Possession of the Bratva (Morozov Bratva #15)

Chapter 4 - Mila

I hadn’t seen much of his mansion as we entered, even though there were enough lights. But by the outside appearance, I knew his home was more like a castle than a home. I noticed the white flower beds on both sides of the driveway as we entered the large wrought iron gates.

The driveway, which wasn’t as long as ours, was paved with white cobblestones. I led up to the front of the house and carried on past where we stopped. At the front door was a large circle with a fountain in the middle. The driveway went around it on both sides. Stopping, we were met by two guards, the doorman, and two other staff members.

Getting out, I looked in awe at the majestic building. The stairs leading up to the solid double wooden doors formed an arch. The two young men quickly collected my bags. There were also some boxes and other items Aleksandr had brought with him. Once they had everything, we moved to the door. The butler held the door open as we entered. Inside, I felt like I had just entered a fairytale.

Scanning the entrance room, I felt sure we could fit half our bottom floor into it. In the middle of the room was a large staircase running up. At the top, it split to both sides. Below that, at the back, were two doors to the sides. Glancing left and right, I noticed two passages leading out of the room in front.

The entire place seemed to sparkle. The white tiles had thin gold lines through them. The staircase was white with gold railings. The large room was bare except for a small dark wood table, which sat on one side of the entrance.

Pulling my hands up to my mouth, I tried to contain the gasp. This was impressive and not at all what I expected. I jumped as Aleksandr suddenly spoke behind me. I was so entranced that I had almost forgotten where I was. “My dear, I have some things to sort. Just for tonight, I am putting you in my adjoining suite.”

Snapping back to reality, I glared at him. Just for tonight, I thought as we headed up the stairs and turned right. We passed three doors down a long corridor before he stopped. Pointing down the hall, he spoke. “The next door leads to my room.” Opening the door, he ushered me inside as he continued. “But for tonight, this will be yours.”

I entered slowly. Standing in the middle of the room, I turned in awe. The window ran from one side of the back wall to the other. It touched the floor and the ceiling. The view was amazing. From where I stood, I could see the tennis courts, the Olympic-sized pool, some outbuildings, and the lawns stretched for miles.

How has he managed to keep this hidden from the world? They appear to be a regular family with modest businesses. This was far from regular or modest.

To one side of the room was a four-post king-size bed. There were vintage bedside tables on each side. A matching vintage dressing table sat to the side against the other wall. Between the two was a closed door. As if he could read my mind, Aleksandr walked to the door and opened it. “In here is the bathroom,” he stated before walking towards the opposite wall.

Following him with my eyes, I saw another door against that wall and two vintage closets. Opening the other door, he continued to speak. “This door leads to my room should you need anything.”

The young man carrying my bag placed it down by the foot of the bed and left the room. “It’s late; we’ll talk in the morning,” Aleksandr said as he left the room. Turning at the door, he smiled as he continued. “You are not to leave the property for now. It’s to lie low for now as not many people know of our Bratva connections.” Aleksandr paused, smiled at me, and then continued. “There will also be no contact with your family for a while until we get settled together, understand.”

“My phone?” I asked, sounding more desperate than I had intended to.

“Not for now, please try to understand, it is for the best,” Alexandr replied. He smiled and pulled the door closed behind him. I stood frozen, still slightly thrown off guard, as I heard the clicking sound. Walking to the door, I turned the knob. It was locked; he locked me in. How dare he do such a thing. I was supposed to be his wife, not his prisoner. He had no right to keep me from my family.

Walking to the bed, I flopped down on it. This is cruel and not at all fair. For God’s sake, I used to run different operations. I couldn’t live like this. Closing my eyes, I lay back as the tears gently strolled down the sides of my head, kissing my ears. I wanted to be home in my own bed with my family.

Sitting up, I wiped the remnants from my ears. I will destroy him, I promised myself. Grabbing my bag, I headed to the bathroom. I had only taken a couple of sets of clothes. I was planning on collecting my other belongings once I had settled. Now, I wasn’t so sure that I wanted to.

