Chapter Eighteen

Bri

I frantically scanned the room looking for Rogue, hoping he would materialize at my side. It struck me as funny that the man I had been so afraid of was now the only person in the world that made me feel safe. The club had erupted in chaos. The blaring sound of the fire alarms going off everywhere and flashing lights illuminating the exits had caused the crowd of revelers to get nervous. The sounds of people murmuring buzzed in my ears as I watched some of them slowly move with uncertainty toward the exits. My eyes scanned the room, searching for the man who had been staring at me earlier. A part of me knew he was to blame for the disruption, and he had to be among the crowd somewhere.

“It’s time to go, Mrs. Delaney.”

The hulking bodyguard to my left grabbed my arm and pulled me from the booth. My legs felt weak, and I reached out to take hold of his arm as the crowd bumped into us. When the sprinklers went off overhead, the crowd of people who had been scared but orderly began to panic. We were pushed and shoved. The two men at my side did their best to shield me, but when people began running, I became separated from them and was swallowed up by the flow of the crowd. Fear propelled me forward.

My eyes continued to search the area. I flinched when a hand touched my arm, expecting it to be the menacing man from earlier, but it was a younger girl trying to steady herself as we pushed through the exit door with the others. Once outside, my fear escalated. Fire trucks and ambulances were on the scene; they were directing the crowd to move away from the building. I placed my hands over my ears as the sirens blared. Images, noises, and people all whirled around me. Every face began to look like him. My hysteria began to consume me. I had to get out of there. I had to escape. With every step I took, I could almost feel the monster closing in on me.

When an arm reached out and grabbed me from behind, I screamed only to have a hand close down hard over my mouth.

“Shh, come with me. We need to get out of here.”

Even through my state of shock, I recognized the voice and sank against him in relief. “Father Michael…”

He was barely recognizable, dressed in black and wearing a black jacket with the hood pulled over his head.

“Come on, we can’t talk here.”

He wrapped a hand around my waist as he quickly pushed our way through the crowd. Once we were free of the chaos, his pace slowed.

“Where are we going?”

“There is a safehouse we have used on occasion not far from here. You and I will wait for Rogue there.”

I still didn’t understand what was happening. “Why were you at the club tonight?”

“This morning Rogue shared with me his concern that you needed extra protection. He asked if I would be willing to watch over you. I was coming to the club tonight to let him know I would do that. But before I went inside, the alarms went off and people were running around like damn idiots everywhere. When I saw you, I knew something strange had happened and my instincts said that the best thing to do was to get you away from there. I will call Rogue to let him know that you are safe and with me as soon as I am able.”

My hand reached over and grabbed his arm pulling him to a stop. “I saw the man that did this! I don’t know who it was. I didn’t recognize him, but he was staring at me while I was seated at Rogue’s booth. When I tried to tell the bodyguards about him, he was gone, then the alarms went off and everyone began to scramble out of there. I know he had something to do with it. I wanted to find Rogue and warn him. I was afraid that he had been sent there to kill him. But I got separated from the men Rogue had guarding me and I couldn’t find him.”

I looked up to see the intense dark frown on his face.

“I don’t know who is behind it, but I do know that Rogue was right, you do need extra protection.”

“I know Rogue has enemies and things are in motion that I don’t understand, but do you think it could have been Tony, the man who has been trying to find me since I left Colorado? I honestly don’t think he will ever stop until he kills me.”

Father Michael came to an abrupt stop and turned me to face him. “Tony Galante has never come against a force like Rogue before. You have not seen that side of him, but trust me, he will never allow that bastard to get to you, Bri. He will make sure that Galante gets everything he deserves and more. Now, let’s hurry and get off the street and out of sight. I will feel better once Rogue knows where we are and sends reinforcements.”

