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“I don’t know if it’s a good idea to leave your side, Ms. Antonova.”
As inconvenient as Vance tagging along would be, I can’t exactly fault him for his diligence. Tensions are running high on all fronts. I doubt he’s willing to ever let me out of his sight.
“Alright,” I say. “Tell the rest of the men to stay with the car.”
“How long do you think we’ll be here, ma’am?”
“A couple of minutes. Not too long, don’t worry.”
I pull out my phone and review the information Uncle Luka forwarded to me. A couple of articles, an obituary. I felt a little sad reading through it. Two lives cut short, caught up in a conflict that had nothing to do with them. I recognize it’s unfair, cruel even. As far as the detective is concerned, I’m actually sympathetic. He’s just a grieving man taking matters into his own hands. It’s just a shame he had to cross me in the process.
It takes me a while to locate the graves. They’re in the center located near a tall tree. The gravestones are made of thick marble, epitaphs carved into the fronts in neat lettering. When I glance down, I notice fresh flowers and a couple of stuffed toys. There’s no sign of weeds or other leafy debris, which tells me someone must have been here recently to tend to the graves. Could it have been the detective?
Behind me, soft footsteps over grass.
“What are you doing here?” comes a familiar voice.
I turn, my heart skipping a beat when I see Andrei approaching. The corners of my lips tug up into a smile, but before I have a chance to get a word out, Vance whips around and reaches for his gun.
“Ma’am, get behind me!”
“It’s okay!” I exclaim hurriedly, grasping Vance’s shoulder. “Stand down. It’s fine.”
“I don’t understand. What—”
“We’re… having a meeting.”
Vance glances between us skeptically, his mouth open slightly in a mix of disgust and surprise. He eventually straightens, hand hovering over the gun at his hip, and nods once. “No funny business, Nicolaevich,” he all but growls in Andrei’s direction. “I’ve got a jumpy trigger finger.”
Andrei crosses his arms over his chest. “I’ll take it under advisement.”
My bodyguard takes a couple of steps away but remains well within range, staring Andrei down with a vitriolic ferocity. Andrei ignores Vance outright, though, and takes his place beside me as we peer down at the gravestones.
He’s so close. I have to fight the urge to take his hand. To wrap my arms around him and hug him.Kisshim to make up for lost time. I was so angry before, blinded by my rage the day of the shooting. Now that I’ve had time to clear my head, I realize Andrei had been trying to tell me the truth the whole time.
“I didn’t realize you’d be coming,” he says under his breath so Vance can’t hear him.
“Ivanovich shot my brother. If you think I’m going to sit on the sidelines without getting a piece of him, you’re wrong.”
“We’ll get him. And then we can put this all behind us.”
My throat closes, my stomach flipping.Us. I both love and hate it when he uses that word. “And then what?” I ask. “After we’ve dealt with him, what happens next?”
Andrei is silent. Contemplative. I don’t think either of us has an answer.
No matter how hard I try, I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t thinking about him. It’s so weird how he’s managed to occupy every crevice of my brain. Day and night, I can’t escape him. I don’twantto escape him. Our time apart has only proven to me just how much I need him.
And that, in and of itself, is a frightening thought.
“Is the groundskeeper in?” he asks instead, just as unwilling to sit in the uncomfortable air as I am.
“I’m not sure yet.”
“Should we head over together, or is your dog going to bite me in the ass?”
For the first time in what feels like forever, I manage a genuine smile. “He’ll behave as long as you do.”
Andrei snorts, but there’s no denying the grin stretching across his face. “What are you talking about? I’m a saint.”
