Page 68 of Bratva Brother’s Bride

I stare at him, my mind reeling. God, no. “So you came here to ask me to marry Anton?”

He has the decency to look away, but only for a moment. When he looks back, his expression is hard again.

“I did what I had to do, and now you need to do the same. Konstantin is not a man who takes no for an answer. If I don’t pay him, he’ll⁠—”

The sound of the door opening cuts him off.

We both turn to see Konstantin Volkonsky stepping into the penthouse, flanked by two men in dark suits. He looks exactly as I remember him: tall, silver-haired, with eyes like chips of ice.

“Viktor,” he says, his voice smooth and cold. “I see you found her.”

My father pales. “Konstantin.”

Konstantin’s gaze shifts to me, and I feel the weight of it like a physical blow. “Vera. You look well.”

My feet won’t move.

“It’s time,” Konstantin says. “We have a wedding to attend.”

My mind grinds to a halt. “What?”

“Anton is waiting, and the arrangements have been made.” He gestures to his men. “Come with me quietly, and no one gets hurt.”

I can’t see the guards from here, but cold dread grips me. Why haven’t they stopped Konstantin yet?

I back away until my back hits the wall. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“Yes, you are.” Konstantin’s voice is calm. “One way or another, you’ll marry Anton tonight. The only question is how much pain we inflict along the way.”

My father is standing frozen by the window, his face ashen. He looks from me to Konstantin, and I can see the moment he makes his decision.

“Vera, just go with them,” he says. “It’s for the best.”

The betrayal hits me like a punch to the gut. “You’re kidding me. You’re actually telling me to go with them?”

Before he can answer, I turn and run.

I make it halfway to the front door before Konstantin’s hand closes around my arm, his grip like iron.

“Let me go!” I struggle against him, but he’s too strong. “I won’t do this. I won’t marry Anton!”

“You will.” He starts dragging me toward the door, his men flanking us on either side. “You have no choice. You and I are going to St. Nicholas. I hear it’s a beautiful venue for a wedding.”

I fight him every step of the way, kicking and screaming and clawing at his hand. It’s no use. He’s too strong.

Then something hits the back of my head, and the world goes black.

I wake up in my old bedroom.

When I claw myself back to consciousness, I’m back at the Volkonsky mansion, in the room I shared with Dmitri for three years.

My head is pounding, and there’s a lump on the back of my skull that throbs with every heartbeat. I reach up to touch it and wince at the pain.

The last thing I remember is Konstantin’s hand on my arm, and then darkness. He must have knocked me out and brought me here.

I sit up slowly, my body aching in places I didn’t know could ache. The room is exactly as I left it. It’s like I never left.

The door is locked. I try it anyway, turning the handle and pushing, but it doesn’t budge. I’m trapped.