AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Ivan?” I ask. “Are you just a driver for my dad? Or are you… something else?”
He glances at me in the rearview mirror with a kind smile before turning his eyes back on the road. “I am the head of your father’s security detail. The U.S. Government contracts with our security agency to provide protection for your father. I promise you are safe with me.”
Well, I feel stupid for not realizing that sooner. Of course, the U.S. Ambassador would require security detail, especially in a country where they don’t like Americans. It seems obvious now.
“Thanks, Ivan. I appreciate it.”
The path to the hunting lodge is dark, and only the headlights guide our way along the dirt road. Thick trees line both edges of the trail, and given what Ivan said about additional protesters possibly hiding out in the woods, I’m uneasy.
When we pull up to the hunting lodge, two lampposts at the entrance light the paved path to a three-story building. The cream-colored façade has six windows across, three on either side of the front door, which has a stone balcony and stairwell leading up to it.
It looks less like a hunting lodge and more like the Bennetts’ house from Pride and Prejudice. Cozy and inviting—very much the opposite of Alek.
“I will patrol around the building tonight,” Ivan says. “Please, try not to worry and have fun.”
“Yeah, okay,” I say. “Thanks again.”
I climb out of the vehicle, on the side without blood splatter on the window. Ivan steps out and lights a cigarette, leaning against the hood of the car with a haunted look on his face.
I’m sure my expression matches his because when I knock on the door, Alek answers with a grin that fades into a frown.
He stands in the doorway, dressed in a black-on-black suit tailored to his lean, muscular body. Light pours out the door from behind, rimming him in a halo of gold.
“What happened?” he demands.
Music and laughter echo from inside the house; no one is aware of what is happening at this very moment.
“Malishka, answer me. What’s wrong?”
“The estate is on lockdown,” I say in a shaky voice. “We were attacked by protesters tonight, and then…”
I turn and point to the car, at a complete loss for words. He takes a few steps onto the balcony, peering over the balustrade at the blood.
“Come inside,” he says, grabbing my wrist.
He drags me through the house, past the living room and the dining room where dozens of people are enjoying what resembles a frat party among taxidermy trophies on the walls. Some are students I recognize from school, including Konstantin and Irina, while others appear a bit older.
Alek leads me into a small study and shuts the door. He directs me to sit down on a leather sofa as he pours us both drinks from the liquor cabinet.
My eyes are staring straight ahead of me, unfocused.
“Drink this,” he says, passing me a glass. He towers over me with his own vodka in hand while I down mine.
I hand him my empty glass. “More.”
Instead, he offers me his drink and sits mine on the desk. He gives me the space to throw it back, but my hands are still trembling afterward.
“What happened?” he asks.
I take a rattling breath. “There were protesters at the front like the night of the Ambassadors’ Dinner, except this time, they started banging on the doors and climbing on top of the car. The guards came out and began shooting, and then someone was dead. Maybe there were more. I don’t know.” I set the empty glass on the floor at my feet before continuing. “The estate is on lockdown until morning. No one comes in. No one gets out.”
Alek runs his hand along his jawline, muttering a string of curses. “My father announced a tax hike yesterday. Let’s just say the Labor Party wasn’t pleased.”
I scoff. “No shit.”
He takes a seat on the sofa beside me. “There is nothing you or I can do right now. What’s done is done, and this is the safest place you can be.”
“Apparently my driver is my bodyguard,” I say with a hollow laugh. “He’s patrolling the lodge until morning.”
