Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

N ikolay

"We come bearing baggage," Danny said.

"You got him."

"Yeah, had to shoot him in the leg to keep the bastard from killing Maxim but he's safely in the trunk."

I was pissed beyond belief but grateful the two men had caught the bastard. "After you bring her here, take him to the icehouse."

"That's what I was thinking. We'll be there in five."

"Is Chantel… okay?"

"Terrified but not a scratch. She thinks she's a badass though. Jesus."

"Okay. Just get here." A badass. That told me she'd tried to run.

I was beside myself as the five minutes passed, furious that someone had gotten to a member of my family. That meant the entire family, possibly the whole regime was being watched, which didn't bode well for the safety measures we'd used.

When I noticed headlights, I placed the weapon in my waistband behind my back. The girl knew the drill. She'd been trained, but the last thing I needed was to scare her to death.

I was at the door before a knock or a ring, glancing into the camera on the security system before throwing it open.

Chantel was soaked, her long hair sticking to her face. When she lifted her head, I was more furious than I'd been in a long time.

"Jesus Christ," I said, nodding to my men. "Let's get you inside." Another wave of guilt passed through me but even worse were the two other feelings.

Lust.

And possessiveness.

They followed me into the living room instead of my office, standing just inside the doorway.

"Are you okay?" I asked her. The moment we locked eyes, we were both transported into the moment from two nights before. I could see trepidation about that as well as the continued edge she'd been placed on because of the stalker.

I sensed the two men were watching us carefully.

"Chantel? Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just… Just a little scared," Chantel said, her voice no longer the strong one I knew from the other night. She was also highly embarrassed, looking anywhere but at me. This was like being forced to relive a nightmare over and over again.

I had to get a fucking grip.

"There's a bathroom right down the hall with towels. Why don't you change into some dry clothes while I debrief my men?" I tried to smile but was fuming.

"I will." She was shaking all over, the warmth the first thing she needed.

I watched as she grabbed her suitcase from Danny, turning slightly to look at me. There were times when you could connect with someone and no words were needed. This was one of them.

And I made the decision right then and there, no one would ever hurt her again.

So fucking help me God.

After she walked out, I took a deep breath.

"You okay, boss?" Danny asked. He knew me well enough to catch there was something odd.

"Yeah, fine. Did the bastard say anything?"

"Not a word. I had a brief chance to frisk him and he has no identification, nothing," Maxim said.

"She tried to run, Nikolay. We were right in the middle of subduing this jerk. She could have gotten herself killed." Danny was beside himself.

After taking a deep breath, I realized the girl had lived far too posh of a life. What she needed was a lesson in rules.

And a hard spanking.

That would come.

Maybe then she'd learn rules were meant to be followed for a reason and that our world was a dangerous one.

Fuck.

"Yeah, you're right. Did the asshole have a weapon?"

"He did," Maxim answered. "From what I could tell, the numbers were filed off. I'll examine it further when we get to the warehouse."

"Another illegal weapon," I said absently. That didn't identify any particular syndicate or cartel. It could be anyone at this point.

"Okay, get some additional men to guard this place and keep him on lockdown. I'll pay a nice long visit to the son of a bitch in the morning. Thank you for grabbing her."

Danny nodded. "Tough girl. She'll be okay."

"I know but someone is out to hurt the Kuzmin family or the Chernoff regime and that's not going to happen."

"Understood, boss," Maxim hissed.

"We'll take care of the bastard," Danny added.

"Good. I need to spend time with Chantel." I was worried sick but knew they were right. She was a tough girl. But she needed to learn there was evil in this world.

They left and I continued fuming, trying to figure out how to handle her. When she finally walked into the room, acting shy and demure, it was all I could do not to launch into her.

Instead, I moved to the bar and poured us both a scotch.

She was still shaking, but at least she was wearing warmer clothes. I took another deep breath before heading toward her. It wouldn't do me any good to lose my patience or my temper at this point.

"Take the drink, Chantel. You've been through a terrible ordeal."

She did, her eyes piercing mine. The electricity was shooting like stars between us, crackling to the point I had to swallow bile in my throat.

"Sit down. Tell me everything." I pointed toward the couch, refusing to take no for an answer.

She did as she was told, easing down as if the couch would break underneath her. I couldn't help but notice she was rubbing one hand on her jeans as she brought the glass to her lips, her arm shaking badly.

After a few seconds, she proceeded to tell me every detail of what had occurred over the last two days. Including what her asshole boss had said and done.

And what her cousin, her mother's niece had said to her.

What the hell was going on?

I allowed her to finish before saying anything, doing my best to keep my tone even. "You ran from the car."

Her eyes opened wide. "Yes. I was scared. I'm sorry. The man was tossed on the hood and he looked at me. And smiled. Is he dead?"

I looked away briefly, taking a swig of my drink before answering. "He's on ice so to speak. Not dead. I plan on getting information out of him tomorrow. Now, you ran."

"I know I did. I said I was sorry."

"Not good enough, Chantel. You knew better and you could have gotten yourself or my men killed."

She dropped her head, taking very deep breaths.

"There are rules to follow now that you're under my protection and in my house. I won't tolerate you doing anything so stupid again. Do you understand?"

"Yes. I do."

"Well, I'm going to help reinforce that understanding."

Jerking her bead back up, she searched my eyes. "What does that mean?"

I rubbed the stubble on my jaw, debating waiting for the spanking. Nope. She needed to learn. "I'm giving you a hard spanking."