Page 48 of Captured By the Bratva

Lines of text jump out at me: Likely to act out of desperation. Owes significant debts to numerous underworld creditors. High probability of risk to target once wedding completed. The realization sinks in, a cold, sick weight in my stomach. Ivan’s world had touched mine long before I ever met him.

The final pages are worse still—reports that detail my family, the people closest to me, the places I frequented. Ivan’s notes mention my mother, the small house we used to live in, the neighborhood I grew up in.

He’d known everything about me, even before I was aware of his existence. I turn the last page, seeing a photo of my mother in the morgue after her overdose. The violation of seeing my life pieced together like this, makes my skin crawl. How did he even get hold of this photo?

A shuffling sound behind me freezes me in place. I turn, my fingers gripping the folder, every page laid out before me like evidence of a life I thought was private, untouched. “Forgot my gun,” Ivan calls to someone, shoving the office door open an instant later.

He stands in the doorway, his eyes fixed on me, dark and unreadable, as if he’s trying to assess the weight of this betrayal.

His expression is hard, jaw tight, as he takes in the sight of me, clutching his secrets in my trembling hands. He’s caught me in the act, but I can’t tell who’s more at fault—him for compiling my life in pages, or me for uncovering it.

“So now you know the truth,” he says, closing the door behind him.

31

CATHY

Ithrow the photos onto his desk, my fingers trembling as anger pulses through me. “You had no right to follow me, to take these!” My voice shakes, but I’m determined not to back down.

Ivan stands in the doorway, his eyes cold and unreadable. He steps forward slowly, each step heavy, deliberate, like a predator closing in on its prey.

“You keep prying into things that do not concern you,” he counters, his tone cutting. “But here we are. You want answers? Fine. Yes, I had people follow you. Is that what you want to hear?”

I scoff, the anger flaring hotter. “So, you married me, trapped me here, and did all this to get my money?” My voice is thick with sarcasm. “Or was it true love?”

His jaw tightens, the muscles in his neck taut as he stares me down. “What would I want with twenty million?” he says, his tone hardening further. “Peanuts.”

“Is that supposed to impress me?”

“Think rationally for a moment. You know I want revenge on Jimmy. So do you. This changes nothing.”

“You lied to me. You stalked me, you fucking psycho. You knew who my father was and you never told me.”

“You should be glad of my protection, Cathy,” he growls, voice a low warning. “But instead, you act like an ungrateful brat.”

“Ungrateful?!” I feel the fury bubbling over, my words spilling out before I can catch them. “I never asked for any of this. I never asked for your protection, or your interference. And I certainly didn’t ask to be trapped in this house like a prisoner.” I step closer, meeting his glare head-on. “You’re the one who locked me up here, not the other way around.”

“Should I have left you to die on the roadside that night?” He grabs my wrist, his grip firm but not painful, just unyielding. “Yes, I was following you boyfriend for my own reasons. But when I saw you, something changed. Don’t you get what a big deal that is? I became obsessed with you. I tried to fight it but I couldn’t do it.”

“Let me go.”

“Enough,” he snaps, his voice low and rough. He begins to drag me out of the study, his steps quick and controlled as I struggle to pull free.

“Get your fucking hands off me!” I demand, trying to twist out of his grip, but his hold doesn’t loosen. He doesn’t say a word as he leads me down the hall, his expression unreadable, his jaw clenched tight. “You knew who my father was and you never fucking told me.”

“Your father was a prick. The only reason you’re inheriting is because he left no other children alive. It was not love that got you his money but a quirk of the law.”

We reach the bedroom, and he pushes me inside, his hand releasing my wrist. He reaches into my pocket and takes my cellphone from me. “Perhaps this will teach you not to pry into what does not concern you. I warned you that curiosity wasdangerous. I hunt for your ex over and over. Why do you think that is?”

“Not for my benefit, I guarantee that.”

He slams the door in my face, locking it an instant later.

From the other side, his voice echoes, cold and final. “You will give me an heir. This marriage is for life whether you hate me or not.”

I’m left staring at the door, heart pounding in my chest, the fury and heartbreak swirling inside me until I feel like I’ll burst. “Go to hell, Ivan!” I shout, the words tearing from my throat. But there’s only silence in response.

32

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