Page 36 of Kidnapped Bride

When it came time to sign, Niko placed the document on his desk and held out a pen, which I refused to take.

"I told you no. I'm not signing anything. I didn't say 'I do', and I do not consent to this." I glared at the priest, who looked away from me, out the window. "Did you hear that? I do not consent to this."

But Nikolai didn't care at all. He lowered the pen to the desk where on the document he scribbled something that looked similar to my signature. It wasn't close enough to fool anyone, though.

"Congratulations, Mrs. Dragonov," Niko said quietly, and it made my stomach lurch.

Bitter resentment burned in my throat as I spat, "I hate you." But not for the first time, Nikolai chuckled at me and curled a hair around my ear.

"Gentlemen, you may leave. Give me a moment with my wife, please." He held my gaze while talking and glanced away only briefly as the door clicked shut. I hugged my arms over my belly and sniffled as he turned back to me. "Being my wife protects you in ways you don't understand yet. The world your father bore you into is a dangerous one, but no one touches a Dragonov wife."

"I'm not your wife."

"Legally, you are. And publicly, you will be by morning." He lifted an eyebrow at me and pursed his lips. I was beginning to get sick of that cocky expression, but I didn't dare try to slap him again. Every time I did that, he'd pin me against whatever surface was nearest to us and try to get me to kiss him.

"You forged my signature… No one is going to believe you."

"Your father's had three weeks to come get you and he hasn't." When he tried to wipe a tear away, I took a step backward. "All I'm asking you to do is consider who's actually looking out for your future right now, Kira. Because it isn't him."

My lip trembled while I tried to think of a protest, but words failed me. I wanted to scream at him that he was wrong, that my father loved me, but he was right. Three weeks of silence were hard to explain away. If my father wanted me back, he had the resources to make it happen, and yet he hadn't come.

Not a single attempt. Not even a message.

I slapped Niko so hard, my palm stung, and I stomped to the door, but when I threw it open, I nearly ran into Vlad in the hallway. He grabbed my arm before I could get past him and I thrashed against his grip, screaming at him to let me go, but it only made him grip me harder.

He dragged me for a few steps before turning to fling me over his shoulder, which was how he carried me all the way back to the bedroom where he dropped me on the bed, and before I could even get to my feet, the door was shut and the lock was set.

It didn’t stop me from launching myself at that door to bang and scream, the same way I'd done for the first three days of being here. Except this time, I knew for better or for worse, no one was coming. I was alone in the dragon's lair, and no matter what I did, he owned me.

No one was coming to save me.

11

NIKOLAI

We moved up the alley single file with our backs to the brick and our weapons drawn. Yakov led, then me, then Tyren, with Vlad bringing up the rear after circling around the block to check the back entrance.

The street was quiet for a Tuesday night, which was either lucky or a sign that people in the neighborhood already knew something had gone wrong at the Pick-a-Sack and were keeping their heads down.

Vlad's call had come in forty minutes ago. Markin's men had walked into my store on Fourteenth Street and taken it, just like that.

Two of my guys who were running the night shift hadn't answered their phones since, and the owner, Deshi, a man who'd been loyal to me for eight years, was unaccounted for.

The store was the anchor of my eastern territory. Losing it meant losing the block, and losing the block meant Markin could push all the way to the bridge without anyone in his way.

Yakov held up a fist and we stopped. He was crouched at the mouth of the alley where it opened onto the sidewalk, and from his position he had a clear angle on the store's front window.

I moved up beside him and looked over his shoulder, not knowing what to expect, but from what I could tell, things looked pretty normal.

The fluorescent sign above the door was still on and I could see straight through the front windows where two of Markin's men stood near the register.

One leaned against the counter with his arms crossed and the other paced lazily between the aisles like he was browsing. They were relaxed, talking casually, and they had no clue what hell was coming for them when I got in there.

But from where I stood I could see Deshi behind the counter on the floor with his hands bound behind his back and a rag stuffed in his mouth. His eyes were wide and frantic, darting toward the door every few seconds like he was waiting for someone to come.

Behind him, near the back of the store, I could make out two shapes on the floor that weren't moving. I figured they were my guys, but I couldn't tell if they were breathing.

"I count two up front," Yakov said quietly. "At least two more near the coolers in the back. Vlad said there's more posted at the rear exit."