Page 101 of Beautiful Beast

But right now, I just can’t be in that house a second longer after killing Alek and watching Erik fight with my father.

I drive down to the gate, where the guard is managing it. “Let me out, Jerry.”

“Sorry, Anya. Orders to not let anyone leave at this moment.”

“Just let me out. I’m not trying to run. Erik has a tracker on this car, I know it. So, I’m not escaping. I just need to get out and clear my thoughts. You understand?”

Jerry sighs deeply before he nods and opens the gate for me.

“Thank you.” I drive away before he can respond.

I make it to the closet café, which is about a thirty minutes away from the house, given how secluded Erik’s mansion is, and sit down at a table, still wearing my nice evening dress, and ignore the looks other customers give me.

What just happened tonight? I killed a man. I was punished for it but not really. Erik didn’t hurt me.

Because he didn’t want to hurt me, I realize. Maybe he’s starting to care more than I thought. He punched my father for hitting me. Erik believed me when it came to the Alek incident.

All these facts combined are impossible for me to ignore.

I’m starting to actually like my husband, and I don’t know what to do with it. He’s the boogeyman, but he’s not to me. How does one even process something like this?

I drop my head into my hands and let everything I’m feeling wash over me.

And that’s when I hear the bell above the door ding as someone walks in. A chill down my spine tells me to look up. When I do, I see two men standing by my table.

They’re young. Both in black suits. One has reddish, brown hair, and the other has black hair. Despite this difference, they both look similar, like they could be related.

They look down at me with smirks.

“Did you need something?” I ask.

“Yes,” the black-haired one speaks. “We need you to come with us.”

I glance around the café and find no one is looking at me anymore. I’m on my own. These two men are dangerous. I feel itin my bones. If I screamed for help, would anyone actually help me?

He leans on the table and lowers his voice. “If you don’t come with us, we won’t hesitate to kill everyone else in this room. So, if you’re a good person, you won’t make a scene, and you’ll come with us.”

I lick my dry lips. “Where?”

“To meet Dante. I’m sure you’ve heard of him by now, seeing as you’re Erik Koslov’s wife and all. He wants to meet you.”

“We’ve already met.” I’m trying for bravery, but my voice is too weak to pull it off.

“Then he wants to meet you properly. Come with us, and there won’t be any problems. Dante doesn’t want to hurt you. He just wants your husband. We’ve heard you hate him, so you’ll have no issue giving him up. Yes?”

Every instinct inside me wants to run for the door and drive back to Erik. But I don’t know these men. I don’t know how serious their threat is, and I can’t risk the death of other people. Nadia would be ashamed of me if I did that.

“I’ll go with you,” I whisper.

He stands back and flashes me a smile. “Great. Once you’re there with Dante, all you have to do is call your husband and have him come meet us. Once you’ve done that, we’ll let you go. No harm, no foul.”

Bullshit. Something tells me I won’t make it out of this alive. Not without Erik’s help.

I need my husband. It’s the first time I’ve ever truly wanted him with me. But now, it might be too late.

I follow the two men out of the café without any fuss. “What are your names, anyway?”

“Finn,” the black-haired one says. “And that’s my brother, Aiden.”

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