie won¡¯t be awake for a while. They had to sedate her to fix her shoulder so it might be a couple days before she wakes up. You should get looked at before that, Ivan,¡± I said. ¡°Yeah, Boss, I have them. Do you think that¡¯ll work?¡± Misha asked Ivan. ¡°It¡¯s worth a shot, I guess, but it¡¯s probably best if you guys are there, just in case,¡± Ivan said. He was visibly nervous. ¡°I¡¯m not leaving her. Do you four think you can handir him if it gets bad?¡± I asked ¡°We make it work,¡± Viktor said ¡°You don¡¯t need to lose her I looked at the doctor. ¡°han po with you, but Itay is going as well, but in case they need to hold thn dow recording of her ying a hopefully that will help keep has caly enough Let¡¯s hope you donnel to do anything invasive on him,¡± I said, in English. ¡°You ain¡¯t never lied. Follow me, gentlemen,¡± he said, walking out of the room leaving me alone with Sephie. I leaned over her, kissing her forehead. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry, solnishko. Once again, you were never meant to get hurt. I¡¯m so proud of you, though. I heard you with Armando. You got the information we needed out of him. You continuously surprise me with your intelligence. It¡¯s more than that, though. You¡¯re street smart as well. This business. It takes a certain level of cu nning. It takes most people a lifetime to figure it out and you juste by it naturally. You¡¯re just amazing, Persephone. You make me want to work harder every single day to make sure I¡¯m worthy of your love.¡± I grabbed her hand as I sat next to the bed to watch over her. I felt the faintest squeeze on my fingers. I picked her hand up, kissing the back of it. ¡°Sleep, love. I¡¯ll be right here the whole time.¡± Chapter 285 Chapter 285 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Five N?velDrama.Org copyrighted ? content. Adrik It took a little over an hour before Ivan and the other guys came back to Sephie¡¯s room. He had a few sets of stitches in various ces, but nothing major. I raised an eyebrow, curious how it went. Misha looked proud of himself. ¡°The recording was enough that the doctor could check him over thoroughly. He didn¡¯t break anything. Just some stitches,¡± he said. They had put Sephie in a double room, with strict orders that no one else was to be ced in that room. The doctor was trying to give us an extra bed, since he knew we were all going to stay with her. I appreciated it. Ivan stretched out on the other bed. He looked exhausted. We all looked exhausted. We were quiet for a few minutes, then curiosity got the better of us. ¡°We know Armando was a part of it, but did you find out about anyone else?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Sal was there the first night. Or first morning. To be honest, I have no idea what day it is. They took my watch, so time was meaningless while we were in that room. How long did it take you guys to find us?¡± Ivan asked. He had a bit of a grin on his face when he asked, like there was a joke we weren¡¯t privy to that he was thinking about. ¡°From the time they grabbed you until the time we got to you, it was right around 30 hours,¡± Viktor said. Ivan chuckled. ¡°She¡¯s gonna be so mad and so impressed at the same time.¡± We all looked to him for further exnation. ¡°That was one of her first questions. How long it would take you guys to find us. I said no longer than a day and half. She said three days. She was worried when they found her tracker and pitched it. She didn¡¯t know you¡¯d be able to track us with the earpieces. I may have neglected to tell her that,¡± he said, his devious grin on his face. Andrei snapped his fingers and pointed at Ivan. ¡°Rude.¡± ¡°You guys heard her at thest. That¡¯s how she was the entire time. Hell, she shot the guy that grabbed her off the bike in the face. She had them all worried anytime they talked to her.¡± He looked at me. ¡°Did you see her eyes this time?¡± I nodded. When Stephen and I got to her, her eyes were as dark as I¡¯d ever seen them. ¡°They were almost ck when we got to her. Were they that dark the whole time?¡± ¡°Yeah, but she kept her cool the entire time. She had one conversation in Italian that I couldn¡¯t understand, but everything else I heard. She was incredible. She was messing with their heads the entire time,¡± Ivan said. You could hear the pride in his voice when he talked about her. ¡°What happened when they grabbed you?¡± Misha asked. I knew he was likely wanting to see how urate his visions were. I had to admit, I was curious as well. ¡°They had to be waiting on us. They came out of nowhere and caught me slowing down to turn onto a street. They blocked us. in, but I made a move to drive down the sidewalk. The vehicle in front cut me off. The guys in the vehicles behind us got out and grabbed her off the bike. I didn¡¯t see how she got away, but that¡¯s when she shot the guy in the face. She was on the way to help me when two more guys rushed her and mmed her into a parked car. One of them held a gun to her head, so I stopped. I¡¯d killed two guys that were on me, but I froze when I saw the gun on her. They took everything off us there and threw us in a vehicle, then stopped along the way to drop the helmets and tracker. I¡¯m sure you guys found everything though,¡± Ivan said. ¡°She headbutted the guy that grabbed her before she shot him in the face,¡± Misha said. ¡°We went to the scene and I was able to see what happened. It was like it was when she and I saw Trino. I¡¯ve never been able to see something happen in the past. before.