Chapter 7: Don't Hurt Her

Vin was minding his business, scanning through yet another missing person’s case that landed on his desk, when Ella burst into his office.

“Don’t hurt her.”

The mafia boss looked up from the document and fixed the doctor with a hard stare. And when he spoke, there was a dangerous edge to his voice.

“Ella, you know better than to barge in here unannounced.”

Ella was used to being reprimanded. She wasn’t the type to bend to anyone’s will outside of the bedroom, so in this case, she wanted Vin to hear her.

“I’m sorry,” she apologized, anyway. “I’ll take any punishment for speaking out about this. I know it’s not my business what you do with your women, but please don’t hurt Callie.”

Vin didn’t plan on hurting her. He wouldn’t hurt a woman. But having Ella stand up for her, made him all the more curious about his new little pet.

Shifting from foot to foot, Ella started becoming uneasy under Vin’s piercing gaze. “That’s all I came here to say. Oh, also! I know you like it rough in the sheets, but she’s off limits for sex until she’s fully healed.”

Vin wouldn’t lie and say it didn’t disappoint him. From the moment he laid eyes on Callie, he knew he’d want to taste her, to have her take him deep inside her until she was begging him to come. So, he said nothing.

“Vin, you have to promise!” Ella whined but froze when Vin sent her a cold glare. He didn’t appreciate being demanded of anything. He was the one who made the demands, not the other way around.

“I won’t take her until I have the doctor’s permission,” Vin said simply, annoyed at how he had to wait to have Callie. He’d been interested in her since the moment he bumped into her outside their apartment complex. “That good enough for you?”

Ella nodded and exited right away. It was the right decision, for Vin’s patience was running thin.

With a shake of his head, Vin turned his attention back to the document in his hand. It wasn’t his job to handle these cases, but in the past few weeks, the number of people going missing within his territory had risen. Normally, Vin would let the police handle this, but something tells him that the disappearances may be intentional to harm his reputation.

Grabbing his phone, Vin shot Soren a quick text to gather his trusted runners to do a sweep around the city.

Thinking Callie was out like a light, Vin went to check up on her. With the door slightly ajar, he could hear the woman’s sniffles muffled by what Vin assumes was a pillow against her mouth.

Being born into a mafia family, Vin had learned from an early age to control his emotions. And more recently, he’d learned to switch them off entirely. So, why was it that his chest stirred, hearing Callie’s muffled crying? And why was it that he couldn’t bear to leave her alone, knowing that she was hurting?

He didn’t have an answer. So, he stood there, outside her door, listening to every choked-out sob that left Callie’s lips.

Callie woke up with a start. All the memories from last night came rushing back to her.

“Shit,” she muttered under her breath. “What time is it?”

It took a while for her puffy eyes to adjust to the bright sunlight streaming in from the high windows covered with white curtains.

The clock on the bedside table told her it was half past noon. She shot up from bed. She was supposed to buy the tickets for the party and meet up with Sienna!

“Wait.” Callie’s entire body slumped in defeat. The realization hit her hard as she felt tears start to well up in her eyes again. She didn’t have to pick up the tickets anymore, she couldn’t go. And was she ever going to see Sienna again? She must think that Callie had gone missing, like those people on the posters around the school.

It would be best if Sienna thought she had been kidnapped and moved on. But Sienna wasn’t that type of person. She would have gone to Callie’s apartment or the club and grilled her uncle about where she was. That’s the type of friend that Sienna was.

Callie needed to reach her first.

If she recalled correctly, Soren had brought her backpack in last night and placed it somewhere in the living area. Though it was likely that Vin had taken her belongings, it was worth checking.

Callie tiptoed to the living room and spots her backpack on the couch. Hurriedly, Callie searched for her phone, but all that was in there were her books and notes from school. Her laptop and phone were missing.

“Looking for this?” The deep voice made Callie jump. Turning around, she saw Vin, clad in black slacks and a comfy white button-down. He looked like he was coming from a business meeting, ready to wind down, with a glass of scotch in his hand. His sleeves were haphazardly rolled up to his elbows, revealing intricate tattoos on his forearms.

Callie stared openly at his toned arms, wondering if the ink traveled further up his arms. Vin cleared his throat, jerking Callie back to reality.

“Y-Yes, can I have it back, please?”

“Who’s Sienna?” asked Vin without breaking eye contact.

Fear shot up Callie’s body. Flashes of red and blue clouded her mind, immediately thinking of the worst-case scenario.

“She’s my friend. Why? Is she okay?”

“Hey, relax,” he muttered, then tossed Callie her phone. Thankfully, she caught it. “She’s been calling non-stop. That’s why I asked. Call her back and ask her what she wants.” Vin then moved back into the kitchen, where he emerged from. “Then, I’ll decide if she’s safe or not.”

Callie, still surprised that he returned the phone so easily, followed him and asked, “Safe? From what?”

Vin shook his head as he refilled his glass with more scotch. “No, no-- If the family is safe from her.”

“What? A-And you’re just giving this to me?”

Vin almost smiled at Callie’s confused expression. He merely shrugged, “I had it checked, and it’s clean—your laptop too. I might have to take it every couple of days to check again. If you’re okay with that, I don’t see why you can’t keep it.”

Callie nodded slowly, still working through the confusion. “Uhm, check it for what, exactly?”

“I had to check if you’re an assassin sent here to kill me.”

Callie choked on her own spit, “What?!”

Vin stepped past her, mildly amused. He shrugged again, “It’s happened before. A few times, actually. I just want to be sure.”

Callie was left speechless. How could a man talk so casually about attempts on his life? And to be suspected of it too? Callie was beyond understanding.

“There’s food on the table.” Vin pointed his glass in the direction of the kitchen table. “Eat, then come to my office when you’re done. It’s on the second floor, next to the guest bedroom.”

With Vin gone, Callie brewed in her confusion. How was this man the same one who killed three men for her?

Vin acted so differently. He wasn’t rude, and he took care of Callie. And dare she say it, he was a gentleman.

Could Vin lead another life, separate from being a mafia boss?