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I shake my head, “I don’t mind. I figure you’re going to find out eventually, so I might as well tell you now.” I lick my lips and then continue. “I went on a vacation with my uncle in Lisbon, and we were supposed to meet each other for dinner at a restaurant he’d found on Yelp. It seemed like a good idea, and for the most part that day, we’d gone our separate ways since he had some work he needed to get done. I went shopping, then eventually headed for the restaurant. Only when I got there and called him, he didn’t answer. In hindsight, I should have left and gone back to our hotel, but I didn’t. I stayed and had some drinks and some really good food. But eventually, I got dizzy. The last thing I remember is hitting the ground and the waiters coming around me.”
“Fuck.” Emily shakes her head. “Your story is what my parents would tell me to scare me away from visiting foreign countries.”
“They weren’t wrong. Things like that do exist, but I never thought anything like that would happen to me, you know?” Even now, I don’t know why I thought it wouldn’t happen. It’s not like I was special by any means or like I knew what to watch out for. All I did was trust people a bit too much, and it got me into a shitty situation.
“I do. You never think bad things will happen to you like that. Hell, I never thought my aunt was going to sell my daughter.”
Emily and I share a stressed gaze, but it quickly fades away. “I guess we can bond over the fact we’re two lasses who have gone through some intense shit.”
“That we can, girlfriend, and as soon as I can drink again, we’re going to share one. If anyone needs it, it’s the two of us.”
Emily isn’t wrong at all, and I’m starting to not feel so bad that Nazyr left me alone with her. She’s lovely, really, and the more I talk to her, the more I think if I’m here long term, I could grow to call her a friend.
It might sound odd, but so far, my time with Nazyr hasn’t been terrible by any means. He’s treated me like a queen in comparison to Duarte, and Nazyr hasn’t made one sexual move on me at all. I really feel as though I’m turning over a new leaf. For the first time in longer than I can remember, I feel like I’m looking forward to the rest of my life… because I truly don’t think it’ll be anything like the past.
Since Emily and I have spoken a bit, I want to ask her something a little more serious. “What do the Umarovas do? I mean, I know they’re involved in the criminal world, but I’m not sure what their jobs are… so to speak.” I wait for Emily to say something to me, but she doesn’t. At least, not at first. It’s like she’s debating what she can or will say.
“I really think that’s something you should ask Nazyr when he returns.”
Just like that, the anxiety I had when Nazyr left comes rushing back. I don’t know what he does, but it can’t be good. He has to be doing something horrible, or at least his family is.
“Why don’t we cook? I’m starving, and so is this baby. We could make some chicken and something sweet too. Ooo, do you like chocolate? I’m sure Nazyr has the ingredients for brownies around here somewhere.”
“Yeah, that sounds great,” I reply with a forced smile, having some answers but even more questions than before.
Chapter Nine
Nazyr
“You seem to have taken a liking to the woman if you’re willing to risk all of this for her,” my eldest brother states, and I swallow hard. I know how this looks from the outside. It looks like I’ve fallen in love with Mona, but I barely know her, and I’ve only known her for a week. I’m not in love with her.
“I saw a woman who reminded me too much of Amelia. A woman who was caught in a horrible circumstance, and I felt like I could help her. I still feel that way.” The only reason I’ve brought up Amelia is that Ruslan could’ve easily left Amelia to deal with her own shit, but he didn’t. Instead, he paid the debts she incurred with the Steele family and saved her life in the process. None of us knew it at the time, but the debts weren’t Amelia’s whatsoever.
It’s a long story, but her ex-boyfriend had stolen Amelia’s identity. He was a greedy bastard and didn’t just stop there. He kept going with it. He was able to shut the cameras off at her place of employment and sneak in, stealing money out of a safe. The last person in the office was Amelia, which meant the blame was associated with her. Ruslan was helping the Steele brothers deal with her when he ended up believing every word she said, and thus their love story started. Now they’re married, and they have a little boy together, and Amelia just found out she was pregnant not too long ago.
“That’s what you expect me to believe, that you’re doing this out of the kindness of your heart?” Ruslan snickers, and I don’t blame him. He’s never known me to be a selfless man by any means.
“I don’t know. Truthfully, I don’t know why I’m doing this, but I know I’m trying to be a decent person here. I know I saw a woman in a fucked-up situation, and I had the power to do something, so I did it. I did the only thing I could think of doing—I helped her because I couldn’t just leave her there. If I did, she would’ve been killed, Ruslan.” I know my eyes are widening as I speak, but I’m speaking straight from the heart.
“You’ve never been the type of man who does something for no reason. You’re my brother, Nazyr. I have known you your entire life. I changed your diapers when you were a baby and fed you… I saw you grow into the man you are today, so I’m going to naturally assume there are some other factors at play here. What details are you leaving out about this entire scenario?”
I recall the one thing I told Emily, which I haven’t told Ruslan. “Duarte made it seem like he had people watching me. As if he knew the type of women that I liked.”
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. He made it seem like he knew the type of woman I was drawn to sexually. I think that giving Mona over to me was something done premeditatedly. I think he knew what I would be drawn to, and I really do believe he’s had people watching me. How long did he know he was meeting with me?”
I think that Duarte must’ve known for quite some time that I’d be the one he was meeting with. That would’ve given him enough time to watch my every move and see firsthand the types of women I’m attracted to. Then I think back to the night I went to the bar and saw Madina. I know all too well what her family does, killing whomever they need for the highest price. However, there have been rumors that her family funnels information to others for the same price. Could she have been Duarte’s contact? She did get close to me that night, and while I didn’t say anything overly forthcoming, she could’ve been on me for a while.
“He knew for about a week.”
I nod, knowing all too well that there’s a good chance he enlisted the help of Madina or someone else. Madina looks like the most likely option at this present time. However, that could change. “All right.”
“So, I think what you’re trying to tell me is that you care so much because this woman is your type?” Ruslan cocks a brow, trying to make sense of this.
I shrug. “I’m not sure, Ruslan. Trust me, I’m trying to figure this out. I’m trying to understand why I felt so compelled to take her with me, and the only thing I can come up with is that it was the right thing to do. I knew if I left her there, she was going to be killed, and I didn’t want an innocent woman’s blood on my hands.”
Ruslan licks his lips and then takes a sip of the water sitting in front of him. “I call bullshit. There might be a small semblance of you deep down that didn’t want her to get hurt, but now that I know she’s your type, it means she’s beautiful. I see what you’re trying to do by comparing her situation to Amelia’s, but these are two entirely different circumstances. You know, if you think she’s beautiful, attractive, or whatever, you can just tell me that. I didn’t have much reason for helping Amelia, and you don’t have much reason for helping this woman, either. I’m not sitting here ragging on you for it, either, so I hope you can see that.”
