When Vadim stopped by Maxim’s mansion, he found the place in a state of chaos. Maxim was reprimanding his workers for something.Luck was on his luck that day. He didn’t have to sneak around. He could just do whatever he wanted.Because Maxim wasn’t paying attention, he didn’t notice Vadim taking a quick picture of Livia. He suspected he knew who she was. He just needed someone to confirm it was her..If the mystery girl in Maxim’s mansion turned out to be the estranged Italian mafia princess, he was going to make a lot of money.The chances of taking the throne from right under Maxim’s nose seemed closer than ever.However, he didn’t want to get his hopes up. The Italian princess was supposed to be dead. She also had an Italian accent rather than the American one that Livia had.But it was still worth a try. He wouldn’t let an opportunity like that pass him by. If Alfoso’s daughter was so close to Maxim, they could use her to destroy the Pakhan and take his place.He booked the firs
It was clear as day that Maxim was trying to make up for what happened to me because of Veronika. From what I had gathered, Polina had been fired but Veronika was still in the house.I didn’t see much of her. She had been moved to Polina’s old bedroom and she stayed away from me for most part.Also, I didn’t have to see much of her since my duties as her maid had been revoked. I solely tended to Maxim which was not a difficult task. I was starting to feel comfortable again.I wasn’t sure whether that was a good or bad thing considering I was still on enemy property.The other staff, however, still looked at me sideways and sent snarks and scoffs my way. They were mad that I had gotten Polina fired.I wanted to yell and tell them that she had gotten herself fired because of what she had done. No one should have had to endure the embarrassment and humiliation that I did.It wasn’t fair to me or to anyone for that matter. Polina deserved everything she was getting.A good part of me symp
The man was dressed in a leather jacket, dark jeans, and his hair was styled Italian style. He looked intimidating but he had a gleeful smile on his face and a mischievous glint in his eyes. I could see a resemblance between him, Mikhail, and Maxim. It was like they were all related in some way, shape, or form. “I’m sorry,” I muttered and tried to walk past him but he didn’t let me. He stood in my way and shook his head. I didn’t like the way he was looking at me. His eyes were all over me like he was studying me and trying to figure me out. “What’s your name, sweetheart?” He asked, and I looked around, hoping Maxim was nearby to save me or anyone else for that matter. It was pathetic how I always thought I was entitled to his help when in reality, I wasn’t. I was nothing but a slave to him, and he hadn’t even bagun to use me. For the first time in my life, I looked to the future and it was blank. I couldn’t tell just how badly he and I would end. The man in front of me laughed w
Maxim had fallen into a morning routine where I prepared him for wherever he was going that day and then I retreated to my room and stayed there all day. Every day, he got me a romance novel to read or gave me a series recommendation. He didn’t speak much but his actions showed how thoughtful and considerate he was. But I didn’t let him fool me. It was only a matter of time before he showed what kind of a man he was. I had yet to see Veronika in a long time. I heard she was around but I didn’t once set my eyes on her. Maybe it was because she was a room far away from other rooms in the mansion since she was being treated like the head of staff. I heard rumors that she was out to get me and I believed them. It was only a matter of time before she got upset and came for me again. If I were her, that was what I would do. I couldn’t tell if Maxim was in love with her or not. If I were her, I would have already left and gotten myself another man–once who appreciated me. But I wasn’t h
As I lay on the bed struggling to breathe and feeling my life slipping from me, I decided I had to be my own knight in shining armor. The F.B.I. weren’t going to come for me and no one was going to save me from anything. The maid who held me down smiled when she felt my struggle start to weaken. She was a sadist and she made me realize I wouldn’t let anyone as mediocre as Veronika and some girl I didn’t know be the ones to end my life. I always thought Alfonso was the one who was going to kill me in the end. The day Carlos found and sold me and I changed my perspective. I thought Maxim was the one who would deliver the final bullet that would drain my life from me. I wouldn’t let Veronika take the cake. I bit the girl who was holding me and she let out a scream. I was weak but adrenaline rushed to my veins when I realized I had a chance of surviving. When the girl stumbled backwards, I grabbed my lamp and threw it at the full-length mirror. It shattered and glass flew everywhere.
