My father, ladies and gentleman.The man that sells out his daughter to keep both of hishands.I pressed my palms against the small bump in my lower abdomen,promising the child that I would never behave like this, that I would cherishand love and protect until the very end of me. Until I took my very lastbreath. I would never treat my offspring like this. I would never throw themunder the bus just to save myself from punishment.
“What do they want to know?” I demanded. “Ask aquestion, I’ll give you the answer.” I turned to the bosses. “You tell me whatto steal, I steal it for you. You tell me who to con, I con them for you. I’venever taken so much as a dollar that belonged to you guys. I hand overeverything. I have nothing to hide. I have no reason to work with the feds.Whatever you want to know I’ll tell you.”
Roman dipped his chin so he had a better angle to lookinto my eyes. I stared back, unflinching. “I want to know if you’re workingwith the fucking FBI.”
I didn’t flinch. I didn’t even blink. I just answeredhonestly. “No. I’m not working with the FBI. Nor have I ever worked with theFBI. I’m loyal to the brotherhood. To you. And I always will be.”
“You swore an oath,” Roman reminded me.
“I did. And I believe in it.” That was my first boldface lie of the night. But it needed to be said if I wanted to stay alive.
Roman jerked his head at me. “We will be watching you,Caroline. Don’t do something stupid. We do not tolerate stupid people. So faryou have been very good for thebratva, for our… expansion in the city. But, if you turn outto be a stupid person, well... that would be a shame. It would pain me to hurtyou, Caroline. It would pain your father to watch. It would pain Sayer in waysI can only imagine. Do you understand?”
He was threatening not just me, but my dad… Sayer. “I-Iwouldn’t dare. I would n-never. I swear it.” He seemed to be waiting onsomething else, so I said. “I understand, Roman. I’m not stupid. I swear I’mnot stupid.”
“Good,” Roman said. “You are such a pretty girl. Iwould not take pleasure in disfiguring you.”
“That’s not true,”Aleksanderlaughed, as if we were telling jokes and not talking about torturing me. “Youwould take pleasure, brother. You would take great pleasure.”
They shared a sadistic smile. “You know me well,brother. Still, she can be valuable alive. She is worth something to ourbrigadier. If nothing else she is the reason he never steps out of line.”
He meant Sayer. Sayer stayed in line because he wasafraid of something happening to me.
“That is why it is good when our soldiers fall inlove, no?”Dymetrusadded. “They are always soreluctant to watch their loved ones lose body parts.”
I tried to swallow, but didn’t quite manage. I knewtheir conversation was a warning, that they were reminding me of who they were,who I was and how I should behave. But they were also being honest. They woulduse Sayer to keep me in line. And they would use me to keep Sayer in line, nomatter how high up he went, no matter how much power he had.
Because as long as I was around, they would alwayshave leverage over him.
What about our child? If I was a liability, what aboutthe tiny, helpless thing in my womb?
Would they clip the baby’s fingers off if Sayerdecided to leave? Or worse?
It took everything inside me not to double over and dryheave. This child. Oh, my god, I had a child to protect. To keep away fromthese monsters. To shield from this horrific hellhole.
Roman,DymetrusandAleksanderleft the apartment, their men following behindthem. Atticus and my dad lingered in my apartment. I needed them to leave so Icould take a long bubble bath and then take a nap for a week.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Dad.”I slammed my half-finished ginger ale on thenearest surface. “Shouldn’t you be on my side? You know, since I’m yourdaughter.”
“I am,” he said with that smarmy smile that he used onwomen he wanted something from. I had been a recipient of that smile themajority of my life. Usually it ended with him taking all of my money andgiving me nothing but a hug and a promise that he loved me.
We both knew he didn’t.
“Just give them what they want, honey,” my dadencouraged. “That’s how we stay alive. That’s how we do this. You can’t keepliving if you don’t keep giving.”
My dad, the motivational speaker.
Because his nose was so clean.
Yeah, right.
“I saw you, Caro. I saw you talking to that tool,Payne. He knows you. And not just because he’s read a file on you. He’sfamiliar with you, which means he has a reason to feel familiar with you. Andthe day the raid happened you showed up acting guilty as fuck. For whateverreason, thepakhanbelieve you, but it’s only a matter of time before I find proof. Then they’llknow what I know. That you’re a fucking snitch. You’re the reason behind theFBI raid. You’re the real reason your boyfriend is sitting in prison.”
“You couldn’t find your ass with both hands,” Igrowled at him.
His mouth split open into a crazy smile. Like actuallycrazy. “I know that thepakhanhas given me permission to do the job when we have proof about you and thefeds. I know that I get to be the one to extract all the little secrets youhave hiding up there.” He pressed a finger to my temple and shoved me so hard Istumbled trying to catch my foothold again. “I know I get to be the one tocollect the pieces of you and give them to your precious, fucking boyfriend.Watch your back, Valero. I’m fucking coming for you.”
I tried to speak, but all I managed to do was not passout. I was completely frozen, my body turning to solid ice. Atticus stormedfrom my apartment, an avenging asshole that had no idea what the hell he wastalking about.
