Chapter 13 | Katia #2
Crouching, I lifted my hand to her nose so she could sniff me. “I hate cats,” I muttered.
Sonya meowed again and nuzzled into my hand. I felt the familiar itch inside my nostrils and broke into large sneeze.
Sniffling, I softly petted her. “She’s going to be okay,” I soothed.
The cat sat down and looked up at me, her green irises cemented to mine.
My lips fluttered as I exhaled a defeated breath. “Fine. You can come home with me, but only until I find your mom. Do you understand?”
Sonya meowed, so I assumed that was a yes. I searched Katia’s hallway closet and found a cat carrier. Placing Sonya inside it, I zipped it up before breaking into a succession of loud sneezes.
“Fucking A,” I muttered, heading to the bathroom and popping two Benadryl. I searched Katia’s kitchen cabinets and closets, finding an unopened bag of cat food and cat litter. Returning to the foyer, I picked up the carrier and left the apartment.
Sonya meowed here and there as she sat in my front seat inside the carrier, but otherwise, the drive home was smooth. When I entered my house, I opened the carrier and Sonya jumped out.
“Don’t make yourself at home,” I said, wagging my finger at her. “I’ll put some food and water out for you in the kitchen, and put some litter in a box by the back door, but don’t get used to being here and don’t scratch anything. Do you hear me?”
The cat meowed, and I wondered if she was some sort of genius who understood English.
After putting out the food and litter, I sat on the couch and texted Alexis.
Leo: I know you’re on this. Any leads?
Alexis: I’m scouring EVERYTHING. I swear, Leo. Stay tuned. I’m going to figure this out.
Leo: I’m going to get a few hours of sleep and will be up early to get the evidence to the DNA lab. Keep me updated.
Tossing the phone on the couch, I harshly rubbed my face. I knew sleep would be almost impossible, but I needed to be fresh to crack the case. Heading upstairs, I willed myself to sleep for a few hours.
Sliding between the sheets, I closed my eyes and envisioned Katia’s gorgeous face.
“One more day, sweetheart,” I said, my eyes drifting closed. “I’m going to find you tomorrow.”
Succumbing to darkness, I left the terrible day behind.
Katia
I drifted in and out of sleep, groggy from whatever Oskar’s men had shot into my veins. At some point, I awoke with a gasp, desperately needing to pee. Were they going to make me go in the damn chair? How fucking humiliating.
Thankfully, my “guard” appeared and spoke in a serious tone.
“I’m going to take you to the bathroom,” he said, pointing to the gun at his hip. “Try anything and I’ll shoot you. Do you understand?”
I nodded and he unfastened the restraints at my wrists and ankles before urging me to stand. He chained my ankles together with a pair of handcuffs that had a long chain between them, and then handcuffed my wrists.
I shuffled out of the room, the man leading me, and realized I was in a private house. The layout seemed to be that of a one or two-story home, and I wondered who owned the house.
“Here you go,” he said, gently shoving me toward the bathroom. “Take longer than five minutes and I start shooting.”
“Fast shooter,” I said, wanting to get under his skin. “Don’t put that on your dating profile. Women hate a man who can’t perform.”
“Shut up,” he said, pushing me into the bathroom. “Five minutes.”
He closed the door, and I rushed to the toilet, needing to take care of business before I did anything else.
After relieving my bladder, I rose, feeling along the wall with my bound hands; searching for anything that could be used as a weapon.
I tried to open the cabinets under the sink, but the handles were zip tied together.
“You done?” my guard asked.
“Almost! One more minute.”
I continued to search, but sadly, couldn’t find anything that could be used as a weapon. Feeling defeated, I flushed the toilet.
“Done!” I called.
My captor walked me back to the chair in the small bedroom. Removing the cuffs, he pushed me into the chair and bound my wrists and ankles again.
“Is there anything I can say to make you consider letting me go?”
Straightening, his gaze roved over me. “No. I’ve been given orders not to touch you. Oskar wants you to implicate Michael Caruso, and he wants you unharmed. For now.”
I pursed my lips, realizing how common it was for women to sell their bodies in his world to gain the upper hand. Hell, Elena had done it for years, and it had ultimately led to her death. My situation was dire, but I was glad that I wouldn’t be sexually assaulted...by this guy, at least.
“What is your name?” I asked softly in Russian.
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Dima said you’d ask me that. He likes you.”
“I like him too, and I’m sad that both of you are stuck in this world.”
We studied each other, and I realized that although he wasn’t as young as Dmitry, he was still in his early twenties. So young with so much life ahead of him.
He slowly backed toward the door, and uttered one quiet word. “Maxim.”
Inhaling a deep breath, I gave a slow nod. “Maxim. Nice to meet you.”
His gaze lingered on me for a few seconds, and I could tell his resolve was wavering.
“If you let me go, I won’t tell anyone—”
“I’ll bring you more water in an hour,” he said, his shoulders straightening as all emotion left his expression. “Don’t struggle. It will just make you tired.”
Pivoting, he left the room and shut the door behind him.
My nostrils flared as I comprehended the small kernel of information he’d given me. Dmitry had a soft spot for me. It wasn’t a lot, but it was something. If only I could relay the info to Alexis or Leo... Maybe they could approach Dmitry and ask him to intervene?
I had no idea, but I clung to hope as I tried to formulate a plan to save myself before I met the same sad fate as my sister...