The Line: The Complete Series

by Nikki Rose

  After the initial beating my guard was up and I was on high alert. I was assigned laundry detail which wasn't too bad.

  I was working in the laundry room when two of the Russians walked in. With one motion of their heads, the few laundry workers alongside me scurried out of the room like cockroaches when you turn on a light.

  “Hey there fellas.” I tried to remain calm even while adrenaline began to race through my veins. They're only two of them but I never knew when the others might pop up. I could take two without too much trouble but these guys ran in packs. Where there were two there were usually more.

  The two men didn't say anything as they stalked toward me, splitting up to go one on either side. They walked around my table where I was folding the clothes.

  The man to my right was tall with an athlete's build. The other was stockier and closer to the ground which meant a lower center of gravity and harder to knock off his feet. The taller one knocked over a stack of sheets I had just folded and I fought the urge to lash out.

  “How can I help you two today?” I put on my best salesman’s voice with a hint of mocking in my tone.

  “You can help us by dying quickly, dog.”

  The man came at me but I dodged his attack shoving him into the wall behind me. The next guy came at me with surprising speed for his bulkier size. I managed to get a hit in just as he got to me, slamming the palm of my hand upward at his nose with a loud crunch.

  "Fuck," he cried out loud and I took the opportunity to strike again, this time with an open hand driving right under his Adam's apple.

  He made a strange choking noise and stumbled back. The other guy came up behind me, wrapping his arm around my neck and grabbing his wrist. I felt my air supply getting low and I knew I had to get him off quickly. I lunged back into the wall slamming his body between mine and the hard concrete.

  He let out a grunt but didn't let go. I drew my elbow back hitting him in the side repeatedly until I hit just the right spot. It caused him to release me. I gasped for air and my vision cleared again.

  The stocky guy charged me and instead of waiting on him, I charged back to throw him off his guard. I let out a yell as I rushed him, my fist crunching into his nose. I grabbed hold of the collar of his jumpsuit and shoved him head-first into the wall and his body crumbled to the floor.

  The lankier guy was quicker on his feet. He came after me. When he tried to land a right hook, I grabbed his arm and made a quick jerking motion down until I heard a crack. He let out a loud cry and swung with his left arm striking me in the jaw, making my head snap back with a shooting pain.

  I kicked his leg at the knee and it bent back with a sickening crack. I stumbled back a little off-balance from the blows I had taken. Hands wrapped around my leg but by the time I knew what was happening it was too late.

  Both feet were pulled out from under me. My back slammed onto the hard tile floor, forcing the air from my lungs in a loud whoosh. The stocky Russian was on top of me, in my face. He punched hard, sending an explosive pain through my eye. His other fist was quick behind the first making contact with my jaw. Each blow disoriented me more.

  I reached up, wrapping a hand around his neck. He fought me off with ease from his vantage point. I gripped his face positioning my thumbs at his eyes but before I could cause much damage, he pulled away. I leapt to my feet before he could recover. As he stood, I grabbed a towel from the table and wrapped it around his neck.

  I let his movement help me along, twisting the towel tighter around his neck. Using the leverage of his body, I swung him over the table letting the towel slip out of one hand so that I wouldn't be pulled with him.

  I slid across the top of the table, knocking the laundry off as I went. I crouched over him and lifted my fist, aiming at his face.

  "Carlile," a guard barked.

  When he saw the two Russians and myself, he put two and two together. He pulled out his walkie-talkie and pressed the call button, "I need some backup in here."

  It didn't take long for more guards to come and take away the Russians. The first guard took me and placed me in solitary.

  I stayed in solitary alone with only the visitation of a guard now and then for three days. It's amazing the way the mind works when completely alone with nothing to occupy your time. I thought of work and of the case. But mostly I thought about Hana.

  On the third day, the door opened like it had each day before. I looked up expecting to see the cart holding a tray of food but he stood empty-handed.

  “Stand up and put your hands out in front of you.”

  “Oh, I am finally going to be joining the regular population again?”

  “No. Warden wants to see you.”

  “The Warden? Why?”

  “Why he does what he does is above my pay grade. He gives the orders and I follow them.”

  The guard closed the handcuffs around my wrists and led me toward the Warden's office. I hoped it would be quick and painless. I was concerned that I might be in trouble for the fight with the Russians. Considering that there were two of them and one of me I hoped they would see that I was just defending myself. What man would go against two by his own choice?

  I was taken into the Warden's office. He sat behind his desk and looked up when I walked in. The guard sat me in a chair and handcuffed me to the wooden arms. The guard stood behind me and to my right until the Warden nodded to him in dismissal.

  “Well, Carlisle. I've got some good news for you. It seems your friends found the evidence you've been looking for and the judge overturned your charges. You’re still a suspect but there was enough reasonable doubt to make the detectives look at other possibilities too. You'll be going home today as soon as I can get your paperwork in order.”

  “That's great. When will my paperwork be filled out?”

