Page 104 of His to Own

I slip off my high heels. They’ll only slow me down. Then I pick up the end of my evening gown and I tiptoe through the trees. Every time I come upon a new one, I hide behind it, waiting.

The sound of gunshots gets louder. More chaotic. What is going on?

The snap of a twig. With a gasp, I look around the tree but I still don’t see Aleksander. Is it just him or does he have other men out looking for me? I feel like an animal getting cornered and ready to be slaughtered.

“Elena,” he says. His voice is even closer. It’s then that I spy something through the trees. Black. Aleksander’s black suit. His back is to me but if I can see him then he’ll be able to see me the moment he turns around.

I have to move. Now.

I take off running but my gown snags on a root and yanks me to the ground. I land on my back with a gasp. As I’m catching my breath, Aleksander comes into view, hovering above me.

“There you are,” he says with a wicked smile.

“You don’t need me. You want my husband. Not me. Just let me go.”

“Why would I let you go? It’s more fun this way.”

He reaches down for me but stops when another man’s voice echoes through the air.

“Over here!”

I turn my head and see a man I don’t know motioning to someone as he looks at me and Aleksander. With a growl, Aleksander storms over to the man and punches him in the face, knocking him to the ground. I sit up and watch in horror as Aleksander stomps on the man’s face until he’s dead. The man’s blood flies everywhere. The sound of his bone crunching makes me want to vomit.

I can’t stop the bile that comes right out of me.

Aleksander pulls a gun from his pocket and shoots two other men who come running into the woods. Who are these men? If they worked for Aleksander, he wouldn’t be killing them right now.

Which means they don’t work for him. Do they work for my husband? Has Maxim come to save me? And how do I feel about that?

With a snarl, Aleksander looks down at the man he stomped to death and pulls a serrated knife from his jacket pocket and begins cutting the man’s head right off.

I let out a feral, primal scream. It’s the loudest I’ve ever sounded.

I can’t seem to watch as Aleksander just saws and saws at the man’s head until it leaves his body. Then he tosses it right towards me. I know I should run but fear has a hold of me and I can’t move. My body is like stone.

Aleksander towers above me and points at the dead man’s decapitated head with his bloody knife. “That’s your husband’s fate. That’s your fate if you don’t do as I say.”

I can’t stop myself from throwing up all over again. Aleksander’s handsome face turns into a sneer. “You’re a monster.”

“I’m a mafia man. It’s my nature.” He grabs me and hauls me through the woods but stops at the edge of the trees. It’s then I see multiple men in the backyard near the house. One of those men is my husband.

“Maxim,” I gasp but Aleksander smothers my mouth with his hand. His bloody hand. I can taste the blood of the man he killed. Darkness plays at the edge of my vision but I can’t pass out. If I do, then I can’t fight. And the only thing I can do right now is fight for my life.

“Your husband has decided to show his true colors. A deal.” Aleksander scoffs. “He was never interested in making a deal. Come on.” He pulls me back into the woods and farther and farther away from my husband.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Your husband has taken over my home. I can’t go back there. Time to find a new place to start my place of business. And you’re coming with me.”

“The woods are too big. You’ll get lost.”

“I know my way around.” He keeps tugging me along and I have no choice but to come with him or I’ll end up hurt myself. My dress keeps snagging on the roots everywhere. With a frustrated growl, Aleksander rips the end of my dress off and tosses it away. I shiver when my partially bare legs get exposed. Thankfully, the rest of the dress lands around my thighs but it still doesn’t offer me much protection.

“Aleksander!” Maxim’s voice rings through the air.

“Maxim,” I gasp. I know my husband can’t hear me when I’m like this. If I want his attention, I’ll have to speak up.

“Aleksander, I know you’re out there,” Maxim says, sounding closer than he did before.