Page 95 of Savage Pakhan

Nikolai slams on the brakes and jerks the wheel to the side of the road. Alek unbuckles his seatbelt before the car has time to come to a full stop, opens his door, and drags me out into the cool night.

I continue to gag, Ivan’s face bunched in anger when he sees us walk through the door. My mind races with the possibilities. Will he raise his hand at me? Pull a gun? Threaten me? Will Alek allow it?

Of course he wouldn’t. Don’t think like that. He’d never allow Ivan to hurt you.

Sweat breaks out over my skin. My mouth fills with saliva and what I ate for dinner spews from me.

Alek holds my hair and rubs my back in gentle circles. Tears burn my eyes keeping what I know a secret from him. Am I sick because I’m pregnant? Or am I terrified to see Ivan again after all this time?

How am I on my way back to him after risking my life to get away?

And why do I continue to break a promise to Alek? Why am I so afraid of telling him the truth?

“I know, Mia. I know. It’s been stressful. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Why do we have to go back?” I sound like I’m crying but my throat is strangled by the force and burn of bile.

I spit onto the ground and grip the door for balance.

“We can’t be on the run forever. The sooner we show Ivan our cards, the sooner we can live our lives the way we want. There’s also the issue with your family and the contract. It’s best to fight it head on now that we are married and found that loophole. There is nothing they can do about it.”

“What if they try? What if they don’t allow it?”

“Allow?” He growls, then dies on a villainous laugh. “I don’t care what they allow, Mia. If they don’t like it, they can either meet bullets or leave.” All while he’s plotting their demise, he continues to rub circles on my back, comforting me.

I’m not the girl who becomes strong overnight. I’m not the girl who won’t be afraid of the person she was trained to be afraid from.

“I’m scared,” I admit, pressing my forehead against the window since it’s cool and my skin is hot.

“No need to be scared, Mia,” Nikolai says, lifting his gun in the air that has a long silencer attached. “I will kill him, Da? Worries will be over.”

I’m not sure why but he makes me laugh. Nikolai is so serious and that’s what makes him funny. Most people would think he is kidding, but he isn’t. He’s serious. If Alek gave him the ‘okay’ to shoot everyone who betrayed him, Nikolai wouldn’t wait another day.

He’ll kill them all and set the house on fire so he wouldn’t have to bury any bodies.

“Mia, My Love, look at me,” Alek begs, pressing his fingers against my cheek to turn my head.

I wipe my tears on my shirt and do my best to take a few deep breaths.

“I won’t allow you to live looking over your shoulder every day. That isn’t a way to live. You deserve to breathe without stress. You deserve peace. How much longer are you going to allow him to have that control over you? If he wants answers, we are going to give him those answers. The only way to fix the problem is to become the solution.” He plucks a handkerchief out of his pocket, wiping my mouth free with a caring grin.

He’s right.

We are the solution to Ivan’s madness, but it doesn’t mean we’ll survive the attempt.

It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell Alek now that I’m pregnant. We can’t risk our lives.

Then, it hits me.

We will always be risking our lives if we don’t take Ivan head on. Alek is right. Running serves no purpose.

He hands me an opened water bottle and I take a swig, swish it out my mouth, and spit it to the ground.

“Come on. Come take a nap until we get there. We are only two hours away.” Alek helps me into the luxury SUV again, slides in beside me, and shuts the door.

He wraps his arm around my shoulder, tugging me to his side. I lean my head against his chest just as the car starts moving again. I close my eyes, not wanting to see the path that might lead to our deaths. I want to stay right here, nestled next to my husband, and dreaming of the future we deserve to have together.

It feels like I closed my eyes for one minute before Alek’s voice wakes me up.