Chapter Thirty
Sarah
It was amazing how quickly I was starting to think of Dmitri’s home as my own. It was all because of him. Ever since he’d found out about Alexis being his daughter and asked me to give a real relationship a chance, he’d been wonderful.
The man would always be a little rough around the edges, it was just who he was, but he was soft with me and Alexis.
He’d already been putting our safety first by child-proofing his whole house and assigning bodyguards to us from the very moment he learned we were threatened by his enemies, but he showed he cared in other ways too.
He had Ronnie stock the kitchen with my favorite sweet snacks.
He joined us for breakfast every morning now, even though he only drank coffee.
He made an appointment for new tires to be put on my car just because he noticed I needed them.
He brought me to the height of mind-blowing ecstasy every night.
Dmitri had gone out of his way to not just make room for us in his life, but to make us feel welcome.
He’d even invited me to redecorate the house in any way I wanted.
I didn’t take him seriously at first, but he insisted that I make changes, starting with our bedroom.
He wanted it to feel warmer, and he was sure I could make that happen. It was a compliment I wasn’t expecting.
Even more than that, I didn’t expect to so easily accept that the bedroom was ours. But it felt right. Everything with Dmitri felt right.
The trial had ended three days ago, and there was a party taking place at the house to celebrate Dmitri’s freedom. It was also my chance to meet some of the key members of the Bratva I hadn’t been introduced to yet.
The first person to arrive was Dmitri’s brother, Maxim. He was a hard man to read, even more stoic than Dmitri, but he was respectful, and just like Dmitri, there was something tender in the way he looked at Alexis.
After that, Dmitri’s cousin, Lev, and Aunt Alina arrived, followed soon after by Nikola and Gina, his snooty on again/off again girlfriend. Gina didn’t even bother looking up from her phone as she strolled into the house, but Nikolay greeted me with a grin.
Before long, the backyard was full of people.
Dmitri had been cooking pork shoulder for about ten hours in the smoker, and I’d prepared lettuce and fruit salads as side dishes.
Of course, Alina brought Russian side dishes and desserts.
There was a feast, and it wasn’t long before everyone was seated at the long tables Dmitri had rented and set up in the backyard with white canopies overhead.
I was at a table with Alexis on one side and my mother on the other.
I’d had to come clean with her about Dmitri’s way of life.
It wasn’t ideal to talk about the mafia with anyone, but I had to explain why there was a bodyguard always tailing me and one sitting outside her house every day she babysat Alexis for me.
She didn’t take it well at first, but after a few days passed, she agreed to come to dinner at the house and officially meet Dmitri. Once she was here, she saw what I saw. Alexis had Dmitri wrapped around her little finger.
Her concerns about us living with someone connected to the Russian mafia didn’t disappear, but she was more open to the idea, and that was just about all I could ask for.
“Did you try this beet salad?” Mom asked, gesturing to one of the side dishes that Alina brought. She saw there was none on my plate. “Here, try a bite of mine. It’s so good!”
Alina happened to be sitting across from my mother, and that compliment led to the two of them chatting about food. On the other side of Alexis, Dmitri spoke with Ivan, who he referred to as the treasurer when he introduced us.
All around, there was lively conversation, and I couldn’t help thinking that if I didn’t know these people were all associated with the Bratva, I never would suspect it. They all just seemed like a normal group of friends and family.
I’d never had a big family, but now, I felt like I did. It was fulfilling in a way I never wanted to let go. I was glad Alexis would grow up like this.
After eating, Alexis was getting restless.
I was in the middle of a conversation with a woman married to one of Dmitri’s brigadiers, but I didn’t have to worry about her.
Dmitri cut off his own conversation to take our daughter out into a section of the yard free of tables.
I smiled so big that my cheeks ached as I watched him chase our daughter around the yard, making growling noises like a monster.
Alexis shrieked with joy as she ran away on her chubby little legs.
Looking around, I realized that everyone else was watching them too, a mix of shock and amusement on each face. It seemed like I was right. Dmitri didn’t show this side of himself to many people. I liked to think that meant we were good for him.
After a few minutes, I excused myself to go to the bathroom. Heading into the house, I passed through the kitchen and living room, going toward the only downstairs bathroom that was between the living room and the foyer.
