Page 5 of His to Own

“I expected you to be done much sooner,” he comments. “I had high hopes for you, Elena.”

I flush and hurry out of the class.

Both Polina and Alexei are waiting for me.

Polina ambushes me before Alexei can reach my side. “What took you so long? I was done within thirty minutes. Not as smart as you think you are, are you?”

“Polina, would you just shut it?” Alexei grumbles. “No one likes you. Leave Elena alone.”

She huffs and storms away.

I feel unsteady in my kitten heels. Another thing Mother insists on me wearing. It makes it hard to get across campus fast, especially when there’s still ice on the ground, but what my mother wants, she gets.

“Are you ok?” Alexei asks, reaching out for me but I back away before he can touch me.

“I’m fine,” I lie. “I have somewhere to be anyway.”

“What?”

“My… my birthday party.”

His eyes light up. “You’re having a birthday party? I didn’t even know it was your birthday. You never said.”

“Do… do you want to come? My sister is picking me up today.” I’ll have to tell Sasha so he doesn’t tell my father why I didn’t arrive home.

“I’d love to come.” He slides in closer to me. “I really like you, Elena.”

A small squeak leaves my mouth. “Oh.”

His smile wavers. “Do you not like me? We’ve known each other for the past year now. I thought it was obvious how I felt for you.”

“I’m not allowed to date. My father is… strict.” That’s one way to put it.

“You’re an adult though. That shouldn’t matter.”

What Alexei doesn’t know is that I’m the daughter of a mafia boss. And it’s better he doesn’t know.

“You don’t know my father,” I say. “Anyway. I have to go. You can come to the party if you want. It’s just…”

“You know what… I’m not sure I’m in the mood today. Sorry. I have a lot of homework to catch up on.” He hurries away from me before I can say anything. If I was even going to say anything. I tend to keep my voice to myself and put it on the page instead of speaking it out loud.

I hurry to the parking lot and approach Sasha. “My sister is picking me up. You don’t need to worry. I just need to spend some time with her. You understand.”

“I do, Miss Karetov. I know how much you’ve missed your sister. But your father wants you home by five pm.”

It’s currently eleven in the morning. Professor Burgov’s class was the only one for today. I have time.

“Thank you, Sasha. I’ll be home by then. I promise.”

It’s then I see Lana get out of a car and wave at me. I hurry to her side and give her a hug before I can stop myself. We don’t normally hug often in our family.

“What’s this for?” she asks, hugging me back. I cling to her like a child.

“Nothing.” I pull back and try to smile.

Her eyes look me over critically. So much like our mother. “You’re looking thinner. Have you been eating? You need to eat, Elena. I don’t want you dying in that house.” But unlike our mother’s words telling me to eat less, Lana encourages me to eat more. She’s better than my parents. Better than me.

“I’ve been eating,” I lie. A few bites here and there. It’s hard to eat when you feel the weight of your parents on your shoulders. Sergei enters my mind again and I squeeze my eyes shut.