by J. L. Beck
Closing my eyes, I try to calm myself down. If this is real, I need to be smart, I need to make sure I get out of here. Right now, I have to worry about one thing. The safety of the child I’m carrying. The child no one even knows about. Clinging to the fact that I know Julian will come for me, I shut down. I can do this. I just have to hold on a little longer and not give these men a reason to kill me before Julian can find me.
5
Julian
Seconds become minutes, and soon worry starts to fester in my gut. What is taking so long? Is she sick? Did she fall in? Usually, I have no problem giving her some space, but it has been well over ten minutes now. No one else has entered the bathroom, so I show no concern when I push the door open and pop my head inside.
“Elena?” Calling out her name, I’m met with nothing but the sound of my own voice echoing back at me.
Fear strikes me like a bull whipping through my insides. The worry in my gut multiplies by a thousand at the lack of response, and I shove through the door and into the bathroom. My biggest fear is that perhaps she has fainted, or even worse, that someone has hurt her, but as I check each stall, I find neither of those things.
In fact, she isn’t in the bathroom at all.
My eyes dart around the small space with fear.
Where is she?
It’s then, as I’m standing there staring at my own reflection in the mirror, that my eyes catch on what looks to be a door on the other side of the room. It could be nothing more than a supply closet, but something tells me it’s more than that.
As I walk over and open the door, my fear molds into something else entirely.
I was right. It’s a secret exit with just enough space to walk through. My biggest fears are coming to life. Someone took her. There is no other explanation. Rushing through, I exit into what looks to be a staff area at the back of the kitchen.
My hands tremble with rage and fear as I retrieve my phone from my pocket. I have to find her before it’s too late, before they hurt her. I’ll kill them all, every last fucking one of them. Rip their hearts clean from their bodies.
Dialing Rico, one of my guards, the line rings, and rings, and rings, and I become more panicked with every second that passes. Why isn’t he picking up? I call Michael next, and thankfully, he answers on the first ring.
“What’s up, boss?”
“Elena. She’s missing. Alert the others,” I growl.
“Shit. Yes. I mean, got it, boss. Do you want us to leave our position and search the building?”
Fuck. I don’t know what to do. I can’t have my men come inside and surround the building at the same time. If I let them come in, Elena might be taken away from here without us knowing. If I keep my men posted, there is no way anyone leaves without us catching them.
“Keep your posts but stay on high alert and call for backup. I’ll search inside until the others get here.” I hang up the phone, barely restraining myself from tossing it to the ground. Without a shadow of a doubt, I know this has to be the work of the Volcove family, or at least someone associated with them.
They want to make me feel their pain. Make me endure my biggest fear of all, but they don’t know what I’m capable of. Nothing will stop me from saving my wife.
I search the kitchen area, tossing things in my frustration and shoving people out of the way, becoming a different man altogether. My only goal is to find Elena and ensure she is safe, then kill every last one of those fuckers.
“Hey, watch it!” Someone shouts as I shove past them. Any other day I would have stomped his brains out with the heel of my foot. Today, I ignore the man completely.
Heading back out into the banquet area, my eyes scan the room, and I look over every person. There is no way they could’ve left the building yet. Not with my men surrounding the area. She has to be here, or at the very least, close by. The place is so large, the square feet alone would make it hard for me to find her on my own. A throb pulses behind my eyes.
I remind myself that Elena is strong and that she knows I will come for her. It’s the only thing keeping me going after deciding to keep my men at their posts. Deep down, I know it is the best thing to do.
I can only hope they haven’t left yet and that one of my men spots them while they’re in the process. Like a bloodhound, I search the hall, accounting for every enemy I had previously seen. Just because they remain here doesn’t mean it isn’t for show. Frustration mounts, and I know with every second that passes, anything could be happening to her.
Rushing out of the room, I head up the grand staircase. I’m a madman, determination pumping through my veins. I will never forgive myself if they hurt her. Never.
Turning the corner, I stop dead in my tracks.
A ghost. It has to be a ghost because there is no way the man standing a few feet away is Lucca. I’ve been looking for him everywhere. After his betrayal, I scoured the earth for him. There was absolutely no sign of him, which made me believe he was dead.
Yet, as I continue to stare, he remains standing there, watching me, waiting for me to strike. I connect the dots in my head.
My blood turns to molten lava, my temper flares, and my teeth grind together. I can’t stop myself from acting on murderous rage, and I fist his shirt in my hand, lifting him off his feet before slamming him into the nearest wall.
“The only reason you’re breathing right now is because I know you have something to do with her disappearance.”
Lucca’s eyes fill with sadness, and he looks, dare I say, guilty.
“I know you have no reason to believe me, but I didn’t touch her. I came here to help. I might be out of the loop, but I’ve heard the rumors. I heard that some associates of the Volcove family were going to strike tonight. They are still pissed about you messing with their operation. I came to warn you, but it seems I’m too late.”
“Warn me?” I hiss and slam him against the wall once more, hoping the impact will rattle some sense into his head. Lucca is a big man and was one of my best, but looking at him now, you would never know it. He is a liar, a thief, and he deserves nothing but death.