¡± Ivan raised his eyebrow. ¡°She really did unlock a new level for you, then.¡± ¡°What happened when Sal was there?¡± Viktor asked. Ivanughed. ¡°Oh, dear G od, she¡¯s just so funny without even meaning to be sometimes. She asked what Sal wanted with her. He told her he was originally just going to use her as bait to draw out Boss so he could kill him, but since she¡¯d killed so many of Sal¡¯s men, she was now in his debt. He said there was also the matter of his son and her making him look like a fool. He kept trying to touch her, but she kept moving away from him, even though we were tied to the chairs. He unzipped her shirt and just stared at her boobs for a minute. She asked if it was his first time seeing boobs. He pped her and told her she had a smart mouth and that she¡¯d learn to keep it shut. She told him she didn¡¯t care for school and she likely wasn¡¯t going to learn it anytime soon. She said she told Anthony the same thing. Oh, I should mention that she called Anthony his ¡®idiot son.¡± Sal punched her so hard that her chair tipped over backward. The two guys that grabbed us had to set her back upright. When she could look at him again, she told Sal he punched like a weak old man.¡± Ivan startedughing, but continued. ¡°She said something like she bet he couldn¡¯t even get it up and then asked him how many di ck pills he needed to even have sex.¡± We allughed. ¡°What happened then? I¡¯m sure that didn¡¯t go over well with Sal,¡± Viktor asked. ¡°Mando stepped in. He told Sal that they wouldn¡¯t get as much for her if he kept hitting her. So, Sephie was able to get their n out of them with her di ck joke,¡± Ivan said. ¡°She¡¯s like a bloodhound when it comes to information. But that¡¯s when Armando looked at her for the first time and saw her eyes. He was visibly frightened when he saw her. She took advantage of it, too. She told them both they were going to die slowly and painfully. It shook them both enough that they left the room immediately. She did the same to the guys that grabbed us. Apparently, they were discussing whether they could get away with stopping along the way and taking turns raping her. It was in Italian, so I didn¡¯t understand it. She didn¡¯t say anything to me at the time, butter, she let them know she understood. She told them she was going to enjoy sending them to meet their dead friends.¡± We all sat in stunned silence. We knew she was incredible, but she just kept impressing us with her ability to withstand whatever was thrown at her. ¡°Did Sale back after that?¡± Andrei asked. ¡°No. I was expecting him to. I was surprised when it was just Armando. I¡¯m still not entirely sure which one of them is in charge. From what Sephie pulled out of Armando at the end there, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s ever been in charge. We need to confirm. with her when she wakes up, but I¡¯m guessing it¡¯s either Ricardo or Giana¡¯s father that have been pulling the strings all along. for Armando,¡± Ivan said. ¡°I need to do more digging on Ricardo to see if I can find out more about him,¡± Viktor said. ¡°Armando is still alive. They took him to a room. Keith and Chris are making sure he stays there.¡± I felt Sephie¡¯s hand start to jerk. She started to mumble in her sleep, which likely meant she was having a nightmare. I put my hand on her stomach and felt her body shaking. I started talking to her, trying to coax her out of her nightmare. She was still mumbling, but I couldn¡¯t understand what she was saying as she was still having trouble speaking. I leaned down, talking softly in her ear, but it didn¡¯t stop. The shaking started to get worse. ¡°Get in bed with her, Boss,¡± Stephen said. ¡°She¡¯s probably freezing on top of everything else.¡± He and Andrei stood up to help move her over so I had room toy beside her. We moved all the tubesing out of her as carefully as possible and Iid down on her right side, which had the least amount of damage Andrei raised her shoulders up so I could slide my arm under her. When he eased her back toward the bed, she tried to tum toward the Andrei and Stephen both saw it and tried to help her roll on her side so she couldy on me as much as possible Her head rested partially on my shoulder, partially in her usual spot on my chest. Her left atto was in a shing that was secured to her waist keep her shoulder immobile, so she couldn¡¯ts acTUKA my chest like she normally did. Her body started to rx as soon as her he on my shoulder and my hand was running sp and doen her back. I felt my body rx being able to hold her unce again. ¡°F**king adorable,¡± they all said at our Stephen said, ¡°You guys should get some sleep. I¡¯m still very much on a caffeine high, so I¡¯ll take the first shift. I don¡¯t like that Sal is still atrge.