by Vic Tyler
With the little bit of money I earn from working for Mach, I buy supplies and make little handmade gifts for them. Like a mousepad with one of his favorite anime characters for Jura, a beaded bracelet for Kitty, and an organizational display box for Damien and his beloved knife collection.
Out of everyone, West is the only person I buy a present for because I feel like his standards might be too high. So I got him a pair of black slippers.
I don’t know when his real birthday is, and he doesn’t tell me, but I decided to make his interim birthday the day we met.
He didn’t want the present at first, but there wasn’t much he could do when I left it in his den.
Sometimes, he wears them when I go to the den, so I guess he does like them.
And for everyone, I ask Hilda to help me bake cake and treats for them, although she gets annoyed since there’s always a birthday every week or two. But besides my own shenanigans, birthdays are just any other day here.
“Can I open it now?” I ask eagerly.
“Do whatever you want.”
Jura freezes before he suddenly waves me away and turns back to his computer. “Actually, go open it in your room. You’re going to make this awkward.”
“But I want to open it here,” I protest.
Scowling, Jura rolls his chair over to me and shoves me towards the door. He can’t quite keep eye contact for once, his cheeks tinged pink, and it’s the cutest I’ve ever seen him act.
Although he pushes me over the threshold and slams the door in my face.
I guess Kitty put him up to it since Damien’s not here, and she’s leaving today. Plus, she likes to harass Jura.
I debate opening it right here and now, but even then, I don’t think Jura will open his door, and I don’t want to open the present in the middle of this empty living room.
So I wave at the camera in the corner before I run downstairs and to the other side of the mansion.
My body thrums with excitement, and my heart pounds ecstatically.
I can’t wait to see what it is.
At midnight, I’m still playing with the ivory chess set that West gave me for my birthday when I saw him earlier in the evening.
It’s small and light enough for me to carry — very portable with its own case and boxes for the pieces. I could probably even take it to Jura and play with him.
But West’s genuine warmth over the past few months is a much better gift. It’s been a slight and gradual process, and most of it is still masked, but I think he’s finally warming up to me a little bit.
It’s been awhile since we last met since he’s busy nowadays, and he said he’ll be busy tomorrow too.
I wonder if he and Jura are working on something together. I’ve only seen Jura go into West’s office a couple of times, but it’s hard to imagine the two of them talking.
When a yawn breaks out, I brush my teeth and rummage through my drawers.
And right at midnight, my phone pings.
I finish shoving my arm into my pink capped–sleeve nightgown and check my messages.
Damien
Happy bday
My heart pounds, and I quickly call him.
The phone rings twice before abruptly stopping.
“Shouldn’t you be going to sleep?” Damien’s deep voice makes my skin tingle, and I involuntarily shudder.
I haven’t talked to him in so long. Maybe I should call him more often.
“I was just about to.” I jump on my bed. “If you wish me ‘happy birthday’ in two minutes, you’ll be the first person to wish me a real ‘happy birthday’ as soon as I actually turn fifteen.”
He chuckles. “You were born at midnight?”
“Midnight–oh–two,” I correct.
“Alright. One more minute.”
We joke around as we count down the seconds, arguing about exactly what time it is since his clock seems to be running eighteen seconds faster.
“Three, two, one,” I cheer.
“Happy birthday, Adriana.” He laughs. “You’re officially fifteen.”
“Thanks, Damien.” My cheeks hurt from smiling so big.
I fall back on the bed and feel a tickle as my necklace shifts. I immediately bolt upright.
Turning to the full–length mirror, I catch my reflection, and my smile widens when I see the gift that he, Kitty, and Jura bought for me.
The silvery white necklace glistens in the light. Just below the hollow between my collarbones, the single upturned wing shines and twinkles with the light pink gem accents threaded into the metal like feathers. The drop chain that extends below is even thinner than the rest of the chain, extending a few inches down with a small teardrop pink gem at the end.
“Thank you for the present,” I say softly, my fingers brushing over the pendant. Even though it’s made of metal — probably silver — I’m scared to break it. “It’s beautiful.”
He chuckles. “Kitty and Jura pitched in too.”
“I know.” I texted them both already. I could’ve texted Damien too, but I wanted to talk to him and tell him myself. “Who picked it out?”
A beat of silence goes by before he responds, “We all did. Kitty said girls like jewelry, and she insisted on getting that style.”
He doesn’t say more than that, so I press on. “And the pendant?”
Damien’s voice gets a little quieter with a begrudging tone. “Jura picked the color of the diamonds.”
I freeze. Diamonds?
I thought they were rose quartz or something. I already felt bad that they bought me something so expensive, but I would’ve never guessed how expensive it’d be.
The line is silent, and it doesn’t seem like Damien’s going to say anything else. So he must’ve picked out the pendant itself then.
“Only one wing?” My giggle sounds pitchy and nervous. “I can’t fly anywhere with one wing.”
“We thought about matching earrings, but you don’t have your ears pierced, do you?”
