by Nikki Ash
“Give me my fucking baby,” I bellow, my gun aimed at Selene’s face.
She presses the gun against Zoe’s side. “Get the hell out of here!”
I don’t move. Quickly I take stock of the situation. It smells like dirty diapers and hard liquor. Beside Selene on the end table are several empty bottles of alcohol. Between those are a few of Zoe’s used bottles. My daughter wears a diaper and it’s full of piss, hanging off her little body. A red handprint on her little thigh makes me want to bash Selene’s head into the corner of the nightstand.
“Put Zoe down and I’ll let you live.”
“Liar,” she snarls. “That’s why I’m keeping this baby.” When she digs the barrel of the gun into Zoe’s side, she screams bloody murder.
Fuck.
I could put a bullet in her head, but she’s holding Zoe too close to her. With the way Zoe flails and squirms, I could accidentally hit her. I can’t take that chance.
“Money? You want money?” I ask, my gun still trained on her. “I’ll give you money and ship your ass to another country. You don’t fucking deserve it, but that’ll be my trade. It’s the best goddamn offer you have.”
Her eyes dart to the window, her brows furrowing. “I need this baby. I need him.”
She looks like shit. Her red hair is dull and stringy and she’s not wearing makeup. A big blackish purple bruise mars her throat. Someone grabbed her neck hard enough to leave a mark. If I had my guess, it’s that my brother’s been hitting the bottle and lost his temper on her. I just hope they didn’t hurt Zoe. The red mark on her leg is infuriating enough. I can’t imagine more.
Zoe’s screams get louder and louder. She’s pissed. I’d like to think it’s because she hears my voice and wants me, but she’s only six months old, so that’s probably not right. I don’t know much about babies. What I do know is she’ll be one happy kid the moment she’s in her mother’s arms rather than this cunt’s.
“He doesn’t want you,” I grind out. Delusional bitch. “You were always a cover for him.” That much I realize now. Had I thought he was remotely interested in Talia, I would’ve shaken him down a lot sooner. But the fact he pretended to love Selene and I thought he wanted to marry her, he was able to fool me.
“He does want me!” she cries out. “He loves me and one day I’ll give him a baby of our own. We won’t need that stupid bitch’s baby anymore!”
This is taking too long.
Adrian is probably outside wondering what’s going on but won’t enter, especially if he overhears me trying to talk her down. But Talia? She’s probably panicking. I know her. The last thing I need is her flying in here like a loose cannon upsetting the situation even further.
“Put the gun down,” I command, my voice loud and sharp.
Crash!
The motel shakes as something explodes nearby. It’s enough to distract Selene to jerk her head toward the sound, dropping her guard.
Pop!
I put a bullet on the part of her body farthest from my daughter. Her foot. She screams, dropping Zoe, who rolls to the floor with a loud thud. My daughter screams—which is music to my fucking ears considering the drop to the floor—and I stalk forward. She’s okay. Selene raises the gun and I put a bullet into her shoulder. Another one pierces her throat. I want to make her hurt. She gurgles, grabbing her throat as blood sprays. With my eyes on her, I scoop up Zoe, tucking her under my arm like a football. Selene gapes at me as she tries and fails to stop the blood flow.
Pop!
I hit her in the stomach. I want her to bleed to death, thinking about what she did. How she struck my goddamn daughter. How she hurt my wife. How she aided my brother in an unimaginable crime.
Tucking my gun into the back of my jeans, I pull Zoe to my chest and kiss her sweaty head. “Shh, I’ve got you.”
Selene has slumped against the headboard of the bed, but she’s still alive, trying desperately to hold onto her life. I stalk over to her and grab a handful of her greasy red hair. Slamming her head down, I connect it with the corner of the end table, ending her misery early. Her skull cracks and she’ll be dead in seconds. If I had more time or if I didn’t have my daughter in my arms, I would’ve tortured her.
Turns out, I’m a family man now.
Torture can’t happen at every enemy encounter. Sometimes I need to be quick and efficient to get back to what’s important.
“Let’s go see Mommy now,” I coo to Zoe. “Daddy’s here. No need to be upset.”
