10. Cipher
CIPHER
T he roads had finally opened, but I couldn’t let Mila Stepanovich leave Port Townsend. Not yet. Not until I could be sure she’d be safe. My hands gripped the steering wheel, the leather creaking under my fingers as I sat in my car, staring at the Inn through the windshield. The snow had stopped falling hours ago, but the storm still churned inside me, a chaotic mix of the Bastard and the cop in me fighting for control.
The Bastard won out, as he usually did.
The thought of keeping her locked away stirred something primal in me. I could already see it—her wrists bound, her fiery temper clashing with my dominance as I did what was necessary to protect her. The cop in me whispered a warning, a nagging reminder that what I was about to do wasn’t just illegal but downright insane. Kidnapping wasn’t exactly in the job description. But none of that mattered anymore. Logic had abandoned me the moment Mila walked into my life.
I popped the trunk and reached for the bungee cords tucked inside. They weren’t exactly rope, but they’d do the job. Shoving them into my jacket, I stepped out into the night and made my way to the Inn. Every step was calculated, every movement careful not to draw attention. Being one of Soul’s guardians had its perks. Full access to the hotel meant no one would bat an eye if they saw me wandering the halls, even at this ungodly hour.
The lock on her door clicked open, and I slipped inside. The room was dimly lit by the moonlight streaming through the curtains, casting a silver glow over her sleeping form. She was lying face down, her body relaxed, one arm draped over the edge of the bed. Her dress hung carelessly over the back of a chair, her panties a crumpled heap on the floor. My gaze dropped to the sheet barely covering her curves, and the realization hit me like a goddamn freight train—she was naked under there.
Fuck .
My cock throbbed against my jeans, my restraint slipping as I took her in. She looked so peaceful, so fucking beautiful, and for a moment, I hesitated. This wasn’t about hurting her; I had no intention of causing her pain. But Mila had a way of scrambling every logical thought in my head, leaving me running on nothing but raw instinct. And that instinct screamed at me to keep her close—no matter what.
I turned away, trying to regain control. Her purse was splayed open on the small table in the corner, its contents scattered. I rummaged through it, my fingers brushing over lipstick, a wallet, a small switchblade that made me smirk. Mila didn’t play by anyone’s rules. That was what made her dangerous. And that was exactly why I couldn’t let her go.
There was only one way to ensure her safety: force her to stay here. Unconventional? Absolutely. Effective? Without a doubt. No one would know where she was, and I’d have her right where I could keep an eye on her.
I moved back to the bed, pulling the bungee cords from my jacket. My hands worked quickly, securing her wrists to the headboard with a precision that came from years of practice. Her ankles followed, the cords stretching to the footboard. She stirred as I finished, her body shifting against the mattress, and then her eyes snapped open.
“What the hell?” Her voice was hoarse, laced with sleep and panic as she pulled against the restraints.
“What do you want? Who are you?”
I gave her a moment and then reached over her, flicking on the bedside lamp. The dim light flooded the room.
“You…Cipher, what the fuck are you doing?”
I stepped back, watching her struggle, her fiery glare cutting through me. She kicked at the sheets, her body writhing as she tried to free herself. It was a sight that made my blood burn, but guilt gnawed at the edges of my resolve.
“Let me go!” she shouted, her voice rising. “You’re insane!”
“Calm down, Mila,” I said, my voice low and steady, though my pulse was anything but. “I’m not going to hurt you.”
“Not going to hurt me?” she spat, her eyes blazing. “You tied me to a fucking bed! You’ve been following me, haven’t you? This whole time, it was you!”
“It’s not what it looks like,” I tried to explain, but the words felt hollow even to me.
Her laugh was sharp, bitter. “Not what it looks like? You just forced me to…to do things with you, and you’re telling me this isn’t what it looks like? Are you fucking delusional?”
I leaned in, close enough to feel her breath on my skin. “Watch your mouth, Mila.”
