2

Chapter 2

Anya

My mouth dropped open, and I swallowed audibly. “On top of the value of the businesses and all the property?” I shook my head, unable to fathom such a thing. “I’m sorry he left you in the lurch like that.”

Dmitri clicked his tongue again in that annoying fashion. “But I’m afraid he’s left you in the lurch, my dear. His debt has transferred to you.”

I collapsed against the chair, staring at him in disbelief for a moment. “I don’t see how. I had nothing to do with loans, and I didn’t sign any paperwork. Perhaps there will be something left from life insurance to settle part of the debt, but you’ll understand why I have to ensure my sisters and I have living expenses first, especially since I now know we have to move out of our house.” It was a modest house by most standards, with only three bedrooms and three bathrooms.

His voice lost any hint of feigned sympathy, going cold and hard. “You will pay the debt. I’m not a bank, and there are rules. Your father was a fool if he thought he could escape his debt by killing himself. All he did was dump it on your lovely lap.”

“I’m afraid you’ll have to sue me.” I wasn’t sure from where I summoned the brave words.

Dmitri turned to nod at one of the goons, who pulled back his jacket to show a gun. I gasped at the sight of it and clung to the arms of the old chair. “Who are you?”

“I’m what some would call a bad man, but I wish to allow you to avoid the unpleasantness of dealing with that side. I’m sure we can come to an arrangement that satisfies your debt.”

“It’s not my debt.” I said the words again, but with far less conviction. I had an inkling of exactly what kind of person Dmitri Ivanov was. He was either a loan shark, or something even worse, and my father somehow found his way to him.

I was blisteringly angry with my father for a moment, but had no time to indulge in that emotion. “I don’t have a way to pay that kind of money, Mr. Ivanov. I’m a college student, and my sisters are both in high school. It sounds like we’re all going to have to find somewhere cheaper and smaller. I don’t enough to keep a roof over our heads, let alone pay back a debt I had no responsibility for.”

His expression softened, but his eyes remained dead. “Truly, I do understand the position you’re in, young lady. I find it admirable that you’re willing to look after your sisters and sacrifice for their future. I suggest a simple trade.”

I nodded once. My mouth was too dry to verbalize any response.

“You’re a lovely woman, and I’m certain you could earn a great deal of goodwill by sharing your body with me and my friends. Enough of that, and you’ll be paid off. Perhaps in ten years, the debt would be fulfilled.”

I stared at him, mouth open in shock. “You expect me to whore myself out for the next ten years to pay off my father’s debt?”

He nodded just once. “Da.”

I shook my head. “Absolutely not. There are no circumstances where I agree to that.”

He stiffened and sat up straight before getting to his feet to lean across the desk. He loomed over me, and I leaned back in my chair further, though I didn’t want to show that weakness.

“You have two weeks, kotyonok. In that time, you need to vacate this house, leave behind the vehicles and all your expensive possessions, and come up with five hundred thousand dollars to satisfy the debt. In two weeks and one day, you owe six hundred thousand dollars if you haven’t paid. At that time, I’ll seize the remaining assets.”

My eyes burned with tears, but I didn’t let them fall. “What remaining assets? It sounds like you’ve taken everything already.”

His smile was nothing less than evil. “Lev Russo left three valuable assets behind, and I intend to fully exploit them. You and your sisters will be taken in two weeks to pay the debt if you don’t have the money I require.”

Anger surged, and I leaned forward. “Stay away from my sisters.”

He didn’t back down. Instead he laughed in my face. “Or what, kotyonok? You’ll perhaps kill me? Will you rip me apart with your bare hands while my guards with guns stand by silently and watch?”

I was vibrating with rage, but also impotent with it. I couldn’t do anything, and there was no point making a threat I couldn’t back up. “You can’t do this.”

He shrugged. “I can do what I wish.”

“I’ll go to the police. This is America, and you can’t do this.”

