Even though he was not an animal person, Thane couldn’t deny those big eyes, and that tiny pink nose with long whiskers was appealing, especially when the kitten rubbed its furry head against his chin. The creature didn’t care that he was an invalid. It didn’t know that terrible things were happening—it was simply a bundle of carefree innocence.
Brie giggled from the floor. “I can’t believe you have so many black kittens, Master Anderson.”
“I know…” Anderson huffed in irritation. “If you can believe it, all the black ones are male. It’s as if the black bastard is taunting me with his offspring.”
Brie broke out in a fit of laughter.
One of the kittens was frightened by her sudden outburst and ran to Anderson, trying to climb up his pants leg. He picked up the tiny black ball of fur and lifted it to his face. “Even though the last thing I ever wanted were kittens, I have to admit they are a kick to have around. And this one?” He turned it around so they could see its face. “I’ve been told this guy is extremely rare—black like his father, with blue eyes like his mother.”
“Too adorable!” Brie agreed.
Thane shook his head, surprised that Anderson seemed to be handling the whole Cayenne/Shadow debacle exceedingly well. “So, what do you plan to do with them?”
Anderson cradled the little kitten against his muscular chest. “I’m not sure yet. There’s no way I can keep all six, but I can’t stomach the idea of giving any of them away.”
“Really?”
He coughed self-consciously. “Yeah, the little buggers have started to grow on me.”
“I always suspected that deep inside that baby-hating man lived a giant softie.” Brie grinned as she rubbed her round belly, glancing at him teasingly. “I bet you are going to make an exceptional pseudo-uncle for our little one.” As soon as she said it, the expression on her face changed, and she bit her lip, trying to keep her tears at bay.
Thane knew she was thinking of Durov.
Suddenly, a vision of his friend beaten and bloody came to Thane’s mind. It felt like he’d been gut-punched, and he struggled to breathe.
The kitten on his chest moved closer, putting its paws on his chin and leaning forward to lick his nose.
Brie burst out in giggles, shaking off her melancholy. “That’s so adorable!”
Thane picked the kitten up in both hands and shook his head. “You don’t know this yet, but you have to ask permission before you can lick me.”
Anderson’s low laughter joined Brie’s lyrical one.
Thane glanced over at Brie, grateful for Anderson’s willingness to bend the rules that granted them this unexpected and welcomed distraction.
When he set the kitten back down on his chest, it started purring as it kneaded him with its tiny claws. Thane frowned and was about to pick it back up when Anderson commanded, “Just give it a sec.”
Sure enough, moments later, the kitten stopped and lay down, curling into a small ball on his chest, still purring loudly.
“She must like you, buddy,” Anderson stated. “If you really want her, I’ll make the sacrifice.”
As endearing as the kitten was, Thane did not want to take on the responsibility. “I wouldn’t dream of splitting up your feline family.”
Anderson smirked. “I won’t be offering again, no matter how much you beg.”
“Truthfully, Master Anderson, it wouldn’t be fair to Shadow,” Brie told him. “A father should be with all of his children, not just one.”
His low laughter was ripe with sarcasm. “Yeah, that’ll be the day.”
Brie got a funny expression on her face. Giving each kitten a kiss before she set them on the floor, Brie walked over to Thane and leaned over, cupping her hand to whisper her idea in his ear.
“Okay, what are you up to, young Brie?” Brad demanded.
Brie smiled sweetly. “Do you remember that bet you made with me at the apartment?”
He looked confused for a second, before his eyes sparked in remembrance. “I do, now that you mention it.”
“You bet on Sir’s first words when he woke up. But, sadly, Master Anderson, you were wrong.”
Anderson shrugged, grinning at Thane. “Hey, I was certain your first words would be directed at me. What can I say?”
Thane shook his head in amusement.
Brie explained to Thane, “At the time, I told Master Anderson I knew exactly what I was going to buy with the winnings, but I’ve changed my mind.”
“Woman’s prerogative,” Anderson replied amiably.
She walked back to play with the kittens, smiling at him mischievously as she passed by.
Anderson turned to Thane. “So, what is she planning?”
Thane didn’t crack a smile when he said, “Brie mentioned that Shadow takes his responsibility to the kittens very seriously.”
“Wait,” Anderson said, holding his hand up. “Please don’t tell me young Brie plans to write another love story about cats.”
Brie snorted in amusement. “Can you seriously tell me that you didn’t feel the love when you read their passionate romance?”
“I most definitely did not.”
Brie arched her eyebrow. “So if I read that story to you right now, there would be absolutely no response—at all?” Her eyes drifted down to his crotch.
Anderson covered up his groin, hiding it from her scrutiny. “I make no such claims, but it wouldn’t be because of the story, darlin’.”
Brie giggled.
“Please tell me it’s not another story,” he begged Thane.
“Fine,” he answered. “It’s not another story.”
“Good,” he replied, sounding relieved. A few seconds later, however, he frowned at Thane. “Did you just say that because I told you to?”
Thane smiled.
