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CHAPTER30
ISABEL
The two men that I’ve just met, Danill and Grisha, sit in the front seat of the luxury sedan while Ruslan and I sit in the back. They drive toward the industrial district, and I try not to think about what is to come.
I don’t want to imagine anything and be disappointed. I know that this whole thing is going to be hard to deal with. The outcome is unknown, and I have no clue how my parents are going to try and spin this, especially my mother.
I’ve done pretty well over the years trying not to think about my parents, specifically my mother. But I know that it was likely her that urged my father to agree to Vova’s terms. She has always been hungry for money, for status. My father is not innocent in that either, but my mother has always been very vocal about her desires.
We park in front of the warehouse and turn the engine to the car off, but nobody makes a move to get out. Then I see another car pull up beside us. Turning my head, I see that it’s Osip, then Panas.
I haven’t seen Panas in years. There was a time that he had a crush on my sister. She was only fourteen, he was twenty, but he courted her, and I know in his heart he wanted to marry her. He would have had they stayed here and allowed it. Honestly, I’m surprised my parents didn’t sell her off as well. Money is money to them.
We all exit the vehicles and I look over at Panas. His face is pale and he looks nervous. Smiling, I reach out and touch my hand to his shoulder. He shifts his attention over to me, his eyes wide.
“Isabel,” he rasps.
“It’s been a while. I’m sorry that I haven’t come to visit you,” I say, my words coming out soft and full of meaning.
Panas was my friend years ago. I loved him as a brother. When my parents sold me, when they ran, they abandoned him as well. He gives me a small smile and shakes his head once.
“I never expected you to, Isabel. You have gone through enough. You did not need to worry about me, too.”
I shrug. “I still should have come and said hello,” I say just as Ruslan slips his arm around my waist.
“Come,” he grunts.
Panas dips his chin and my hand falls from his arm. Together, we all walk into the warehouse. I’m the only woman among these men. I decided to wear something that I felt not only powerful in, but beautiful as well.
I’m in a black wrap dress that I paired with a nude belt around the waist and a pair of nude high heels. I didn’t spend a lot of time on my makeup, but it’s darker than usual and my lips are deep red. My hair is straight, and I wore it simply down.
The room is dimly lit as we walk inside, but in the center, there is a single light shining as if it’s highlighting the four people tied to chairs beneath it. I see them. I recognize them all and yet, I don’t even know who they are.
My father is sitting at the end, his hair is grayer, he’s got a few more wrinkles, his frame the same and he still looks handsome. My mother doesn’t look human. She’s had so much work done that I wouldn’t recognize her if she passed me walking down the street.
But it’s my brother and sister that have taken my breath away. I have no doubt that they are as innocent as I am in this situation. Fuck, I hope that they are. I would hate for them to suffer the fate that I have no doubt Ruslan has decided for my parents.
My sister Irina is beautiful. Her dark hair isn’t quite as long as mine, it hits right at the middle of her biceps, but it’s the same shade as mine. She’s not wearing much makeup, which is usually how I am too. She’s just simply stunning. I haven’t seen her since she was fourteen years old and she’s now a twenty-year-old woman.
Then there is Ion, my brother. A child of twelve the last time I saw him, he is now eighteen and a far cry from a child. He is a man now, at least in looks. Though when his eyes lift to mine, I see the boy that is inside of him appear for a moment before he tamps him back down.
“Isabel, your family,” Osip announces.
Taking a step toward them, I don’t stop until I’m just a few feet away from them. My brother and sister just stare, as if they’re looking at a ghost, but I can’t allow myself to dig into that expression, I’m too busy looking at my parents.
“Do you have anything to say for yourselves?” Ruslan asks.
Thankfully he does ask, because I don’t think that I can even speak right now. I’m completely and totally frozen at the sight of a family that sent me away to live with a monster, a family that sold me for sex.
“What would you like us to say?” my mother asks, lifting her nose in the air slightly. “And who are you to ask?”
Ruslan takes a step forward, his hand falling from my waist. When he does, I watch as he leans down slightly. “I’m Ruslan Zaitsev. I am Isabel’s man. I am aTorpedoand I run a successful club for the Bratva. So, now that we’ve been introduced. Tell me what the fuck you have to say for yourself.”
My mother arches a brow but doesn’t actually say anything. She tilts her head to the side, her eyes finding mine before she slides her tongue along her bottom lip.
“Seems we did the right thing. You look well enough.”
I don’t have to charge at her, scream in her face or anything, because it’s Ruslan who takes a menacing step toward her. He doesn’t scream though, honestly, I don’t think there would be any point to it. My mother isn’t someone who gives a shit if she’s hurt you or anyone else.
