Chapter 17
Rosie
It took two weeks for Kirill to stop watching my every move while I work, and last week, I finally managed to send out a handful of hidden codes, praying to all that’s holy Enzo, Dad, and Adriano received them.
I crammed everything into a single hour and haven't risked another attempt since, not wanting to do too much and get caught.
My eyes are on fire as they jump from one screen to the next, and there’s a dull pain in my left bicep. My left pinky is freezing, as if all the blood flow has been cut off and no warmth can get to it anymore.
The numbers and letters blur for a second, then it feels as if my vision drifts to the side. It started happening last week.
Working eighteen hours a day is quickly taking its toll on my eyes and body.
I don’t keep much of the food down, and the clothes they’ve given me hang on me from the weight I’ve lost over the past two months, one week, and two days.
My heart whimpers as I enter another site where it shows more than two hundred thousand members, selling videos and images of minors.
As soon as I see the first video, I lurch to the side and grab the trashcan, losing the meager contents in my stomach along with bitter bile.
I have no idea how much longer I’ll last.
Either my body is going to give out, or I’m going to lose my mind.
“What. The. Fuck!” A man roars suddenly, making my head snap up.
I’m so overworked that it takes my mind way too long to recognize him.
Rodian Volkov. Yegor’s second-in-command.
He pins Kirill with a dangerous glare. “Who the fuck authorized this?”
“Danil and Yegor,” the emotionless robot that’s my guard replies.
Straightening up, I grab a tissue and wipe my mouth before taking a sip of water.
Rodian comes closer and looks at the screens before making eye contact with me. Seeing the shock in his blue gaze confuses me.
He glances at Kirill. “Get Danil!”
As my guard walks away, Rodian again stares at me. “You’re alive.”
“Yep.” I sit back in the chair and close my burning eyes. “I take it you didn’t know about this little slice of heaven?”
“No.” I hear him move, and when I crack one lid open, I see him walk closer to the door. He stares into the other hall where the hackers are hard at work, then shakes his head before he comes back to me. “This is a fucking mess.”
“Ya think?”
Danil rushes into the room with Kirill right behind him.
“Rodian? Yegor didn’t let me know you were coming.”
“Imagine my surprise when I looked at the finances and saw millions coming from a new operation,” Rodian mutters, his tone barely controlled. “Yegor authorized this?”
“Yes. Take it up with him,” Danil says, his tone lacking respect.
Suddenly Rodian moves, and I jerk back when his fist slams into Danil’s jaw, making the man stagger before landing on his ass.
Ohhhh, that’s the most satisfying thing I’ve ever seen.
I have to resist the urge to applaud Rodian.
The underboss of the Bratva towers over Danil as he climbs to his feet while rubbing his jaw.
“Watch your fucking tone.”
“Yes, sir,” Danil quickly replies, more respectful this time around.
“Leave!” Rodian snaps angrily, and when Danil hesitates, the underboss of the Bratva reaches for his gun that’s holstered at the side of his chest.
Danil and Kiril turn and run, making it out the door right as Rodian fires a shot into the doorjamb.
I know more about Rodian than Yegor. While the head of the Bratva is in his early seventies and likes to make people do his dirty work, Rodian, who’s much younger and in his thirties, is known for being brutal.
Things have never been good between the two men. I don’t know why, though.
Rodian’s jaw is clenched, and his eyes are filled with rage when he directs his attention at me.
He doesn’t stop looking at me as he pulls his phone out and dials a number, and a moment later he asks, “Why the fuck do we have a capo of the Cosa Nostra?... Fuck the money, Yegor. This is an act of war we didn’t need right now.
” Grim lines cut into his face, making fear trickle through my chest, but his tone is in total contrast, almost sounding friendly as he says, “Fine…. Sure… Of course… I think I’ll hang around a bit and see how everything works. ”
He ends the call, then takes a moment to calm down before he looks at me again. “How are you holding up?”
From all the strain of spending long hours behind the screens, I’m unable to keep my eyes open and close them as I say, “I’ve had better days.”
“Mikhail,” Rodian calls, and again, I have to crack an eye open so I can watch as one of the guards comes in.
