The escape
973 Words
NASTIA
I couldn’t believe my ears. This had to be a dream - a cruel nightmare I couldn’t wake up from.
It felt so wrong. So impossibly, wrong.
How did it happen? Surely word must have spread that I did it. Any moment now, they would come for me. My throat tightened, breath unsteady. I feared for my life.
How? Had he taken the pill meant for Vronik? Did Vronik do it? Or, had this all been a trap from the very beginning?
This must be a set-up. I’m being framed for murder.
Footsteps echoed down the corridor, slow and deliberate, growing louder with each step. They seemed to be coming for me. My pulse pounded in my ears.
This can’t be happening.
The footsteps stopped right outside my door. A single knock followed. A sharp, deliberate knock that sent a jolt of fear down my spine. I placed a hand over my mouth to keep from gasping. The room felt smaller, my vision blurred as panic consumed me.
Then…
A voice.
A familiar one.
“It’s me. Open up, Nas,” Konstantyn’s voice broke the silence.
Relief crashed over me. I fumbled with the latch, my hands trembling, and pulled the door open. I threw myself into his arms, gripping him tightly.
“What happened?” he asked, stepping in swiftly and locking the door behind us.
“I think I’m being framed for murder,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “I never used the pill, but when I woke up… one was missing.”
Konstantyn’s jaw tightened. He ran a hand through his hair, pacing from one end of the room to the other. Every few steps, he glanced at the door, as if expecting it to burst open at any moment.
“This doesn’t look good,” he finally muttered, his voice dangerously low. “You have to run. It’s the only way.”
“How do I start? Where do I go? The place is swarming with guards, Kon!” My voice broke between sobs, fear choking me.
His jaw clenched, his eyes burning with determination. “I’ll never let anyone hurt you, I promise.” He placed a firm hand on my trembling shoulder, his touch the only thing holding my world together.
I shook my head violently and shoved him away. “You can’t promise that! You’re under punishment yourself. No one will listen to you - not even as his son!” My voice rose in desperation, my hands trembling at my sides.
He exhaled sharply, his face downcast. “Come here.” His arms wrapped around me, holding on as though he could shield me from the danger looming on the outside. His heartbeat pounded against my ear, almost as hard as mine.
Then, we heard the sound of boots crunching against gravel.
The cartel soldiers were coming. They drew closer with every passing second.
He let me loose. “You have to move. Now.”
At once, without hesitation, I shrugged on my pants, pressed a swift, desperate kiss to his lips, and slipped out the door. My pulse thundered in my ears as I crept down the corridor.
As I turned a corner too sharply, I unknowingly hit a vase. It then plunged to the floor with a loud crash. The shattering sound was deafening as it echoed through the silence.
“Who’s there?” a voice barked, sharp and commanding. Footsteps. Heavy boots approached. “Come on out! Hands on your head!”
Panic surged through me. I could barely breathe. I hid behind the wall, trying to not be seen. If they found me, it was over. They’ll be no trial. No mercy. Just a swift, brutal end for a crime I didn’t commit.
Hell, they won’t even try me in court.
I had no way out.
The guard was closer now. Seconds away.
Then, out of nowhere, a sharp movement. Someone strolled past me - Konstantyn. He stepped into the light, chest rising and falling as if he’d been the one running.
“It was me,” he said, voice steady but breathless.
My heart froze.
He was taking my place.
I watched, paralyzed, as the guards grabbed him, their suspicion momentarily satisfied.
He had saved me.
A great wave of relief crashed over me as I clutched my chest, gasping for breath. My heart pounded vigorously, I felt weak from the terror that had gripped me moments ago. Then, a tap on my shoulder. Cold. Unexpected. My stomach twisted.
I turned sharply. Too sharply. What I saw next froze me in place. The world spun around, my vision blurred.
Vronik.
It was Vronik himself, flanked by several guards.
My blood turned cold. I tried to speak but I could only stutter. My tongue felt too heavy, my mind a frantic mess. But I forced the words out, my voice barely more than a desperate whisper.
“I… I didn’t do it, sir. I didn’t kill Duvbyk. This is all a misunderstanding. I swear. Someone’s setting me up!”
Vronik didn’t respond immediately. His face held no fury, no disgust - only something that made me even more confused.
Then, he did something I never expected. He placed a firm hand on my shoulder, his lips curling into a small, almost reassuring smile.
“I know you didn’t do it.”
Immediately he said that, my world seemed to stop. My breath ceased. My knees caved in, and I sank to the ground. Relief washed over me, drowning out every other thought. He knew. He believed me.
But then, his next words struck me like a dagger to the heart.
“But you’ll serve in the brothel for two weeks… for trying to flee.”
Oh s**t!
I knew what this meant. It was worse than pleasuring Duvbyk.
- Writer
