Chapter 13
"A close call"
Contract number 2
I woke up about 9 am. Somehow Niko managed to wiggle out from underneath me and go off on his next contract. I frowned when he didn't bother to wake me to atleast say goodbye, but I guess he was in a hurry. My brother got the idea to make breakfast for me and himself. It wasn't anything special. Thank goodness Karen's contacts pulled through and got the bare essentials for meals. I was pretty sick of ordering pizza and Chinese. I wondered if Niko was good at cooking.
"Thank you. This was very kind of you." I say as my brother placed a plate of food in front of me.
"It's the least I could do for you and Niko for helping me. I don't suppose he told you what happened yesterday."
"He told me he was successful in the first contract. That's all he said."
"It's pretty crazy that I should be thanking him for doing these for me. I mean, thanking someone for killing someone?"
"You don't need to thank him. In fact, you shouldn't thank him." Karen added.
I glared at her as she came into the living room. She was in the bedroom for a long time. I knew she was awake. What she was doing in there I kind of want to know. If she is planning on screwing us in the end, I want to know.
"I think we should! He's out there right now risking his life for us!"
"He's out there right now for himself. He's out there not for you or your brother. He told me so before he left this morning."
"That's a fucking lie!"
"Believe what you want to believe. He doesn't care about you."
"Then why the hell is he bringing me along! He loves me!"
"I don't doubt for a second that he is fucking some woman right now."
"I don't know what you're trying to do, but I trust him to not call him and see."
Things were really getting threatening in the air. My brother stepped back to not get sucked into another fight.
"Why did the idea pop in your head? I didn't suggest you call. You know what? I will call him. You'll see for yourself."
"Don't you dare call him! What if he's trying to stay quiet?! You'll give up his location!"
Karen still dialed his number, and he did answer. I restrained myself from kicking her ass for her stupdity.
"Niko, how goes the mission?"
She put him on speaker, so I can listen.
"I am at a hotel right now awating orders. Your men haven't told me to go after the target yet."
"Is there anybody else there with you?"
"No. Why?"
"Sharon seems to think you have a prostitute with you."
I lost it. I pounced on her and knocked the phone from her hand. I fought on top of her, punching her face while Niko pleaded to me from wherever he was to stop. I couldn't hear him with the blood rage ringing in my ears.
"Sharon! Stop!" He shouted as loud as he could. There was no use.
I wildly went after her like a lioness attacking her prey. Karen, in her desperate attempt, managed to lock my arms together in some police style maneuver. She had me pinned down in just a few seconds and placed hand cuffs on my wrists. That still didn't stop me as I wrestled myself off the floor and tackled her again with just my body weight.
"Sharon! Enough!" Niko exclaimed.
Karen took one strong uppercut to my jaw, and that sent me backwards onto the floor. My arms couldn't catch me as I got knocked out.
I awoke with no idea what happened. All I know is my head hurt, and I couldn't move my arms. My brother held an icepack to my head and my phone to his ear.
"She's alright. She just came to. Wanna talk to her?"
He held the phone to my ear and a frantic Niko was heard. He was saying something, but my brain couldn't piece together what he said.
"No. I won't let you destroy our relationship." I said with a faint tone.
"What are you talking about?" Niko asked.
I seemed to get my senses back.
"I think she is trying to ruin our relationship, Niko!"
"Who? Karen?"
"Yes. Karen! I never said what she said. I trust you fully and completely. She is the one putti-"
"Easy. I know how she is." He cut me off before I got too angry. "She's jealous of us. She's married to her job and has no boyfriend or husband to love her. She's miserable. Just put up with her for a few more days, and she'll be gone."
"I can't, Niko. She makes me so angry."
"Hold it together. Don't let her get under your skin."
"I try not to, but then she says stuff like that."
"Would you feel better if I show you where I am?"
"You don't need to prove me anything, Niko. I said I trust you, and I do."
"Well, just know I really miss you. I wish you were here."
"Where is 'here'? Maybe I can see you?" I offered.
"It's not safe. Besides, I am at a hotel in Florida right now.'
"Florida?! Why there? How'd you get there so fast?"
"This is where the target resides. I flew in via private jet. It only took a few hours to get here."
"Oh, well a private jet will get you there. Was it fancy?"
"It was. There was champagne aboard and high end shit, but in all honesty, it wasn't like being with you. I'd give up all of this in a heartbeat to be with you."
I squealed over the phone. He is being so damn cute, and he's not here for me to smother in kisses.
"You liked that?" He chuckled.
"Couldn't you tell?"
"You two are making me neasous." Karen called from the bedroom.
"Ignore her, Sharon." Niko said before I could advance.
"I couldn't go to attack her anyway. She's got me cuffed."
"Damn. You gave her a run for her money, didn't you? She'll make sure not to piss you off again. Remind me not to piss you off either." He laughed.
