Once Upon A Lie

Fifty-four:

Fifty-four: 

There was rage simmering through Alina. She couldn't remember the last time that she'd been this angry. Maybe when she'd first been told of the arranged marriage to Aleksander, but not even then. This was a different kind of rage. This was a betrayal from someone that she thought was one of her dearest friends. "Papa please!" Alina begged. "I don't want this. I don't want to---"

"Nikolai told us, Alina," said Leo, "he told us that you've been intimate with Aleksander. Aleksander has run off----the arrogant asshole that he is----and left you in this predicament."

Alina huffed. "I'm not even pregnant. I'm on birth control. If you remember, you made me get on it because you were so sure Aleksander was going to fuck me once you arranged the marriage."

Leo scowled at his daughter. "That isn't the point. The point is that you have been compromised----"

"This is not the eighteen hundreds!" Alina said. "People have sex all of the time----"

"Not heiresses to multibillion-dollar companies that could lose their fortunes if they get involved with the wrong person."

"The Hilton----"

"You are not them," he snarled, "you are my daughter. I am doing what is necessary to keep my daughter safe from scandal. You've finished your credits at school. You will graduate, and you will marry Nikolai."

"I told you that I didn't want your money!" Alina shouted at him.

Her father laughed. "We are beyond that. If you do not follow through with this engagement, we will lose everything. Unless you would like to send your mother and me to the poor house when you could have stopped it, tomorrow, it will be publicly announced and you will have no choice but to go through with it."

"This isn't fair!" Alina shouted. "Nikolai is manipulating you. Petyr is never going to give you the money to finish that film, Papa. He's trying to scam you out of your company. Can't you see that?"

"The Lantsov's are a good family," Leo said, "they honor their business deals. Nikolai is one of your oldest friends. He will honor you by being a good husband."

Alina glowered at him. "No, he won't. As long as he's not Aleks, he won't be who I want or who I need."

"Aleksander has left you!" Leo shouted. "What part of that do you not understand, my daughter? He took what he wanted and he left. And do you know who else has disappeared along with him?"

"He hasn't---"

"Zoya Nazyalensky," Leo told him, "he never had any intention of being with you, my dear. Nikolai is willing to make an honest woman of you. Consider yourself lucky. Now, get some sleep. We've a long week ahead of us."

Her father left her room, and when he did, he locked her inside of it. Alina let out a shriek, and threw herself at the door. She banged against it, hard, with her fists. She hoped that somehow the Saints would hear her and help her get out. But she banged, and banged, and the only thing she got for it were wrists that hurt.

Alina shouted until her voice was hoarse too. But it was her parent's home. As far as everyone was concerned, she was a teenager throwing a fit. No one was going to come to rescue her. She slumped down on the ground.

She didn't care what her father said. Zoya might have been missing, but there was no way that Aleksander would have run off with her. She had been with him. She knew how much he loved her. How much she loved him. They'd been foolish in the beginning but there was nothing that was going to get between them.

They had been through too much not to end up together. One way or another, she would get out of there.

Alina slumped down on the ground in front of her bedroom door. She rested her head against it. What a fool she had been. Her cell phone vibrated in her hand then. Her parents had been so relieved to have her home, they hadn't even thought to take it away from her.

Alina, you okay?

Alina someone said you left last night with Morozova. What's wrong? 

Alina, what happened? Text me, please. 

Starkov, are you okay? Someone said you left during your shift. 

They were from Mal, Genya, Nina and Kaz. And quite a few more from Mal than anyone else. Including a very, very long-winded one.

Alina! Nina said she might have scared you off last night by telling you about me coming to Os Alta sooner than this year. I'm sorry I lied to you about that but I signed a NDA with Nikolai's family that I couldn't talk about anything regarding Vasily's death. I was expelled from my last school after what happened and they were going to arrest me but Nikolai said if I helped him with something he could make the charges go away. He's been having me take pictures of you since Vasily died. He thinks Aleksander's responsible, and he wants him to pay for it. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you sooner. I came to the school because I was trying to keep you safe. He's been getting money from this man named Magnus Opjer and they've got some weird plan to take over your family's company. Be careful. Don't trust him.