Tattered obsession tatte.., p.37
Tattered Obsession (Tattered Obsession Series), page 37
"This might be our only chance to get him without an entire army of men coming down on us," Liam agrees. "Once he's solidified his hold on the city, he'll be out of our reach, and the first thing on his to-do list will be eliminating any threats to his power—including your family.”
“We have to strike while the iron’s hot,” Tristan affirms. “Every hour that goes by ups the stakes that much more.”
My throat has gone dry, and all the ruminating I was doing yesterday comes back in full force. "What..." I manage. "What do you have in mind?”
Theo and Tristan exchange a look. "Lucas will think twice about being in the same room as any of us," Tristan says finally, and the sudden reluctance in his tone is alarming. "If we want to catch him-off guard, we need to send someone he doesn't perceive as a threat. Someone he has a vested interest in finding.”
"Me," I whisper. "You're talking about sending me.”
Theo's jaw clenches. "We wouldn't do this if there were another way, but we need someone to distract Lucas, and you're the only one who can do it. He's a psycho, but he's a smart psycho.”
I wrap my arms around myself. "Won't he get suspicious that I suddenly want to see him again?”
"We have an idea about that, too," Liam interjects. "We'll fill you in if you want, Vivi, but we're not going to push this if you don’t—”
But I'm already holding up a hand. "If it means ending this," I say, "then I'm in. I don't care what it takes." I take a shaky breath, pushing back my fear, the guys’ words of faith and encouragement from last night ringing in my mind. It might not be enough to make the terror disappear… but it’s enough to keep it at bay. “Tell me what you want me to do.”
The Emmerico office building overlooks the river, as ominous in broad daylight as I'm sure it is at night. Just stepping through the doors is enough to make me shiver, and as I glance around the nearly deserted lobby, my stomach churns. If Theo's contacts didn't run security, I'd be completely at Lucas's mercy right now.
"You all right, kid?" Theo's voice comes through the earpiece I'm wearing.
"Just peachy," I gripe, nodding wordlessly to the security guard, who buzzes me up with a heavy look. If this goes down badly, he's apt to get killed—along with me, my family, my best friend, and the men I love.
It's all falling on me.
"Just breathe," Tristan advises. "We're right behind you. You'll never be alone.”
"If you get into any trouble, we'll be there," Liam affirms. "Just stick to the plan, and we'll be fine. We're not going to let anything happen to you.”
Their words give me a flash of confidence, and I hurry across the lobby to the elevators. I check my watch, biting my lip as I wait for the lift to arrive. I can do this, I tell myself. All I have to do is get to the penthouse and buy them an opening. They've got eyes on me, and I couldn't be more grateful for that. I just have to hope it's enough.
The ride up to the penthouse floor feels like it takes a hundred years, and as I smooth my skirt and fix my hair, I glance at my reflection in the mirror, trying to calm my heart.
"I love you guys," I whisper into the earpiece. "If this goes badly, I just want you to know that.”
There's a long pause. "We love you too, kid," Theo replies.
"More than anything," Tristan agrees.
"Always," Liam concludes.
I cling to their words with everything I have as the doors slide open. Taking a moment to steady myself, I pinch my cheeks for a burst of color, take a deep breath, and step out of the elevator.
Victor Emmerico's old office is the only one on this floor, just as imposing as the building itself. I'm sure Lucas has already set it up in same ostentatious style as our apartment, but right now, his poor design taste is the least of my worries. I hurry to the frosted glass door, and my heart skips a beat when I see the two guards standing on either side, their eyes entirely too sharp.
"What's your business here?" one of them demands, holding out an arm to block the entrance while his other hand goes to his pistol. "Boss isn't taking visitors.”
"I called ahead," I reply. "I'm his wife.”
"The runaway?" The second guard snorts. "I don't think the boss wants to see you.”
"Let her in," comes a muffled voice from behind the door, a voice that's haunted my nightmares every day since our wedding. "Search her first.”
I swallow hard and extend my arms so the first guard can pat me down, adrenaline making my fingers shake. He hesitates at my shoulders, and for a moment I'm sure he's going to find the earpiece, but then he blows out an unimpressed breath and waves me through the door.
