Page 29 of Scarred (Russian Sinners 2)

I never dreamt I’d be back in Russia, under a man’s protection. Certainly not a man like Nikolai. I thought back to the moment I first saw him. I considered him dangerous and beautiful, like a jaguar. A wild and beautiful beast that could also be deadly. The moment I laid my eyes on Malcome, I thought him dangerous too. But he reminded me of a snake. Those two were not alike.

I wished a phone call to Anastasia and Scarlett was possible. I couldn’t believe they were in Russia too. I missed them. We never went a day, maximum two, without speaking and now it had been over two weeks. I wondered what they were doing. Nikolai didn’t divulge more information beyond the fact they were safe. But that was all that mattered.

I worried about my mother. Was Oliver able to protect her from Dad’s rage? I had no doubt my father would have blown a gasket by now; I prayed it wasn’t my mother that paid for it.

I pulled the phone Nikolai gave me out of my pocket and scrolled through my phone book. I noted Nikolai’s number was in there but I kept on going till I got to my brother’s name.

I pressed his name and waited.

“Hello?” My brother’s familiar voice answered.

“It’s me. Can you talk?” If he was with Mom, I didn’t want him to risk getting our plan exposed.

“Yes, I can talk. I’m at Nikolai’s club with Ilya.”

I took a deep breath as I aimlessly roamed the grounds of Nikolai’s estate.

“I’m worried about Mom,” I told him. “You know how violent Dad gets.”

“Yes, I know.” In all our years growing up, Oliver was my rock. “After you left with Nikolai, Ilya and I went to pick her up. She has been moved to one of Nikolai’s places where he won’t find her. Even if he does, he’ll never be able to get through all his security.”

A relief washed over me. Now that she was safe, it was easier to breathe and be happy about this newfound freedom from my father and Malcome. Nikolai was beyond thoughtful when it came to safety and I appreciated it.

“That was great thinking. Please thank Ilya on my behalf too.” The guy was scary as hell but if he helped keep my mother safe, I’d be eternally grateful. I heard my brother relate the message.

“He says you’re welcome.”

“Are you okay?” Sometimes I worried about my brother’s lack of fear.

He pushed for signing up with the military without doing his homework. His friends told me plenty of stories where my brother charged into the battle the same way. Just thinking about something happening to him had my blood running cold.

I never cared for excitement or the adrenaline rush that accompanied it. I preferred a simple life with my routine and easy-going best friends. Most of all, I liked my quiet time that allowed me to get lost in my own world and paint it on canvas.

“Stop worrying, Sis.” My brother’s voice came across the line. “I am great. Everything will work out.”

I couldn’t quite meet his optimism, but I certainly welcomed it. It wasn’t that I doubted Nikolai’s competency. I just knew how sneaky my father and Malcome were.

“Did the plan work?” I asked instead. In this case, I’d need to have some faith.

“Yes, it did,” my brother confirmed. “Police found your discarded purse and smashed cell phone. They pronounced it a kidnapping. Now the police, along with Malcome’s annoying, stupid men are on the hunt for you. But so far, they are of the opinion you are still within the city limits.” I couldn’t believe they fell for it. It seemed such a simplistic plan but both Nikolai and Oliver said that simple was better. “I moved Mother to Nikolai’s secure location. I told police she was safe but refused to disclose the location. Luckily, Nikolai’s connections in the police department allowed for that topic to be dropped. Nobody but Nikolai, Ilya, and I know where she is. So that bastard of our father is staying alone in the city. He can beat himself up for a change.”

He was right about that. Our father always blamed someone else for everything.

“Although, I have to say,” my brother continued in a smug tone, “I am quite enjoying seeing our father sweat with fear. Hilda told me Malcome paid him a visit.” Hilda was our cook and a saint for sticking around with our dysfunctional family. “She heard Malcome threaten Dad that unless he produces you within the next forty-eight hours, he won’t settle his debts. And if my calculations are right,” he continued and I could detect a satisfied smile in his tone, “he only has twenty hours left. Fucking Malcome thinks Dad has you and is trying to protect you.”

Both my brother and I knew that notion in itself was ridiculous. Oliver hated Dad. His violent behavior and the way he took it out on his family made our dislike grow with each year till it turned into hate… hate for what he had done to Mom, how he treated us, and ultimately how he sold me to Malcome Schmidt.

“Please make sure Hilda is safe too,” I reminded my brother. It wasn’t important to me to see our father squirm. I knew without a shred of doubt he was losing his shit.

“We did,” he confirmed. “After that, we took her to stay with Mom. It was Nikolai’s idea.”

My heart swelled at such a thoughtful gesture by him. I loved that he cared about everyone’s safety, even our cook. Shit, I could easily lose my head for a man that was so protective.

“That’s good.”

“I would love to see that bastard’s suffering right now,” he spat.

“The main thing I care about is that you and Mom are safe,” I spoke softly into the phone. I didn’t want to focus on the consuming hate over my father or my ex-fiancé. And thinking about Nikolai had my heart racing in an alarming way. I had to be cautious and focus on building a new life with just the three of us. I actually looked forward to it very much.

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