Chapter 3

Alexei

 

I run my hand through my hair, pouring another glass of cognac. I’m tired, exhausted but I need to let Lev know that I have Alina. I pull my phone out and dial his number as I yawn and sit back in my chair.

“Yes?”

“I have her. The doctor is taking care of her, but I expect you will want to come soon. She’s in bad shape, двоюродная сестра.” I hear him sigh into the line before downing my drink.

“She is ruined, yes?”

“Possibly beyond repair. I’m sorry, Lev. She was used, abused, and raped. She has cuts, bruises, and broken bones that will heal but inside? I don’t know. She’s sedated right now but I’m sure she will want to see a familiar face when she wakes,” I tell him leaning forward to grab the bottle to pour another drink.

“How do we handle this problem, Alexei? How do we make this stop? We may be bad men but to rape and hurt women? We’ve never lived by that code,” he argues.

“We might not hurt them in the same way, but we do hurt them, Lev. Honestly, I don’t know where to begin, but I do agree. Zakhar needs to be stopped. This isn’t a discussion for over the phone. We will talk more when you arrive, yes?”

“Of course. I will leave first thing in the morning. Thank you for getting her and keeping her safe, Alexei. I don’t know what I would do without her. She’s all I have left aside from my father.”

“I know. She is here and safe for now. I will talk to you soon.” I hang up and down another glass trying to ease some of the tension in my shoulders when my office door opens.

“You brought an extra, Alexei. Why?” Vera asks setting my plate of food on my desk in front of me.

“She looked familiar to me at the time. I can’t place why.”

“So, you acted on impulse yet again? We’ve discussed this, Alexei. You must think before you react,” she reminds me. I smirk at her and grab the fork from the plate and stab it into the meat.

“I know, I know.” Vera has taken care of me since I was a child. She is more of a mother to me than my real one was. My real mother abandoned me only to return years later. Even that didn’t last long. The abuse that I was forced to endure will never fade from my mind, but Vera has done all that she can to help me learn to control the evil in me to a point.

“You know, yet you brought her here. Do you know who she is? Where she came from? She is pale as the white snow with red hair. I assume she’s Irish,” Vera adds as I take a bite of my food.

“She’s ill, is she not?”

“She is. The doctor has her sedated as well,” she informs me. I nod my head and take another bite before looking up at her. She isn’t much older than me in age, but her soul is far older than any of us could imagine.

“I will tend to her until she is well and then she is free to go,” I tell her with a smile. Vera smiles and nods her head, happy with that option.

“You were always a good boy, Alexei. No matter what they told you,” she says softly. I was never good. I killed when I was nine. It was the only way to stay alive. When you are thrown into the pits of Hell, you fight or die. I know what those girls must be feeling because I too was close to death once. I could reach out and grab the devil’s hand in mine, but at the end of the day, I lived to fight another day.

“I like that you saw that in me, Vera. I only wish things were different. I will not allow those women to be used and hurt the way I was.” She smiles bigger, a tear rolling down her cheek.

“I know you won’t. You did the right thing. I just want to make sure you know what you’re doing with the girl.”

“I’m doing just as I told you I was.” She nods her head and turns to leave my office when Dmitry comes in. He walks over and drops into the chair across from my desk, eyeing me.

“What do you want?” I ask eating more of my dinner.

“The other girl,” he begins when I cut him off.

“I’ve already discussed this with Vera. She will stay until she’s well then she is free to go,” I inform him.

“Why take her to begin with?”

“She looked familiar to me at the time. I can’t place from where, but I could swear to it that I’ve seen her before.” Dmitry laughs, tilting his head back.

“You fucked her in the past?” I smirk and shake my head.

“Not that I recall. No, it’s from somewhere else.” Dmitry shrugs and grabs the bottle on my desk, pouring himself a glass. I watch as he swallows it in one go before setting the empty glass back down.

“The basement is prepped and ready. Once I have word that Jimmy has been taken, I will personally bring him here,” he tells me. I nod my head, setting the fork back on my plate.

“He has used the last of my patience. I didn’t want to believe Jimmy to be a rat. I never saw him as that type of man, but we must make him an example to anyone that dares to mess with us.”

“I agree. Where would you like him left?” I sit back and ponder that for a second before the idea hits me.

“Central Park. What a lovely way for the normal people of this city to wake up,” I laugh.

“You are one sick man.”

“Says the killer,” I tease.

“Yes, well. I am what I was made,” he reminds me.

“Aren’t we both?”