¡± ¡°Once he finds out about Anthony and Lorenzo, he¡¯s going to be unpredictable. Let¡¯s hope she doesn¡¯t sleep for three days. We may not have that long.¡± Viktor said. ¡°I can buy us a day or two with that,¡± I said, wiggling my phone out of my pocket. I nodded to Stephen to watch the door to make sure no one came in, then dialed Trino¡¯s number. Chapter 286 Chapter 286 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Six Adrik ¡°Jefe, any word?¡± He picked up on the first ring. He sounded worried. ¡°She¡¯s fine, Trino. She¡¯s going to need to stay in the hospital a few days though. Armando beat the shi t out of her before we could get to her,¡± I said. ¡°I hope he¡¯s already dead.¡± ¡°He wishes he was, I can tell you that. He¡¯s still alive though. I n on drawing it out as long as possible. I want him to suffer.¡± ¡°I love this line of thinking, lefe.¡± ¡°That being said, Sal is still atrge and I¡¯m a little worried about what he¡¯s going to do once he finds out about Anthony and Lorenzo. I¡¯m not leaving her until she can leave the hospital.¡± ¡°Say no more, Jefe. I have the perfect solution. I¡¯ll take care of everything. Sal won¡¯t find out until I¡¯m sure that Sephie is okay. and can leave the hospital. No matter how long it takes.¡± ¡°Thanks, Trino. And thanks again for sending Oscar. He¡¯s been an integral part of our fireworks show.¡± Trinoughed. ¡°I love that guy. I¡¯ve never met anyone who gets as excited to blow shi t up as that dude. He¡¯s great.¡± ¡°He¡¯s good at his job, I will definitely give him that,¡± I said. ¡°Keep me updated on Sephie¡¯s condition. How bad is it?¡± he asked. ¡°He dislocated her shoulder and broke her arm. She also has five broken ribs and a punctured lung. She¡¯s more blue and purple than anything right now, but she got more information out of both Sal and Armando despite everything that was happening to her. There¡¯s another yer behind Armando that we don¡¯t know much about.¡± ¡°F**k, Jefe. How did you not kill him?¡± ¡°I was well on my way to doing so, but she stopped me. She was having trouble breathing,¡± I said. ¡°She¡¯s even more special than I thought if she could stop you in the middle of that,¡± Trino said. ¡°You have no idea, Trino. I¡¯ll keep you updated and let you know when she can leave. Thank you again for everything, Trino.¡± ¡°De nada, Jefe.¡± Viktor ran to one of the vehicles to get a charger for Misha¡¯s phone so we could plug it in for Ivan. Nobody had slept in over two days, so nobody wanted to be woken up to him fighting his past. I didn¡¯t want to put Sephie in danger either. Knowing her, she would wake up just to help him, knowing he was struggling. I had to admit that listening to her y helped me rx and be able to sleep better, given the situation. Because of her arm in a sling and cast, I couldn¡¯t hold her as close as i wanted to. Because of her chest tube, she needed to be partially sitting up. She was as close to me as her arm in a cast strapped to her waist would allow, but I still managed to pull her legs over mine partially so she would feel even closer. It was frustrating and not ideal, but I found myself drifting off to sleep despite everything. We were all woken up periodically by nursesing in to check on her. One nurse clearly wa happy with me being in bed with her, but she didn¡¯t say anything. Perhaps it was the gun on r hip that she didn¡¯t like. Dr. Williams came in that evening to check on her before he left for the day. He chuckled, ¡°one of my nurses went on a rant about you being in bed with her. I told her i could send her home for the day if she had that much of a problem with it. She decided to let it go.¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t know I basically pay her sry. She¡¯ll be out of a job if she doesn¡¯t let it go,¡± I said sternly. ¡°I¡¯ll make sure she takes care of everyone else on the floor instead,¡± he said. ¡°How is she?¡± he asked pointing at Sephie. ¡°She¡¯s been mostly quiet. Like Ivan, she has demons that resurface anytime she gets hurt. She started fighting, but as long as she can feel me next to her, she stays calm.¡± As I said that, she struggled to snuggle closer to me. ¡°Let¡¯s make sure you stay next to her, then. She needs to stay quiet so she can breathe easily until her lung has a chance to heal a little more,¡± he said. He looked toward Ivan, who was still sleeping. ¡°How¡¯s he doing?¡± ¡°Good so far. As long as he can hear her ying, he stays calm. I assume he was okay when you checked him out earlier?¡± ¡°He was as calm as he was when she was with him. You were right, too. She is incredibly talented¡± I smiled, feeling that familiar pull in my chest. I loved it when other people saw the greatness in her too. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in the morning to check on her again. If something happens overnight, the nurses know to call me,¡± he said. ¡°Thank you, Dr. Williams. For both of them. I understand it¡¯s a bit of a unique situation we¡¯ve put you in. I appreciate everything you¡¯ve done,¡± I said. He nodded his head and left quietly. Sephie stayed quiet for the entire night, as long as her head was resting on my shoulder. She would periodically try to get closer to me, but would struggle to do so each time. Her ribs made it difficult to move without severe pain and her arm in a cast and sling made it awkward for her toy against me. I tried to hold her as close as possible without hurting her. Dr. Williams came back the next morning to check on her. He looked at everyone in the room. ¡°You¡¯re all looking slightly more refreshed this morning. I take it you all got a little sleep, at least?