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Lev laughs. “I most definitely did. You’re included in theour. There’s enough city for both our families.”
“Just don’t tell your dad we said that.” Vitaly laughs and smacks Dominic on the back. “I don’t know how it’s possible, but the old man is immune to our charm.”
“It’s a true mystery,” Dominic deadpans while eyeing the five tattooed Russian men in front of him.
“One that will obviously remain unsolved,” Lev says with a laugh, scrubbing a tattooed hand over his jaw.
Danil looks over at the building. “Everyone ready?”
Dominic looks over at his men and gives a nod that’s so soft I could’ve easily missed it, but it gets their attention. Within seconds, the large group splits, half go inside the building while the other half disappear into the shadows.
“What’s going on?” I whisper to Matvey.
He turns me towards him and cups my face. Smiling, he gives me a quick kiss before lowering the ski mask onto my head until only my eyes and mouth are showing.
“They’re going to join our men and keep the building secure for us,” he tells me, cupping my masked face with a grin playing at his lips. “You look adorable in this, by the way.” His eyes cut to the building before landing back on mine. “We’re wiping them all out tonight.”
“Not all of them.” I reach up and grab onto his forearms, feeling the muscles move beneath my fingers when he runs his thumb over my lips. I kiss the scarred skin and grip him tighter. “There will still be two left.”
“Don’t worry about them,malishka.They’re not going anywhere. I’ll deal with them soon enough.”
When I nod, he leans down and kisses me slowly. It’s a kiss I could easily lose myself in, but we both know now isn’t the time, so he pulls back with a soft groan.
“Ready, baby?”
Suddenly the nerves get to me and I start to doubt that I can do this. Watching a man get shot and actually being the one to pull the trigger are two very different things. “What if I can’t do it?”
Matvey smiles like it’s no big deal. He kisses me again and says, “Then I’ll do it for you, baby. Either way, we’re doing it together, just you and me.”
“Just you and me,” I repeat, making his smile grow even bigger.
He gives me a wink and one more quick kiss before wrapping an arm around me as we all make our way to the building in front of us. We’re on a darkened side street, so there isn’t any other traffic, and the sidewalks are empty. The men around me are all dressed in black, but I’m the only one wearing a mask. Finn is eager and alert. He watches everything, and I can tell he’s curious, but he stays by my side, shooting me quick looks to make sure I’m okay.
Matvey’s just as tense beside me, watching every corner and keeping me right next to him. As soon as we step through the front door, he pulls his gun and gives me another wink, looking every bit the dangerous, sexy badass he is.
Danil points to a set of elevators and the door right next to them that leads to the stairwell. “The two floors above us are where the viewing rooms are.” He looks over at Dominic. “Everyone was frisked when they came in and all weapons and cell phones were taken. We told them new security measures were in place for their protection. None of the stupid fuckers questioned it.” Danil points his finger up at the ceiling. “Your man is right above us, second to last door. ”
Without a word, Dominic and his men head to the stairs, not even bothering to wait for the elevator. The dark, murderous look in Dominic’s eyes reminds me that I’m surrounded by the city’s mostdangerous men, and the man I love is most definitely one of them. It’s easy to forget who my family is because I don’t see them as violent criminals. I see them as my brothers and the man I love. I see them as my family, and I’ll never see them as anything other than that. I know the kind of men they are, and nothing could ever make me view them in a negative way.
Right above us are men who are just as powerful, but their power is the more accepted kind, the kind society doesn’t frown upon because the men who wield it aren’t covered in tattoos or piercings. Danil told me about some of the men here tonight, politicians and diplomats, wealthy sons of prominent men—people who look upstanding, but scratch the surface and you’ll find the vilest of things beneath the perfect façade. Every single one of these men were drawn here tonight because they saw photos of trafficked and abused women who they were led to believe would be up for auction. They came here with one purpose and one purpose only—to buy a woman they can rape and abuse.
So fuck all of them.
“That’s my girl.”
I look up and see Matvey beaming down at me, dark eyes lit up with pride and a big smile on his gorgeous face because he can tell everything I’m thinking. With a laugh, he grabs my hand and leads me to the stairs while Roman yells out orders for the other men in their Bratva. I smile at the sight of my brother. He’s a natural leader, they all are. I see the respect in their men’s eyes, and it’s so different from how Konstantin’s men used to look at him. They served him out of fear and greed, but they never respected him or his brother. Respect isn’t something that can be bought, and you can always tell what kind of leader a man is based on the respect you can or can’t see in the men who rank below them. The enforcers in the Melnikov Bratva look at my brothers and Matvey with respect, and I know every single one of them would take a bullet for them without a second thought. That tells me everything I need to know about my family, and I’m proud as hell to call myself one of them.
I squeeze Matvey’s hand as we take the stairs to the first level. On the way, we pass Dominic. Two of his men are dragging a man between them. There’s a dark hood pulled over his face, and his wrists are zip-tied together. He must be gagged because he’s letting out muffled screams that everyone is ignoring.
Lev laughs and smacks Dominic’s shoulder as we pass by. “Have fun.”
“I plan on it.”
Even though he finally has the man who killed his sister, I recognize the look on his face. It’s the same one Matvey gets when I catch him thinking about Konstantin. It’s a mix of relief at finally having the bastard and anger at knowing it will never be enough.
We hit the second floor, and Matvey leads me out of the stairwell while Danil and Lev continue to the next floor with a group of men behind them. Roman and Vitaly step onto this floor with us, followed by five armed men. Finn’s ears perk up as he sniffs the door in front of us. The hallway stretches out in front of us, closed doors lining the right side, Several armed men are already in the hall, and when they see Matvey, they start speaking Russian, telling him that all the doors are locked and that everything’s been quiet. The men inside these rooms are evidently still clueless about what’s really going on.
“Holler if you need me,” Roman says, patting my head as he walks past me to one of the other doors.
