Page 72 of Beaten

“You fucking asshole,” Dimitri snarls. “You knew I raised my sister. You knew she was like a daughter to me and yet you stole her from me to win a war. A pathetic war that you’re not going to win. I am going to get my sister back, one way or another.”

“But you can’t start a fight in a room full of people, now can you? And you know it.” Alek’s smile is too much for the situation. I can tell it’s only pissing Dimitri off more.

“No. But I can wait until this event is over and kill you.”

I gasp. The thought of Alek dying is one I’m not happy with.

Dimitri sets his eyes onto me. “Katya. Please tell me you’re ok, at least?”

“She is,” Alek says, pulling me in closer to him. “Especially when she begged me to take her virginity.”

“You fucking asshole,” Dimitri hisses. “You raped my sister?”

“It’s not rape when it’s consensual.”

“It’s not consensual. You kidnapped her.”

“I’m fine,” I interject. “Dimitri, I’m fine.”

He looks me over, surprise flicking across his features. “You seem… not as scared as I thought you would be.”

“Turns out, Katya is thriving being outside her old room,” Alek taunts. “And it’s all thanks to me.”

“You fucking asshole.” Dimitri can’t control his anger and he lands a punch to Alek’s face. Alek rightens himself before he throws his body at Dimitri and they end up in an actual fight.

Sofiya turns to me. “Katya,” she whispers. “Let’s go. While Alek is distracted. Let’s go.” She grabs my arm and tugs me away. I find my legs moving of their own accord. My brain isn’t deciding this.

“I’m not sure…” I trail off as Sofiya shoots me an incredulous look.

“Not sure about what? This is the chance we’ve been looking for. Come on.”

I don’t have it in me to break Sofiya’s heart so I follow after her and out of the museum. She runs over to a valet.

“I need my car. Now.”

“But we just parked it,” he explains.

“I don’t care. Get me my car. Now.” She turns back to me and grabs my arms. “Katya, this is it. I’m going to get you back home. Dimitri is going to be so happy.”

“But him and Alek –,”

“They’ll be find. They won’t kill each other in public. You can be safe again.”

Sofiya’s car pulls up and she dives inside the driver’s seat, motioning at me to get into the passenger seat.

There’s so much I want to say from my feelings for Alek to how I don’t want to go back to my old room but none of it seems right in this moment so I get into the car.

“Let’s go,” Sofiya says the second I shut the door behind me. She doesn’t even give me the chance to buckle my seatbelt before gunning the car away from the museum.

“Should we wait for Dimitri?” I ask.

“Dimitri will catch up. I’ll call him. He’ll be happy that I got you back. I’m happy I got you back.”

I can’t appreciate Sofiya’s words right now because all I can think about is how I’m getting farther and farther away from Alek.

Chapter Sixteen

Alek