Rodian gives him an order that makes the guard jog through the room to the other door on the opposite side. When he shoves it open, I hear machines whirring, then it shuts again.
Again, Rodian walks to the hackers’ hall and looks at something before coming back. Placing his hand on my shoulder, he whispers, “I’ll reach out to Christiano and hang around to make sure nothing else happens to you.”
Shocked, my lips part. “Why would you do that?”
“Because it’s time for a new Pakhan.” He shakes his head. “Shit like this has to stop.” He squeezes my shoulder. “Give me a few days. I’ll get you out of here.”
I’m so desperate I don’t think to question him, and when my chin quivers from the hope flooding my chest, Rodian pats my cheek gently.
“I’m sorry this happened, Rosie. It’s not how I do things. Just go along with whatever I do and say.”
Yeah, I’m not so sure about that.
The guard, Mikhail, comes back with a small bottle, which he hands to Rodian, who says, “Eyedrops. Put some in.” He sets it down on the desk.
Not wasting time, I reach for it and take off the cap. I quickly put a few drops in each eye, then keep them shut.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
I hear footsteps, then Danil says, “I hear you’ll be staying for a while? The accommodations aren’t too great.”
“Just give me a fucking room.” Suddenly I’m grabbed by my arm and hauled to my feet.
I struggle to see anything when I pry my eyes open, then Rodian says, “I’m taking her for entertainment.”
The hell he is!
While I yank against his grip, Danil argues, “That’s not why she’s here.”
“Are you giving me orders?” Rodian growls, tugging me against his chest. When I smell sandalwood and spices, my heart shrivels once more as the thought of Enzo pops into my head.
“No. It’s just…” Danil lets out a sigh. “We’ll lose money.”
I keep blinking like crazy while Rodian’s fingers bite into my arm.
“How much does she bring in a day? That amount on the board? A hundred mil?”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’ll pay it. It’s not every day I get to fuck a capo.”
I’m yanked forward and have no choice but to walk as Rodian forces me out of the hall where I’ve been working my ass off, then he shouts, “Why am I still waiting to be shown to a fucking room?”
The chains make it impossible for me to move any faster, and it has him swiping me off my feet and up into his arms.
I hear footsteps pound on the floor as someone runs past us while saying something in Russian.
When I feel Rodian’s breath near my face, I jerk, but before I can pull away, he whispers, “Just go along with it. You’re safe.”
I remain tense as hell in his arms, and finally my vision begins to return, but then he steps out of the building, and I’m hit with bright sunlight.
“Jesus,” I whimper as my eyes slam shut again.
It feels like he walks to the other side of the damn prison before we enter another building and I’m able to see where we are.
We’re following Mikhail down a long hallway with doors on either side, then the guard stops in front of one and shoves it open.
Rodian steps inside and kicks the door shut before setting me down on my feet.
I sway from the sudden motion.
“Are you okay?” he asks.
I shake my head as a wave of nausea rolls through my stomach, and glancing around, I run to the sink, but as I heave, nothing comes out.
It goes on for so long that my ribs hurt, and when it finally stops, I slump down to the floor.
“Christ,” Rodian grumbles, then he picks me up again and carries me to a bed that’s pushed up against a wall. When I tense up, he says, “I’m not going to hurt you. The last thing I need is the Cosa Nostra hunting me for the rest of my life.”
The urge to cry wells in my chest, but I use the meager strength I have to fight it back.
Rodian sits down on the side of the bed, his blue gaze sweeping over me. “You look like shit.”
An empty-sounding chuckle bursts over my cracked lips. “Thanks. It’s the five-star treatment your people have given me.”
He pulls his phone out, then asks, “What is Christiano’s number?”
“Huh?” My head pops up.
“Give me his number so I can call him.”
My heartbeat speeds up, and strength flows through my body as I move into a sitting position. My blurry gaze jumps between his phone and face. “Are you serious?”
“Does it look like I’m fucking joking?”
No.
Frowning at him, I mutter, “The Bratva will be able to track the call. What game are you playing at?”
“Give me more credit than that. The device is encrypted.”
Oh my God!
Wait. This might be the only call I get.
“Christiano might not answer.” My voice cracks over the words while my pulse speeds up even faster. “Call his underboss. Enzo.”
