9. Annalise

9

ANNALISE

I ’m seized by a desperate urge to flee. My heart hammers against my chest as I yank at the door handle, but it won’t budge. He must have my door child locked. Panic surges through me, and I pound my fists against the window, trying to break free or at least hoping that someone will see me and call 911.

I’m such an idiot.

I was so focused on trying not to stare at him earlier that I completely neglected to pay attention to my surroundings. We should have been at the office a long time ago. He’s not taking me to the office.

So, where is he taking me?

I need to get away from him.

“Let me out!” I scream, my voice ragged with fear. “Please, just let me go!”

I regret ever getting into this car with him. I should have heeded Isabella’s words; I should have stayed at the restaurant with her, but in my desperation to get back to my daughters, I’d stupidly gotten into this car.

And now Cassius knows the truth…or, at least a portion of it.

Cassius lounges in the driver’s seat, his cold blue eyes fixed on the road, a statue of unwavering composure. His grip on the steering wheel remains steady, and he watches my futile attempts without a hint of emotion. It’s as if my desperation means nothing to him, and it only serves to heighten my terror.

All those years ago, when I heard him and Damian in that office…

If he was capable of that, who knows what he could do to me?

I somehow got it twisted in my mind that he was the nice brother, but there are no nice brothers. Just because he smiles more doesn’t mean that he’s good.

“Annalise, you’re wasting your energy,” he says calmly, not even bothering to look away from the road ahead. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“You can’t do this!” I snap. “You can’t keep me here like I’m some kind of child or dog. You have to let me out!”

But my words fall on deaf ears, and I quickly realize that I’m not going to get my way by trying to make demands.

Cassius isn’t afraid of me, and what reason would he have to be?

A part of me wishes I could curl up into a ball and cry, but that’s not going to be productive either.

My fingers ache from clawing at the unyielding door handle, but I can’t stop. The thought of being trapped in this car with Cassius, at his mercy, sends shivers down my spine. What does he want with me?

If demanding didn’t work, maybe pleading will.

“Please,” I whisper, tears streaming down my face as I continue to struggle. “You don’t have to do this.”

“Do what?”

“Hurt me.”

“Hurt you,” he repeats, shaking his head. “Your fear is misplaced.” His voice is devoid of warmth. “I have no intention of hurting you, Annalise.”

He doesn’t? Or is that just something he’s saying in an attempt to get me to let my guard down, so he can make his move?

Honestly, he doesn’t need me to let my guard down to do whatever he wants with me.

My fear only worsens when I realize that we’re heading out of the city limits, leaving behind any chance I had of someone actually being able to help me.

“Then let me go.” My voice cracks under the weight of my emotions.

He doesn’t say anything, merely glancing in my direction before returning his gaze to the road. I can see the outline of his jaw clenching beneath the smooth skin of his face, and for a moment, I wonder if there’s more going on beneath that icy exterior than he’s letting on.

But it doesn’t matter. All I can focus on is the overwhelming need to escape, to put as much distance between myself and Cassius Volkov as possible. I’ve tried reasoning with him, pleading with him, but his resolve remains unshaken. It’s clear that my only chance of survival is to find a way out of this car—and I’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen.

If—no, when I get out of this, I’m leaving this city…state…country. I’ll never be at the mercy of the Volkovs again.

My fingers fumble with the lock on the door, frustration boiling beneath my skin. I cast another glance at Cassius, who remains completely unaffected by my desperate attempts to escape. He seems too composed, almost as if he’s been through this countless times before.

How many times has he been in a car with someone, and they didn’t make it back home?

How was he even able to read my messages? I had a password on my phone.

“Tell me this.” My voice is fierce despite the tremble in my hands. “How did you get into my phone? How did you read my messages? That shouldn’t be possible.”

Cassius’s ice-blue eyes flicker toward me for a brief moment before returning to the road. He doesn’t say a word, leaving my question hanging in the air like a thick fog. The silence is deafening, and it only serves to heighten my uncertainty. Just how powerful is this man?

“Answer me!” I snap, anger overtaking my fear. “What kind of resources do you have at your disposal that you could tap into my personal life so easily?”

Still, Cassius remains silent, his jaw set and his gaze unwavering from the road ahead. His refusal to answer only adds to the tension building within the small confines of the car. It feels like we’re trapped in a pressure cooker, and I can’t help but worry about what will happen when it finally bursts.

I study his face, searching for any hint of emotion or vulnerability, anything that might give me some insight into what he’s thinking. But all I find are those impossibly cold blue eyes, as unreadable as ever.

I’ve never been so frightened in my life…not even when I was caught by Nikhil all those years ago.

“Where are you taking me?” I ask quietly, my voice laced with desperation. “Please, Cassius. Tell me something.”

For a moment, I think he might actually respond. There’s a subtle shift in his expression, like he’s considering answering my plea. But then, just as quickly, the wall comes back up, and I’m left to wonder what’s going on behind those icy blue eyes.

I take a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart. If I’m going to get through this, I need to keep my wits about me. Panicking won’t help my situation—only clear thinking and determination will see me through.

I need a new plan—I’ll wait until he stops, and the second my door is opened I’ll run like crazy.

