Chapter 186: Get the phone. Viktor will want proof

Aliya’s palm struck Sienna across the face. Sienna’s head snapped to the side.

The sting spread quickly across her cheek. She stayed still. Slowly, she turned her face back toward Aliya. Her cheek burned.

Her eyes did not leave Aliya’s. Aliya’s breathing was heavier now. "Don’t joke with me." Sienna swallowed.

She could feel the taste of blood where her teeth had caught the inside of her cheek. But she didn’t look away. If Aliya wanted fear, Sienna wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction.

"You look fearless." Aliya leaned closer. Something unsettling in her eyes now. The playful smile was gone, replaced by a restless intensity that made Sienna’s stomach tighten.

"You think Viktor is coming to save you?" Sienna said nothing. Aliya smiled again. "Believe me, I’ll finish this before he even makes it back." Sienna’s jaw tightened.

She didn’t know where Viktor was. She didn’t know what had taken him away from the house or how long he would be gone. But Aliya clearly knew something.

And that frightened her more than the threat itself. Before Sienna could ask, Don Capri stepped forward. His shoes stopped just inches from her.

The light behind him cast his shadow across the pavement, covering her completely. "Where is my damn money?"

Sienna looked up at him. For a moment, she genuinely didn’t understand. Then it clicked. "The money?"

"Don’t play stupid with me."

"I’m not." Her cheek still burned from the slap. Her knees were throbbing against the cold pavement, but her mind was already moving. She glanced around without making it obvious.

Two guards were holding her arms. One stood slightly to her left. The other to her right. Two more stood behind Aliya, close enough to reach her quickly if she tried anything.

Simon and Elena were farther back. Don Capri was closest. Too close.

Sienna lowered her eyes for a second, taking in the distance between the men, the open space behind them, the steps leading back toward the house.

There wasn’t much. But there was always something. "What money?" she asked. Don Capri’s face hardened.

"The money you took."

"I didn’t take anything."

"You expect me to believe that?" Sienna looked back at him.

"You lost your own money because you were greedy." A flicker of anger crossed his face. Sienna continued before he could interrupt.

"What does that have to do with me?" The slap came before she saw it.

Smack.

Her head snapped to the other side. The force made her ear ring. For a few seconds, she heard nothing but a high, thin buzzing.

She lowered her eyes and breathed through it. Her cheek throbbed. Her knees hurt. Her palms were cold against the pavement.

But underneath all of that, her mind kept working. Four guards. Two close. Two behind Aliya. Don Capri in front. Simon and Elena behind him. The front steps were only a few feet away.

The driveway stretched beyond them. The gate was farther. Too far. Sienna swallowed and slowly lifted her head. Nobody seemed to notice where her eyes had been moving.

Good. She let her gaze settle on Don Capri again. Aliya folded her arms. "We’re going to teach you a lesson." Her voice was almost cheerful. Sienna looked at her.

Aliya’s eyes traveled over her, lingering on the bruising already beginning to show on her cheek.

"Let’s see if Viktor still wants you after we’re finished. You can keep the money we have more now," Elena shifted slightly.

"Aliya..."

"What?" Elena hesitated.

"This is enough." Aliya turned her head slowly. "Enough?" The single word came out cold. Elena said nothing more. Aliya looked back at Sienna.

"You should be begging me." Sienna almost laughed. Instead, she wiped the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand.

"For what?"

"For showing you what happens when you get in my way." Don Capri stepped aside. Simon moved forward.

Sienna’s eyes immediately went to him. Unlike the others, he wasn’t smiling. He stopped a few feet away and looked down at her.

For a moment, he seemed reluctant. Then he glanced at Aliya. She gave him a small nod. "Go ahead." Simon took another step. Sienna’s fingers pressed into the cold pavement. She looked from Simon to the men holding her.

Her breathing slowed. Whatever happened next, she needed to stay conscious. She needed to keep thinking. And, most importantly, she needed to stay alive until Viktor came back.

Simon had not spoken a single word to Sienna since the day he handed her over to his boss.

Months ago. Back then, loyalty had come with a price, and Simon had been more than willing to pay it with someone else’s life.

At the wedding, something close to guilt had flickered across his face when he’d seen her. Sienna had noticed.

She had wondered, for one foolish moment, whether there was still a piece of the man she once knew buried somewhere inside him. Apparently, there wasn’t.

Aliya had offered him something he wanted more. Power. A better position. And Simon had chosen it.

Now he crouched in front of Sienna as though they were old friends meeting again after months apart.

"Enna, baby." The old nickname made Sienna’s stomach turn. Simon smiled. "I promise I’ll get you out of here." Sienna stared at him.

"These people are dangerous," he continued quietly. "You just need to bear with me a little longer, all right? Everything will go back to how it used to be."

His smile widened. "Even better." Sienna almost laughed. Even better?

He had sold her once, cheated on her. Now he expected her to believe he had come to save her? "Get on with it already," Aliya snapped.

She was growing impatient. Then she looked at one of the guards. "Get the phone. Viktor will want proof." One of the men stepped away. Sienna said nothing.

She kept her face still. Simon moved closer. He expected her to cry. She didn’t. He expected her to plead. She didn’t. Instead, she watched him.

Calmly. That made him hesitate. "You don’t have to be afraid of me," he whispered. Sienna’s eyes remained on his.

Just a little closer. Simon reached for her. Sienna waited. One second. Then another.

He came closer, apparently convinced that whatever he intended to do, she was too frightened to resist. He was wrong.