Grace Between Mercy

by S. Ferguson

  22

  Ron

  I have lost the ability to concentrate on my work. My frustration has been out of control each passing hour of not knowing where Kella is. I down my glass of scotch. Wishing I could just drown in it like Jake used to for once, but I know that won’t do shit to get Kella back. The sound of my phone ringing pierces my ears and I quickly snatch it up,

  “What?” I half yell into the receiver. Jesus I’m strung tight.

  “Tut tut, Ron,” Elizabeth coos making my blood run cold.

  “Elizabeth,” I seethe. “Where is Kella?” My tone beyond demanding.

  “Why, here with me of course,” she mocks. “I do grow weary of waiting. You seem to be lacking your usual resourcefulness. I’m rather shocked you haven’t found us yet.” I hear a soft groan in the background and my heart skips a beat.

  “That better not fuckin’ be Kella.” I am nothing but a ticking time bomb of rage in this moment.

  “And what if it is?” she responds. I hear what sounds like her blowing a kiss. Christ, I knew she was a fucked-up bitch, but even this seems far for her. Maybe she’s finally snapped.

  “Ron!” I hear Kella yell, but her voice is weak, something about it sounds off. “Don’t fucking believe her shit. She’s working with Tony! We’re in—” Her voice is cut off by the sound of something slamming into flesh. Hard.

  “Shut up, you stupid, stupid girl!” Elizabeth screeches. “And to think I was going to keep you alive.”

  “YOU’RE FUCKIN’ DEAD!” I roar through the phone jumping to my feet. I have lost myself to rage, knowing that Kella is suffering at this monster’s hands. Feeling horror that Elizabeth was once someone I loved. That this is all my fault. Once again Elizabeth has managed to hurt someone I care about and she’s getting away with it. For now.

  “Not with my new friends around,” Elizabeth quips, before abruptly ending the call. I ignore the soft knock on my office door, growing more insistent with every second that goes by. I can’t bring myself to speak, I stand stuck in place, staring at the phone gripped tightly in my hand, furious. I cling to the rage as I feel something far more insidious beginning to worm its way inside my chest: fear.

  “You okay, Boss?” Jake keeps his voice low and soothing, attempting to calm the inner beast threatening to escape. I guess he was the only one brave enough to not wait for an answer to the knocking.

  “Kella is in trouble,” I say firmly, “But I know how to find her now.” I pause, taking a deep breath. I grab something to write with from my desk and scribble the number Elizabeth called from, handing the note to Jake. “I’m pretty sure I know where they are but have Dave run this to be sure. And tell Greg …” I take a fortifying breath. “Tell Greg to prepare for war. We are going to New York.”

  23

  Ron

  I set my foot down in New York City, stepping into an alley near my hotel. Not wanting to take any chances, I arranged for a private entrance. In Tony’s territory, a place I swore I would never visit again. I do my best to swallow down the rage and nerves trying to consume me. I would have preferred to keep this in my territory. I have connections there, I have the cops in my back pocket. Here, everything is a wildcard. Wildcard. The word makes Kella come to mind, but I shove it down. Work first, always.

  “You sure took your time getting here.” The words are promptly followed by a choking sound. I turn to see Jake’s hand around Alex’s throat. I smirk, I’ve seen this show before.

  “Let go, Jake.” I keep my voice calm, even though there’s nothing more I’d love to do than let Jake finish him off. After I get the information I need. Greg moves instead, grabbing Alex by the collar of his dress shirt and shoving him against the brick wall of the hotel. My guys have a strong hatred for Bree’s fuckwad of an ex-boyfriend, Greg more than most.

  “Where’s Tony?” he growls.

  “Easy!” Alex begins, raising his hands before him. “Tony isn’t who you’re looking for and we all know it.”

  “You’re right, we aren’t,” I reply, my agitation growing. “Where is Elizabeth?”

  “At the old warehouse,” Alex said before Greg rammed him against the wall again for good measure but not before I see his eyes widen. I think his revelation was supposed to shock me.

  “Why should we trust you?” Jake crosses his arms over his chest.

