“Did he do something wrong?” he asks, but then is interrupted when his phone buzzes. “Your husband.” He looks at me before he answers. After a few words to Dimitri, telling him what is happening, he passes the phone to me. “He wants to talk to you.”
“Dimitri.”
“Ruby, what’s wrong?” he asks, and I can hear the concern in his voice. Everything around me seems to fade when I hear his voice. The agitation I felt before disappears, and calmness starts to penetrate my being.
“I’m just feeling a little nauseous,” I say, and Jade says loudly from the other side of the couch that I fainted too.
“You fainted?” Dimitri asks.
“Yes, but I’m okay now,” I say, and have Jade once again contradict me from her side of the couch, which has me glaring at her. I don’t want to concern Dimitri when he’s in danger. His mind needs to be on what he must do and not on anything else.
“Ruby, for fuck’s sake, just tell me the truth. Why the hell haven’t you seen a doctor yet?” he asks angrily. “Let me talk to Vlad, and I want you to relax. I’ll be coming home tonight.”
My stomach lurches. If he’s coming home, that means he has already killed Cristina. I want to ask, but I decide against it, not wanting him to tell me anything.
“Okay, I’ll see you then.” I’m about to hand the phone over, when he stops me.
“Ruby, I love you.”
My eyes fill with tears. Why the hell am I so sensitive today? “Love you too,” I reply, and hand the phone to Vlad, watching him roll his eyes at my statement. I hear Vlad explain to him about what happened with the doctor, and he tenses at something Dimitri says before he turns and leaves the room.
“You look like you are feeling slightly better. That man really does have the best effect on you,” Jade says with a gentle smile. “Either way, I have called the doctor, and she will be here soon.” To be honest, I’m feeling a little better, but it won’t kill me to get the doctor’s opinion. Just the thought that my man will be home tonight and that he is fine has me feeling much better already.
DIMITRI 19
Placing my phone back in my jacket pocket, I turn to find Andre looking at me. “What’s wrong?” he asks with a frown. “Anything happen back home?”
“Ruby is sick, and the doctor who came to see her was a man, which freaked her out.” My anger at not being able to be with her now when she’s sick has me on edge. I explained to Andre some of Ruby’s story, as he had a right to know, seeing as he was asked to babysit me. I know Alexei meant well by sending Andrei. He is worried about my actions in the state of mind I’ve been in. To be honest, I’ve never been as angry and out of sync with my rationale as I was this last month, but to know that after everything Ruby has gone through, the bitch who was partly responsible for it is still trying to kill her had my mind blowing.
“What’s wrong with her?”
“I don’t fucking know. Apparently she’s been nauseous, and today she fucking fainted. We are leaving today after I put an end to that bitch’s life,” I state. Andrei and I are about to leave, as we know Cristina will be alone today, as she is going in for her biweekly manicure. It has been difficult to get anywhere near her, but today will be the day she pays for what she has done to Ruby. I understand it was first done to her family, but Ruby had nothing to do with it. This should never have gotten this far, and now another person must die.
Vlad mentioned that Jade is accusing me of being the culprit behind why Ruby is sick, as she’s been worried about what is happening here. I will make sure to finish what I must do and get back as soon as possible. This last month with Ruby has been everything I could hope for. She is everything I could ever have imagined in a woman. I have such a high sexual attraction for her that I have never had with anyone else. When I’m with my woman, I have a need to touch her, to feel her, and to have her know she is mine.
Once this business with Cristina is over, I’m going to buy a house somewhere in the countryside where Ruby will have the type of garden she wants. I know she misses being around nature, and I’m going to give her that. We won’t be able to stay there permanently because of my type of work, but we will stay there often enough to please her.
“Well, hopefully she has no clue we’re here and she keeps her appointment,” Andrei says as he heads towards the door. I place one of my guns in the holster inside my jacket against my side, and then the other one on the other side. My blade is tucked away in its holster on my left leg where my slacks hide it. Looking around, I make sure I have everything, and then head out after Andrei. I don’t like the idea of killing a woman, but I know she will continue coming after Ruby until I finally stop her. I won’t take a chance of Ruby getting hurt in any way.
