Page 92 of Forced plus-size Bride of the Bratva
“I’m sorry,” I whisper.
He chuckles bitterly. “Don’t be. You weren’t the one who slit his throat and burned his body like trash.”
My stomach turns, but I manage to keep my voice soft. “Maybe if you told Adrian…maybe if you—”
“I don’t want justice,” Yegor snaps, stepping closer. “I want retribution. I want Adrian to suffer the way I did. I want to see the light go out of his eyes when I take everything he cares about.”
My heart beats faster, but I keep my expression still. I glance at the shadows behind him, at the faint light seeping through the slats in the warehouse wall. I don’t know what time it is. I don’t know how long I’ve been here. But I know Adrian. And I know he’s already tearing the city apart for me.
“Tell me about Nikolai,” I say quickly, gently. “What was he like? What did he want?”
Yegor frowns, but again, he doesn’t stop me. He circles around the chair like a predator, but his voice softens, just a fraction.
“He was serious. Focused. Smarter than the rest of us. He didn’t want war, not really. He wanted structure. He wanted respect. He thought the Bratva could be more than just blood and bullets.”
I nod again, listening, watching. “And you believed in him.”
“He was my brother.”
That comes out raw. And for a moment—just one sliver of a second—I see the man beneath the monster.
“You know Logan?” I laugh lightly. “He’s my brother. My only brother. I’ll do anything for him. Anything.”
Yegor appears in front of me again, a wild grin on his face. “Will you turn on Adrian for him?”
“In a heartbeat.”
He throws his head back and laughs. “Fucking liar. I see right through you. You don’t fool me.”
I barely have time to react.
Yegor grabs a strip of duct tape from the table beside him and slaps it over my mouth before I can protest. The adhesive burns my skin, yanks at the small hairs on my face, sealing off any words I might’ve said. I let out a muffled sound, thrashing weakly, but it’s useless. My head is pounding, the blood loss making my vision spin.
He stares at me, and there’s something gleeful in his eyes now. Something deranged.
“You’re smart,” he says, tapping a finger against my forehead like it’s some kind of compliment. “But not smart enough to get out of this.”
I glare at him through the haze of pain and fear. He smiles.
“When I’m done with Adrian,” he whispers, “when I’ve destroyed him from the inside out, I’m going to ship you off to one of the rival syndicates we’ve been at war with for years. They’ll love having a Rusnak wife in their hands. Maybe they’ll carve their name into your skin. Maybe they’ll break you piece by piece. And maybe I’ll send him the videos, just for fun. Before I cut off his head.”
I flinch. My heart stutters. Rage and terror tangle inside me until I can barely breathe.
He stands, brushing imaginary dust off his coat.
“But first,” he says, already turning toward the warehouse door, “it’s time to invite your husband into the mix.”
He doesn’t look back.
I hear the heavy clang of the metal door as it shuts behind him, leaving me alone in the dark with the sound of my own ragged breathing echoing in my ears.
Chapter 20 – Adrian
Zalar found Alexei about an hour ago.
Captured him sneaking across the border into Sokhumi, trying to disappear like a coward. Now, he’s being held in one of our remote facilities on the outskirts of the city—locked up, alone, and probably pissing himself by now.
I sit in the back of the armored car, fingers curled tightly around the leather seat as the city speeds past in a blur. Kaz is beside me, quiet for once. He knows better than to speak when I’m like this—on edge, seething. It’s been almost a full fucking day since Jennie was taken, and there’s still no damn lead. Not one solid thread to pull. No update. No message. Nothing but silence.
