15. Chapter 15

Chapter fifteen

CAIRO

It's been an entire day and things have gone from bad to worse. Asking around, I've found several conflicting reports, each one mentioning Ada but in completely different parts of the city. However, the few I'm worried about are the ones where Ada was seen on campus, speaking to the administration, or sitting in the courtyard.

Paval and Tia have been holed up in my apartment, stuffed in the guest bedroom, only appearing in between naps. I can't even fucking blame them. I'm barely dealing with my father's endless demands to graduate, my phone ringing incessantly since this morning after he found the perfect woman to be my wife.

It's just after four, my next fight in a few hours, and Tia is currently out of commission. People are getting antsy about their money and while the OGs know that my girl is off limits, it's only a matter of time before someone tries swinging at her again. Needing a distraction, I head to the gym on the first floor of the building, making sure to lock my apartment behind me. I even turn on the fucking security system that's been there from day one but I've never touched.

We can't be too careful at this point.

Not even two feet into the gym and my phone rings again. I answer the call, just about to scream into the phone when my father's voice reaches my ears.

"Why did I just get a call saying that you're failing one of your business classes? What am I paying for if you're going to squander the opportunity I'm affording you?"

I'm a fully grown adult and yet my father has to have someone on the down low feeding him my grades. I wouldn't be surprised if it's one of the deans or if he has an administrative assistant keeping his bed warm. I swallow a sigh, knowing that it'll only piss him off. "I think they've got it wrong, Dad. I'm passing this semester and graduating next year. Everything's fine."

Those are definitely the wrong words. "Fine? Everything is not fine , Cairo. You're a goddamn pitiful example of my legacy at that university. You've not won one award or accolade and you always come home with cuts and bruises. Brute force will get you nowhere. "

He's a fucking hypocrite. He uses force everywhere, intimidation, his fists, or loud words to scare his employees into doing what he wants. "I need to study."

"See that you do. If I find out that you failed a class, repeating it will be the least of your worries. No woman wants a husband without a degree." He hangs up and I chuck the device across the room before slamming a fist into one of the punching bags. I'm barely passing but it's enough to get me out the door.

Clapping echoes through the room and I twist around to see the twins approaching. Dark expressions sit on their faces as they stop in front of me, Jax holding the bag I just hit. Aidan folds his arms across his chest, shaking his head. "Caught Tia's older doppelganger in the registrar's office earlier. They could be fucking twins. I know you mentioned keeping an eye on the woman but that's her mother, isn't it? The one in the news when we were all kids?"

"Yeah, she got an early release and wants to talk to Tia but by law, she's not allowed to. It's a whole fucking mess and it's about to get worse. I don't know why the police aren't doing anything." I've called the station twice and both times, they said that they were aware of the issue. Sounds like a bunch of bullshit to me.

Aidan nods. "I was wondering why we hadn't seen the princess running around. We'll try and keep tabs on her but the moment we tried to take a picture, she was gone."

Which tracks with what Paval's fathers said. I make a note to send the Kolas crew a message as soon as I head back upstairs. If Paval gets a hint of Ada being on campus, he's going to try and confront her. I just know it.

"How's Paval? We haven't seen him either," Jax muses, hanging off the bag. He wiggles his eyebrows; these two are so close to Tia that they have to know about our unconventional relationship.

"Doing much better. He can take a good hit, apparently but he's taking care of Tia at the moment. They're childhood sweethearts and he's the best protection she has." I try to gauge Jax's reaction when I realize he wasn't actually asking about Paval's health. "He's not fighting again. Not this soon anyway."

I retrieve my phone, ignoring their continued antics and the unasked question they so badly want an answer to—what's the relationship between me, Paval, and Tia? The answer would be I have no fucking clue but I'm beginning to see Paval as even more adorable than usual.

The way he apologized in the bathroom wasn't something I had expected. I rush back upstairs only to find Tia trying and failing to get Paval out of the bathtub. She's got tears in her eyes from laughter, the poor woman slipping on the rug and falling onto her ass. "Cairo, help me." It's the first time in a day I've seen her smile, let alone heard her laugh.

Unfortunately, the situation is more serious than it seems.

Paval not being able to stand on his own is a symptom that Nick said to watch out for. He's just frustrated, angry that he can't do it on his own as I help him to his feet, soap suds sliding down his torso. "I've got him, Tia. Go rinse off in the other bathroom so I can get Pav taken care of."

Tia leaves me with a kiss, the man I've been obsessed with for far too long completely naked in front of me. His strength is failing but his half-lidded stare riddled with lust isn't something I can ignore, especially when his cock thickens against my thigh.