We make our way towards where we know Cristina will be in the next half hour. The boss knows we are here, as Alexei informed him of what was happening. He had a car waiting for us when we arrived, with weapons for us to use. I haven’t met the man he sent to drive us before, but apparently he’s someone the boss trusts. I know Cristina killed one of the boss’s captains and an old friend, Ruby’s father, so I’m thankful to him that he is letting me kill her instead of giving the job to someone else.
“I’ve been told that she is already there,” Yarek informs us just before we arrive at our destination.
“Are her guards with her?” I ask, wanting to get this over and done with.
“No, they dropped her off and left. We have arranged everything. The cameras will be off, and you won’t have any interruptions. Just remember you only have about half an hour; then you need to leave.” I had already made sure about the cameras, and not only the ones in the salon, but the ones across the road on the building that faces the salon.
“This isn’t our first rodeo, kid,” Andrei grunts as he gets out of the car, which has me shaking my head in amusement at his sensitivity. “What? He’s talking as if we have never done this before.”
We walk up to the door and enter. The woman behind the counter raises her head. When she sees us, she nods and points towards a door at the end of the corridor and then turns and leaves into another room. We make our way down the corridor until we reach the door and then, without a knock, enter.
The first thing I see is a woman sitting back in a reclining chair. Her eyes are covered with cucumber slices, her hands on top of the armrests. She’s clearly having her nails prepped for whatever she is having done. “Diana, what has taken you so long?” she says when we enter.
“I’m afraid Diana isn’t coming,” I state, which has her snapping up in the chair, the slices falling off as her head turns to face us.
“What do you think you are doing, just walking in here? Do you know who I am?” she says angrily as she moves as if to stand, but I get to her before she can and place my hand on her shoulder, holding her down.
“I know exactly who and what you are,” I say. Now that I have her here, my fury at what she has done and the way she has hurt the woman I care for has me wanting to make her feel the pain that Ruby felt, but contrary to my immense fury, I would never be able to mutilate a woman. I see her eyes fill with fear when she realizes that we aren’t worried about her position.
“I would leave right now if I were you, because when my men arrive, you won’t be able to go anywhere again,” she threatens, which has Andrei grunting in amusement. He is standing against the door just in case someone decides to try to enter before I’m done with her.
“I’m not going anywhere, and neither are you. Do you know who I am?” I ask, and she frowns.
“Should I?” she asks.
“I am the husband of the woman you are trying to kill,” I state, and watch as realization dawns.
“I guess that fool blabbered,” she says angrily. “Your wife, as you put it, deserves to die. Her father killed mine, and because of her, my brother died.”
My other hand shoots out and pushes her back against the chair, my fingers around her throat. All I want to do is squeeze and see her reveng
eful, hateful body perish under my strength. “Your brother raped her and mutilated her body, and you think he didn’t deserve to die?”
“She had it coming with the type of father she had. If it wasn’t Chris, it would have been someone else. I’m just sorry she didn’t die at the time,” she says angrily. Her words snap my self-control.
“Well, she didn’t die, but I’ll make sure you do,” I state as I squeeze the breath out of her. She struggles, to no avail, her eyes glaring at me as she gasps for air. I see tears start to stream down her cheeks when she starts to lose the battle. Her strength starts to lessen, her struggles reducing as I see her life force diminish. “No one will hurt Ruby while I’m around.” She takes her last gasps of air, and then I feel her body lose its battle. I finally let go when I’m sure she is dead. My heart is racing at what I just did, but knowing Ruby is now safe would have me do this all over again.
Taking a step back, I look at her and shake my head. What a shame that this had to happen. Revenge is a dangerous route that us humans fall into, and in the end, it doesn’t bring us the peace that we think it will, instead leaving us bitter and unfulfilled. I hope that at least now she’s at peace.
“Let’s go,” Andrei says as he looks at his wristwatch. I nod as I turn and follow him out, not looking back at her. Now I need to get back to Ruby, make sure she’s okay, assure her that no one else is going to come after her, and make her as happy as I possibly can.
We walk out of the salon, not seeing anyone as we leave. When we get into the car, Yarek hands me a letter from the boss. Opening it, I read the two sentences there and nod.
