Page 38 of Used By the Bratva

I give him a tight smile as I get out of the car. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

He nods and idles by the sidewalk until I’m inside the police station. I take a deep breath as I walk toward the reception desk; the officer behind it looks up at me.

He gives me a friendly smile, and the corners of his eyes crinkle. “Hello, do you need help?”

“I want to press kidnapping charges. Or file a report, make a statement. I really don’t know what you'd call it.”

One of the officers in the office area behind the main desk looks up, her eyes widening, concern glinting in them.

The other officers in the room are either on their phones or asleep at their desks, none doing anything productive on their night shift.

The officer clears his throat. “Who's been kidnapped?”

“I was. By Leonid Orlov.” I hold onto the edge of the counter and lean over it slightly to see what he’s scribbling on a piece of paper. “Please. I need to file a report. I don’t know where I am or what I'm supposed to do.”

He nods and stands up. “You must go to the chief, who will take this report. Come with me.”

The officer signals me to follow him around the desk. He leads me down a long, beige hallway and stops in front of a door with a frosted glass window that reads ‘Chief Morrison.’

After knocking on the door, the man opens it and enters for a moment. I can’t quite make out what they’re saying, their voices are low. Then the officer comes out again and looks at me, stunned.

“He’s ready to talk to you.” The officer holds the door open for me as I step inside.

Chief Morrison looks up, the crumbs from the sandwich in front of him caught in his white mustache. His bushy eyebrows draw together, and his eyes light up in confusion as he looks at me.

I nod and close the door behind me. “One of your officers told me to talk to you about my abduction.”

Chief Morrison rummages for some papers. I sit on one of the hard metal chairs, and he picks up his pen. “Let’s start with your name.”

“Natalie Popov.” I swallow hard, claw my nails into my palms, and hold back the tears. I haven't cried in days, and I won’t start now.

“Alright, Natalie. You've been kidnapped. How did you get here? Tell me everything from the beginning.”

I nod and breathe shakily as I try to keep a clear head and remember everything that has happened in the last few days. How I went to the office to meet with Boris, and how I met Leon there. How he told me that he killed my family, but I still don’t know the names of my family or why he killed them, how I fainted and woke up in Leon’s house, which is somewhere around here.

Every now and then, Chief Morrison gives me a sympathetic smile and continues to scribble his notes.

Chief Morrison finishes writing the rest of his notes. “I need to make a copy of this, but when I get back, we’ll talk about the next steps in the investigation and how to get you back where you belong.”

“Thank you.”

He leaves the room, and I sink into the chair. This is going to be one of the longest nights of my life. I smile to myself and shake my head. I can’t believe what I’ve just done. If Leon finds me now, he’ll kill me. But I must take the risk for the baby.

I hope the police will lock Leon up so that he never hurts me or anyone else again.

Yawning, I run my hands over my face. As soon as I’m done here and back in the city, I’ll spend the next week sleeping.

The door opens, and my mouth goes dry, heat creeps from my toes to my head.

Shit. Shit. Shit. I’m dead. I’m so fucking dead.

Speechless, I stare into his brooding eyes. His dark hair is disheveled, and his jaw ticks wildly with irritation. Leon closes the door behind him, and with a long stride, he rushes toward me, his hand around my throat as he leans over me.

Goddammit, why does he look so hot when he’s angry?

“Did you really think it would be so easy to get away from me?” He pulls me to my feet, the hand on my throat tightening as he pushes me back against the wall.

My heart skips a beat. “The chief works for you?”

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