Loving a Killer | 18+

2.9 - Sacrifices

| Maddox |

"What do you say we do now, Boss?" I asked, clearly curious as to what Adriano could possibly have in mind. He had been speaking for the past fifteen minutes about how fucked we are. He lit up a cigarette and took a long drag.

"Frankly ... I don't know King. We're in such a compromised situation. Kosta knows her face now. It's not safe for her outside of the estate," Adriano sighed, resting his forehead in his hand.

"Of course it isn't, but we can't keep her here forever. You know that," I informed him. He nodded, understanding the bind we were in.

Norah was still asleep. I made sure to set up this meeting with her father at a time she wouldn't come looking. I knew she would be the topic of discussion, and I knew her pride. Even if we are just trying to formulate a good plan of protecting her, she would take it as us visualizing her as we did months ago: as some little girl we had to keep hidden away.

Also, she couldn't be here when I told her father our plan.

I hated myself for coming to tell him and conspiring our plan behind her back. The problem was, I didn't want it to be our plan anymore. After our close call with Viktor the other night, I don't think I had it in me to put Norah back in the same room with that man.

I couldn't let her walk into Kosta's home and kill him. No matter what I armed her with, she would never be protected enough.

"So what do you say we do, King?" Adriano turned the question on me. I took in a deep breath and rounded the plush chair in front of me, taking a seat.

"I'm going to kill him," I came out with it without a second thought. Adriano's eyes widened in amusement.

"Who?" He questioned. He knew who but spoke in disbelief.

"You know who," I replied, seriousness in my tone so he knew I wasn't joking, "He's going to kill your daughter, Adriano. He killed your wife and you sent your daughter away in hopes he wouldn't kill her, too. Well, now he has the chance."

"You can't be serious, Maddox. That's a suicide mission," Adriano scoffed, dismissing my idea completely. I am set in my way though, and nothing he says will steer me from what I've been planning.

"Think about it. He knows her face. By now, he knows who she is and who she's linked to. There's no hiding her anymore," I explained the hard truth.

Adriano gave me a skeptical look. I kept my composure even though I knew what he was thinking.

"Why do you seem so dedicated to Norah's safety?" He asked, studying my face for an answer.

"Four months ago, you paid me for the task of keeping Norah safe and bringing her to you if we needed to protect her. I still take that task as seriously as the first day you ordered it. As of now, Norah is no longer safe, and nothing is going to protect her from Viktor Kosta unless he's six feet deep."

Adriano was silent. I knew that that answer would be enough to shut down his slight suspicions. He knew I was dedicated to the tasks he gave me. He also knew I was right, but I don't think he was ready to admit it verbally.

"Maddox, you're the best I've ever seen in your position. Doing this most likely will get you killed," He spoke up, disapproval thick in his words.

"I'm willing to make that sacrifice if you will let me take out Kosta," I told him firmly. My pulse rose as I waited for his approval. Adriano sighed again, running both his hands through his hair before clasping his hands on his desk.

"If this wasn't my daughter we were protecting, I'd tell you to get the fuck out of my office..." Adriano said, "But this is one of my children, and if you're willing to do this, then we better get to work."