by Bailey, Fawn
I'd given her pain to forget the other pain, and she responded to it so beautifully.
I carried her to our bedroom, ignoring her cage and placing her naked body on top of the sheets.
"My pretty dolly," I whispered in her ear, peppering kisses over her skin. It was something we didn't do often. I wasn't a gentle man. But seeing her suffer made me want to give her everything I had left to give. All the love, all the care in the world.
"I'm going to make you better," I promised her. "I'm going to make it okay. And then we'll find your sister and get rid of your dad, okay, dolly?"
"Yes," she whispered, moaning for me as I licked at her tender skin. "That feels so good, Master..."
I continued my gentle assault and she squirmed beneath me, folding her body against mine. I didn't stop until I heard her breaths slow down, knowing she was slowly drifting off to sleep. I was caught in an uncomfortable position holding her, but I didn't give a shit. So what if I couldn't sleep like this? I had my dolly in my arms, and that was all that mattered. I was nothing without her. She was my favorite toy, and she was of no use to me broken.
She drifted off to sleep as I watched her, muttering sweet nothings in her ear and smoothing down her hair, kissing a trail down her collarbone, licking at her burning hot wound. By the morning, there was a small smile on her lips, and she was sleeping soundly.
It was all I could have asked for.
Chapter 19
Ophelia
The message came to me the next morning, clear as day.
There was a doll waiting for me when I woke up. I would have been a fool not to recognize it as the one Vlada used to carry around everywhere she went.
It was sitting at the foot of our bed when I woke up, and Kain was nowhere to be seen. I felt anxious as I grabbed for the toy, checking to see if there was a note included. And sure enough, there was a piece of paper, this time jammed down the doll's throat.
My stomach twisted as I looked at the note. There was only a time on it, 9 pm. I knew without a doubt my father would be waiting, and I hoped he would stay true to his word and not bring his goons, because I already knew I wasn't going to tell Kain about the meeting. After all, my little sister's safety depended on it.
I hastily hid the doll in the back of my closet and rushed downstairs, still feeling the pain from the previous night on my abdomen. But Kain's lashings hadn't left bruises. He'd been merciful and gentle, and he'd truly done what I'd asked of him - taken the pain away the previous night, and left little trace of it in the morning.
I ran down to find Kain in the middle of a conversation with one of his men. He looked up to see me and smiled wide.
"Dolly," he said, outstretching his arms.
I hugged him tightly and he smoothed down my unruly mane.
"What's going on?" I asked him.
"Good news," he said. "I think we've found your sister."
"Vlada?" I gasped, my heart pounding into overdrive. "Where is she?"
"Your father mentioned a man called Abbate when you were with him, didn't he?"
I nodded.
"We believe she's with this man," he went on. "He lives not far away from here. We're going to go there tonight. But we need you to stay here. As safe as you can be."
"When are you going?" I asked, a ball of worry already forming in my belly.
"Tonight," he replied. "Probably around nine."
I knew this was part of my father's plan. He'd let them have her, so he could do what he wanted with me. This meant nobody would be around to see what I was doing, and I didn't even need a location for our meeting. I was sure my father was going to come to me.
"Okay," I replied, my mouth feeling dry. "I'll wait here."
"Good girl." Kain kissed the top of my head and grinned at me. "The nightmare is almost over, dolly. You'll have her back soon enough, and then you can rest easily, okay?"
"Okay," I whispered again, giving him a brave smile. I couldn't let him know what I found on our bed that morning, perfectly placed there to unnerve me. It was just what my father wanted. But I wasn't going to crack. I was going to bring him down all by myself if I had to.
The hours of the day passed so slowly I felt my stomach twisting in frustration. Kain was the same, nervously pacing whichever room we were in and going over and over the plans with his advisors. The plan was to strike at Abbate's mansion when his guards changed for the night shift. There was a ten minute gap, during which Kain intended to get my sister back.
"Are you sure she's there?" I asked him for the umpteenth time.
"Yes," he nodded. "She has to be. Everything points to it. And we think your father is there too. We'll take him out, dolly."
I nodded too, and he pressed a reassuring kiss against my lips.
"Dolly, we have to go soon," he said. "I'm leaving behind a guard to keep an eye on you. Don't leave his sight, okay?"
"I won't," I told him, though I knew my father would find a way around it. "Who is staying?"
Kain called a man over and introduced him as Gabe. We shook hands awkwardly and then my Master pulled me in for a kiss before whispering in my ear it would all be okay. Too bad I couldn't believe him anymore. Not with what I knew.
"I'll see you soon," I told him, and he gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.
"Not without your sister," he promised me, and I managed a weak smile. "Goodbye, dolly."
I waved him off, then retreated to the house with Gabe. He was nice, a little older and very kind.
"What do you want to do, Miss?" he asked me, and I shrugged indecisively.
"We could go to the winter sunroom," I suggested. I'd been spending a lot of time there lately.
Gabe followed me there, and we set up chairs across from each other. He kept a close eye on me as I skipped through a book, unable to focus on a single word on the page.
Everything was fine until the first gunshot.
