Savage Tracker by Maggie Cole

33

Obrecht

The vibratingpanties I bought for Selena sit in a gift bag next to me. I'm going to make her put them on in the car and wear them during this little event of Skylar's. Then I'm going to tie her up and edge her when we get home until she loses her voice from begging me.

I stare at the picture she sent me. My naughty little wife.

Matvey's image pops up on the screen. I answer, "Matvey, are you on your way?"

"They took her," he barks out.

My gut sinks. Bile rises in my throat. I bark, "What do you mean they took her?"

"We were in the store. Someone dropped something. Gleb was picking it up—"

"His job is to not take his eyes off her! Where the fuck were you?" I demand opening the car door and practically sprinting inside Skylar's office.

"At the front, I—"

"Call Maksim. Call Liam." I hang up and Skylar's assistant Bradley, who has the hots for Adrian, but isn't opposed to checking me out as well, approaches me with a big smile.

"Obrecht! It's so—"

"Where is my brother?" I seethe.

His eyes widen. He points behind him. "They went into the office."

I brush past him and see Maksim across the room. He hangs up his phone, and his face is pale. He motions to Dmitri, Sergey, and Boris.

I bang on the office door as hard as I can. Rage fills me in a way I've never experienced it before. My dorogaya is in the hands of the devil. "Adrian! Open up, now!"

The door opens. Adrian and Skylar are behind it. He asks, "What's wrong?"

"You need to come with me now!"

"Obrecht, what's wrong?" Skylar repeats.

I can barely say it. My insides are shaking. "He took her."

"Who?" Adrian asks, the hairs on my neck standing up.

Who? Why the fuck is he asking me who?

"Selena. Her bastard ex took her."

His eyes turn to slits. I barely hear Maksim say, "Skylar, can you leave the room?"

She goes, and the Ivanovs gather in her office and shut the door.

"Do we know where he took her?" Maksim asks.

"My guess is his house. The bastard always orders his guys to take her to his house," I claim.

"Arrogant prick," Sergey mutters.

"We need to go now," I claim.

"Hold on. We need to find out what Liam knows," Dmitri says.

"I don't give a fuck what Liam knows. I'm going to get my wife, and he's dying tonight by my hands," I claim.

"He was tracking Jack. If we know where Jack is, we'll know for sure where she is," Dmitri claims.

"Fine. You call him. I'm leaving."

Adrian steps in front of the door.

"Move!" I yell.

"Wait. You can't go by yourself. Chill out a minute."

"He has my wife," I grit through my teeth.

Adrian nods. "I know. We'll get her back. If you don't do this right, she could get hurt."

"He could be hurting her right now. Either come with me, and we plan in the car, or I'll do it myself." I shove him aside.

"Hold on. Obrecht! I'm with you. We all are." Adrian follows me through the office. My cousins are in tow. Liam and Hailee step inside right as I get to the front.

I throw Darragh's words in his face. "Do you see what not taking care of loose ends does?"

Hailee moves out of the way, and Liam holds his hands in the air. He claims, "She's at his house."

I step outside and ask, "How many men are there?"

"Only one and the driver. They're waiting for Jack to arrive."

"Fine, I'll take them out, too."

"It's Mack Bailey."

I freeze. A new horror fills me. Selena told me what he wanted to do to her. Over the last few months, everything has come out. As much as I deplore Jack, in many ways, Mack might be worse. I turn and jab Liam's chest. "You're to blame for this."

"Obrecht, this isn't the time. Let's go," Maksim says and opens the car door.

I scowl at Liam and get in with Maksim. Boris follows, and Liam jumps in. The door shuts, and the car takes off. Liam's phone rings.

He answers, "Finn. What's the situation?" His jaw clenches, and my gut spins. "Keep your eyes tight. We're on our way." He hangs up.

"What?" I bark.

"Jack's home. He and Mack just went into the house."

I shake my head. "You and your deal. I should have never listened to you."

"We're two weeks away. Let's take out Mack and his driver. Jack goes with me to the garage. As soon as—"

"Enough! It's over, Liam. I don't care how the O'Malleys make their money going forward. Sell your souls to the devil for all I care. He goes to our garage," I seethe.

"Obrecht, you don't understand—"

"Everyone, calm down. We need to be on the same page so Selena doesn't get hurt," Maksim says.

I continue to glare at Liam. Why did I ever agree to this?

Liam's phone rings. He answers, "Killian."

"He's going to our garage," I reiterate to Maksim.

Maksim nods. "Yeah. I need you to calm down, though, or Selena could get harmed."

I take a deep breath. He's right.

"We're five minutes away. Stay put." Liam hangs up. "Killian took out Mack's driver."

"How?" Boris asks.

"I'm not sure until we get there."

"The house is large. Where do you think he'd have her?" Maksim asks.

More disgust and fear fill me. Selena's dreams were too frequent and intense to be wrong. My wife has a sixth sense. I should have known we couldn't escape this from happening with Jack still alive. I feel ill as I say it. "He'll have her in the bedroom in the cage."

I ignore the horror-filled expressions and pull my gun out of my pants. While I prefer tearing into these men with my knife, I'll shoot them with no hesitation if it comes down to it. I double-check the chamber is full of bullets.

