Page 106 of Shadows of Obsession

"If something happens to you, not a stone will remain standing in this damn city. Every soldier who's there and fails to protect you will learn how it feels to have their dicks ripped off. I will paint Chicago red with blood if you get hurt. Is that what you want?" he says, emphasizing each word as if he wants to imprint them in my mind.

"No!" I manage to say, though it's more of a murmur. His hand tightens at my throat and he brings his mouth close to my lips.

"Then you will listen to me and run if something goes wrong," he whispers.

"Okay."

It's all I manage to answer because his presence is too much for me right now. His dark gray gaze has a gleam that I've learned to recognize so well. It's desire. And even though I'd like nothing more than to forget everything and sink into him, into his safety, the reality is that time is passing and we need to act.

Realizing the same thing as me, he releases me and takes a few steps back.

"You'll go in with the money and try to convince him to release Roxy," he tells me, and I know that he hates every bit of this plan, but it's what Aidan demanded.

Roman believes Lev has been helping Aidan hide until now, precisely to make his move and separate me from him.

He’ll certainly be monitoring the surveillance cameras, and I know that at the first sign of suspicious movement, he won’t hesitate to hurt Roxy and disappear. The plan is simple: I go in, convince him to release Roxy as soon as he has me wherehe wants, and keep him talking long enough for Roman and Damien to intervene and grab him.

I know what will happen once Roman gets his hands on him, but I can't find any sympathy in me. This man, who emotionally and financially blackmailed me for months, dared to kidnap Roxy just to get to me.

I feel like every limit of my kindness has been tested with him, and I simply can't find the strength to forgive him or move past it anymore. Because that's what I would have wanted. To forget him. To forgive him at some point. For me, for my peace of mind, but it's clear this man will never leave me alone.

Before we leave the room, I look at Roman and ask him, as confidently as I can,"Do you have a gun?"

?

The address where Aidan is located is at the opposite end of the city, so we met with Damien a few miles away, just in case Aidan isn't alone there.

And something tells me he isn't alone. He's always been a coward. He knows I'll come for Roxy, but he also knows who I live with, and he won't take risks.

Damien gets off a Ducati while, behind him, two SUVs stop and five armed men emerge. Roman wasn't exaggerating - judging by how many soldiers are here, we really could conquer a small state. If we count the other six we brought, we're definitely too visible a force. We'd be easy to detect on any surveillance camera.

I could have hacked the cameras in the area, but he would have immediately realized something was wrong. Aidan is too paranoid to believe in coincidences.

"Luna," is all Damien says, and I awkwardly wave in greeting. It feels like an eternity since he dropped me off at home. Damien resembles Roman physically - tall, broad-shouldered, with black hair. He has intense brown eyes and hair cut short on the sides. Although their styles are completely different - Roman with his designer suits and Damien with his leather jacket, black jeans, and boots - both exude the same aura of control and dominance.

The difference is that with Damien, control seems like a bomb ready to explode, while with Roman it's masked under a veil of sophistication.

Roman puts his hand on my waist and greets Damien.

"I know I said it was urgent, but I wasn't expecting you to bring the heavy artillery," Roman says, and I can detect the amused tone.

Something passes through Damien's eyes, and I could swear it's regret.

"Let's say it's a debt I needed to repay to tygrisek," he answers, and I instantly know what he's talking about.

From the way Roman tenses, he too realizes what ‘debt’ he's talking about.

"Thank you," I say and extend my hand.

If it weren't for Damien forcing Aidan's to leave the city and leave me alone, I don't know what I would have done. I know the man who gave me my scars is dead. The fact that Damien feels the need to make amends for Aidan’s return gives me comfort. Yet if you saw him on the street, you'd say this man has no soul.

My hand barely touches his when Roman pulls me back toward him.

"A thank you is enough. He doesn't need to touch you!" His tone is final.

I can't help rolling my eyes at how crazy he can be sometimes. The grin on Damien’s face tells me how ridiculous he finds his friend's remark and gesture too.

"The Siberian glaciers must have melted if evenyoufell in love," he says before turning his back to have a discussion with some of his soldiers.

---