The Mistaken (34 page)

“I’m not discussing this with you.”

Terrified of the way she was thinking, I turned away
again, but she closed the distance and faced me, undeterred.

“Tyler, I can do this. I know I can.”

I grabbed her by both arms and got right up into her
face.

“No, Hannah. You
can’t
do this, and you
won’t. You think I have any way of knowing for sure where they
might take you? You think Alexi was
ever
honest with me? For
God’s sake, you could just as easily end up in a whore house, maybe
even sent to another state or country. No way would I ever risk
your life like that, Hannah. No way. You’d never survive, not for
one blasted second.”

She stared at me with eyes round as the moon,
momentarily frightened into silence. Then her stubbornness kicked
in, and her chin jutted out.

“What about your brother?” she asked. “How the hell
do you plan on rescuing him?”

I stared her in the eye for a long moment then let
go and pushed her away.

“Don’t you worry about Nick. He’s my problem. Not
yours. I’ll figure everything out on my own, without your
help.”

In all honesty though, I didn’t know what to do
about Nick. I was resigned to the idea that I would have to throw
myself at the mercy of Alexi and Dmitri, that they would allow me
the chance to somehow repay them, even if my very life was forever
beholden to them. The only chance I had of that working was if I
cut all ties with Hannah and sent her away. I was convinced that
Alexi didn’t know who she really was. During our last conversation,
he told me to find the right girl or bring the one I had, like one
was as good as any other. He didn’t care. Nick had only spoken to
Alexi about Erin. He never shared the information from that rental
car receipt. Alexi couldn’t know about Beck Maguire, or Hannah. We
never saw any of his men back in her neighborhood, so if I made
sure she got out of town safely before I met with Alexi, he would
have no choice but to settle with me alone. His prize would be long
gone. He would never find her, and I would never tell.

Convinced that was my only option, I pressed my lips
together and brushed by Hannah, but she caught my arm and spun me
around.

“You can’t just dismiss me, Ty. I deserve a say in
my own future.”

I shook my head. “That’s just it, Hannah.
This
is not your future.”

There was no way I could take the chance of having
her wait for me at the hotel. Not now. Not with her cavalier
attitude. I didn’t know whether they knew to come here looking for
her. For all I knew, I might not even make it back alive. She’d be
alone and defenseless. The best and safest thing for me to do would
be to buy Hannah an airline ticket back to Seattle. I could arrange
to have her car shipped straight home. As long as she was gone
before I left to meet with Alexi, there would be nothing he could
do.

With my decision made, I ran my fingers along her
cheek and up under her chin. “You’re future’s at home, Hannah, in
Seattle with your son, and no matter what it takes, I
will
get you back there.” I tapped the end of her nose with my finger
and walked away, but I heard her sigh impatiently in reply.

Given her response, I had a strong feeling Hannah
was going to be difficult and refuse to go if she feared for my
wellbeing. I would have to tell her that I’d managed to swing a new
deal after all, that Nick would be released, and together we would
repay Dmitri the money we owed him. I would tell her that she was
safe, and that we no longer needed her.

I was at odds with myself about sending her away. I
didn’t understand my feelings for her at all. I was deeply touched
by the way she had so willingly given herself to me, to ease my
pain, to show that she had forgiven me. But allowing myself to make
love with Hannah had further complicated an already unmanageable
situation. I realized, with great remorse, everything she had
forfeited, and yet she still offered herself to me as a source of
comfort. I was bewildered by her sense of compassion and her
ability to forgive, especially when all I had ever shown her was my
own selfish need for revenge.

I came to accept that I must break our strange bond
and part ways, and because she seemed reluctant to do so, I would
push her away. I would make her
want
to leave, whether it
was by way of anger, fear, or simply hurt feelings.

I would cast her aside to save her.

~

Later, I approached Hannah, trying my best to appear
casual and confident.

“Tomorrow, I’ll meet face to face with Alexi and
Dmitri, and I’m positive we’ll be able to work out an acceptable
deal.”