I could have been extremely happy talking to him for a while, but I heard his phone ringtone.
"I have to let you go. It looks like the target is on the move, and they want me. I will talk to you soon, мој слатки анђео."
"Збогом, Niko. Волим те."
"Волим те. I'll see you soon."
I lost my connection with him, and already I wanted to hear his voice longer.
"Do you want me to ask Karen to get you out of these cuffs?"
"Like she would. And If I got my hands free, I'd go after her again."
"You got to remain calm. Listen to your boyfriend. We need her, too."
"I don't trust her at all. She's planning something."
"We will have to watch out for her. It would be so wrong of her to stab us in the back after all of this. And she's the one who said it was wrong for her employers to stab Niko in the back. She's being a hypocritical cunt."
My brother hit the nail on the head with that statement.
Again my brother and I found ourselves keeping our minds busy while Niko was out. I really wish I was able to help him in any way. As I was told atleast 20 times, I had no business with him while he was out doing these contracts. The only thing I could do was be there for him at the door no matter what time he came home and offer my support. By that, I can offer him food and water, or comfort, or, if he asks for it and has the energy, sex.
Karen came out of the bedroom around 4 pm stating she was going out, and that the both of us were to remain silent to not draw attention to ourselves.
"And just where do you think you're going? Out to set up something to betray Niko?"
"Do me a favor? Don't make this all about yourself. This is something I need to do to make sure he gets home."
"Is he finished with the contract already?"
"No. He got captured."
The blood slipped from my face, and I did the best I could to stumble in her general direction to get information.
"What happened to him?!" I asked when I finally got to her.
"He got captured." She repeated the obvious.
"I know that! Tell me how! Tell me when! Is he hurt?"
"Would you rather me tell you all that, or would you rather see me doing something to get him back?" Her logicality seemed to quell my need for answers, and I sat back down. She got my answer from my action.
"Get him back safe. Please."
"We will do the best we can."
She exited the apartment complex, but I chased after her before she got into her suv.
"Karen! Please give me your number. I want to know how he is."
"I'm not supposed to give that out. However, I'll give it to you. She took my phone and typed in the digits herself to ensure nobody else heard. "You know, Niko was right. I am miserable. I am married to my job, and I probably will never know what it will be like to be loved again. Niko treated me right when he and I were dating, and now that he is gone, I'll never have that again. I miss him. I am glad for you and him. But now that he is in danger, I jeopardized more than just your relationship. I jeopardized his life. I will call you as much as I can to inform you on what's going on and if we get him."
I noticed her voice cracked a little when she said 'if we get him'. I couldn't really tell though if she did still love him.
Her phone number was my direct link to Niko, who was miles away from me in some God awful building. I decided to head back into the apartment before anything else bad happened.
My phone chirped moments later with Karen's number on the screen. I feared the worst that she was told he was killed.
"It's Karen. I figured I'd let you know how we know he got captured."
I sat down on the couch, enticed by her cliffhanger.
"Niko left early this morning about 4 am. I thought this target was going to be a little more harder, so I made the suggestion that he'd wear a wire. It was equipped with a panic button that he could push that allowed him to alarm us without saying anything. I helped him get the wire on and showed him how to use it."
The thought of her touching my Niko's bare skin made my heart furious, but my brain told my heart that this isn't the time to overreact.
"Once he understood how to use it, he was sent off on his mission. He was told by my employers that the target was on the move to another location. His distress call came hours later after your phone call. We are attempting to locate his last distress signal, and get him back before they do him harm."
"I am glad you gave him that alarm. Had he not have it, he'd have no way to call for help. Thank you for thinking of him and his safety."
"You're welcome. We might be able to get him back alive. We just received another distress call from him before I called you. Just remain positive, and be confident in us to rescue him."
My phone notification beeped, and I saw it was Niko. His capturers didn't take his phone away?
"Niko just sent me a text message!" I pulled down the notification bar and read his message aloud, so Karen can hear his message.
"He's being held in a small warehouse by the gang leader. He says he was tied up, and they tortured information out of him about who he works for. He is in a room in the basement."
"How foolish of them to not take his phone. Can you call him to make sure it is him?"
"I'd rather not. I'm afraid his ringtone would give it away that he has a phone."
"I'm sure he turned the ringtone off. Call him. Make sure it is him, so we know it isn't a bluff."
I called his number, and thankfully he did answer. I tried to keep my cool, so I was understood by him and to make sure he didn't talk too much.
"Niko? Are you okay?"
"Yes." He whispered. "A little beat up, but I'm okay. The real torture is being away from you."
I remained calm. My mind squealed like a schoolgirl again.
"The idiots didn't take my phone. Did you get my message?"
His voice pulled me out of my dream sequence.
"I told Karen your location. She has a bunch of men coming for you."
