Chapter 16 Tatiana
TATIANA
Iwake up to the feeling of someone moving through the room and my eyes snap open.
Dimitri stands near the dresser pulling off his shirt, and I sit up in bed still disoriented from sleep.
My head pounds from all the vodka I drank before passing out and my mouth tastes like I've been licking ashtrays.
"What time is it?" I croak, then immediately cough a few times. My mouth is so dry.
"Almost two in the morning." He tosses his shirt onto a chair and starts unbuckling his belt. "You missed your shift."
"My shift?" I rub my eyes trying to remember what day it even is. "I was supposed to work?"
"You're my private waitress, remember?" I hear him chuckle but ignore it. I'm in no mood for laughing right now.
When he left, I was getting wasted, and it only took a few more shots before I passed out. I just can't believe I slept so long. It was only nine a.m. when he left me.
"I didn't mean to drink so much." I pull the sheet up higher over my bare body and yawn again. "I just needed to calm down."
"Well, you certainly accomplished that." He walks over to the bed and sits down on the edge as he kicks off his shoes, then punches his pillow before turning to me. "We need to talk about something."
"What?" I sit up straighter, scooting back against the headboard so I can see him better.
If these are the hours he keeps, we're gonna have to have a long talk about sleeping arrangements.
Today is an exception because of what happened.
If he wants me to stay here, I can't be in his bed and he can't be straggling in all hours of the night keeping me awake.
"It's about what happened." He runs his hand through his hair and I can see the exhaustion on his face. "Whoever put that photo into your locker is working for my enemies, and that means I have a mole who knows things about my organization."
My stomach twists uncomfortably. "Like which locker is mine."
"Exactly like that." He turns to face me fully. "Which means you can't leave this penthouse—at all—until we figure out who it is."
"What?" I throw the sheet off and swing my legs over the side of the bed. "You can't be serious."
"I'm completely serious," he says callously. "If someone on my staff is feeding information to the Kozlovs, they could come after you the moment you step off that elevator."
"So what, I'm just supposed to stay locked in here forever?" I stand up and immediately regret it when my head spins. "I have a life, Dimitri. I can't just disappear into your penthouse and never leave."
"You can and you will." He stands too and crosses his arms. "At least until we eliminate the threat."
"How long is that gonna take?" I can't believe this. "Days? Weeks? Months?" He thinks I'm just going to hide in his apartment and wait for death to come? I still have to deal with my landlord and the things in my apartment, and what about work? What will Linda think when I never clock in or out?
"As long as it takes to keep you safe." The asshole Dimitri is back and the sweetheart who was here earlier to comfort me has vanished. "I'm not negotiating on this."
"You can't just decide for me." I back away from him. "I'm not your property no matter what you keep saying."
"No, you're the witness to a murder who's being actively hunted by the people who committed it." His jaw tightens. "And I'm the person trying to keep you alive despite your best efforts to get yourself killed."
"I want to go home," I blurt without thinking. "To Ukraine where my mother is. Where I'll be safe."
"You won't make it to the train station." He takes a step toward me. "The Kozlovs are watching for you. You are the only person who can identify them. If you leave this building, you're dead."
"You don't know that. I worked for a week and went to and from my apartment and I was fine.
" I'm arguing a point on validity, not because I don’t believe him.
I'm a fucking scaredy cat when it comes right down to it.
I'd be pissing myself if I had to leave this place, but if it means getting away from how he thinks he gets to decide my life for me, I'll risk it.
"Yes I do know that." He stalks around the end of the bed and locks the door. "Now go take a shower because you stink like alcohol and sex."
My face burns with embarrassment. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me." He walks over to his closet and pulls out a towel. "You smell like you've been marinating in vodka for hours and you've still got my cum dried on your thighs. So go shower and then we'll continue this conversation."
He's right about both things and the humiliation makes me want to die. I never even got out of bed after he fucked me. I lay there stewing in his juices while I drank myself to sleep.
