Sociopath's Revenge (23 page)

"Damian wasn't as happy?" I asked carefully, wondering if his dark demeanor wasn't only a result of years held in captivity. She shook her head; her eyes unfocused in thought.

"He was at peace. He preferred to be quiet and do his own thing, although he often helped Dom, who liked to get into impossible situations. Then my boy came back, and he wasn't at peace anymore. He had similar traits to the boy I knew, but with a difference of palpable rage that couldn't find a satisfactory outlet."

Although my mind told me to let go, I just couldn't. So I asked, "Is it gone now?"

She grabbed my hand and squeezed it, while her voice filled with sadness. "We both know what will calm it down. Never doubt he loves you, but… the peace will never come until the monsters of his nightmares are gone. Even if it breaks my heart, I can't judge him for that." She sighed quietly and resumed her knitting, leaving me to my complicated feelings.

It had been two days since he left to finish whatever he had to do, and those were restless days. Not knowing anything about him, with no contact, it just wasn't something that made me happy. Ultimately, love was most probably about sacrifice, so my morals and conflicted heart had to deal with the idea of him being gone for days to torture men.

Connor was supposed to give us invisible guards, so we were free to do whatever we pleased. We were fortunate enough to purchase tickets to the Broadway show,
Beauty and The Beast
, and of course, Kristina couldn't contain her excitement and wonder. She begged us to stay behind to get a photo and autographs, and although I tried to explain that wasn't how it was done, to our surprise, the main cast, Belle and Beast, decided to pose for some photos, and she ended up happy.

Rosa moaned and begged for more shopping, so while Kristina and Juanita visited another toy store, we explored Fifth Avenue to study the newest fashions. Although I grew uneasy in crowded places, everywhere people were rushing somewhere, and no one paid much attention to anyone.

This bugged me too. Would Damian want to stay in New York once everything was over? I remembered the girl who loved it here; the city mesmerized me, and I soaked up every minute spent here. In my first year in North Carolina, I almost couldn't stand the steady way of life and people always in your business.

But this trip only showed me how much I'd become part of our small coastal town with warm smiles, yards, beaches, barbecues, and a peaceful way of life where I didn't try to stay caught up with the rhythm.

"Mama, look!" My eyes rose to Kristina, who climbed up on the ship, waved her hands and jumped on the rope as a gasp left my mouth. Clenching my hand to my chest, I stood up and walked to her as she bounced up and down on it, clearly having a blast after scaring me shitless.

"Baby girl, this is for older kids. Don't do it again."

She rolled her eyes. Since when did she roll her eyes so much at me? Then she whispered, "Mama, I'm a fearless pirate. You cannot question my power in front of the crew." I watched other kids doing all sorts of things, and they had some "make believe" going on. Was she the captain? Before I could ask any questions, she shushed me. "Mama, sit back with Grandma Juanita, please. It's embarrassing," she concluded dramatically. With a shake of my head, I slowly walked back and noticed Rosa on a swing close to Juanita as she popped another brownie into her mouth. The girl had an appetite; she either read or ate. Or danced. Probably how she kept that body of hers in shape.

"Didn't you plan to finish the series?"

She shrugged. "I grew bored, decided to hunt you down. Nice playground." More likely, she was scared of staying alone in the house. After what had happened to her, she'd never sought any therapy, so no wonder she had all those phobias. Her story was awful, and despite not having the scars on her face anymore, she still rubbed her cheek and forehead from time to time as her eyes glassed over, indicating she was somewhere else.

"Yeah, Kristina is excited." Her loud squeals of joy caused rounds of laughter from all three of us.

Suddenly, my phone vibrated in my jeans pocket. My brows furrowed because Annie knew not to contact me, and Damian said he wouldn't call. A glance at the screen showed an unknown number, but what if he had to use a prepaid phone? My hands shook as I answered on the fourth ring, the flashback of a similar phone call after everything went to shit so vivid in my head.

"Hello?" I calmed a bit, congratulating myself for not indicating my emotions to whoever called.

"Sapphire." A voice from the past.

"Uncle Benjamin?" How did he know my number? The sleazy man was never someone I wanted to talk to. Why would he call me anyway? "How did you get my number?" Fear settled in the pit of my stomach, as my intuition told me something was off.

"How much do you love that pretty little girl of yours?" My heart stopped as I felt the blood drain from me, leaving me pale. Juanita and Rosa joined me with worried expression on their faces. "Say… more than your Sociopath?" My eyes quickly scanned for Kristina, as she sat in the sandbox studying the sharks. "You're watching her now, good. Have you seen the red light on her?"

Red light? Only then did I see the red spot on her forehead. If it had not been for the adrenaline in me to save my child, I would have collapsed there on the spot.

A sniper’s mark.

Benjamin chuckled at my sharp intake of breath. "Always a smart girl. So here's what you will do. Tell those women to go home, then pick up your girl and come to the black Mercedes parked next to the sidewalk. That way no one will get hurt. But if you don't listen, your kid's head will be blown off. Five minutes, Sapphire."

"Why?" I asked, dreading his answer because subconsciously I had put two and two together. Seemed like all my childhood was filled with child molesters and men without souls. And they called my love a monster.

"You'll figure it out on your own." With that, the line went dead as I fisted my hand. Breathing heavily, I understood his threat.

A man like him had no morals; they would kill Kristina and anyone who stood in their way. Where the hell were Connor and his men when we needed them so much?

