by J. J. McAvoy
He nodded and frowned. “She’s the one who sold out her father’s location to Vance. She apparently misses the power—these encrypted letters are hers. I thought they were ranting’s of a mad woman at first—”
“Today is the day,” I read the letter aloud, which had the worst grammar, even in Russian. “Today is the day I take my rightful place on the throne. My father was fool and lost everything. He didn’t know how to play the game. But I do. I have spent years planning my revenge and now with the power of the Amory. With the power of the Valero, I shall be queen. I will cover the earth with the blood of my enemies. Starting with Irish Cunt and Italian whore.
“And this is why we do not keep journals. It’s dated for today,” I added as I handed it to her. I knew she couldn’t read it, but she looked ready to rip it from my hands.
“So she’s batshit crazy. Give me a location and I will kill her now whether it’s true or not.” Mel’s eyes narrowed in on the paper. If she wasn’t careful, she would set it on fire.
Fedel frowned. “I don’t have one. These letters were taken from her personal tablet. However, they are bouncing from eight different countries. We see everything she types but have no idea where she is.”
“What makes you think this is real? She cannot honestly be stupid enough to be writing her innermost thoughts and plans,” I asked him. He said he hadn’t verified it yet, and despite how true it may have seemed, it could have been a lie.
“As requested, a notice was put out about the death of Orlando. Because of that, Amory went back to Russia. However, it wasn’t just him who came home—all the Valero did. Most of them spread out through Moscow. But all within walking distance to the Black Hotel where there is no one else staying but a Mrs. S.,” Fedel explained, and all I wanted to do was bash his head in. The downside to ruling an empire was the lack of fucking vacation days. I was looking forward to this camp.
“Tell me about Mrs. S. personally,” Mel demanded softly as she stared at the photo of her.
“Saige Rozhkov, age twenty-six, born in Stavropol, Russia to a prostitute of a mother. Her father basically wanted nothing to do with her, from what I could find. He had two other sons, and I guess she wasn’t cool with being treated as a second-class citizen, so she killed both boys at sixteen. She got her father’s attention, and he made her his heir. She has been a black widow of sorts. However, she doesn’t need to marry them to suck the life out of them. She’s trained herself in hand-to-hand combat, taught herself how to fly almost anything, and she can speak Italian, French, English, Spanish, Hebrew, and Russian. She’s cold, and she’s merciless,” Fedel finished, and at the end of his little biography, he looked straight to Mel.
On the outside she looked cool, calm, and collected, but on the inside I could see the lioness trying to claw its way out of its cage.
“Fedel, leave us.”
I stared in her eyes, scanning them quickly before standing. She finished off the rest of her drink before rising along with me. We both walked into the private room at the back of the plane without speaking.
The moment I closed the door, she took a deep breath and tried to stand still for a second but couldn’t.
“I want her head on a plate.”
I wasn’t sure why, but I chuckled. “Is this jealously? Are you mad that this woman is on the same level as you are?”
A knife flew at my face giving me only a second to react. I moved out of the way before it embedded itself in the door.
“No one is on the same level as me.”
“She killed her brothers.”
“Half-brothers don’t count. I would kill them too if they stood in my way,” she replied.
“She betrayed her father.”
She glared at me, her eyes searching my face. “Her father was an honorless, spineless bitch. I would have killed him first.”
Brushing her hair back, I brought my lips closer to hers. “Then why are you so angry?”
“Because I read the rest of the letter.”
I stared at her, confused. “You don’t know Russian.”
“I may not be able to speak it, but I can read most of it just fine. My IQ may not be the same as yours, but I handle myself.” She took a deep breath. “I believe she said I a classless, emotionless, cunt-faced daughter of a whore. She knew that my parents were separated, and she also knew that my mother was having an affair with her bodyguard, Roger. That I should have burned with her in the plane. The only way she could have known that is if she was with Amory and Vance. So I want her head on a fucking plate!”