Whatever Mikhail said to Livia upset her and I know he said something. I should have never left him lingering on her doorway when I went to speak to the doctor.I should have asked him to let her rest because now, I wanted to kill my own fucking twin. He straightened his posture when I walked into Livia’s room.When he and I made eye contact, I gave him a look and he followed me outside. He could read me better than anyone, and that was why he was my spokesman. Lots of times, I didn’t have to tell him what to say.He just automatically knew.“What did you say to her?”“Nothing—”“Are you fucking lying to me?” I asked.He sighed and ran his hands over his face. I had a feeling I wouldn’t like what he was about to say.“She is lying. There was someone else in that room with her. Someone screamed when that glass shattered. If she is lying about something as simple as this, then what else is she even lying about?”“We can’t trust this girl. She is nothing but fucking trouble.”I was so fu
“You fucking psycho!” Veronika yelled as she stormed into my office. I was growing sick and tired of her. I needed a strategy to get her out of the house as soon as possible.I couldn't fucking stand her.“No one dares talk to Maxim the way you do. You may want to rephrase your words.” Mikhail told her.She gulped and whispered a barely audible apology. She had a big ego and the contract I signed stating I would marry her was giving her a fucking big head.She was lucky I didn't know where the damn contract was. I would have burned it and denied any knowledge of it. “My agent dropped me and my magazine shoot was cancelled. I know this was all your doing.” She said. I could tell she was fuming and she could barely control herself.“You should have thought about that before you did everything he warned you not to do.” Mikhail said smugly.She looked pissed beyond words. She was a model who walked runways and did commercials for certain brands as well as magazine covers. Her livelihood
To say Maxim treated me like a princess was an understatement. He took me shopping and asked me to pick out all the clothes, shoes, and bags I wanted. I even bought my own self-care products, lotions, perfume, and makeup. I didn’t pretend I was modest with it either. I picked out all the items I wanted, no matter how expensive they were. He had all the money and if he was going to keep me captive, I might as well take advantage. He didn’t mind, though. He went all out on everything. That particular day, he left a note on my bed asking to take me out on a date. I had a feeling he wasn’t really asking. He looked like the kind of a man who didn’t take no for an answer. I couldn’t hide my excitement after I read the note. I couldn’t deny that I was warming up to him. I may have acted like I hated being in Russia, but he was starting to make it very exciting. He and I didn’t speak much, but his actions told more than he did by word of mouth. I immediately jumped in the shower and cle
Maxim was understanding and extra sensitive ever since I told him I was homesick. I wasn't sure whether it was because he felt guilty for keeping in Russia when he shouldn't have.Either way, the guilt of what I had done to him and his organization was eating me alive. I could barely look him in the eye without feeling bad.I wasn't sure how long my excuse of homesickness was going to suffice for. At some point, I was going to have to admit that something else was bothering me aside from missing Chicago.People were going to suspect I was hiding something if I didn't come with a better excuse. “What’s on your mind?” Sonya asked.She had come to visit me when she found out the boys were out of the house. She didn't like coming to the house when they were around because they forced us to train and she hated it.She hated any form of physical exercise that didn't involve shopping.“Nothing…” I answered.I hadn't even realized I was staring into space until she spoke to me. I didn't dare
Carlos being in Russia made a lot of sense. It made sense why Akira was killed suddenly. That whole family was a thorn in my side. It didn’t even make sense that he knew what was going to happen.How did he know I was going to meet Akira? How did he even know I was working with the man? We had tried as much as possible to keep this thing a secret, but somehow, it got out.“I heard you think Livie knew what was going to happen.”I shook my head, thinking about it. I couldn’t see her willingly betraying anyone. If she was doing it, I couldn’t help but think that maybe she was being threatened into it or something.Either way, if she was the one who telling all my secrets, she needed to pay for it with her life. She was no exception from all the people who had betrayed me in my lifetime. She needed to pay for her mistakes.“I don’t think she was. Yes, she was acting weird, but she couldn’t have known what was going to take place. She doesn’t even know how the Bratva is run, and she makes
Livia fell asleep in my arms, so I carried her to her bed and tucked her in real nice. When she was asleep, I kissed her on the forehead and left her room. I went to the surveillance footage of her room and I didn’t find anything suspicious from the previous day. When she came from shopping, she stripped naked and went straight to the shower. It was an indicator that she had gotten upset over shopping. Her story about homesickness was checking out, but I needed to ask Sonya.I had to be smart about it, or else she wouldn’t tell me anything. She was bound to cover for her friend. If I worded my words the right way, she would sing like a canary. I picked up my phone and dialed her number. “Why do I have the displeasure of speaking to you this afternoon, Pakhan?”“I wanted to ask you something.”“Oh, and here I thought you wanted to say hi to me.”She was the only person who made me want to so something sassy like roll my eyes. She thought she was funny with her sarcastic remarks but