“Let me help you find her. Let me prove myself.”
“There is nothing to prove,” I spit, wanting to smash his face in, needing to kill him. He betrayed me, betrayed us. Almost got Elena killed.
And yet, I hesitate…
“I can get her back. I can find her. They think I’m a traitor already. They’ll never expect me to be helping you. Let me do this. If not for you, for Elena.”
“And why should I trust you? You betrayed me.” The words burn as I speak them.
“You shouldn’t. I did what I had to do for the same reason you’re doing what you have to do right now. Love has that effect on people. I didn’t want to betray you, but they had her…”
Her?
I shake my head. I’ve wasted enough time. I need to find Elena, and if trusting Lucca even for a second means I can save her before it’s too late, then I will. I have no other option. Releasing him, I take a step back, putting space between us. I want to destroy him—my entire body trembles as I withhold the revenge I desire.
Lucca sags against the wall for a moment before straightening and gathering his wits. “Have they left yet?”
“I have my men posted everywhere, and none have said anything.”
Lucca smiles, but it’s sinister. “Follow me. They most likely went to the basement. They know your men are here and that they wouldn’t be able to get away without you knowing.”
This could be a trap, my mind tells me, but it could be a lead too, and right now, my main concern is finding Elena.
“Lead the way,” I order impatiently.
I’m hesitant as I let Lucca take the lead. My heart thunders in my chest with each step we take, each beat becoming louder, making it hard for me to hear or feel anything besides that heavy thumping. The door leading into the basement is unlocked, and as we head down into the darkness, I reach for my gun.
I
t’s hard to make out, but several doors lead into what I assume are rooms, and I wonder briefly if she is in one of them. Lucca moves along the wall, slowly twisting the knob of each one and shoving the door open.
Then we hear it. “Don’t cry, sugar. You don’t have anything to cry about…yet.” Everything in the world around me fades. Taking a step forward, I’m ready to go in guns blazing. I don’t care about calling for my men or how many might be on the other side of that door. I only see one thing: rescuing Elena.
“Whoa, slow down. We need a plan.”
“We go in, kill everyone who is not Elena. Plan over.”
“That’s too risky. Think about it. Chances are she is going to get caught in that crossfire.” I know he’s right, and I hate it. “I need you to trust me, okay?” he whispers, his voice holding me in place.
“Then what’s your plan?” I grit through my teeth.
“Be smart. We both don’t want anything to happen to Elena. You go in and assess the situation. Make sure she is out of harm’s way. I’ll come in as a surprise. We’ll take them down together.”
“Fine, let’s do this,” I growl, knowing I’m being forced to put every ounce of trust into a man that had previously betrayed me. A man that I should have already murdered.
6
Elena
Tears spill out the corners of my eyes, leaving wet tracks on my cheeks as they run down and fall onto my beautiful satin dress. I try not to fully sob, try not to show them how scared I am, but it’s no use. Tear after tear runs down my face, giving away how I feel on the inside.
Defeated and utterly afraid.
“Don’t cry, sugar. You don’t have anything to cry about…yet.” Someone next to me snickers. Moving closer, he raises his hand and wipes the tears from my skin. I cringe from his touch as much as I can with being tied to the chair. I don’t want this man to touch me. I don’t want anyone to touch me besides Julian.
The unknown man’s hand travels down my neck and trails along my collarbone. Just when he is right above the swell of my breast, the door flies open and his friend comes strolling in.
“Everything is set.” Even without seeing his face, I know he is smiling, boasting in what he thinks is success.
“Perfect,” the man behind me chimes in, and a shiver runs down my spine.
This could easily become the worst day of my life. My thoughts swirl around Layla and the unborn baby that Julian knows nothing about yet. I know Julian is searching for me, flipping this entire place upside down. I remind myself to keep my thoughts positive. Julian brought a lot of men. He won’t walk in here on his own. There are only three of them. We have at least ten people on our side, and Julian will do anything to protect me.
Everything is going to be fine, I keep repeating to myself in my head.
Tucking my chin against my chest, I look down at the floor while the men surround me like vultures, never standing still, always on the move.
Out of the corner of my eye, I catch something moving in the distance. Turning my head slightly, I see the other door crack open slowly. It’s a sliver of movement, but it gives me impossible hope. The air in my lungs stills as Julian appears like a knight coming to rescue me.
His face is an angry mask of pure murderous rage. The last time I saw him like this was two years ago. A day I’ll never forget. A day a lot of people died—all of them by my husband’s hand.
“Well, look who finally made it to the party.” One of the men chuckles behind me.
Then, like a bucket of ice water being poured over my entire body, I feel something cold and hard press against the back of my head. I know immediately, without looking, what it is. The barrel of a gun. “Julian Moretti himself.”
“You made a lot of mistakes today. Taking my wife. Hurting her. Threatening me. You know you’re going to pay with your lives, don’t you?”
“I don’t see how you are in any position to deal out threats. I’m the one holding a loaded gun to your whore’s head, aren’t I?”
