An Obsession with Vengeance (Wanted Men Book 3) (38 page)

As Maks shoved himself off the body and got to his feet to look around, he deliberately wiped his mind. He couldn’t let himself think about what Tegan might have gone through yet.

There was only one other door down here, and it had a small window at eye level, as a cell door would. And fuck if
that
didn’t bring back some pleasant shit. Putting his back to the wall, not 100 percent trusting in Eberto being on his own, Maks ducked forward and back in front of the small opening as if he were a seagull in a McDonald’s parking lot. Nothing came at him, so he took a longer gander, and what he saw ripped the scars off the wounds of his past and made him bleed rivers. He struggled for breath, his airways instantly sealing, and tore that door out of his way so fast it slammed against the wall like a clap of thunder—didn’t even think booby trap, but dimly noted a slug never entered his chest.

All he really had in his head was the need to get Sydney’s boy out of that fucking cell!

Andy jumped to his feet from where he’d been sitting on a small cot, a hoarse shout coming from his throat. Then he blinked those amethyst eyes so like his mother’s. Maks felt as if a knife were twisting in his gut as he watched that handsome young face with dried blood under his nose and on his chin crumple. “Russia?”

Holy fuck.
Maks looked around and spotted the goddamned key hanging on a nail just near the door. Prime strategy to torment victims. Let them see their freedom was just out of their reach. He grabbed it and hustled over to unlock the cell door. The kid was still by the cot, but when Maks pushed that barred door in, Andy came to him as if released from a cannon.

Their bodies hit, and Maks had to say he was glad the boy had taken the initiative, because it would have taken more than he had in him in that moment to step one foot inside that cell.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Andy whispered, his voice cracking.

“Of course I’m here, kid. Where else would I be?” He put his cheek to the top of his blond head and held him tight. And for the first time since Maks left that cell in Russia and pledged his loyalty to Vasily, he thanked God. And it was no learned prayer for one of his men. No. He deliberately and concisely sent his own personal, heartfelt words up to heaven and thanked their creator for the gift he’d just given them in the form of this boy’s safety.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” Andy repeated.

A constant tremble was branching out from the boy’s body, so strong it was shaking Maks in his shoes. “Come here.” He brought him out into the living room, keeping Andy’s head turned away from where the Mexican’s body lay. “Sit.” They went down to the sofa. Andy didn’t let go. Maks didn’t either. He held Sydney’s son in the same way he’d craved his own father’s arms around him when he’d lain in that cell; his grip tight around Andy’s broadening back, the other clasping the boy’s head to his chest. “I’ve got you, buddy. There was no way I wasn’t coming for you. No fucking way.” He paused for a few breaths. “I’ve been here before, kid, and I understand the fear.” He gripped Andy’s jaw and brought his head up to hold his gaze. “It’s totally acceptable that you were scared. Don’t be embarrassed by that. It just means you’re smart. Only stupid people ignore their instincts, and fear is one of the best we’ve got.”

The kid nodded. “You mean when you were in jail?”

“No. Another time. But that’s a story for another day.”

“My mom must be freaking out. Eberto said he had her and that his men had killed you and Micha. That’s why I went with him.”

“If you knew me and Micha better, you’d have known immediately he was fucking lying,” Maks muttered. “And your mother did freak out, and she will again if we don’t get you back to her. We sedated her to save her sanity, but she’ll be waking soon.”

“No kidding. Good thinking,” Andy murmured, sounding relieved. “How did you know where to find me?”

“Yeah, about that. I got some good news for you.”

“I thought
you
were my good news,” Andy said around a strained chuckle that made his cheeks go ruddy. He finally pulled away.

Feeling a goddamn blush hit his own face, Maks ruffled the kid’s already-mussed hair. But Andy’s attention was gone. He’d spotted Eberto.

“You . . . did that?”

Knowing this could get tricky, but also knowing he had to be honest, Maks nodded and looked over. The Mexican’s limbs were splayed and small pools of blood were forming around him. His head placement was way off and his eyes were wide open. “Yes. I did.”

“’Cause of me and my mom? Or did you have a beef with him before?”

“I’d never dealt with him before your mother came to me.”

