Page 58 of Forced Bratva Hostage

With her head steady, her clear eyes moved in the direction of his finger, tracking his motion with precise efficiency.

“Excellent.” He set the penlight down on the nearest table, his hands grasping the stethoscope around his neck.

With it, he listened to her heartbeat and then her lungs, his brows furrowing slightly, accentuating the concentration etched on his face.

I stood a few paces across from her, my worried eyes cast on her relaxed form as I leaned against the wall, arms folded. A gentle smile played on my lips; however, deep down, I was still a little shaken up by the whole incident.

I'd never been more afraid in my life than I was a few hours ago. Seeing her strapped to that chair with a collar bomb around her neck had scared the living daylights out of me. I used to think that I had grown above the concept of fear; I honestly used to believe that nothing could scare me.

But the thought of losing Wren in one the most gruesome ways ever ripped my heart to shreds. I couldn't stomach it. Iwouldn't know what would have become of me if that bomb had gone off before my arrival.

I did know this, though; I would have tracked that bastard, Kolya, and he would have suffered a fate far worse than what he had.

In my head, his screams still echoed, his face scrunched up in pain, and agony flashed across it constantly, calming my nerves. He wouldn't hurt anyone ever again, not while he was being holed up in a basement fifteen feet below.

I’d had that basement built two years ago, but I hadn't tested it yet, until now. I called it “inferno,” Latin forhell, a literal place of darkness, pain, and torture. It was, indeed, hell on Earth, and Kolya was my first candidate—oh, the things I would do to that bastard.

Killing him would be merciful, and he was undeserving of mercy; he would suffer for what he had done. Stealing from me was one thing, but kidnapping my pregnant wife—that was a transgression that I wouldn't forgive.

Kolya would feel the heat of hell on Earth. I would personally torture him for as long as I wanted until he begged for death. But unfortunately for him, killing him was not on my agenda. My plans involved all manner of pain and torment, but death was not one of them. At least not yet, anyway.

I'd torture him here on Earth, breaking his spirit, soul, and body until there was nothing left of him. And then, with a smirk on my face, I'd gladly send him to hell to be finished by the devil himself.

My lips curled into a self-satisfied grin at the thought of my evil plan. I found peace and comfort in the fact that he was down, fifteen feet below, a place where no one could hear his screams. I basked in that knowledge, delighted by it.

“Let's check on the little one, shall we?” Dr. Lee's voice snapped me back to the present.

A warm smile spread across his face as he gently pressed his fingers over her belly before grabbing a handheld device from the table. I figured that was a fetal Doppler ultrasound that would detect the baby's heartbeat.

“Raise your shirt, please,” he instructed.

Wren heaved a soft sigh, her hands lifting the hem of her gown, allowing him access to her bare belly. He applied the clear ultrasound gel to her abdomen, then positioned the Doppler device against her skin, its soft whooshing sound filling the room as it detected the baby's heartbeat.

Wren jerked her head, her eyes flickering with wonder as her face lit with a bright, contiguous smile.

“The baby's fine,” he announced, beaming. “Its heartbeat is strong and steady.”

I heaved a deep sigh and headed over to her, taking her hand in mine. It seemed soft, like the gesture of a weakling, yet it felt so right. Fingers intertwined, we stared at each other for a moment, with me towering over her.

“It's my pleasure to announce to you that, considering what she's been through, both Mrs. Tarasov and the baby are fine,” Dr. Lee said, his lips curling into a smile and his tone reassuring. “There's nothing to worry about.”

Her soft exhale was laced with relief as she looked up at me, her eyes shining with gratitude.

A slow, easy grin crept onto my face, a sense of calmness overshadowing me. “Thank you, doctor.”

“You're welcome,” he said, beaming. “I'll leave you two to it then.”

Dr. Lee dematerialized.

I gently squeezed her fingers as we locked eyes in silence, our lips parting into small smiles.

Taking her hand, I held her up, and she waltzed behind the curtain to change back into her dress.

The thing with Veronica was still left addressed, and although Wren had been smiling with me since the incident with Kolya, I knew this shouldn't be swept under the rug. She at least deserved an explanation.

My grip tightened around the steering wheel as I drove through the streak of cars on the highway. Momentarily, I'd steal glances at my wife, wondering how to best start the conversation.

Bringing the vehicle to a halt in traffic, I killed the engine, waiting for the light to turn green.

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