Vengeance Aside (Wanted Men 0.5)(53)

“Oh?” Maksim came around the table. “I enjoyed watching you work last night, so how about we make it a date.” When he reached Lukas, he motioned him to his feet with two fingers. “Personal files from his home computer,” he said, holding out his phone.

As Lukas looked at six names—three of which he recognized from Scorch—and long, detailed descriptions of what would be done to the women once Garrett Dawson was in possession of them, the groping sadist earned himself the number one spot on his most wanted list.

He looked to Samuel who was waiting by the door. “Mine, yours, and a friend Dale has mentioned are three of his six targets. You’ll probably recognize the others.” He kept to Russian so as not to alarm the girls. “According to this guy, the ladies are in for a lot of hard fucking. Something that sounds strangely like reconstructive surgery on a pussy that ‘doesn’t deserve his worship any longer.’” He air-quoted. “And when he’s through ‘punishing them,’ a slow, agonizing death, because ‘that’s what stuck-up whores deserve.’”

Samuel was the least violent of the two of them, but seeing the viciousness that twisted his feature just then, you’d never know it.

“What is it? Sammy?” Farah went to get up, but her husband shook his head and came back to place a kiss on her head.

“Don’t. Just ignore me. Knowing this guy was hanging out at the club pisses me off.” His tone was even, but his eyes were still furious. “You’re housebound until I say otherwise.” She didn’t protest when he lifted her by the chin and kissed her before snapping, “Maks? You want that computer?”

The two left, with Gheorghe following like a dark shadow, and Vasily and Dmitri soon did the same with Vasily saying they were going to the hospital to sit with Lukas’s father and Yuri. Lukas was to tell Maksim to keep them updated.

When it was just him, Dale, and Farah, his sister-in-law stood.

“Well, since it’s still early, I’m going to the stables.” She looked distracted as she headed for the exit. “Do you ride, Dale?”

“No. I’ve never had the opportunity.”

“That’s too bad. Maybe Lukas will teach you, and we can start going out together.”

After she was gone, Dale got up. “What was that all about?”

He shrugged. “Dawson’s about to get spanked.”

“That was understood. What were you guys saying?”

He hooked a lock of her hair with his pinkie and brought it under his nose. “I’m aware you don’t speak Russian, Dale.”

“Which is why I just asked you to translate.”

He brought the ends of her hair over to tickle her chin. “We didn’t want you to know what we were saying.”

“Why?”

“Because there are certain things you’re better off not knowing.”

“Am I in danger?”

He almost laughed. “No, yagodka. I would never allow it.” He took her hand and left the dining room.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

“Okay.”

Her hand squeezed his while her trust did the same with his heart.

“Farah’s a different animal here than she is at work.”

“She’s not second-in-command here.”

“I get that,” she said as they crossed the hallway to enter the kitchen. “I’m just surprised she was so compliant when Samuel grounded her.”

“She understands that when her husband puts his foot down, it means he’s either protecting her or trying to find some piece of mind. She loves him enough to give him that without causing unnecessary drama. I’m confident you’ll soon do the same for me.”

Lukas hid his smile by kissing her knuckles and played dumb by pretending not to see her skeptical look.





SIXTEEN


So being housebound for her own protection was in her future. Dale couldn’t say she was looking forward to that. In fact, she wasn’t sure she’d ever accept being told she was a prisoner until her husband said otherwise. Maybe if he offered some sort of explanation…? Samuel hadn’t.

“If you do that to me in the future, will you at least tell me why I’m not allowed out of the house?”

“Yes. I can do that for you.”

Oh. Well, that was easy. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Does your father still live in the Sharpstown area?”

Her stomach lurched. “Yes. Why? Was that information in my file?”

“Do you visit him often? Could Dawson have followed you there at any point?”

That spooked her enough to make her stop him in front of the counter she’d sat on last night while they’d eaten. “No. Aside from yesterday, I’ve only gone back once since I moved out. I thought you said I didn’t have to be concerned.”

“You don’t. Why don’t you see your father?”

She focused on an elegant wrought iron bird cage that held potted flowers rather than birds. “We don’t get along. But I would like to go over and get the things I dropped of yesterday.” Not that she needed any of it. Everything from clothes to tampons had been stocked in Lukas’s rooms for her.

“Would you like to go now?”