“Fine. Number?”
Shit! What’s Enzo’s number? I always just pressed dial.
I close my eyes and focus, then rattle off what I hope are the right digits.
Rodian puts the phone to his ear, and I swear my heart is about to beat out of my chest as I wait to see what happens next.
“Enzo Falco?” Rodian’s eyes flick to me. “It’s Rodian Volkov. Bratva.”
My lips part, and there’s a rush in my head that makes me dizzy.
“I’m calling to discuss a business opportunity. I want to take down Yegor… Yes, a coup… I want the Cosa Nostra to back me.”
I can hear Enzo’s voice but not what he says, so I inch closer to Rodian.
“Oh, you will definitely back me.” He holds the phone out to me. “Talk to him.”
I grab the device and knock it against my head in my hurry to press it to my ear. My voice is unrecognizable when I say, “Enzo, it’s me. Rosie.”
There’s a moment’s silence, then he snaps, “You don’t sound like her. I need proof.”
The sound of his voice makes my body shudder hard, and I almost whimper, but instead, clear my throat. “Sono io, Enzo. La tua Rosellina.”
“Jesus fucking Christ,” he groans while inhaling harsh breaths. “Rosie. Fuck. Where are you? Does the Bratva have you? Are you okay?”
“Russia. Yes. No.” God, I want to be strong, but unable to hold it any longer, a sob bursts from me. “I m-miss you all… s-so m-much.”
Rodian reaches for the device, and I scramble away from him and off the bed. “One minute.” I hold my finger up, giving him a pleading look. “Please. I’m begging you.”
He nods, then rises to his feet and walks to the door.
“What’s happening?” Enzo barks. “Are they hurting you?”
“I’m in some kind of prison. They’re forcing me to hack for them. It’s… hell.” Another sob escapes me while Rodian glances up and down the hallway. “I… I…” Too overwhelmed and tired, I can’t think straight anymore. “I miss you.”
“Shh… I’m here, bella mia. Just focus on my voice. What can you see around the prison?”
“I’ve only been out of the building today, and the sunlight was too sharp for my eyes to stay open, so I couldn’t see anything.”
Suddenly, Rodian grabs the phone out of my hand, and as horror crashes over me, he snaps at Enzo, “You’ll get to talk to her in a minute again.
Business first. I’ll give you the location where she’s being held, but the Cosa Nostra has to promise to back me in taking down Yegor.
I want to hear it from your brother. Have him send his acceptance of allegiance to the following number.
” Rodian gives it to Enzo, then adds, “You have one minute to talk to Rosie. We can’t risk being on this call for too long. ”
He hands the device back to me, and I gasp as I say, “Tell everyone I love and miss them.”
“I will. Are you wounded? Have they…”
Knowing what he’s trying to ask, I answer, “No, they haven’t hurt me physically.” Which reminds me. “What happened to your hands and wrists?”
“Have you been able to see me via the cameras?”
“No.” My voice grows hoarse. “They showed me my funeral.”
“Christ, Rosie.” He clears his throat. “My hands are fine. Don’t worry about it. I’m coming for you.”
“Okay.” I have to squeeze the word past the lump in my throat. “Be careful. I don’t want any of you getting hurt because of me.”
“From now on, you come first, Rosie. No more putting others before yourself,” he says, his tone harsh. “Once I have you back, everything is changing.”
Rodian signals for me to wrap it up. “I have to go.” I shut my eyes and whisper, “See you soon. Okay?”
“Sooner than you think. Be strong for me, bella mia.”
I nod, and unable to get another word out, I try to cling to the phone as Rodian pries it from my fingers before cutting the call.
He leans down and locks eyes with me. “I promise you will be reunited with your family, Rosie. But it’s good if you look devastated. Scream and cry. It will make the others believe that I raped you.”
Two months, one week, and two days.
The hell surges through me like a violent storm.
I let out a harrowing cry and sink to my knees, my shoulders shuddering under the weight of the trauma I’ve been forced to endure.
Rodian crouches in front of me and places his hand on my shoulder. Only because I’ve been starved of any kind of affection do I press my forehead to his sternum.
He pulls me into a hug, and I weep uncontrollably until exhaustion takes me.