by Bella Rose
Detective Orr’s cheeks were tinged with pink and he suddenly became very interested in the notes he was taking on his phone. “Do any individuals come immediately to mind? Anyone your father had a recent disagreement with?”
It was on the tip of Nicolai’s tongue to tell the detective that Vladimir was responsible for this mess, but years of training could not be overcome. Nicolai gave the detective a bland look of boredom. “This was nothing more than a typical mafia hit. There’s no telling who ordered it. I’m sure it’ll be wrapped up quickly and we’ll all move on.”
There was more frantic typing on the little screen and Nicolai wondered how the man could even see what he was writing, let alone make sense of it. Fortunately it wasn’t Nicolai’s problem. He knew who had killed his father, and it would be handled in house the way these things always were.
***
Lily rolled to her other side in the bed, unable to get comfortable. She was worried about Nicolai. What if something happened to him? What would become of Lily?
She heard the front door open and close. Then a set of heavy boots went down the hallway. He was home. A sense of relief overcame her and she sagged with the release of tension.
Nicolai’s tread on the stairs gave rise to anticipation. What if he wanted to have sex? Only a few hours earlier she had anticipated that possibility with eagerness. Now she wasn’t so sure. It was so dark. The only thing she could make out in the dim light was the shape of his body and the pale gleam of his blond hair.
“Why are you not asleep?” Nicolai murmured. It was odd, but there was something just a little off about his voice.
She struggled into a sitting position, pulling the sheet up around her bare breasts. Perhaps he had been drinking. The idea bothered her a little, but he didn’t seem drunk. “I was worried about you.”
“Why?” She could almost hear his frown.
Lily wondered why he sounded so grouchy. It was very unlike him. “You’ve never been this late before.”
“My poor Lily, did you think I would leave you all alone without a protector?” There was something almost cruel and mocking in his tone. This was so unlike Nicolai. She didn’t understand what she’d done to warrant this treatment.
“I don’t know what I thought,” she admitted softly. “But I’m very glad you’re back.”
“I have to wash.”
She couldn’t see him, but she could feel the strangeness in his manner. Her heart rate began to speed up as she wondered what was wrong. In the bathroom she heard the shower go on, and then turn off in what seemed like the blink of an eye.
Nicolai pulled the covers back. The action exposed Lily’s naked body and made her feel strangely vulnerable. He got into the bed and then held out an arm. “Come closer.”
She did as she was told, feeling horribly awkward. Gradually the heat of his body began to soothe her. Still, she could not relax. Something felt very wrong.
“My father is dead.”
The clipped sentence shocked the hell out of her. She grew tense once again. “What happened?”
“He was murdered.”
“What?” The word slipped out before she could choke it back.
“Just go to sleep. I will take care of the murderer in the morning.” He turned over and gave her his back. Minutes later he was asleep.
Lily tried to do the same, but could not shake the feeling that there was something wrong.
Finally, she slipped into an exhausted doze.
Chapter Eight
Lily turned around in a circle. She wasn’t sure where she was, but she knew that she was dreaming. The world was hazy and yet she could feel everything as if it were real. She stood in a hallway. Perhaps it belonged to a hotel or a grand penthouse apartment. The rich furnishings were nothing like what she had seen before.
She stretched out her hand and touched the gleaming wood of a hall table. Moving forward, she let the tips of her fingers brush the surface as she walked. The intensity of the sensation was shocking. She had never known dreams to be so vivid.
Soon she found herself standing before a door. In the way of dreams, she could not have guessed what waited on the other side, yet she knew that she was very eager for the delights she was sure to find. The knob was warm beneath her palm as though it had been in the sun. She turned it and pushed the door open.
Lily glanced down. She was standing barefoot on a lush carpet that felt soft beneath her feet. She curled her toes into its thickness and wondered at the delightful sensation. She sniffed and caught a whiff of the roses lying forgotten on a round table just a few feet away. Their sweet scent was mixed with something else. Something familiar.
