Force

by Becca Jameson

  She gasped and shook her head back and forth. “I was fine. I was in good hands until you pulled me the other direction, asshole.”

  “You were not fine. You were two seconds from being grabbed by men who wouldn’t hesitate to rape and rough you up before they disposed of your body in a way no one would ever find the pieces.”

  She shivered. “Why wouldn’t I believe that’s your intention?” She struggled again, jerking on her hands and screaming.

  The blond man covered her mouth this time. “Jesus. Listen to what we’re telling you. We need to get out of here. How do you think we know so much?”

  “How do you know so much?” She fought for every breath, confused. Scared out of her mind.

  “Told you. We’re with the good guys. You’re going to have to take our word for it. At least a dozen people in that speakeasy were paid to snag you. We’re two of them. The difference is, we were paid by the good guys.”

  “We have to go.” The blond looked anxious as he turned around. He jiggled his keys in one hand. “My car’s around this corner. Let’s make a run for it and see if we can get to it before someone catches us.”

  The darker man nodded. He lowered Lauren’s hands, grabbed one wrist, and pulled her along behind the blond.

  Lauren stumbled several times. She was not even close to feeling like she should trust these guys. If it was true there was a price put on her head, she couldn’t trust anyone.

  Except Dmitry.

  But she was no match for these two men, and she didn’t want to risk injury by going limp and having them drag her or worse, kill her in the alley. So she tried to keep up and avoid falling on her knees.

  It could be worse. Anyone who took her was better than Boris and Erik. She had no doubt those two would love to rape her half the night and then slowly cut her to small pieces.

  The car was indeed about a block away. It seemed farther under the circumstances. She moved her feet as fast as she could to keep up. Her gut told her this was her best option under the current circumstances, though she was scared out of her fucking mind.

  When the blond clicked a button to release the locks on an inconspicuous black sedan, she reeled back. Every instinct told her not to get in the vehicle.

  Suddenly the darker man opened the rear door and set a hand on her head to press her forward into the backseat.

  She had no choice but to crawl inside and scramble across to the other side. When she grabbed the handle of the door and pulled, nothing happened.

  She whimpered. “Please. Don’t do this. Whatever anyone told you about me, it’s not true. I’m just a regular woman who dated the wrong man six months ago. If you return me to his people, you’ll have to live with the guilt of my death for the rest of your lives.”

  The blond started the car and pulled away from the curb at the same time the darker man settled in the seat next to her and shut the door.

  “Lauren. No one’s going to hurt you. Give us a minute to find out where they’re taking Dmitry, and we’ll arrange for you to be with him as soon as it’s safe.”

  “Safe? I was safe inside the bar,” she shouted, throwing her hands in the air. “It wasn’t as if someone was going to shoot me in the head in the middle of that crowd.”

  The darker man blew out a breath. “You were never safe inside that speakeasy.” he muttered. “If the Russian mob hadn’t grabbed you first, the guys who ruffed up Dmitry and almost killed him would have done so.”

  “Why?”

  “They threatened to kill you if he fought. They have to follow through.”

  She inhaled sharply. Maybe these guys were telling the truth. Neither of them had made any move to hurt her. Or perhaps their orders had been to return her to Anton’s people unharmed.

  She huddled against the door, trying to put as much space as possible between her and her assailants.

  A low buzz sounded, and the darker man pulled a phone from his pocket. “Talk to me… Okay… Who? Where did she come from? Lord…” He ran a hand through his hair. “Yes… Okay… We’ll lay low and wait for your call then.” He ended the call and set the phone on his thigh.

  He turned his gaze toward Lauren. “Some woman from the crowd is tending to Dmitry. No one seems to know who she is. Perhaps a coincidence. Says she’s a doctor. She’s going to take him to her clinic. We’ll wait to find out where that is.”

  Lauren stared at him. He seemed sincere. Maybe he would return her to her friends. For the first time since these men had grabbed her, she felt a glimmer of hope.

