For Love and Vengeance Read online

  “We don't know what they did to her, and until we do, we need to believe that they only held her captive. We need to believe that they didn't hurt her.”

  “Don't patronize me. I'm not a child. I was never a child! You saw her last night. Is that the same women you remember? If it is, we saw something very different, and God help me I almost don't want to know what she went through. I don't know how to deal with what she went through because of me!”

  Jake could feel the pain flowing from his twin, pulling him into his distress. His nature was such that he wanted to lessen Jason's hurt, but he didn't know how. All he knew was he had to try, so he began speaking in a low placating voice.

  “I know you're hurting. I probably can't even begin to imagine how much, but you need to keep calm. Whatever happened to Aviva while she was with those men, and I pray it’s nothing close to what's running through your mind, but you still need to remain calm. Jason, even if your deepest musing become a reality; she's going to need your strength to get through this.”

  “I know, but how do I get through this, knowing I'm to blame. If she had never met me, she wouldn't be laying in that room having gone through what she has.” Jason told his brother with unshed tears in his dark green eyes.

  “You get through this second by second, minute by minute. You get through this with the love and support of your family.”

  “You also get through this with a promise from me,” Josh said from inside the closed door.

  Neither Jason nor Jake had heard him enter which gave testament to how absorbed they had been in their conversation.

  “I promise that we are going to find and punish the men whose total lack of judgment would lead them to think they could take what belongs to us; that they could hurt what belongs to us, and get away with it!”

  Jason watched Josh as he came further into the room. He was supposed to be the carefree brother. Jason had never seen him like this and it gave him pause. In that moment, hearing Josh’s words, he realized how much he had allowed his emotions to overtake him.

  This seemed to be a developing pattern whenever he spent too much time in their company. Mere weeks ago the outpouring of all this emotion in front of these men would have made him cringe. Yet somehow, at this moment, he no longer cared. Knowing that he had these men watching his back gave him the space he needed to concentrate on Aviva, to take care of her if she would allow it.

  Knowing they didn't want his verbal offers of appreciation, Jason didn't give it. Rather he changed the subject. He wanted to know what Josh had managed to find out on his little excursion to the cell.

  “What did you find out?” Jason asked, his mantle of composure once more in place.

  “You were right. He's a fool. He didn't know anything. He had a photo of you in his pocket,” Josh said, raising his chin towards Jason. “He was told to watch the hotel and call this number if he saw you.” Josh handed Jason a small slip of paper containing the contact details.

  Standing, Jason took the parchment and looked down at it. “Who's he working for?”

  “No one. He's just a guy, down on his luck, looking to make a buck or two. He nearly pissed his pants when I grabbed him by the neck. That number's all he knows.”

  “Are you sure?” Jason questioned, not wanting to leave any stone unturned.

  “I'm sure,” was Josh's emphatic reply.

  With a nod of his head, Jason reached for the phone resting on the stand and dialed the number on the paper. After two rings, it was answered.

  “Yes?”

  “This is Jason King. I understand you're interested in my whereabouts so I thought I'd give you a call. As you already know, I'm here in good old London town. I don't know who you are and I don't want to know who you are. However, what you need to know is…I'm coming for all of you, and when I find you, I’m going to kill you.” Jason didn't wait for a response. He slammed down the phone in its cradle, certain they had got the message.

  Now the waiting game began. The ball was once again in Jake's court. They needed information as to how many people they were up against.

  Chapter 5

  Aviva awoke to the sound of mumbled voices coming from the main living area of the suite. She surmised that the occupants were Jason and his brothers and maybe his father, Jackson, although she had yet to see him.

  If she knew one thing about Jason, he was probably already making plans as to how he would achieve retribution for her abduction. Some people might have thought that the best course of action would be thankfulness for being alive and to move on. But if she knew Jason, and she did, they were discussing what had happened to her, and she had every intention of being a part of the discussion.

  Throwing back the covers, she moved as quickly as she could into the bathroom. Once finished, she realized she had no clothes. Looking around the bathroom, she spotted two terry robes hanging on the inside of the bathroom door. Deciding one of them would have to do, she pulled it on and was ready to face those gathered in the living area.

  She had been right in her summation. The three brothers were the occupants of the main living area of the suite. However there was no sign of Jackson and Aviva felt a small pang of sadness at his absence. His fatherly affection was something she felt in need of at that moment.

  Jason was immediately aware of the opening of the bedroom door. Throughout his conversation with his brothers, he had been keeping his ears peeled for any sounds coming from the bedroom.

  “Hi, Angel,” he said, cutting off whatever Jake had been about to say.

  Aviva knew Jason's tactic was his way of ensuring that she wasn't privy to their discussion, and she wasn't having it.

  “What were you all discussing?” Aviva knew the answer she would get before it came. They would close rank and try to sidetrack her. They had done it before on the day she had been kidnapped. She had known they had been up to something on that day, just as sure as she knew they were up to something now.

  “Nothing important. Just chit-chat.”

  “Jason King, you have never indulged in chit-chat in your life. Don't try to mug me off!”

