VERA
I freeze in a state of panic as Andrei hits the floor. His blood paints the tiled floor a deep red. Before I can rush to him, the
man who shot him grabs me around the waist and lifts me off the floor.
A flurry of gunshots rings out, and I glance out of the window, noticing three men I recognize from Andrei’s home. I try to fight against him, kicking and screaming. “Who the fuck are you?” I shout. Desperate to be released so I can get back to Andrei.
He doesn’t respond, speaking in Russian to one of the other men. They say they’ve got what they came for and that their boss will be pleased. I wonder whether Igor was behind this. He told me he would come for Andrei within a week if I hadn’t completed my task. It has been a week.
It would be the only reason they’d snatch me.
Does that mean Andrei is dead?
Numbness spreads through my flesh like a disease. He can’t be dead. It would kill me if he were. The man holding me rushes out of the cabin and bundles me into the back of a blacked-out SUV.
Before I have a moment to even try the door, the vehicle is speeding away from the cabin and away from Andrei. I hope his men get to him in time to save his life. The alternative isn’t worth thinking about. I sit in the back of the vehicle for what feels like hours.
A few attempts to shout at the men at the front and demand to know where we are going have been unsuccessful. All I can think about is Andrei.
He could be dead for all I know. The lump in my throat hurts too much and my chest aches. The SUV comes to a stop in an industrial site on the outskirts of the city.
One man opens the door to the car, and yanks me out. I grunt and try to writhe against him, but he’s too strong. He picks me up and carries me into the warehouse, taking a left and forcing me into a plain, dark office.
He pushes me into a hard, plastic seat in front of a rotten, wooden desk. “Wait here,” the man who dragged me in here barks, marching out of the room and slamming the door shut behind him.
I glance around the room, trying to get a sense of who has me. I’ve got a good idea who has captured me, but Andrei has many enemies.
Andrei.
My stomach twists with nausea as I remember him lying in a pool of blood. They’d shot him in the shoulder and chest. In a short space of time he means something to me. The first man I ever slept with or even got close enough to care about.
Is Andrei dead?
The sound of door opening draws my attention. As expected, my uncle, Igor, is standing in the doorway. The look in his eyes sends a shiver down my spine. He’s angry that I haven’t killed Andrei.
“Hello, Vera,” he says, walking to sit behind his desk. He steeples his fingers on top of it and glares at me. “I wish I could congratulate you on your success, but it seems you forgot the reason you were bought by Andrei.”
“I did not forget.”
“Then why did my men see you snuggling close to him when they arrived this morning?”
“It’s called acting,” I say, setting my jaw tight. If my uncle learns I betrayed him, he will kill me. “I had to make him pay for their death, just killing him isn’t enough.”
He tuts and taps his fingers against the desk. “I told you to take his life swiftly.”
I let my eyes sink to the desk and try to play my part. “I know, uncle. It’s hard to accept that a swift killing is enough suffering for the suffering he has inflicted on me.”
He nods his head. “I understand. It seems he has grown an attachment to you, and this could play to our advantage. My man was as unsuccessful as you were and I have punished him for that.”
I don’t glance up, keeping still and unmoving. Andrei is alive. The relief I feel is monumental. A fluttering in my tummy ignites, and warmth thaws the numbness that had inflicted me. “What is it you need me to do?”
He clears his throat. “I assume you had a plan when you were seducing him?”
I nod my head, meeting his gaze. “Yes, sir. I intended to make him believe I cared for him, before hurting him. The blow would be far more painful that way.”
My uncle smiles. “I taught you well… too well.”
I return the smile, despite the sickness twisting my gut. Return me to him, and I will make the man who killed my parents pay. It’s clear that all this time I’ve been blind to the truth. Andrei didn’t kill my parents, Igor did.
He kept hit them when I was out, as I’d be the easiest to manipulate. The youngest girl-the emotional one-who would do anything to avenge her family. My brother and sister never would have fallen for it.
How was I so blind?
Now that I consider it, it makes perfect sense. Igor is the only person who benefitted once my family died. He took over as pakhan to the Saint Petersburg brotherhood. All the power and money went to him.
Why would Andrei want to kill my family?
He wouldn’t have gained anything. All this time I’ve believed every word my uncle said, but not anymore. I won’t let him use me. I won’t rest until he has suffered.
