Page 18 of Bratva Butcher

I’d always loved flying. Some people hated it. Feared it, despite the fact that there was about a one in an eleven million chance of something actually happening. Statistics showed that you were actually more likely to die from a car accident than a plane crash.

I was a stickler for statistics.

The man returned to his seat a few isles down, sitting next to another goon. There were twenty-four other people on board; two stewardesses, a pilot, a co-pilot and twenty guards to watch our every move and make sure we didn’t try anything stupid, like take over the plane.

The idea had definitely occurred to me. I contemplated it several times when they were loading us onto the aircraft. However, knowing how to fly a plane was not on the list of skills I possessed. That, and the fact that they had me wrapped head to fucking toe in steel.

Talon was nowhere to be seen. Mr Richy Rich just dumped us on the tarmac and took off without a word. Probably to go buy more people like they were fucking merchandise.

For that indiscretion alone, he’d made my listandmoved to the top.

I glanced around the cabin for the umpteenth time, assessing.I need to prepare. Make a plan.Just because the odds of escaping were shit all didn’t mean I shouldn’t try.

The only shot I had was when we were disembarking.

I had to take it.

Or die fucking trying.

I knew what I had to do next…and I hated it.

Begrudgingly, I turned to look at the stupid fucker sitting next to me. “You know this guy, don’t you? Talon?” I asked Dimitri, picking at the food with dainty fingers. I couldn’t really go pissing him off when I needed his intel.

His gaze sliced to me from the corner of his eyes before looking back ahead. He just sat there with his perfect posture and aristocratic air, not even bothering to acknowledge me or the question I’d asked.

I pushed down my initial instinct to bite his fucking head off. I had to be calm—rational—if I hoped to get any answers out of him.

If I could make him see why talking would be in his best interest, too, he might be more forthcoming.

“Look, the idea of working together absolutely repulses me,” I whispered out of the side of my mouth so I wouldn’t be overheard by the guards. The grunt that followed told me that Dimitri thought the same thing.

Would you look at that? We actually agreed on something. Hell must have truly frozen over.

“But I don’t think we have any other option. The way I see it, we’re both in the same boat here. We’ve got more of a chance of pulling off an escapeifwe work together.”

“There will be no escape. Not from a man like Talon.”

A response. Oh my lord.

“You’re not even going to try?”

“There would be no point.” He kept his head forward, not looking at me as he spoke. “Talon is smart. With unlimited resources. Look what he’s done here. A twenty-person security escort for two people? Not to mention all of this.” He thrashed with frustration, making the chains wrapped around him rattle. “He’s not taking any chances with me. There’s too much history between us. Too much bad blood. He’s not going to risk wasting this opportunity. It’s just not going to happen.”

“You seem to know him well,” I observed.

“Well enough,” he said plainly.

My eyes narrowed with suspicion. “You know why he spent a small fortune to buy us from your brother, don’t you?”

“I know why he boughtme.” He finally looked at me, staring right into my eyes. I felt like he could see into my goddamn soul. He had such a penetrating gaze, filled with so much darkness. It was a little eerie, having all his focus like that.

My heart thumped a little faster in my chest. He really was quite nice to look at. All those hard, sculpted lines of his face. The jaw that was so sharp, I could cut glass on it. Being a cunt didn’t make him any less attractive, unfortunately.

“You, though,” he continued, completely unaware of the thoughts flying through my mind—thank god.The last thing I needed was him knowing I was hot for him. “Well, that’s the real question, now, isn’t it? He looked right at you as if he recognised you.”

That wasn't possible.

“I don’t see how. I’ve never seen him before. Never met him. Didn’t even know his name until I heard you say it.”

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