25. ISABELLA

Chapter 25

ISABELLA

“Let’s move on, or I’m going to go against my word and punch you in the throat!” I tell Lucien, who raises his brows as he looks at me. “I can’t help how my father brought me up.”

“You should never tell your opponent what you’re about to do.” Lucien laughs.

“That’ wasn’t me telling you. That was me warning you!” I turn as footsteps sound behind us, and Harry brings a tray with my tea and ginger cookies.

“Thank you.” My tone is clipped as Harry puts the tray beside me. “I won’t be far if you need me.” He’s about to walk away, but I stop him.

“Sit!” I command and point to a leather armchair a distance from me and Lucien. “I’ll speak to you in a bit.” Then turn back to my cousin who is smirking at me. “What?”

“You were born to be a queen, cousin,” Lucien tells me. “You’ll realize it soon enough.”

“Whatever.” My eyes search his. “You were telling me about Stacy.” My eyes narrow thoughtfully. “Your question about the friends I had. My only friend was Stacy. My father didn’t really allow me to have other friends.”

“Which suited my narcissistic sister well,” Harry tells me. “She was so jealous of you giving anyone any special attention she even eventually killed your dog Titan.”

“No!” My eyes widen in shock. My first Cane Corso, Titan, had been found dead on the motorway a few miles from our house. The vet had told us it looked like he’d been hit by a big truck. “I don’t believe Stacy would do that. She loved Titan.”

“She pretended to love Titan,“ Lucien tells me. “Then the first opportunity she got, she tied him up, muzzled him, and beat him with Harry’s baseball bat so she could blame him if you ever found out.”

“Bullshit!” I hiss. “You’re lying!” Nausea starts to roll in my stomach once again. “Jesus. That’s just sick.”

My mind is whirling. I just can’t see Stacy doing that. She was always fiercely protective of me and such a good, loyal friend. She’d cried with me when they’d found Titan dead.

“I’m sorry, Isabella, it’s true,” Harry says.

“Why would I believe anything you tell me?“ I glare at Harry.

“Stacy was obsessed with you right up until she met Lev,” Lucien tells me. “You left for Switzerland for a year or two when you were twelve. When Stacy’s parents wouldn’t let her go, she retaliated and threatened to go to the police and tell them her brother raped her while her perverted parents stood and watched.”

“You’re fucking lying!” I yell, my voice echoing through the room. “Stacy told me that Harry did rape her.”

“No. Harry did not. When Stacy’s parents didn’t take her threat seriously, reminding Stacy they were respected judges, Stacy went to someone they were scared of—your father,” Lucien told me. “Giving him the story she’d come up with.”

“Bullshit!” I shake my head. “My father was at her house fucking Stacy’s mother.”

Lucien laughs and stares at me in disbelief. “You think Marco would dip his dick in that whore?” He pulls out his phone. “You really did live with cotton wool over your eyes, didn’t you, little cousin?”

“Marco has been fucking Genevra for about ten years now. Once she was over the grief of Matteo and Marco over your mother, they found solace in each other’s arms,” Harry tells me.

“You might not remember me as you were too young. But I used to visit your house before Karina died. While Marco and Karina may not have started out in love, they eventually fell in love.” Lucien’s eyes fill with pain for a few seconds.

“Is that why he and Ivan had her killed?” I guess.

“Your father had nothing to do with that,” Lucien tells me. “He was going to take you and James over to Russia a couple of months later to avoid the suspicion that your mother wasn’t going to let you anywhere near the Belovs.”

“But she left me engaged to Andrey.”

“A few days before she died, she called Roman and demanded he choose Andrey and get the contract signed immediately,” Lucien tells me. “Karina knew that the only way to ensure your safety was to have the Belovs’ future attached to yours.”

“But why attach me to the very family she was running from?”

“Because she knew that Ivan would ensure you were protected with the promise of a kingdom he’d always envisioned for the Belov Bratva,” Lucien answers. “Karina knew too that with that alliance signed and Ivan’s ensuring Isabella’s safety, Roman would stop the squeeze he and Karla had on the Belov’s organization and Velvet Transport, of which Roman owns the greater portion.”

“I’m confused,” I tell him, sipping the ginger tea. “You said my mother didn’t want me to marry a Belov, but then she got Roman to ensure I was engaged to Andrey.”

