Afon

by Esther E. Schmidt

  Marlon gets to his feet. “I just came back from the airport but I could stay and help out or get some of my guys down here, whatever you need.”

  Peacock puts a hand on his shoulder. “Stay for a few hours, annoy that pixie woman of yours and if all goes quietly you can head out and get some rest. Ricca brought some of his men, Ford has his guys in place and brought extra and I have a few guys coming in too. We’ve got it all covered. No way Marco can slide inside unnoticed. I say let him fucking try. Like Afon said, he’ll come to us and that...will make our job easier.”

  I check my watch and see it’s almost time for the guests to arrive. “Okay guys, I’m going to head over to check on a few things. Then I’ll see if the women are ready to come down.”

  “Ah, yeah, the women. Isn’t it time yet you had one of those?” Peacock taunts Ricca.

  Ricca winces. “Don’t remind me. I’ve got one locked up in my bedroom, that’s enough for now.” Ricca rubs his neck. “She’s a damn stunner and a feisty one. She almost kicked me in the jewels when I went in to talk to her. Talk about a different kind of bedroom action.” Ricca chuckles while the rest of the guys, including me, burst out in laughter.

  Chapter 18

  This is going to get messy.

  ***Andy***

  “Are you sure you don’t want to see the one I brought with me?” Unique asks and puts her bags near the door.

  We’re in the bedroom. Tarzan wanted us girls to get together so Ruby can do my hair while we can ‘discuss our annoying men’ as she puts it. And to be honest, this is what I need. Girl time. It’s a ‘who cares, let’s drop everything and just talk’ moment all women need every once in a while.

  Besides…I really like having a friend do my hair. When my mom was killed, I was only ever around guys. Ricca and his three buddies, who were like extra brothers, all testosterone in the house and no one to talk girl stuff with. So, this moment right here? With the four of us in the same life as I am, our men work together…talk about a strong connection. Some women have a book club, we have a whole different kind of kick ass club. We workout together and share gory details about how best to end someone as if we’re discussing the best shade of lipstick.

  It’s twisted but in a good way. And I know there are five of us in the room, but I’ve not been around Unique for that long. Karma did tell me that Unique’s father was one of the best hitmen that was ever alive. She hasn’t had an easy life either. On top of that Marlon seems to want her; she clearly has a thing for him and yet there’s this wall between them where mud gets thrown against every time they go near each other. It’s weird.

  I think about Unique’s question but I’m sure. “Nah, because if I see it I know I’ll have a hard time picking between two gorgeous dresses and now I don’t have to choose because the one hanging in my closet is too freaking perfect already.”

  “I wanna see. Maybe I’ll shrug out of this one and put it on,” Tarzan quips.

  “Oh, shut up. You already look like a killer in that one.” Ruby waves her hand toward Tarzan who’s wearing a dark blue cocktail dress with golden heels underneath.

  Tarzan raises her eyebrow. “Duh, I am a killer. But the dress is smokin’, I know.”

  Tarzan shakes her head. “Well, Ruby, you look hot in that green dress with the nice ‘I’ll show you my thigh when I strut on over’ element in there, and that baby bump is looking smooth too. It really suits you. I bet Yegor is drooling with every step you take.” Ruby beams at Tarzan but Tarzan is sliding a hand over her waist. “I’m pulling off this tight, silky thing but shit…not for long because this belly is going to swell for months. Then it’s baby puke and working my ass off to get all that pregnancy weight off because all I do is eat. Ford is handfeeding me and that fucker enjoys watching me grow. I might need to kill him if he keeps this up because he’s seriously the one to blame for knocking me up.”

  All our mouths are hanging open while we listen to Tarzan’s ramblings. She glances at us and shrugs. “What?”

  “You’re pregnant?” Karma squeaks.

  “Uhmmm, yeah?” Tarzan’s cheeks heat. “I should have said that instead of rambling out my frustrations, huh?”

  “Well, duh.” Karma chuckles while she launches herself at Tarzan, hugging her while all of us head on over and join in.

  “I can’t believe it. I’m so happy for you,” Ruby gushes.

