❝When you're determined to do something, nothing can stop you.❞
ASHTON JUMPS AWAKE to the familiar smell of charred sausage and overcooked eggs. He rubs his eyes and rolls around, kicking sheets from his legs. Ria must be cooking. He stretches out of bed and ruffles up the nest atop his head. There's a distant squeal and the sound of steam rising from a searing pan.
With a chuckle, he grabs his phone and checks for messages. "Are you still alive in there?" he calls to her.
"I'm fine!" she squeaks.
Ashton shakes his head and bites back laughter. God, this woman is everything. Yawning, he rises and crosses the hall into the bathroom to freshen up. Ria continues to burn breakfast and leaves a series of cries of distress in the distance.
As he's striding towards the kitchenette, the pockets to his sweats buzz and he's quick to snatch out his phone. A single text reads across the screen.
We're in. Set a time and place to meet.
He grins. Perfect.
Meeting might not be possible. I'll call with instructions.
His pulse thrums as he reforms the plan he's come up with for taking Vincent out. After reaching out to a few resources, he was able to get in contact with a couple of Vincent's ranks. Men that Ashton has fought with on a number of missions. Men who loathe the monster they have to work for.
They were more than eager to join him in devising a plan against Vincent, but he doesn't trust anyone enough to meet alone. It's not worth risking if someone tries to set him up and turn him over. Plus, with Ria spending most of her time with him in the hotel, only leaving for her hour therapy sessions, she'd be bound to notice him leaving for some unexplained reason.
I'll just have to call them tonight. Everything will be set in motion. All he has to do is make sure they can excute Vincent without leaving any other casualties.
The one skill that Vincent used Ashton for is going to be the means to his own end.
Ria will understand. She has to.
After everything that demon has done to him and Vivian, it's unrealistic to let him live in a world where they're all supposed to be happy. He promised Vivian freedom from her brother and that's what he'll provide.
Pocketing his phone, he's welcomed to Ria, in nothing but an oversized sweater and knee-high socks, shoveling a spatula full of suspiciously dark eggs onto their plates.
"You realize I could have called room service, right?" Ashton sits on the other side of the island and rests his arms atop the cool marble.
"I wanted to do something nice for you," she mutters and sucks in her bottom lip to keep from pouting. "Though it didn't turn out so well."
Warmth buzzes through the confines of his heart. He can't fight his growing grin as she blows frizzy curls from her face. She slides a plate to him and mumbles sorry. He grabs a sausage link and bites off one end, ignoring the burned elements and swallows.
"Maybe it's my hunger speaking but it tastes great."
Ria's head pops up with a hopeful smile. "Really?"
"Mhm." He coughs and covers his mouth. "You should cook all the time."
"Okay" — she daggers her gaze — "let's not get carried away." She shovels a forkful of eggs into her mouth and nearly gags. A hand flies up to cover her mouth and she coughs. "Oh god. It's awful."
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Ashton takes his own bite of eggs and grins past the unseasoned taste. "You should become a chef, Ria. I mean it."
Ria bites back a bashful smile and rolls her eyes to the ceiling. "You're so sweet."
"Mmm." He points a fork at her. "Now what did we say about using that word?"
Mock innocence guides her shoulders into a shrug. "I don't know...sweetheart," she drags.
"Ria," he warns
"Tesoro," she sings.
"That's it." He drops his fork and scoots from the counter. "I no longer love you. This relationship is over."
"What?" Ria giggles and scurries to his side. "I was just joking! I take it back."
"Nope. Too late." He stiffens as she wraps her arms around him and snuggles her cheek against his bare chest. "Get off of me."
"Not until you take it back," she mumbles against him. "Please. I was just kidding. It took so long to make you realize that you love me."
"Well, it all went to waste. Nearly a year and you ruin it."
"You're not being fair," she cries and leans back, pulling him with her weight. "I can't help it if you're a sweetheart. Sometimes you're an ass, but that's okay. We all can't be perfect."
He chuckles and pulls her close by wrapping his arms around her shoulders. "Who am kidding? I can't go a day without you."
"Okay, so say it."
"Say what?"
