Chapter 17
Kira
Istep out of his room and close my eyes. My heart hurts. I know I’ve lost him. He will never believe me. I take a deep breath and open my eyes and walk directly into Roman.
He's standing in the hallway like he's been waiting.
Like he knew.
Panic floods through me, ice-cold and absolute.
I try to cover myself suddenly very aware I’m undressed.
"Kira." His voice is pleasant. Too pleasant. "How was the fitting?"
"Fine." I keep my voice steady even as my heart tries to kick through my ribs.
He steps closer, studying me with eyes that see too much. "You’re flushed.”
I glance down at my feet and can’t miss the expanse of skin on display. My mind races for explanations.
His hand shoots out, gripping my chin, forcing me to look at him. "Where is he?"
"Who—"
The slap comes out of nowhere.
His palm connects with my cheek hard enough to snap my head sideways. Hard enough that I taste blood. I stumble backward into the wall. When he hits me again, my head hits the wall. My legs go out from under me. I slide down the wall with my legs stretched out in front of me.
Stars explode across my vision. My ear rings. The metallic taste of blood fills my mouth.
"Where. Is. He?" Roman looms over me, his face twisted with rage I've never seen before.
He knows.
"I don't—"
Maksim’s bedroom door jerks open.
Maksim stands there, taking in the scene—me on the floor, blood on my lips, Roman standing over me with his hand still raised.
Something in Maksim's face goes dead. Then murderous.
"Get away from her." His voice could freeze blood.
Roman turns, and now he's smiling. "How convenient. Saves me the trouble of finding you."
"I said get away from her." Maksim moves forward, positioning himself between us.
"Or what?" Roman's laugh is ugly. "You'll defend her honor? After you just fucked her in my house days before our marriage?"
The crude words hit like bullets. He knows. He knows everything.
"How did you—" I start.
"Cameras." Roman gestures around the hall. "You think I don't monitor every inch of my compound? I watched the whole sordid display. Very touching. The dead heir and his former fiancée, rutting like animals."
Horror crashes over me. He watched. He saw everything.
That’s when it dawns on me—there are cameras in our rooms.
I’m going to be sick.
"You're sick," Maksim snarls.
"I'm thorough." Roman's smile sharpens. "And you're predictable. I knew you'd go to her eventually. Knew you couldn't resist. That's why I put her room next to yours. That's why I arranged all those private moments. I wanted to see if you'd betray me."
"You set us up," I realize. "All of it.”
"Testing loyalty." Roman shrugs. "Maksim failed spectacularly. Repeatedly, from what I saw. The creek was particularly entertaining."
He watched us at the creek too. The violation makes me want to vomit.
"You're insane," Maksim says.
"I'm pragmatic." Roman straightens his cuffs. "I needed to know if you were truly with me or if you were weak enough to be swayed by a pretty face and old feelings. Now I know."
"Know what?" Maksim's hands curl into fists.
"That you're useless to me." Roman signals, and suddenly guards appear from nowhere. Six of them, all armed. "I kept you alive because I thought you'd help destroy her organization. You did that beautifully. But now that job's done, and you've proven you can't be trusted."
"Roman—" I try to stand, but my head is still spinning from the blows.
"Stay down." Roman doesn't even look at me. "This is between men."
Maksim lunges.
He's fast—faster than Roman expects. His fist connects with Roman's jaw, snapping his head back. Roman stumbles, and for a second, I think Maksim might actually win this. Logic doesn’t factor in. Even if Maksim overpowers Roman, we’re in his compound. We can’t escape.
The guards intervene.
Three of them grab Maksim, hauling him back. He fights—God, he fights—landing blows that would drop normal men. But there are too many of them.
"Maksim!" I'm on my feet now, trying to reach him.
One of the guards backhands me casually, sending me sprawling again.
"Don't touch her!" Maksim roars, fighting harder.
"She's mine to touch." Roman wipes blood from his lip. "Or she was. Now she's just a problem to solve."
He pulls a gun from his jacket. Points it at Maksim.
Time slows down.
"No!" I scream. "Roman, please—"
The shot is deafening in the enclosed hallway.
Maksim jerks, then goes still. Blood blooms across his shoulder, spreading dark and wet across his shirt.
"Maksim!" I'm crawling toward him, uncaring of my state of undress.
The guards holding him let him drop. He hits the floor hard, blood pooling beneath him.
"Take her to her room." Roman holsters the gun like he didn't just shoot someone. "Post guards. She doesn't leave. She doesn't see anyone."
"No!" I fight as hands grab me. "Let me go! He'll die!"
"Probably." Roman sounds bored. "That's rather the point."
"You can't! He’s your family!"
"Family means nothing." Roman finally looks at me, and his eyes are empty. "You should know that by now. Take her."