"No funny business," is all I get in the way of a warning, and the next thing I know, I'm stepping into Lucas's office. He's standing with his back to me, gazing out the bank of windows that overlook the city, a glass of scotch in one hand. The revulsion that goes through me at the sight of him can't be overstated.
"So," my husband says, "my disloyal wife decides to come crawling back to me. Funny how this happens the day after I take over for my father.”
You didn't take over for him, you murdered him, I want to say, but I bite my tongue. Instead, I lower my gaze and reply, "You've got me there.”
Lucas turns around, his black eyes landing on me. A smirk creeps onto his face. "You always did have a mouth on you, Vivian. I'll give you that. We could have been very happy together, in another life.”
"Fucking asshole," I hear Liam mutter into the earpiece, only to be quieted by Tristan.
"Guess that's just how the cookie crumbles," I reply, spreading my arms.
Lucas takes a sip of his scotch. "You're lucky I'm even letting you show your face here, you know that? After all the shit you've gotten up to, I'd be well within my rights to have you shot dead here and now.”
"But you haven't yet," I point out, my heart racing.
Lucas scowls. "Don't speak too soon. What do you want?”
"To survive," I reply simply, and there's enough truth in it that my voice holds steady. "That's all I've ever wanted, Lucas.”
"Don't," he says, raising a bored hand. "Let's skip the theatrics, Vivian. You're never going to make me believe you've suddenly rethought your feelings for me. Not after fucking around with three men and disobeying me every chance you get.”
"Good," I reply, "because I haven’t rethought my feelings for you.” My lips curl back. “You disgust me, Lucas. But that doesn't mean I haven't rethought our... arrangement." The words are horrible even coming out of my mouth.
Lucas snorts. "Our marriage, you mean?”
"Yes," I reply stiffly. "Our marriage.”
"And what brought this on?" he demands, taking a step closer to me, and it takes everything I have not to flinch.
Stay calm, I remind myself. Stick to the plan. "Our relationship was always a transaction, Lucas," I tell him, managing to hold his gaze. "It was never about feelings, and we both know it. It was convenient for our families, and that was it. It could still be convenient now." I swallow as his eyes burn into me, searching for any signs of deception. "That's why I came back," I continue. "I told you that what I want is to survive—and for my family to survive. With you running London, the odds of that happening are slim. I'm doing what I have to do to live another day, and if that means coming back to you, then so be it." I square my shoulders. “Whatever’s necessary, right?”
Lucas watches me for a long beat, setting his glass down. Then he snorts. "Damn, my brother really did a number on you, didn't he? I have to say, if he weren't such a son of a bitch, I might even be impressed." He drifts closer, crossing his bulky arms. "And what about me, darling?" he asks, staring down at me. "What do I get out of all this?”
"For one thing, my father's men stand down," I reply. "Done. Finished. In your pocket. Sure, you'll be able make them stand down eventually either way, but why rack up more deaths if you could gain allies instead?”
Lucas snorts. "And you really think they'll listen to you?”
From over our heads, there comes a muffled bump. Lucas frowns, his eyes moving toward the ceiling.
Fuck.
"No," I reply quickly, daring to move closer to him, "but they'll listen to my father. He'll fight if he has to, but after that stunt you pulled at Victor's, he's desperate to avoid more bloodshed. As for what else you get out of it?" I make a show of looking down at the ground, as if I'm holding back tears. "I talk Theo into leaving the city, and taking his friends with him. They'll fight to the end if they have to, but if there's one person who can make them leave, it's me. They'll let me go if I ask them to. I don't want to, but I will if I have to." And then, for realism, I add, "If it means saving their lives.”
"That's it?" Lucas asks, raising an eyebrow. "That's your proposal?”
"That's it," I reply. "You get to bypass the rest of the resistance and get down to ruling the city like you’ve always wanted. And I get to keep my loved ones from dying. It's a win-win.”
Another sound comes from up above, this one a low scrabbling noise. "What the fuck is that?" Lucas asks, craning his neck.
