“You are such a fucking ass, and Volodya’s going to kill you for this.”
“That fucker won’t be able to do shit. You’re just a plaything to him anyway. God, Maddie, grow the fuck up. You really think he’s interested in you long term? I asked around at Inferno. Every time he goes there, he leaves with a different woman, sometimes more than one. He’s practically fucked his way through the whole damn city, and you’re just his latest conquest. Everyone knows what’s going on except you. It’s fucking pathetic.”
His words sting, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to give him the satisfaction of seeing it. I already knew Volodya wasn’t a virgin, and a man as gorgeous as him has probably had more sex than I could ever fathom, and I don’t want to think about any of it. I know that everything between us isn’t a lie. No way in hell am I going to trust Derek over the man that I’ve fallen completely in love with.
So instead of giving the bastard what he wants, I sit up a little straighter and say, “We’ll see, Derek. I know him, and you don’t. You’re relying on rumors and stories from jealous women who wish they were fucking him.” I look over at him and laugh. “We’ll see who’s right soon enough. I predict that he’ll be shoving a knife into you before the night is over, so this is your last fucking chance. Pull over and let me out, and I will saveyourpathetic ass by not mentioning this to him, but this is a one-time offer. If you don’t let me go, then you’re on your own when he knocks down your goddamn door.”
He smacks the steering wheel and yells, “Shut the fuck up!”
I shake my head and mutter, “You stupid fucking idiot.”
I’m not expecting the punch when it comes. Derek’s always had a temper, but he’s never been physically violent towards me. His fist hits my cheek, slamming me into the window and making my whole head light up with a white-hot pain. My vision darkens as the truck swerves and he has to roughly jerk us back onto the road.
“Just shut the fuck up,” he growls as I fight to not pass out. “Your boyfriend is the fucking idiot. He’s walking into a trap tonight, and he doesn’t even know it.”
The pain in my cheekbone makes it difficult to think about anything else, but his words push all that away and replace it with fear. My mind is racing when he pulls in front of the house he’s been renting on the outskirts of the city, and that’s when I realize just how confident he is in this trap that’s been set for Volodya. He’s making no attempt to hide me, and that in itself is terrifying.
“What trap?” I ask him, stretching my mouth and trying to decide if he’s actually broken something.
He turns off the truck and looks at me. The face that I used to know so well is now morphed into something I barely recognize. This is who he always was, I remind myself. The man I thought of as my first love never really existed. He’d shown me what I wanted to see and hidden his true self from me. I feel like such an idiot.
“Scott knows they’ve been watching him, and they took his fucking sister. They held her for days and then dumped her off at his house with a warning to stay out of Medvedev business. She says they held her and beat her and that they raped her. That your precious Volodya raped her, Maddie.”
“Bullshit,” I say, not even having to think about it. “There’s no way in hell he did that.”
“You think Kaylee lied about it?”
“Yes, I do, and you’re an idiot for believing her.”
He lets out a harsh laugh. “Yeah, because he’s such a good guy, right? Someone who runs a Bratva surely can’t be capable of rape. God, wake the fuck up.”
I think about Volodya, about his need to dominate, the way he likes rough sex, the way he’s warned me to leave before he loses control, but even with all that, I know he’s not a rapist. No way in hell. And just like I know he’s not a rapist, I know Kaylee is fully capable of lying about this. She’ll do anything for attention and sympathy.
Before I can keep arguing with him, he slaps the tape back on my mouth and gets out of the truck. Pulling me out of it, he throws me over his shoulder, letting out that signature groan that always used to drive me nuts, and walks to his front door. No one sees me. No one knows I’m here. And I have no idea how to get my ass out of this mess.
The place looks exactly as I remember it. Video game remote controls litter the coffee table along with empty beer cans and chip bags. It’s obvious that the bulk of his paycheck goes straight into his video game habit based on the various consoles lined up beneath his large, flat-screen TV. He carries me down the hall, ignoring my muffled screams when I realize he’s taking me to his bedroom. Tossing me on the bed, he leans over and grips the edge of the tape.
“If I pull this off, are you going to be quiet?”
I nod my head, desperate to get more air. The tape is making me feel like I can’t breathe, and as soon as he rips it off, I fill my lungs and try to scoot away. He grabs my legs and laughs.
“You’re not getting away, Maddie, so you might as well stop trying.”
“What the hell are you going to do to me?”
“We’re going to have some fun until Scott calls to tell me the Russian fucker is dead.”
“Scott’s not going to be calling you. Derek, listen to me. There’s no way in hell they’re going to win in a fight against a fucking Bratva. You have to know this.” I shake my head at the sheer stupidity of what they’re attempting.
“He’s hired guys to help him. People who know what they’re doing.” He smiles and digs his fingers into my thighs hard enough to make me suck in a breath. “He’s the one that’s going to be dead before the night is over, and I have a feeling you might wish you were.”
When he leans closer, I lose it. Screaming, I kick out as hard as I can, thrilled when I hear him give a loud grunt of pain. I don’t stop until his fist hits me again. With my hands behind my back, there’s nothing I can do except try to curl my thighs to my chest to protect as much of my body as possible. The next punch splits my eyebrow and pulls a deep scream from me. Blood gets in my eyes, mixing with my tears and blinding me.
I just need to hold on until he gets here.
I repeat the mantra over and over again because I know that Volodya will come for me. I don’t give a fuck what Derek says. He will come for me, and when he does, I’m not going to be the one sobbing and bleeding and feeling so much pain I can barely breathe.
I just need to hold on.
