Precarious

Chapter 34

Sierra's POV:

For my entire life, the idea of having a father was so foreign. I never considered any of my mother's boyfriends as a father figure. And as much as I was grateful for Stefano, I always considered him as a brother who was forced to grow up under shitty circumstances. Therefore, meeting Michael, my father, was unexpected.

Not knowing how to properly react to this information, tears started forming in my eyes. I was grateful that I could finally meet my father, but I wished the circumstances were different.

"Hey, don't cry. Everything's going to be okay." I mean, both of us were trapped and likely weren't going to be released. But thanks for the optimism...?

"How long have you been trapped here for?"

"I lost track of time to be honest. Maybe a couple of years. The last time I saw the boys was when Stefano was in his last year of college. I hope they're doing alright."

"They said you were still there when I asked about you, so I'd like to think that they have hope about you returning."

"You... you asked about me?"

"Of course. You're my father after all."

"A pretty shit one," he chuckled. "I'm as good of a father as Nancy was of a mother to you."

"Even if you weren't in my life, at least you were a good father to my brothers."

"That doesn't change the fact that I wasn't a good father to you. I should've tried harder to find Nancy after she fled my house that day. If I managed to find her and convince her to give me custody of you, maybe you wouldn't have suffered as much as you did."

"H-how did you know about that?"

"A while ago, I overheard Nancy talking with someone about how she staged a disappearance in the states to come to Russia. When that person asked if she brought you with her, Nancy threw a fit and went on a tangent about her misdeeds toward you. I never heard from her after that day, and I couldn't believe you had to live with her for so long."

"It was difficult, but I survived. To be honest, I'm glad she left me in the states. At least that gave me the opportunity to live with my brothers and have a better life. I doubt I would've survived if I came to Russia with her."

"How was meeting your brothers? I know that it can be difficult to be the only girl among the five of you."

"They seemed distant at first, but I think our relationship improved as I got to know them better."

"Did you meet your extended family? If so, how was that?"

"I met some of my maternal cousins. It was interesting to say the least." I cringed thinking about my encounters with those people. I hoped that I never saw them again to be honest.

"Let me guess, you didn't like them? Don't worry, no one in our immediate family likes them that much. We only tolerate them since they're Natasha's family."

"I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who dislikes them."

"I'm glad that I finally got the chance to meet you, Sierra. However, I wish we could've met under better circumstances."

"I think Stefano already figured out what happened by now. I'm certain that he's going to send help. But for now, we'll have to figure out a way to escape. That'll start with gaining our captors' trust."

Gavin's POV

It had been a day since I last saw Sierra, and I was pissed. She wasn't the type to go away for long periods of time without notifying someone. There was no way that she was on a retreat by herself. Someone else had to be responsible for her disappearance.