Page 76 of Sinful Embers

“What?” I growl.

Dmitri nods. “Carlos killed Gunther. And he shot your father just before the feed was cut.”

Judy and Viktor step forward. Viktor lifts his shirt, revealing scars—horrible, deep, whip scars.

“You’re Tor?” I breathe.

Viktor nods. “Your father and Gunther chained me. Stripped me. Whipped me. Sodomized me. And Vivienne… she raped me. Then made me watch as they did the same to Judy.”

Judy nods, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “One brave twelve-year-old saved us. And she didn’t shoot your father—Gunther did. On purpose. He was jealous. He wanted Vivienne to himself.”

My chest tightens. My jaw locks.

Judy hands me a thumb drive.

“It’s all on there,” she whispers. “Everything.”

I don’t know what to say.

Dmitri steps forward. “Leigh saved my life when she was three. She is one of the bravest, most loyal, compassionate people I know. I’ve seen that video feed, Radomir. It’s rough. But trust me, I will protect her with my life.”

Sabrina pulls something from her pocket and hands it to me.

A pregnancy test.

Two pink lines.

My world tilts.

Sabrina smirks. “Looks like you’ve got another reason to find her, Daddy.”

Chapter 20

LEIGH

The ropes bite into my wrists, the rough fibers cutting into my skin with every slight movement. Carlos sits across from me, his dark eyes alight with an unsettling glee, his hands meticulously cleaning a knife as if he has all the time in the world.

"You know, princess it didn’t have to be this way," he muses, tilting his head. "You could have been useful. Beautiful, intelligent, with blood more valuable than gold. But no, you had to play house with Radomir. Such a waste."

I refuse to give him the satisfaction of a response, even as my pulse hammers in my throat. I’m terrified—not for myself, but for the life inside me. My baby. Radomir’s baby.

Carlos sighs, as if truly disappointed. "He won’t come for you, you know. And if he does, well—" He twirls the knife between his fingers, a slow, deliberate movement that makes my stomach churn. "He’ll die. They all will."

I lift my chin, my voice steady despite the fear twisting in my gut. "You’re delusional."

Carlos laughs, the sound grating against my nerves. "Oh, darling, I’ve been called much worse. But at least I’m not a fool in love."

My fingers curl into fists behind my back. I refuse to let him see me break.

RADOMIR

I crouch behind a fallen tree, my eyes scanning the perimeter of the cabin through the dense tree line. Sam, the caretaker, had been knocked out cold, left to bleed in the dirt. The bastards had taken over his cabin—the only one left standing after Sabrina blew the other to hell. She had actually pouted when she realized Carlos wasn’t inside it. "Would’ve saved us the trouble," she had muttered.

Now, we prepare. I glance at the people who have gathered—my family, my men, my allies. Dmitri, bruised and sick but standing firm. Viktor, already perched in a sniper’s nest, his scope locked on the target. Sabrina, her eyes burning with determination. Oleksi, Judy, and Viktor standing together, a united front I never thought I’d see. Even Gunner, the cold-hearted torturer, looks ready to rip Carlos apart with his bare hands.

I swallow hard, my throat tight. Leigh did this. Her loyalty, her love, her bravery—it brought them all here.

And now, we’re going to get her back.

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