“Dealing with Gabriel… somehow. He didn’t give me many details. I just wanted to see my family again.”
“Luca is your family now,” Alek gently reminds me.
“Yeah,” Susanna agrees. “You should just go back to him.”
I know coming to my sister’s house was a bad idea. I should leave before she drags me down with her but I can’t get my feet to move. Luca’s house is still too new. Too much uncertainty. I miss the chaos of my old house.
“I am not here to fight you, Susanna,” I say.
“Well, I want to fight,” she snaps.
Before I can get a word out, a knock on the door makes everyone stop. Alek opens the door with a frown… only to reveal Dimitri Ivanov on the other side. Katya’s brother.
And the man who once kidnapped me and Susanna.
Chapter Nine
Nina
“Dimitri?” Alek asks, pure shock in his voice. “What are you doing here?” I can detect the wariness in his tone. He and Dimitri never made true peace when Alek married Katya. It was a temporary truce but it was never an end to the war between them.
“I heard that you made a deal with Luca Moretti. That he married one of your daughters.”
“Yes, I did.”
“Without consulting me. Even though you’re the one married to my sister.” He barges into the home. “How do you think that makes me feel, Alek? It should be me that you’re making an alliance with. Not Luca Moretti. An Italian of all things.”
“Luca and I made the deal back when you and I were fighting. I had to honor it. I am sorry. But there doesn’t need to be a war between us. Katya and I are happily married. Can’t you see that? We can make peace.”
“I don’t want to make peace,” Dimitri seethes. “I want my sister back. I want you to stop fucking me around.” In one smooth motion, he pulls out a gun and aims it at Alek’s head. Katya screams.
I go still. The memory of Dimitri kidnapping me two years ago still haunts me to this day. He never hurt me but it was still a scary experience that one doesn’t just get over.When I glance at Susanna, I can see the fear in her eyes too. It’s one thing we have in common.
“I am taking Katya back,” Dimitri growls.
Katya runs between her brother and husband. “Dimitri, no. I love Alek. I am happy with Alek. Don’t start another war. You can make peace. And you won’t shoot me with your gun. So don’t even think about threatening me. You have nothing to gain here and everything to lose.”
“Not when Alek is making deals behind my back.” He turns his gun onto me. “I may not shoot my sister, but I will not hesitate to hurt your daughters, Alek. Especially the one you used to make a deal with Luca. If she’s gone, you have nothing to bind yourself to Luca with.”
“Don’t hurt Nina,” Alek warns.
I’m frozen solid. All the air has left my body. I’m not even sure I can think properly.
Before I can even process what’s happening, Dimitri rushes forward and grabs me, hauling me towards the door.
“Don’t!” Susanna screams, startling me. She sounds truly worried for me. My sister who hates my guts.
“You don’t get to call the shots, Alek,” Dimitri says. “Katya, come with me. Now.”
Katya looks between Alek and Dimitri before turning to Dimitri. “I will come with you. Only to make sure Nina is ok. But Dimitri, you are going to regret this. I know it. Alek, I’ll be fine. Dimitri won’t hurt me. You know it. Let me talk some sense into my brother.”
Alek looks like he wants to object but he finally nods, trusting his wife to handle this. When I first met Katya, she was an anxious mess who could barely function but now she’s a strong woman who can stand up to the men in her life. It’s admirable.
Dimitri pulls me along and I don’t put up a fight. I just have to hope that Katya can get me out of this situation. Susanna runs outside as Dimitri forces me into his car. The worry on her face makes my heart squeeze in panic. Does my sister truly care for me?
Me, Katya, and Dimitri are quiet on the drive as he takes us to his house.
It’s not until we pull into the driveway that Katya speaks. “Dimitri, what are you doing? You’re causing trouble when there doesn’t need to be. Just make peace with Alek.”
