Page 41 of The Red Room
“Expecting more gifts?” She smirks and nudges my arm.
I hold the crescent moon necklace between my fingers, the sharp curve of the silver digging into my thumb. She follows behind me closely as I make my way to the door, expectinganother package left absent on my doorstep. Starting at the top hitch, I pull it to the side, followed by the handle lock, and finally, the dead bolt.
I peer back at Courtney’s grinning face and she nods. With a deep breath, I open the door inch by uncomfortable inch. There isn’t a package on the welcome mat. No, there’s two large legs standing at shoulder’s width, and when I open the door fully, Dimitri’s impressive stature becomes clear. His head reaches above the frame, and as he stares down at me, my eyes widen in an instant. If there were a list of people I’d never expect to knock on my front door, Dimitri is somehow near the top.
“Good evening, Ms. Nat,” he says in his thick, accented voice.
Despite my throat constricting, I swallow down the spit lathering my tongue and stutter out, “Di—Dimitri?”
“Who is that?” Courtney whispers from behind, though her attempt at subtlety can use work. I hear her, and with how close I am to the large bouncer, I have no doubt he hears her too.
“I am a friend of Ms. Natalia.” His deep voice hits a lower octave. He keeps his hands tied behind his back, the sleeves of his blazer bunching up near his shoulders. “And I am here to take you both to Völk.”
TWENTY-ONE
Dimitri is quietas he drives us through the crowded LA streets, never giving more than a grunt when the other drivers on the road seem hellbent on rearending us. He’s had to veer into the bike lane more than a few times to keep the polished black SUV scratch-free. I silently applaud his patience from the backseat as I ready my camera. A new lens. Fresh memory card. Wiping the entire thing down with a microfiber cloth. I don’t want to disappoint Nik, not when he’s promised nearly a month’s pay and even sent Dimitri to escort us there. And yet, that’s not what I’m concerned about the most. Maybe I don’t want to disappoint him for simply being me. Someone at least three rungs beneath the top of the success ladder he stands on. Despite everything that’s happened, there’s still this nagging sensation at the back of my head, four words screaming louder than street noise.You aren’t good enough.
Courtney busies herself pressing every single button within reach, and she can’t seem to stop rubbing the custom leather seats. “This is nice,” she whispers, and I nod in agreement. “So, Dimitri. How long have you worked at Völk?”
“I don’t work for Völk,” he responds, work coming out asvork. “I am here because of Nikolai.”
Courtney gives a small laugh. “What are you? His bodyguard?”
I don’t know if bodyguard is the word I’d use. Nik is the last person that’d need protection, especially from anything human. So why does Nik keep him around? Are they friends? Someone he can trust?
“I look out for Mr. Vostik’s interests.”
Courtney leans forward, resting her forearms on the front seat. “So, you’re like … his assistant?”
“Da,” he says. “Assistant is fine.”
She raises a brow at me. “Anything you can share with my friend, Natalie? Maybe something she should know before she gets in too deep?” Courtney winks at me but there’s only one thought crossing through my head.
Oh, if you only knew Court.I can only imagine how she’d react to seeing a three-hundred-pound killing machine in the flesh. The Nikolai he hides beneath his tight, defined skin. She’d probably do what any rational person would. Scream like hell and bolt in the opposite direction.
Dimitri continues to stare at the road in front of us, a firm grip on the wheel. “Nikolai is best man I know.”
“And he’s incredibly hot,” she whispers again, elbowing my shoulder.
I return an elbow of my own to her side, ignoring the burn in my cheeks. “How long have you known Nik?”
He draws a deep breath and sighs. “Since we vere children. My mother worked in the kitchens at the Vostik estate. We lived in a small house on the property. Nikolai would play with me and my baby sister.” Dimitri peers at me in the rearview mirror. “Ida.”
“Is she here in LA, too?” Courtney asks, pulling out her phone and illuminating the backseat. She either dropped something or is searching for more buttons to press. I’m not sure which.
He visibly stiffens, fingers curling tighter on the steering wheel. “No. Ida passed away many years ago.”
I see the flash of hurt in his eyes, the pain he holds behind his stern features. Is this why Dimitri is … well, Dimitri? A stone wall void of any emotion? Even when he pulled me out of Nik’s loft during the full moon, he wasn’t panicking. No, he was far too calm to be mere feet away from something capable of chewing on his intestines like sausage links. Kind of hard not to be fearless while constantly surrounded by werewolves. Fearless, or broken I guess.
“I’m sorry, Dimitri,” I say and rub his large shoulder, my palm smoothing over the cotton of his black blazer.
He doesn’t shake off my touch, nor does he seem to acknowledge it. “I’ve had enough moons to mourn her, Ms. Nat.”
While Courtney may brush off his statement as some kind of language barrier and poor translation, I latch onto it.Enough moons.He’s had enough moons to mourn the death of his sister, but does that mean it happened on a full moon at the Vostik estate? Was she killed by someone in the pack? The question burns at my throat like bile begging to be spat out. I can’t, though. Not in front of Courtney. So, I do the only thing I can. I ignore it, biting down on my tongue and willing the thought away.
“You two will stay together tonight, yes?” he asks, once again looking at us from the rearview.
“That depends,” Courtney says with a devilish smirk. “If this one ditches me again for Nikolai,” she coos each syllable of his name. I swat at her leg, doing little else than widening that beaming grin of hers.