Alexei (Her Russian Protector #8) (22 page)

Abby smiled knowingly and slid her arm around my shoulders. “Come over to the window.”

Kylee stayed behind to look through the showcases of jewelry while I walked with Abby to the bulletproof windows at the rear of the store. Leaning close, Abby whispered, “I heard about your sister. Whatever you need, it’s yours.”

“Thank you, Abby,” I whispered right back and blinked away grateful tears. “I feel bad asking, but all the banks are closed so—”

“It’s not a big deal. I know your check is good.” She squeezed my shoulder. “I’ll even give you a break on the interest,” she teased with a playful wink.

While Abby unlocked a door and entered the reinforced and protected cashier area, I walked down to the open window and began filling out a check. I hesitated when I got to the amount. How much would Shannon need to survive in a new city? How long would she be unable to work? I made a hasty calculation and wrote out the five figure amount. I decided not to think about how long it would take me to earn all of that back. My sister’s life was worth every penny in my bank accounts. I would give them all to her if it meant she would stay alive.

Abby glanced at the check after I pushed it through the small opening in the bulletproof window. She didn’t even blink at the amount. “I’ll have to do a mix of big and small bills. Is that okay?”

“Yes, it’s fine. Whatever works for you, Abby.”

“All right. Hang on. I’ll be right back.” She disappeared into a locked room where I assumed they kept their safe.

I glanced back to see Kylee inspecting gold chains. It wasn’t the type of jewelry she liked to wear so I suspected she was looking for something to use in a clothing design. Feeling anxious and exposed, I looked around the shop, counting and recounting the customers. I didn’t recognize any of them, but the paranoia gripping me made me sensitive to every glance.

“Okay,” Abby said as she reappeared at the window with a stacks of bills still wrapped in their bank yellow, purple and brown bank bands. She counted it out for me twice before placing the money inside shopping bags. “Can I see your ID, please?”

“Yes.” I slipped it through the small window. While I waited for her to record the necessary information, Kylee wandered over and joined me. “I guess you didn’t see anything you wanted?”

“Nah,” she said and then nervously looked over her shoulder. Moving closer, she whispered, “There’s some guy watching us. Don’t look back!” She hissed when I started to turn my head. “Brioni suit? Bruno Magli boots? This guy isn’t part of Lalo’s crew or those backwoods skinheads. I can’t see any tattoos on his hands or neck. I don’t think he’s part of the Russian crew either, but he looks dangerous and familiar.”

Mouth dry, I smiled at Abby who gestured toward the locked door after pushing my ID back at me. “Let me come around and meet you. I’ll have one of my security guys walk you out to your vehicle.”

“Shit,” Kylee whispered frantically. “That guy is coming toward us. Keep walking. Keep walking.”

Just as Abby stepped onto the main floor, she looked behind us and broke into a wide grin. “Besian! I didn’t know you were stopping by today!”

“I thought I would come into the store and browse.” His raspy voice carried an accent that was quite unlike Alexei’s. When he stepped into view, I noticed that Kylee’s dangerous description fit the man perfectly. He wasn’t as tall as Alexei or as muscular, but there was a menacing, intimidating air about him. My internal alarms went crazy. I needed to get away from this man and quickly. “I never know what might catch my eye.”

“Uh-huh,” Abby dryly remarked. “Marley’s not working this weekend so your eye will just have to keep on wandering.” She pressed the bag of money into my hands. “Take care of this.”

“I will.” Surprised by the weight, I held it close to my chest.

“Shay, Kylee, do you two know Besian? He’s, um, a very successful local businessman,” Abby said with obvious amusement. “But we won’t talk about what type of business he’s in because this is a family friendly store.”

Besian laughed. “You make it sound so scandalous, Abby. They’re just clubs, and it’s only dancing.” He turned his full attention to me. “I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Shay, but I think we have a good friend in common.”

“Oh?” I asked weakly, already knowing the answer.

“Alexei.” He studied me closely. “I have to admit I’m rather surprised to see you.” His gaze flicked around the store. “Is Stas waiting for you outside?”

