Page 17 of Bratva King

He shrugged as though it were nothing. "You eat too slowly,” he said after finishing his half.

"I enjoy food, unlike some impatient boys.”

He scoffed at her answer.

"I appreciate flavor,” she told him.

“Oh yeah? Let’s see, what was it you said last time? Oh hmm, this pastry has subtle notes of onion,” he said, mimicking her.

She burst into laughter. "I've never sounded like that."

"You do."

"I don't."

"You absolutely...”

She shoved him, and he shoved her back. Soon they were wrestling across perfectly trimmed grass while trying not to drop their pies. Eventually both surrendered, breathless with laughter. Alexei flopped onto his back.

"You know,” he began, giving her a thoughtful look.

“What?”

"My father says one day we'll probably end up married,” he told her.

Natalia made a face. “I’m not sure how I feel being married to you. It sounds exhausting.”

"It probably would be,” he said, pretending to look solemn.

The memory shifted sharply, like shattered glass. Natalia now heard screams, then gunfire. The first explosion rattled the entire house. Windows burst inward, and someone shouted.

"Traitor!"

Then chaos swallowed everything. Natalia remembered running into the hallway. Some members of the staff were screaming, and even now, she could see the fresh blood on the marble floors.

Guards fired wildly down corridors filling with smoke. And God, the smell. Even now, she could recall burning wood, gunpowder, and the coppery smell of blood.

Someone grabbed her arm, and she twisted free.

“No, I need to save papa!"

She ran toward his office. The massive doors hung open, revealing overturned furniture. The room looked like a battlefield. Her father's motionless body lay sprawled beside the desk. His eyes were open and a crimson stain spread beneath him. She froze.

“No, no, no,” she whispered.

A familiar lieutenant stood nearby, his pistol still smoking. He looked directly at her, and recognition flashed across his face.

“Little Natalia,” he murmured. “You shouldn’t have come in here.”

Natalia didn’t think. She ran, not stopping. If she did, she’d end up like her father. The house she'd known all her life became a maze of fire. Flames climbed curtains, beams cracked overhead. People she recognized collapsed around her.

Everything blurred through tears. She stumbled down the front steps. Someone fired behind her, and stone exploded inches from her head. She kept running, although each breath she drew from her lungs was excruciating.

She had to reach the gardens to access the gate there, which would lead her to the woods. Beyond that, she didn’t know what to do. Her foot caught on broken masonry. She pitched forward. Pain exploded through both knees, and she cried out.

She couldn't get up. Her legs simply refused to work. Footsteps thundered closer. She squeezed her eyes shut, thinking this was it. Her end, but instead, someone with strong arms scooped her off the ground.

“Natalia, thank God!” It was Alexei, and he was breathing hard.