Page 42 of Ruthless Vow
He continues like he didn’t hear me.
“Mikhail is escalating. He believes I’m hiding you. People are dying because you’re missing, but we can still fix this.”
“People are dying because Mikhail is a monster,” I say.
“Do not talk to me like that,” he snaps, and there it is. The familiar edge. The expectation of obedience.
I keep my voice steady.
“I’m not a child. And I’m not an object. You can’t just trade me for protection or sell me off to the highest bidder.”
“Dochka.Listen to me.”
The pet name makes my stomach twist. It sounds like affection, but really, it’s ownership. It makes my skin crawl.
“I can fix this,” he continues. “You come home. You return to our house. You let me handle Mikhail.”
My throat tightens. My eyes sting again, and I hate myself for it.
“You don’t know what he’s like,” I say quietly.
He goes still on the other end.
“What did you say?”
“You don’t know what he’s like,” I repeat, and my voice stays calm because I cannot afford to be emotional with him. He uses emotions as leverage. “You weren’t there when he started controlling what I ate and what I wore. You didn’t see him when he started locking me in my room. You couldn’t stop him from hurting me.”
Silence stretches.
My father’s voice comes back sharper.
“We all have burdens to bear, Anya. Marrying Mikhail is the only way to keep our family safe.”
My throat tightens.
“No one can stop what’s coming,” I say hollowly. “Not even me. You made your bed when you chose to sell me off. It’s your turn to lay in it, Papa.”
“Anya,” my father says, and it sounds like warning now. “You do not understand what you are doing.”
“I understand perfectly,” I say. “Goodbye.”
I hang up the phone and throw it on the ground, stomping on it for good measure. It hadn’t occurred to me until just now that he’s probably put a tracker in it. I take it apart, but don’t find one, so I decide it’s probably okay. I take out the battery anyway and flush it down the toilet.
It’s strange to realize that I don’t feel safe around my own father. Maybe I never did, but I was too naïve to see the truth. I see it now, though. He was always afraid of Mikhail. Our marriage was always a bargaining chip to keephimsafe. He never cared about my safety or what was good for me.
That’s why we’re here now. That’s why this war is happening.
The strangest truth of all is realizing that the only place I feel safe is by Viktor’s side.
19
VIKTOR
Afew quiet days pass, but I can’t let down my guard. Ever since that wedding dress showed up, I feel on edge. When Mikhail started leaving bodies all over Brooklyn, they were a message to everyone. He left that crate on my doorstep. He knows I have her.
My only consolation is that he doesn’t know where. At least not yet. The crate showed up at the old safe house and Sergei arranged to have it brought here. He’s getting closer, though. It won’t be long until he finds us. Sergei is right, of course. We’re going to need an exit plan.
I’m in the control room watching the security feeds for any unauthorized movement when I hear clattering in the kitchen. I get up to check on the noise and find Anya standing at the stove, trying to make herself something to eat.
