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“I’m fine. You’re the one who needs saving. Why the fuck did you do this?”
“I owed you one.”
“No, you fucking didn’t. We’re supposed to be a team. The last thing you owe me is fucking dying on me.”
“Oh, baby, it’s okay.” He tried to reach up for me again and managed to grab my arm.
“Don’t you dare try to say goodbye to me. I will bring you back to life and kill you again if you do this to me.”
“You would.” He made a sound that was supposed to be a laugh, but he was choking on blood. Tears began to roll down my cheeks.
Matteo’s grip on me tightened. I was shaking when I met his gaze. “I love you, Carter. It was worth it.”
“No! No. No. No. You will not fucking die on me.”
“Didn’t mean to.” His eyes fluttered closed.
“Stay awake. Please. Keep talking.”
Members of my team raced in, but I was barely aware of their presence. I focused on keeping pressure on Matteo’s wound and watching for any sign he was still breathing.
Martin, my second in command, pressed his fingers against Matteo’s neck. “He’s got a pulse, but it’s slow.”
I nodded.
“What do we do about him?” He pointed to Landon.
Vaguely, I’d known my brother was screaming in the background. I hadn’t bothered to inspect his wound. It would eventually be fatal if he didn’t get medical attention, and I had no intention of letting that happen. I couldn’t deal with him right now. My focus was on Matteo.
“Carter?” Martin asked again. “We have to deal with him before the paramedics get here.”
I forced myself to concentrate. “Take over for me, and don’t you dare let up on the pressure.”
“You know I won’t.”
I normally trusted him to have my back, but I didn’t trust anyone with Matteo. I didn’t really have a choice now, though.
I took the few necessary steps to bring me to my brother’s side. I looked down at him and smiled when I saw his face contorted in pain.
“Please!” he screamed. “Do something!”
“I wish I had the luxury of watching you die slowly.”
“No. We can fix this if you help me. I’ll give you?—”
I pulled a knife from the sheath on my leg and slit his throat. Thank God Matteo hadn’t taken it from me when he tied me up. Landon tried to scream, but only a gurgling sound came out. Seconds later, his eyes closed for the last time.
I wiped the knife off on my pants, stuck it back into the sheath, and returned to Matteo. I took over from Martin, holding pressure on Matteo’s wound as I tilted my head toward my brother’s body. “Take care of it.”
“Yes, sir.”
34
MATTEO
The first thing I noticed when I woke up was how dry my throat was. Next was the awful taste in my mouth. Shit, how much had I drunk the night before? And what the hell was that beeping sound? Damn, that was irritating.
I tried to move, wanting to turn it off, but everything hurt. It was like I’d been run over by a steamroller. What the fuck? I tried to open my eyes, but that seemed to require superhuman strength. What had happened to me?