“How is everything back home?” I ask, keeping my tone light. “Are my cousins, Anna and Tiana, well?” I ask, referring to his daughters.
His eyes flash at the mention of his daughters. “Everything is fine at home,” he snaps. “Your cousins look forward to being reunited with you once you’ve completed your task.” His left eyes twitches, and I know he is not telling the truth about my cousins. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone has harmed them, or are dead.
He never cared for them as a father should, not like my father. My dad was more paternal toward Igor’s daughters than he ever was. “We intend to get you back into the Petrov household tomorrow morning.” He stands for his chair. “When you return, you will tell them you escaped from captured and made it back to the city.”
I nod my head. “Yes, uncle.”
He sets a device in my hand. “We will listen to every single word, Vera, so do not fuck this up.”
“I won’t let you down, uncle.”
It’s important to make sure he doesn’t know that my allegiance has changed. If he catches on, I’ll be dead and so will Andrei.
“I need to equip you with some better weapons, follow me.” He walks out of the room, and I trail behind him.
If it wasn’t for the fact I’m outnumbered here, I would strangle the life out of him right now. Naive is the only way to describe what I was when he convinced me that Andrei Petrov killed them.
A man who may have a ruthless persona and who won’t shy away from doing what’s necessary, but deep down has a heart of gold. A part of him he showed to me, despite my attempt on his life.
I’m desperate to get back to him and make sure he’s okay. He may not be dead, but he was shot twice. I was certain he was dead when I saw the bullet hit him in the chest, before Igor’s men dragged me away from him. If it hadn’t been for Andrei’s men arriving when they did, he would be dead.
* * *
Igor’s men have deposited me near to Andrei’s home. I recognize nothing, but they are sure Andrei and his men will find me.
They have left me in a small, but pleasant park. Instead of moving around, I opt to take a seat in the center of the park. A few kids play on the swings nearby.
My uncle was certain they’d find me, since they have been out searching for me today. I feel like I’m on a knife edge, unsure what to do. If I make a mistake, I’ll end up being the one who gets cut. I’ve got to play this right.
Andrei is the one telling the truth in this situation. He’s kind and caring, nothing like the man my uncle described him to be. It was all a ruse to make me believe he was the killer.
Igor knew that if I found out he killed them, I wouldn’t rest until he was dead.
A pair of hands land on my shoulders, and I’m hoisted to my feet. I writhe out of the man’s grip, turning to glaring at him. His peppered gray hair is dark and messy and he has tattoos scrolling up his neck and arms. I recognize him from Andrei’s place.
“Vera, come with me please,” he says, eyes narrowing.
“Who are you?” I ask.
He steps forward. “Demetri, one of Andrei’s men.”
I observe him for a moment, unsure whether to trust him of not. “Are you going to take me back to him?”
He nods his head. “Yes, he has asked us to find you.” He closes his hand around my arm, pulling me toward him. “It is best that you don’t deny Andrei Petrov. He can be ruthless to anyone who denies him.”
I play along, letting him drag me out of the park. “Okay, I can walk you know.” I hold my hand in the air. He need not drag me back to Andrei, I’d sprint to him.
Demetri lets go of me, but stays close. “No use running, as I’ll only catch you.”
I give him a nod and fall into step in front of him, accepting that he will encroach on my personal space until we’re behind locked doors.
What he doesn’t know is I’d never run.
The moment I had sex with Andrei, I knew this wasn’t pure lust. Our connection is deep, even if it makes no fucking sense. I was supposed to kill him. That is what I had intended to do when he bought me at that auction and took me home.
It makes me sick to the stomach, as I remember the way I watched him sleep, holding that razor over his throat.
What has my uncle turned me into?
Before my family died, I wouldn’t even consider hurting a fly, let alone a person. He wielded my grief as a weapon and warped me into someone I no longer recognize.
The man I was supposed to kill has stolen my heart. A heart I believed was too broken to function again, but for the first time since I lost my family, I feel human. My uncle thought he had the perfect plan, what he didn’t bargain for was that he’d thrust me into the arms of my soul mate.
The numbness easing as Andrei’s warmth and kindness thaws my ice-cold exterior. With Andrei, it feels like I might have a future-a chance. A chance I never expected to have again.