Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Katya
The moment Alek says that he wants to marry me, I know my life is no longer mine.
“But I don’t want to marry you,” I respond on instinct.
The smell of copper is strong in the air from the dead bodies in the foyer.
Alek’s other guests who survived are all running out the front door, clearly freaked out after he killed Travis right in front of everyone.
He’s a man who doesn’t seem to care what people think of him.
He’s a man who just wants what he wants.
And right now, he wants me.
“You don’t really get a choice in the matter,” he says, cupping my face. “From the first second I saw you today, I knew you had to be mine. It’s the only way I’m going to truly hurt Dimitri. Claiming you as my own will break him down. It will be so sweet.”
“Please,” I begin to cry. “I don’t want this. You scare me.”
“No. I push you. You’re a girl who’s been locked away her entire life. Now is your chance to become a woman.” He drops his hands. “Now. I have to deal with this fucking mess your brother gave me. I’m going to bring you back to the cage for now. Just to make sure you don’t go anywhere.”
Alek picks me up bridal style before I can react and carries me past the dead bodies and to the basement. I press my face against his neck. The sight of the dead bodies is too much. I can sense Alek is smiling. He likes that I need him.
But it’s not him I need. It’s my room. It’s my safety. It’s my family.
The moment Alek sets me down in the cage, I feel like I can breathe again. No people around me. No open spaces. Just me and this cage.
I sink down and wince when my backside touches the ground. It still hurts after the spanking Alek gave me… the one in front of all of his guests. That was the most humiliating thing I’ve ever experienced and yet, it did help calm me down. The whole thing was confusing.
Alek closes the cage door and locks it. “I’ll come back in a bit. I know how much this cage calms you. Just rest.” He speaks to me in a way that seems comforting but how can my kidnapper be comforting? None of this makes any sense.
It’s been such a long day that the moment I lay down, even on the hard floor, I manage to fall asleep in an instant.
Alek
It doesn’t take long to clean up the bodies. I call one of my men, Sam, who comes and takes care of it for me. I have to fight the urge to storm over to Dimitri’s house and kill him. That’s probably what he wants from me. Get me enraged and expose myself and he’ll get the chance to kill me.
That’s not going to happen.
Instead, I go over to Maria’s house since I know she can help calm me down.
“Alek, what is it?” she asks after she opens the door and ushers me inside. I catch a glimpse of myself in the foyer mirror and see how crazy my eyes look.
“Just at war with Dimitri. Nothing unusual.”
“But you’re all right?”
“I’m standing right here, aren’t I?”
She rolls her eyes like I’m an annoying younger brother. “Just because you’re physically fine doesn’t mean you’re actually fine.”
“I just had to come here. This place always calms me down. Helps me orient my thoughts.”
“Of course. I can make us some tea.”
“Actually, I want to talk to Nina and Susanna. I have an idea for them.”
“I’ll go get them.” She heads upstairs while I settle on the couch in the front living room.
Pictures of Maria and Gregor and the girls are all over the walls and mantle of the fireplace.
This was a home filled with love until Gregor died.
It’s gotten colder since then. The girls have gotten more cold since the death of their father.
Nina and Susanna join their mom in the living room.
“You needed something?” Susanna asks, looking like she wants to be anywhere else than here.
“Sit. Let’s talk.”
Nina sits down beside me while Susanna takes the chair furthest away. She always had more of an attitude than Nina, though Nina is no saint herself.
Maria gives me a curious look. “What’s going on?”
“I am getting married.”
All the air leaves the room. The three women exchange looks.
“Married?” Nina asks in her softer voice. “To who?”
“We didn’t even know you were seeing anybody,” Maria adds.
“Who would you want to marry?” Susanna asks. “You never date.”
“I date. I just don’t bring women around here if it’s not serious.”
Susanna blushes and furrows her brow. At sixteen, she’s still so young and innocent but thinks she knows everything there is to know about in this world. It’s a dangerous combination.
“Who is she?” Nina asks.
“Her name is Katya Ivanov.”
Nina and Susanna stare at me blanky but it’s Maria who has a reaction. “Katya Ivanov? That name seems familiar…”
“She’s Dimitri Ivanov’s sister.”
Maria’s eyes practically bulged out of her head. “His… sister?”
“What’s wrong?” Susanna demands as her and Nina look between me and their mom.
“No one has seen his sister in… years!”
“Well, she’s mine now. I’m going to marry her. And I need your help.” I turn to Nina and Susanna. “I want you girls to go wedding dress shopping with her. I think it would be a fun idea.”
