Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 108119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 541(@200wpm)___ 432(@250wpm)___ 360(@300wpm)
“Come on,” Nikolai jerked his head to the door as we both made our way into one of the private viewing rooms. “I’ll sit with you.”
I sat down in one of the cushy chairs and pressed the button that opened the curtains.
I gasped in horror at what I saw.
Dangling from the ceiling in an array of chains, with blood dripping from his body.
Was Andrei.
And all I could utter was one word. “Why?”
“Some things are worse than death,” Nikolai mumbled. “He does this so you don’t have to, he hangs there with purpose, with pride. As long as I’ve known Andrei and his father, I’ve never seen him willing to die in order to save another human life. I didn’t even think him capable of love. Most days he tolerates people. Today he showed all of us that there’s more, that it’s deeper, that his father didn’t steal everything from him.”
Tears welled in my eyes. “I deserve to be out there.”
“Andrei would of course argue that point.” Nikolai leaned forward in his chair and watched; his cold dark eyes were hard to read. In all actuality, everything about him seemed, dark, just like Andrei, like he had something in him that fed off the light or would if he let it. “He’s losing a lot of blood, but I imagine they’ll put a stop to that soon.”
“What? How?”
Nikolai crossed his arms and leaned right back in his chair. “I’ll tell them to cauterize the wounds.”
My eyes widened. “With what?”
“Fire.”
I started shivering.
He didn’t look at me, just said. “You should go shower, get comfortable clothes on and then grab wine or whiskey, and enough food to last you the night. And if you’re a praying sort, I’d maybe start doing that too.”
“Praying?”
“It’s best he’s blacked out. I would pray he stays that way. Because you won’t be able to handle the screams if he wakes up.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I highly doubt that.” He jerked his head to the door. “Go. He’ll still be here when you get back.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
Andrei
“Mama!” I ran in circles around her legs until she finally noticed me and picked me up.
She was the prettiest woman I’d ever seen.
“Pretty.” I touched her cheeks and giggled. “You love me, Mama?”
Her eyes filled with tears as she nodded and whispered so nobody would hear. “I love you so much, Drei, more than my own life.”
A door slammed. “Get away from my son!”
Mama slowly dropped me to my feet.
I clung to her leg as my dad stomped into the room.
He was always angry.
He didn’t hug me.
And he hated it when my mom did.
He said it was weak.
I was weak.
“Andrei,” He jabbed his finger at me. “Go get your brother and sister.”
“Okay.”
I had just had my fifth birthday.
I didn’t realize that in two years my mom would ask me to kill her.
I didn’t realize that my life was about to change.
I didn’t realize it wasn’t normal. My life.
I would know on my first day of school that I was different.
I would know shame.
I quickly ran into the nursery. They were twins. Three years old and silly, and they cried a lot when Mama couldn’t hold them, so I tried to hold them too.
But it wasn’t the same.
I knew that.
It didn’t feel the same as a hug from her.
“Come on, we gotta go see Dad.”
“Dad?” Katya repeated. “He’s home.” She didn’t sound excited as she slowly rose to her feet and grabbed her doll. I hung onto her hand and squeezed it.
“Pace, come on.”
Pace’s hair was bright blond.
He clutched a truck to his chest.
And slowly we walked back to the kitchen where my mom was sitting at the table, her tears dripping on top of it.
“Katya, Pace,” Dad barked. “Get in the car.”
Pace began crying. “Where?” He wanted to know where they were going.
My dad grabbed his toy truck and threw it against the wall. “Listen to me for once and go wait at the door!”
Pace nodded, his expression hurt as he went to the door.
Katya slowly lifted her gaze to Dad’s. “We go on trip?”
Dad didn’t answer.
He grabbed her doll.
She couldn’t sleep without it.
“Dad, Katya needs her doll if she’s going—”
His slap cracked my cheek so hard that I fell to the ground. My mom didn’t come get me.
I could hear her cry harder.
“Say goodbye to your children,” he hissed.
Mama rose to her feet and reached for Katya first just as Pace came running.
They hugged for maybe three seconds.
I didn’t count.
And then Mama said. “What about Andrei?”
“He’s the oldest. He stays.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to beg him to let me leave.
But my cheek still hurt.
He gathered my brother and sister with another man, and they left the house.
The doll was at my feet.
The truck was in pieces near the wall.
“Mama?” I felt sick to my stomach. “They’re coming back right?”
She didn’t answer, but she went to the pantry and opened a bottle of something that smelled sweet and strong. She chugged and then set it down on the counter. “No, Drei.”