Page 64 of Ruthless Vow
I look at his hand and feel the nausea twist again, hard enough that my mouth floods with saliva. I swallow it down without blinking, without flinching. I refuse to get sick in front of him. I refuse to give him that kind of control over my body too.
Mikhail’s voice is low, meant only for me. “You look beautiful.”
I hold his gaze. “You look pleased with yourself.”
His smile stays polite. “I got you down the aisle, didn’t I?”
“Not without a gun to my head,” I answer.
The guards behind me shift slightly. They don’t like that tone. Mikhail’s smile tightens a fraction. “Take my hand, Anya.”
My throat tightens. My heart races. All the fears and anxieties I’ve been holding onto come to a head right here. This is the moment. This is the line.
If I take his hand, I’m agreeing to live in a cage with silk sheets, constantly in fear for my life. I’ll have to raise my baby in a prison, never knowing if Mikhail will choose to use its life against me.
If I refuse, people will die. Viktor will die. I know that. He has already proven to me that he’s capable of senseless murder.
My breath comes shallow. It’s part pain and part control. I keep my face smooth and let my eyes flick once across the room.
There are so many men here with weapons hidden under jackets. There are so many eyes watching. There are so manyexits that I can’t reach. The guards have me positioned perfectly so that if I run, they can grab me fast without making it look messy.
Mikhail’s hand remains extended, unwavering. He’s acting patient, but it’s just another layer of his control.
A ring box sits on the table nearby, velvet and expensive. The sight of it makes something hard settle in my stomach. This isn’t the man I should be marrying. My mind drifts, uninvited, to Viktor.
He isn’t some romantic fantasy. He isn’t a white knight who’s coming to save me. He is, however, the only man who’s treated me like a person. He allowed me to be myself without compromise. He accepted who I am, with all my faults and failures, and didn’t ask me to be anything else. He didn’t try to control me. He didn’t try to hurt me. I may have gave him hell but in the end, he was just trying to protect me.
He’s the only man I’ve ever truly trusted. I realize that with sharp irony as I turn back and see my father sitting there, a grim look on his face. He’s not happy, exactly, but he’s relieved to have this business settled. That’s all I really am to him. Just business to settle. This marriage strengthens his operations, even as it strips me of my free will.
I lift my chin slightly, the smallest motion that still feels like defiance. The room is so quiet I can hear the faint hum of electricity somewhere in the building. I can hear someone’s breath catch. I can hear the rustle of fabric as a woman shifts in her chair.
Mikhail’s hand remains out. My hands remain at my sides. The next choice I make will determine everything. It will decidewhether I keep breathing, whether Viktor keeps breathing, whether my child gets a chance to exist outside of Mikhail’s reach.
I steady myself the only way I know how. I pick a point in the distance, focus on it, and build the rest of my control around that fixed spot. I take a shallow breath and keep my voice level.
“I’m not yours,” I say quietly, knowing the cameras will still pick it up if they’re close enough.
Mikhail’s smile stays in place, but the skin around his eyes tightens.
“You will be,” he threatens. “Don’t be stupid, Anya.”
I don’t answer him. I don’t give him the satisfaction of an argument in front of an audience. My silence is not surrender. It’s restraint. Because I know that in this moment, I have to make a decision. One that will either free me or end my life.
27
VIKTOR
“You sure this is going to work?” Sergei murmurs to me. “What’s stopping this kid from double-crossing us?”
“Fear of his life, I suspect,” I say back. “He knows he’s dead if doesn’t follow through.”
“He knows he’s dead either way,” Sergei reminds me. “Just stay sharp. I’m not pulling you out of there in a body bag.”
I nod as we look at the building. It’s a large warehouse near the water. It’s an odd place for a wedding, but I’m sure Mikhail is having it here on purpose. It’s Grinkov territory. He thinks that’ll make him safer. He thinks I wouldn’t dare have the audacity to attack. His arrogance makes him sloppy.
Sergei’s jaw tightens. He checks his weapon again, then checks mine like he doesn’t trust me to have done it myself. He’s not stupid. He knows my head is not in a normal place. He knows the only reason I’m still breathing evenly is because I’m forcing it.
The vehicles roll in tight formation. Two cars peel off early and take the long route around to the back. Misha’s team is alreadyin place near the power grid. Another team is posted on the side street with eyes on the side entrance. There are too many men in play to try for stealth. Our only move is to overwhelm Grinkov’s men and do it quickly.
