The Fiddler's Heart Read online

  “Oh God it hurts, please, Zane, please.” She begged for him to stop. He gripped her hips as he lifted up and then looked down at her as he straddled her hips. He was squeezing them, underneath her dress.

  “I have a lot of plans for you. A lot, and since we have all the time in the world, I’m going to make sure you know I own you, and when you beg for me to take you, to love you and possess you and this body like I once did before, none of the things you did with those men will matter. But it isn’t going to just happen. I’m not going to start where we left off. No, no, no, no, I have to punish you. Not only for cheating on me, but for trying to rat me out and get me killed.” He twirled the elastic of her thong panties around his finger as he lowered down her body. He shoved her dress up to her neck and over her mouth, nearly suffocating her. It was intentional and so were his next moves, reminding her that she was his, and that her life with the Buristoff brothers was over. All she could do was cry and lie there as he played his games, made her beg for mercy.

  * * * *

  “Motherfucker, what in the world is going on? Where do these feds get off telling us to back down? Fuck that shit and fuck them,” Sodo said to Merdoff.

  “Just hold tight and don’t panic yet. Worst-scenario we go in under everyone’s radar, Special Forces style, and those fucks won’t know what hit them,” Merdoff said.

  “But who are the feds trying to catch now? They got Boger Slay, they got the fucking chemist?” Gordon asked. They had their gear packed and were waiting on confirmation of a location where Francesca was taken.

  Merdoff’s cell phone rang.

  “It’s Kinsey Colby now,” he said and answered it. Sodo looked at his brothers. They knew that Colby Agency did a lot of security things, but they had no idea the connections those brothers had. Thank God they were friends with them.

  “Let me put you on speaker so you can explain to everyone who is here. It will be all of us heading out for the hunt,” he said to Kinsey.

  “Okay, so this is what my guys found out. Seems that the federal agents are monitoring men working for Adrian Colomos. They met up with Roderick Apprentice who actually is a rat working for the government. Your guy Zane who got the chemist to create that drug was double crossing Boger Slay to win over Adrian Colomos, who wanted Zane’s head on a platter for conducting those illegal casino nights and not sharing the profits. You never try to rip off gangsters. Anyway the feds were investigating all these men and bottom line is that Adrian Colomos and some men headed out an hour ago to the Bahamas and a private resort and island with several secluded mansions on it. Now either they are planning on partying it up and thinking they got away with getting the drugs and distributing them, or Colomos found out that Zane took Francesca and is keeping her alive when Colomos ordered him to kill her.”

  “Holy fuck. They left an hour ago. How do we get there, and in time to help save her before these fucking gangsters kill her?” Track asked.

  “We got you covered, and the feds are already pulling together a team, so you need to move your asses and get there before them.”

  “Jesus, we aren’t going to make it. We have to get transportation under the radar and we need supplies and—”

  “I got you all covered. Get to the heliport in Casper in thirty minutes. My guy, Cody, will explain everything when you get there,” Kinsey said and they thanked him and then ended the call.

  “Well, let’s move. Any fuckers get in the way of us saving Francesca and they die,” Sodo said.

  “Yes they will,” Gordon said.

  * * * *

  Another night, another punishment session, and Francesca wanted to die. She would not give in. Would not beg him for forgiveness like he wanted her to, as he struck her, assaulted her but didn’t rape her. No, for some strange reason he wouldn’t force himself upon her and do that because she wasn’t submissive and begging to be his possession. She was in so much pain, with every breath she took she could hear the echo in her chest, the ache in her ribs, and was pretty sure they were broken. Her lips split, her cheeks and eyes swollen nearly shut, and he was relentless in his assault and touch. It was dark in the room, the sun set a while ago, and her vision blurred as she lay there, juts wanting to die. He walked into the room, placed something on the bedside table. Beside it he put something heavy down. It sounded like metal, like maybe a gun. She didn’t even panic or feel her breath hitch. She didn’t care. He could kill her and it would stop the pain, would prevent him from ultimately raping her. That was probably his plan. To break her down and when she succumbed to his beatings, his assault on her body and she said she was sorry and begged to be his woman, that was when he would rape her then kill her. Unless she made him kill her first.

  She tried to see through her swollen eyelids, and she thought it was a gun. But also a syringe and a bottle of something a drug. That made her tighten.

  “I think it’s time to revisit a very special night we shared. You put on one hell of a show that night, baby. Bliss is a great name we came up with, and you were in bliss.” He sat down next to her and stroked her breast. “I was pretty fucking jealous when you were thrusting against every guy in sight and letting them rub their hands all over your curves. If I wasn’t so possessive I would have let them all take you all the way instead of just tasting you.” She clenched her eyes closed and barely any tears escaped. She was starving, dehydrated, and sick.

  He continued touch her and he leaned closer to her lips and whispered against them.

