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CHAPTER ONE
Lev
“What the fuck do you mean ‘gone’?” I ask Ludis yet again, my heart beating frantically in my chest. It takes everything to keep my calm on the outside, but inside I’m in turmoil.
“Elena went up to take her breakfast. That was when we discovered she wasn’t in her room…or yours,” Ludis says, subtly letting me know he had an idea of what went down last night.
“Where did you find that?” I snatch at the torn scrap of clothing. The piece of fabric still carries her scent. It hits me like a kick in the gut.
Fuck!
There’s blood on it.
Her blood!
They got her.
It’s all my worst nightmares unfolding again. I shake my head, forcing out the vision of my mother and sister lying in a pool of their own blood. The demons that have haunted me each night since that day are once again emerging, making themselves a part of my grim reality. The scar on my face starts to pulsate angrily, making my fists clench.
Keep it together, Ivanov!
This is no time to lose your shit!
I will not allow my anxiety to boil out. Not in front of my men. I must think clearly. This is not just a threat. If someone has taken her, it’s a show of power. An attack against my family.
My family!
Nobody fucks with the Ivanov name, and whether she likes it or not, Aurora is now an Ivanov.
“Where?” I snarl. I hold up the garment, waiting for Ludis to respond.
“We found it outside your bedroom window, Boss,” Ludis says. I frown in confusion.
The window?
How the fuck…
“What’s come up on the security footage?” I bark. His jaw works as he shakes his head, not meeting my eye.
“Nothing, Boss,” he finally says.
“Nothing?”
There’s no way.
That’s fucking impossible!
We have cameras on every conceivable access point on this godforsaken property.
“Not a thing,” he says. In the face of my rage, a lesser man might tremble. I can feel my nostrils flaring as I glare at him.
“And neither you nor any of the men saw anything?” I wait impatiently until he shakes his head. “This would never have happened on Petrov’s watch,” I mutter as I barge past him. I get a flash of dark-eyed fury from my cousin, but he has the good sense to say nothing as I storm toward the entrance. The security room is located near the center of the house, and I make my way straight to it.
“What can you show me?” I bark as soon I enter. A couple of tech types practically jump out of their seats as the door flies open before me.
“We… I…” one begins to stutter. Aleksei Fyodor, my chief of security, is nearby and quickly takes over, scrolling through the various camera angles that show all the bedroom windows.
“There’s no sign of her at any point during the entire night, Boss,” he says. I push past him and flick from screen to screen. I know he’s checked, but I need to see it with my own eyes.
