Page 23 of His Order

“Time for you and me to go for a little ride,” he says evilly. “I think it’s time I let your boyfriend know that we are together.”

Those are the last words I hear before it all goes black for me.

***

I wake up to a heavy silence. Not the calming kind. My skull pulses with a dull, rhythmic throb. I feel the dripping of what I can only think is blood on the side of my head. My ribs scream every time I inhale.

My wrists are bound. They are twisted behind my back. Panic coils low in my belly. I know this place.

He brought me back. To the penthouse. His penthouse. The one Pavel kept me in at the start of this torrid nightmare. The irony is a blade against my throat.

It’s him. Dmitri. I hear the click of a lighter before I see him.

A single flame flares to life across the room. He lights a cigar with practiced ease, the embers glowing as he takes a long, slow drag.

“You’re awake. I was starting to get bored.”

My eyes adjust, and I see him sitting in the leather armchair, legs crossed, gun resting casually on the armrest beside him.

“I was starting to worry that I’d hit you too hard,” he adds. “We got a little blood on you, but no matter what, we need to sell this to your boyfriend.”

I am barely clinging to consciousness. The low ringing in my ear easily disorientates me. I shift upright, wincing at the sting in my ribs, the bite of the cords against my skin. I don’t answer him. I won’t give him the satisfaction.

His eyes scan me—every inch.

“Pavel’s always been careless with his toys,” he murmurs, blowing smoke toward the ceiling. “But I admit, Iunderestimated you. The lamp stunt?Did you grab a lamp to throw at me? Bold. Stupid, but bold.”

I glare at him. “You killed my brother.”

A slow, easy smile makes its way to his lips. “Oh, I know. Your point?”

I grind my teeth. “I am going to kill you for that.”

He tilts his head and chuckles. “You’re not in a position to even manage that, sweetheart.”

“You underestimated me,” he says, his voice soft but laced with venom. “You thought you could manipulate Pavel, play him like a puppet. But you were wrong.”

He reaches out and touches my cheek with a cold, smooth finger. His touch sends shivers down my spine, not from desire but from fear.

“I’m the one who pulls the strings, darling. I’m the one in control.”

He leans in, his lips brushing against my ear. “And now,” he whispers, “you are here. In front of me. You will beg for your life. Suka. Who do you think you are to breach my firewall? Breaking my encryption? Do you think you can enter my kingdom and get away with it?”

“Let’s see how much you’re worth to Pavel,” he says. “My money is on him racing to come back to you. Like the little pathetic Romeo, he is.”

“Sad,” My head hangs low a bit, and the pressure in my skull increases. “I thought you to be some kind of king. But you look pathetic. I am just a little girl, and I made you nervous. You are afraid of me.”

He crouches in front of me. His fingers reach out, almost claw-like, to brush a strand of hair from my face. I recoil violently, heart pounding, a surge of adrenaline compelling me to pull away as if from a dangerous predator.

He laughs. “Still a fighter. You really do remind me of your brother.”

My blood runs cold.

“Go to hell,” I spit.

Dmitri's face does a subtle tango of emotions.“You are quite the beauty—I must say. Maybe I have a little fun with you after I am done with Pavel. That fucker knew that there is a bounty on your head and he kept you away from me. Why?”

I meet his gaze, forcing myself not to flinch at the nearness of him. “I see you are not that smart either.”

---