I silently pray for Asher to deny my question, to prove he is the man I see behind his icy, tormented eyes. My hopes are dashed when he nods instead. “But not in the way you’re thinking. Although our family’s bond died years ago, my mom couldn’t forget the pledges she made when she became your godmother. When she heard about your sale, she went straight to your father—again. He couldn’t deny the proof she had, but was adamant he knew nothing about your sale. That’s when he told her about you fracturing your skull. They arranged for us to wed that same afternoon. Your father figured the Yurys could protect you better than he had.” He smiles a slick grin that makes my insides tighten. “Although no money exchanged hands, I still own you.”
I roll my eyes without fear of reprimand. I’m too confused to let another emotion enter the mix.
We sit in silence for another twenty-plus minutes. There’s so much to take in. It’s not that I don’t believe Asher and Vaughn’s recollection of events. I’m just genuinely stunned—even more so when my father enters my bedroom clutching the decapitated head of my uncle in his hands.
Chapter 28
Asher
Zariah’s scream shreds through my ears before she burrows her head even deeper into my chest. The image of her uncle’s head dangling from her father’s hands is too much for her to stomach.
I don’t have an issue. In this very moment, it occurs to me that Stepanov still has it. He is a professional mobster in every sense of the word. He looked at the facts as they were presented and set motions in play toimmediatelybring down the person responsible for his wife and daughter’s torment.
He reacted exactly how I’ve emulated him the past sixteen years, although I would have delayed Bear’s death a little longer. He would have lost body parts slowly—starting with the filthy dick he planned to touch his niece with.
Stepanov’s kill is fresh. Blood is still oozing from the bottom of Bear’s head, and the snow mixed throughout the mud on the bottom of Stepanov’s boots is not yet slosh. I wouldn’t be surprised to walk into the barn out back and find Bear’s body still twitching. That’s how recent his death was.
I rarely respect a man, but right here, right now, I do. I’m disappointed Stepanov stole an outlet for the fury still burning me from the inside out, but I’m sure I can find better ways to diffuse my adrenaline.
Starting with his daughter.
Chapter 29
Zariah
Four weeks later. . .
“Stop it. It’s fine. Go.”
Eda peers at me with her big, glistening eyes. She’s not happy about the haphazard way we’ve made Asher’s bed, but since she works for me and not Asher, she has no reason to fret. “It’s barely midday.”
“And. . .?”
“I can’t leave for the day. I only started an hour ago.” She sounds more panicked now than she did when I gave her the clothes and shoes Asher confiscated from me when I began my role as his first ever chambermaid.
“Youcango, and youwillgo. It’s an order, young lady.” I march her to the door, my grip on her arm as light as a butterfly wing brushing past. “If you don’t go now, I’ll slice another ten minutes off your work schedule tomorrow.”
Although I’d give anything for Eda to be completely free of this life, I understand that is not possible. She has a debt to pay, and until Asher believes it has been paid in full, she must remain a member of his staff. His rules never stipulated how long her days need to be, though, so I’ve been gradually cutting them down since I requested her position be changed from chambermaid to my personal assistant. I have no need for a PA, but a little white lie never hurt anyone.
“Are you sure you don’t mind? We didn’t even tuck in the sheets.”
“I’m sure,” I reply with a giggle. “They’re going to be messed within five minutes of Asher returning to this room, so why go to so much effort?”
Eda’s giggle—my god. It’s so rare, I cherish every one she awards me with.
After waving Eda off, I make my way to Asher’s office. To say the past four weeks have flown would be an understatement. It’s been as rushed and as frantic as my first six weeks here, but with flirty kisses, steamy moments, and a hot, dominant man I’ve always wished for, but never thought I’d have.
Asher is as brooding and dominant as ever. He has to be. When whispers circulated that he had given my brother a pardon, his enemies saw it as a sign he was becoming weak. I’m not as inclined to agree. He rules his empire with the same iron fist my father did, but he has more allies than he does enemies. With this industry being more about numbers than anything else, the odds are stacked in his favor.
I stop just outside Asher’s office door when I hear him speaking in English. The only time he uses English is when he’s seeking updates from my therapist. No, I’m not seeing a shrink. My therapist is a specialist in recovering memories after traumatic brain injuries. With her help, I’m hoping to piece together the parts of my life I forgot after my fall. She uses a range of techniques, including hypnosis. That is what Asher’s call is most likely about.
Because my father avenged my mother’s death like a madman, Asher and I only have Vaughn’s recollection of events to run off. Although I trust Vaughn, Asher doesn’t truly believe anything without facts. That’s why my father arrived how he did last month. You can’t get more proof of a death than a severed head.
Asher could take the same steps my therapist and I are using to return the memories drugs stole from him, but he’d rather live vicariously through me. I don’t mind. It gives us plenty of opportunities to talk. . . amongst other things.
I wait for the beep of a disconnect button to sound through my ears before slipping into the doorway. Asher notices me in an instant. His eyes rake my body as his pants tighten at the front. I no longer wear dowdy sweatpants and holey shirts. I have an entire walk-in closet full of clothes to pick from every day. Today I’ve kept things simple. I’m wearing nothing but a trench coat—Asher’s trench coat.
Moisture floods between my legs when Asher crooks his finger, commanding me to his side. I jump, more than happy to fulfil his every whim. These type of orders I have no qualms following.
