The clothes were far richer than she was used to. She could tell just by touching them. The soft fabric slid through her fingers like a silken waterfall. She held up a blouse, pink with white flowers. A pink flowing skirt matched the blouse perfectly. A bra and panty set were tucked beneath the items of clothes. She blushed but picked them up, hoping they fit. As she turned to walk away, she spotted a pair of high heels in a pretty cream colour.
Shaun shook her head and wondered if she could get away with just putting her running shoes back on. She could count on one hand the number of times she'd worn high heels in her life. Heels did not fit into a doctor's lifestyle. She was also nearly six feet tall. When she wore heels, she tended to tower over her dates.
Somehow she didn’t think Jozef would care if she was taller than him. He was a man very much in control of himself. She couldn’t imagine him being threatened by a tall career woman.
Shaun reentered the bathroom, changed quickly and presented herself back in the bedroom. Jozef got up from the bed and stretched, giving Shaun a good view of him. Her heart beat a little faster as she imagined the slabs of muscle beneath the suit he now wore. It was unfortunate that she knew what this man looked like naked, because dressed there was very little hint of the bulging muscles beneath.
He wore a wine-coloured shirt, unbuttoned at the throat, tucked into a pair of dress pants with a thick leather belt. The patent leather shoes on his feet looked expensive and Shaun bet they cost about as much as her monthly salary.
She looked around for her running shoes but didn't see them. "Where are my shoes?"
Put those on. Jozef pointed at the high heels.
Shaun grimaced. It didn't look like she would have a choice. Someone had taken her shoes and she wasn’t willing to argue with Jozef, which meant she wasn't going to have access to them. If she didn't find a good pair of running shoes, escaping the mansion was going to be tough business. She could easily picture herself foiling her own escape plan as she tripped and broke a limb on her way out.
We’re eating breakfast with my family. Jozef gestured at the door, indicating they would leave together.
Was she ready to meet the Koba crime family of the Czech Republic? Absolutely not. Did she have a choice? Probably not.
In line with her desire to show Jozef that she was a compliant captive, Shaun merely nodded her head and agreed to go to breakfast. Her heart pounded in fear and her palms grew damp as they walked through the opulent hallways of the sprawling mansion to the dining room. Shaun tried to remember which way they went and how they got there, but she quickly lost track as they passed room after room.
Her heart sank as she realized leaving the mansion would be incredibly difficult. Not only was it massive and twisty, but they passed at least half a dozen security personnel on their way to the dining room. She suspected there were more outside the house, keeping watch for potential threats. They would’ve all been briefed on the new house resident, which meant they would also probably know to watch for her if she tried to run.
Shaun was truly beginning to worry about how deep into enemy territory she’d landed herself. If she couldn’t figure this situation out, she might actually end up married to a ruthless thug, eating her morning meal with his entire crime family on a regular basis.
She couldn't hold in her gasp as they entered a room so grand that she wondered how it wasn't in a museum. The walls were filled with mirrors, gilded-framed paintings and other items she instinctively knew were very old and valuable. In the middle of the room was a massive table that looked big enough to easily seat thirty people.
At the far end of the table, next to a large window facing a well-manicured lawn, was a group of well-dressed people who all turned as Jozef entered the room with Shaun. She stopped abruptly, her stomach swirling in trepidation, making her feel nauseous. All eyes were on her.
Jozef placed a broad hand at the small of her back, giving her a modicum of comfort as he urged her forward. The length of the room until they made their way to the head of the table felt like the longest walk she had ever taken.
Shaun was used to standing out in a crowd. Though she was far from the only black woman in Montréal, most of the places she frequented were predominantly Caucasian. She had been the only black health care worker with Doctors Without Borders in Ukraine, which didn't help her blend in. It was probably partially due to the way she looked that she caught Jozef's attention that day he saw her using sign language with the child. She stood out like a beacon on the streets of Luhansk.
