ELLA
Igrunt and hiss in pain as I climb out of bed. I refused pain meds at the hospital, not wanting to be knocked out for the next day, so I’m feeling every bit of damage my body went through during the crash.
I keep replaying it in my mind.
I’ve never felt fear like that before.
Not just for me, but for Asher. For what he must have been going through. He hid it well, but I could still see the ghosts of his past haunting his eyes. My heart nearly cracked in two, right down the middle, dreading the reality that it could have been the end for one or both of us.
I still can’t take a full breath.
I wander out onto the luxurious balcony that overlooks the estate’s massive grounds. The golden sunlight of late morning casts a glow over the perfectly manicured lawn and gardens, and under different circumstances, I would sit here in silence and admire the view. This house, the house Asher’s grandfather left him, is breathtaking and feels as if it was plucked straight out ofThe Great Gatsbynovel.
But today, there are much more pressing things on my mind.
“Any word?” I ask Asher as I slowly take a seat in the chair next to him, doing my best to hide a wince of pain. I’m in one of his T-shirts and a pair of boxers that he keeps at the house for when he visits, and as I cross my legs, I notice scrapes and bruises along my skin. I have more on my arms and a hell of a goose egg above my temple. But I count myself fortunate. Things could have been so much worse. And I’m so grateful they weren’t.
He shakes his head. “The two men in the bus killed themselves after the crash.” He doesn’t look at me as he speaks, he just stares ahead, seemingly numb. “The men in the other cars got away, and the cars and the bus were taken care of before the police got to them.”
“Taken care of?”
“The men dumped a canister of gas inside their vehicles then set them on fire. Basically, nothing is left of the cars or the bus, and there’s no DNA to extract from them.”
“What about the cars that surrounded the apartment?”
“They fled before the police got there, but it looks like they had help from within the police force.”
“Olsen?”
“I don’t think so. But Senator Sanders is a powerful man. He could have some dirty cops on his payroll.”
“But even without DNA, you still know who’s behind all this.”
He nods and finally looks at me. “I can’t rest until they’re both eliminated.”
“And what happens after that?”
He’s back to staring aimlessly at the grounds. “That should send the message that I’m not to be fucked with. But to drive it home, I have Sterling working on something behind the scenes. Once Sergei and Yegor are finished, there will be nothing left oftheir empires, and I’ll take them over and gain exponentially more wealth and power.”
“More?” Asher is already one of the most powerful men on earth.
“More.”
“Why?”
“Because the elite like to consolidate power and wealth by whatever means necessary. And someone within their league needs to keep them in check. I can’t do that if I’m not at the top of the food chain.”
“And who keeps you in check?”
He looks at me again. “You. My family. The ethics my parents drilled into me.”
“It’s easy to let those things go with that kind of wealth and power.”
He rubs a hand over his tired face. “I already have that kind of wealth and power. More at this point is just more.”
“And you’ll use that wealth and power to keep the elite in check?”
“I already do. But yes, I’ll continue.”
