Page 29 of Knocked up by the Mafia

I mean, I could probably get myself out of here. I know Evgenii’s guards well, and I know their schedules.

I doze off slowly and jolt awake when my phone rings. I answer it without looking at the screen. “Daniel?”

“It’s Ivan.” He sounds pissed that I was expecting the man I love. “Your annulment is through. You are free of Daniel Quinn. We can celebrate later. For now, get some rest.”

He actually did it. I can’t believe he actually did it. I feel so betrayed. I hiss at him over the phone. “I will never forgive you.”

I hang up, and a few moments later, I hear Evgenii coming out of his room on the phone. Ivan must be telling him to sort me out. I can hear his end of the conversation.

“She’s stubborn. She doesn’t want to listen to me.”

Silence while Evgenii listens.

“Yes, she probably needs therapy. She probably has Stockholm, whatever it is.”

Another pause.

“I’ll speak to her now. It’s probably the pregnancy hormones making her irrational.”

I hear his padded footsteps and don’t look at him as he hovers in the door leading out to where I’m sitting. I stare ahead of me. “Be careful; I bite.”

“I know.” He sighs. “Natalia, you need to listen to reason. You’re not thinking straight. Pregnancy changes how a person acts, thinks, and feels, and you’re not in your right mind right now. You need to trust that we have your best interests at heart.”

I stand up and face Evgenii. “My best interests at heart? I want to raise my child with the man I love, and you threaten to kill him. You try to have me taken from him, twice may I add, and on top of all that, when I do show up to get advice from my older brother, who should always be in my corner, the first thing you do is annul my marriage. The marriage I want. The marriage I choose. I know the type of man Daniel is. I grew up in the Volkov family. What I don’t understand is what I’ve done to Ivan?”

Evgenii looks at me, confused, and holds up his hands. “Hold on, what do you mean what you’ve done to Ivan?”

“What have I done to him, Evgenii? I have been loyal. I have traveled to almost every shit hole there is to do deals for him. I’ve killed for him to secure arms deals and drug routes. I’ve been in danger for the last few years because I had to kill the heir to a Sicilian family, and Daniel saved me. And for all that, for all I’ve done and sacrificed, Ivan betrays me by having my marriage annulled when I asked him not to.”

Evgenii frowns. “Natalia, this is exactly what I’m talking about.”

“About my fucking emotions,” I roar, kicking the deck chair away from me. “I am pregnant, not incapacitated. You didn’t question Shirley, not once, when she was pregnant. You worshiped the ground she walked on and begged her to love you. I never thought it would be possible for me to love, not with the life I have. Let alone have children. Yes, this wasn’t the plan, but fuck it, Evgenii, this is what I want.”

“You can’t just abandon your family because you fucked some guy,” he shouts at me, poking me in the chest. “You are acting like an insolent child. You ask what you’ve done to Ivan. How about betraying him? You slept with the enemy.”

“So did he,” I shriek. “He fucked the Sorvino girl until she was pregnant, had a half-breed, and is sharing his property with the enemy, but I’m the bad guy.”

“It’s different!” He turns from me. I grab his arm and turn him around.

“How the fuck is it different? At least I love Daniel. Ivan just wanted Tori as a power move.”

“You wanted Daniel so you could save your hide,” Evgenii sneers at me. “Don’t act like a fucking saint. This isn’t a Hallmark movie, Natalia, this is reality, and there are consequences to your actions. Be thankful that all Ivan did was annul the marriage.”

He turns from me and storms into the house. He has made up my mind for me. I do not belong here anymore. My family doesn’t care about me. They care about losing the person doing their dirty work—because I’m good at what I do. I’m silent and move around easily. They don’t care about the danger I’m in. Ivan hasn’t once offered to negotiate to get the bounty off my head while Daniel runs head-first into danger to spare my life.

I go inside and to my room and slam the door, locking it. I get dressed and sit on the bed, waiting. Evgenii knocks on the door, and I shout, “Fuck off.”

“I’m going to see Ivan. Grow the fuck up while I’m gone.” I hear him huff off, and I nod. I wait about twenty minutes before I get up and open my window. I’m on the ground floor, but I know the guards don’t often patrol around here because it’s hard to reach. I always considered telling Evgenii about this little security flaw, but today I’m glad I didn’t.

It’s overgrown here, and I pick my way quietly through the bushes, keeping as low as possible. Thankfully I’m not so far along that my body hinders my movement, but I am still cautious. I don’t want to hurt or risk the baby.

I get to a drainage gate and test it. It’s still loose from when I sneaked out to save Ana and Luigi. I tug it and pull it aside, listening for the guards. No one makes a sound, so I crawl through and stand up outside the property. I make my way quickly from the house. I don’t know if anyone sees me, but I am free and move quickly.

I hail a cab and climb in, asking them to take me where I think I’ll find Daniel’s brother. If Daniel’s a Quinn, then he’s related to Ronan. I doubt Ronan will be very welcoming, but I know there’s a possibility that Daniel will go there first to get supplies.

I stare out the window, my mind wandering as we approach the turn onto the freeway. I don’t know what happens next.

I hear the squeal of tires, the shattering of glass, and the sound of metal twisting. The cab flips, and I curl up, trying to protect my belly. It stops, and I breathe hard, praying my baby is okay. I hear voices, it’s not English, but I can’t make out what they’re saying. I’m dazed by the crash. Hands grab me and drag me out. I feel the sting of broken glass as I’m dragged. I try to pull away once I’m on my feet, but the men holding me keep shouting at each other. One walks right up to me and raises a fist. Then everything goes black.

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