Page 126 of Taken By My Grumpy Pakhan

I glanced around the walkway one last time. It wasn’t the busiest area in the city, and I had chosen the hospital for that very reason, but now, it felt like the perfect crime scene. The few witnesses only lifted the collars of their coats, stuck their hands into their pockets, and hurried off in the opposite direction.

Defeated and partly crippled by fear, I got in the car.

They slid in on either side of me, boxing me in, and the doors locked with a heavy click that made my stomach turn.

“You have the wrong person,” I said the moment the car started moving.

“I think you’re exactly who we’re looking for, Miss Sinclair.”

“I doubt it.” My voice was shaky, almost desperate. “Maybe it’s a mix-up with the names or identity, but I assure you, I am no troublemaker. I stay out of people's ways. There’s no need for anyone to kidnap me.”

“But we’re not kidnapping you, my dear.” The taller one spoke in a posh British accent I hadn’t noticed earlier. “We’re simply bringing you in for a little… questioning.”

I swallowed tightly, my palms growing clammy with sweat at his reply. Everyone knew a second location was an absolute nightmare. I had to work out an escape as soon as possible.

“You can always question me here, you know? I’ll answer your questions and I promise to be honest.”

“That would’ve been the time-efficient option.” He glanced at me briefly. “Only the questions are not from me.”

A chill that had nothing to do with the harsh air conditioning settled deep inside me.

When I saw the men, I’d assumed the worst. A hit and run, a ransom kidnapping—I’d considered everything except the one name that kept gnawing at me.

I was convinced if I didn’t speak of him or say his name, he would have no power over me.

Besides, I had managed to stay hidden for three weeks.

“Who sent you?” I finally gathered the courage to ask.

This time, it was the shorter man who answered, his voice thick with a Russian accent that destroyed whatever hope was left in me.

“You’ll find out soon enough.”

I fell into a crippling silence, my arms circling around my belly in a protective instinct.

If the men knew I was pregnant, then he certainly knew.

Dread clogged my senses. My decision to leave might’ve been an abrupt one, but it was also the best.

It made things easier for both parties and demanded no commitment from him, but like Anna had warned, men like Kazimir had an ego the size of the world, and even though they might be the ones in the wrong, they didn’t do well with rejection.

A hidden child was even worse, especially for one who belonged in the mafia. They never let their blood grow away from their roots.

We pulled off the main road, taking a right onto an untarred road flanked by trees on both sides.

Every mile covered caused the knot in my stomach to tighten till it was almost painful to breathe, and I found myself whispering a pitiful plea.

“Please don’t take me to him.”

The men exchanged confused glances but didn’t say anything.

“Please,” I repeated. “Please.”

Three weeks had been enough for the hurt I felt to give way to a burning hatred, but even that part of me knew I was no match for Kazimir in the real world.

He had called me little bird, and I’d taken to the name failing to understand how well it depicted our relationship.

I was prey, and he was an apex predator. I only had a good time because he willed it, and now that I had broken the spell, there was no telling what lay on the other end for me.