Page 83 of Merciless Desires

"Soon!" Boris spins, leveling me with a menacing glower. "Soon? The girl knows too much. The longer she lives, the greater risk she poses should anyone learn of her."

I spread my hands innocently. "They won’t. I have her contained. She poses no threat. No one can get near her—"

"Don’t be naive!" Boris’s eyes blaze. "Think, Viktor! She’s running around a loose cannon, a threat to our organization. All it takes is for her to go spilling what she knows to law enforcement—or worse. If our enemies get a hold of her… If Badawi captures her, he’ll extract every secret she possesses right down to the make and model of her vibrator. She’s a loose end. Get rid of her."

His words chill me, but I don’t let him see it. My tone is placating. "I can have her eliminated today.”

I don’t like to lie to Boris, and my words are true. I can have her eliminated, should I so choose.

"Yes. Today." Boris exhales, visibly regaining control. "Take care of this personally, Viktor. Leave no trace behind."

Everything in me recoils at the thought. "As you command, pakhan." The words nearly stick in my throat.

Boris searches my face, then nods. "Go then."

I leave, my hands itching with the urge to wring Boris's fat neck. But I proceed out of the warehouse as normal, allowing no hint of my turmoil to show. Inside, my thoughts swirl in desperation.

I’m not ready to kill Natalia. Not yet.

Refusal, however, can mean my own death for insubordination. And Boris will simply order another to kill her in my place.

What the fuck is wrong with me? First I get myself pussy whipped by a fucking mark and then I lie to my pakhan.

Fuck!

I return to the safe house at dawn and the first thing I do is pour myself a tumbler of vodka and swallow it back before pouring another. The burn of the alcohol in my throat feels good. I've become weak. Compromised by this young slip of a woman—this captive who should mean nothing.

I drain the glass and hurl it across the room. It shatters satisfyingly. Natalia has gotten under my skin and I despise this loss of control.

Why don't I just put a bullet through her skull?

Never have I hesitated to kill. As a boy, I watched my father murder enemies without flinching. I’ve felt their blood splatter on my face, yet I never looked away. I successfully severed all emotion.

Until now. This small but feisty woman has awakened something in me, dug up some long-buried protective instinct, and I can’t shed it no matter how hard I try.

The thought of harming her still troubles me, but not as much as I’m troubled by this newfound… weakness.

I could order Dmitri to complete the task in my stead. My hands curl into fists at the thought. Imagining her at another man's mercy fills me with an unfamiliar jealous rage.

No, she’s mine. I'll decide her fate. Tomorrow I will end this. No more games.

Tonight, I’ll have my fun with her. I’ll rut her like an animal until I’m raw and spent.

Once I fuck her brains out, this unnatural fixation will fade. I am certain of it. She’ll become just another conquered plaything. A used toy. A bright star that lost its luster.

By tomorrow, I'll be rid of her, one way or another. I'll hand her off to my men if I have to. They'll dispose of her.

My jaw tightens against the hot wave rising in me at the thought of her dead, her vibrant energy wiped out. But it's the only solution now. I’ve indulged in this diversion long enough.

I don't bother with pretense when I unbolt the door and enter her room, and the thud of the door hitting the wall as I enter echoes through the cabin.

She’s sitting on the edge of the bed with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders since I left her without any clothes. Her spine stiffens when I enter and her wide eyes dart around as though someone in the shadows might save her. Her slender fingers worry the hem of the blanket. Her chest rises and falls too quickly, breath coming in panicked gasps.

Good. Let her be afraid.

My eyes rake over her. What is this power she has over me?

“On your knees,” I say, my voice low and even despite the anger simmering beneath the surface.

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