The blustery wind whips through my dress and jacket.
Only ever wear a dress, Isla…
The grey clouds mimic how my soul feels as I walk from the bus stop to where I know Dimitri will be waiting for me.
I had been summoned via message on my phone late last night.
My apartment…
4.45 PM tomorrow.
D.S
I knew it was time to move forward with my life, hoping that I would have come up with a plan to rid my world of him before he called for me, but I have nothing solid yet. The plan would have to be thought out and well-executed as I will only have one shot at it.
Failure will result in my death. You can’t take on the Russian Mafia and expect to win.
Can you?
Business is conducted at his lavish apartment in Rose Bay. No offices for Sokolov, everything is extremely perfect, organized, and welcoming, unlike himself.
Grabbing my jacket by the lapels to cover my bare neckline and keep the unwanted wind and anything else out, I walk up the path toward the contemporary styled apartment block. Nestled in dark green foliage, the tall square dark grey concrete constructed building looms. The garden is overly established and possibly from the original owners, but the building is new, strong and no doubt solely owned by Dimitri. Stretching my neck up, tilting my head back, there looks like there is at least three stories. Of course, he has to have the best.
A steel door greets me. My heart is striking my rib cage. My limbs are heavy and reluctant to move. My mind is numb. I can’t allow myself to think anymore. This is going to happen. I have to be strong and survive. I brace myself for the physical torture to be unleashed on me in a matter of minutes. Running away from Dimitri will result in punishment. He loves to exhibit to me who is in charge and where I fit in the grand scheme of his life. Showing me on numerous occasions, how fierce he can be if I don’t comply. Cameras are watching me psyching myself up to move my finger toward the button which will end my freedom.
Pressing the buzzer, I take a few deep breaths and a calmness washes over me. This is the start of my new beginning. I have to be confident and resolute or my future will never exist.
The huge grey metal door opens effortlessly. It looks as though it should weigh a ton but it glides back, and a serene Dimitri is on the threshold, smiling at me.
What the fuck? When does he ever open the door or smile at me for that matter?
Dimitri’s demeanor catches me off guard straight away. I don’t move, just stand there staring at him. He’s dressed down for the occasion, only wearing charcoal suit pants and a white dress shirt unbuttoned at the top. My eyes quickly rake over his broad chest down to his glossy black shoes. Politely he greets me, reaching for my hand. “Isla, how gorgeous you’re looking this afternoon, please do come in.”
As if I have a choice…
Putting my hand directly in his, he brings it to his mouth, kissing it.
“I’m so glad you came.”
“Good evening, Dimitri,” is all I can manage to say. My brain is taken aback and I still don’t quite understand what is going on here. Dominant, mighty Dimitri is tranquil and looking…happy?
This can’t be good!
“Come this way. I have an early dinner planned for us.”
“Oh,” escapes my mouth as he leads me through his grey-and black-toned apartment to an alfresco area overlooking the water. There is no hint of a woman’s touch in this elaborate apartment. Very sharp, square, and clean, full of modern furniture and the latest tech-savvy gadgets adorn the walls and flat surfaces.
The view from his veranda is spectacular, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from a crime lord. The sky is showcasing its anger with snippets of the sun going down, trying to be seen before it goes for the night. Pulling out a dark grey wooden chair for me, he requests for me to take a seat across from him before pouring me a glass of red wine.
His preferred drink…
His odd behavior rattles me, and my calmness is slowly slipping away. My hand starts to shake slightly as I take a small sip of the wine. Placing it back before I drop the whole glass, I notice Dimitri’s eyes firmly set on mine.
“Well, Isla. You have been busy while I have been away on business. I leave you for one week and you find yourself jet-setting across the ocean to Las Vegas, of all places.” His voice remains passive and level. “Did you enjoy yourself?” A sneer crosses his calm face.
How the fuck do I answer that? Do I tell him about being in another country, away from his clutches, with the man I have dreamed about since I was a young girl? That Alex gave me the freedom to do whatever and whenever I wanted, giving me gifts, showing me the time of my life, in and out of the bedroom? Do I divulge that I was enjoying myself until my psycho captor found me?
