Chapter 38
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
AVELINA
I’m getting more confident in my office work as the days fly by. And today, I’m standing in front of a filing cabinet in the office when Viktor comes in and closes the door.
He strides over and runs his hand up my thigh. “Christ, Avelina, the things you do to me.”
“Good things?” I ask in a breathy voice.
He jerks my hips against his so I can feel how hard he is. His eyes scald me with a hunger I can’t ignore. And his mouth on my throat is making my world spin out of control.
He kisses me again and again as I grip his muscled arms. “I want you, and I’m going to have you,” he growls.
What, right here? My gaze darts toward the office door—the top panel has clear glass. He must be able to read my mind because he pushes me down to my knees and nods. “Show me how much you want me.”
He’s looking at me like I’m the source of all the pleasure he’s ever known.
I undo his belt, then his pants as he watches me, stroking through my hair, along my jaw, and under my chin.
My eyes flick again to the clear glass. I want him as much as he wants me, but…
“What if someone comes into the office or sees us through the door?”
“I don’t care who sees. So, be a good girl for me and suck.”
His cock springs free. I palm his length. He’s thick and absolutely perfect.
“Use your mouth, Avelina. Let me see how deep you can take me,” he orders.
I hold his gaze as I lick over the head of his cock. He takes a sharp breath, his jaw tightening as his hand returns to my hair. He grips tightly to hold my hair back from my face. “I want to see every reaction on your face as I take your gorgeous throat.”
I take him deeper and deeper, moaning around his cock as he glides across my tongue and into my throat.
He tastes so good, feels so good. I love this. I love pleasing him. Knowing every groan that’s leaving his throat is for me and me alone.
I swallow him again and again, desperately taking him the way I need as he pants and tells me what a good girl I am. I’m drunk on his praise and the taste of him as he pushes my head down and gags me on his cock.
Just when I’m sure I’m going to push him over the edge, he pulls me off him.
I pant and lick my lips. “I didn’t get to finish you…”
“You will,” he promises. “And in a much better way.”
He drags my dress off me and spins me around so that I’m facing his desk. He pushes my knee onto the table. Stroking over my pussy, he shoves my lacy panties to one side and slides a thick finger inside me. “So damn pretty and so damn wet.”
“Someone might see us,” I say quickly, but he thrusts into me, gripping my hips to keep me in the position he wants.
“The only thing they’ll see is me making you mine.” And he groans as he sinks into me. Every perfect thick inch of him filling me as my lips part, a groan escaping me.
He grasps my hair again, pulling my head back against his chest so he can see my eyes as he fills me again and again, thrusting harder and faster as I moan and mewl for him.
He yanks down the cups of my bra, making my breasts bounce and tumble into his hands. And he roughly thumbs my hard nipples as they ache with need. “Stop thinking, Avelina. Just take every inch,” he growls.
His name slips between my lips as I arch back for him. He feels so good, and I just can’t get enough. I cry out with every sharp thrust of his hips. It feels like I’m melting into ecstasy itself.
Viktor’s hand collars my throat as he watches my face. His muscles tighten as he pounds his hips to fill me again and again, faster and faster, until the table knocks against the wall at its side.
“Viktor,” I beg. “Please, please...”
“You’re going to come, baby. I never settle for anything less than that,” he grits out.
His free hand snakes down my belly and massages over my clit as he pounds into me harder and faster, making me his.
Lips parted, my eyes meet his again. They’re an inferno, raging with impatience and pleasure as he chases our ecstasy. And I shudder as my pussy tightens around his thick cock. My eyes start to roll back. But I don’t want to miss his reaction, so I force myself to meet his gaze.
He lets out a sharp breath. “Come, Avelina. Come for me now!”
“I don’t want to be done. More, I want more,” I gasp.
“So greedy,” he pants. And he keeps slamming into me, the sound of his skin slapping against me echoing in the room as he pounds into me, proving with each sharp thrust that I belong to him.
I’m his, and I love it.
But I can’t hold out. Even though I want to, I just...
“Come!” he commands.
He pinches my clit as he jackhammers into me.
And it pushes me over the edge and into an orgasm that threatens to drag me into unconsciousness.
