Chapter 20
ADRIANNE
Croaking one eye open, the first thing I noticed when I woke up was that I was alone in the bed. That realization forced me awake too fast, and that's when I realized this wasn’t Nikolai’s room.
I sat up slowly, my mind still foggy with sleep, taking in my surroundings.
The bed was softer than the one in the basement, the sheets a pale cream instead of the dark colors I remembered from last night.
Sunlight streamed through floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating a space that was beautiful in a way that felt purposefully impersonal.
Like a polished suite in an expensive hotel.
My clothes from the basement were neatly folded on a chair by the door. All of them. Even the hoodie I’d been wearing last night and drenched in the shower.
But it was the flowers on the nightstand that made me pause.
Camellias. Pink and white, arranged in a crystal vase, their delicate petals catching the morning light.
The same flowers I’d admired yesterday while walking with Alexei, buried under snow and still surviving the severe conditions.
I’d stopped to look at them, mentioned how beautiful they were, how they reminded me of something my mother used to love.
He remembered.
A small smile tugged at my lips despite everything. The gesture was sweet. Thoughtful in a way I hadn’t expected from anyone in this house.
Yet confusion stopped me from appreciating the gesture the way it deserved.
I’d fallen asleep in Nikolai’s bed. I remembered his hand finding mine under the covers, the steady rhythm of his breathing, the warmth of his body next to mine. I remembered feeling safe for the first time since this nightmare began.
So how the hell did I end up here?
Had he carried me? Moved me in the middle of the night like I was a piece of furniture he needed to rearrange? The thought should have made me angry, but instead, it just left me feeling hollow. Like whatever connection we’d shared last night had been nothing more than a fever dream.
Like the last time.
Before I could spiral further into confusion, there was a soft knock on the door.
“Miss Battaglia?” A woman’s voice, accented and gentle. “May I come in?”
“Yes.”
The door opened to reveal a woman in her fifties, dressed in a simple black uniform, carrying a tray with what looked like enough food to feed three people. Eggs, toast, fresh fruit, pastries that smelled like heaven, and a pot of coffee that made my mouth water.
“Good morning,” she said with a warm smile, setting the tray on a small table by the window. “I am Galina. I hope you slept well.”
“I… yes. Thank you.” I gestured to the room, to my clothes, to everything. “Did you…?”
“Sir Volkov asked me to prepare this room for you last night. He said you needed proper accommodations.” Her smile widened slightly, like she knew something I didn’t. “He was very specific about making sure you were comfortable.”
Sir Volkov. Nikolai. He’d done this. Not Alexei.
But then, who brought the flowers?
“Sir Volkov is waiting for you in his study,” Galina continued, moving to the bed where I now noticed a dress laid out that I definitely hadn’t seen before. “He asked that you join him after breakfast. I’ve prepared this for you to wear.”
The dress was stunning. A deep red that would probably make my skin glow, made of fabric so soft it looked like it would feel like a second layer of skin. Beside it lay a cream-colored fur shawl that looked warm and fluffy.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, running my fingers over the fabric.
“Sir Volkov has excellent taste.” Galina’s tone suggested she was talking about more than just the dress. “Now, please eat. You’ll need your strength. The house can be… overwhelming.”
She left me alone with my thoughts and enough food to feed a small army.
I ate mechanically, my mind racing as I tried to understand what all of this was.
After forcing down as much food as I could manage, I changed into the dress. It fit perfectly, hugging my curves, making me feel beautiful and exposed all at once. The fur shawl was impossibly soft, warming me instantly as I draped it over my shoulders.
I needed to see Nikolai. I needed to understand what last night meant, if it meant anything at all.
Galina had given me vague directions to the study. Second floor, east wing, third door past the portrait of a woman with butterflies in her hair. Simple enough.
Except nothing in this house was simple.
I made it to the second floor easily enough, but the hallways seemed to multiply the further I walked. Every corridor looked the same. Every door was identical to the previous one. I was about to give up and ask for help when a familiar voice called out behind me.
“Lost, querida?” Dear.
I turned to find Alexei leaning against the wall, that easy smile on his face. He looked relaxed in dark slacks and a cream-colored sweater, his hair slightly damp like he’d just stepped out of the shower.
“Completely,” I admitted. “I’m supposed to meet Nikolai in his office, but I think I’ve walked past the same portrait three times.”
“The house has a way of confusing people.” He pushed off the wall, closing the distance between us. “Come on. I’ll take you there.”
“Thank you.” I fell into step beside him. “And thank you for the flowers. They’re beautiful.”
He glanced at me, something flickering across his face. “Flowers?”
“The camellias. In my room.”
“Ah.” His smile returned, but it seemed strained. “I’m glad you liked them.”
We walked in silence for a moment before he spoke again. “That dress looks incredible on you. The color suits you.”
“It does, doesn’t it?” I smoothed my hands over the fabric. “I think red might just be my new favorite color.”
“Mine, too. There’s something about it that feels alive. Sensual.”
Before I could reply, we reached a set of large double doors, dark wood with ornate handles. Alexei didn’t slow down or knock. He just pushed them open like he owned the place.
“Nikolai, I found your–”
The words died in his throat, and I understood why immediately.
Nikolai stood by the window, his back partially to us, dressed in dark slacks and a black dress shirt that looked tailored to perfection. But it wasn’t him who made my stomach drop.
It was the woman.
She stood close to him. Her hand rested on his chest, fingers splayed over his heart like she had every right to touch him there. She was so beautiful that it made my throat tighten.
