Chapter 20
Y ulianna
Frida came into the room after Eddie left and pulled me into a hug. It was a good thing, too, because I was close to going nuclear or maybe a breakdown. Between the uncontrollable anger and throbbing pain in my chest, I was struggling to breathe, let alone stand.
I couldn’t cry now, maybe not ever. It was time to strategize. Our happily ever after wouldn’t come overnight, but one day, Eddie and I would be reunited.
“I need your help.”
Frida stepped back, gripping my shoulders.
“I’ll do whatever I can.”
I clung to my friend, hating to put her in this dangerous position, but Frida was the only person I trusted besides Eddie.
“Help me sneak out after the party.”
She glanced around the room before whispering, “Are you running away?”
I shook my head no.
“It’s not that simple. My father will hunt me down and most likely kill Eddie in front of me to make a point. I know Eddie would die for me, but I would scorch myself with a million suns before I let Father hurt him. It was stupid to dream and think that one day, we would be free. There was never an escape. Part of me always knew, but I didn’t want to believe it.”
“Your father had both of us fooled. I never thought he’d back out like that. Just tell me where you’re going, and I’ll make it happen.”
“We’ll talk more upstairs in my room. For now, I need to avoid my father while making sure he sees me. That way, he won’t come looking for me when I slip out. I’m hoping that he’ll leave me alone until tomorrow. Lord knows he will want to go another round about my behavior and tell me that I embarrassed him.”
“As far as I’m concerned, you held it together better than most. I’m not sure I would be as calm and composed as you were.”
“This is my father we’re talking about. He’ll want me to beg at his feet. I won’t do it. He betrayed me. My father looked me in the eyes, told me that he was happy that I was happy, and then tore out my heart. There is no forgiveness for that kind of betrayal.” I sighed. “I’d rather…I better not say that part out loud.” I nodded toward the door. “I don’t want to go out that way. Can you take us back through the service corridors?”
“Of course.”
The secret passages in this place were endless. I’d tried to learn them all, but if I’d been caught, then my father would have been informed.
Frida grabbed my hand and walked to the furthest corner of the room. She pulled on the candelabra on the wall, and a piece of the wall that looked perfectly smooth a moment ago, swung inward like a door.
“Wow. Is there one of these in every room?”
“Almost all of them,” Frida said, smiling with a mischievous glint in her eyes. “How do you think I’ve learned all the best gossip?”
“Devious woman, I love it.”
We slipped into the shadowy hallway that was only a little wider than my shoulders. How on earth did the staff drag laundry and carry trays of food through these?
I was completely lost when a noise caught my attention, and I tugged on Frida’s hand.
“Do you hear that,” I asked, keeping my voice softer than a whisper.
We craned our necks as we listened, and sure enough, there were two faint voices.
“Where are we?”
“Near your father’s art exhibit.”
“No one is allowed to be in this end of the house.”
“There is a fork in the passage up ahead.” Frida pointed.
Gripping my hand tighter, she picked up her pace and I was glad that I thought to remove my heels.
We stopped and listened again when we reached the intersection. I pointed to the left, and Frida nodded. We quickly scurried along until the voices were less muffled.
Frida stopped and put a finger over her lips as she slid a small flap to the side, producing a peephole. Raising up on my toes and peeking into the room, I wanted to growl as soon as I spotted Christov. I didn’t know the woman with him but assumed it was Alina.
“I think that’s Alina,” Frida whispered, seconding my suspicions.
The conniving witch was wearing one of the catering outfits. She’d been here the entire time.
Alina was in his arms as tears ran down her cheeks. I knew how she felt. It seemed like none of us wanted this arranged marriage. So why did Christov agree and push so hard? If he married Alina, I would be free. Was the addition of my father’s wealth really worth this much pain, anger, and sadness? That was a stupid question. Of course, it was. That was all anyone ever wanted from me except Eddie.
“I don’t know if I can wait that long,” Alina said.
“I can’t kill her right away. We’ve been over this,” Christov said.
My mouth dropped open, and Frida gasped. Thankfully, they didn’t seem to hear us.
“You promise to get rid of her so we can be together?”
“Yes, my love. We’ll be together no matter what.”
She ran her hand down the front of his suit jacket.
“I just need to wait until my inheritance is signed over, and that won’t happen until my father dies. We need to be patient. He’s old, and it’s unlikely he’ll live another twenty years. If he goes too long, I’ll speed up his untimely demise. Besides, as of now, Mr. Mikhailov is fronting my new business, but he won’t if his daughter is found in a ditch the day after our wedding. It may take some time, but I’ll make it happen,” Christov said soothingly to Alina, like he was comforting her about losing a puppy, not killing someone. That someone being me.