  “What else do you have to go on?” Alex replies. I have to admit he’s right. We have no other lead and I need to find Kella,

  “Take us there.” I cast a hard look at Alex daring him to test me, promising him more than a beating if he is lying.

  “Yeah,” Alex replied. “But you need to have your boy,” he pauses, gesturing his head at a fuming Greg, “let me down. I can’t show you where to go when I’m stuck against a wall.” I nod to Greg who releases his captive with a dark look.

  Righting his shirt and fixing his hair, Alex looks at me with a smirk knowing I am his only chance at saving Kella,

  “Do know that while I won’t kill you, now,” I begin, giving him a hard look, “I can have my ‘boys’ rough you up on the way. So, wipe that smug look off of your face before I do it for you.” The harshness of my tone causes Alex’s smirk to disappear, I catch a brief flash of fear before his face goes neutral. It’s enough to make me want to smile at how much control I have; even outside of my own territory. Trapped between Jake and Greg, Alex sits in the backseat of my town car giving me directions as I drive. I dismissed our driver not wanting any extra witnesses.

  “Stop here,” Alex says. “You don’t want to tip anyone off that you’re here.” I understand his thinking and park in a nearby alleyway. We all step out, Alex being pinned in to prevent escape or a potential tip-off.

  “It’s up here,” Alex points, heading off down an alley.

  “You better be telling the truth,” Greg warns.

  “If not I’ll kill you myself,” I snarl, causing Jake to look at me in surprise. I don’t take matters personally anymore, at least not often. I relish the feeling of my gun tucked into my waistband. I haven’t much need to pack heat in my own backyard, but this is Tony’s space, and he has yet to accept or negotiate peace. There was no way in hell me and my guys would not be armed. Thank God for private jets.

  We follow Alex for what feels like forever, only a few minutes feels like hours, a handful of streets feel like miles. My frustration only grows until we stand in front of a set of large warehouse doors. Somewhere along the way the hotels and apartments morphed into a warehouse district.

  Anger rolls off of me in waves. The need to get my hands on Elizabeth for making Kella suffer; for involving her in a game she didn’t belong in rising to the surface.

  “You have my back?” I ask Jake and Greg who both give a quick nod. I didn’t even need to ask. Moving to either side of the building, the two take their positions as I go in from the front, alone.

  Hold on Kella, I’m coming for you.

  I stop once I’m through the doors, cautiously looking around at my surroundings. I’m standing in a spacious, mostly empty room. Support pillars line either side, which could provide cover for me or someone else. At the other end of the space stands Elizabeth. She has a cocky grin on her face, but I can see the fear in her eyes. Two goons stand on either side of her. Judging by their cocky looks, I won’t even need my gun to take care of them. You never worry about the guys trying to show you how tough they are, you worry about the calm stoic ones.

  “Where is Kella?” I growl, boring a hole into her skull with my eyes.

  “No hello?” she asks me mockingly, brushing me off. “All in due time.”

  I freeze as I hear a click beside my ear. My eyes follow the sound and I see a third man pointing a gun at my head, emerging from behind one of the columns.

  “Move and die,” he says.

  “You bitch.” I look at Elizabeth knowing she led me into a trap, but internally I smile. She doesn’t know about Jake and Greg. She wants to play, we can play.

  “Just get
ting the upper hand, dear.” She wags her finger at me condescendingly. I growl deep in my chest, hoping my guys are already on it.

  “Bring him,” Elizabeth commands, the two guards with her smile before heading down a hallway behind her.

  24

  Kella

  I sit up groggily as the drugs in my system begin to wear off. I hate them, especially since they give it to me twice a day now. I try to fight them every time, but they pin me down, stabbing the syringe into my neck. I jump up when I hear the lock on my door click. Pressing my back against the wall, I see Elizabeth’s goon enter the room.

  “Time to go, princess,” he says, grabbing Lexi by the arm, dragging her from the room.

  “And you brat,” the other gently closes the door behind him, “are finally going to be of some use to me.” He undoes the fly of his pants as he approaches me. I press my back against the wall as his pants fall to the floor; the fact that he goes commando is a momentary distraction but then I smile. I was not expecting this to happen, but this, this is a scenario I’m familiar with. I open my mouth to scream but his hand clamps over my mouth tightly, his other gripping my throat.