Rogue

While I didn’t like the idea of leaving Bri behind inside the club while I conducted business, I did not want her to hear any of the information Blaze had discovered. There were things that I was involved in, things that I wanted to shield her from. I wasn’t only protecting her from outside threats, in a way I was protecting her from myself, from the darkness in which I resided.

“Sevan? Did you find him today?”

Blaze closed the door behind us, leaving us alone in the office. “No, I contacted him via text, asking him if he was aware that Petros had made a move against the Bratva in Las Vegas. He pretended to know nothing of the attack. When I asked if he knew where Petros was at or heading to, he said he would find out and get back in touch with me.” He scoffed as his eyes narrowed. “The old bastard even wished us his best saying he was worried for our safety. It was all I could do not to call him out for the liar that he is. I have already decided that I am going to cut out his lying tongue when the time comes.”

I moved to the desk and leaned back against it. “It will be no less than what he deserves. I made a call of my own and received confirmation that Sevan is indeed behind Petros’ aggression. He has been playing us for fools.”

Blaze’s face darkened. “Who is the source?”

Blaze probably knew me better than anyone. We had seen each other’s most dangerous sides and taken on many challenges backing each other up, but even he didn’t know of my past, of the connections to my father’s family. I wasn’t ready to reveal anything about my ties to the Irish mafia or my father and uncle. I wasn’t sure if I would ever let anyone know. I had spent years denying them after my father abandoned me on the streets. I had made my way without them, created an empire without their name or connections.

“They are a reliable source.” I recounted the details I had learned from my earlier conversation with my uncle and waited for Blaze’s reaction.

“Hmm, so we will need to kill Petros and the scheming Sevan.”

It was a statement, not a question. “If his sons are involved, they will have to be dealt with as well. I can’t let this kind of deception go unanswered.”

“Did you call Nik and let him know what you discovered?”

I shook my head. “No, they will not dare attack him again. Once they regroup and form another plan, they will go after us, but we will be waiting for them. But until we have taken care of Petros, we must play Sevan’s game. I don’t want him getting word that we know of his treachery. You know how much I love surprises.”

Blaze grinned as he sank into the seat in front of the desk. “How did Bri take the surprise you had for her?”

“I haven’t explained everything yet. I told her that I would not be able to spend time with her until this business with Petros was over. I haven’t told her about the estate, just that she would be leaving the penthouse. Speaking of surprises, I should warn you that Alessio will be arriving tomorrow.”

Blaze abruptly stood up. “I suppose that son of a bitch Tomas will be coming with him.”

I tried to bite back the smirk forming on my lips. “Alessio is bringing Eden. You know as well as I that he has assigned Tomas as her personal guard. Besides, Tomas can be handy. Maybe he would be willing to help you plan out a strategy for capturing Petros.”

“Fuck you, Rogue, and fuck Tomas! I don’t want nor do I need that arrogant prick’s assistance with anything.”

I never flinched. “If that is the case, we need to come up with something before he arrives. I can take Bri back to the penthouse and we can meet at my office there in the building.”

The mention of Tomas had blackened his mood and while Blaze was dangerous any day of the week, when he was angry, he was positively lethal.

“I have a liaison scheduled upstairs, but as soon as I have had my fill, I will meet you. That will give you more time with Bri before you take her to the mansion. You should enjoy what time you have left with her because we have no idea how long it will take to find and rid the world of Petros and Sevan. Then we have that damn Tony Galante to take care of, but that will be more fun than work.”

I frowned at the thought. Not having Bri with me, not being able to put my hands on her whenever I wished would be difficult, but it had to be done. Blaze was right, I should make wise use of the time we had together. “I will meet you later then.”

I stood from where I had been perched on the edge of the desk when the fire alarms began blaring in my ears. The security lights flashed, and the ear-piercing screech of people yelling and screaming filled the air. Blaze and I exchanged worried glances and rushed for the door just as the sprinklers went off.

“What the hell? Sprinklers don’t go off unless there is a fire,” Blaze yelled over the alarms, but I couldn’t think of anything but getting to Bri.