They smiled at one another, making me sick to my stomach. Money…it was always money. Why did it corrupt people into the worst versions of themselves? How much was my death worth? One million? Ten million? One billion?
I shouldn’t be surprised. I’d seen something dark in Christov at the dinner months ago and again tonight.
“God, I love you in this sexy little outfit,” Christov said, licking his lips.
Yuck.
“I thought you’d like it. You were brilliant sneaking me in with the caterers,” Alina said, lifting her skirt.
Thankfully, she had her back to us because it was easy to guess that she wasn’t wearing anything underneath.
“I want you,” Alina said and kneeled before Christov.
Unzipping his pants, he fished out his dick and groaned as Alina slipped him into her mouth.
It was too bad that I couldn’t record them. Even though watching them together nearly made me vomit. How would I convince my father that Christov wanted me dead? That excuse for not marrying him seemed flimsy even to me.
“Fuck that feels good. Come here, I need to fuck you.”
Taking her hand, he pulled her over to the desk. Alina lifted her skirt and moaned as Christov fucked her hard like one of my father’s stallions with the mares who never looked impressed.
Frida tapped my arm and made a gagging face. I covered my mouth to keep quiet and smiled despite the insane situation. I’d just overheard Christov planning my death with his mistress, and yet, I felt justified in whatever I did next.
Once Christov was done, he shoved his dick back into his pants while Alina fixed her hair.
“I’m doing that again before this boring party ends,” Christov said as they walked out the door.
“Well, isn’t he a charmer,” Frida whispered.
“Truly.” I tapped my chin as I thought.
“Are you going to use that information to get out of marrying him? You can’t marry him now. He’s plotting to kill you.” Frida crossed her arms. “I won’t let that happen.” Her mouth was set in a hard line, and her eyes burned with anger.
“Thank you,” I said, grabbing her arm and hugging her. “But I don’t know if this will be enough.”
“What? Why won’t that be enough?”
“Father has no reason to believe that Christov wants to kill me. He’ll think I made it up. As for Alina, he won’t care because Christov and I aren’t married yet. And even after, he’ll make excuses. I’m not stupid. This is the world we live in. As long as Christov and I produce a male heir, no one will care where he sticks his dick.” I shook my head and held up my hand. “Don’t get me started. I’m already so angry that I want to burn the house down.”
“I’ve never heard of your father cheating on your mother,” Frida said, and she was right. I hadn’t either.
He was either really good at hiding it or had always been faithful. The bastard might have a shred of dignity in him after all.
“True, but he doesn’t love me.” Frida’s face fell. “He’s only ever seen me as a walking dollar sign. He showed his true colors and feelings tonight.”
“I’ll help you with anything, any time.”
She smiled, and I didn’t know how I’d gotten so lucky to have someone like Frida in my life.
A few hours later, I sat on my bed, showered and impatiently waiting for Frida. I’d decided to wear a grey sweater dress that reminded me of Eddie’s eyes and that I knew he loved on me. A soft knock from the hallway pulled my attention from the door connecting our bedrooms.
“What?”
“It’s me. Can I come in?” My mother’s voice drifted in, and I shook my head.
Even though I knew she hadn’t agreed with his decision, it didn’t stop me from resenting her almost as much as my father. She was the only one who might have been able to sway him, but for all the years I’d been locked up in this mansion, she’d never fought for me.
“No. Just leave me alone.”
“Sweetheart, I didn’t want this,” she said, and I bit my lip at the ache in her voice.
“I don’t care what you wanted. He sold me to a man who hates me, all for the sake of money and power, and you let it happen. I’ll never forgive either of you. Leave me alone and make sure Father doesn’t come up here, or I may do something rash,” I said, crossing my arms.
It was best to be vague, but I wanted the threat out there. If my father was in front of me right now, I’d push him out the window and chase his falling body to the ground to get free.
The rage had twisted itself inside of me with every minute that passed since he’d stabbed me in the back. Now, it was something ugly, something that I would nourish because I needed it to fight against my oppression.
“I’m sorry,” she said.
When I didn’t respond, her shadow disappeared from under the door. Her sorry and tears were nothing to me. There was nothing fair about this, and no one could convince me otherwise.
“Psst.”
Frida waved me over. I didn’t hesitate as I grabbed my winter cloak.
“Are you sure you want to do this? If your father breaks into your room and you’re gone….”
“I don’t care. Father can lock me up, hit me, whatever he wants. He’s already done his worst, and all that remains is a cold wasteland in my soul. I’m going to take back my life, even if it’s not today. I’ll rip everything he loves away from him like he has done to me, and it starts tonight.”
“Okay, then we better go.”