The car slows to a stop, and the sudden silence is jarring. We’ve arrived at a deserted boat ramp, the fading sunlight casting eerie shadows along the water’s edge. Seagulls cry out in the distance, their calls echoing through the otherwise quiet evening. My heart pounds violently against my rib cage as I take in our surroundings—secluded, isolated, and utterly terrifying.

He could do anything to me here, and nobody would be the wiser.

He’s going to kill me.

“Please, Cassius,” I beg, my voice trembling with fear. “You don’t have to do this. There must be another way.”

His eyes remain fixed on the watery horizon, as if he hasn’t heard me at all. But I know better than to think he isn’t listening. I can see the tension in his jaw, the subtle clenching of his fists. He’s very much aware of my pleas, but whether they’ll have any impact remains to be seen.

“Franny and Gina are my daughters, and if you kill me, they won’t have a mother. Is that what you want?”

“Daughters?” The word slips from his lips, and I can’t quite decipher the emotion behind it. Surprise? Disgust? Pity? It’s impossible to say.

“They need me.” Now, the tears are flowing down my face like a river. There’s nothing prideful about me right now, and I don’t care. The only thing I care about is seeing my daughters again.

If they don’t have me, then who will they have?

“How old are they?”

It’s clear why he wants the answer.

“Two.”

“Interesting,” he whispers, finally turning to face me. “You kept them a secret.”

“Please,” I whisper, my hands shaking as I clutch them together in my lap. “I’m begging you, Cassius. Have mercy.”

“Mercy,” he repeats, his voice low and dangerous. “Such an interesting concept, isn’t it? Tell me, Annalise, would we have ever known that we had daughters if I didn’t read that message?”

I don’t say anything. How can I?

“No, of course not.” He snorts, shaking his head. “You just wanted to show up, get some quick cash and go, right?”

“It was a good opportunity, and I…”

“You what?”

“I wanted to give them a good life.”

Cassius opens the car door and steps out, leaving me to wonder what fate awaits me at this desolate boat ramp. He’s quickly on my side, opening my door and beckoning me out.

I may not know what Cassius has planned, but whatever it is, I’ll do everything in my power to survive—for myself and for my daughters.

The sun casts a golden glow over the water, creating an ethereal scene that feels as though it’s been plucked from a dream. As I gaze out at the tranquil waves lapping against the shore, the contrast between the peaceful surroundings and the fear clawing at my chest is almost jarring.

“Quite the view, isn’t it?” Cassius muses, his voice breaking the silence. His unexpected comment about the beauty of the surroundings sends a shiver down my spine, adding an eerie and unsettling element to the scene.

I force myself to nod, taking a deep breath to steady my trembling hands. For a moment, I allow myself to find solace in the serene environment, letting the rhythmic sound of the waves wash away some of the terror that threatens to consume me. But this temporary reprieve can’t last forever.

“Are you going to kill me?” The question slips past my lips before I can stop it, my voice barely above a whisper.

Cassius studies me with those piercing blue eyes, and for a moment, I can’t read any emotion in them. But then a slow smile spreads across his face, and he chuckles softly. “You think I brought you all the way out here just to kill you?”

“Didn’t you?” I ask, unable to keep the tremor from my voice. “Isn’t that why we’re here? To put an end to…whatever this is? Because you’re upset with me for hiding the truth.”

“I am upset with you,” he admits, “for keeping my blood away from me, but I don’t believe in ripping a mother from her children. If that hadn’t happened to my family…maybe things would have turned out differently.”

For a moment, no matter how brief, I feel my heart ache for him.

“You won’t hurt them?” I ask. “They’re innocent.”

“I know they are,” he agrees. “Children always are.”

“Then, you’re going to let us go?”

“Is that what you want, Annalise?” His gaze bores into mine, challenging me to answer honestly.

“More than anything,” I admit, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. “I don’t want them to live in fear. I don’t want to live in fear.”

“Franny and Gina are mine…” he finally says, his voice low and strained. “My daughters, or at least my nieces.”

The way he says it feels possessive, but I don’t dare confront him.

“Do you want to know why I brought you here?” he asks, voice so low that I can barely hear him.

“To make me tell you the truth?”

“That too.” He smiles at me, and it actually feels genuine. “I like to come here, sometimes, to think. I’ve never brought anyone here before.”

Even though it shouldn’t, that warms my heart.

“I need to meet them,” he says, his voice barely more than a whisper, yet it resounds in my ears like thunder. “I need to meet Franny and Gina.”

A chill runs down my spine at the ominous tone in his voice. I swallow hard, trying to steady myself as I grapple with the implications of what he’s saying.

“No,” I say quickly, shaking my head. “I can’t let you do that.”

“Do you really think you have a choice?”

My breathing becomes uneven. “I don’t want them hurt.”

“I won’t hurt them.”

I shouldn’t trust him, but I do.

And I don’t think I have any other choice.

Now that he knows the truth, he’ll never leave me alone. But if I let him meet them just this once, maybe it’ll give me enough buffer time to slip away with them tonight.

“Promise me…” I let out a breath. “That you won’t take them from me.”

He thinks about it for a long time before nodding his head. “I promise you.”