Page 22 of Cruel Russian King
They thought I didn't know that she was missing. And I never let on that I did. By the time they found her they discovered she’d already gotten married him.
I want them to feel the same rage and betrayal I felt when they eventually learn Ninel and I are married.
Pfft! Married? Artie, You haven’t even claimed her yet! I should’ve gotten rid of you, just like I swore I would, and put Yegor as leader. You’re pathetic!
I shoved my father’s voice out of my head and tapped the keys on my laptop. I pulled up the feed to the house. I needed to see Ninel…it had been far too long since I saw those memorizing eyes of hers.
One minute stretched to two…three…then four as I scanned for Ninel.
Nothing.
I even paused the feed in the bedroom, thinking she might have been in the bathroom. Ten minutes in, it hit me…Ninel was nowhere on my fucking estate.
I rose from my desk, grabbed my car keys, and dialed Kolya, my head guard, while heading to the parking lot.
“Yes, Mr. Rykov. What can I do for you?”
“Where the fuck is Ruslan?”
I heard keys tapping on the other end. “He’s in the house, sir. But, something's wrong. He just collapsed in the living room. ”
Sliding behind the wheel, I pulled up all the cars in the garage on my tracker. The Porsche was in the city, five minutes away.
“He was in charge of Mrs. Rykov. If one hair on my wife’s head is touched, I’ll torture Ruslan before I kill him. Strip him and tie him to the tree at the back of the house. I’ll deal with him when I return.”
“Yes, sir.”
I cut the line and sped toward the stationary Porsche. My heart jolted in my chest like a rum bottle forgotten in a trunk. With that recent hit against us, the city wasn’t fucking safe. Shit! I slammed my hands against the steering wheel and slammed the accelerator.
The last time I’d been this afraid, I was ten. After my mother had been beaten in the ring so badly that she had collapsed and needed to be taken to the hospital. Yegor and Zahkar were told that our mother went on a short vacation because she needed some time for herself.
I sighed. It wasn’t like Ninel couldn’t take care of herself, she was trained by Lev and Jaroslav.
She is…but did you return the knife she usually carries? Or give her a cell phone in case she ran into trouble?
Shit!
My mind ran back to the alley where she tried to cut me in the face with the key but I overpowered Ninel’s tiny frame easily.
I screeched to a halt in front of the Porsche, parked outside one of our casinos this time. I hopped out and moved toward the nearest art gallery. Knowing Ninel, if she hadn’t stopped there yet, she’d be on her way.
Fingers crossed, I ducked into every store along the way, scanning the crowds. Ten minutes in, I spotted her in the dark blue dress I had laid out for her that morning, cut to mid-thigh, paired with boots with two-inch heels. Sunglasses shielded her eyes, and instead of a baseball cap, her hair was tucked under a wide-brimmed straw hat.
Finally, I could breathe.
I trailed her as she moved from store to store toward the art gallery. Now that I had her in my sights, I couldn’t help but be impressed that she’d gotten one over on Ruslan and bypassed the other guards on duty.
The only way she could’ve done it was if she memorized their shift changes. But how the hell did she even get the car out of the garage?
I dragged a hand down my face. Did I even want to figure it out? If I did, she’d just find another way to escape. Still, I couldn’t let her think sneaking out was acceptable.
I'll punish Ruslan in front of her. She'll learn that her actions affect others as well. I won't kill him, at least not today, but he'll remain assigned to Ninel so every time she sees him she'll remember the pain she caused him and think twice about her damn actions.
Fifteen minutes later, she stepped into the gallery, and I followed a minute after. For now, I’d let it slide. I won't drag her back like I did the last time. Hopefully, this outing would curb her need to sneak off…at least for a while.
Inside, I watched as she moved from painting to painting, eyes sparkling, a smile plastered across her face. The last time I’d seen her this happy was at the meal we’d shared before…I kidnapped her.
She stopped at one painting, studying every detail. She even chatted with an elderly woman for a few moments. She bit her lip, and sighed. Her shoulders slumped slightly.
