Page 21 of Marked (Russian Sinners 1)

My mom… My heart squeezed in agony at the memory of my mom. It was something I excelled at forgetting. Those painful last days of her life. The captivity had those memories coming back tenfold. I still missed her. The guilt ate at me slowly, and it was something that would stay with me forever.

Sergei stopped his tour at the back of his house, with a large pool stretching in front of us. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The sight in front of me was the one of serenity and beauty.

“This is my favorite part of your house, Sergei,” I exclaimed with a smile and he smiled back. “It’s beautiful.”

After the heavy topic of his past, this place felt opposite… light and tranquil. There was an eternity pool with a waterfall that gave the impression of dropping off the mountain. The rushing sounds of the water calming, it made me feel like I was in the midst of nature. There were statues at each corner of the pool. With a water fountain cascading back into the pool, it created a serene and calming environment.

Sergei’s phone rang and he answered in Russian.

After a few words, he hung up, looking at me. “I have to go. If you want to go for a swim, feel free.”

“I won’t swim, but I’ll stay around here if that’s ok.”

“Of course,” he replied quickly. “I’ll send someone with drinks.”

He left without a backward glance and I sat at the edge of the pool. Rolling up my pants, I followed with taking my shoes and socks off when true to Sergei’s word, he sent someone with drinks.

He brought over a bottle of wine with a glass, some cheese and crackers, and a bottle of water. I gratefully took it. I gulped the entire bottle of water and then poured myself a glass of wine while nibbling on crackers.

I shouldn’t be drinking wine on an empty stomach. I knew it but might as well savor it. I was alive and it was a grand cause for celebration. With each day that went by over the last two weeks, my hope of being saved dwindled. I thought that was it for me.

I finally admitted to myself that I was scared shitless during my captivity. It was harder and harder in the last week to hang on to the fake sense of bravery. But I was scared that if I broke down, it would have killed me right there and then. So I kept the fake bravado and held onto the hope of being saved against all odds.

With each sip of the wine, slowly my body relaxed and aches from bruises dulled. Or maybe it was the topical lotion I got. Either way, it didn’t matter. The pain was almost gone.

I wasn’t sure how long I sat there, enjoying the sun, my feet soaking in the pool and sipping wine. My mind gloriously empty at this moment and my body relaxed, I stared out at the horizon, tips of the mountains in the far distance covered in ice. I could cry from the beauty of it. Or because the alcohol in me worked against me. Either way, I was grateful to be alive, seeing the most beautiful and breathtaking sight. One tear escaped, then the next one, and then all the fear and pain from the last two weeks unleashed in terms of tears.

The only sounds breaking the serene environment were my soft sobs and sound of water fountaining into the pool.

“Anastasia, what’s the matter?” A deep voice echoed behind me, and I raised my eyes to meet concerned grey eyes. He must have changed, and had an unbuttoned jacket on, his gun holster peeking underneath. “Did someone hurt you?’

He kneeled next to me and watched me, trying to figure out what happened.

Would he laugh at me if I told him they were tears of relief? Would he understand?

“I’m fine,” I murmured, tasting salt from my tears on my lips. “I think… wine made me lose my shit.” The statement was followed up by a loud hiccup.

He slowly took the almost empty glass of wine out of my hands and put it aside. I should pull myself together but I just couldn’t. All the fear and control I held over myself, trying to stay strong for the past two weeks just all dissipated. My whole body trembled with the fear I contained since the moment I was kidnapped.

The whole world withdrew into a fog as I buried my face into the crook of his arm, his biceps strong under my cheek.

“I thought I was a goner.” My voice was a shaky whisper and any trace of the strength gone. “I thought for sure, I wouldn’t survive it this time.”

His arms came around me and I relished in their strength. “You are safe now.”

I felt his voice more than heard it. For all his aura of danger and harshness, I felt safe with him. His warmth seeped through every pore of me, and slowly my shaking subsided. We stayed like that for a few seconds, maybe minutes when I finally put myself together.

I tried to rise on shaky legs but would have stumbled flat on my face if he wasn’t holding me up.

Chapter Nine

Dimitry

My first thought upon seeing Anastasia cry by the pool was that I was going to kill whoever made her cry or hurt her again. I didn’t expect she’d be drunk, the last two weeks crashing in on her. She had been through a lot. I was impressed she kept it together. For a pampered, sheltered princess, she was a strong woman.

As I held her up, ensuring she wouldn’t fall forward, her legs wobbly, she buried her face into my chest. She was definitely drunk, although I couldn’t blame her. I wondered what she meant when she said she thought she wouldn’t survive it this time. Was she kidnapped before?

She raised her head and those beautiful emerald eyes met my gaze.

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