Page 90 of Darkest Game
Denis tosses Ana to the ground at Elaine’s feet. “I got her like you wanted.”
“What are you doing?” I ask. “My sister has no part in this.”
“She’s related to you. She does have a part in this. I’m going to make your entire family suffer like how you’ve made me suffer. Anastasia is just the first.”
“How did you take her?” I ask Denis. “How?”
“I gave him some of my men,” Elaine explains.
“We shot down Mikhail’s guards,” Denis says. “After that, it was easy to find Ana and take her. I would have taken Sasha and Natalya too but they weren’t there.”
Sasha must be at her home with Nico and Natalya is at the hospital with Mikhail. That only leaves one person.
“My mom?”
“Tatiana, that bitch,” Denis hisses. “I would have killed her but she ran. I took Ana when I had the chance and came right here. That bitch didn’t even save her own daughter. What kind of mother is that?”
“My mom is a good mother,” I say. “Don’t you talk bad about her. Not you. Not after what you did to us for years.”
Denis sneers at me and kicks Ana in the stomach. Her scream of pain makes me drop to my knees.
“Ana, I’m here,” I say, pushing her hair out of her face. “I’m here. Ok? I’ve got you.” I look up at Elaine. “Leave her alone. It’s me you want to hurt.”
“And I am going to hurt you. But I know that seeing your sister raped is going to be the greatest suffering you can imagine. You’ll watch her be raped, and then you’ll be raped yourself. All the men in this room are eager to take you. Both of you. Now they just have extra. Right, men?”
I watch in horror as the men in the room only look more hungry as they gaze down at Ana. I can hear some of them murmuring amongst themselves, saying how hot it is that I’m crying or how hot it is that Ana looks as young as she is. I have to push back vomit from escaping my mouth.
Elaine is right. Torturing my baby sister is a surefire way to make me hurt.
But she has gotten something wrong. By giving me someone to fight for, I am going to make her pay.
No longer the shy girl I once was. In the past couple of weeks, I have changed drastically and I can thank Elaine for that.
There’s no way Ana and I can fight our way out of here. We have no weapons and we’re only two women in a room full of men. But I am going to take Elaine down with me.
There’s just something I have to try first.
“Denis,” I say. “Uncle. Leave Ana out of this. You know it’s wrong. She’s innocent in this.”
“Is she?” He sneers. “She would snap back at me all the time. Out of all of your sisters, she was the one I hated the most. I’m not angry to see her get hurt. You can’t appeal to my nice side, niece.”
“I’ll be your prisoner again,” I offer. “If you help me. I’ll stay with you. You can act as my father. I always know you wanted to be my father. I’ll even call you ‘dad.’ If you just save Ana. I’ll go with you. You know I will.”
Denis stares back at me with curious eyes. “You’d really do that?”
“Denis,” Elaine barks.
“I would,” I say, keeping my eyes glued to him. “I will do all of that. And I won’t complain. You wanted me and my sisters as your actual daughters. You can marry me off to someone else for political gain. I will let you. Just save Ana.”
“Don’t listen to her,” Elaine says but I can see Denis wavering. I’m giving him all he’s ever wanted. To be my father. To be better than my father.
Ana sobs as she curls into a ball. I run my hands over her head, shushing her. I wish I had the strength Natalya and Sasha have as big sisters. But they’re not here right now. Ana only has me.
And I can’t be weak. For her. For myself.
“I will go with you,” I say to Denis. “Right now. Just kill her.”
In one fast move, Denis pulls his gun out but before he can fire it off, another man runs at Denis and tackles him to the ground. Elaine flinches back.
