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He looks up at me slowly, making eye contact. His eyes are solid-black and soulless. He begins in a devilish tone, “The end says… don't look for us. Me and my bride have many babies to make. She will fight me, of course, but that will make it all the sweeter. She will always be mine.”

I’m too stunned to move, and a tear rolls down my cheek, thinking of what he has planned for our girl. Alexie’s screaming snaps me out of my thoughts. “Conrad! Wewillfind her.Iwill find her.”

He starts up again, saying the same things in Russian as before. I look to Katia, who is also crying, hoping to get some help with understanding him. She composes herself and takes a deep breath. “He always reverts to our native tongue when he’s pissed off.” She then begins repeating after him, translating for us. “That cunt, she will never be his. She has always been mi– Ours. I'm going to cut out his fucking tongue with my blade, rip out his intestines, and choke him with them, but only after I cut off his cock and shove it down his fucking throat,” she repeats the entire thing as if it’s a totally normal thing to say.

I look at him wide-eyed. “Jesus Christ, man,” I say in response, and he just gives a devilish smirk.

“First things first. We have to wait until the other two wake up to make sure they’re okay. Then we find our girl and kill that fucker where he stands,” I say, leaving the room, but Marcela and Katia stay to sit with Alexie.

I'm walking back down the hall to check on King and Stryker when BJ comes rushing from the elevator. She runs straight to me and throws her arms around me. “I came as soon as Marcela texted me. We’ll find her, Con,” she blurts out.

“I know we will,” I reply, trying to reassure myself more than her. “We have to,” I mumble under my breath.

“How are all the guys? Please tell me everyone else is accounted for and okay,” she asks in a rushed ramble. I place my hands on her shoulders, look her in the eyes, and take a deep breath. She copies me and inhales deeply, allowing me to answer her.

“Well, there really is no update. Stryker and King are still out, but Alexei is awake down there in Room 420-” Before I can finish, she’s rushing down the hall to Alexie’s room, so I follow along.

We’re all back in Alexie’s room when we hear hollering, from a few doors down this time.Is this déjà vu?A nurse comes rushing in, saying our other two friends are awake and demanding us.

Guess it's time to tell our girl’s other boyfriends that she's been taken by a fucking monster.

Nat

Move!Moveyourfuckingbody, Nat!

I keep yelling at myself, but nothing is making my body work. He injected me with something that’s keeping me frozen.A paralytic. Typical Ivan. Sick Fuck!Thinking his name brings me back to the gravity of my situation. I’m in the trunk of a car that Ivan’s driving.How did this happen? We went in with a plan. How could it all go so wrong?

We were in the room with Andrei and Ivan. No, wait, he’s also Kruz. The look on King’s face during that revelation almost destroyed me. Ivan played him. He played them all. King thought of Kruz as a brother and felt broken after he ‘died’, but he didn’t die at all. It was Ivan all along. The shock factor gave Ivan the upper hand. It practically immobilized King and Stryker because they had no idea what the fuck was happening, and by the time they came around to it, it was too late, and Ivan was going to win.He did win.

My body rocks in the trunk, and I can’t do anything to brace myself. This is what he wants, what he thrives on. Ivan wants me to feel helpless. He always hated the fact that I could take care of myself. What a joke that is, given my current predicament. My eyes flutter, letting me know that the paralytic is slowly starting to wear off.

Andrei?

Holy fuck, Ivan shot him. He said something about one more Volkov to go.Was this his plan all along?I rack my brain, trying to remember when I last saw Alexie. My head feels so heavy, another sign that the drug is wearing off, but the fog on my memory is thick. The back of my head starts to pound as I recall slamming my head into that piece of shit’s nose. The crunch plays in my head like sweet music.

But then what happened?

The vision of Stryker lying on the floor plays on repeat in my mind. Alexie was next to him, and they weren’t moving. Please be alive. I don’t know what I’d do without them, and I can’t lose Alexie again. This can’t be happening. My mind walks me through the apartment we just came from, but I’m not walking. I’m being carried by Ivan.Where is he taking me?In the kitchen, I see King. His head slumped as Ivan whispered something to him, I can see his lips moving but can’t make out the words. What did he say? King said something back but then went silent.

I know what happened after the world went dark, even if I don’t want to admit it. My heart won’t let me. They’re gone. Ivan will have killed them, probably in some torturous way. If a heart could actually break into pieces, mine is shattering behind my ribs right now. This feeling is something I didn’t think was possible. All the physical pain I’ve endured is nothing compared to what I feel now. I want to run and scream, but I can’t even fucking move.

With all my might, I try to will myself to move my fingers or toes. I saw Uma Thurman do it inKill Bill,so why can’t I? There is such a parallel in this moment to the character in that movie. Losing everything you care about in an instant, and now my only driving force is vengeance. Just like her character, I will get my revenge. I will destroy Ivan.Now move your fucking toes, Nat!

The sound of squealing brakes, and my body slamming into the wall of my cage, brings my attention away from trying to move. The car door opens and then closes. After a moment, the trunk lid pops up slightly, and a small sliver of light enters the trunk. The light grows brighter, allowing me to see the outline of the devil on earth himself, Ivan.

“Look who has regained some movement,” Ivan coos at me. The light behind him is blinding, and I can’t see his face fully, but I know it’s him. I realize that my head and shoulders are moving and that it’s me controlling them.Just a little more, and I can get out of here. I need to destroy this disgusting monster looking down on me.Ivan leans down closer, his face coming into view. There is an evil grin spread across his face, and crusty blood dried around his nose, which has started to turn blue and purple. A sense of satisfaction blooms inside of me. “Ready to start our new life together?”

Ivan leans down further, and I feel his hands move under my body. He starts to lift me out of the trunk, and my body has no choice but to fall against him. With my body cradled to his, he walks us into a building. I try to look around to figure out where he’s taken me, but it’s no use. My ears perk up at the sound of approaching footsteps.

“All fueled up and ready to go,” a mysterious voice says.

“Good,” Ivan responds to this man. “My bride and I are ready to head home.” I don’t understand what is happening. Ivan’s mind has always been twisted, buthis bride? Even he can’t be crazy enough to think I’d go for that bullshit.

Ivan continues walking forward, and I hear the hum of an engine, and soon we’re ascending stairs. “We’re ready for takeoff when you are, Sir,” someone says.A plane.We are boarding a small private plane. He sets me down in a chair and crouches down next to me. “You will break,moy ogon,” he tells me, calling me his fire. This isn’t the first time he’s called me that, and it’s always sent a chill down my spine.

“Time to sleep again,” he states coolly. There’s a pinch on my neck, followed by a burning sensation. Everything goes dark again.

My head swirls as my eyes open. The room seems to be spinning, and I know I’m lying on my back. I’m able to move my body, so I try to sit up but can’t. Both of my wrists are tied tightly with rope and extended above my head. Each of my ankles are also bound, anchoring me to something, so I’m unable to get up. I start to shake my body, trying to figure out if I have any wiggle room, but it’s no use as I barely move.I’m on a bed.My fingers try to snake down to the rope around my wrists. I can’t seem to find a knot.

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