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Chapter 16
Misha
Abbie struggles like a wild cat against Alek’s hold while Armani and I tie her to a chair.
“Looks like you like it rough,” Alek taunts her, and I notice his hands are digging hard into her biceps.
“Fucker,” Abbie spits at him, her eyes lit with fire.
“She’s restrained,” Armani mutters, clearly bored with the exercise. Alek chuckles darkly, “Let’s see if you can free yourself.”
Abbie strains against the ropes as if it will help her get loose.
Losing interest, I glance toward the yakuza. There’s no sign of the fuckers or Aurora.
“Baby, if you don’t free yourself, you’re shitting, eating, and sleeping here,” Alek taunts Abbie.
Something tells me to walk toward the crates, and as I take a step, Armani asks, “Where are you going?”
Not answering his question, I head to the back of the warehouse. I come across Seijo and Takaharu, where they’re chilling and smoking.
“Where’s Kazuo?” I ask.
Seijo shakes his head at me, then asks, “You looking for the girl?” He tilts his head. “Is that why you beat me up?”
Giving him a look of warning not to fuck with me, I walk deeper into the crates. If the fuckers think I’m interested in Aurora, they might hurt her to get back at me for the beating I gave Seijo.
There’s a feeling in my gut that something’s wrong, and I pause between two crates to listen.
I hear Abbie cursing at Alek, the Albanians laughing at whatever they’re doing to the twins, but nothing else.
I don’t hear Aurora.
Following my gut, I move deeper into the maze of crates, and turning left, I see Kazuo leaning against a crate, but there’s no sign of Aurora.
It takes a moment for me to realize what’s going on.
“Did you put her in a crate?” I snap as I stalk toward him.
Kazuo steps forward, giving me an annoyed look. “Fuck off, Petrov.”
I grab the front of his shirt and yank him closer to me. “Where. Is.
She?”
His lips curl up in a cruel grin, then he waves across the crates. “I can’t remember.”
Before I can think things through, my fist slams into his face.
He fucking shoved Aurora into a crate. She’s claustrophobic!
As Kazuo staggers back, I tighten my hold on his shirt, yank him to me and let my fist crash against his jaw.
The blow is so hard it knocks him unconscious. I let go of the fucker, then call out, “Aurora!”
I try to rip a crate open, but it’s impossible without a crowbar.
Blyadʹ!
“What the fuck?” Armani says as he comes around a crate with Seijo and Takaharu right behind him. He spots Kazuo knocked out on the floor, then mutters, “Christ. Not again.”
Armani spins around just as Seijo and Takaharu jump into action. He kicks Seijo back and slams the flat of his hand against Takaharu’s chest, forcing him to stagger back until he falls on his ass.
“Alek!” I shout. “I need a crowbar.”
Darting forward, I take Takaharu while Armani focuses on Seijo. “What the hell is going on here?” Instructor Yelena snaps.
All four of us freeze, and Kazuo lets out a groan as he rolls his head from left to right.
“They shoved Aurora into a crate,” I explain.
“So?” Instructor Yelena glares at me. “Let the woman figure things out by herself.”
“She’s fucking claustrophobic.”
“Still. She has to do this on her own,” Instructor Yelena argues.
Alek comes running around a stack of crates with a crowbar. I grab it from him and start to pry open the crate Kazuo was leaning against.
A harrowing scream from Aurora has me working faster, and when I flip the front panel off, it’s to see her collapse against the side.
“Khristos!” Crouching, I push my arms beneath her body and lift her out of the fucking box. My heart is beating a mile a minute as I lay her on the floor, then I check if she’s breathing.
Her breaths are way too shallow and fast.
“Come on, moy malen’kiy olen’, open your eyes,” I bite the words out.
Her face is ghostly pale, and when her eyelashes flutter, I snap, “Wake up, Aurora.”
As she comes to, her breaths are incredibly fast, and when her eyes open, they’re dark with panic and fear.
Just like that night.
“Breathe, moy malen’kiy olen’.”
