I’d stomp on his toes and bolt down the street, but how far would I get? He has a gun, and he’s not the kind of man to give empty threats.
“You’re an asshole,” I sneer as he leads the twins and me to his SUV parked around the corner.
He opens the back door for the twins, and they climb into the backseat. He flips the child lock switch before he slams the door shut behind them and opens the passenger door for me.
He corners me, blocking any chance of escape. If I fight now, he has my children. I won’t let him leave without me.
“Where are you taking us?” I ask.
“Get in the vehicle.” Antonio doesn’t answer my question. He’s gruff and forceful. He pushes me into the front seat when I don’t get in quickly enough. “Was that so hard?” He leans in and yanks the seatbelt across my waist, securing the buckle before slamming the door shut.
I glance back at the twins. Do they recognize Antonio from Liam’s abduction?
“Buckle up back there,” I instruct. I don’t want anything happening to either one of them.
Antonio climbs into the front seat and starts the engine. The vehicle purrs to life, and heat flows freely out the vents. He hasn’t been waiting for long.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask, glancing at Antonio.
He pulls out into traffic. I don’t expect him to take us back to the compound where I live with Mikhail. Antonio didn’t grab us just to give us a ride home.
“Not that you’d believe me, but I’m protecting you.”
I snort at his answer. “Yeah, right? Since when is kidnapping suddenly protecting someone?”
He bites down on his bottom lip. He’s silent.
There’s something he isn’t telling me. Well, two can play at that game. I don’t need to divulge that Nikita is heading after the Italians to attack them. But where?
I don’t know where their compound is located or where Nikita was headed.
Either way, I don’t want to be in the middle of a firefight.
I clear my throat. “If you’re planning on taking us to your house, the kids don’t have anything. No clothes. No toys. We should stop for a few things.”
Antonio glances at me briefly. “Why? So, you can try to escape? I don’t think so.”
Okay, he’s going to be harder to convince than I thought. I press my lips together, trying to come up with an excuse for him to take us some place safe.
“Do you really think your compound is safe for my kids?”
He lets out a soft humph. “They’re both yours?” he asks, glancing in the rearview.
Shit. Did he not realize that I have twins? Is that why he only snatched Liam a few weeks ago?
My silence is my admission.
The heat blows throughout the vehicle, and Antonio reaches for the thermostat, turning down the fan.
“I thought the girl was a friend of his or another Russian’s kid.”
“The girl is mine,” I say, giving him a pointed look. If he so much as harms a hair on her head, I’ll kill him with my bare hands.
“Wow, you really got busy there, having two kids so close together in age.”
“They’re twins, you fucking asshole.” I don’t care that the kids can hear my language from the backseat. It’s the truth. At least I didn’t say they werehis.
“You weren’t saying that when we—”