Page 221 of Fall Before Her Throne

My head hung between my shoulders. Fuck. I thought I’d get a chance to say goodbye. Badawi pulled a pair of handcuffs from her belt.

“What the fuck is this?” Ryu asked, stepping forward.

I held out my wrists. “This is the deal.”

But instead of grabbing my hands, Badawi leaned in close. “This was the best that I could do,” she said. “I’m sorry.”

My head snapped up. “What? What do you mean?”

She closed her palm around Max’s upper shoulder. She snapped the handcuffs over his wrists, and they clicked shut. He didn’t recoil; he didn’t jolt.

He expected this.

Everything clicked inside my head. “No.”

“Leona,” Max murmured. “This was always what had to happen.”

I shook my head, stepping closer to fist my hands in his shirt. “I had everything planned out. How could you do this?” I turned to Farrah. “You promised me. We had a deal.”

Badawi gave me a sad smile. “This was a better one.”

“My soul.” Max’s voice cracked with emotion. “I cannot let you take the fall for this. This is my role. It’s my call.”

“No.” I slammed my fist against his chest. “You can’t.” I turned to Obi and the rest of my guys. “Stop this. I followed the plan, Obi. I did what you needed me to do. This isn’t what is supposed to happen.”

Obi ran his hand up the nape of my neck. “You did everything perfectly, ifunanya’m. Leading us here, setting up Greco. You are incredible.”

I jerked away. “Then why is this happening?”

He put both of his palms on my shoulders and tugged me close. “Because the strategy needed a sacrifice. One of our pieces had to fall,” he murmured in my ear. “And that was never going to be you.”

I swallowed the stone in my throat, but my eyes pricked with tears.

There was no way out of jail time. I knew that. It was the only way to close the RICO case and get the feds off our backs.

But it was supposed to be me. I’d made my peace with it. I’d planned for it. The guys were supposed to wait for me, to visit me, to take care of New York while I was gone.

Not this.

Behind me, Cas started a one-sided argument with Max. Ryu paced, one hand dragging through his hair. Somehow, Ciel had a phone in his hand, but for once he wasn’t typing—like he knew there was nothing he could do. Wynn put a calming hand against my back, and it was the only thing that kept me from screaming.

“He will be safe,” Wynn said. “We’ll make sure of it.”

I looked up into his pale gaze. “You can’t know that.”

“We can, and we will,” he answered. He brushed my hair over my shoulder. “You know this is the better plan. Let Obi and Max take care of this one, okay, darling?”

My teeth ground together, but I steeled myself and straightened my back. Without looking at any of my men, I cut through them all and broke up the arguments.

“How long?” I asked Badawi.

“It won’t be forever,” Badawi said quietly. “We’re offering Samuel and Max a plea deal instead. This was the right call.”

I nodded tightly. Samuel put a warm hand on my arm. “I’ll make sure the time is as short as possible.”

“Thank you, Samuel.”

Max cupped my face and leaned his forehead against mine. “Let me do this for you. For all of you. Please, anima mia. All I’ve ever wanted to do was protect you, keep you safe. This is what I’m meant to do.”