“That’s none of your business, Mr. Strip Club Owner,” Kylee interjected forcefully, “and we’ve got somewhere to be.” She put her hand between my shoulders and propelled me toward the exit. “See you around, Abby.”

“Wait! Let me get a security guard—”

“No need,” Kylee said quickly and pushed me forward. “We’re fine.”

“Thank you, Abby,” I called over my shoulder as Kylee hustled me out of the store. When we hit the street, I glared at her. “That was rude!”

“Fuck that guy,” Kylee grunted. “I remembered why he looked so familiar to me. He’s a loan shark, Shay. He used to run a book for the Albanian mafia thugs over at the Black Eagle Club. He’s one of the bastards who used to own my dad’s debt. He took our boat and our car and my horse.” She hurried across the street at my side. “He’s one of the reasons Daddy put that rope around his neck in our barn.”

“Shit, Kylee.” I hated that such awful memories had been dredged up for her. She had been fifteen when her father had hanged himself in the barn where she had kept her beloved horse—the horse he had been forced to give to Besian only a few days earlier. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. Nobody made Daddy gamble or embezzle. He did that himself.” She wrenched open her truck door and hopped inside. As she cranked the engine, I buckled my belt. “But assholes like that made it too easy. They took advantage of him when he was down. They kept feeding him credit because they knew they could collect on all his collateral, even after he died.”

As she hit the gas, Besian stepped out of the pawn shop, a cell phone pressed to his ear, and watched us drive away. Never one to go quietly, Kylee actually rolled down her window and shot him the finger. “Vulture!”

“Oh my God! Are you crazy?” I twisted in my seat to see the gangster’s shocked reaction as she punched the accelerator and tore down the busy road. “You just sat here and told me that guy is affiliated with the Albanian mafia. Are you seriously trying to pick a fight with someone like that?”

“I’m not afraid of people like that anymore.” Kylee gripped the steering wheel tightly. “I’m over being pushed around by criminals.”

Still aghast at the trouble she had probably made for herself, I pulled my phone out of my purse and called Shannon. She didn’t answer so I texted her for the name of her hotel and the address.

Hey! We have the cash. We’re headed your way. Be ready to leave as soon as we get there. What’s the address?

“Why isn’t she answering?” I asked, worry edging into my voice.

“Maybe she’s almost out of battery. Maybe she’s in the shower. Maybe she went out to grab something from a vending machine.” Kylee reached over and gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t panic. I’m sure everything is okay.”

“I hope so.”

A few seconds later, my cell phone chirped with a message alert.

“What’s she say?” Kylee asked as she merged onto the loop.

“She’s at the Spanger Motel.” I opened a map app on my phone and punched in the name to get directions. “Take the loop to 225.”

“We’ll have to grab 146 to get up to Baytown and then hit the interstate to take us into Louisiana,” Kylee said, already thinking five steps ahead. “It’s nearly five, and it’s getting dark. It’s going to be a long drive.”

“We’ll trade off behind the wheel.”

My phone started to ring. It was Stas. I ignored the call, but guilt gnawed at me. Staring out the window, I chewed on my thumb. “Alexei is going to be so angry with me.”

“Yep.” Kylee didn’t even bother trying to convince me otherwise. “I would suggest you wait to call him until we cross the state line. By the time we get your sister situated in New Orleans or Baton Rouge and make it back to Houston, he’ll cool down.”

“No, he won’t.” My stomach churned violently as I accepted the truth of the situation. “I said I trusted him. I told him I would stay put and let him protect me.”

“Yeah, you did. He swore to protect
you
. He didn’t say shit about your sister. He can’t expect you to sit in that apartment, living the high life, while your sister gets her throat slit by some cartel hitman.”

I ran my thumb up and down the screen on my phone. “What if there’s another way? What if he can help her?”

“You need to stop second guessing your decision, Shay.” Kylee glanced away from the windshield and held my gaze. “You told me what happened last night with Nikolai. As far as Alexei’s old family is concerned, Shannon is as good as dead. If you call Alexei, if you tell him where she is, do you really think he’s going to choose between his old mob boss and you?”

