Chapter 21: Vivian

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

I screamed on the inside, tightening my grip around the steering wheel. All manner of thoughts were tugging at my mind, clouding my head and eventually blocking out my voice of reason.

He'd found me!

I put my foot down, driving at top speed as the speedometer needle climbed dangerously. I couldn't let him catch me; if he did, I'd be….

You'd be fucking toast! Now drive faster!

The tiny voice came at me now in full force after I'd shut it out of my head during the meeting when it was screaming at me to drop everything and run.

"Gentlemen, having two angry Wolkovs in one room will not end well."

Mr. Petrov's voice echoed in my head as I put my foot down, accelerating onward. At the mention of that name, I'd felt my heart sink into my stomach, and when I set eyes on him, I was overwhelmed by fear and anxiety.

This unexpected encounter had me rattled—scared to death. The way he'd looked at me was rather cold and dangerous—two words that were, in fact, the perfect definition of Daniil Wolkov. His eyes had been burning with rage, and my heart wouldn't stop racing.

It had taken all the courage in me to remain in that room, even though all I'd wanted to do was run. I couldn't let anyone else in the room know what was going on, but it had been harder to keep calm with his attention focused on me.

The toughest thing that I had to do today was give my opinion regarding the deal without letting my emotions get the better of me. His constant glare hadn't helped, but I was determined not to screw this up. Mr. Rodriguez had entrusted me with this task, and I didn't want to disappoint him.

Despite the fact that they'd all seemed impressed by my insight, there was no vacancy in my mind to accommodate their surprise. All I could think about was how I was going to escape the moment we were done.

Never had I been so afraid in my life. I was so tense that I'd wanted the ground to open and swallow me whole; it would be a better punishment compared to what Daniil had in store for me. He'd lost me once, and it didn't take a genius to guess that he wouldn't like to lose me again. He'd do everything in his power to get me back.

Four years hadn't been enough time to make him have a change of heart regarding me. The hatred was still in there, evident in his eyes, and I thought he'd killed me multiple times in his mind while seated there.

He hadn't made a fuss about seeing me; he hadn't created a scene, and his expression was blank at some point, unreadable. This had been torture, not knowing what he was thinking or planning, and I could tell that he loved toiling with me.

Daniil was like an apex predator; he loved to see the fear in his victims' eyes before devouring them. He was the kind of monster that enjoyed torturing people, the kind that would send someone straight to hell with a fucking smile on his face.

This was the man that I'd managed to piss off. Now, he was coming for me. There was no two ways about it; Daniil Wolkov had found me, and now, he would stop at nothing until he got his revenge.

I was driving really fast in the direction opposite my place. The devil was back in my life, and I didn't want him anywhere near my kids—not when I didn't know how he'd react to finding out about them. I was driving in the opposite direction because I knew that he would follow me; this was my feeble attempt to draw him away from them.

I had always known that this day would come, the day of reckoning, but I hadn't expected it to come so suddenly and unexpectedly.

What were you thinking? That life was going to give you a heads-up and say, "Oh, hey, Daniil will find you in two days' time?"

You're really not helping right now.

"Argh!" I let out a frustrated groan, banging against the steering wheel.

My voice of reason said to me, Stay focused, Viv. You can't get through this if you're not thinking clearly.

How was I supposed to think clearly when those two voices in my head wouldn't quiet?

He could chase and eventually get me; whatever he would do to me, I would accept. However, I didn't want him around Leo and Sophia. He was their father, and he deserved to know, but I couldn't let him find out about them.

Maybe I was being selfish, but knowing Daniil, if he found out about them, I'd be dead meat. He would skin me alive because I hadn't only escaped him, but I did so with his unborn twins. Although, in my defense, I hadn't known I was pregnant until I left for Spain. If he found those kids, he would take them away from me as a part of whatever cruel punishment he had planned for me.

"No, no…."

I was more terrified about losing those cuties than I was about what he would do to me. The thought of him taking my babies away from me made my eyes water. I was both pissed and scared at the same time.

Truck! the voices in my head chorused, shifting my attention to the vehicle approaching in the opposite direction.

With a swift swerve, I wheeled the car away, and it whooshed past me dangerously. If I had delayed for just a second more, I'd have been crushed.

What good will you be to the kids if you're dead? Focus! my voice of reason snarled at me.

Incoming . You've got a boogie on your tail.

I'd heard the sounds of those screeching tires taking a sharp turn onto the road that I was on. And now, as I jerked my eyes in the rearview mirror, I saw them clearly: Those exotic cars were quickly catching up with me.

The scene looked so familiar, only the last time it had happened, I was a lot younger. It was like déjà vu; history was repeating itself.

Looks like they're back for a rematch.

I revved my engine, changed up, and put my foot down with my eyes focused on the road.

I gripped the steering wheel tightly, my heart racing like a jackrabbit. I could see them in my rearview mirror, their black G-Wagons weaving in and out of traffic, gaining on me. My mind raced with fear, my thoughts a jumbled mess.

He was in one of those vehicles, probably the one in front of the others. Just yesterday, while driving home, I had thought that the black SUV behind me was Daniil or some of his men. If only I'd known that I would truly be driving away from him today.

He was gaining on me real fast, and I guessed that he had upped his game. The man was relentless, and even though I couldn't see his face, I could envision his rage.

I pushed my car to its limits, the speedometer climbing higher and higher. The roads blurred together, a kaleidoscope of asphalt and concrete. Nervous, yet in control, I zigzagged through traffic, my tires screeching in protest. Horns blared around me, but I didn't dare look back.

"Watch where you're going, man!" a driver yelled at me in Spanish, but I couldn't care less.

