Dangerous Beauty: Part One: Destiny (28 page)

“I would love nothing more, but I can’t. We have to handle this Mitchell situation today. I need to make sure you’re safe.”

“I would be safe in bed, with you,” she said wrapping her arms around his waist.

“How about this, I’ll have Gianni take you home, and I’ll be there in about an hour? We’ll take a hot bath, I’ll give you a massage, and see what else I can do to help you relax,” Nathan said kissing the top of her head and Carter nodded. “Good, now give me a kiss and get your ass home and in bed,” Nathan said.

Carter obediently stood on her tip toes and gave Nathan a soft kiss on his lips. “Hurry home, Nathan. Don’t make me wait too long.”

“Damn, you’re bossy,” he teased.

“Damn right I am.”

“Let’s go get Gianni and get your grumpy ass home then, shall we?”

Carter laughed softly. “Please.” She followed Nathan to the front of the office.

Once they made it to the front of the office, Carter went and stood by the elevator to wait for Gianni, who was receiving instructions from Nathan. It had been a stressful day, and now she had more to worry about. Her mother was here. In New York. The thought made Carter uneasy. She didn’t understand why her mother would be here trying to protect her. The woman didn’t even know her, and Carter had convinced herself a long time ago that her mother didn’t even care. This was all just too much to think about right now. Carter rested her aching head against the elevator.

“You ready to go?”

Carter turned around to see a smiling Gianni standing behind her. She smiled back and nodded.

The elevator doors opened, and they both got on. Carter stood next to Gianni and rested her head on his shoulder as he pressed the first floor button. The doors of the elevator closed, and the elevator began to move. Carter frowned. The elevator was going up, not down.

“What the hell?” Gianni muttered, pressing the first floor button again.

“Why is it…?” Carter’s sentence trailed off as the elevator came to a stop on the twenty-seventh floor.

“I don’t know. This floor is aband…”

Gianni’s words were cut off when the elevator doors opened and two bullets hit him, one in the throat, and the other in the head. Blood spewed from his head as his body fell to the floor.

Carter dropped to her knees next to Gianni, her mouth agape and tears filling her eyes. “No, no, no, no,” she screamed and cried, laying her head on Gianni’s chest.

Carter lifted her head from Gianni’s chest and looked down at his lifeless body. She was only looking for a second when she felt a forceful blow to the back of her head, and her body flew forward as darkness overtook her.

***

“Wake up now, you little troll,” a voice taunted.

Carter’s eyes opened, but her vision remained hazy, and her head felt like a tone of bricks collapsed on it. She saw a figure standing in front of her, but she couldn’t make out who it was, or where she was.

“Wake up. You little bitch.”

Carter’s vision began to clear and she looked at her surroundings. She was in what looked like an abandoned office area. The area was completely empty, and it looked like it was being remodeled. They were on a side with no elevator, but there was an emergency exit. Carter made sure she stored that knowledge just in case she decided to dart for the stairs.

Then it hit her, she was on the twenty-seventh floor. She remembered getting on the elevator with Gianni to leave, and the elevator started moving up on its own.

Oh God! Gianni!

She looked at the man in front of her. He stood staring at her in a black shirt and black trousers pointing a gun straight at her face. “Mi-Mitchell?” she whispered, and pain shot through her head. Her head dropped forward, and she closed her eyes tight, biting her lip through the brutal pain.

“Don’t say my name, you little bitch,” he spat. “You just sit there and wait for the show to begin. I was starting to think you wouldn’t wake up. Kent may have hit you in the head too hard, that dumb son of a bitch.” He shook his head “Can’t find good fucking help these days. Hell, you were supposed to be killed by the dumb motherfuckers five years ago.”

Kent? Kent, as in the man who killed my father, Kent?

She wanted to ask, but it hurt to talk, to breathe. She could barely open her eyes. The pain in her head was excruciating, even the tears stinging the backs of her eyes caused her pain. Her breaths were labored, but she tried her best to push back the pain and focus. She needed to see if she could move, she didn’t care if it hurt like hell, she was getting out of here. Carter tried to move her hands and legs, but she couldn’t. She looked down and noticed for the first time that she was sitting in a chair. Her hands were tied behind her back, and her legs were tied to each of the front legs of the chair. “Shit,” she muttered, then instantly regretted it when pain shot through her head once again.

