Страница 306 из 349
“Get up.” Anissa’s scream splits the ocean silence as she pushes to her feet. “Swim, you heartless piece of shit.”
“Anissa.” Luca is the one to warn her of the precarious position she’s putting herself in.
I don’t say a word.
I keep my mouth shut because the storm of strength she exudes isn’t something I’m willing to stifle.
“Get on your feet and fucking swim,” she snaps.
Amar looks at me, then Anissa, and back again. But this time, it isn’t in fear. His eyes are scrutinizing. Calculating.
“You heard the lady.” I jerk my gun skyward. “On your feet. Now.”
Finally, he complies, moving like a ninety-year-old as he climbs to his feet instead of the active man he’s always been. “You would sentence a grandfather to death for doing his job?”
“I would slit your throat in a heartbeat for far less.” I grab his arm and drag him starboard. “You should be grateful I’m being lenient.”
“Let me take it from here.” Luca joins me, grabbing Amar by the back of the shirt to encourage him to straddle the side of the boat.
“But my shoes. My clothes. Please, let me take them off.” The old man attempts to kick off one of his loafers.
“No. Leave them on.” I exude sympathy with a feigned smile. “I’m a fair man, Amar. I only want the boat. I wouldn’t dare to take anything else from you. Not your clothes or your wallet. Not even your cell. You need to make sure you take it all with you.”
He shakes his head, over and over.
I incline mine. “Enjoy the swim.”
Luca gives him another shove, sending the man tumbling into the water with a rewarding splash. He bobs in the deep blue and struggles to remain afloat as he kicks off his shoes and maneuvers out of the clothes weighing him down.
Anissa watches every second, her arms crossed over her chest, her face a mix of anger and guilt.
“Want me to get us out of here?” Luca asks.
“Yeah. We don’t have time to watch the show.”
“I agree. She made her position all the more precarious by throwing her weight around. If Amar makes it ashore and word gets back to Luther that—”
“That I value a toy over the asshole who stole from me?” I shove my gun back inside my jacket. “I’m not afraid to admit her worth is more than Amar’s.”
“Right,” he mutters.
He makes for the cockpit and turns on the ignition while I remain in place, my attention glued to Anissa as she stares at the slow-moving swimmer.
“You spoke up for his benefit, didn’t you?” I move toward her, drawn closer by her internal struggle. “Your demands were an attempt to save his life.”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re too soft, Anissa.”
It’s that remarkable softness that has me settling in behind her to wrap my arms around her waist. I let her compassion ease my rage, my thirst for blood dissipating with her warmth.
She gives a slight shake of her head. “That wasn’t softness.”
“I wasn’t going to execute him. I told you I’d be lenient and I was. The old man escaped without a single scratch.”
She doesn’t respond. She barely breathes as the boat accelerates, gliding over the water’s surface to gently rock us back and forward.
“For a second, I thought you were enjoying the power trip.”
“Maybe I did.” She turns into me, her arms still clinging tight around her waist while she rests her head on my shoulder. “I don’t know what I’m feeling anymore. Everything is so heavy.”
“You should sit down. The adrenaline is wearing off.”
She nods but doesn’t move.
“Come on.” I slide my hand over her arm and lead her back to her seat. “Sit.”
She slumps onto the padded bench and stares up at me. “Will he make it back to shore?”
“Do you want him to?”
She hangs her head.
The show of guilt pummels me. There’s no place for it. Not here. Not after what he did. But I need to remember she’s not like me. She set up camp on the opposite side of the law and has no plan to cross enemy lines.
“He was born and raised in the Greek islands, Nis.” I run a hand through her hair, gently soothing her. “He lives and breathes this ocean. I’m sure he’ll be fine.” I glide my touch over her jaw to her chin, raising her face to meet my gaze. “Is that what you wanted me to say?”
“I don’t know.” Her eyes implore me. “Nothing makes sense anymore.”
“Your guilt is unjustified.”
She shakes her head. “You don’t understand.”
“I may not be prone to the emotion. But I’m not immune, either. I’ve made mistakes that haunt me.”
“Over what?”
“It doesn’t matter.” I stroke her jaw, succumbing to her tenderness.
“I don’t need details, Cole, I just want a distraction. Tell me a story. Tell me about you.”
“I don’t think you need more ammunition to hate me, do you?”
She winces, her beautiful face changing into a mask of pain. “I don’t hate you. I don’t think I even understand you. I still don’t know why you’re doing any of this—fighting your father, taking down a money-making operation—it doesn’t make—”
“Because when I was a kid I caught a man raping someone I cared about.”
Her expression slackens. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.”
“But you want to understand, right? So let me tell you.”
I shouldn’t elaborate. It’s nothing but pathetic weakness encouraging me to spill my secrets. A blatant desire for her understanding.
“I walked in on the situation too late and had to drag the man off her. But that’s where my help stopped. Instead of taking matters into my own hands, I told my father and hoped he would deal with the perpetrator.”
“He didn’t?”
“At the time, I thought he had. The sick bastard who hurt her disappeared from my life for a while. I knew he was still around, but he wasn’t part of the organization like he once was.”
“He worked for your family?”
“He was family. They all are. Everyone who makes their way into our circle is one of us. Luca. Hunter. Sarah. Even Decker. They may not have the same blood in their veins, but their loyalty makes their bond even stronger.”
“What happened to the girl?” She blinks up at me, her eyes holding sympathy I don’t deserve.
“I kept watch over her for a long time. I made sure she was doing okay. But it wasn’t enough. I told myself she was moving on with her life when in reality she was bottling her anger, letting it fester for years until it became too much and she took revenge into her own hands.”
She pulls back, her concern making way for shock.
“I should’ve dealt with him as soon as it happened. If I’d had the balls to take care of the situation back then, my father wouldn’t have found a like-minded deviant. Then maybe they never would’ve built this empire together.”
“Wait?” She frowns “They built it together? But I thought your father and uncle…”
I let the information sink in. The depravity, too.
“Jesus, Cole. It was Richard who raped her?”
“My lineage doesn’t leave much hope for me, does it?”
A heave of breath leaves her lips as she sinks her head against my stomach and curls her arms around me. She hugs me tight, as if she’s trying to keep the vulnerability wrapped around me, not letting an ounce of the weakness escape.
I return my touch to her hair, stroking the delicate strands. “I’m the cause of all this. One moment of weakness inspired more women to be violated.”
“You said you were a kid.”
“In body, not in mind. Just like Tobias, the reality of this life has been my constant since I was born. I was raised as an adult. I should’ve acted like one.”