Chapter 20 - Igor

The car hasn't even stopped when I climb out and head into the estate. I stride across the floor, up the stairs, and straight into my office.

"What do we know?" I ask, taking off my suit jacket. "Who's taken her?"

"I've got someone working on that," Matvey says.

"Why weren't you watching her?" I growl. "Where were you?"

"She… she wanted some privacy. Maybe nobody took her, Igor. Maybe she ran." He runs a hand through his hair.

"She didn't," I say quietly. "I know she didn't. She wouldn't. Her life is here now, with me."

"By force," Matvey says. "Maybe she was just waiting for the right time. I mean, I caught her sneaking out in the first place."

"You say she was sneaking, but on the phone, it sounded like she was just walking out, going to the store like a normal person. She isn't a prisoner." I slam my hand on the desk. "And I want to know where she is now ."

Matvey leaves the office, and Yvonne comes in. "Do your people know anything?" I ask.

"They're looking. They will send over the video footage from the pharmacy shortly." She puts a hand on my arm. "She'll be fine. She's a tough cookie."

"She wasn't feeling well. I should have stayed with her." I pour myself a whiskey and drain the glass.

"You couldn't have known someone would take her," Yvonne tries to comfort me. "You couldn't have predicted this would happen."

"Of course, I could have. In our line of business, this is always a possibility."

"So what?" Yvonne asks. "We live in fear? We worry that at every turn, someone is going to hurt us. Arina will be fine. She's got a brain and a smart mouth to boot."

I sit down and tap my leg at what feels like a hundred miles per hour. I clench and unclench my hands.

Yvonne's phone rings, and she answers it. "Hello?"

There's a brief pause before. "Okay, thanks for organizing it."

She comes to my desk after she hangs up and turns my computer on to log into her emails. She pulls up the video file she's been sent, and hits play.

"This is where she is scanning the aisle, and this is when someone approaches her from behind."

We watch. The man has his back to the camera, but he's clearly got a gun jammed into Arina's back.

"I told Matvey she didn't run," I murmur. "Who is that?"

We watch for a few seconds before the man turns his face.

Luka Milov.

That fucking dirty rat. Matvey tipped him off that they were going to be at the mall.

"Igor," Yvonne says as I stand up suddenly and walk out of the office. Matvey is on the phone downstairs, pacing around the entrance hall.

"You fucking traitor," I roar. As he turns, my fist connects with his jaw. His phone goes flying, but he doesn't back down. He instantly throws a punch back at me. I block it and punch him in the stomach. "You tipped off the Milovs again and then acted like you were so innocent."

He knees me in the leg, just missing my groin. Then he punches me on the side of my head.

"Stop!" Yvonne yells, hurrying downstairs to get between us.

"I will never forgive you, Matvey," I roar, grabbing him by his shirt. I hear it tear as he tries to pull away, his mouth full of blood.

Yvonne forces herself between us, and I let him go, stepping back.

"Igor, what is wrong with you? That is your brother."

"Because this isn't the first time he's tipped off the Milovs. I should have known he would do it again."

Matvey spits out the blood and glares at me. "I didn't tip off anyone. I didn't even know it was the Milovs who took her."

"Liar!" I roar.

Matvey stands straight. "I'm not lying. I didn't want anything to happen to her. That's why I went with her."

"Then why did you let her go to the pharmacy alone?" I ask as Yvonne pushes against me as I approach him.

"Because she wanted girly shit, and I don't do that," Matvey admits, looking defeated. "I feel fucking terrible that I didn't go in with her, but I didn't think anyone was going to take her. I was right outside."

Yvonne touches my face. "Calm yourself, Igor. Matvey is telling the truth, and you know it. What is the sense of fighting amongst ourselves? It isn't going to bring Arina back."

I breathe heavily before I nod. "Fine. No more fighting."

Matvey spits again, and Yvonne turns to him. "Go rinse your mouth out with salt water. Then let's meet in the study and discuss what we're going to do to get Arina back."

"I need a moment. I'll be there now," I say, going upstairs to our bedroom. I slam the door behind me.

I look around, and I see her silk nightgown. I pick it up and sit on the bed with it in my hands. I raise it to my nose and sniff. It smells just like her soap and cream mixed together. It's what I smell when she lies in my arms at night, like honey and milk.

I clench the nightgown in my hand and fight back the tears.

If the Milovs do anything to her… I think my worst fear is that they will turn her against me. After everything we've been through, from absolutely hating me to accepting her role as my wife. I hate the thought of losing her.

I lay her nightgown on the bed beside me and got up, taking off my tie and unbuttoning the top button of my shirt.

I go back to the study and pour another glass of whiskey. Matvey comes in looking worse for wear.

