Until the End (26 page)

Naomi tsked. “Don’t forget, the nice ones never last long in this life, Mishca. I’m sure you can remember that.”

She smiled coyly, knowing she had hit her mark when he almost imperceptibly flinched, but she also knew she had made a grave mistake when his eyes crackled like blue fire.

Mishca felt a coldness wash over him, the same coldness he had learned to rid himself of to keep from losing himself to this life completely. But right now, he forgot all of his renowned self-control.

Grabbing her by the hair, he threw her into the chair, the force of the movement sending it back on its hind legs. As she made to get up, he snatched up his gun, shoving the barrel of it against her throat, keeping her in place.

She cleared her throat, forcing a smile. “That’s the Mishca I remember.”

“Tell me where the diamond is.”

“I don’t—”

“Do not lie to me,” he warned as he cocked the hammer back, “or I’ll paint these walls with your brain.”

Smirking, she said, “Seems counterintuitive when I wear your stars.”

“And I’ll burn those fucking stars off your back if I need to.”

She remained stubbornly silent, practically daring him to act.

So be it.

If he couldn’t hand over the diamond, they could have her body. Moving his finger to the trigger, whatever she saw in his face made her break.

“I’ll have to bring it to you,” she hastened to say, her eyes now following the movement of his finger as he removed it from the trigger. “Tomorrow. I have it stored in a safety deposit box.”

Lowering the gun, he crouched down until they were eye level. “Two o’ clock, tomorrow. The Fountain. You bring it, then you leave and never show your face here again.”

Stashing his gun away, he gave her his back as he headed towards the door.

“All of this for her? Why is she so special?”

He expected the bitterness in her voice, but beneath it was a sadness he hadn’t expected. He had never thought much of how he treated the women that came and went in his life, only thought that since there was a mutual understanding as to what was expected, there wouldn’t be an issue, but as he was seeing now, the lines sometimes blurred.

“Because I love her,” he answered honestly.

And this time, she was the one who flinched.

Lauren kept her eyes closed though she felt Mishca move from beside her. He was careful, moving silently around, trying not to disturb her. She had wanted to sleep, but every time she about to drift off, images of the Albanian had her too afraid to succumb to her unconscious, not sure what she would find in her dreams.

It was easy, pretending like she was sleeping, because she counted in her head. The only way she could keep herself from going back to that dark place was to count aimlessly, thinking of random numbers in various combinations.

She could hear him beside her, the sound of something dropping onto the dresser reaching her ears. He pressed a tender kiss to her forehead, the act taking away some of the anxiety.

She had no idea what to feel.

Guilt mixed with relief. Anger and sadness. Fear and justification.

Standing up, she tiptoed across the cool floor, cracking the door to peer out. Luka was laying on the floor with his feet against the wall, staring up at the ceiling as though it held all the answers in the world.

“What’s doing?”

She didn’t know why she had gotten up, just wanting to move around, but now she felt obligated to answer him.

“My shoulder hurts. Is there any aspirin?” Actually her shoulder did hurt, probably from the recoil of the gun after shooting it the first time. It had more power than she was expecting.

“I could call the Doc for you, have him look it over. Cap might want me to do that, be responsible and all.”

“The Doc?”

“Shit, I forgot you’re new. We have a doctor on call. Comes whenever we need him.”

He didn’t know and the words explaining it to him caught in her throat. The only thought that repeatedly ran in her mind was that there was another doctor.

She didn’t know what she had thought. It wasn’t like they were
not
going to need a doctor just because her…but they couldn’t just replace him, could they?

“Yo?” Luka was looking at her as though she might be having a panic attack.

She felt like she was. “Yes,” she said without thinking about.

She didn’t know what she would say when the doctor got there, but she needed to see for herself.

It was the way he carried himself that brought the first lance of pain, then there was the slight scent of beeswax and rubber that clung to his hands when he brushed her hair back to gaze down at her shoulder. Even in the way his eyes could be caring one moment, but detached the next.

Just for an instant, Lauren didn’t see the strange man standing next to her. No, she saw Cameron Thompson, at least how she last remembered him. That easy smile of his, familiar golden eyes with laugh lines fanning out beside them.

She could almost imagine it was him who was tending to her, but all too soon, that illusion shattered, leaving only the reality of the situation she found herself in and the emptiness she felt at seeing her father’s replacement.

“You’re—” She needed to clear her throat, “—Doc, right?”

“Yes, that’s what they call me.”

“What’s your real name?”

He seemed taken aback by her question, looking to Luka for an answer though she doubted he would be able to give him one. If he knew about her relationship with the Volkovs, he would have never brought the man here.

Mishca wouldn’t have allowed it.