There was a new wariness in the kid’s gaze that hadn’t been there before when he looked at Maks. There was also gratitude. “Even though I’m kinda freaked out by that, thanks, Russia. Uh, so what’s the news?”

Keeping a smile hidden, Maks got them up and urged him toward the stairs. “Come on. I’ll show you.”

He went up first and saw V sitting in an awkward position at a small dinette. It was clear the Reaper was trying to put off an I’m-just-a-harmless-guy-no-worries-here vibe. His dark gaze was on the girl, memories of his own little sister no doubt crowding him. Eleanor’s narrow shoulders were bowed right along with her head, fingernails being furiously picked at. She looked as though she was waiting to get into trouble.

“This who you were hoping to see again?” Maks asked Andy as the boy entered the kitchen on his heels.

It was impossible to say whose eyes bugged more.

“Elli?”

“Andy?”

Their disbelieving whispers overlapped, and in the next instant, they met in the middle of the room and were clinging to each other in a hug too fierce for mere children. V jerked to his feet and slammed out into the backyard, coughing. Maks watched the interaction. The careful affection and quiet, comforting whispers Sydney’s son bestowed on this cowed girl was something that would stay with him forever.

The boy had just found a place in his heart.

CHAPTER 24

Sydney surfaced from the darkness, already knowing something was wrong. She forced her heavy lids up and tried to focus on the wavering faces above her. Vasily and his daughter, Eva.

“Easy.”

Her sluggish gaze swung to the side to see Gabriel crouched next to her.

She was dizzy, and her head felt thick, but the choking pressure in her chest, the awareness that something horrible had happened lived. Vasily ran his hand over her hair in a paternal way as she looked around for Maksim and An—

Andrew!

A stream of terror poured into her veins. “Where is he? Is he here?” She jerked upright so fast Eva jumped up from where she’d been sitting next to her to avoid a collision. The new position had Sydney’s vision warping, her brain feeling as if it were floating without an anchor. She shook her head to try to fix it and vaguely noted they were on the sofa in her loft. She didn’t care to question how they’d gotten here.

“Maksim’s last message said he’s close.”

Vasily’s calm voice should have been reassuring, but it wasn’t. “Close? Where? Where is my son? That monster took my baby!” she screamed. Her boy. Her precious, precious boy. Gone. “Vasily.” She grasped the front of his jacket and jerked him. “My baby,” she wailed. “Do you understand that? He has my baby!”

She didn’t know how long she railed—stating the obvious and looking for someone to blame but knowing she only had herself—but by the time she slumped into an exhausted heap, her forehead was on Vasily’s broad shoulder and she’d pretty much destroyed his pressed suit jacket with her tears and grasping hands. She didn’t care. A cup of tea was placed in front of her, but she couldn’t lift her head to even thank who she knew was Eva by the onyx nail polish.

“. . . stay positive. Can you do that for me?” Vasily was saying.

Sydney moved back and focused on his taught, stern features and was aware enough to appreciate his support. But that was it. She remained perched on her knees on the very edge of the cushions and dropped her eyes to stare down at her clasped hands as they trembled in her lap, wishing for her son with everything in her. Never had she thought she could love someone so much. She swallowed her rising emotions, her panic, her horror, and her fear. What was Eberto doing to him? Her fault. Her fault. Her fault.

“It makes no difference whose fault this is, Sydney. That ceased being an issue long ago.”

Gabriel’s murmur told her she’d been speaking out loud. “Where is Maksim?” she rasped. Another one. He was out there searching. What if she lost both—?

Vasily’s pat to her shoulder interrupted the panicked thought. “I’m sure he’ll be getting in touch any time now.”

If he can.
She dropped her head into her hands. What if the worst happened?
What will I do? How will I survive? I did this to them. How will I go on without my child? Without Maksim?

Her boys. Her men. Both of them gone.

She whimpered as her brain squeezed in a vice and then she jerked upright when her wrists were clasped, her arms brought down.