My eyes focused on Juanita and Rosa, as I said, "You need to go home. Now. And fast." Juanita's eyes grew with fear as she darted toward Kristina, but I stopped her with my hand. "No, she and I stay. Go."

Rosa shook her head. "No, Sapphire, No!"

"She has a sniper mark on her. He will kill her. It's him."

Her lips trembled, because she understood how powerless we were against them. With one last look at Juanita, I ran to my Kristina, picked her up in my arms as she wiggled in displeasure, and shoved her head to my chest, covering her from the deadly aim as much as possible. "Mommy, no. I want to play."

She began to cry, and I patted her back. "Shh, be quiet." The man standing by the car wearing glasses was a muscled mountain, who could probably squish me with one arm. His face held a permanent snarl. He pushed us inside without any gentleness, and we ended up on the seat opposite two men who greeted us with sinister, dirty smiles that instantly made me wish for a hot shower.

"Time to kill your lover boy." Closing my eyes for a second, I prayed to God not to be put through the same thing I went through all those years ago.

Where are you, Damian? You promised me.

How could he put me through all this again?

Dominic

Rosa rushed after Sapphire, making me curse as I exited the car and stopped her by the waist right before she was seen. Although I bargained with them for her, who the fuck knew what they would have decided had she tried to stop them. She struggled against my hold, as I got distracted inhaling her sweet scent and enjoyed the feel of her in my arms for the first time.

My sweet girl.

"Let go of me, you fucking piece of shit," she screamed, and I grimaced when her mouth proved to be less than sweet. I spun her around swiftly. Her tits pressed against me and her eyes grew huge once she had the time to study my face. "Who are you?" She placed her hands flat on my chest and tried to push, but I wouldn't budge. "You aren't Damian."

"No."

Then she blinked rapidly and whispered, "Dominic?" And because she knew my name, and how my body reacted to her despite the danger looming over us, I pressed a hard kiss against her stunned mouth, almost moaning in pleasure at the softness of her lips. Letting go of her, I removed the cross from my neck and gave it to her. "Keep it." She frowned. "Don't follow them. It's dangerous. Connor and I will handle this problem. Leave with Juanita."

A loud gasp from behind her confirmed the old woman heard everything as her eyes drank me in. "Dominic."

Emotions.

She was part of my memories, but there simply was no time for this. "Go home and stay there. Now." I wasn't satisfied until she nodded, and with that, I jumped back in the car as Vitya sped after S's vehicle.

Game fucking over for S was coming.

"The house sucks," Rosa whined, as she dragged her suitcase on the porch, while the white headphones dangled from her neck. Did she ever go anywhere without them? "And no offense to the bitch or anything, but I really prefer a bigger megapolis. I'd die out of boredom here." We entered the house, and she fell on the couch, folding her arms and sending daggers my way. I took the glass, poured some cold water from the fridge, and focused my entire attention on the yard beside ours where a beautiful woman played with her child.

The woman's silky ebony hair shone brightly in the sun as she tilted her head back, blowing air bubbles through the tube as her daughter clapped her hands and giggled loudly in excitement. They sat on the green grass, both wearing jean shorts and pink T-shirts, barefoot. They seemed happy and carefree, and I couldn't help but long to join them and envelop them in my arms and never let them go.

Sapphire.

My Sapphire.

If only I was a better man.

"With my scars finally gone, I thought you'd give me the chance to date," Rosa continued, and the happiness in her tone couldn't be ignored.

She got the plastic surgery done on her some months ago, which eliminated all the scars on her face as though they'd never been there. Don insisted on doing it right after we moved to Luke, but I took my time, not wanting to attract any attention to us in case someone wanted to find her through it. Kit Davis was one of the best plastic surgeons in the world, and he'd found the time for us just recently. And since the work was very neat, as I didn't want any traces of the horrific experience left on her skin to remind her of it, I wanted only the best. "What was the point of it?" Furrowing my brows, I glanced back at her with annoyance, considering she took my attention from the perfect view.

I replied in a colder tone than usual, "I wasn't aware we'd done it to improve your sex life. Be grateful, Rosa." She blushed, and remorse filled her eyes. She opened her mouth, probably to apologize, when the doorbell rang.

About fucking time.

I marched the few steps to the door and opened it swiftly where a teenager stood, holding a ventilated container.

"Mr. Reed?" he asked. I nodded, and he handed me the paper along with a pen. "Could you please sign here?" I quickly put my signature, tipped him a twenty, and snatched the container from him.

"What did you order?" Rosa joined me, her eyes curious and a bit cautious, which wasn't surprising due to the whimpering sounds and movements.

"A puppy."

Her mouth hung open so wide, I thought her jaw would hit the floor. "This is, like, super cool." She reached inside to pat it, but I stopped her.

"It's not for us."

"Oh. Who is it for then?"

"For my family." And with those words, I went out to put my plan in motion.

Damian

"Drop your weapons, Sociopath. We have your woman and child. You can't get away from this," the voice from my darkest nightmares spoke, and I couldn't believe my eyes.

Benjamin Hill was S? Rage ran through me, as I remembered meeting him all those years ago at John's party that gave me Sapphire. Not any document, not any leads ever traced back to him. Not one shred of evidence indicated his involvement in this mess, yet alone being the main orchestrator. I had paid attention to names first, then to faces, and since his name never came up, I'd had no reasons to spy on him. That day at the party, Erik acted sleazy toward Sapphire and my entire focus was on him, although something had bugged me when I looked into the fucker's eyes.