Chapter Fourteen Sarah
My astonished gaze tracked Maksim as he and his brother stalked out of the room. A ragged sigh whooshed out of my lips. I would be lying if I said the last half hour was a complete mindfuck. After my encounter with the Beast, I’d walked into the room, both fearing and despising Maksim.
But then he told me his story.
And as much as I hated myself for it, I empathized with him. Maybe it was because of all the children I’d worked with over the years who had parents who made them feel broken or defective because of their speech.
Or maybe it was because in some of society’s eyes, I had two “broken” brothers. Unlike Maksim’s family, my parents had tried everything within their power to shower their sons with love, compassion, and understanding.
But Maksim wasn't that fortunate. He’d been betrayed by the very person who was supposed to protect him. That betrayal became repeated over and over throughout the years.
As I stood there trying to regulate my out-of-control emotions, I couldn’t help reflecting that Maksim was nothing like I had expected.
First off, I never imagined him being so damn handsome.
With his gorgeous face and stunning body, he was seriously distracting.
Somehow, I’d had it in my mind that he would be this mustache-twirling ogre, which was laughable after seeing him.
The aura surrounding him certainly fit the bill of a powerful man with henchmen to do his bidding. Not to mention that power came from unsavory and perhaps illegal things.
Like organized crime.
Since he was very obviously not Italian, he wasn’t a part of the mafia, which often was equated with Italians.
Like the Irish had their clans, and the Japanese had the Yakuza, and the Chinese had the Triad.
I’d heard the word for the Russian mob many times since they were prevalent in Philadelphia.
It was on the tip of my tongue when the man he’d left me with cleared his throat.
Jerking a hand through his dark hair, he grunted, “Let’s go.”
Nodding, I rose off the couch. As I approached him, I tried forcing a smile to my face. My mother’s words echoed through my mind. “Just remember, Sarah. You catch more bees with honey than vinegar.”
Those were her sage words when I got older and asked why she didn’t go off on people who said nasty or ignorant shit about Silas or Sammy. Whenever there was a remark that made my blood boil, Mom would just smile as she unloaded on them in a lady-like way.
“All of this has been overwhelming, and I don’t remember your name from earlier,” I said, as I extended my hand.
The young man eyed it warily. “It’s Lev.”
With a nod, I said, “Sarah.”
“Like I don’t know that,” he grumbled.
Just keep smiling. “I suppose you do.”
“Follow me,” he grumbled.
After whirling around, Lev started stalking out of the room. I had to practically sprint to keep up with him. Of course, I kept slowing down because I was taking in the grandeur of the house.
As I stepped into the expansive garage, I mused, “Guess I could’ve been kidnapped somewhere much worse, huh? I mean, you usually see people in movies or TV taken to real dumps. This place is spectacular.”
Instead of responding, Lev opened one of the back doors for me. “Get in.”
I bit my tongue from telling him to fuck himself. Once I got into the seat and put on my seatbelt, Lev dug something out of his pocket. As we reached a black SUV, he shoved it at me. “Put this on.”
It was identical to the one I’d worn last night, which caused a myriad of emotions to shuffle through me. As I slid the mask over my eyes, I ignored the heat that flooded my core at the memory of my time with the Beast.
The SUV cranked up, and we started moving. In the darkness of the mask, I couldn’t help thinking about the Beast. Was he also one of Maksim’s brothers, or was he just another one of their associates? Since I was staying, would I see him again? Would I see him without the mask?
Groaning, I rubbed my forehead over the silk fabric of the mask. What the fuck was wrong with me? After what he’d done to me, I shouldn’t ever want to see the bastard again.
And yet…
I did.
Because of that fact, I knew there was something fundamentally wrong with my mental state.
I’m sure some would argue that having a stranger in a mask chase me down for sex already made me mentally unstable.
And there was a part of me that agreed with them.
But another side argued it was healthy to free some of the burdens of my life by giving up control with another consenting adult.
One thing both of those sides could agree on was that fantasizing about the masked man who drugged and kidnapped me was mental.
Desperate to rid myself of thoughts of the beast, I asked, “Can I please take this mask off?”
I mean, we’d been riding along for what felt like an eternity, but it was probably closer to ten minutes.
“Yeah, whatever.”
As I slipped off the mask, I squinted my eyes to get used to the light. My gaze bounced around trying to decipher where we were. I don’t know why it mattered. It wasn’t l was going to call the police and report my location.
