Page 39 of Merciless Union
“You don’t get to have my body anymore,” Arina calls out as I’m walking through the doorway. “You don’t get to treat me like this.”
“I can treat anyone however I want,” I call back. “That’s something you need to learn fast, Arina. For your own good, at least.”
I storm out of the penthouse, needing space.
Fucking marriage.
Who knew it would be this difficult?
CHAPTER10
Arina
Maxim is gone for the rest of the night. When I wake up the next morning, he’s still nowhere to be found. And frankly, I don’t miss him. If he refuses to treat me right, I don’t want anything to do with him.
I’m standing in front of the bathroom mirror, brushing my teeth, when an idea forms in my mind.
Maxim doesn’t get to control me. I don’t care if he’s the head of the Bratva. He doesn’t scare me. I know he won’t truly hurt me. It wouldn’t be a good look if his new wife went mysteriously missing.
All I need to handle is his coldness, which is easier if he’s not around.
I finish getting ready for the day, my idea filling me with nerves and excitement.
I exit the penthouse and see a guard is stationed in the hallway. Maxim isn’t one to take any chances.
“I need you to take me to my father’s house,” I say. He’s younger than Maxim but almost as big. I need him to work with me. I’ll never be able to sneak past him otherwise.
He sighs, standing up straighter. “Mrs. Petrov, your husband gave me orders this morning not to let you leave the house. You’re staying put.”
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
“Maybe call your husband and get his permission,” he responds in a bored tone, shrugging. “It’s not my business. I just do my job.”
“And your job is to keep me prisoner?”
He shrugs again. “Pretty much.”
Well, there goes that idea.
My shoulders slump as I go back into the penthouse. I need to find another way to escape. Unfortunately, I’m on the top floor of a thirty-foot building. There’s no other form of escape.
I need to convince that bored guard to let me go. I refuse to call Maxim and get his permission. He doesn’t get to boss me around anymore.
I walk back out to the guard. “Ok. I know it’s your job to keep me safe. Maxim would have your head if something happened to me, correct?”
He nods, slowly chewing on gum. I guess standing in front of a door all day would be pretty boring.
“I’m going to leave, whether you try to stop me or not. Either way, you can come with me, make sure I’m safe. Just call my husband and tell him I’m going to my parents’ house. Surely, I’m allowed to do that?”
He looks me over before sighing and grabbing his phone. “Hi, Mr. Petrov,” he says once Maxim answers. “Your wife wants to go to her parents’ house for the day.” I can hear Maxim’s voice on the other line. “Ok, sir. I’ll let her know.” He hangs up the phone. “He says you’re to stay put. No leaving for anything.”
My mind scrambles. “But, but … My mother is sick. My father called me and told me she’s on her death bed right now. If I don’t get over there, I won’t be there to say goodbye to my own mother. She willdie, thinking I abandoned her.” I try to put as much desperation as I can into my voice.
The guard shifts, looking around the hallway.
“Please, just call my husband again and inform him.”
He grumbles as he lifts his phone back up and dialsMaxim’s number. “Sorry to bother you again, sir, but your wife is telling me that her mother is very sick, and she needs to see her right away.” He pauses, listening to Maxim’s reply. “All I know is she told me her mother might die soon.” Another pause. “Ok. I’ll take her.” He hangs up. “He said you can go, but I’m coming with you.”
