Page 59 of Unholy Tsar

“No. The entire country is my territory, Malyshka. He’s fucked. I just need a few more days to pinpoint his exact location.”

She hesitates. “What if—what if I—” she trails off, biting her bottom lip in worry.

I tilt my head, studying her. “Say it.”

“What if there’s a faster, easier way to find out T–Trey’s location?”

My eyebrows arches with curiosity. “Do you have an idea?”

“I mean…” Her head drops, as if her thoughts are too shameful to share.

“Speak.”

“Instead of searching Trey out, we could always let his men come to us. I’ll bet anything those guys who kidnapped me are still lingering around the city. You can use me as bait to—”

My heart jolts. “Stop it.”

“But we’d be able to set a trap for them, giving us the advantage and—”

“I said stop talking!” I roar, leaping to my feet in agitation. Cecilia jumps back, startled by my outburst. “Listen to me carefully, Malyshka. I’m not going to do anything that’ll put you in danger.”

Her surprise turns to confusion, which twists into sadness before settling in a wistful smile. Without looking me in the eyes, she walks into my chest and hugs me.

My hands hang limply by my sides.

“Thank you for caring about me,” she whispers. “But remember, I’m not just some weak girl anymore. You’ve been training me. And you might not have known it, but all that training was for this. It’s time to stop running from my past and face it head-on. I need to. Please, let me do this, Maksim.”

I hate that her words make sense.

“Cecilia…”

But she’s relentless, determined to convince me. “If we plan it ourselves, we’ll be able to control everything. We can make sure there’s no chance I get hurt. Please, Maksim, think about it without letting emotions cloud your judgment. This is the best way to get him. To end this nightmare, once and for all.”

Once again, she’s right. If only my emotions weren’t so tangled up in her well-being, I would’ve brought up the suggestion myself. I sigh and let myself think about it logically. New York is my hometown. If I personally oversee every little detail, I’ll be able to create a plan for every possible scenario.

We could actually pull it off without her getting hurt—but there’s always a chance things could go wrong. Am I really willing to take that risk?

She looks up at me, a pleading sparkle in her blue eyes. I know all too well what it means to run from your past.

“If we’re going to do this, then we’ll do it my way,” I finally concede.

She nods rapidly. “Of course.”

Placing my hands on her shoulders, I hold her in place. “You will do every single thing I say, when I say it, without argument. Understand?”

She meets my gaze earnestly. “I promise. I’m smart enough to know that the only way we can pull this off is if I listen to you. I don’t want to get hurt either.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” I ask, but my voice is filled with doubt.

“I was born ready. The real question is, are you?”

Her confidence rattles me. I just swallow hard and shake my head. I’m not fucking ready for this. But that doesn’t matter. We’re doing this, for Cecilia’s sake.

I will annihilate the demons from her past. And then nothing will stand between us.

She will be mine.

21