She flinched like I’d struck her. I blew out a breath.
“No, that won’t be necessary.”
“Your father doesn’t log his time either,” she said softly.
I nodded. Of course he didn’t. I wasn’t too keen on anyone thinking I, a married man, was upstairs fucking the imprisoned pussy we kept on the grounds, but whatever.
“Text me if he shows up or anyone comes to disturb me.”
She nodded quickly, and I strode to the stairs, grateful none of the guards tried to stop me. They stared straight ahead as I passed by.
The moment I reached room twenty-seven on the third floor, I slid my key in and cracked the door open.
Natalia Vasiliev bounded off the leather sofa, her eyes wide, when I stepped into the room.
“I-I’m not supposed to have visitors,” she sputtered out. “I’m not for sale.”
“You’re already bought and paid for, Vasiliev. Sit down,” I said, closing the door behind me.
Her slender body shook, but she held her ground, her glare hardening as I approached her.
“I swear I’ll scream—”
I pulled out the gun hidden in my jacket, which my father’s fuckwits had been too dumb to check for and pointed it at her. She stepped back, her hands up like they could stop a bullet.
“I’ll shoot you before the sound leaves your mouth. Sit.” I pointed to the sofa with my gun.
She sat down, her sweatpants hanging low on her hips, her white tank top crooked.
“What do you want?” she whispered. “I’ll do anything. Just don’t hurt me.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” I said, taking a seat on the sofa. “I’m Dominic De Santis.”
She sucked in a sharp breath, her eyes widening.
“I’m the one who bargained for your safety. Of course, I can revoke that at any time.”
She visibly relaxed. “What do you want?”
“I want to know what you know about Stefan’s murder.”
She swallowed and rubbed her palms along her sweats before the words flowed easily from her mouth. “ I don’t know much. I fell in love with Stefan at college. Like a Romeo and Juliet thing, you know?” She looked wistful as she took the trip down memory lane.
I liked the fact I didn’t need to press her for information.
“Stefan was perfect. Beautiful. He wanted out of this life just like me. We planned on running away together, but he-he didn’t make it.”
“Do you know what happened?”
She shook her head, a tear sliding down her cheek. “No. He went to meet with someone. He said they were going to help us. I don’t even know if that’s true. Then he texted me to tell me Fallon dropped him off at 53rd. He said his dad was coming. I was scared because his father found out we were together days before and he threatened Stefan. Told him he’d kill him. They fought. Stefan made me go to the car, so I did.”
“Did you hear any of the argument?”
She shook her head. “Nothing really. It was just him telling Stefan he’d disown him if he ran off with me. He threatened to kill me too.” She sniffled and wiped at her nose. “That’s when Stefan told me to go to the car and lock the doors. That’s all I heard.”
She drew in a deep breath. “Stefan came out like ten minutes later really upset and said we’d be leaving the next day. I went to say goodbye to Fallon. I didn’t want to give anything away because my father would’ve killed Stefan too if he knew I was leaving. Fallon promised he wouldn’t say anything. I went to where I was supposed to meet Stefan, but he never came back for me. I-I thought it was maybe because his dad had won, and Stefan had given in and was done with me. I waited in my apartment and then got the news S-Stefan was murdered. Fallon came to tell me.”
She cried softly, her body trembling. “Someone killed him. I wish…I wish I knew who. He was taken from me! And for what? Because of some stupid rivalry? It’s not fair. It’s not fair.”
I swallowed. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”
She nodded miserably. “Thank you.”
I studied her as she cried for a moment. Then she gathered herself and let out a slow, shaky breath.
“Am I going to die too? Because I want to. Without Stefan…”
“You’re not going to die. I knew Stefan. He’d want you to live. I know he would.”
“I know,” she said softly, her dark hair falling over her shoulders. “I just miss him so much. I’ve been a prisoner since I tried to leave town.”
“How did it happen? How were you taken?”