I touch my unpunctured earlobes. Maybe I should get them pierced. “No.”
He chuckles. “Probably wouldn’t be able to fly with three wings either.”
“Then I guess that means I can’t go anywhere.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“You’re stuck with me.” I pause before adding, “Forever.”
He chuckles awkwardly. “Maybe we should’ve gotten you earrings instead then.”
“I’m okay with my one wing.” My fingers brush over the pendant. “I don’t have anywhere to go. And I want to stay.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” A note of disapproval laces his voice like it usually does when I tell him I like it here.
“I like everyone. And no one’s hurt me.” I even think they might like me. Maybe. “And even if someone tries, you’ll stop them.”
His voice comes out with slow reluctance. “Yeah.”
“And if anyone does, then you’ll punish them.”
He pauses. “Adriana…”
“That’s why you killed all those men, right?”
He doesn’t answer.
“You stabbed them where it’d hurt most, and then you shot them and took their teeth.”
He sharply inhales. “Adriana —”
“Why, Damien?”
His voice lowers. “How did you know all that?”
“Answer me first.”
“You don’t want to know.”
“It’s my birthday, Damien. Tell me.”
“This is not the sort of thing you bargain for,” he growls. “It’s not a ‘present.’”
“The men who hurt me are gone. And I want to know why you did it. Don’t I deserve that at least?”
He exhales slowly. The line is quiet for a few moments before he answers, “Because they deserved it. People like that shouldn’t live, so I did what I had to.”
“Did you have to?” My heart pounds fast, dreading the answer either way. “Did West tell you to do it?”
; “No.” Damien sighs. “You’re safe, Adriana. You don’t have to worry about them anymore. Ever.”
“You can’t just get rid of everyone. There will always be more people like them out there.”
“And I’ll get every single one,” he says with a low fierceness to his tone. “You’ll never have to be scared again. I’ll keep you safe.”
“You can’t guarantee always. It’s impossible.”
He’s quiet for a long second. “I’ll make it happen for you, Adriana. I’ll protect you. Always.”
I swallow hard as my heart pounds in my chest. “You’ll always be there for me?”
“Yes.”
“Promise?”
“Of course.” After a beat, he asks, “So how did you find out?”
My fingers fiddle with the hem of my dress. “Promise me you won’t hurt them. Or get rid of them. Or let anyone else hurt them.”
“I —” He groans. “If someone’s spilling details they shouldn’t, I can’t not do anything about it.”
“It wasn’t anyone from the organization.”
He’s quiet as he tries to wrap his head around it and figure it out. “Then who?”
“Promise?” I press.
He sighs. “Fine.”
“One of the maids is dating someone from the police force, and he apparently talks too much. She said she didn’t tell him anything, and I don’t think she’d lie. Plus, she’s not a bad person. She always gives me an extra slice of cake.”
He chuckles. “So she’s the one fattening you up?”
I pout. “Nuh uh.”
“Pretty soon, I’ll be able to roll you down the stairs,” he teases. “Alright. If you trust her, then I’ll defer to your judgment. Don’t tell me any more. It’s better if I don’t know.”
He trusts me. That brings a smile to my face before it fades. “Will you do me one more favor?”
Warily, he asks, “What is it?”
“Don’t kill anyone else.” As touched as I am, this doesn’t feel right. “Not for me. I’m so happy that you and Jura care, but I can’t live with the fact that more people might die because of me.”
“This isn’t like Rodion Stepanov, Adriana.” His voice lowers dangerously. “They’ll hurt more girls. Girls just like you.”
“There are other ways to help them. Some of those men are powerful.” I shake my head even though he can’t see me. “And I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
He laughs, amused. “Nothing will happen to me. Nothing can protect them from me.”
“You don’t know that. What if you get hurt because of me? What if you die?” My voice quivers. “I don’t want that to happen, Damien.”
His voice strains. “These are the same men in Andrei Stepanov’s circles. They won’t change. They’ll continue as long as they’re not stopped.”
I swallow. “How many?”
“What?”
“How many more people are on your list? The big ones?”
“I —” He halts before continuing reluctantly, “Four frequenters.”
I take in a deep breath. I can’t believe I’m saying this. Allowing this to happen. “Then stop after those four.”
For a moment, he’s silent. I think he’s about to refuse when he says in a clipped tone, “Fine.” He almost sounds angry.
The line is quiet for a few moments. Cautiously, I ask, “What do you do with the teeth?”
“Nothing.” His voice is even again. “I throw them away, so you can’t have them even if you want them.”
“I don’t. But why do you do it?”
“I don’t know.” He pauses for a second. “It just seems appropriate.”
“Thank you, Damien.”
He grunts. “Go to sleep.”
“Okay. You should too.”
After exchanging ‘good nights’, we hang up, and I sit on my bed, feeling simultaneously lighter and heavier.
Looking at my phone, I wish I could see him now. I wanted to tell him that, but I was too scared to.
