Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 120955 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120955 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 605(@200wpm)___ 484(@250wpm)___ 403(@300wpm)
Too shocked to find words, I can only stare at her.
“It’s your only chance of getting away,” she says, letting go of my shoulders. “I’m not going to poison myself twice for you.”
“What about you?” I ask, battling to process what’s happening. “What did Lena give you?”
“Don’t worry about me,” she says, wiping her brow with the back of her hand. “It was a small dose. I’ll survive.”
“I can’t believe you did this,” I say, shaking from head to toe. “It’s so dangerous and irresponsible.”
“Don’t let it be for nothing.” She pushes me toward the toilet. “Go. Hurry. We’re running out of time.” When I don’t move, she says, “It’s now or never, Kate. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
My brain goes into shutdown mode, even as my training dictates that I assist her. When her shoulders curl inward and her chest heaves, I take her arm.
“Come,” I say, leading her to the toilet. “I’m calling Alex.”
She shoves me away. “Take the fucking bag, Kate. Don’t be an idiot.”
I look at the bag in the corner behind the door. “How did it get here?”
“My bodyguard smuggled it to Lena,” she says, kneeling in front of the toilet. “Does it fucking matter how it got there?”
Brushing her hair over her shoulder, I say, “I can’t just leave you like this.”
She utters a laugh. “I’ll have enough people worrying about me. All you—” Violent retching cuts the rest of her sentence short.
I hold her hair as she empties her stomach. When the worst of it is over, I run for the door.
A knock falls on it as I’m about to reach for the handle.
“Katerina?” Alex calls. “Is everything all right?”
“No,” I say, opening the door.
Alex and Mikhail stand on the threshold, their faces tense with worry.
“It looks like poison,” I say in a shaky voice. “She needs to get to a hospital.”
“Breakfast, Papa,” Dania says meekly from the toilet. “Blini.”
Mikhail utters a string of expletives.
Alex says tersely, “I’ll call an ambulance.”
“No.” Another heave racks Dania’s body. Sucking in a breath, she says, “I want you to take me, Papa. I don’t trust the ambulance.”
“Tell your driver to start the engine,” Alex says to Mikhail. “I’ll tell my men to make sure the roads are clear. You’d better call home on your way and take samples of the breakfast. Maybe sweep the kitchen.”
Mikhail gives a nod before running down the hallway.
“Can you hold down the fort here while I check on security?” Alex asks me, his words quiet but rushed. “I’ll send Igor to carry Dania to the car.”
My stomach twists as I nod. “Of course.”
Offering me a fleeting smile of gratitude, he follows on Mikhail’s heels.
Another bout of vomiting leaves Dania slumped over the toilet. There’s not much I can do for her other than holding her hair out of her face. If the dose of poison she took isn’t lethal, it’ll work itself out of her system in a few hours. However, they’ll still have to monitor her at the hospital to check for organ or nervous system damage. They’ll probably pump her stomach to be on the safe side and hook her up to a glucose IV while running tests. After overnight observation, they’ll discharge her and send her home. Her life will return to normal, and her suffering will have been wasted.
I look between her and the bag.
“Fuck you, Kate,” she says, her chest rising and falling with rapid breaths. “I’ll kill you if I went through this for nothing.”
Shit. I don’t know what to do. She’s right about one thing. This is my only chance. There won’t be another opportunity. The house is in chaos and I’m caught in the maelstrom, forced to make a rash decision.
Instinct kicks in, survival mode taking over. I drag the bag from behind the door to the vanity area of the bathroom. My hands shake as I pull down the zipper and take out a black T-shirt, a puffy jacket, a pair of combat pants, and a cap with a labyrinth logo.
Am I really doing this? I’m not thinking logically any longer. Pure adrenaline dictates my behavior. I yank off my sweater and drag the T-shirt over my head. I don’t bother to remove my leggings. I only kick off my sneakers before pulling on the too-big combat pants. I’m in the middle of bundling my hair under the cap when the door swings inward.
Fright freezes me in place. If Alex catches me, I don’t know what he’ll do to me. I only know that it’s too late. I’m guilty. I’ve been from the moment I unzipped the bag.
Lena steps into the bathroom.
I blow out a breath, nearly collapsing with relief.
“Come on,” Lena says, taking a pair of combat boots from the bag. “Igor is on his way. You have to hurry.” She hands me the boots and shoves my sweater and sneakers into the bag. “Put them on in the next room. I’ll hide your clothes and take care of Dania.”