"Miss, stay still," Gabe shouted, jumping up. He looked down at his shirt then, only then realizing the shot had come from inside and hit him in the chest. He opened his mouth and blood poured from it as I started to scream in horror.
"Now, now, princess Ophelia."
I turned to the door leading into the room where my father was standing. He put his gun away and grinned at me.
"I promised we'd be alone," he said. "I thought we should honor that deal, no?"
"He is an innocent man!" I cried out, my eyes watering as I stared at Gabe's unmoving body on the ground.
"Was," papa corrected me. "I don't think he's without us any longer, princess."
I swallowed thickly as he approached me, my hand subconsciously going to my navel, to the burn.
"Still hurts?" papa asked, gesturing to the scar he'd left on me. "Poor stupid little Ophelia. If only you weren't so goddamn stubborn and stupid, maybe I could stop hurting you."
"What do you want?" I asked him through tears now streaming freely down my face. "Where's Vlada?"
"Your little orphan will have her soon," he growled at me. "I know time's running out for me, princess. But I have to do one last thing."
"What's that?" I asked, my heart pounding a million miles a minute.
"Revenge, of course," he laughed heartily. "You know I'm a traditional man, princess. And you wanted to save your sister, didn't you?"
I nodded, a part of me already knowing what was coming next.
"Well, you know what I believe in," he grinned at me. "The words I live by. Will you tell me, princess Ophelia?"
"An eye for an eye," I whispered. "Glaz za glaz."
He clapped slowly, rounding the table until he stood right before me.
"I'm glad your memory is still working," he told me, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. "Since your senses clearly aren't. But yes, princess, I believe in justice, in giving something to get something back. And you want your sister back, don't you?"
I nodded numbly, and he cooed at me.
"I'm sure you know what it will cost, don't you, O
phelia?" he growled at me, and I paled. "Tell me. Tell me what you think it is."
I looked up at him, my eyes burning with pure hatred. He was a sick fucking bastard, getting off on this.
"I'm not letting you kill Kain," I managed to get out.
He laughed out loud, saying, "I imagined you'd say that, Ophelia. Of course you would, you little fucking traitor."
In a flash, his gentle touch turned feral and he wrapped his fingers around my throat.
"I'm talking about your life," he told me in a low, threatening voice. "Your life for your sister's."
"But why?" I managed, fighting for my next breath. "Papa! You're hurting me!"
"Because you're a fucking traitor on top of it all," he spat at me. "I gave you so many chances to make it up to me, Ophelia. So. Many. Fucking. Chances. And you blew them all!"
He let go of me and I tumbled to the ground, coughing as I struggled to breathe. I looked up, at the man towering over me. I would never be able to call him papa again. He wasn't my father. He was a monster, hell-bent on revenge even when it meant nothing anymore.
"You're going to die tonight," he told me. "I hope you know that."
"No," I snarled, and he backhanded me across the face, sending me sprawling back just as I'd managed to pick myself up again. "Please, don't do this."
"You made me," he growled. "You made me do it all, princess."
He shook his head and sighed as I looked around for anything I could use to defend myself.
"Why are you fighting it, Ophelia?" he asked. "If you don't die, I'll kill them both. Vlada and your man. I'll make you watch. Do you want that?"
"N-No," I managed.
"Thought so," he grinned at me. "So you'll do as I say, won't you, princess?"
I remained stubbornly quiet, making him laugh at me while he shook his head.
"Stupid little bitch," he murmured. "You really want them dead?"
"It's a trap," I muttered, raising my eyes to his. "Vlada being with Abbate... is it a trap?"
"Of course it's a trap," he grinned at me. "And it will go as well as you want it to go, princess. Or as badly as you want it to go. Here's my offer..." He closed the distance between us, reaching under my chin and looking into my eyes. "Either you prove your loyalty to me by letting me kill them both... or you die yourself, knowing they'll both live."
I swallowed thickly.
"What will it be, princess?" he asked, smiling widely.
"You're sick!" I cried out. "You're a monster! You're not my papa. You never were."
"That's where you're wrong," he grinned at me. "You have my blood running through your veins, princess. Sokolov blood. And you need to prove your loyalty to me, or die for the man you love. Your fucking choice."
He let go of me and I collapsed to the ground, sobbing softly as he walked around the room. He stopped at the liquor cart and poured himself a glass of Kain's favorite whisky. He took a sip of the amber liquid and grimaced at the taste.
"The man has fine taste in women," he said. "But poor taste in drink. This is trash."
He walked over to me and poured the remains of his drink all over me. I was crying openly now. Not because I was so scared of making a choice, but because I'd already decided.
Of course I would die for Vlada.
And of course I would die for Kain.
Maybe, after all this, they could live together. My Master would raise her like the daughter we'd never have. Maybe they'd think of me. Maybe he'd teach her to remember me.
"Tick tock, Ophelia," my father said with a grin, as if he were reading my mind. "I'll need to know your decision soon, if you want them to get out okay."
I stood up and smoothed down my dress, the burn still hurting beneath the fabric.
"All brave now, huh?" he asked, smiling widely. "I do admire that about you, Ophelia. You could have been a fine heir. I assume you've chosen differently. Will you die for them?"
