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I shrug again. “That’s up to you, Tiana. As soon as he lets me know who he’s working for, the only thing keeping him alive will be your cooperation.”
She sways slightly, her hand clasped to her throat. “But… I can’t…”
“Take a seat, Tiana,” I tell her. It would do no good to have her collapsing right now.
“Or what?” Some of her familiar fire flickers, even though I can see she’s wavering. I like that about her.
“Or I will make you sit.” I jerk my head at Dima, who pushes a chair up behind her. Without further argument, she slumps into it and drops her face into her hands.
“I can’t believe this is happening.” Her voice is muffled.
“Tiana… baby, if you could just understand.” Her father’s voice is choked. “I would never have done this if I had any other options. But I was backed into a corner.”
“So, you sold me?” The words are tortured. “To save your ass?”
“They would have killed me, Tiana!” Theo’s face twists. “Would you want that?”
“All I ever wanted was for you to love me, Dad.” Tiana’s voice breaks, and fuck it, something twists in my chest. This is hurting her. And for whatever fucked up reason, that just doesn’t sit well with me. “I just wanted a father who cares.”
“Of course I care,” the bastard lies. The more I see of him, the more he turns my stomach. “But I had no choice.” He looks up at me. “I knew you were getting closer to the truth. You just wouldn’t back off. And then they started…” He trails off.
“Who started?” I bark at him. “Who have you been working with?” He licks his lips, looking around anxiously. “You’d better loosen that tongue, Avants, or I will fucking cut it out!” I snarl.
Fear darkens his eyes. “Kirill, I need you to know it was never personal.”
“I don’t give a fuck. Who were you working with?” Tiana shrinks back at my rage, but it doesn’t deter me. This bastard put my business at risk. More than just my business. Several men were killed when that last shipment was hit.
“I’m… I’m sorry!” He’s babbling again. “It was-”
Unfortunately, he doesn’t get to finish the rest of the sentence. Because the air is torn by a high-pitched whine, and then the side of his head explodes. I freeze, and the man holding Theo lets go of him as glass shards spray through the air when the window shatters. Theo’s knees buckle, and he slumps to the floor, his head a mess of blood and bone fragments. In what’s left of his face, his eyes are open, wide but unseeing; terror has been etched into his final expression. Tiana screams and jumps up, her chair falling over. Blood spatters my shirt and my face, and there’s a spray of pink across her cheek too, but she seems too shocked to notice.
“Dad… Daddy!” She lunges toward him screaming, but I get there before she can find her way closer.
That’s when the unmistakable sound of gunfire starts.
My eyes meet Dima’s and our instincts kick into gear in an instant. It doesn’t take long for both of us to realize that we are under attack. It’s not the first time this happened since I’ve been running the Bratva and it’s probably not the last. But having Tiana in the midst of it ramps up my reaction time.
I can feel the adrenaline surge in me as I take in the scene around us. Time seems to stand still as each tiny detail soaks into my mind. Within a fraction of a second, I calculate the risks of each possible scenario and then decide on the best course of action. It’s not a hard decision: get Tiana out of here, and then get back in and send these cunts to kingdom come.
“Up!” I bark, hauling her to her feet. She’s still clawing at the air as she tries to reach whatever is left of her father. “Move!” The word is aimed at Dima as much as it is at her. The men are galvanized into action, and in a moment, all hell breaks loose. Theo’s body is abandoned on the floor as lead hails down upon us, and everyone dives for cover.
Bullets fly past us, whizzing by like angry hornets as my men crouch and return fire. Dima’s in full-scale attack mode, barking orders and taking out the bastards who’ve dared to invade my home. Which is just what I need to get Tiana out of here. I drag her behind a bookcase and push her firmly against the wall.
“Stay here!” I hiss at her, my hand on her trembling shoulder. “Don’t move!”
She nods, eyes wide with terror but obedient for once. Her father’s blood is still warm on my hands, and it fuels my rage as I stand up and join the fray. My men are trained for this shit, but I won’t cower behind them while they fight for me.
I dive across the room, using the expensive furniture as cover while taking potshots at our assailants.
Motherfuckers.
They thought they could take me on my turf? They have another thing coming.
Dima catches my eye across the room and jerks his head toward the hole where the window once was - he’ll take care of whatever is out there. I nod once in acknowledgment before popping off another round at a shadowy figure through the shattered windowpane.
The man falls backward with a cry, but there are more where he came from - fucking cockroaches! But at least Dima will give me enough time to get Tiana out of here.
I glance back at her; she hasn’t moved an inch from where I left her. It doesn’t last long. When I get back to her and reach out to take hold of her again, she’s galvanized into action.
