CATALINA
I staredout at the window in front of me, my thoughts running a million miles an hour.
I couldn’t believe Nikolay tied me to his bed.
Actually, I could believe it.
I should have seen it coming. I should have—
There was nothing I could have done. When Nikolay set his mind on something, I doubted I could stop him, and he was determined I stay here while they went on this mission.
I closed my eyes, my heart hurting for Mikhail.
The one thing he had been trying to keep from happening by staying away from his mother had happened anyway.
Please, let her be okay.
His mom was innocent. She just had the misfortune of being born a woman in a messed-up world. I didn’t want her to get hurt. And I didn’t want Mikhail hurt, which I was sure was how he was feeling right now.
He blamed himself.
I could see it in his eyes.
I didn’t know how he would be if they didn’t get to her in time.
I blinked my eyes, trying to get rid of the moisture there. I didn’t even care that they tied me up and left me.
I just wanted them to be safe.
I took a deep breath and focused my gaze on the window. I doubted it would be very long until Leo came in and cut the zip ties.
I moved my hand a little, wincing.
Nikolay really left no room for me to get out of this. And why the hell did he even have zip ties in his closet, of all places?
I shook away the thought.
A noise came from outside the room, and I sat up a little straighter.
It couldn’t have been more than fifteen minutes since they left. They couldn’t have gotten on the plane already, could they?
I had a bad feeling in my stomach when I heard footsteps approaching.
The door to Nikolay’s room opened, but it was Leo who came in.
I smiled at him.
Unsurprisingly, he didn’t smile back.
But what was surprising was when he moved to the side, and a man I didn’t know walked in.
My heart stalled from fear at the sight of the strange man with thin black hair, dressed in a black suit and walking with a cane. But that wasn’t the most surprising thing about him. No, it was the fact that he was scarred all over his face and hands. I couldn’t see his torso or back, but I had a feeling he might be scarred there too.
I couldn’t tell if the scars were from cut marks or … fire.
I swallowed noisily in the otherwise silent room.
Something terrible had happened to this man.