Page 65 of Forced to Marry the Bratva

“Genevieve,” he says softly, pulling me into a comforting embrace. “What’s going on?”

My tears start anew as I cling to him, the warmth of his presence offering a small measure of solace. “It’s Father,” I choke out, my voice barely above a whisper. “He’s been using me all along, Gael. He embezzled from the Zolotovs, and when I confronted him and said I wouldn’t help him any further, he turned on me.”

“He embezzled from the Zolotovs…” Gael mutters the statement, looking hurt yet not as shocked as I’d expect.

“Did you know something about this?” I ask, leading him to sit beside me on the sofa.

He shakes his head. “But it’s expected of Father, isn’t it?” Gael says. His arms tighten around me, and his anger and shock are evident. “I’m so sorry, Gen,” he murmurs, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of my head. “You don’t deserve any of this.”

“Neither do you,” I admit. “None of this. To think you’ve been forced into revealing things about Father to the Zolotovs. I know they pressured you; I heard a voicemail from Lev to Damien. I swear, Gael, had I known, I would never have let them take advantage of you like that. I can only imagine the tactics they must have used…” I shudder at the thought. I reach over and cup his face in my palm tenderly. “But you didn’t crack, did you?”

“Gen,” he shakes his head. “They didn’t really pressure me. They just asked me once or twice, and I told them the truth, that I didn’t know anything about Father’s plans. So, they let it go. In fact, Lev and I ended up having quite the night at the club,” he chuckles. “The man knows how to party.”

“Really?” I gasp, relieved that Gael wasn’t traumatized by the ordeal. At the same time, I feel like a fool for assuming the worst of Damien and Lev. If only I’d confronted Damien in time, most of my anger could have been prevented.

“Truly. They’re wonderful guys,” Gael mutters. “In fact, they never brought it up again. But when the night ended at the club, I couldn’t get Lev’s question out of my head. I always knew something was off about Father’s sudden interest in their family, so I took it upon myself to find out what I could.”

“What did you find out?” I ask, my face going ashen white, wondering if I am truly prepared for the answer.

“I discovered…” Gael’s usually playful eyes pool with tears as he takes his hands in mine. “I discovered that the Zolotovs never forced your hand in marriage. I was digging through his papers, emails, and previous call logs, and I found a voicemail from Boris trying to reason with Father to rethink the marriage. However, Father insisted he’d ruin them if they didn’t accept, so Damien stepped forward to protect his family.”

“No…” I whisper, feeling the world shake around me. All this time, I thought Father’s hand had been forced to give me up, only to now learn he was the one who orchestrated the whole thing.

With a sickening sense of clarity, I realize that my father has been using me all along. My heart clenches with pain at his betrayal. I remember the moment he announced my arranged marriage as if it were yesterday. The cold, calculating gleam in his eyes as he spoke of securing our family’s future suddenly takes on a sinister new meaning.

“I wish I could have protected you, Sister,” Gael says, his voice choking as he does.

“Oh, Gael,” I stop him from speaking further. “You’ve always protected me, but in your own way, you’ve been manipulated, too. We both tried our best,” I say, pulling him into a hug.

“There’s one more thing,” Gael says into my shoulder. I pull away and look into my brother’s eyes.

“What is it?” I whisper.

“When I started digging, I found that Father has spies trailing the Zolotovs. He had a folder marked as highly confidential about Damien’s underground fighting. That’s what Father was after—leverage against the Zolotovs.”

My heart clenches at the mention of Damien. Despite our rocky start, the forced nature of our marriage, and my anger toward him, I know I love him. Learning the truth about Father, I recognize that Damien is a good, kind man who was forced to marry me yet still tried to give me his all. He never told me the truth; he tried to shelter me from it. And me? I walked out on him without any explanation and without giving him the opportunity to explain.

Panic rages in my heart at the realization that while he shouldn’t have kept secrets from me, I should have given him the benefit of the doubt and tried to clear the air.

“Father knows about his fighting?”

“He knows everything. How he fights, who he fights, where he fights,” Gael tells me.

Knowing that my father has his eyes set on him, planning something sinister, threatens to break me apart. The thought of him using Damien’s dark secret against him fills me with fury.

I love Damien Zolotov, and I’ll do all I can to protect him. If Father has this information, I can’t even begin to comprehend all the evil ways he could use it against Damien.

My mind races as I consider our options, the weight of responsibility heavy on my shoulders. “We need to do something, Gael. We can’t let Father hurt Damien or his family.”

Gael sits up and looks at me, his eyes filled with concern. “I know, Gen. But we need to act fast if we’re going to help him.”

I stare down at my trembling hands, willing them to be steady. It’s time for me to take control, to put an end to my father’s destructive machinations. My decision made, I reach for my phone, dialing Anoushka’s number with newfound determination. I know I should call Damien, but I’m afraid he might lose control and risk bringing harm to himself. This time, Damien needs his family, and I trust Anoushka since she helped me out the last time around. She’ll know what to do.

“Genevieve?” her voice sounds surprised as she answers. “What’s going on?”

“Anoushka, I need your help. My father’s planning something terrible, and I don’t have much time to stop him.” The words spill out of me in a torrent of desperation, and I take a deep breath to steady myself.

“Slow down, Genevieve. Tell me what happened,” she says, her tone calm and reassuring.

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