Page 58

Valeria

M alin drove the car smoothly, acting like nothing had happened, but his grip on the steering wheel was so tight I worried it might crack at any second.

His knuckles were white, and his phone hadn’t stopped ringing since he fired the engine.

His dark eyes watched the road, yet his mind was elsewhere.

“What will Zyon do with Chester?” I asked when the heavy silence became unbearable. My worry for Zyon spiked too high, knowing how much effort he put into hiding his identity.

“Nothing,” Malin grumbled, casting me a scrutinizing glance. “Why?”

“I saw Chester talking at the funfair with some older man that Alice recognized as maybe being Giovanni Valentino,” I replied, studying his face with the same precision he did. “You know my husband is involved with powerful people, right?”

“Chester’s life hangs by a thread, Valeria,” Malin disclosed cryptically, turning back to the road.

His profile showed nothing—no emotions or feelings.

It was completely blank. Even the grip of his hand on the steering wheel lessened as if he realized it could give me some indication of the status of the current situation.

“Does Zyon plan to cut that thread?” I inquired, feeling my stomach cramping. The alcohol and the adrenaline put it in an unenvious state, and I only hoped I wouldn’t start throwing up .

Malin inhaled a deep breath, keeping me in a prison created by silence and his slow, evasive answers. I needed direct responses, or I didn’t know how long I would manage to hold my emotions under control.

The fear of Zyon doing something stupid was eating me alive, but I forced my mind to trust him. He’d been in this business for years. He almost sacrificed our relationship to keep his identity hidden. He wouldn’t throw everything recklessly out the window because of Chester’s provocation.

“If Zyon could kill your husband, he would’ve done it the moment he laid his eyes on you for the first time,” Malin muttered as if he was afraid someone might hear him. “But if you ever claim I said it, I will deny it. Zyon doesn’t want you to know how crazy he is about you.”

“I received that information a long time ago,” I pointed out with a smile, unable to fight the emotions filling my chest. My love for Zyon consumed me since he texted me back.

Mon c?ur. The loving pet name he gave me confirmed my greatest wish. He was my stalker. The man who brought me back to life, who made me feel desired and cherished. He protected me in every possible definition of that word. He risked over two hundred million to win me in a poker game.

Jesus! The guy was utterly crazy.

“Did George Harrow really die because of me?” I whispered, hoping I wasn’t crossing some imaginary line. I should’ve probably asked Zyon for clarification, but the murder had been on my mind since they hung him before my window. I needed the answer yesterday.

“No.” Malin slowly shook his head, taking a rapid turn that pushed me against the door. He drove like a maniac. “George’s fate was sealed long before he became a threat to your and Zyon’s affair.”

“You hung him before my window,” I exhaled exasperatedly, clenching my fists. Just the thought of Zara seeing the mutilated body made me furious.

“It was a message for your husband, Valeria,” Malin replied, glimpsing at me. “Zyon wanted you to see it and understand that whoever makes threats to you will die. And Chester received a memo. We know he’s behind everything. ”

“What does it mean everything?” I gripped the door handle to prevent my body from colliding with the door again, trying to ignore the speed at which we rushed to Lisa’s house.

“If Zyon wants you to know the specifics, he will answer your questions,” Malin answered diplomatically, pointing upfront. “Which house? I don’t know the exact address.”

“The last one.”

I looked outside the window at the quiet night street. Zara should be fast asleep. Waking her up would be a shock, but it was necessary. I had to hide her from Chester before deciding my next move. I didn’t want her to spend a second with him.

“Anyway.” I turned to Malin, who raised a brow at me. “You just told me more in a few minutes than during weeks of working in your casino.”

“It’s not my casino,” he uttered, parking before the white wooden fence. “And I’m not a talker either.”

He grasped my hand tightly while he scanned the outside world. I frowned but didn’t move, waiting for him to let me go. He watched our surroundings for more long seconds, challenging my patience.

“In and out, Valeria,” he said, drifting his gaze from a sleepy neighborhood to me. “Don’t pack. Don’t small talk with your mother-in-law. Take the girl and go. Understood?”

The simple why burned my tongue, but I didn’t ask. Malin’s behavior confirmed my husband’s power. It was pointless to waste time with questions. My task was to take Zara and leave, and that was what I attempted to do.

“Yes,” I confirmed, opening the car door.

The street was dark and quiet. Only two lamps enlightened the sidewalk. The trees on Lisa’s property cast ominous shadows on the house and front yard, intensifying my anxiety.

I felt watched not only by Malin but by someone else. My paranoia took the best of me, turning my courage into raw fear. My hand trembled when I pushed the key into the lock and opened the front door, entering the dark hall .

The single lamp in the living room was on, throwing light on a sleeping Lisa. I quickly approached her, seeing Malin observing the street through the window.

“Lisa,” I whispered, gently poking her shoulder. Her eyes snapped wide open, and she looked disoriented for a moment but quickly recognized me. “I‘m taking Zara.”

“What?” she whispered, jumping to her feet. “Now? It’s the middle of the night.”

“I have to,” I replied sadly, taking her hand. “Chester lost me and her in a big poker game. It’s my chance to leave him forever.”

“I don’t understand a word you’re saying, Valeria.

” Lisa’s wrinkled face twisted with confusion, but I didn’t have time to explain the details.

I saw the tiny circle light from a cigarette moving outside, suggesting where Malin was.

He expected me to come out quickly, and I didn’t want to jeopardize my escape.

“I’m sorry,” I breathed, let go of her hand, and ran to Zara’s bedroom.