¡± he asked. One of the nurses had brought in an extra bed the night before, so the guys rotated through the beds during the night. Each time a nurse came in to check on Sephie, they would rotate. It wasn¡¯t ideal, but they weren¡¯t going toin if it meant staying close to her, There were quiet grunts in response to Dr. Williams¡¯ question. He chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m guessing you guys likely haven¡¯t eaten, either. I can have food sent up. You¡¯ll feel better once you can eat, as well.¡± He turned to me. ¡°How did she dost night?¡± ¡°She was quiet. She¡¯s tried to move closer to me a few times, but struggles to do so. It makes her frustrated, even in her sleep,¡± I said. ¡°She¡¯s going to be in a good bit of pain for a while. Her bruising is deep. And I know I don¡¯t have. to tell you how painful broken ribs are.¡± He walked to the side of the bed opposite from me. Het put his hands up, looking at me. ¡°I need to check her,¡± he said, before he touched her, like he was asking my permission. I tried to sit up so I wouldn¡¯t be in the way. He lifted the nket off her, then lifted the hospital gown she was wearing to look at her chest tube. I heard the guys cursing quietly as they saw the bruises that covered her body. Dr. Williams checked everything, then said, ¡°I need to roll her onto her back. She has so much bruising that I want to be sure I didn¡¯t miss something that¡¯s causing her to bleed internally.¡± Andrei and Misha stood up immediately to help shift her onto her back. They gently lifted her and turned her so the doctor could have ess. As he palpated her abdomen, she started mumbling. He heard her and took note of it, but continued his exam. I could see her body start to shake the longer she was away from me. Dr. Williams felt it too. ¡°That¡¯s concerning,¡± he said. ¡°That¡¯s what happens when she¡¯s away from him,¡± Ivan said. ¡°It¡¯ll stop once we put her back on him,¡± Misha said. Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDra/ma.O(r)g! ¡°Intriguing,¡± he said as he continued his exam. When he was satisfied that there was nothing going on internally that he needed to worry about, he stepped back to let Andrei and Misha move her back closer to me. Dr. Williams stood and watched as the mumbling quieted and her body rxed as soon as her head was on my chest once again. ¡°That¡¯s not something I see, ever,¡± he said as he stared at Sephie, like he waspletely lost in thought over what he¡¯d just witnessed. Ivan didn¡¯t say a word, but he stood up and walked silently to the bed, standing in between Sephie and the doctor, his arms crossed across his chest. It was enough to break whatever thought pattern was going on in his head. ¡°I¡¯lle back in a few hours to check on her again. From what I can see, she¡¯s doing well. She might be able to get the chest tube out earlier than I thought, but she¡¯ll still need to stay here for observation for a day once ites out. We want to make sure it won¡¯t need to go back in,¡± he said as he walked toward the door. ¡°I¡¯ll have food sent up, as well.¡± He closed the door quietly behind him. We all looked at Ivan, somewhat puzzled. ¡°Doctors are all the same. As soon as they find something that can¡¯t be exined with their science, they want to study it. I¡¯ll die before I let that happen to her,¡± he said, clearly bristled. ¡°I¡¯ve seen that look way too many times before.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s hope she continues to make improvements quickly so we can get her out of here,¡± Andrei said. ¡°I¡¯d also rather get my own food than rely on what he sends up.¡± ¡°Fair point. I¡¯ll tell the doctor it¡¯s not needed,¡± Viktor said. We could hear the edge to his voice as he stood to leave the room. I smiled, as I kissed the top of Sephie¡¯s head. Viktor rarely got angry, but when it came to her, he would destroy whatever he perceived to be a threat, no questions. asked. Chapter 287 Chapter 287 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Seven Sephie I knew I was in a hospital by the smell. That¡¯s a smell that you don¡¯t find anywhere else. I could hear voices in and out. I knew the guys were with me. I felt Adrik¡¯s hand in mine. I could hear Ivan telling them what happened. My body reacted when Ivan was going through the events while we were in that room. I heard Adrik talking to me, trying to calm me, but it wasn¡¯t working. The shaking got worse. I could feel it, but it also felt like I didn¡¯t have control over my own body. There was a disconnect between my brain and my body. I was trying to move, but I couldn¡¯t. I felt Andrei¡¯s warmer than average hands under my shoulders and Stephen¡¯s ice-cold hands on my legs, lifting me gently. I