Dasha stood as they approached the table, a gracious smile stretching her lips. "Shaun, welcome. Come meet the family.”
Chapter Fourteen
Jozef urged Shaun forward with a hand on her back. Her timidness with his family was calling to the protector in him. Together they walked the length of the room toward two empty chairs at the table. Jozef’s seat was on the right-hand side of Krystoff and Shaun’s chair was beside Jozef’s.
As Shaun sat, Jozef pushed her seat in. She clutched the sides of her chair as he pushed and looked up at him, her golden eyes wide and concerned. He took his hands off her seat and took his place beside her. She reached out quickly to pick up the water glass in front of her and took a hasty sip. Jozef noted that her hand was shaking, though she covered it by replacing the glass on the table quickly.
He regretted that she was nervous around him, around his entire family, but he didn't blame her. She'd gone through a traumatic few days, something that an innocent woman should never have experienced. But she was handling the situation beautifully, far better than Jozef would've thought. She wasn't hysterical, she wasn't begging him to let her go and she wasn't throwing a tantrum. He wouldn't have blamed her for any of those reactions.
"I hope you don't mind, Shaun, I've had our cook make a feast for us in honour of your arrival. Normally, we eat our morning meals separately." Aunt Dasha was the first to break the tense silence, her smile filled with warmth as she waved her hand to indicate the bounty in front of her.
Shaun didn't say anything for a few seconds and Jozef wondered what she was thinking. She was so silent most of the time, absorbing her surroundings. He suspected her intelligent brain was constantly thinking, trying to figure out a way out of the situation.
She wasn't going anywhere though. Unfortunately, she had seen too much. Besides that, there was something about her that made Jozef long to explore the connection between them. She was foreign, different. Not just the way she looked, or the country she came from, but everything about her. The way she thought, her desire to heal. The way she moved: precise, confident, elegant.
He could easily see her in an operating room, her fingers dancing expertly through someone's body. But it wasn't just her beauty and grace that attracted him, it was her existence. She was so different from him and his family. Jozef lived violence, but this woman was the opposite. She healed. Her profession was giving the gift of life to those who were critically ill. She intrigued him.
"I'm actually very hungry," Shaun said, giving Aunt Dasha a small smile. "Thank you for your hospitality."
Though her words were stiff, they were also polite. Jozef adored his aunt, even though she could be an absolute bitch when she wanted to be. She had heart. When Jozef's parents died, she’d taken him under her wing as though he was one of her own children. She'd raised him, learned sign language along with her husband, and insisted her children learn as well so they could communicate with him. Jozef owed Dasha a debt of gratitude that he could never repay. Any future wife of his would have to get along with his aunt and he appreciated that his aunt was putting in effort to make Shaun feel welcome.
It was a bizarre situation for all of them. Having a strange woman in their midst, one who was there under duress, was unprecedented. Captives went to the shed, then they went into the ground. Shaun was the only exception in the history of their organization. Aunt Dasha and Shaun were both dealing with the situation as best they could.
"Where are yo
u from?" This question came from Jozef's cousin, Saskia. Her tone was bordering on rude.
"I'm from Montréal, Canada,” Shaun answered, her own tone guarded.
“What are you doing here?" Saskia demanded, ignoring her mother’s sharp admonishment to be polite.
"I work with an organization called Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières.” Her accent as she spoke the words was so perfect, Jozef wanted to ask her to say it again, then something else in French. “For the past four months, I have been working in a hospital in Ukraine, close to the front lines."
Shaun glanced at Jozef, her brain clearly flashing back to the moment he'd taken her from the hospital, the moment he murdered her colleague. The haunted look in her eyes was unmistakable.
Once again, a feeling of regret arose in Jozef. It was unusual for him to regret anything. Everything he did in life was thought out and methodical, including kidnapping Dr. Shaun Patterson. He’d needed a doctor and he preferred to have one that he could communicate with. Finding her was like finding hidden treasure in the soundless murky depths of an ocean.
