Chapter 9 #2
As soon as Nikolai bent that corner into the hallway, Vladimir’s entire demeanor changed. The false civility dropped away completely, giving way to a predatory look in his eyes that told me my days were numbered and somehow they’d be too many to endure.
“Alone at last,” he said, turning his full attention to me. His hand moved to my face, gripping my chin hard enough to bruise. “You know, little Italian princess, I think you and I are going to become very well acquainted.”
I tried to pull away, but his grip didn’t allow me to budge.
“You’re hardly in a position to fight me.
” His fingers dug into my skin further, and I winced in pain.
“Your family thinks they’re untouchable, but look at you now.
Collared like a dog, dressed like a whore, kneeling at my feet.
You’ll be willingly licking your water off the floor by dinner tonight. ”
Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.
“Tell me,” he continued, his face inches from mine, “What do you think your precious brothers would do if they could see you now? If they knew how easily their princess gave in?”
“They’ll come for me,” I muttered more to myself than anything else.
“Will they?” His laugh was vile, infused with a poisonous danger that was all too quick to spread through my veins. “And what will they find when they do? Their sister, broken and defeated, begging for scraps at my table?”
He yanked on the leash again, pulling me closer. “By the time they find you, you’ll be so well-trained, you won’t even want to leave.”
The tears fell from my lashes, silent and unstoppable, even though I tried my best to stop them. I hated him for reducing me to this, for stripping away every piece of dignity I had left. But fear had me collared as much as Vladimir did.
“That’s better,” Vladimir cooed, wiping a tear from my cheek with mock tenderness. “The sooner you accept your fate, the easier this will be.”
When Nikolai returned, his father had already straightened his tie and resumed eating as if nothing had happened. But the tears on my cheeks told a different story.
Nikolai took one look at me, and something violent flashed across his face. His fists clenched at his sides.
“Time for you to leave,” Vladimir announced suddenly, and panic flooded my lungs. “You have work to do, Syn.”
“What work?”
“The Battaglias need to know we have their precious daughter. You’ll make contact with them today.
” Vladimir untied the leash from the table leg as he continued the instructions.
“The coordinates to those graves you continuously cry over will be sent to you once you’ve confirmed they’re willing to negotiate. ”
Vladimir yanked on the leash, making me stumble to my feet. “Come along, Pet. Let’s accompany Niko to the door before you go to your kennel like a good little bitch.”
“I’ll take her,” Nikolai said, his hand stretched and waiting for the leash as Vladimir hesitated. “Proof of life. I’ll snap some photos to send to the Battaglias when I make contact.”
Vladimir studied his son for a long moment, then shrugged. “Very well. But don’t take too long. You have calls to make, and I have plans for our guest this evening.”
The way he said it made my blood turn to ice. I wasn’t going to last a single day here.
Nikolai walked over to me, his movements careful and controlled. He reached for the leash and guided me down that hall into a more narrow one that seemed to be more of a service corridor.
I followed him down the hallway in silence, my legs shaking with each step. With him gone, I would have no one to rely on. Even though he was my captor, I trusted him to keep me safe. Without him, Vladimir would be free to do whatever he wanted with me. The thought alone was terrifying.
When we reached my room, he paused, waiting for me to turn to face him. He reached for the collar then, his fingers brushing against my neck and wiping the trickle of blood away before unclasping the buckle and setting me free. The leather fell away, leaving angry red marks on my skin.
“Adrianne,” He whispered, his eyebrows pinched together, the same look in his eyes I’d seen when he reached for Sasha on that kitchen counter.
Regret. Pain. Maybe even genuine concern.
He reached up and touched my cheek where his father had gripped my face, his fingers gentle against the tender skin. I should have flinched away. Should have pulled back.
Instead, I found myself leaning into it, desperate for any human kindness after the cruelty I’d endured.
But then, reality crashed back, and I jerked away from his hand, my head hanging low in shame. I was pathetic. Grateful for scraps of humanity from one of my captors. Apparently he needed to be set free just as much as I did.
Without thinking, I rose up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his cheek in a soft, chaste kiss.
“I forgive you,” I whispered against his skin.
Nikolai stared at me for a long moment, his eyes searching my face like he was trying to understand why I could forgive a monster.
Then, he turned and walked away without a word.
I entered my room and closed the door behind me, leaning against it as my legs finally gave out. The room was exactly as sparse as I’d expected. Bare walls, a single bed with a brown blanket, nothing else. No comfort, no exuberance, a kennel, indeed.
I had just started to move toward the bed when the door burst open behind me.
Nikolai stood in the doorway, breathing hard like he’d been running. He gripped my hand and placed his phone in my palm, his eyes intense and urgent.
“Midnight. Keep yourself alive until midnight.”
Before I could speak, he was gone again, leaving me alone with the phone clutched in my trembling fingers.
I stared at the device for what seemed like forever before unlocking the screen. A message was already waiting for me, and when I read it, my heart stopped.
“Now that your Jimmy is gone, I’m all you’ve got. Be ready.”
Jimmy. My heart clenched with grief and hope in equal measure.
I clutched the phone to my chest and sank onto the bed, staring at the message until the words blurred together. Midnight. I just had to survive until midnight.
Outside my room, I could hear Vladimir’s voice echoing down the hallway, speaking in rapid Russian to someone. Planning something. Probably something that involved me and his twisted evening plans.
Midnight.