22. Tara
22
TARA
I come awake to the sound of my name and the gentle shake of a strong hand.
"Honey, wake up. They're here."
Nik's voice cuts through the fog in my brain. My limbs feel like they’re wrapped in wet sand. I can barely move.
"Who?" I mumble, my throat dry.
Nik scoops me out of bed like I weigh nothing. "Sorry, honey, but Bella needs to make the bed. You know these young bucks can be quite cocky and heated crashing into a room."
“You are so British, Uncle Nik.” My foggy brain has a smile for the young bucks. Then I frown. Why the fuck is Bella making my bed? Blink up at him. "Are you kicking me out?"
"No. Never," he says, brow furrowed. "But your Russians are on their way."
My eyes snap open. I look at him, suspicion rising like bile. "That show at the gas station. That was intentional, wasn’t it? You wanted them to see you."
"Me?" He arches a brow, innocence painted all over his face.
"Uncle Nik, you’re getting too old for this shit."
He rolls his eyes. "The day a young prick gets the better of me is the day I book myself into a home."
He presses a button on his watch. A panel slides open in the wall. I stare.
“Oh no not that panic space.” I grumble.
“There are peanut butter cups in there.”
“Really?”
He nods
"In you go."
"Oh look. Telly," I mutter, snuggling into the fluffy blanket like I’m not seconds away from being hunted.
"Remember the drill."
I nod. I’m too damn tired to smile, let alone respond. I curl into the corner and fall asleep before I hear the panel click shut.
RUSLAN
My cabin is cold and quiet. I grab my phone and dial.
"Konstantin, I just got off the phone with Nadia. She's going to need your help back at Dragunov Village."
"What about Tara?"
"I'm here now," I say stiffly. A spark of jealousy flares in my chest. The eagerness in his voice grates.
I hang up and immediately call Nadia.
"Konstantin flies out tomorrow," I say. "Keep an eye on him."
"Of course, brother."
"Did you get the camera to Valeska after the break-in at Site 17?"
"I did. Everything’s in place."
"Good. I have to go."
"Yeah, you’ve got a hot woman in your bed," Nadia teases.
"You’re just jealous you don’t have someone as hot in your bed." I smile. Unbeknownst to my other siblings, Nadia and I appear to disagree on everything. She is a headstrong rebel, and my favorite sibling.
"No, we’ve got her locked up at the facility."
"All for the cause, sweet sister. I’ll call you soon."
"Love you, big brother."
"Ya tebya tozhe lyublyu."
I hang up, a smile curling on my lips. It’s all falling into place. Tara—God, she was supposed to be a distraction. Now she’s a complete obsession and, as it turns out, an invaluable treasure and a bonus addition to our plans.
But fuck. She drives me insane. I can’t keep my my hands off her and that’s a fucking problem. Tonight I gave her a taste of the real me, and instead of balking, she was more turned on than ever. Shit just thinking about her and my cock is rock hard wanting to sink into her hot tight warmth.
The moment she walked through that door, she was not leaving me again, ever. I toss back a splash of vodka and pad toward the bedroom. Sure, she’s going to be livid when she finds out she’s still pregnant. And my sister Irina is going to be even more furious when she finds out her plan to deceive has failed.
I’m about to walk past the sofa, but something feels… off. I turn and look at the long side table beside the front door. My eyes widen when I see that my wallet is open. I pick it up and go through the bills. Only ten dollars is missing.
I frown. That’s strange. Did I use ten dollars? I rack my brains, but I can’t remember spending any money earlier. The front door creeks and I walk toward it before freezing. It’s open. Fuck, did someone come inside?
And stole ten dollars when there was a whole stack of much larger bills.
That doesn’t make any fucking sense. I scan the table. My keys are gone. My head turns toward the coat rack. My jacket is gone. My heart jolts and a bad feeling creeps up my spine. I glance outside. My car is still there.
As I walk toward the bedroom, I notice Tara’s clothes are no longer scattered on the floor. They’re gone.