“You may want to be quiet, baby Anastacia. That’s quite a head injury you got there. I don’t want you dying before you fiancé gets up here. Congratulation’s by the way, such a shame to see a young couple die before the wedding,” he said with an evil smile on his face.

“What the hell do you want, Mitchell? Why didn’t you just disappear?” Carter bit out.

“No point in disappearing,” he said with a shrug, “your fucking mother’s going to kill me anyway, so I might as well take you and that fucking little blond prick with me.”

“Why? What the hell do you want?”

“Peace,” he said in a bright, sadistic tone. “You came here and ruined everything. You should be dead like your lying cowardice father, but instead you’re here and your goddamn mother is making my life a living hell. I can’t sleep. I see the bitch everywhere I turn.”

“That’s because you’re insane,” Carter said a bit too forcefully, and pain shot through her head, so severe, it knocked the wind out of her.

“I told you to stop talking, but you never listen. Do you?” Mitchell taunted. “That little temper of yours, huh? That was very impressive what you did to my three men down stairs. You ran right into that ambush then walked right out. New fucking plan.” he screamed. “I keep making new plans with you around. This little elevator plot wasn’t even set for you. It was for your damn fiancé. Yep, we were going to shoot him up as soon as the elevator doors opened, but when I saw you get on the elevator, inspiration struck. Some Romeo and Juliet type of shit… except I will be the one killing both of you. I’m going to make you watch me kill your fiancé, then I’m going to listen to you cry, and once I’m satisfied, I’ll shoot you in the head,” Mitchell chuckled. “I still can’t believe you survived all the shit I’ve thrown at you. How the fuck did a little thing like you do that?”

“Untie me, and I’ll show you,” Carter said through clenched teeth.

Mitchell laughed. “Absolutely not. You think I’m an idiot? No, you sit there. I will call your fiancé, tell him I’ve got you, and to come alone or I’ll kill you. He will come up here, Kent and Patrick will
try
to kill him.” Mitchell leaned in and whispered. “But between you and me, they don’t have a chance against your boy toy. That giant bastard will kill them quick. Then he’ll come looking for his “beautiful” little Carterina, and as soon as he gets to that point right there,” Mitchell said pointing to the small opening leading to the side of the large area him and Carter were in, “I’ll kill him before he even sees you. And you my dear have a front row seat.” Mitchell pulled his cell from his pants pocket.

“No, please don’t,” Carter whispered. She felt herself drifting again, but she fought against it, she needed to find a way to warn Nathan.

“Oh wow! The bitch begs?” Mitchell said through a derisive laugh. “As much as it pleases me to here you humble yourself. I have to say that begging will not work at all.” He dialed Nathan’s number.

After two rings, Nathan picked up.

“Hello, you Russian parasite. Guess who I have with me on the twenty-seventh floor, tied to a chair, waiting to die?” Mitchell’s tone was smug and filled with hate. “Let me show you,” he put the phone up to Carter’s mouth, “say something!” he ordered, scowling at her.

“Nathan, don’t come up here. Ahh!” She howled in pain when Mitchell jerked her throbbing head back hard. “They’re going to try to kill you Nathan!” She screamed before Mitchell snapped the phone away from her face.

Carter could barely breathe, the pain in her head now reaching an unbearable level. She couldn’t stop the river of tears falling down her face or the loud sobs escaping her lips at this point. She had never experienced such insufferable pain in her life. She knew she couldn’t hold on for much longer. She needed to get loose, save herself and Nathan before she either passed out, or died.

“Do you hear that, Nathan? Do you like hearing your little bitch cry?” he spat, and then he delivered another hard blow to the back of Carter’s head.

Carter’s breath caught in her throat and her eyes opened wide as the worst pain she had ever experienced in her life shot through her, stilling her entire body. She was sure she blacked out for a second and when she came back she took a loud gasping breath as broken sobs began to fall from her lips.

“Gianni is dead. Come alone, or it’ll only get worse,” Mitchell said and he ended the call.

***

Nathan crushed the phone in his hand, picked up the chair he was sitting in, and hurled it across the conference room in a fit of rage.

