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My brother is effectively missing, and I don’t have the time or the patience to soothe her ego by overperforming my post-sex responsibilities.
“I’ll just take you home. Town isn’t that far from here, at least not by car,” I continue. “Just give me thirty minutes to drive you back, and you’ll never have to see me again.”
Her expression shifts once again, and she appears conflicted about parting ways forever. “Okay, my apartment isn’t too far from the fairgrounds. I live on campus,” she says sheepishly.
I can tell that she’s dying for some resolution or reassurance aboutsomething.It probably has something to do with how insecure and inexperienced she is at sex. Does she want me to tell her how good it was or something?
I don’t have the mental bandwidth to deal with her insecurities.
I can’t tell her that I’m worried about Misha, because that will just give her more context to use in case she pursues me. I’ll have to keep my nauseating concerns to myself for the entire duration of the drive.
“Just try not to talk too much while we’re driving, okay? I have a headache,” I lie.
She seems polite enough, or at least anxious enough, to stay out of my way if I tell her to. I doubt she’d ask questions about my brother, or that she even remembers that I was trying to contact him in the first place.
We brush ourselves off, and Vera hands me my jacket from the floor.
It’s ruined for sure, but I’d rather die than leave behind evidence that I was here at all. I’m well-known for my meticulously tailored suits and exclusive brands, so I’d be pinned here the moment anyone stepped foot inside.
I take it from her, snatching it out of her hands with a bit more force than I intended to. She looks somewhat shocked at my change in demeanor, but I don’t have the time or the fucks to give.
She follows me out to my car, and I see a bloody handprint across the front of it as I walk over to the driver’s side. It must be from someone fleeing the shooting last night, but the reminder in the daylight is grim.
The real world is still out there, and there’s no doubt that the rest of the city will be reeling from the aftermath of the attack for months. If Johan is responsible for the shooting, I need to stay as far away from him as possible.
I can’t risk getting dragged down with him once the police get on his ass.
Vera opens the passenger door and climbs in, holding her arms and legs close to herself as the tension between us rises again.
This time, it’s not sexual tension.
It’s the result of my impatience and frustration with my brother combined with the crumbling illusion of safety.
We might have had a decent night together, but I’ve put this girl’s life in danger.
“Just give me the address and try to keep your voice down. And try to calm down a little. If anyone sees you making that face at them when we’re at a stoplight, we’re going to get tailed.”
She sits up straighter, smiling uneasily at me as I start the car.
It’s clear that the only thing on her mind is sex, and I should have expected that from someone her age.
Not only that, but she’s still a college student. She and I have absolutely nothing in common. She could never begin to understand the pressure that I’m under, especially not as the leader of the Bratva. Just looking at her, I’m willing to bet that she’s studying something useless at that overpriced school of hers.
When I start the car, Vera jumps at the sound of the engine.
“Jesus, that’s a lot louder than I remember,” she says.
“Yeah, you were half asleep from a concussion last night. I’m kind of shocked you’re feeling so much better already,” I reply without looking at her.
I need to stop giving her the impression that I care about her at all. I barely cared when she approached me by the toilets. I just need to get rid of her so she can forget about me.
But her life is probably devoid of excitement in any capacity, so I doubt that’ll ever happen.
The light from the sun is oppressive and blinding as we make our way out of the deeper part of the country. I’m sure that under different circumstances, it would actually be quite beautiful, but my head has started to pound from the lack of proper sleep and dehydration.
Not to mention, I’ve smoked all my cigarettes, so I’m craving a smoke like I never have before. I should have known better than to blow through them all so quickly, but I needed the buzz after such an insane night.
Vera’s doing well enough at not talking to me, but her anxiety manifests in other ways. She taps her fingers along the handle of the door, periodically taking time to pick at a piece of loose skin on her fingernail.
