Page 34 of Caught in the Crossfire

A long, tense ride. Leona had drifted in and out of sleep. The other women had holed up in the staterooms to rest and clean up. Leona visited a few times, but always returned a few minutes later to curl up next to Caspian and Ciel.

Volpe hadn’t moved from his spot in the main salon. He’d sat in a lounge chair near the windows and watched us all. Ryuji had, in turn, sat at the bar and watched him while cleaning his knives and his guns.

When we could see the coast again, Edward slowed the yacht and radioed for directions.

I snapped my fingers, and Ryuji leapt up, repositioning himself in front of Leona while he raised his handgun toward Volpe. The entire salon was silent. The rescued women were still in the staterooms, and I hoped they’d stay put so they wouldn’t witness any more violence.

Volpe needed to be dealt with.

“Edward, let us handle this,” I said to the boat man via earpiece radio as he cut the engines from the bridge. “Stay in the bridge and don’t interfere.”

His words were careful. “Just let me know where to go when you’re ready. Or if we need to drop a body off the side of the boat, I’ll move us to deeper water.”

“Fine.”

I exhaled through my nose, watching as Leona looked at Max with an emotion I couldn’t decipher. Caspian kept her tucked under his arm with Ciel on her other side, but she didn’t hide from Volpe’s gaze either.

My control was the only reason we hadn’t killed him yet. My control and the pained look in her eye when she glanced between Ryuji’s gun and Volpe’s passive face.

I pulled my pistol from its holster. He stood from the lounge chair.

“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you,” I said. I kept my voice level. Calm. We were the ones in charge here, despite his upturned chin and dominant stance.

If he was still wearing his suit jacket—which looked to be tied around Leona’s body—he might have straightened it. Since he wasn’t, he straightened his spine and looked me head on.

“Take me to the city and I’ll be on my way.”

I shook my head. “I won’t hesitate to end you right here, right now. We are not proceeding until we get answers.”

“Obi,” Leona said from beside Caspian. She stood, drawing Caspian to stand beside her. He angled his body in front of her. “I made him a deal. If he helped me in…there, we’d get him off the ship.”

I leveled my glare back at Volpe. “Is that true?”

The man nodded. “The agreement was to take me back to New York.”

“Fuck that,” Caspian growled. “Kill him now and let’s be done with it.”

“Cas, no.” Leona placed one hand on Caspian’s chest.

“Why were you on that boat?” I asked.

“The Albanians kidnapped me, just the same as her.”

“Bullshit,” Caspian interjected. “You’re working with them. I would have let the sharks eat the skin from your bones while you sank to the bottom of the ocean.”

Volpe rolled his eyes. “Thanks for your input, Cas.”

“Please stop,” Leona said. Ciel gripped her other hand, pulling her back against him should Caspian decide he wanted to take Volpe’s life into his own hands.

“No.” My words sliced through the air, giving everyone pause. “Tell us the truth, Volpe. All of it. The Vokshi Clan took you both. Why?”

His eyes widened at the name, but he tried to play it off by crossing his arms over his chest and sighing heavily. “There’s nothing else to tell. They got the jump on me, and clearly you four couldn’t keep her safe, so they snagged her, too.”

The rest of the guys instantly talked over one another in protest, but I lifted my pistol and pressed it to his chest. “Tell me the situation with the Albanians. They wouldn’t go after people like the two of you—powerful leaders—without reason.”

“I don’t have to tell you anything,” he hissed, eyes narrowed. His chest pressed against the barrel of my weapon, unafraid. “Leona and I made an agreement. Live up to your side of the bargain, like I lived up to mine. Take me back to the city.”

My voice went low. “She might have made an agreement, but I’ve done no such thing.”