I let out a strangled cry, the most I can give after such a thorough fucking.
My legs and pussy still quivering with aftershocks, he pumps deep inside of me, grunting with each spurt of his seed.
He presses his lips to the side of my neck as our eyes meet again. And he smiles as his lips brush my ear. “That’s my good girl.”
He slips my dress back onto me, and as he buttons up his pants and then leaves, I let a huge smile spread across my face.
The television hums in the background of the rec room as I flip the page of my book.
I listen to the newscaster talking about some international skating event that’s made headlines—in Seattle, I think.
The screen shows the Russian team arriving at the airport: wheeled luggage, matching team uniforms, and sleek hairstyles everywhere.
And then I see him.
Gennady.
My stomach plunges. It’s only a brief shot of him. But his expression is hard. Uncompromising. Menacing. And so familiar that it brings the memories rushing back.
My book falls to the floor as I freeze. This is what he meant in his email. ‘Soon’ really was soon. He’s here, and there’s no escape from it. The walls feel like they’re closing in. Like the den is now a box or coffin.
Someone calls my name, and I snap back with a shake of my head.
“Lunch is ready.”
I lick my lips as I stare at the screen. “I’ll be right there.”
My appetite is gone. Replaced with something else entirely. Anxiety. Repulsion. And pure terror.
I shake my head. And remind myself that he’s in Seattle.
Which means I still have time to figure a way out of this.
That evening, I lace up my skates in the quiet of the rink.
It’s dim inside. Normally, a couple of soldiers from Viktor’s team accompany me now.
But today, when Viktor went out to work, I slipped out without the guards.
I just need to be by myself tonight. And I locked the doors behind me after I came into the rink, so I know no one can get to me while I’m here.
The cool bite of the air calms my nerves a little.
And the second my blades hit the ice, muscle memory takes over.
My brain shuts off—just for a little bit.
Glide. Cross-step. Twirl. The skirt of my outfit sways with each pass.
The music from the playlist fills the speakers, bouncing off the empty walls.
An instrumental song, slow and haunting.
I move like I used to, like I did when I was on the path to my dreams, before everything crumbled.
Jump. Land. Spin. My body remembers the moves, so my mind doesn’t have to. Instead, my head races with thoughts of the past. Of what I thought I’d escaped.
My skin prickles like I’m being watched.
For a moment, I let myself believe it’s Viktor again.
But deep down, I know it’s not.
Because Viktor brings peace. This feeling is completely different.
I open my eyes and peer into the darkness at the back of the rink.
And then I hear that voice.
The one that makes fear crawl up my spine.
“Well, well, looks like you still got it.”
I whirl around. Heart hammering. My skate catches on the ice. I just manage to stop myself from falling. And then I see him.
He’s standing at the edge of the rink now, imposing as always, hands shoved into his pockets like he owns the place.
“How did you get in?” My voice is sharp. “The doors were locked.”
His expression makes my blood freeze. “A measly lock wasn’t going to stop me from seeing you again.” The way he sneers the words makes bile burn the back of my throat. He’s not gloating. He’s giving me a warning.
“I thought you were in Seattle…”
“I took a private jet here this evening. Especially so that I could see you.”
I keep my breathing even. Not letting on that he’s gotten to me. “What do you want?”
His expression reminds me of a viper. “To talk.”
I don’t know what’s more unsettling: the way he says it or that I know that’s not what this is.
“We’ve been watching you, Avelina. All these years. It didn’t take us long to find out where you had gone and what you were doing.”
I don’t respond. A cold drop of sweat slides down my back.
“We know about your daughter too.”
My chest tightens. And my breath catches in my throat.
“She’s special.” Panic starts to race through me. “One of our people saw her skating when you came to Russia. We see in her that same spark you had. The same potential.”
“Stay away from her!” I yell.
“Now, now, don’t get upset.” His tone is light, but his eyes are cold. “We’re giving her a gift. An opportunity. Just like we gave you, remember? The difference is she’ll have you to guide her. Make sure she doesn’t fail us—like you did.”
“I-I didn’t.” My voice cracks. “I didn’t fail. I survived.”
