Page 10

“We are attending a gathering at my cousin’s place tonight,” Leon says abruptly when I walk past him in the hallway. He is gruff and unfriendly.

“Okay,” I say, keeping my answer short and casual. It must be another family event. I really hope it is. Maybe Chiara and Maxim will be there. Oddly, I find myself looking forward to it, because I had so much fun the last time I hung out with his family. Fun I was certainly not expecting to have.

That evening, while trying to decide what to wear, I notice that Leon has selected a black suit for the night, and I decide I had better dress up, too. He bought me two pretty dresses, and I guess this is the night I should wear one of them.

I choose the light blue one with thin shoulder straps and a long, flowing skirt. It is elegant and modest enough for a family gathering.

I do my hair up in a curly bun with some loose pieces hanging around my face, and when I look in the mirror, I feel quite pretty.

I never really thought of myself as being pretty. My father always made a point of telling me I was anything but pretty. He made it clear no one would ever want to marry me or be with me. He made me feel worthless most of the time.

Well, surprise, Dad. Someone wanted me so badly they kidnapped me to marry me.

I laugh silently at my own dark sense of humor. Then I sigh, feeling sad. Maybe my father was right. Maybe the only way I ever was going to find someone to marry me was like this. Not for love. I quickly finish the last touches of my makeup. I’d better get going.

When I get downstairs, Leon is waiting for me. He looks incredibly sexy in his tightly fitted black suit that hugs his broad shoulders and shows off his bulking figure.

He holds the car door open for me and I wonder if it’s to make sure I get inside without running away or just because he’s being polite.

Obviously, it’s so I don’t escape.

When we arrive at his cousin’s place, I am introduced to Kiril and Paval, and then I spot Maxim and Chiara, too, and feel a small amount of relief that they are here.

I smile. It is a family event.

Chiara comes over immediately when she sees me and hugs me tightly, which I accept a little stiffly because I am not used to being hugged.

She treats me like I am her friend, which is confusing. I still haven’t worked out if she actually likes me or if it’s some kind of manipulation. I’m just going with the flow, though. Mostly because I don’t really have any other choice.

“Gin?” she smiles.

“Yes, please.”

“Leo, do you want a drink?”

“I’ll come through now and see what I feel like,” he calls out as Chiara leads me away.

She takes me into the house through the crowd of people, and the more I look around, the tenser I become. This isn’t a family event, after all. This is a house full of my father’s enemies and rivals. It’s some kind of business party, and of course all of their allies are my family's enemies.

I swallow hard, sinking into a corner near the bar while Chiara happily orders us some drinks. I want to hide away. I want to disappear into the woodgrain of the door and have no one see me. Suddenly my dress feels all wrong, and my hair feels wrong, and everything feels wrong.

I thought he was bringing me to a family event, but he brought me here to use me as a pawn in some stupid game he is playing. I’m just a tool of some kind to him.

I feel like an idiot, and knowing this causes me deep disappointment. For some reason I thought we were kind of getting along at home. I mean, okay, not getting along , that’s a bit of a stretch. But I didn’t expect this from him.

Why not, though? He’s just another mob boss like my father. They are all the same, and I should not have expected anything less of him. They use people, manipulate people, and don’t care about the consequences.

Leon arrives and stands next to Chiara.

“Where’s Sasha?” he asks.

“She was just—honey, what are you doing over there?” She grabs my arm and drags me out of the corner where I was trying to hide.

I stand shifting nervously from foot to foot, keeping my face turned down while I still try and keep an eye on who is near me.

Leon frowns. “What’s wrong with you?” he demands.

“I, um, I thought it was just going to be your family,” I mutter.

“So?” He doesn’t seem to get it.

“Nothing. I just misunderstood, that’s all.” There is no point in explaining anything to him, because I doubt he will care, anyway.

Leon continues to watch me closely, and once we have our drinks, he leads us deeper into the party so that he can mingle with all of the guests. I find myself sticking very close to his side, because at least he is the enemy I know.

He seems to sense my unease, and to my surprise he slips his arm around my waist, pulling me even closer to him. I do find comfort in the gesture, even though I don’t know what he means by it.

We mingle with a lot of people who I recognize, and a lot of people who literally make my skin crawl with the way they look at me, but Leon doesn’t leave my side for one moment. He seems to be protective of me, which is confusing, but right now I am so grateful that I don’t even want to question it.

