4. Chapter Four #2
“Who did get the lead role?” Nikolai asks.
Ana points at Maria who jerks when she realizes we’re all looking at her. Maria doesn’t waste the opportunity though. She bats her eyelashes at Nikolai too. Ekaterina only rolls her eyes again.
“She did,” Ana says. “Maria got the lead role.”
“Maria,” Nikolai says softly, like he’s caressing her name. I don’t like it one bit.
“So you can stop paying attention to her,” Ana says, nodding at me. “If you want to spend time with a ballerina, spend time with a real one.”
Nikolai smirks. “That sounds like a good idea. And so it’s a good thing I’ll be married to one.”
“Married?”
Nikolai nods at me. “Lana and I will be married at the end of the month.”
The utter shock is priceless on Ana’s face. It takes everything in me to not laugh. “You… you’re going to be married? You two?”
“Yes,” Nikolai says simply. “So Lana isn’t boring me. In fact, you’re boring me because I can see what you’re doing. You’re trying to act better than my fiancé but you’re not better. Now, run along. I’m tired of talking to you.”
Ana shoots me a death glare before running back to Maria’s side.
“Thank you,” I breathe out.
“That girl doesn’t get spoken down to enough. And you should be careful about thanking me for things. I’m a man who makes deals. A thank you is a death sentence in my world.”
Before I can reply, Nikolai pulls a box out of his pocket. “Since we’ll be married at the end of the month, I wanted to give you this. I saw it the first day I saw you and knew you would be the one wearing it.” He gets down on one knee, despite the snow on the ground, and opens the box.
A beautiful diamond ring is nestled in. Classic cut. Diamond that’s not too large but not too small. Nothing tacky. Just an elegant ring… meant for me.
I glance at Ana and Maria to see them watching this exchange intently. It feels good, I’ll be honest.
But when I look back at Nikolai and see the possession in his eyes, I don’t feel as smug. My life is going to be bound to this man – this dangerous man – and I still don’t fully know how to feel about that.
I know I have no choice though. Nikolai and I will be married.
I hold my hand out and he slips the ring on my finger. “It’s a perfect fit,” I murmur.
“Of course it is. I had it set to your exact ring size,” he says, standing up.
I clench my hand into a fist. The band of the ring is pressing into my hand. “How did you know my exact ring size?”
“You’re a ballerina, Lana. Every single one of you girls has your exact measurements taken for anything. I found the documents in your dance instructor’s office.”
“You broke into Camille’s office?”
“I’m a mafia man. Breaking and entering is one of the more light crimes I have been involved in.”
“Like murder?” I ask. “Is that something you’ve been involved in?”
He gives me a knowing smile. “You will be mine. Now, you won’t have another show for a few months so I won’t see you until the wedding but I’ll be keeping an eye on you. Just to make sure you’re safe. I don’t want someone sending another person after you to kill you.”
“Nothing like that has happened.” Since Claudia’s death, I might add.
“I want you safe, Lana. You will be my wife after all. And I like to cherish the things I own.”
I swallow hard. Own. Nikolai will own me once we’re wed. “I still want to dance,” I blurt out. “I still need to dance. Even after we’re married.”
He inclines his head. “Of course. I don’t want you to stop. I want you to become the best. You’ll show your dance instructor that you deserve the lead role. No matter what it takes.” His eyes flick to Ana and Maria before turning back to me. “I hope you like your ring.”
“It’s beautiful,” I whisper. My breath forms in the cold air.
“I know,” he says, not looking away from my eyes. Under a spell once again.
The month passes by in a blur. Dance practice. Rehearsal for Swan Lake where I have to watch Maria prance around and brag to everyone that she’s the lead. Watching each day tick by knowing I’ll be a married woman soon.
Elena heals in that time and is able to come home.
“I’m glad you’re all right,” I say, standing in her bedroom doorway as she gets settled in her bed.
“Me too. But I’m still tired. The infection I had developed took a lot out of me.”
“It was touch and go there but you pulled through and I’m glad you did.”
Elena watches me. “Why do you sound so sad? I’m alive. That’s all that matters… right?” Her eyes darken as she dips her chin to her chest. “Father didn’t come to see me in the hospital though.”
I sit down beside her on the bed and I want nothing more than to take her hand in mine but I hold back. We’re not a touchy-feely family. “You know Father. He’s… stubborn. Elena, there’s something I have to tell you. Something you don’t know.”
