Chapter 130

A friend from the past.

I’m standing in the staff restroom fighting with myself in order not to throw up. I don’t need to panic just yet. Rat is not in the club and it might be hours before he arrives. Gavin hasn’t confirmed when he is supposed to show up exactly. My new boss was very excited when he mentioned rat. I bet those two have been in touch over the years. Gavin couldn’t have bought that story about Rudolf being shot. He must have known that it was a set-up to keep the police off his back.

I didn’t stay to talk to Hunter, but from his expression, I figured that he was completely shocked to learn that I used to go out with Rudolf. When I came back to continue with the training, he wasn’t at the bar any longer. I only assumed that he went after Gavin to find out why his old boss was coming back. I might have complicated things around here for him, although Hunter was never a problem. Rat was furious when he disappeared. He had no idea that Hunter was caught, and now when I think about it, I know that there was more to it then. Maybe Hunter had enough of that life and started working with the police instead to bring Rudolf down. Who knows?

My breathing finally slows down when I get back to the changing room and check that my gun is still there. My black skirt covers my leather strap with the sharp knife that I have on me. If rat tries to touch me I’ll slash his throat with it. I stabbed Tahir, and I won’t hesitate to kill rat, to look him in the eye and tell him that he has no more power over me, that I’m ready to rip him apart if he even dares to touch me again.

I splash water all over my face and then start to reapply more makeup before my shift is just about to start. I like looking at myself in my fake glasses. Rat doesn’t expect to see confident Rosie, and I won’t let him get to me this time. He will be dead before he even realises what’s happening. I don’t care if I go to prison or not. As long as the bastard is dead, nothing else matters. It’s too late to get my old life back.

My anxiety hasn’t flared up since I ran, since I left Tahir on the floor, hoping that he would die. My new me is confident and ready to strike back.

When I get back to the bar a bit later, the floor is still quiet. It’s only after seven and I still have a long and intense shift ahead of me. I take my time to familiarise myself with all the cocktails, shots and drinks while there is nothing else to do. Hunter shows up when it starts to get busy, looking agitated and tense. We don’t talk, but I feel like he is here to keep an eye on me, in case something happens. He has no idea that I used to go by the name of Rose Waltham, that he was the only person that had ever been kind to me in the past. After all, rat didn’t have only me for his sadistic tortures. There were probably other girls, other victims.

It’s clear that Hunter is worried his old boss will discover that he has been out for years and he never came looking for him.

“Are you all right?” Hunter finally speaks to me halfway through my shift. It’s my break and he follows me to the back, with that odd look on his face. My T-shirt is stuck to my back. I have been working really hard in the past few hours, trying to keep all the male customers happy. Donna is swamped, she has guys queuing, hoping that at least one of them will get lucky tonight. I’m glad that I didn’t wear a low-cut top like she has. If I’m not as busy I can a closer eye on the entrance. I need to make sure that I’m not missing anyone. Other waitresses have been saying that the boss is expecting a special guest this evening, someone important. I have a feeling that rat will make an appearance, at least to let everyone know that he is still very much in the game. Will he want to corner me in the group or alone? Will I be able to stab him or will I have to use my gun?

“I’m good. How about you? I thought the training was supposed to last longer than half an hour?” I ask with a smile.  

“Yes, I meant to apologise for that. I had to go and speak to Gavin about something,” he says. I put my glasses back on and start to go back to the bar, when Hunter blocks my way out.

“Before you go,” he says, glancing around. “You need to be very careful tonight. Your ex isn’t a good guy and I don’t want you to get hurt. Please tell me that you won’t do anything stupid?”

I open my mouth to tell him that he doesn’t have to worry about me, but then I think about the fact that he never tried to help me. He managed to get out, saved himself. After all, he could have told someone, the police or the social services. I would have been saved much sooner.

“Don’t worry about me, Hunter. I can take care of myself,” I say, quieter than I intended.  Hunter nods, but something tells me that he is not finished with me yet. He obviously is planning something, and I hope this won’t ruin the fact that I want to get to rat first, before everyone else.

Micah

“Where the hell have you been all night and afternoon?” Tequila asks, pacing around her living room and looking at me like she knows what I’ve been doing all night. I’m stunned, seeing her in good shape today. She should be in bed, curing the nasty vodka hangover.

I didn’t want to come back so early in the morning and face Kiki’s and Tequila’s questions, so I stayed out, drove around for a bit. I needed some time out to think about what happened in that warehouse.

The numbness comes back; the guilt keeps spreading deep inside me. I’m no different than the Russians. I remember everything, every single detail: the screams, the smell of blood and flesh. This is not normal. I shouldn’t be acting like nothing happened. The thing is that I have to pull myself together, push the guilt aside, and think about what I’m going to do next. Tahlia needs me and I can’t act like I can’t handle being the bad guy.

“It’s none of your concern. Take care of Kiki and don’t go around drinking another bottle. I need to go out again,” I tell her, getting up. I have no idea how I’m going to fire my gun when my hands are trembling like fuck. Rudolf is not weak, and he is guarded by his own people.

Tequila kneels in front of me. She has dark circles under her eyes. The alcohol is still in her system. I can smell it. I made a mistake taking her with me before. This time I’m doing this on my own.

“What the hell happened? The Russians called, right? You know where she is? For fuck’s sake, Micah, tell us what is going on.” She keeps asking calmly, like that will change anything.

I place my hands on her shoulders and look at her. Maybe she’ll see through me, see what kind of monster I’ve become. When I save Tahlia, I won’t demand any forgiveness. I don’t deserve her. This time, I will let her choose.