Zoe grabs my shirt and screams, still super pissed at being slapped, screamed at, and then dropped. Fuck, I’d be pissed too. Holding her to me, I step outside the door I kicked in and frown when I see Adrian’s SUV rammed into the unit beside this one. Talia is sitting behind the wheel looking every bit like a mafia queen. Wild eyes. Furious stare. Protective motherly aura rippling toward me in hot waves.
“What did you do to my fuckin’ car, woman?” Adrian gripes as he comes up behind me.
“I stayed in the car!” she yells out. “I obeyed! Now bring me my baby!”
Zoe screams harder and tries to flip out of my grip.
Someone wants their mother.
Talia
My first thought when I saw Kostas stalking toward the SUV with our baby in his arms was that she’s alive and safe and I can finally breathe again. My second thought was how fucking sexy my husband looked holding our daughter to his chest like she’s his entire world. Those hands that are capable of killing and torturing are also capable of being gentle and loving. When his eyes met mine, I could see the hardness in his light eyes—quite the contradiction—but the moment he looked down at Zoe, who was crying, his eyes went soft. The same way they go soft when he looks at me.
Once I stop staring at his eyes, and how precious our little girl looks in his arms, I notice the blood. Blood everywhere. All over their clothes, and splattered across their flesh.
“Is that blood?” I jump out of the driver’s seat and run around the back, needing to get to Zoe and Kostas. “Is she bleeding?” I snatch her out of Kostas’s hands and start checking her for injury. Her face is red and swollen from crying and there’s a handprint mark on her thigh, but there’re no cuts.
“It’s not hers,” Kostas says. “We’re both okay.”
“Who the fuck slapped her?” I bring her thigh up to show him. I’m seeing red. I don’t see Selene or Aris anywhere. Did those fuckers touch my baby and then leave her here? That blood better be theirs.
“Selene did,” Kostas says through a growl, his jaw tightening.
“Please tell me that bitch is alive,” I hiss. “I’m going to fucking kill her.”
Kostas shakes his head. “She’s dead.”
“Did she at least suffer?” I rub my daughter’s thigh while holding her close to my chest. Her crying is already calming down.
“This is her blood,” Kostas tells me. “I made sure that bitch was in pain before I ended her life.”
“And what about Aris?” I glance around, suddenly realizing we’ve only been discussing Selene.
“He wasn’t here,” Adrian says.
“What?” I screech. Zoe jumps in my arms, and I remind myself I need to stay calm. “He can be anywhere.” My gaze flits around us, hating that we’re standing outside. He could be about to pounce.
“We’re going to find him,” Kostas promises. “Right now, we need to get our daughter home.”
Kostas is right. Zoe’s diaper is filled to the brim and leaking. She probably has a diaper rash. Who the hell knows when she was fed last. If that bitch wasn’t already dead, I would torture and kill her my fucking self. Aris better run far because when I get my hands on him, I’m going to make sure he suffers for the both of them.
“We need to find a hotel,” I tell the men as we climb into the SUV. Luckily, when I drove into the front of the building, hoping to create a diversion, the siding was rotted wood and no major damage was done. “We need to get her diapers and clothes and formula. She can’t go two hou
rs like this. I need to give her a bath.”
The heaviness of everything that’s happened is hitting me like a two-ton weight on my chest, and it’s hard to breathe. “We need to get her to a doctor,” I say through a sob. “What if…what if they hurt her?” I’m supposed to put Zoe in her car seat, but I can’t let her out of my arms. She’s clinging to me like a little koala bear.
Kostas tells Adrian to stop at the store, and while he runs in to grab stuff for Zoe, Kostas calls a local hotel and makes a reservation. The entire time, Zoe’s tiny, chubby arms are wrapped around me with her face snuggled into my chest.
Oh, God, I finally have her back in my arms.
My heart is racing.
I need to get her as far away as possible. To somewhere safe.
What if Aris is following us? Waiting to make his move. What if this is all a trap?
I’m so tired, and all I want to do is snuggle up with my baby, but I need to make sure she’s safe.
As I watch her, I notice she’s fighting sleep. She’s probably too scared. Whatever those pieces of shit did to her has my baby too scared to let herself go to sleep.
