“No! There are few men I trust. Only a handful of my own. I only reached out to the Syndicate because of your connection with my sister. She’s clearly loyal to you. She even threatened me if I tried to harm you or come between you. I’m grateful she met with me today at all.” He lets out a chuckle as if the idea of his sister threatening him on her husband’s behalf is sweet. He doesn’t know the war machine that she is.
“Why did you meet with her?” I demand as dread settles in.
“So she could convince you to help. I figured it would be easier for me to convince my sister than you, and you’d believe your wife over me, so that’s the route I chose.”
The breath is knocked out of me. This means she didn’t betray me. She isn’t disloyal. She’s truly my wife. She always has been. And Viktor was just trying to separate us.
She needed to talk to me! That’s what she said. She needed to talk about this. She was helping.
Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck!
I have her locked in the basement like a criminal. Like the enemy. I’m treating my wife like a prisoner in her own home.
I’m sick to my stomach.
I treated her like trash. I casted her aside. I didn’t even give her a chance to defend herself. I acted as though she meant nothing to me when really, she’s my light. My fire. When I thought it was all a lie, when I thought I had to end the life Ibuilt with her, there was no other life worth living. There is no happiness without her.
“I have to go!” I abruptly say.
“You will help?” he rushes out.
“Yeah. The Syndicate will help.”
I hang up, and race to my wife to beg for her forgiveness.
Chapter 47
Katerina
These basement walls mock me. Memories of our tryst down here haunt me. What once was a sacred space, becomes another prison.
My heart aches, but I refuse to let any tears escape. I won’t cry over another man. He’s not Viktor, I know this, but this imprisonment feels too similar.
I’m not foolish. I know why he did this. He had me followed to meet Petya. He knows I lied to him about going alone and now doubts my loyalty.
But what I don’t know is how long this seed of distrust has been in him. Has he always questioned my loyalty? Has he been pretending this whole time?
But that doesn’t make sense. Why would he believe me over Alex? Why would he induct me into the Syndicate? If he didn’t trust me, why would he invite me into the most sacred aspects of his life?
My next move is to prove my loyalty, but I fear he won’t listen. If he’s already made up his mind about me, if he’s alreadylost his trust in me, it’ll be hard to convince him. But he has to listen. Not just for our marriage, but for all those women suffering because of Viktor. It’s our duty to help them. I have to make him understand that.
The basement door swings open, and in rushes Dominic. His eyes are wild, and his hair is untamed. He looks like a wreck.
He rushes into the cell I’m locked in and rips it open. Standing before me, he appears smaller than ever. Less intimidating.
We stand in silence, each waiting for the other to speak. Needing to hear his thoughts, I keep my mouth shut. He doesn’t seem furious; he seems distressed.
“Katerina, I was wrong. Your loyalty was questioned, and instead of coming to you, I reacted poorly.
“Reacted poorly? You locked me in the basement where you kill enemies!”
“I know. I’m sorry. Trusting has always been difficult for me. As the head of the Syndicate, trust is a commodity I can’t give freely. Your relation to the Bratva made you someone I couldn’t let close. You never were supposed to become anything to me. Much less my wife and leader of the Syndicate. When knowledge of your betrayal came to light, I resorted to my old ways and pushed you out.”
“But haven’t I proved myself to you? Shouldn’t I have been given the benefit of the doubt, or at least deserved a conversation? You threw me out like I was nothing.” My fury doesn’t hide my hurt.
“I’m sorry. You have to believe me,” he begs.
I take a step back. “No.”
