Page 25 of Bratva Prisoner
“Someone you don’t want to mess with.” Maksim moves to stand between Troy and me, creating a barrier with his body. “Walk away. Now.”
“This is between me and my girlfriend.”
“Ex-girlfriend,” I correct automatically when I find my voice. “Very ex.”
“You heard her,” Maksim states, and there’s something in his tone that makes my skin prickle with awareness. This isn’t just protective boyfriend behavior. This is something else; something that speaks of experience dealing with situations like this.
Maybe he’s a cop or a former military.
Troy looks between us for a moment, clearly debating whether to escalate or retreat. Finally, his natural survival instincts win out over his ego.
“This isn’t over, Alyssa,” he warns before backing away into the crowd. “You can’t hide behind your new boyfriend forever.”
We watch him disappear among the other pedestrians, and only then do I realize I’ve been holding my breath. My entire body feels like it’s vibrating with leftover adrenaline and fear.
“Are you okay?” Maksim asks, and his hands come up to frame my face as he checks me for injuries.
“I’m fine. Scared, but fine. How did you know where to find me?”
“Harrison called me the moment you left the house. I’ve been tracking your location since you walked out the front door.”
“Tracking my location?”
“Your phone has GPS, Alyssa. It’s not exactly advanced surveillance technology. We need to get you somewhere safe,” he declares before taking my hand and guiding me toward a black car parked at the curb. “Preferably somewhere with better security than a public sidewalk.”
I let him help me into the passenger seat, but my mind is still reeling from the encounter. “How did Troy find me here? I’ve been so careful, and this neighborhood is nowhere near where I used to live or work.”
“He’s been watching my house.”
The matter-of-fact way he says it makes me sit up straighter. “What do you mean, watching your house?”
“I mean, he and his friends have been conducting surveillance on Ravenshollow since I brought you home yesterday. They know you’re staying with me.”
“Since yesterday? How do you know that?”
Maksim pulls away from the curb and answers, “I have my own security measures in place. Anyone who gets too close to my property gets noticed.”
“And you didn’t think to mention this to me?”
“I was handling it.”
“Handling it how?”
He doesn’t answer immediately, and that silence tells me more than any explanation could. Whatever he’s been doing to “handle” the Troy situation involves methods he doesn’t want me to know about.
“Maksim, I need you to tell me what’s really going on here. How did you know Troy would be at that jewelry store? How did you manage to show up at exactly the right moment? And don’t tell me it was lucky timing, because I’m not stupid.”
“I told you, Harrison called me—”
“Harrison called you, and you just happened to be in the neighborhood? You just happened to know exactly where to find us on a street with dozens of shops and restaurants?”
The questions pour out of me faster than he can deflect them, fueled by weeks of running scared and the growing suspicion that there’s more to my rescue than coincidence.
“I was already on my way to find you when Harrison called,” he admits after a moment. “Your safety is my priority, and leaving the house without protection was reckless.”
“Protection from what? Troy’s an asshole and a stalker, but he’s not some criminal mastermind. He’s just a guy who can’t take no for an answer.”
Maksim’s hands tighten on the steering wheel, and something moves across his face that looks almost like guilt. “Alyssa, there are things about Troy that you don’t understand. Things about his associations and the people he works with.”
