Page 6 of Devious Secrets

“Let go,” I urge again.

He drops my hair and brings his dark eyes back to mine.

“How did you get this uniform?” He flicks the lapel of the black vest.

“From the storage room. I came in with the other staff.”

His eyes narrow. “Identification is checked at the staff entrance.”

I nod. “Yeah, there was a guy there, but he got a phone call and just waved us in.” I had thanked the stars and the moon for that bit of luck, but it seems my luck has run out.

He drops his hand from my throat and pulls a phone from the inside pocket of his suit jacket. With his eyes locked on me, he presses the phone to his ear.

“Send Igor to me,” he orders, then hangs up.

“This was obviously a huge mistake and I’m sorry if I messed up your night. It sounds like you have a lot going on. You can just let me go.” I grab the handle and shove it downward, but it’s still locked.

He moves to the desk and leans back against it, folding his arms over his chest. Moments tick by, and I continue to rack my brain for a way out of this room and this building. The entire time he watches me, as though he’s trying to figure me out.

Well, good luck to him, because I haven’t recognized myself in months.

There’s a knock on the door behind me, breaking the silence of the room. Alexander steps up to me, waiting for me to stand aside before reaching for the door. He slides the plate of the handle to the left before turning it downward. It opens up.

“Come inside.” He pulls the door open enough for Igor to step in and shuts it before I can move a single muscle toward it.

“You needed something?” Igor’s a rough-looking man.

A jagged scar runs across his neck, like someone tried slitting his throat once. His hair is shaved short, showing two more scars on his scalp.

“You were in charge of security at the employee entrance tonight,” Alexander states as a matter of fact.

Igor glances my way, his jaw tightening. Word must have spread already about my appearance in the office.

“I was.” He rolls his shoulders back, bracing himself.

“You checked every badge?” Alexander’s face is emotionless.

Igor’s Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows hard. “I got a call. I missed a few.”

The conversation switches to Russian. Alexander’s tone never wavers. Igor’s jaw tightens even more and by the end of the conversation, he gives a hard nod and agrees to whatever Alexander is saying.

“Make your offer,” Alexander states.

Igor lifts his left arm, offering his hand to Alexander. My mouth dries when I realize his pinky finger is missing the tip. What the hell is happening here?

“What are you doing?” I try to get my feet to move, but I’m glued to the floor by my own fear.

Alexander ignores my question as he grasps Igor’s hand, bending it at the wrist until his fingers are all pointed upward. Holding the hand with one hand, he grasps Igor’s pinky just above the second knuckle with his other. Muttering something in Russian, Alexander twists the finger while shoving it backward away from the joint at the same time.

A snap crackles the air just before Igor lets out a tortured groan. His finger is bent in the wrong direction at the second knuckle.

My stomach rolls.

Alexander snaps an order, and Igor covers his broken finger with his other hand and nods. Without another word, he opens the door and exits, his face pale as he cradles his broken finger against his chest.

“Why did you do that?” I shout. “You didn’t have to do that!”

Alexander shuts the door, sliding the lock back in place before standing toe to toe with me again.

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