Blonde hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail, sharp features, red lips curved in a smile. She wore all black, the dress clinging to her like a second skin.
They looked intimate. Like I was interrupting something private.
Adrik stood on the other side of the room with another man I didn’t recognize, both of them deep in conversation. But my eyes couldn’t leave Nikolai and the woman.
The feeling that crashed through me was visceral and ugly. It started in my chest, a sharp, twisting pain that spread like poison through my veins. Jealousy? Hot and bitter and completely irrational.
I had no right to feel this way. The man kidnapped me!
Whatever happened between us last night, whatever vulnerability he’d shown me, whatever softness I’d allowed myself to feel, it meant nothing.
But knowing that didn’t stop the burn.
I’d let my walls down. I’d seen glimpses of the man beneath the monster, and like an idiot, I’d let myself care. I’d let myself hope that maybe, just fucking maybe, there was something real between us.
And here he was, with her hand on his chest, looking at her like nothing else in the world existed.
Nikolai’s head snapped toward us, and the fury that flashed across his features was terrifying. His eyes went from ice to hellfire in a heartbeat, his jaw clenching so hard I could see the muscle jump.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” The words came out as a growl, low and dangerous.
Before either of us could respond, he was moving towards us. Three long strides and he was in front of us, his huge body blocking our view of the room. His hand gripped the edge of the door, his knuckles turning white.
“Out. Now.”
“Nikolai, I was just–” Alexei started.
“I don’t give a fuck what you were doing.” Nikolai’s voice was drenched in venom. He turned to me, and the look in his eyes made me flinch. “You. Your room. Now.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re forbidden from leaving that room. Do you understand me? Forbidden.”
The words hit like a slap. All the softness from last night, all the vulnerability, it was gone. Replaced by this cold, cruel stranger who looked at me like I was nothing more than an inconvenience.
“And what the fuck are you wearing?” His eyes skimmed over my body like I was infectious. The disgust was clear in his curled lip and flared nostrils. “Take it off. Shred it. Or you know what’s going to happen if I find you wearing that again.”
“Are you serious right now?” My voice came out sharper than intended, anger rising to meet his.
“Do I look like I’m joking?” He turned to Alexei next, his expression murderous. “You. A word.”
What happened next made my blood run cold.
Nikolai’s hand shot out, lightning fast, and grabbed Alexei between the legs. Hard.
Alexei cried out, his knees buckling, his face going white with pain.
“Shut the fuck up,” Nikolai hissed, his voice so low I almost missed it. His body blocked the view from inside the office, making it look like they were just having a tense conversation. “You’re lucky we have company, or I’d be cutting your dick off instead of just squeezing your fucking balls.”
Alexei gasped, his hands gripping Nikolai’s wrist, trying to pry him off.
“You’re going to be a good little mutt and lock her in that room.” Nikolai’s voice was calm, conversational, completely contradicting the violence of his grip. “Then, you’re going to bring me the key. Immediately. Do you understand?”
Alexei nodded frantically, sweat beading on his forehead.
“I didn’t hear you.”
“Yes,” Alexei choked out. “Yes, I understand.”
“Say it back to me.”
“Lock her in the room. Bring you the key.”
“Good boy.” Nikolai released him abruptly, and Alexei stumbled back, gasping for air.
I stood there, frozen in shock and fury. This was about that woman. About me walking in and interrupting whatever the fuck was happening in that office.
How could I have been such a fool? How could I have let him play me like this?
Nikolai straightened, adjusting his shirt like he hadn’t just assaulted his cousin. When he looked at me, his eyes were empty. Colder than I’d ever seen them.
“Go.”
I wanted to scream at him. To punch him, make him feel even a fraction of the pain and humiliation radiating through me. I wanted to tell him exactly what I thought of his hot and cold bullshit, his cruelty, his complete and utter lack of humanity.
But I didn’t say a word.
I turned on my heel and walked away, my head held high, my hands balled into fists at my sides. I didn’t look at Alexei. I didn’t acknowledge the way he was still bent over, trying to catch his breath.
Behind me, I heard the door slam shut.
My feet carried me through the hallways on autopilot, retracing my steps back to the room I’d woken up in.
It all felt like a cruel joke now.
One moment, Nikolai was reaching for my hand under the covers, holding onto me like I was the only thing keeping him grounded. The next, he was locking me away like a dirty secret, making sure I couldn’t interrupt whatever the fuck he had going on with the blonde woman in black.
I reached the room and slammed the door behind me, my chest heaving with rage and hurt and confusion.
The camellias on the nightstand mocked me with their delicate beauty.
I grabbed the vase and hurled it at the wall. It shattered with a satisfying crash, water and flowers and broken crystal spreading across the floor.
It didn’t help the rage that coursed through me.
Because, despite everything, despite his cruelty and his games and his complete disregard for my feelings, I still felt the ghost of his hand in mine.
Still remembered the way he’d whispered my name in the shower, broken and lost. Still saw the vulnerability in his eyes when he’d told me about his sister.
Was it all a lie?
I’d let him in. I’d let myself care.
And he’d locked me away like I was nothing.
I ran to the folded stack of clothes and pulled out the winter jacket, looking for that gun I’d stolen. Because if I had any certainty right now, it would be that Nikolai would come for me. If nothing else, just to make sure I’d followed his orders and taken off the dress.
I had no clue what his issue was. Why he hated it so much if he was the one who chose it in the first place. There was absolutely nothing on this earth that would force me to take it off now.
Petty? Maybe.
But in this limited world of mine, it somehow felt like revenge.