Novak (11 page)

Katrina

Once again, I’m lying beneath this man who has invaded my life, my being, and my body, and I feel as if he is in the very core of my soul.

I know he is in my head, my heart, and my body, but I also know my survival instincts run too deep in my psyche to ever fully drop my guard. I have always had to fight to survive, living and working in a man’s world.

The only way any man will ever have me, is to take me. He will have to take me over and over again.

What I don’t know is he enjoys taking me. He enjoys knowing no other man holds this type of power over me.

He revels in the fact that he can cross every boundary and break down every wall of my defenses that I have spent a lifetime building.

You see, in his mind, this makes me his for the simple fact that no other man holds the power over me that he does.

None before him, and none after him, will ever be able to consume me as he does. Mathias Novak, Carl Sims, whoever this man is, he has done something that no man has ever done to me. For the first time in my life, I am alive…

Sergei

“I’m watching her right now, boss, and you will never believe who she is speaking with. It’s none other than David Turner of the FBI, along with that fiery, little, redheaded partner of his, Rene. They followed her out of the gym again, just like yesterday. This may turn into a problem, boss. Do you need me to handle it?”

I can hear my boss breathe in deeply, exhaling any of the stress that threatens to cause him to operate in the emotional realm. It’s a habit he has. He says that decisions based on emotions such as anger, can be detrimental to his business. I’m certain he is well past the angry stage with the news I just gave him. I hope I don’t have to kill the girl. I kind of like her, but I will kill her all the same if my boss orders it.

“Not yet, Sergei, I’ll take care of the conniving, little liar. God help her if she has told that man anything. God help her,” my boss repeats, solidifying that none other will be able to rescue her if she has made the mistake of revealing any information.

I’m certain that even though my boss is threatening her, there is a part of him that anguishes at the thought of her betraying him. Regardless of his feelings for her though, he won’t let them interfere with business.

Katrina

My phone rings and, this time, I choose not to ignore it. Between Novak and the FBI, my nerves are shot. Agent Turner and his partner ambushed me again after I left the gym today. I managed to get away this time without seeing any more gruesome pictures, but not before Agent Turner reiterated how much danger I’m in and pressed his card into my hand… as if that’s going to help me. It’s not as if I don’t know how big of a mess I’ve gotten myself into. I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Novak is dangerous and, now that the FBI is involved, my days of toying with him are over.

He is not going to let me go and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it.

Yes, he has a death grip on me, a stranglehold. All it will take is one phone call and he can rob me of my very life. I know that Novak is obsessed with me, but I have no idea just how far he is willing to go. I expect death, but I did not anticipate the deception he will subject me to. He is a master chess player in the game of life and I have sorely underestimated him.

I mentally prepared for the ruthless blow of his anger. I’ve been waiting for the sound of a bullet whizzing towards my body as it exits a gun, or the slap of a whip on my backside, but I have forgotten about the destruction a simple mind-fuck can wield. In this game of love and war we presently find ourselves playing, Novak is a master manipulator.

Novak

I make sure my voice is calm and cool when that sneaky, little bitch answers the phone.

“I have made dinner reservations and we will be flying there, Katrina. I expect you at my house no later than 3:00pm this afternoon.”

“It’s 11:00 now and I just got back from the gym.”

“Don’t fuck with me, Katrina. I’m not in the mood.”

I know she knows me well enough to know that my calm demeanor and monotone voice means I’m in no mood for her shit.

“This will be a great time for you to assure me I have your cooperation by saying, ‘Yes, Sir’.”

“Yes, Sir,” she mumbles into the phone.

No sooner have I hung up the phone, than an eerie feeling comes over me. She isn’t stupid and if she has even an inkling that I know she has been conversing with the FBI, she will run.

From nowhere the thought comes to my mind that she may very well know I have been watching her and, if she does, then she knows that I’m aware of her little coffee date and her second meeting with the agents. I will be watching her until she arrives. Sergei will follow her, ensuring she arrives at my home to get ready for our
date.

Katrina

I quickly try to push it away but the niggling thought in the back of my mind remains; there is no shaking it. Though I have no proof that he knows I talked with Agent Turner, very little gets past this man. It is his job to be aware of everything at all times. His ability to read people is incomparable. He is very good at what he does. At times, I wonder how the man can be so adept in the art of reading body language. Is it an innate ability or one he has been trained in? I would venture to say both. I have committed the unpardonable sin of speaking to the enemy—the FBI. I can only hope the fact that I revealed nothing will not only keep me safe, but alive.

I exit the shower to make my way to my make-up table and I immediately see him. He stands there, just glaring at me. No, glaring
through
me would be a better description.

“I said I would be at your house by three, Novak. It wasn’t necessary for you to send Sergei to force me to come.”

“Well, we both know you are a liar and a thief. Do you actually think I believe anything that you say?”

Before I can stop myself, it is out of my mouth, “Well, we both know that you are a thug!”

I sit, trying to just push the fear from my mind and looking in the mirror at the woman before me.

I never see, or hear, him coming until his hands are clenched around my neck.

“You’ll be wearing what I mandate.”

“I’m no one’s slave,” I calmly answer.

I am trying to project much more confidence and control than what I am feeling right now. Something is wrong. Something is very, very, wrong. Every fiber of my being is screaming
red flag
and it is taking all I have to not succumb to the fear that is lodged in my chest right now. I am terrified of this man. I have viewed firsthand the cruelty that he is capable of and I have witnessed, with my own eyes, his sadistic tendencies. The man in the hospital was beat beyond recognition, all but beat to death. I have become entangled in a very ruthless and dangerous man’s web of deceit.

I continue getting ready as Novak does business over the phone. Yes, it must be just my imagination and paranoia. Surely he couldn’t know anything, or so I tell myself, as I continue to get ready for an evening that holds nothing but mysteries for me. I can only hope for the best. I realize, in this moment, I am not beyond begging for mercy. The only question is, does a man like Novak even harbor any mercy in his cold, dark heart?

Novak

I make my way to the bed and retrieve the dress that my soon to be wife will be wearing this evening.

I remove the white dress from the box and I can’t resist saying, “You will be wearing white tonight, the color of purity and innocence. We both know you are a liar and a thief, but we don’t have to let the rest of the world know it, now do we? Some things are better left unsaid. Wouldn’t you agree, Katrina?”

She continues applying her make-up and trying to alleviate the nagging fear I know she is feeling. I know it’s a fear that will not release its grip on her. Her body language tells me she suspects that I know something. She makes a valiant effort to pull herself together and we make our way to the airport. She can lie to herself, as she does everyone else, but I see right through her deceptions. She can’t successfully lie to me. I waste no time confirming her fears and as soon as the plane takes off, I address her. She understands now why that nagging fear just wouldn’t go away. I can see the terror in her eyes as I confront her about her betrayal. I react in a way she never anticipated.