"Good. Tell them I am in the basement in some sort of jail cell. The guard has the key. They'll have to take him out. He has a rifle. Someone will have to snipe him from far away. From what I saw, there were 6 guys with rifles at the main entrance."
"They didn't even blindfold you either?"
"I don't think I am going to be alive for much longer. They must have not even bothered."
"Don't say that! You're coming home to me alive and safe." I started to cry.
"Молим те не плачи. If Karen says she will rescue me, she will do it."
"Niko." I sobbed.
"I will be home soon."
"What are they going to do about the target? You won't get credit for it if you don't kill him, will you?"
"Right now, I think they aren't worried about it. And you shouldn't be either."
"You're right. I'm sorry. I care about you getting home safe and into my arms."
"I gotta let you go. I hear someone. I love you."
He hung up before I could tell him it back. I was sure he was going to be tortured some more, or they were on their way to kill him. Whatever the choice was, my eyes welled up and I threw myself onto the couch cushion and wailed.
I looked at the clock when I woke up. My heart was heavy as I cried myself to a short nap. It was a little after 7:30, and I received no new phonecalls or text messages from Niko or Karen. I only hoped as long as I didn't get phone calls from Karen only meant she was busy locating Niko. I wondered what they were doing to him, and that made me feel useless in his rescue. I still needed to remain hopeful because any doubt would lead to a negative result.
"Have a nice nap?" My brother asked.
"Not really." My eyes felt puffy.
"I called that Roman guy and asked him to come over. I think he needs to know what happened."
Oh, shit! Roman doesn't know his cousin is in danger! How selfish of me to not tell him.
It was about an hour later when Roman came inside the apartment. He was told the entire story on how he got captured, when he got captured, and what the plan was to get him back. Roman seemed calm, yet concerned as we told him.
"You really shouldn't worry about Niko. He is a survivor. He knows what to do in these situations. He has the nous to play for time. Whatever time he can get, makes the difference in his rescue." He paused for a moment, taking a walk to the kitchen. "This isn't the first time he got captured." He said with his head in the refrigerator.
"What?"
"He and I were captured by the Russian mafia lead by Michael Faustin."
"And he was calm about it?"
"Surprisingly, yes. I was a coward. And I was the one shot in the stomach. It seems these thugs want you to show fear because it feeds their ego. If Niko keeps a calm head, they will try to get him to show fear. It seems fear only gets you hurt or killed faster."
His claim made some sense.
"What are you doing?" I asked when he pulled his head from the refrigerator.
"Taking stock. You seem low on food. I'll go to the store and get what you need."
"Thanks, Roman."
He showed me the shopping list, so I knew what he was getting. He sat down and had a serious look on his face.
"I know you're worried, but try not to. Niko needs to know you're not worried about him. He can focus on surviving better."
I was told that so many times to stay calm. It was easier said than done. Roman left the apartment to get the needed groceries. I was left with only my thoughts. Some positive and some negative. What if scenarios came to mind as I planned his rescue in my head on how it would go. Nothing came close to the real thing. He is somewhere being tortured and having his willpower tested. I guess that training was really necessary. Had he not, he'd be breaking.
My phone rang with Karen on the other line.
"Just an update, our men are on their way with speed to get Niko back. We had to plan a rescue amd ensured no men would be killed. This could be a big rescue for one man."
"Did he send another distress call?"
"No. Did he call or text you?"
"Nothing. I'm getting worried." Despite Roman said a few minutes ago, I started to panic.
"Listen to me. I need you to text him. Let him know we are on our way to get him. Let me know if he responds."
I decided to acutally listen to her rather than not like I had before. Mostly because of Niko's sake, but for once, she seemed honest instead of living in a lie. She may not have confessed that she was still in love with Niko, but I got the idea when she reminessed about her time with him.
I waited, staring intensely at my phone screen waiting for a reply. I hung up on Karen to focus on Niko. It was over 30 minutes later when I received a message back.
Who is this?
I knew it wasn't Niko. He would know who I was.
Listen here, you pile of shit. Set him free, or you'll pay!
My threats were on deaf ears. I could hear the thug laughing at my minor threat.
You don't need to worry about him anymore. We executed him. He is nothing but a corpse now. Whoever you are, you're wasting your time in rescuing him.
I dropped my phone as my hands went numb. I couldn't believe him for one second that they killed Niko. I refused to believe it. He was alive!
I texted Karen telling her what the capturers claimed. My thumbs were shaking uncontrollably as I hit send.
Her reply actually shocked me.
We need to hurry. We have no time to waste!
I don't know what she knew. Maybe she knew he wasn't dead either.
Don't call or text Niko now. We know where he is, and we no longer need to risk his saftey. He pushed the distress button again, so we know he's alive.
My heart jumped, knowing he was still alive. His capturers still don't know he has the wire on. I remained positive for the rest of the day and tried to fall asleep, knowing somewhere there was a brave rescue in the making, and an even braver man holding on against all odds.