In the inside pocket of her leather jacket was my burner phone–and my only means to contact Kyle.
I licked my lips, my fingernails digging into my palms. Nadia would never give up the phone. And I couldn’t slip it from her pocket either. She was far too savvy for that.
I dug my teeth into my lower lip as I tried to come up with another way to reach out. I had bigger problems now that I was on Belvarian soil, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Kyle.
I framed it that I was focused on him because he may provide a solution to some of my problems, but I knew that wasn’t the case. Feelings that I’d never experienced before had already taken root and were growing.
As nonsensical as it sounded, I knew that was the case. I’d never experienced a connection with anyone like this before.
I had to find a way to contact him, at least to see how he was. My mind created nightmare scenario after nightmare scenario. What if something had happened to him after we left? What if he was seriously hurt and no one knew?
“Nadia,” I said as the plane slowed to a stop and the engines began to wind down.
My sister raised her eyes to me, her eyebrows arching in question.
“Did you leave someone behind to make sure Kyle was okay?”
My sister huffed out a breath as she rose, shaking her head. “I’m not that concerned about the good doctor. We have larger problems on our hands.”
I leapt from my seat. “Kyle can be a solution to one of those problems. Unless he’s lying on the beach dying because of your hit to his skull.”
“Calm yourself, Natashka. There is no reason to be upset.”
“There is every reason to be upset,” I shouted.
My sister lifted her chin, peering down her nose at me. “He is a distraction you do not need. If he proves in any way useful, I will–“
“Fetch him, I know. You will crack him over the head before you tie him to a chair and force him to do your bidding. I knowexactly how you operate, Nadia. I have turned a blind eye in plenty of instances.”
My sister licked her lips as she took a step closer to me, her expression unimpressed. “My mode of operation is not your concern,moya sestra. The outcomes are the only thing that matters.”
“That’s not true,” I said, my nostrils flaring.
My sister scoffed. “You must forget about him, Natasha. He is nothing to you, and he must remain nothing to you.”
My jaw tightened as I prepared a rebuttal.
Before I could, she clapped me on the shoulder. “Do not argue, my sister. The fire in your eyes is undeniable. It is up to me to make certain nothing comes of it, though.”
“That is not your decision.”
“And your life is not your own. There are larger things at play here. Do not make the mistake of thinking Papa would agree with your childish tendencies. He would not.”
I wanted to shout that it wasn’t a childish tendency, that my feelings were real and valid, but my sister would never listen.
She gave me a gentle shake as I pressed my lips together. “Natashka, give it a few days. You’ll forget all about him. He’s just a passing fancy.”
I struggled not to roll my eyes at her condescending statement. Instead, I simply stood still as she waved Stefan over.
“Straight home. No stops. And no phones.” My sister wagged a finger at him.
“Of course,” Stefan answered, wrapping his thick hand around my bicep.
“No phones? Nadia, I’m not a prisoner.”
“No, you are not. You are far more important than a prisoner. And as such, I must take the necessary steps to protect you. Even from yourself.”
My lips parted as I stared at her. “Protection from myself?”