"Say, I love you."
"I'm pretty sure I've already said that enough, Ria." He smirks. "Three times actually."
"You said two the other day!"
"Well, I've said it again since then."
"Ugh!" She releases him. "Ashton, I hate you. You're the worst boyfriend ever."
He bursts out laughing as she whirls on the balls of her feet and storms back into the kitchen. "Ria, I'm just kidding. I-"
Taptaptap.
Ashton stiffens and looks at Ria as her eyes widen, then glances at the door.
"Room service?" she whispers.
He shakes his head and motions for her to stand behind him. Ria tiptoes over to his side. Another knock, more impatient this time. As he edges toward the door, he mentally curses himself for not bringing his gun. He left it with Vivian and Jared in case anything happened and they needed it.
"I know you guys are in there," a female voice calls. "Please open the door. I've had a very long morning."
"Camilla?" Ria hisses and slowly steps around Ashton's shielding arms. "What is she doing here?"
"Wait." Ashton reaches out as she tiptoes to the door and glances through the peephole. "Get over here," he hisses.
Ria unlocks the door and swings it open. "How are you here?"
Camilla strides in and turns her head to land her gaze straight on Ashton. "You guys have got to be kidding me." Her thick familiar accent stabs through each word. "I suppose you want Vincent to find out that you're back?" She folds her arms under her chest and begins tapping the toe of her black boots against the tiles.
Ashton hasn't seen Camilla in several months, yet she holds that same motherly air about her that sends his skin crawling.
When he doesn't answer, she rolls her eyes and smooths down her crimson dress. "Well, I'm glad to see you're safe, Ashton." She turns her gaze to Ria and smirks. "What did I tell you? I knew Ashton wasn't actually abandoning you. It's just not who he is."
"I guess you were right," Ria mutters and lowers her gaze.
"What the hell is going on?" Ashton demands. "Why are you here? Why are you talking so comfortably with Ria?"
Camilla blinks in surprise. "Firstly, Ria is a beautiful woman that I've grown fond of in the short times we've met. You're very lucky you met her before I did."
Ria rubs her arms and Ashton swears he can actually see her blush from where he stands.
"And you and Miss DeVoure are awful at being discreet. I tailed Ria from the grocery store and figured you must be hiding here. Why else would she come to a hotel a mere two blocks from her apartment?"
Ashton curses under his breath. It hadn't crossed his mind that Vincent might consider tailing Ria. He likes to think she's not involved in this part of his life in the first place.
"Since Vincent isn't here with you," he notes while glancing at the door, "I'm assuming you weren't lying about not wanting him to come in contact with me."
"Of course not." She smiles and inches closer, movements as slick and dangerous as ever. "I'm trying to protect the people I love and sadly that means keeping you away from each other."
Ashton pinches the bridge of his nose. "Camilla, you don't love me and sure as hell don't love Vivian. I wish you would stop pretending like you're our mother and realize you're just as demented as Vincent."
She narrows her eyes. "I've always protected you two to the best of my ability."
"Which wasn't very much. Not to mention you're sleeping with the monster who drove us to this horror show."
"Who do you think helped Vivian find you?" The tan of her complexion grows flushed, and groomed brows loom over her russet eyes. "I covered up Nikolai's murder. I got her off of drugs. I sheltered her for months. When I thought she was ready, I gave her enough money to either find you or move on with her life. Sadly, she chose to find you and Daniel got a hold of her."
"Speaking of," Ashton sneers, "why the hell did you not tell me that my own best friend" — he jabs a finger at his chest — "was working with Vincent? If you care so much about me?"
Camilla sighs and rubs her brow. "Ashton, we live in a morally grey reality. Who was I to tell Daniel that he was wrong when I was no better than him? Loving Vincent while constantly bargaining for you and Vivian's safety? I'm no hypocrite."
"He made a deal with Vincent to keep us apart in return for my loyalty to him," Ashton snaps. "When I did find Vivian again, Daniel went right back to Vincent and nearly got Ria killed."
