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Cursing under my breath, I turn Star into my chest, covering her head with my hand as I walk her to the exit. I buzz the button for the station master to open the emergency door because I don’t see Star getting through the turnstile.
Once we pass through, she steps out of her booth and waves me over.
“Sir, wait for the police,” she orders.
I ignore her as I move Star toward the stairs leading up to the street.
She approaches me, lays a hand on my shoulder, and repeats her command.
I shrug off her hand and growl, “Don’t fucking touch me. My fiancée needs to get home. No way in hell we’re waiting for the police. I just killed a man.” I glare at her. “You wanna make it two?”
Smart woman, she backs off with her hands up in the air.
“Thought so.”
I turn my attention back to Star, who begins shaking in my arms.
I curse under my breath. The shock is settling in. I half carry her up the steep, narrow flight of stairs. Her knuckles turn white as she clutches my shirt tightly.
I coax her toward the curb, crooning low about what a good girl she is.
A lie, for sure.
She’s been a very bad girl, and once she’s safe, she’ll be punished accordingly. I’ve been lackadaisical and look what happened. I almost lost her. A wave of impotent fury rampages through me, but I lock it down. This isn’t the time or place, but damn if I ever let this happen again. Strict rules will be imposed and enforced, and I will give her a taste of what happens if she ever breaks them again.
At the corner, I flag down a yellow cab and bundle her inside. I wrap her in my arms as I shoot off a text to Cristo, alerting him to what has just happened. He instantly replies that Marku and Anton explained the situation and backup is coming to get them out of the clutches of the police.
And then…we get stuck in midtown traffic. I roll down the taxi windows to let in some air. The loud drilling from a construction site and smog from standstill traffic permeate the car. Stroking Star’s hair, I lift her chin gently from where she’s hunched into my chest. The vinyl of the back seat squeaks at my slight movement.
She peeks up. Her eyes bleed terror. She licks her dry lips. I get it, she saw me kill a man point-blank. She may have been raised in themafie, but this was clearly the first time she’s witnessed what’s an average day for me.
I send out a prayer of thanks. Tatum had done right by her. My lips turn downward. Until he left her. She’s been exposed, and if I hadn’t been obsessively watching over her, God only knows what would’ve happened.
Hugging her closely, I swear to her, “Precious, you’re safe.”
She shakes her head and says between chattering teeth. “I’ll n-never be…safe.”
Her eyes speed past my shoulder to whatever is outside the taxi window.
I wrap my hand around her nape and squeeze.
“Look at me,” I demand. “You’re safe. I will kill every last one of them, you hear. I won’t rest until there’s scorched earth beneath your feet. Death to them and everyone they love.”
She bursts into tears, and I curse myself for letting my anger loose. She’s frightened, and here I am, talking about killing more people. I tug her back into my chest, letting her weep in the protection of my embrace. It breaks my heart to hear her.
The release will help, I tell myself, even if I feel like a complete asshole. No, I didn’t create this world of brutality, but I won’t allow her to escape it either. One can argue that I should give her a new identity and help her disappear, but even if I thought it was feasible, I’m not that kind of man. This incident only makes me want to envelop her in bubble wrap and keep her away from the world, not free her into it.
As difficult as it was to take care of my father—and there were days when it was hell—I never abandoned him, never gave up on him. I loved him. After surviving his loss, I can never willingly abandon Star. She’s the first person I’ve loved since him. It might have started long before, but now that I’ve accepted how much I love her, there’s no un-knowing it.
I glance down at Star, whose sobs have receded to a steady sniffle.
And the frenzied panic I endured when I didn’t know whether she was alive or not… I can’t go through that again. I refuse to.
But there’s no denying that I’ve failed her, and it’s urgent that I redeem myself. Over Star’s back, I shoot a text to Cristo, telling him that I’m taking her home, and that I’ll stay with her until she falls asleep before joining him. They’re likely meeting at this very moment to begin strategizing our counterattack. They will be expecting my immediate presence, but there’s no way I’m leaving her.
Cristo’s response comes quickly.
Cristo:Are you fucking serious?
