Page 122 of Silent Heart

Our family was gathering back at the farm. The first football game started at eleven thirty, which meant beers were alreadybeing cracked open and appetizers being passed around. No one would dare fill up too much until Grandma’s beautiful feast.

It should have been me helping her prepare. I woke up early. I drove up here, fighting back exhaustion and guzzling the bitingly strong coffee the signora made for my travel mug. I was my granny’s helper. Always. Instead, Laney, Kayla, and Abigail were already in the kitchen, ready to serve a big breakfast to the menfolk come to do the morning chores.

The women were wearingmyaprons.

Worst of all, I’d wanted this time to tell my grandparents what a wonderful man Kolya was. I needed to explain how well things were going, smooth the way so that when Kolya did speak to my grandpa, it wasn’t sudden.

There wasn’t a chance to pull either my grandma or grandpa aside. Instead, I had to suffer through the subtle jabs and forced niceties. My cousins proved they didn’t deserve to know about Kolya.

They will try to ruin it for me.

“I’m glad you’re happy to see me, girl.” I patted Lilac’s silk neck. She tossed her head in agreement and lifted her feet a little higher, as if dancing under my praise. “Otherwise it wouldn’t be worth coming back up here.”

That wasn’t quite true. If it had been just my grandparents and me this morning, the day would have been perfect. I was just being a grinch about everyone else invading my sanctum.

Lost in the bleak wonderment if this was what the next three years would be like, I zoned out of the world around me. I tried to tell myself Thanksgiving break hadn’t been so bad, but then again, I’d spent most of it with the Vlasovs. Maybe that was part of the resentment.

Shit.Turning in my saddle, I looked at the path behind me. I should go back, force myself to stick out their chilly greeting, and make them talk to me like one of the family.

“I shouldn’t have let the damn aprons bother me so badly,” I muttered.

I hadn’t been the most pleasant person either. Just because I thought their uninspired lives were silly didn’t mean I shouldn’t take an interest.

“I can do better.” Pulling gently on the reins, I clicked my tongue and attempted to turn Lilac.

The mare tugged her head away, trying to continue down the path.

I frowned. This beauty didn’t have an obstinate bone in her body.Ookaay?I tried once more, but a desperate whinny from the horse sent shivers of dread over my body.

In a rush of black wings, a murder took off to the sky. The chorus of crows joining their voices together created one hell of a warning. I reached for the six-shooter on my hip, gaze snapping around the woods for a threat.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” a cold voice drawled.

Through the trees, various forms advanced. Deadly yet sleek military weapons pointed at me.

“Empty the pistol,” the voice commanded. “Slowly. No funny business.”

I spotted him. Adler wore a suit, just like he had the day he threatened me on campus.

“I’m not going to ask again, Miss Kellnhofer.”

Knowing that I was outnumbered and that they would hit Lilac if they shot at me, I dropped the pistol onto the ground.

Adler’s lips thinned. “You can barely follow instructions. That does not bode well for your future.”

It made sense that he was the leader of the sex traffickers. The lack of empathy in his eyes would make peddling the unwilling flesh of young victims all the easier.

“Dismount, and come walk with us,” the vile excuse for a man instructed.

I slid off Lilac’s side, patting her and cooing to keep her at ease. She might not understand the details of what was going on, but she knew it was bad. The mare shifted back and forth, looking around with a darting gaze at the approaching forms.

Praying to high heaven that they didn’t shoot my horse, I darted forward. My palm connected with Lilac’s backside in a violent smack. I inwardly apologized to her for the hard slap, but it had the desired effect.

The mare bolted.

Someone shoved me from behind. I stumbled, skidding into the dead leaves which would become dirt by next summer. Gunshots cracked through the air. A scream formed in my lungs. I struggled to rise, sure I would see my beloved horse collapse, but a boot to the forehead sent the world black.

Chapter 51 – Kolya

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