I grab the towel from his hands and storm into the bathroom without another word. The door slams behind me and I hear him grumble something that pisses me off more. What right does he have to make choices for me? And especially ones that limit my God-given rights. And then insult me on top of that?
My blood is boiling.
I turn on the shower as hot as it'll go and strip off my clothes.
When I catch sight of myself in the mirror I understand why he told me to shower.
My hair's a mess; my makeup's smeared. And there are bruises on my hips from where his hands gripped me.
I look exactly like someone who drank too much and had rough sex before passing out.
The hot water feels good on my sore muscles and I stand under the spray longer than necessary trying to formulate a plan.
I'll shower like he said. Then I'll get dressed and tell him I'm leaving.
I'll explain that I need to go to Ukraine where I'll be safe with my family.
He can't physically stop me from walking out that door.
Except he probably can. And he probably will. And the man is stronger than me in so many ways. It almost brings tears to my eyes, but I have to try it.
Leaving St Petersburg is my only option now.
I have to think of what might happen in the long run.
There's no way he can promise I'll be safe, even if I do listen to him.
They're his enemies. They could kill him as easily as they could kill me.
A bullet doesn't discriminate. He's insane if he thinks I’m just going to take this lying down.
I wash my hair twice and scrub my skin until it's pink before finally turning off the water. The towel he gave me is huge and soft, and I wrap it around myself before wiping the steam off the mirror. I look slightly more human now, but the fear is still evident in my eyes.
When I open the bathroom door, Dimitri's sitting on the bed, still shirtless and scrolling through his phone. He glances up when I walk out.
"Better?" he asks as he sets his phone aside. He's calmer now, looking more like the compassionate man I let ravage me earlier, but it doesn't sway my decision. I have to leave.
"Yes." I clutch the towel tighter. "Now I need to get dressed so we can talk about my leaving."
"You're not leaving." Dimitri pats the bed beside him. "Come here." When his hand extends toward me and his finger wiggles, beckoning me, I almost lose my nerve. I really do feel safe with him. I just hate how he wants to boss me around.
"I need clothes first." I don't move from my spot near the bathroom door because I'm afraid I'm just gonna break down and start doing what he says.
"You don't need clothes to lie down." He pats the bed again.
"Come here, Tatiana." This time when he says it, it's more commanding.
He is trying to order me like a fucking dog, and it reminds me why I feel the need to go back home to Ukraine.
I can find my cousin wherever the fuck he is in this city, and we can both go home.
"I'm not tired," I grumble, because I’m not. "I just woke up." I mean sure, I could sleep some more, but I've been sleeping for sixteen hours already. That's plenty of rest. Besides, whoever's watching me won't think I'll sneak out of here at three in the morning headed to the bus station.
"You passed out drunk. That's not the same as actually sleeping." He stands and walks toward me. "Now stop arguing and get in the bed."
"No," I protest as I take a step back. "I'm not getting in your bed. I'm getting dressed and we're having a conversation about my leaving."
"Get in the bed now." He's close enough now that I have to tilt my head back to look at him. "Or I'll make you."
"You're not listening to me." Frustration makes my voice crack. "I don't want to stay here. I want to go home to my family where I'll be safe."
"You won't be safe anywhere except here." Dimitri's voice calms again and his hands settle on my shoulders. "I know you don't want to hear that, but it's the truth, Tatiana. You can't go out there alone."
"Then send someone with me." I'm grasping at straws now and I sound like a whiny brat.
"No," he says bluntly. "Get in bed, Tatiana."
He guides me toward the mattress, and I'm too tired to keep fighting. I sit down on the edge still clutching my towel, and he pulls back the covers on the other side before climbing in. Then he reaches over and tugs me down until I'm lying beside him with my head on his chest.
"I'm not tired," I repeat even though I know the minute I close my eyes, I'll feel sleepy.
"Yes, you are." His arm wraps around me, holding me in place. "Just sleep. We'll talk more in the morning."
"I don't want to talk in the morning." I try to push away, but his grip tightens. "I want to leave now."