  “It's true, Vee. We were just waiting around for you to wake up.” Giving her a beguiling smile, Josh backed up his brother’s answer to her question.

  She wasn't fooled for a moment. Did all the men in this family think that one flash of their dimples was enough to throw her off track? Well, two could play that game.

  “Joshua, if I were less polite, I’d say you just told me an untruth.”

  “Ahem.” Josh cleared his throat.

  “Why’s your face turning so red?”

  “Ah...I think I may be coming down with something.”

  “Oh, you poor baby, let me see if you’re running a temperature. This damp weather can play havoc with one’s health,” Aviva said walking towards him, deadly intent in her eyes.

  Josh panicked, flashing his eyes towards Jason, silently pleading for help. After all, he’d only been trying to help him.

  Jason took pity on him. “Come on, Angel, leave the man alone. He doesn't need you mothering him.”

  Stopping her advance, Aviva looked at each of them in turn before replying. “Oh, you don't want me to mother him, but it's alright for you all to mother me? I want to know what you were talking about. I know it concerns me, and I have a right to know!”

  “We wanted to know what had happened to you while you were held and how you managed to get away.” Jake held her eyes with a penetrating stare. Feeling cruel for distracting her in this way, he knew Jason would have something to say to him later. But he had realized weeks ago that Aviva could wrap his brothers around her little finger. Someone had to hold firm in the face of her determination. As the oldest, that task fell to him.

  Aviva gave Jake a look of disbelief, but he didn't budge, not even when he felt his brothers’ stares boring into him. This small woman standing before them was stronger than Jason or Josh wanted to admit. He knew it and she knew it. He also knew whatever she had gon
e through was still taking its toll on her. He was even more certain that none of them were ready to face the story she had to tell.

  As the tension mounted, Josh decided the best course of action was to attempt to distract her. He could see Jason was pissed off with Jake, and if Jake succeeded in upsetting Aviva any more than he already had, he and Jason would probably come to blows, and none of them needed that.

  “Aviva, you must be hungry.” Not waiting for her response, Josh continued speaking, giving her no opportunity to decline. “Jake, why don't you call room service and order us some food.”

  “Thank you, but I'm not hungry.”

  “Come on, sweetheart, you have to eat something. You've been asleep for over twelve hours. You need something. Tell her, Jason.”

  “Seems to me, you two have everything covered, so why include me now.”

  “Oh, for God’s sake! Don't start – any of you. I'm not in the mood. Joshua, seeing as how you're so interested in food, you order it. Jason, I need some clothes and, Jacob, when I'm ready to discuss what happened to me, I'll let you all know. Now if everyone knows what they have to do, I'll leave you to get on with it!” Finished, Aviva did an about face and left the men with their mouths hanging open.

  Closing the bedroom door, Aviva sat on the bed and stared into space. She knew she had just been a complete bitch to all of them, and she knew they didn't deserve it. They meant well, cared about her, probably more than any other human beings ever had, apart from her mother. The reality was she had just spent eight days with the loss of control over her life, her body, and her will. She needed to take back control.

  There was a soft knock on the door before Jason came into the room with a tablet computer. “I called the boutique downstairs and they can provide everything you need. You can use this to place your order and they'll bring it right up.”

  Handing her the computer, Jason hesitated. “Do you need anything else, Angel?”

  “No, thank you.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I'm fine, Jason. If I need anything, I'll ask.”

