“It wouldn’t make a difference if you were. You can’t boss me around anymore, Dimitri.” She spits out my name as if it’s trash. “You lost the chance when you abandoned me.”
My jaw falls open like a fish out of water. “Abandoned you? I didn’t abandon you. I set you free.”
She folds her arms in front of her chest all prissy like. “In the house my uncle, aunt, and quite possibly my grandfather were murdered in, with three snipers outside the door, and shitty-ass cell reception inside it! You may as well cut off my wings.”
“Where the fuck are you going?” I ask when she pulls away from me. “I’m not done with you yet.”
Roxanne shrugs out of my hold before I can dig my nails into her arm. “We came here to visit my friend. Since you seem to have pull with the warden, I guess we don’t have to wait for visiting hours anymore.”
Her friend she nudged her head to during the first half of her comment isn’t eager to join her campaign. She looks on the verge of pooping her pants. I understand her concern. I’m five seconds from killing someone. I just have no clue if that someone is Roxanne or me. I love her feistiness. It thickens my cock as quickly as it fills my mind with immoral thoughts. A girl has to have spunk to be fingered in an alleyway with a stranger watching, much less go against a man as powerful as me. But her spunk also drives me nuts. Furthermore, I wouldn’t have let her out of our agreement if I knew she was going to march straight back into it.
I shouldn’t be surprised. She’s always there, in every frame, causing trouble.
It’s one of the things I like about her the most.
When Roxanne disappears into the entrance of the prison, I jerk my head in the direction she went. “Go with her. Make sure she sees who she came here to see, then load her into my car.”
“What car, D?” Rocco asks as he struggles not to laugh about the rage on my face. “Do you wanna drive your girl home from your first date in Smith’s beat-up van?”
I talk through a tightened jaw. “The car Smith is going to get here A-S-A-fucking-P if he wants to keep his job.”
Smith holds his hands in the air, knowing he did wrong before he puts them to good use. He will build a car if he can’t get one here within the next thirty minutes.
“All right.” While rubbing his hands together like he’s choosing a whore for the night, Rocco takes off in the direction Roxanne just went. Her friend reluctantly follows them.
Although I’m pissed at Smith, I am too confused about my exchange with Theresa to discount it for a second longer. “Did Theresa’s information sway your opinion at all?”
We only arrived here on the cusp of dawn for one reason—to unearth if Maddox is aware the woman he’s serving a life sentence for isn’t dead. It’s obvious from what Rico and Smith have discovered the past couple of weeks that Megan is alive and well, so why the fuck is Maddox keeping his mouth shut about it? If you had an out for a lifetime sentence, would you continue serving it? I fucking wouldn’t.
Smith twists his lips, a sign he’s confused. “From what I heard, your father is aware Megan is alive. I’m just struggling to understand why.”
“You’re not the only one,” I breathe out before I can stop myself.
When they were alive, my father chewed up and spat out his daughters as if they were tobacco, so why would he give a shit about a random woman, let alone one who’s batshit crazy? He kept Megan alive for a reason, I’ve just got to find out why.
“While I talk with Maddox, look a little deeper into the files Theresa handed over. She said she did this for a favor, but we both know she doesn’t do shit without some type of payment upfront.”
Air whizzes from Smith’s nose when he hums in agreement. “I’ll do that as soon as I organize a car. Any particular brand?”
“Something fast and noisy…” I almost add,just like Roxanne, but hold back the urge. I don’t need to brag. Roxanne’s moans could be heard two towns over. Smith and Rocco live on the same block as me.
Smith’s smirk reveals he heard my inner monologue. It’s as cocky as the heat that roars through me when Roxanne can’t help but watch my entrance to Wallens Ridge State Prison. She keeps her gawk on the down-low with lowered lashes, but I don’t need to see her eyes to know she’s watching me. I can feel it in my bones. It thickens my cock in an instant, which doubles the heat of her stare.
“Prisoner 9429 is waiting for you in my office.”
I shift my eyes from Roxanne to Warden Mattue. It’s a fucking hard feat, only done because I’m curious to learn how he knew which prisoner I wanted to visit. This is my first time at this establishment since Rocco was an inmate.
When he catches my imprudent stare, the Warden’s throat works hard to swallow. “I assumed he was who you were wanting to see, considering you’ve seen him once a month since his conviction.”
He shows me a visitor ledger with a barely eligible D Petretti scribbled in the log once a month for the past year. It’s not close to my signature, but I’m reasonably sure I know who it belongs to.
“You can wait here.” When the Warden attempts a rebuttal, I slice my hand through the air. “Did I sound like I was asking permission?”
I don’t watch the bob of his head. I’m too fascinated by the faintest hint of a smile under locks of red hair to pay his mundane submissiveness any attention. Even with her veins bubbling with anger, Roxanne can’t help but respond to my surly personality. She seems to get off on it like she’s obsessed with the thought I can protect her unlike anyone else.
It instantly proves my reason for sending her away was the most stupid idea I’ve ever had. As I’ve said before, she doesn’t want a man to take care of her. She wants a bastard, a monster, a man so evil, even when he has the blood of her mother on his face, she’ll still crawl onto his lap and snuggle in.
If Fien weren’t on my mind, I’d show Roxanne right now that I can give her all of that and so much more. Instead, I return her steely stare for a couple more seconds before I make my way to the Warden’s office.