  My chest squeezes due to the look on Tarzan’s face. She’s been through so much and yet she’s finally found her place. Ford is treating her like a queen. Her face is practically glowing with happiness.

  My mind wanders to Afon. How he’s picked me up when I was at my worst, never judging and yet with determination pushed me back up in a solid way where our connection grew into something bigger. To a point where I now think about what it would be like to have a future with kids of our own. I haven’t even had him inside my body yet and here I go letting my mind wonder because I can…he gives me everything. Allows me to dream, crave, hold out my hand and grab hold of everything within our reach.

  “You’re going to be a stunning pregnant woman and an even more beautiful mommy. I’m sure. Congratulations,” I tell her and squeeze her tight.

  “Yeah, well, you bet my fat thighs, ass, and belly that will all be growing like weeds. But I can’t wait. Just look at you two.” Karma and Ruby give each other a look before Tarzan continues. “I can’t believe our kids will all grow up together.”

  “Hang on, I need to show you something. I’ve got a Pinterest board filled with ideas about a nursery.” Karma grabs her phone out of her purse and hands it to me.

  She’s got a thing for skulls. “I could spend hours checking those pictures, clicking on it and then watch all those other related pictures. Pinterest is like a maze. Once you get sucked in, time becomes irrelevant.” I chuckle and hand the phone back. “You girls look and I’ll be right back. I’m gonna grab my dress from the other room and get dressed, then you can start to fuss with my hair, okay?”

  All their eyes are locked on Karma’s phone when I open the sliding doors to the large room next to the bedroom. It’s actually one big room separated by sliding doors, Afon made it into a room just for me, well…for my clothes. It has a tiny desk and a tiny couch that’s more for Dozor to lie on because he’s always following me around. It has a large built-in closet with rustic wild west swinging doors. There’s no other way to explain it.

  The corner of my mouth twitches. These last three weeks Afon’s been working on the house while pampering me back to my old self. The changes he made, like the room I’m standing in, shows I’m not just a piece of property for him…something he acquired by signing a contract. Everything he does for and to me shows how much he cares. I feel special, treasured, adored…loved.

  It’s in his eyes. Although I’m not ready to voice those three words, it’s clear as the steady beating of my heart. I love that man. And based on his actions and tenderness the feelings are mutual. Maybe I do need to tell him, I wonder as my hands reach for the swinging doors of the built-in closet, but I’m thrown back when they burst open my way.

  The wind is knocked out of me with a solid punch to my gut before I’m being spun around, feeling cold steel pressing against my temple. “Thought you could take it all from me, bitch? Think again.”

  Marco.

  Fuck. Shit. Dammit. And what the actual hell? Glancing around the room I see a tiny window that’s slightly open. How the hell did he pass security? Dammit, think. Weapons, what should I do? My mind throws around different options within a nanosecond that won’t end up with my brains exiting out of my skull since there’s a barrel of a gun pressing against the side of my head.

  Common sense kicks in first. When you’re in this position…someone behind you, never lean back. Then you can easily be brought to the ground. I have to keep him against me, grab the wrist that’s holding the gun, and throw him to the ground while disarming him. Easy right? Nose, throat, knees, elbows, weak points, one single hit, smoo
th turns. Options, dilemmas, fractions of seconds where different scenarios play out, and yet all I have to do is breathe and let instinct kick in.

  In one fluid motion I grab the hand holding the gun and point it away from me. I step aside and slam my arm down in the space created to hit his groin, hit back up to smack his nose, and twist his arm so he has no other option than to crash to the ground while I keep his arm at an unnatural angle. I throw the gun out of the room, hoping the girls will notice I’m having an issue in here.

  My necklace swings from my movement and a smile spreads on my face. Afon’s gift. I take the pendant in my hand and a slight ache in my chest burns when I rip off the necklace. With my knee pressing down on Marco and his arm locked in a painful grip, he’s not going anywhere. Right now, I’m going to make damn sure he’s not leaving this room until he’s not breathing anymore. But I need time to make him suffer. That’s the reason why my sharp pocketknife slices through skin, making sure to cut straight through both his Achilles tendons. Yeah, he’s going nowhere. His scream fills the room when I notice the girls storming inside.

