Page 1 of The Broken Promises

Chapter One

Sasha

"Somebody's looking gorgeous," Lily teases while placing Chinese food on the coffee table.

I want to hide my smile, but my lips can't hold it back. Everyone can tell the happiness on my face. Dmitri shows the same glow. Even his men tease him. I had been in love – with Gabriel Petrovich – but it didn't feel this way. Now I wonder if I did love him or if he was the closest to escape that I thought I wanted.

Dmitri.He started out to be my protection. Now he's becoming my hope for everything. My revenge. In achieving my dreams of becoming a wife and a mother. I don't yearn for a regular life now. I've been through hell, sold my soul to demons, and bound myself to hatred. It's not a good foundation for a good life. I have accepted that I'll never have it. But it doesn't mean I can't be happy.

“Uh-oh. That look again,” Lily shakes her head.

“What look?”

“Don’t tell me we have to stop?” Lily asks.

Sometimes, I think she thinks of my revenge as her adventure. After she had her revenge on the drug lord who enslaved her, Lily acted like the queen of the oppressed. She takes control of my plan for revenge. I hate Anya and Gabriel, but I still don't have the strength and the heart to be so evil. Lily is covering that part for me.

“I’m not stopping. Just...putting it on pause for a while," I reply. I'm overwhelmed with love and joy. I want to enjoy it for a while before facing my hatred again.

“A pause? Sasha, Gabriel has already stepped into the trap,” Lily reminds me. “We just need to pull the strings now.”

“But…”

It will shatter everything Dmitri and I have built so far. Lily will say that I must do this before getting involved deeper with Dmitri. My current happiness won't last if Gabriel can snatch my life again. Lily is right. He has already stepped into the arena. It's either I win or lose. Either way, I will lose Dmitri.

Somebody knocks on the door before I can give Lily an answer. "I'll check it," I tell Lily after she accidentally knocks the drinks on the coffee table.

My body turns numb when Declan Sarkova, Gabriel’s assistant, stands behind the door.What is he doing here?I look at Lily with my heart almost exploding in fear. Did Gabriel discover what she did? Gabriel loves Anya; he'll kill anyone who will do or did her harm.

"We have to go," I whisper while dragging Lily to the fire exit. "It's Declan, Gabriel's right-hand man. He…they must have discovered what we did to Anya."

"That's impossible," Lily walks to the door and returns to me. "Go hide in the closet. I'll deal with him."

"No. Lily…" I fall quiet when Declan knocks again. She gives me a sign to hide. "Be careful. Please."

Lily walks to the door. Instead of hiding in the bedroom closet, I hide in the broom closet near the kitchen to watch Lily. I open my phone and search for Dmitri's number. He won't hesitate to save me, even if it will be against Gabriel. I trust him.

“Hello, gorgeous,” I roll my eyes after hearing Lily’s lame greeting. Is this her strategy? Flirt with Declan?

“Lily Nicombe?” Declan has always sounded gentle. A strategy Vigo probably taught him. "I'm here to ask about Odyssey."

I almost pressed Dmitri's number after hearing the rehabilitation center where Anya stays. Lily remains calm and lets Declan into her apartment. Declan looks around and becomes curious about the two boxes of Chinese noodles on the coffee table.

“Noodles?” Lily asks in her casual tone. Her bravery amazes me. "Are you sure only Odyssey has it?"

“I do not understand,” Declan answers.

"Shit? You're not Phoenix?" I panic when Lily sounds panicky. She already knows who Declan is. I calmed down after realizing she was pretending to wait for somebody else. "You have the wrong person. I'm sorry, but please leave."

I flinch after Declan grabs Lily by the hair when she moves away from him. My hands shake as the memories of how I was abducted play in my head, causing me to drop my phone. I want to pick it up to call Dmitri, but the door may swing open.

"Officer, come on," Lily fakes a laugh. I'm shocked when she suddenly brushes her palms across Declan's chest and lightly grabs his crotch. "I've stopped dealing drugs. I'm clean."

My forehead furrows when she suddenly drops to her knees and positions herself between Declan's legs. She reaches and unbuckles his belt while flashing flirty smiles at him. Declan gathers more of Lily's hair and guides her closer to his crotch. He isn't one of the men who raped me, but he is as heartless as Gabriel and the other men. Declan won't let this moment pass, especially when Lily initiates it.

“But I can still give you some things you might want,” Lily says while taking Declan’s cock out of his pants. “And more.”

“What are you doing?” Declan asks. I have the same question.

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