  “The men said I was so fucking lucky to have you as my woman, and that your cream tasted so fucking good,” he said and she reacted. She bit him, right on his lip, and wouldn’t let go. He raged and slammed his forearm down on her belly, cracking her rib. She felt it and couldn’t breathe. “Fucking bitch!” He reached for the syringe and she rolled to her side, but he grabbed her, yanked her back, and struck her with the needle right in her neck. He looked like a monster as he released what felt like so much of the drug, whatever it was. He pulled it out and shoved away from her. She didn’t know what he gave her but this was it. Her last stand because the drugs, his abuse was going to do her in. She rolled back, the pain making her hold her breath and his back was toward her when she reached out for the gun. The door burst open and men came in. Shots were fired. They were shooting up the room and she fell as she grabbed the gun. She hit the back of her head and pointed and shot. She just kept shooting and her body jerked as the pain hit her shoulder, her arm. Zane was dead on the ground, three other men too, but one still held the gun on her. He shot her, but she shot him in the chest. As he pulled the trigger he missed her head and hit the dresser.

  Her head spun and her vision blurred and then there were more men coming in. Men in black and camo and she could hear gunfire erupting somewhere but she couldn’t pull up the gun. She heard her name. “Francesca! No! Fuck no!!” Century?

  She could feel the hands on her, fingers against her neck, her breathing grow shallow, but her ears were numb to the words, to any translation. She shook and heard yelling, felt like she was on a cloud, and then her body was jerking up and down, and then darkness overtook her vision.

  * * * *

  Century ran with Francesca in his arms. It was a complete chaotic mess. The feds were there, helicopters landing, military assistance, and their woman needed to be air lifted immediately or she was going to die. He got her to the military chopper.

  “Drugs, we don’t know what, this is the vial.” Gordon handed one of the medics the vial. “Three gunshot wounds. Shoulder, arm, and wrist,” he said and they strapped her in.

  “We got her. She’ll be at the airbase hospital fifty miles out,” they said and then the men stood there and watched, not knowing if she would make it.

  “She killed Colomos and two men,” Track said aloud.

  “What a fucking mess and those goddamn feds forcing us to wait, stopping us from getting to her in time because they saw that Colomos was with his men to kill Zane. What the fuck. If she dies…” Gor
don said and stopped.

  “She isn’t going to die. She’s in good hands, those are military medics, now let the feds handle this fucking mess, and let’s get to that base hospital so you guys can be there for Francesca,” Merdoff said and together they followed him and his team to their ride out of there.

  * * * *

  Angelina cried the second she saw her sister in ICU. All the tubes, the wires and monitors, she looked like death. She survived three gunshots, getting beaten and maybe even raped again by Zane, and it was the drugs he gave her, something the doctors couldn’t identify, that could possibly kill her. It was touch and go. The military hospital was the best and the doctors working on saving her were top notch. Her men’s friends and their connections were going to save Francesca’s life. Angelina was so proud of her. Of how she fought so hard and even grabbed the gun. How did she even know how to use a gun? How did she have the strength and wherewithal to shoot and hit those men?

  She took her hand and leaned down close to her sister’s ear.

  “You got this, sis. You hear me, Frankie? You fight and come back to your men, to me and our new family. You keep fighting. I know you can do it. You’re stronger than anyone ever gave you credit for.” She kissed her cheek, caressed her hair from her forehead, and stared at all the bruising, her swollen eyes and lips, her cheek. It all looked so painful and she knew her sister’s men were having such a difficult time looking at her. They thought they failed Francesca. But they didn’t. They moved heaven and earth to get to her and find her, and they got in trouble for doing it too. They didn’t care though. The feds wanted them charged with interfering in the investigation and a multitude of other things, but from what her men told her, Sodo and the team had pull. Like them, they had done some serious dangerous stuff in the service and a few phone calls and those feds were backing down. Not completely, but Castle told her it was just to show face, and that Sodo, Track, Gordon, and Century would be just fine.

  She looked out through the glass and saw all her men and her sister’s men. There were a few other guys there wearing medical coats and talking to them. She walked out and right into Fredo’s arms. “What’s going on?” she asked.

  “It seems they might have figured out the combination in the drugs that Francesca was given. Before they take a chance on injecting something that could help, it could also place her into a coma, which wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. It will give her body time to truly rest and recover, but there’s no way of taking her out of it. She would come out on her own. It’s a risk.”

  “So why do it then?” she asked him. Fredo cupped her cheek. “Her vitals aren’t good, Angelina. Her blood pressure is dropping, and she’s showing signs of kidney failure. Doing the surgeries and all the blood she lost weighed its toll on her body. Plus she’s weak, dehydrated, add it all in and she isn’t in the clear by far.”

  “The doctors think this injection won’t hurt her in any other way, just place her in a coma?”

  “That’s what they think. If they wait too long it could make matters worse. The window of opportunity is now.”

  “Then we need to do it. She can’t continue to suffer or even die some long drawn-out terrible death as her body shuts down. We have to try to save her,” she said and all eyes were upon her. Sodo hand his hands on his hips and his nostrils flared. Track was pacing. Gordon and Century looked at one another and then at the doctors.