Once more, Ivanov laughed at me. “I own the police, and none of them will lift a hand to help you. You’ll spend the next two weeks scrambling to find a way to pay the debt, but we both know you won’t. In two weeks’ time, we’ll be exactly back at this place, but the difference is you and your sisters will become my property.

“I’ll send you and Carrie to work in the brothels. Some of the clientele will be rough, and you’ll wish you’d accepted my offer to serve myself and my associates instead. However, I will keep Miss Sasha for myself. She’s a tasty little morsel, and I’ll be sure to let her know her older sister could’ve spared her that by accepting my offer.”

I glared at him. “She’s only fifteen. Carrie’s just seventeen. You can’t do this.”

He shrugged. “In my home country, the age of consent is fifteen. She’s an adult, and she shares the burden of paying her father’s debt just like the rest of you. So go to the police, or do what you wish, but know for every step you take, you’ll pay for it ten times over.”

He straightened his jacket and stared at me for another moment. I thought perhaps he was waiting for me to beg him to reconsider, to allow me to whore myself out for him and his friends in the place of my sisters. I was prepared to do a lot to save them, including dropping out of school and finding a full-time job to try to support us and make ends meet, but I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t surrender to his filthy suggestion without trying to find an alternative first.

After a half-minute of silence, he nodded once more before turning away from me and striding to the door. His goons flanked him, and none of the three of them looked back as they swept through and slammed the door behind them.

I collapsed in the chair as soon as they were gone, losing all ability to stand. Silent tears swept over me, and they became sobs I couldn’t quite stifle. I gave in to the storm of weeping, which wasn’t the first over the last few days since finding my father’s body in the bathtub in the master suite.

This time, the tears were prompted by fear and rage, not just grief and sadness. I’d held low-key anger toward my father since discovering him and realizing he chose such a selfish route to escape whatever his problems were, but now it swelled to outright fury. His body was still at the crematory, preparing to turn to ash, or I would’ve pummeled it with my fists at the moment, I was so angry.

And terrified. I could freely admit that to myself and didn’t have to try to hide it now that Dmitri Ivanov and his goons had left, for at least the time being. I had no idea what I was going to do, and I could empathize for a moment why my father had chosen the route he had. I still didn’t understand why he’d gone through with it, but I could see why suicide was an option he considered viable to escape Ivanov. I doubted he’d even given it a thought that the girls and me would inherit his debt.

I was wrung out and emotionally drained, but forced myself to leave his office after trying to restore some semblance of order. My gaze darted around the room as I rejoined the others in the living room, and I let out a sigh of relief when I didn’t see any sign of Dmitri or his men.

Others had started to leave, so there were only a few sparse hangers-on still mingling. Somehow, I managed to deal with them and get them all out the door within the next twenty minutes.

I went to check on Carrie, and she’d fallen asleep behind her tablet. I laid the iPad on the table and covered her with an afghan from the couch, running my fingers down the intricate threading. My mother had crocheted it when she was pregnant with Sasha. Tears blurred my eyes for a moment, and I wished with all my might to have my mother back, so she could enfold me in her arms and protect me from the horrors awaiting.

Since that wasn’t an option, I straightened my shoulders and went upstairs. Sasha was in my room, having taken refuge there to avoid the gathering downstairs after we attended my father’s service at the funeral home. She was asleep as well, and I left her sprawled on the right side of the queen-size bed, taking just a moment to remove her glasses and lay them on the nightstand.

After that, I moved into the bathroom and quickly shed the black dress and pantyhose worn for the funeral. Once dressed in more comfortable yoga pants and a T-shirt, I left the room and went downstairs again. I returned to my father’s office, this time knowing I needed to investigate to see what kind of money he’d left, if any at all.

I lucked out, and he hadn’t shut down his computer before deciding to kill himself. He used a password management program, and it was still signed in, so I was able to check his account balances and spreadsheets.

It didn’t take long to realize we were fucked.