“You can’t think like that, Sydney,” Vasily ordered. He’d slid from the cushion and had come down on his haunches in front of her. She hadn’t even noticed. “You can’t underestimate Maksim. The guy is a survivor, and he’s more possessive of what he thinks belongs to him than any of us. Whether he’s accepted it or not, he considers you—and subsequently, Andy—his, which means he will tear this city apart to get to your son. As I’ve told my daughter a time or two, have some faith in your man.”

“I am his,” she admitted, needing to tell someone. “And he’s mine. I was scared and didn’t want it to happen, but it did, it really did, and now he’s mine. Him and Andrew. And I never told him. I didn’t tell him I loved him.” Her voice wavered in its high pitch. “I never told Andrew enough either. What if I don’t get the chance—?”

Vasily’s phone going off had black spots dancing in her vision, and she held her breath as he whipped it from his pocket. His shoulders slumped forward and her heart stopped.

Until he announced, “They got him. Maks found him, and your boy is fine.”

Sydney broke.

With guilt and remorse piercing his heart, Maks sent the text he’d just typed out and regretted like hell not being able to call Tegan, or better yet, go see her personally. But even though he didn’t want to, he knew he had to respect her wishes. If what Eberto had said . . .
Jesus Christ.
What had that fucker done to her? How far had he gone? Maks wasn’t sure he wanted to know, because with the Mexican already dead, he’d have no one to make pay for the sins against his best friend if he knew details of them. Putting his phone away when a reply wasn’t forthcoming, he figured he could do nothing but attempt patience. He’d give Tegan the time she’d asked for. But it wouldn’t last forever. He couldn’t let her leave his life. Leave
their
lives. She was too much a part of them.

Having left a cleanup crew at the house, Maks sat in the backseat of the Hummer, the kids at his side. He liked the way they kept looking at each other, as if to reassure themselves they weren’t seeing things. Their hands never separated.

“You got skinny,” Andrew said as he cleared off the smear of dried blood from his lips and chin with a wet wipe Alek had given him.

Maks caught Micha’s eye in the rearview mirror. They both raised their brows in a that’s-not-gonna-go-over-well way.

But Eleanor just scoffed so quietly it was barely audible. “You’re bigger. Bet that makes you feel special.”

“That’s ’cause I am special. Didn’t I tell you that before?”

“Only a hundred times.”

“Guess you forgot.”

Eleanor lost the crooked smirk and became serious. “No. I never forgot anything.”

Alek’s head bobbed, his profile showing he was smiling from where he’d taken the passenger seat up front. He’d handed the wheel over to Micha because the guy preferred to be doing something even as mundane as driving to sitting idle.

“Why were you there? I don’t understand how you’re even sitting here.” Andy laughed as he tucked the dirty wipe into a pocket on the side of his backpack. Kid was clearly still struggling.

“The lady who took me after my mom left said my father wanted me.”

Her wording made Maks wince. Her mom “left”? Abandonment issues, say hello to Eleanor.

He continued to blatantly eavesdrop as she went on. “She brought me to that house, and I had to stay with him.”

“Why didn’t you ever call? You knew our number. I waited forever.”

If Eleanor heard the mild accusation in Andy’s voice, she gave no indication. “He wouldn’t let me. He wouldn’t let me leave or anything. I was gonna run away at first, and he caught me sneaking out because the gate creaked. He said . . .” She rubbed at the tip of her pinkie when her nail picking caused the cuticle to bleed. “He hated Auntie Sydney. He said she talked my mom into hiding from him, hiding me from him, and then he said he’d hurt her if I tried to leave or ever see you guys. He said I was his now, and he’d know if I tried anything. He said he’d hurt you, too.” She shook her head fiercely. “I wasn’t gonna do anything to make him do that. I figured I’d wait till I was older and he couldn’t do anything about it. Then I’d come and find you.”

Andrew hugged her hard, looking too sad and too old for his age. “Did he hurt you?” he questioned hesitantly.

She shrugged and scraped at something on the knee of her jeans with her thumbnail. “Yeah. But I didn’t care.”

Brave words. Fuck.
Maks looked out the window to see they were crossing back into Manhattan. He wanted to go back and kill that fucker all over again. Why hadn’t he held off and brought Eberto to the club? He could have kept the pariah on the wall and fucked him up every time someone revealed another wrongdoing.