  “Okay, the food will be here shortly. I'll let you know when it arrives.” Jason hesitated, as though he wanted to say something else, but obviously changed his mind as he left the room without further comment.

  ~~~~~~~~~~

  “Did she say anything?” Josh asked as soon as Jason returned to the living area.

  “No, she's just sitting on the bed, staring into space.”

  “How are you going to handle this?” Jake wanted to know. “I recognize the difficulty of the situation, but the more information we have, the better our chances of coming out of this unscathed.”

  “I know that, Jake, but I also have some understanding of what she's going through, and the worse thing I can do at this stage is force the issue before she's ready.”

  “Okay, so we wait.” Jake thought it best to refrain from stating the obvious. The longer they delayed, the more time the culprits had to plan or abscond. They were being watched so clearly it was no secret they were in town or where they were staying. By now, they probably knew Aviva was with them. It was only a matter of time before they made their move.

  He didn't like it. Jason wasn't thinking straight. He was too preoccupied with Aviva and that fact alone could get them all killed.

  The hotel was too big. People were constantly coming and going. He had set security in place, but that might not be enough. They were too conspicuous. They needed to get out. Coming to a decision, Jake knew they needed a change of venue. The last thing he needed was some kind of battle playing out on their doorstep.

  It was as though Jason had read his mind. “We need to get out of here. Do you guys have somewhere else we can go? We're too open, vulnerable with all the coming and going of a hotel.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing. Josh, that's your department. What you got for us?”

  “There's a place in Hampstead. Not too big, set back from the road and I have the perimeter wired. It should suit our needs.”

  Trusting his brother's judgment, Jason nodded his head in agreement. “Okay, set it up. Jake, have you heard anything more?”

  “Not yet.”

  “As soon as you hear something, we go. We need to hit them quickly. Then we need to get out of England.”

  Jason began to pace, deep in thought. “I'll be forever grateful that I have Aviva back in one piece. But something doesn't feel right.”

  Jason's words were no more than a mumble of his deepest thoughts. His brain working furiously, needing to decipher what was going on. Until he knew for sure, he would be unable to place himself in the mindset of his opponents, to get a grip on their twisted thinking.

  He needed Aviva to speak to them. But he had given his word that he would wait until she was ready. Only his promise presented one problem, by then it could be too late.

  Josh watched Jason pace, troubled by the same uncertainties. “I was thinking the same thing. I don’t understand why they’d go through all this trouble, not to mention expense of, kidnapping her, secreting her out of the country, only to allow her to walk out. It doesn't make sense.”

  Jason kept moving, back and forth, back and forth. “It makes perfect sense, if you understand the type of low life we're dealing with. I'm sorry to say that I do. Aviva means nothing to them. She was just a pawn in their maneuvers to get to me. If it had been to their advantage, she'd be dead.” Jason spoke in his most passionless voice, indicative of his extreme anger.

  Jake and Josh looked to each other, nodding. The game was definitely on. They all needed to tread very carefully.

  The knock on the door drew the men’s attention. Jason opened the door to find the waiter standing behind a two tiered trolley loaded down with covered dishes that emitted delicious aromas. The smell of the food caused Jason's stomach to grumble and he realized how long it had been since he had last eaten. Gesturing the waiter forward, he stood back to allow him admittance, following his every motion, his attention on high alert. He was taking no chances that the man wasn't exactly who he portrayed, a hotel employee.

  “Good afternoon, Tom. Just place the trolley by the table. We'll deal with it from there.” Hearing Josh call the man by his name was enough for Jason to relax his guard at having a stranger in their midst. Following his instruction, the waiter placed the laden trolley beside the table, bowed and made his way from the room.

  “I'll go and get Aviva and see if she wants something to eat.” Jason's words trailed off as another knock sounded at the door. Again on alert, he approached it with caution. Jake and Josh took up positions on either side of the door, both at full attention, muscles bunched, prepared for the unexpected.

  Their actions showed men on edge, and when men as physical as they acted this way, a situation could change in an instant. They needn't have worried. Outside stood a pretty brunette carrying numerous bags. Aviva's clothing had arrived.

  ~~~~~~~~~~

  Hearing the second knock, Aviva came into the living area to see a pretty young woman standing on the threshold of the suite. She was holding a mass of shopping bags with the boutique insignia emblazoned across it. She also saw Jason was standing in front of the door while his brothers stood off on either side as though ready for some kind of attack. Until that moment, Aviva had felt safe. But if these huge men were worried about infiltration, maybe she needed to revise her thinking.

  The young woman was fluttering her eyelashes at Jason in a way Aviva didn't like. What the heck was she playing at? She had a job to do and she had better stick to doing just that and bloody well leave the eying up of her man alone.

  Aviva took a few steps forward, ready to put the hussy in her place with a few choice words. She saw the moment Jason became aware of her presence and turned his head in her direction.

  Aviva saw a shadow appear behind the young woman. Her eyes widened in shock. There were two men standing behind the lady at the door. Men Aviva recognized. They had guns. One aimed at her, the other at J
ason's back.

  At her expression of horror, Jason spun around and saw the guns pointing at them. Appearing unconcerned, Jason took a long stride back into the room, deliberately using his larger body to obscure the gunman’s line of fire that was directed towards Aviva. He took yet another step backwards. The young woman stumbled into the room, having been pushed roughly by one of the would-be intruders. Jason extended a hand backwards, beckoning Aviva to him, his eyes never leaving the men now slowly moving into the room.

  Aviva was rooted to the floor. Fear again gripping her, images of the past week running through her mind, rendering her immobile. She could no longer physically see the men, but her imagination had taken over. They were all going to die. Jason and his brothers were going to die.

  Aviva’s disjointed mind registered only a blur. Jason was no longer in front of her. He had moved with such speed she was puzzled. Then everything slowed down. She saw the young woman being held behind Jake's back, and Jason was now in possession of one of the guns and Josh the other.

  These men were huge. How could they possibly move so quickly? Her unbelieving mind attempted to make sense of what she had witnessed. Maybe they weren't really human. Maybe they were some form of genetically modified super beings from the planet Kingdoria, and their spaceship had crash landed on earth and they had spent centuries assimilating themselves into human society. But their super human speed and strength refused to be diminished. Yeah, that was it, Aviva thought, satisfied with her questionable rationalization.

  Coming out of her stupor, she saw Jake whispering in the assistant’s ear. The woman rapidly nodded her head and hastened from the room, giving the intruders a wide birth.

  “Aviva, go into the bedroom and close the door,” Jason dictated his order without taking his eyes from the man he held by the throat in some kind of neck lock. Aviva didn't move so much as a muscle. She heard him, but for the life of her, she couldn't move. She was too fascinated by what was going on. Plus, she wanted to see those bastards get their asses kicked because she had no doubt that was exactly what was about to happen.