Everyone else was still outside, so it was quiet in the house. I took my time using the bathroom and reapplying lipstick. I was trying to impress the people here today. I didn’t dress up for a backyard party, just wearing jeans and a T-shirt, but I took a little extra time with my hair and makeup.
Tucking a strand of brown hair behind my ear, I stepped out of the bathroom with thoughts of running around the yard with Alexis and Dmitri, and I nearly ran right into Gina.
She was waiting just outside the bathroom, and at first, I assumed she needed to use the toilet.
I started to step aside with an apologetic smile, but the cold look in her eyes gave me pause.
She moved quicker than I expected, grabbing onto my arm hard enough that her pointy fake nails dug into my skin. With her other hand, she pulled a little handgun out of her purse, pressing it against my ribs with a vicious grin on her face.
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, shocking keeping frozen in place for a moment.
“You’re coming with me, bitch,” Gina snarled. With a rough jerk of my arm, she started to drag me to the front door of the house before I could even think to object. My brain was running too slow, and the gun pressed against me just made it worse.
Terror raced through me, and I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking as I was pulled out of Dmitri’s—my house.
I was supposed to be safe here, and normally, Dmitri had men positioned across the street to make sure of it, but today, half the Bratva was in my backyard.
It was deemed unnecessary to keep someone on guard duty.
Dmitri didn’t see this coming.
I didn’t either. Gina was rude during my brief interactions with her, but she was Nikolay’s girlfriend and I’d heard someone refer to her as the daughter of a brigadier. That had to mean she was trustworthy, right?
Apparently not.
“Get in. You’re driving.” She shoved me toward my car, allowing some distance between us as she walked around to the passenger side, but she kept that gun trained on me.
There was no opportunity to get away, not right now. So, I got behind the wheel of my car, and Gina handed over my keys. She must have grabbed them out of my purse while I was in the bathroom.
But I didn’t see my purse anywhere. She’d left it inside, and my heart sank at that realization. My cell phone was in there, and without it, I didn’t have much hope of calling Dmitri for help.
I didn’t know what to do except comply. My hands were still shaking, and it took a couple of tries to get the key in the ignition. Gina waved the gun around impatiently.
“Stop stalling, damn it. We need to get out of here.”
I swallowed hard and willed myself to calm down enough to function, but it didn’t work. I was too freaked out.
Still, I managed to drive, following the directions that Gina snapped at me.
“Wh-where are we going?” I stammered. I didn’t have a lot of options to get out of this, and I figured that my best bet would be to talk her out of it somehow. I had no idea if that would work, but I had to try.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her lips curve in a cold smile. “We’re going to meet some friends of mine. They’ve been dying to meet you since I told them Dmitri has a woman.”
“Who are you talking about? The Italians?”
Gina laughed, the sound grating my nerves. “I guess you’re in on all the secrets now, huh? Is it pillow talk for a man like Dmitri? I can’t imagine him talking about anything else. The man’s all business.”
“No, he’s not.”
I didn’t know why I even said that. What was the point in defending Dmitri to this traitor?
She chuckled, but there was no humor in it.
“Is he any good in bed? I’ll admit, I’ve wondered.
Nikolay is talented in that way. I could’ve latched on to someone else high in the Bratva to give me a better life, but I chose him, and how does he repay me?
” She slapped the dashboard, making me jump. “He won’t fucking commit!”
“That’s why you’re doing this?” I asked incredulously. “Because you’re mad at your boyfriend?”
“I have nothing in this Bratva! No money, no power. I only get a little bit of respect because of who my brother is, but it’s not enough. I wanted a powerful man like Nikolay to take care of me. Since he won’t do it, I struck a deal with the Italians. They give me big money to betray the Bratva.”
“Why did you take me?”
“You’re Dmitri’s weakness, of course. Don Baldoni wants to use you to hurt him.”
She said it so simply, like it was common sense and not an evil plot to destroy another human being.
She was a monster. Fear rose inside me, but I refused to let it show.
I just had to stay calm and stay alive until Dmitri could find me.
I had no doubt that he would, and the people responsible for taking me away, would pay.