She looked at me, a single brow raised in suspicion.
“That’s odd. You didn’t seem so sure
earlier
this
evening.”

I blanched inwardly at her remark. “What happened
between us, Hannah, that was a moment of weakness, nothing more,
brought on by the wine and my regret at having involved you in this
mess. It won’t ever happen again, I assure you.”

Hurt flashed across Hannah’s face, and I saw my
opportunity to drive the necessary wedge between us, to start the
process of getting her back home where she belonged.

“I’m sorry, Hannah. I don’t want to hurt your
feelings, but I need to focus on Nick right now. His confession
this morning hit me at my core.”

“Confession? What confession?”

“That’s what I was trying to tell you earlier. Nick
admitted to seizing the opportunity to bring me down a peg when I
was having a difficult time adjusting to Jill’s death. He said he
purposely got me abusing alcohol as retribution for all the slights
he imagined I’d paid him, to show that I was just as weak as he’d
been when he started using. To prove that I was no better.” I saw
the fury rage within Hannah as she took in this bit of
information.

“Why would your own brother do that to you...at your
lowest moment? That’s unfathomable.”

I raised my hand to calm her down. “It’s okay,
really. It’s put everything into perspective for me, and it’s the
one reason why I’d never even consider risking your life to help
Nick. We got ourselves into this mess, and we can damn well get
ourselves out.

“I’ve known these Russians for several years now,
and I’ve dealt with them on my brother’s behalf before. They know
Nick is impulsive, and that I’ll always be there to step in for
him. Dmitri is a businessman, after all, and all he needs is
money—albeit a lot of it—to see the deal through. Blood spilled in
retribution would garner him nothing. I’m certain I can get him to
see that much.”

I watched Hannah closely. She seemed to accept what
I told her at face value. Offering her a solution that didn’t
include violence appeased her, calming her fears on my behalf.

“Well then, what’s going to happen to me?” she
asked.

“For now, I want you to stay put and out of the way
until I’ve worked out all the details.”

“And what details would that be?”

“Don’t you worry your pretty little head. It’s
getting late. You should get some sleep. I’m going out for an hour
or so. I’ll try not to disturb you when I get back.”

I was purposely dismissive, as if I were trying to
distance myself from her after our tumultuous union earlier this
evening. Making her think I regretted making love with her was a
sure fire way to do that. My words and attitude plainly hurt her,
and I hated myself for doing it, but I believed it was the only way
to disentangle myself from her quickly.

“Be a good girl and stay put.” Without another look,
I turned and headed out the door.

Chapter
Thirty
-
Four

Tyler

For my plan to work, there were several items I
needed to attend to immediately. I visited the concierge who helped
make arrangements for Hannah’s flight back to Seattle. She printed
off the electronic ticket and placed it in a small envelope. I also
had her make arrangements for a Town Car to pick Hannah up at the
hotel and drop her off at the airport in time for her flight in the
morning, paying extra for a personal escort up to the security
gate.

Next, she helped me locate a shipping company. I
made arrangements with them to pick up Hannah’s BMW at our hotel
and ship it to her residence on Seattle’s Eastside. The bill of
lading was faxed to the concierge. I had her put all the paperwork
for the airline ticket and shipping into a large manila envelope. I
scratched Hannah’s name across it with a thick black marker and
handed her the key to Hannah’s car.

Lastly, I needed to find a quiet, private corner to
make another phone call to Nick, or Alexi, since I wasn’t sure who
would answer. I was prepared for either, so while I was
disappointed, I wasn’t surprised when I heard Alexi’s voice. His
tone was more serious than it had been the last two times I’d
spoken to him. I think he was tired of playing games.

“Tyler, my friend, so good of you to call.” He
addressed me with his usual sarcasm, his concise articulation
aggravating me more than usual.

“Alexi.”

“I hear you are nearly back in town. I hope the girl
is well. We need her in top form, after all. I cannot afford
damaged goods, you understand.”

