Page 45 of Claimed By the Pakhan

“Like I said before, you’re too curious for your own good.”

“I don’t understand,” says Fia, blinking away the confusion. “Why was I wandering around the dockyard in the middle of the night?”

“Searching for answers. The time of day is irrelevant. Once you set your mind to something, you develop tunnel vision andstruggle to rest until you’ve put your curiosity at ease, which is why you’ve come close to death several times.”

“Several times?” she repeats.

“Yes,” I sigh. “You were almost taken out by a car, Fia.”

“Yeah,” she says absent-mindedly, glancing at her palms. She fiddles with her fingernails, looking anywhere but my face.

“Tell me what else happened.”

“I remembered you warning me about visiting that place, but for some reason, the docks have always called my name. There was a feeling I struggled to shake off, like I needed to get to the bottom of something.”

The man who almost killed her was a Kuzmin hitman. The family had docked in Seattle, being a pain in the fucking ass as usual. I never told Fia we were in conflict with them because she had no business knowing. Knowledge gets people killed in this industry and she was the single person on this earth I wanted to protect.

I stare at her. Usually, I have no trouble getting into her head, but the pages are glued together today, making it impossible for me to read her.

“How did the dream end?”

Fia frowns, confusion obscuring her vision as she interprets the vision. “You told me I’m not leaving your sight ever again,” she says, gaze still focused on her palms. “And then there was so much fucking blood. I felt like I was swimming in it.”

“Yes,” I say. “The man got what he deserved.”

“You dismembered a body to save me,” she states, finally returning to my face.

“Believe me, spitfire, I’d do a lot more than that.”

Lines appear between her brows as she regards me from the bed.

“Luka said you were screaming earlier. What was that about?”

Fia’s lips part as she interprets my question, like I’m missing the hidden meaning underneath. “That was… nothing. Just a recurring dream, not a vision.” She deflects the spotlight. “You were gone all night.”

“You missed me?”

“No,” she says, snorting. “Not when you’re repeatedly out stabbing men in the chest.”

“Unfortunately, there were no deaths tonight.”

“No,” says Fia. “Just more keeping secrets.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Alexander Kuzmin,” she states, poison filling her eyes. “I’m not a child, Emil. You can tell me what’s going on.”

“And risk you being killed?” I shake my head. “Ignorance is bliss.”

“No, it’s cruel. I’m your wife, living under your roof, carrying your two children, and you can’t even tell me the truth.”

“I’m protecting?—”

“Sure,” she drawls. “Like you actually give a fuck about me. You’re afraid of losing me.”

“Of course I’m afraid of losing you.”

“That’s not love,” Fia states, looking at my face blankly.