"Almost there, kid," Theo's voice sounds over my earpiece. "Just keep him focused on you.”
"Your dad's building's shoddier than I thought," I say, crossing my arms. "Sounds like it's coming apart at the seams.”
"My dad was never the hot shit he thought he was," Lucas replies, his eyes drifting away from the ceiling, and I exhale in relief. "He was an old man who was past his prime, and my brother is a no-good interloper who doesn't know when to call it quits, either.”
Another thumping sound comes, sounding closer than the last. "Couldn't you say the same for yourself?" I ask quickly, trying to cover up the noise.
"Careful, wifey," Lucas warns me. "Don't forget who's calling the shots around here.”
"Sorry," I reply. "That's gonna be a tough habit to break.”
Lucas sniffs, unimpressed. "The back-talk? Damn right. You really think you have it in you?" He grabs his scotch, downs the rest of it, and closes the distance between us. Having him so close makes me want to shiver in revulsion, and with the way his eyes are raking over me, it's all I can do not to move away. "You really think you can make this little 'arrangement' worth my time?”
I'm just opening my mouth to say something else when a crash comes from the ceiling tiles just above our heads, and time slows down. Adrenaline rushes through me, my heart jumps to my throat, and I see Lucas's hand move towards his sidearm as he starts to look up again…
No, it's too soon!
The opening is life-threateningly slim, and there's no time to think. If he figures it out, we're all dead. The world around me moves in slow motion, all sensibility slipping from my mind as I do the only thing I can think of.
I grab Lucas and kiss him.
It's like kissing a monster, but there's no other choice. I can taste the scotch on his breath, feel his repulsive lips on mine as I buy us those few precious seconds, grimacing even as I press my mouth to his.
Lucas reels back for a second, stunned, and I take the opportunity to squeeze out of his grip and dart to the side just as the ceiling above us explodes in a shower of tiles and gunfire. Theo, Liam, and Tristan drop into the room, guns blazing, all wearing bulletproof vests, and Lucas dives for cover under his desk amidst the flying debris. The goons from outside burst into the office, returning fire, and it's all I can do to duck behind the coffee table before the office erupts into an all-out war zone. More security guards storm in from the hallway, and it takes me a moment to realize that I'm not sure whose side any of them are on. Soon shots are flying back and forth between the remaining Emmerico loyalists, Lucas's defectors, the guys, and Lucas himself... and I'm trapped in the middle of it all.
One of the men barrels towards Lucas, shouting something I can't quite make out over the din of the gunfire, only for a bullet to pierce his chest and send him sprawling to the floor. Liam, his combat expertise kicking in, kicks over a bookshelf to use as a makeshift cover, pulling me out from under the coffee table and behind his body just as one of Lucas's guards comes running toward me, his gun raised.
Theo and Tristan are firing just as I hear his shot, which ricochets off the ceiling as Tristan pulls me swiftly to the side. The man slams into the bookcase and then collapses to the ground, blood pooling around his body. As it sinks in that they just saved my life, a hail of gunfire tears into the bookcase, and Liam grunts in pain.
"Liam!" I cry, panicking, as I haul him behind the barrier.
He coughs, sucks in a breath, and shoots me a crooked grin, pointing to the bullet, which is now stuck in his vest. "I'm okay, Vivi.”
I drop my head in relief and peer out just in time to see Theo and Tristan standing back to back, picking off two guards who were trying to flank their position. When they see me, they trade a look and dive behind a desk to reload their guns.
I catch a glimpse of Lucas crawling towards a door near the back, which must be Victor's panic room. "He's getting away!" I shout, and Tristan pops up from behind cover to fire a string of bullets at the door.
Swearing, Lucas hesitates just as two more of the guards, these ones fighting each other, crash into him and send him sprawling to the floor, too busy trying to kill each other to notice him there. Theo charges out of cover, but I can see his confusion. He’s not sure which of them is his guy and which is his brother's... and they're both providing cover for Lucas. Tristan, meanwhile, closes the distance to the bookshelf, ducking down next to me as Theo stands there, trying to get a clean shot.
