“Been living in a world of black and white. Not caring about anything. Death. Torture. Pain. None of it mattered.” He moved in closer, looped his arm around the back of me, and tugged me closer. “Then I met you, braveheart.” He lowered his head and kissed me. It was firm yet slow as his lips moved over mine in a deep caress. “We’re ending this, baby. We’re taking down Vault.”
I tensed. Holy shit.
That was why Deck and his men were with Kai. He’d always said he didn’t have friends and that he didn’t trust anyone, but he was putting an awful lot of faith in Deck. “Is that possible?”
He slid his hand down my arm until his fingers linked with mine then helped me off the hood of the car. “I’m making it possible.”
“What about… well, my father?”
“Don’t know yet.”
A wave of fear crashed into me. “We have to help him, Kai. They’ll go after him, right? They’ll kill him or hide him or… Kai, we have to help him.”
He cupped the back of my head, fingers bunching in my hair. “We will.”
I gripped the front of his shirt. “Oh, God. Kai, he’s all I have left.”
He stared down at me, eyes hard and concerned, fingers tightening in my hair. “Yeah.”
There was something in his eyes, but I hadn’t seen it before. I thought it was concern, but it was more than that. Worry? But Kai never seemed worried about anything.
Kai grabbed me and lowered his mouth to mine and said, “You’ll always have me.”
He kissed me again. It wasn’t gentle and sweet. It was a promise.I fell asleep in the car and when I woke, it was on a couch with my head on Kai’s lap. His hand slowly caressed my hair.
“No. Forget it.” I heard Deck saying. “Don’t push me, Georgie.”
Georgie? She was here? Of course she was. Kai told me in the car before I fell asleep that she was with Deck now. Then he told me about Tristan and Chess. Their story was crushing and beautiful at the same time.
“Vic. Please, talk to him,” Georgie said.
“Don’t need Vic talking to me, Georgie. I said no,” Deck said in a grated tone.
I opened my eyes and Kai must have sensed I was awake as his hand stilled.
“Kai?” Georgie said. “Tell him. I can reach him. I can help.”
“Jesus Christ, Georgie, no. Not fuckin’ happening,” Deck said. “I don’t want you seeing him like that.”
“He’s not who you think he is,” Vic stated.
“I don’t give a shit,” she shouted, her voice quivering and on the edge of tears. “I want to see him.”
I sat up and Kai passed me a bottle of water, the cap already off. I chugged it back, the liquid sliding down my throat like cool silk. The plastic crackled as I finished it off and set it on the coffee table.
“Georgie. Stop. Now.” It was Deck and his tone was seriously pissed.
I looked over my shoulder just as Georgie went for a door handle on the other side of the kitchen.
Deck was up off the bar stool and behind her before the door was all the way open. He latched onto her arm, dragged her back, then bent and in one swoop had Georgie over his shoulder. He did it so fluidly that it was like it was a usual occurrence.
“He’s my brother. He’s my goddamn brother,” she shouted.
“I know. And that’s why I can’t let you.” He carried her kicking and screaming into another room then the door closed. There was a loud thump, a smack and a few short abrupt words from Deck before silence.
Kai stood and held out his hand. “You need a bath, baby.”
I did. Desperately. “How’s your shoulder?”
He didn’t reply; instead, he lifted me off the couch and set me on my feet. I was guessing it was good then.
“Where are we?”
“One of Deck’s safe houses. Although, I don’t know if I’d call it safe after seeing the basement.”
He didn’t let me think too much on that as he urged me in front of him, past Vic who was stirring something that smelled like tomato basil sauce on the stove. He nodded to me and I half-smiled. Vic was super scary and I wasn’t sure about him even though he’d helped me escape Alfonzo and Jacob.
We went into a bedroom at the end of the hall and Kai shut the door. The house wasn’t decorated and looked rather average, one you’d find in a newly built subdivision. There were no personal touches though; nothing hanging on the walls, and minimal furniture.
Kai walked into the adjoining bathroom. I heard the shower curtain pushed aside on the metal rings and then the water turned on. I walked in to join him and he was leaning over the tub, his hand testing the temperature of the water.