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“I was just catching him up on what happened.”

“You’re all right? The baby? Sasha?” Ilya demands in English.

“Yes, but is Demyan —”

“Alina,” he says, sounding like there’s a ton of pressure on him and he’s in the middle of something. “Are you safe?”

“We’re at Vasily’s fortress. My cousin’s away but his men and staff are here. He’s sending another family member to help out,” she says. “It’s well stocked, there are cameras, and it’s an absolute fortress.”

“Last time I was there the security needed upgrading.”

“You always say that,” she chides. “But it is. I’ve been told the cameras are all high-tech and there are patrols. We didthe switch off from taxi to Vasily’s SUV a number of miles back.”

He barks an order in Russian, then he’s back to us in English. “You weren’t followed?”

“We did the two-car pickup. One went another way and the car with the precious cargo circled before coming in. We weren’t followed,” says one of the men. “And the high-tech cameras ring the property. We use it regularly, and not just as a vacation place.”

“We should be safe, Ilya,” Alina finishes.

“Should or are?”

She looks at the men and one nods. “Are.”

“Stay where you are. And tell the men no one, not even one of theirs, gets on the property. If anyone does and comes to the door, don’t answer. I know the house; no one can get in unless the door’s opened. So you’re essentially in a house-sized panic room, understand?”

“Yes,” she says, and Kara and I grip hands harder.

“Demyan’s phone’s out of juice, so I’ll track him down and we’ll work out a plan to get you all to safety.”

He hangs up. I feel a little better, but how the hell is Demyan with a dead phone?

“Alina, when you spoke to each other in Russian, did… did he say where Demyan is?”

“No.”

And in that moment, I see how she fits into their world. Because I don’t know if she’s telling me the truth or not, and it scares me even more.

“Mama!”

Sasha’s broken free, or Olga was smart enough to release him, and he rushes to me, grabbing at me. I slip an arm around him and pick him up, hugging him close. His little heart’s beating fast and I’m sure he’s feeding off the energy in the room.

“Hey, baby,” I whisper, peppering kisses over his little face as Kara bounces one of his feet that’s now shoeless. I spot the shoe near Olga who stands and heads to the kitchen, muttering about snacks and drinks.

The house isn’t big, at least not for this amount of people, but I don’t think many will be getting much sleep and already one man is carrying bedding out into the living room which is in the middle of the house.

“These sofas open out into beds, and we can make forts. Would you like that, Sasha? A sleep fort? We can have a slumber party.” She smiles at him as he buries his head into my chest.

I look at her, then at Kara as he pulls his foot from even her. “He’s overwhelmed.”

“Poor baby,” she murmurs. “Even though we weren’t followed, it’s smarter to sleep here. Ilya’s right, the place is like a panic room, but I know Demyan. He’ll want overboard on safety when it comes to you.”

“Us,” I say, making sure she understands she’s included.

“Olga’s getting snacks and one of the men put some clothes and amenities in the bathroom. They’ll probably swim, but we can get changed into them. Something more comfortable.”

I try to keep the panic down.

Clothes to be comfortable in. A panic room style house. Camping in the middle of it, pretending it’s a slumber party, to be even safer. Not being able to contact Demyan.