Chapter 27 – Scarlett
I sat strapped to a chair with my hands bound behind my back, the ropes biting into my skin. My heart was racing in my chest as I watched the white suited man smoking in front of me.
He hadn’t said anything since he walked into this dimly lit room with his armed men, and his silence only worsened my situation. I sat there, helpless, completely at the mercy of this mean-faced man.
Once again, I was tangled in a dangerous web of something I knew nothing about. I was sure the only reason I was kidnapped was because of the Tarasov last name. This man obviously had a beef with Roman, and instead of taking out his fury on him, he decided to take it out on me.
“Why are you doing this to me?” I summoned the courage to ask, my voice low and almost hopeless.
His lips curled into a mischievous grin. “Finally, she speaks.”
My eyes squinted, wondering if he’d been expecting me to start a conversation.
He rose from the chair he’d been sitting in across the room and let out a puff of smoke. With slow steps, he approached me, his shoes scuffing menacingly across the floor.
“Listen, you’ve got the wrong girl, okay?” I said, trying to mask my fear.
“Wrong girl?” He halted in front of me. “I think not, Mrs. Tarasov.”
I swallowed hard, biting the inside of my mouth. “Look, I don’t want anything to do with that family. How do you think Mia was able to deceive me?” I paused for a moment. “It’s because I was desperate to run away from that monster.”
“She’s lying, Boss,” one of his men chipped in from behind.
“No, I swear, I’m not.” I glanced back at him, my voice laced with desperation.
“Yes, you are,” the man in white said, nodding his head. “I think you’re trying to save your own skin. Pathetic.”
Pathetic?
My face twisted into a frown, offended by the condescension in his tone. His words insinuated that I was weak and was the kind of woman to easily turn on her husband. Somehow, that sparked something dangerous inside me—dangerous enough to make me fantasize about slitting his throat.
As much as I hated to admit it, he was right—denying Roman was pathetic, and it made me look weak. Yes, my husband was a prick, a fuckin’ pain in the ass. But I was still a Tarasov, and I shouldn’t let the enemy prey on my vulnerability.
And just like that, my countenance shifted from fear to something darker.
“You know what’s pathetic?” I asked in a flat tone, with a blank expression. “Kidnapping a helpless woman just to get back at a man you can’t beat in hand-to-hand combat.”
The room fell silent, and I could see the shock on his men’s faces. For the next few seconds, nobody said a word, just radio silence.
He bent over, hands on his knees, as he glared at me with fire in his eyes. If that was an attempt to terrify me, then he had something else coming because his glare wasn’t even half as intimidating as Roman’s.
“You’ve got a sharp tongue, don’t you?” he asked, leaning closer to mirror my face. “I suggest you bridle it if you wanna keep it.”
I pulled my head back, away from his bad breath.
What did you have for dinner, rotten fish? I thought to myself, hoping I wouldn’t have to keep holding my breath for long.
He straightened. “Did your husband tell you about me?”
I let out a quiet sigh but said nothing.
“Did he tell you why I hate him so much?”
Silence.
“Roman is the reason I lost my wife,” he said. “He stole something precious from me, and now I’m returning the favor.”
My eyes narrowed, and my heart sank into my stomach. Had Roman killed his wife? My pulse raced as I struggled to even imagine him doing that. Roman was a monster, but he had rules, lines he never crossed. Women and children were off-limits to that man.
I knew that much from Nikki and Natasha, plus the fact that I was still breathing up to now.
“My husband has issues, but he’d never kill a woman,” I said, looking right into his eyes.
“You sound so sure.”
“I am.”
He hesitated for a moment, then let out a soft chuckle.
“Prove me wrong,” I said. “Tell me how he’s the reason you lost your wife.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what I did or said, but somehow, his confidence wavered, and a glint of shame flashed across his face. My eyes squinted as I studied him, trying to understand what he was ashamed of.
Then it hit me.
“Hold on a second.” My brows arched in disbelief, my eyes pinned on him. “You didn’t lose your wife to death, did you? You lost her to him.”
“He seduced her!” he snapped, like I’d just opened up an old wound. “He knew she was my wife, yet he lured her into his bed!”
“Did he force himself on her?” I asked, enjoying his outburst.
“It doesn’t matter!” He kicked his chair away. “He slept with her, and shortly after, she left me.”
Composed, I sat there, watching him vent like a child whose candy was taken away. Now, who was the pathetic one between the two of us?
His inability to control his emotions was the reason I no longer saw him as a threat. All I saw was an overgrown child in desperate need of revenge.
“From the way I see it,” I shrugged my shoulders, “your anger is misplaced, sir.” I paused for a while, then continued, “The person you should be mad at is your wife…ex-wife. She willingly offered herself to him.”