“He’s gone now, Elli.” Andy sounded pretty damned satisfied about that. “He can’t hurt you anymore. Russia made sure of it. Your dad can’t hurt any of us.”

“Okay. But if he’s gone, and my mom’s gone, where will I go now?”

Hearing the kids shift, Maks brought his gaze back into the SUV to see them looking at him. So much hope and fear and pain stared at him.

“We’ll do our best to fix it so you don’t have to go anywhere you don’t want to, sweetheart,” he promised, even though he knew he shouldn’t. “Don’t worry about that right now. Okay?” He wanted to pat her somewhere in reassurance but didn’t dare.

“You’re the best, Russia,” Andy said gravely. “Now I know why my mom likes you so much,” he added before settling back into the seat beside him, finally relaxing. Eleanor did the same, tucked up close to her brother.

“Who are these guys?” Maks then heard her whisper.

“My mom’s friends. Russia’s her boyfriend, though.”

Eleanor leaned over to look at him, hazel eyes wide in her drawn face. Couldn’t have been any wider than Maks’s after having heard
that
title. As nonchalantly as he could, he slipped his hand into the front pocket of his pants and grabbed for his key, rubbing it so hard the metal teeth scraped at the pads of his finger and thumb. His increased heart rate immediately began to slow. He drew in a few tight breaths and brought Sydney’s image to mind. His beautiful little Aussie.
Boyfriend?
Once again, he cautiously attempted to allow what he was coming to feel for her to fill him out. And it did, bringing with it a longing he didn’t understand. But it was hampered from taking over completely by fear. So much fear, and that damn pain just waiting to consume him.

Because he knew, without having to be told, that their time had come to an end. And not just because the job was done. But because what woman would choose to stay with a man who lived his life as Maksim did? The world he lived in was brutal. Period. And now Sydney knew it firsthand. Yes, this particular situation had come about because of something she’d done, and it had worked out in the end, but maybe the next one wouldn’t. Look at what Sergei’s life had become. Maks had a strong feeling his Aussie wouldn’t take that chance. Not with her boy. And if all went according to plan, once Maks spoke with Jeremy, their attorney, a young girl to raise, as well.

He disconnected from the quiet conversation still going on next to him and watched his city go by. His only option was to let her go.

The thought had his fists curling, his key cutting into his palm as a possessive fury swooped in to trample the altruistic thought. She was his, though. He couldn’t let her go. But he couldn’t keep her if she didn’t want to stay. What if she did? And what if he began to feel what Vincente and Gabriel felt for their women? He couldn’t
love
her. She’d have the power to destroy him if he allowed that. He should just keep her for sex . . .

But it wasn’t about sex anymore. It hadn’t been for some time, despite him craving it with her as any addict with their drug of choice. He frowned when he realized that. The sex was way down on the list now. This was all about her. About how he felt when he was with her.

Was he fucking nuts? He couldn’t be considering keeping her and these two kids.
Kids?
Children he’d be responsible for? Children who might one day want to emulate him? He’d be a fucking role model. He’d eventually be called upon to solve their shit and help them with other shit and talk to them about more shit, all in order to make their lives a little less confusing.

Why was that tempting to him? What if he screwed them up? Made mistakes?

Like every parent.

Jesus . . .
The fact that Andy might need him because his own father was absent . . . Or Eleanor. After Maks’s upbringing, he might have a lesson or two for her on how to deal with the trauma an asshole father left behind . . .

Holy shit.
Could he possibly be useful to these kids?

The very thought was staggeringly attractive. But at the same time, not. He couldn’t help wanting them all the fuck out of his life so he could go back to not giving a damn about anyone but himself and his friends.
Dammit, putting yourself out there is a hell of a lot harder than Gabriel and V make it look.

What a head fuck.
And a pointless one, because, as he’d thought earlier, Sydney was probably going to leave his ass anyway. That would just make it easier, take the decision away from him. He’d let her and Andy and Eleanor go and be thankful it was over. Be relieved that they couldn’t do this to him anymore. Problem solved. Right?

Maks finally closed his eyes against everything in him that was refuting that argument and continued to sift through his mangled emotions for the remainder of the drive.