Daniel

by KJ Dahlen

  “He never gave up looking for his wife, did he?” Tate asked.

  “No he never did, yet every day he doesn’t find her, he loses a little more hope that he’ll ever find her.”

  Tate shook his head. “I know how that feels boy. It was the same for me when I thought we lost your mom. It was the not knowing if she was dead or alive that hurt the worst. You can’t go forward and you sure as hell can’t go back.” Tate cleared his thoughts and gazed at Daniel as if something just occurred to him. “You think this girl is Ivan’s daughter, don’t you?”

  Daniel nodded. “I have a feeling that’s exactly who she is. The only problem is how do I prove it before I let Ivan know? Even if it is proved...If Ivan knows about her, he will hunt down Begian and kill him for what he’s done.”

  “Maybe that’s what he needs to do son,” Tate told him quietly. “Ivan needs closure, for his wife, for his father and if this is his daughter, he needs justice for missing her entire life.”

  Daniel turned his head to stare at his dad.

  Tate held up his hand. “I know what you’re thinking. I don’t know the whole story and you’d be right. But son, Anya was Ivan’s wife, he loved her enough to give her his name and she stayed with him, so it must have been a good marriage. For her to be ripped away from her husband and family and taken away from her home that must have been horrible for her. I think the first thing you need to do is learn as much about that girl’s life as possible.” He shrugged. “Then if you think he needs to know about her, you need to tell Ivan. You told me once that Ivan was a good man, well don’t you think he deserves to know he might have a daughter?”

  Daniel just stood there and nodded. “Yeah, I think he does. But you’re right, I do need to know more before I say anything. I also need to know why that man keeps coming after her.”

  “You keep her close and I’ll send a couple of brothers around tomorrow to watch your back,” Tate told him. “If someone is after her, you need to keep her safe.”

  Daniel nodded. “Thanks Dad. She’s asleep right now, but in the morning, I’ll talk to her and figure this out.”

  “We’re never far away if you need us,” Tate assured him.

  “I know that.” Daniel grinned. “And I may need some backup tomorrow but tonight, I think I’ll just watch over her and see what she has to say come morning.”

  Tate slapped his son on the back and smiled. “We got your back son, no matter what.”

  Daniel nodded. “Yeah, so did Ivan, that’s why I think I have to call him in on this before she leaves here. I have to convince her that she doesn’t have to run anymore.”

  After Tate left, Daniel poured a cup of coffee and went to the bedroom. He figured he was too wound up to sleep anyway. He pulled up a chair and sat down. Sipping his coffee, he watched over her for a few hours.

  When the sun came up, she began to stir.

  She opened her eyes and frowned as she looked around the room. When she saw him sitting there she looked confused. “Who the hell are you?”

  “We met last night when I got you away from the bastard that tasered you,” Daniel told her. He studied her eyes and it was just as he thought, her eyes were a stormy grey blue with a hint of green. She was Ivan’s daughter.

  “Oh shit, I remember now.” Shaking her head, she expressed, “I guess I was worse off than I thought.” She tried to sit up but cried out in pain instead. “Damn, that hurts.”

  Daniel got up and helped her sit up. “Easy now. You don’t want to start bleeding again.”

  “My belly doesn’t hurt so much this morning, do I have you to thank for that?” she asked as she studied him carefully.

  “I found your cut and cleaned it up last night. We should check on it this morning.” Daniel nodded.

  She stared at him and sighed, “What do you want to know? I can see you have questions.”

  “Well, first off...Who are you?”

  “My name is Rani Nashovic. My parents live just over the border in Mexico and I left there about two weeks ago.” She dropped her eyes to the blankets as her fingers worried the silken edges. “My mother told me to get away from the compound we lived at. She told me my dad was going to make me marry the man who attacked me last night.”

  Daniel frowned. “You told me you didn’t know his name.”

  She shook her head. “And I don’t. I’d seen him around the compound but I never knew any of their names. That was one of the rules my dad made. I couldn’t speak to any of the men. My place was in his home but I hated that house. My mom and I had always been his prisoners and there was nothing we could do to break free.” She looked away from him for a moment then turned her head back to glare at him. “My mother woke me in the middle of the night two weeks ago. She told me to get dressed in warm clothes and to take very little with me. She said I would have to run and run far away. My father told her that in two days’ time, he would marry me off to a man who wanted me. My mom told me he had a look in his eyes that said more than he told her.”

  “How did you get away?” Daniel asked.

  “Where there is a will, there is a way. Every chance we were allowed to go outside, we looked around. We memorized the best routes in and out. Then we waited for the day to come when we both could get out.” She sighed and wrapped her arms around her middle. “I don’t know what to do now though.

  Daniel had an idea of what she could do, but he needed to find out more.

  Chapter Three

  “So the guy from last night?” Daniel asked.

  “He was a member of my father’s cult. You see, I ran away from my father’s control and he didn’t like it. He knows he can’t control me anymore and he thought this man would beat my rebellious out of me. He sent that man after me to bring me back but I’ll be damned, if I’m ever going back.”

  Daniel frowned. “Your dad has a cult?”

