Chapter Eighteen: Annika
Ifinally feel like my life has begun to make sense again like I understand what I want to do with my life now that things have calmed down. I feel like Stephan and I really could start to build a life together, chasing the dream, all while doing what we love. It’s strange to think that I ended up here, that I want to spend the rest of my days getting involved in the crime world, but I couldn’t deny how wonderful it felt to be working alongside Stephan. We have big plans for what’s to come, and I can only imagine that there won’t be a day that ever feels dull again.
I helped Stephan get out of bed so he could get ready. He was looking much better, almost back to his old self, getting ready to retrieve the painting that he wanted to give to me, the first in my personal collection that would one day be hanging in my gallery.
I couldn’t believe that after everything he went through to keep that painting safe that he would hand it over to me without the slightest hesitation. He trusted me with it, he trusted me with his heart, and I couldn’t be more grateful that we found each other when we did. He saved me on countless occasions, and he had lived up to his promise of keeping me safe.
I could tell that he was still a little bit on edge, and I wanted to ask him what was wrong, but I was afraid he was going to say something that would land us right back in trouble again. I worried that he was starting to have doubts about something, something that I should’ve been aware of, but I knew all my questions would be answered in due time. I just had to keep my head up, help him get the painting back so we could move onto our next job.
I watched as he slipped into his button-up shirt, slicking his hair back, and trimming his beard, looking a lot more like himself again. He caught me staring at him, smiling back at me, inching closer so he could pull me in.
“What are you looking at?” he asked, teasingly.
“Just admiring, is all,” I replied, giving him a soft peck on the lips.
“Trust me, I’m the one that should be doing all the admiring. You look beautiful, as always, and if you want we could stay in a little longer before we head out,” he said, his words interrupted by the kisses he was trailing down my neck.
“There will be plenty of time for that once we tie up our last loose end, hm?” I asked, reminding him that the longer we let the painting sit in one place, the more worried we’d be that someone would find it before us.
“I hid that thing so well, and there is no one that knew of its location that would ever double-cross us,” he said, pouting at me, wanting to pin me down on the bed and take me right there. The thought was tempting, but I knew that we would both be able to enjoy ourselves a whole lot more if we had the painting safely in our possession.
“Come on, now. I promise we can spend the rest of the day or the week doing whatever we want once we have this back. I know how much it meant to you, and while I still don’t want to accept you handing it over to me, I think it’s best we at least get it back,” I said, and he nodded reluctantly.
“Alright, but I’m going to have you all to myself once we get back.” His grin said everything about what his intentions were.
“Oh, yes you will.”
We had been staying at Viktor’s home on the lake for what felt like months, but it was only a few weeks ago that I’d brought Stephan here with my family to try to save his life. We were getting used to the quiet and the calm, and I was starting to wonder whether I was going to miss that when it was gone. I decided that there would be plenty of time for that in between all of the excitement that we were going to find along the way, and I couldn’t wait to see what Stephan was planning to do next once we finally had everything settled.
The sun was high in the sky when we got into one of Viktor’s cars that he lent us for the time being, bidding everyone goodbye before we took off, heeding the warnings we got to be careful regardless. I’m sure that was the kind of thing that was uttered every single time anyone left the house in a family of crime, and it was nice to get to know all of Stephan’s brothers a bit better while my family was off buying new properties and deciding where they were going to move to next.
They had managed to clean up our old home, getting rid of all the evidence and bodies that had been scattered across our entryway and living room floors. Every time I thought back to that night I shuddered. I couldn’t help but feel rather grateful that we all managed to make it out even though the odds were most certainly not in our favor.
I knew that the thought probably crossed Stephan’s mind as well because I would catch him daydreaming every so often, lost in thought when I’d have to bring him back down to reality again. I could tell that he was still processing everything but I was just happy that we had each other because I was well aware that I never would’ve been able to do it alone.
He and I both still had a lot of learning to do about what we could and couldn’t control when it came to the work we got involved in. It was probably the first time in Stephan’s entire life that he actually listened to the advice given by his brothers, and I could see that it already started to make him see things differently. He wanted a future with me, he wanted me by his side no matter what, and I couldn’t ask for anything more.
We’d been through so much together, so much that we still didn’t have the time or chance to tell each other what we really wanted out of life. I had an idea about him, and I was sure he had an idea about me otherwise he wouldn’t have even suggested the gallery at all, but we were nowhere near finished learning about each other.
Stephan had dreams, dreams that were far more than just getting rich, enjoying the ride, and keeping me close by his side, and I wanted him to achieve every single one of them the same way he’d wanted for me.
I rolled down the window, taking in the bit of fresh air because I hadn’t been out in days, and I felt the soft touch of his hands grip my thigh, holding me there comfortably while we drove back down to Ivan’s pharmacy.
He parked outside, leading me into the alleyway that led to the back of the building, pulling apart the bricks in the wall, until he found the little secret lockbox that held the one thing we had been saving for such a long time.
It had been the subject of all of our chaos, but now it was going to be the beginning of our future, one I couldn’t wait to share with him. I stood back while he unlocked it, looking back at me right before he opened it, but when he looked deep into the lockbox, his eyes widened immensely.
“What the fuck?”
“What is it?” I asked.
“It’s not here,” he said, reaching his arm to the very back of the metal box to see if it had slipped, or was moved somewhat that he just couldn’t see it, but when he finally removed his arm and looked back at me, I realized that it was in fact missing.
“There’s no way it could be missing. Who else knew about the painting being back here?” I asked, thinking back to the night when Stephan had told me where he hid it, not mentioning that he had clued anyone else in on its whereabouts.
“There’s one other person that could’ve possibly known where it is, but I didn’t tell him myself, though I had my suspicions from the moment I put it back here,” he said, and our minds both clicked, heading back to the front of the pharmacy to confront Ivan. Once we got around to the front, we noticed that the doors were locked, but I looked at the sign that detailed the hours plastered on the window, noticing that the place should’ve still been open.
“Fuck. I was worried that something like this might have happened. I can’t believe that he would do this to me, to us, after everything he did to help. He probably ran off with the painting himself, and he could be anywhere by now,” Stephan said, and I could see the heartbreak in his eyes, realizing that he might not ever be able to see that painting again or get to hand it over to me the way he wanted to.