Regret swirls around her deep brown eyes and she lowers her head. "And I'm truly sorry about that. I never wanted anyone to get hurt. The fact that Ria lost your-"
"No!" Ria blurts and jumps to Camilla's side. Trembling hands wring around each other. "I don't want to talk about that." Her voice is hoarse with grief. Eyes wide and stained in fear.
Guilt circles around Ashton's lungs and squeezes so tight he can't breathe. Imagining how traumatized she must be from all of this is practically impossible. In the past year that he's known her, her life has been a series of one chaotic event after another. Dealing with his world and her own can't be easy.
"I'm sorry," Camilla whispers and runs a hand down Ria's arm. "I forget some things are better left unsaid for now."
Ignoring how affectionate she's being towards his girlfriend, Ashton brings up the matter at hand. "So, why are you here?" He folds his arms, trying to warm the blizzard stirring within. "To tell me not to come after your boyfriend?"
"Precisely." Camilla breaks into an oddly genuine smile. "Vincent is under the impression that you and Vivian have escaped him. He believes Ria is the best way to find you. Once he deems her useless, hopefully, he'll give up on this manhunt and find a better way to kill my husband."
"That's your plan?" he deadpans. "You realize most of Vincent's infatuation with Vivian and I is playing with our lives, right? He doesn't just care about killing your husband. He gets off on torturing Vivian. He's trying his hardest to convert me into another version of him. He'll never give up on us, Camilla. You know this better than anyone. We're his favorites."
The truth sets in her dawning gaze, but she shakes her head. "His biggest concern at the moment is ridding me of a life with my husband. Not only will he have more control of the drug trade, but I no longer have to hide my relationship with him."
"You are a very big part of his life," Ashton agrees. "But Vivian is a capsule of his worst memories. Pent-up hate and jealousy stemming from his parents. She's a reminder of what he did to his family. A trophy, if you will."
Ria nods. "Vincent is extremely jealous of Vivian. She has people who love her. He finds pleasure in punishing her for it. And Ashton...he's so obsessed with bringing out a darker side in him. He wants Ashton to be like him. He wants me to become a part of Ashton's world."
"Like hell that'll happen," he grumbles. Ashton will die before he lets Ria be tainted by his past. He's failed to protect Vivian so many times. He refuses to let the same happen to Ria.
Camilla sighs and strides over to the kitchenette. She pulls out a stool in front of the island and rests upon it gracefully, crossing her legs and resting her hands over her knees. "I will figure something out. There has to be something more valuable to him." Though she only sounds as if she's trying to convince herself.
"The only thing Vincent wants more than that is your freedom and a child." Ria's gaze is cast to the ground. "Yet he's not getting those things either. Vincent needs something to distract him."
"We've been trying to get pregnant for months," Camilla grumbles. "At my age, I am not so easy to fertilize."
Ashton cringes at the thought. "Vincent should not be having children."
"If he had a child, he'd put his entire focus into it. He'd love it more than he loves me, I'm sure." Camilla smiles. "If only we hadn't waited so long to try."
"Do you sleep with your husband?" Ria wonders. "He may find it suspicious if you get pregnant."
Camilla waves this off. "Jose has impregnated other women during our marriage. He knows there is no love between. It's merely the fact of who I'd be getting pregnant by. Vincent Menshikov is his biggest competition. They're at a stand-off after years of failure to conquer the other."
"But I'm good enough to win this war for him?" Ashton runs tired hands down his face. "He's insane."
"Ashton, I hate to admit it, but you're the best he's come across. When you're determined to do something, nothing can stop you. You're relentless. You nearly killed one of Vincent's men with your bare hands for touching Vivian."
He flinches at the memory and his eyes flick to Ria, ready to see the disgust on her face. He doesn't find it. Instead, sorrow rests in her eyes and she inches towards him. She places a warm hand on his arm and smiles, weak and slightly shattered.
"Why do you have to be good at things like that?"
"I don't try to be," he whispers, throat raspy. "I just want to protect what I care about."
Camilla sighs, bringing their attention back to her. "Sadly, there's a difference between taking down small-time criminals and petty thieves. My husband has an empire of crime with my father's money to back him up. Getting close to him is impossible. Attempting to murder him is suicide."
