Gavriil (Stepanov Mafia)

“Do you think Devin Conway had something to do with the two men who showed up here the other night?” Yuri asked.

I nodded. “Absolutely. Those men were clearly amateurs, so there is no way they were hired by a legitimate organization. They were probably a few friends of Devin’s who had no idea what they were getting into but did it because he offered them cheap drugs.”

“How did he get back in contact with her?”

“I let her keep her cell phone, so I knew there was a chance she would call him, but I thought having Eric watch her would keep her safe. I didn’t think he’d be stupid enough to let her meet up with him.”

Just then, the front door opened, and Eric stepped in. He slipped through the door like a ghost, clearly trying not to be noticed. All of the men around me went silent. The air was tense with anticipation, no one sure how I was going to react. Honestly, I wasn’t sure how I’d react, either.

“Is there anything else you need to tell me, Eric?” I asked calmly.

He looked up, a surprised expression on his face. “Oh, um. No, I think I told you everything.”

I took a step closer, and Eric practically flattened against the wall in an attempt to keep his distance.

“You don’t know where Sam was taken?”

He shook his head. “No, sir.”

“Okay, then answer me this,” I said, taking another step towards him. Eric’s eyes were wide, and they nearly rolled back in his head when I pulled out my gun and pressed it against his forehead. “What in the fuck were you thinking?”

Before Eric could even open his mouth to answer, I pulled the trigger.

The bang echoed around the room until it was just a tinny buzz in my inner ear. I turned back around.

“Whoever finds Sam first gets a promotion. If any of you fuck this mission up in anyway, you’ll end up like your pal Eric here. Are we clear?”

Every set of eyes were on me, and I could tell everyone was trying not to look at Eric’s crumpled body on the floor, folded over like a limp noodle. They all nodded at the same time.

Chapter Seventeen

Samantha

Devin kept me blindfolded for the entire hour-long car ride. At first, I’d assumed he was taking me out of the city, but when we stopped, and I was finally able to get out of the car and put my feet on solid ground, which helped to moderately relieve my motion sickness, I heard the faint drone of sirens and the buzz of the city I had become intimately familiar with during my lifetime. I figured it more likely that Devin and his accomplice had driven me around in circles to confuse me.

“Where are we? Why are you doing this?” I asked.

Devin’s fingers dug into my upper arm. “Do you want to be gagged again?”

“You shouldn’t gag a pregnant woman, you asshole.”

“If things go as planned, you won’t be pregnant much longer.”

An icy fear clawed its way up my spine. Who was this man? Had I really been walking through a baby store with him just over an hour before? I could hardly believe it. Not only had we been looking at the prices of baby items, but I’d been having a great time. I was convinced my brother was in the process of turning his life around. But instead, it had all been an act so he could abduct me and harm my baby. Not only had he not rehabilitated at all, but he was immensely worse than I ever feared.

Still blindfolded, I felt the warm sun on my skin, and then the sudden chill when I was led inside a building. I heard mine and Devin’s footsteps clacking against smooth concrete floors, making it seem like we were in some sort of cave, but I didn’t hear a third set, making me wonder where the driver of the car had gone.

We only walked a short distance before Devin jerked me sideways through a door and into a room that was much warmer – if I had to guess, it was a small office carved out in the corner of a warehouse. The floor was carpeted, and noises didn’t echo as much as they had in the other room.

“Sit down.” Devin pushed me so that the backs of my legs hit a wooden chair, and then forced me down. Immediately, he began tying a length of rope around my hands.

“Is this necessary?” I asked, trying to use the same tone of voice I had always reserved for when Devin was annoying me. Usually by eating the last piece of cake in the refrigerator or playing his music too loud in his room so I couldn’t hear the television. I wanted him to try and remember who we were to one another.