“No.” Lucien shook his head. “She didn’t want you to. But she also didn’t want Roman and our grandmother to kill Ivan or Andrey. Karina was adamant about that, which is still perplexing for all of us who have been putting the pieces together for your mother’s last few days for years.”

“Well, all I know is that I’ve got married, been kidnapped three times, and chased across America and Canada after whatever it is my mother has left me.”

“And for your babies,” Lucien points out. “It’s not just about the information; it’s about what your children bring to the table, and then there’s your mother’s super drug.”

“It has a potentially high street value,” Harry tells me. “One of its many applications is as a powerful hallucinogenic.”

“One that doesn’t take forty-eight hours to leave the bloodstream,” Lucien points out. “And other than a bad thirst and needing to piss like an elephant for an hour, there are no nasty side effects.”

“Fuck!” My face falls, and my heart lurches as I realize what this whole goose chase is really about. “What Lev is really after is the perfected formula for the drug.”

“We believe so,” Lucien nods. “I can remember when we were kids how Lev became obsessed with Karina’s drug and how it could help the Belovs corner the drug business.”

“But of course, your mother was never going to let that happen,” Harry assures me.

“But what about the information she stumbled on?” I ask. “Is that real or just a Big Foot thing to ensure my safety some more.”

“Oh, Karina definitely has the dirt on someone,” Lucien tells me. “I’m sure Lev wants that, too.”

“Your brother, Lucien, and Roman were making plans to extract you from Boston a few days before your twenty-first,” Harry picks up the story. “But Konstantin made the big mistake of asking Stacy for help to get you out of the house.”

“Stacy contacted Lev with Konstantin’s plan, or whoever is helping him, and she was told to get you together with Andrey by any means possible,” Lucien continues. “You know the rest and by now must know the truth in my words. Because if you think about it, someone was always two steps ahead of you and Konstantin.”

“Yes, but after that, someone’s always been able to find us,” I point out, and my eyes widen. “You think Andrey’s the one helping Lev?”

“To be honest, I haven’t ruled him out,” Lucien admits. “Out of all of you, he’s the only one that’s got off unscathed so far.”

“I don’t think it’s Andrey,” I find myself defending a man I’m trying my best to get away from because while he may make my heart and my flesh melt just with a look, the more I learn about this world he lives in, the more I’m certain this is not the life for me or the twins. My eyes narrow in on Lucien. “How do I know it’s not you and Harry?”

He sighs. “You don’t.”

“How did you even meet Harry?”

“I met Harry at a club when I came to discuss your extraction with your father about ten months ago,” Lucien tells me. “Like you, Harry was being forced to marry someone he couldn’t stand. I won’t bore you with that story. But his life story fascinated me, especially when it collided with yours.” He opens his screen, and I see a video clip. “You see, after listening to Harry, I decided to check out his sister myself and learned a lot more than I had expected.” He presses play. “This will enlighten you.”

The video starts with Stacy sitting at a bar, and the camera gets closer to her. I presume that it’s Lucien with a hidden camera taking a seat next to her.

“I take it that’s you with a camera strapped somewhere?”

Lucien nods.

“Hello, handsome,” Stacy looks at him and smiles, immediately sidling up to him. “Want to buy a lady a drink?”

“Depends…” Lucien’s voice is deep, sexy, and alluring. “What do I get in return?”

“My company and a drink?” Stacy smiles, her eyes devouring Lucien.

“How about your company, a drink, and a conversation?” I see him lean closer and whisper. “Then we can see where that goes.”

“Mmm,” Stacy smiles alluringly. “I like the sound of that.”

Lucien buys her a drink and starts with the usual small talk of introductions. He calls himself Lu, but Stacy uses her real name. I see the bartender exchange a glance with Lucien. The bartender nods, and Lucien hands him a couple of hundred dollars when Stacy’s not looking.

“Were you drugging her?” I ask Lucian accusingly and hit the pause button on the video.

“I was giving her a gentle nudge toward telling me what I wanted to know with a little help from your mother’s NeuroMind.” Lucien gives me a tight smile. “Don’t worry. It wasn’t the drugs that were making your friend horny. Stacy’s sexual appetite is because she’s just a little slut that enjoys sex.”

“Don’t speak about her like that!’ I hiss, not knowing why I’m still defending her after what I’ve learned.

