Who the fuck is Mila?
“And I doubt she will ever let me live anywhere else after this whole deal with the Santoris is over. Wait, did you saykills? Jesus, Sasha…how many do you have?”
The other guy, who I assume is Sasha, replies. “Oh, I have no idea. You could count my tattoos. I get one for every kill, but I’m running out of skin. I suggest you come up with a better way to keep track of yours, although you do have a lot more real estate than I do.”
Their bellowing laughter carries down the hall before the door opens and closes again, and they’re gone.
My guards don’t give me the all clear to exit the closet for several minutes, although I doubt I could move even if I wanted to.My brothers were right.Teddy is in the Bratva.Teddy is in the Bratva and is moving in with some woman named “Mila.”
I simultaneously feel my heart shatter and feel nothing at all. Why would he do this? What could the Taranov’s hate about us so much that he would do this? Why Leo? Of all of my brothers, why would he go after the only one without a hardened heart? And why use me? He didn’t need me to get to Leo. He didn’t need to make me fall in love with him. He didn’t need to…
I place a hand on my womb as the tears welling up in my eyes finally fall freely down my cheeks. My guard holds me as long as he can as I break down in Teddy’s room before insisting that we have to leave. He tries to pick me up when I struggle to stand, but I don’t let him. I’m stronger than that. I’m not going to let a man, even one sworn to protect me, hold that kind of power over me right now.
Every step to the car is a little stronger as my lust for vengeance grows, and by the time we’re pulling out onto the road, all I can see is red. I take my phone, ignoring the dozens of messages and calls from Theodore, and dial Gabri.
“Hello?”
“I believe you. How do we take him down?”
Chapter 30
After days ofsilence from Ellie, I wake up to a glorious notification. To anyone else, it would just be a normal buzz and a tab that says “Ellie: 1 new message.” But to me, it’s like an orchestra of harps informing me that my very own angel has finally sent me a message.
Ellie:Hey…sorry for being MIA…lots going on with the family after Leo…Can we meet up somewhere? Please? I miss you.
Since the lockdown, I’ve been…a mess, to say the least. My girl hasn’t been in my arms where she belongs in a month and a half, and to make matters worse, I haven’t even heard from her since our fight. Then everything went up in flames. I want to be there for her and assure her that I wouldneverdo anything to hurt her or any of her family. I want to hold her while she mourns her brother, be her strength in this time of pain. If I could put a ring on her finger so that she would belong to me forever, I would in a heartbeat. That way, I would be the one to protect and love her. I would keep her with me always, never letting a day pass that I wasn’t grateful for her presence.
One thing I know is that I don’t give a damn what my sister has to say. I’m going to see Ellie. The entire Bratva can try to stop me, but I’ll burn the fucking world down just to see her face.
Me:Yes! Of course we can meet up, baby. I miss you so much…Just let me know when and where
Ellie:Later this morning? Say 10 ish? We could just get coffee at our favorite café. I won’t have a lot of time…
Me:I’ll see you then?
Ellie doesn’t respond, but I don’t care. I have a time and location to see her, and my only focus is figuring out how to get out of here. My saving grace is that the playoff finals are in full swing, and a little white lie about practice is enough to convince the guards to let me through. I know I should tell one of them, but as it stands, they’re still loyal to Mila and would absolutely rat me out.
To my surprise, Ellie is already inside and waiting when I walk into the café. This is the first time she’s beat me to a date even though I got here early to have her drink ready. She looks up as the door chimes open, anddamn, that’s not the Ellie I remember.Yes, the death of a loved one can change you. I know that firsthand from losing Mom. But there’s something deeper than grief in her eyes. A darkness I’ve never seen before. A forced smile and wave is all it takes for my skepticism to fade. I jog to the table where shesits with two coffees.
When I finally reach the table, I lean down and try to give her a hug, but she shoves a mug into my hand instead of reciprocating my awkward embrace.
“I hope you don’t mind that I ordered for you. I figured your favorite was still the same.”
Sitting in the empty seat across from her, I take a sip of the warm beverage to find it is indeed my favorite, a cappuccino with extra sugar.
“I still think it’s weird that you prefer hot drinks in the middle of summer in Florida,” she says, sipping on her iced coffee.
“Well, it was always cold when I lived in New York. It’s probably some weird Pavlovian response, but it makes me feel cozy.”
“Hmm…I suppose.”
We try to carry on a conversation, but the animosity in the air makes it impossible. Neither one of us has brought up Leo, or the fact that her family thinks I might have something to do with his death. We haven’t even brought up hockey since her brothers aren’t playing. Which sucks, by the way. Without our team leaders, we were blown out of the water yesterday. And if they sweep us at home, our chances of coming back from behind go way down.
After an hour of awkward conversation, Ellie reaches across the table and grabs my hand. I light up immediately at her simple touch, which commands every part of my body. It’s as if I’ve been dormant since I last saw her, and finally, she’s come back and brought me back to life.
“I know things have been weird between us, but…would you mind coming back with me? I…I have to get back home soon, but I don’t want to say goodbye yet. I can sneak you…”
I want to say yes, but even I know how stupid it would be to go into the home of the Mafia family that thinks I’m the one responsible for killing their son. And if Mila finds out, I’ll be the next death in this feud. My intuition tells me to say no. It’s evident that something is off with Ellie today beyond the death of her brother. But when she looks up at me with those big, beautiful hazel eyes and bats her eyelashes, I’m a goner.