“No,” Susanna says point blank.
I frown. “No? Why not?”
“Because we don’t even know this woman. And you expect us to just be ok with you getting married?”
“Did you think I would remain single all my life?”
“No,” she grumbles, looking away from me, her arms crossed. So much attitude in such a small package.
“We just weren’t expecting this,” Nina says, the calmer of the two of them.
“Neither was I,” Maria adds. “Alek, are you thinking straight? How did you… meet Dimitri’s sister?” She flicks her eyes at her daughters, not wanting them to know the full truth. Because Maria knows I took Katya illegally and she doesn’t want to ruin my reputation with her daughters.
“We just did,” I say pointedly. “No need to know all the details. Now, Katya and I are going to get married.”
“How long have you known her for?” Susanna asks.
“A day.”
She blinks before she scoffs. “A day? Are you being for real? You’re going to marry a woman you’ve only known for a day?”
“When you know, you know. And I know Katya is going to be my wife. End of discussion. I didn’t come here to get your approval. I came here to share the news with all of you.”
Maria places her hand over her chest. “It’s just a surprise is all.”
“I’m sure it is. But Katya will be my wife and I need you three on board. Once we’re married, she’ll be coming around more and you’ll be coming over more as well. Katya is only a few years older than you two are. I thought you could become friends.”
Susanna wrinkles her nose. “You’re marrying someone only a few years older than us? But aren’t you my mom’s age?”
“No. I’m much younger than your mom. I’m thirty-eight. Your mom is fifty-five.”
“And how old is… Katya?” Nina asks, hesitating on her name.
“She’s twenty-one.”
“That’s disgusting,” Susanna blurts out.
“Susanna,” Maria scolds but Susanna isn’t listening. She’s never been one for listening.
“How is it disgusting?” I ask.
“Because she’s so much younger than you. Why would you marry someone like that? Someone who likes old men?”
“I’m not old,” I say, trying not to get offended. “It’s just that you’re so young. You don’t realize that these things don’t matter when you get older. Yes, Katya is younger than me. But she is an adult, just like I am. And I am going to marry her. And I want you girls on board.”
“I’m not sure…” Nina says while Susanna gives me a flat look and point blank says, “No.”
I raise an eyebrow. “No?”
“No.”
“No? You can’t just say no without an explanation.”
“No, I am not ok with any of this. You meet this girl just yesterday –,”
“Today actually.”
Susanna blinks. “Fine. Today. And now you’re going to marry her? How are we supposed to be ok with this? You’ve been a father to us for years now. Is she going to be a new mommy to us?”
“No. You have your mother. No one is going to replace Maria.”
“So why don’t you just marry our mom then?”
Nina’s eyes widen at her sister’s question.
I look between the two of them. “Did you two really think me and Maria would get married someday?”
“Oh girls,” Maria says, sighing. “Alek is like a brother to me. That will never change. And I have no desire to get married ever again, especially to someone younger than me.”
“Alek doesn’t have a problem marrying someone younger than him,” Susanna grumbles.
“Enough,” I snap, though she just rolls her eyes. Susanna has always been someone I’ve never been able to get under my control. Nina has always been easier, though when she’s around her younger sister, she can become a menace herself.
“Listen to Alek,” Maria advises.
Susanna uncrosses her arms and shrugs so exaggeratedly that only a teenage girl would be capable of it.
“Why should we? He’s going to marry a girl so much younger than him after only meeting her today.
I don’t want her a part of this family. I don’t want to have to pretend to be friends with her just because we’re closer in age than she is to Alek. I don’t want part of this.”
“Nina?” I ask, looking at her.
She sighs. “My sister is right. This isn’t ok. We don’t want this. Our family works. Us, Mom, and you. We don’t want someone new entering into it.”
So, they’re going to stand as a united force against me. Not surprising. I figured they wouldn’t take this well but I was hoping it would have gone slightly better.
“I understand what you two are saying. And I love you both. You’re always going to be like daughters to me. That will never change. But this is happening. I am marrying Katya.”
“When?” Susanna demands.
“I haven’t picked a day yet but soon. Very soon. Like in a week or so.”
Her eyes bug out of her head as she pushes herself to her feet. “No! In a week? You can’t be serious.”
“I am very serious.” My tone speaks to no arguments. Nina shifts around in her seat, knowing that they shouldn’t push me but Susanna has no qualms about it.
“Then I am not going to the wedding.”
“You will be there. Even if I have to drag you there myself.”