Page 128 of Destined for the Devil
“Turn around.”
I did. But I was not prepared for handcuffs. Panic surged down to my toes, but John upped the ante and wrapped something tight and dark around my eyes, rendering me blind.
Oh fuck. That fire that raged inside me when I’d first arrived—it spread through me again. I jerked in his grasp, but he held on tight, pushing me forward. Down the small stairs, down the hall, down the big stairs just like before, and finally, cold, fresh air hit the skin on my cheeks.
It pierced me like a thousand knives, but John dragged me forward on uneven gravel, then on soft earth. Careless, like I was a thing, not a human being, he shoved me inside a car and shut the door.
Blind and bound, I sat in the backseat of the moving car, waiting for the unknown, my chest swirling with dread and fear.
But when the car stopped and the door opened, John was suddenly gentler. Carefully, tenderly, he tugged on my arm and helped me climb out.
Barely able to breathe, I stopped when John wanted me to and waited. There were footsteps around me for a few seconds, and then silence again. No voices, no indication of where I was or who was there. Finally, the handcuffs came off, and John’s repulsive voice sounded right in my ear. "I’m giving you this, Isla…because I respected your father."
The blindfold slid off, and I squinted, adjusting my eyes to the light. But then I saw someone behind John—Sergei standing in front of a car.
And that’s when my heart died. I’d never been so happy to see Sergei in my life, and at the same time, I knew exactly what that meant. John raised his eyebrows and jutted his chin out, indicating for me to turn. I whipped around, and the grief washed over me like a wave.
There stood Roman, with a sad smile on his face, his hands behind his back.
No! No, no, no,no!
"No, baby, please don't tell me you did it, please don't tell me you came!" My tears suffocated me, and I lunged toward him, wrapping my arms around his torso. But he couldn’t hug me back; he was handcuffed.
"My Angel." His voice was deep and familiar, spreading warmth through all of me. "I'm so happy I got to see you…one last time." His sweet whisper soothed me while I sobbed into his chest. "Don't cry, baby, don't cry,” he pleaded, his own tears running down his cheeks.
"Roman! This is not how this was supposed to end!" I accused him, not knowing what else to do. John got his way, shattering my heart into a million pieces.
I’m going to take his life.John was going to kill him, and I was going to suffer for the rest of my life!
"Moyadevochka..." Roman whispered into me. "Remember what you said about my last name?” I looked up into his deep blue eyes, filled with tears and love. “That's what I feel for you, baby. I feel that kind of love. I love you more than life, I told you that."
His gentle voice. His tender touch. His heavenly love. It would be all ripped away from me.
No, no, no, no! This was all wrong! This was all rotten! This was not supposed to happen!
"You need to go, okay?” Roman nodded confidently, gulping down his tears. “And you need to promise me that you will smile again."
Before I could respond, before I could understand, three huge men grabbed his arms and pulled him back and away.
No.
No!
The adrenaline rushed through me, and I understood that this was it. They would take him, and I would never see him again! Petrified, I lunged for him, only to be pulled back by none other than John.
"I love you, Isla.” Roman stumbled back in their grasp, his eyes never leaving mine. “Never forget that. I love you.”
His last words unleashed a monster inside me. “Roman! No!” I rushed for him, shoving against John’s chest. My arm tore free—only for a hand to clamp around my neck from behind, dragging me back like I was a paper doll.
I screamed. I kicked. I threw wild punches as I watched Roman being pulled away and pushed into the car that brought me to this wretched place.
“Let me go! No! Let me go! Roman! No! Stop!Roman!" I heaved, on the verge of spilling out the contents of my stomach right onto John’s shoes.
But John heard nothing. My feet dragged on the uneven ground, and I was passed into the arms of someone else.
Arms, chests, strong hands in my face and on my arms and back pushed me into the backseat of another unknown car, and the man got in too, ignoring my screams.Fucking Sergei.
The car lurched forward, and I fell back into the seat, immediately realizing that we were already speeding away! Away from my love, away from the man who held my whole heart and soul in his hands.