  “Now why are you having fun all alone in here? No fair,” Tarzan sulks, enjoying the view in front of her.

  A smile spreads my face fueled by adrenaline. “Because he’s mine to play with.”

  “We can see that,” Karma says, leaning back against the wall.

  “Want me to inform the guys…you know, let your man in on it too…or do you want to finish this yourself?” Tarzan questions, phone in hand.

  I let go of Marco’s wrist and kick the fucker in the face. “Nope, I’m good. You ladies might need to step out of the room, because this is going to get messy.”

  “Okay then,” Ruby quips. “Unique, show me what you have in your bag. I’d rather check out the clothes you brought instead of getting blood on the dress I’m wearing.” She looks over her shoulder at me when she stalks out of the room. “Have fun.”

  I zone those girls out and let my gaze slide over Marco’s body, a plan already forming in my head. Oh, yeah…I’m going to have fun alright.

  Chapter 19

  She’s my goddamn wife.

  ***Afon***

  “What the fuck is taking them so long?” Ford mutters.

  He’s thrumming his fingers on the table. Guests are already arriving and it’s good Ricca is handling most of it, making sure everybody is welcomed. My phone gives a buzz from an incoming message. When I check I see it’s from Tarzan, telling me they have a situation, but that it’s contained.

  “Shall I go check?” Yegor asks Ford. “They never take long to get ready, maybe something’s wrong.”

  “There’s an ex-assassin, who happens to be my wife…three others are trained to handle at least three men attacking at the same time, and Unique, who I’m sure can handle herself too. Any problem they might run into in a bedroom upstairs in a damn house that’s tight with security…I’m sure they can handle,” Peacock grumbles.

  “But it sure would be nice if they’d hurry the fuck up. I mean…if this pregnancy shit means women will be taking hours to talk and shit…that would be kind of annoying and time consuming.” Ford sighs.

  “What?” Peacock’s eyes are bulging. “You got your woman pregnant too?”

  A shit-eating grin spreads across Ford’s face. “Fuck yeah. We’ve been keeping it quiet, but she was going to tell the girls tonight, so that must be the reason why they’re taking so damn long.”

  A loud crash and the sound of glass shattering rips through the air. We all watch as a body lands on the floor that appears to have been thrown through a window, with gunfire blasting through the air the next second. All of us, and the guests, in the room take cover while Marlon grabs his bag and rushes out of the room.

  “What the actual fuck?” Peacock grumbles. “This your idea of having a mob engagement party? Throw a body along with a few bullets into the celebration? Fuck.”

  Ford crawls closer, Yegor and Ricca are within earshot too.

  “Esposito?” Ford raises an eyebrow in question at Ricca.

  Ricca shakes his head. “No. That fucker already brought the heat on his ass with the stupid shit he pulled. He’s not ready to be terminated by the syndicate. Esposito might be a stupid asshole but there’s no way he’d go for a suicide mission like that.”

  “Marco,” Yegor grumbles. “He’s got two men working with him. We have to assume it’s them because we have no other outstanding vendettas, right? Or did you bring some shit that got stuck underneath your shoe?” Yegor directs the question at Peacock.

  “Me? Fuck no, only you idiots are dipped in shit. My woman is fucking pregnant, no way am I risking war or outstanding vendettas. Everything is fucking handled on my end. I’m betting it’s Marco. But stay put though. Marlon is out there. If it’s just three fuckers he’ll take them out.”

  We all watch as one idiot jumps through the window, an assault rifle in each hand, starting to fire around in every direction. I take aim but right when I want to squeeze the trigger, there’s a red dot appearing and right after that a hole is smashed between his eyes. His knees buckle as the rifles drop to the ground, his head bouncing off the floor.

  “That’s one down,” Peacock chuckles.

  Everything is silent for a moment before Marlon strolls into the room, throwing his bag to the floor. “There were only two. Shit’s clear now. Somebody hand me another drink because my glass got fucking shattered and my throat is dry from running the fuck outside.”

  The guests are all climbing to their feet, the men tucking away their guns. Yeah, nice way to bring people together, right? I turn my attention to Marlon. “You’ll get your fucking drink, but first you need to tell me if Marco was out there too.”