  Rani nodded. “Well, he thinks he has a cult. In all reality, it’s a small community that he rides roughshod over and they are too afraid of him to fight back. He’s broken just about every promise he’s ever made them, but they know there’s no way to get out from under his thumb.”

  “Where is this cult, as you put it?” Daniel asked.

  “Like I said, just over the Mexican border. It’s a small community inside an eight foot high fence. My dad pays the Mexican police to leave us alone and we are self sufficient mostly. We raise our own food and school the kids born there. The only drawback is my dad rules that place with an iron fist and he insists on doing things his own way.”

  “Is that why you left?”

  Rani shook her head. “No, I hated having to leave my mom behind but she told me he sold me to someone I can’t stand as a punishment for asking questions and objecting to his authority.”

  Daniel frowned at her but didn’t say anything.

  She studied him for a moment then asked, “So where are we anyway?”

  “We are at my granddad’s ranch just outside of Temple. You said you needed a few days’ rest. And you should be safe here while you do that. There are men standing watch outside, so please don’t freak out if you see someone. They are there to protect us.”

  “This is as good a place as any for now.” Rani nodded.

  “Tell me something,” Daniel asked. “What’s your dad’s name?”

  “Begian Nasovic.”

  “And your mom’s name?”

  “Anya Nashovic,” Rani replied as she studied him carefully. “Why do you ask?”

  “Because I don’t think that’s your real name,” Daniel informed her.

  Rani caught her breath for a moment, then she whispered, “And who do you really think I am then?”

  “I think your real last name is Antosha, not Nashovic.”

  Her eyes went wide and they filled with fear. “How do you know that name? Antosha?”

  Daniel frowned. “I worked for Ivan Antosha for several years. Question is how do you know the name?”

  “My mother would tell me stories of
a man she once knew back in Russia. She told me she loved him very much once upon a time. Saying how I should always remember the name Antosha but that I could never tell a soul that name.” She peered at him. “So why do you think my name is Antosha and not Nashovic?”

  “Because Ivan was married to your mother when Begian kidnapped her and left the country.” Daniel dropped his bomb on her. “That was after Begian murdered his stepfather, who was Ivan’s dad.”

  Rani began to tremble. The pieces were beginning to make sense in the puzzle that was her life. She knew her dad hated her, for her whole life. Now she knew why. She knew her mother was afraid of her husband but until now, she never knew why.

  She looked over at Daniel. “I think he did love her at one time but she never loved him back and over the years, he began to hate her. He always hated me and no matter how hard I tried, he always held back any emotion from me.” She looked away then looked back with tears in her eyes. “Now, I know why.”

  Daniel nodded. “I’m sorry.”

  She shook her head. “Don’t be sorry, don’t ever be sorry. You just told me the truth as you know it.” She paused then added, “So what do we do now? I can’t prove any of this, can I?”

  “Oh, I think you can,” Daniel told her.

  “How?” She tilted her head and stared at him.

  “I can call Ivan and have him come here. He can verify if you’re his daughter or not. But honey, look at your wrist.”

  She glanced down at the birthmark she’d had all her life. “What about it?”

  “Ivan has the same birthmark and he told me once that all the members born into his family carry it.”

  She caught her breath upon this information. Staring down at the mark her dad hated, she looked up at him. “Begian would always stare at the mark and then he would crush my wrist, just to hurt me, I think.”

  “No, I don’t think that was why he did it,” Daniel assured her. “To him, this was the ultimate sign of his betrayal. This meant that you weren’t his child but the child of his stepbrother.”

  “Why didn’t he just kill me then?” she wanted to know.

  “Maybe he couldn’t?” Daniel shrugged. “I have no idea. But I think we should call Ivan soon.”

  She inched down into the bed. “I think I need to think about this for a while. This has turned my world a little crazy you know?”

  Daniel got up, walked over to the bed, and sat down on the edge. He stared at her for a moment then asked, “What’s wrong?”

  She gazed at him sadly, “All my life I’ve tried so hard to please him and for what? He was never going to be happy with me, never going to be proud of me. He was never going to love me because I wasn’t his, but he would never let me go either. He couldn’t take the chance I might meet my real father. I was his ace in the hole in case his brother ever found him, wasn’t I?”

  Daniel nodded, as he looked troubled.

  “You said it yourself.” She sighed. “He stole my mom away from her husband, because he knew she wouldn’t come to him on her own. He held us both hostage all my life. I know he threatened her by using me against her desire to run. He had to let me live, he had to let me grow up, otherwise she never would have stayed with him. Now, you’re telling me I have a real father out there and I’m afraid. Will this Ivan love me anymore than Begian did? Will he even care that I’m alive? Did he love my mom like I know she loved him?” She paused, “I have so many questions but never any answers.”

  Daniel leaned over her and looked her in the eyes. “Ivan will be thrilled to know you are his daughter. I know for a fact that he never stopped loving you mother. He once told me that he didn’t know if she was dead or alive but the hole in his heart told him that they weren’t finished yet. He knew she was out there somewhere and he would never stop looking for her. Not even if all he ever found was a gravestone.”

  “Is he a good man?”

