Page 7 of Cruel Russian King
As I made my way through the gates, my thoughts stayed tangled in him. That voice, that half-smile, those grey eyes…
I sighed and pulled out my phone again and tried calling Scott to distract myself from the weird feeling Artyom had left in me.
Chapter 3 - Artyom
It had been a week since Ninel bumped into me, and every time I closed my eyes, I felt her body pressed against mine again. Though it was brief, it was electric, and unforgettable.
Every free moment since then, I was either watching her through surveillance or trailing her myself. I couldn't focus on my meetings or work, so I delegated most of my tasks to Yegor and Zahkar. She’d given me her number, and that meant she trusted me. That small gesture pushed my plan to the next phase.
After Scott walked out of the hotel with the escort last week, my men grabbed him and held him until I arrived. I showed him the footage of him and the escort having sex in the room. Then I told him exactly how I’d ruin him if he didn't do as I instructed: I’d leak the video across every corner of the internet and make sure he’d never work in the U.S. again.
The objective was simple: He'd tell Ninel that he was in an accident. He'd take her to the park on a romantic picnic at a time, date and place that I'd choose. Then all he had to do was act like the slimy bastard he really was, since all he wanted to do was fuck Ninel and leave anyway. He'd make Ninel uncomfortable, touch her if necessary to shake her up just enough so she'd call me.
He agreed.
I couldn't wait to spend some one on one time with Ninel before everything went to shit, because I knew after my plan was executed she'd be mad as hell.
I handed him the letter from the doctor to confirm his alibi of being in a car accident, before breaking two of his fingers and giving him a black eye, just like the injuries laid out in thedoctor’s letter. And then I told him if he breathed a word about any of it, I’d find him by slowly breaking every bone in his body.
This morning, I had his parents picked up as insurance.
Now, I watched from a distance as he walked beside Ninel, fingers entangled with hers on one side and the picnic basket on the other.
She was breathtaking.
Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She wore a triangular sleeved floral dress with a sweetheart neckline that hugged her waist, flaring mid-thigh. Large silver hoops dangled on her ears. Silver heels adorned her feet.
My jaw ticked as she laughed at something he said pressing herself against him. I forced myself to stay put.
In a few hours Ninel would be mine and no man would touch her ever again.
About an hour later, my phone rang. It was Ninel. A small smile curved my lips as I answered.
“Hey, Ninel,” I answered casually, as if I hadn’t been staring at my phone waiting for her to call.
“Artyom…” she sniffed. “Does the offer still stand if I need a buffer?”
My heart slammed once against my ribs, but my voice didn’t betray the turmoil I felt by the sadness in her voice. I expected her to be upset, to shed a few tears. I just didn't expect it to…affect me.
“What happened?” I asked, my voice hardened.
“I'd prefer not to tell you over the phone. Can you come pick me up?”
“Location,” I demanded, acting my role flawlessly.
She gave it to me, before I spoke again.
“Are you safe where you are?”
“I-I think so,” she whispered, trying, and failing, to hold back a sob.
“Don’t move. I’m coming.”
We hung up and my eyes tracked Scott just in time to watch him stagger toward his car, picnic basket swinging in one hand, the other cupped over his nose.
He barely had time to toss the basket into the back seat before my men closed in. Not to kill him, but just a gentle reminder to stay away from Ninel.
But, the filthy hand he had touched Ninel with would be removed. What they did with the rest of him was up to their creativity.
