Page 28 of Caught By the Bratva Beast

As we ride over the crest of a hill. A small river appears at the bottom. I don't think I've ever felt more relieved in my life.

Maxim leads the charge into the water, not stopping until he's in the middle. He turns and watches me as I guide Prancer down into the current, putting more distance between me and the growing fire. He looks at me, his eyebrows knitting together, worry shining. Beyond the worry, there's something more.

“We make a good team,” he says, his voice low and husky, though I'm not sure it's just from the smoke.

“We do,” I say, before I launch into a fit of coughing trying to catch my breath. “How are we going to get back to the house? We’re trapped on one side, and it looks like the other leads in the wrong direction.”

“We can follow the river. It'll take us winding back up to the house and if we get on the other side of the bank fire won't be able to reach us. Not unless this side lights up, but the winds are dying down and we shouldn't have to worry about more sparks for much longer. My men will be racing in soon with water bombers.”

“The forest is burning though. It's never going to be the same.”

“Sometimes you have to set things on fire to watch what flourishes in its wake.”

And for just a moment, as we crossed the other side of the river, I think he might be talking about us.

Chapter 9 - Maxim

“I didn't peg you for the romantic kind of man,” Pearl says as I lead her down the winding stone path between a set of trees and just below a trellis of climbing roses.

“I'm not. I asked one of my men. He has a wife, and she likes to do things like this. I thought you might like to look at the stars too.”

“Now that makes a lot more sense.” Pearl winks at me before stopping to toy with one of the roses, her fingers running over the soft pedals.

I unfold the blanket from where it hangs over my arm, spreading out the smooth cream fabric, making sure there isn't a rock in the way. Pearl puts the water bottles in the middle of the blanket before laying down on one side of it, looking up at the stars above.

“You never really get to see this in New York. What's that dusty line right there?” She points out a cloudy white line darting across the sky, though it still looks more like a smattering of dust than anything else.

“That's the Milky Way.”

“Hold on, you can see the galaxy from out here? I don't think I've ever seen this before, even when I traveled. We spent most of our time in cities and the light pollution left a whole lot to be desired. If I had known that there were views like this, I think I might’ve forced Dad to go camping with me.”

“I don't know, there's something peaceful about spending time out here. When I was younger, I used to come right up to this spot and lay down on the blanket beside my mother. We talk about life together.”

“Is she still alive? You talk about her like she's gone.”

I reach out as I sit down and brush a strand of Pearl’s chocolate hair behind her ear. Those little red strands shine again, though not as bright as before. The moonlight doesn't bring them out the way the sun does when it shines down upon her.

“She passed away a while ago. Shortly before I was thirteen from breast cancer. It was too far advanced before the doctors caught it. I haven't thought about her much in the last years, there's been too much going on.”

Pearl sighs, rolling on her side and facing me for a moment. “I know what it's like to have to live without your parents. I never really knew my mom. Dad said she left when I was a baby. He said that she wasn't built for the kind of life he wanted for us and that it would be better if she went. Mom took that to heart and decided she didn't want her baby either.”

“I think it might be a lot worse to lose them without knowing them than to have known them, loved them, and lost them. I at least grew up knowing my mom loved me.” I stare up at the stars, thinking about all the nights I laid out here with my mother.

She rolls on her back; her gaze returns to the sky. I'm forgotten beside her as she starts tracing her finger through the air like she's trying to connect the dots.

“You know all the constellations have a story, but you can never see the same constellation on this side of the world and the other at the same time.”

“I knew that. I may not know much some days, but I do know the earth isn't flat.”

“Thank God, I was having a hard time trying to figure out how to bring up that conversation with you.”

The unladylike snort comes from her again before she bursts into a round of laughter and giggles, shaking her head and wiping tears from her eyes as they gather. “Really? With all you’ve come across in your life, flat earthers might have been the deal breaker for you?”

“Would it be a deal breaker for you?”

“If I get paid enough money, I don't care.” Pearl presses her lips together as if she said too much, her gaze darting away from me and focusing elsewhere on the sky.

“Have you ever thought about something other than escorting as a job? Maybe spending the rest of your life lounging on a beach in Italy. Maybe Croatia? I hear Brazil's got nice beaches too.”

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