Denial has her shaking her head.
“Someone could be beating them right now. Torturing your sisters. I know what I would be doing.” I allow my gaze to drag across her frame.
Her jaw tightens, but her bottom lip still drags down.
“Or…” I open my hands wide. “They could be dead somewhere, and that’s on you.”
Her eyes widen and glaze over; she’s shaking her head repeatedly.
I can see her folding. I’m close to breaking her.
“You are preventing me from closing this case because you keep lying to me. So what did you tell Igor?” I ask.
She wavers before her hands dangle at her sides in defeat. I hated breaking her down like that or placing those images in her head, but she needed to start helping me.
“That I had been sick in the bathroom, and when I returned to my room, everyone was gone, but I heard Leah screaming.” She blinks, and tears fall. Her shoulders are raised high like she can protect herself from the fear that is closing in and clouding her blue eyes.
“Okay.” She’s telling the truth to me now, and that means that she had lied to Igor. I understand the fear I see growing in her gaze.
“So what were you really doing in the loading bay?” Was she there to draw the security away from their stations around the boat? Was she part of this? Her fear seemed legit, but her want to find the girls she grew up with was questionable.
She closes her eyes, and more tears fall. Her hands are curled into small fists.
Pavel is watching her like he wants to hug her. His eyes are filling with pity, and I want to strike him and tell him to man up.
He notices I’m staring at him, and some of the pity flees from his gaze, but not enough to satisfy me.
“Go do something useful.” I bark at him, and he leaves. Evie’s eyes snap open at my raised voice.
“I was trying to escape. I thought I could hide in one of the crates, but I couldn’t get it open.”
“That was stupid of you.” I’m moving closer. The anger at how close she would have come to death fuelled my veins and propelled me towards her. “You would never have gotten out of there unnoticed.”
“I had to try.” Each word is said with pain. “You must understand that. I was trapped.”
I had grown up in confinement, in a camp that trained us to be the best we could be. Most boys there didn’t want it. We all started at the age of six—most of us kids. I’d seen so many piss their trousers or call out for their mothers. I was glad to be trained by the best. I wanted to be an assassin. I wanted this life. That’s what made me the best. We were beaten when we didn’t perform up to their standards, but that’s what turned boys into men. Soon, the thumps were welcomed to see exactly what your body could tolerate.
The thought of Evie being beaten leaves a whole different feeling in the pit of my stomach.
“Why? Were they hurting you?” I ask. It shouldn’t matter. I shouldn’t be asking, but I need to know.
She flinches in confusion, and her brows drag down over her blue eyes. “No, but I didn’t belong there. They took me from my home.” Her lip trembles and I don’t like how her words are making me feel.
She looks ready to burst out of her skin, and I move closer and click my fingers three times in front of her face. Her gaze focuses on my fingers. She steps backward at each harsh click.
“Stay focused.” I bark. “So you were hiding in the loading bay, then what?”
“One of the security was in there. I think just doing a routine check. His radio buzzed, and it was Sacha. Calling all security to the loading dock.”
“Are you absolutely sure?” I ask, but I already know she’s telling me the truth.
“Yes. He sent them there, and they all died.”
Evie appears exhausted at the confession. I can’t understand why I was being lied to or what Sacha could gain from this. Was it the girls?
“Did Sacha see you at all?”
She looks away from me and bites her lip while shaking her head. “No. But I saw him in the hallway. He called my name. He was looking for me.”
I’m being set up. Now the only person who I could get information from had just left the building.
“What are you going to do?” Evie’s words drag my attention back to her.
“Are you going to tell Igor?” Fear stretches her neck, the pull visible along her creamy skin.
I ignore her and turn to Michail, who has remained quiet the whole time, but I know he’s taking in every word, along with Pavel.
“This information never leaves this room,” I speak over my shoulder. My men were loyal, but this was way over my head. I had no idea how high up the deceit went. Igor couldn’t be involved. He wouldn’t risk his neck like that. I didn’t think he would, anyway.
I turn to Michail. “None of it.”
“Yes, boss.”
“Yes, boss.” Pavel echoes.
“Find out where Sacha is,” I tell Pavel, and he leaves at my request. I turn back to Evie, who watches me.
“Are you going to tell Igor?” She repeats.
I had no intentions of telling Igor the truth. That wasn’t required of me. The only job I had was to find the girls and return them. That’s all I would focus on. I push aside the fact that I’d hate to see anyone hurt Evie. I didn’t even know her, but something about her called to the beast inside me not to hurt her but to protect her.
“I don’t