  “Now, now, we’ll have none of that shit,” he says calmly, a little too calmly. I double over as he knees my stomach, knocking the wind out of me. As I gasp for air, he seizes the opportunity to shove himself into my mouth. He thrusts deep into my throat and I can’t breathe. Tears well up in my eyes but I know I’m going to win this war. I begin to sob, knowing that’s what he wants to hear, as he groans in pleasure. It is then that I move. I can no longer wait for a man who may never come. I am on my own and I am no victim. I wait for him to pull back from my throat, biting him as hard as I can. I taste blood as he howls in pain and I spit him out of my mouth.

  I quickly jump up, kneeing him in the face for good measure, spitting on the floor to get rid of the bitter taste of his blood. Looking around I see a glint on the ground and smile. I run to his pants, removing a shiny switchblade. I make a mad dash for the door, running down the hall to the entrance of the warehouse.

  I stop, seeing Elizabeth’s back to me ahead. My chance for payback here, I begin to quietly sneak up on her,

  “Oh, Ron.” I pause in my stalking at hearing her words, Ron is here? Why?

  “It is here that you will die, you and that thorn in my side brat.”

  “Let her go.” I can hear the rage in his voice and I freeze. It is then that I see the jerk that took Lexi still holding her by the arm, her body dangling limply at his side.

  “Oh, you care about her?” Elizabeth mocks. “But of course, she is your spy.” My heart sinks at Elizabeth’s words, she is more than just his spy. My heart aches at the fact that he would save Lexi and not me. I force the thought from my mind, no, he doesn’t care, no one has. It’s time to get myself out of this mess free of Ron and his gang. I continue creeping up on Elizabeth, who is completely distracted. Pride does indeed come before the fall.

  I strike, coming up behind Elizabeth, pressing the knife blade to her neck. She gasps, freezing in fear.

  “Don’t move,” I growl looking at everyone in the room. “Release us or your precious bitch is dead.” I force the knife into Elizabeth’s skin proving that I won’t back down. She whimpers and I know I’ve drawn blood.

  “Let her go!” Elizabeth screeches but no one moves.

  “Now, release my boss.” I turn my head to see Jake holding a gun on Elizabeth’s frozen in place goons. I smile smugly as Elizabeth sputters in rage.

  “I would do as he says.” Greg’s gun clicks as he aims it at Ron’s would-be killer. The goons lower their weapons.

  “Your time has come, Elizabeth,” I say into her ear. I turn the blade, stabbing it into the side of her neck. Blood spurts out onto my hands as I cut upward toward her chin.

  “There is no grace, there is no mercy,” I say, kicking her body away from me.

  25

  Ron

  I feel a mix of emotions watching Elizabeth die. I was relieved to hear Kella’s voice. I was happy that she provided enough of a distraction allowing Jake and Greg to sneak in and get a drop on Tony’s men. I was pissed that I didn’t get to do the job myself.

  “That was my kill,” I roar, storming up to Kella. “You had no right to take it from me.”

  “From you?” she shot back hotly. “Were you the one she was torturing? The one she was starving and beating on?” She raises her hand to stop me before I can continue. “You had no right. You just wanted to play the hero and save the damsel in distress. I saved myself. I am no one’s victim.”

  I looked into her eyes and saw emptiness, hurt, and rage. Now isn’t the time for my anger. Reality is I am happy to see her, to know she is safe. I look her up and down and my thoughts stop. I saw Lexi when they brought her out, her face was bruised, and she looked worse for the wear, but it was nothing compared to Kella. Bruises covered her from head to toe. Her pupils were dilated, and she was wavering side to side. I could tell she was being starved, she was looking a few pounds lighter. Her mouth and neck are covered in blood, she looks like something out of a horror movie.

  I react without thinking, crushing her in my arms. She stiffens, immediately trying to push away before going limp. Gently, I pull her away from me, now that her adrenaline has worn off, everything is taking its toll and her body has given out. I scoop her up gingerly in my arms as Jake and Greg make short work of taking Lexi’s arms to help her stand.