When we arrive at the hotel, Adrian checks us in and then both men flank me as we ride the elevator to the top floor. Only my husband would book the Presidential suite when we’re only going to be here for a couple hours.
Adrian remains outside, while Kostas and I head inside. While I give Zoe a bath, checking to make sure there’s nothing visibly wrong with her, Kostas rinses off as well. Adrian must’ve gotten him clothes because when he gets out, he’s in a plain white T-shirt and a pair of gray sweatpants.
Once they’re both cleaned up, I sit on the couch with Zoe while Kostas makes her a bottle. I hold her close and take in her sweet baby scent, thankful to have her back in my arms.
Her eyes are almost closed at this point, most likely exhausted from everything she’s been through, but she’s still fighting to stay awake.
My strong fighter. Just like her daddy.
The second the bottle touches her lips, she sucks it down. Her eyes begin to droop, and her stiff body loosens in my arms.
“She was so hungry,” I mumble, trying hard to stay strong for my daughter, but inside I’m a mess.
Something worse could’ve happened to her.
We could’ve lost her.
“She’s a baby,” Kostas says. “She’ll soon forget what they did to her.” He runs his fingers through her head of soft dark curls.
“I’ll never forget,” I tell him.
And I won’t.
Not until the day I die.
Every thought in my being is fueled by the urge to hunt Aris down and punish him for this.
For putting my baby in harm’s way.
One day we’re going to find him, and when we do. I will make him pay.
“As soon as we get home, we’re going to get shit organized and find Aris,” Kostas promises. His words hit me. Home. The hotel. The villa where Zoe was taken. The thought of bringing her back there has my heart racing.
“I can’t go back there,” I blurt out, and Kostas’s eyes widen. “I know it’s your home, but…”
“Our home,” Kostas growls out without letting me finish.
“Kostas…”
“If the next words out of your mouth are to tell me you’re leaving me, so help me fucking God.” Kostas stands, towering over me. Zoe’s bottle is empty and she’s sleeping soundly in my arms. “You’re my fucking wife, and that’s our daughter, and if you think I’m going to let you leave me, you better think twice,” Kostas chokes out. “I know I fucked up, Talia. Her getting taken is on me.” He pounds his fist against his chest, and his eyes bore into mine. “But you aren’t fucking leaving me. Ever.”
“Kostas, that’s not what I was going to say.” I consider laying Zoe down, but I can’t do it. So instead I stand, still holding her, and walk over to him. “I’m not going anywhere without you.”
Kostas’s shoulders drop slightly in relief. “Tell me what you need, zoí mou.”
“A place where we’ll feel safe. A home where Aris hasn’t touched and soiled. Maybe one with a pool, so I can take Zoe swimming. But it needs to be secure so nobody gets to us.” I just need a damn break. A moment to be at peace with my family without living in fear. It can be months or years before we find Aris, and the hotel no longer feels like my safe place since it’s where he stole our daughter. There’s no way I’m going to be able to sleep at night, knowing that’s where she was taken from.
“I’ll handle it,” Kostas assures me, already pulling his phone out. “Why don’t you and Zoe go lie down and rest and once she wakes up, we’ll head out.”
Before I head to the room, I step closer to Kostas, and with Zoe sleeping between us, give him a soft kiss. “I don’t blame you for any of this. Never think that. I blame Aris and Selene.”
Kostas nods once, but I can tell by the way his eyes flinch slightly, he’ll always in some way blame himself for not keeping Zoe safe. And I get it, because I’ll always blame myself as well.
When we pull up to the house—no, house isn’t the right word, more like castle—Kostas gets out and unbuckles Zoe. She’s awake now and goes willingly with him. Unlike where Aris kept us, this place is backed up to the beach. I can smell the salt and hear the waves. My heart already feels steadier. My body already feeling lighter.
Surrounding the home is a tall block wall with a wrought iron fence running along the top. From what I can tell, it runs around the entire perimeter of the property. The house is at least three stories tall.
