“When we came down the alleyway, he followed, and he had a gun. Plus, the tattoo on his neck tells me all I need to know. He’s one of your father’s men. Sending someone so sloppy is really an insult.”
Worry festers deep in my gut. If someone could attack us out in the open like this, what could happen at the house? One trip outside the house, and I had to kill a man. It also tells me we’re being watched, and if we’re being watched, it’s only a matter of time before the next attack.
How can I protect Elena when we can’t even leave the house for a simple dinner? There is no other way around it. She won’t be safe until my enemies, and her father are taken care of. I will kill them all to protect her.
41
Elena
Since the night in the alleyway, Julian has been more vigilant. He keeps me within his sight almost always now and has been working from the library or our bedroom more than the office. While he works, I usually sit next to him and read or watch a movie on my iPad.
Security has been tightened, and more guards are patrolling the house, which I’m guessing has something to do with the attack on out dinner date.
Thankfully, Marie has returned to the mansion, and I have someone to spend time with, the times he does have to step away or leave.
I wish things with my father and Julian would end already. I won’t deny that seeing my husband kill to protect me, excited me more than it should have. I’m pretty sure there is something wrong with me, why else would I be turned on by blood and bullets?
Shoving my lunch around on my plate with my fork, I look up and find Marie staring at me from across the kitchen. She smiles when I catch her staring. “Maybe we can go in the pool for a swim this afternoon?” I suggest.
“I’ll take you,” Julian’s voice booms through the kitchen, startling the hell out of me.
“Hey,” I greet him, catching my breath. “Are you done working?”
“To see you in a bikini? Yes.” He winks, and a smile spreads across my face.
“I can bring your lunch out to the terrace,” Marie offers quietly. She is still afraid of Julian, even though she was very thankful to have her job back.
“Yes, do that,” his voice turns sharp as he talks to Marie, then softens again when he turns his attention back to me. “Come on. Let’s get wet.”
We never make it to the bedroom to get changed because on the way up, Julian’s phone rings.
As soon as he answers, his playful demeanor changes, and instantly, I know something terrible is going to happen.
“What do you mean he is with the Volcoves’? Is that where he has been hiding out this whole time?” Julian’s eyes cut to me, and all the puzzle pieces fall into place.
Oh, god, no… he found my father.
My heart races in my chest, and I feel like it’s somehow getting harder to breathe. He found my father. He found my father, and he’s going to kill him.
“Yes, I agree… don’t go in alone. I’ll get a team together. Wait for my call.” Julian ends the call and stuffs the phone back in his pocket. “I’m sorry. I’ll have to take a raincheck on the pool.” He grinds the words out through his teeth.
His entire demeanor has changed now. Before me stands a man of power, of ruthless violence, and he is going to bring down the world around me.
“You found my father, didn’t you?”
“Yes.” At least he isn’t lying about it. “He’s been staying with the Volcoves’. Do you know who they are?”
I shake my head, no, mainly because the words won’t come.
“Lev Volcove was the man who scared you at the auction. The one who scratched your leg.”
A shiver runs down my spine just thinking about him. Why would my father surround himself with those people?
Julian’s next set of words shock me to the core. “I killed Lev for touching you. His family knows. Your father allied himself with them because they want my head on a pitchfork.” The seriousness of the situation hits me like a freight train.
“Let me talk to him, tell him that I’m happy here,” I plead, doubting he would even consider it. “The last thing I want is for something to happen to either of you.”
Julian pulls away as if I’m crucifying him with my words. “Nothing you say or do is going to change my mind. If your father truly loved you, he would’ve stayed and made sure you were okay, but instead, he tucked his tail between his legs and ran. There is a price to pay for hurting those that I care about, and his hourglass has run out.”
Tears well in my eyes, and I know that this is going to end badly. It feels like my heart is being ripped in two. I love Julian, but I love my father, too, even if he sold me to the enemy. You can’t help who you love, and I’m caught on a teeter-totter between the two most important men in my life.
“I’m going to end this today.” The darkness in his voice bleeds outward like a blot of ink on paper. It takes everything in me to remain standing before him, and when he turns his back on me and starts to walk away, something inside of me shatters. It’s like all over again, he is choosing his need to make my father pay over me. His need for revenge outweighs any love he has for me, and I know I have to do something, warn my father, tell him to end this before Julian gets the chance to.
As soon as Julian is out of sight, the wheels in my head start to spin in motion. I consider my options. There are not many. Leaving the grounds to search for my father will put me in more danger and cause bigger issues between Julian and me. I have to do something, though, because I can’t stand here while he puts a group of men together to scour the countryside for my father.
Turning on my heels, I rush out of the room but stop once I reach the door jam. It hits me then. I can’t leave, but I can call him. I can warn him.
The only phones in the house are the guards’ cell phones, but I’d bet anything there is a phone in Julian’s office. I could use it, that is, if the door is unlocked. Tiptoeing out of the bedroom, I look both ways down the hall.
Seeing no one, I dart into the hall and rush toward the door that is Julian’s office. Praying like I’ve never done so before, I grab onto the cold iron wrought door handle and twist it.
I’m half expecting someone to jump out into the hall and find me or the door to be locked, but neither happens. A breath passes, and the knob continues to twist, the door creaking open as I give it a light push. My heart is galloping like a horse in my chest as I slip inside the room. I can’t imagine the punishment I will receive if Julian finds out what I’m doing.
The fear of being caught doesn’t outweigh my fear for my father. I will take whatever punishment is given to me if it gives my father a chance to escape.
Walking toward the massive desk, I locate the phone, the single landline in this place after Julian had the one in the kitchen removed. My hands shake violently as I grab the receiver and bring it to my ear. The dial tone fills my ear, and I push the buttons and dial my father’s number.
Worry wells like a molehill inside of me. The phone rings, and rings, and rings, and just when I think he won’t answer, I hear his soft tone filter into the receiver.
“Hello?”