"That's not happening." He's getting sleepy. I can hear it in his voice. "Stop fighting and close your eyes."
I lie there listening to his breathing slow down and feeling his heartbeat steady beneath my ear. Part of me wants to keep arguing, but the exhaustion is winning. My eyes drift closed despite my best efforts to stay awake.
But I force them open again when I feel his chest rise and fall in the deep rhythm of sleep. His arm is still around me, but his grip has loosened.
For good measure, I wait what feels like another thirty minutes until deep sleep has taken him and a light snoring rumbles up from his throat. I know if I don't move now, he's gonna force me to stay indefinitely, and I just want to go home now.
I carefully extract myself from his hold and slide out of bed as quietly as possible. He doesn't move when I grab my clothes from where I left them on the floor before sex and get dressed as quickly as I can while keeping an eye on him.
I pick up my shoes instead of putting them on because the sound might wake him, then I slip out of his bedroom into the hallway. The penthouse is dark except for a dim light coming from under the office door. I tiptoe past it toward the front entrance.
My hand is on the doorknob when I realize I'm actually going to do this. I'm going to walk out and head to the train station and buy a ticket to Ukraine before he wakes up, and I'll be gone before he can stop me.
The thought sends a rush of adrenaline through my chest, causing a smile to bloom on my face as I realize I've left my duffel bag behind—my cash, my ID, my debit card.
I glance over my shoulder and think about turning back, but my hand is already on the doorknob.
I can't go back now. What if he wakes up?
So I turn the knob slowly and pull the door open.
And Gleb stands in the hallway right outside with his arms crossed and an expression that says he was expecting this.
"Going somewhere?" he asks while lifting one eyebrow in an accusatory manner.
"I need to leave," I whisper, hoping not to wake Dimitri. "Just let me go."
"Can't do that." Gleb doesn't move from his position blocking the elevator. "Boss's orders are nobody in or out…" He glances at the dark space behind me in the apartment and nudges his chin upward. "Go to bed."
"Come on. Dimitri's asleep." I take a step into the hallway, praying he will have mercy. "He won't know I left until morning."
"He'll know the second you get past me." Gleb takes a step forward and scowls as his hand reaches for his gun on his hip. "Which you're not going to do because I'm not taking that punishment for you. So turn around and go back inside."
"Please," I whine. I'm begging now and I hate it. "I just want to go home to my family. I won't tell anyone where I've been. I won't cause any problems. Just let me leave."
"I have my orders." His hand rises and he points into the apartment. "You need to go back inside before I have to make you."
"Make me?" Anger flares in my chest. "You can't just force me to stay somewhere against my will." I see the elevator and know I could outrun this ogre, but if the carriage isn't waiting on me, I'd end up getting nabbed while it ascends to this floor.
"I can if the boss tells me to." Gleb moves closer. "Now are you going back in on your own or do I need to call him out here?"
The thought of Dimitri waking up and finding me trying to sneak out makes me want to throw up. He'd turn into the angry monster version of himself and I'd have no choice but to cry again. I turn around and walk back into the penthouse sulking, and Gleb follows me inside but stands in the doorway.
"I'll be right outside if you try this again." He locks the door from the hallway side. "Don't make this harder than it needs to be."
The click of the lock echoes in the silent penthouse and suddenly, I can't breathe. I'm trapped, actually trapped like a prisoner with a guard standing outside to make sure I don't escape.
I walk back to the bedroom where Dimitri is still sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of what just happened. Looking at him lying there so calmly while I'm falling apart makes rage build in my chest.
This is his fault. All of it. If he'd just let me go to the police properly instead of covering everything up, maybe I wouldn't be in this situation.
If he'd protected his casino better, maybe there wouldn't be a mole threatening my life.
If he'd just let me leave when I asked, I could be on my way to safety right now.
But instead I'm locked in his penthouse with a guard outside the door and no way out.
I'm his prisoner now and there's nothing I can do about it.