Page 61 of Forcibly Sold to the Bratva
“That’s perfect, Yuri.” I pat him on the shoulder.
But just then, a sharp crack echoes through the warehouse. For a split second, I think it’s a crate falling.
But then, I hear gunfire. I see two of our men go down right before me, blood seeping onto the floor.
“GET DOWN!” I roar, tackling the manager to the ground as gunfire erupts around us.
“Boss, what should we do?” one of the employees yells from behind a crate.
“PREPARE YOUR WEAPONS! We’re being attacked!” I scream over the gunfire and reach for the phone in my pocket to text Agafon to send back-up.
Chapter 18 - Arina
I see the mansion looming up ahead, and immediately, the happiness I feel after hanging out with Tatiana and Katya begins to fade around the edges. Seeing the house reminds me of Ilariy and how I’ve been avoiding him for three days straight.
I know it’s cruel how I’m treating him by not giving him a conversation. I know, somewhere in my heart, that I’m being unfair.
But the truth is that I’m a raging mess nowadays. After everything that happened with my brothers, I don’t know how to channel my hurt. I feel guilty, knowing I’m taking it out on Ilariy, understanding, somewhere in my heart, that he couldn’t have meant those words he said to my brother.
But the fact that he even cared to say them hurts.
The moment we drive up to the house door, I realize something is wrong. I step out of the car to see guards rush past me. The drivers are checking weapons, and there’s a whole convoy being prepared to drive off.
My stomach drops as I grab the arm of a passing security man. “What’s happening? What’s wrong?”
The man looks startled by my touch. “Mrs. Letvin, please go inside. Everything’s under control.”
I tighten my grip when he tries to pull away. “Tell me what’s happening,” I snap, imagining scenarios so dark that my heart begins to race.
He hesitates, but answers. “There’s been an attack at Mr. Letvin’s warehouse. We’re sending reinforcements.”
My blood turns to ice. “An attack? Where is Ilariy?”
He pales. “Boss is at the warehouse, Ma’am.”
“What?” I screech, panic making my knees weak. He’s at the warehouse under attack, and if reinforcements are being sent, things must be bad out there. He might be hurt… or worse.
“I’m coming with you,” I say, already walking toward the nearest SUV.
“Ma’am, that’s not possible. Boss would never—”
“He isn’t here to object,” I cut him off, turning to face him. “I’m going. You can either help me, or I’ll follow on my own.”
The guard seems torn between his loyalty to Ilariy and the fear of losing track of me. Finally, he sighs. “You’ll stay in the car. No matter what we find, you don’t get out unless we clear it. Understood?”
I nod quickly. “Just hurry.”
***
The ride feels endless. I sit in the back of the SUV. The guards are in the other seats, and no one talks. Everyone is tense, and every time I try to call Ilariy, he doesn’t answer. My mind races with horrible possibilities.
What if this is the last time? What if my last memory of him is the hurt in his eyes when I refused to let him explain?
I think about his voicemails. Each one repeats the same plea: “Arina, please. What you heard... it isn’t what you think. I need to explain. Please call me back.”
I never did. Pride and hurt kept me away, and now that stupid pride might cause me to never see his face again.
“We’re five minutes out,” the driver announces, and I lean forward to see through the windshield, and my heart seizes. There’s a fire of some sort out in the distance.