"You're positive he'll have her in his bedroom?" Maksim asks.

"Yes."

Liam scrolls on his phone. "I've got the layout of Jack's house. Up the stairs, then turn right. Only door on the right. Finn said they went in through the garage. His house locks through his app. Declan has the code and said all doors are unlocked. The security system is off as well."

We turn into a wealthy subdivision. Extensive lawns and mature trees surround each estate. The sun has set, and the streetlamps are on. The driver turns the lights off and veers onto Jack's street.

Liam puts his phone to his ear and knocks on the divider window. The driver rolls it down. Liam speaks into his phone. "Finn, are we clear?" A few seconds pass. "Okay, coming up now." He hangs up the phone and says to the driver, "Go slow. It's thick foliage the entire driveway and clear to the garage. The bedroom is on the backside of the house."

It feels like forever before we get to the mansion. I don't wait. I storm out of the car, putting my black gloves on as I move toward the entrance. My heart's racing. Images of what they may be doing to my dorogaya fill my head. I push past nausea and remind myself to be smart so Selena doesn't get hurt.

The others are behind me. I pull out my gun, flip the safety, and creep into the house. I move toward the dual staircase and quietly go up, grateful there is carpet. At the top, I turn right. I hear their voices before I get to the room. Selena's scared whimpers break my heart.

A thick Irish accent says, "Are you sure you don't want one last go before I pay you? I don't mind giving you a final round. I'll even take part."

More bile rises in my throat.

Jack's voice makes the hairs on my arms rise. "Tell you what, you pay me, then I'll let you have your first go here. I want to watch and listen to her pay for disobeying me."

Selena's sobs get louder.

In a mocking tone, he says, "What's wrong, dear wife? Rethinking how good you had it with me?"

I stop at the edge of the door. I glance back at Maksim, Boris, and Liam. With my gun aimed straight, I peek into the room.

Both men huddle over the cage. It's barely big enough to fit a Labrador retriever, much less a woman. Selena is naked and on all fours. She's shaking. They have the same black hood over her face she bought from the store as the thing that scared her the most.

Jack sticks his fingers through the cage and drags them over her ass. "She got fat. You're going to need to starve her a bit."

Selena shakes harder.

Mack reaches in and grabs her chin. "She'll learn how to behave with me."

I aim my gun and shoot Mack in the head. He topples over the cage with blood pouring out of him. Selena screams, and Jack spins. "Get on the ground," I shout at him. I want to shoot him, too, but he's going to pay. I'm going to string out every last moment he has with pure pain and fear.

He gapes at us and raises his hands in the air.

"Get on the ground," I order again.

He does as he's told. Boris stands over him, pointing his gun.

I race to the cage and pull Mack off. Selena is screaming. Blood covers her. I attempt to open the cage, but there's a padlock on it.

"Where are the keys?" I growl.

Jack laughs. Maksim kicks him then crouches down and threatens him, but I don't hear what he's saying. All I can focus on is Selena and getting her out of this cage.

I reach in and pull the face mask off her. I get on my knees and bend until I'm eye level with her. "It's okay, baby girl. I'm going to get you out of here."

Her eyes will haunt me for the rest of my life. There's so much fear in them, it pains me to look at her, but I force myself to keep my gaze on her. I reach through the cage and push her hair off her face. "Can you get into a different position, my dorogaya?"

She stares at me. Tears fall everywhere. Her breathing is erratic, and I worry she may have a panic attack or an actual heart attack.

"Someone get me the keys," I say, attempting to stay calm for her but doing a poor job. I want to rip Jack's head off. If Selena weren't in this cage, I would. I keep repeating, "It's okay. You're safe. I'm getting you out of here."

A lifetime passes before someone hands me the keys. I don't know who, since I won't tear my eyes away from her. I finally get the cage open and attempt to move her out, but she screams in pain.

"She's been in there too long," Liam says. "I've seen it in prison. Go slow."

I'm unsure what he means by that comment, but I don't care at this point. He brings a blanket over, and we slowly help her out. When she's free, she breaks down in my arms.

"Shhh. It's okay. He won't ever harm you again. I promise."

Her cries sound like a wounded animal. I've never felt so much agony. I wrap her in the blanket and pick her up.

Jack's on the floor, surrounded by Boris and Maksim. I warn Liam one last time, "He goes to our garage. Take that cage and put him in it." I don't wait for an answer. If he doesn't comply, there's going to be a war between our families. Liam will be the first O'Malley I take out.

I cover every part of Selena except her face and carry her down the stairs and out of the house. Another car is waiting. Sergey is in it. When the door shuts, we pull out. He says nothing for several moments but finally speaks. "Do we need to go to the hospital?"

"No! Please. I don't want anyone touching me," Selena cries out.

I stroke her hair. "Okay, baby girl. I'll take you home if you let Stefano examine you."

"Don't leave me. Please," she cries.

I tighten my arms around her. "I'm not leaving you." I kiss her on the head, and she starts crying again.

Sergey's eyes meet mine. "The others are waiting. Do we need them for cleanup? Are they dead?"

"Mack is. Send them in."

Selena shakes harder. "Jack is still alive?"

"Not for long, baby girl. I promise you, his death is going to be drawn out and painful."