Page 35 of Chasing Danger

“Fine?” he shouted, though the close call seemed to have shaken him enough that he easily followed my guidance and sat back down. “This is not fine. This is the exact opposite of fine.”

“I just meant that your family is safe. I’ve put a protection detail on them and can move them to a safe house if necessary. Your friend as well. Everyone is safe.”

Running a hand over his face, Oliver mumbled into the palm of his hand. “Protection details. Safe houses. Just like that.” He breathed deep for a few moments as I sat back down in the nearest chair and waited.

It didn’t take as long as I expected for him to finally lower his hand and look me in the eye with a determined gaze.

“Who are you? Normal people don’t have bodyguards and safe houses on standby. Not to mention the room full of armed men that you took out single handedly. I’m not stupid. Something is going on and I want to know. I deserve that much after I’ve been dragged into the middle of it.”

“You’re right,” I said, and he seemed startled by my quick agreement. “You deserve to know. Just... bear with me. I don’t often have to explain this.”

I started at the beginning, explaining my mix of Russian and Italian heritage. How I inherited leadership of one of the most powerful Italian mafia families when I was only eighteen and maintained that position for twenty years through a mix of ruthless violence and cunning politics.

Oliver was oddly silent as he listened to me. He didn’t say a word. He barely even blinked as he absorbed everything I said like a dry sponge that had suddenly found itself submerged under far more water than it could hold.

It was only as I explained recent events that he began to fidget, pawing at his hair to pull it in front of his face. I recognized it as a nervous gesture whenever he was feeling self-conscious, so I wrapped up my explanation quickly.

It was probably either the Russians or Caprice Vidales’ people who attacked him, though I wasn’t certain which one. No matter who it was, he was obviously in danger due to his association with me. So, he needed to stay here where it was safe while I sorted everything out.

When I’d finished, he still didn’t say anything. By that point, he’d stopped staring at me and now sat on the edge of the bed staring out the window again.

“I didn’t intend to get you involved,” I said, just to fill the silence. “Originally, I just wanted a distraction to keep me entertained while I was in town. But then I realized that you wouldn’t just fall into my bed. Winning you would require effort. I probably should have walked away at that point, but I liked the effort. It was refreshing.”

Standing from my chair, I stepped around the bed and reached out to lay a hand on his shoulder, but he flinched away from my touch.

Not wanting to push him, I stepped back.

“It’s my fault that you’re in danger now, so I promise I’ll protect you. Just stay here while I take care of this, and I’ll get you back to your normal life as soon as I can.”

I turned to leave, but at the last moment he grabbed the very edge of my sleeve.

“Thanks, I guess, for telling me... and for taking responsibility. I’m just... I don’t know what I’m feeling right now. I’m not angry. I’m just... numb.”

Gripping his hand in both of mine, I gave it a squeeze. “That’s understandable. It’s a lot to process. Take some time to think things over. I promise to take care of you, so I’ll be gone for a little while. You have free rein of the penthouse. It’s fully stocked so you shouldn’t need anything. Just don’t try to leave. I’m assigning a bodyguard to watch over you and they will stop you from leaving if necessary.”

I pulled out a basic phone from my pocket, which I placed on the side table by the bed. “This is a secure phone. It’ll only call the numbers already programmed. You can use it to reach me and check in on your family and your friend. If you do need anything, just ask Eva and she’ll get it for you. I’ll be back in two days.”

He gave me a nod and a non-committal grunt of agreement, which I figured was probably the best I was going to get. Then I left him alone and closed the bedroom door behind me.

“Eva, you’re staying here.”

“But, Boss...” she started to argue.

“No, I don’t trust anyone else to guard him. Not until I know for sure who attacked him in the first place. Gavriil will be with me, so I won’t be alone, and I don’t plan on getting into any trouble.”

She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at me. “You never ‘plan’ for any trouble. It just happens. And the fact that we don’t know who attacked that boy and what they want, means you’re in more danger, too.”

Heading for the front door, I grabbed my coat and swung it over my shoulders to protect me from the dreary weather outside. “Doesn’t matter. You’re staying. I should only be gone for two days. Make sure he stays here until I get back and get him anything he needs.”

She agreed, but from the tone of her voice I could tell she hated being relegated to what she saw as ‘babysitting duty.’ Still, I had faith that she would follow my order to the letter, even if she didn’t like it.

Gavriil followed right behind me as I left the penthouse and stepped out into the hallway toward the elevator. “Two days? So, we’re leaving the city. You have a plan.”

Pressing the button to call the elevator, I watched the numbers slowly count up to our floor. “It won’t solve everything, but I think I know how to solve at least one of our problems.”

The elevator dinged and the door opened, but rather than immediately step on, I flashed Gavriil a violent smile.

“We’re going to visit The Wolf.”

---