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1728 Words
The young man winced as the woman doctor checked over his wounds. Scowling at him, she said nothing as she reapplied the bandages. His dark eyes met hers, and he flinched. Looking at the cot in the corner, he nervously made sure his sister was sleeping. Licking his lips, he shook his head. “The man… I’m glad he lived. He is okay?”
“My brother is fine, but your life now hangs in the balance. I’m sure you want to be around for that pretty little girl over there, right?” she asked, nodding at the sleeping child.
“Caroline is all I have left. Our uncle was supposed to help us, but…” shaking his head, the young man grimaced. “He cannot be trusted any more than the Elders back home who wanted to marry her off to a man three times her age.”
Ambrosia’s eyes went wide, her blood running cold. “An arranged marriage? But she’s still a baby!”
“She is eleven, turning twelve during Ramadan. Fatima, my elder sister, said that Carol was born on the last night of the fasting time,” he replied softly. “We have no parents, so the Elders made the decision. In Istanbul, it is also frowned on to offer a child’s hand to an adult, but there is also no law against it, so, to prevent it, I escaped with her in the middle of the night.”
Scowling, Ambrosia searched her memory until she clicked her tongue against her teeth. “So, you’re practicing Muslims?”
“That is not a problem, is it?”
Hearing a snicker from the door, she turned to glare at her twin, Declan. “It doesn’t matter what your religion was or is. So, what about your name?”
“I am Denzel Aydin. Why did you seem… shocked by my faith?”
Her smile seemed to relax him as she packed up her bag. Sitting on the chair, she continued pressing him for answers. “Knowing your faith gives us insight into the food you’re able to eat. How long have you been in Canada?”
His eyes dulled, his face morphing into an expression of pain. “A year… I think. I’m unsure because everything after our arrival is a blur. I mostly protect my sister, and we scrounge for food. We stayed near the… the food houses, to eat what they threw out. We have no money, so we survived on our instincts alone.”
Letting out a breath, the woman sighed. “Strange. I would have thought that both of you would have had Turkish names, not Western ones.”
“Our father was a man from the Western countries. From where, I do not know. He named my sister after his mother, but allowed my mother to choose the middle name. She chose Hürrem, after her most favored Ottoman Queen,” the young man answered.
Declan scoffed. “What about your name? It’s Cornish, meaning something like stronghold, I think.”
Denzel grinned. “You are right. My father was well-traveled, and he felt that his only son deserved a strong name.”
“Right now, you and your sister are fit for visitors. My brother wants to talk to you about that night. If it were up to me, you’d be dead for that little stunt you pulled, but he said you begged for help,” Ambrosia said stoically. She knew that the young man was hiding something, but she didn’t want to push too hard before Russell had a chance to question him. It was her younger brother who had turned to Callum, prostrating on his knees as he begged for the task. Though shocked to his core that Russell would even go that far, Callum agreed under the condition the discussion be live streamed to the Don’s Den.
Declan cleared his throat behind her, letting her know that the hour she told her man she would be was up. Walking out to the hall, she waited until her twin sealed the room with his keycard before they continued down the hall. Silently going over the information they learned in their heads, she felt it when he grabbed her hand. Pressing a particular code into the skin, he let her know that he had come to the same conclusion she did.
“He’s not the overly chatty type, but Russ can crack him,” she said out loud.
“I can use his sister to get to him, but not in a bad way.” Russell’s voice fell around them, and they turned to the darkened corner the sound had come from.
He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you, sis. The first session went well, by the way. I’m clearing the air first, and I don’t think she likes that my so-called family used me to express their aggression. You know I would never turn to that, though.”
“Do we?” Declan breathed in annoyance. “Then you won’t mind explaining why I got a report that you were caught on camera bringing Sky to your place here in the Towers.”
Russell cracked a smile. It wasn’t a question, but a statement. A challenge issued by one of his superiors that required his response. He raised a brow, his smile growing into a smirk. “Ask David if he asked me to take her there and asked me to take care of her.”
“So, I can call him now, and he’ll tell me the same story?” Declan asked.
“Go ahead; I got nothing to hide,” his brother shot back. “You got your phone, or do you need mine? Better yet, I saved all the messages between us.”
Grunting in frustration, Ambrosia moved to snatch both their phones. Lifting Declan’s, she realized David was already listening in on the conversation between the other two men. “Oh, for crying out loud. Can we stop the pissing contest before I go get my favorite little psycho? Jesus, Declan, lay off. David, is what Russell said true?”
“Every word,” the man on the phone replied calmly. “Russ, you left her alone?”
“No, I left her with your son, who has been talking fashion and accessories with her since they woke up this morning. She’s taking him to the studio with her later to see where she works. Don’t worry, I already called in Robbie to assist with guard duty, and he brought Giana over, too,” Russell replied.
David laughed. “Sneaky little bastard. I didn’t even know Jax slept out last night.”
Russell laughed. “You were snoring drunk in the study when he left, so he put a note in the coffee maker since that’s the first thing you go for in the morning apparently. At least, that’s what he told me.”
The sound of David yawning and making his way to the kitchen. Finally, he barked a laugh. “Yup. Right where he usually puts his notes.”
Hanging up the phone, Ambrosia smiled knowingly at the younger man, who was trying his best to disappear into the shadows once more. “Nicely done, Russ. You managed to get David to trust you. Not many get that pleasure, you know.”
“I’m just doing my job as her boyfriend and taking care of her while she’s down. Come on, sis. I’ve noticed how Cal takes care of you after a long day at the hospital, and I’ve seen how Temperance always got a meal on the table for her man when he gets off work. You take care of each other, and it shows. I want that, but I also understand that it works both ways and that sacrifices were made to get you where you are now,” he told her.
Letting out a heavy breath, Russell looked down the hall toward the door separating him from the two people inside. “That said, I’m glad I met you, and I’m grateful I now know how a real family works. As brainwashed as I was, all I ever wanted was a place to live in peace. I craved love, attention, and peace. I wanted to know my siblings, to save them from a threat I honestly thought was real.”
“We didn’t need saving,” Declan laughed dryly.
“No, but I did,” Russell whispered. “Without you, I wouldn’t even be here. Without Rob, my life would have been over before it really began. All I ever knew was pain and betrayal, and you two saved me from that just by accepting me into your lives and loving me the way I needed. I owe everything I am to you, and I owe my sanity to Robert Drake.”
Tears burned her eyes as Ambrosia went to where he was standing. Her heart ached, breaking for the boy still crying for help beneath the surface of the man’s calm, collected demeanor. Pulling him into her arms, she sobbed quietly. “Oh, Russ. If we’d known about you beforehand, our meeting would have gone vastly different. You’re our brother, our family, and we would never treat you like they did.”
She paused, wiping the silent tear lines from his cheeks. “You don’t have to thank us for doing the right thing. I just wish I’d known sooner, so I could have intervened faster and got you out of there. Declan and I have morals, unlike both our mothers and father, and we care about our people. You keep fighting because I promise you that no one will blame you for something beyond your level of control. You deserved to be safe, happy, and loved, but they couldn’t even give that to you. I’m so proud of you, little brother.”
Blinking, Russell stared at his sister. “Why? Why are you proud of me? What did I do?”
“You broke the cycle, just like we did,” Declan answered. “The generational curse of abuse ended with you, and that’s why we’re so proud to call you family.”
Overwhelmed, Russell could only nod as he tightened his hold on his sister.
- Writer