"Why can't you kill him?" Ria asks.
Ashton snaps his gaze towards her, but she avoids it. Instead, bites desperately on her bottom lip. Of all the things to come out of her mouth, the last he'd expect is for her to condone taking someone else's life. Not the Ria he knows.
Fear stabs him in the chest and twists at excruciating angles, realizing that slowly but surely, his world is affecting her. Altering her views.
Camilla sneers and clenches her fist on her lap. "You realize I would be the first suspect if something happened to Jose in my presence, right? Not to mention I haven't harmed a soul in my life. I can control the death around me if necessary, but I refuse to abide by it from my own hands."
"Sorry," she whispers. Tense shoulders rise and she stares at her fumbling fingers.
"Well, it seems like this meeting has gone unsuccessful. We still don't have a plan besides the waiting game and Vincent is very good at that." Camilla flips her hair over her shoulders with grace before sliding from her seat. "Do me a favor and don't get caught, you two. I would hate for this situation to get worse." She traces her gaze over them and smiles with a warm delicacy. "You two look nice together. I hope I was right about you."
"We'll be safe," Ria assures with gentleness.
The three of them stride to the door in Camilla's exit. Oddly enough, sickness doesn't follow meeting someone from this dark part of his life. At least, she seems to be the least problematic person at this point.
Before she leaves, Camilla whirls around with wide eyes. "I almost forgot! Your mother has been visiting me and Vincent, demanding to know where you are."
Ashton groans and rubs his aching temple. "Shit. I haven't seen her since last year."
"Give her a call, will you? The more she visits the antsier Vincent gets about finding you." Bitterness lies beneath her tone.
Ashton ignores this. Camilla and Charlotte have despised each other ever since he got involved in this business. Two women with his affection in the balance. One who wants to be his mother. The other who's done a terrible job.
"Yeah, okay. I'll make sure she stops."
She smiles one last time. A wash of contentment fills her gaze before she turns and saunters down the hall like a deviless. Ashton shuts the door and exhales, permitting his rigid muscles to relax.
"What are we going to do?" Ria's hand finds his and squeezes.
"I don't know." Though Ashton already has everything sorted out.
All he needs is to give the word. One plan to storm Vincent's precious castle. Once he's out of the picture, they'll never have to worry about running or hiding again.
"Should you call your mother?" She squeezes his hand again, voice growing softer.
Dread fills his lungs and he slouches. "I don't want to."
"I think it'd be a healthy choice. Maybe you can convince her to talk to Sophia?" She clears her throat and hardens her voice. "You should call her. Call her and meet her."
"Ria-"
"Please, Ashton." She looks up and pleads with determination in her eyes. "I know you hate her, but she's your family. So is Sophia. You can't keep letting these wounds fester over time."
It's clear that she's right. Hate burns in his veins from just how right she is. As much as he hates his family, they're about the only one he's got. Along the lines, he and Sophia have to reform what's left.
"Fine." He releases her hand pulls out his phone. "I'm going to make this quick." As the line rings, he strides towards the living room and rests back on the sofa, preparing himself for hell to break loose.
The phone only rings three times before his mother answers with a breathy hello.
"Hey, Mom. Camilla told me-"
"Ashton!" she cries, voice sharp in his ear. "Oh my God. Thank God you called!"
Ashton freezes and sits up straight. Ever since he was a kid, he's never once seen her break down with emotions. For the first time in twenty-three years, he hears his mother cry.
"Please, come home," she sobs. "P-please son. I need you."
"What's going on?" Fingers cramp as he strangles his phone. Fear burns a hole in his chest. Just hearing the emotion drowning her stirs vomit in his stomach. "What happened?"
"I-it's your father. I-I need you here," she blubbers.
"You're not making any sense. What about my dad? What's going on, Mom?"
"Your-your father, h-he's dead."
How are we feeling about this chapter??
Camilla is a lot softer with Ashton around, but still wants him to spare Vincent.
Ashton's plans are coming together.
More drama keeps piling up!
See ya soon with a super SWEET update ☺
Love ya!
-bri💕