  “Baby!” she squeals once she is ungagged. “I knew you would come for me!” She runs toward me, arms open before seeing me holding Kella.

  “You’re carrying her!?” she screeches, clearly upset at something so ridiculous despite everything she’s gone through. I shake my head.

  “One, not your baby, and two, yes, she is mine,” I reply curtly, holding Kella closer to my chest. We might not be okay right now, but I can’t deny how good it feels to hold her. To know that she is finally safe.

  “After all we’ve been through.” Lexi pouts. “You still choose her over me, your girlfriend? I was abused too, you know.”

  “Not my girlfriend,” I reply, tired of the time we’re wasting. “I planned to check on you too, but right now, she’s my priority.” I gently adjust Kella in my arms. She’s so fucking light. I feel horrible, she’s suffered for so long,

  “You do care!” Lexi’s face lights up more than it should, and I know that it will come back to bite me in the ass.

  At the hotel, I get a doctor who takes cash and doesn’t ask questions to make sure both girls are healthy enough to make the flight home. Four hours later, we’re in the air. I still haven’t stopped holding Kella.

  Once home, I gently lay Kella down in my bed again. She is back in my penthouse, in my bed. Where she should be. I shake the thought off, it was because of me Kella suffered. It was because of me she was put in danger. I knew it could never be.

  I walk out of the room giving her one last look before making my way to work.

  “Dad?” I hear Bree’s voice as I walk into Keegan’s. “Is she okay?”

  “She’ll be fine,” I reply with hope in my voice. “The doctor put her on some pain meds to keep her out for a bit so she can heal. I’m just here to talk to Lexi.”

  “Yeah, we know.” Declan wraps his arm around Bree protectively. With her mother dead, I’ve loosened Bree’s lockdown, but I still have her closely guarded because of Tony. “She’s already waiting in your office.” I groan at the thought of being in a room alone with Lexi, but this shit needs to be handled.

  “Baby!” she squeals, throwing her arms around my waist. I roll my eyes.

  “Lexi,” I say firmly as I pry her off me. “Feeling better?” I only ask to be polite, but it is a mistake, as she already seems to be springing back.

  “Still hurt, but your love will heal me.” She bats her lashes at me flirtatiously and I snort at her remark.

  “I don’t love you,” I begin, taking a seat behind my desk where she can’t reach me.
“Now, tell me what happened.”

  26

  Kella

  I wake up slowly, my mind finally breaking through the constant drug-induced fog. Memories flash through my mind, and I sit up quickly. I groan as a sharp pain erupts through my head. My body aches from head to toe. Slowly, I process everything running in a continuous cycle through my head. I was kidnapped. I saved myself. Elizabeth is dead. Good riddance. And Ron, I sigh. Ron is a chicken shit. I shake my head tsking. Of course he wouldn’t save me, I’m nothing to him.

  I huff taking in my surroundings. I am in a familiar room, in Ron’s penthouse. I see no sign of him and take it as my chance to escape. I know he doesn’t want me here and I don’t want to be here.

  A cold blast of air hits my skin as I crawl out of the warm bed. I look down to see I am only wearing my bra and panties. My face heats with embarrassment and anger. Who stripped me, and why? I hobble to the bathroom, looking at myself in the mirror. I am covered with bruises from my cheeks, to my arms, even on my stomach. I hurt just looking at myself, but it’s time to leave. I can feel sorry for myself later.

  I slowly make my way through the room, my eyes scanning for my clothes. Of course, they are nowhere to be found. I groan turning toward the closet. If Ron thinks he can take my clothes, then I’m taking his. Rummaging around, I manage to find some sweatpants and a T-shirt that are much too large for me but they’ll have to do. Putting them on gingerly, I make my way out into the cold, empty hallway. I creep around the corners, trying to find my way out, finally finding the front door.

  “And where do you think you’re going?” I hear Ron’s voice break the silence, my hand hovering over the doorknob. “And in my clothes no less?”