“Come, Lily.” It was Vladimir. She felt a jolt of pleasure at the sight of him there in the room. “Come to me.”
He was beckoning, and she felt compelled to obey. The room was huge. The round shape seemed odd, and yet the enormous bed that dominated the center made it feel as though it were the perfect size and shape.
Vladimir lay on the bed. He was naked. Lily glanced down, realizing that she was naked as well. Her nipples were hard and her breasts felt heavy. There was an ache low in her belly and she knew it came from a need that must be fulfilled at once. On the bed she could see that Vladimir’s cock was hard and ready. The length of him jutted up from a nest of dark curls at his groin as though it had a mind of its own.
He beckoned again, curling his fingers and urging her to join him. She felt strangely uncertain, though her dream self certainly wanted him. Her arousal was for him. Wasn’t it?
She stepped hesitantly in his direction. Extending her hand, she reached for his. The look of satisfaction on his face was both exhilarating and terrifying. There was something she was supposed to remember about him. Wasn’t there?
Vladimir pulled her onto the bed. He stroked her skin with his hands. The warmth of him was intoxicating. She stretched luxuriantly and arched her back to push her breasts into the contact. He rolled her nipples between his fingers until she was hard, hot, and aching for his mouth.
The touch of his tongue was electric. Every nerve in her body sang with desire and she thought she might die of the pleasure. She pushed her fingers through his hair and pulled his head closer to her breast. The low sucking sensation drew a long sigh from her lips and she felt her inner muscles quiver as she neared her orgasm.
Then the dream shifted. Vladimir flipped her onto her belly. Lily liked this at first. The way he used his fingers to delve between her legs and play with her pussy excited her. But he kept pushing her face into the thick coverlet. She struggled to catch a deep breath. Then he spread her open and plunged his cock into her opening.
There was a sharp pain and Lily cried out. But the pain began to recede. Vladimir bracketed her hips in his hands and began pounding into her with his cock. Each thrust left her gasping at the sheer power behind it. At least she could breathe. As long as his erection was buried inside her body, she could breathe.
“Come for me, Lily,” Vladimir commanded.
She struggled, feeling her body poised on the edge of bliss but unable to fall over the edge. She panted and gasped. “I can’t.”
“You will!” he shouted the words. His thrusting grew more powerful. Each stroke caused a pinprick of discomfort that soon bloomed into a burn that made her squirm with the need to end it.
“I can’t!” she cried. “Please stop. I can’t come. I can’t come for you, Vladimir!” She was desperate now, and so very confused.
And then Vladimir was gone.
Lily was on the bed alone. She lay on her back, still naked and breathing as though she had just come up for air after being underwater for a long time. Her heart was hammering against her ribs and she had the most profound sense of relief.
“Lily?”
“Nicolai?”
She felt the bed move and then he was there. His presence was calming. He seemed larger than life, and yet his aura surrounded her in warmth and security. And when he lowered his mouth to
hers, she kissed him back with every bit of her soul. She felt his soft hair against her fingers and the taste of him was on her tongue.
They grappled for control of the kiss; the advance and retreat of their tongues was almost a dance. She finally cupped his face and pulled his full lower lip into her mouth. Sucking lightly, she nipped him and then let go.
The laughter in his eyes was full of life and love. He nuzzled her neck, kissing every inch of her skin as he covered her with his body. Stretching out atop her, he let his skin rub a tantalizing path over hers. The erotic feel of him made her gasp and moan with need. The ache in her pussy was acute.
She lifted one calf and rested it in the dip of his lower back just above his buttocks. The position exposed her pussy to the light friction of his heavy erection. He brushed her again and again until she was straining to get closer.
“May I?” he whispered. “I want you so badly, Lily. Will you accept me?”
“Yes. Oh yes!”
