Page 41 of The Chosen Heir

Taking the stairs up to the second floor, I passed Yo-Yo’s room. Sounds of Pop Smoke’s deep voice blasted through the thin walls. Hoping to relax, I took a shower but my mind kept spinning. My best friend had run away, I lost my virginity, and I may or may not have a boyfriend. Oh, and don’t forget you’re going to move into his place behind your mother’s back.

I had to snatch up this chance with Alex because the reprieve I had with my mother would end at some point. She hadn’t approached me about my plans because she was wrapped up in Yo-Yo, but she would, and soon. After graduation, I was expected to move back home, unless I went off to a graduate program or got married. There was a small window of time to see if there was any future with Alex. That was my real dream, not another degree or starting a career, but I could never confess that to her.

Since showering did nothing to clear my mind, I threw on a pair of tight running shorts, a sports bra, and a long-sleeved running shirt. Trekking down the stairs, I slipped on my sneakers and grabbed the key to the front door. My father’s head snapped up from their deep conversation and looked at me from above my mother’s bent head. Gesturing down my body, I pointed to the door and slipped out, locking it behind me.

At the top of the stoop, I took a deep breath of air and exhaled slowly. When I finished a series of quick stretches, I hit the pavement and went on a run.

???

I was in a groove as I ran through my neighborhood toward the park alongside the East River in Long Island City. The skyline of Midtown Manhattan, with the Empire State Building and the United Nations building, always did the trick of calming me down. And a relaxed mood was more imperative than ever. My concerns about Yo-Yo and my mother, about Tasa and Alex receded into the background. Although that left space in my head for guilt that I might have violated Tasa’s trust by telling Alex about the dance workshop in Montreal. It was so hard to know what was the right thing to do, but I figured it was best to put my trust in Alex since he knew most about any potential threat to Tasa. The scary-looking knives I found in his chest of drawers when I went looking for something to wear hadn’t escaped my notice. It was the knives that had tipped me over to disclose my knowledge about Madame Pierrette’s dance workshop. By the time I passed the ginormous neon Pepsi Cola sign along the river, I was feeling lighter than I had all day.

While pounding the pavement, I was focused on my breathing when a black car flew past me on the street and screeched to a halt a dozen feet in front of me. The back door flung open, shuddering from the force used to open it. As I passed by, I rubbernecked to see what was going on when I was snared by a pair of livid green eyes.

Fear sliced through me.

Skidding to a stop, I breathed heavily as Alex unfolded his large body from the car. Fury vibrated off him in tsunami-like waves.

Pointing to the ground in front of him, he commanded, “Come. Here.”

Flustered, I squeezed between two cars parked at the curb to stand in front of him. “What happened? Did anything happen?” I rushed out, my chest heaving.

“In the car,” he demanded. His voice was stone-cold, but his eyes were blazing hot. Tripping a little, I slipped past the bulk of his body and slid onto the seat. He instantly came in behind me, slammed the door shut, and ordered the driver to go.

Blood rushed to my head from stopping so suddenly and panic slinked through my chest.

“What’s happened?” I repeated. Why wasn’t he telling me what was going on instead of staring at me silently? He looked furious, but it couldn’t possibly be with me…though his nostrils flared wide with barely restrained rage and all his intensity was focused on me.

“Fucking really, Nina?”

“What?” I cried out, my nails digging into the leather seats.

“You fucking go running out in the open. Alone. Are you out of your mind?” His hand motioned up and down to encompass my body, as he spat out, “You don’t even have your phone on you.”

“I was running. I don’t take my phone running. Only my key. See,” I unzipped the little pocket of my running shorts and took out my key to show him. While I knew his world was dangerous, I hadn’t thought anything of going running like usual. Although, I’d witnessed the limitations put on Tasa, it would definitely be an adjustment for me.

He gazed down at me as if I’d lost my mind. “A key? That’s it? I texted and called you and got no answer. Nothing. Panicked, I finally went to your house. Your dad told me you went out running. Thank fuck he knows the circuit you usually take.” He looked like he was about to throttle me as he said in a low, pained tone, “Nina, if I didn’t want you to take the subway alone, what in God’s name would make you think it’d be okay to go running without a bodyguard in the middle of Queens?”

My breathing should have returned to normal, but I was still panting, anxiety bubbling in my chest.

“Christ, woman, I thought you had better sense than this.” His voice turned guttural, “Violence, blood, death. They’re a regular part of my life. At fifteen, I killed my first man, making me the equivalent of what you might know of as a made man.”

“What happened?” I asked, dying to know more about him.

Alex gave me a sharp look. His eyes flickered away and then slashed back to me. “Fine, you want to know? It was in Romania. We were driving from my grandmother’s village to the capital when our car was run off the road. There was a shoot-out. We held tight until we managed to pick off enough of the attackers and then the rest ran for a nearby forest. My father was shot in the leg, so he shouted at me and Luca to go after them.”

His face grew still, a mask of serenity sliding over his features as if he wasn’t discussing the killing of men. His voice turned eerily calm, almost monotone, and his eyes emptied of life. He was torpedoed back to that day as if the events were playing out before him. My heart ached, imagining Alex not much younger than Yo-Yo, living through the fear and panic of an attack.

“It was only me and Luca. We were out there for hours, creeping, stopping to listen for signs of them hiding, circling back and forth until we slaughtered them, one by one. An hour later, we captured the last one standing.” There was a long pause. My breath faltered in my chest. Rapt by Alex’s face, I saw the killer in him. Another creature stirred beneath his civilized suit, and it was not a pretty sight. Should I have been scared by that revelation? Probably, but life wasn’t black or white. I’d also been on the receiving end of his protective, caring side. Seen him go to great lengths to care for his family, over the years. Witnessed his concern for Tasa. Those qualities compensated for the other, darker side of him.

Alex shook his head, breaking the spell. His eyes refocused on where he sat, in the back of his black Mercedes. “My father almost bled out that day. The wound was bad, and he had to wait until we came back with our quarry. Do you know why we kept the second man alive?” he asked in a wry tone.

I shook my head, fear slithering down my spine. I sensed I wouldn’t like the answer, but if I was to be part of his life, it was time to woman up.

“Because we needed to torture him to find out who he worked for and who had tried to dispose of us.”

“Who was it?” I squeaked out.

“The highest Roma gang in the country. A simple vacation to the old country, and they thought it was a prelude to us returning home to rule. That vacation turned into a bloodbath. It wasn’t the only kill Luca and I would partake in for the next two weeks.” He let out a weary sigh. “My life is brutal, Nina.”

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