  “I think so.” Daniel nodded. “He’s a fair man, but he’s also a hard man. If you treat him honestly, he’ll treat you the same way. He hates lies and liars but once you have his protection, you’ll have it for the rest of your life. Let me call him. He deserves that much at least.”

  Rani stared down at the blanket. “I’m scared,” she whispered.

  Daniel lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. “Please give Ivan a chance. I will stand behind you. Either way, I got your back. You won’t be alone here. I found you and I can protect you. ”

  “So I just got away from one prison only to find myself in another prison?” Rani asked.

  Daniel smiled. “No bars on the windows here, sweet thing. All I’m saying is that you won’t face Ivan alone. I’m here if you need me to be.”

  “Do you promise?” Rani asked as if no one had even stood beside her before.

  “I promise.”

  “Okay, you can call him. But if this doesn’t work out, I’m walking. Just so you know.”

  Daniel leaned forward and brushed his lips on her forehead. Then he got up and said, “You rest. Would you like something to eat?”

  Rani smiled a little. “I could eat. Do you have any more of that coffee?”

  Daniel smiled. “You bet I do.” He turned to the door.

  She called out his name, “Daniel.”

  He turned to look at her. “Can I be there when you make the call?”

  He nodded. “Of course.”

  Chapter Four

  He returned with two cups of fresh coffee. Then sitting on the edge of the bed, he placed the call.

  Rani reached out and tangled her fingers in his. She didn’t know if she needed just his touch or the connection to another human being. This call might well change her life, the question would be would it be for the better? Or was she changing one prison for another?

  Daniel dialed Ivan’s private number. As it was still early, he knew the other man wouldn’t be at the club yet. Many nights he knew Ivan didn’t leave the club until the very early hours. He could have waited but he thought Ivan would want to know about Rani as soon as possible.

  When he answered the call, Ivan didn’t sound happy. “What do you want?”

  “Ivan, this is Daniel Young.”

  “Da, I know who you are.” He growled. “What do you want so early in the day?”

  “I met someone last evening,” Daniel began.

  “I’m very happy for you,” Ivan snapped. “But why call me so damn early in the day to tell me that?”

  “Her name in Rani Nashovic.”

  A long moment of silence fell on the other end. “What did you say?” Ivan finally asked.

  “I think you heard me old friend. She’s twenty two years old, with long black hair and the sweetest stormy grey/blue eyes with just a hint of green. Oh, and she also shares your family birthmark.”

  “The hell you say.” Ivan growled.

  “I’m sitting here looking at her, my friend,” Daniel assured him.

  “And her mother? Is my Anya still alive?” they both heard him ask.

  Rani nodded.

  Daniel rolled his hand as if to say, speak to him.

  Rani cleared her throat and whispered loudly, “She was two weeks ago when she begged me to run.”

  They both heard Ivan gasp on the other end of the call. “When were you born child?” They heard him ask.

  “May 13th, 1998.” Rani tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and almost she held her breath as she waited for the man on the other end of the call to say something.

  “They left Russia in November, 1997,” he whispered softly. “Where the hell do I find you, Daniel?” he growled. “I would very much like to meet my daughter.”

  “I...we’re at my grandad’s ranch outside of Temple,” Daniel replied.

  “I will be there as soon as I can get there. Please my friend, do not let her leave you,” Ivan ordered. “I’m on my way.”

  “I’ll be here,” Rani assured him. “I think it’s long past time we met.”

  Daniel ended the call and
looked over at her.

  She had tears in her eyes and she seemed shocked.

  “Are you all right?” he asked.

  She nodded. “I’m just afraid to meet him. He actually wants to meet me and I’m scared. What if I disappoint him? What if he comes all this way and I’m not his daughter? What happens then? Will he just turn his back on me? Will he take one look at me and beat me for trying to fool him by laying a claim?”

  Daniel frowned at her questions and looked horrified at her last question. He gathered her into his arms and held her close for a moment. “Of course not. Ivan would never hurt you. He’s not a coward to hurt a woman like that. Why would you even say such a thing?”

  Rani peeked up at his face from the safety of his embrace. “Begian had no such worries about taking his anger out on a woman by hitting her. In fact, he never seemed to need a reason to hit and hurt me.”

  Daniel tightened his embrace and whispered, “That’s the difference between men and fucking cowards. Real men don’t need to prove they are stronger than women. They already know it and they don’t use their strength as a weapon against those smaller or weaker than they are.”

  Rani shivered in his arms but she was also humbled by his words. Then she was surprised. Surprised, because for the first time in her life, she wasn’t afraid of this embrace. She actually felt safe with his arms around her.

  She peeked at him again. She felt warm and safe, instead of dread and panic. She snuggled down in his embrace.

  Daniel groaned.

  She snapped her head up and asked, “I’m not hurting you am I?”

  Daniel leaned back a bit. “No you aren’t hurting me, except that it’s hard to hold a beautiful woman in my arms and not take the next step.”

  Rani blushed then frowned. “The next step?”

  “You have no idea how much I want to kiss you right now.” Daniel groaned.

  Rani pushed him away and crossed her arms across her chest. “I won’t let you rape me.” She growled.