The Bratva King's Kidnapped Bride - Page 62

She shook her head. “You’re a criminal.”

I winced at the harsh truth. It had never bothered me before because it was all I knew. I frowned.

“I suppose, yes. But—”

“Stop. Please.” She raised her hand and rolled away from me. “Please don’t keep saying things about noble traditions, family pride, lineages, or anything like that. You regularly break the law. You’re a criminal. And a liar. It was your fault I was nearly killed.”

She rose up on her elbow, her eyes welling with tears. With a small gasp, her hand went to her stomach, and my heart lurched at the look of horror on her face. Did she even regret the baby now, when she’d seemed so happy before?

“Katie,” I said, reaching for her. My words offered no comfort, but perhaps I could make her see the depth of my remorse and my true feelings through my touch.

She rolled all the way off the bed, stumbling to the bathroom. I waited for the door to slam, but she only pulled it shut behind her. She was beyond anger, maybe beyond reach.

“Katie, please come out and talk to me,” I called. “You must have questions. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

There was nothing but silence from her on the other side of the door. It felt like miles separated us. She came out a few moments later, wrapped in her robe with her toothbrush and toothpaste in her hands, and a few more toiletries in a mesh laundry bag. With her head down, she disappeared into her closet and returned with some clothes haphazardly tossed over her arm.

“I want to sleep in one of the guest rooms tonight,” she said, her voice devoid of any emotion.

I jumped up and opened the balcony door that separated her special suite from the one we shared. She shook her head.

“Just one of the other rooms is fine,” she said, listlessly moving toward the door.

I nodded, ready to respect her wishes even though I yearned to pull her close and refuse to let her go.

With her head down and her slowly shuffling feet, she reminded me of a zombie. I’d done that to her. Not the ruthless kidnappers. Only me. I kept my gaze trained on her, praying she’d turn and meet my eyes at least once more. She only quietly slid out the door and disappeared into the hallway.

All I could do was pray she wouldn’t try to completely disappear from my life as well.

Chapter 35 – Aleksandr

After staring at the door for a solid ten minutes, it seemed that Katie wasn’t returning. No doors down the hallway slammed, there was no sound of breaking glass, yelling, or crying. It seemed like she had shut down.

I had to give her time. The memory of her face as she understood I was the head of the most powerful Bratva in California wouldn’t leave my mind. It was stronger when I closed my eyes.

Sleep was impossible. Not without Katie in my bed.

I took a bracing shower to clear my head as much as possible, then made sure the house and grounds were locked up tight. Extra security roamed the walls, and the gatehouse was as well-manned as any medieval fortress.

I had left Lev in charge of the two men who kidnapped Katie, and had almost forgotten about them in the rush to get her to the hospital. Now they were fresh on my mind, and I headed to where Lev was keeping them. It was a long drive to the warehouse in the seedier part of downtown LA, and I used every minute to plan out their punishment.

Lev was waiting for me, chatting to someone on his phone, but he ended the call the moment he saw me pull up to the darkened building.

“Max is inside already,” he told me as we pulled open the garage-style door and went inside the vast, nearly empty space.

I had to chuckle at the sight. My brothers had tied them up to folding chairs in the middle of the warehouse, a lone light shining down on them. They’d already been given a few knocks, and their heads rested on their chins. When they heard the screech of the rusty door hinges, they both looked up, horror emanating from both sets of eyes. All we needed was a dramatic score to really set the scene.

“They’ve already spilled their guts,” Max said, seeming disappointed. At their weakness, but also thinking we were done punching now that we had the information we needed. “Spineless cowards gave up everything as soon as I brought out the blowtorch. Didn’t even need to fire it up.”

I strode over to the men with Max and Lev on my heels. Making a tutting noise, I shook my head at them.

“Do you think I’d thank you for telling me where your boss is?” I asked.

They cringed at my menacing tone, and one of them began to snivel. “We were just following orders. We didn’t hurt her.”

My fists clenched. “That’s where you’re wrong,” I said, still thinking of the pain in Katie’s eyes.

She was trying to be strong, but witnessing Sergei be ruthlessly murdered in front of her, then going hours without knowing if they were her last, was going to stay with her for a long time. I turned to Lev and pulled him aside.