Nodding, I tied my cloak on and pulled the hood up. Frida led me to the bookshelf in her room, and we snuck into the passageway. We walked as quietly and fast as possible through the maze behind the walls. Within seconds, I was lost again and had no idea where we were.
Reaching a plain door, Frida unlocked it and slipped into a stone corridor.
“Where are we?”
“This leads outside. Everyone but the house staff has forgotten about it. The guards don’t even know it exists, and we don’t tell them. It gives us an escape route if they turn on us.”
“I don’t understand. Why do we even have it?”
“Emergency exit, in case the house is ever attacked. The ones who have been here since before you were born said they were built during construction when your grandfather was a little boy.”
We came to a set of steel bars with a wooden door just beyond. The locks didn’t want to give at first, but Frida worked at them until both were open.
Stepping out into the night, I took a deep breath of the cool evening air. We were in the middle of the forest, and—thanks to the tricks Eddie had taught me—I knew by the position of the moon that we were facing East.
“Wait here,” Frida whispered as she pushed through the forest edge. I heard a car door open before she spoke again. “Okay,” she said, and I followed where she’d gone.
There was an older vehicle on the side of the road, and a soldier stood by the driver’s side door. I froze at the sight of his uniform.
“It’s okay, this is my cousin Lev. He agreed to help us,” Frida said.
Suddenly, this felt like a big trap. In my haste to get away from my father I forgot about the other obstacles that stood between me and the hotel. I got in the back, and as soon as all the doors were closed, Lev turned and looked at me.
“We shouldn’t hit any checkpoints, but if we do, there is a strap there.” He pointed to the loop near the seatbelt. “Pull on it and roll onto the floor. The seat will fold down and cover you completely from sight.” I nodded.
“Why are you helping me, Lev? I don’t know you.”
“No, you don’t, but I never wanted to be a soldier. I was forced into this life as much as you are being forced into a life you don’t want. Frida and I have talked many times about running, but we don’t have the resources.”
“So, you want to run when I do? That’s your payment for helping me now?”
“What Lev is saying is that we will help you as much as we can, not just tonight. But yes, we want to come with you.”
“Alright, I’ll see to it that when I escape, you’re with me.”
I held out my hand to Lev. He was handsome, not like Eddie, who stole your breath away, but he looked very much like the male version of Frida—sandy hair and soft blue eyes. We shook, and for the first time since realizing I was nothing more than a piece to be sacrificed, I felt like I was taking back some control. A plan was slowly forming in my mind.
“Lay down and cover yourself with the blanket to be safe,” Frida said, and I did as she instructed.
My stomach churned, and my hands shook during the drive. The fear of coming up to an inspection stop and getting caught out here by the police, or worse, my father, was wreaking havoc on my nervous system.
After what felt like an eternity, Lev shut the car off, and I sat up.
“Make sure you are out here by five. We want to be back at the forest door no later than six in the morning.”
“Okay,” I said, getting out of the car.
Frida got out as well and gave me a hug.
“Here you go,” she said, handing me a small stack of cash.
“What is this for?”
“I have a friend who works here. Knock at that door. His name is Allen. He will give you a key to use the service elevator so you won’t be seen on camera. I promised him payment.”
“Frida, I don’t know how to thank you.”
“You’ve always been my friend first, Yuli. Now go, don’t waste another second.”
Her eyes filled with tears when I kissed her cheek.
“Thank you. I love you, my friend.”
I walked down the alley toward the back door of the hotel Zolotoy Chastokol.
A man about my age opened the door when I knocked. He put a finger to his lips, signaling for quiet. I pulled the money from my pocket and handed it over. Nodding, he took the cash and let me inside. We walked over to the elevator, and he swiped the card before handing it to me. I tucked it into my pocket as we waited.
“My shift is over at five. You must meet me here no later than ten minutes before that, or my boss will be suspicious that I’m still here,” he said, and I nodded.
The door opened, and I stepped inside.
“Thank you,” I whispered, then hit the button for the penthouse.
With each floor, my nervousness grew until I was a jittery mess. Reaching the top, I took a deep breath to try and calm my pounding heart. There were only two suites up here, and I quickly made my way to the left. Hand shaking, I rapped on the door. Each second of waiting for Eddie was agony.
What if he left?
What if he was taken by my father’s men?
I could’ve just walked in using the card he gave me, but the fear that he might not be in there was crippling. Instead, I knocked again.
What was I doing? After everything we had been through, I was brave enough to open a door. I reached into my cloak to grab the key when I heard the lock turn.
Looking up, I pushed the hood off my head. Eddie’s eyes instantly shifted from cautious to filled with love.
“Thank God you made it,” he said, pulling me close, and I held on tight.
No matter what happened from this moment on, my heart would always belong to Eddie.