“What is it?” Her eyes are wide, like a doe. She was always the prettiest of the three of us in my opinion – not that our father would agree.
“I’m getting married. I didn’t tell you while you were in the hospital. It was better you focused on healing.”
“To who?”
“To a man Father chose.” A little white lie. “An arranged marriage to help strengthen our families. His name is Nikolai Smirnoff.” I don’t mention that he’s the one responsible for Elena being in the accident in the first place. She doesn’t need the extra stress.
“Have you met him yet?”
I hold out my hand with the ring on it. “He gave this to me. He’s… a mafia man. Dangerous but doesn’t want me to be hurt at least. This is for the best. The wedding is happening next week.”
She blows out a long breath. “You’ll live with him and I won’t get to see you as often. It will be hard being in this house without you.”
“I know. But you have to remain strong, Elena. Focus on going to college. Focus on your writing. I know how much you want to be a poet one day.”
“Father doesn’t approve. It’s not acceptable to be a poet in this family. He read some of the things I wrote once. Harsh things about him and he has never approved since then. I think it’s why he likes dance. It doesn’t have an opinion itself.”
I frown. “I’m sorry, Elena. I’m sorry you’re going to be on your own here.”
“She’s not on her own,” Adriana says, bursting into the room. “I was listening to you two talk. You always leave me out. It’s annoying.” She falls onto the bed between us. “I’m here to help keep Elena company.”
Elena and I exchange a look. We both know that Adriana is not a good buffer for our father.
“You should run away.” Adriana’s comment is so blunt, it almost takes me a moment to understand it.
“What?”
“You should run away. You shouldn’t have to marry that man. I saw him at the hospital. He’s handsome but he’s also terrifying. You should run. It’s what I would do if Father forced me into a marriage.”
“Seeing as you’re only sixteen right now, I don’t think Father is going to force you into a marriage any time soon. So, you’re fine. And I’m not going to run away. It would only cause more problems.” My eyes flick to Elena. I can’t risk her getting killed because I refused to marry Nikolai.
I will marry him. A part of me wants to and another part wants to run like Adriana suggested. But I will stay and do my duty for this family.
I will become the best version of myself I can be. Both as a mafia wife and daughter and as a ballerina.
My wedding day.
I haven’t seen Nikolai at all this past month but I could feel him watching me. Keeping an eye on me. Making sure I’m safe.
I was supposed to be at a rehearsal for Swan Lake today but I told Camille I had to miss it for my wedding. She didn’t seem all that surprised. Even though my father never revealed to her that he’s a mafia man, I think deep down she knows that I’m involved in things that even she can’t comprehend.
The wedding dress I chose is classic to match my ring. Something old Hollywood looking. White satin. No lace. No sleeves to show off my toned arms. A bodice that hugs my waist and a skirt that flares out just enough.
Mother paid for a hairstylist and makeup artist to get me ready for the day, claiming I had to look my best.
The hairstylist curls my hair and leaves it bouncy around my shoulders while the makeup artists paints soft, light makeup onto my face. Nothing extreme. I want to look beautiful today. Not like a clown.
Stage makeup is always more intense so it can be seen by the audience. Today is not about being on the stage. It’s about marrying a man I barely know anything about.
My family and I are driven to the church where the wedding will take place. Our new driver, Samuel, is a decent enough man but he’s not Ivan. No one could replace the driver I felt comfortable with – that I had known since I was a little girl.
My mother and sisters walk on ahead and enter the church while me and my father remain outside. Inside that church is Nikolai waiting for me.
“How many guests are there?” I ask, gripping my father’s arm.
“I thought you didn’t want to know anything about the wedding.”
“I didn’t. But now I should know.”
He clears his throat. “Between the people I invited and the people Nikolai invited, there are at least a hundred people inside that church. Today is about bridging the gap between us. Him and I. Making peace.”
What my father means is that our guests are a show of strength. Only the highest ranking Bratva officials and their wives and children are allowed at this wedding. It’s a sign of status for my father and I’m sure for Nikolai as well.
I shiver in the cold, winter air. The shawl around me doesn’t offer much protection from the elements.
“A winter wedding,” I murmur. “I always dreamed of one when I was younger.” The perfect wedding for an ice princess like me.
“Make me proud today, Lana. Nikolai will be in charge of you now. I will not have a say in your life anymore. But you are still my daughter and I will not completely lose you. You are setting an example for the kind of man your sisters can marry after you. Don’t fuck this up.
” His harsh words make me flinch. A crack in my stone.