Page 5

My head of security, Ivan, moves to the back of the car and pulls the door open. He reaches inside to drag Sasha’s limp body out of the vehicle.

I head over to the trunk to get my things out. He’ll take her directly to her room and lock her in there. When she wakes up, I’ll go and check on her and introduce her to her new home.

I grin at the thought.

I messaged Ivan as soon as I knew I was going to take her tonight. It wasn’t the original plan, but I already knew that it was the perfect opportunity. No bodyguards, all alone in the club—the little rich princess was asking for trouble.

I hear Ivan mumbling to himself and glance over at him. He has her hoisted over his shoulder. She is still out cold.

Where the hell did I leave my phone?

I press my hands against my pockets, but it’s not there. It must be in the front of the car. I climb back into the driver’s seat and scrounge around for it, finding it underneath the seat.

Suddenly, there is loud shouting and a huge commotion from some way off, closer to the house.

I sit up too fast and hit my head on the doorframe of the car. Fuck.

I hear Ivan shouting again, and when I jump out of the car to see what the hell is going on, I see her running.

She’s moving like a scared deer being chased by hunters. She is fucking fast.

Clearly, I didn’t give her enough of that blue shit.

Ivan is bolting after her, but he was never a good runner, so I overtake him quickly, chasing her along the border fence of my property. There is nowhere for her to go, so we just have to wait for her to get tired.

But then she jumps up against the fence and starts climbing like her life depends on it.

Shit.

I run harder. She’s fucking stupid if she thinks she can get over that barbed wire along the edge.

More than once, I see her wobble and almost fall, but by the time I reach her she is standing on the top of the pillar and looking as though she is thinking about jumping.

“Don’t be fucking stupid, Sasha,” I demand, starting to climb up as well.

That stupid fucking girl takes a step closer to the edge, and just as I reach the top, she loses her balance. She screams so loudly it pierces into my skull, and I reach out just in time to grab her arm and pull her back towards me, stopping her from being torn to shreds on the barbed wire.

My heart is hammering in my chest as I pull her into my arms. That was so fucking close. I can’t believe she would put herself in danger like that.

Relief floods my thoughts as I hold her shaking body against me. Thank fuck I got here in time.

I drag her back down the other side of the fence, and in all honestly, at this point, she looks like she is in shock, because she is hardly fighting me at all.

But when we hit the ground again and her bright green eyes turn to look up at me, that all changes.

I see hurt in her expression. Her eyes are glittering with the threat of tears. She bites down hard, swallowing them back. Then I see anger. Maybe betrayal. And she turns wild again.

Her arms are flailing, her legs are kicking out, and she is screaming loudly.

This is obviously what she did to Ivan. But I am not Ivan.

I grab her throat and pull her back up against my chest, making sure she is facing away from me so she can’t grab at me. I twist her arm against her chest and pin her body against mine.

She carries on trying to kick, so I lift her off the ground, and with ease, I carry her towards the house. She doesn’t stand a chance against me. I am twice her size, and she can fight all she wants, but I have waited too long to have her here under my control.

“Ivan, get your shit together,” I say as I walk past him and see him nursing his bleeding arm.

He looks dejected and nods tightly. “Yes, sir.”

I carry Sasha up the stairs, and she pointlessly continues to try and squirm from my grip.

I walk into the room I’ve had prepared for her and throw her onto the bed.

She gasps as she lands on the soft mattress and then spins around to face me.

Her eyes are wild and scared as she watches me.

“Are you going to torture him?” she stammers with tears in her eyes.

“What?” What the fuck? Who?

“The man I bit. The man who I got away from. Are you going to torture him because he let me go?” Her voice is shaking.

“Torture him? What are you—whatever,” I snap, knowing she is just trying to distract me. Why the fuck would I torture Ivan? Her question doesn’t even make sense.

I keep my eye on her as I walk towards the door and then slam it shut behind me, leaving her alone, securely locked up in her room. I finally have her.

Years of planning and plotting and chasing this revenge dream. I finally have her, even sooner than I thought I would.

A smirk curves across my lips as I walk away.

I want to enjoy this moment to the fullest.

I walk heavily down the stairs, still smiling.

Ivan is standing in the entrance hall, grumbling over his injured arm.

I chuckle loudly.

“She got you pretty good, by the looks of it.”

“I can’t believe she bit me. Who the fuck bites people?”

He turns his arm towards me to show the very distinct and deep pattern of her teeth in his skin.

I laugh again. “Damn. That looks painful.”

“It is painful.”

“You know where the first aid kit is. Go disinfect it and wrap it up and take some painkillers or something. Then come back and find me. We have some work to do.”

Ivan mutters to himself as he wanders off in search of pain relief.

I head over to the bar in the living room to pour myself a vodka. A little celebration before the fun begins. I pour one for Ivan as well and place it on the living room coffee table while I sip mine and wait for him.

It doesn’t take long before he comes into the living room with his arm wrapped up in a clean white bandage.

“I think I should go for a rabies shot,” he grumbles, as I nod towards his glass.

“Drink that. You’ll be fine.”

Ivan slumps into the chair next to me. “So what do you have planned?” he asks, downing the vodka.

“Get your phone out. I am going to dictate a message. Take note of it, then I want you to take it to the security guys and have them send it, encrypted, to that asshole Danil.”

“You are messaging him already?” Ivan asks, confused.

“Just a little taunt. I don’t want him to know it’s me yet. For now I just want the satisfaction of having him under duress—knowing his daughter has been taken, and not knowing who it is that has her.”

“Mm. That’s dark. I like it. Alright. I’m ready. What do you want to say?”

I run through a message with some input from Ivan, and when we are happy with the details, he has one more vodka before disappearing to take the message through to the security room at the back of my property.

I lean back with a smile on my face, draping my arms over the back of the sofa.

“Sasha, you and I are going to have an incredible time,” I laugh, talking to myself. “Well, at least I know I am.”

Then I pull out my phone and message my entire security team to tell them it’s time to start planning. Things have been moved up, and I want to get the ball rolling on the rest of my plan.

Glancing at my watch, I notice that it’s almost three. I push up off the sofa and walk upstairs, passing Sasha’s room on the way to my own. I pause outside the door, listening for any sounds that might come from inside. I don’t hear anything. I almost want to open the door and check on her, but I decide against it. I know she’s in there, and silence is good because it means she isn’t up to anything.

Besides, I had that room so heavily secured before I even moved in that I have no doubt she will never be able to escape.

I climb into the shower and let the hot water soak over my body while I think about how quickly things escalated this evening.

When I climb into bed later on, I am fidgety. I think I’m just over-stimulated by everything that has happened tonight—the excitement of finally getting my hands on her, and how easy it all was.

But the one thing that seems to be playing on my mind the most is the kiss we shared in that red passageway.

I guess it’s been ages since I kissed a girl, especially one that beautiful.

I know what I am really happy about is the fact that this is all coming together now.

At least I fall asleep quickly, because I know I need to rest.

I have a lot to plan over the next two days.