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But the chaos doesn’t stop.
The first assailant drives off. Vance and the rest of my men try to shoot at him, but the bullets ricochet off. An armored vehicle? There’s not enough time to think about it, because another car suddenly pulls up and out steps—
Andrei.
Fury swells inside me, along with an overwhelming wave of confusion and heartbreak. Was this his idea? Is my little brother bleeding out because of him? This whole thing was a trap.
“Sandra!” he shouts, rushing toward me.
But my men won’t let him anywhere near. They open fire, forcing him to duck behind his vehicle for cover. His brothers are with him. I have no idea what’s going on. All I know is I have to drag my brother to safety, away from the danger of stray bullets.
“Ah,fuck!” Frederick groans as I drag him. He’s too heavy. I have no other choice.
“Just hang on,” I rasp. “I’m going to get you out of here.”
I can’t hear anything as tunnel vision grips me tight. I have to get my brother to the car, but will I make it there in time? My heart hurts.
Antonov and Nicolaevich are officially at each other’s throats. Blood has been spilled. This cannot go unpunished.
“Stop!” a familiar voice roars over the pandemonium. “For the love of God, hold your fire!”
I manage to sling my brother’s arm over my shoulder and pull him to his feet. Vance is nearby, dashing toward me as he takes the brunt of Frederick’s weight. “Get him to the car!” I command, the air in my lungs burning at a thousand degrees.
“Sandra!” Andrei calls out to me. His heavy footsteps sound against the pavement, drawing near.
I turn, pull out my Makarov, and aim it at his head. Tears burn my cheeks, sting my eyes. “You son of a bitch!” I scream, hating how tight and pained my voice comes out. “You set us up!”
Andrei looks absolutely crestfallen. An act, I’m sure. Just another part of his game. He puts his hands up in surrender, but his finger is curled around the trigger of his gun. He could shoot me if he wants to. I don’t understand why he’d approach, why he’d let me get the drop on him.
“This is some kind of misunderstanding,” he says. Have I gone into shock, or does he sound as distraught as I feel?
My hands won’t stop shaking. I can’t catch my breath. The distant wail of police sirens grows louder and louder by the second.
“If you’re going to kill me, do it now,” I hiss at him. “Come on. I’m wide fucking open!”
Andrei shakes his head in disbelief. “Sandra, I don’t want to kill you. I’m trying to tell you, this whole thing is some kind of mistake—”
“Sandra!” Vance shouts at me. “We have to go! Your brother needs a doctor!”
I swallow hard. My brother needs help. I can’t afford to waste any more time.
Heartbroken and angry, I race to the car and climb in.
Chapter 24
Andrei
“What the fuck is going on?” Samuil roars after me as we rush into the taxi depot.
It’s a lot closer than driving all the way to my place for an emergency meeting. Besides, if the Antonovs decide to come after us in retaliation, we have no shortage of taxis to use as escape vehicles.
“You drove us right into the middle of an ambush!” Leo grumbles. “What the hell were you thinking?”
Damien remains calm and collected. “Let’s just take a minute to breathe, okay? Is anyone hurt?”
“No,” Samuil growls as he cracks his knuckles. “But someone’s about to be if I don’t get some fucking answers!”
“They’re going to come down on us after that,” Roman points out. “We managed to strike a balance with them. A temporary truce. Now that’s gone out the window!”