Maxim was suspicious of me, I could tell. If I had just played it cool and acted unbothered, he would have never had doubts that I had something do to with whatever had happened in his meeting. He looked at me like he knew I was behind everything. It was clear something really bad had happened while they were out doing their business. “Did you know something would happen? You acted weird in the morning like you didn’t want me to leave. What did you do?”My acting skills were going to have to save me from the whole situation. I couldn’t let Maxim find out that I had put a bug on him. If I did, he would kill me, and Alfonso would kill Allegra. In that moment, I wished the ground would just open up and swallow me alive. “What happened? I didn’t even know something went wrong until you told me just now.” I said. He looked for any signs of deceit in my eyes, but he wouldn’t find any because I was a pro at acting like nothing was going on. “Maxim, talk to me. Did anyone get hurt?” I as
I shook my head. That was not an option.“I don’t know when I will see Akira again. I can’t refuse to see him. We have to move first before someone catches on to what we are doing. Takumi might kill him once he finds out, and I can’t let that happen.”“You’re right. The Yakuza are Alfonso’s biggest allies. If we take them away, we take away some of his power.”As we were driven to the location where we would meet Akira, we went over what we would discuss. All we needed was to meet with him, give him our weapons, and then leave.The meeting didn’t even have to take that long. The ride out of town was not that long. Within minutes, we had arrived. Once we were there, we waited inside an abandoned building.We were there for ten minutes before Akira showed up.“You’re late,” I said to him as soon as he was there. I didn’t like it when people wasted my time.“I apologize for my tardiness. I thought someone was following me, so we had to lose them, but don’t worry, no one followed me here
Livia was acting weird. I could tell something was weighing heavy on her, and she didn’t want to tell me what it was. When she told me she was homesick, I didn’t believe her.But when I was in the shower, I tried to put myself in her shoes. If I were the one who had been kidnapped and sold to the highest bidder, I would miss home as well. especially because she was in a foreign land that she wasn’t used to. Most people never adapted to the cold weather in Russia.And she seemed to hate it at first, but I thought she had already gotten used to it. Looking back, I realize it was naïve for me to think such a thing. She probably was not used to it, and she wanted to go back.However, I wouldn’t let her go, so I had to find a way to get her not to miss more.Even if she was struck with homesickness, I knew there was something else that bothered her. I let her be, thinking that she would probably tell me when the time was right. And even if she didn’t, I would respect her wishes.She helped
I looked at the bug in my hand, wondering what would happen once I planted it. I couldn’t help the tears that fell down my face. I didn’t dare sob because of the driver.If he was working for Vadim, he would tell him everything I did. I couldn’t risk all that. I had to pretend I was cool with everything.Just as I was starting to be happy, Vadim came and ruined everything. It was clear he wanted the throne for himself. If he thought Alfonso was above killing him just to control both the Russian and Italian mafias, he was wrong.Alfonso had no loyalty to anyone but himself. He only looked after himself and did anything that would make him happy or bring him more wealth. That was why he was willing to sell his own daughters.Vadim was better off accepting the high rank in Maxim’s organization rather than aligning himself with a man like that. However, something told me he wasn’t any better.“We’re here,” the driver said.I hesitated before getting out of the car. How could I go out ther
I scooted as far away from him as I could, and he just laughed it off. He enjoyed making me squirm and nervous. I wished I could control my emotions quickly, but I couldn’t. I had just seen Carlos.Wherever Carlos was, Alfonso was probably lurking in the shadows. He liked his children doing his dirty work for him. I wouldn’t be shocked if he was nearby, watching me getting scared and getting a good laugh.“You seem happy, Ottavia. Your father doesn’t like that. He thinks we should spice things up.”I knew he was watching me. I should not have been foolish enough to think I could be happy after Alfonso found me. I should have known the burst of joy would come at a cost. He hated seeing others happy.“What do you want?” I asked as I looked out the window.“Oh, don’t look so sad. It’s not a bad thing. Honestly, I think you should have known better than to fall for a man like him. Maxim will kill you the moment he discovers you are nothing but a traitor.”I didn’t dare look at Vadim. He e
“We should just go. I don't want to be here anymore.”So we paid and left. He didn’t try to follow us, and he didn’t try to speak to me. He was reminding me that he was still around and that I wasn’t supposed to forget what Alfonso had asked me to do.“What was that back there? You seemed like you just saw a ghost.”I didn’t answer her question truthfully.“Nothing. I thought I saw someone I knew but it was a mistake. It shook me up, and that’s why I wanted us to leave. I’m sorry we had to.”“You don’t have to apologize for that, do you hear me?”“Yes.”With that said, we went to a lingerie shop where we chose very cute sets. I had never worn a leather lingerie before, so Sonya picked out one for me.“Since you have golden skin, you can wear a red one. I think with red lipstick and red heels, you will pull it off really, really well. Maxim will lose his shit when he sees you in this.”I smiled at first before I realized what she had said.“How did you know about Maxim and I?”“Oh, ple