Page 2 of Reign of Four

A voice cuts through the tablet speaker. “It is empty. She is not here.”

My heart drops.

Ezra.

“Well, someone’s been here, or there wouldn’t be blood all over the fucking hardwood.” Mikhail’s voice pitches as he lets out a frustrated yell. “Where the fuck did that suka take her?”

I’m right here, I want to scream. Come find me. I’m here.

“Take out frustration on enemy, Mikhail,” Ezra chastises, his voice louder than before. They must be walking closer to the microphone. Is Liam playing a recording from earlier in the day, or are we spying on them live?

“Wait—what the fuck is that?” Footsteps, then a growl, loud enough that it reverberates through the room. “Ezra. Get over here.”

Liam takes a breath and presses a kiss to my cheek. “Smile for the camera, zhena.” With a tug, he unties the knot holding my gag in place and removes it from my mouth, dropping the soiled cloth to my lap. “We have an audience.”

My heart slams harder against my ribs, wanting to flee Liam’s side and return to my men’s. I stare at the screen and wait for my men to appear. All I see is a tiny picture of me and Liam in the corner. The rest of the image is black.

Paper rustles through the speaker, and the image on the screen lightens from black to white as something shifts on their side. Mikhail’s face fades into view, his warm amber eyes cutting into my soul as our gazes meet through the video feed. A wave of Russian flows past his lips, too fast for me to catch what he’s saying.

The image blurs and Ezra’s face replaces Mikhail’s. The audio crackles as he exhales hard.

“That bastard. I’m gonna cut him up into little, tiny pieces and feed him to the fucking rats. Do you hear me, mudak? I’m fucking coming for you.” Mikhail’s anger roars like thunder, sending fresh tears to my eyes.

“Mikhail—” My voice cracks. I swallow, but it doesn’t do shit when your throat is dry as fuck. I try again. “Ezra?—”

Liam cuts me off before I can get any other words out. “Isn’t she beautiful, boys?” He caresses my cheek while my two lovers glare at him through the screen. “I thought you might want one last look.”

“Fuck you?—”

“Mikhail.” Ezra sighs. “What do you want, Liam? Money? Women? We will give all in exchange for Valentina.” His expression remains passive, but his eyes burn with contained fury, sparking like embers in the night sky.

I have no doubt he’s lying. All of my men will tear Liam limb from limb before they give him anything, after what he’s done.

Liam hums idly, like he’s considering Ezra’s question. “What I want?” His grip on my cheek tightens, his fingers digging into my flesh. I flinch as the inside of my cheek presses painfully against my teeth. “Why, I have everything I want right here.” He leans down and presses a quick kiss to my lips. As our eyes meet, his shoulders tense and a darkness fills his gaze. “But now that you mention it, perhaps there is one other thing I want, since you’re both here.” Releasing my cheek, he slides his hand into his pocket and pulls out a switchblade. With a flick of his wrist, the blade slides free from the handle and glints in the light. “I seem to recall one of you having a fondness for knives.”

Panic ripples across my skin. Mikhail stabbed Liam in the shoulder the night Liam assaulted me in the alley. Then, he gave me that very same knife to hold while Ezra carried me back inside the club, all four of us leaving Liam to his own devices as he lay bloodied and bruised on the dirty concrete.

I stopped my men from killing Liam because I didn’t want to watch him die. I didn’t want to watch him suffer.

Now, I might pay for that kindness.

Liam pretends to study the blade, scraping the pad of his thumb against its edge. He pulls his finger back, and a bright red line forms as his blood quickly pools around a shallow cut. “It would be a shame if my hand slipped.”

Ezra growls. “Do not touch her?—”

Liam’s eyes flash dangerously, and he bares his teeth at the camera. “She is mine. I’ll touch her whenever I fucking please.” He rubs his bloodied thumb against my cheek, visibly streaking my skin red. The copper tang of his blood fills my nose, and I hold my breath and clench my eyes shut to keep my stomach from churning.

If I keep my eyes closed, I can play pretend?—

“If you don’t believe me, I’ll have to prove it to you.”

My eyes snap open just in time to catch a glimpse of my men’s fury as Liam swoops in for a brutal kiss, locking our lips together in a grandiose display of affection. He grips my shoulder tight with his bloodied hand, no doubt leaving another smear of red, like he’s marking his territory.

A whimper catches in my throat, and he smiles against my lips, no doubt having heard the sound. I pray my men didn’t hear it.

When he finally pulls back, he shoves my face away from his, a dark laugh passing his lips. “See, boys? Mine to touch all I want.” His gaze flicks lower, and dread seizes my spine.

“Don’t,” I breathe, my voice barely a whisper. “Please.” The last thing I want is for Mikhail and Ezra to witness my shame as Liam forces himself on me. I meet my ex’s eyes and plead for the part of him that might actually care for me to hear me now, to stop this before it’s too late.

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