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“The brigadiers took the girls. Don’t let them trick you the way they tricked Gennady. They also tore away what he loved most.”
He scowls at her. “Save your breath,” he snarls. “Stop dumping guilt on me.”
Dominika doesn’t falter against his intense gaze. Her eyes remain locked on his, determined to make him understand. “Your daughter has found happiness with Nikolai. Let her pick the man she wants. She’s so much like Aria.”
“Where did they take them?” His voice is desperate.
Dominika’s smile turns sad. “She’s a remarkable person. And she’s just like you.”
With those final words, Dominika’s hand slips from Zakhar’s arm, and her body goes limp as she succumbs. She held on for this moment to make sure we knew the truth.
“We have to find them,” Zakhar declares. “Before it’s too late.”
Vito responds with a solemn nod. “We’ll get our daughters back, I promise.”
“Not our daughters.” Zakhar’s low tone is ominous. “The brigadiers.”
26
EDEN
I’m overwhelmedby a terrible smell that I can’t describe. I take shallow breaths and hold my body very still. I’m held captive in my own body, my limbs heavy and immovable, as if I’ve been frozen in time. I have the impression that I’m falling, and it’s odd. This sensation of being surrounded by rough, jagged hardness, though I can’t reach out and touch the edges. I can feel them scratch me as my body rolls back and forth. I want it to stop, but it won’t. I take deep breaths, trying hard to stave off the terror, but it only makes the sensation worse. I feel the walls pressing against my skin, almost crushing me. I want it to end, but I’m powerless to stop it.
There is a jolt as if I’ve hit bottom, and the shock of a sudden stop reverberates through my bones. Everything around me is silent, and it becomes unbearable. I try to move, starting slowly by wiggling my fingers and tapping them against the hard surface. But when I try to lift my arm, it feels too heavy to move.
No matter how hard I try, my eyelids remain shut, and I can’t open them.
Am I dead?
No, I decide. If I was dead, then I’d feel nothing.
Self-preservation makes me stop moving. It’s useless to do anything until I know where I am. My body curls into a ball, and I worry about protecting my baby from whatever danger surrounds us. Sweat forms on my forehead and neck, and I take deep breaths, willing myself to remain calm as I feel my body lift into the air.
It’s still again, and I open my eyes slightly and then shut them again. What I’m seeing doesn’t make any sense. Have I gone back in time?
I open my eyes. I’m witnessing a bad dream. My head spins when I slowly recognize my surroundings.
I’m in the dining room of my parents’ old house, lying on the wooden floor.
My head swims when I move it, and I shut my eyes again.
Rough rope bites into my ankles, and a chair moves with me when I try to move my legs. My ankles are tied to the legs of the chair. I could probably get away if I dragged it behind me, but that wouldn’t be smart.
I won’t get far tied to a chair.
I think about my mother, running from her home, and a sick feeling washes over me. I close my eyes to steady my head. The loopy feeling starts to exit my mind as whatever drugs they pumped into my body start to wear off.
That’s when I realize Mercy isn’t with me.
I strain to hear any sign of her and pray she’s just in another room. Footsteps echo down the hallway and stop outside the door, and I press myself against the floor, trying to make myself seem small.
Through my eyelashes, I watch Alexander stride in and walk toward the table. Gunsyn joins him, opens the whisky bottle, and pours two glasses. I don’t dare open my eyes more, but I don’t need to see to feel the tension between them. The tension in the room is thicker than the rope around my ankles.
“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right now,” Alexander hisses. His words are venomous, laced with rage. “Your plan better work because there is no turning back from this clusterfuck.”
“Dear Alexander,” Gunsyn drawls, and a wicked laugh erupts from his mouth. “You were the one who said the younger one would be easier to control than the older one. And everything is so close now. So, takesomecredit for your idea—well, part of it.”
“Control?” Alexander snorts. “That arrogant ass has a stronger will than his father. Do you really think he’ll make a deal with us in exchange for her?”
