Page 1 of Barinov

I

Part One

Chapter 1

LEX

Roman Russo’s office - The Obsidian

Freaking the fuck out.

DING.

The sound rips through the quiet of Roman’s office. I hurl my phone out of my pocket so fast it damn near flings out of my blood-soaked hands.

“Shit!”

Cade whips his head toward me. “What is it?”

I glance down at the screen, choking on a breath as I skim the message. “He’s got her, Cade. He fucking has her!”

“What does it say?” Cade asks, his voice shaking as he hurries over. He skids to a halt at my side, peering around me to get a better view of the screen.

“Hi there, Lexie. Did you miss me? She whimpered once. Your name, I think.” I clear my throat and try to calm the rage surging up my spine.

“But then she… no.”

“What?” he asks, his hand cinched in a damn death grip on my bicep.

“Then she bled and couldn’t blink. So soft. So still. So easily mine. Your little queen, now mine redefined.”

“Oh my God,” Cade whispers.

“You played the game. You lost the piece. Our board belongs to something carved from your unease.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?!” he snaps. “This isn’t some sort of game.”

“I know.” I nod and continue. “We don’t bluff. We don’t forgive. She’s with us now. And she’ll learn to live.” My blood-stained fingers slip on the glass, making it hard as shit to read. I swipe the phone on my jeans, but it only makes the red streaks even worse.

“Here, babe. Let me see,” Cade says, taking the phone from my grip. He scrubs the screen against the hem of his shirt until the glow breaks through the mess.

“You touched her once and called it fate. But I’ll be the one to detonate,” Cade reads, his wide eyes flicking to me for a breath before looking back down. “She wears my collar. Bears my name. So go home, Lexie. You’ve lost the flame.”

“A collar?” I grit my teeth, dragging a hand through my hair before the coppery slickness registers. “Damn it!”

“What’s wrong?”

“I just got Roman’s fucking blood in my hair.” I rub my palms on my jeans, but it doesn’t do shit. “What is this sick fuck doing to her, Cade?”

“I don’t know,” Cade replies, his hazel eyes glossy.

“Is that it?”

He shakes his head and wipes off a tear sliding down his cheek. “Her screams? A symphony of purest art. Each note a promise we’ll tear apart.”

I cough and try everything I possibly can to swallow the growing lump in my throat.

“So gather your kings, your knives, your pride. But the girl you loved…” Cade presses his palm against his mouth to stifle a gasp.