Chapter 3 Naomi

• Naomi
• 'The wedding is tomorrow, you’re my bride.” .The words echoed in my head as blood pounded in my ears. It was as if someone yanked out the world from under my feet. I wanted to vomit on the buffed wooden floors.
• Those should’ve been the happiest words I could hear. But instead, all I felt was cold reality gripping its iron fist around my heart.
• For one maddening moment, I imagined myself smiling through the pain and spitting in his face as my final act of defiance.
• It would be easy. Oh, goodness, it would be too easy to make that a reality. All I had to do was tell him the truth about what he had already lost without realizing. And then it would be over.
• But I couldn’t force the words past my lips.
• Call me a coward, but I didn’t want to die.
• I did, however, want to get out of this wedding.
• “This isn’t what my father wants,” I finally said, my voice shaking. “He will never agree to this.”
• Gavril looked at me curiously before a short laugh escaped him. “Agree? Don’t you know?”
• “Know what?” I asked in a small voice.
• His eyes sparkled with glee, and my skin crawled. “Your father is dead, Sveta,” he said in a flat tone, with no warmth or emotion attached to his news. “It doesn’t matter what he planned or what he wants.”
• I gasped, and tears sprang to my eyes. I already knew about the death of Stanislav Orlov. But it was the cold and callous way that Gavril would have told Sveta had she been standing here in my place. She might not have cared about her father like a seventeen-year-old would, but to be told the news by a man with a cruel smile on his face…
• “Take off your clothes,” he finally said. “I don’t have all morning.”
• My face flushed, and my heart jumped to my throat. Take my clothes off? In front of him?
• “Why?”
• Gavril arched a brow. “You need a wedding dress, one that will match our wedding.”
• Vera wheeled a row of dresses into the room and stood silently to the side.
• “Take your clothes off, Sveta,” he finished, voice thick and hard. “This is not a request.”
• Of course, he wasn’t. There wasn’t a dress in this room that I wanted on my body. Especially not one that was bought and paid for by the man who was going to trap Sveta in marriage and use her for his plans.
• Well, he wasn’t staring at Sveta Orlov but Naomi Spencer, who was used to being pushed around and could fight back just as well.
• Fuck him and his plans. I wasn’t going to just go with them.
• “No.”
• The cruel playfulness disappeared from his eyes. “What did you say?”
• I raised my chin in defiance, wishing I had worn my pajamas now just to spite him. My heart was nearly beating out of my chest in defiance, but I was going to stand my ground.
• “I said no.”
• Gavril shook his head, the hint of a hard smile playing on his lips. “Let me lay this out for you, Sveta. If you do not agree to pick out a fucking dress and play the role of blushing bride, I will give you to my guards. You put up quite a fight against them. And I’m sure they’d be happy to repay that favor and fuck you until you bleed.”
• Fear swirled in my stomach, but I didn’t show it outwardly. “I will kill you before you get the chance.”
• Gavril’s laugh was grating, almost bordering on disbelief.
• “Oh, I like you, Sveta,” he replied, reaching into his coat. I watched as he pulled out a shiny, slim knife, and my heart stuttered in my chest.
• To my surprise, Gavril didn’t raise the knife in the air. Instead, he spun it in his hand and pointed it at me, handle first.
• “Do you really think you can kill me?” he asked lightly. “Then give it your best shot, Sveta. Vera will be a witness, so that my guards will not exact vengeance upon you should you succeed. And if you’re lucky enough to kill me, then you will be allowed to leave.”
• I glanced over to Vera, and she gave me a small nod, her expression almost bored at what was going on between us. What had she seen in her lifetime? Was she used to this horrible person and what he did to people? I had the sneaking suspicion that if I did end up killing Gavril, she would kill me and step over my corpse without a second thought.
• Still, this was likely the only chance I would have. I could get my freedom by just killing him. It would be my last chance to take back my life and get out of this mess.
• Besides, I held no special feelings for the man before me. If I killed him, a lot of people would likely cheer me on for doing so. He must have ruined a lot of people’s lives. And if we were being honest, the world was probably better off without him.
• So, I took the knife, the slim metal not as heavy as I thought it would be. My palms were sweaty as I gripped it tightly, searching for the way I wanted to attack him.
• One shot.
• When I started toward him, Gavril’s eyes widened as if he expected me to fall apart and throw the knife on the floor. My heart thundered against my rib cage. With each boom-doom of my heart, my anger grew. I thought about what he would have done to Sveta, to me.
• He might not realize that he had the wrong woman. But he was going to pay a price for it.
• With a snarl I launched at his chest...