𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 • 09 || ❝𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐫❞

>𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐃

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𝐊 𝐑 𝐈 𝐒 𝐓 𝐈 𝐀 𝐍 • 𝐏 𝐄 𝐓 𝐑 𝐎 𝐕

I sit at my office chair and scroll down through hundreds of emails sent from mafias all around the world who are already congratulating me on my future engagement and hope that they will be invited to the engagement party and wedding. Shit.

It's all too late now. Everyone has the assumption that Mila and I are together and getting married. I close the laptop aggressively and already want to throw it across the room. I stare deeply into space but feel the sudden vibration sensation travel down my leg. I pick up my phone and see Cian's name light up my screen. "Cian, what can I do for you?" I attempt to be happy, but that emotion is too far down the drain now.

"I just wanted to congratulate you again, everyone is aware and I'd like to attend the engagement party and wedding." He chuckles, "I hope you're planning something big and great for her Kristian."

I groan in frustration, now I have to go along with it. I couldn't think of anything worse than being betrothed to a woman you hate, or being betrothed to another person in general. Marriage. I couldn't think of anything worse, I mean, look where it got my mother and father. But I knew Cian would be the one to open his big mouth, I should've definitely come up with a better lie that doesn't include marriage, engagement or parties. Why couldn't I have just said I plan on torturing her because she's some hooker I picked up from the club and now has an obsession. Now that lie would've been better. "Always planning something nice for her." I say through gritted teeth. Liar.

Cain and I speak a bit longer before he can tell me that he has some more shipments to sort out and ship off. I thought it was for the best anyway, there is so many times I want to lie to him.

I make my way downstairs and find Jace waiting outside of my office ready to talk to me. He is fully aware of what has been going on and even he has given me a mouthful of words of how stupid I am. Being the head of the Bratva you'd think I would be smarter than that. But apparently, I had a moment. "Have you decided on what you're going to do?" I shake my head with his words, but I've barely been sleeping because my mind is too busy being active and thinking about what to do.

"Everyone knows Jace." I groan and open the office door, allowing us both inside. I sit on the chair and glance up at him, his face says it all though. He's speechless that I've stooped so low and have fucked up in the first place. I try to lie my way out of things now look.

"Maybe it isn't so bad Kristian, the easiest thing to do is to go and talk to Mila and see what she thinks about it all." I scoff at his words. "Think about it, she wants freedom, you want answers, if you try and get closer to her, you'll find them out sooner or later and then decide on what you want to do with the information. Plus, now that we have no nurse, she can help fix us up. It looks alright on your arm." I stare at my arm where Mila had stitched me up, she must be experienced with it so Jace's idea isn't so bad after all.

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I finally have a plan on what I want to say to Mila and have already begun to walk down the basement stairs. I make it to the bottom and find her sitting up and finishing her last mouthful of food, to which I can only assume was her favourite scrambled egg that Igor has prepared especially for her.

"Mila." I approach the entrance of the cell door to gain her attention and not make her choke on her food, she glances up at me and finishes swallowing her mouthful. "Kristian." She says sternly, not happy to see me in the slightest.

"I have options for you." She rolls her eyes and folds her arms across her chest.

"Go on."

"The Irish mob think that you are my soon to be wife thanks to your stunt yesterday." Her eyes widen, "So, you either help stitch up my men and pretend to be married to me, or you can stay down here until I figure out what I'm going to do with you. Plus, you get freedom, to some extend a mobsters wife can only do so much."

"So, it's a lose, lose situation then."

It isn't really, but if that's how she wants to see it she can. I know I'd rather my freedom than anything. But then again, a mafia man hasn't got any freedom. I begin to walk away, I tuck the chair away and take a few steps up to the top of the basement, from here I can already smell the familiar scent of chocolate, last time Igor baked cookies, I almost wonder what he's baking now, probably muffins. "Wait." The sound of defeat draws me back downstairs, Mila has now stood up against the cell.

"I'll pretend for me, not you." Well, that was easy...

"Fine by me." I open up the cell door and she begins to follow me upstairs, sniffing out the food Igor is baking and preparing for us all. I take Mila upstairs to the guest bedroom where she will be sleeping for now, on the way we discuss her ways to which she can help the Bratva, luckily, she is experienced with fixing up wounds, but I think I established that the other day.

"This is your room for now, but remember you're under maintenance and are watched at all times. Do you understand?" She nods in response and takes a seat on the ready-made bed.

"I'll leave you to rest for a bit, Elias will be sitting outside your door, so don't even think about running away. Because I'll always find you now Mila."

𝐌 𝐈 𝐋 𝐀 • 𝐎 𝐑 𝐋 𝐎 𝐕

Kristian Petrov has no idea what he has gotten himself into. I've only agreed to fake this marriage for him to find out more information about my family, he doesn't know it yet but I know he's hiding information about them and soon that truth will come flying out.