Every time I thought I knew her, I figured out something new. When I gave her that letter, I honestly didn’t think she would be able to read it. I had read ahead and stopped when I noticed where the letter was going.
“Then her head on a plate you shall have. However, it will be next week. The men need this. We will keep Fedel and Declan on top of everything they do. But we can’t go after them with our men acting like children remember.”
She nodded, and I turned to leave when she grabbed my arm. Facing her, I watched as she opened and shut her mouth twice before dropping her hand and stepping back.
“I don’t know how to do this, Liam,” she replied, crossing her arms. “I don’t know how to be open. I’m not that type of person.”
“Bullshit.” I laughed, causing her to look me in the eye. “You don’t want to know. You can speak God knows how many languages. You are an expert fighter, shooter, and a master manipulator. If there is something you wanted or needed to be able to do, you would force yourself to learn. You would commit to it through blood and sweat. You would do that for everything but me. So don’t try that card with me. I do not accept that excuse. I know you too fucking well for that shit.”
“I am trying! You are closer to me than anyone else, Liam!”
“That would be enough, if everyone else wasn’t dead.” She froze at my words.
I stepped in her face again and kissed her forehead. “I. Am. All. You. Have. Just as you are all I have—fuck Declan, Neal, Olivia, Coraline, even my parents. My family and loyalty start with you and you alone. The sooner you fucking realize that, the sooner we can get back to losing ourselves within each other and actually killing all those who stand against us.”
She said nothing, looking away from me, and I turned to leave. She didn’t stop me, because she was my Mel and hardheaded as fuck. I could say it to her a thousand times, but she needed to realize it herself. Tomorrow she would, and it couldn’t come fast enough. Then I would fuck her senseless for all the frustration she had caused me.
MELODY
Once he left, I laid back on the bed, trying not to think, but failing miserably.
I. Am. All. You. Have. His voice replayed in my mind even as I tried to push it out. I didn’t understand why he couldn’t just be happy with sex. I was willing to have sex. I wanted to have sex. However, instead of a quickie, I was laying on a bed alone. My mind felt so clouded. He was making it that way. I should have been thinking of ways to kill Amory and Saige, but instead, I was thinking of him, stupid fucking sexy Irish man.
I rose from the bed, fixing myself before walking out. I didn’t bother looking at Liam. Instead, I grabbed my things and walked off the plane. The moment I stepped out, I took a deep breath and smiled. I loved Cascadia. It was small, it was quiet, and it was green. I had hated it at first, but now the trees gave me peace. Nature was the only thing that made sense.
In front of the plane were Jeeps waiting to take us to the camp. I walked straight to Monte, and he already knew not to ask. Instead, he threw me the keys. Before driving off, I glanced back at Liam who glared at me. However, in the rearview mirror, I watched as he ran faster than any fucking man I had ever seen and jumped onto the back of the truck with ease.
He smirked at me before turning back to the rest of the men, fist in the air. They applauded him like he was something special.
“Camp Callahan begins now!”
Never mind, he was special
. . . a stupid, special kid. I was tempted to turn sharply and send him into one of the tress, but he climbed into the front with me.
“If I wanted you to ride with me, I would have waited for you,” I said as he looked out at the small town we drove through.
“Why Cascadia?” he asked me, ignoring my comment completely. When I didn’t answer, he said, “This is a good time to be open, Melody, or does that only happen after sex?”
Stomping on the pedal, I drove us even farther, taking a path onto an abandoned road in the middle of the forest.
“I went to community college here. It’s small, rainy, and unknown. Cascadia is the place you go when you don’t want to be found,” I replied, turning left near the riverbank.
“You went to community college?” he asked, surprised, but of course he was. He was a rich kid from Chicago. I was a rich, too, but I was never really a kid.