  “Her sister is her only relative and family. If she says to try then we support her,” Century said.

  “You’re her family too. Her men,” Francesca said and she stepped from Fredo’s hold and reached out to take Century and Gordon’s hand.

  “She’ll pull through. We have to try. She fought so hard, and she isn’t done fighting yet,” she told them and they nodded their heads and the doctors prepared to help Francesca.

  * * * *

  “This is absolutely the worst feeling to have. Francesca doesn’t deserve any of this. We failed her. After everything she went through, we let our guards down and forgot all the promises of protecting her and not letting her out of our sights. What if we lose her? What if lose this opportunity that we never even thought could happen and be real? I can’t take this. This guilty, miserable feeling that we fucked up and failed her. Christ, all those bruises, the broken ribs, three fucking gunshot wounds. My God.” Track rambled on and on and ran his fingers through his hair and then rubbed his face in his hands. He was sitting outside of Francesca’s room where she lie in a coma for the past two weeks.

  Gordon placed his hand on his shoulder. “We all feel it Track. We’re all thinking about where we went wrong, how we failed her too, but none of that negative thinking is going to help Francesca pull out of this. She needs to know that we’re waiting for her. That we’re right here sending all our strength to her somehow,” Gordon said.

  “We need to keep going in there and whispering into her ear, let her know we’re here, that we love her and that we believe she is more than capable of pulling through,” Sodo said and stood up and walked across the way and into the room.

  “We’re a family now, and she’s our woman. We’ve never let anything get in the way of what we wanted, or what we needed to accomplish on any mission. That woman in there, our woman is damn tough, and so freaking special that we don’t even deserve her. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to give her up. Not fucking happening,” Century said and stood up and walked into the room as well.

  “Come on man, we will make it all up to her when she pulls through and we lay our eyes on those gorgeous green eyes of hers and feel the depth of our love for her,” Gordon said and nodded for him to come with him so that they could all whisper I love you into her ear and kiss her skin and infuse that love into her body with hopes that she indeed would pull through completely.

  Epilogue

  It was becoming a routine and their commander hooked them up with temporary quarters while they remained by Francesca’s bedside. The injections seemed to work, and her vitals were getting stronger. She was healing and sleeping, with three weeks in a coma. They were discussing transporting her to a closer location in Texas, but the doctors wanted to be sure she was stable. Sodo looked at her as she slept. The bruising and swelling still apparent but nothing like when she first arrived. They helped to care for her wounds and they constantly talked to her and had conversations around her because the doctors said it could help and she might hear them.

  He caressed her cheek and kissed her lips softly. “I love you so much, baby. I want to see those gorgeous green eyes of yours and hear your sexy little voice. I miss you, Francesca Pouquet,” he said and caressed her hair. They had even brushed it for her and helped to massage her legs and feet, to keep circulation going. He missed her so much. He kissed her cheek again and then he felt her move. He pulled back, and she tried swallowing and opening her eyes. “Baby?” he said and his brothers rushed over.

  “She’s waking up. Get the doctor or nurse,” Gordon said and Track ran from the room. Sodo caressed her cheek.

  “That’s it, tough girl. Come on now, open those sexy green eyes,” Sodo said to her. And she did. She blinked them open. “Hi,” she whispered in a very hoarse voice and he felt the tear fall. He wiped it away and his brothers squeezed his shoulder and Track was there too as well as the doctor and a nurse.

  “We’re right here, baby, and so glad to see you awake,” Gordon said and she blinked but then closed her eyes again and they moved to let the doctor check her over. Gordon and his brothers embraced. “That’s our woman, tougher than nails,” Gordon said.

  “Hell yeah,” Century added.

  * * * *

  Francesca kept the blanket wrapped around her as she lay on the lounge chair in the back yard despite not being cold. Her men were insistent and right now they were preparing for their friends to come over for a nice little barbecue. It had been a few weeks since she arrived home and she really was feeling much better, but her men were keeping her resting and her ribs weren�
�t quite healed and she needed physical therapy for her arm and her hand. The good news was that she would fully recover and would still be able to play the fiddle. Thank God.

  She pulled the blanket off and turned to stand up from the lounge chair.

  “Whoa, slow down, what are you doing? Where are you going?” Gordon asked her as he lifted her by her hips. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him tight. “I need some loving from my men.”

  He ran his palm along her ass and squeezed.

  “We’ve got guests coming in less than an hour,” he said to her.

  “I think we have plenty of time.”

  “Hmm, not when you get exhausted and need a nap. We’ll make love later tonight,” he said and kissed her deeply. Track rubbed her back and then Gordon released her to him. Track kissed her next then Century, and when it was Sodo’s turn he lifted her up and carried her to the cabana to sit on a stool by the bar.

  “You know, you all don’t need to keep carrying me everywhere. I’m feeling stronger and stronger every day, and I can even start walking for exercise.”