Her whole body shudders, and she starts to sob uncontrollably as she struggles into a sitting position. Her hand claws at her chest, and she shakes her head wildly.
I pull her to me, and once we’re face to face, I let my breath fan over her quivering lips. It worked once, and I’m praying it will work again.
Our eyes lock, hers filled with terror and mine with determination. “Breathe,” I growl the order, willing her to listen.
She sucks in a painful-sounding breath, and it makes me want to kill every single member of the yakuza.
“That’s it. Breathe with me,” I murmur while I bring a hand to her face, cupping her cheek.
As soon as she gets enough air in her lungs, a broken sob bursts from
her.
Not giving a flying fuck that I’ll get in trouble, I lift Aurora bridal style
into my arms and carry her out of the warehouse.
“What happened?” Abbie shrieks from where she’s still tied to the chair.
Aurora whimpers through a sob as she curls closer to me, her arms wrapping tightly around my neck.
“Shh… you’re okay,” I say as I step into the hallway and head for my suite.
My heart is still pounding against my ribs as if it’s trying to get to Aurora.
None of what’s happening around me registers, there’s only the woman in my arms.
The past weeks I’ve had to train her have been downright torture. I’ve had to fight my feelings for her constantly, and the fucking emotions just kept growing.
Every time she accomplishes something, my chest fills with pride.
Whenever she struggles, my protective side wants to jump in and help. I’m forced to spend every day with her, and at night she’s in my dreams. She’s driving me insane.
Reaching my suite, I lower her feet to the floor and let her lean against me while I dig the keycard from my pocket. The moment I have the door open, I move her into the room and kick the door shut behind me.
My arms wrap around Aurora as she cries uncontrollably.
“You’re going to be okay,” I say, hoping the words will calm her down.
Suddenly she pushes away from me, shaking her head as she covers her mouth with a trembling hand. She walks toward the window before changing direction and heading back to me.
Only when she moves past me do I realize she’s going for the door. “No!” I grab hold of her and pull her toward my bedroom.
“L-let g-g-go.”
She struggles against my hold, but I drag her into the room without much effort. I shut the door and lock it, shoving the key in my pocket.
“Why?” she shouts as she yanks free from my hold.
I don’t have an answer, I only know I can’t let her leave. Dodging the question, I say, “You need to calm down.”
Her eyes start to burn with anger as they lock with mine. “Calm down?” she gasps. “I’ve been going through hell since I got here, and on top of that, I have to deal with your shitty attitude. And then…” her face crumbles, and she closes her eyes before she forces the words out with a strained voice, “And then I get locked in a crate.” She shakes her head. “I’ve had enough. I can’t do this.”
“You can,” I bark, my tone unreasonably harsh.
She can’t give up.
She wraps her arms around her middle, and stepping closer to the door, she demands, “Unlock it.”
“No.”
“Misha!” she screams with so much desperation I almost lose my mind.
The wild look in her eyes makes worry pour into my heart, and not knowing how to calm her down, I do the only thing I can think of. I step forward and wrap my arms around her, squashing her to my chest.
“Let g-go,” she cries as she strains against my hold.
I practically engulf her body with mine, and knowing I’ll hurt her if I tighten my arms to keep her from breaking free, I say, “Please stop. Just for a minute. Catch your breath.”
Aurora’s fingers fist in my shirt, and her body convulses as a silent cry rips through her.
The sight brings me to my knees, and I slump down onto the polished tiles, pulling her into my lap so I can cradle her.
“Just breathe, moy malen’kiy olen’.”
Finally, she stops struggling, and I feel the fight drain from her body as she leans against me.
“Good,” I praise her. “Let me just hold you.”
Christ, will I be able to let her go?
Every time something happens to her, I lose my shit.
How long will I keep lying to myself? Yes, we’re enemies, but I can’t make my heart stop caring about her.
Caring?
Ha, you passed caring weeks ago.
My arms tighten around her, and I press my mouth to her hair, taking a deep breath of her floral scent.
Fuck.