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She keeps bringing me drinks, sitting close to me when we gather for meals, and hiding behind me when other men start to approach her.
I want to push the girl away and demand she keep her distance, but when Eve sees me sticking close to her, she makes a point to get close to me and whisper a quick thanks.
“She needs someone to look out for her.”
Otherwise, Eve keeps her distance the way we discussed this morning.
She talks with other men, doing what she needs to do to keep them happy. I know it is our plan, but it doesn’t make it any easier to watch her curled against another man’s side while his arm is wrapped around her lower back. Knowing she is my wife and loves me doesn’t make it any easier to watch when the man in the maroon mask corners Eve in the lounge and practically pins her against a wall to talk to her.
When I see his leg shift between Eve’s, his knee brushing against hers, my vision goes red.
Every single one of my instincts demands that I stand up and defend the honor of my wife.
Just as I start to charge towards them, however, Eve catches my eye over the man’s shoulder and lightly shakes her head.
It does nothing to douse the fire raging in my chest, but it does keep me across the room from them.
When I don’t think I can take another second, however, I storm out of the room and into the hallway for some fresh air. When the door behind me opens, I assume it is Maddie coming to beg me again, and I throw a dismissive hand over my shoulder.
“I’m not in the mood for company.”
“That’s understandable,” a male voice says. “These events can be taxing.”
I turn and see Edgar standing in the doorway, his hands folded behind his back. “I only wanted to make sure you didn’t need anything. But if you are fine, then I will just—”
“Actually,” I say, stopping him. “I do have a question.”
Edgar turns to me, a blank smile on his face.
“Is there a way that any of the guests can leave the inn for a short period of time and then return?” I ask. “No more than a couple of hours.”
All morning, while I watched Eve move around the inn and talk to other men, I distracted myself by planning.
If I can leave the inn even for an hour, I can find a phone, call Grigory or someone in the Bratva, and give them more information on where to look for Milaya. That way, I can tell Eve that the men are doing something while we are trapped in here, and it will assuage a small amount of the guilt eating at me.
But before the idea even has legs, Edgar swats it away.
“I’m sorry, sir, but no one is allowed to leave the inn. Not even me,” he admits. “It is a safety issue. I’m sure you understand.”
Disappointment settles in my stomach like a stone, and I shrug. “I suppose I don’t have any other choice.”
Edgar’s face is sympathetic, but I’ve seen enough of the man to know that it is an act. Everything the man does is a performance.
“It is simply an unnecessary risk. If someone leaves, they could go to the authorities with their firsthand account of our operation, and we would all be arrested. There is also the risk that a guest could use their knowledge of our proceedings and the inn’s layout to alert their cohorts on the best way to infiltrate our operation. And beyond threats of arrest or violence, there is the chance that a desperate bidder would leave the estate to procure more money to bid on his woman of choice, which while great for our business, is bad for the integrity of the event.”
“There are a lot of threats to your life and business,” I say.
“Unfortunately, yes,” Edgar says. “It is a burden I have learned to live with.”
Sensing I have no further questions, Edgar tips his head slightly before turning to go back into the lounge.
But then he stops and looks back over his shoulder. “I don’t need to worry about you, do I, sir?”
“Me?” I ask, rolling my eyes and smiling. “Of course not.”
I can’t tell if Edgar is more or less confident because of my answer, but he goes back into the lounge and leaves me alone in the hallway.
I stay there for ten minutes before rejoining the party.
