Page 22 of Lord of Ruin

Christos was right. Someone else was involved. “Just see what you can find.”

“Just let… me go. Please. I won’t tell anyone. I won’t call the police. I promise.” Jenna seemed much frailer than she had the night before. I kept her in my arms as I glanced around the clinic.

“I can’t do that and I already explained why. You will not survive another attack. Now, I assume there’s no one else here?”

She shook her head. “I sent my assistant… home.”

“Good. We need to get going. I hate this fucking city,” I huffed.

“Where are you taking me? I have a life. This is my business. You can’t… I mean I don’t want to…” She looked away, her body swaying. I moved closer but she wanted nothing to do with me, taking a long stride backwards, almost stumbling in the process.

I pulled her close, wrapping my hand around the back of her neck.

“I’m taking you somewhere safe.”

“I do not want to go.” The girl was forever defiant, doing what she could to drive me away. She had no idea what she’d gotten herself in the middle of or what the bastards like the Russian were capable of. Now wasn’t the time to share the joyous information, but at some point, I might have no other choice.

“As I already told you before. There is no other choice that will keep you alive. That dead man is one bad asshole.”

“And you’re not?” She managed to punch me in the jaw.

I closed my eyes briefly while I snapped my large hand around her fist to keep her from doing something else stupid. “Do not do that again.”

Christos lifted both his eyebrows, obviously amused this vulnerable girl thought she could get away from me.

“Do you have a purse or any belongings here?” I asked.

“Yep. In my desk drawer. I’ll get it.”

“I’m afraid I can’t allow you to do that. I have a feeling you’ll try and leave. I’m going to tell you one more time. He’s not alone. There are more of them, an entire freaking army. Christos. Please get her things.”

“What about the dead man?”

Sighing, I realized that calling Gabriel a second time wouldn’t bode well for his relationship with my brother but at this point, I had few choices. While we’d ripped the oversized photos from the center of the fucking New York universe, I had a bad feeling the police had already been notified. The last thing I needed was interference from police outside my jurisdiction. Even if I could easily call in more than one favor.

“Where there’s one, there will be more. See the tat on his neck?” I asked.

“It’s unusual.” He crouched down, jerking on the dead man’s jacket.

“He was Russian,” Jenna managed.

“We heard,” my second told her. “Odd, boss man. I don’t like it.”

While it wasn’t unheard of the Albanians working with the Russians, sometimes using the brutal thugs as their bodyguards, I found it interesting at this point since I’d heard the two factions were battling amongst themselves and had been for over a year. Maybe the intel I’d received was wrong.

“There’s nothing in his pockets,” Christos stated as he rose to his feet. “But he has a great tailor.”

I gave him a hard look, shaking my head. “Whatever occurred is just the beginning.”

“Then let’s get the hell out of here,” my Capo grumbled before heading toward the girl’s office.

“Tell me your name.” Her question was asked with anger and no other real emotion. That meant she was firmly placed in the middle of shock. Somehow, I knew when it wore off, she’d be a bear to handle. But I would have no issue taming her.

As I continued to cradle her against my chest, she continued to push me with everything she had.

I could lie to her or provide some sense of information that might calm her down. I doubted my name had been heard in the city since Phoenix was in charge of the entire regime. “My name is Stavros Diamondis.”

Jenna narrowed her eyes, but I sensed there was no recognition. “Who the fuck are you?”

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