I pour him a whiskey and hand it to him before I sit down.

Matvey sits opposite me, but Yvonne remains standing.

"We need to come up with a way to speak to Kervyn Milov to get her back," she says, looking at us.

Matvey shifts slightly, and I drain my glass. Yvonne knows something is up, so she puts her hands on her hips. "What did you two do? What was Igor saying about you tipping off the Milovs before?"

Matvey is the one to speak. "I found out the Milovs didn't know about her, about Arina. That's why she was never in their lives. Not because they abandoned her or drove her mother away but because they didn't know she existed. I let it slip to Luka Milov and caught him following her. It's the real reason I didn't want her to go to the mall alone."

Yvonne looks at Igor. "You told her, right? You told her that her brothers didn't know about her?"

I look up at her, feeling sorry for myself as I reach for the bottle of whiskey. "No."

"You didn't tell her? She's going to find out now, and if she finds out, you knew she's going to be pissed with you." Yvonne throws her hands in the air dramatically. "Men!"

"No one knows I know," I say quietly. "But I need her back, Yvonne."

"I can try to arrange a meeting with Kervyn to discuss this, but he knows who you are. He remembers you from Russia. He won't give her up to you easily." Yvonne sits beside Matvey and crosses her legs.

I rub my head and then pour another glass of whiskey, which prompts her to get up and take the bottle away. "Getting drunk is certainly not the answer, Igor."

I drain my glass and sigh. "Make the arrangements."

"Go get some sleep," Yvonne says. "Or go watch a movie. Or do something to distract yourself."

I look up at her. "Leave the whiskey, and don't tell me what to do."

She purses her lips, but she knows better than to argue with me.

She puts the bottle down and taps Matvey's shoulder. "You come with me."

Matvey drains his glass and sets it down, getting up and walking out with Yvonne.

I pour another shot of whiskey and stare into the glass miserably.

What am I going to say to Kervyn Milov that would convince him to give his only sister back to me as his wife? He hates me—he always has. Our families have been rivals since before we were both born.

I drain my glass.

Arina. Fuck I miss you, Arina. I wish I'd told you I love you this morning before I left for the resort. Then again, I wish I'd stayed home to take care of you. Maybe this wouldn't have happened.

I down another shot of whiskey.

I close the bottle and get up, leaving the office and going upstairs to the bedroom.

I'm not particularly hungry, so I skip dinner.

I strip to my briefs, and I slide into the bed.

Normally, Arina would curl up against my chest, one hand over my heart. Sometimes, she will trace lazy circles on my skin, lulling me into sleep.

The bed is cold and empty now. Her presence was fiery, bold, and noticeable.

I turn on my side and bring her pillow into my arms as though I was holding her from behind. The pillow smells like her shampoo. Coconut.

Coconut and something else I can never put my finger on.

I breathe it in deeply, and a tear escapes my eye.

I will not cry.

I do not cry.

I have not cried for years now.

But a piece of my soul is missing, and I long for her to be back in my arms.

Eventually, drunk exhaustion takes over me, and I doze off into a fitful sleep, only to wake up once again at four in the morning.

My head is heavy with a hangover. I get out of bed and get into a hot shower. I hang my head and let the hot water run on my neck, easing the pressure in my head.

I pick up her shampoo and read the bottle.

Coconut and elderberries. Hmm. I put some on my hand and rub it over my head. I want to smell like her. I want to smell her the whole day.

I use her soap to wash off the slimy, sweaty feeling on my skin.

Once I'm out, I dry off and brush my teeth. I get dressed in a suit and go downstairs to find Matvey and Yvonne already at the dining room table.

"Couldn't sleep either?" Yvonne asks.

Matvey looks up at me, and I nod. "I couldn't. How soon can we arrange a meeting with Kervyn?"

"My people are trying to set it up for today or tomorrow, but some of them are saying he's taken a week off to be with family."

"A week?" I ask, groaning. "We can't wait a week."

"I don't want to push too hard," Yvonne admits. "I don't want him to reject the meeting altogether."

Matvey gets up and goes to the kitchen. "I'll arrange some coffee."

"What's his story?" I ask quietly, sitting down.

"He feels guilty, and he's worried. He does care about her, too, Igor. We all do. She's our sister now." Yvonne reaches for my hand. "And we can't fight amongst ourselves because then we've already lost the war."

I look into her eyes. My family's eyes. I nod and say. "I don't want to fight either. I just want her back, Yvonne. Safe in my arms where she belongs."

"I know. You two are a perfect match, even if it did start a bit rocky." She smiles softly. "We'll get her back, don't worry."

Matvey comes back with Marie, who is carrying three piping hot cups of coffee, and I sit back. "Let us make plans then. What will we bargain with when we see Kervyn?"