For now, while I think of a plan in my head to trap Kristian, I keep my head down on the fluffy pillow below me, I haven't had a proper night sleep for a week now. I feel my eyes getting heavier and heavier but I will not go to sleep, I won't allow it to consume me while I'm deep in thought. Maybe I should tell Kristian some parts of the truth, how I'm working alone, as far as I'm aware no one knows about Nikita. But, one thing he won't find out is why I want him dead. His Bratva destroyed my family, now the leader of the Bratva will get what's coming to him.

I sit up against the headboard and look at my surroundings, the wall paper is a simple neutral grey and has a painting on the wall, no doubt another that Kristian brought from an exhibition. There is no bathroom in here, but I don't mind that, as long as I get my own space that's all I need. I walk over to the guest bedroom door and open it and find who I assume to be Elias sitting on a comfy looking chair with a pillow under his bum. "So, you're the famous Mila Orlov." He smiles brightly revealing white pearls, his eyes are denim blue and his dark buzzcut hair style suits his facial shape. I'm surprised Kristian put someone attractive as my bodyguard, but then again, we're not married yet. "That's me, all good things I hope you've heard." I'm obviously lying and being sarcastic, Kristian probably has been slating me non-stop. He laughs and shakes his head.

"What's the big deal with you?" I sit on the floor cross-legged next to him, but then Polina's words cross my mind about not interacting with the Bratva men. All mafia men have bad backgrounds, but all backgrounds of these men are different.

"Now the information for that is on a need-to-know basis, and you don't need to know." He grumpily says, God this man must have bipolar. I decide to stop talking and shut myself back into the guest bedroom, but before I can shut the door Elias speaks. "Kristian wants you downstairs at seven, he expects you to be ready." Men and their orders, I roll my eyes and shut the door without giving Elias a reply.

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Hours have passed and within that time Elias knocked on the door and gave me several boxes of clothes for me to choose from ready to meet Kristian. I decide to go with the light blue dress that stops just after my knees, however the sleeves keep slipping even though they're thin straps. I open the door and Elias is no longer sat in the comfy chair, and the chair has now disappeared too. I walk down stairs and find Kristian in a suit and staring down at his wrist watch, waiting for my arrival. "You're late." He mutters, I give an apologetic look without saying the words and stand in front of him.

"Here. I didn't take you for a big diamond kind of girl." He holds out a black velvet box in his palm and opens it up for me.

The diamond is small, he wasn't joking. But it is perfect. We haven't spent a lot of time together, and already Kristian can read me like a book. I'm just now dreading spending more time with him and for him to find out what I'm hiding, why I'm here.

"Thank you." I slip the ring on my marriage finger and stare down at my hand, watching the light reflect of the diamond revealing the true beauty inside of it. My mind begins to wander, I was told to dress up and here Kristian is in a three-piece suit with a black buttoned shirt under it, it looks so tight on his muscles.

"So, where to now?" I enquire with an eyebrow raise. He chuckles, "You'll see."

I follow him out into the foyer and then out onto the pebbles surrounding Kristian's mansion. He turns to look at me and begins to speak, "For this to work, you must be at my side at all times when we are together or when I say otherwise. You need to play as my wife and not as someone who wanted to kill me, do you understand?" I nod. I know any wrong move I could get myself killed, if it's not by Kristian it might be from other mafia leaders.

I get into Kristian's car allowing the familiar scent. Cedarwood and lemon. I look over to Kristian who has already started the car and began to drive, I must've already put on my seatbelt without acknowledging it. I dart my gaze away from Kristian and stare out of the window, but I can't see out of them, the sky is pitch black and tonight there is no star in sight to illuminate my surroundings.

It doesn't take us long to reach an unfamiliar building with a neon light just next to the entrance. We approach the back door instead where another sign says 'VIP'. "Where are we?" I ask.

"Club Uaylder." My mind is still full of confusion, I know it's a club but as the Russian rolls off his tongue it sends a rush of shivers down my spine. "What's that in English?" I manage to say, although I have a Russian background, my knowledge on the language is slim.

"Wilder."

We walk through the back and there I see multiple doors written with the words 'Private' in multiple languages. "What's through those doors?" He begins to laugh, "Something that your innocent eyes don't need to see." I roll my eyes my mind could only imagine what could be behind those doors.

"So do you and your men own this place?"

"Yes." I began to look around further as we walked inside of the club. There was a bar full of people who were drinking and laughing loudly. It was obvious that the head Pakhan would've owned a club, every mafia has its own clubs, restaurants, jewellery stores you name it. I just don't know how I didn't know about this sooner when I was researching about Kristian.

We sit at the bar and Kristian calls over the bartender and speaks to him in Russian, I'm definitely going to have to learn the language in my spare time. Kristian turns with his eyes on me and passes me a shot, the liquid was dark and it smelt a bit spicy.

We cheer and clank the shot glasses together. "To new beginnings." He says with a smile, I say the same and down the liquid until it reaches the pit of my stomach.

New beginnings here we come.