  »»•««

  “I’m not leaving here without Lauren,” Dmitry mumbled. He squeezed his eyes shut and rocked his head against the hard floor. How the fuck had Boris and Erik been in Chicago, and he hadn’t known? If they had their hands on her… He rolled his mouth closer to the floor, bile rising in his throat. The pain was probably enough to make him vomit by itself, but the thought of those two jackasses getting to Lauren almost made him retch.

  Leo kneeled at his side until he could get right in Dmitry’s face. “You’re going to have to trust me on this. Abram said she’s safe. We need to move you to this woman’s clinic and get you evaluated. Lauren will catch up with you there.”

  “Safe? I saw Boris and Erik in the crowd.”

  Leo nodded. “And they’re still out there. I saw them moments ago. They don’t have Lauren.”

  “They could have hired someone else to grab her.” Dmitry held his breath between sentences.

  “I’m not sure they’re savvy enough to do that. Plus, how could they have known she would be at the fight to arrange such a kidnapping?”

  Dmitry glared at Leo. He was in so much pain, he couldn’t think straight. “You better not be fucking with me.”

  “Abram says she’s fine.”

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s out back. He’s going to drive us to the clinic. Can we go now?”

  “Fine.” Dmitry let his head thump back, defeated.

  Leo blew out a breath and stood. “Okay. Let’s go.” He turned toward the doctor. “Do you have a car?”

  She shook her head. “No. I came with someone.”

  “Where is that person?”

  She looked away. “No idea. Not my concern right now.” She stared down at Dmitry. “I’m a doctor. It’s in my blood to help people. Your friend needs medical attention. Can we focus on that and get out of here?”

  Leo nodded agreement.

  Dmitry seemed to float out of his body as he watched this unfold. It was unimaginable to him that he would leave Lauren behind.

  But twenty minutes later, he climbed out of the back seat of Abram’s car and limped toward the door of a dark medical clinic that was obviously not open at this time of night. He leaned against the wall as the woman unlocked the clinic and pulled the door open.

  She flipped on lights inside the waiting room and headed directly to the far side of the room to open another door to the back of the office. “I’m Dr. Schwan, by the way. Call me Katie.”

  Leo took one side of Dmitry, and Mikhail took the other. They guided him through the waiting room and into an exam room down a short hall. They eased him onto the narrow bed against the wall.

  Dmitry winced as he let himself relax onto his right side. “Who’s got Lauren?”

  “She’s safe. On her way here.” Leo backed toward the door as Dr. Schwan prodded Dmitry again. He faced the doctor. “Fix him.” And then he was gone.

  The woman scowled and shook her head as she met Dmitry’s gaze. “Your friends are so warm and friendly.”

  He ignored her snarky comment and flinched as she hit a sensitive spot.

  She pulled an ultrasound machine to his side, lubed the tip of the probe, and set it against him. Without a word, she pressed the probe around his back and side, her attention focused on the screen next to his head. “You said you injured yourself twelve days ago?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did the doctor find then? Did he do an ultrasound or an MRI?
”

  “Ultrasound,” Mikhail said. “He said Dmitry needed several months rest to allow his kidney to heal.”

  “I see you’re a very obedient patient,” she muttered, pressing several buttons on the machine at her side and continuing to torture him with her probe.

  Abram stepped into the room. “Lauren will be here in five. Leo’s meeting her out front.”

  Dmitry tried to breathe easier. It was impossible. Until he had her in his sights, there was no way he could relax.

  Finally, Dr. Katie wiped off his side and sat back. “You’re going to live. But you’re lucky. Your kidney’s still attached. I was afraid it had pulled away from the lining. You absolutely can’t fight again in this condition. The kidney will undoubtedly be bruised. It needs time to heal.”

  “He won’t be fighting, doc,” Abram said.

  Dmitry jerked his gaze toward his manager and friend. “You gonna pay the rent?”

  Abram smirked. “I think you’ll find your earnings from tonight sufficient enough to keep you afloat.”

  The door burst open again, and Lauren ran into the room, Leo at her back.

  “Jesus, baby.” Dmitry reached out a hand toward her.

  She threw herself at him, wrapping her small arms around his neck and squeezing him tight.