“Young Brie…” Anderson implored.
She gave him an innocent look. “What?”
“No more stories from you.”
“Oh, don’t worry. This isn’t coming from me.”
“What isn’t?”
Brie picked up two of the black kittens, giving them each an Eskimo kiss, ignoring the question.
Anderson looked back to Thane.
Thane nodded his head toward Brie and watched her for several moments, touched to see the open joy on her face. He glanced back at Anderson in gratefulness.
Anderson understood, and tipped an imaginary hat. “Anytime, buddy.”
A few days later, Thane was looking at Durov’s rescue team: Wallace, the boy he had trained to collar Brie; Captain, a friend of Gallant’s who’d become like family after the airplane crash; and Samantha, a long-time friend and colleague, who shared a complicated past with Durov.
Anderson, Baron, Gray, and Boa were also in attendance, having all agreed to assist in the dangerous mission. However, Thane had quickly whittled it down to these few because of the extreme risks involved.
He felt the three he’d chosen stood the best chance of getting Durov back with minimum peril. There was no point to saving his Russian brother, only to lose someone else he cared about in the process.
Thane grabbed the rails of his bed and forced himself into an upright position. He looked at each person there, inspired by their bravery. “Thank you for your friendship, your courage, and your selfless hearts. Each one of you here has offered the same sacrifice, and for that I am eternally grateful…” His voice faltered, and he lay back down, tears of gratitude blurring his vision.
He would never forget this moment or the people standing before him.
Captain took over the meeting, being a trained leader who understood the urgency of the mission ahead. “We need nonessentials to leave so we can go over the plan in order to execute it quickly and efficiently.”
The four men staying behind shook hands with those who were leaving for Russia, wishing them good luck and a quick return. It was sobering for Thane to realize, as they all shook hands, that there was a distinct possibility one or more of them might n
ot make it back.
By the end of the night, each person knew their role and how the mission would play out. While Vlad would act as the spokesperson for the family and deal with the Koslovs while negotiating the ransom, Andrev would join the team and assist where he could.
Having extensively researched the Koslov brothers, and knowing their unbalanced nature, Thane determined that Samantha should act as the leader during the ransom exchange, with Andrev remaining out of sight. Thane was afraid that having one of the Durovs physically present would take away from the impersonal nature of the business, adding a dynamic that could complicate things.
The only catch was getting the Koslovs to agree to having a third-party act as a representative for the family. He would have to rely on Vlad and Andrev to convince them.
Gavriil was known to have a fetish for subduing and punishing strong women, but Samantha was a skilled Domme, and he felt confident she could exploit that to her advantage. Having Captain and Wallace take on subservient roles would make them appear as less of a threat during the potentially volatile exchange.
“You are not to engage,” Thane stated emphatically. “Make it a quick exchange and get Durov the hell out of there. These men are infamous for changing their minds at the flip of a dime and won’t hesitate to kill you if they get spooked.”
“Understood,” Captain replied. “The helicopter will be prepped and ready for takeoff as soon as we have him in our possession.”
Thane appreciated the military background Captain brought to this operation. With Samantha’s command of the Russian language, as well as her quick wit, Thane felt certain she would be able to navigate any unexpected issues that arose during the exchange. As for Wallace, his youth and strength could prove vital if things suddenly went south.
Before the team left, Thane told them, “Durov’s life is not worth one of yours. If it comes to that, leave him behind. Anton would not want you to sacrifice your life for his, and neither would I. You three must come back alive, with or without Durov.”
He saw Samantha balk at his statement and met her gaze. “Do you understand?”
She nodded, but tears filled her eyes.
Thane shook hands with each of them. He wished, with all his heart, that it were he and not them taking this risk for his brother.
To be left behind was almost more than he could bear.
Brie cried as she hugged each person, thanking them through her tears.
When they were alone again in the hospital room, he was overwhelmed with the weight of responsibility he felt for those three, but it was quickly followed by a hope that settled over him like a blanket of protection.
Thane pulled Brie close and kissed her tear-stained cheek, stating confidently, “They will bring him home.”
Lucinda
The silence had been deafening, but necessary, as Thane waited to hear from the rescue party. They had been instructed not to break their silence until all of them were safely out from behind enemy lines.
Thane stared continuously at his phone the day the ransom exchange was scheduled to take place. He and Brie were anxious for it to ring even though they knew there was a possibility the news might be devastating.
There had been several occasions over the course of many weeks when he’d lost that internal connection he’d always felt with Durov. At this point, he could not rely on it, because he refused to accept any other reality than that his brother was alive and returning home.
When the phone finally rang and an unfamiliar Russian number popped up on the screen, Thane felt a moment of panic, afraid of what he would learn. But he picked up the phone to answer it, looking at Brie with confidence he did not feel.
He answered in formal Russian, unsure who was on the other end, “Zdravstvuy?”
Durov’s rich voice filled his ear. “Brother!”
Thane momentarily lost the power of speech. He had not anticipated how deeply hearing his friend’s familiar voice would affect him.
