Page 21 of Lord of Vengeance
“You and Jacob take the boat to shore, leave it at the dock. Then grab a room at one of the motels for the night.”
He laughed, cursing in Russian. “And what are you doing?”
“Entertaining for the evening.”
“Plokhoy chelovek delayet plokhiye veshchi.”
A bad man doing bad things.
“Just a momentary respite, my friend. A much needed one. Tomorrow, we begin our search for the bastards in earnest. Get some rest.”
“Perhaps Jacob and I will enjoy the scenery.”
“Uh-huh. I’m contacting you early so get some rest.”
He laughed. “I doubt that. Have fun, boss. Call me if you need us. We’re only a boat ride away.”
“Lock down the weapons before you leave. I don’t want to terrify my beautiful guest.” We’d brought enough weapons with us to start a war, something I hoped didn’t happen. As much as I loathed small towns, the last thing I wanted to do was to dirty the streets with rivers of blood unless absolutely necessary. At this point, I considered our trip a fact-finding mission and nothing else. It would be interesting to see how long that would last.
“You got it, boss. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” His boisterous deep laugh was more gregarious than normal. Perhaps because he’d rarely seen me let my hair down.
I shoved the phone back into my jacket pocket seconds before the bathroom door opened. As soon as she stepped into the corridor, I grabbed her arm once again, sliding her hand into mine.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she demanded.
“As I told you before, this is just the beginning. You’re coming with me. And sunshine, I won’t take no for an answer.”
CHAPTER 6
“She walked in shadows believing she didn’t deserve the sunshine that was only a step away.”
—Leo Christopher
Sabrina
Possessive.
This dark and delicious mystery man truly believed he could own me for a single night. I wanted to challenge him, but I had the distinct feeling he’d make good on his heated promise, spanking me all over again. While the round of discipline had been painful, I’d been pitched into a surreal world, no longer able to feel my arms or legs. He’d been brutal in his actions, his hand and belt covering every inch of my bottom, the heat blistering. The pain had even smoldered to the point I’d no longer been able to see straight.
At this moment, a sickening feeling pooled into my stomach, the ugly and horrible realization of my arousal a reminder I didn’t know him at all. I could be in the hands of a crazed criminal, someone who had intentions of doing me harm, but I couldn’t break his hypnotic spell.
There was no doubt he could tell how excited I’d become, as if pain was a foundation for pleasure. Panting, I closed my eyes, willing my body to stop reacting.
I’d learned a long time ago about the power of treacherous men. I’d lived, breathed, eaten, and slept the concept from the time I first became cognizant of what dangerous men were all about. Far too early for any normal girl. Then again, I’d never considered myself normal. I’d also learned evil men walked in the darkness, using shadows to hide their true selves, enjoying the power presented to them in the absence of light.
However, once the sunlight rose high in the sky, only those capable of feeding off the truly powerful and influential people of the world were capable of tolerating the scrutiny blue skies could bring. They were the ones to be terrified of, not those pretending to be boogeymen.
Growing up in extreme poverty, living amongst vicious people in a section of a city where it seemed all the ruthless, vile criminals of the world hid in plain sight had been horrific. I’d learned early on that those around me were simply waiting for their next opportunity to steal, kill, maim, or rape. They bore no consequences, no punishment for their repulsive deeds.
The police had been terrified of them, almost never taking a cruiser through the neighborhoods of South Los Angeles. They’d known better than to risk their livelihood and lives to protect the few considered innocent. They would never have made it out alive. I’d only seen uniformed men twice while living there. Once had been when a building next door to the squalor my family had lived in had caught fire, some deadbeat torching it for fun. The second had been during a gang war on the street one evening that I’d been forced to walk home alone, my brother forgetting to pick me up because he was out with his gang buddies getting high.
The terrible experience was the thing nightmares were made of, the horrific events of that night lingering in my dreams every so often. I’d had panic attacks after the near-death moment, unable to speak for almost a year. The only saving grace had been my life had been spared, one of the bad guys allowing me to live. I’d often wondered why he’d bothered. It had been obvious how brutal and dangerous he was.
My reminiscing of the terrifying moments was all because that night had been my first lesson on how to identify a bad man.
And the one who had his fingers wrapped firmly around mine was without a doubt a dangerous man through and through. His aura alone should have encouraged me to shove him away from minute one. I’d also caught a glimpse of the weapon he carried in his jacket. That in itself wasn’t a crime, but my hackles had been raised at the sight. Granted, lots of men carried weapons where I lived, on their person or in their vehicles. However, this man was definitely not a local.
What I could barely understand or tolerate was my extreme attraction to him. He could do anything he wanted to me and the fact I was an officer of the law wouldn’t provide any assistance. I never carried my weapon on my person with me while off duty, preferring to leave it in the car. Until recently, Sitka hadn’t been a hot bed of crime, which hadn’t presented the need to carry at all times.