They drag me away. I fight every step, screaming Maksim's name, watching his still form get smaller as they haul me into my bedroom.
Blood. So much blood.
Is he breathing? I can't tell.
They throw me into my room and slam the door. I hear locks engaging—multiple locks—and then footsteps as guards take position outside.
I run to the door and pound on it. "Let me out! He needs help! Please!"
Nothing. No response.
I'm trapped while Maksim bleeds to death in the hallway.
The realization makes my legs give out. I slide down the door sobbing with my heart shattering. This is my fault. If I'd been smarter, more careful—
But it was a trap. All of it. Roman planned this from the beginning.
And we walked right into it.
Hours pass. Or maybe minutes. Time has lost meaning.
I pace the room like a caged animal. Try the door again. The windows. Search for anything I could use as a weapon or a way out.
Nothing. I'm completely helpless.
Is Maksim alive? Dead? Dying alone while I'm locked away?
The not knowing is torture worse than anything else.
Finally, I hear someone unlock the door.
I'm on my feet immediately.
Roman steps inside, closing the door behind him. He's changed clothes. The ones Maksim bled on are gone, replaced by a fresh suit. Like nothing happened.
"Where is he?" I demand. "Is he alive?"
"That's your first question?" Roman's smile is cruel. "Not whether the wedding is still on? Not begging for mercy?"
"I don't care about the wedding. Where is Maksim?"
"Touching." He circles me slowly. "The whore actually cares about her lover."
The word hits like a slap. "Don't—"
"Don't what? Call you what you are?" His voice rises. "I was going to marry you. Make you the queen of Moscow. And you repaid me by fucking him! In my house!"
"You set us up!" I shout back. "You arranged everything—"
"I tested you!" He's in my face now, fury radiating from him. "And you failed! Just like he failed! Both of you weak and predictable!"
"If we're so predictable, why are you so angry?"
Wrong thing to say. His hand wraps around my throat, slamming me back against the wall.
"Angry?" His grip tightens. "I'm not angry. I'm disappointed. I actually thought you might be worth the trouble. That you had discipline. Control. But you're just like every other woman—ruled by emotion and sentiment."
Spots dance across my vision. I claw at his hand, but he's too strong.
"The wedding is off," he says conversationally, like he's not strangling me. "I don't want a whore in my bed. I have standards."
He releases me suddenly, and I collapse, gasping.
"Instead," he continues, straightening his suit, "I'll marry your sister. Sweet, innocent Anya. At least she hasn't been tainted by my Maksim's touch."
"No." I'm still choking, voice raspy. "Not Anya. The deal was—"
"The deal is whatever I say it is." He looks down at me with contempt. "You broke our agreement when you spread your legs for Maksim. So now your sister pays the price."
"Please." I'm begging now, pride abandoned. "Please, Roman. Punish me. Kill me. But leave Anya alone. She's innocent—"
"Innocent." He laughs. "Like you were innocent? Like you didn't know exactly what you were doing when you seduced him?"
"I didn't seduce him—"
"You think I care?" His shoe connects with my ribs, and pain explodes through my chest. "You think the details matter? All I know is you betrayed me. And betrayal has consequences."
Another kick. I curl into a ball, trying to protect myself.
"The wedding will be next week," he says, like discussing business. "Anya will wear your dress—we'll have it altered to fit. She'll stand where you were supposed to stand. Marry me instead of you."
"She'll refuse," I gasp out. "She'll run—"
"She'll do exactly what I tell her." His voice hardens. "Because if she doesn't, I'll kill you. Slowly. And make her watch. Do you think your sweet sister could live with that guilt?"
He's right. Anya would never let me be tortured to save herself.
"What about me?" I force the words out through bruised ribs and terror.
"You'll be dealt with after the wedding." He straightens his jacket. "Can't have loose ends. But first, I need to secure the alliance through your sister. Then you become... expendable."
He heads for the door, then pauses. "Oh, and Maksim?" He glances back. "Still alive. For now. Thought you'd want to know. He's in a cell in the basement. We're keeping him breathing just in case I need additional leverage over you or your sister."
Relief and horror war in my chest. Alive. Maksim is alive.
But trapped. A prisoner like me.
And we will both die soon.
"Don't try anything stupid," Roman warns. "You're not leaving until I decide what to do with you."
He opens the door, revealing the guards stationed outside.
"Oh, and Kira?" He smiles. "If you do somehow manage to escape? If you try to run or interfere? I'll have Maksim killed immediately. Then your sister. Then your father. Everyone you've ever cared about, dead because you couldn't stay put. Understand?"
I nod because what choice do I have?
He leaves, and the locks engage again.
The Ice Queen has finally, completely shattered.
And I don't know how to put the pieces back together.