“Durov, is that really you?”
Brie cried out, “Is that Rytsar, Sir?”
“It is I, brother,” Durov confirmed.
Thane’s voice faltered, his tone gravelly as he fought to speak through his many emotions. “Oh, hell… I cannot tell you how good it is to hear your voice again.”
“I feel the same, comrade.”
“Where are you now?”
Brie burst out in excitement, “He’s alive. Oh, my God. Rytsar’s alive!”
Thane’s elation was cut short when Durov said, “Wallace has been injured. We are headed to my physician even as we speak.”
“How bad is he?”
“It is bad, moy droog, but…he will live.”
“Thank God. And you?”
“I will recover, as well.”
Thane tried to relay the news to Brie but she was so thrilled, she grabbed the phone and cried, “Come home to us!”
She handed the phone back to him, tears of happiness running down her face.
Thane told Durov, “I would be there if I could.”
“And I would have kicked your ass if you had come. You have Brie and the babe to look after.”
Thane chuckled, but he could not shake the helplessness he felt. “What do you need me to do?”
“Nothing more, comrade. You have orchestrated a miracle. One I never imagined was possible.”
Thane and Brie were forced to wait for a reunion with him because Durov insisted on remaining there. “What they have done to Wallace was gratuitous and cruel. The Koslov organization is no longer stable, brother. Even among the unlawful, there is a set code of conduct. They must be stopped.”
Durov was determined to take out the Koslov brothers, and both Captain and Samantha were staying in Russia to assist him. Wallace, on the other hand, was returning due to the serious injury he’d sustained.
The only information Thane had was that Wallace was stable and able to travel. Thane bore the responsibility of his fate, having knowingly put him in a situation that was potentially dangerous.
Brie cried when Wallace walked through the door with a sterile gauze bandage covering his left eye. Thane felt a lump in his throat, as he greeted the man.
The loss of an eye should have been his to bear, not Wallace’s.
“Tell us what happened.”
Wallace’s voice was calm as he stated matter-of-factly, “Durov is safe. We all made it out alive. He would have died that day if we hadn’t shown up.”
“Oh, my God!” Brie cried, covering her mouth.
“The Koslovs are as crazy as you said they were,” he told Thane. “Someone had to sacrifice, and I knew it needed to be me.”
“Why you?”
“They would have taken Captain’s eye or killed us all. The decision was clear.”
Thane looked at him with both admiration and remorse.
“Sir Davis, I knew two things when I went to Russia—that something significant was going to happen, and I was meant to be there.”
“It should have been me.”
Wallace snorted, laughing lightly. “You don’t know how many times I’ve said that same thing in my own life. But I don’t feel that way anymore.” He seemed almost surprised by it, and shook his head. “Wow…between my recent visit to Trevor’s grave and Durov’s rescue, I am free of that guilt.” He looked at Brie in wonder. “I am free.”
She wrapped her arms around him, smiling through her tears as she embraced him. “I’m glad.”
It would have been an odd response for a man who had just lost his eye if they hadn’t understood his history and the significance of this moment.
Thane shook Wallace’s hand. “I owe you my gratitude, and you have my utmost respect. You are no longer the young man who came to The Center looking for meaning in your life. It is a rare person who can free themselves from a difficult past, but the potential once they do is limitless.”
“That’s exactly how I feel, and I can’t begin to tell you how incredible it is.”
> “Is there anything we can do? Anyway we can help you, Faelan?” Brie asked.
“Just treat me like you normally would.” Wallace pointed to his face. “I don’t want or need your sympathy.” He glanced at Davis. “I’m certain you understand where I’m coming from.”
“I do,” Thane agreed, “but I also know from experience that you will have low moments. We are here when you need us.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Thane was hit with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude and struggled to speak. “Wallace, thank you for saving him.”
He nodded. “Family.”
Thane received a letter from Lucinda a few days later. He pulled the folded note out of the envelope and opened it up. The handwriting was in large, child-like print with rainbows drawn all around the borders.
Mr. Davis,
You are my hero.
Can I come see you?
Love, Lucinda
He would have preferred to wait until he was fully recovered, not wanting the child to see him as the invalid he was now. However, Thane was unsure how long recovery would take and didn’t feel it was fair to make her wait because of his pride.
There was another element to it. Although he had been told the little girl was doing well since the crash, he needed to have that personal contact to confirm it for himself. Those last seconds together had haunted his dreams every night since he’d awakened from the coma.
Thane had been disturbed to learn that the stewardess, Viola, who had helped the young girl before takeoff, had not been among the survivors. In order to bring closure for everyone, Thane wanted to invite the family of the young woman to join their private reunion.
Picking up the phone, he made a call to Lucinda.
“Hello, this is Thane Davis. I would like to speak to Miss Jefferys.”
“Oh, Mr. Davis, it is such an honor to hear from you,” Dorothy, her mother, gushed. “Let me get my daughter for you.”
There was excited chatter in the background, and then he heard the girl’s shy voice.
“Hello?”
“Miss Jefferys?”