Page 7 of The Bratva's Forced Bride

But Yaro only scoffed.. As if I should’ve gone along with it and accepted my fate without questioning anything.

My stomach lurched at the thought of my dad offering me up in exchange for the supposed theft he had committed. While I wanted to doubt that he was capable of such a thing, a lingering sense of dread in my stomach hinted at otherwise.

My entire body went cold.

“Is it true?” I asked, my voice quieter than I had anticipated. “Did he really rent the warehouse out to you and steal from you?”

The other one glanced at me over his shoulder, and he sighed. Regret gleamed through his blue eyes. “Yes, it’s true. We paid him to keep quiet.”

That solemn tone was all I needed to hear to know they weren’t lying. I couldn’t imagine they would kidnap someone they didn’t know for no reason—not that it was okay in the slightest.

My stomach turned, and I fought against the bile that crept up my throat.

The nightmare I hoped was either a prank or some misunderstanding was unfolding before my eyes. It was real, and the force of that made me feel sick.

As the despair and anger collided within me, I didn’t know what to do, and I didn’t know what they intended to do with me, or how I would possibly get away.

But the thought of sitting by while they did what they wanted with me wasn’t one I could swallow easily.

“That might be the case, but I had nothing to do with this,” I began, feeling as the anxiety coursed through me. “I won’t pay for what my dad did.”

“And yet you’re the one bound in the back of our vehicle,” Yaro mumbled, sending me a hard look through the rear-view mirror. “You don’t have much say here.”

“I wasn’t exactly given a choice!”

More anger flared from within my chest, making my hands shake. But Yaro only sighed.

“Gag her.”

The other glanced at him with a questioning gleam, and his brows furrowed. While he didn’t say anything to verify what was being asked of him, he didn’t need to.

When Vik didn’t do as asked, it was his turn to receive Yaro’s scalding look.

“I said, gag her. I’m done listening to her.”

Reluctantly, Vik gave in and grabbed a roll of duct tape from the center console. He searched for the beginning and yanked enough to surely cover my mouth, then broke it off.

My heart hammered in my chest despite how he turned to face me with a remorseful expression. He didn’t seem as convicted as Yaro.

Holding the tape in front of me, Vik went to put it on my face, but I wriggled from my place and dodged it.

“Just sit still. Please,” he mumbled, seemingly to avoid his brother’s scorn.

“How can you expect me to do that in my current situation?” I said, completely at a loss.

Everything was ridiculous, and I couldn’t understand how I found myself in that position.

“Make this easy.”

“Never,” I muttered, pulling away from the tape again.

He gave me a pleading look, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t here to make him feel better, even if he seemed nicer than the other one.

“For God sake, Vik! She’s probably sixty pounds soaking wet,” Yaro snapped from the driver’s seat as he turned a corner, moving the steering wheel accordingly. “Get it done already.”

His voice made both of us jump, but only Vik looked regretful.

Before I could do anything, his hand was on my shoulder with less care than before, and he slapped the tape across my mouth. I sucked in a harsh breath through my nose, surprised by the sudden shift in him.

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