  “I've got them filled out right here all I have to do is sign.” He tapped a single finger hard on the papers on his desk.

  “Great then what are you waiting for?”

  “Before I send you on your way, I just have a couple of questions.”

  “Sure, what's that?”

  “Any ideas why the Russians were targeting you?”

  “I'm not sure, sir.”

  “Did they say anything? I'm trying to find out if this was just your typical prison rivalry or if there's something more going on.”

  “They said it was for a friend. And I will say that during that first beating in the yard both guards that were on duty conveniently disappeared during that time.”

  The warden made notes and I hoped I wasn't making myself enemies. I wasn't one for letting conspiracies or politics drive my decisions. I didn't like corruption.

  “I'll make a note about the guards and look into that. I don't tolerate turning a blind eye even in prison. You said they did it for A friend?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Any idea who this friend might be in?”

  “If I had to guess, which I don't like to do, I would probably guess their friend is Petrov.”

  “Petrov? Who's that?”

  “He's a high-level Russian mobster type. My team took him down a couple of years ago.”

  “Is he still in custody, now?

  “I cannot confirm or deny if he is in custody at this time.”

  “Understood. I'll make sure that I'm screening communication from outside the prison better.” The warden took a few notes. “And I'll look into those guards.”

  “Thank you.” With that, the warden signed my paperwork and called the guard back in.

  CHAPTER 23

  Hana

  I waited at the house, pacing the living room floor. Lightning flashed outside my window and thunder shook the house but it wasn’t the storm that made me anxious. Mason was getting out. Hunter called a couple of hours before to tell me that the judge had seen the new evidence and ruled to release Mason until his trial. We still had work to do to prove he was innocent but it was a step in the right direction. Mason would be out of that horr
ible prison.

  A horn beeped outside in two quick successions. I peeked out the front window to see Hunter’s car splash in a puddle pulling into the driveway. Not caring about the rain, I ran out the door and down the steps, skipping the last two and jumping down to the walkway. I ran across the yard making a sprint for the passenger side. Mason climbed out with a huge grin on his face even as lightning lit up the sky just behind him.

  “Mason,” I called out, leaping into his arms.

  He caught me, wrapping his arms around my waist.

  “Hey there, beautiful,” he lowered me to the ground and ran his fingers through my wet hair, wiping away the wild locks that clung to my face.

  His eyes bore into mine with so much desire that the rest of the world melted away until it was just the two of us. I lifted my hand, resting it on his as he cupped my cheek. His voice came out in a deep rasp that sounded like he was in physical pain, “Damn, I missed you.”

  “I missed you too,” I whispered, afraid my voice might crack if I said any more.

  I didn’t have to worry about finding more words because Mason crashed his lips down onto mine in a passionate, claiming kiss.

  “I’m just gonna head on out and give you two some privacy. We’ll talk later,” I could hear the smile in Hunter’s voice and it was a strange sound compared to his usual serious demeanor.

  Mason broke the kiss for a moment, long enough to respond. “Thanks for everything, Hunter. We will talk in the morning.”

  “Yeah, yeah. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” he teased.

  “Thanks, Hunter. For everything,” I added just before Mason claimed my lips again.

  He lifted me, scooping his arms under my ass and I wrapped my legs around his waist. He carried me into the house, through the living room, and down the hall. Our tongues danced together. He slid me down his body until my feet met the floor. Our hands roamed over every curve as we peeled off each other’s clothes until there was nothing left between us. We both fell together onto my white fluffy comforter. He kissed me with so much passion that I thought I’d either melt or combust from the heat building between us.

  I was completely lost in Mason. Nothing else existed but him and me. He trailed hot kisses down my neck and back up to my lips again. He adjusted himself at my soaked entrance and thrust into me all the way to the hilt. I cried out from the fullness. He pulled out and thrust back in again, harder and I let out another cry but he kissed me, swallowing the sound.

  Mason continued his punishing pace sending my body spiraling. My back arched and my nails dug into the sheet with one hand and his back with the other. I cried out and Mason sped up to a feverish pace. He was wild and fierce with each unrelenting thrust until he let out a guttural animalistic roar, lunging forward, plunging deeper into me until my insides clenched around him.

  Moments later, Mason nearly collapsed, rolling to his side to avoid crushing me. We laid there panting for several minutes before he finally rolled to his back, pulling me to rest my head on his shoulder.

  “God, I missed you,” he brushed the hair from my face and kissed my head.

  “You mentioned that earlier,” I smiled and closed my eyes as he gently stroked my hair.

  “I felt it was worth repeating,” I could hear the smile in his voice and he squeezed me against him.

  I nuzzled up against him and let out a content sigh. “I never want to leave this spot.”

  “You won’t hear me arguing.”

  “Good. It’s settled.”

  “You know, it's a shame...”

  I lifted my head so I could look at him. “What is?”

  “All that time we were keeping busy painting and cooking when we could have been doing this.”