“Yes, and I’m damn proud. Just because we have money doesn’t mean I wanted to waste it at some big fancy university, studying for a career that isn’t really an option. Nor did I want to deal with all the fake people who walked through the halls. I met Adriana here actually.” It was freshman year, and she looked so nervous. However, I saw what she could do one night after a few guys were just a little bit too rough.
“You didn’t want to go to school with two-faced people because you wanted to be the only one in the room,” he stated, causing me to stomp on the brakes, and he jerked forward.
“You don’t make me want to try. Do I lust after you? Yes. Any straight female would. Do I find you attractive and smart? Yes, and yes, again. But you are so very cocky, arrogant, possessive, and chauvinistic. You think you see me as an equal, but you don’t. You are pushy, annoying, and childish way too often. You piss me off! I signed that contract. I was going to try, but then you came at me like an animal. You disrespected me. You tried to make a fool of me. You insulted me, and now you think you can demand my love. You think you can force me to love you because my father is dead? Because you’re being a dick? I don’t give a motherfuck. I really don’t. So fuck you, Liam Callahan. I. Am. All. I. Have. That is how it has been and always will be.”
He stared at me wide-eyed as I unbuckled my seatbelt and stepped out into the forest. Grabbing my bag from behind my seat, I walked up the side of the hill by myself. I knew the forest well enough.
LIAM
I watched her walk away in shock, right before the pain kicked in. All I could see was red when I jumped out of the truck. I didn’t stop moving until I was right behind her. Grabbing onto her arm, I pulled her back and shoved her against the tree.
“We have already established that I am cocky, arrogant, possessive, and chauvinistic!” I yelled in her face. “And yes, I am pushy, annoying and childish often. But it is because I’m sick of being alone!”
I stopped, blinking a few times before stepping away from her. I hadn’t meant to say that. Fuck. I really hadn’t planned on saying that. I wanted to grab all the words and shove them back into my mouth, however it was too late. What was said could not be unsaid.
“Li—”
“I’m sick of being alone, and I know you are, too, even if you don’t admit it to yourself. I just want to skip this part.” I sighed, looking at her once more before walking into the forest.
I had no idea where I was going, but I just needed to get away from her. If I didn’t, I would say something else, which would be just as dumb. Somehow, my walking led me to a clearing of lavender flowers. They looked so soft that I took my jacket off and just lay down. Was every day of my life going to be a battle? Sighing, I took a deep breath, allowing myself to look up at the darkening sky. Being a city rat, I had never seen so many stars shine from the sky. I wasn’t sure what it was, but all of a sudden, I was drifting off.
I would head to the camp in the morning. Right now, I wanted to sleep in this moment of peace. Making sure my gun and knife were easy to grab, I allowed myself to relax.
MELODY
“Did he ever make it back?” I asked Monte as I looked out of the cabin window. The sun was starting to rise, and I hadn’t moved since I realized he hadn’t made it to camp. That had to be at least nine hours ago.
“No, ma’am. Are you sure you don’t want anyone to search for him?”
I’m sick of being alone! His words echoed in my mind, and all through the night, I couldn’t make it shut up. I had this weird feeling that something was going to happen. My gut told me something was going to happen, but I just wasn’t sure what that was yet.
“Ma’am?” Monte asked me again.
“No, we had an argument. He will find his way.”
“Should I let the men know?” he asked me, and I turned to him, glaring into his eyes. The men were settling fine.
They were already doing what they were supposed to be doing—relaxing, eating, practicing.
They didn’t need Mel and Liam drama right now.
“Ma’am, he’s back.” Monte pointed, and I followed his hand to the man fighting to get flowers off him as he broke through the tress. The idiot fell asleep in the forest. But then again, it was Cascadia. He was fine, nothing ever happened here. Rolling my eyes at him, I turned away from him just as a gunshot rang through the air. I had heard guns go off all night and in the morning, however, this one made me freeze. Every hair at the back of my neck rose.
LIAM
Fuck my back hurts. I groaned as I walked toward the noise. Part of me was so confused and tired that I really wished I had remained sleeping. Had it not been for the damn sun, I could have slept there all day.
