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The word is out of my mouth before I can stop it.
I thought this was all over. That’s why Yakov has been relaxing around the house. It’s why he’s been spending time with me at home.
We’re safe…
Aren’t we?
“What the fuck does that mean?” Mariya snaps. “He’s dead. You killed him. Why would we be in more danger?—”
“Taking down a target like Akim is always going to make more enemies. It never ends.”
Mariya’s mouth falls open. “I thought…”
She doesn’t finish her sentence. How could she? There’s nothing to say.
Yakov sounds exhausted. And he’s the one who grew up in this world. He was trained for this. What about me?
“People are always going to come out of the woodwork to try and take down the man at the top. Unless you want to be collateral damage, I suggest you listen to me.”
Mariya doesn’t look happy—far from it. But she doesn’t argue. After a few seconds, she turns and stomps down the hall to her room.
Yakov lays his head on the back of the couch with a sigh. I should reach out and make sure he’s okay. Or offer to talk to Mariya. I should make myself useful. But I can’t talk around the lump in my throat. Yakov just dumped a new reality in my lap and I need to sort through it.
I’m always going to be in danger. My child is always going to be in danger. Akim was just the first in a long line of enemies to come. This fight is what our life will be like from this point on. It never ends.
It. Never. Fucking. Ends.
I blink back tears as I stand up. “I’m going to go lie down.”
Yakov tenses. “Are you feeling okay?”
No.
“Just tired.” I give him a tight smile. I swear there are actual cracks in my flimsy mask.
“I’ll come with you.”
“That’s okay. I’m just going to sleep. You can stay and?—”
He stands up and scoops me into his arms before I can finish. “I’m tired, too.”
“Not too tired to carry me.”
His eyebrow arches playfully, but the emotion doesn’t reach his mouth. “I’m never too tired for that.”
Yakov carries me to our room and lays me in bed. I dreamed about being here with him. I’ve always felt safe here in his room. Now, I’m not so sure there is such a thing. Yakov, this life we’ve built, our child… It could all be taken from me without warning.
I roll onto my side as tears burn in my eyes. Yakov drapes his arm over my waist and I swallow down the sob in my throat. I squeeze my eyes closed and pretend to fall asleep.
16
YAKOV
I reach for my phone for the fifth—no, sixth time. The sixth time in as many minutes.
I can’t stop myself.
I know the mansion is under lock and key. There’s a guard for every square foot, which is a lot of fucking guards. And yet, I can’t stop checking the security cameras to make sure the gates are locked, the house is shut up tight, and Mariya and Luna are safely inside.
