Bought by the Bratva (Morozov Bratva #17)

Chapter 22 - Nadia

“Please, Vadik,” I begged. “You promise not to harm any of them, please.”

“Nadia, you knew the deal going in,” he replied shortly.

“I beg you, please. Plus, you said you would get me out. When will that be?” As I completed my question, I heard a movement behind me.

Turning swiftly, I was stunned to see Abram standing in the door. How much has he heard? What did he know? My mind reeled as I disconnected the call.

He glared at me, his eyes narrowing as he stepped towards me. Taking a step back, I felt numb with fear. “Abram,” I breathed out. Instinctively I lifted my hands in defense even though he hadn’t even hinted at hitting me ever.

I was terrified of him. Vadik and my cousins told me many chilling tales of the Dubow men. But until now, I couldn’t see how they could be so dangerous. For a moment, I didn’t recognize the man before me.

“Please, Abram, let me explain,” I said softly, trying to calm him down.

Before I could get another word out, he exploded. “What? What would you like to explain? I heard you clearly! There is nothing to explain, Nadia!”

Placing my hands together, I brought them up to my lips. “If I could just…,” was all I could get out as he cut me off.

“There’s nothing to explain. Nothing you say can fix this,” he breathed, moving closer still.

My heart was pounding at my ribs, my lungs felt drained of all air. Gasping, I stepped back more until I felt the window behind me. There was nowhere to go.

“All of the information you have so sneakily collected was fake! Everything from the start was fake!” Abram spat at me. “You have been sending your stupid family planted intel. They have been chasing their own tails from the start!”

No, my mind screamed. They would kill me if they knew this. It couldn’t be true. I watched Abram walking up and down. He appeared to be huffing and puffing as if fighting with himself. I was sure if steam could come out of one's ears, his head would be fuming.

“Abram…,” I started saying but closed my mouth as he stopped and glared at me.

“No!” he screamed, his voice echoing off the walls. “No, you do not say anything, not a word. I am not done with you.” His chest moved up and down in rapid concessions as he heaved.

As he moved closer to me, I thought I might wet my pants as fear took control of my body. I had never been so frightened in my life.

“Did you hear what I said?” he questioned. His intimidating aura once again came through. Yet, his tone was a tad softer than before.

Nodding, I bit my lower lip so I couldn’t say anything. I didn’t want to upset him more than I already had.

Abram looked at me as he spoke. “From the start, I’ve been playing you. Did you really think for a moment that we didn’t know about your plans? We knew everything. You were the one taken for a fool.”

I watched as he turned and started moving to the door. Then he stopped in his tracks, turning back to me. I wanted him to leave; I wanted to be alone with my pain. I felt sure he didn’t mean all the things he was saying. I knew I had broken his trust. But we could work through it.

If all the intel I had sent was fake, then no one got hurt, and there was hope. “Abram,” I whispered, needing him to understand that I had no choice.

As he looked me up and down, his expression changed. I felt a chill run up my spine as he came towards me. This time, he walked right up to me. We were so close that our noses were almost touching. “You know what the best part of all of this was?” he asked.

Shaking my head softly from side to side, I breathed in deeply.

As he continued, he placed his hand on my cheek. His touch was warm and gentle. I longed for more as I closed my eyes. “You have been my fiddle to play as I wanted. And believe me, I have done a marvelous job at playing you. So much so that you actually fell for me, didn’t you?”

His words crushed my heart, and I wanted him to take it all back. I wanted the man I got to know. I believed he was somewhere inside. It couldn’t all be a lie.

“Your heart races every time we touch. Your stomach flutters when we kiss,” he breathed out over my lips.

Opening my eyes, I knew it was all true, and I wanted him to kiss me. Lifting my hand to his cheek, I wanted it all to be a bad nightmare.

Abram pulled his face back slightly. He stared deep into my eyes as he spoke again. “You are foolish if for one moment you thought I felt anything for you but contempt. I never liked you. It was all an act to get you to open up. You fell for it all.”

Gasping for air, I felt my world crumbling, shattering to pieces. I was sure he could see the aching that surged through me as my eyes filled with tears.

Abram stepped back and stopped halfway across the room. His tone was filled with bitterness as he spoke. “You are a little mouse, and this cat has been toiling with you. I played with you to see how far you would go. But you know what? You have been caught.”

