I nod and slip off the chair to get to work. When I have everything ready, I pour two glasses of water, then wait for Nisa.
I wonder what the east wing of the mansion looks like and whether Gabriel’s wife is also a kind person. She must be if she’s surrounded by these amazing people every day.
The fear I feel for Gabriel is slowly fading, but I’m still cautious, not wanting to upset him. I really don’t want to go back to Tymon, who’d probably kill me on sight.
“Let’s eat,” Nisa says when she returns.
Once we’re seated, she places a massive chunk of meat on my plate.
My boss prepared it, and I get to eat it?
Never in my life did I imagine something like this would happen.
I give Nisa a tentative smile, then cut off a piece and pop it into my mouth. The tender meat practically melts on my tongue, my eyes drift shut, and I almost moan.
So good.
The meal is easily the best I’ve ever had, and I eat everything on my plate even though my stomach is threatening to burst.
When we’re done eating, Nisa sips on a cup of tea, her eyes resting warmly on my new haircut. “You have some color on your face. How do you feel after all the exercise?”
I’m exhausted but don’t care.
“I feel okay.” My teeth tug at my bottom lip. “Thank you for everything. Today is the happiest day of my life.”
Emotion washes over Nisa’s face, she reaches across the table, and taking hold of my hand, she gives me a squeeze. “You’re welcome, Lara Hanim. I enjoy watching you experience new things. It’s like watching a flower blossom.”
We sit in silence, my thoughts filled with how much and how quick my life has changed.
Getting shot was the best thing that ever happened to me.
The stitches will come out tomorrow, and this time I don’t mind the marks that will be left behind. They’re a reminder of the day I left hell and found heaven.
Chapter 15
Gabriel
It’s been a month since I attacked Mazur, and there’s no sign of the bastard. It pisses me off to no end.
I had my men pull away from his house and only left two to keep watch, one at the front of the property and the other at the end of the tunnel Mazur used to escape. It led to a storm drain outlet.
The employees at his house keep working as if they expect him to return any moment. None of them asked about Lara, though. It’s like they don’t even care that she disappeared.
Over the past four weeks, she’s settled into a routine, following Nisa like a shadow. Yesterday I heard her laugh out loud, and I found myself smiling.
She seems to fit right in with the way we do things and have not once argued. She’s a damn good worker as well.
Now that I’ve become used to seeing her around the house, she doesn’t annoy me as much as she did at first. However, it does bother me that she doesn’t smile often. I caught her smiling once, and it made that twisting sensation return in my chest.
When I walk into the security room at the club, it’s to find Mirac keeping his wife, Elif, company.
“You’re keeping her from work again,” I joke as I take a seat behind the monitors. Elif once tried to explain how everything works, but hacking will never be one of my strong points.
“She’s distracting me from working,” Mirac mutters.
“Right.” I nod toward the monitors. “Anything on Mazur?”
Elif shakes her head. “It’s dead quiet out there. He’ll come to the surface at some point. They always do.”
Just then, my phone starts to vibrate in my pocket. Pulling the device out, I see Emre’s name flashing on the screen.
“Evet?” I answer as I rise from the chair and walk toward the doorway.
“Where are you? One of Mazur’s men just showed up, demanding to talk to you.”
My right eyebrow lifts as I leave the office.
“He just showed up? Armed?” I ask Emre.
“Unarmed.”
That’s not fucking weird at all.
“I’m close to my office. Take the man to the freezer where we keep the beverages.”
Turning around, I head toward the section holding all the freezers and meet Emre, where he’s talking with Daniel, the head of the guards.
“So, this guy knocked on the door and demanded to speak with me?” I ask again, unable to believe someone would be that stupid or desperate to die.
“Evet,” Emre nods. He gestures to the freezer’s door, and opening it, I’m on guard as I step inside.
I come face to face with a middle-aged man who looks more like a sickly accountant than a soldier.
Frowning at him, I demand, “What’s your name and what are you doing at my club?”
“Filip,” he answers, his arms wrapped around himself for some warmth. “My name is Filip. Mr. Mazur sent me to check if the girl you shot is dead.”
What?
Surprise slithers down my spine, then every muscle in my body tightens. “What girl?”
“Lara Nowak. One of the maids. The CCTV showed you shot her during the attack and took her away.”
Frowning, I give the man a look of warning. “You’re fucking brave walking into my club, demanding to talk to me, and then demanding I give you information.” I take a step closer, narrowing my eyes on him.
He’s scared shitless, but he had to know he was undertaking a suicide mission when he came here.
“Did Mazur guarantee to pay your family for your death?” I ask.
He doesn’t even bother to withhold the information. “I only have months left. At least this way, my family will be well off.”
I lock eyes with the dead-man-walking. “You’re carrying a listening device,” I state the obvious, to which the man nods. Knowing Mazur is listening to this conversation, I say, “You can’t hide forever, Mazur. I will find you.”
The man clears his throat, his features drawn tight with the fear of his impending death. “Mr. Mazur also wants to know why you attacked him.”
I let out a dark chuckle, slowly shaking my head. “If Mazur wants that information, he’ll have to ask me in person.”
The man’s eyebrows draw together, nervously licking his lips. “And the girl? Is she dead?”
If Mazur sent a man to check if she’s alive, Lara is worth something. Or she’s been fucking lying to me and doing a damn good job of it.
“Why do you want to know if the woman is dead?” I counter his question.
“Mr. Mazur just cares about his employees.”
Right, and I’m fucking Santa Claus.
“She’s dead,” I lie. Taking my gun from behind my back, I keep eye contact with the man. “May you find the rest you so desperately came to seek.” Sparing him the time to agonize any further about what lies in the beyond, I train the barrel between his eyes and pull the trigger. I hope, for his sake, Mazur will pay his family for his sacrifice.
“Bury him,” I order before stalking out of the freezer.
“Where are you going?” Emre asks, following after me.
“I’m going to find out what Lara’s been hiding from me,” I snap, anger already pulsing through my veins.
Chapter 16
Lara
Life is wonderful. I can’t stop smiling.
Every day my heart fills with more warmth, and I’ve grown so attached to Nisa I can’t imagine life without her.