Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
It should’ve been a relief. I should’ve felt free and ready to claim my new life, but I had no idea what I was going to do or where I was going to go. Fearing Sergei might send me away, I asked, “What happens now?”
“That’s up to you.” Sergie looked down at me, and his expression was unreadable as he added, “You’re welcome to stay, or I can find you somewhere to go. Somewhere safe where no one would know who you are or where you’re from. You’d have a fresh start.”
After everything, after Alek and the fear and being told that I was basically dead to the world, Sergei was offering me freedom. Real freedom. A chance to start a new life and put my past behind me. I should’ve been excited by the thought, but the thought of being alone and starting over in some strange place terrified me more than I cared to admit.
“And if I stay?” The words came out in barely a whisper. “What does it mean for me?”
“It means whatever you want.” He didn’t smile or offer comfort of any kind, but there was something in his eyes that looked a little like hope. “I could help you build a new identity. A new name. New anything. A clean slate. You can be anything you want to be. You choose, and I’ll make it happen.”
His words settled over me like a promise, but it wasn’t just a simple promise. I had my freedom. It was there within reach, but so was the responsibility of shaping a future I hadn’t dared dream about until this very moment.
“I’ll have to change my name?”
“I’m afraid so.” Sergei’s eyes softened, but his tone stayed grounded. “Alek might be gone, but that doesn’t mean we’re in the clear. Men like him don’t die clean. They leave shadows. Friends. Family. Followers. Enemies. There’s always a chance those shadows will come crawling back, and if they do, they’ll be looking for you.”
“I understand.”
His eyes held mine, dark and unyielding. “Stay here or go. It doesn’t matter. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure none of them touch you.”
“How will you do that?”
“Like I said, you’ll have a new name. A new license. Even a new social.”
“This is a lot.”
“Yes, it is. But we have time to figure it all out.” His answer was quick, like he understood the storm of thoughts that were rushing through my head. He let out a breath before closing the laptop and said, “I have to get to the casino.”
“Oh. Okay.”
My chest sank at the thought of him leaving. Before he had a chance to move, I reached up and wrapped my arms around him, hugging him. I thought he might resist, but instead, his arms came around me and pulled me in tight. I rested my head on his chest as I whispered, “Thank you.”
At first, he didn’t move, and I thought he might pull back. But he continued to hold me. Hard and fierce. Protective like steel. He wasn’t gentle. He held me as if the world was trying to rip me from his arms and he wasn’t going to allow it.
I could feel the heat of his breath on my neck, and when he inhaled a deep breath, it sent a shiver down my spine. He wasn’t just hugging me. He was taking me in, and I was doing the same with him. I felt safe in a way I never had before. Not with any man. His touch wasn’t about possession or control. It was about protecting me from a world that wanted to pull me under.
And God help me; I didn’t want to let go.
When Sergei finally pulled away, I felt the loss immediately. It surprised me how much. It was like stepping out into the cold after being wrapped tight in a warm blanket, and it only grew colder when he grabbed his coat and walked out of the apartment. I heard the door close behind him, and then, the silence came.
I didn’t move. I was still trying to process everything that had happened. Alek was dead. I couldn’t believe it. While he had made my life a living hell for years, it was still such a shock to think he was actually gone. That I was actually free. I wound my arms around myself, trying to hold onto the feeling of Sergei’s embrace, but it was already gone. I let out a slight sigh, and Bog asked, “You okay over there?”
I gave him a small smile and shrugged. “I’m trying to be.”
“You have nothing to worry about. Everything will be okay. Sergei will make sure of it.”
I gave him a slight nod, then carried the gifts Sergei had given me into the living room. Sergei had lit a fire in the stone hearth, and it was burning low, giving the room a soft glow. I curled up on the couch and pulled a blanket over my legs. I opened the journal to the first page and let my mind wander.