  “What the hell happened? Where were you?”

  Tears ran down her face as she pulled back. “I was so scared when you left that cage.”

  “I’m fine.”

  She ran a hand down his body as if to prove to herself he was truly alive and well. She lifted her face and glanced around the room until she made eye contact with Dr. Katie. “Is he going to make it?”

  The doctor nodded. “If he stops fighting.”

  He grabbed her hand and pulled it to his lips to kiss her knuckles. “Who were you with? Why did you separate from Mikhail?”

  She shrugged. “No idea who they were. Two guys grabbed me right out of Mikhail’s grip and dragged me out of the bar and stuffed me in their car. They never said who they were, just that they were the good guys and that there were about a dozen people at that fight who were there to grab me.”

  “And you believed these mystery men?” He lifted himself onto his elbow, wincing.

  “No.” She growled. “But I wasn’t exactly a match for their strength. It wasn’t as if I had choices and I jumped into their car without question.”

  “Of course. Sorry.” He squeezed her hand and then turned toward Leo. “Did you see them? Do you know who they were?”

  Leo shook his head. “No. And they sped away as soon as they dropped her off.”

  Abram spoke next. “I’m not surprised. There were definitely men there with a bounty on both your heads. It’s not hard to believe there were good guys in the crowd watching the bad guys too.”

  Dmitry wasn’t buying it. “You’re trying to tell me there were people in that crowd who went out of their way to save my woman from the hands of Yenin’s men out of the kindness of their hearts?”

  “Wasn’t just Yenin they saved me from,” Lauren added. She glared at Dmitry. “Why didn’t you tell me those guys who attacked you behind the bar threatened me?”

  Dmitry winced. How the fuck did she know that? “Didn’t want to scare you more.” He lifted his gaze to Abram. “How did you know she was safe?”

  “A man grabbed my arm, handed me a slip of paper with a number, and told me to call it.” He shrugged. “That place was crawling with cops. Undercover agents from every damn department. Who knows what they were there for, but I’m betting they didn’t want Lauren killed in the mayhem.”

  Leo sighed. “It’s possible. There’s no way to know how huge this Russian thing is. There could have been twenty men there with eyes on the Russians.” He chuckled. “Hell, us. Perhaps some of them worked for the government or something. I suspect Yenin’s people, or Grigory’s, have something much larger going on than any of us are aware of. And that’s just the Russians. Obviously there were others who weren’t fond of you fighting tonight, either.”

  “Especially if that many people are chasing Lauren and me around town.” He turned toward her. “We have to get the hell out of Chicago.” He held his breath, hoping she wouldn’t balk. He’d never intended to return to the apartment tonight. Win or lose, that was his last fight. He needed to get her safe somewhere and fast.

  Abram set a hand on Dmitry’s leg. “You’re going. It’s all arranged.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Abram pulled out a thick envelope from his back pocket. He opened the unsealed flap and extracted a pile of money, which he handed to Dmitry. “That will be enough to get you started in a new place.”

  Dmitry didn’t look at the money. He gripped it in one hand and continued to stare at the envelope.

  Abram handed him two passports next. “New identities.” And then he removed two plane tickets. “I think you’ll like it here.” He handed both to Dmitry. “You’re on the first flight out tomorrow morning.”

  Abram turned to face the doctor. “Can they stay here until morning? I promise no trouble. It’s not safe for them to return to their apartment.”

  Dr. Schwan nodded. Her eyes were wide. She wasn’t used to this level of nefarious activity.

  Abram turned toward Mikhail. “Tell me where Alena is. I’ll have someone pick her up. That apartment isn’t safe anymore. I’ll get someone to pack your belongings, and we’ll find you a safer location in the morning.”

  Mikhail nodded. He hadn’t said anything for several minutes.

  Leo turned toward the doctor. “Thank you. For everything.”

  Katie licked her lips as she met his gaze. “It’s what I do.”

  Leo grinned. “It’s far more than that, and you know it.” He set a hand on her cheek, shocking Dmitry. He’d never seen Leo approach a woman with such care. “You probably saved Dmitry’s life.”