Fuck.
I run to the bedroom. Empty.
Bathroom. Empty.
"Fuck!"
I grab my phone. "Konstantin. Get here now. Tara’s gone."
We meet and search everywhere. It’s Konstantin who says it:
"If I were her, I’d head for the gas station."
That pisses me off more than it should.
We hit the station.
“Yeah, a woman came through about ninety minutes ago. Didn’t buy a ride. Just made a call."
"Anyone else stop by?"
"Some old guy.” The woman snorts. “He bought condoms."
My blood boils as I slap cash down. "Show me the footage."
We review the tapes. A Range Rover sits just out of camera range.
“She must’ve snuck into that Range Rover,” Konstantin observes.
“Who is that man?” I ask
“That’s Nikolas Vasilikis.” A young man comes in from the back. “He lives in a mansion on the outskirts of town.”
The trip to the estate takes too fucking long and by the time I get there, I’m already far too impatient. We get the estate’s location. The security is very tight. Anyone would think the fucking King lived here as guards with leathal weapons stop us.
"I need to see Nikolas Vasilikis,” I snap. “He has something of mine and I’d like it back.”
The guard takes his time, goes into the guardhouse, and ambles back.
"Mr. Vasilikis isn’t thrilled," the guard says, but lets us through.
A butler meets us at the door, weapon at his hip. "Mr. Vasilikis will see you in his study."
"Fuck the study. I want to search this house. She’s here."
"You search my house without my permission, you leave in a body bag," Nikolas’s voice cuts in like a blade.
He appears out of nowhere. Still. Dangerous. Calm.
"Where the fuck is she?" I snap.
"Who?" he replies.
"Tara Craft."
"I think she’s in Boston for an interview."
"Don’t play dumb."
I grab his collar and slam him into the wall. Oleksi Mirochin walks in and sees the scene.
"Dragunov, I wouldn’t…”
"Shut the fuck up, Mirochin. One more word and someone gets shot."
Nik moves like lightning. My own gun is in his hand, aimed at my men, and before I can blink he’s changed our positions and has me pinned against the wall.
I see Oleksi fake flinch. “I tried to warn you.” He yawns as he strolls past us. “If you don’t need me Nik, I’m going to bed.” He walks off as if one older man isn’t holding three big hulking Russians hostage.
"You’re in my house," Nikolas hisses.
Pavel moves. Nik adjusts the angle—he can still shoot them all.
"You touch one inch of this house again, and I’ll bury you in the desert," he says.
Todd, his man, strolls over.
"Take our guests to check the house," Nikolas says, cold and clear. He lets me go and unloads my weapon. "They’re under the illusion my GODDAUGHTER is here."
That word slams into me. Goddaughter.
I blink.
"You and I," Nikolas growls, keeping my gun and walking into his study, "are going to talk."
I know when to show respect. The man could’ve killed us all. I wonder if he wants a job? I glance around. I’m guessing he’s not hurting for money. Uh… Fuck, I wonder if he owns Matriarch Corporation Vasilikis.
"I know you picked her up at the gas station."
"Which one?" he asks.
"The one you bought condoms at."
"Ah, those were for my guard’s kid."
He narrows his eyes.
"Now tell me where Tara is."
I lie. Say we’re in a long-distance thing. Say we fought and she ran.
Nik doesn’t blink. "In all the years I’ve known her, I’ve never seen Tara have hysterics."
I want to rip the walls down.
He shows us every room.
She’s not there.
As we leave, Nikolas’s voice cuts through the night.
"Next time, bring a warrant. Or don’t come at all. While you might be the Dragunov... I’m the Monarch."
The name hits like a gut punch. He is that Nikolas Vasilikis.
We drive off, defeated. On the way out, I see two teens sneaking out of the guest suite.
So the condom story was true.
Fuck.
She’s not here. But she’s out there.
And I will find her, especially as I also know she’s carrying my child!