3. Chapter Three
Chapter Three
Natalya
U ncle Denis makes it clear the day after the funeral that he’s moving in.
It doesn’t matter that my mom stands in the doorway with her gun drawn. Denis brushes right past her into the house.
“You’re not going to shoot me, Tatiana,” he says, handing her his coat like she’s the maid.
“I might.”
“If you were going to do it, you would have done it already. Put the gun down.”
“Mom,” I say, standing on the stairwell with my sisters. I don’t want to risk losing my mom too.
Slowly, she lowers the gun with a sigh. “I said I didn’t want you moving in here.”
“And I said that you don’t get a choice. This is Lev’s home, which means it’s my home now.”
“You did not buy this place. Your name is not on the lease. Mine is. I raised Lev’s children in this house. You have no claim to it.”
Denis only shrugs. “I’ll make sure to get my name on the lease. Don’t you worry.” He nods at his coat in her hand. “Aren’t you going to hang that up for me?”
With a grumble, she tosses the coat onto the coat rack. “There. Happy?”
“Ecstatic.” His eyes find mine. “Natalya, you’ll be meeting with Antoni later today. We’re going to discuss wedding plans.”
I shiver. Marrying Antoni is not what I want but my only other choice is Mikhail, who I’m not sure I want to be with either. Yes, Mikhail is disarmingly handsome. Yes, he makes me feel things I’ve never felt before.
But that doesn’t mean I trust him. Will he take care of my sisters? He’s only made it clear he wants me. He’s never said anything about wanting my family too.
And right now, I need to do everything I can to protect my sisters. If I marry a man Denis doesn’t approve of, he just might force Sasha into a marriage as soon as possible. She might even have to marry Antoni. She’s nineteen, so legally she’s an adult. Old enough to get married.
“I have to run by the theater first,” I tell him. “I left some of my things behind and I want to retrieve them. Some of my fellow dancers wanted to see me and wish me condolences.”
Denis frowns. “I’m not sure I want you going there anymore. You are to stay in this house where I can watch you at all times.”
My father was strict about me not dating anyone but he never controlled where I went. There was always a level of freedom with him.
With Denis, I’m thinking that’s going to be different.
“I promised my friends I would be there. So I’m going.”
“She’s going,” Mom adds. “You can’t keep her from the theater, Denis. She’s a dancer. She’s built a community there. She has a right to go.”
He sighs like what we’re asking is the end of the world. “All right. But make it back home soon. You’re meeting Antoni tonight. I was thinking you two could be married by the end of the month.”
I stand up straighter. “That soon?”
“Yes. Is that a problem?”
I share a look with my mom before I shake my head. “No. No problems here.” Something in my gut is telling me that I don’t want to upset Denis.
I give Irina and Ana a hug before heading out the door. Sasha doesn’t like to hug so I respect her space by not forcing her to touch.
Our private driver takes me to the theater. The sight of it makes my heart sting. It’s a reminder of what I lost. Yes, I could dance again but it’s too painful thinking of my dad. Dance was something we shared and now he’s gone.
I tell Richard, the driver, to wait by the car. I hurry inside and grab my things from my dressing room. Some makeup and clothes and hair products.
I leave the dressing room and am struck by how quiet the hallway is. My friends said the wanted to meet up but I don’t hear anyone. I text Jake and he tells me that we’re meeting tomorrow. I got my days mixed up. Shoot. I doubt Denis will let me come back here tomorrow.
I tell Jake not to worry about meeting up and head for the doorway at the end of the long hallway. The fluorescent lights above make everything look eerie. As I walk, I feel like the door is getting farther and farther away from me rather than closer, like I’m in some sort of dream.
I pick up my pace and run for the door.
An exhale of relief escapes me when my hand touches the door handle. I made it. Then I pull it open.
Mikhail is standing on the other side of the door. I didn’t even see him before.
With a gasp, I step back. “Mikhail.”
He enters the hallway, shutting the door behind him. I glance over his shoulder to look for Richard but I can’t see him through the dark glass.
“What are you doing here?” I ask.
“I followed you,” he admits. “I’ve been keeping an eye on your house. I wanted to know when Denis would make his move. When he would marry you to Antoni. Are you still going to marry him?”
I clutch the box tighter in my arms. Something tells me I need to be afraid. “I don’t want to but I don’t see any other choice. If I don’t marry Antoni, Denis will just force my younger sister, Sasha, to do it, and I know she’ll die inside if she’s forced to marry anyone.”
“Understandable. What if I offered you a different option?”