could feel the bed dip beside me as Adrikid down next to me. I could smell him. I just wanted to be close to him. When Andrei gently eased me back toward the bed, I knew I wasn¡¯t close enough to Adrik, but I couldn¡¯t move right. I struggled to turn toward him, hoping they would see. I couldn¡¯t do anything. I couldn¡¯t see. I couldn¡¯t speak. I couldn¡¯t move. But I could hear. And I could feel. Andrei and Stephen did notice my struggle and turned me so I could be closer to Adrik. As soon as they put my head on his shoulder, my body rxed and the shaking subsided. I wanted to be closer still, but this would have to do for now. I was in and out of consciousness throughout the¡­day? Night? I had no idea what day it was. Or what night it was. It didn¡¯t really matter, to be honest. My body stayed rxed as long as I was close to Adrik. I heard the doctore in and tell Adrik that he wanted to check me. I felt Adrik shift underneath me and I knew I was going to start shaking again. I tried to tell him, but I still couldn¡¯t speak. Whatever they sedated me with this time was taking longer to wear off. I didn¡¯t like it. I couldn¡¯t control my own body. I felt the doctor¡¯s hands checking me over. I felt Andrei and Misha move me. I felt the shaking start once I was, apart from Adrik. I felt Andrei and Misha put me back against Adrik, but then I felt a very weird feeling. It was much the same as when Sal was staring at my boobs and Armando was looking at me half-naked, I didn¡¯t like it. It didn¡¯tst long, however. I couldn¡¯t see and I couldn¡¯t hear him, but I knew Ivan was standing over me. Since we were grabbed, I¡¯d been able to feel him much the same way I could feel Adrik, just not as strongly. He had his own energy signature. I knew he was standing over me, protecting me. It was a different feeling with Ivan. With Adrik, it felt like he was standing with me, beside me, anytime he was being protective with me, With Ivan, it was like a protective bubble that he put me in, while he stood guard against whatever he perceived to be the threat. The weird, gross feeling went away almost immediately and I knew it was Ivan silently daring the doctor to continue whatever it was that was making me have this feeling. I finally felt the doctor leave the room. I also heard Ivan¡¯s voice talking to the guys, but it was hard to hear anything except Ivan for a few minutes. I knew Adrik was still with me, but the protective bubble that Ivan put me in blocked everything else out. I woke up again, after sleeping for who knows how long. Adrik was still as close to me as possible, his arm hoiding me gently but firmly. I knew he was asleep, because his hand was still. When he was awake, his hand would lightly run up and down my back. I tried to move my body to see if it would work yet. This time I could open my eyes. Everything was blurry for a moment, but the room started toe into focus. I knew I wouldn¡¯t be able to move the arm: that was in a sling and I wasying on my good arm. I tried to wiggle my toes. It N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. actually worked this time, so I tried to move my foot, then my lower leg. Everything worked. Finally. I stretched my legs and immediately regretted it. Shooting pain through my entire body caused me to let out something in between a scream, a yelp, and a cough. Adrik was jolted awake, as were the guys. Adrik was immediately concerned and we were quickly surrounded by each one of the guys. ¡°Sephie, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Adrik asked. He was looking me over, trying to figure out what happened. He noticed. my eyes were open and stopped to look at me, his wide smile stretching across his face. ¡°I missed you,¡± he said. quietly. I tried to talk, but nothing came out. My throat felt horribly dry. I ended up coughing once, which made me wince in extreme pain. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t try to talk yet, spider monkey. You need water first,¡± Andrei said as he walked to a table next to another bed in the room. There was a small pitcher there, with water in it. He poured a small amount of water into a cup and brought it to me. While he fetched me water, Misha and Viktor helped move me and adjust the bed so I could sit up a little more. Sitting up made it easier to breathe, so I was thankful for the change. Andrei handed me the water, saying, ¡°slowly,¡± with a stern look on his face. I smiled weakly at him as I drank the water. Oh, that felt good. ¡°Once you keep that down, you can have more,¡± Ivan said. ¡°Can you blink?¡± I blinked my eyes to show him. ¡°Good. Two blinks for yes, one blink for no,¡± he said. I nodded my head once. ¡°Are you in pain, solnishko?¡± Adrik asked. I blinked twice. He cursed under his breath. ¡°Can you breathe better now?¡± Ivan asked. Two blinks.¡± ¡°Are you nauseous?¡± Andrei asked. I thought for a minute, then blinked once. I wasn¡¯t happy about not being. in control of my body for so long, but at least I wasn¡¯t nauseous this time. He went to refill the cup with water? He poured a little bit more this time, then handed it back to me. I drank it slowly. My body felt weak. And painful. ¡°Do you want to know who won the bet on how long it took them to find us?