Hope you are now at peace and that you can make a life with the woman chosen for you. Thank you for being the trustworthy soldier you have always been, and for watching out for my sons.
We make our way directly to the airport, where the plane is on standby for us. Before taking off, I send a message to Alexei, letting him know that it is done and that we are on our way back. I send another one to Vlad, asking him about Ruby, but don’t get a reply, which has me worrying.
By the time I arrive at the building and leave the car to make my way upstairs to Ruby, my nerves are frayed. When the elevator door opens, I find Vlad inside. “How is Ruby?” I ask, not bothering with pleasantries.
“She’s in the doctor’s rooms. Jade said when you arrive, you should go there.”
My stomach knots worse than it was. Why would she still be in the doctor’s rooms? Is it something worse than just a stomach bug? When the elevator stops and opens its doors, I can feel my heart racing. This woman is so deep under my skin. I never thought anyone could ever affect me the way she does. If anything is wrong with her, we will get the very best doctors, but I will make sure she gets better soon. The thought of her suffering, of her being sick after everything she has already been through, makes me angry. She has been through enough; she needs a break. Surely this isn’t something more to torture her.
Walking in, I see her on the one bed, her arm with a drip. Her head turns when I enter. My heart lurches as I approach. “Sweetheart,” I say as I take her hand and lean down to kiss her lips lovingly. Hearing a noise, I look around to see the doctor approaching. “What’s wrong?” I ask, but dreading knowing.
“Your wife has been neglecting herself. She was dehydrated, and I don’t think she has had a decent meal in a while,” the doctor says, which has Ruby mumbling something under her breath.
“Why the hell haven’t you been eating?” My worry is forgotten, anger taking its place.
“I wasn’t feeling well,” she replies in a defensive tone. I look back at the doctor and raise my brow.
“We have taken care of that. I have given her some tablets for the nausea. She will be fine going forward. I just need you to make sure she takes care of herself in her condition.”
I tense. “What condition?” I thought she said she was dehydrated. Nothing about a condition.
“Do you want to tell him?” she asks Ruby instead of replying to my question. What the fuck is wrong?
“Dimitri, it seems I was wrong,” Ruby says. What the hell is she talking about? Wrong about what? I stroke her cheek and wait for her to continue. “They were so sure, but the doctor assures me that the diagnosis is correct.” Instead of continuing, she bursts out crying, which has me in a panic. I pull her up into my arms, being careful not to pull on her arm.
“It’s okay, sweetheart. Whatever it is, we will figure it out.” I look around to ask the doctor what the matter is and realize that she has left without me noticing. “You have to tell me what is wrong. I’m stressing here.”
She raises her tear-stained face to me, her smile confusing me. “The doctor said I’m pregnant,” she says, which has me tensing.
“What? But I thought you said you couldn’t,” I mumble, my thoughts in a jumble. Is she really having my child?
“I know, but she has had all the tests done. The doctors had told me it was going to be really difficult for me to ever fall pregnant with all the damage done, and that I should conform myself to never having children.”
Is this real? Am I really going to have children? My heart is racing at the thought of what Ruby is telling me.
“Are you happy?” she asks, a frown now marring her forehead.
Am I happy? I know I’m scared! I have had men shoot at me, have been in death-meriting situations, and never have I been scared like I am now. I am going to be responsible for the life of my very own child. Not only has this woman in my arms shown me what real love is, but she now is also going to gift me with a child.
“Yes, sweetheart, I am happy. Very happy! This is our very own miracle,” I state, and another tear runs down her cheek.
“You will be a wonderful dad,” she says, which has my heart lurching in reaction. I will do everything in my power to protect my wife and child.
Placing my hand over her stomach, I look deep into her eyes. “I love you, Ruby. You are my miracle.” When I met her, I never thought I would be married and now have a child on the way. If ever I have done something right in my life, it was the day I went back to Russia to protect her. All threats against her have been neutralized, which means we can finally find our happiness in peace, and with time, I will have Ruby forgetting everything that happened before.
I was given a miracle in life, and I will make sure to hold on to that miracle until the day I die.
THE END.
Mayhem: Bratva Fury (book 3) Page 15
