Page 42 of Bound By Hate (Born in Blood)

Gleb walks onto the stage and grabs my chin, forcing me to look at him. “What did I tell you about watching your mouth? Take her away.”

I’m dragged off the stage and brought backstage, where the guards force me into a small cage, barely big enough for a dog. The other women auctioned off are also in cages beside me. The guards eye me over before walking away.

The teenage girl is next to me—the one who reminds me so much of Mila. “Are you ok?” I ask her.

She shakes her head and speaks in Russian.

“You don’t know English? You asked me to help you before.”

“Help,” she says in her heavy accent before speaking in Russian again. That must be all she knows—help me.

“I want to help. I will help. How did you end up here?”

She only looks at me and talks in Russian. I turn to the other woman in the next cage over. “Do you know English?” But she shakes her head, responding in Russian. How can I help these women if I don’t even know their language? I’m just as lost as they are.

And I fuckinghatebeing helpless.

Gleb reappears, holding onto an envelope. “You did your duty to me, Viktoriya. I got my money. Have a nice life.”

“Who bought me?”

He shrugs. “How should I know? He was rich. That’s all I cared about. Now, I think I’m going to spend some time with Mila. She’ll be sad knowing her big sister killed herself. She’ll be vulnerable enough to agree to marry me.”

I grip the cage’s bars between my hands. “You wouldn’t. You can’t. You can’t tell her that I’m dead.”

“Why not? You’re better off dead, being the bitch you are. I’m doing you a service by saving your life. You should be grateful, Viktoriya. But we both know you won’t be, and that’s your problem. You’re never fucking grateful to the men in your life. You think you’re so much better. So, how does it feel being stuck in a cage like a dog?”

I’m … speechless.

Gleb huffs. “That’s what I thought.” He gives me a wink before walking away and whistling. His day is sunny. My day is hell.

I lean back against the bars as best as I can. I’m not sure how long I’m going to be here. I better get comfortable.

SOFIYA

I wake up in the middle of the night full of anxiety. My mind can’t stop thinking about things with Vik. Our fight. The party. I could tell she was uncomfortable. My sister is great at putting on a front that nothing bothers her, but I can tell when something does. She didn’t look … happy.

Granted, it’s hard to please Vik. She rarely looks happy, but this was something different. She had an air about her that felt off. Maybe it was those odious women. Vera and her friends. I could tell right away how petty and mean they were.

Maybe it had to do with Aleksander. He seems to be good at getting under Vik’s skin. I saw it at the bridal shop. I saw it tonight at the party.

I need to know what’s going on with her.

Mikhail is in a deep sleep when I get up and doesn’t even wake when I leave the bedroom. Vik is probably fast asleep, but I can’t wait until morning. I need to talk to her now.

Knocking on her door, I wait. When she doesn’t answer, I try again, but there is still no response. I crack open her door and poke my head inside.

Except … Vik isn’t in her bed. I check her room and the ensuite bathroom, but she isn’t there. Hurrying downstairs, I look in the living room and kitchen, but she’s nowhere. Did she leave again? I wouldn’t put it past her. Vik has a hard time staying in one place. She’s never fully satisfied with her lot in life.

Maybe she’s in Mila’s room. I open Mila’s door and look inside, not wanting to wake her if I don’t have to.

But Vik isn’t there either. It’s only Mila asleep in her bed.

Where the hell is Vik?

I’ll have to wake Mikhail and get him to find her again. But before I can go to him, I hear the front door open, and I rush back downstairs.

Only to find Gleb entering the house. He stops when he sees me. “Sofiya, hello.”

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