Chapter Twenty-Five : A Death Owed is a Death Delivered
Dimitri
Step. Squeak. Step. Squeak. Step. Squeak. Step. Squeak.
My shoes seemed to squeak against the tiled floor in a way that echoed through the walls, making me starkly aware of how quiet it was here.
Corinne's Club was fucking exhausting, each one of the Vedmans adding their own level of eeriness to the mix.
The moment Zoey froze in the kitchen and sprouted that shit about a memory loop, I knew what she saw - knew that she looked at me with pity in her eyes. It was enough to make me want to punch a goddamn window out just to see the shards of glass shattered on the floor, just to watch the droplets of blood drip down, steeping itself into the glass - a cocktail of violence and pain so like that evening when everything changed.
Instead, I held Corinne close, allowing the Witches to change the topic in that natural way they seemed to have, flitting between conversations that were a weight upon your soul, to frivolous matters that had my leg twitching out of sheer boredom.
But these women were more of a family to Corinne than her own mother was, and until that changed, they had the Bratva's protection. I already had men trailing them - watching their every move, willing to lay their lives down for our new extended family. I had also issued a warning that these women were untouchable because nothing good could come out of one of them dabbling with these women.
"Yes?" I barked the word down the phone, pressing the illuminated device against my face. I knew my tone was sharp, but I didn’t care. We had to find this fucker because Corinne needed a death, and this was the only thing I could think of that she might be okay with.
And even then, there was a chance that she would say no - a chance that she couldn't go through with it. And honestly, if it didn't affect Corinne as much as it did, I wouldn't give a fuck. Another less Voodoo bitch and her kid was no loss to me and mine, but to Corinne the baby mattered.
"I have to ask." Ravi's voice was teasing, and it made me want to remind him that his job wasn't to question, it was to simply do. "Is this your version of flowers?"
I growled my warning, and this time I was only met with an answering chuckle. And I couldn't shake the question that had been plaguing me since the Witches descended upon my house. Was Corinne making me weak?
It was easy to view her as the weak link - the easy prey, even easier to fix it. I had simply doubled her guards. I doubt she'd even noticed, but I wasn't about to let one of my enemies take her from me simply because I had become compliant.
No. This question stemmed far deeper than just Corinne' safety - I questioned the effect she had on me - the way I was suddenly softer in ways that didn't seem to matter. And I wondered if it would adversely affect my leadership because the Bratva would not survive another loss.
"Did you find the fucker or not?" I repeated myself, and suddenly Ravi's demeanor changed. His answer came quickly, knowing full well exactly how much I despised repeating myself.
"We have him at the warehouse."
"I'll be there shortly."
The sound of humming was so quiet that if my footsteps were even slightly louder, I would have missed it. I disconnected the line and allowed my feet to guide me towards the music.
The voice cracked and fizzled in certain parts of the song, the hummed melody crescendoed at the same time my fingers gripped the doorknob to one of the guest bedrooms upstairs.
I pressed the door open and placed my fingers on my gun out of habit, not because I thought I was in any danger.
Standing in the room that was unoccupied just this morning was a woman of small stature, with mousy brown hair, and brown eyes. She should have been plain, but instead her skin seemed to almost glow. And as she turned towards me, I suddenly felt like an intruder. Even though all my senses and rational explanation presented her as another Witch, she seemed far too young and wholly innocent.
It was an uncomfortable type of innocence, the kind built on the belief that Santa Claus truly existed and that the tooth fairy offered one money.
Not only did she not belong in my world, I wasn't even certain she belonged in Corinne's Club.
"You must be Dimitri." She swallowed nervously as she addressed me.
I glared at her stonily. It was pretty fucking obvious who I was, afterall, she was in my house. She stood before a Canvas and some paint, and judging by the splattered hands, she was working through something. Why she wasn't with Corinne and the others was beyond me, but I wasn't about to stick my nose in the Witch's business.
"I'm Jesse…" Her voice trailed off.
"Another Witch." Even as I said the words, my mind was on what waited for me at the warehouse.
I left her there with a half farewell, typing out a text as I walked.
D: Little Vedman, another one of your Witches has arrived, and she looks far too nice to be associated with your Club.
Her reply was almost instantaneous.