Page 36 of Unbridled Fire
He shot me a droll look. “I’m obviously not going to tell you where you are, and you can talk English. I’m trying to learn better, so I don’t talk Russian here.”
“Speak Russian,” I corrected.
“Huh?”
“You don’tspeakRussian here.” My eyes narrowed. “Forget it. Why did you kidnap me? If you want me to help you, this isn’t the way to go about it.”
“Oskar has a plan for you,” he said, the words ominous. “He’s busy with a meeting that couldn’t be moved so he won’t be here until tomorrow morning. I’m supposed to make sure you don’t escape.”
“Can I have some water at least?”
Nodding, he walked to a small refrigerator resting along the wall to my right. Pulling out a bottle of water, he approached and unscrewed the lid. He lifted the bottle to my lips and I took several large gulps.
“Thank you,” I said, sighing. “I promise, if you untie my hands, I won’t try to leave.”
“No way, lady. Just settle in and wait. I’ll be back in a few hours with a granola bar for you. See you later.”
“Wait!” He halted and I struggled to find some reason for him to stay. The thought of being left alone in my makeshift prison was terrifying. “Are you the only one here? Do you want to sit and talk for a bit?”
“You’re not going to get any information out of me,” he said, his tone void of emotion. “I’m just a soldier who does what he’s told. See you later.”
He left the room and my shoulders tensed at the finality of the sound of the door closing. My chest rose and fell with my labored, shallow breathing, and I closed my eyes. Drawing upon my yoga knowledge, I focused on calming my energy.
Leo knew I’d been taken, and I had no doubt he’d do everything in his power to find me.
Trying to slow my raging heartbeat, I silently prayed that he would find me before it was too late...
Leo
I made it to Katia’s place in record time and found a parking spot. Rushing to the trunk, I quickly grabbed the backpack that held my crime scene tools and jogged to her building. A man exited, and I slid inside before running up the stairs to her apartment.
Whoever had taken her had been smart enough to close the door. Lowering to one knee, I pulled some tools from my backpack and began to pick the lock.
“You’re the only man I wouldn’t kill for picking the lock to Katia’s place,” a deep voice droned to my right. Glancing over, I saw Michael, dressed in dark pants and a polo shirt instead of his usual suit, indicating he’d rushed over as well. Chris loomed behind him, and I returned to focusing on the lock.
“I told you not to come,” I said, clicking the lock open and turning the doorknob. “You’re on the security cameras now, less than an hour after the attack.”
“Since I own the apartment, that shouldn’t be a problem.”
Scowling, I rose and entered Katia’s apartment. “Let me assess first,” I said, holding up a hand to halt them from entering.
There was a large crushed brown paper bag on the floor, and I gave the kidnapper credit for being thorough in his impersonation of a delivery guy.
“I don’t see any evidence of a syringe,” I said, pulling gloves out of my back pocket and picking up the paper bag. I stuffed it in a large zip lock bag and sealed it before placing it in my backpack. “I’ll test that for DNA.”
Michael and Chris entered, closing the door behind them.
“I’m going to kill those bastards for touching her,” Michael said, crouching and inspecting the floor where the bag had been.
“Get in line,” I muttered.
We inspected the scene for a while, unable to recover any other evidence besides the fake delivery bag and Katia’s cell phone. I picked it up and placed it in a side pocket of my backpack, determined to return it to her soon.
After a thorough search, we stood, defeated; hands on our hips as the energy vibrated between us, tense and fraught with worry.
“How long will it take you to test the bag for DNA?” Michael asked.
“I’ll rush it, so hopefully sometime tomorrow. But don’t get your hopes up.” I shook my head. “The chances of getting anything helpful are low.”
