The Promise (Darkest Lies Trilogy Book 2) by Bethany-Kris (fiction book recommendations .txt) 📕

shoulder out of socket after a fall from his dirt bike and wouldn’t stop fidgeting long enough for the doctor to get a good grip. His father’s low bark of that order was just what was needed to still Roman long enough for the doctor to do the deed.

Painfully, of course.

That was the thing.

Roman really liked to avoid pain. Just because he could handle it, didn’t mean he could stand it. Not always.

After the doctor was done with his examination, he was given a list of instructions on how to handle the concussion. Roman nodded his head along with whatever the man said, resisting his nature to be an asshole, instead trying his best to speed up the process.

“And most importantly, you need to rest,” the doctor said to him sternly, and then looked over his shoulder at Demyan .

Who, surprise, surprise, nodded in agreement.

As if that bullshit was going to happen. Things needed to be done now. That much was clear. Karine had to be protected first. They were already running out of time if the two things Dima knew for certain was Roman’s location, and the fact he had Karine.

Roman could rest when Dima was eliminated.

The doctor and nurses shuffled out of the room eventually, prompting Roman to stand from the wheelchair immediately. At least he was able to do that now, and he’d all but refused to get into the bed.

“You heard the doctor, son, you need to rest,” Demyan said, stepping forward.

Roman reached for the jacket his father held out to him. The one thing that had managed to make it out of the wreckage of his car other than him.

“I’m sure we can find somewhere for you to rest for the night if—”

Roman had been too focused on struggling through the pain of shrugging on his jacket, but those words from his father stopped him up. “Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Rome—”

The affectionate nickname only pissed Roman off more, and he shook his head. “No. Dima is here. For Karine. We need to get her out of the lodge—hell, out of Vermont. I don’t trust her being this far away from us.”

“From you, you mean.”

God.

What did it matter?

Roman’s rage spilled through his heart, red and hot. “I’m not going to find a place to sleep tonight and hope he’s not already one mile closer to her.”

That didn’t seem to interest his father, maybe that should have been Roman’s first clue something else was more important, and he just hadn’t figured it out yet.

“But why did Dima come to you—practically alone?” Demyan asked, making Roman pause before he shoved his left arm into the jacket with a wince. “Who came with him? Where is Leonid? His father has taken over the Chicago bratva. If anyone from that organization wants to speak to me, it should be him. As far as I’m concerned, Dima is fucking nobody. Think about it, that was a bold move for him to do that here like he did. The way he did, Roman.”

He was hearing his father, sure, but he didn’t care to listen. That was the difference. Only one thing mattered to Roman, and it wasn’t Dima’s fucking games. It was Dima himself. That was the big problem here.

“So he’s feeling bold—who fucking cares? It’s only a matter of time before they find Karine in Vermont. We need to move her. Now.”

“We only have one piece of a very confusing puzzle. Don’t you think before we go making any rash decisions, we should find out more? Getting answers to some of these questions could help, Roman. Leonid could have just as easily requested to speak to me himself, and we would have at least pretended to have a civilized conversation first. It’s bullshit semantics—yes, but it’s how it’s done.”

Demyan’s brows furrowed in his thoughts, and it pissed Roman off like nothing else that his father wasn’t hearing him first.

Roman glared at the others in the room, growling under his breath, “Get out. Now. Leave us alone.”

That caught Demyan’s attention, making him meet his son’s eye. However, he didn’t protest the demand, and the two of them waited in silence until every other person in the room was gone. They were finally alone.

It took every ounce of focus and strength he had to stay balanced, and not let the pain stabbing throughout his body take control, but Roman did it. He had to. “I need you to hear what I’m saying. Karine has to be moved. Dima wasn’t fucking around tonight. She isn’t safe out there, with three bulls watching over the whole property. It’s only a matter of time before they find her.”

Demyan stared at his son, then nodded. “I hear you, and I also know she’s as safe there tonight as she was today ... otherwise, I doubt the first move Dima would have made was to accost you on the highway, Roman. It seems like you haven’t heard me, no? Something’s not right here.”

“Nothing is fucking right here. If what he did to me was a warning, what will he do to Karine if he can get his hands on her?”

“That’s exactly where my question lies,” Demyan continued, before moving to grab the wheelchair as Roman started to fall backward. His father said nothing as he rested into the chair, and his swimming vision cleared. “It doesn’t make sense to do what he did—not if you consider we have business between our organizations. It was just violence. Just for the girl. Why?”

“Because Dima is a fucking lunatic.” Roman managed through clenched teeth as he massaged the pad of his thumb hard into his temple to relieve the pressure there.

“I don’t think that’s it. I think they’re hiding something, and we need to find out what it is.”

“We can work on finding out all their secrets, if you want to waste your time, but we need to keep Karine safe, first.”

Demyan narrowed his eyes at his son. “Karine will never be safe. The two of you will spend the rest