Claim Me

Chapter 14

14Yulia

The second “debriefing” is even more grueling than the first. Obenko and the two agents want me to go over every conversation with Lucas and describe each of our encounters in detail. They want to know how he kept me tied up, at what point he gave me clothes, what kind of meals I cooked, and what his s****l preferences are. I cooperate at first, but after a while, I begin stonewalling them. I can’t bear to have my relationship with my former captor dissected by these men. I don’t want them knowing about my feelings for Lucas or my fantasies about him. Those softer moments between us and the things he promised me—those are mine alone.

What happened during my captivity was wrong and twisted, but it also meant something—to me, at least.

“Yulia,” Obenko says after I evade yet another one of his questions. “This is important. The man with whom you spent two weeks is Esguerra’s second-in-command. From what you’re telling us, it sounds like he, not Esguerra, is the driving force behind them coming after us. It’s crucial that we understand exactly what he wants and how he thinks.”

“I’ve already told you everything I know.” I try not to let my frustration bleed into my voice. “What more do you want from me?”

“How about the truth, Yulia Borisovna?” Mateyenko gives me a penetrating look. “Did Kent send you here? Are you working for him now?”

“What?” My jaw falls open. “Are you serious? I’m the one who warned you. Do you honestly think I would betray my brother’s adoptive family?”

“I don’t know, Yulia Borisovna.” Mateyenko’s expression doesn’t change. “Would you?”

I rise to my feet. “If I were working for him, why would I tell you that he got this information from me? A double agent wouldn’t warn you that she’d cracked—she’d come to you as a hero, not a failure.”

Next to Mateyenko, Sokov crosses his arms. “That would depend on how clever the double agent is, Yulia Borisovna. The best ones always have a story.”

I turn to Obenko. “Is that what you believe as well? That I betrayed you?”

“No, Yulia.” My boss doesn’t blink. “If I did, you’d already be dead. But I do think you’re hiding something. Aren’t you?”

“No.” I hold his gaze. “I’ve told you everything. I don’t know anything else that could help us.”

Obenko’s mouth tightens, but he nods. “All right, then. We’re done for the day.”

When Mateyenko and Sokov leave, I go back to my room, a tension headache throbbing in my temples. I have no doubt Obenko meant what he said: if he thought I was a double agent, he would’ve killed me.

After surviving Russian prison and Esguerra’s compound, I might die at the hands of my colleagues.

Strangely, the thought doesn’t upset me much. The hollow chill that has settled in my chest numbs everything, even fear. Now that I’m here—now that I’ve done everything I can to ensure my brother’s safety—I can’t work up more than a smidgeon of interest in my own fate. Even the memory of Lucas’s cruelty feels distant and muted, as if it happened years ago instead of days.

When I’m back in my room, I lie down and pull the blanket around me, but I can’t get warm.

Only one thing could chase away this cold—and he’s thousands of miles away.