We rushed through the office door and down the hall back into the heart of the club where chaos and panic had already taken hold. People were screaming and running to the door. Pushing and shoving each other in the pandemonium to reach safety and get away from the streaming water being sprayed on top of everyone. I couldn’t see over the crowds, but I pulled my pistol in case I needed to be ready. Blaze was shoving his way through the mass of people toward the booth beside me. When we reached it, she wasn’t there. Neither were the two guards I had posted to watch her.

“She probably ran with the crowd. Maybe the guards took her to the car,” Blaze said as I continued to scan the club looking for any sign of her.

The sprinklers were still going off and I heard sirens from fire trucks in the distance. Fuck! I didn’t need this shit right now. I looked around, there was no smoke, no sign of a fire. Nothing that would have set off the alarms and the sprinklers.

“This was intentional. Find Bri!”

A sickening feeling began to settle in my stomach. I rushed to the doors, pushing everyone out of my way. Once outside, I looked toward the car. The windows were tinted, and I couldn’t see inside. I ran forward and opened the door to find the back seat empty. She wasn’t there. I frantically began searching the crowd of people that were flooding out the door. I didn’t see her. Blaze rushed forward.

“She wasn’t in the car. Where is she? Where are the two fuckers that were supposed to be watching her?”

Blaze’s face was hard. “I found one of them inside searching the bathrooms. When the alarms went off, they grabbed her and headed for the exit, but in the mayhem, they were separated. They were pushed and somehow lost their hold on her. She was carried away in the crowd of people and vanished. The other man is still searching for her among those that left the club.”

Anger threatened to take over any rational thoughts I might have had. My wife had disappeared in the chaos, the two incompetent assholes that were supposed to be watching her had lost her. They would be lucky if I didn’t kill them for this mistake, and if I didn’t find her soon, that was exactly what I would do. I would not tolerate this kind of uselessness in my organization.

A million thoughts rushed through my head. Had Petros taken her? Was this what he had planned all along, or was it Tony Galante? Both men were dangerous, and my angel could be in their hands right now. The thought infuriated me as much as it terrified me. But I couldn’t focus on that right now, I had to find her and when I did, I would bring hell down upon the person that dared take her from me.

Three Hours Later

The fury raging inside me grew with every second that I didn’t have her with me. I had searched everywhere for her, but she was nowhere near the club.

Blaze walked to where I was standing, both of us still wearing the wet clothes we had on earlier. “The fire chief confirmed that the sprinklers were tampered with; this was an intentional act. I paid him a cool grand to keep the information under wraps. I have one of the men handling things. He will take care of hiring a cleanup crew. I checked the cameras and I think you should see them.”

I followed Blaze into the IT office where one of the men had the security cameras pulled up on the monitors. My eyes were fixed on the screen where Bri was sitting at the booth before the fire alarms were pulled. One of the waitresses brought her a glass of water but from the video, I could see Bri’s eyes were focused on someone or something across the room.

“What the hell? Go find that waitress and bring her to me. Now!” The man I had directed the order to didn’t hesitate. He rushed from the room.

“Zoom in.”

Even in the video, I could see the concern on her face.

“Where the fuck is the damn waitress?!”

“She is right here, boss.”

I turned to see a short little blonde clutching her hands together tightly. She looked as if she would burst into tears at any moment. “You took my wife something to drink. Was there anything said or unusual when you were at her booth?”

I stalked toward her, and she backed away as if she were afraid.

“I took her a glass of water. She didn’t say anything to me but before the alarms went off, she did tell one of the men standing guard that a man was staring at her. When she tried to show them where he was, he had already disappeared. She seemed nervous. Then the alarms went off and everything went to hell from there.”

“Is that all you know? Did you see what happened to her after the alarms went off? The direction she went or if anyone was with her?”

She shook her head and clasped her hands nervously in front of her.

