"She's a barista at the coffee shop that I frequent. I don't know her, but I've seen her," Hannah says. She steps farther into the room and takes Lucy's vitals while staring at her watch and checking her pulse.
"Why was she sneaking around and inside the yard?" I ask, not expecting Hannah to have an answer.
"She wanted to ruin my proposal," Luka mutters. He's not the least bit quiet about his displeasure. "Should have let her die."
Hannah smacks Luka's arm. "Don't be a jerk. Were you really going to propose?" Her blue eyes widen as she stares up at Luka Ivanov.
The girl is smitten. Probably the fact they have a kid together and another baby on the way. I'm not supposed to know, but nothing is kept a secret around the compound.
"I was," Luka says. "But now I'll have to come up with an entirely new plan because our little invader ruined it."
"Her name is Lucy," Hannah says. "And I'm sure if we go back out into the garden, we can make the most of tonight."
Luka is grumpier than I am, and that says a lot.
He walks up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, his lips against her neck. "It should be perfect when I propose, and tonight has been anything but that."
There's disappointment written all over her face, but she forces a smile, pretending not to care. I've seen that look dozens of times before on women when I tell them I'm not interested in a relationship.
Usually, I'm the one causing their discontent, not Luka. At least not lately.
I'm sure he'll propose. He's madly in love with Hannah and their daughter, Bay. Even if it's not tonight, it will undoubtedly happen, and I'm sure that he'll ask me to record the entire event.
I never took him for a romantic.
Hannah changed him more than even he cares to admit.
But I'm not like Luka. There is no girl in this world capable of tying me down.
Lucy grumbles, and her fingers graze the cotton quilt as she begins to regain consciousness.
"Come on," Luka says as he takes Hannah's hand and leads her out of the bedroom. He doesn't want Hannah to witness the interrogation.
The bedroom door closes behind them, leaving Lucy and me alone.
Her eyes lazily open, and her breathing intensifies.
"Care to explain yourself?" I ask. I start slowly, cautious. I'm not giving her any information about our organization or what she's stumbled into. But that doesn't mean she's not aware of who we are and is working for the enemy.
Which could be anyone.
The FBI, the Colombian Cartel, or the Italian Mafia.
She rolls her lips together and shuts her eyes again. "Going back to sleep isn't going to make this all go away."
Her tongue darts out past her cherry lips, and her eyelids flutter open. "Water."
My hands ball into fists at my side, but I oblige. There is a bathroom connected to the bedroom, and I grab a Dixie cup from the sink and fill it with water.
"Can you sit up?" I ask, bringing the cup, half-filled with water, to the bed. I'm less worried about the mess and more about her not choking on it.
She grimaces as she sits, and her eyes momentarily close. Based on her sour expression and struggle, I suspect she has a headache or maybe a migraine.
I don't bother to ask if she's all right. She's alive, thanks to me.
Although Luka technically brought her the EpiPen, and Hannah administered it, I made sure to call for their help. Some credit is due to me for keeping her alive.
Her fingers grip the quilt as she sits up and finally opens her eyes again, refocusing on the wall. Her gaze looks right past me as she seems lost in thought or maybe still quite out of it.
I hand her the cup of water, and her hands tremble as she brings the cup to her lips, taking a sip.
"What were you doing?" I ask, towering over her, awaiting an explanation. I suspect that nothing she gives will come close to the truth.
"Taking a sip of water."
"Do you think that's funny? I should call the cops and have your ass arrested for trespassing," I threaten. The truth is that we don't deal with the police. We handle matters internally, but she doesn't know that we're villains and she's stepped into our criminal enterprise.
"Please, don't do that," she whispers. Her voice hitches, and there's a slight tremble in her tone. Her bottom lip quivers. She's afraid.
She ought to be afraid of me.
"And why shouldn't I? You're trespassing."
Lucy rolls her lips together. At least that was the name she gave me last night when I met her at the club. But now, I suspect it wasn't just a coincidence, stumbling into her.
She wanted me to notice her.
Her eyelids are heavy. There are dark circles under her bright green eyes. She's struggling to stay awake, and I suspect it has more to do with the adrenaline and allergic reaction to the sting than anything else.
Lucy opens her mouth, and I interrupt her before she can speak.
"Don’t lie to me." It's a warning. I want the truth, whatever it may be.
She shuts her lips, and her eyelids droop, like she might fall asleep sitting up.
I take the cup of water from her and place it on the nearby bedside table. "Rest." She's of little use to me groggy. I could get her to spill a few secrets, but her words would undoubtedly be slurred, and I'd make little headway.
Lucy isn't going anywhere.
"Sleep. I will be back shortly."
I retreat from the bedroom, shut off the lights, and close the door. I stand outside in the hallway, guarding the room that she occupies. There are too many people in the compound to let her chance wandering freely, especially with Bay roaming the halls and Kira beginning to crawl.
Mikhail heads up the staircase. "I hear we have an uninvited visitor, and you decided to let her have one of my rooms?" There's disdain in his voice, and his top lip twitches with a snarl, unpleased by the news that was brought to him, probably by Luka. Although any number of Mikhail's men might have overheard and witnessed what transpired.