While he enjoyed the idea of keeping her, looked forward to being married to the intelligent, beautiful doctor, he didn't like that he'd been the one to terrorize her. The thought of causing her harm cut deep, an uncomfortable sensation for a man who dealt death with the same casualness he used to order a meal.
Had they met somewhere else, under different circumstances, he would've approached her, showed her that they shared a language, an uncommon one. She would've smiled at him, the way she'd smiled at the boy on the street. She would have used her graceful hand movements to greet him. Eventually, he might’ve asked her out. He could've taken her to the club that his family owned, or on a walk through the streets of Prague, shown her the Old Square. Instead, she was his captive and he was her tormentor.
"I know who Doctors Without Borders are. I'm not stupid,” Saskia snapped. "What I want to know is what you were doing there. Are you some kind of do-gooder? You're willing to sacrifice your life for the dregs of society left on the front lines?”
Jozef’s face heated as anger surged through him. He slapped the table with his palm to draw his cousin's attention and swiftly signed to her, keep a civil tongue in your head.
"We don't bring strangers into our home," Saskia said coldly, not afraid to stand up to their feral dog. "I’ve been told from the day I was born, no strangers, and I’ve followed this house rule to the letter. Now Jozef is allowed to drag a foreigner home?"
Jozef glanced down at Shaun, worried that she would be upset by his hotheaded cousin. Instead, she gazed at the girl calmly, an expression of understanding on her face. Jozef wished that she would look at him that way.
Before Jozef could continue arguing with his cousin, his uncle stepped in to decisively shut her down. "Shaun is Jozef's fiancé. She is not a stranger to us. She will live in this home, and you will be polite to her. End of argument."
"I doubt it," Leeza piped up from beside her sister.
Leeza was the older sister, more levelheaded. Next to Leeza was her husband, Adam. There was an empty spot next to Adam for the couple's son, Kristoph. The child missed many of their family meals though, as he was autistic and often unable to attend, depending on his state of mind that day.
“I apologize for my sister’s behaviour. You are of course welcome here,” Leeza said, her accent thick. She'd never been able to pick up English as well as her sister and mother. They spoke almost flawlessly, with little accent, while Leeza and Krystoff retained heavy accents.
Leeza stood and leaned across the crystal glasses and porcelain plates, sticking her hand out to Shaun. Shaun looked startled. The table was so massive Leeza’s hand only came halfway across. Jozef bit back a smile and shook his head.
Shaun stood as well and shook the proffered hand, squeezing before letting go. When she relaxed back into her seat, Jozef could feel some of the tension draining from her. Despite their chosen profession, the Kobas generally were not bad people. Unfortunately, Shaun was an innocent caught up in their drama. Ordinarily, as enforcer, it would be Jozef’s job to keep innocents out of the family business.
As Leeza settled back into her seat, she pinned Jozef with a look. "My understanding is that she was taken from Luhansk rather quickly. Does she have any clothes besides the ones I provided this morning? Does she have toiletries, or feminine products?"
Jozef shook his head.
"Then that's our first order of business today," Leeza said brightly, with a smile. "I will take Shaun shopping and we’ll purchase all of the necessities she’ll need.”
"No, thank you…" Shaun tried to protest, but Jozef reached out and squeezed her hand, looking over at her and shaking his head as he caught her eye.
Jozef signed to his cousin. You may take her shopping, but under no circumstances is she to be out of your sight. You will take bodyguards and you will remain with her at all times.
He reached into his pocket and took out his wallet, digging out his credit card and tossing it across the table toward his cousin. She snatched it up, a mischievous grin spreading across her face.
"I'm coming too," Saskia chimed in, her annoyance forgotten over the thought of a shopping spree. "It's been ages since I've managed to get to the Gucci store."
Leeza rolled her eyes as she pocketed the credit card. "You and your famous designer houses. You should try someone local, support our shopkeepers."
