Page 18 of Nikolai Petrov

I use his momentum and pull him into the empty room, dropping him onto the matted carpet.

His eyes cloud and unfocus when I tear my knife from his neck.

“You took what is mine, asshole.” Sourness fills my mouth at his flaccid features and I spit the dank flavor onto his glazed stare.

It gathers on one milky orb to rest in a cooling puddle against his nose.

Peering closely, I don’t recognize him. It either means Ivanov is hiding his men from me, or he works for someone else. Tosya most likely. If it was Ivanov, Natalia would already be at his estate.

The acrid smell of urine and shit begin to emanate from him.

Me: Wayward hotel. Room 179

I send the quick text to Chekov and wipe my other hand on a dry portion of the jacket. Digging a rag and a length of rope from my bag, I stuff them into my pocket and stand.

Quietly, I pull the door closed behind me and move to the next room down the hall.

It’s empty too.

I’m glad to see this hellhole isn’t very busy tonight. Every room at this end is at my disposal.

When I press my ear against the door I know Natalia is in, I hear muffled sounds and a man’s voice.

And her whimper.

Anger boils in my chest as I silently open the door.

Three slow steps inside, there’s a man in a white tank top facing away from me. His blonde head is facing down as he leans over something in front of him with his pants sagging to his knees.

“I told you to suck on it. Just because you have to stay a virgin, doesn’t mean your mouth can’t be a whore.” His arm jerks and I see his hand knotted in a swath of long red hair.

“Please don’t do this!” The fear I can hear in her voice raises my fury to where the edges of my vision darken and all I can see is him.

He bends over again, his lean body making the vertebrae of his back show beneath the snug fabric of his shirt.

I line up the tip of my blade with the gap between the knots on his spine and slam it deep with a solid hit of my fist.

He screams and drops as his legs give out beneath him. I manage to grab the back of his shirt and keep him from falling onto Natalia.

Her large, teary green eyes look up at me over his writhing body. “Nikolai?” She struggles to try and stand, but her hands are bound behind her.

“Shh, baby. I’m here.” My hands seek the warmth of her and wrap around her waist. I pick her up easily and move her from the thrashing man on the floor between us.

“I’m, I’m gonna kill you!” the blonde squeaks out as his useless legs anchor him by the bed. Blood runs in small rivulets down his back, staining the white shirt and soaking into the floor.

“Natalia. Are you okay?” Cutting the zip ties that held her wrists, I find myself running my hands over her, both checking for wounds and to sate the driving need I’ve been fighting for weeks to touch her.

She flings her arms around my neck and squeezes her body tightly against me. Sobbing into my neck, I can feel her lips pressing hotly against the hollow of my throat.

“I was so scared!” She pulls her face back just enough to meet my mouth with hers.

Ignoring the groans of the man behind me, I thread my fingers into her hair and pull her against me so I can possess her, ravage her soft lips and assault her tongue with my own.

Breathless, I pull away. “I need to find out where they came from. Did they tell you anything?”

“No, they just kept talking about how I’m supposed to be a virgin, but they were keeping me until payment came through.” Her arms wrap around my waist and she snugs herself into me.

My cock hardens in my pants and presses against her belly. “You need to wait across the hall. Room one seventy-seven.” I pull back and cup her cheek with my bloody hand. “Do not go into room one seventy-nine, okay?”

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