The screens flicker, shifting rapidly between grainy images of traffic cameras, street views, and distant security footage. Elena built this software herself—innovative, ruthless, and completely illegal. It works like magic, piecing together movements across hours, tracking every subtle motion.
I watch as Elena tracks him frame-by-frame, stitching together his route all the way from the estate to wherever his destination is. It’s extraordinary.
“Perfect sleuthing,” Lev murmurs appreciatively, nodding at Elena. “You’ve outdone yourself, Elena.”
“Now,” I say, voice hard, determination seeping through every fiber of my being. “We find Astrid before something happens we can’t undo.”
“We’ll get her back,” Alexei says confidently. “Spalding’s fucked himself, crossing this line.”
Luk nods slowly. “This family has never been stronger. We will remind them why they should’ve feared us from the start.”
They’re all right, of course, but beneath the determination and the fury, a fear gnaws at my gut, deeper and sharper than I’ve ever known.
Astrid is somewhere out there—alone, afraid, and in danger. Carrying my children. Our children. And I realize that as much as I need my family’s strength right now, Astrid needs mine even more.
My heart beats faster, a desperate drumbeat in my chest.
“You have the location yet?” I ask Elena, barely able to control the urgency in my voice.
“Almost,” she replies quietly, eyes locked on her screen. “He’s good, but not as good as he thinks. I’ll have him.”
I close my eyes for just a second, feeling the truth settle deep in my bones. Astrid isn’t just a lover, or a partner, or even the mother of my unborn children—she’s my future. My reason. The part of my life I didn’t even know I’d been missing until she walked into it, fierce and brilliant and brave enough to stand beside me.
And I’ll tear the entire world apart if that’s what it takes to bring her home.
CHAPTER 35
ASTRID
The ties bite sharply into my wrists, leaving my skin raw and aching. I sit in a small, dimly-lit office, a room filled with blank walls, stale air, and a door that looks depressingly secure. I'm alone, but not entirely. Muffled voices drift from somewhere beyond, too indistinct to catch.
My head spins slowly, a thick haze still lingering from whatever drug they gave me. I close my eyes tightly, panic threading through my veins, cold and heavy.
How will Yuri be able to find me? Tatiana was too smart. She knew the blind spots, knew exactly where to lead me so no one would know.
A sick wave of regret washes through me. I trusted her, even if just briefly. I believed her smile, her easy voice, her charm. I walked willingly into her web like an idiot.
But dwelling on that isn’t going to help. I have to find a way out somehow. For Yuri. For the family I’ve found. For my babies.
I swallow the lump in my throat, chest tightening painfully. I’m terrified, truly terrified.
Maybe I can’t do this. Maybe it’s easier to just give up and let Spalding and Tatiana play out their horrible game.
Then, I feel a fluttering in my belly, gentle like the brush of butterfly wings beneath my ribs.
At first, I freeze, confused. Then it happens again, unmistakable this time. I hold my breath, stunned.
The babies. They’re moving. They’re okay, strong and kicking.
My vision blurs, tears burning hot tracks down my cheeks. Relief floods through me, fierce and bright, washing away the fear, replacing it with something sharp and powerful.
They’re alive. After the abduction, after whatever chemicals they’d injected me with, I hadn’t dared think about what that might have done. I couldn’t face the thought that harm might have come to them.
But they’re fighting, already stronger and braver than their mother.
In that instant, everything shifts inside me. I won’t just sit here. I won’t let this happen. If my children are fighting, so will I.
I breathe deeply, blink the tears away, and start scanning the room. The door is solid, but there’s a small window high up, partially hidden behind filing cabinets. Maybe it opens. Maybe it doesn’t. But it doesn’t matter because I’ll find a way.