My little girl was half-asleep when I stood her up and wrapped her in a blanket. I didn’t take her clothes or shoes, just an old blue rabbit she always had with her. It was a present from Alice for her first birthday, and it quickly became her favorite toy.

“Valeria.” Lisa blocked the door when I cradled Zara in my arms and moved to leave the house. “Chester will be furious. If he finds you, it will end badly.”

“He won’t find me,” I claimed with absolute certainty, trying to push her away. “We are done. Now, let me go.”

“I won’t allow you to do anything stupid,” she stated, pressing her palms against the doorframe to bar our escape. “It will put Zara in the middle of your fight.”

“She’s already at the center of our fight,” I snapped, my deep respect for her slowly dissipating. I had to get out of this fucking house before Chester showed up.

“If you leave like this, it’ll be worse,” Lisa preached, refusing to move an inch.

“Yes,” the low male voice confirmed. “For you, Mrs. Kellerman.”

Malin’s words were a clear threat when he emerged from behind my mother-in-law. My breath stuck in my throat when I noticed the granite black gun in his right hand pointing at her side .

“I suggest you let Valeria leave without causing trouble,” he continued, his demonic eyes piercing her face when she looked at him in pure fright. “You know I don’t have any boundaries when it comes to violence.”

“Why is this devil in my house, Valeria?” Lisa whispered, her voice jumping an octave. Zara snuggled closer to me, still sleeping, but it was just a matter of time before she woke up and started asking questions I didn’t have answers to.

“How do you know each other?” I asked instead of replying, but I quickly realized we were wasting precious minutes. “It doesn’t matter,” I said, pushing past her to leave the house. “Let’s go.”

“Goodbye, Lisa,” Malin uttered in a chilling voice, yet I didn’t care about his past with Lisa, Chester, or anyone else. My only goal was to get my girl to safety.

I hurried toward the car, holding Zara close to me. My eyes focused on the door handle as I attempted to grab it and pull, but a rough, large hand abruptly stopped me.

“Where do you think you’re going?” the aggressive male voice said, making all the tiny hairs on my body stand up. I froze in shock, tightening my grip on Zara. “Go back inside!”

The command was harsh and direct, forbidding any resilience or fight. Still, the intruder had no idea what kind of monster was hidden in my shadow.

“No,” I stated in defiance, stepping back from him as he tried to grasp my elbow. “We’re not going anywhere.”

“Oh, you are.” The man chuckled deviously. The street lamp enlightened his long, crooked nose, thick beard, and mouth twisted in a snarl. He was scary as hell.

“No,” I repeated, hastily turning my head toward the house. “Malin!!” I yelled, expecting him to run from the door and eliminate the threat, but he wasn’t inside. Only Lisa stood on the threshold, her hand pressed against her chest.

“Mommy?” Zara’s tiny, sleepy voice momentarily broke my concentration, but my protective instinct was at its peak. I couldn’t let this man touch us.

“What’s going on, darling?” The man mocked me with a broad, sinister smile. “Your friend won’t help you. He’s dead. ”

“W-what?” I breathed, gulping the fear down my dry throat. Malin couldn’t be dead. I didn’t hear anything that would suggest a fight. He was a huge man. If he had collapsed to the ground, I would’ve heard it.

“Yes,” the guy confirmed, approaching me like a vulture preparing for a feast. “We’re returning to the house to wait for your husband.”

“Never,” I hissed, forcing my brain to devise an escape plan. But with Zara in my arms, it was a difficult task. I couldn’t run. She was too heavy for me.

“ Oh ,” the man whined, his throaty laughter feeling like ice against my skin. “How I love women who fight.”

He took a step closer, and I stepped back, unsure which direction would be better.

I always considered Lisa my ally against Chester, but maybe I was wrong.

He was her son, after all. If she had to choose between me and him, I couldn’t be angry at her for choosing him.

Still, it didn’t change the fact that this development was unfortunate.

And I had no idea what happened to Malin.

Fuck!

The panic gripped me in a tight embrace, crippling me. Chester would kill me for taking Zara without his permission. He lost us to Zyon, but he would still consider this a betrayal. I couldn’t stay here. It would be my death sentence.

“Don’t make it worse than it already is,” the man lectured, almost sounding like he cared for my well-being. “Let’s go inside before the neighbors notice the fuss.”

“Of course,” I mumbled. “The neighbors.”

Without thinking, I inhaled deeply, prepared to shout like a lunatic, and hoping that someone would help me, when I noticed the tall figure approaching the man from behind. He was like a shadow, moving quickly and inaudible. It looked as if his feet didn’t touch the ground.

“Boo,” Malin said, startling the man, who swiftly turned around with his arm prepared to hit him, but he was quicker. He punched his opponent straight in the middle of his face with his gun. The terrible cracking sound resonated through the front yard, followed by a thud .

“Get inside,” he rumbled, opening the door. While I put Zara inside and sat in the passenger seat, he climbed behind the steering wheel and turned on the ignition.

“Who was that?” I asked, fastening my seatbelt because if I thought he had driven like a lunatic before, it was nothing compared to the speed we flew through the streets now.

“Valentino’s lapdogs,” Malin replied, clutching the steering wheel. He constantly checked the mirrors while I looked over my daughter. Her eyes were wide open, but she didn’t dare to make a sound. I took her hand, clutching it so she knew she was safe.

“I hope it will end soon,” I whispered, looking at Malin’s frowning profile.

“It’s only the beginning, Valeria.”