Prime stepped beside Virginia. “You should go with him.”
“With who?” she whispered.
Ajani appeared behind her. “With me. Someone who might keep you alive if you tell the truth.”
Virginia looked at Marguerite one last time. Marguerite’s face twisted in betrayal.
“You open your mouth, and I swear?—”
“You swear what? Your army quit. Your Russians sold you out. Your family’s leverage is gone. Please finish that sentence, though. I’m curious,” Targen said calmly.
Virginia started crying then, but she went with Ajani.
Marguerite watched her go, and suddenly pure rage spilled from her.
“Fuck you. Fuck all of you especially this bitch!”
Targen moved toward her, and I didn’t stop him this time. He got close enough that she had to tilt her head back.
“You should have stayed away from my wife.” He looked toward a couple of men standing near Sergei. “Take her.”
They moved in. Marguerite fought. She cursed. She spat. She called me everything but a child of God. But she was still dragged backward through the same doors she had stormed through minutes earlier.
For a few seconds nobody moved. Then Granny Nette stood. Every head turned toward her. She looked around the room, then at the DJ.
“Well? The bride and groom paid for music, didn’t they?” she snapped.
Somebody laughed and the DJ, God bless him, put the music back on. Everly stood in the middle of all of it, Real’s arms around her. Her eyes met mine, full of worry. I gave her a small smile. She didn’t look convinced that things were all right. I couldn’t help her, because I didn’tfeelconvinced. Targen came back to me.
“Milaya.”
I looked up at him. “You let that happen.”
“Yes.”
“You let me think we were in danger.”
“You wereneverin danger.”
“Targen!”
“I know.”
I stared at him. Hedidknow.
That was the problem with Targen. Sometimes he understood exactly what he had done wrong and still would do it again if he thought he was protecting me.
Infuriating.
Intoxicating.
I looked away before my face gave away too much.
Juvie was trying to convince Mikhail to dance again. Mikhail looked like he would rather be deported. Hyacinth had both hands on her hips, yelling at somebody about a spilled drink near her shoes. Prime stood with Ajani and Braeden again, the three of them already talking like nothing had happened.
Targen reached for me slowly this time, giving me room to say no, as always. I should have. Instead, I let his hand close around mine. His thumb rubbed over my ring.
“You okay?” he asked.
