Page 93 of Dangerous Beginnings

Chapter 51

Chains of Desire

Isabella

As we get into the car, a heavy silence descends upon us like a suffocating blanket. My heart pounds in my chest, the alcohol coursing through my veins amplifying my anxiety. I steal a glance at Aslanov, but his expression remains inscrutable, his features carved from stone.

The car glides through the streets of Moscow, the city lights casting eerie shadows across the interior. My mind races with a thousand questions, but I know better than to voice them in the oppressive silence that surrounds us.

Just when I think we’re headed back to the mansion, the car suddenly veers off course, turning left into the dense woods that border the outskirts of the city. My breath catches in my throat as a sense of dread washes over me like a tidal wave.Fuck.

My fingers tremble as I grip the edge of my seat, my eyes darting nervously to the dark expanse of trees outside the window. The silence in the car is deafening, broken only by the soft hum of the engine and the rhythmic beat of my heart.

Aslanov’s gaze remains fixed on the road ahead, his hands steady on the steering wheel. His silence is suffocating, his intentions veiled behind a mask of impassivity. My mind races with fear and anticipation, my thoughts consumed by the unknown. The car continues to wind its way through the labyrinth of trees, the darkness closing in around us like a vice. My pulse quickens with each passing moment, my senses heightened to the point of overload. And then, just when I fear I can’t bear the tension any longer, the car comes to a stop in asmall clearing deep within the woods.

As the car comes to a halt in the heart of the dense forest, my eyes widen as I take in my surroundings. To my right, nestled among the towering trees, stands a rustic wooden cabin overlooking a serene lake. The scene before me is both beautiful and haunting, the eerie silence of the forest lending an air of mystery to the secluded spot. This is not the mansion. My heart races with a mixture of fear and fascination as I realize I’ve never been here before. I cast a hesitant glance at Aslanov, but his expression remains unreadable as he steps out of the car and strides around to my side.

With a silent command, he opens the car door, his gaze fixed on me with a silent intensity that sends a shiver down my spine.

His hand wraps around my throat, applying light pressure as he pushes me against the leather car seat.

“Are you scared of me?” His lips were so dangerously close to my ear, sending shivers down my spine. I hesitantly shake my head. “Say it.” His command makes my hair stand up straight, yet my mouth speaks for me.

“I am not scared of you.” Barely above a whisper.But I am.He doesn’t move, instead he watches me. I breathe out, “What’s stopping you?” A mere breath of a whisper.

“Our agreement, yourconsent.” I stare at him in disbelief, and I swallow.No Isabella, do not, I repeat; do not give him your consent.

A stupid grin appears on his face, while his eyes darken a little. My breath quickens and my heart rate rises. He seems to notice the war within my head, and he’s winning, again. His finger runs along my jaw.

“That’s it, “he mumbles, “Give into it.”

A full-body shiver runs down my spine and back up. The cold air hits my face. But the edge is gone, alcohol courses through my blood. I taste fear on my tongue like a bad omen. I whisperthe omen, my voice barely above a breathless murmur. “Yes.”

“Yes, what?” He clarifies.

I stare at him. “You have my consent.”

His lips curve into an evil smile, a silent acknowledgment of his victory over me. His hot breath comes near my ear. “You should have never given me that consent.” He applies more pressure on my neck, “I am now able to do terrible, awful things to you.” I shiver, lips trembling.

My heart pounds in my chest as I watch Aslanov walk to the back of the car, the trunk. I watch him in the viewfinder, he retrieves zip ties. My breath catches in my throat as a sense of dread washes over me.

When he comes back, I offer no resistance as he secures my wrists and then ankles with ruthless efficiency, the plastic biting into my skin with each tight loop.

A whimper escapes my lips as he turns me around, his touch sending shivers down my spine as he tightens them even further. A painful cry echoes from my lips. But the cry isn’t long heard as a piece of tape covers my dry lips and another one. I whimper into the tape.

I feel exposed and vulnerable, utterly at his mercy as he effortlessly lifts me over his shoulder, my body hanging limply against his back. I widen my eyes as he carries me like a bag of potatoes towards the cabin. My breath picks up and I wonder if the Devil will kill me tonight—in pleasurable ways. We enter the cabin, and a warmth washes over me, the fireplace is burning.

“Scared yet?” His voice cuts through the silence like a knife, his eyes ablaze with a cruel intensity that sends shivers down my spine.

As he carries me into the cabin, I know that I am about to confront the true extent of his power—and the depths of my own fear.

He positions me onto a chair in the center of the dimly lit cabinnext to the fireplace, a shiver courses through my spine despite the heat of the fire, my every instinct screaming for escape. With a predatory grace, he approaches me, his finger tracing the curve of my jaw with a chilling tenderness that belies the darkness lurking within him.

But as he moves behind me, his touch turns cruel, his fingers gripping my ponytail with a force that sends waves of pain radiating through my skull. I scream into the tape, the sound muffled by its suffocating grip as I struggle against my restraints.

With a sinistercalmness, he locks the door and closes all the blinds, casting the cabin into an eerie darkness that mirrors the depths of his twisted desires. The silence that follows is deafening, broken only by the steady rhythm of his boots against the wooden floor, each step a chilling reminder of the predator that lurks within.

The last window closes with a loud bang, and I flinch. No longer able to suppress some of the fear inside of me. Trapped in the suffocating confines of the cabin, my heart races with a primal fear, my every breath a desperate plea for salvation from the darkness that threatens to consume me whole.

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