I sped on.

The men behind me were relentless, their minds evidently set and determined. I could feel their eyes on me, boring into my skin. My skin crawled with fear, my mouth going dry.

I took a sharp turn, my tires squealing loudly at the sudden move. The cars followed suit, with Daniil's leading the chase. My heart skipped a beat as I realized I was running out of road.

"No, no! What do I do? What do I do?" I mumbled to myself, struck with terror.

I felt like I was losing his chase; either I'd gotten sloppy, or they'd gotten better. Whatever the case, though, I needed to ditch them, and to do that, I had to think fast.

I spotted a gap in traffic and made a break for it, my car surging forward. The cars were right behind me, their engines roaring like beasts.

These guys just don't want to give up! I screamed in my mind, frustrated by their determination.

Hate to break it to you, Viv, but they're not going to stop. Daniil is here for you. I would suggest you face him and get it over with. You can't win.

Now who's not helping? the tiny voice countered my voice of reason.

By running away, you're only delaying the inevitable. Mark my words, Daniil will not stop. And soon, you're going to run out of gas.

I glanced at the gauge, and the voice was right; I was already running low on gas.

"Fuck!"

Face your fear, Vivian. You don't really have a choice, anyway.

"No, no, I won't give up," I muttered to that voice as I weaved through the streak of cars, my heart in my throat.

The road became a blur, a never-ending stretch of danger. I drove on pure instinct, my fear fueling my actions. I was a woman on a mission: to escape.

"I've escaped him before. I can do it again," I said, blood rushing in my ears.

Suddenly, I saw my chance: a side street, empty and inviting. I took it, my tires screeching as I turned. The cars followed, but I had gained precious seconds.

I accelerated onward, the engine roaring as I sped away from my pursuers. Finally, I dared to look back.

I think I lost them.

I glanced again and again, but there was no sign of them.

Isn't this too easy?

My voice of reason was still talking when I realized that this street was a dead end.

"Shit!" The exclamation escaped me softly.

In an attempt to hit the brakes, I panicked and took a wrong swerve, and the car careened out of control, heading straight for a street lamp. Time seemed to slow as I frantically tried to correct my mistake.

But it was too late.

The car crashed into the lamp with a deafening crunch, the bonnet crumpling like paper. Sparks flew everywhere, dancing like fireworks. My head snapped forward, hitting the steering wheel with a sickening thud.

Dazed and disoriented, I sat there, stunned. The airbag hadn't deployed, and my head was throbbing in pain. I could taste blood in my mouth, and my vision was blurry.

As the reality of the situation set in, I assessed my injuries. My head was pounding, and my neck felt like it was on fire. I could feel a warm trickle of blood running down my forehead, and my left arm hung limp and useless.

I struggled to move, but a wave of agony washed over me, forcing me back into the seat. I was trapped, unable to escape the wreckage.

With blurry vision, I watched the cars pull up beside me, and then, I saw him step out of his car, fuming, a frown etched on his face.

I knew that I was in grave danger now, but my injuries, my pounding head, wouldn't let me move.

Daniil yanked my door open and stood there, seamlessly unconcerned about my present situation.

"Get out!" he barked at me. "Get out of the fucking car!"

Gripped by fear, I forced myself out despite the aches all over my body.

He grabbed my neck, staring into my eyes. "Did you really think that I wasn't going to find you?"

He was a real monster with no ounce of sympathy in him while he choked me as though he intended to drain the life out of me with his bare hands.

"You tricked me, Vivian…. You ran away from me."

I could hear in his voice that he was still as angry as the day that I'd left, and that anger was pushing him to tighten his grip around my neck.

Unable to breathe, I tried to slap against his big arms, but my attempts were futile. I managed to catch his eyes, and it seemed like there was no humanity left in him any more—if there ever had been any.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you right now?" he said to me, even though he knew that with the way he was choking me, I wouldn't be able to talk.

He hesitated for a moment before finally letting go of me, and a loud gasp came forth as I struggled to breathe. My legs were too weak to carry me, and my eyes felt like they were about to fall out of their sockets.

I was still fighting to catch some air when I heard my phone ring in my hand. Glancing at it, I realized that it was Alba.

Oh, God, no.

I immediately declined it, but he noticed. Of course, he did.

"Who was that?" Jealousy was palpable in his tone.

I couldn't reply because I hadn't recovered from almost choking to death.

"Who was that?" he reiterated, angrier than before.

"Nobody," I replied, wheezing.

He snatched the phone from me and realized that it was locked.

"Open it and hand it over. Now," he commanded.

With a little resilience, I hesitated, but the look in his eyes was too scary for me to be stubborn, so I did as he wanted.

I took the phone and dialed Alba's number. My heart was pounding really fast as I knew this was it: my greatest fear. Daniil was only seconds from finding out about the kids, and right now, there was nothing that I could do about it. I felt my tear glands charging up, and soon, my eyes were filled with unshed tears.

Alba picked up the phone, and Daniil glared at me, putting the phone on speaker.

"Talk," he commanded.

I swallowed hard, and the moment I shut my eyes, those tears started to pour.

"Ms. Keith, I was calling to tell you that the kids are really missing you," Alba said on the other line.

The kids' voices buzzed through the phone, their giggles and yelps. We could hear Alba begging them to stay put, telling them mom was on the way, but they wouldn't stop the noise, nor would they stop playing around.

"I swear to God, these kids will be the death of me," she joked, laughing with them.

My heart felt like it was ripped from my chest when Daniil jerked up to look at me with so much fury in his eyes.

His eyebrows rose in disbelief. "The kids?"