“Go, but if you think of anything else, I want to know. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Mr. Delaney.”

She didn’t waste any time getting the hell out of the office.

“Fuck! I found her on the camera, boss. Someone took her.”

I moved back over to the monitors and watched him replay the video. Bri had run outside with the crowd, the fear still evident on her face when a man wearing all black came up behind her and grabbed her. His hand covered her mouth as he dragged her away from the camera angle.

While my blood turned cold, and anger was threatening to consume me, I felt a rush of relief when I saw the security footage. I turned to Blaze. “Bring the car around.”

“It’s already waiting out front.”

I threw open the door to the office, almost knocking down some workers in the hall as I made my way to the front. Blaze was behind me.

“Where are we going?”

“To the safe house. I know who took her.”

Blaze easily caught up to me. “Do you want to share?”

“She is safe, thankfully. Michael has her. He was wearing a crucifix around his neck, and I noticed it on the camera. However, this was an orchestrated attack, and I don’t know if it was meant for me or a means to get her.”

“So, why was the priest at the club?”

“After his self-defense session with Bri this morning, I asked if he would be willing to step back into our world long enough to keep her safe. He said he would think about it; I guess he made his decision.”

Blaze scoffed loudly as he opened the car door and got in the driver’s seat. “You don’t think he will be a bit rusty. Are you sure he is prepared to send souls to the devil without taking the time to try to save them first?”

“You sound offended, but you will be dealing with other matters. Michael is the only other one I trust with her. Besides, before he gave up this life, he was very efficient. He just doesn’t have the bloodlust that you do. I am confident that given the situation it will all come back to him.”

“I hope you are right, but I have my doubts. But I suppose who better to protect an angel than a priest.”

Bri

The safe house was nothing like the penthouse in the heart of the city, and it was much different than what I had seen in the movies. However, it was still nicer than my old apartment. There were two modest-sized bedrooms, a kitchen stocked with nonperishable food as well as several bottles of liquor. The bathroom was fully equipped with medical supplies, enough for several small emergencies, and there was another room Michael had not shown to me, but while he was busy making sure everything was secure, I peeked in. I had never seen anything like it before. It was an arsenal equipped with everything from knives, several different types of guns, loads of ammunition, and even some grenades and flash bangs.

I quietly moved away from the room and sat back down at the kitchen table and realized that I truly didn’t know the man I had married.

“Would you like something to drink? I could make some coffee or if you prefer something stronger. Rogue has a nicely stocked bar.”

I shook my head and pulled the blanket Michael had given me when we first arrived tighter around my shoulders. “No, thank you.”

“You look a bit pale. Are you sure you are alright?”

I almost laughed at the observation. “No, I’m not alright. I know we only had one session this morning, but I had hoped it would make me a little stronger and braver. But tonight, when the alarms went off, I panicked. If you had not been waiting for me outside, I don’t know what I would have done. My first instinct was to run, to escape, not to fight.”

He moved closer and took a seat across from me. “It was one session. It isn’t realistic to expect to be a master at self-defense so soon. It takes years of practice and after what you have been through, it is only natural that you were afraid. Don’t beat yourself up over it, and don’t underestimate your instincts. It was instinct that urged me to go to the club tonight. If you sense danger and something inside you is telling you to run, do it. The self-defense moves I am teaching you are meant to be used as a last-ditch effort, not to prepare you for battle.”

“How long do you think it will be before Rogue discovers I am gone?”

His eyebrows rose. “I’m sure he knew it immediately. Not much gets past Rogue. I just feel sorry for the men he had stationed to protect you; they will not receive much leniency.”

“It wasn’t their fault.”

He stood and moved over to the window. “Rogue will not see it that way. They had one job and they failed at it, miserably I might add.” He pulled back the curtain. “I knew it wouldn’t take him long to find us.”

