Romancing The Mob (ON HOLD)

chap. 14

            “Scusi, Signor?”

            Even as Alexei turned towards the voice calling to him in the parking lot, he knew it was a mistake. A blow to the back with something heavy and dull had him tripping, almost brought him down, but he caught himself on one knee and both arms. The next blow to his left arm was blocked as he grasped the wooden 2 by 4 as it was swung at him, but his grip slacked with the three repetitive kicks to his ribs and stomach. Alexei tried desperately to scramble up, but there were four guys on him at once, and he knew he didn’t have much of a chance. These guys meant business, and they unrelentingly attacked Alexei, barely letting him move. The savage instincts from his days on the streets kicked in, and Alexei found himself fighting desperately for his life, for his survival, and he didn’t stop until he’d taken two down with him.

            “ALEXEI!” Laura’s scream pierced the black fog of rage that had settled over his eyes, and he paused for a second, hearing the sound of her feet on the pavement. His vision was blurred and something was dripping into one of his eyes, so he had it closed.

            “Man, let’s go! We gotta get out of here before someone sees us!” One of the goons said to the other, and Alexei spun towards the voice, only to get a sucker punch to the face that sent him reeling.

            “That’s from Maloney.” Another thug growled at him, before they sprinted away. Alexei managed to lean himself against the side of his car as Laura got to him, closing his eyes against the pain racking his own body.

            “Oh god, oh my God! Alexei, Jesus, what happened?” Laura insisted, laying a hand on his forehead, the other fluttering around his body, not knowing what to do. He looked awful, his entire face swollen, his clothes sticking to his body from sweat and blood. “Oh Dio, I’m calling the police.”

            “Non,” Alexei croaked, grabbing her hand tightly in one of his and pressing his phone into it. “Yanes. Call Yanes.”

            “Yanes? Non, I need to call you an ambulance.”

            “NO,” Alexei said fiercely, opening his eyes briefly to focus on her. He wiped the blood from one eye angrily. “No hospitals, just…call Yanes.” He sighed, suddenly exhausted, and he sank down the side of the car to sit on the ground with his arms dangling on his knees and his head hanging.

            “Okay, okay, I can do that, I’ll call Yanes.”

           

            Ten minutes later, Yanes was driving them to Alexei’s town house, cursing the whole while. Laura clutched Alexei’s hand tightly from the front seat, turning around every two minutes to survey him. He was stretched out in the back with his eyes closed, his free arm thrown over his eyes, not moving. Bruno and Yanes helping him from the car gingerly, but Alexei was still wincing and groaning as they did. By the time they got Alexei upstairs and on his bathroom floor, the bruises on his body had already started to form, and Laura wrung her hands nervously as she stood in the doorway, biting her lip and praying he would be okay. Alexei swatted away Bruno’s hands as they poked and prodded him.

            “Basta, basta. I just need to lay here.”

            “On the floor?” Bruno shook his head and Yanes rolled his eyes.

            “We’ll get him rinsed off, then we’ll put him in bed.”

            “Is there anything I can do?” Laura asked, and Yanes glanced at her.