LOGIN“I was hopeful she could be happy again,” Talli explained. “Then I met him.” She glanced at Barshan and shivered. “Oh, he looked good and acted just right but there was something about him that he tried very hard to hide. I first saw it in his eyes. They seemed dead to me. When I looked at him, his eyes were cold and empty.”Yes, the very same thing Barshan felt coming from Jerome. It had bothered him too.“I tried to watch out for my mom but he began to isolate her,” Talli went on. “She didn’t see it at first and it wasn’t until after they were married, she finally caught on to what he was doing. That’s when I saw the fear in her eyes. She tried to stop it but he wouldn’t let her go. He tightened his hold on her and it was then when she got sick. I tried to get to her but he wouldn’t let me near her.” She paused then turned her head away from his gaze.
Talli explained her fatigue to him, “As you can understand, I didn’t get a whole lot of sleep last night.”“Turn around and back up,” Barshan ordered. “Let me help you.”Talli turned away from him and backed up almost into his lap.Barshan inhaled deeply and her scent washed over him. Reaching out, he touched her skin. His hands gently massaged the muscles of her neck and shoulders. Barshan could feel the tightness lessen as he worked the area on either side of her head.Talli closed her eyes and groaned as she let go of the stress. His fingers bit deep yet soothed at the same time. Her whole body had been sore but after a few minutes of his hands on her neck and shoulders, she could feel the soreness lessen. She rolled her head to one side and moaned as his thumbs sank into her neck muscles. His fingers came close to the place on the back of head where she’d been struck yesterday but he never touched it.“Oh my, that feels so good,” she whispered as she groaned.“Stress always feels
Talli’s gaze went first to the dog then to the man. Her eyes were drawn back to the dog. For a long moment, they stared at one another.Then the dog broke contact and looked up at Callen.“Is this the person you wanted my Rugar for?” he asked Barshan. He held the dog’s collar in his hand but not too tightly.“Yes, this is Talli Janick. Talli, this is my friend Callen and his dog Rugar.”Talli nodded at Callen then looked at the dog again. “He’s beautiful. Will he accept me?”“Let’s find out,” Callen said as he let go of the collar and made a motion to the dog.Rug
“I’m not a fool,” Talli told Barshan. “I do appreciate the care you and the others are offering. My parents taught me to be independent from a very early age. They also taught me to accept help when it’s offered if I think it’s warranted. My mother was a wreck after my father was murdered, so I didn’t have much choice about it. It took her years but she was finally able to stand on her two feet again. I held everything together for a long time. I’ll do what I have to do to stay safe and let you guys do your thing.” Turning her head, she glared at him. “I don’t know what you hope to gain from this. My father’s will cannot be compromised. You’ll never get what Russell promised you. You’ll never get ownership of my father’s shop.”Barshan glared right back at her. “I think this goes beyond ownership of your store. That’s what drew us in but this is something else entirely. This could bring chaos and blood to
Barshan glared at her. “He’s dangerous and I will not see him hurt you.” He shook her briefly. “I don’t know what he’s after but he isn’t going to get it.”Talli swallowed her fear. “What are you going to do?”“I’m going to keep you safe while the others get more information on this guy.” He walked her over and placed her into his car and took off. He kept watch on the traffic behind and around him. Several times, he took wrong turns to elude anyone following him. Finally, he pulled into a quiet cul-de-sac. Then he hit a remote and a garage door half way down the street opened. He pulled the vehicle inside and closed the door quickly.Talli closed her eyes and let out a sigh then she asked, “What is this place?”“It’s a safe house. My safe house, no one else knows about this place.” He got out of the car. “It’s fully monitored both here and through Yuri’s security, so we shouldn’t have any surprises. Besides, our neighbors all work for Yuri, so we should be safe here.” He motioned for
Outside the jewelry store…Over the phone, Yuri was quiet for a moment then growled, “He scattered her mother’s ashes? He deserves what is coming for him.”“I agree,” Barshan stated. “I’m getting her a watch dog for when we can’t be with her. I don’t want her to be alone until this man gets caught.”“I agree.”“Now, I just have to get her to agree with it.” Barshan sighed.Yuri laughed out loud. “Yeah, good luck with that. She’s a very stubborn woman.”“Tell me about it,” Barshan grumbled. He thought of how he liked this about her. She was so petite, so small, yet he’d witnessed her courage and strength already. He had to admit he admired her very much. She had stood her ground against two of the most powerful organizations in the city without blinking an eye. After a moment he asked, “Do you really think this Dexter person could be related to the royals that are still alive? If so, what the hell business did they do with a man like Christophe? I mean why go to a merchant rather than
Mikial shook his head then announced, “That was very strange.”“What did he have to say?” Yuri asked.“At first, he asked me the same question he’s been asking me for weeks, have I considered his request. When I told him my answer hadn’t changed, he threatened me.”Yuri grimaced and he glanced at t
Pepper sighed. “It’s bad enough he never wanted me but to do this to her is too much.”Yuri patted her arm. “He won’t get away with it, believe me.”
Yuri searched the paper, growled, then handed it to Mikial.Mikial read it then crumpled it in his hands. He looked at Yuri and tightened his lips in rage. “That dirty low down bastard.”“What is it?” Sazon asked.“It’s a newspaper article from eighteen years ago and a death certificate for Pepper
Pepper went on, “Who knows what he would have done to me if I hadn’t gotten away from him. He wasn’t taking me home. I might have been just another victim that night. He could have killed me or worse yet, sold me into child prostitution for all I know. I hope you guys can bring him down and leave h







