Easing the fists my hands have made, I throw back the whiskey I ordered and stand to leave. It was a mistake to come here, to watch Via on stage again. I hate that she works here. I have no right to demand anything from her. She’s mine, but even so, I should have stayed away. I’m not sure what I was expecting. I guess a song, stripping, and seeing men gawking at her fucking beautiful body. What I got was a knife straight through my heart. Watching her singing that song, I know she wasn’t miming. I know she was feeling every word. The torment was like a storyboard across her face, every telltale look—I’ve never forgotten a single one—played out in her eyes.
Pulling myself from my thoughts, I start to walk toward the exit. A flash of red catches my eye, and I stop to look across the room. Via leans over the bar and talks to the barmaid who passes her a bottle of water. She turns and starts manoeuvring backstage when some prick grabs her wrist and pulls her back. My feet move before my brain has engaged, and as I get closer, I can see him mauling her tit. My brain switches off. Every sane thought is lost in the haze of anger, and every little thing I’ve ever been taught about keeping calm and managing a situation dissipates like smoke.
Thankfully, before I get there, Via has wrenched her arm from his grasp and slipped away. I can still see him though, and I can tell what he’s thinking. Glancing around to make sure there are no bouncers, he slips along the passageway after Via. Moving faster, I catch up to him, and his yelp of surprise is the only thing that escapes before I pin him to the wall, my finger and thumb at his throat either side of his windpipe. He can’t speak, he can’t breathe. I watch as his lips start turning blue, and he scratches at my hand.
“You don’t look at her, you don’t get anywhere near her, you don’t breathe the same air as her. You certainly don’t fucking touch her. Give me an indication you understand me,” I grind out, malice lacing my every word.
His eyes widen, almost like they’re bulging out of his head, but there’s no way I’ll let go until I know he comprehends my threat. Tears form in his eyes spilling over and racing down his cheeks. There’s a tiny movement, one that most wouldn’t notice, but being that I have him pinned, I am watching for it. I grin and release my grip. He falls to the floor and immediately covers his throat with both his hands. I know he can’t speak, but that works for me as I crouch down next to him.
“If you ignore my warning, I’ll come back. Next time I won’t be so lenient. Are we clear?” I ask still sporting a small grin.
He looks up at me, his face red, still holding his throat as tears continue rushing from his eyes, but he nods fervently.
“Good to see you’re being amenable, that works in your favour. Now get up and go, don’t stop for your friends, don’t stop to grab your coat, don’t stop even if someone calls you. Leave. Never come back and never go near her again.”
I watch as he scrambles to his feet and practically runs away.
Closing my eyes, I breathe in through my nose. I need to get over the satisfaction of what shit like this does for me. The darkness is still in me, and Via doesn’t need that. She needs better than me. Cleaner than me.
I remember the sadness in her eyes from earlier. I put that devastation there. And right now, I can’t deal with it on top of my own agony. So, like a coward, I’m walking away to deal with my current life, but this fucking time, I’ll come back when it’s over.
ISAAC
“Where have you been?”
“Out,” I force the word through my teeth. As team commander, I don’t need to explain myself, but as their friend, I should. Unfortunately, I can’t find it in me right now to think straight and telling them that I’ve been going to ShadowBox to watch Via for the last few nights won’t go down well.
“Go catch some sleep. We need to be up soon, and we need to be fresh. They can’t get the jump on us because we’re sloppy and tired,” Darwin tells everyone.
Nodding, they all disperse except Shelly who stays where she is. Darwin glares at her, and she arches her eyebrow back but makes no move to leave.
I chuckle, shaking my head, and Shelly’s eyes snap to me.
“What?” She shrugs. “At this point, with the number of missions we’ve completed as a team, especially where you and I have been a couple…” Shelly’s hands come up, making air quotes with her fingers. “I know you just as well as Darwin, I’m worried about you… and her.” Her gaze drops from mine, and I sigh.
“We all need to stay focused on this mission,” I reply.
“Isaac—”
“No. All of us, Shel, that means me, too.”
Darwin looks from me to her and back again and then scrubs his hand down his face. “Shit. I have a bad feeling.”
I grind my teeth together. There’s nothing more to say.
“We have four hours. Go. Sleep. We need