“For every word you speak, I’ll add another minute of torture before I finally kill you.”
The three men start to laugh, but I know Julian is deadly serious. I know he has some kind of plan. Back up is going to burst through these doors any minute now. He doesn’t do things half-assed. He came prepared.
A moment later, the door flies open, but it’s not who I expect to come walking in. Anger pumps through my veins.
With a smug smirk on his face, Lucca walks into the room. “See, I told you he would fall for it.”
The room erupts into laughter, but I feel like anything but laughing.
“We figured he wouldn’t fall for it a second time. I’ll give it to you, Lucca, you must be one hell of an actor.”
“You son of a bitch,” Julian growls, lunging for Lucca. Before he can even get two feet, two of the masked men tackle him to the ground. A guttural scream rips from my throat, but again, it’s muffled by the gag. Panic clings to every muscle on my body.
No, no, no! I should have told Julian that I saw Lucca earlier. I should have said something. This is all my fault.
The ache in my chest expands, and dread overtakes me as the three men drag Julian to the spot in front of me. The gun that was pressed against my skull moments ago disappears and is now pointed at my husband’s head instead.
A muffled scream rips from my throat, making the guy next to me chuckle. “Want to say something, sweetheart?”
He grabs the gag and pulls it from my mouth.
“Please…” I croak, my voice sore from screaming.
I’m crying so much now that Julian’s face is nothing but a blurry mess before my eyes. Julian stares at me, his eyes bleeding into mine. I can see the profuse love and guilt in them. It reflects back at me with the intensity of a thousand suns. He won’t beg for his life. That’s not who he is. But I can. I will.
“Please… Don’t do this. Take me instead,” I plead.
“How cute that you’re willing to give up your life for this piece shit, but no can do, sweetheart,” one of the men replies, whispering into the shell of my ear.
My entire body trembles, and I start to struggle against the restraints once more. I know I won’t be able to save him, but I have to try. I have to.
“It’s time to die, Moretti—”
“Hold on. Let me do it,” Lucca interrupts at the last second. “He’s been hunting me like an animal for two years, I want to be the one to pull the trigger.”
“I suppose we owe it to you. You did lead him right to us.” One of the men holding Julian chuckles. “He’s all yours. We’ll take his wife as payment.”
I shake my head profusely, my hair sticking to my tear-stained cheeks. All I want to do is wake up from this nightmare, but this isn’t a nightmare—it’s reality. Blinking, I watch Lucca move toward Julian.
Time stands still for one brief second, and then he pulls his own gun from his holster, a wicked smile spreading across his face, a glint of hate in his eyes.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I say a silent prayer.
I’m shattering, breaking into a million pieces knowing that I cannot stop this from happening. The gun goes off, and time comes to a standstill.
Another shot rings out, then another. Each sound as deafening as the next, making me gasp with pain. Each pull of the trigger rips my chest open a little bit more until there is a huge gape, and I feel like I’m bleeding out.
“Open your eyes, Elena,” Julian’s gravelly voice meets my ears.
My eyes fly open, and I’m greeted with the familiar pale-blue eyes of my husband. Julian is kneeling in front of me, and all I can see is him. I’m only vaguely aware of Lucca untying me from the chair.
As soon as I’m free, I fall into Julian’s arms. He tugs me into his chest, pulling me close into his protective hold. I bury my nose into the crook of his neck, inhaling deeply, unable to get my breathing under control, partially thinking this might be a dream.
“I was so worried about you,” he
whispers into my hair.
“I was worried about you,” I murmur back. “And the baby too.”
Julian pushes me away a few inches so he can look at my face. “Baby?”
“Yes, baby. I was going to wait until tomorrow morning to tell you. It’s hard to give a man who has everything a Christmas gift. I bought some blue baby shoes and wrapped them up.” I sniffle.
“Congratulations,” Lucca interjects, reminding me of the fact that he is still here.
Julian pulls me to my feet but keeps his arm around me. We both look at Lucca, standing a few feet away, his hands in his pockets like he didn’t just kill a room full of men.
“Thank you,” I tell him. Julian simply grunts. I give him a little side look, telling him without words he should be thankful too. He rolls his eyes, and I know it’s going to take him a moment to get himself in order. He almost died in front of me.
If it wasn’t for Lucca…
“You betrayed me…but you did save us today,” he finally says. “We both owe you.”
Lucca grins. “I was kind of hoping you’d say that. Because I could really use your help with something.”
“Is that so?” Julian huffs, clearly not happy about this development.
“Yes. Like I told you earlier, I only betrayed you because Lev’s family had someone I cared about. I’ve been protecting her ever since. Unfortunately, she just ran away from me.”
Ran away from him?
If he was protecting her, why would she run away?
“What do you need help with?” Julian asks.
“I need help hunting her down.”
Did he just say hunting her down? Oh boy…
***
Thank you for reading Savage Christmas a Moretti Crime Family Novella. Read Julian and Elena’s story in Savage Beginnings and Lucca’s story in Broken Beginnings.