  I chuckled. “I barely knew you then. Part of the time I thought you were the bad guy holding me captive.”

  “Technically I was.” I looked at him with bemusement and he elaborated, “holding you captive.”

  “But for good reason. A reason I didn’t understand at first.”

  “When did you know that I wasn’t some psycho just breaking in and holding you?”

  “I suspected what you were saying was true when I walked in on you on the phone that first morning. Most people don’t keep up their lies when they don’t know they are being listened to.”

  “That’s true. But you still gave me hell after that.”

  “I wasn’t one hundred percent sure.”

  “So, when did you know one hundred percent sure?”

  “I don’t know. I think that happened more gradually the more I was around you.”

  I let out a yawn, exhaustion finally setting in. I hadn’t slept well while Mason was gone and our recent activities had drained the last of my energy.

  “It feels so good to lay here in this bed with you. The whole time I was locked up I couldn’t relax. I had to sleep with one eye open. But, being here in your arms, it's heaven.”

  “Wanna take an afternoon nap?”

  “That sounds wonderful.”

  I rolled over to wrap my body around Mason but found an empty bed. A glance at the clock told me I’d only been asleep for an hour but Mason was already gone. I slipped out of bed, gathered my crumpled clothes from the floor and threw them on quickly before padding out to find him.

  I peeked into the living room but there was no one in sight so I continued on to the kitchen. Mason stood over the kitchen table studying the files and papers that covered the wooden surface. He was so focused on what was in front of him that he didn’t even notice me walk in until I made it to his side and wrapped my arms around his waist.

  “Hey,” he mumbled, only half paying attention but he wrapped his arm around me and pulled me tighter to his side.

  “What are you working on?” I looked over the papers on the table, seeing many of the same files I’d studied while he was locked up.

  “I may be out of prison for now but that’s only until the trial unless I can find some hard evidence to prove my innocence and his guilt,” he placed a finger on the DMV photo of Donnie.

  “Did you sleep at all?”

  “I dozed off for a few minutes,” he stopped and turned to me. “It felt so good lying there next to you. I couldn’t bear to think of having to go back to prison and missing that again. And next time would be for a lot longer. I was only locked up for a couple of weeks. I couldn’t imagine twenty-five to life.”

  I held tight to him, squeezing like I might never let go as tears sprung to my eyes. I’d been so grateful to have him back I hadn’t thought that it could all be temporary, “then I want to help.”

  “Sure,” his voice sounded hesitant and I looked up at him with a raised eyebrow.

  “What is it?”

  “I’m just not sure what you can do.”

  “Well, I’m pretty familiar with the case now. I’ve been working on it the whole time you’ve been away.”

  “Away? Is that what we are calling being locked up in prison now?”

  “I thought it sounded better,” I smiled up at him.

  “You really worked on the case the whole time?”

  “Yeah. What else did I have to do without you here? I’m the one who found the intel at the convenience store.”

  “You did that?”

  I nodded.

  “I don't like the idea of you being involved in this stuff. Didn’t that guy get killed?”

  “Yes, but it's okay. I called Hunter as soon as I found him and I—”

  “You found him?” Mason’s voice rose.

  “Yeah. I was supposed to be meeting him to get the video surveillance but they got to him before I got there.”

  “What the hell, Hana? Why were you the one doing all that?”

  “I was trying to get you out. Why are you mad?”

  “What do you think would have happened if you’d been there when whoever killed him came by? You think they wouldn’t have killed you too?”

  “And what would have happened if I hadn’t have look
ed into things myself? You’d still be locked away in prison getting beat up or even worse,” I argued back. I couldn’t believe he was angry when everything I’d done was to help get him out.

  “My team—”

  “Your team was busy trying to find Natalie. No one else was taking the time to chase down leads. None of your so-called brothers did that. It was me. I’m the one who spent hours driving around trying to find someone who could recognize the man helping to frame you.”

  “My team is focusing on what’s most important. Natalie is in a hostage situation and may not have much time left.”

  “I get that. I do. And I want them to find Natalie but my point is that I’m the one who found information to help get you out and you are acting like you’re pissed at me for it.”

  “Only because you put yourself at risk.”

  “You put yourself at risk all the time.”

  “That’s different.”

  “How the hell is that different?”

  “Because—”

  “Because it's you and not me. It's easier to put yourself at risk than it is to watch someone you love put themselves in danger.”

  “Yeah, it is,” the anger in his voice dropped slightly and he sat down in the chair, resting his head in his hands. “I don’t know what I would have done if something had happened to you.”

  “Same. But that’s why we need to work together to keep you out of prison. So, can we just agree to that at least?”

  “Yeah, okay. Why don’t you tell me what you know?”

  Mason

  We ate dinner while watching the surveillance videos on Hana’s laptop when she jolted upright.

  “Wait. What was that?”

  “What was what?”

  I hit pause on the laptop, and she leaned in close to the screen.

  “I just need to go back just a few seconds. A little more.” She hit the keys and then paused it.