Page 83 of Forced Bratva Hostage

He pushes me forward a bit. “This is my sister, Tatiana,” he says. “She’s my only family, and I love her dearly.” He laughs. “Just yesterday though, she told me she wanted to start looking for a husband. Can you believe it?” he says, jokingly, but not joking at all.

“Mm. She’s gorgeous,” one of the men remarks, his eyes dragging up and down over my body while he speaks about me like I’m not even in the room. I smile as sweetly as I can, biting my tongue to stop myself from saying anything that will do damage.

Patience, Tia. You have to trust that Andrei will come.

“I assume you’re willing to make a deal?” a man says. He looks like he’s in his late fifties, and I swallow hard as his eyes meet mine, and I see a coldness in him.

“I’m sure there are going to be competitive offers this evening; whatever you come up with has to be worth my while,” Boris says, as negotiations begin.

“You do your rounds tonight, and at the end of the evening, you tell me who your highest bidder is. I assure you—I will double whatever they’re offering.”

My heart sinks. This man is hell-bent on winning me, as though the entire thing is a game of poker and I’m a prize.

“We’ll talk later. Gentleman, enjoy the party.” Boris smiles, satisfied with the interaction. He pulls me away, and I turn to look at him with a strained expression.

“Please, not him, Boris,” I whisper.

“Shut up,” he hisses. “I will make the decision based purely on what value they give me. I will get the most out of you.” He snaps under his breath.

Looking around, I’m searching for Andrei again, terrified that Boris will sell me off tonight, and I won’t even get to go home.

Please come.

Just as I think the words, Andrei steps out in front of us with a dark smile on his lips.

“Boris, what a surprise,” he muses.

“How the fuck—” Boris snarls, reaching for his gun. “You weren’t invited,” he shouts, loud enough to draw everyone’s attention.

A murmur moves through the crowd, and the music dies down as all eyes turn towards Boris and Andrei.

“This man is not welcome here,” Boris says loudly.

Behind Andrei, three men appear; they glare at Boris, and his eyes go wide.

“Nico Andreev? Arkady? Radmir Kuznetsov—" he stammers in disbelief. “What the fuck is going on?”

Nico lifts his chin and speaks to the crowd with confidence.

“This man is not who you think he is. Boris has been playing all of you.”

“Fuck off. He’s lying. Don’t listen to him.”

“We have proof,” Andrei says. “He’s been syphoning money from every single deal he’s running. The profits are double what he says they are. He’s playing every single one of you.”

As the crowd gets more agitated, my half-brother begins to panic.

More men start to surround Boris, all of Nico’s brothers, and the Kuznetsov brothers. I don’t know them by name, but they are wearing the family crest embroidered into their jackets. I can’t believe he did it. He brought an army.

I try to step forward, to move towards Andrei.

Boris grips my arms so tight I cry out in pain and wince, falling against him as he pulls me backwards. Van arrives behind Boris, his gun in his hand, lifted as he points from one person to the other. “Back off,” he shouts.

“Put the gun down, Van,” Andrei warns him. “You’re outnumbered.”

Boris is furious. “You’re the one who’s outnumbered, Andrei. You and your friends have walked into an entire event packed with my allies. You don’t stand a chance.”

Boris searches the crowd, shouting orders. “Do something. Get rid of them.” But no one moves.

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