Lie (Betrothed 8)

He glanced at her and turned back to me. “I just got her.”

I stared at him harder, furious at his disobedience. “Open the fucking door.” I took a few steps toward him, silently promising retribution if he didn’t do what he was told. I could burn this place to the fucking ground if I wanted to.

“She’s the reason Ivanov is in prison right now.”

Now I raised my voice so loud, all the bars in the cages rattled. “Open. The. Door.” I didn’t pull out my gun because I didn’t need more than my voice to make a serious threat. The guys at the table were still, watching their leader engage me in a verbal battle. If he didn’t obey, I’d shoot him and move on to the next guy.

He sighed in annoyance because she was a prized prisoner, but he knew it wasn’t worth his life, along with the lives of his men. He pulled the keys out of his pocket and finally opened the door. “There.”

The second the door was open, Catalina sprinted to me, getting to me as quickly as she could, as if I was the only thing in the world that could save her. She crashed into my chest so hard she actually made me shift backward slightly. Naked, sobbing, and shaking, she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried her face into my chest. “Please get me out of here.” She grabbed at my shirt and cried, taking deep breaths and soaking my clothes with her tears. “Please. Don’t leave me here…”

My hand moved under her hair, and I pulled her back slightly so I could look into her face. I’d imagined that naked body so many times, but now I didn’t look, I didn’t want to look. I pulled my shirt over my head and gave it to her.

She took it with shaking hands, as if she’d never received a gift so wonderful as the clothes off my own back. There were no words she could say to match the appreciation in her eyes. It led to a whole new batch of tears. She was shaking so much she couldn’t even get it on.

So, I did it for her. I pulled it all the way down over her ass and her thighs so she would be completely covered. Then I cupped her face with both of my hands and looked at all the bruising and swelling. It made me sick to my stomach, made me feel so much pain. This woman was so beautiful, but now she was a busted fucking piñata. I whispered to her. “You’re safe now.”

A flash of gratitude came into her eyes before she closed them, more tears flooding.

I turned to Popov. “Who did this?”

He was silent, rigid because he knew shit was about to go down.

I turned Catalina around and pointed at her face. “Who fucking did this?”

He was too scared to look at her. “Ivanov is in jail because of her. He’ll probably be in there for life because the cops have been looking for him—”

“Who. Fucking. Did. This?”

Popov looked at his men, as if he were asking one of them to take the fall.

Catalina spoke through her tears. “It was him.” She came closer to my side, like she didn’t want to be even a few inches apart for me. “He came into my cage and choked me while he beat me until I blacked out…”

Popov held up both hands once Catalina threw him under the bus. “I didn’t know who she was—”

I pulled out my gun and shot him right in the fucking head.

His dead body fell to the floor with a distinctive thud. The ceiling was low and there was no air filtration, so I could smell the burning of my gun right away. I could even smell death because we were in such close quarters.

Catalina closed her eyes and breathed deep with relief, like she was thanking god he was dead.

I returned my gun to the back of my jeans and faced the other two.

Neither reached for his gun or rose from his chair to resist me. They didn’t avenge their friend; they took the path of least resistance. The smoke from Popov’s cigar still rose to the ceiling, and the rest of their poker chips sat on the table, untouched.

I grabbed Catalina’s hand. “Let’s go.”

Instead of running for the door, she stayed put and tugged me back to her. Her face came close to mine, and she whispered, “I can’t leave the others. They have to come too.”

I shouldn’t have been surprised by the request. “I can’t do that.”

She started to grow hysterical again. “You have to. I can’t live with myself if I go free and they don’t. Please do this for me…” New tears started in her eyes and quickly dripped down her cheeks. She must be in so much pain right now, but instead of thinking about herself, she still thought about other people.