A Dangerous Passion (COMPLETED)

Chapter 33

Skylar's POV

"What is going on?" I demand to Andrei as I smooth out my dress against my legs. Tensions are suddenly high and now I can't help but hate myself for what Im wearing.

Andrei barley even looks at me before he clears his throat and says, "let's begin, shall we?"

Everyone agrees with low mumbles as I sit here completely stunned and still very confused on what the hell is happening. This without a doubt a set-up of some sort, I'm just not quite sure which kind.

The older-looking man across from me suddenly says my name as I fiddle with the hem of my dress. "I'm Vladimir," he greets and stretches his hand across the table. He smiles warmly as I hesitantly shake it. "I would tell you who I am, but that isn't really any of your business, now is it?" He's obviously trying to get some sort of rise out of me, but instead I just nod along.

The woman beside him brings up a bag from the side of her and pulls a stack of papers out, evening them together loudly against the table. "Anyways.." she begins and flicks her way through the papers. "Before we get on with the main objective, let's get our food here." she smiles towards me, probably trying to comfort me in some sort of way, but it only draws more attention to me.

Vladimir snaps his fingers a few times and the waitress scurries up to the table with a notebook ready in hand. "We'll all get the special tonight with some water to drink," he explains as she starts jotting the singular order down as fast as her hand will let her. Damn.. I was really looking forward to a glass of lemonade tonight.

Every moment that passes as we wait for the food to arrive, more quite talk arises among the importent-looking people. The entire time, Andrei doesn't even share a glance with me. He just talks to that woman, Vladimir and the others sitting with us. I just want to go back home now and lay in bed until I can't feel anymore.

But my daydreaming soon ends when steaming-hot plates of food are placed in front of us and the conversation is quick to turn back to where we left off, even though it wasn't much of one to start with. I grab my cutlery and begin carving into the steak presented with some garnish and baby potatoes on the side. Yumm...

"So have you two talked about any plans regarding the.." Galina begins to speak as she cuts into a piece of her steak, but she is quickly cut-off.

Andrei clears his throat loudly into his napkin. "No," he quickly says and shoots her a death-stare. Wow.. What's gotten to him so suddenly?

I shrug to myself and continue to cut my potatoes into small little pieces so they last me forever. This is the best meal I've eaten since my mother was alive, and even then, it's still not nearly as delicious as hers was.

A few moments pass before Galina speaks up again and all of our attentions. "Have you not told her, Andrei? She should know what's going on."

I pick up my glass of water and peer up at everyone who is now looking at me with that look people give you when something is going on. "What is she talking about?" I finally ask as I look back over to Andrei. He's beginning to look even more nervous than what he did before.

"Look," he begins. I watch as his fist clenches together over a napkin he's been holding awhile now. "I never was going to take you out on a date, Skylar. We are here for another reason. A bigger reason."

As much as that hurts my heart for him to say that, I move past it quickly so he can't see the obvious hurt in my eyes. "What reason?" I push.

He sucks in a breath, looks at the ground for a second, then back up at me. "Because of this situation." He gestures toward my little baby bump popping out of my dress. "We need the baby to be 'pure' in order for it to live. So we are getting married."

As soon as the last word left his mouth, I already feel the shards from my glass cutting through my skin and laying beneath my feet. "W-what?" I gasp with my hand still open from the glass that I was holding. No one says anything to me, they all just stare at me in surprise, like I've just said the worst thing in the world. It wasn't even me who said it, though. That was all Andrei.

I stand from my chair, feeling a shard of glass dig into my heel. I ignore it. Just ignore the pain, Skylar, just ignore it and get the hell out of here.

"Skylar, you're bleeding. Sit down." Andrei says as he stands up with me. He tries to grasp my arms as I stumble a bit, but I push his hands away.

I take another step back from the table, and before I know it, I've taken off. My pained feet carry me across the room and down the stairwell to the floor below us. I don't even realize how busy the restaurant is until I see the dozens of people seated around me. I should scream. Cry for help. Maybe someone will help me get out of this mess!

My heart races as I try to scope out an escape route, but then I see almost every door is guarded by a pair of guards.

"Skylar!" I hear someone yell from behind me. I whip around and see Vladimir and Andrei side by side. Andrei doesn't look mad like Vladimir; his sad expression almost makes me sorry for causing such a scene. But I don't, I just limp my way to the front doors as fast as I can.

As I approach the doors, I see our driver speaking with one of the guards. He doesn't look nearly as mean as them, so I decide to talk to him. "Excuse me," I say softly and tap him on the shoulder.

He spins around, facing me with an eased smile. "Yes?"

"W-would you be able to take me home by any chance? I hurt my leg pretty badly and can barley walk." My eyes are soft and pleading as I speak, so much so that he simply nods and begins leading me through the doors.

Wow, that was much easier than I had thought it would be.

He opens the door for me and I practically fall into the backseat since the pain in my foot is so bad. The door closes shut and soon enough we're off.

"What happened in there?" I hear him call out to me from up front.

I wipe my tears of pure pain and agony. "J-just an accident. I dropped my glass." I try to laugh it off, making it seem as though it was a misunderstanding, but he isn't having it.

"Sure about that? You were on the verge of tears when you came to me."

I take a long deep breath and keep my eyes directed on my injury. This is probably how he's going to get me trouble. That is if I tell him what actually happened. I barley even know this guy, it's really none of his business anyways.

"Everything's a-okay," I assure and the rest of the ride home is completely silent.

~

When we arrived home, I was quick to go back to my room and lock myself in. Andrei and his little friends are probably looking for me as we speak. They probably thought I ran away, but as much as I know I should've at least tried, I didn't. I don't have the strength anymore to actually care about my well-being. I'm not even sure if I have enough to care for this poor child anymore.

Currently, I'm throwing up the small portion of dinner I had tonight and probably the rest of the food I've tried so damn hard to keep down.

I wouldn't be surprised if this pregnancy killed me in the end. Being in as much stress as I was before wasn't helping, and neither is knowing that I'll have to get married to that asshole soon.

The contents in my stomach have suddenly seemed to all disappear and I no longer feel the need to throw up. I'm so drowsy and tired I don't even flush the toilet, so instead, I grab the nearest towel from the sink and wrap it around my foot. I lay down on the cool, tile floor and take my phone in hand, then begin texting someone. I'm not too sure who it is as everything seems so blurry, but I know I'm telling them what's going on and how sick I feel.

After only a few moments of typing "drunkingly" on my phone, I let it drop to the floor and I roll over on my side, beginning to cry so loudly, I think the entire house can hear me. And the longer I cry, more pain consumes me and I'm eventually just a shaking, crying mess on the floor of the bathroom. That is until the pain just suddenly stops and everything goes as dark as the night sky.