Taken, Kissed, and Loved [FREE and COMPLETED]

Chapter 21

David was bored and nervous, hypnotizing his phone. On one side he was hoping it would ring just to hear her voice again. On the other side, he dreaded the sound, because it would mean she is in trouble. Why did he tell her it was only for emergencies? Because it is. What, did you think she would just casually call you, asking how are you, what are you doing, what are you wearing? Don’t be ridiculous. She doesn’t give a crap about you, you are just a means to an end. Was he? Damn, he wished they could have spent more time together, that he could have given her more good memories to hopefully outweigh the bad ones a bit. What memories did she have of him now? A couple of good orgasms, yes, but other than that? Pain? Fear?

The phone rang, pulling him out of his thoughts. He jumped up and grabbed it. It was Shannon. “Yes?”

“Peter just called in that there is someone looking for Petrelli’s leather goods.” David’s heart fluttered. Yes, finally! “And don’t get a hard-on, it’s not your little princess,” Shannon continued in an ironic tone.

David suppressed a sigh. “One of our informants?”

“No actually, this is someone new. I’m sending you the photo.”

This was a dangerous situation. Not many people knew about their contact point and the only one learning about it recently was Christina. Did she send someone, knowing she couldn’t get out herself? That would be disappointing. David looked at the photo and his frown deepened. No, this man definitely didn’t come on her behalf. And him showing up could be either really good news or really bad ones.

“Did you get it?” Shannon was concerned by the long pause.

“Yes. I know him.”

“Good or bad?”

“I honestly don’t know. Bring him in.” This was risky, it could have been a trap. But it could also solve some of his problems. “But Shannon, be extra careful. He might look like s**t, but he is dangerous.”

“Don’t worry, I can handle one guy.”

David very much doubted that. No, if Malcolm Williams decided to kill her, Shannon couldn’t do a thing against it. David would know, he and Malcolm were trained together. But if he was here to kill someone, it would be David, so Shannon should be safe for now. She wouldn’t listen to any more advice anyway.

---

David arrived at an abandoned garage complex on the outskirts of the city shortly before Shannon and Luis did. Adam was supposed to be there as well but got held up by traffic. Taking all his nervousness and anxiety and shoving it somewhere deep inside him, David was ready to let his worse self out if it seemed necessary.

A car pulled over next to him and Shannon and Luis pulled a tall man out of it, tied and blindfolded. David forbade himself from thinking about how much better it would be if it were Christina. Focus, i***t. You haven’t seen Malcolm in years. Why is he here? How did he find you? What does he want?

Shannon pushed the man on his knees and removed the blindfold, Luis standing behind him with a gun ready. David wasn’t taking any chances. The man looked just like David remembered him, dark hair might have been a bit longer than when they served together, but the green eyes were the same. Christina’s were prettier. Shut the f**k up, moron.

Malcolm blinked in the sharp light, squinting as he looked around. “Dave! Good to see you.” David couldn’t tell whether he was being honest or not. “Lovely place. And I love the rope and the blindfold, very Godfather-like.” Yes, that was Malcolm as he remembered him, always the jester. Which made him even more dangerous. You don’t expect the smiling joking guy to suddenly jump up and slit your throat. There was a time when David would trust him with his life without hesitation but that was a long time ago.

Shannon rolled her eyes. “Have you even seen The Godfather?”

Malcolm turned his head, trying to look at her, but she was standing too far behind him. He knew better than to try and move the rest of his body. “No, but I’ll watch it with you any time, fair lady.” He leaned forward towards David and whispered loud enough for everyone around to hear. “I kinda like her.”

Shannon’s brows went up. “Oh David, was this your class i***t in high school?” Her voice was overflowing with irony.

“Something like that,” David chuckled. “Why are you here, Malcolm?”

“Straight to the point, as always.” Malcolm’s voice grew more serious. “Well, there is a word around about quite a lot of money for whoever takes you down. And an even bigger sum for someone lucky enough to bring you in alive.”

“Did it mention a bullet through the head of anyone dumb enough to try?” It made sense. Peter Anderson had more than enough money to put a huge bounty on his head.

“No, I think they forgot to mention that.”

David crouched in front of Malcolm, carefully studying his face. “So, did you come here to claim that reward?”

Malcolm scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Yes, I came here to kill you. And my brilliant plan involved getting groped by that beautiful lady over there, being tied like a turkey for Thanksgiving, and having that lovely friend of yours in the back pointing a gun at me all the time. You know me, I’m a criminal mastermind.”

It was always fun being around Malcolm, but he didn’t answer the question. “Don’t be a smartass, Malcolm. Why are you really here?” David was slowly losing his patience.

Malcolm sensed the change in his voice. He knew David too well to know when it was time to stop with the jokes. “I came to warn you, Dave. I don’t know what s**t you got into, but it looks f*****g deep. And as I know you, you are fighting for the good guys. We used to be brothers, so I thought I would come to offer my help.”

David’s eyes closed slowly, hands covering his face. In his wildest dreams, he wouldn’t even dare to hope for something like this.

“Oh don’t cry, Davey,” Malcolm whined and pretended to sniffle. “You know you were my first, that gives us a special bond that cannot be broken by such a feeble thing as a ton of money.”

“You are an asshole, Malcolm,” David grinned and turned to Shannon. “Untie him.”

One of Shannon’s brows went up. “You sure?”

“Yea. He’s a pain in the ass, but we can trust him.” David was sure of that.

She shook her head in silent resignation and bent down to loosen the rope around his wrists. “Fine. But if he keeps talking, I’m going to cut his tongue out.”

“That would be a shame, my fair lady. I can do more things with my tongue than just weave sweet words.” Malcolm teased her and then turned to David, getting on one knee in front of him. “And as for you, my liege, you have my gun. And my knife. And a rifle, some grenades, I could get a rocket launcher or two if I tried real hard.”

“Malcolm, just as silly and annoying as I remember.” Adam’s strong voice interrupted them. “But at least you're alive, that’s a good start.”

David raised his eyebrows. “Were you afraid I would kill him?”

Adam’s head jerked to the side, pointing at Shannon. “No, I was afraid she would kill him because I know what a d**k he is around women.”

“Now that is insulting, Adam. While my d**k is an important and indeed sizable part of my body, I have other qualities as well.” Malcolm got up, dusted his pants, and rubbed his wrists. “So, would anyone care to tell me what did I just sign up for?”

“Wait a minute.” David’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Adam. “It was you who told Malcolm how to find me, wasn’t it?”

“Uhh…” Adam hesitated. “That depends. Are you mad or glad he’s here?”

That was a simple question. “Of course I’m mad, now we will have to listen to his bullshit until someone shoots him. But… I guess a bit of both.”

“Then it was totally me.” Adam showed his perfect white teeth in a wide grin.

“And the others?” When you risk your life together with someone over and over, you form a strong bond. But it’s not a miraculous unbreakable bond lasting for a lifetime, especially when lots of money is involved.

Malcolm patted his back. “Waiting for your call, mate.”

Now he had a small army of very capable people. The only thing he needed was a target. He decided to give Christina a few more days, but if he didn’t hear from her until then, he would probably just go after Peter Anderson directly. And get her out of there.

We’re at war.