From the tree-lined road, it was obvious we were in the suburbs, and from the size of the mansion we’d just left, it was one of the upperclass ones. The question was which one.
Turning slightly in my seat, I eyed Lev. Amusement flickered within me that they had tried to pretend not to be brothers. While Lev didn’t have as distinctive wolf eyes as Aleks, it was obvious they were related.
Just like Maksim, Lev was incredibly good-looking. Of course, he was a baby compared to Maksim and even Aleks. From the way he was currently sulking, he was the typical spoiled baby brother.
We rode along in silence for a few more minutes before I couldn’t take the quiet any longer. “Look, I’m sorry you got stuck with me.”
Lev responded with a tick of his jaw and continued scrolling on his phone. Since I was stubborn to a fault, I said, “It must be hard being the younger brother. I’m sure they give you a lot of shit.”
“Yeah, they do,” Lev quickly replied. From the scowl on his face, I knew he hated that he had answered me.
“I can’t imagine what that’s like. Especially when the hierarchy of the sibling dynamic bleeds over into business.”
Lev’s response came in a frustrated huff. Eyeing a chip in my nail polish, I said, “I’m the middle child wedged in between my brothers. But we don’t have a family business or anything like that. But I guess you know that, huh?”
Lev’s head slowly turned to face me. “Why are you talking to me?”
I shrugged. “Just making conversation.”
“We don’t need to do that.”
“Why not?”
He narrowed his dark eyes. “Because you and me? We’re nothing. Yeah, you’re helping my brother, but all that shit is between you two.”
“You don’t mince words, do you?”
“No. I fucking don’t.”
Holding up my hands, I said, “My apologies. I’ll just stare out the window.”
He grumbled something under his breath as he shoved his hand into his pocket. A moment passed before he thrust my phone at me. I glanced between it and him.
“Take it,” he ordered.
“Are you sure?”
“Maksim told you that you could have it, didn’t he?”
“Yes, but–”
“Then take it,” he barked.
I quickly jerked it from his fingers. Although I had a smile on my face, I snarled, “Thank you so much.”
Lev blinked at me before going back to his own phone. Since it was Sunday, I didn’t have to worry about checking any work emails. Instead, I checked my texts.
Thankfully, there were none from Mom. I quickly shot her one.
Hey! How’s everything going?
A few moments passed before she replied. Good. Hollis has had a calm weekend so far.
I’m so glad to hear that. Love you. I’ll call in the morning.
Okay. Love you, too, sweetie.
After I finished my text, I swept the phone over my heart. Fighting my tears, I stared out the window. Even though I was almost thirty and completely self-sufficient, I desperately wanted my mother at that moment.
Specifically, I wanted her like I’d had her in my pre-adult years. I wanted her to wrap me in her arms and tell me that everything was going to be okay. Of course, I’m not sure even one of her hugs could still the emotions currently raging within me.
I don’t know how long I sat like that. It must’ve been a concerning amount of time since Lev actually spoke to me. “Are you all right?”
Jerking my eyes open, I dropped my hand with the phone to my lap. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
After giving me a questioning look, he went back to his phone.
When the SUV finally pulled up at my apartment building, my heart twisted in my chest as I thought of how much had changed since I left yesterday.
I would’ve never imagined something I was looking so forward to would end up changing my life.
As the SUV remained on the curb, Lev hopped out before coming around to my side to collect me. “No funny business, right?”
“Right.”
Instead of following me, he stayed glued to my side as I made my way to the front door. I typed my code, and then we stepped practically side by side into the lobby. “Is this necessary?” I huffed.
“Just not taking any chances.”
With a sigh, I stepped onto the elevator. After riding up to my floor, Lev actually followed behind me down the carpeted hallway to my door. Once again, I used the code and unlocked my front door.
Stepping in front of me, Lev pushed open the door. His gaze bounced around the foyer like he expected to be met with an armed intruder. “The security in this building is very good,” I remarked.
“You can never be too careful.”
After dropping my phone on the entrance table, I walked down the hall into the living room. With his hands jammed into his black jeans, Lev did a slow turn around. “Nice place.”
“Thanks. I’ve been here for about two years.”
“Good neighbors?”
“Pretty good.”
He paused in turning and cocked his brows at me. “The kind that’ll notice you’re gone and get worried.”
“Oh,” I murmured when I got his meaning.