He shrugs. “Interpret it however you want. But you’ll come back to Russia. With her.”
My mouth opens to refuse. “I won’t—”
“If you don’t, well, you know how persuasive we can be.”
I shake my head, trying not to collapse onto the ice. “Why her? There are thousands of girls in Russia you can train!”
“True.” He shoves his hands back in his pockets. “But she’s got excellent genetics. That’s a huge advantage which a girl picked randomly won’t have. And you—well, you understand the program. You’d be an excellent secondary trainer. You’ll be of use to us again.”
My hands shake as I press them to my sides. “She has autism,” I blurt out. “She wouldn’t be able to handle the program.”
He lifts a brow. “We know. We know everything about her. Her timing is impeccable. Our team physician tells me that he believes her superb timing may be a result of her autism. He’s seen something similar in another autistic skater who used to be on the team.”
Sofia couldn’t survive that world. I barely did. My chest heaves as I fight to get enough air to my lungs.
“Run, and we’ll find you. Say no, and we’ll make sure no one finds out what happened to you. All of you.” He lasers me with his glare. “We’ve got a file on your boy too. And on your new boyfriend.”
My knees go weak. But I lock them, needing to appear strong.
“Your mafia boyfriend can’t protect you,” he sneers. “The Russian government is bigger than some group of Bratva thugs.”
My pulse pounds. I can’t speak. I can’t move.
“The new training program starts in two months, Avelina. Be ready. We’ll be in contact with arrangements.”
He turns and vanishes into the darkness. Gone into the night like he was never here.
I’m frozen to the spot. Numb.
He came for me once.
And now he’s coming for my daughter.
And this time, I don’t think I can stop him.
I wait until I hear the echo of the door slamming before I move.
My knees immediately buckle, and I sink to the ice.
The chill bites through my tights like sharp teeth.
My lungs burn from holding my breath, and the scream stuck in my throat won’t release.
For the next few minutes, I just stay slumped there, my breathing coming in short, ragged bursts, fogging up the air around me.
He found me.
No. He found us.
He knows her name. Her face. Her autism. He has a file on her. One on Leon too.
A sharp sob slips out before I can stop it, and I press my palm to the cold surface beneath me.
My fingers tremble as they close into fists, nails biting into my palms. I thought I was done paying the price.
I thought if I stayed small, quiet, hidden, the past would stop chasing me.
I was stupid. So damn stupid. And now? Now I don’t know what to do.
Suddenly, everything feels like too much. The lights. The hum of the AC. I can’t stop seeing that unnerving smile on his face. Calm. Composed. Sinister…
His words echo in my mind. Clawing down my spine again and again as nausea rises in my throat.
They never stopped watching. They were biding their time.
Waiting.
Until they could make the most use of a failed pawn.
Until they could take Sofia from me.
I squeeze my eyes shut.
My baby. My little girl with her anxious hands that find comfort in softness and hugs. My daughter who can’t stand loud noises or flashing lights. Who panics if her socks don’t sit the right way. She won’t be able to handle a crowd cheering, let alone the brutal regime of Russian training camps.
It almost broke me.
And I know that it’d break her for sure.
They’d chew her up and spit her out.
And if I fight back—if I run—they’ll kill us.
Me. Her. Leon. And Viktor probably too.
I press both hands to my mouth, biting back another sob and the choke of bile. My chest aches. I want Viktor’s strong arms around me. I want his deep voice steady in my ears, telling me it’s going to be okay—even if it’s a lie. I want to tell him everything. Let him help me carry the weight.
But even he isn’t safe.
If I tell him, if I bring him into this, Viktor will go to war for a woman he barely even knows. He’ll burn the world down trying to protect us. But they’d take him down first.
He may be Bratva, but nobody is stronger or more powerful than the Russian government.
I curl into myself, right in the middle of the rink, like I’m a young girl again, hiding in the supply closet during training. I thought I’d left that girl behind in Russia. But she’s still there. Shaking in the cold, wanting someone to save her.
No one saved her back then.
And I’ll be damned if I let Sofia be that girl.
I have to save her.
Even if it costs me everything.