Even if impossible, I know he means it.
Nikolai drives with controlled urgency, pushing us through the city as efficiently as he can without drawing too much attention. Eventually, the hotel looms just up ahead on the strip, but as ready as I am to storm the place right now, we haveto wait. We have to prepare, regardless of how agonizing that might be.
Either way, the Grimaldis thought they could take what matters most to me, and they’re about to learn just how badly they fucked up.
Chapter 26 - Elena
Cold, bitter wind is the first thing I register.
It howls across the rooftop, whipping my hair relentlessly while my skin prickles. The burning against my wrists comes next as zip ties dig deeper into my skin each time I struggle.
Then I feel the cold seeping from the concrete into my legs as everything comes into focus, making me stagger.
A barb of humiliation wedges its way into my side at the realization that I’m on my knees, barely propped up against a cement wall beside me. Overhead lights cut through the otherwise dark sky above, making me squint beneath the harshness of it.
Each time the wind picks up, it comes as a harsh reminder that I’m on top of a building somewhere. Too high up, and far too exposed.
As more awareness spreads through my body, almost like my system has rebooted, my senses are sharper than they had been. I focus on the way my heart pounds so hard that it hurts, and how my lungs refuse to cooperate.
Twisting instinctively, I earn a rough shove between my shoulder blades that makes me careen forward.
“Stay still,” someone rasps behind me, leaving no room for argument.
Even if I should, I can’t. Not while I’m surrounded by men on a rooftop somewhere.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask, trying to get a better look at him. “What do you want?”
I’m met with laughter, both low and clearly male.
Squinting through the bright floodlights, I see the one behind me, along with two more. The one looks older with streaks of grey in his short dark hair. A few more figures linger nearby, making me well aware of how outnumbered I am.
“It’s fortunate you have a strong enough heart. The sedative was a higher dose than intended, but you’re awake now,” one of them says as he kneels in front of me, giving my cheek a condescending flick that makes me flinch. His grin is wide and bright, almost identical to the other one. “That’s a good thing.”
My stomach twists immediately, recalling that pinch I had felt before.
“You drugged me?”
The one behind him shrugs. “Our men did, at least. Apparently, you were acting like a wildcat out there. I wonder if those claws are your own, or something borrowed from being a Lukov.”
“Either way, I’d like to see it for myself.”
The two of them sneer, enjoying this moment far too much.
“Stop toying with her and get to the point,” the older man murmurs, gesturing vaguely. He looks me over briefly. “She deserves to know.”
“Know what?” I demand, growing more irritated from the way they dance around my questions.
“That you’re valuable, of course,” the one in front of me says, head tilting slightly. “Very valuable.”
“You’re being rude, brother,” the other muses, not even committing to pretending he’s scolding him. “You should always introduce yourself first before reminding a woman of her place.”
More irritation flares inside me, but I’m in no position to bite back. Not yet, anyway.
He chuckles, and the green in his eyes looks disarmingly innocent. “Fine. I’m Cesare, and this is my brother Carlo. And this,” he says, motioning over to the older man, “is our father, Orlando. You must’ve heard of him by now.”
Glancing between them, the name clicks at once, and my eyes widen at the realization.
Grimaldis.
