Page 76 of The Chaos She Brings

A pack of period pads and clean underwear hit me square in the face.

“The fuck?”

Aristov stands in the doorway, watching me like I’m a particularly nasty stain on his shirt. “You said you were on your period.”

I blink. “I—Yeah.”

An oddly considerate gesture from my kidnapper.

A clean set of clothes follows, landing at my feet. Black trousers. Black top.

“Get changed,” he orders. “It’s time.”

“For what?”

He doesn’t answer. Just grunts and slams the door shut.

Okay then.

I peel off my bloodied underwear, swap them for the fresh pair, and pull on the clothes.

What the fuck do they expect me to do today?

The door reopens a few minutes later and Aristov motionsfor me to follow him. Not wanting to anger him I trail after him like a good girl, only tripping once as we ascend some stone steps.

Bright lights greet me at the top and I have to squint to adjust after spending my time in a dark cell. There are men everywhere and something about it makes me want to shrink back. But, instead, I keep my head held high as I follow behind Aristov through the crowd.

He doesn’t look at me once, he’s so sure that I’m following him. If it wasn’t for the twenty or so other Russian men glaring daggers at me, I’d say now was the best time to escape.

Aristov leads me into what looks like an office, the air thick with the scent of leather and cigar smoke. Behind the desk sits the man who cornered me outside the gym, his gaze locking onto mine with a steady, assessing intensity that makes my skin crawl.

“Tessa. Lovely of you to join us.” He gestures to the chair across from him.

I sit, crossing my arms. “Not like I had a choice.”

He grins, all sharp teeth and amusement. “I suppose not. But no matter. You’re free now.”

I raise an eyebrow in suspicion. “I’m free?”

He stands, rounding the desk and coming to stand directly in front of me. He’s tall—I have to crane my neck to meet his eyes.

“You won’t be kept in the cell any longer.”

“Oh, how chivalrous of you.” I roll my eyes. It just makes him grin harder.

“You know,” he says, reaching out to twirl a strand of my hair between his fingers. I try not to flinch. “I’ve been watching you. For months now. If I had known before that you would be such a spitfire, I wouldn’t have paid that boy to kill you.”

My heartbeat is thumping in my chest, but I keep my expression bored, neutral. “You ordered him to kill me?”

His hand moves to cup my cheek. My knee comes up, catching him in the balls.

He doubles over, groaning in pain. Aristov moves to grab me, but the man holds up his hand. He breathes deeply, until he gets control of the pain. Straightening, he comes to loom back over me.

“It wasn’t personal, my love. Your father killed my brother. Tat for tit, as you might say.”

I stifle a laugh at his error.

“But then you killed him. What was his name?” He clicks his fingers. “Jake.” The look he gives me is of genuine admiration. “That got my attention. Now… well now I no longer wish you dead.”