Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 56507 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56507 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 226(@250wpm)___ 188(@300wpm)
“No,” Mom says, rushing over to me. She kneels and puts her hands on my knees. “You’re not allowed to say that, Anna. You’re not even allowed to think of it. If I’d had the courage to reach out before, then Aiden would never have taken you. This never would’ve happened, and we wouldn’t be here.”
“It doesn’t matter now,” I tell her. “We’re together. I-I love you, Mom.”
She makes a croaking noise of pure agony, then whispers, “I love you too.”
She catches me in a hug as I fall against her. I press my face against her chest, letting the tears come as I think about the hard-to-believe fact that, just a few hours ago, we were sitting around the dinner table. I’d much prefer to be experiencing that tension over this.
“If we get the chance,” Mom whispers. “I’m going to distract them. You run, okay? You keep running no matter what happens or what you hear or see. I failed you once before. I won’t let that happen again.”
“Mom, your arm …”
She lets out a shaky breath. I think it’s supposed to be a laugh, but it doesn’t sound very convincing. When she fell in the park, she landed badly on her arm. Even now, as she holds me, I can feel how difficult it is for her. It’s like there’s no strength in her touch.
“It doesn’t matter,” she says. “Even if they … If it comes to the worst, your safety is all I care about. Please, Anna.”
“It won’t come to that.”
“Oh, it might.”
The voice comes from the doorway. It’s the same man who approached us in the park. He sounds like he’s drunk on a power trip.
“Or maybe we’ll get more creative,” he goes on. “Maybe we’ll show you how powerless you really are, hmm? I could show you some of my games.”
“You’re pathetic,” Mom hisses, fighting off tears. I think she’s even closer to crying than I am, but she fights away the sobs. “Do you think we’re scared of you? Do you think you’re tough?”
“I don’t think anything. I know how fucked you are, Mrs. Bigtime.”
“Do you seriously think my husband or her brothers will let you get away with this?”
I almost scream, Do you think Aiden will let you get away with this? But I don’t want them to know how much I care about him. I don’t want them to guess that the idea of being with Aiden again is the only thing stopping me from collapsing into complete terror.
“I’ve been threatened many times,” the man says. “There’s always some husband or brother who will supposedly make my life miserable. Yet, poof, here I am. Like magic.” He laughs coldly. “It doesn’t matter. We’re getting the boat ready anyway. Soon, they won’t be able to touch us. Maybe, if your husband is nice and her brothers give me what I want, you’ll see them again. Maybe not.”
“The boat?” Mom whispers under her breath.
“Ignore him,” I hiss. “He’s just a coward.”
That makes me remember something Dimitri told me once when I was younger. “Just because somebody is weak, just because somebody is scared, just because somebody is pathetic, it doesn’t mean they can’t hurt you. Sometimes, Ania, that makes them more dangerous.”
I try not to think of that as the door scrapes against the floor, making a harsh metal sound. The two big men from before walk in. At least, I think it’s them. I was too panicked earlier to pay attention, and now they’re wearing masks anyway. The same big men, different ones, it doesn’t matter. When one of them says, “Time to go,” what choice do we have?
Mom stands up, putting herself in front of me, looking brave even as she cradles her hurt arm. “If you take me and leave Ania here, I’ll do anything you want. I’ll give you access to all my husband’s bank accounts. I’ll help you make this the biggest score of your life.”
“Pfft,” one man grunts. “Do you think we’re going to trust a rich, stuck-up slut like you? Move.”
Mom turns, offering me her hand. “Remember what I said,” she whispers.
Do I have it in me to leave her to handle this alone? I know it’s what she told me to do. I know it’s what Dimitri, Mikhail, and Aiden would want me to do, too, but I just got my mom back. There’s no way I’m letting her go now.
CHAPTER 29
AIDEN
“They’re on the move,” I snap as we reach the bar where Dad’s men tracked them. Just as we pull up, a van is driving away. I might not have noticed it if the goddamn amateurs didn’t push the gas the second they saw us coming. Then one moron even sticks a pistol out the window and fires at us. The bulletproof glass of the car splinters as I speed after them.