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“You do have another choice,” I told her. “You can stay at the lodge. I’ll pay for the room. Go get your son, pack up your things, and we can leave right now.”
Katya rocked her weight back and forth on both feet, seemingly thinking over the offer I’d just presented her with. After a few minutes, we heard the sound of creaking floorboards from down the hall, and her boy poked his head around the corner and gasped. “Mama,” he said, looking at Aleks, and all the blood.
“Shh, shh, it’s okay,” Katya said. She ran to him, wrapped him up in a hug so that he couldn’t see anything but her, and then carried him down the hallway. “Don’t worry about it, honey. We’re going to stay somewhere else tonight, okay. Won’t that be fun? It’ll be like a sleepover.”
Despite everything that had just happened, I smiled when I heard her say this, and slid my hands into my pockets. I really wanted to help this woman, and it seemed like she was actually going to let me.
Chapter Twelve
Katya
AsIgatheredafew items of clothing and helped my son pull his coat over his pajamas, I thought about what might’ve happened if Zane hadn’t shown up the moment that he did. I’d seen Aleks mad before, but I’m not sure I’d ever seen him as furious as he was when I first walked through the door. He could’ve—
I couldn’t think about that, I couldn’t imagine the outcome for me or for Luca.
What had I been thinking, staying here this long with a rotten son of a bitch like Aleks.What if he had hurt my son? What if he had hurt me and Luca was left with him?
And my knight in shining armor, for the night at least, who could have ever guessed it would be Zane Grey?
But then again, it wasn’t worth dwelling on. It was over now, and Luca and I were on our way to a safe place. I had my own personal bank account, with money in it, and a warm, secure room to use for the night. I would worry about the rest later.
On my way out the door, Zane took our bags and went ahead with Luca. I stepped over Aleks unconscious body and stared down at his face one last time before leaving. I silently hoped that this would be the last time we ever saw each other, but deep down, I knew it wouldn’t be. Still, I felt like this was a goodbye of sorts, because I knew that after tonight, things were never going to be like they were.
Things had changed—but for better or for worse, I couldn’t yet say for sure.
Chapter Thirteen
Zane
Drivingbacktothelodge was surreal. I came over expecting to tell Katya I was sorry for how things went down earlier when we were talking in my suite, and then leave. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be leaving her apartment twenty minutes later with her and her son in the car with me. It felt like I was in a movie or something, like if I had told someone else this story, they would say I was making it up.
As I drove, however, I realized that I would need to make arrangements for Katya and Luca at the lodge, so I pulled my phone out of my pocket and called Harry. He picked up after three or four rings.
“Hey, Zane. What’s up? Is everything ok?” he asked. “Are you on your way to get Kenlee?”
“Yeah, everything is fine. I’ll be there to grab Kenlee soon. Thanks again for watching her so last minute.”
“You know it’s never a problem. Sloane was actually just—”
“Listen, Harry, I hate to be rude but I’m sort of in a hurry here. I was wondering if there are any available rooms at the lodge. I have a friend who needs a place to stay for a while. I’ll pay for it.”
“No need. Any friend of yours is welcome at my lodge. If you are asking, I know there’s a good reason. I will call the front desk and have the room prepared. When will they be arriving?”
Feeling relieved, I told him, “Soon. They are with me now as we had to leave rather abruptly. They can hang out in my room while the room is prepared so no need to rush. And Harry, I really appreciate this.”
“No problem at all,” he said, and because I knew Harry so well, I knew he meant it. “I am happy to help. Let me know when you arrive and I will let you know when the room is ready.”
“Great, thanks. And uh, Harry, if you wouldn’t mind keeping this on the down low.” I looked over at Katya, who was ringing her hands in the front seat. “My friend doesn’t want a lot of people knowing where she’s staying.”
“Of course,” Harry said. “But I have to ask… is everything okay? For real?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine. She just needs a place to crash for a bit, a place where no one can find her.”
“Understood. See you when you get here.” He hung up.
Katya had been extremely quiet and I wondered if she was processing what happened or was having second thoughts. I truly hoped she saw that leaving that abusive pile of shit was the best decision she could make. If I let myself think about what could’ve happened if I had not shown up, I would feel the rage begin to build again. It also made me wonder how many times it had happened before. I wanted to know, but then again, I didn’t. Maybe the saying was true,ignorance really is bliss. I knew it was easier than thinking she had been hurt before. It killed me to think that Katya felt like her only option was to stay with a man like that. I vowed that one way or another I would prevent him from ever hurting her again.
When we arrived at the lodge, we headed to the front desk. Luckily, Harry had put her a few rooms down from me so that would make it easier to keep an eye on things. I hoped it would make her feel better as well.
