ALEXI
Rose looked small sitting there, beside me, in my car as I drove. She was curled into herself, Ariel clenched to her chest, and she looked at everything with cautious eyes.
She hadn't touched anything, as if scared of ruining something.
She could destroy the whole fucking car and I'd still want to kiss the fuck out of her loud mouth.
"Rose."
"Yes?" She whispered. Even her voice was shaky. My jaw clenched.
"I'm surprised you aren't asking me questions."
"I..." She squirmed a bit on the seat, circling deeper into herself. "I...I am tired, Alex."
Alex. She rarely called me that. Alexander had been the name my mother gave me at my birth, but then my father decided it wasn't Russian enough and changed it to Alexi instantly.
"We'll be there soon," I said. "Have you eaten anything?"
"I ate a cheeseburger," she mumbled, and I snaked a glance at her as her eyes closed. Slowly, she fell asleep. Ariel followed her.
I stopped the car at the side of the road and turned towards her.
The moon lit her face up just the right way as if some of its light was reserved just for her - to make her glow. Her hair, strawberry blond, was down in waves, parted in the middle and caressing her cheeks. Her chest rose and fell gently, and her tiny hands clutched her ginger ball of fur to her body as if the little thing would keep her safe from everything.
I extended my hand towards her and caressed the side of her face with the back of my hand, the skin warm and soft under my touch. I allowed myself just that.
Then, I restarted the car and drove to the tiny house I had bought. It was a bit out of the way and secluded. I hoped Rose wouldn't freak out about it being far away from civilization.
The garage opened as soon as I neared it and I parked my car. I had just one car here, a joke in front of my collection back home. I wasn't even a collector of cars, I preferred bikes.
I picked her up, pain shooting down my arm from my shoulder. Ariel was still tugged to her chest and walked inside the house. From the outside, it looked shitty, but if someone looked closer they'd noticed the bricked windows and the too-strong-looking doors.
I took her to the guestroom and set her down on the bed. I took her shoes off and tucked her in. Ariel instantly decided to explore the room and smell everything. I watched both of them for a while. Let Ariel scratch the shit out of my hand. And walked out, closing the room behind me.
Bringing Rose here had never been the plan. It was not safe. She could figure shit out. She was smart.
But seeing her, sitting there at the corner of the bookstore, looking like someone had ripped the heart out of her chest - I couldn't help myself. Most of the Bratva thought I was heartless. And I was.
I was so convinced that I was.
Till her.
. . .
My father was a cruel man. He was cruel to me, but that was something I was used to. What I could never bring myself to get used to was him hurting her.
Hurting my sister.
She looked just like mom, and acted like her too often, too.
I kneeled beside Alisa, cradling her head to my chest as she cried silently. The doctor worked on her wounds, sealing another away with stitches.
I sat down on the rough ground of the cell, handing her a bottle of vodka. I didn't say anything, just let her sob and drink till the stitches were all in.
When the doctor was done, he walked away.
We sat there for a while.
She closed her eyes. "He thinks I am protecting Olivia."
"You are."
"Do you hate me for it? For protecting her?"
"Yes."
She smiled. "I hate you."
"You should." Because I can't keep you safe.
"I could never." She pushed away from me. "I happen to like your annoying face."
"Let me send you away."
"You can't deal with that crackhead on your own," she said, taking another giant sip of the vodka. "You need me more than you think."
"You mean she needs you."
"Shut the fuck up, Alexi. No one likes you."
I chuckled, ruffling her hair. "There she is."
She smiled. "Do you know where my phone is?"
"No."
She nodded. "He blew up a safe house today. Some people were there."
"Fun."
"People died, Alexi."
I didn't care about that. Alisa loved to humanize me.
I nodded. "Sad."
She passed me the bottle. "Maybe this will make you a human."
"Nothing can make me a human."
This wasn't the first time Alisa and I were sharing a bottle of vodka in a cell. This had become a tradition when we were younger. Anytime he would hurt one of us, the other would have a bottle of vodka and sneak into the cell.
If he knew about this, he didn't give a fuck.
"Except someone called...Rose."
"I will break what is left of your nose."
"That is not funny." I could see the laughter in her eyes. "But, I need to get this checked out." She pointed at her swollen nose. "I can barely breathe."
I nodded and stood, picking her up. "Why didn't you tell the doc?"
"I needed him to get the fuck away from me for a moment."
I set her down in her room. Igor had made a base in one of the abandoned factories, outside the city. This was a good place to hide. And too random for anyone to suspect.
I sent the doctor to Alisa.
I walked into the main room. Igor was set on a chair, surrounded by his men. Nikolai was standing at the corner. His eyes fell on me as soon as he saw me. His face hardened, and his scar seemed to deepen. He walked towards me.
"Are you insane?"
"Jury's out on that. What did I do?"
I rubbed the back of my neck. I hadn't been able to sleep. It was early morning now. Rose would be waking up soon.
"Tell me you don't have a whore in your apartment."
My hand wrapped around his neck before I could stop myself and I slammed him into the nearest wall. He didn't fight back. My nails dug into his skin. "Call her that again and I will rip your fucking tongue out."
I let him go. He stayed still, tilting his head, watching me closely.
"Boys," Igor said with a laugh. "What is this about?" He got off his chair and walked towards me. He looked so much like me, even after changing his appearance. His face may be without any marks, but I knew the rest of his body was covered with burn marks.
If only he had died.
"Nothing," I said. "I heard about the safehouses. Do you think they were there?"
"No." He laughed. "They call it a 'safe' house, do they not? We just showed them how incredibly safe it is." His smile turned sharp. "Who is the girl in your apartment?"
I held my breath for a moment. "Just someone I'm fucking."
"Rose Candella," he said the words, and I instantly wanted to cut his tongue out, just so he'd never be able to say her name again. She was too pure, too good to even cross his mind. "Getting your rage out, hm?"
"Yes."
He watched me for a moment. "Does she know?"
"No."
"Good. Kill her when you're done. We don't leave leftovers."
And then he walked away.
My fists balled but I didn't slam his head against a wall. "What have they been discussing?"
"The cafe owned by Cassandra," Nikolai said. "I think he plans to fuck with something there."
"I like that cafe."
"Good cupcakes. And you know who works there?"
"Don't tell Alisa," I said. "She will get herself tortured again."
"She will hate you."
"I will get her more vodka."
. . .