Page 8 of Cruel Redemption

Luka carefully placed me on the couch and one of the men, immediately slid a cushion from another couch under my foot to keep it elevated.

“It’s bleeding through,” Luka noticed. “We might need to bring Dochev in.”

“Done,” Nikoli answered.

“Who is Dochev?” I looked between them.

“Family doctor,” Luka explained. “He’s discreet. Don’t worry. He will know if you need stitches.”

I winced, pushing up on my palms. Stitches in the bottom of my foot sounded excruciating. I hoped Dr. Dochev had another option for me. I didn’t like being at a disadvantage with my injury or the one propped up on the couch with so many armed men circled around me. I was used to a position of power. Vulnerability like this was something I avoided. The Russians never saw my weaknesses exposed. I didn’t have weaknesses.

“What can you do to find Enzo?” I asked Nikoli. I had to find a way to gain control.

Luka stepped between us. “Why don’t you tell me what you can about the kidnapping.” He nodded. “What did you see? What do you remember?” he pressed.

I squared my shoulders. “I was walking outside to the car to get him to bring him back up to the office. I saw him as soon as I walked outside. He was on his phone. Before I could tell him, a black van pulled up, but I didn’t have a chance to react. It was—” I paused to breathe. “I couldn’t put it together fast enough before there was a bag over his head, and I froze.” I stopped for a second.

“It’s okay. Take your time.” Luka remained calm. Patient. More so than he had been upstairs.

“They threw him in the back of the van. I am sorry. I should have screamed out or something to warn him. Gone after them. Pulled him out of there.” I looked up into his face. “I didn’t do enough to stop them.”

Luka knelt beside me. The gesture was more powerful, considering we had a Bratva audience. He took my face in his hands.

“You don’t have to apologize. You and Enzo were attacked. There is nothing to be sorry about. Going after them would have been suicide. I’m glad you didn’t.”

I dropped my head, searching for a breath, and probably for an answer. Why Enzo? Why now? My ribs hurt. My eyes burned.

“Someone grabbed me, but he only got one arm and more of my sleeve. I started to fight him. I was able to keep going. I guess that’s how I lost my jacket.”

“I didn’t see it on the sidewalk. I had combed the area around the entire block. Someone must have circled back and collected it.” Luka pieced the chain of events together with me.

“How did I not see it coming?” I asked. My voice cracked. “What did Ciro and my father always say to me a thousand times? Assess. Assess. Assess. I didn’t assess anything.”

He shook his head. “Hey, this is not your fault.” Luka wanted me to believe it, but I didn’t know if I could agree. “You were the one who had been attacked, not the other way around.”

I huffed. “On the way down to the street…in the elevator all I could think about was— What we were going to do with the building. The offices. I had other things on my mind, more important things than my safety. And look what happened.” I stopped short of admitting that above all Luka had distracted me. Thinking about our plans, our future, my love for him.

“It’s not your fault.”

“What happens to him is my responsibility. It is my fault. He works for me. I should have protected him.”

Luka’s hands fell away from my cheek. He turned toward his men. They exchanged a few words in Russian, none that I knew. I was frustrated and stuck on the damn couch. He turned back to me.

“I need to get you out of here.”

“What about Enzo? We have to find him. We have to get him back. I need to look for him,” I argued.

“We will. But first, I need for you to be safe. Let Nik and his men start the search.”

There was relief in knowing there were highly trained teams at Luka’s disposal. A team ready to turn the city over to find Enzo.

“Pahkan, I’ll begin a perimeter search of the cameras in the area to get a direction on the van. I’ll update you every hour,” Nikoli informed him.

I wondered if I would get used to him being addressed by his Russian title.

“Good.” He nodded and the men were immediately dismissed from the lobby. A few seconds later, two remained posted outside the revolving doors.

Luka’s strong arms slid under my body as he lifted me against his body.

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