She would have begged him to finish her and yet this man had asked if he had her permission to continue. She spread her legs wide and wrapped them around his waist just as he probed her entrance with the tip of his cock. The length of him entered her slowly. The delicious friction left her panting and gasping as she waited for the passionate connection to be forged between them.
His huge cock stretched her body, but where there could have been pain there was only pleasure. Nicolai kissed her as he penetrated her pussy. The kisses relaxed her and eased the insertion until he was fully seated inside her body.
“You feel so good,” he whispered. “So perfect. I believe you were made for me.”
“I am yours,” she told him truthfully. “I have waited for you.”
Nicolai began to move, but slowly. The languid strokes left her gasping and trembling as she waited for more. It felt so very good. She curled her nails into his biceps and held tight as he rode her quicker and quicker.
She became aware of everything all at once. The softness of the bed beneath her, the scent of Nicolai’s skin, the sensation of their sweat damp skin rubbing together, and the knowledge that she could love this man forever. Her heart swelled and she felt her climax coming fast.
“Nicolai! She screamed his name.
He said nothing, and changed nothing. There was no demand in his movements. He continued to pleasure her simply for the joy of it. And finally she leaped from the edge of bliss to find fulfillment.
The climax was beautiful. She felt every wave and tremor with a consciousness that went far beyond the rational mind to the place where dreams originate. And as the peak began to recede, she snuggled against Nicolai so that she could plant a bevy of kisses all over his face and lips.
“You are mine,” he whispered. “Meant for me.”
“Yes.”
“No!”
The harsh shout jarred Lily. She was ripped from the bed, her eyes focused on Nicolai as he watched her go. She struggled, trying to go to him. She held out her arms to him. Yet he shook his head at her.
“You chose Vladimir.”
“No!” Lily protested. “I didn’t!”
“Mine. Mine. Mine!” Vladimir’s snarl sounded like a demon let loose from the pits of hell.
The dream world shifted again. Red streaks appeared in a burnt-orange sky. Vladimir was dragging her by one ankle. The pavement cut into her skin. She clawed at the ground, trying to get away. Her nails cracked and peeled as they were ripped from her fingertips by Vladimir’s relentless march toward purgatory.
“Where are we going?” she demanded. “You cannot take me against my will!”
“You belong to me,” he told her with absolute certainty. “I bought you. You are mine. You will work for me.”
He threw her into a pit. Lily hit the bottom like a boulder flung to earth. There were others, many of them. They were tied to the walls of their prison. Lily stared at their nakedness and felt shame. They were beautiful, but tears streaked their faces and welts puckered their skin.
She was yanked from the ground and tied as they were. Her legs were spread, and she was forced to stand with her body fully exposed and vulnerable. Her mind rebelled. Then the screaming started. Lily wanted it to stop. It was so loud. And yet when the door opened, the screams grew louder still. Men spilled into the room and Lily learned their purpose.
Forcing the prisoners to submit, they copulated with every one until not one was conscious. Then they came for Lily. She began to scream. And once the floodgates were open, she could not stop them.
***
Lily sat straight up in bed. Her body was pouring sweat and her heart was pounding as though she’d just run several miles. She could still taste the fire and brimstone on her tongue. The fear was real, but what did it mean?
Throwing her legs over the side of the bed, she stumbled across the room to Nicolai’s en-suite bathroom. She fumbled in the dark for the knob on the sink. The cool water felt good on her hot skin. She splashed a few handfuls of water against her flaming face and stood for a moment with her hands braced against the counter. She tried to breathe in order to calm down.
Finally she shut the water off and reached for a towel. Patting her face dry, she suddenly drew back in surprise. The strange, coppery scent on the towel wasn’t just unpleasant. It made her stomach twist and roll up into a ball. She swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat and reached for the light switch. Perhaps the towel had lain for too long and gotten moldy. Except that didn’t smell like any sort of mold that Lily had ever seen.
