26. Chapter Twenty-Six
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
M y ass was rumbling beneath me when I came to. Something was covering my eyes now, and I was still naked and cold. I shivered in place, as I tried to get a feel of my surroundings. My hands were still tied behind my back, and his sticky cum had dried on my thighs. I prayed to God that he didn’t have any diseases and hadn’t made me pregnant.
My ankles were tied together and my knees were to my chest. From the rumbling, I figured I must’ve been in a car. Spanish music played and I could hear the sounds of men, but I couldn’t quite make out what they were saying.
My Spanish was rusty, since I’d spent the better part of this year with the Russians, and went to The Academy as a small kid. I kept my ears peeled as I tried to struggle out of my bindings. The pain in my wrists and ankles grew, the more I tried to get out of them.
The car came to a stop, rocking my body from side to side with the force of the brakes. The men got out of the vehicle, speaking in our language in hushed tones. I caught a few words saying they were planning on transporting me .
I heard the trunk opening and the chill grew.
“Get her out,” a familiar voice ordered.
My ex-fiancé sounded like he had a bug up his ass. He directed the men in Spanish on where to put me for now, and to meet him when they finished. They were probably going to talk more.
I couldn’t have been in Venezuela, since the air was still full of that Russian cold. Hands grabbed me and swung my body over a shoulder. I grunted from the impact but didn’t waste my time trying to scream. I still had tape over my mouth to keep my sounds muffled.
My kidnappers walked with me for a while, and bounced me forcefully on their shoulder as we headed upward. A tear rolled out of my eye, because I knew I was going to have more bruises from their rough handling.
I wasn’t concerned about what they were going to do to me. I’d lived through worse, but I was worried that Benedikt wouldn’t be able to find me. Because he sure as fuck was coming. I knew that for certain.
I’d never doubt that.
One thing the time I’d spent with Benedikt had taught me was that he was obsessed with my safety and well-being. Borderline possessive in his thoughts of me. He wouldn’t allow anyone to steal me out from under him.
If only for his pride, rather than something small, like love.
I was tossed onto a mattress, and bounced with relief that it was semi-soft.
“Stay down, bitch,” an unfamiliar man ordered me.
I heard his footsteps walking away as he left me tied like this. A door opened and closed, then there was silence. I thought I was all alone, but I had no way to know for certain. I didn’t feel like there was a presence with me now, so I struggled to sit up.
I moved like an inchworm, until I could rest my body sideways against the headboard .
Panting, I tried to roll my head to my shoulder so I could rub the blindfold off my eyes, but it didn’t budge. Exhausted, I leaned harder on the headboard, and prayed for a way out of this situation.
As time wore on, I felt more and more bleak. It wasn’t until I heard the gunshots that I perked up. Something was happening. I took a risk in the loud distant chaos, and rolled off of the bed onto the floor with a loud oof.
I scooched and inched my way under the bed, as much as I could, praying that my body wasn’t sticking out for someone to see. I slid around, until my body lined up with the wall, and laid still.
I waited.
Shouts rang out, with the sound of footsteps running down the hallway, before being followed by the sound of gunshots. I shook as I heard someone going down the hall, kicking in doors, from the sound of it. My head swiveled at every single sound, as the footsteps got closer and closer.
I held back a sob as they stopped in front of the room I was in. I heard the handle to the room jiggle. I tried to stay quiet as the door was kicked in a second later. The footsteps stomped around the room.
I prayed they found what they were looking for and let me be.
They stomped into a room and I could hear what sounded like swishing. Maybe a closet or something? I bit down on my lip, trying to silence a whimper, as the steps grew closer to the bed.
A minute passed and I heard no movement. What were they doing? I didn’t know if they had left, or if this was a trick to get me to leave my hiding spot, but I wasn’t moving. A second later, I could feel a breeze against my forehead.
“There you are, my malen'kiy angel,” Benedikt’s warm tone soothed my nerves .
My shoulders loosened, as I relaxed, knowing that he was here. I couldn’t help but trust him. Ever since he’d rescued me, he hadn’t let me down. Not once. I felt his hand wrap underneath my arms and pull me from under the bed.
Benedikt lifted me onto the bed and removed the blindfold and tape. I blinked as the room I’d been held in came into focus. I couldn’t care less about the details, not when Benedikt wore the most anguished look on his face.
I tried to lift my hands to caress his cheeks, but I was still tied up, I’d forgotten for a moment.
“Sorry, my malen'kiy angel. Let me get that for you.” He whipped out his knife and cut the cable cord off my wrists and ankles.
“Thank you,” I said, rubbing my painful wrists as best I could.
“Let’s get you home,” he mumbled.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, as I tried to stand on shaky legs.
“This was my fault,” he whispered.
I shook my head. “No. It wasn’t.”
He nodded. “Yes. I should’ve been there to protect you. I was too busy stopping your father, and failed to see the bigger threat.”
I stopped walking, the pain between my legs too great.
Benedikt cursed in Russian, before holstering his weapon, and sweeping me off my feet. Then he pulled his weapon back out and tried to balance.
“Let me climb on you like a backpack,” I suggested.
He vetoed it right away. “No, the enemy could shoot you and kill you from behind. The front would be better.” Even though it looked like it pained him.
He tore off his shirt and draped me in it. We maneuvered my body until I was wrapped around him like a koala, to the front of his chest, leaving his arms free for the fight. It strained the place between my thighs but I powered through the pain .
I would ignore it, so we could get out of here alive.
I gritted my teeth as he started slowly walking. We took a few steps before Benedikt stopped. He squatted and grabbed something.
“Lean backward,” he ordered.
I did as he asked, and he passed me a handgun.
“Aim that behind me, wife. Shoot first, ask questions later, baby,” he cooed.
It wasn’t like I hadn’t grown up around guns. I just hadn’t shot that many. However, I followed his directions. Growing up, my father’s men taught me every part of the weapon. I knew my way around one, even if I was rusty.
One soldier let me shoot a couple of glass bottles in the back of the property, if I stole something from my father in return. It was a good trade. I grabbed money, jewels, and small things he wouldn’t miss, until I was sent off for training at The Academy.
I aimed with a shaky hand behind Benedikt. I knew that, by the time I shot a bullet, Benedikt would have taken care of the threat. I just had to keep my wits about me. Benedikt jogged through the house I’d been held in.
Dead bodies were littered everywhere.
I assumed that meant we’d won. If we hadn’t, Benedikt would either be running faster, or sneaking slower, to not get caught by the enemies. I kept my eyes alert as I looked for any signs of danger.
We made it outside with no incident.
Benedikt didn’t hesitate to get me into a transport vehicle. He barked orders I couldn’t follow in Russian, once he sat me on the seat. It didn’t take long for us to head out. I wondered if Juan Carlos was dead and asked Benedikt about it.
His eyes grew dark as he looked at me. “He will be soon, my malen'kiy angel. He will be soon.” Violence flooded the enclosed space, and I shuddered at what was coming to Juan Carlos, just happy that when it came down to me or him, I’d ended up on top. I’d never doubted he would come for me. The world finally chose me, and I had Benedikt Petrov to thank for that.