Page 73 of Arranged with Twins
I’m restrained to a metal chair in a room I don’t recognize. The walls and floor are concrete, painted white but stained with rust or blood in the corners. A single bulb hangs from the ceiling, creating harsh shadows that make everything look stark and threatening.
Memory crashes back in fragments as I recall the men on the street, the gunfight, and the syringe piercing my neck… I force myself to open my eyes slowly, fighting waves of nausea that threaten to bring up what little I ate today. The room spins violently before settling, and I take careful breaths until my stomach stops churning.
“You’re awake.”
The voice comes from a chair in the corner I hadn’t noticed. I turn as much as I can toward the speaker and see a man I don’t recognize. He’s tall and lean, with dark blond hair and cold blue-gray eyes. He wears an expensive suit that seems out of place in this sterile prison.
“Who are you?” My voice comes out hoarse and cracked.
“Adrian Petrov.” He stands and moves closer with an air of menace. “I believe your fiancé might have mentioned me.”
This is Leo’s former protégé turned enemy, and also the man my father supposedly owes fifteen million dollars. “Where am I?”
“Somewhere safe.” Adrian hovers over my chair, which makes me tremble before I can hide it. “We’re somewhere Leo won’t reach you easily.”
I try to scoot away from him, but there’s nowhere to go. The wall is at my back, and he blocks the only path toward the door. “What do you want?”
“What I’ve always wanted.” His smile is cold and calculated. “Leo’s empire, his territories, and his influence. You’re simply the key that unlocks all of it.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Of course, you don’t.” Adrian reaches out to stroke my cheek, and I flinch away from his touch. “Your parents have been very helpful, though not quite helpful enough. Vincent’s information has been valuable, but I needed more direct leverage.”
My parents. The words increase my nausea. “You’re lying.”
“Am I?” He pulls out his phone and shows me a text message. The screen displays a conversation between him and someone listed as “KC,” which is mostly likely Katherine Cooper.
Package delivered safely?reads the most recent message, sent just a few hours ago.
Yes. As discussed. No complications.comes the reply.
My stomach drops. “Mother wouldn’t?—”
“Wouldn’t sell her daughter to maintain her lifestyle?” He laughs, and the sound is sharp and ugly. “Katherine Cooper is many things, but self-sacrificing isn’t one of them.”
I stare at the text exchange, my mother’s initials clear at the top of the screen. The betrayal cuts deeper than I thought possible. “She knows you took me.”
“She suggested the timing.” Adrian puts away the phone with deliberate care. “Your mother was concerned you were getting too attached to Leo, and you might not cooperate with their long-term plans for the marriage.”
I frown. “What long-term plans?”
“You were to divorce him once the Cooper finances stabilized, of course. Her idea was for you to take half his assets in the settlement, then remarry someone more suitable to your parents’ social aspirations.” Adrian’s tone is casual, as if he’s discussing the weather. “Your growing feelings for Leo threatened that strategy. I couldn’t entirely convince Katherine that Leo would be dead within months, and she insisted on her back-up plan.” He slants me a look as he says dryly, “You know how difficult it is to argue with that woman.”
The room tilts around me. Everything I believed about my parents and their motivations for the arranged marriage crumbles into dust. I knew they were expecting us to divorce in a couple of years. I had expected the same at the beginning, but it didn’t occur to me that Mother would actively meddle to prevent my happiness if it wasn’t with a man she deemed suitable once Leo was no longer of use to her.
“Vincent’s been stalling on intelligence payments, so Katherine and I agreed that more persuasive leverage was needed.” Adrian continues his explanation with clinical detachment. “You, my dear, are that leverage.”
My hands shake against the zip ties. “What are you going to do?”
“That depends on Leo.” Adrian stands and moves toward a small table where several items are laid out with surgical precision, including knives of various sizes, pliers, and other instruments I don’t want to identify. “If he’s smart, he’ll turn over his shipping routes, his client lists, and his operational territories in exchange for your safe return.”
My mouth goes dry. “What if he doesn’t?”
“Then I’ll send him pieces of you until he changes his mind.” Adrian picks up a small, sharp blade and tests its edge against his thumb. A thin line of blood appears. “Starting with fingers, then moving to more essential parts.”
Terror floods my system, but I force myself to stay calm. Panic won’t help me survive this, and I need to survive for my babies. “He’ll never negotiate with you.”
“Won’t he?” Adrian turns back to me, the bloody knife still in his hand. “I worked under Leo for years, learned from him,and studied his methods. His weakness has always been his insistence on loyalty.”
