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I spin in the direction of the voice and feel dread close its hand around my heart. De Luca’s standing near the doorway with his arm around Aurora’s throat and a gun pressed against her temple.
“I didn’t think you would want to leave her behind,” he says, “when you take your trip to hell.”
I freeze as we watch him leave the shadows, shoving Aurora in front of him until they stand in the middle of the vast room. My eyes rest on Aurora. She stares at me, her face streaked with tears.
I feel Petrov make a move for his firearm, but I stop him.
“Good idea,” says De Luca. “It would be such a shame to blow her brains out,” he says. “I just got these shoes polished.” I watch him briefly glance at the dead men on the floor before he raises his head. “Though I suppose I’ve walked through enough blood already.
“Bloodyou’vespilled, you bastard!” I snarl.
“Then I guess a little more will mean nothing.” He chuckles like a madman. He probably is.
“Leave her out of this. She’s got nothing to do with any of it,” I tell him calmly, even though everything in me is telling me to tear the motherfucker apart.
“Are you kidding? She’s key to everything. My little bargaining chip. You will do what I want, or she dies,” he says. I know he’ll do as he says. The man’s clearly a psychopath.
“What do you want, De Luca?” Although I’m snarling, it hides my desperation. I’ll do anything he wants to save her, and he knows it.
“What do you think, Ivanov?”
“The MeshMare? It’s yours.” I’m serious. I don’t care what it takes. I meet her eyes and pray that she can read that in mine.
Hold on, Solshinko,I plead silently.
But behind her, he’s shaking his head. “You think you’re getting off that easily?” De Luca meets my stare. “What I want isyou. Your life for hers.”
“Done,” I answer without hesitation, stepping toward the circle of light he’s standing in.
“Lev! No!” Aurora screams. I don’t look at her face as I keep walking. “Please…! Father, you can’t do this!”
“Shut the fuck up, bitch!” he snarls, though his evil smile barely slips as he keeps his eyes on me.
“Boss!” I hear Petrov say behind me. I wave him off without looking back.
“The deal is done,” I tell him, walking steadily forward until I’m a foot from De Luca. So close to Aurora I can breathe in the scent of honey and roses.
“Don’t do it, Lev. Leave,” she pleads, but I ignore it.
I finally bring myself to meet her eyes. “I won’t let him hurt you. You’ve had too much of that already.”
She’s shaking her head, beautiful eyes moist and longing as she gazes up at me. It’s a silent blessing. At least I’ll take that image with me when I’m gone.
“Enough with the bleeding fucking hearts,” De Luca snarls, raising the barrel of his gun and aiming at the middle of my face.
So this is it, then.
At least it’ll be quick.
I flick a glance at him, then smile into Aurora’s eyes.
“You’re going to be okay,” I say softly. Then wait for the gunshot.
And then, it comes.
When it does, it takes me almost a second to realize I’m still standing. There’s no hole in my forehead either. I’m not dead. But the wide-eyed look of horror on De Luca’s face tells me he’s about to be.
Releasing Aurora, he clutches his throat, gurgling strangely. A bullet has passed neatly through a point beneath his left ear and out past his right ear. Aurora screams as she scrambles away and surges toward me. I meet her halfway and pull her so hard against my chest, her breath rushes out. She doesn’t seem to care.
