Behind the Mask

Chapter 99

Raven's POV

I kicked in the door and roared. Silas was on the bed behind malen'kaya shalun'ya balls deep in her ass as she was completely unconscious. Meanwhile, Nate and that bastard Murdoch looked as if they had just finished fucking. Murdoch pushed Nate away and scrambled toward the dresser, presumably to get a weapon, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with him, so I shot first, taking out his left knee.

The man screamed as he cradled his leg, while Nate seemed conflicted. He looked between the man and malen'kaya shalun'ya, finally making the decision to protect her by putting himself between us. "Don't hurt my doll," he growled.

While I fully admit seeing him in a protective manner, stark naked was a bit of a turn-on, the whole situation dampened any arousal I might have felt. "I'm not going to hurt her or any of you," I said, lowering my weapon.

North came storming into the room about then and yelled, "Damnit, Raven, Sean said no shooting!"

"He said no killing. He isn't going to be walking anymore, so he didn't need his kneecap. Besides, this way, he can't run away," I smirked. North just groaned as Corey began to pan the camera around so that Sean could see the vials.

"Tranq all of them, and bring me everything you can find - vials, needles, notes, computers. I want everything," Sean said over the phone.

Without warning several soft popping noises came from the doorway as Marc expertly shot the three men with tranq darts. He stood next to Marissa and frowned, "Sean, she's already unconscious and it looks like he injected her with something. There's a fresh needle and vials here with liquid still in them."

"Bring it all," Sean said. "Keep her close and a tranq handy if needed, but I doubt she will resist if she wakes up. I'd like to avoid adding any more toxins to her or the baby's system."

We busied ourselves clearing the offices and gathering everything we could find. Brandon and Dominic met us outside to help load computers and files. Luke and Gabe rode in the back of the SUV North and Marc drove to keep watch over malen'kaya shalun'ya. Meanwhile, Solnechnyy svet and I had bound the three men and placed them in the back of our SUV. Sean and Owen had stayed to finish prepping the hospital cells for all four of them. No matter how much we loved them, we had to keep them safe from themselves at this point, and a hospital cell was the best way to do that for now.

When we arrived at the Giovanni compound I was surprised to see my father's car in the drive. He was inside, leaning heavily on a cane while talking animatedly with Leonardo. "Father?" I said curiously.

"Yevgeny, my boy," he said with a genuine smile. "I've been worried for you." Corey motioned for me to go on as the others began seeing to the materials, Silas, Nate, and Marissa, as well as Murdoch. My father saw the man's bleeding leg and snickered, "Went for the knee, huh?"

I shrugged, "He had it coming."

Owen's POV

Sean was hunched over, staring into a microscope. Every so often he would adjust the slides, take notes furiously, then sigh. Half the wing had suddenly become a science laboratory. Machines beeped and whirred as he tested each vial, trying to first decompose and then recreate Murdoch's serum. He'd barely slept in a week.

Marissa had been in tears when she'd awakened. She was so terrified and refused once again to eat or drink until we finally relented and allowed her and Nate to share a hospital cell. Despite both of them being fully under the control of Murdoch's conditioning, they clung to one another and he took care of her as if she were the most fragile of creatures. He fed and bathed her daily. Kota had brought a stack of books and Nate had taken to reading to her for hours. Silas seemed indifferent, almost absent in his attitude. He did not acknowledge any of us, nor did he ask about Marissa, Nate, or Murdoch. He ate, slept, and watched television as if he were on a holiday.

I was brought out of my thoughts when I heard Sean's glasses hit the table and he sighed. He was rubbing his eyes and pinching his nose. "Sean, love, you need to take a break, please," I begged. He merely grunted. "You need to eat. If you don't take a moment to rest, you're going to make a careless mistake. Isn't that what you always tell me?"

He shot me a harsh glare, and snapped, "Seriously, now you choose to listen and throw my words back at me?"

I flashed a cheeky smile, "See, I do hear you, love. I just don't listen all the time."

He snorted and sighed, "Men."

I came closer, wrapping my arms around him, "I know you want to fix all of this, but you can't do it if you let yourself get run down. Come, eat dinner with your husbands." He groaned but finally stood and holding my hand, he followed me down the hall to the kitchen where the rest of our family sat.

North set a plate in front of him when he sat down and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. Each of them made a gesture of some kind to touch or speak to him. Providing whatever reassurance they could in some small way. I saw his shoulders start to relax as he began to eat and visit with them. I continued to study him - noticing the dark circles under his eyes. "Stop staring, Owen," he said finally, not bothering to look up and confirm his statement. "If you had laser vision, I'd be on fire by now," he scoffed.

I chuckled, "Sorry love," and ran my thumb over his hand. "How can we help?"

He swallowed his water and blew out a breath, "I think I have a handle on at least part of the serum. I want to test it on Murdoch, but I need someone who isn't going to kill the bastard to handle the conditioning."

"I'll do it," Luca said from the doorway. "Tell me what to implant in his subconscious and I'll do it." We all blinked in surprise. "I may want him dead, but at least I can keep some sense of perspective for now. Goodness knows you can't let one of them in the same cell with the bastard." He thumbed toward Kota and North. He was right. Both of them were watching not only Marissa but the men they loved more than anything being used like human puppets.

Sean slapped the table, "No time like the present. Besides, I need to check on Marissa and the baby, that is if Nate will let me near her." We all agreed. He was extremely protective of her. Raven was crushed when he lunged out at him. Of course, he'd only remembered him as the man that had shot Murdoch and assumed he was going to hurt her as well. Our family would need a long time to recover from all of this when it finally ended.

Murdoch actually growled at Luca like a damn animal when he injected the serum into his IV. We watched as his eyelids fluttered shut, then Luca sat next to his head reciting the information Sean had requested. Hours passed and he continued to sleep until finally, his monitors blared, and his eyelids fluttered. "Sir?" he asked Luca.

"Hello toy," Luca said quietly with a wicked grin.

Author's Notes: The light is returning my lovelies!

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