Claimed by Shadows (The Shadowmen #2)

Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

“PAIN’S MY ONLY HOME” BY ZEVIA

IRIS

T he next three days move excruciatingly slowly, the sun continuing to shine as I wait for Nik to come home. By the time Sunday morning rolls around, I’m a fucking mess. My stomach clenches with both excitement and dread, my heartbeat sluggish and a sour taste in the back of my mouth as I head down for breakfast.

I go stock-still as I enter the room because Nik’s widening eyes tells me he didn’t know I was here.

“Ah, Kukolka , glad you could join us,” Sergi purrs, and I swallow hard, fighting the stinging in my eyes as I take a deep inhale and resume walking into the room, taking my usual place next to Sergi. I’m opposite Nik, who’s gazing at me, Dima and Andrei behind him like sentinels. “As you can see, Iris is back where she belongs, Nikolai.”

There’s an edge to his words, and I flick my gaze between father and son, my heartbeat thrashing inside my chest as I try to work out what Sergi’s angle is here.

“Good morning, Iris,” Nik murmurs, his voice gruff and deep, sending shivers cascading all over my body.

“Good morning, Nikolai,” I whisper back, my gaze locked with his. I can’t help it, my jaw tenses as I hold in the words I truly want to say, the plea that is being trapped just behind my lips. “I trust your trip was pleasant?”

My even tone makes pride shine in his eyes and warms the parts of me that have been frozen these past weeks.

“Very good, thank you,” he replies, lifting his coffee cup up to his mouth while the server places my breakfast of avocado and toast before me.

My hands only tremble slightly as I pick up my cutlery and look down at my food, feeling the weight of two chocolate gazes resting on me. One welcome, the other abhorrent.

“I was thinking you could help Iris settle in more,” Sergi states, making my hands pause in cutting my toast. “I’m sure you’d like that, Kukolka , wouldn’t you?”

“Very much, thank you, Sergi,” I answer, glancing up at Sergi, trying to keep my tone even and not show the level of excitement I feel at being able to have some time alone with Nik. My gaze flicks to Nik, seeing his fingers gripping his cup so tightly his knuckles have turned white.

“Excellent.” He beams like a benevolent ruler, and it hits me he is truly insane. He really believes that he is just, that what he’s done and continues to do is right and fair. “Why don’t you join Iris on her walk this morning? You can take your men, Nikolai. I need Vlad for something else.”

The name of my normal jailer flies past me as I sneak a look at Nik, as I try desperately to keep from smiling. I can’t let Sergi know just how much having some time alone with Nik means to me. He’d not only use it against me, but it might put Nik in danger, and I can’t do that to him.

“As you wish, Father,” Nik answers, his tone almost bored sounding, but his eyes burn into me.

Sergi switches to Russian, and I look back down at my breakfast, not hating the avocado as much as I did moments ago. I’ll get Nik today, and that is everything. Pain surges between my legs, reminding me of the rough treatment Sergi gave me last night, but taking a sharp inhale, I push it aside.

I’ll deal with that later, and with telling Nik. For now, I focus on eating as quickly as I can, but not too quickly as to be suspicious. I want to finish and get outside as soon as possible though, and not just for the fresh air. One of my soulmates is joining me, and that is better than any sunshine, breeze, or birdsong.

“UNWORTHY OF LOVE” BY CHAPTERS, BOLSHIEE

NIKOLAI

I itch all over, a pounding in my ears the only thing I can hear as I watch Iris eat. She winced when she sat down, and I was only here for a matter of minutes before I heard my father’s men talk about his new toy, one that they have held down while he does unspeakable things to her. I had to muster every ounce of self-control not to kill each and every one of them, even though their names are seared into my mind, on my kill list for when I can finally take control.

I spent my time in Russia securing my reputation, making my own contacts and gaining loyalty so that soon, very fucking soon, I can make the move. I just wish I’d been able to do it sooner. My delays have caused her pain and I’ll never forgive myself for it.

“Nikolai?” My father’s harsh tone cuts through my inner turmoil, and I turn away from Iris, who has just gotten up and excused herself, fucking Vlad following her, looking at her with a leer that needs to be carved from his face.

“Yes, Father?” I reply, keeping the anger from my tone by sheer fucking force of will. It helps that I’ve honed my skill of remaining blank throughout years of torture at this man’s orders if not his own hands.

“You can have today off, but then I need you with me as I move forward with the Fallen. They’re our way into the Enlightened, and you know how important they are for our empire,” he says, and I take an inhale at the names. I knew he wanted to get in with them. He wants more power, and the Enlightened and the Fallen have the lions’ share. The Fallen are one branch of the Enlightened, a not so secret society that has members in all echelons of society. It’s rumoured that they can get any information you need, and all it costs is a favour, but that favour could be something as simple as information in return or they could command you to murder your mother. You don’t know in advance, but you best be willing to pay the price, otherwise they will take it from your flesh instead.

“Where are we with them?” I ask, curious as when I left, he was just approaching them.

“They’ve invited me to their poker game in a couple of weeks to discuss our mutual interests,” he tells me, placing his now empty cup on the table. “You’ll be with me, of course, and we’re to bring some of the girls so we can show them what we have to offer.”

“Will you bring Iris?” I question, cursing myself as it was instinctive. My muscles tense as he looks at me, a considering gleam in his eyes.

“That’s a good idea, son. We can show them what happens when someone owes us, so they know we are not to be messed with,” he muses, placing his napkin on the table and getting up from his seat. I follow him, having lost my appetite the moment she walked into the room, looking like she’d died inside. “You can tell her on your walk.”

With that, he sweeps out of the room, his men who were standing along the walls following him and leaving me, Dima, and Andrei alone.

Andrei hisses under his breath, cursing in Russian, and I nod.

I don’t know what happened, but I plan to find out. Then I need to work out how to get her away from him and back with the Shadows, all while trying to stage a coup and murder my father. Fucking hell.