Page 72 of Cruel Russian Pakhan

“Then stop dodging the questions,” I responded stubbornly.

Lev exhaled sharply and turned away, dragging a hand through his hair. When he faced me again, the edge in his voice was back.

“We’ll talk tomorrow. In private.”

I nodded stiffly. “Then we’re done here. You can leave.”

He stared at me like he didn’t quite believe I meant it. “You want me to leave?”

“We’re clearly done talking.”

“Katya…”

My voice hardened. “Just go.”

He lingered for a moment, then turned and left. The door clicked shut behind him.

I sank back against the pillows, refusing to cry.

Why should I? Because the man who’s supposed to be my husband can't even fake concern?

He doesn’t love you. You weren't the woman he was supposed to marry. You'd be a fool to wait for someone like him.

The thought twisted like a knife.

He’ll care about the baby, because it’s his. But you? You’re just an incubator.

I swallowed hard, forcing those thoughts from my mind. Right now, I had one goal: convincing Lev to let me see my siblings. I had no illusions; he'd absolutely assign a security detail to shadow my every move. So I had to be smart. I had to prove I wasn’t going to be used as a pawn, and that Yegor andZahkar weren’t the threat he believed them to be. Maybe then, he’d actually listen.

I began rehearsing what I’d say when he returned. If this didn’t work, if he didn’t listen now, by the time he did decide to listen, which might be after the baby, any cord of friendship my brothers and I had built at the house would be completely severed and irreplaceable.

Fifteen minutes later, the door swung open, and I sighed in relief, glad that Lev had returned. This time, because I knew exactly what I wanted to say, I was more confident that he’d agree.

My heart stopped when the person stepped into view.

It wasn’t Lev.

He was dressed in black with his face hidden behind a ski mask. Three others stormed into the room behind him.

I opened my mouth to scream, but a cloth pressed against my face, soaked in something sharp and chemical.

Darkness swallowed me before the scream that bubbled in my throat could escape.

Chapter 23 - Lev

Katya was infuriating.

Why couldn’t she understand that just because she wanted something to be true didn’t make it so? Her brothers were loyal to Artyom. And Artyom? That bastard was only loyal to himself.

She met them once. Once. For a few damn hours. And somehow, she believed they'd drop everything for her because of shared blood?

That wasn’t how the world fucking worked.

Maybe not your world. But maybe in hers, that's exactly how things work.

I sighed, frustrated. This was why Bratva men married inside the culture. A Bratva wife would've understood how deep loyalty ran. Katya might have her father’s blood, but she was still an outsider, whether she liked it or not.

But would she even listen to that?