  He shakes his head. “Nah, man. Just two. This sucker right here.” He points to the dead guy with the two rifles next to him. “And another one outside. They managed to kill off six of our guys to breach one of the blind spots. I didn’t see anyone else.”

  Fuck. Why the hell isn’t Marco with them?

  “Okay, let’s clean the fuck up so we can start the celebration, seeing we’ve already started the party with a bang, huh?” Ford chuckles in an effort to lighten the mood before he turns to me. “Or did you want to cancel? Go out and see if we can find that Marco fucker. He must be either close or laying low and watch it all go down without getting his hands dirty so he can split right after.”

  “Fuck no,” I grumble and remember the message from Tarzan. I grab my phone and see another message telling me to get the fuck upstairs. “Shit. I don’t have time for that Marco fucker right now. I need to get upstairs. Tarzan sent me a text asking for me, can you handle it here?” I ask and when he nods, I take off running.

  When I get upstairs I see the bedroom door is open, Tarzan is pacing back and forth. She sees me coming and starts to fire off her words. “What the hell was that shooting all about? Marco’s buddies? Does Ford have a handle on it? Is it contained?”

  “Yeah, you’re right,” I tell her. “Marco’s buddies. Marlon took care of it but it’s a fucking mess downstairs. They’ve already began to clean up but we need to discuss shit because it was only a two-man job, no sign of Marco himself.”

  “Figures, since Marco is in there with Andy.” Tarzan points toward the space I transformed into her personal closet, dressing space.

  What the fuck? My heart races as I take a step forward, except…I don’t get very far because Tarzan is blocking my way. “Wouldn’t do that if I were you…I know we’ve trained for years and you can rip me out of a bad vibe trance I get from time to time...but shit…you don’t want to step in there, Afon. She doesn’t even recognize any of us. She actually growled at me.”

  My heart settles when I hear this…in fact, this makes me snort and shake my head. “Move, Tarzan. She’s my goddamn wife, I can handle all of her.”

  “Alllllrighty then. Not quite married there, dude, but whatever,” Tarzan quips and steps aside, her hands rising in defense. “Just thou
ght I’d give you a heads-up. Oh, and the dude is already dead…but I think she’s redecorating in there, you know…painting the walls red, throwing some meat on the walls and such. Yeah, but you got her, huh? Then go on and handle it because we’re already fucking late for the party and I’m pretty sure her dress is ruined so she needs a shower and a fresh set of clothes…if you rip her out of that killing loop she’s got going on in there.”

  I acknowledge Tarzan with a tight nod and step inside the room. Andy is on her knees carving the fucker’s stomach right open. Tarzan wasn’t kidding. The whole room is red. My guess is Marco stopped breathing a while ago. Suddenly the attack downstairs makes sense. A fucking distraction, that’s what those two were giving Marco so he could sneak in and kill my woman.

  Pride hits my chest as I watch Andy slicing up Marco, because unlike Tarzan’s statement, I can tell Andy is in full control. She’s not spaced out at all because I’m listening to the angry words she’s throwing at Marco while destroying his body. Let’s call this session in front of me a twisted form of therapy.

  You know…the kind of therapy at the end of a long line of sessions where you’re discussing the road where you came from and how far you’ve come. And she’s come a very long fucking way but look at her now. Strong as fuck, determination radiating from her. Then I see it. The tiny pendant in her hand she’s using.

  “You like your new jewelry?” I croak, emotion flowing heavily through my veins.

  Her head swings in my direction, our gaze collides and the recognition and love that shines from within her hits me hard. I’m frozen to the spot and it’s exactly as I thought and the reason I’m standing here right now. She’s most definitely not in a bad vibe or trance. She’s closing a bad chapter in her life. And she sure as fuck recognizes me.

  “I love it,” she says with a bright as fuck smile on her blood smeared face.

  I nod at the necklace that’s lying broken on the floor. “I bought a few extra since I figured that would happen but shit…I kinda thought it would be Dozor who would break the first necklace with his paw. The fucker has broken mine that way too many fucking times.”