His expression darkened as he stepped forward. “Roman could’ve refused her, but he didn’t. He slept with her, humiliated me, and made me a laughing stock.” He halted in front of me, fingers adjusting his tie.
He was much calmer now and seemed to have regained control of his emotions. His voice was low and venomous, his eyes blazing with fury.
Oops, the devil part of him is back.
And so was my fear and anxiety.
“Roman is about to know what it feels like to lose his woman to another man.”
Eww. Gross.
I locked my jaw, my heart racing in my chest, unsure of what evil he had planned for me.
“Get the cameras rolling.” He snapped his fingers.
“Cameras?” My eyes widened in panic
A bright light enveloped the room, so harsh it almost blinded my eyes. It seemed like an LED light on a tripod, aimed directly at me.
“By the time I’m done with you,” he added, “my men will upload the video on the internet, and everyone will watch you get defiled.”
“No.” I shook my head, my heart threatening to jump out of my chest.
He laughed. “Roman will never recover from that.”
“Please, you don’t have to do this,” I begged, struggling with the ropes that held me bound.
“Oh, but I do,” he answered, laughing hysterically. “Your husband started this. I’m gonna be the one to finish it.” He leaned in, flashing that ugly smirk of his.
I spat on his face. “You’re a coward!” I declared. “No wonder your wife left you! You will never be half the man Roman is!”
Furious, he smacked me across the face, and the impact turned my head to the side.
My fear transformed into anger, and I glared at him, my chest heaving with slow, measured breaths. “Did that make you feel powerful?” I asked, refusing to let him break my spirit.
He fumed in silence, his broad shoulders rising and falling.
“Do whatever you want with me,” I said, my voice dripping with venom. “But know this: There’s nowhere on earth you can hide that Roman won’t find you. And when he does…” I paused, a smile on my face, basking in the thought of the horrible things he’d do to this man, “…you will beg for death.”
His scowl deepened, threatened by my resilience. “Start recording!” he barked, fingers undoing the button of his pants.
I didn’t say another, didn’t even struggle with the ropes that held me bound. I just sat there, staring at him.
In a heartbeat, the door burst open, and because the light was directly on my face, I couldn’t see what was happening in the shadows. However, the sound of rapid gunshots was loud and unmistakable.
My body stiffened, and I closed my eyes in fear, trembling at the chaos around me. Beneath the gunshots were screams of men, the sound of cracking bones, and heavy punches.
In the midst of all that violence, I heard his voice: “You son of bitch! How dare you touch my wife?!”
It was Roman. He’d come for me.
My heart was filled with gladness as I sat in the middle of the chaos, trembling, hoping a stray bullet didn’t hit me.
A few seconds later, the gunfire ceased, and from the shadows, a figure emerged. The harsh light behind him concealed his face, recreating the scene from the first time I tried to escape the Tarasov mansion.
As he drew closer to me, his face became clearer. As expected, it was him—my husband, my knight in shining armor.
He bent over before me, his bloodied hands on my cheeks. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? Did he touch you?” His voice was low but filled with genuine concern and a hint of fear.
“I’m fine now,” I answered, holding back the tears of joy that welled in my eyes.
He kissed me on the head, then straightened and revealed his blade. Roman walked over to my back and cut through the rope that kept me captive.
I hopped to my feet and embraced him tightly, my arms slung around his neck. He held me close, stroking my hair back, his possessive hand around my waist.
“Thank you,” I whispered in his ear, my heartbeat steadying in my chest.
“You’re my wife,” he said. “It’s my duty to protect you.”
I closed my eyes and drew a deep breath, reveling in this moment. The second I reopened them, I saw him aiming his gun at us from the shadows—the man in a white suit.
“Roman, watch out!” I yelled, my eyes wide with fear.
Instinctively, Roman pushed me aside seconds before the shot rang out. As he fell to the ground, he hurled his knife at his shooter. The throw was practiced and precise. The knife sliced through the air, spinning violently until it buried itself halfway into its target’s chest.
The man dropped. Dead.
As soon as Roman’s body hit the ground, I ran over there, kneeling beside him. “No, no, no, no…!” The words tumbled out of my mouth in a nervous rush.
He’d been shot in the stomach and was already bleeding out. His blood was warm against my hands as I tried to apply pressure to his wound.
“Stay with me, Roman,” I whispered, sniffling as tears streamed down my cheeks.
“It’s just a flesh wound,” he answered, his voice weak.
“Help!” I raised my head, shifting my gaze across his men’s faces.
Sergei showed up and asked me to step aside, saying that he’d take it from here. I rose to my feet, glancing down at the blood that stained my hands as they carried him away.
I never thought a day would come when I would shed tears because I was afraid of losing the same man I once hated. My whole body trembled as I prayed that he would survive this. And in that moment, I realized the depth of what bound us together.