I raised my chin up high, knowing the next words I'd say would change our lives forever. I smelled the whisky on myself, knowing I was covered in it.
"I will die for them," I said clearly, and my father laughed in my face.
"You look so pathetic," he growled at me. "Dripping with booze and so fucking sad. Dying for a man who didn't even care enough to protect you. Foolish girl."
"Fuck you," I spat out, and he smirked at me. "I've made my decision."
"Indeed you have," he growled. "Now come with me, princess. It's time to meet your end."
Chapter 20
Kain
Everything was going according to plan, which should have made me suspicious from the start.
I filed into a van along with five other men. I'd done my research. Looked at CCTV footage and made sure Vladimir and Vladislava really were staying there. I was ready to take him out and rescue the little girl I never should have endangered in the first place.
When I met Ophelia Sokolov, I was trained to be a cold-blooded, cruel killer. But she had changed me into something else. She'd taken the monster I'd been and turned me into a man who stood before her, humbled and eager for her forgiveness. My love for her had changed me, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
We arrived at Abbate's mansion about ten minutes after nine. I only knew of him through business association. He was one of the Italian mobsters who'd done dealings with the Marinos, and I still had a couple deals going with him. He was a mean old man who might've been the third worst Dad in the world, after mine and Ophelia's. I knew he had a son, a young guy called Enzo, whom he used as his hound. A killing machine. It reminded me too much of my own story to deal with it, so I switched my attention back to Vlada.
She would be about ten years old now. I still remembered her from Ophelia's birthday party all those years ago. This sweet, timid little thing who looked just like her older sister, but was still uncorrupted by the world of her father. Of course, that didn't last long.
I didn't even want to think about the things little Vlada had been through at the hands of her father. He was a sick man judging by the way he treated Ophelia. I doubted he'd showed her little sister any more mercy.
We filed out of the van, the eight of us, and neared the barbed wire fence that surrounded Abbate's property. Luckily, we had a way in now.
It only took one of my men a couple of mines to go through the thorny shrubbery around the property to find one of the bunkers. He opened the shaft, and we all stared down into the darkness before descending into the dark tunnel one by one. In there, it was damp. It reeked of shit and was so cramped it made even me feel claustrophobic.
"Keep going," I told my men. "To the house."
We made our way through the tunnels slowly. Judging by the blueprints for the property, we'd soon come across a ladder that would lead us straight into Abbate's backyard, right behind a large olive tree.
"It's here!" one of my men, Robert, called out. "We found the ladder."
I motioned for them to stay quiet and climb up, and followed among the last of us. We turned off our flashlights and made it out into the backyard behind the tree, just like the plan directed. That was when I first got a twinge that something bad was going on.
We quietly lined up outside the house, where the lights were lit up and the sound of a blaring TV was blasting over the lawn. Then, we ran inside with our guns pulled.
"Where the fuck is she?" I roared, my eyes scouring the inside of the house.
A merry laugh greeted me, followed by a slow clap of hands.
"Kain Marino, I presume," a voice said.
I turned in the direction of it, finding an older man with greying hair sitting in front of the TV. He turned it off and got off the armchair slowly, as if he didn't have a care in the world despite having eight guns pointed at him.
"Abbate," I barked at him.
"I assume this isn't part of our business deal," he chuckled.
"If you want to continue doing business, it is," I growled in response. "We're looking for someone."
"
Vladimir Sokolov isn't here," he told me with a shit-eating grin.
Either he was lying or that bastard heard us arriving and disappeared again.
"We'll make sure of that," I said, motioning for one of the men to go.
He left, and the rest of us kept our guns trained on Abbate.
"There's a little girl here," Abbate spoke up.
"Where?" I barked at him.
"You'll find out soon enough," he laughed, pointing to the doorway. I turned my gun to the door.
A little girl stood there, the mirror image of my dolly, only younger. Long black hair and those eyes, one different color than the other.
"Papa?" she asked, her little voice shaky.
"Vlada?" I managed to get out, just as a gunshot rang out from the hallway.
I turned my gun back there just as the room filled with guards. We were surrounded.
I knew then it was a trap, and I cursed myself inwardly. I'd fucking botched the rescue mission. We were all as good as dead.
"Well now," Abbate said, reaching out to the little girl. "Looks like I'll be the one negotiation our business, doesn't it?"
"Fuck you," I snarled at him. "Let go of her."
"Her?" He pointed at the girl. "She's my meal ticket, so no, I don't think I will."
One of my men fired, and then all hell broke loose.
I heard the girl shriek and I threw myself at her to protect her from the gunshots. She squirmed under me and I ripped her hand away from Abbate's, holding her close as I attempted to crawl out of the room.
It was carnage. Screams, shouts, gunshots and the smell of blood filled the room. Somehow, miraculously, I'd managed to make it into the hallway in time to see Abbate run off, while my men fought the other guards.
A man appeared before me, and he roared, pointing his gun at me when he noticed Vlada. It confused him for long enough that I could fire, covering the little girl's eyes with my hand so she wouldn't see.
"It's okay," I whispered in her ear. "Show me your room, Vlada."