“He won’t betray me. He’s not like that.”

“No, he probably wouldn’t, but at what cost?” Kylee bit her lip and shook her head. “You’re his mistress, his girlfriend.
Sort of.
You’re not his wife. The loyalty he owes you doesn’t come close to what he owes Nikolai. You’re a bright, shiny new thing in his life. That history he has with Nikolai? That shit goes way back, Shay. Can you imagine what Nikolai will do to him if he finds out that Alexei knew about your sister? That he helped you get her out of the city?”

A shudder rocked me right to the core. “I don’t want Alexei to get hurt.” Thinking of her safety, I added, “I don’t want you to get hurt either.”

“We’ll be fine.”

I couldn’t tell who she was trying to convince more—me or her.

“He’ll forgive you,” she insisted. “He’ll forgive you for this.”

Feeling sick, I sadly murmured, “No, he won’t.”

“Don’t say that.”

“It’s the truth. That wall he built around himself? The one I was telling you about earlier? The same things that made him build that wall are the same things that will make it impossible for him to forgive me for this.”

Alexei was such a complicated man with a dark and complex history. The rules he had given me this morning weren’t so much about control as they were about testing my commitment to him. Like me, he had spent a lifetime being disappointed and hurt by people. Unlike me, he had chosen to protect his heart by closing it off and only allowing himself to indulge in these romantic arrangements with mistresses, these easily controlled emotional transactions.

I was officially the worst mistress in the history of the world. I hadn’t even lasted one full day. He would see my decision to go after Shannon as a betrayal of everything he had done for me. I was flinging it all back in his face, and he would punish me by turning his back on me and sending me away.

“Don’t get all weepy on me.” Kylee playfully punched my arm. “I’m all out of tissues, and I don’t want you getting snot on my new dress.”

“I’m not going to cry.” I blinked rapidly to clear away the wetness threatening to spill onto my cheeks. An hour ago, we were excitedly discussing my blossoming relationship with Alexei but now? I was sitting here bereft and silently planning its funeral.

Angry with Shannon, I clenched my hands together on my lap. I would get her out of the state and give her a clean start, but then she was on her own. I couldn’t keep doing this. I couldn’t allow her to drag me down again. This had to be the final time.

Glancing down at the navigation screen on my phone, I motioned to the next exit. “Get off at Center Street.”

Kylee followed my directions until we found the rundown motel. “Holy shit,” she exclaimed as we turned onto the property. “I’ve seen motels in horror films that looked nicer than this.”

I couldn’t argue with that observation. Only one light worked in the parking lot. From what I could see, the moldy green paint was peeling and half of the windows didn’t have drapes. My jaw dropped when I saw a hooker walk out of a room still fastening her shirt. Her skirt was hiked up around her thighs so high I could see that she wasn’t wearing underwear. She combed her fingers through her stringy hair before sliding into the front seat of a car driven by a man I could only assume was her pimp.

“Jesus,” Kylee breathed in horror. “This place is a cesspool!”

“Let’s just grab Shannon and get out of here.”

“Which room is she in?”

I looked at her message and then at the numbers on each door. “Fourteen. Over there.”

“Hang on.” Kylee swung the truck wide and backed into the closest spot. “We aren’t sticking around here any longer than necessary.”

“Stay here.” I flicked off my belt and tossed my phone onto the dashboard. “I’ll grab her, and we’ll get the hell out of here.”

Kylee looked around nervously. “Hurry. This place gives me the creeps!”

I practically jumped out of her truck and ran to the motel door. I knocked twice. “Shannon! Shannon, it’s me. Come on! Let’s go.”

The rattle of a door chain met my ears. A moment later, the door opened—and a pair of hands grabbed the front of my hoodie and hauled me inside the motel room. Before I could scream, a hand cruelly slapped over my mouth, muffling the sound as I kicked and flailed wildly. With a rough shove, I was thrown face down on a bed. The scent of mildew and much, much worse filled my nose. I pushed off the dirty, smelly blanket and lost my balance, rolling off the bed and onto the floor.