Page 6 of Beautiful Agony

She wraps her arms around herself, her voice trembling. "For days, this black Mercedes kept showing up. Outside our house, near my school. Mom was terrified but wouldn't tell me why."

"Then this morning, I was driving home from swim practice. These cars came out of nowhere. Forced me off the road near the bridge." Her fingers dig into her arms. "This tall woman with the most terrifying blue eyes got out. She said if I didn't come with her quietly..." Serena swallows hard. "She said she'd hurt Mom. She'd hurt Dad."

Olga. I realize, bile rising in my throat. The same woman who promised to help me escape. The same woman who betrayed me.

Of course, I should've seen it. How could I have been so blind? So stupid?

"She brought me to the docks," Serena continues. "And that's how I ended up here."

Her voice cracks and she falls silent, staring into the darkness.

I reach for her hand, offering what little comfort I can.

"What's he like?" Serena's whispered question catches me off guard. "My brother? Mom never... she won't talk about anythingfrom before she met my dad. But I always wondered. I mean, theremustbe a past before me, right?"

I pause, weighing my words carefully. How do I explain Vadim to this her? How do I describe the complexity of a man who can order deaths one moment and tenderly kiss away my tears the next?

"Whatdoyou know?"

"I found this old photo in her dresser once," Serena pauses for a moment before she starts talking again. "She was holding a baby. She looked so young and beautiful. But when I asked her about it, she got really mad, changed the subject, and told me to never talk about it again."

My heart aches. I think of Vadim's pain whenever Polina rejects him, the way his eyes cloud with hurt before his mask slips back into place.

"Your brother is..." I trail off, searching for words that won't frighten her. "He's extraordinary. Brilliant and determined. When he sets his mind to something, nothing can stop him."

Like dismantling a human trafficking empire piece by piece. Like avenging every woman who's suffered at Kirsan's hands.

"He'll come for us," I say with more conviction than I feel. "He'll find us and get us out of here."

The moment the words leave my mouth, doubt creeps in. How could Vadim possibly track one shipping container? What if Kirsan kills us before he can reach us?

Or separates us?

I mentally shake myself. No. I've seen what Vadim can do. I've witnessed his power, his resources, his relentless drive. If anyone can find us, it's him.

"Really?" Serena's voice is small, hopeful. "You're sure?"

"Yes," I say firmly, squashing my earlier doubt. "I'm sure."

The container jerks to a sudden stop, throwing us against each other. Metal groans and squeals as the doors are yanked open, and our prison is filled with the earthy smell of rain.

My heart drops as Sayanaa's silhouette appears, flanked by men with raised guns.

"Get out," she orders, her voice hard as iron. "All of you."

Nobody moves. The women around me press closer together, as if our combined fear might somehow shield us. Sayanaa's lips curve into a cruel smile.

"Ugh, Tuvans." She barks at them in a language I've never heard before. One that sounds nothing like the rolling rhythm of Russian.

The women still don't move.

Sighing, Sayanaa nods to one of her men. The gunshot is deafening in the enclosed space. The woman by the entrance crumples, blood blooming across her chest. Screams erupt around me, echoing off the metal walls.

Sayanaa's voice cuts through the chaos like a blade, speaking that unknown language at them.

Finally, women start scrambling out, pushing and shoving in their desperation to get away from the corpse beside them. Beside me, Serena's hand tightens around mine, her grip almostpainful. I look down and see those storm-gray eyes—so like Vadim's—wide with naked fear for the first time since I met her.

I squeeze back, trying to offer what little comfort I can even as my own terror threatens to overwhelm me. The familiar weight of Mom's necklace is gone, crushed under Sayanaa's heel, and with it any illusion of safety I might have clung to.

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