I was relieved he didn’t know we’d made it back into
San Francisco yet. I was a little surprised though, knowing he was
probably watching us from a distance. I couldn’t rely on him
telling me the truth. As long as Hannah stayed put, she would be
safe until I saw her off to the airport. After that, I would be
face to face with Alexi, and he would have to deal with me
alone.

“She’s fine,” I answered. “Now put my brother on the
phone.”

“In a moment. First, I want to make arrangements to
meet—you, me, and the girl.”

“Not so fast, Alexi. I need to speak to Nick before
we get down to business.”

He barked a command in Russian, snapping his fingers
impatiently. Loud voices called out in the background as Alexi
handed the phone over.

“Tyler?” It was Nick. His voice was even rougher
than before, thick and garbled.

“Nick, are you all right?”

“Ty, remember what I told you—” he began but was cut
off. He yelled out from far away. “Stay away, Ty. Don’t come here.
Don’t come looking for me!”

Then his voice faded away altogether. It killed me
inside to hear him calling out so desperately and not be able to
come to his defense. It was difficult to control my temper when
Alexi returned to the phone.

“You see, my friend, your brother yet lives, but I
think he could use your help. I suggest you bring the girl and meet
us at the tea house. Nine a.m. sharp. And Tyler...this is your last
chance to make it right, so do not fuck it up. For your brother’s
sake.”

Alexi hung up before I could say anything else. I
glanced at my watch. I had nine hours left to lay the ground work
and get Hannah away from the hotel. It was time for me to go back
to our suite and get started. I prepared myself by ordering six
shots of tequila at the hotel bar. It was enough to set me on edge,
yet not so much that I was overly impaired, given how much alcohol
I normally consumed. I downed all six shots quickly then ordered a
bottle of beer to take back up to the room.

It was dark and quiet in the suite. Hannah had gone
to bed, as I’d suggested. I was hesitant about taking the next
step, nervous even, but I had little choice. I stood in the doorway
to her darkened room and stared over at her resting form. I walked
over to the bed and stood next to her. She was sleeping on her
side, turned away from me with just a sheet pulled up to her waist.
It was easy enough to tug the sheet away from her body without her
feeling it. Hannah lay exposed to me, with only her undergarments
covering her tempting curves.

I allowed my eyes to roam over the alluring
silhouette of her body, recalling the sweet moments we had shared
earlier. My pulse, already accelerated with thoughts of my plan,
quickened even more as the heated blood rushed through me. My
muscles were taut, and I grew hard with desire. I wanted nothing
more than to climb into bed beside her and repeat it, to show her
that I could be just as giving as she had been. But, as aroused as
I was, I knew I could never go there again. I would have to be
satisfied with the precious memories she had given me.

With a reluctant sigh, I took the end of the cold,
sweating bottle of beer and touched it to the side of her bare leg
just above her knee. I slowly swept the chilled vessel up her
thigh, over her hip, to her waist, and along her ribs. She startled
awake with a quiet gasp, turning to look back over her shoulder as
I loomed above her in the dark.

“Ty?” she called out in sleepy confusion.

“Mm. How lovely you look, Ms. Maguire,” I taunted
her menacingly then returned the bottle to my lips for a long
pull.

She drew a sharp intake of breath. “Ty, what are you
doing? Are you drunk?”

She tried to pull herself up in bed, but I swung my
leg up and over her. I straddled her body at her hips and knelt
down on the bed, pinning her in place. When she attempted to scoot
out from under me, I pushed her back down by placing the bottom of
the bottle against her chest, just below her chin. She shivered in
fear while I leaned down to stare at her with a devilish grin.

“Oh Hannah, relax, it’s just one beer,” I pulled
back to take another drink, “to wash down a few shots.”

The fear in her eyes was plain, even in the dim city
light outside the window. Her soft voice trembled as she spoke.
“What’s wrong? Why are you drinking again?”

I chuckled. “Why should there be anything wrong? I’m
just…reliving old times.” I smiled and continued to stare into her
frightened eyes.

“Ty, please. Get off me.”