Page 35 of Russian Roulette
Old habits are hard to break.
Vulcan ignores my question about the pizza being my last meal and goes over to the doublewide stainless-steel refrigerator. He comes back with a chilled water bottle for me. “Here.” He plots it on the table beside his plate. “Come sit by me. Let’s catch up on your day.”
I slide onto the wooden bench beside him. He scoots closer until our legs touch under the table. I notice Kit’s displeasure at my seating choice. The dynamics between the men fascinate me. Pushing their buttons might be fun.
Leroy is sitting at the end of the table with a whole extra-large pizza all to himself. He’s eating it straight out of the box without using a plate, or napkins.
“How is your pizza, Jade?” he asks me between bites.
“Delicious,” I reply. “Where did you get it?”
“Christianos,” he replies with his mouth full. “It’s a small Italian restaurant outside of Vegas. The owner is a friend of ours and we keep him in business. Stick with us and we’ll feed you right. What should we eat tomorrow night? Barbeque? Thai? You name it and I’ll round it up for you. If there’s one thing we believe in around here, it’s eating well.” He tilts his head at Kit, who is carefully removing a stray pepperoni that has fallen onto his vegetarian pizza with a fork. “Except Kit, that is,” Leroy adds.
“I’m not planning on hanging around until tomorrow because you’re going to release me tonight, right?” My eyes search the men’s faces. Kit averts his gaze from mine and turns toward Seven.
“She has a valid question,” Kit mutters to Seven. “We can’t keep her as a hostage forever. What is your plan? How long do you intend for this to go on?”
19
JADE
Seven puts down the slice of pizza and carefully wipes his mouth with a napkin before speaking. “Isn’t this something we should discuss privately without Jade in the room?”
Kit frowns at him. “Why? It’s her life on the line. She should be a part of the conversation. I wasn’t crazy about this plan from the beginning. We made a rash decision without thinking it through carefully. We need to fix this before things get out of hand. What are we supposed to do? Sit around and eat pizza every night together when we’re holding a woman here in my house against her will?”
Wow, Kit is going to bat for me, hard. When his eyes catch mine, I give him a grateful smile.
“The reason we rushed the decision to grab her wasbecauseher life is on the line,” Seven argues. “Are you forgetting that? We couldn’t take the chance on waiting. It might’ve been too late by the time we sat around with our thumbs up our ass and discussed every possible scenario. Sometimes you need to act impulsively and go with your gut, which is what we did.”
“But my life wasn’t on the line,” I blurt in. “I already told you the Russian mob believes I’m dead. That means there’s no other reason to keep me hostage.”
“I can think of at least one,” Vulcan leans over to whisper in my ear. He slides his hand under the table and squeezes my thigh, sending tingles through me. Instead of shoving his hand away, I let it stay. He’ll take every opportunity to remind me of how weak I am under his touch. Even now, with Kit and Seven in the room, my body is magnetically drawn to Vulcan. Unconsciously, my body has shifted to where I’m practically snuggled under his muscular arm.
“I’m with Kit on this,” Vulcan says. “If we’re not honest with her, she’ll keep trying to escape and will put herself in more danger. Last night, she was willing to walk through the desert in the dark to run away. If any of you think we’ll be able to hold her much longer, you’re sadly mistaken.”
I’m shocked how Vulcan is speaking up for me, too. Maybe there’s a real chance Iwillget out of here today.
“You’re outnumbered, Seven,” Leroy says from the end of the table. “Jade’s a smart gal. Tell her the truth and let her make her own decisions.”
Seven lets out a long sigh and locks eyes with me across the table. Once again, I’m mesmerized by the deep green pools of his gorgeous eyes. His short, neatly trimmed beard has grown out slightly since yesterday. I’m itching to reach across the table and graze it lightly with my knuckles. These men are too damn gorgeous for any woman to resist.
“We were only trying to protect you,” he says with a touch of regret. “We never meant to scare you or hurt you in any way. Believe it or not, we’re not that kind of men.” I nod back at him, willing him to tell me more. “You’re in a shitload of danger,” he continues. “Not only from the Russian mob, but also from the most vicious man in Vegas. For reasons I don’t yet understand, he’s turning Vegas upside down trying to find you.”
I frown at him in confusion. “Who is he? What’s his name?”
“He’s goes only by Mr. Giovanni,” Seven replies. “I’m sure he has a first name that no one knows or uses. He demands respect from everyone. Even if someone knew his first name, they would never dare to use it. Even his mother calls him Gio.”
“I’ve never heard of him,” I say. “Then again, I’m not up on Vegas underground power plays. What would he want with me? I’m a nobody. Is he working with the Russian mob?”
Seven lets out a laugh. “No, they’re sworn enemies. Giovanni is from Sicily. His family connections go way back in Vegas history. He runs most of the larger casinos and hotels here, along with many other assorted businesses. Everything from trash collection to car rentals. Giovanni could shut down Vegas with the snap of his fingers if he wanted to. He controls Vegas and worst of all, he’s our boss.”
“All of you work for this mysterious Mr. Giovanni?” I ask. “I thought you had your own Vegas show?”
“I do,” he replies. “I headline one of the most popular shows in Vegas as an illusionist. Unfortunately, Giovanni owns me, the show, my contract, everything.” He waves a hand toward Vulcan and Kit. “The same for them. He controls their lives, too.”
“What’s the big deal here? Everyone has terrible bosses. It’s part of life. Having a headline show in Vegas is amazing! Why are you whining over how bad your life is? If you ask me, you sound ungrateful for being given a wonderful opportunity to live a life most people can only dream of. You should’ve met a few bosses I’ve worked for.”
“When I said he owns us, I meant it,” Seven continues. “He controls us and the people we care for. Haven’t you ever heard of the Vegas mob? They run everything in this city. Nothing happens without their approval. They’re in total control.”