“What?” I ask breathless. The way he’s looking at me makes it hard to think.
“I could kill Antoni. Then he wouldn’t be a problem for you any longer.”
I blink. He can’t be… serious. Can he? “You would…”
“Kill? Yes, I would. I’ve done it before.” He says is so nonchalantly. I know Bratva men are dangerous. I know they’ve killed but hearing one admit it is another level of crazy.
“Has my father killed before?”
“I never saw Lev kill anyone with my own eyes but… yes. I know he’s killed some people. Does that scare you? That I’ve killed people before?” He steps closer to me and I back up until my spine hits the wall behind me. He tucks a piece of my hair behind my ear. His touch is electric.
“Yes. It scares me. But… I’m not surprised. I know what Bratva men do.”
“Good. And I’m offering to kill Antoni for you. Then he’s no longer a problem.”
“And what happens to me? With you?”
“I’ll expect you to marry me in return. I want you, Natalya. I want you to be mine. Say you’ll be mine. I really don’t want to have to drag you out of here and lock you away in my mansion. I would much prefer you agree to be my bride.”
All the air leaves me. “You’re dangerous.”
“I never claimed to be anything else. I have done a lot of bad things in my life, Natalya, but taking you against your will is not something I want to do. I am offering you a choice. I’ll kill Antoni if you agree to be my bride.”
I lick my dry lips and his eyes go right to them. What would happen if he just kissed me right now? Would I hate it? Or would I lean into it?
“Can you promise to keep my sisters safe?”
“I promise I won’t hurt them.”
“No. I mean, can you promise to make sure they’re never forced into a marriage they don’t want.”
He frowns and slowly shakes his head. “I’m sorry. I can’t promise that. I don’t control everyone and everything in this city. But I can offer you a chance to not have to marry a rapist. I’ll kill Antoni, you be mine. You’ll live with me.”
“Will I get to see my sisters again?”
“They’ll still be under your uncle’s control, so that will make it hard.”
“Then why not just kill him?”
His laugh is low and dangerous. “You have a dark side to you, don’t you, baby?”
I shiver at the pet name. It’s so intimate. For some reason, it makes me want to press my legs together. “Answer my question. Please.”
“So polite,” he murmurs, taking the box out of my hands and placing it on the floor.
He stands chest to chest with me. I can feel the heat radiating off his body.
“I could kill Denis. But I know he’s more heavily guarded than Antoni is.
Antoni is cocky. He thinks he’s untouchable.
It will be easy to kill him. Denis will be harder.
I can try but I can’t promise that I’ll kill him.
But I can promise to kill Antoni. So what will it be, baby?
Do you agree to be my bride?” He places his hands on either side of my head, trapping me in.
Except, I don’t feel trapped exactly.
I gasp when the front of his shirt brushes the front of mine. We’re standing so close. Other than when I’m dancing, I’ve never been this close to another person before.
I know that this is a good offer. If Antoni is dead, then Denis can’t force me or Sasha to marry him. But what happens if Denis just finds another man to force Sasha to marry?
If I’m married to Antoni, then I have no power. Antoni is loyal to my uncle. There is no way to stop him.
But with Mikhail… there is a way. Mikhail clearly is not loyal to my uncle, which means he might be able to kill him one day and save my sisters.
That’s assuming Mikhail isn’t a danger to my sisters. I don’t know for sure. And I’ll never know until I take the plunge and agree to be his bride.
I have to make this decision without knowing all the outcomes.
Because of that, I have to go with my gut.
“Ok,” I whisper. “I’ll be your wife.”
He smiles. “Good choice.” He backs away from me, letting me breathe. “Return home. I’ll take care of Antoni. And then I’ll come for you.”
“You won’t be able to get into my house. It’s too heavily guarded now that Denis is there.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll get you out. Killing Antoni is my way of saying you can trust me.”
I let out a slow breath. “I’m still not sure I can do that.”
“Then why agree to be my wife?”
“Because you seem like the lesser evil. And I really don’t want to marry a rapist.”
“I may not be a rapist, Natalya, but that doesn’t make me not evil. I’m not a good man. But I will protect you because I want you to be mine. That I can promise you.”
“Why do you want me so much? You barely know me.”
“You’re beautiful. When I watched you dance, I couldn’t take my eyes away. And your innocent. I want to touch something as innocent as you. I want to consume it. I want to corrupt it.”
I shiver. He’s right. He’s not a good man. A good man wouldn’t say any of the things he just said.
And yet, I’m not as afraid as I should be.
“I’m meeting with Antoni tonight.”