I jumped from my seat when the front door banged open. Both Rogue and Blaze were wearing almost identical frowns, but when Rogue’s eyes met mine, the intensity I saw made me take a step back. He crossed the room in three strides, grabbed my wrist, and pulled me down the hallway to the closest bedroom. I jumped as the door shut loudly behind us.

Once we were alone, he yanked me hard until I crashed into his chest. His hand gripped my chin and turned my face up to his. “Are you alright, Angel?”

“I’m alright, but I think I saw the man that did this. He was staring at me while I was sitting in the booth at the club. When I alerted the two men you had guarding me, he disappeared and then the alarms went off.”

His hands came up to my face. “Why didn’t you come find me? You ran.”

“I didn’t run. I wanted to find you. I was afraid that the man was there to kill you, but when the sprinklers went off, I was carried away with the crowd. Michael grabbed me outside and brought me here.”

He continued to look over me as if he were inspecting me for injuries. “I’m getting you out of the city. I’ll have your things packed up and brought to you, but it isn’t safe for you here. But first, we need to get you out of these damp clothes.”

“I am fine. There isn’t anything for me to wear here and I’m not going home naked wrapped in a blanket. I can change at the penthouse. But I don’t want you to send me away, not unless you can come with me.”

“I should have already taken you there. I never should have allowed you to stay with me when so much danger surrounds me. Don’t worry, it won’t be anything like this. You will be in luxury and have everything you could want or need, but I won’t be staying.”

I took a deep breath, surprised at how the thought of Rogue not being with me made me feel when only a few days ago I was trying to find any way I could to escape him. “Then I won’t have everything I want or need.” I took a step back. “How long will you be away?”

“It depends on how easy it will be to kill the men that threaten me.”

He took my hand, opened the door, and pulled me back to the kitchen where Blaze and Michael were waiting.

“Why didn’t you call me and let me know you had her?”

Michael shrugged his shoulders. “Dropped my phone outside the club when I grabbed her.”

“Thank you for being there tonight. The men that were responsible for her safety will be dealt with.”

Michael nodded his head slightly. “I have a few things to take care of before I can leave the city, but I will meet up with you in the morning.” He looked over at me. “I’ll see you soon, Bri.”

I wasn’t given a chance to respond before Rogue began pulling me out the door and into the waiting car. There wasn’t another driver, so Blaze jumped in behind the wheel and Rogue sat beside me in the back.

“It wasn’t the men who were watching me that should be blamed for tonight. They did all they could; it was an accident.”

Rogue’s eyes narrowed as he turned his face to me. “They lost you, Bri. You could have been taken tonight. It was most definitely their responsibility to keep you safe.”

“In that situation, anyone could have lost sight of me, even you.”

He huffed out a deep breath. “Will it make you feel better if I promise not to kill them and only remove them from your security detail?”

“Yes.”

“Fine, it’s done. Blaze, don’t kill the two idiots that were tasked with keeping Bri safe.”

Blaze grumbled something under his breath, but I couldn’t tell what he said.

Rogue pulled me across the car to sit on his lap.

He brushed back a strand of hair that was hanging near my face. “Your clothes are still damp, too. Are you cold?”

“I’m too nervous to be cold.”

“When we reach the penthouse, we can take a warm shower. Now, tell me, did you recognize the man you saw at the club? Did he look familiar at all?”

I shook my head. “No, he didn’t. The way he kept staring at me was unnerving and I thought I saw a pistol in his hand, but now I am not certain. Maybe it was my imagination. I do think he is the one that set off the alarms, but no, I have never seen him before tonight.”

“Hmm, I will have security footage sent to my computer and have you look over it. Hopefully one of the cameras caught him and we can identify him.”

I snuggled against him relishing in the warmth his body offered mine. This man who I had hated a few days ago was now the only thing I craved. His touch, his voice, his smell, the strength of his arms around me. I yearned for it, but I couldn’t help but wonder when Rogue sent me away, would he ever come back for me?”