I type out a text message, my fingers slowly hitting each key. My heart races as I look at the words. And as I take a deep breath, I hit ‘send.’
Me
I miss you
Immediately, the ‘read’ message pops up underneath it. My heart races in nervous anticipation.
And there’s no response.
I wait a few more minutes. And then a few more. And soon enough, thirty minutes have gone by.
Jerk.
My heart falls heavily in my chest, and I crawl into bed.
As much as I want a response, I’m not going to wait up just to feel worse about not getting one.
It takes a while for me to go to sleep, but when I do, it’s fitful and restless.
The next morning, when I wake up, I find a new message from Damien an hour after I sent the text.
Damien
Miss u too, squirt. Happy bday
Stupid.
But for the rest of the day, there’s a huge smile on my face that won’t go away.
chapter nineteen
Months later
Damien is back!
As soon as the gates opened and Kitty’s red Jaguar peeled into the gravel driveway, I was on my feet, bolting out the door.
I’ve been waiting, planted right by the window, ever since I got the notification that his plane landed.
It’s already been six and a half months since everyone left, and Damien is the first to arrive.
I know he’ll head straight to West’s office, but I don’t want to wait until he’s done to see him.
By the time I skid into the foyer, Damien and Kitty are already down the side hall.
Next to Kitty’s petite figure, her long hair fluttering with each step, Damien’s black attired form looks even taller and broader than I remember.
Digging my foot into the tiled floor, I launch forward at my school’s track record–breaking speed.
Damien shifts his bag off his shoulder, and the motion looks so casual that you’d think he was just adjusting it, but I know he knows I’m here.
Kitty, on the other hand, glances back, and her hazel contact lensed eyes follow me as I sprint towards them.
She smiles, brushing an auburn lock behind her ear. It’s amazing how her hair stays so full and luscious considering how often she dyes it.
She’ll occasionally change appearances for her missions, and when she does, she stays in character twenty–four–seven like an intense method actress.
I leap onto Damien’s back, throwing my arms around his neck and attaching myself onto him like a monkey. He stumbles forward with a grunt.
“Have you been sneaking extra cheesecake again?” His voice is deep and silky smooth, making my stomach flutter.
Even though we talked on the phone every so often when I called, it’s different when that rich, velvety sound blooms in my ears, and I can feel the vibrations in his chest.
He smells clean with a hint of soap underlying his masculine, unique scent. He’d never be able to disguise himself from me since I can recognize him anywhere.
“Are you calling me fat?” I demand, a tinge of worry seeping through me that I might be too heavy.
He chuckles, and the sound warms me from the inside out. I don’t know how he manages to make his laughs sound so secretive, and they’re always a treat to hear.
“I never said that.” His large hand reaches back to pat my hair, and I’m glad he can’t see me blush. “Have you forgotten to clean your ears with no one around to remind you?”
Rolling my eyes, I slide off him and cross my arms.
“I came all the way downstairs to welcome you home, and this is the thanks I get?” I whine.
“Don’t feel bad. He fell asleep in the car as soon as he got in,” Kitty purrs. “Didn’t bother with ‘hi’ or anything.”
When she breaks character and leans forward, grinning coyly, I get a full view of her generous cleavage.
Overly conscious that my breasts don
’t push together like hers, I’m thankful that I wore this shirt that covers me completely.
Well, all my shirts do because it still makes me anxious when men look at me for too long. I wish I had Kitty’s confidence and that sexy aura she radiates.
When Damien turns around, my heart stutters.
His black hair is a little longer than usual — messy but effortlessly sexy. His crystal blue eyes stand out even more against his tanned skin.
He looks older and hotter, while I’m still struggling to fill out my push–up bras and jumping around to tackle him.
No wonder he and Kitty make such a good couple.
I take a deep, controlled breath, feeling an unwelcome surge of jealousy sting through me.
I love Kitty. I really do.
But I love Damien too.
My face heats up at the thought.
Hopefully it’s not noticeable. It took me a while to admit it, and I can probably thank Jenny for drilling it into my head that I sometimes question whether she brainwashed me into thinking I love Damien. But even if she did, I can’t deny that there’s an element of truth to it.
“You should join the football team” he teases, ruffling my hair. “You’ll bulldoze everyone on the field with that tackle.”
I stick out my tongue. “Oh, please, I’ll be the one racing down the field and scoring touchdowns.”
His lips curl into a beautiful smile, and it feels like I’m seeing it for the first time all over again.
Even though I can stare at him all day, I look away quickly. It’d be too embarrassing if he caught me drooling.
I run ahead of Damien and Kitty to West’s office and knock on the door.
“I’m just going to drop in and say hi,” I explain shyly. “West’s been busy lately, so I haven’t seen him either.”
The door clicks, and I enter the warm, cozy room, followed closely by Damien and Kitty.
Standing by his window like he usually does when he’s in business–mode, West smiles affectionately when he sees us.
My heart lifts, and I take it as an invitation to run into his arms, tackling his big belly.
