Tears burned my eyes at his cruel tone. “Learning curve, remember?” I whispered, swallowing hard, desperate not to cry in the middle of Cade’s party. “You were just saying how we’d help each other. Do you think freezing me out and then growling at anyone that talks to me is helping?” I demanded.
“Sometimes that curve… it’s just steeper than I’d realized,” he replied gruffly.
His words hit me hard. I’d been trying but obviously in his eyes, I was still falling short.
“Hey, uh, guys? Everything okay?” Cade’s confused voice interrupted our heated conversation.
The damned tears I’d been fighting won their battle and cascaded over my cheeks. “Sorry, Cade,” I rasped as I pushed past him, desperate to escape.
“Sam!” Sid hollered after me.
I shot a murderous look over my shoulder. “Don’t you dare follow me,” I hissed.
I pushed past the crowd, keeping my head low, not wanting to draw attention to myself, or at least not more attention. I made it to the front porch where I knew there would be less people. I wanted some time to collect myself before I figured out what to do.
Unfortunately for me, I wasn’t alone.
CHAPTER 15
Osip Ivanov appeared from the side of the house with his gun pointed at my chest.
For a moment, it felt like a dream—or rather, my worst nightmare—come true. It took a second for my brain to register that it was real.
“Hello, little one. One of my men has a gun pointed at your boyfriend back there. If you want him to live, don’t say a fucking word,” he warned.
He could have been bluffing, but I couldn’t risk it. Obviously, he’d been casing the house. It was more than likely he hadn’t come alone.
I nodded woodenly, feeling an odd numbness take over.
He took my arm roughly, pulling me toward a black car that appeared at the curb. “We’re going to go for a little drive,” he informed me coolly.
I eyed the car with raw terror, knowing that once I got in it, I might never make it out.
Osip shoved me into the car, pushing in next to me as another man slid in. We tore away from the curb before his door was even shut.
The car drove at high speed through Caden’s neighborhood to the nearest freeway on-ramp. It was ironic that one of the few times I prayed for traffic we were met with a nearly deserted freeway. The car flew down the freeway at terrifying speed.
My breath sounded incredibly loud in the small space as I fought for control. I knew Sid would come for me. I just needed to hang on.
I couldn’t believe we’d spent the night arguing. I’d be damned if that was the last time I got to speak to him.
Osip spat something in Russian to the driver, who immediately slowed down a bit. I guessed he didn’t want to risk being pulled over.
I, on the other hand, had never wanted to hear sirens so badly in my life.
“Where are you taking me?” I demanded.
“Someplace quiet.” The clipped response sent a chill down my spine. “Stop talking or I will make you stop.”
I shuddered, remembering all too well how violent his methods could be. I clasped my fingers in my lap, twisting them to the point of pain as I bit my lip against the tears that threatened to escape.
The dark landscape shot by and I tried to get my bearings. We were headed out of Los Angeles, that much was obvious. It looked like we were headed toward the mountains. The men in the front seat talked quietly in Russian as Osip sat stiffly at my side, his only movement the drumming of his fingers against his thigh.
My thoughts drifted to Sid. I’d hurt him, that much was obvious. It was my nature to make light of things. Had I done that too much with him? Did he not know how much he meant to me?
I winced at the thought.
My bladder began to protest when we’d been driving for what felt like ages. I hadn’t ever used the bathroom at Cade’s, and after more than one cocktail, I desperately needed to.
“I have to go to the bathroom,” I whispered urgently. I’d waited until I was desperate to speak up.
I caught the exit sign for Lancaster as we pulled off the freeway. Though relatively close to Los Angeles, the small city bordered the Mojave Desert. My blood chilled at how easy it would be to get lost out here.
How easy it would be to disappear.
Osip made a scoffing sound. “You wait.”
I shook my head frantically. “I can’t.”
The driver said something in Russian, to which Osip nodded. “We have almost arrived. You will wait.”
I squeezed my eyes shut as the car rambled over a dirt road. I’d never wanted to get somewhere so badly, despite the doom that awaited me. Every bump in the road was like torture before we finally pulled up in front of a small house.