I would destroy him and his reputation before I needed to collect anything else. The bathroom was just as stunning as everything else. The tiles were similar to the ones in the entrance hall. The oval tub also appeared to be vintage. It was a golden color and looked out of place like I was.

Filling it with warm water, I lay soaking for a while. I felt the tension in my muscles ease as I stared at the ceiling. Once the water started cooling, I got out. I stood looking out the large bedroom window at the world outside. Whatever business dealings they were involved in surely paid well.

As I stood there, I noticed the guards moving around the perimeter. As far as I could tell, there were four sets of two. Four men walked around the house in pairs of two. They passed each other almost directly below my window. I assumed they passed each other close to the front entrance as well.

The other two pairs were walking around the outer area. I noticed they also passed each other, but not so frequently. I wondered how many guards Aleksandr had patrolling the property. There had to be many in a vast place like this.

Lying in bed, I swore he would regret his words. I will make him swallow them with a pound of nails. For now, I will play along while I dig into his life. A man like him surely has a lot of dirt to hide. I will dig it all up. I will expose his sinister plan and show everyone what a bad guy he is.

Sleep came quicker than I expected. Being in a new place, I didn’t think I would sleep at all.

Hearing a soft knock on the door, I opened my eyes and sat up. Looking around, a dark sadness filled me. I had hoped it was all a bad dream. But I was still here. Getting out of bed, I heard the knock again. “Yes,” I called out.

The door opened, and a guard stuck his head in. “Morning, let me know when you’re ready for breakfast,” he mumbled. He had a deep tone to his voice.

“Sure thing,” I replied, heading to the bathroom. After washing, I dressed in a pair of slacks and a dark brown top; I walked to the door. Knocking lightly, I spoke through the closed door. “I’m ready.”

The door opened. Outside were two guards waiting for me. “This way, ma’am,” the one said as he walked towards the staircase. I followed without a word. What did Aleksandr think I would do? Run away? I considered this thought, smiling at myself. “I might have tried it, but I was sure I would most likely have been caught.

We walked down the staircase and entered the passage leading to the left of the entrance. Two doors down, we entered what the guard called the breakfast room. There was a large table in the center of the room. It had multiple seats for big family meals. A smaller table was against the far side by one of the windows.

The guard directed me to that table. As I sat down, a maid came walking through a door to the side. She was carrying a tray with a fresh pot of coffee, one cup, and some cream. She placed it down on the table. Smiling at me, she spoke softly. “Cream and sugar?”

“I can do it, thank you,” I replied, reaching for the cup.

Her eyes widened as she took the cup from me. Her tone sounded slightly distressed as she spoke again. “No, ma’am, no. Let me, please.”

I sat back in my chair and watched as she poured the coffee. She placed the cup before me with the beaker of warm milk and a bowl of sugar cubes. “Thank you,” I said, smiling at her. She couldn’t be much older than me. Her brown hair was pushed up neatly under her white maid’s cap.

“Breakfast will be ready in a minute,” she said as she turned and headed back through the door. Watching her as she walked away, I noticed she had a slight limp. I wondered what had caused it. She was a bit stocky, but it could look that way due to her baggy dress and apron.

She returned shortly with a large plate filled with a variety of food. She smiled widely as she placed it on the table. “We weren’t sure what you preferred, so we made a selection,” she said. She stood, turning from side to side looking down at the floor.

“Thank you, it looks lovely,” I replied. “What is your name?”

“Annah, ma’am,” she replied before walking briskly back to the door. This time, she didn’t enter. She stood next to the door as if waiting for instructions. I sat studying the dense rose garden outside as I ate. I was basically done when I heard Aleksandr entering the mansion. He didn’t come in, though. I heard him heading upstairs.

I wondered if today would be like last night. I didn’t like the cold man he was. Only time would tell what the future with him would look like. But I was sure to keep my guard up.