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The woman is only here because she’s a stand-in for me. Talia won’t dare hurt me physically, but she’ll do all she can to make me suffer emotionally. It’s working as I hold myself and rock. Or maybe Taliawillhurt me. Maybe she’s proving that no one is off-limits to her crazy hate.
“Talia.” I inch closer to the bars. “Please don’t hurt her. Her father will pay.”
Talia cocks her head to the side. “Pay? Do you take me for a cheap whore?”
It takes every ounce of strength to say nothing and keep myself from reaching for my belly. But I manage it all the same.
“Do you ever think,” Talia asks as she faces me, “that one day you might have to watch this if your husband wills it? Would you tellhimto spare an enemy so that you might spare your conscience? Do you imagine that he would listen?”
“Andrei would never do this,” I protest. I know he would never have allowed this to happen. He took me away by force, and we were made to wed, but nothing else was ever forced on me.
Talia throws her head back and laughs madly. “Then clearly you know nothing of our dear Andrushka.”
With desperate eyes, the woman looks at me and then at Talia. Talia turns slowly, and the woman’s expression turns to fear as she beholds Talia’s dark smirk.
“Boys.” Talia lifts her hand and snaps her fingers. “Playtime.”
The goons set upon the woman, tearing at her pajamas as she screams. She stares at me, imploring me with her eyes to help her, but I’m powerless to do anything.
Guilt rushes through me as I hear her shriek. My hands tighten around the bars of my cage, but I don’t dare look away.
Talia shakes her head at me as if this is all my fault.
She heads toward the stairs and leaves her monsters with their new plaything. Nausea grips me.
I’m forced to watch but this poor woman is forced to live it.
But instead of being sick, I faint on the filthy floor as shrieks fill the air amidst the sound of buttons being ripped open.
Chapter 4
Paige
When I wake up, I’m no longer in the basement but lying in a comfortable, warm bed. For the briefest second, I think I dreamt of the cruelty and pain I witnessed in that horrible cellar. But that fantasy ends as soon as I open my eyes. I don’t recognize the room I’m in. The bedroom is modern, with light beech furniture and gold accents. The bedding and curtains are shades of turquoise and sand and give a touch of surprising sophistication. A large window stretches across the wall, drawing in natural light and presenting an incredible view of the garden below. The room is light and airy, unbelievable for a mad, murderous nutjob.
I peer underneath the sheets. Someone has bathed and dressed me in a plain cotton gown. I shudder, thinking about the hands that touched me while I was unconscious. I press my fingertips to my belly, hoping we’ll be all right. A slight wave of nausea swoops over me, but I close my eyes and focus. At least I attempt to will it away. I get up quickly and head to a door that I hope is a bathroom.
I come back out quickly as someone jiggles the doorknob, and I rush back into the bed. I slip under the covers and wipe my face with my hands. I watch the door, my body coiled into a tight nerve, ready to fight or flee if I have to.
Talia enters, and her stern gaze meets mine. The look of hate in her eyes is matched by my own. I wonder if I want Andrei more because she wants him so badly.
But she doesn’t really want Andrei. She cares only about what he represents. I wanthim, and I’ll find a way back home.
Her hostility is concealed with a wide smile. “How did you sleep?” She strolls over to the large window, playing the hostess. “I hope it was well.”
I don’t bother to smile. “What happened to that woman?”
“What woman?” she asks innocently.
“The one your men attacked in your dungeon.”
“You are being melodramatic, Paige.”
“I prefer it if you call me Mrs. Barinov.”
Talia’s smile slips into a scowl. I must be crazy to tease the devil. She studies me with narrowed eyes, but I refuse to roll over. I keep my back straight while my stomach churns.
“Her father paid,” she replies flatly.