“Son! What has gotten into to you?” Angelo yelled, as he and the rest of the men stood from their seats. Some had to move from the path of the flying chair.

Nathan removed his suit jacket quickly, then his holster. He removed both Glocks from his holster and stormed out of the conference room.

“Nathan, what the hell is going on?” he heard his father say behind him.

Nathan kept walking with a Glock in each hand at his sides. “Mitchell has Carter. She’s hurt. Gianni is dead,” Nathan said continuing his journey to the elevator.

He knew he had to map this out right or else he’d get himself killed before he got Carter back. Carter said something over the phone. She said, “
Don’t come up here they’re going to kill you
.”
They’re
meaning Mitchell isn’t alone. They will probably try and get him when the elevator door opens, but Nathan would be ready for the motherfuckers. He would kill them and then he would find Mitchell and make sure the bitch wished he’d never met his fucking father. Nathan was going to make Mitchell suffer for this.

“Nathan, I’m going with you. Where is she?”

“Us too.”

Nathan heard his father and the rest of the men fall in line behind him.

“No, he said to come alone or else he would kill her. I’m not taking any chances with Carter’s life. I’ll do this alone,” Nathan said nearing the elevator. He pressed the up button. “He has her on the twenty-seventh floor, I’ll be back soon.”

“No son, it could be a trap,” Angelo said turning Nathan toward him. “I will go, let me handle this. Mitchell is my fault, my problem. I will get her and bring her back to you.”

“No papa, I can’t let that happen. Once he sees it’s you and not me he’ll kill her, and I can’t…” Nathan could feel his heart beat quicken. The thought of losing Carter made his chest tighten painfully. “I will not live without her. Do you understand that? She is going to be my wife,” Nathan said firmly as the elevator door opened.

Angelo’s hand shot up and he grabbed Nathan’s arm. “I know that, Nathan, but you are my son, and I will not live without you. I need you to let me do this. You need to be here where you can be protected,” he said trying to move Nathan from the elevator.

“No,” Nathan snapped. “Mitchell gave his orders. None of us will put Carter’s life in any more danger than it already is.” Nathan looked into his father’s eyes. “Trust me, papa, everything will be fine. Do not send anyone up. I’m going to get my wife,” Nathan shook loose from his father’s grasp.

He saw that his father was restraining himself. Nathan knew he wanted to throw him out of the elevator and have him held down while he went up to get Carter, but he didn’t move, and Nathan was grateful for that.

Once the elevator closed, Nathan pressed the twenty-seventh floor and pressed his back against the side wall, preparing himself for the series of bullets coming when the elevator door opened. And not to disappoint, as soon as the elevator door opened shots rang out.

***

Carter heard the sound of gun fire and her heart stopped. She didn’t give a shit how much it hurt. She pulled against her restraints, trying to get loose.

“Nathan,” she screamed at the top of her lungs over and over while Mitchell laughed at her, enjoying her pain.

It was only a second before the shots stopped. “Nathan,” Carter screamed, tears pouring from her eyes. “Nathan please. Say something please!”

“Carter,” she heard him scream and she cried loud, relieved to hear his voice. “I’m coming baby.”

“I told you he’d kill them,” Mitchell said with a shrug then he aimed his gun toward the entrance.

“No, please don’t, I’m begging you.”

“I don’t care.” Mitchell said waiting patiently for Nathan to round the corner.

Carter could hear Nathan running, he was coming fast. “No. Please I’ll do anything. I’ll give you anything you want.” She begged and cried pulling at her restraints even as the pain in her head continued to worsen, and she felt warm blood oozing down her neck.

Mitchell snorted. “I’m sorry, Ms. Stone, but there is nothing you can give me that would be sweeter than this.”

“Nathan, go back! Don’t come back here please.”

Mitchell laughed. “Sounds like he’s still coming, honey.”

“Nathan, stop!”

“Keep your eyes open, little girl, this is going to be quick.”

Carter saw Nathan round the corner looking in a different direction from her and Mitchell. Everything after that went in slow motion in Carter’s eyes.

Mitchell’s gun cocked and Carter screamed.

Nathan looked her way and raised his gun quickly, but not quickly enough. Carter knew Mitchell’s bullet would hit first if Nathan didn’t move now.

She screamed, “Go back!” as she closed her eyes tight.