Chapter 28
CHAPTER
TWENTY-EIGHT
NIKOLAI
Hours later, I’m pulling up in front of the estate when my phone buzzes with a message from Emil.
Emil: Call me. There’s a situation.
Every muscle in my body goes taut. I fire off a quick text:
Me: I’m here. Be in the security room in two minutes.
I slam the door behind me as I storm toward the house. When I reach their location, Emil and two guards are pacing, their faces pale as they watch the security monitors. “What the hell is going on?” I bark.
Emil exhales sharply, his words spilling out in a rush. “It’s Sofiya. She’s gone.”
“What the fuck do you mean she’s gone?” My blood turns to ice. “She couldn’t have left the property without me being alerted.”
Emil shoves his hand through his already disheveled hair. “She was last seen in the back garden, gathering herbs. She’s not in her room, and we’re reviewing all the security footage, but so far, there’s nothing.”
Panic grips me, and my voice rises to a roar. “Are you fucking serious? Get a team together to scour every inch of my property this fucking second. How long has she been missing?”
Emil gulps hard. “About four hours.”
In an instant, my hand is around his throat, slamming him against the wall. “You didn’t notice she was missing for four fucking hours?”
He chokes, clawing at my grip, but I don’t loosen it.
One of the newer and clearly less intelligent guards rises from his seat. “She’s usually in her room, but you said we couldn’t look at that camera feed, so?—”
Before he can finish, I spin and press the barrel of my gun to his forehead. “It’s probably a good idea for you to shut the fuck up.”
The color drains from his face, and I have to suck in a deep breath not to pull the trigger. “Let me make this clear. If something’s happened to my wife, you’re all dead.”
I’ve wasted enough time talking with these idiots. Yanking my phone from my pocket, I frantically navigate to the tracking device app connected to her ankle monitor.
My stomach drops when I realize where she is. Deep in the woods at the far end of the property, and she isn’t moving. Dread grips me, and I bolt outside, breaking into a run through the freezing rain.
My men will pay for their incompetence, but the person most to blame is me. She’s mine to protect, and I failed her. The realization is a knife to the gut.
SOFIYA
My ankle throbs with pain, and my skin feels like ice, but all I can do to stay alive is huddle into myself. I’m so cold that I’ve stopped caring about what happens to me.
A deep, menacing growl tears through the stillness. My stomach clenches. Is this it? Am I about to die here, ripped apart by a hungry animal? I grab a broken branch nearby, ready to defend myself with what little energy I have left.
Then Nikolai emerges from the shadows like a man possessed. Relief crashes through me. His hair is disheveled, his chest heaving, and when his eyes find mine, they are filled with panic.
He drops to his knees beside me, his hands cradling my face. “Fuck, baby. Look at you.”
I flinch, waiting for the anger, but it doesn't come. His thumb brushes my cheek gently.
“Are you hurt?” he asks, scanning me for injuries.
“My ankle. I don't think I can walk,” I say, my teeth chattering.
He swears under his breath, his eyebrows pulling together as he scoops me into his arms, holding me close. “I’m so fucking sorry.”
My exhausted brain can't figure out why he's apologizing. All I can focus on is his warmth chasing away the cold that had seeped into my bones. My fingers grip his shirt like he’s the only thing keeping me grounded.
“I thought I was going to die out here, and it would be all my fault. I’m such an idiot.”
“Don't say that,” he insists, his voice strained. “You're safe now. I’ve got you, Sofiya. I swear, nothing’s going to hurt you again.”
His hold on me tightens, his heartbeat pounding against my ear as he moves through the trees with purposeful strides. A sob catches in my throat, and before I know it, I’m crying. I clutch at his shirt, clinging to him as if letting go would shatter me completely.
“Why do you care?” I gasp, the question slipping out between tears.
I raise my head to look at him through watery eyes. His face is hard, but his gaze is so tender it sends a pang through me. “You're my wife,” he simply says, like it's the only explanation needed.
I bury my face in his neck and let it all out.