¡± Ivan asked, a grin on his bruised. and battered face. Two blinks. ¡°Technically, neither of us. 30 hours,¡± he said, smiling at me. ¡°You were closer,¡± I managed to say in a whisper. ¡°I¡¯m d.¡± I smiled at all the guys and leaned my head toward Adrik. Andrei refilled my cup yet again. This time, he filled it uppletely. I drank part of it, but then handed it to Adrik, who finished it. I was sure he hadn¡¯t had anything to eat or drink the whole time I¡¯d been out. He drank it quickly, handing the empty cup back to Andrei. I gave Adrik a sympathetic look for keeping him trapped yet again. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare try to apologize,¡± he said. ¡°I would stay here until the end of time with you.¡± He leaned over and kissed my forehead gently. ¡°How long?¡± I whispered. Viktor looked at his watch. ¡°Right about 24 hours this time, but considering what you went through, I¡¯d say you¡¯re ahead of schedule, sestrichka,¡± he said, giving me a wink and his broad, handsome smile. I smiled back at him, but it was weak. Everything felt weak. And painful. So painful. ¡°How much pain are you in, princess? On a scale of 1-10,¡± Ivan asked. I thought for a minute, taking inventory of my body. I held up 5 fingers, then 3 fingers. ¡°So, like a 13 for normal people, then?¡± Ivan asked, grinning at 1. ¡°Do you want some pain meds? The doctor said you were going to be in severe pain for a couple days,¡± Adrik said. He could tell by the look on my face that I wasn¡¯t happy with that option. He smiled softly at me. ¡°I¡¯m not sure ibuprofen is going to be enough for this time, love.¡± ¡°How much longer do I have to stay here?¡¯ I whispered. ¡°You still have a chest tube in, but the doctor said that might be able toe out soon. You have to stay another day after thates out to make sure your lung stays inted, then you should be able to leave,¡± Ivan said. I peeked underneath the hospital gown that I was wearing, trying to find the chest tube. ¡°Can we take it out now?¡± I asked quietly as I was looking. Adrik grabbed my hand, pulling me very gently against him. He wasughing at me, but he was also still concerned about me. He looked at his watch. ¡°The doctor should being back soon to check on you before he leaves for the day. We can ask him then.¡± Chapter 288 Chapter 288 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Eight Sephie I looked at Ivan, noting that he¡¯d been cleaned up and had a fresh set of clothes on. ¡°How?¡± I asked, pointing at him. I was sure they would know what I was asking, so I didn¡¯t feel the need to borate or use any more energy than absolutely necessary. ¡°The recording of you ying worked so the doctor could stitch him up and make sure nothing was broken. We¡¯ve all been listening to it off and on while Ivan sleeps. So far, he hasn¡¯t woken up fighting.¡± Misha said. N?velDrama.Org owns ? this. I looked at Ivan, remembering him standing over me thest time the doctor checked me. ¡°What made you protect me from the doctor?¡± I asked, my voice still only barely above a whisper. He raised his eyebrow. ¡°How do you know that, princess?¡± ¡°I can feel you now too. Not as strong though.¡± I stopped to take a breath. ¡°I could hear all your conversations too. I just couldn¡¯t move,¡± I said, trying to breathe as deeply as I could. ¡°Really?¡± Adrik and Ivan both asked at the same time. Iughed quietly at them, nodding my head. ¡°Different, though,¡± I said. I looked back at Ivan, still wanting to know what the doctor did. ¡°You were right to do what you did. It felt gross whatever he did.¡± ¡°He was looking at you the way the doctors at the facility looked at me when they were excited about a new experiment they wanted to try on me,¡± Ivan said. ¡°It felt the same when Sal was staring at my boobs. And Armando cut my clothes off,¡± I said, taking as deep a breath as I could manage after getting the words out. I coughed once, which made Andrei quickly get more water for me. ¡°You¡¯re my favorite, Bubba,¡± I said as he handed me a full cup of water again. I nced at everyone¡¯s tense faces at the mention of Sal and Armando while I drank more water. ¡°Armando?¡± I asked quietly. ¡°He¡¯s still alive, sestrichka. He¡¯s in a room. Chris said he¡¯s trying to talk his way out by saying Boss has crazy and put him in there for no reason,¡± Viktor said. gone I closed my eyes for a moment, trying not to get angry. I felt Adrik tighten his hold on me. He pressed his cheek against mine, trying to help me stay calm. I took as deep a breath as I could. When I opened my eyes and looked at the guys, they were all surprised. ¡°Holy shi t, you were not lying, Ivan,¡± Misha said. He looked at Adrik. ¡°Does she feel calm to you, Boss?¡± I felt Adrik nod his head, his cheek still pressed lightly to mine. I was smiling at them, knowing they were talking about my eyes. I didn¡¯t feel out of control angry, but I was certain my eyes told a different story. ¡°They were like that the whole time they had us,¡± Ivan said. ¡°But she never once lost her cool.