“This just doesn’t make any sense. We’re women in the modern era. You don’t have to marry anyone you don’t want to.”
I look down at my lap. “It’s more complicated than that.”
“How? Explain it to me, because I’m lost. Why can’t you just call the police on these people?”
“Because they are the police,” I snap. I take a deep breath to try and soothe my racing heart. “I’m sorry. I just… I haven’t thought about any of this stuff in a long time.”
Jorden lays a hand on my shoulder. “What happened?”
“Before I left, I tried reporting my stepdad to the police. He was basically planning to lock me in the house until the wedding. ‘Then you’ll be Mikhail’s problem,’ he said. So I called the police and said I was being imprisoned.”
I grit my teeth together, the memory as fresh now as it was that da