The lights momentarily dazzled her eyes. She lifted her hand to shade her gaze and blinked a few times. Finally she could focus on the towel. But by then she wished that she had not. The dull rust-red stains on the towel weren’t difficult to identify.
“Blood,” she whispered.
Turning, Lily stared at the shower. The glassed-in monstrosity included a white marble floor shot with streaks of pink quartz. Except now it was also stained a dull rusty red. More reddish stains circled the drain. And there were footprints on the bathmat as well.
She couldn’t breathe. This wasn’t right. None of it was right. Nicolai had told her their father was murdered. There was blood all over the bathroom. Was Nicolai injured? Had he been hurt?
The very thought gave her wings. She scrambled out of the bathroom and back to the bedroom. With the light spilling from the bathroom, she could see the man in the bed. She sucked in a deep gasp of horror.
Vladimir.
They were twins. Their builds and features were identical. Now she knew why it had all felt wrong. What she didn’t know was how to handle the demon currently sleeping in her bed.
“Lily!” he called out suddenly. “Come back to bed.”
She froze. He didn’t sound mean or crazy. He sounded whiney. It was in her mind to simply bolt, but she had nowhere to go.
Chapter Nine
Nicolai would have never expected to be standing outside his own house, surveying the property. Of course he had never expected to come home and find Vladimir’s car in his driveway, either. He could only hope that Lily wasn’t dead on the floor.
Anatoly shifted in the bushes, his big body making surprisingly little noise considering his size. “Why don’t we just break in and drag his murdering ass outside?”
“Because that would give him the opportunity to use Lily as a hostage.” Nicolai hated the idea that Lily would be hurt because of him. “We need to find out what he’s doing in there.”
“He’s crazy,” Anatoly muttered. “There’s no telling what game that bastard has decided to play.”
“That’s exactly what I’m afraid of.” Nicolai grabbed Anatoly’s arm, gesturing to a light on the second floor. “She usually goes to bed early. What if she doesn’t even know he’s in there?”
Anatoly started creeping closer. Nicolai followed on his heels. The two of them made the edge of the yard and then stopped. Nicolai gestured to the stairs that led to the upper-story balcony. They’d been added t
o make a fire escape and keep the building within code requirements. Now they were going to be Nicolai’s way inside his own house.
“Careful,” Anatoly murmured.
Nicolai didn’t respond. Carefully placing his weight on each step, he managed to avoid too much in the way of creaking and groaning. The old wood was weathered in places, but it was still solid. He climbed to the balcony and very carefully approached the bedroom window.
The light breeze stirred the curtains through the open window. He shifted sideways, trying to get a better view of the bed. There was someone in it. The shape of the body beneath the sheet was large. The person appeared be sleeping on his stomach.
“Shit,” he muttered.
It was Vladimir sleeping in his bed. Vladimir! That crazy bastard had just gone to Nicolai’s home and attempted to assume his life. Nicolai wasn’t entirely certain what this new psychosis was, but it was time to get Lily away from it. He just needed to find her.
He couldn’t see anyone else in the room. Then he realized that the light they’d seen had been coming from the bathroom. He couldn’t see into that space from here. He would need to infiltrate the house in order to do that. The problem was that anything he did could potentially wake the sleeping Vladimir. For now, he was as dormant as he ever would be.
Movement near the bathroom caught his eye. Lily entered the room. She stared at the bed, obviously aware that the person sleeping was not Nicolai. He saw her recoil visibly at the sight of Vladimir. Why didn’t she just run? Why would she stand there and not make a break for it. Of course, the answer was obvious. She didn’t want to run the risk of waking the beast and incur its wrath.
Nicolai returned to the ground. He motioned to Anatoly. The big man stood close enough to hear Nicolai’s whisper. “Lily is inside with Vladimir. He’s asleep. We have to wait until she decides to make a break for it. I’ll stay here. You go back to the house and keep an eye on the investigation.”
“I don’t like the idea of leaving you here alone, boss,” Anatoly grunted.