¡± He looked at me with a look of pride on his face. We were interrupted by the doctoring in to check on me. ¡°Oh, good. You¡¯re awake now,¡± he said as he walked into the room. The guys took a small step back from the bed, but didn¡¯t leave. They gave the doctor just enough space to do what was needed, but they were making sure to stay close to me while he was in the room. Adrik pulled me closer to him as the doctor approached the bed. Even though it hurt, I was grateful for him doing so. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Dr. Williams asked as he looked over my chart. ¡°Like shi t,¡± I said quietly. Dr. Williams chuckled. ¡°How¡¯s your breathing? Can you take a deep breath in?¡± I did as instructed. My ribs were still incredibly painful, so I couldn¡¯t breathe as deeply as I wanted to. ¡°Good.¡± He looked at Adrik, asking, ¡°have you heard her wheezing at all?¡± Adrik shook his head no. ¡°What about coughing?¡± ¡°Only when she tries to talk too much,¡± Ivan said. ¡°That¡¯s to be expected,¡± Dr. Williams said. ¡°You¡¯re probably going to have a harder time talking and doing normal, everyday things for a few days. Take everything very slowly. It¡¯ll make it easier on your lungs to keep up. I¡¯d like to take the chest tube out and see how you do.¡± I nodded my head, eagerly. If me staying in the hospital was dependent on that thinging out, then I wanted it out as soon as possible. ¡°Can I get out of bed?¡± I asked quietly. ¡°After your chest tubees out, you can walk for short distances. You¡¯ll need to take your IV stand with you, but a little bit of movement will be good for the rest of your body. You¡¯re going to be sore, though. How much pain are you in?¡± ¡°I¡¯m okay,¡± I said. I was worried about him giving me pain meds that would knock me out for days at a time. I would rather suffer through it. Ivan caught my eye. I looked at him sternly, trying to silently tell him to keep his mouth closed. ¡°Why do I feel like you¡¯re lying?¡± Dr. Williams asked, ¡°I¡¯ve had worse, doc. I¡¯ll be fine,¡± I said. My tone was short enough that I was hoping he would let the matter drop. I was trying not to maintain eye contact with him, as I didn¡¯t want him to notice if my eyes turned dark. I nced at the guys, who all had sympathetic looks on their faces. They knew why I was refusing pain meds. Dr. Williams just sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll get a nurse to get your chest tube out shortly. Then you can try going for a short. walk in the hallway. I don¡¯t want you to overdo it though. How¡¯s your appetite? Are you nauseous?¡± I shook my head no. ¡°Good. We can give you a few snacks and see how you do with those, then you can have more substantial food.¡± He looked to Viktor. ¡°Or would you rather get food for her too?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll take care of it,¡± Viktor said. I was curious as to what that conversation had been like, but I would wait to ask about thatter. Dr. Williams nodded at Viktor, then said, ¡°I¡¯ll have a nursee in shortly. I¡¯ll be back in the morning to see how you¡¯re doing.¡± He smiled at me before leaving the room. Once the doctor was out of the room, Ivan looked at me, his broad smile across his face. ¡°Princess, do you know what you¡¯re doing with your eyes now?¡± I looked at him,pletely confused. ¡°Your eyes were totally normal when you were talking to the doctor, then you said you were okay and looked at me. Your eyes went dark as ever when you looked at me, then back to normal the next time you looked at the doctor. If you¡¯re doing it on purpose, I¡¯m impressed as hell. If you¡¯re not doing it on purpose, then your eyes are telling you that you should be.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do it on purpose, I don¡¯t think. I didn¡¯t want you to tell him I¡¯d told you how much pain I¡¯m in. He¡¯s going to give me pain meds that make me sick or knock me out. I don¡¯t want that. We can¡¯t afford to stay in here for a week just so I can wake up pain free like Sleeping Beauty.¡± I stopped to breathe, but then added, ¡°I also didn¡¯t want him to notice my eyes changing. You guys don¡¯t need another reason to want to hurt him.¡± Chapter 289 Chapter 289 Chapter Two Hundred Eighty-Nine Sephie The chest tube came out quickly. The nurse made me stay in bed for half an hour after it came out, just to make sure my lung would stay inted and functioning properly. Once the half hour was up, she came in and told me I could get out of bed. I wanted to get out of bed as much for Adrik as I did for me. I still felt guilty for keeping him trapped with me. I knew a short walk would do him good, too. I¡¯d had bruised ribs before, but never broken ribs. Both were not something I wished to ever have to deal with again. Every single movement caused pain in my ribs. Andrei and Viktor were there to help me sit up on the edge of the bed. My hospital gown wasn¡¯t secured, so they all got a full view of the bruises down my left side. 1 heard collective cursing. ¡°If you won¡¯t take pain meds from the doctor, will you let me go get you some ibuprofen?