Page 155 of Konstantin
I pull up the tracking app for the bracelet.
But a harsh chuckle escapes me as soon as I realize it’s still at the farmhouse. She removed it.
My blood turns to ice.
“Chorti materi!” I snarl, slamming my fist against the steering wheel.Motherfucker!
Throwing the SUV into gear, I fly down the road, tires screaming as I tear toward the farmhouse. My foot doesn’t leave the gas pedal until I’m skidding to a halt in the gravel, leaping out before the engine even dies. The two men I left posted with her stiffen when they see me.
“Where is her bracelet?” I demand.
One of them points to a small side table just inside the doorway. “She wanted to take it off. Sorry, boss.”
“Yeah?” I growl, pulling the remote from my pocket and powering it down. “Youwillbe sorry.” I tuck the bracelet into my pocket and face them again. “Don’t tell anyone else about this, or you die. Understand?”
They both nod.
Rushing back to my car, I punch in the GPS for the SUV she stole as I race down the road.
She has a head start, but I can still catch her. I have to.
Because she’s not just running toward danger. She’s carrying our future with her.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
EMILIA
As I siton the edge of the bed in the dingy motel room, the air feels thick and stagnant, carrying a faint smell of mildew. I grip the burner phone I grabbed from a shady convenience store while the clerk was in the back, my fingers trembling as I dial Nate’s number.
The phone rings, and I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping my brother answers. I don’t know how much time I have before someone tracks me down. The seconds feel like hours, but finally, I hear him.
“Hello?”
“Hey, Nate.”
“Em? What’s going on? What happened to your phone?”
I lean back, running my hand through my hair. “I-I’m on the run. I had to leave. It’s bad.” I pause, struggling to find the right words. “He knows. Konstantin knows everything.”
Silence stretches on the other end for a moment, as if he’s tryingto grasp the full impact of what I just said.
“What do you mean he knows? How?”
“He got a file.” My lashes fall shut. “One with my real identity. Your identity. He…he must have gotten it from Gerardo, though it was anonymous. But it had to be him. Fiona and Riley are the only other two who knew what I was doing, and they wouldn’t do this to us.”
“Shit…” He exhales sharply, his anger palpable even through the phone. “That fucking bastard.”
“Yeah,” I whisper, not sure what to do or say anymore.
I can almost hear Nate moving around, his frustration growing as fast as mine. “You have to lie low. Don’t trust anyone, Em. We’ll figure this out. Once we bring Gerardo down, we’ll run. You and me. Somewhere far, just like we dreamed about when we were kids.”
The idea of running, of leaving everything behind, twists something in my chest. The thought of not watching Konstantin become a father, of walking away from the family we could have, rips at me in a way I never expected.
Despite everything he’s done, the way he chained me to the floor, there’s a part of me that can’t shake the sadness that settles deep in my bones at the thought of leaving him. Of the possibility that we could never be a family.
When I found out I was pregnant in the hospital, it felt surreal. So much so, I took a test at home just to be sure. I was on the pill, thought I was safe, but I was wrong. The doctor told me privately, unsure if I knew, but I didn’t.
I hadn’t even noticed I’d missed my period, too overwhelmed by everything else going on. Now, holding on to this knowledge, I want this baby. I want Konstantin.
