Chapter 21 Alina
ALINA
The phone feels like it weighs a thousand pounds in my hand. My father's voice still echoes in my ears, cold and calculating, making demands like he has any right to. Like he didn't drug me and hand me over to men who wanted to kill me.
Two hours. Come alone.
I set the phone down on Dimitri's desk with trembling fingers and look up to find him watching me. His green eyes are dark with fury, his jaw clenched so tightly, I can see the muscle jumping beneath his beard. He's already shaking his head before I can say anything.
"No." The word comes out flat, absolute. "You're not going."
"Dimitri—"
"I said no." He starts pacing, his movements sharp and agitated like a caged tiger. "Viktor wants you isolated and vulnerable. It's a trap, Alina. He'll kill you the moment you walk through that door."
"Maybe." I stand, my legs steadier than I expected. "But he'll definitely kill Katya if I don't show up."
That stops him mid-stride. He turns to face me, and I see the war playing out behind his eyes. The ruthless Pakhan who makes calculated decisions versus the man who just made me his wife, who promised to protect me.
"We'll find another way," he says, but his voice lacks conviction.
"There is no other way." I move around the desk toward him, my heart pounding. "You said it yourself. A direct assault gets people killed. But if I go in, if I can get close to Katya, we have a chance."
"A chance to get yourself killed." His hands curl into fists at his sides. "I just got you back, Alina. I'm not losing you again."
The raw emotion in his voice makes my chest tight. This man who kills without hesitation, who threatened to destroy an entire family to save me, is afraid. For me.
I reach up and cup his face, feeling the roughness of his beard against my palms. "You won't lose me. But I need you to trust me on this."
"Trust has nothing to do with it." He covers my hands with his, pressing them harder against his face. "Your father is a snake. He's already proven he's willing to sacrifice you for power. What makes you think he won't do it again?"
"Because this time, I'm not going in blind." I pull my hands free and step back, my mind already working through the logistics. "I'll wear a wire. A tracking device. You can have your men positioned around the compound, ready to move in the moment something goes wrong."
Dimitri's eyes narrow. "And when Viktor searches you? When he finds the wire?"
"Then you come in shooting." I cross my arms over my chest, trying to project confidence I don't entirely feel. "But he won't find it. He thinks I'm desperate, that I'm willing to betray you to save Katya. His ego will make him careless."
Alexei, who's been standing quietly by the door, clears his throat. "She's right, Pakhan. Viktor's arrogance is his weakness. If Alina can sell the performance, if she can make him believe she's there to negotiate, we might be able to extract Katya before he realizes what's happening."
Dimitri rounds on him, fury blazing in his eyes. "You're supposed to be on my side."
"I am on your side." Alexei's voice is calm, measured. "Which is why I'm telling you this is our best option. A frontal assault on that compound will cost lives. Good men will die. But if Alina can get inside, if she can locate Katya and give us intel on the layout, we can move fast and surgical."
I watch Dimitri process this, see him shifting from husband to Pakhan, from emotion to strategy. It's fascinating and terrifying to witness the transformation.
"Fine." The word comes out like gravel. "But we do this my way. Every detail, every contingency planned down to the second."
Relief floods through me so intense, my knees go weak. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet." He moves to his desk and pulls out his phone, already making calls. "If this goes wrong, if Viktor so much as looks at you the wrong way, I'm coming in. And I won't stop until everyone in that compound is dead."
The cold certainty in his voice should frighten me. Instead, it makes me feel safe. Protected. Loved, even though neither of us has said the word.
The next hour passes in a blur of preparation. Dimitri's tech specialist arrives with equipment that looks like something out of a spy movie. He fits me with a wire so small I can barely feel it against my skin, hidden beneath my bra strap where even a thorough pat-down wouldn't find it.
"The range is good for about half a mile," the tech explains, his fingers working with practiced efficiency. "We'll be able to hear everything you say, everything that's said to you. If you need to signal us, just say the word 'dragonfly'. That's your panic word."
Dragonfly. Like the tattoo on my wrist. I nod, committing it to memory.
The GPS tracker is sewn into the hem of my jeans, invisible unless someone literally cuts the fabric apart. The tech shows me how it works, how Dimitri's men will be able to track my exact location in real-time.