“Nobody is getting in or out of here without my knowledge,” Kostas says. “The home is owned by a well-known politician. It’s equipped with cameras and has a surveillance room. Once Adrian sets it all up, we’ll be able to see every inch of this place right from our phones. And those fences”—he points to the walls—“they’re wired with five thousand volts of electricity. One touch and it will knock a person the fuck out.”
“Thank you,” I tell him, feeling like the weights have been removed from my chest and I can finally breathe again.
“Let’s go inside.”
The inside is completely furnished. Beautiful shades of cream and bright blue. White wash wood everywhere, giving the entire place an upscale beachy vibe. To the left is a huge living room and dining room—a massive floor-to-ceiling fireplace separating the two. To the right, from what I can tell, is the kitchen. In the middle is a stunning white wash spiral staircase that leads to the upstairs.
“Can we stay here forever?” I joke.
Kostas doesn’t laugh, though. “If you want to.”
My head whips around to face him. “Are you serious?”
“If this is where you’ll feel safe, then it’s yours.” He shrugs like it’s no big deal, when it is in fact a huge deal. This house must cost millions, and he’ll buy it just because I love it.
It doesn’t matter what I ask for, he always makes sure I get what I want. He said it in his vows that he would make sure I’m always happy, and while I didn’t believe them at the time, I know now he meant them. Even back then, when we barely knew each other, he was promising to put my happiness first.
Before I can say anything back, the front door opens and in walks Mom, Stefano, and Phoenix.
“Oh, miei cari,” Mom cries out. My darlings. She runs straight toward Zoe and me and wraps her arms around us. “I was so worried,” she cries, which makes me cry.
“We’re okay, Mom. Zoe is okay.”
Zoe wiggles in my arms and her bright blue eyes pop open. She grants my mom the most beautiful gummy smile, and Mom’s and my tears fall even harder.
“Da-da-da,” she coos, and Kostas laughs. Of course the only sound she’s still making sounds like Dad.
“She already knows who she needs to call to get whatever she needs,” Kostas says, taking her from me and holding her to his chest.
I sigh, watching him whisper something to our daughter. I don’t think I will eve
r tire of watching him hold her.
“This house is gorgeous,” Mom says. “How long are you staying here?”
“Until we find Aris,” I tell her at the same time Kostas says, “As long as Talia wants.”
We spend the day by the pool—yes, the house has a stunning infinity pool and Jacuzzi—enjoying Zoe. Kostas frequently takes calls, no doubt determined to find Aris. For the first time in months I feel safe and don’t even bother to ask him for updates. I’m simply content living in this temporary bubble.
For dinner, Kostas has one of his men pick up groceries and Stefano grills burgers while my mom and I make the side dishes. Everything feels so normal. I know being with Kostas means nothing will ever really be normal, and there will always be threats. My husband is a powerful man who runs a dangerous organization. But seeing another side to him today—him sitting on the lounge chair in his swim trunks, eating a burger and baked beans, and swimming in the pool with Zoe—gives me hope that after we find and kill Aris, we will be able to finally start our life as a family.
After dinner, everyone leaves, and it’s only Kostas, Zoe, and me. While we were out back, he of course had her furniture brought over. Her room is upstairs, directly next to ours, but he also had a portable crib put in our room for now.
“Thank you for putting a crib in here.” I lay Zoe in her bed. “It’s going to take some time until I’m comfortable with her sleeping in her own room.” She’s been fed, has a fresh diaper, and is sucking on her pacifier, already half asleep.
“She’ll stay with us until you’re ready,” Kostas says. “But I promise you, she’s safe in this house.” He locks our bedroom door. “Come shower with me.”
When I give him a look, silently asking why he locked our door, he says, “I want to make sure none of my men accidently walk in and see my sexy wife naked. Then I’ll have to kill them.”
I laugh even though I believe he really would do just that.
With my hand in his, he guides us into the bathroom. From here, we can still see Zoe’s crib.
I watch as he pushes his trunks down his muscular thighs, and his thick cock springs free. His eyes meet mine, and the love that shines in them takes my breath away. I’ve always thought Kostas was sexy, but seeing him as a father, interacting with our daughter, makes him beautiful. And when he looks at me the way he is right now, knowing that underneath all that darkness is a lightness only reserved for Zoe and me to see, makes my heart swell.