She couldn’t help but wonder what else she didn’t know, how many more of his secrets would hurt her. She thought the worst thing that could have happened to them was his uncle, but she realized that
that
was just hitting the surface.

“Derek Myers, mam.”

She nodded. “Luka, could you get me a glass of water?”

He left the room.

“Do you have a family, Mr. Meyers?”

His hands stilled on her shoulder where they were gingerly pressing against her skin. She realized what that question might have sounded like coming from her.

To him, she was just another one of them.

“I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “You don’t have to answer that if you don’t want.”

Whatever he might have heard in her voice had him answering. “I have a wife and two sons.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, fighting past the pain in her chest. It was like a raw, festering wound that refused to heal. “I’m so sorry.”

“Pardon me?”

She shook her head, falling silent, letting him continue his work in peace. When Mishca returned, she would do whatever she could to help.

The light shining from beneath his bedroom door had Mishca’s heart skipping a beat, his somber mood lifting. He briefly wondered why Luka hadn’t called him until he saw the enforcer coming out of the kitchen with a glass of water.

“She’s awake?”

He nodded. “Her shoulder was hurting so I called Doc.”

“
Fuck
.” Mishca’s cursed drowned out Luka’s next words, but he didn’t care.

Mishca couldn’t blame him for this. He hadn’t known their history, but with each step closer to the bedroom he took, a sense of foreboding filled him.

Doc was wrapping gauze around Lauren’s shoulder when he entered, followed by medical tape. Lauren’s eyes found him immediately, but she didn’t say anything, her eyes said it all.

“You should be fine,” Doc was saying, oblivious to Mishca’s presence. “Take it easy for a while so you won’t further strain the muscle. Have Luka call me in a couple of days and I’ll come by to check on it.”

She nodded silently.

Patting her knee, he repacked his supplies, heading back out, speaking to Mishca before leaving out. Mishca closed the door behind him, hovering near the door, not knowing what to do.

He was anticipating what she would do now. Would she scream at him? Would she fight him? Either would be understandable, but she did nothing

“How are you feeling?”

“How much?” She asked softly.

He blinked, surprised, but confused by her question. “What?”

“How much does he owe your family? Isn’t that why he works for you?”

Scrubbing a hand down his face, Mishca sighed going to sit in one of the chairs across from her, knowing she probably didn’t want him near her at the moment.

“Lauren—”

“Answer me.”

“Five-hundred-thousand.”

“And when his debt is paid, he can go back to his family, and none of you will bother him again.”

“Not in so many words.”

“Then explain it to me,
clearly
, so I can understand.”

“It’s not just about the money,” he said, the words seeming pulled from him.

“But you never answered the question. If he pays his debt, is he free to be with his family?”

“In a way, yes.”

“I’ll pay it.”

“Lauren—”

“I have the money, just tell me what to do. Do you need it in cash, small bills? A check?”

“I can’t allow you to pay his debt?”

“Why not?” She asked looking at him.

God, it was like her pain was manifesting inside of him, making his heart ache. “You do not have that kind of money.”

“Actually, I do. When your father paid for my mother’s silence, my dad had already set up a trust for me that came from his life insurance. I can pay it, just tell me.”

“Lauren, you’ve been through a great deal tonight and I don’t want you—”

“No!” Her sudden shout made him fall silent. “Do you even know his name? About his family? I can’t let them experience what we did.”

She was on the verge of breaking down and the sight of that crushed him. This was what it would always be. Something would always remind her of Cameron and there was nothing he could do about that, but he could save her further pain.

He had made a mistake chasing after her, blindly believing that everything would be okay. If her happiness and peace meant he had to live without her, he would push her away for her own good.

“His debt can never truly be paid off,” Mishca said calmly, turning off the emotions that plagued him when she was around. “He borrowed half a million from the
Bratva
, that’s not including the interest or whatever else Mikhail has tacked on.”

“Give me a number.”

“Seven-hundred, maybe more. I don’t know for sure.”

“Find out.”

“It’s not going to make difference.”

She got out of the bed, minding her shoulder, coming over to stand in front of him, so close that he could practically feel the rage pouring out of her. “You call your father, you find out the amount it would take to sever the doctor’s ties to you and I will pay it. I’ll give you whatever you want.”

“And if Mikhail doesn’t agree?”

“Then you find a way to make him!” she screamed at him, her voice breaking. “How could you
do this
? Wasn’t one family enough? You have to destroy another one?”

He flinched at her words, but the storm was still raging inside of her, but he continued on. This was for her own good.

“The choice is theirs. No one forces them to take the money, nor are there any secrets about the way we do business. Don’t lay the blame at my feet.”