Page 46 of Tainted Essence
“You look rough, kid.” I flick my gaze up to see Vincent standing before me strapped to the hilt with weapons. Blood splatter is visible on his face and arms, but the sight that holds my attention is the three bullets lodged into his Kevlar vest.
“I thought you were a sniper?” I wheeze out.
He claps me on the shoulder and I flinch in pain. He withdraws his hand and shoots me an apologetic smile. “I was the one who fired the missile. Be glad it was me and not Gage because he can’t aim for shit.” I crack a smile at his teasing of his brother-in-law.
“Fuck you! My aim is perfect,” the man himself defends. I peer over at him and see Destiny tucked under his arm and nestled into his side. Everything becomes white noise as she and I stare at each other, this is the second time we have been kidnapped together and come out the other side to tell stories about it.
I can’t remember everything we said in there but something is telling me this thing between us isn’t over yet.
“You need to go with Andreas and get patched up.” I tear my gaze from Destiny to stare at Vincent.
“Yeah, okay,” I mutter as he signals for a guy to come forward and help me into the back of the car. The tinted windows are too dark for her to see me in the back seat but I can see her perfectly fine. She’s putting on a brave face for her family’s sake but I see the cracks in her armor. The moment she is alone she’s going to fall apart and I won’t be there this time to pick up the pieces.
Koda has been apprehended, which means my job here is done, we’ve proven the RDS and DLCF are allies to the Murdochs, Memento Mori and Godfathers. With Anya taking Russia back, this means their family will now control three countries. Fuck, if they manage to get control of the English they will have the majority vote and could potentially come for us.
Andreas and one of his guys climbs into the front of the car. The second the engine starts, Destiny pulls free of her father. I roll down the window in time for her to grip the frame as she peers inside the darkened car at me. Her features are etched in pain, her eyes plead with me not to leave her and stay. When I open my mouth she shakes her head, forcing me to remain silent.
“You aren’t your mother, you are far too strong to lose yourself in someone else. I wish you every ounce of happiness, Tay Tay, because you deserve it. You are someone’s happy ever after…” Her bottom lip begins to tremble, she closes her eyes and sucks in a deep breath before slowly blinking those beautiful gray-blue eyes open again and pinning me in place with that look. “You’re just not mine,” she whispers, then places a kiss to the tips of two of her fingers and then presses them against my lips before stepping back.
Andreas begins reversing out of the driveway but my gaze is still locked on the blonde-haired beauty sandwiched between her uncle and father, who both glare at me but I ignore them. The broken look in her eyes has pain spurring to life in my chest.
“I wish I could be your ending,” I whisper as we drive away from the only woman who I think actually really gave a damn about me, and was willing to help me slay my demons just so I would remain by her side.
Spending three days in Russia recovering wasn’t something I enjoyed but today is the day I finally get to go home and I’m itching to get the fuck out of here. Andreas and his men have been good to me. Being here did give me insider information though. At the next meeting with heads of the families, Anya is going to announce that she will be reclaiming her birthright as Pakhan of the Volkov Bratva. According to Andreas, Gage is pissed that she is choosing to rule under her maiden name and not Murdoch, but in this country, the Murdoch name doesn’t mean shit, it holds no power and the Murdochs can’t call the shots.
Anya earned the respect of her people and in turn they will remain loyal to her and her only. I haven’t seen any of the Murdochs or the one Murdoch in particular that I wanted to see the most. I was told by Kyros, Andreas’s second, that once the remainder of her family arrived the night we were rescued they returned to the states. Knowing she is so far away hurts but this is for the best. We both knew that I was only stationed with her until the threat against her life was eliminated and it has been.
I snatch the phone Andreas got for me off the bedside table and scroll through the list of contacts until I find the person and hit call. It rings three times before she answers.
“Hello?” I hate that hearing her voice still brings a smile to my face even after all the shit she has done.
“Miss me?” I tease.
“Taylan?”
“How many stunningly handsome guys do you have calling you, Kimmy?”
She chuckles but I can tell it's forced. “Just you.” There’s a beat of silence before she breaks the awkwardness. “Do you still hate me?”
A whoosh of air escapes me as I mull over her words for a minute. “I hate what you did, but I don’t hate you.”
“Thank you,” she says barely above a whisper.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Your daughter's name is Lila.” A harrowing sob comes through the phone. “She’s at a boarding school in Romania.” I tell her everything Koda told me and how for the past three days I have been searching for her daughter. Andreas sent his tech guy to me so we could both hunt down Kimber’s daughter. Koda was telling the truth, a quick call to the school proved that she is indeed a happy kid and hasn’t been harmed. He may be more worthless than dog shit but at least he didn’t harm that poor girl.
“D-does she know who I am?” Kimber chokes out.
“I don’t know, Kimmy,” I answer honestly, the school wouldn’t provide me that type of information. “Wave has a plane standing by for you to go to Romania and get your girl. I will personally cover the costs for you and her to see a therapist so you can both reconnect and work through the trauma you both have suffered by her being separated from you.”
“I didn’t even recognize him, Taylan. I had no idea he was her father, I swear?—”
“I believe you, Kimber. Now, go get your girl and I’ll see you both real soon.”
“Taylan?”