Page 39 of Sold to My Ex's Brother
Or if that’s ever even going to happen. The more time that passes, the harder it is to believe that I will ever taste the same kind of freedom that I had before I fell pregnant.
I should be grateful that Anton is willing to do everything in his power to ensure I do not come to harm, but with other womenout there facing the same hellish nightmare that I was thrown into, I can’t help but feel restless and useless sitting here on my butt, doing nothing at all to help.
I know I can’t live like this forever. But what other choice do I have now? If I try to escape, I know that Anton will redouble the security, maybe even turn on me for betraying him, if he feels like I have tried to pull something like that.
But if I stay, what will I be teaching my little girl about the kind of life she can live for herself...?
Little girl.
I smile slightly as the thought crosses my mind. It is the first time I have assigned a gender to my child, even in my own head, though I know that we will not know for certain for a while longer. I plant my hands on my belly and send a silent promise to my child that I will do everything I can to ensure their freedom.
Anton already has their safety covered, I don’t need to worry about that part.
But I need to focus on giving them a chance beyond the four walls of this apartment. Even if it means going up against Anton to make it happen.
18
ANTON
The scent isthick in the air, booze and cheap, sweet perfume, sweat and desire so thick that they feel as though they might choke me. I lift the beer to my lips but don’t bother taking a sip.
I don’t want to be so much as tipsy. I need to be on my game right now, and this drink is nothing more than a cover to make certain that I’m not busted as I keep watch on this strip club, and make sure Iris Langford doesn’t succumb to the bullshit that Artem’s men will spin to her.
I’ve been working on finding the women who Sergei name when we managed to draw forth some information from him. Ruby, it looks like, has already made it out of the city, so she is not in danger that I can sense, but Kyra Kelso and Iris Langford…
I can’t say the same for them.
We managed to track them to this sleazy strip club on the East side of the city, where it looks like they have been moonlighting under different names since they quit work at the bar.
Whether my brother is targeting them out of revenge or just tying up loose ends doesn’t matter. Artem’s men are coming for them, and I’m here to stop it.
This club is the perfect place for a kidnapping. It’s the kind of grimy dive where baggies and fifties change hands in the open. It’d be entirely too easy for one of Artem’s guys to flash a fat stack of cash, lure a girl into a back room, and drag her out the alley door to a waiting car.
I’ve had my men watching the place for a week. Leon finally flagged a problem: a guy playing the long game, chatting Iris up every night to build trust so she’d drop her security. A quick hack of the CCTV confirmed it was Stefan Rodri, one of Artem’s enforcers. That’s why I’m here tonight.
I grip my beer, scanning the grim, neon-lit room. I’ve always hated these places—the tinny music, the vacant stares of the dancers, the pathetic men salivating over them.
Then I spot her.Iris.
She looks nothing like her social media pictures. Her blonde hair is lank, her body whittled down to almost nothing. As she totters toward a platform on towering heels, Stefan intercepts her.
I tense, keeping my posture casual so I don’t give myself away. Stefan grins, reaching up to brush a stray hair from her face. Iris stiffens, then swiftly masks it, forcing a polite smile.
Before he can push further, Kyra appears from the back in a tiny bikini. She steps sharply to Iris’s side, eyes locked on Stefan. Even numbed by this place, her survival instincts are still sharp enough to spot a predator.
But he still leans in, bringing his mouth so close to Iris I can almost smell is breath in the air around me. I see him reach into his pocket and press some money into her hand, and she stares down at it for a moment.
She slides her hand into the man’s grip, and tugs him towards one of the private rooms. I rise to my feet and head to the stage next to them, pretending I’m fascinated by the woman before me as she spins around the pole. I pull some dollars from my pocket and throw them on to the stage, not wanting to stand out in here anymore than I’m sure I already do.
“...baby, I know that you love this place, but I just want some fresh air before we start,” he tells her, leaning in even closer, the distance between them almost vanished. “Come smoke with me. I have something I know you’ll like...”
He pats his pocket pointedly, and her gaze flicks downward. She chews her lip; out of the corner of my eye, I can see her trying to figure out just how much of a risk this is going to put her at, if she should think better of even entertaining a suggestion like this.
But then, she glances back to Kyra, and leans in to whisper something to her—before she follows him towards the back door.
Shit. It’s happening.No doubt he has a car waiting out there that he’s waiting to bundle her into first chance he gets, take her to wherever it was that they held Maya before.
I can’t let him get her out of here. Even if I could send a few of my men to follow the car, there’s no telling how difficult it would be to break her loose once they had her under lock and key.
