Page 10 of Captive Union
“Yes, yes,” he mocks. “No, stop this fighting. You’re coming with me.”
“Is he dead? Is Maxim dead?”
Erik whirls me around, his arms gripping my shoulders. “I wish I could say he is, but he’s not.” I slump in relief. “I need Maxim alive for my revenge. I want him to feel hurt in the way he made me hurt.”
“But then, how did you get away from him?”
Erik snorts. “You have that much confidence in your brother’s skills you don’t even think I could beat him in a fair fight?”
“This isn’t a fair fight,” I whisper.
“Well, your brothers never fought fair to begin with. Call it karma. I just knocked Maxim out. He’ll wake up to know his precious baby sister is gone, taken by his most hated enemy.”
“No.”
“Yes. Now, come along.” He grips my arm tightly as he pulls me out of the restroom. I glance back at the party, knowing the rest of my family is in there, and I’m moving farther and farther away from them.
Erik walks me out of the hotel. Given how late it is, hardly anyone else is out. It’s so easy for him to drag me into his car. I don’t even bother putting up a fight. What’s the point? He has a gun, and I have nothing. If I tried to run and managed to get away, he’d probably go back upstairs and kill my family. I can’t risk that.
So I keep my head ducked down as I’m pushed into the backseat of his car. Erik settles next to me and motions for his driver to take off.
“Unfortunately, you don’t get to see where we’re going,” he tells me as he reaches under the seat and pulls out a burlap sack. “I can’t have you someone spilling the beans to your brothers.”
“No,” I whimper as he places it over my head. My vision is a brown blur, with Erik's faint outline next to me.
“Just be a good girl,” he says, his words muffled through the cloth, “and this won’t be too bad for you. It’s not you that I want to hurt. You’re just a pawn in my game.”
I’m not sure if his words are meant to be comforting, but all I feel is an icy cold fear coursing through me. I don’t know where I’m going. I might never see my family again.
I remember feeling lonely surrounded by my family, but now, I understand what true loneliness feels like.
It’s horrendous.
And there’s nothing I can do to change what’s happening to me.
CHAPTER4
Erik
“Hurry up,” I snap at my driver, a younger guy named Dave, who joined my service low on cash and in need of an easy job. He jerks at my command and nods, picking up speed.
I look out the back window and curse. A car is following us with a face in the window I recognize—Alexei Petrov. I managed to knock Maxim out during our fight, but it appears the younger brother had enough wits about him to follow us. If Alexei is on our trail, then Maxim won’t be too far along, and I don’t know if I can take them both on at the same time.
“Lose that car,” I order Dave. He floors it, whizzing around other cars. The world outside becomes a blur.
A whimper beside me makes me look over. Kira, with a bag over her head, is sitting so still she could be mistaken for a mannequin. The only sound she’s making is a soft whimper. A little church-mouse she is. Instead of screaming as most people would, she’s opted for the quiet approach to captivity. Even when I grabbed her from the bathroom, she never spoke above a whisper. I wonder if I’ll be able to get her to scream someday. A beauty like her shouldn’t be so quiet.
I turn when I hear someone honking at us. Alexei has caught up and is right next to me. He motions for my car to pull over, but he’s insane if he thinks I’m doing that.
“Keep driving,” I order. Dave nods frantically but does his job. I roll down my window as Alexei does the same. “This is pointless,” I shout to him.
“Give me Kira,” he yells in return, swerving around another car, almost getting hit. I have the advantage of having a driver. Alexei has to keep his attention on both me and the road ahead. Kira jerks at the sound of her brother’s voice, but she still doesn’t call out for him.
“You’re only going to get hurt,” I taunt. “I suggest you stop following us.”
“Like fucking hell. You have my sister!” He swerves his car, so it nudges mine. I pull my gun out and fire. The bullet pings against the side of his car. Alexei curses and pulls away. I meant what I said to Kira about not wanting any of her family dead. I want Maxim and Alexei alive to see how they lost their beloved baby sister. But I need to get Alexei off my case to do that.
I keep firing at his car until Alexei slows down and Dave speeds up. “Do not stop moving,” I growl. Dave nods again.