“I’m leaving and you’re going to stay here until I come back. I’m not getting into another argument. We are done and I have to go,” I repeat, then get up, grab my jacket and stroll towards the door.

She is swearing after me.

“Wait, hold on,” Kiki shouts from upstairs.

“What?” I ask with heavy voice, turning to look at her.

“Good luck,” she says and then vanishes in the room.

I nod to her and then leave to face my demons and save the girl I love.

Tahlia

I wipe the sweat off my forehead, taking another sip of water. I glance at the clock and tense my shoulders. It’s half past ten and Gavin hasn’t called me yet to his office. I have a feeling that this is how rat wants to play this—just show up unexpectedly and surprise me. I’ve been looking out for him, feeling on edge. It’s a weekday, but the club is very busy.

Hunter keeps working hard, but I know that something is wrong with him. He has been scanning the floor more than usual. On top of that, he had been checking up on me every damn time I go out for a break. This isn’t normal or even fair. I’m fucking ready to face that bastard on my own.

I pour a pint of beer for the tall handsome bearded guy at the bar that has been eyeing my cleavage since he showed up. Men seem to be paying more attention to me since I died my hair black. I keep smiling, pretending that everything is all right. At least that way people don’t recognise the real me. Ten minutes later Rob strolls through passing all the other bartenders. His face, as usual, is red, sweat soaking his white shirt. He shoots me a sharp look and stops by Hunter’s station. I can’t hear what he says to him, but Hunter doesn’t look happy. He looks around before he joins Rob, who looks annoyed that he has to wait for him.

“So how long have you been working here then?” asks the guy, smiling. He has to shout through the music.

“Only couple of days. Why?”

“You are very pretty. Did anyone ever tell you that?” he asks, giving me that lame look that he is up for some fun. For a split second I think about Micah, wondering what he’s doing right now—and if he is looking for me. I look past the guy, seeing someone in the crowd. My heart accelerates, but I realise it’s just some random guy that only looks like rat.

“Hey, can you go and fill the tray with the ice? I have a queue and this handsome stranger wants a pitcher of cocktails,” Donna asks unexpectedly, fluttering her eyelashes, pulling me back to being a bartender, not a girl who is waiting for her revenge.

She does have a few men waiting to be served and I’m not even that busy. That low-cut top obviously helps her with tips. Maybe I need a little break. The tension is killing me. I grab the heavy tray, telling her that she owes me one, and head to the back. The guy with the beard keeps staring until I disappear heading downstairs. The ice is kept with the beer and other drinks. It’s cool inside and it feels nice to be away from the heat and hungry stares and the crowd of people.

“I was wondering how long it was going to be before we heard something on the streets.” The voice that I know startles me and the metal tray falls on the floor. Tahir shuts the door and stands in my only way to escape. His face hasn’t changed at all, the same twisted smile appears on his lips. I don’t understand how he is still alive. He must be injured; the stab wounds wouldn’t heal so quickly. “Nice hair, by the way, but that wasn’t clever at all, Tahlia. You had a chance to run, so why didn’t you?”

I think about that knife, the knife or my gun. This is not what I expected at all, and now I’m trapped in the storage room with that arsehole. I should have made sure that he was dead when I still had a chance.

“Where the fuck is Rudolf? I thought he wanted to see me?” I ask, hoping to buy some time. I need to get out of here and back behind the bar and I’d rather not use my knife on him. The only thing in my favour is that he doesn’t look strong enough to kill me.

“Do you really think he would come for you? He has other people doing his dirty work for him. And we have some unfinished business, bitch.”

“You’re injured and I’m not scared anymore. This is finished business. The rat can go and fuck himself,” I say.

Then Tahir goes for me. One minute he is just standing by the door, the next he grabs me by the neck and lifts me by my throat. He must be high to have such strength without showing pain. His actions are fast and smooth as if that stab wound doesn’t bother him.

The pressure on my neck is intense, and I’m losing oxygen fast. I wiggle my legs around, trying to pull away, but he clamps his fingers tighter, suffocating me.

“Stupid cunt, I’ll batter you and then I’ll taste that sweet pussy of yours before I slash your throat,” he rasps and throws me over to the corner. I land on the stack of beer, bruising the left side of my body. My head hits something hard, and spots dance in front of my eyes for a split second.

Tahir grabs me by my hair and then punches me straight in the face. My jaw feels like it’s been cracked in half. Next he throws me in the middle of the floor and starts kicking me with his boot. The oxygen gets punched out of my lungs; the pain spreads everywhere. Now, suddenly I have lost all control. How could I be so stupid to think I could have tricked rat?

I try to scream, but no sound comes out of my mouth. I see rat’s face in front of me again.

When Tahir takes his knife and starts moving it down between my legs, I scream as loud as I can, forgetting about the pain.

He laughs and rips my shirt open to ogle my chest like he wanted to before, and for the first time in three years I know that I have made a terrible mistake. I should have run, run as far as I could. Now, I’m going to die in another basement, away from the only man that promised to keep me safe.

Tahir kicks me again, and this time my body squirms in agony.  There is blood in my mouth, and I just want him to get it over with.

“That fucking stabbing was childish. You should have finished the job and actually killed me,” he whispers, leaning down.

“Hey, arsehole, why don’t you hit someone your size? Someone that can fight back?” asks someone else, barging into the room. One second I smell Tahir close to me, the next it seems that he’s been hit at the back of his head. Then the darkness drops me back into the hole.