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“A woman who has Kolya Uvarov’s ear,” I finish over him with a glower. “If you want his attention, then you need mine first.”
It has to be the dress giving me all this confidence, because I certainly don’t know where else it might be coming from. As we swing around the dance floor, I notice Geneva on the left side of the ballroom. She’s got her eyes on me, her expression partially curious, but mostly just irritated.
Concentrate on the asshole, June.
“You drive a hard bargain,” he says, scowling at me. “It’s not the only thing you’re making hard right now.”
He shoves his groin against me, and I gasp with disgust. But I refuse to walk away now, not when I can be of help to Kolya. So I stand my ground and stare at the asshole, refusing to be intimidated.
“Tell me what you need to right this second, or I’m walking away.”
I’m talking bolder than I feel. I figure that if he uses force, I can scream, cause a scene. I’m not just gonna offer him the upper hand on a silver platter.
His upper lip curls in distaste. “So be it. Some of Ravil’s men aren’t happy under his leadership. Many still see Kolya as the rightful don of the Uvarov Bratva. He’s made poor choices—one in particular—but if he’s willing to reverse that decision now, then he’s looking at swelling his ranks until he outnumbers Ravil ten to one.”
I feel my breath hitch. “Which decision is that?”
“You don’t know?” he asks searchingly.
I keep my expression apathetic. “You’re humoring me, remember?”
Iakov gnashes his teeth. “The red trade. Get your man to lift his ban on trafficking prostitutes, and it’s a done deal.”
I take him by surprise by slamming my foot down on his fancy Italian loafers. He releases me with a sharp intake of breath and I lunge backward, glaring at him with disgust.
“Kolya will never agree to that. Nor would I want him to.”
The asshole’s eyes narrow. “Then you’d both be making a huge mistake.”
“The only mistake I made tonight was letting you touch me. I’ll have to shower twice when I get home. Don’t you ever speak to me again.”
I’ve already got my back to him and I’m storming away when he grabs me again and twists me back around. “Don’t you dare walk away from me, you little fucking slut.”
Fears starts edging out my anger. “You… you can’t… if Kolya sees the way you’re—”
“He won’t do a fucking thing about it,” he spits in my face. “As I said, hurting me will be the same as calling for war. I’m the key to everything; you’re just some whore Kolya knocked up by accident. I’m—”
I cut him off by spitting in his face. The gob of saliva hits him right in the eye, temporarily blinding him. I turn and start to run, but with my bad knee and injured ankle, I stumble the first few steps.
It’s all the time he needs to recover and snare me by the bun on my head.
“You fucking bitch!” he screams, causing several of the people around us to gasp and clear the area. “Do you know who I am?! I will teach you a lesson in respect.”
He pushes me down so hard that my legs cave and my knees hit the ground. The beads of the dress dig into my flesh like a million tiny needles. He’s still got me by the hair, but with his free hand, he starts to undo the buckle of his belt.
Oh God… Oh God… Oh God…
Tears erupt in the corners of my eyes. I can feel everyone in the ballroom watching this play out, but no one steps in. No one speaks up.
I cringe back at the sound of Iakov’s buckle coming loose. His face hangs over me, a living nightmare. And then…
I smell vanilla.
I watch as the asshole’s expression goes from fury to shock. The knife glints at his throat for half a second before I watch it slice from left to right. Blood sprays out crudely and I feel the heat, the wetness splash on my face.
The next thing I know, I’m being lifted into the air. The air around me ripples with screams. Maybe they’re mine, maybe they’re not—I can’t be sure.
“Grab the sister,” I hear a familiar voice command. “Quickly.”
