Page 29 of Sin of Silence

Dasha squeezed her hand. “It’s for the best. My nephew has developed an attachment to you and I’ve never seen him care about anyone other than family. I dearly hope whatever feelings he’s developing will keep you safe.”

“Why do you care?” Shaun asked, trying to understand what Dasha could gain from helping her.

Dasha’s answer was simple. “We were asked to welcome you into our family. As our family is a small one that doesn’t grow often, I take that order seriously. You are one of us and I will try my best to protect you as I would any other member of this family.”

Shaun was floored by Dasha’s words, especially since she’d only known the woman for two days. “Thank you,” she said humbly, wishing she could do more to earn the loyalty Dasha was showing her. It shouldn’t matter to Shaun; Dasha was complicit in her abduction. Yet for some reason, she couldn’t think of the older woman as a kidnapper.

Dasha took Shaun’s chin in her hand and looked at her closely, then nodded her head. “You’re attractive, you’re smart and you can communicate with him. These are all points in your favour. Let’s hope it’s enough.”

Shaun’s mouth went dry. The way Dasha was speaking it almost sounded as though her life were in danger. Would Jozef really kill her for trying to escape? He had to know she’d try.

Dasha let go of Shaun and stood, stepping away from the bed. The door opened and Jozef strode inside, his eyes immediately zeroing in on Shaun. She stood, using the bed to keep her legs steady because she was shaking like a leaf under his stern stare. Dasha walked toward him, but his gaze didn’t waver from Shaun. Dasha stopped and touched his arm.

“Go easy,” she told him. “You knew she would try to run.”

Dasha left the room, taking all the warmth with her.

Shaun tried desperately to remember everything Dasha had told her, but it all fled as she raised terrified eyes to the mobster who was slowly crossing the room toward her. Shaun wanted to back away from him but there was nowhere to go unless she crawled across the bed. She stood frozen, even as he approached her until he was standing so close, she could smell the spicy scent of his aftershave.

The scent was very appealing to Shaun. She never wore any kind of perfume, body spray or even scented deodorant. It was against hospital rules. She was so used to the smell of disinfectant cleaning solutions and antibacterial soaps that when she found a scent appealing it really drew her. Despite the danger of the situation she wanted to close the distance between them, press herself against his body and bask in his scent.

She’d felt a connection to him from the very beginning. They’d gone through several emotionally charged moments together and now they were bound to each other. It was a strange feeling. She was still terrified of him, still hyperaware of the danger of her situation, but a part of her wanted to be there, with him. Shaun was so used to taking control in the operating room that having it taken from her was a strange feeling, but not wholly unappealing.

He was standing very still, staring down at her, his expression smooth and inscrutable.

She lifted her chin. “I’m not sorry I did it.”

She wasn’t exactly going against Dasha’s advice. She wasn’t apologizing.

Jozef stiffened and his hand dropped to the holster at his waist. He wasn’t wearing a jacket so his holster was visible.

Shaun saw a splatter of blood on the cuff of his shirt. She didn’t think the blood was his, which meant he’d hurt someone since she saw him that morning. The idea made her shudder. She was so far out of her element with these people. Her entire world was geared toward preserving life, and now she found herself in the midst of a group of people who thought nothing of murder.

As his hand landed on the butt of his gun, Shaun lifted accusing eyes to meet his. “You promised you wouldn’t point a gun at me again.”

He didn’t move.

“If you shoot me, you’ll always know you broke your promise.”

He growled; a ferocious sound torn from deep in his throat. His hand snapped out so fast she didn’t have time to move out of the way. He gripped her by the throat and shoved her backwards onto the bed. She landed with a bounce, pinned to the mattress by his hand at her neck. She gripped his wrist with both of her hands as he kneeled on either side of her hips.

He squeezed until she could barely breathe and tears jumped to her eyes. She choked on a cough and struggled beneath him for a few useless seconds before forcing herself to calm down. She tried to breathe, slow and even, taking in as much air as she could.

His cold gaze didn’t leave her face. She could feel his struggle as he held her. The same struggle he’d had in the forest. Kill her, as he would kill any other witness, or allow her to live. Make her disappear or keep her locked up and force her to marry him.

She had to help him make the right choice.

Shaun took her hands away from his wrists and did her best to sign to him in the tiny space between them, using short, quick signals.

Please, I don’t want to die.

Chapter Nineteen

Jozef stared down at her, blinking until he was able to focus on her hands. She was saying,I don’t want to die, over and over. He’d had tunnel vision when he’d entered the room. From the moment Karl had told him of her escape attempt, all he’d been able to think about was getting to her, setting eyes on her. He didn’t know why, but he needed to make sure she was real and still under his care.

Once he saw that she was safe, the fury had set in. Like an inferno raging through his body, he hadn’t been able to douse the flames of his anger. He wanted to take hold of her, shake her, demand she tell him why she wanted to escape.

He knew exactly why she would want to leave. He’d be deeply surprised if she actually wanted to stay. She was everything he was not. Her life was so different from his that they never would have met in the normal course of things. Yet, Jozef had found her and taken her; now she belonged to him.

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