He turned but stopped. I watched as Abram stood halfway to the door with his head down. His shoulders lifted and lowered as he breathed. I slowly started walking towards him. I had to know if all he said was true.

Before I could touch his shoulder, he glanced at me and stormed to the door. “I need to make a call! Stay here; I’ll be back,” he barked at me as he slammed the door shut.

Abram had left me in the spare room, which had been my salvation from the world many times during my stay with him. I didn’t know how long he would be gone.

Looking out the window, I realized that I had been a fool. My tears burned my skin as they ran down my face. The world outside was a blur. I knew I had to get out. I had to escape before he killed me.

My heart was shattered. I couldn’t even think straight. Wandering into the bathroom, I rinsed my face. Sitting down on the edge of the tub, I hugged myself as more tears pushed up. Gulping at the air around me, I tried to fill my scorching lungs.

I fell for it all. He played me from the start. I was a fool thinking a man like him could love a woman like me. Moving back to the basin, I rubbed my face with cool water from the tap. Looking up at my reflection, I spoke harshly to the woman staring back. “Get a grip, you need to get out now.”

Swallowing hard, I felt my throat hurting as the boulder didn’t want to move. But I knew I had to. I quickly went into the bathroom. Grabbing a small bag, I collected only what was mine. I was relieved to see that everything I had brought with me was still hanging in the closet.

I wasn’t sure if Abram was home or not. Since he left the room, the house has been quiet. There was no sound as I peeked out the door. I quietly moved out of the room and down the stairs. I wondered if the guards knew what had happened. Would they stop me if they saw me leaving?

Not wanting to take a chance, I tried to stay out of anyone’s way. I checked for any movement as I opened the door leading to the backyard. The guards weren’t on rotation. That meant they should all be in their usual places.

Stepping out into the cool evening air, I moved between the trees. I stopped as I heard some guards talking up ahead. My heart was beating in my throat. I breathed slower, trying to quiet my heaving. Luckily, they didn’t stand long. I heard their voices disappearing into the night air as they moved away.

I waited until I couldn’t hear them any longer before moving again. It didn’t take me too long to find a way out of the yard. This was probably the only good thing that came from being on my own most of my life. I had learned how to get in and out of places. It was one thing my cousins had instilled, the art of sneakiness.

Glancing back, I ran. I had to ensure I placed as much distance between them and me before anyone noticed I was gone. Once I couldn’t see the mansion or any lights, I slowed down a bit. My muscles were burning and my chest felt like a fire was made inside it.

I walked in the bushes along the side of the road. I didn’t want to be seen but also hoped to hitch a ride should someone come along. I felt sure I would be able to know if it was him or his men.

They would most likely be coming from behind me, so I kept an eye in that direction. I couldn’t be discovered or followed. As I moved, I scolded myself for taking such a risk. Look what happened. I placed myself into this mess. I felt like slapping myself or walking up to one of the trees and banging my head against it.

Yet, if someone had to see that, I would most likely end up in a mental institute. It was bad enough that I was walking around and arguing with myself. After what felt like miles and miles, I saw a bus stop. Running up to it, I looked for a schedule. I couldn’t see one, so I sat for a moment, hoping one would pitch soon.

After a while, I got up and looked up and down the long stretch of road. There were no vehicles and no buses. Throwing my hands into the air, I screamed out loud. “Come on, really. I need a bus.”

Turning, I noticed the payphone on the other side of the bus stop. It was half hidden behind a tree and in the shadows, making it harder to spot. Rushing over, I looked at the coins I had in my pocket. It should be enough to make a quick call, I thought as I popped them into the slot.

The phone rang and rang. I was about to give up when Pavel’s voice came across the line. “Yes, hello.”

“Pavel,” I whispered, looking back in the direction I came from.

“Nadia?” he questioned loudly.

“Yes, I need to get out. I’ve been made. I ran away, but someone must come get me before they find me,” I added, feeling scared and cold.

“Okay, okay, where are you?” he asked.

Once I gave him the bus stop number, he hung up. Luckily, I didn’t have to wait too long. My cousins drove pretty fast. Hiding behind the bus stop waiting, my heart still felt heavy. His words kept playing on repeat in my mind.

I waited just over an hour for my cousins. My heart was heavy, and my head ached from all the crying. But as they pulled up, I was slightly relieved in a way to be going home.