Page 19 of KAI Tortured

The door slams behind them.

“Rosey! Rosey! ROSEY!!!” I scream into the void, but no one is listening to me anymore. Rosey’s gone. “I’ll do anything, Rosey! Anything! Just get me out of here!”

~

I wake up to the same stench that’s still vivid in my memory. The air is thick with the scent of mold, mingling with the sharp tang of rust from corroded iron bars, which completes the heavy, oppressive atmosphere that makes the basement the last place I want to be in. I’m bloody, bruised, and in pain. And tied up. I never thought she’d go this far. She came back once, and used the opportunity to kick me, use me as a punching bag, and take all her frustration out on me, all while I begged her to let me go. I’m willing to do anything for her to let me go. To make any deal on this earth, just to be free. I’ve been beaten before, by Milan. But that was different. Milan was not my family.

She is. The powerful and almighty Rosey Slavinovich.

KAI

There’s a storm brewing inside me, one that threatens to consume everything in its path. I’ve been betrayed. Sure, I was the one who betrayed them first, but then why do I feel rage coiled inside me like I’m a viper ready to strike? This has gone too far. It’s unforgivable. They played me. I gave Martin my bike, and when I wanted it back, he kept me away from Maisy’s hotel room for longer than needed. I never doubted Martin’s interest in motorbikes. It just shows I can talk about bikes for hours. And it serves me right for being played. Fuck! I put my bike before Maisy’s safety and look where it got her. If she’s missing one hair on her head, it would be over for them.

The Delgados and I plan on getting inside Orion’s house and taking Maisy with us. And not one person on this earth will stop me.

As I ride, I sense my wrath trying to take over my body. If I squeeze the handles any tighter, I’ll break them. My hands crave some action.

It’s dark when we arrive outside Orion’s house. Four of my men are following me. Actually, one of them is a woman, Zeena, who’s very much into mixed martial arts. After Marina, I started trusting women more. I took Zeena with me because she counts for three men when she fights. We are a sight to behold, and also to hear when we approach on our bikes, but I don’t care. Let them hear me. I’m taking my Maisy with me, and this time, I won’t hide.

I park and nod at the others to park too, and to be ready. I’m expecting some action at any moment now, but nothing’s happening. It’s oddly quiet.

All of us have drawn our guns. They should have come out by now. I know something’s wrong. Especially when I notice Orion’s front door is slightly ajar.

I fix my gun in my jeans and run to it.

“Kai, this could be a trap!” Zeena shouts.

Too late; I’m already on the doorstep.

I push the door open, but it’s stuck. Something’s jamming it from the inside. I peek through and am met with the thick, metallic scent of blood, and see three dead bodies lying on the floor.

“Fuck!” I ram the door harder and step inside. “Get over here, quickly!”

I was hoping to encounter Orion and Logan defending Maisy. I was meaning to kick their asses, too. But the silence here is nauseating, laden with the weight of the unknown.

“Orion! ORION! LOGAN!” I run into the living room, where I come across more bodies. Martin’s one of them, fucking serves him right for playing me. But his death doesn’t satisfy me. He was supposed to protect Orion. And Maisy, if she was here. Dread runs through me and I race up the stairs, heading straight for Maisy’s room. For once, I’m actually scared of what I might find in there… Maisy, lying on the floor, her eyes open, her body frozen… dead… I’m scared that whoever wanted to kill her, succeeded.

But then another thought forms, one I dare not create words for, so I just run and jump over more bodies with a sense of foreboding that clings to me like a second skin. I run until I enter Maisy’s room and, the sight I’m met with will haunt me forever. There, sprawled on the wooden floor, are Orion and Logan, their bodies lifeless.

The silence is so profound it’s suffocating. My heart plummets into an abyss, and a silent howl is caught in my throat. Guilt. That’s what lashes at me instantly. My actions, my decisions, did this. I left them exposed. Unprepared. Had I stayed, none of this would have happened.

What am I going to say to their families? Worse still, what am I going to do without them?

As Zeena and the boys come up the stairs, I kneel beside the bodies.

“Orion… Logan… Please tell me you’re messing with me.” My voice cracks. Fuck. I’ve never cried in my life, but I feel the tears running down my face now.

What a stupid mistake I made. I now see what they were doing. They were protecting me. They sacrificed themselves so I wouldn’t get hurt, because I never stood a chance against… this. My burden to carry for the rest of my days, a constant reminder.

“Kai! KAI!! What the fuck? Move!” Zeena pushes me out of the way and checks both men for a pulse. “They’re not dead, you jackass! But they will be if we don’t get help immediately!”

“Fuck!” I wipe my face and stop wallowing in self-pity. I pull my cell out and dial Uncle Jon Vitali. He answers instantly.

“It’s Kai Delgado. Logan’s been shot. He needs urgent medical care. Orion Carte, too. We need to take them somewhere safe.”

Uncle Jon swears down the phone. “Where are you?”

“Orion Carte’s house. Bring an ambulance. Hurry!”

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