But I guess I’m still trying to cling to the hope that Lucien and Harry are wrong, and they’re the ones setting me up. Although I’m not too sure as I don’t feel threatened by either of them, but then again, they could’ve been drugging me too. I suppress a shudder and push my dark thoughts away. I remind myself that if Harry was telling the truth back in the alley, Stacy was going to take me back to Lev— bitch!

“You’re just like your mother!” Lucien sighs. “Soft-hearted and too damn nice.” He hits play again.

“So, Stacy, tell me about your family?’ Lucien asks her.

“I have a mother and father who are both crooked judges working for crime rather than against it,” Stacy tells Lucien. “And a gay brother that I have by the balls, as he knows my grandparents will cut him from the will if they find out, as they are old school.” She snorts. “I’ve been working on my grandparents for some time now, and I’m pretty sure they’ll cut him out anyway, which means I get everything.”

She hails the bartender. “Another round, please.” The man looks toward Lucien, who nods. She turns back to Lucien, leans in, and whispers. “I told everyone that Harry raped me when I was thirteen. He got beaten shitless by my father and sent away.”

“Jesus,” Lucien says. “You should be working for me. I need devious bitches like you in my organization.”

Her eyes widen in realization. “I knew you were an alpha male and dangerous.” She swivels her stool and slides closer. “Want to know a secret?”

“Sure!” Lucien says.

“My boyfriend is Bratva.” She whispers.

“Oh?” Lucien remarks. “And who would that be? I might know him.”

“Lev Belov.” She giggles. “We have big plans.” She turns an engagement ring on her finger. “We’re going to rule the underworld.” She leans forward, and I see her eyes are glazed.

“And how are you going to do that?” Lucien asks. “I thought Lev Belov was dead?”

“No.” Stacy shakes her head. “He’s not.” She puts a finger to her lips. “Shhh. You can’t tell anyone. Only me and his…” Her eyes widen. “Fuck I’ve said too much already.”

“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me,” Lucien assures her. “Why is Lev pretending to be dead?”

“He’s pretending to be dead right now, so he can gather intel on one of their organization’s biggest enemies that stole his mother’s business and nearly crippled their trade.” Stacy downs the last of her drink. “Oh, no. I seem to be without a drink.”

“Bartender,” Lucien hails the same man who has been serving them. “Another round of drinks please.”

Stacy slides off her chair and positions herself between his legs, sliding her hands up Lucian’s muscular thighs clad in dark cotton pants until she’s unabashedly cupping his cock. Her eyes widen in surprise and darken with desire. “Wow. You’re huge.”

I hit pause as I don’t really want to see my best… or ex-best friend fiddling with my cousin’s dick. “I thought you were gay?” I look up at him.

“I like men and women.” Lucien shrugs. “I can’t resist a beautiful man or woman. Especially when one is inviting me to fuck her by rubbing my cock.” He winks at me. “And Stacy is one hell of a fuck.”

My head shoots toward Harry, who is sitting stony-faced and not saying a word.

“You fucked her?” My eyes widen.

“I was getting information from her.” Lucien looks at me unabashed by his actions. “She was coming onto me. I’m a man that likes to fuck just like any other man, and when a sexy woman starts rubbing my cock….”

“Jesus…” I hold up my hand to silence him. “I don’t want to know.”

“You asked,” Lucien points out.

I ignore him and move the conversation away from my cousin’s body parts. “So you knew Lev was alive and planning all this shit?” My eyes narrow. “But you didn’t warn Konstantin or my father?”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed,” Lucien says. “But your brother doesn’t listen to anyone!” He raises his brows pointedly. “Kinda like you!”

“But still, you knew what their plan was!”

“Stacy didn’t know the whole plan,” Lucien admits. “All she knew was that Lev wanted her to ensure you and Andery met. He gave her specific instructions to ensure you and Andrey got into a compromising position no matter what she had to do.”

“She set me up to be with Andrey?” I whisper in disbelief although Stacy did admit that to me.

“I’m afraid so, little cousin.” Lucien’s eyes fill with compassion. “When you were younger, Stacy latched onto you, and you became her obsession. Then, when she met Lev, he did. People like Stacy are single-minded and will do whatever is necessary to get what they want or please the person that holds their affection.”

“I just became someone she could manipulate and discard?” I start to feel sick again.