I stand near the elevator with Conor, Liam, and Mikey. The nervous energy sizzles in my veins. I have hardly left this apartment since I arrived here six weeks earlier. And when I have been out, it’s been to the store. There has been nothing exciting. Well, except for that day Conor took me to his friend’s boutique, the memory of which will keep me warm when I’m a lonely old woman.
Today, I’m accompanying the Ryan brothers on a job and I couldn’t be more thrilled.
“Remember. Be discreet. I need this sorting quickly and quietly,” Shane says as he hands me a slip of paper. “This is the information I need. But, if you have time, get anything else you think might be helpful.”
“Aren’t you coming with us?” I frown at him.
“No. I’ve got a meeting,” he says. His tongue darts out and he licks his lower lip. It’s a habit he has that drives me crazy because it makes me think of what else I’d love him to do with that mouth.
“Erin stopping by, is she?” Mikey says with a laugh, earning him a glare from Shane. Liam and Conor chuckle quietly behind me, while an acute pang of jealousy strikes me out of nowhere. Who the hell is Erin?
“Just get the job done. I’ll see you back here later,” Shane growls before turning around and walking down the hallway and out of sight.
“Who is Erin?” I whisper once he is out of earshot.
Conor chuckles softly. “I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough.”
I want to ask more questions, but the elevator doors ping open and we step inside. Once the doors close, Conor and the twins begin to go over the plan for the job we’re headed to, and I listen intently. I don’t want to screw up on my first time out.
We arrive at Balthazar’s bar over an hour later. Liam drapes his arm over my shoulder as we walk through the doors and I can’t help but notice the many admiring glances he and his brothers attract.
After we select a table near the back, Conor orders us some drinks from the waitress.
“We all clear on the plan?” he asks when she walks away from the table.
“Yes,” I say, and the twins nod their agreement.
“Let’s do this, baby,” Liam says with a grin as he holds out his hand. I take it with a smile and he pulls me up from my seat. He makes a show of grabbing my ass and kissing me deeply in front of the customers and then we stumble to the back of the bar towards the toilets. When we reach them, he takes his arm from around my waist and we walk towards the office at the rear of the building. He tries the handle, and as we suspected it would be, it’s locked. Taking out the small multi-tool from his pocket, he picks the lock in a matter of seconds.
“You’re up, baby.” He grins at me as he opens the office door. “I won’t let anyone else in here.”
I nod at him, just before I slip inside the door and fire up the computer. It doesn’t take me long to guess the password and I’m in within five minutes. Ten minutes after that, I’ve got all the information Shane asked me to retrieve. I’m about to switch off the machine when I see the file titled Romanov and my breath catches in my throat. Why the hell does this guy have a file with my family name on? My heart starts to pound against my ribcage as I move my fingers over the mouse and click on the tab. The sound of the door opening startles me and I turn to see Liam’s face.
“We might have some trouble out front. We need to go.”
I look back at the screen and then at Liam. “Can I have just one more minute? Please?”
He rolls his eyes. “One minute. I need to check on Conor and Mikey. I’ll be back in sixty seconds. Do not leave this office until I come get you.”
“I won’t. Thanks,” I say as I turn back to the screen and open the document. It’s a Russian marriage certificate, but it doesn’t relate to the name of the family on the file. I scroll further until I’m disturbed by the door opening again.
“It hasn’t been a full minute,” I say as I turn around, but it’s not Liam’s face I’m looking at. Instead, there is a tall man with a shaved head and a tattoo of a raven on his neck.
“Who the fuck are you?” he snarls as he advances towards me.
My instincts kick in and I spring from the chair and flash him mu best smile. “I was just looking for the restroom…” I say, but as I’m speaking, he stops in his tracks and stares at me, his mouth hanging open as he blinks at me. I don’t know what the hell has him so spooked, but I need to get out of here, and fast. Glancing behind him, I mentally plan my route out of here, but I’m hampered by the fact that he is blocking the whole doorway. I hear the commotion in the hallway outside, making me wonder where Liam and his brothers are.
The bald-headed man continues staring at me while my heart keeps pounding in my chest. After what feels like an eternity, he finally speaks. “Nataliya?” he breathes. “I’ve found you.”
I blink at him, but I don’t have a chance to tell him that he is mistaken because I see the figure of Liam looming behind him as a large hand wraps around his throat. The glint of a blade flashes before my eyes as the bald man’s head is pulled back. I close my eyes as his blood sprays my face and body, and when I open them again, he is on the floor clutching at his throat while his blood pours through his fingers and onto the ground. Liam holds out his hand to me and I grab it.
“Let’s get out of here,” he says as he pulls me out of the room. I stumble after him, wiping the blood from my face with the back of my hand. It’s in my mouth and my nose, and the copper tang makes me want to retch. As we round the corner, two more men with tattooed necks almost crash into us. They see me covered in blood and draw their weapons. Liam pushes me behind him. He knocks the gun from the hands of the one closest to us before slicing his throat with the blade, while Conor steps seemingly out of nowhere and snaps the second man’s neck.
We run past them and into the bar where Mikey is holding off two more men who look like they were trying to make their way into the back.
“Let’s go,” Liam shouts and Conor pulls a gun from the waistband of his trousers and aims it at the head of one of Mikey’s attackers. That seems to stop everyone in their tracks and the two assailants back off, allowing the four of us to run out of the bar to the car parked outside.
Liam bundles me into the back along with Conor and then jumps into the passenger seat while Mikey climbs into the driver’s seat and starts the engine. The car wheel spins out of the parking lot as he floors the accelerator.
“Jessie,” Conor snaps as he pulls me towards him. “Are you okay?” he asks as he starts lifting my clothes and rubbing his hands over my body.
Looking down, I remember that I’m covered in blood and I grab hold of his hands. “It’s not mine. I’m fine.”
“Thank fuck!” he sighs as he wraps his arms around me and kisses the top of my head.
“What the fuck happened?” Mikey shouts. “Why the fuck is Jessie covered in blood?”
“Some guy walked in on her in that office. He had a gun in his hand. I had to make a split-second decision.”
“It was my fault,” I add. “I asked Liam for more time. I should have left when he told me to.”
“But how did he get into the office? Why weren’t you there? Why didn’t you stay with her, Liam?” Conor snaps.
Liam puts his head in his hands and groans. “I heard the noise in the bar and recognized the Russian accents and knew that we didn’t have much time. I only left her for a few seconds to see how many of them were there. I don’t know where the other guy came from. He must have already been in the building.”
“Which is why you were supposed to stay with Jessie and divert anyone who tried to get in there, Liam!” Conor says in exasperation. “Now we have three dead Russians. Cleanly and quietly, Shane said!”
“It was my fault,” I say again.
“It wasn’t, Jessie,” Liam snaps. “I know the drill. I should never have left you.”
“He could have fucking killed her,” Conor says as he punches the back of the passenger seat so hard that Liam jolts forward.
“Don’t you think I know that,” Liam shouts. Then he turns in his seat and looks at me. “I’m sorry, Jessie.”
“There’s no need to be. I’m completely fine, and you saved my life.”
“Shane is going to go fucking nuclear when he finds out about this,” Mikey says with a shake of his head.
“Fuck!” Liam says with a sigh before he puts his head in his hands and stays quiet for the remainder of the journey home.
