Page 109 of Thorns of Silence

She shrugged. “I’m sure. Don’t worry, those men will be dead soon if they aren’t already.”

I winced at how casually she made the comment. Would they kill me with such ease too? Without an ounce of doubt, I knew that they would.

Once the driver parked the car, Tatiana and I slid out. It was unheard of for the Nikolaevs to let a stranger into their home, but Tatiana assured them of my family’s position in the underworld and vouched for me.

Hesitation danced through me. I prayed her husband wasn’t here, but I worried it’d look suspicious if I asked her the question. Instead, I smiled as if everything was peachy while internally shaking with worry.

A light tap on my shoulder had me turning around and meeting Branka’s gaze. “Are you feeling okay?” she signed.

“Never better,”I signed, lying through my teeth.

The sun was still high up in the sky. A mild breeze swept down the side of the estate, reaching us where we stood across from the lot housing rows of luxury cars, from Aston Martins to Mercedes Benzes, a Bugatti along the far end, and… a bright red Jeep.

“It’s Isabella’s. My sister-in-law,” Branka explained, catching me staring. “We stay here when we visit from Russia. It’s nice having a full house.”

Full house.

Living with my girlfriends felt that way. Lively. Happy. Sometimes full of drama. But I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I could understand her wanting to live in the midst of it.

“It helps Skye too,” she continued, and I watched her carefully, hungry to know everything about my daughter.“It means she’s surrounded by her cousins, aunts, and uncles.”

My heart squeezed under my chest at the prospect of seeing my daughter again. Did she remember me?

We made our way toward the back of the house where a large patio covered the area, facing the immaculate lawn that stretched as far as the eye could see. There were boys and girls running around, and my eyes followed them with a smile.

Until I spottedher. My baby girl was on the playground with a blond boy with those same pale blue eyes. He looked older than her by at least a few years, but it was hard to tell. It could very well be that he was just larger due to his genes.

The two were glaring at each other as if they were sworn enemies. Then the boy pulled on her pigtailhard, making her wince and cry out while he bolted away.

Branka rushed over to her, her scolding glare pinned on the boy who was grinning from a safe distance. A tear rolled down Skye’s cheek, soon followed by many others, making my feet move in her direction.

I joined them and lowered to my knees. “Did he hurt you?”

Skye’s blue eyes met mine and she shrugged. “He’s always pulling on my hair,” she complained. “He’s mean.”

She gave her head a shake, her dark curls escaping from the pigtails sticking to her tearstained cheeks.

“Boys are dumb,” Branka signed and mouthed, while I nodded my head in agreement. “Might as well learn that now.”

Skye studied us with wisdom far beyond her years before her attention darted behind Branka.

“Sasha too?” Skye questioned, seeing Sasha approaching behind us and making Branka wince before flashing her husband an innocent smile.

“I see we’re teaching my daughter to rule over the boys, huh?” Sasha’s smile looked like a shark’s grin to me, But the soft expression in his eyes countered it. “Best to just stay away from them. And if any of them give you a hard time—” He shot a glare at the boy, who I assumed was his nephew. “Daddy’s going to whoop their ass.”

Skye smiled through her tears and sadness tugged on my heartstrings. Could I take her away from this?

“Are you going to whoop Nikola’s ass?” Skye questioned while Branka attempted to stifle her smile. “I want you to.”

“Don’t say ass, Skye,” Branka scolded, then shot her husband a glare. “You too, Sasha.”

Sasha actually bowed and flashed her a big smile. “Your wish is my command.” Then he rose to his full, towering height. “Nikola, get yourbuttover here.” He winked at his wife.

I could feel everyone’s eyes on us while I watched the whole exchange with fascination. The boy sauntered over, his hands tucked in his pockets and his head hanging low.

“I’m going to whoop your ass.” I read Sasha’s lips as he winked at Skye again, signing “ass” and drawing a scolding look from Branka. “Unless you apologize to Skye and start treating her the way a girl should be treated. Gently and with respect.”

Skye and I snickered, and their eyes darted my way. “Sorry,” we signed at the same time, and Sasha’s gaze narrowed on me. Almost as if he was seeing something he didn’t like.