"And end up looking like you," Saskia said sarcastically, eyeing her sister with mock horror. "No, thank you."
The sisters were almost polar opposite in their clothing choices; Leeza was conservative while Saskia preferred edgier clothes. Despite their differences, the one thing the two women could agree on was how much they enjoyed a shopping trip. Especially if someone else was picking up the bill. Jozef hoped Shaun wouldn't feel too hopelessly out of her depth with his two shopaholic cousins.
"Girls, we have a guest present, please don’t argue," Aunt Dasha chided gently.
The rest of the meal went well, with conversation flowing easily around the table. Unless spoken to directly, Shaun remained silent. She ate the food placed in front of her and watched the family as they chatted with each other, her gaze remaining slightly concerned and haunted but occasionally amused at the gentle ribbing. That was the look Jozef hoped he could grow. He hoped that one day she would forget their beginning and settle into some semblance of a relationship with him. It didn't even need to be happy, just real. Because a real marriage would bind her to him, erase the danger of her knowing too much. And it would place in his grasp a good woman, a person who would have been far out of his reach only a week ago.
He looked down at her as she bent her head to fork a bite of eggs into her mouth. Meeting her had been a stroke of luck and Jozef wasn’t stupid enough to let go of his lady luck.
Chapter Fifteen
Shaun stood quietly and watched while preparations were made for the shopping trip. She was surprised at how long it took and how much was involved in the planning. Jozef had lined up the five guards who would be accompanying the women and was lecturing them, his hand signals rapid and smooth. Once again, she marvelled at his lack of expression. It was so unusual to see someone use sign language without involving facial expressions.
At first, Shaun tried to follow what he was saying. He was instructing them on things like checking the vehicles before entering, making sure all exits were covered, and making sure each woman was accompanied by at least one guard, with three guards for Shaun. She was not allowed out of their sight for any reason, except to go into a change room without an exit.
His movements were so rapid that she quickly grew tired of watching. The group was standing in the lobby of the mansion, next to the large double doors. Dasha was talking quietly with her daughters while Jozef instructed his guards. Shaun’s gaze lingered on everyone and everything as she attempted to retain as much information as she could, which was a lot. Shaun had learned many tr
icks in medical school for memorizing information so she could pass her exams.
Each of the guards had at least one weapon visible, though she suspected they probably had more beneath jackets, and strapped to hips or ankles. Even Saskia was checking a small pistol, opening the chamber and squinting at it before snapping it shut and shoving it in her purse.
It was the sort of scene Shaun might expect to see in a movie. She was the only one shocked by the extravagance, the security, the weapons, everything. She felt like she was living some kind of dream, or more accurately, a nightmare. It was so difficult to wrap her head around the things she was seeing and experiencing.
Leeza reached out to touch Shaun’s arm. “Everything okay?"
Shaun thought about the question. Was everything okay? Not really. At that very moment she was supposed to be in a field hospital, preparing for surgery on a soldier who been struck in the chest with shrapnel. She’d been waiting for the swelling to go down, for him to gain strength so that he could survive the surgery. Now, he would be left in the hands of a less skilled surgeon.
Shaun didn’t know how to feel about that. She should be angry that she'd been dragged from her extremely important work and forced to come here, to this mansion, to be married off to a member of the Koba crime family. But she wasn’t angry. She didn't feel scared or sad, either. Any of those emotions would've been appropriate, even welcome.
Instead… she felt numb. If she were to self-diagnose, she would say that she was likely experiencing prolonged shock. A physiological response to her kidnapping; a response meant to protect her. But the shock was slowing her down, making her brain feel sluggish. She needed to snap out of it, come up with a plan.
"Hey… we can plan a shopping trip for another day if you're not ready." Leeza’s concerned gaze was on Shaun’s face.
Sin of Silence (Sinner's Empire Book 1) Page 9