¡± Viktor asked. ¡°I can get snacks, too,¡± he added, grinning at me. ¡°I¡¯m more excited about the snacks, if I¡¯m being honest,¡± I said, trying to pull the st upid hospital gown around me. ¡°Can you get me some clothes too? This thing makes me want to murder people.¡± ¡°You got it,¡± Viktor said,ughing at me. Adrik stood in front of me. ¡°Hold on to me,¡± he said as he helped me stand. Once I was standing, he wrapped the hospital gown around me, tying it so it would stay in ce. His hand brushed against my skin. ¡°Grab her a pair of my sweatpants and a hoodie. She¡¯s freezing,¡± he told Viktor. ¡°She¡¯s going to be living in your hoodies until her armes out of this cast,¡± Ivan said as he thumped the cast with his finger. ¡°I can¡¯t imagine your tiny little shirts being able to fit over that thing.¡± ¡°My shirts are not that tiny. Your shirts are just giant inparison,¡± I said grumpily. N?velDrama.Org copyrighted ? content. ¡°Ok, she needs snacks. I¡¯ll be back as quickly as possible,¡± Viktor said,ughing. He left the hospital room quickly. Adrik offered me his arm as I walked slowly to the door. My legs felt fine. Sore, but fine. That¡¯s a good sign. Being able to walk around always made me feel better, no matter how much pain I was in. Misha and Ivan walked out of the room ahead of us, with Andrei and Stephen behind us. It was still early enough in the evening that people were still visiting friends and family that were in the hospital, so the hallway wasn¡¯t empty. We got plenty of strange looks as I walked at a snail¡¯s pace down the hallway with my giants. ¡°Can I tell them I¡¯m the go d da mn princess? Will it make them stop staring at me?¡± I asked Adrik quietly, speaking Russian so we wouldn¡¯t be understood. Heughed at me, leaning over to kiss my cheek. ¡°You can tell them whatever you like, solnishko. Or I can have them all killed for looking at you. Say the word,¡± he said, grinning at me. ¡°Don¡¯t tempt me,¡± I said. Viktor was back shortly after my excursion into the hallway. ¡°I lied. I¡¯m more excited about the sweatpants than anything.¡± I said as he handed Adrik a bag with clothes for me in it. Ivan and Stephen were the closest ones this time, so they helped pick me up and move me to the edge of the bed. I was impressed with how gentle they all were, given their massive size. Adrik helped me put his sweatpants on. They were a few sizes too big for me, so he rolled the waistband and tied them tight enough they would stay up. He nced at the guys, the sweatshirt in his hand. They all turned their backs to me, so as not to see all of me. Adrik carefully took the hospital gown off and reced it with the sweatshirt, leaving my left arm out of the sleeve. ¡°Sweet, now it looks like I only have one arm,¡± I said, ying with the empty sleeve. I smacked Adrik with it as he helped me sit back on the edge of the bed. ¡°Oh, this is going to get me in trouble.¡± Adrik looked to Viktor. ¡°Definitely needs snacks.¡± Viktor threw a protein bar at Adrik, who ripped the wrapper open with his teeth and handed it to me. As soon as the protein bar was in my hand, my stomach woke up. ¡°I don¡¯t know why men think women are thatplicated. Keep us warm and give us snacks. It¡¯s not rocket science,¡± I said, taking a bite.. ¡°I feel like most women are slightly moreplicated than you are, spider monkey,¡± Andrei said. ¡°That¡¯s fair. Totally fair.¡± Once I ate one protein bar and managed to keep it down, I was starving. I ate three more in the span of an hour. Viktor had also brought me some ibuprofen, so I took that, which helped take the edge off the pain. Ant hour after I took my first dose of superprofen, Ivan asked, ¡°what¡¯s your pain level now, princess?¡± I thought for, a moment, then held up four fingers. ¡°So, an 8 for normal people, then?¡± he said, grinning at me. I was starting) to feel more like myself, despite my pain. I felt like I could finally smile genuinely back at him. ¡°Ah, there it is,¡± Misha said. ¡°Viktor, she¡¯s gonna need more protein bars. Maybe get her some beef jerky or something, too. Clearly protein makes her soul return to her body.¡± Iughed, but grabbed my ribs with my good arm. ¡°F**k. Laughing is not an approved activity right now. I¡¯m currently regretting bringing out your hrious side.¡± I felt Adrik shift me so I was leaning back against him, his arm around me protectively. ¡°How much easier is it to talk now, princess?¡± Ivan asked. ¡°It¡¯s better. I can breathe a little easier sitting up,¡± I said. ¡°You want to know about when I was with Armando, don¡¯t you?¡± He chuckled, nodding his head. Stephen said, ¡°we all heard that conversation. What happened when you asked him about who was pulling the strings?¡± ¡°Ricardo,¡± I said. ¡°He wasn¡¯t looking at me until I said Ricardo¡¯s name, then he looked at me. I could tell he was livid that I had said Ricardo¡¯s name, but he was also afraid. There was fear in his eyes. When he walked back over to me after I said all that to him, it was the only time I was actually afraid for my life. If you guys hadn¡¯t shown up when you did, he might¡¯ve killed me.¡± Adrik tried to pull me closer, but it was difficult given my sling. He nodded to Andrei and Ivan, who both stood and walked over to the bed. ¡°Pick her up so she can.