"You'll never be alone," Dimitri says, watching from across the room. "Even when you can't see us, we'll be there."
I change into the prepared clothes, simple jeans and a dark sweater that won't draw attention. No jewelry except for my wedding ring, which I twist nervously on my finger. The gold is warm against my skin, a reminder of the vows we spoke just hours ago.
For better or worse. In sickness and in health.
I didn't realize the worse would come so soon.
When Pavel finishes and leaves, Dimitri and I are alone in his bedroom. The bed where we consummated our marriage is still unmade, the sheets tangled and rumpled. It feels like a lifetime ago, not just a few hours.
"Come here," Dimitri says, his voice rough.
I go to him, and he pulls me into his arms, holding me so tightly I can barely breathe. His heart pounds against my cheek, fast and hard, betraying the fear he won't voice.
"If anything happens to you, I'll make him watch as I destroy everything he's ever cared about. And then I'll kill him slowly, painfully, in ways that will make him beg for death."
I believe him. Every word.
"Nothing's going to happen to me," I say, trying to convince us both. "I'm going to get Katya, and we're going to come home."
Home. The word slips out naturally, and I realize with a start that I mean it. This estate, this fortress, has become home in the short time I've been here. Or maybe it's not the place. Maybe it's the man holding me.
Dimitri pulls back and cups my face, his thumbs brushing across my cheekbones. "I need you to understand something. You're not just my wife. You're not just a piece in this game. You're…"
He trails off, struggling with words that don't come easily to a man like him. But I see it in his eyes, in the way he's looking at me like I'm something precious and breakable.
"I know," I whisper. "I feel it too."
He kisses me then, deep and desperate, and I taste fear mixed with desire. His hands slide into my hair, tilting my head back, and I open for him, letting him claim my mouth like he's trying to memorize the taste of me.
The kiss turns heated, urgent, and suddenly, we're moving toward the bed. Dimitri's hands are everywhere, stripping away my clothes with shaking fingers. The wire and tracker are carefully avoided as he lays me down on the tangled sheets.
"I want you," he growls against my throat.
There's no time for this. I should be getting ready, focusing on the mission ahead. But I need this too, need to feel alive, connected, and loved before I walk into my father's trap.
Dimitri makes love to me slowly this time, his movements deliberate and tender. He kisses every inch of my skin, murmurs words in Russian that I don't understand but feel in my bones. When he finally enters me, it's with a gentleness that makes tears prick my eyes.
"Mine," he breathes against my lips. "You're mine, Alina. Come back to me."
"I will," I promise, wrapping my legs around his waist and pulling him deeper. "I promise."
We move together, building toward something that feels bigger than just physical pleasure. It feels like a promise, a prayer, a desperate hope that this won't be the last time.
When we both shatter, it's with my name on his lips and his on mine.
Afterward, we lie tangled together, our breathing slowly returning to normal. Dimitri's hand traces lazy patterns on my back, and I memorize the feel of it, the warmth of his skin against mine.
"We should get ready," I finally say, though I don't want to move.
"Five more minutes." His arms tighten around me. "Give me five more minutes."
I give him ten.
Then reality crashes back in, and we're moving again. I dress carefully, making sure the wire and tracker are secure. Dimitri watches me with dark eyes, his jaw tight with tension.
Alexei appears at the door with an update. "The men are in position. We have eyes on the compound from three different angles. The moment you give the signal, we move."
I nod, my stomach churning with nerves. This is really happening. I'm really going to walk into my father's stronghold and try to rescue my sister.
Dimitri hands me a small earpiece, nearly invisible once it's in place. "You'll be able to hear us, but don't respond unless you're alone. We don't want Viktor getting suspicious."
"Understood."
He walks me downstairs to the waiting SUV, his hand never leaving the small of my back. The driver is one of Dimitri's most trusted men, someone who'll get me to the compound and then fade into the background.
At the vehicle, Dimitri stops me with a hand on my arm. He turns me to face him, and I see something in his eyes I've never seen before. Vulnerability. Fear. Love.
"Alina." My name comes out rough, broken. "Come back to me. I need you to come back."