Page 23 of Darkest Game
“I failed Irina too. I should have been keeping a better eye on her. I never should have let her go outside.”
“She was kept as a prisoner for the past two years. I didn’t want to keep her on lockdown any more than she had been.”
She pushes my hair back. “I know. But we don’t even know who took her. We don’t know who killed Mikhail’s guards. She could be anywhere.”
“She could be dead,” I sob.
“Don’t go there. Have hope that we’ll save her.”
I clung to hope for the past two years that I would get my sisters back and now that hope has been dashed.
The front door bangs shut, signaling Mikhail has returned. I rush out to him and without me having to ask, he tells me.
“I know who took Irina. It was the Irish. But I don’t know where they’re keeping her. I checked some of Liam’s known locations but she hasn’t been spotted around there. I’ll keep looking for her, Natalya. But…”
“Don’t say but,” I snap.
“But we might have to face the reality that she could be gone.”
I break down into tears as I sink to the floor. Both my mom and Mikhail try to keep me up but nothing can. Ana watches from the corner of the room, not saying a word. My usually talkative sister and now she’s as quiet as a mouse. All because I lost our other sister. I lost Irina.
And I don’t know how to save her.
Irina
Liam drives us to a small chapel in the middle of nowhere. A reception hall is right beside it, presumably where the party forthe wedding will be. Jack wants this to be a whole affair so he invited a lot of guests. People I don’t even know at my own wedding.
The wedding I’m being forced into.
He parks the car. “This is it. Time to get married.”
“You can still drive away,” I urge. “Neither of us want this. We could just leave right now. If you gave me back to my family, then maybe you could strike a deal with Mikhail and Nico.”
“They would shoot me on sight.”
“You don’t know that. My sisters would make sure I wasn’t hurt, which means their husbands wouldn’t immediately start shooting. I could put in a good word for you.”
“Put in a good word for me? Like it’s a job interview?” He scoffs. “No. I’m not going against Jack. I like my life the way it is. I don’t want to give it up to go into hiding. I don’t want to work with Mikhail and fucking Nico, who killed my first boss. Cillian Kennedy was my friend. I could never work with the man who was responsible for his death. Never.”
“But you don’t want me.”
His eyes flick over to me and away. There’s something he’s not telling me but I doubt I’ll get any answers. This is a marriage of politics. Not love.
To my right, I see more cars pull up and people exiting them to head to the church. There have to be around a hundred people so far. A spectacle indeed.
Liam offers me his hand after he opens my door. I would rather not take it but he’s my future now. No one is coming to save me at this point. I have to try with Liam or I’m going to be miserable for the rest of my life.
But the fact that he’s still going to step back and let Jack have his way with me tonight is concerning. It’s not husband material. It’s not what I dreamed of in a man that I would be bound to for the rest of my life.
Slowly, I place my hand in his and Liam curls his fingers around mine. His touch is warm and strong. If I wasn’t so afraid, I wouldn’t be angry about marrying Liam. He’s incredibly handsome and hasn’t shown any desire to beat me. I know that’s a low bar but in the mafia, that’s all one woman can expect.
He leads me to the church.
“This is all wrong,” I whisper.
“What is?”
“You weren’t supposed to choose my dress. I was supposed to surprise my husband on our wedding day. I was supposed to be in love.” My throat chokes up from holding back tears.