  “I didn’t do anything except prove he wasn’t bleeding out.”

  Leo’s smile broadened. “Yes, you did. You provided a distraction and made it impossible for anyone to snag Dmitry after the fight.”

  She nodded. “Am I harboring fugitives now?”

  Leo chuckled. “No. Nothing like that. These are the good guys. The bad guys are still out there. No one here has committed any crime outside of fighting underground.”

  She bit her lower lip and turned toward Dmitry. “I’ll take a blood sample and make sure it’s safe to travel. In the morning I’ll do another ultrasound and draw more blood to make sure you’re still okay.”

  Dmitry pulled Lauren in closer as he met the doctor’s gaze. “Thank you so much.” He held the envelope with his free hand. Abram had stuffed everything back inside. No one mentioned what their new identities were or where they were headed in the morning. That was for the best.

  Even Dmitry hadn’t looked yet. He and Lauren would sort it out privately. Dmitry lifted his gaze toward Abram. Why was the man helping them out? In Dmitry’s mind, no one ever did anything for nothing.

  Abram smiled. “Get healthy. I’ll stay in touch with you from time to time. Lie low. Don’t fight any more.”

  Dmitry nodded. He didn’t know what to say. Abram had proven he was indeed a man of his word. One of the good guys.

  “We’ll give you two some time alone,” Leo said. He ushered everyone from the room, leaving Dmitry staring at Lauren, who had tears running down her face.

  “You scared the fuck out of me.”

  He smiled as best he could. His face hurt. His eyes were swollen. Even his mouth cracked open on one corner. He ignored it. “Sorry. Won’t happen again.”

  “You’ll stop fighting?”

  “Yes.”

  She flinched. “Really?”

  “Done.”

  “Where’re we going?”

  “No idea. Let’s leave it a surprise until we get to the airport.” He hesitated, trying to read her face. “You okay?”

  “Yeah. I guess.” She fidgeted next to him. “If I have to b
e on the run, at least I know I’m in good hands.”

  “Hopefully this will be the end of it.”

  “You believe that?”

  “I have to.”

  »»•««

  Abram smiled as he lowered himself into his office chair and answered the call on his cell phone. “Anton Yenin. Heard you got out of the slammer. How are things in Vegas? How’s your dad? I heard he hasn’t been well lately.”

  “Cut the shit, Gromov.”

  “What? You didn’t call to shoot the breeze with an old friend?”

  “I want my men back.”

  “What men? Oh, you mean the three guys who came to me asking me to manage them so they could make a living while you were in jail? Those guys?”

  “I’m out. And I want my men back.” Abram could hear the barely contained fury in Anton’s voice.

  “I don’t think so. Maybe if your father had given two fucks about them while he was in charge, they wouldn’t have come to me. But they fight for me now. You lose. And you can tell your cronies to get out of town too. Those two idiots wouldn’t know their ass from their nose. I heard they couldn’t even manage to hold on to one tiny woman. If I were you, I’d seek better help.”

  “I want the woman back too.”

  “What woman?”

  Anton’s voice rose. “You fucking know who I’m talking about. Lauren Schneider. Bitch dissed me. She’s mine.” Abram imagined spittle coming out of the other man’s mouth.

  “Lauren. Huh? Name sounds familiar. But I don’t know her. She give you the slip again?” Abram chuckled deep and low, knowing he would annoy the piss out of Anton.

  “You’re on my last nerve, Gromov.”

  Abram sobered and spoke tersely to Yenin. “Listen, you little shit. You’ve been on my last nerve for years. I don’t know what stunt you’re trying to pull in Vegas that requires you to employ six fighters with such fascination, but I’m telling you to back the fuck off. These three are not yours anymore. So accept that and simmer down. And if I hear a peep out of anyone that you or your men are back in my city trying to lure my men again, I won’t hesitate to fuck with you. Got it?”

  There was a pause.

  Abram held his breath. He didn’t have the means to fuck with Yenin. He could only hope Yenin didn’t call that bluff.