CHAPTER 47
CHRISTIAN ‘VICIOUS’ VOLKOV.
“I’ve had a long fucking day, man. You know what I’d like? To be in her presence and watch her hand me a smile God knows I don’t deserve but here I am finding myself in a predicament.
To kill or not to kill you? To wrap this up or to stay put and finish you off?
She’s with some smiley country bumpkin right now who secretly thinks she can be his. I’m itching to kill the fucker and kidnap her from that clinic but I have to do this for her. You understand, right?”
Trepidation coils in his gut, you can see it in the way he snorts back bitter tears, in the way his hands tremble as he crawls to me bleeding on the slimy warehouse that’s abandoned and in south side Chicago.
“I—I’ll do anything. I’ll work for you! I’ll—serve you–.”
The laughter that rumbles from my throat is more than ironic.
I turn to Jagger and Jett who are standing behind him watching this pitiful man act more pitiful than an abandoned street cat.
“You hear him? He wants to serve me? What are we, in the nineteenth fucking century?
Here’s what I think you should do, Julius. My men here are going to give you a voice recorder yeah? Ask Alexia Green for forgiveness, tell her she’s fucking worthy than your slimy ass.”
“Y—yes, I’ll do it. I—I’ll do it.”
Jagger places the small recorder on the ground kicking it with his foot right where Julius’ slimy bloody hand picks it.
Like throwing a bone to a starving dog, he presses the button, his voice groggy, his tears doing nothing to calm me from the high and the blood rush traveling my veins at his discerned death.
Because he’ll die alright. Here, alone and away from the grand office where Maximo nabbed him in the first place.
“Lex…I mean Alexia…we were wrong that night, we should have stopped, we should have listened when you said no.
Rhett said you wanted it, I swear I thought—but that doesn’t mean I should have engaged, I should have…taken advantage of you.
I’m a thirty-year-old man who still lives with his parents and who has accomplished nothing since he was born. I took out my insecurities on you because you had everything, Alexia…you were a nobody who turned herself into a nursing student and I—I was jealous.
I’m a low self-esteemed man who thought that rolling with what my friends did made me powerful…that taking you made me powerful. It didn’t, Alexia and for what it’s worth, I’ve regretted that day ever since and I hope you can forgive me. I hope you can forgive us.”
He hands me the recording, accidentally touching the lapels of my jacket.
The same thousand-dollar jacket I wore for Sunshine for our date tonight.
Julius notices it quickly but by the time he mutters a sorry, my left foot is already connecting with his jaw.
He winces and rolls in the greasy muddy water like a pig.
“I’ll—I’ll give you more information.”
“Yeah?” the sarcasm drips colder than the night.
Crawling like the worm he is, his face banged up, his will to fight dimming, Julius raises his arms up in defeat.
“I-I know where he is. You want…want Rhett? I know where he is but you have to promise me that I get out of here alive.
I…I know where he is! He called me last week. I can get you to him but first? P-promise.”
He should be dead but Rhett is the one man I’ve failed to find among these bastards.
Fear does things to a man. And Julius is pretty scared if he’s willing to rat out his buddy for his freedom.
“Where?”
Where is that bastard?
“My life for…for that piece of information. Promise me.”
“You think you are in a position to bargain?” Jagger lashes out and I throw him a glare crouching to be at a level with Julius.
“The Vitellos always keep their promises, Julius. You have my word.”
“He called me, I didn’t call him. I swear I cut off communication with him a long time ago.
But then when he called, I thought of—finding out where he was, you know? Rhett’s in Jersey. Now you let me go. I did everything you asked.”
I stand up, brushing the dirt off my shoulders.
“Funny story is, I haven’t been a Vitello for a long time, Julius. My father was a Vitello, soon as I reached the States, my sister and I changed our last names and took our mother’s surname, Volkov.
So keeping my promise to you as a Vitello, means jack shit to me. My old man barely kept his promises, I’m not about to keep mine either.”
“No. No. You promised me. I’m valuable to you. I’m more valuable than you’ll–.”
I tip my head at Jagger stepping back.
A shot rings in the air, Julius falls to the floor.
Dead.
Leaving the drat warehouse, my phone to my ear, I dial Maximo.
“Rhett Kingston’s in Jersey. Tear the city apart if you have to but find him. For Catelina.”
Maximo goes silent for a minute before he replies, “For Catelina.”
I hung up.
Sunshine: I don’t know. Your men are pretty banged up so Xavier and I have a lot to do at the moment.
Me: I’m coming over.
Sunshine: You are done working already?
Me: No.
That was fifteen minutes ago. Fifteen minutes stalling with Julius when my woman was in her clinic with another nuisance I wanted badly to eliminate.
***
“He’s gone you can stop kissing me now”, she huffs.
I grasp the hint of annoyance in her voice but that doesn’t mean I’m done tasting those lips of hers.
“You are angry?” I ask because I’m fucking fuming at the scene I walked into.
That Xander guy feeding her yogurt. Yogurt of all things instead of something healthy.
“You kissed me because you were jealous and I’m telling you right now Xavier is my coworker. You are the one who hired him in the first place.”
I wasn’t but I don’t tell her that.
This Xavier guy is here in my damn clinic because my men were stupid enough to hire a guy who looks like the next Chris Hemsworth, only smugger and a doctor. Women fell for that shit.
“I missed you. Missed these lips that have been on my mind all day.”
I steal a kiss from her lips, groping a handful of her ass.
Jesus, she smells great.
“Yeah? Is that the reason why you arranged a date without asking me first?”
“Would you like to go on a date with me?”
She blushes, her hands planting themselves on my chest.
“It doesn’t work like that but since I’m all done here, yeah I would like to go on a date with you, Christian.”
“Say it again.”
“Christian.”
“You know what I’m thinking right now? More than I care to admit? Me and you in a bed, my hands on you, these pretty lips opening up and moaning my name like you know who you belong to.
I warned you, blondie. One kiss and there would be no restraints. One kiss and you are mine. No Xaviers asking you out, no man getting to cup that pussy like he owns it. It’s me and you, Tesoro.”
“It hurt…last time. I’m not sure whether–.”
“I’ll lick it better, Tesoro. No one’s getting hurt, you are not getting hurt under my watch.”