Page 16 of Crowned

“Lilia. What is this?”

I stand up and snatch the pregnancy test out of his hands. “I bought it by mistake. It’s nothing.”

Dad’s eyes bulge and a vein throbs in his temple. There’s so much hatred and disgust in his face as he stares at me. Even more than the day I had my first period all over his white carpet and he threw me out of his home and life for seven years.

“Are you pregnant?” he spits.

A scared little girl’s voice cries in the back of my mind,No, Dad, please don’t be angry. I didn’t do anything wrong. I didn’t mean it.

As if I had any choice but to have sex with Konstantin and Elyah, but Dad wouldn’t understand that. I grab my handbag, shove the test back into it, and stand up straight. “That’s none of your business.”

Nothing ratchets Dad’s temper up faster than open defiance. “You’re pregnant? I’m supposed to get you married, and you’re carrying some other man’s bastard?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t taken the test yet.”

Dad points at the bathroom door. “Do it. Now.”

Fear makes my belly swoop. What if I’m not ready to know yet? This isn’t how I imagined becoming a mother. I thought I’d have a roof over our heads and a husband to protect us, but there’s just me and my horrible circumstances.

I shake my head and clutch my handbag strap tighter. “I will take the test when I’m ready.”

Dad is clenching and unclenching his fists in a way that tells me he’s dangerously close to hitting me, pregnant or not. “Take that test, or I will tie you to a chair until you piss yourself.”

Angry tears gather in my eyes as his men advance on me. One of them grabs a chair while the other pulls a length of fine rope out of his pocket. They put their hands on my shoulders and force me into the chair.

I hold up my hands. “Wait.”

A vision comes to me of a tiny baby swaddled in a white blanket and cradled in muscular, tattooed arms. The handsome face that gazes down at the child with love is Elyah’s, and my stomach twists. Then the picture changes and it’s Konstantin’s arms holding the bundle, and his normally malicious eyes are soft. Silver rings glint on Konstantin’s fingers as he cradles the baby’s head in his large hand. He leans down to press a gentle kiss to the baby’s brow and a tiny hand splays against his scarred cheek.

I take a shuddering breath. What a ridiculous fantasy.

“Fine. I’ll take the test.”

Dad flings the bathroom door open. “Get in there.”

I dig the test out of my purse, and to my horror, Dad follows me into the small room. “What the hell are you doing?”

His expression is granite as he folds his arms. “I’m watching you piss on it. I don’t trust you to not to just run it under the faucet.”

My mouth falls open. “Are you crazy? No, you’re not.”

“Mikhail, Dmitry!” Dad shouts, not breaking eye contact with me.

Before his goons can crowd into the bathroom and get their disgusting hands all over me, I slam the door in their faces. Cheeks burning with humiliation and fury, I reach under my dress to pull my underwear down and sit on the toilet.

Several minutes pass while Dad and I glare at each other. I can’t relax. I can’t pee.

“Hurry up,” Dad growls.

“I’m trying,” I reply through gritted teeth. I want this over even more than he does. I close my eyes and think of rushing rivers. Waterfalls. The sound of rain dripping off a roof.

Just as I’m about to give up and try drinking a gallon of water, my muscles relax, and I can finally pee. A moment later, I brandish the test in the air where Dad can see it, and he grunts and leaves the room, slamming the bathroom door behind him.

“Come out when you have the results,” he calls through the wood.

I lay the test on the sink and wash my shaking hands. In a few minutes, I’ll know whether my life as I know it is over. I’m broke, desperate, and there’s nowhere to run. If I can’t escape Dad, I’ll end up back in his house waiting for Konstantin to appear and tear me apart. Dad might think he’s strong, but he can’t protect me from a man like Konstantin.

As my heel bounces nervously on the tiles, an even worse thought occurs to me. Dad takes me home, Konstantin appears, and the two of them decide that the solution to both their problems is to force me to marry him.

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