Page 9 of Sweet Deception (Savage Vow #2)

A long pause.

Then, without hesitation, he sank to one knee.

The breath rushed from my lungs.

Gleb reached out, placing a firm hand on his head, a silent, chilling gesture of acceptance.

Vincenzo had just pledged himself to the Krasnogorsk Bratva

I turned to Matteo, my heart breaking at the fury in his eyes.

Salvatore hadn’t moved, but his silence was deafening.

Gleb finally spoke. “Your cousin understands what it takes to survive. You should be grateful.”

Grateful.

I was going to be sick.

“You promised,” I whispered, voice shaking.

His gaze snapped to mine. “I promised you’d see them.” His lips curled into something cruel. “Not that you’d like what you saw.”

I wanted to scream. I wanted to fight. But I couldn’t.

Because this was exactly what he had intended.

To show me that even when he gave, he still took more.

A lesson. A warning.

And worst of all, proof that no matter how much I wanted to believe otherwise, the people I loved would break before he ever would.

I turned away from him, swallowing down the grief clawing at my throat.

Matteo was watching me, his eyes burning with the same unspoken words that had been on my tongue for months.

This is my fault.

I swore to protect them.

And I failed.

A hand touched my lower back, startling me.

Gleb.

He leaned in, his lips brushing my ear. “Let’s go.”

I hesitated, my feet refusing to move. But what choice did I have?

I turned away from the cell, away from Matteo’s fury and Salvatore’s silence.

As we walked down the dim corridor, my hands clenched into fists.

Gleb thought he had won.

That he had crushed me.

But he hadn’t.

He had only lit the fire.

Because if I had to burn this world down to save what was left of my family, I would.

“You’ve kept them there for three years,” I said, my voice low but shaking. “Why show them to me now?”

Gleb didn’t look back. “Because I wanted to see how much you’d beg.”

I clenched my fists, anger burning through me. Then, without another word, he led me inside the lounge.

He didn’t speak as he led me inside. The guards who had trailed us like phantoms since the prison cell now stood stationed by the door, silent sentinels to whatever was about to happen.

A small fireplace crackled in the corner of the lounge, casting flickering shadows against the dark-paneled walls.

The space was richly decorated, deep leather chairs, a decanter of dark amber liquid on a polished table but it felt suffocating.

Or maybe that was just the weight of Gleb’s fury pressing into me.

I turned to face him. “What was the point of that?” My voice was sharp, my body still vibrating with the shock of Vincenzo’s betrayal.

Gleb pulled off his gloves one by one, his movements precise, controlled. “You needed to see the truth.”

I took a step closer, the fury bubbling inside me making my limbs shake. “And what truth is that?”

“That loyalty is fragile.” He tossed his gloves onto the table and leaned back against the edge of it, watching me with the same cold amusement that always made me want to scream. “That your family will choose survival over you.”

My hands clenched at my sides. “You forced them into this!”

He arched his brow. “Did I?”

I hated how calm he was, how every word dripped with condescension.

I swallowed down the lump in my throat. “Matteo will never kneel to you.”

“Matteo is a fool.” His voice was quiet but sharp enough to cut. “And you’d do well to stop clinging to dead ideals. It only makes your suffering worse.”

My nails dug into my palms. “Why did you bring me there?”

Gleb sighed, as if I was exhausting him. “Because I wanted you to understand what happens when you play at defiance. It doesn’t break me, Anna. It only breaks the things you care about.”

A wave of nausea rolled through me.

I wanted to hit him. To claw at his face. To make him feel something, anything, other than that infuriating coldness.

Instead, I forced myself to meet his gaze. “And what do you care? You don’t need me. You have your control, your power.”

“I need an heir.” His voice was a whip-crack against my skin.

A sharp, painful silence followed.

His meaning settled between us like a heavy stone.

I had known this, of course. It had been the sole reason for this marriage, to give him a son, to seal the alliance.

But hearing him say it like that... so clinical, so detached... made my stomach turn.

I took a slow breath, trying to steady myself. “And if I don’t?”

Gleb’s jaw tensed.

“You will,” he said simply. “When I’m ready.”

The certainty in his voice sent a chill through me.

But I pushed forward, desperation clawing at my throat.

“My brothers,” I whispered.

His expression didn’t change.

“Please.” My voice cracked. “Let them go. Matteo, Salvatore, they aren’t threats to you anymore.”

Gleb exhaled slowly, rubbing his fingers together as if contemplating something tedious. “I don’t think you understand, printsessa. They are only alive because of you.”

A lump formed in my throat. “Then let them go.”

“No.”

The word struck like a slap.

My stomach twisted, but I forced myself to step closer, my pride shriveling with every inch. “I’ll...” My voice wavered. I swallowed hard. “I’ll do what you want.”

His head tilted slightly, his icy gaze dragging over my face. “You already will do what I want.”

My breath came out ragged. “Then tell me what I have to do to make you let them go.”

A trace of something unreadable flashed in his eyes, something I couldn’t name.

Then, in a slow, deliberate movement, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring.

It wasn’t delicate or ornate.

It was a heavy gold band, thick and unmistakably Russian stamped with the emblem of his family. A symbol of power. Of ownership.

I stared at it, my breath caught in my throat.

“Put it on,” he said.

I didn’t move.

His gaze darkened. “Now.”

A twisted sort of defiance surged inside me. “And if I don’t?”

His lips curled into something that wasn’t quite a smile.

Then, before I could react, he grabbed my left hand, pried my fingers apart, and forced the ring onto my finger.

The cold metal burned against my skin.

“There,” he murmured. “Now you officially belong to me.”

I yanked my hand back, my breath ragged, my pulse hammering in my ears.

“You think this means anything?” I hissed.

Gleb’s eyes gleamed. “It means everything.”

His words felt like chains locking around my throat.

I tried to tear the ring off, but he caught my wrist before I could. His grip wasn’t harsh, but it was unshakable.

A shudder ran through me.

Slowly, he let go of my wrist.

Without another word, he turned away, grabbed the decanter from the table, and poured himself a glass.

Then, in one smooth motion, he hurled the glass against the wall.

The shatter echoed through the room.

I flinched, my breath catching.

Gleb didn’t look at me.

“My driver will take you home. Go Anna,” he said quietly.

I swallowed hard. “What?”

“I have no interest in dealing with your dramatics tonight.”

My nails dug into my palms. “You...”

“Go.”

The command rang through the room, final and unwavering.

For a second, I considered pushing him further.

But there was something in his posture, something tight and coiled, as if he were on the edge of something dangerous.

So, without another word, I turned on my heel and left.

The last thing I heard before the doors closed behind me was the sound of glass crunching beneath his boot.