Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 106541 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106541 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 533(@200wpm)___ 426(@250wpm)___ 355(@300wpm)
Sofia and Lera.
“You did it,” Sofia whispers, her voice a sob. “He’s going to let us go.” She hugs Lera in closer while muttering, “We’re months from freedom.”
46
KATIE
My hand shoots up to clamp my mouth when my entrance into my room has a squeak popping between my lips. “Holy… Alek, you scared me half to death.”
“Sorry.” Don’t let him fool you. His grin says the opposite. “Figured I’d come check on you.” He fights his eyes to drop to my stomach for almost three seconds before they eventually win. “Things are a little…” He leaves his comment for me to work out.
“I didn’t…” My speaking skills are as poor as his. It is a lot harder to fool someone when you’re truly lost as to what is going on. “Ghost just…”
He looks sympathetic about my lack of vocabulary. “He’ll come around.”
“If not, I’m sure Anastasia will bring him around.”
Anger about my statement hardens Alek’s features with as much fury that rains down on me when I recalled I’m not the bad guy, but he steers our conversation in another direction. “I brought you something to eat. It’s not ragu, but I still think it is the bomb.”
When he lifts a silver dome off a dish I didn’t notice on my drawers until now, an idiotic tear slips from my eye. He bought me grilled cheese sandwiches.
“Hey… jeez… fuck.” We really shouldn’t communicate when we’re confused. It doesn’t make a lot of sense and only adds to the bewilderment. “Don’t cry, Kate. It is just some bread and cheese slapped together.”
“I’m not crying about that. I just…” I squeal my frustration into the cool night air before trying again. “I don’t know what the hell is wrong with me.”
I shoot daggers at Alek when he mumbles, “I have an idea.” He chuckles, bringing the temperature in the room to a manageable level. “I know you didn’t, but I’ve got to ask—”
“I didn’t sleep with Kirill.”
“I know.” His voice sounds nothing but downright gospel. “But did he do anything else?” I shake my head when he asks, “Inseminations? Weird doctor’s visits?” I freeze and glare when he murmurs, “Warm baths with added lotions?”
“What?”
He scrubs a hand along his prickly jaw. “I’ve been researching swimmers way more than I ever fucking should, and you’ll be amazed how long those suckers can last. If the temperature is right, they can survive days.”
I take a moment to get over my shock so I don’t sound like a brain-dead idiot before saying, “I haven’t been in Kirill’s vicinity the past month. Other than him stopping in the night…” My eyes widen as a memory I tried to bury floods my head. “He gifted me a nightie and new underwear.”
Unease remains captive on his face until I dig the underwear from the bottom of my underwear drawer. “What the fuck?”
“They were stained like that when he gave them to me,” I push out, wanting to ensure he is aware I am not responsible for their crusty, gross appearance. “Could they have?”
He screws up his nose. “I honestly don’t know.” He looks on the verge of being sick when he asks, “Can I keep these?”
I nod. The only reason I stuffed them into the bottom of the drawer was because I didn’t want Kirill to have an excuse to gift them to me again.
“Thanks.” He pushes them into his jeans pocket before checking his phone. “I need to go.” He locks his eyes with mine. “You good?”
My nod must be pathetic as he grins a halfhearted smirk before he pulls me in for the quickest hug. “It’s only fair I ruffle his feathers a little since he’s been shaking the shit out of mine the past month.”
I have no idea what he’s referencing, but I relish the warmth of his hug for a minute before walking him to the door. “Try and eat and get some rest. Some shit appears to be going down. Sofia and Lera were moved here an hour ago.”
“Lera is here?” My question should include her mother, but since I’m not exactly sure whose side of the fence she is on, I left her off. Something seems off with her. I just can’t quite put my finger on it.
“Yeah.” Alek’s smile makes the need for moonlight unnecessary. “She usually raids the refrigerator for sweets around nine. It’ll be a good time to catch her.”
I point to the locks on my door. “There’s no sneaking out for me.”
My heart thuds against my ribs when Alek murmurs, “Do you really think he chose this room for no reason?” I assume he is referencing Kirill with how low his voice lowered during the ‘he’ part of his reply but am proven wrong when he mutters, “He couldn’t sneak into your room every night if he didn’t have access to the keys.”