Stepping into the campsite, I glanced around at the cabins scattered deep within the forest. My Mel sure knew how to pick a vacation spot. A few men smirked at me, and it was then that I realized I was covered in flowers. Sighing, I brushed myself off quickly before attempting to walk forward. The key word being attempting.
It happened so quickly I didn’t even have time to blink. My body was thrown back at the force of the bullet that collided with my chest. I couldn’t scream. I couldn’t even breathe. All I felt was the pain.
Goddamn it, Neal!
My body began to shake as chaos erupted around me. Eric was beside me in a moment before a scream rippled through the air.
“Liam!”
That was the voice of an angel. My angel. She pushed Eric away from me before falling to her knees beside me. She looked so beautiful. I reached up to touch her face, but when I did, all I could see was the blood on my hands. My blood on my hands.
Mel grabbed the side of my face with one hand and gripped tightly to my hands with the other.
“You’re going to be okay,” she whispered. “I swear. You’re going to be okay.”
She was starting to blur as the pain took over. In the back of my mind, I could feel them ripping my shirt. But in the front of my mind, all I could see was her. She was worried, scared, and caring as she held onto me. I smiled at her and she smiled at me.
“You’re not alone, Liam,” she whispered, and I knew that the pain, the burning in my chest, was worth it. This was so fucking worth it.
I took a small amount of pleasure in the panic in her eyes as mine closed. Half of me felt so bad for causing her pain. The other half knew that we, as humans, sometimes learned the best lessons from pain.
Checkmate.
EIGHTEEN
“There is no greater blessing than a family hand
that lifts you from a fall;
but there is no lower curse than a family hand
that strikes you when you’re down.”
~ Wes Fessler
NEAL
I cleaned my rifle for what had to be the fifteenth motherfucking time as I waited for the sun to come up. I wouldn’t be able to sleep until this was over. Truthfully, I hadn’t slept well in over a decade. Every night since high school, I woke up in the same cold sweat, and every night I would believe it was just a dream until I saw the tattoo on my arm. It was nothing special or fancy. It was just
the number 224. The locker I found Liam in. It would forever be burned into my skin and in my mind.
Every night I saw him, this small nerd with messy brown hair and glasses shaking in a locker. He was beaten up badly. He had even pissed himself he was shaking so hard. I was momentarily frozen in shock. I screamed for help over and over again, even when Coach D was already there trying to help him. I just kept screaming until my voice went silent. He stepped in and did what I had failed to do. In that one moment, it was like a sheet was lifted from my fucking face and I realized I was an idiot. I was jealous of Liam. Our father had poured his love into him since the moment he was born. The sun and moon revolved around Liam. Was he all right? Did he take his pills? How far did he walk today? Did you see how fast he read that book? Did you know he understands your homework Neal? Liam this. Liam that. Whenever I needed to speak with our father, he was in Liam’s room. Whenever I need help, he was busy with Liam. Always fucking Liam. I was jealous. He lost his twin, had his shoulder broken, his feet crippled, and small dying lungs, all within hours of just being born, and I was jealous of him.
It didn’t make sense anymore, but back then with a child’s understanding, that’s what I thought. Whenever our mother saw him, she would break down. She would sob and sob then lock herself away for months. I blamed Liam for that. What made it worse was that I truthfully hated myself. I hated myself for not protecting our mother. I was young. I couldn’t do anything, but it didn’t help. It was just easier to blame it all on Liam because it started when he came. So when he was being bullied, teased, or flat-out embarrassed, I looked away. I always looked away until I saw him shaking in that locker, and then I couldn’t look away any longer.
Declan stepped in, knocking back a beer. “This is such a stupid plan.”
“It’s my only chance, Declan,” I said with a sigh, cleaning the barrel once again. I didn’t want the bullet to back-jam. If it did, then it would come out with more force. It would definitely kill him.