Taking another mouthful of my wine, trying to compose myself unsuccessfully, I try to sound confident. “I enjoyed the sights of the Las Vegas Boulevard. I have never seen anything quite like it.” My hands start to fidget on my lap.
“It certainly is a unique place, my love.”
Fuck, my love? What stratosphere have I just landed in?
“And the man you were with, Isla, Alex Raven. How do you know him?”
And there it is…The storm is rolling in.
Just as his name is mentioned, his loyal servant brings out our food. There’s no way I can eat a single bite, my nerves make me feel ill and my head is starting to swirl with Dimitri’s uncanny behavior.
Taking his knife and fork, cutting into his rare steak, he chews slowly. Prolonging and heightening my uneasiness, I move the beans around the plate, keeping my head and eyes peering solely down, hoping he has forgotten he asked me a question.
His cutlery bangs harshly onto the porcelain plate, startling me, fortifying I am now fully focused on his face.
“My love, how do you know Alex Raven?” he says with force.
The thunder and lightning will be upon me in mere seconds…
Deciding to go for the professional route, sounding nonchalant, I inform him we were hired to do his sister’s baby shower and he was impressed with Jules and my work and he offered to take us to his new resort to assist his choice of antiques and interior design for the new casino.
I know he’s not buying it.
Silence stretches.
“Yet, I don’t believe Jules went on this trip,” he states as he finishes a mouthful of his meat.
Trying hard to look at him straight in the eyes, I try for a serene voice. “Jules had to stay back and look after some clients. Both of us couldn’t go and, since I have knowledge in antiques, we decided it was best if I went.”
I feel like I’m going to be sick… He knows who Alex is… Of course.
He leans back from his plate and places his cutlery down again, slowly.
Anyone looking at this man can see he is powerful, he is a force and ruthless. If you happened to walk past him on the street, you would definitely look twice at his athletic, strong build, his unshaven face, and his finger-raked brown hair. With dark, dark brown eyes showcasing a dangerous edge to his persona.
Even though he must be close to forty-three-years-old.
His rugged handsomeness draws you in, taking hold, and sucks every inch of life out of you. His easy-going attitude tonight highlights a new aura around him. I can’t comprehend what his angle is, but at least I have managed to be in his presence for nearly half an hour and I am still sitting on a chair, conversing with him. Not being punished for my betrayal.
My body is rigid and stiff, trying to remain calm but I can’t eat or drink now. I search his face for answers to his next move but he’s unreadable.
His authoritative voice and fixed eyes command me.
“Isla, my love, from this day forward, I swear to you no one will touch you. No one will look at you without my permission. You are to become mine in every sense of the word.”
My heart thumps so loudly I can hear it in my head. Pounding.
Reaching now for my hand, which is unwilling to move a millimeter, he clasps his hand, which is twice the size of mine, securing me to him.
“It’s always been my plan to have only you, Isla. The time is right to announce it. No more hiding you, no more men, no more work. You will be with me most of your time. I’m not getting any younger and I need an heir.”
Fuck…my brain must be in shutdown mode because I think he just said something about me giving him an heir? I’ve definitely gone crazy…
His touch is making my skin crawl, yet I can’t remove his claws from my hand.
“You will move in with me, at my home. I expect you to attend all functions with me and I have organized that we will be wed in three months.”
My throat constricts, closing off the scream I want to hurl through the air. My gut twists like a knife piercing me from the inside. I must turn a shade of white or green as I feel bile churning in my stomach and throat.
“I need the bathroom now,” I whisper as I stand up, wobbling on my feet. He still grips my hand hard.
Standing brusquely, he ushers me inside, down the corridor, to the door on the left, where I am faced with the toilet bowl.
I came here tonight expecting to be tortured, abused, and left for dead for my betrayal of engaging with and leaving the country with a man who wasn’t on his prescribed list of clients, hoping that he would have had enough of me and my family, paying fully for my father’s ways and not worth his effort and time anymore.
How wrong can one person be?
I just became his most prized possession, never to be out of his or his men’s sight. His wife in three months.
The entire contents of my stomach rapidly come up.
The hurricane just fell upon me with a subtle yet devastatingly fierce and violent force…