Page 14

I flinched away, but there was nowhere to go.

"Your father," Pavel said, his tone shifting. "Do you know where he is now?"

The question surprised me.

Why would he care about my pathetic excuse for a father? Unless...

A chill ran through me as I realized what Pavel might be asking.

Was he planning to hunt my father down?

To make him pay for his debts—or for transferring them to me?

I should be horrified at the thought.

I should warn my father, protect him despite everything.

But the hot flash of vindictive satisfaction that surged through me was immediate and overwhelming. Would I mourn if this man put a bullet in my father's head? The honest answer disturbed me more than Pavel's gun against my skin.

"No," I finally answered, my voice steadier than expected. "He disappeared three years ago. Haven't heard a word from him since he threw me to the wolves."

"Tell me about these men who hold your father's debt," he demanded, suddenly intense. "Names. Amounts. Everything."

"Why would you care?" I challenged, instantly regretting my boldness.

His eyes narrowed. "Because I don't share what's mine."

Mine.

The word hit me like ice water.

I wasn't his.

I wasn't anyone's.

Yet something about the raw possession in his tone made my breath catch.

No one had ever wanted to claim me before—they'd only wanted to use me.

The difference shouldn't matter.

It shouldn't send that forbidden rush through my veins. But it did.

The gun pressed between my breasts. “Did you know, when someone lies, their heart races. Unless something else is making your heart pound."

I gasped, panic clawing at me. I squeezed my eyes shut, begging whoever might be listening to make this stop. To let me wake in my bed, for this all to be just another nightmare.

"Open your eyes. Look at me," he demanded.

I obeyed.

Because that was what good girls did.

That was what I'd always done—followed the rules, kept my head down, worked hard.

It was supposed to keep me safe, not standing here facing death.

"IfI let you go," he murmured, "how do I know you won't run to the police?"