Page 94 of Nanny for the Bratva Daddies

“Please! Think about it, if I’m bleeding, then there might be something wrong with the baby and I don’t know about you, but if Ivan hasn’t decided what to do with me yet, and you take that decision from him and risk the life of the?—”

The door swings open and the guard I saw earlier stands in front of me with an assault rifle hanging diagonal across his body.

“Fine. But I will have to report this.”

“Whatever.” I roll my eyes as my heart pounds, trying very hard to act as casually as I can.

Keeping my legs together, I step out of the room onto a stone floor that’s much rougher under my feet. It’s warmer, too. The guard leads me down a narrow corridor lined with windows similar to those in my room, only they’re a bit thinner. It’s impossible for me to glimpse outside.

He leads me down a spiral staircase where the stone walls give way to a more modern housing. It feels less like a castle and a lot more like a home. We stop outside a brown door and the guard jerks his head to the side.

“Be quick.”

“Whatever.” Skirting around him, I make it to the toilet just before my bladder explodes. Relief is short lived when I wash my hands and spot the guard almost hugging the door. I need to get away from him, somehow.

Scanning the bathroom, I find very little at my disposal. The single toilet and sink, while ornate with gold detailing, are lacking in decoration. The mirror is attached firmly to the wall with no openings or hinges, and the small cupboard is locked tight.

Fuck.

The only weapon I have is myself. Staring at my reflection, I almost don’t recognize my own face. My blonde hair hangs in dirty clumps, all my makeup has washed off, leaving only some threadbare streaks of mascara, and there are huge bags under my eyes.

There must be something I can do. I need something to make the guard leave.

My solution is archaic at best, but it’s all I have. Given that my teeth are my only weapon, and my cheek is the easiest place to get blood from in a hurry, there’s only one thing I can do.

Adrenaline spikes as I tuck the inside of my cheek between my teeth, then balance my chin on the edge of the sink. I can barely breathe as this stupid, stupid idea spins around my mind.

If I let my knees go weak and fall, my chin will catch on the skink and my teeth will cut into my cheek. It’s a good plan.

A stupid plan.

But that's the only plan I have.

“Are you done?” comes the guard's voice, followed by several knocks on the door. “Ain’t got all day.”

Fuck it. Here we go.

I relax my legs, let my body go limp, and fall.

“Help me!” I stumble out of the door with my palms full of blood. “You need to get help!”

The guard’s face turns ashen, then a shade of green when I reach for him and smear the blood onto his suit. He stumbles back, then turns and runs down the hall.

I don’t care where he’s going. Spitting out another mouthful of blood onto the floor as my cheek throbs loudly, I sprint down the hallway the opposite way. I have no idea where I’m going and no sense of direction.

I just run.

Past statues and portraits, past art and wide-open rooms, I run until my chest feels like it will explode. I run down corridors, upstairs, down other sets of stairs, and through doors and rooms until, finally, I slam through double doors and a gust of fresh air blasts over me.

I only make it a few steps before a stone balcony slams into my gut and I double over with a grunt. Leaning over the railing, the mansion stretches down several floors below me, then it reaches out into a magnificent garden filled with flowers of more colors than I even knew existed.

Then, the scent of salt tickles my nose. I lift my gaze further and the garden melts into something much worse.

Water.

As far as the eye can see. It stretches around the property in all directions and the city in the distance is nothing but a smudge on the horizon.

The one bridge that weaves between the island and home is pulled upward, raised so high that all it would take is one shove and this island would float free into the endless abyss of the open ocean.

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