Page 85 of Paved in Hate

It takes everything I have to not react. “You mean the woman you offered me?”

“No, fuck her, I’m talking about the pet I acquired almost two years ago.”

“That’s a long time. She must be pretty damn special.”

He gives a wicked laugh that makes my blood run cold. “She is.” He lets out a sigh at some memory he’s reliving. “She was so fucking feisty when I first saw her in line to be auctioned off, a fucking spitfire that immediately got my cock hard. I’d pulled her out of line and claimed her as my own, and breaking her, Vitaly,” he says with another groan, “goddamn, it’s been the most fun I’ve ever had.”

“He’s not lying,” Osip says, grinning at his brother. “He was like a fucking kid at Christmas who refuses to share his favorite toy. I can’t say I blame him, though, she’s a fucking looker.”

“Ah, come on, you can’t tell me all this and not show her to me. Where is she?” I look around the office like she might be hidden somewhere. When Konstantin hesitates, I hold up my hands. “I promise not to touch. I just want a peek.”

“I guess a look wouldn’t hurt,” he finally says. “Danil’s going to be a while, and I’m sure my pet wouldn’t mind some visitors.”

So many small battles are going on inside me, but I remind myself that it’s the war I need to focus on. I can’t beat the shit out of him, I can’t kill him, and Danil and I sure as fuck can’t fight our way off this property with just the two of us. There’s a lot of things I can’t do right now, but I can at least get a glimpse of Alina. I can confirm that it’s really her and that she’s alive. I just hope like hell the two of us can hide our emotions when we see each other. It’s a huge fucking risk, but it’s one I have to take. The Alina I remember is whip-fucking-smart, and she’d catch on quick and know what to do. I just have to hope that she’s not so broken she’ll break when she sees me.

I follow Konstantin and Osip out of the office, memorizing the path we take through the large house. On the third floor, I’m lead down a side hallway. The two guards posted outside the last door makes it pretty obvious where he’s hiding her. They step aside when they see us, and when Konstantin unlocks the door and slips the key back in his pocket, I take a breath and try like hell to prepare myself.

I shouldn’t have bothered, because nothing could ever prepare me for the sight in front of me. A dark-haired woman huddles in the corner, naked with her arms wrapped tightly around her legs, the black viper ouroboros tattoo prominent on her pale, thin wrist. Even tucked into a small ball, I can still see the bruises and scars that mark her skin. She’s underweight, dangerously so, and when she hears us walk in, she lifts her head, and I nearly fall to my fucking knees. Alina’s blue-green eyes stare back at me, and for one brief second, I see the recognition and desperate hope in hers before I give a barely noticeable shake of my head. She sees it, and I’m forced to watch that brief glimpse of hope die as she shuts back down right before my eyes.

Konstantin snaps his fingers, and to my absolute horror Alina gets on her hands and knees and crawls to him, stopping before his feet. Her face is flushed with embarrassment, and she keeps her eyes locked on the ground in front of her. I know she’s ashamed to be seen like this in front of me, and all I want is to take off my sweater and wrap her in it and carry her back to her family, but I can’t do that. I have to act like I’m enjoying this, so I bite the inside of my cheek so hard I taste blood and give Konstantin my best smile.

“I see you’ve trained her well.”

He laughs and pets her head like she’s a goddamn dog. “It took a long time to get her like this, but she finally came around.” Looking down at her, he fists her hair tight enough to force her face up to his. “Isn’t that right, pet?”

“Yes, sir,” she whispers, and the sound of her voice after all this time is gut wrenching. I remember her laughing and joking around, but she never sounded like this. He’s beaten her down to nothing, and as much as I’ve told Matvey over the last two years that we can get Alina back and that she’ll be fine once we do, I’m starting to think that maybe I was wrong, that maybe fixing Alina won’t be quite what I thought it would be.

“Where did you find her?” I ask, working hard to keep my voice neutral.

He smiles but keeps his eyes on her. “My men grabbed her in Moscow. She was so fucking obstinate. She fought like a feral cat and even managed to break a nose and scratch the hell out of another man’s face. She threw her phone out the window and refused to tell us her name.”

Konstantin runs a finger down her cheek. “But you eventually caved, didn’t you, Nadia Nikitina.”

For a moment, I’m too stunned to do anything but take my next breath. She’d used Matvey’s last name as her own. By the time she was kidnapped we were all using Melnikov as our last name, but Nikitin is Matvey’s real last name, and she’d taken the feminized form as her own. Alina’s eyes dart briefly to mine before looking away, and I hope in that brief second she could see how fucking proud I am of her. She fought, she threw her phone away so they couldn’t get any information about her, and she gave a fake name—all to protect her family. She’s my goddamn hero right now.

I know there’s no way in hell I’m going to be allowed to be alone with her, but I’m desperate to let her know that we’re coming for her, that we’ve never stopped looking for her.

“You’ll have to bring her to my club one night,” I tell him, forcing an easy grin on my face. “My brothers would love to see how you’ve broken her.”

Konstantin laughs and turns his head to look at me. “I don’t think your brothers are into what I’m into. I heard Roman had a pet, but now he only seems interested in his wife. The same goes for your other brothers. They just marry their pets.”

Alina’s eyes fill with pain while Konstantin and Osip both let out a harsh laugh. I can’t bear the thought of her thinking something that’s not true, so I laugh and say, “Well not every brother. Matvey’s stayed single.”

At the mention of his name, Alina bites her bottom lip as her eyes turn glassy. I know she’s fighting tears, and the last thing I want is to get her in trouble, so I keep talking, trying to direct the focus to me instead of her.

“He’d be interested to meet Nadia, though,” I say. “He’s a picky son of a bitch, but I’m guessing she’d catch his eye.”

When I see Konstantin’s jaw clench, I laugh and smack his shoulder. “Purely to admire from a distance,” I tell him. “I just thought you might like to show her off a bit. Hell, if she belonged to me, I would.”

He thinks about what I’ve said while he fists her hair again, making her watery eyes seem like it’s from physical pain instead of the emotional pain that’s really causing it. He’s hesitant to bring her out in public, but his ego is begging him to.

“I’m not sure about Pink,” he finally says. “The club is yours, but it’s not as tied to what we do as the Red Viper is.”

“I’ve worked hard to keep them separate,” I agree, “but the Red Viper sounds perfect. In fact, my brothers and I were thinking about going there this Friday. It’s been a while since we’ve gone, and truth be told,” I say with a laugh, “my brothers need to let off some fucking steam. They’re so tied up in wives and pregnancies, and I think they’re forgetting how to have fun.”

Konstantin laughs and looks over at me. “And what about you? Feeling suffocated already by married life?”

I shrug and smile. “Your sister keeps me satisfied, but,” I say, forcing a laugh, “I’m not so sure I’m made for monogamy.”

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