I am very observant of how he talks to people and treats them, and it kind of surprises me that he seems to be very well-liked. He has this social persona that is charismatic and charming. He commands attention in a very alluring way. I can also see that people have a lot of respect for him.

The night goes on, and inevitably I have to accept the fact that I need to go to the bathroom, and I can’t exactly ask Leon to go with me, because that would seem weird. I’m hoping that if I just hurry there and back, I won’t bump into anyone who is looking for trouble.

“Leon, will you excuse me for a moment? I just need to go to the ladies',” I say quietly.

“Of course, do you know where it is? Just through those doors and on your left."

“I do, thanks.”

He drops his arm from around my waist, and the coldness of its absence makes me feel more exposed.

I keep my head low and my eyes averted as I quickly make my way towards the house.

I rush into the bathroom and close the door behind me with a sigh of relief.

Thank goodness, no one seemed to even notice me.

I spend a little time in the bathroom freshening up and take a deep breath. When I’m done, I prepare myself to move just as quickly and quietly, unnoticed, back to Leon’s side.

Stepping out into the hallway, I glance left and right and find no one there.

But when I turn the corner, I walk straight into the worst possible person I could have imagined. Rico Nunez is one of my father’s biggest enemies. He’s not just a rival, but an avid enemy of my father. They have had a number of close encounters with each other in the past involving violent shoot outs.

He recognizes me immediately.

I try to step around him.

“Where do you think you are going?” he snarls angrily. “Why did they invite trash to this party?”

“Rico, please, just let me go past,” I mumble as the anxiety begins to grow inside me.

He grabs my arm and spins me around, slamming my back against the wall. A sharp breath is shoved from my lungs at the impact.

Before I can make another move to get away from him, he grabs my throat and squeezes so tight I can’t breathe.

I kick him hard in the shins, but all this does is make him angrier.

“Who the hell do you think you are, coming here ?” he breathes against my face, and the strong smell of alcohol makes me want to gag, but I can't even take in a breath.

“Your father owes me so much. And how could I miss this perfect opportunity to take it?”

I kick again, with no effect. I’m started to feel dizzy, and my head is throbbing with pain.

Rico pulls me away from the wall and slams me back into it, a small cry escaping my lips as I manage to take one breath.

“Shut up,” he snarls.

I grab at his hands, trying to pull them away from my throat, but he is far stronger than I am and far bigger. I am not in control in this situation, and when that reality sets in, so does the fear.

“I think you are coming with me.” He glances over his shoulder and sees that no one is paying any attention to us. He looks satisfied. “I’m taking you. Right now. This is too perfect an opportunity.”

He maneuvers me in front of his body with his hand clasped over my mouth, so I can’t call for help and starts pushing me into the house, towards the front door. He’s really going to try and kidnap me. There are so many people here, but he’s going to try.

I lash out, swinging my arms, and he shakes me, then slaps me so hard I see stars.

“I’ll lock you in the basement, chain you to the wall, starve you—that’s what your father likes to do, isn’t it? That’s how he deals with his enemies. So I’ll take his precious little girl and do exactly the same thing to her.” His mouth is right against my ear, and his words send an icy cold shiver right through my body, locking fear into my bones.

An image flashes through my memory of being chained up in a basement, freezing cold, crying, begging for help, but my words drifting in empty air with no one to hear the—

The image freezes me. I feel the shock set in, and suddenly I can’t move.

Rico shakes me again and tells me to walk, but his words are jumbled in my head, and I don’t react. I don’t do anything.

“What the fuck is going on?” A familiar voice.

“I found this rat at the party. I was just taking it out,“ Rico snaps in response.

The world spinning around me as I try and hold on to reality.

“Get your hands off her, Rico. Let her go right now.” It’s Leon. It’s Leon’s voice. It pulls me back into my mind and away from that memory. I glance towards him with wide terrified eyes, pleading him to help me ,but he is looking at Rico, not me.

“I won’t. She snuck in here, like a spy, and I’m taking her with me. I’m locking her up in my basement, where she can fucking rot and die, for all I care.”

Leon’s eyes flash with anger and Rico seems to hesitate. His grip on me relaxes for the smallest moment.