"Traitorous bitch," Lucas growls, scrambling out from under the guards and shooting each of them without a second thought. He sees Theo and fires another bullet, forcing him to throw himself out of the way.
Out in the hallway, I can hear the thundering of more footsteps, and fear washes over me. Our window is closing, Lucas’s guys outnumber Victor's two to one…
And he's making a break for the panic room again.
My eyes go wide. He's about to lock himself in there and wait for us to slaughter each other, and then that will be it. No justice. No peace.
"No fucking way," I growl under my breath, crawling out from behind the bookshelf.
"Vivian, stop...!" Tristan shouts after me, but I'm not listening. My adrenaline is rushing, my heartbeat roaring in my ears, and there’s no stopping to think. I'm seeing this through, one way or another—for my family, for the guys... But most of all, for myself.
Hardly aware that I'm doing it, I scoop one of the fallen guards’ pistols, feeling for the safety just like Liam taught me. My muscles protesting, the battle a blur around me, I stand up and sprint to Lucas, vaguely aware that the guys have realized what I'm doing and are suppressing his men's fire.
Just as my husband's hand finds the knob to the door, I put the barrel of the gun to the back of his head and click off the safety. "Don't move," I pant.
Lucas spits out a curse. "You really think you're gonna shoot me, Vivian? Huh?" he demands. "You gonna shoot your own husband?”
“You shot me,” I point out. “You kidnapped me. You tried to kill all of us. And then…” My throat thickens. “And then you shot my father. You think I won’t fucking shoot you?”
Lucas snorts. “You don’t know what it’s like to pull the trigger, sweetheart. You don’t know what it’s like to do the shit I do around here. You really think you have it in you?" He gives a breathless laugh. "You're just a fucking puppet, Vivian. Mine, your father's, my father's, Theo's... doesn't matter. You'll never be anything else.”
And with that, he turns the knob and opens the door—
—just as I pull the trigger.
I didn't totally expect anything to happen, but then... it does. The gunshot rings through the room. Blood flies. Lucas seems to freeze mid-motion, his hand still on the doorknob... and then he slumps to the floor, dead. I stare down at his body, my ears ringing, the world swaying around me.
Lucas Emmerico is dead, and I killed him.
Just like that, it's like a spell has been lifted, washing over the guards, the guys, everyone who was caught up in the battle just a few seconds ago. Slowly, everyone begins to lower their weapons, their expressions either ones of relief or confusion as they process that the man at the center of it all—the man who was purging this city from the inside out—has just been killed. I don’t blame them; I can barely believe it myself. As the new batch of guards storms in, they skid to a halt at the sight of their boss dead on the floor, and I can see the question that's written on all their faces: What now?
Theo doesn't hesitate to answer it. "No one move," he says, standing up with his gun in hand. “It looks like this operation is once again under new management. Anyone thinks of trying anything, and I promise you'll regret it.”
His eyes meet mine from across the room as he approaches me, taking me by the hand and helping me to my feet. Tristan and Liam are right behind him, surrounding me and pulling me into a collective embrace. Wary, the remaining guards in the office slowly begin to put down their guns as the newly-arrived group looks around, clearly trying to figure out what the fuck just happened.
Me? I’m too busy melting into the guys' embrace to care about anything else. They're okay. They're really okay. The relief that floods through me is so intense, so all-encompassing, that I almost burst into tears right there in the middle of the office. In the end, though, I hold them back, and as I bask in the presence of the men I love, I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding.
It's over.
It's finally over.
Epilogue
"You're sure you're okay?" I ask my dad as we say our goodbyes and drift toward the foyer of the house where I grew up, with the guys on either side of me and Violet and my mother bringing up the rear.
"Been better," my father grunts, stiffly rolling the shoulder where he got shot. "This is gonna take some time to get back to normal.”
"I know the feeling," I agree, my eyes drifting to the spot on my own upper chest where Lucas's bullet pierced my flesh all those months ago. Sometimes it still aches, but I find that those moments are growing fewer and farther between the more time passes.
