Page 64

“You have fire in your eyes,” he observed with a smirk. “You’ve seen worse than us, haven’t you ? That’s why we don’t scare you.”

“I’d be a fool not to be scared,” she admitted, inhaling deeply. “But if I had let fear control me, I would have died hundreds of times.”

Hundreds of times…

My hand pressed against my chest as if to keep my heart from bursting. The walls of the room seemed to close in around me.

“You want to see this man ? What are you willing to do ?”

“Anything,” Sienna replied without a moment’s hesitation, “I would die for him.”

I held my breath as they stared each other down. Then Grigori smirked and nodded before glancing at Sasha.

“Take her to see him before she leaves. Then let him go—he’s of no use to us.”

Sienna exhaled in relief, and I quickly grasped her hand. Sasha stormed toward us, fury etched on his face.

I instinctively recoiled, stumbling over the carpet. My sister tried to catch me, but I landed on the couch.

“Sasha !” Nikolaï’s voice cut through the tension, freezing his brother in place. He knelt in front of me.

“Are you okay ?” he asked gently.

I nodded, unable to look away.

“I’m sorry, Selina. I didn’t mean to scare you,” Sasha said from behind his brother, his shoulders slumped, his gaze avoiding mine.

“No, it’s me who overreacted. I… it’s going to take me some time to get used to being around men again,” I murmured, twisting my fingers, pressing my lips together as I forced myself to look up and meet Sasha’s eyes.

He studied me for a few seconds, and little by little, his gaze softened. Finally, he nodded and gestured for my sister to follow him.

She gave me a concerned look, but I smiled at her reassuringly, and she eventually followed Sasha out of the room.

I let out a soft sigh and stood, forcing Nikolaï to step back. “I should go see Rafael and explain what’s happening tonight.”

“Let’s go together,” Nikolaï said, opening the door for me to pass through, while behind us, Roman hummed what sounded like a love song.

Chapter seventeen

Selina

My eyes settled on the jet, ready for departure on the tarmac, as Roman brought the car to a stop nearby. In the end, Sasha and Roman had decided to switch places, so Sasha had left with Sienna and the children a few hours earlier, despite my sister’s protests. My heart clenched at the thought of my son waving goodbye, his eyes glistening with the tears he had tried so hard to hold back as the car took them away from the mansion.

In just a few hours, I would hold him in my arms again, and with Sienna, he was safe—I trusted her completely.

My hands trembled slightly as I unbuckled my seatbelt while Nikolai opened my door, extending his hand to help me down from the large 4x4. I thanked him, pulling my wool coat tighter around me against the morning chill. Roman climbed the steep steps to the jet with an ease that was almost unsettling, while I watched Grigori approach a few men near the wing, his presence commanding their full attention, their expressions almost reverent.

“Let’s go,” Nikolai said after retrieving two suitcases from the trunk, along with my bag. I tried to take it from him to help, but he simply shook his head and strode ahead at a brisk pace. He climbed the steps just as effortlessly as his brother, despite carrying all the luggage. How was that even possible?

I sighed, following much more cautiously, gripping the handrail to keep myself from slipping on the steps, slick with morning dew. I envied my sister’s physical endurance—she wouldn’t have struggled with something as trivial as this. But being locked up for eight years had robbed me of any physical strength, unlessone counted the times I was beaten. I grimaced at my own dark humor. Maybe I really was losing my mind.

Lost in thought, I suddenly looked up as footsteps rushed toward me. I frowned, watching Nikolai descend quickly in my direction. Before I could react, his arm wrapped around my waist, and in the blink of an eye, my feet left the ground. Within seconds, I found myself at the entrance of the jet, blinking in surprise. He looked at me with a small smile.

“Thank you,” I breathed.

He nodded, gesturing for me to step inside with his arm. I cast a hesitant glance at the interior before finally stepping in—for my son.

My eyes widened at the luxurious cabin. Thick beige leather seats were arranged in sets of four, facing each other. A soft white carpet covered the floor, and the ceiling was lined with more of the same elegant beige leather. I sank into one of the seats by the window, nearly groaning in pleasure as I sank into its plush comfort.