“What do you want from me?” she demanded, her voice breaking.
“I just want to keep you safe.”
Her laugh was humorless, her eyes filled with fury. “By tying me up? By… fucking …me?”
The accusation hit like a punch to the gut, but I didn’t flinch. I’d crossed every line tonight, pushed her far past any boundaries. But something deep inside me wouldn’t let me stop. I needed her to understand, needed her to listen. And if this was the only way to make her stay, so be it.
“You’re not leaving, Mila,” I said firmly, my voice leaving no room for argument. “Not until I know you’re safe. Even if it means keeping you here by force.”
Her struggles slowed, her breaths coming in sharp gasps as she glared up at me. “You’re a bastard, Cipher. A fucking bastard.”
I smirked, the corner of my mouth twitching. “That, I won’t argue with.”
“Let me go,” she cried.
“I can’t do that, angel.”
“Why? Why are you doing this to me?”
I sighed, still hovering over her curvy frame. I ignored my male instincts and focused on what the whole point of this was. “Yulian Volkov is in Washington.”
Her eyes widened as she searched mine. "What? How is he even allowed back into the States?"
"That's what we are trying to find out. And I am so close to bringing him down, Mila. So close.”
“What does that have to do with me. With this?” She struggled against the restraints once again.
“I can't focus on him if I'm constantly trying to catch you, Mila. You have to stop running, baby."
Tears continue to brim over and run down her cheeks. "He's going to kill me. I can't stay here,"
“If you don’t stay I can’t keep you safe.”
“I don’t need anyone to keep me safe. Least of all you. You’re more of a monster than he ever was for what you did to me.”
Her words cut deep, although I knew she said them out of anger, so I swallowed the sting and leaned over her, my hands pressing gently against her arms, soothing her frantic movements. She stared up at me, her chest heaving, tears streaking her cheeks. God, she was beautiful, even like this—defiant, furious, vulnerable.
"You need to trust me, Mila," I said softly, my voice breaking under the weight of my own guilt. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I got so close, that I—" I stopped myself, the words choking in my throat. There was no excuse for what I’d done.
She turned her head away, her tears soaking the pillow beneath her. "Yulian has already destroyed me, Cipher," she whispered, her voice cracking. "There's not much more you could do to hurt me."
The way she said it—it was like a dagger stabbed into my chest. My hand moved on its own, brushing her hair back from her face. She flinched at first, then froze, her body trembling under my touch.
“I don’t want things to be this way,” I murmured, my thumb tracing the delicate curve of her cheek. She turned her face into the pillow, hiding from me, and I let out a ragged breath.
“Mila.”
She didn’t look at me, didn’t say a word, but her body betrayed her. The rise and fall of her chest, the subtle shift of her hips beneath the sheet—it was as if her body was warring with her mind, just like I was.
My gaze dropped, lingering on the bare curve of her shoulders, the tops of her breasts peeking from under the sheet. My hand moved before I could stop it, the tips of my fingers grazing the fabric, tracing the edge where her skin met the cool linen.
Her breath hitched, her eyes snapping to mine.
“Cipher…” she warned, her voice trembling.
“I’ll be back,” I said, reluctantly pulling my hand away and stepping back. “I’m here to keep you safe, Mila. Even if it means keeping you safe from me.”
Her gaze followed me as I moved to the door, her eyes filled with a mixture of fear and something else I couldn’t name.
I closed the door behind me, leaning against it for a moment, my chest tight with emotions I couldn’t afford to feel.
How the fuck had it come to this?
I’d called Ray a coward earlier, but what did that make me now? Standing here, leaving her tied to that bed—vulnerable, exposed, utterly at my mercy. I’d crossed a line I couldn’t uncross, done things I couldn’t undo.
And yet, as monstrous as it was, I couldn’t bring myself to regret it.
Because keeping her safe was all that mattered. Even if it made me the villain in her story.