I tilt my head back and look up at the sky. It’s dull. Not a single speck of brightness to be had, which was how I felt. Rubbing my hands up and down my arms, I know I need to escape this.
“I’m tired,” I said, making my excuses.
“You know you can talk to him, don’t you?” Ivan asked.
I glance at Ivan who is still staring. I wonder at times what is going on in his head. He’s always plotting. Always keeping one step ahead of the game.
Talking to Andrei was out of the question. It has always been out of the question. He has his own life.
“I’ll see you at dinner,” I said.
Ivan doesn’t stop me from leaving. I pass so many guards as I make my way to Andrei’s and my sleeping quarters. He’s not here and I’m glad about that.
Sitting down on the edge of the bed, I rest my palms flat on my knees and take a deep breath, then another, and then another. I’m still taking them, trying to calm my nerves, when my cell phone beeps. Pulling it out of my pocket, I’m almost hesitant to look. The last thing I want to see is another picture from Bethany. I promised myself I wouldn’t let anything she said bother me, but how could I be so foolish to think I would get over it? This is my sister we’re talking about. She takes great pleasure in hurting me.
It’s not from Bethany.
Nathan has texted me. I’ve not seen him in quite some time, and I miss my friend with his easy smile and heartwarming words.
Nathan: I need to see you.
Andrei asked me not to have any contact with him. So I haven’t. Leo didn’t approve of me seeing Nathan. I don’t have feelings for my friend. I’m not attracted to him in any way.
Nathan: I have to tell you something. I know what is going on, Adelaide. I can help you.
I doubt very much he can help me. Can he stop me from feeling this way? Can he stop my sister from hurting me?
Adelaide: I can’t talk right now. I’m away with friends. I’ll let you know when I’m back.
I’ll meet him one final time to let him know that I can’t see him. Pushing Andrei’s buttons is not sensible. He might not kill me, but I bet he wouldn’t have any qualms about killing Nathan.
Andrei
I’d never known such a big fuck-up in my entire life as I stared down at the bruised woman that was not Demon’s daughter, Cassie. The plan was simple. While Demon thought he was hurting me and taking out some of the Volkov main warehouses, my men had gone on a mission to extract his precious daughter, Cassie-the Evil Savages MC princess.
What did I get? Lottie, the bastard daughter, the one known to be his, but he never fucking claimed. The one who was constantly left out in the cold because her mother had been a club whore who’d become a rat, so Lottie became known as the Rat’s daughter. She was all but useless to me. Ivan was on his way to me as I watched this young woman. Eighteen fucking years old.
I’d already killed the men responsible for getting me the wrong woman. Lottie looked nothing like her sister Cassie.
Running fingers through my hair, I glance at Terrance who’s been quiet since I killed the two men who were lying in a puddle of their own blood. My thirst to kill was strong. Rage consumed me.
I had no choice but to wait for Ivan, and I don’t even know why he was in town without my knowledge. Ivan always did whatever the fuck he wanted. The usual rules of the Bratva structure didn’t apply to him. He always had a plan in motion, and there was always a reason why he did what he did.
Hands on my hips, I waited. My cell phone beeps, and I see my other little problem is also being taken care of as we speak. I’d deal with that problem after I handle this one.
Of course, Ivan arrives within twenty fucking minutes. I have no idea how he’s able to get to and from wherever he is within such a short amount of time, but he arrives looking collected and calm. I bring him up-to-date.
Lottie is still out completely cold. The tranquilizer we gave her would see her dead to the world until tonight.
“Now this is an interesting turn of events,” Ivan said.
“Do you want me to kill her and dispose of the body?” I asked.
“Why would we do that when we have a far more interesting player?” Ivan moved toward Lottie and crouched down. “Now, my sweet, I didn’t think of you, but this is going to go very nicely indeed.”
I frowned. “She’s not Cassie.”
“You’re right, and that bitch would be difficult to handle. This one … this one is perfect, and don’t you think she will look interesting on Ive’s arm?” Ivan asked.
“What?”
Ivan chuckled. “Move her to secure location. I’ll handle the rest, and I don’t want to see her harmed in any other way, do you understand me?”
There was no point in arguing with him. What Ivan wants, he will get and I’m more than happy to grant it. I nod my head, and he smiles. It’s not nice at all.
Ivan’s the first to leave after I’ve made the necessary arrangements to transport Lottie. I’m not sure she will suit Ive, but I’m not going to criticize that decision. Ivan’s in charge of who we marry. There’s no chance of us making that choice. I’d tried to deal with Bethany, to accept my future with her, and then he handed me Adelaide, and well, I was learning to accept this life with her.
I tell Terrance where to take me, and I sit back, pulling out my cell phone and seeing a text from Leo, telling me that Adelaide is fine. She decided to stay in the apartment. I opened the app and glanced through the cameras, but I don’t find her. I spot Leo in the sitting room, and I don’t have time to question it, as Terrance pulls into the warehouse.
Three men are stationed outside the door, and I climb out of the car, making my way inside to the man currently tied to a chair, bleeding. It’s the best look that son of a bitch has had. He was quite a hard man to track down.
Dragging a chair toward him, I take a seat and stare at him. His face is swollen, but one of his eyes is open.
“I see my men have kept you busy,” I said.
“Fuck you.”
“Let us both save all of our troubles and tell me what a fucking hit man is doing playing friends with my wife?”