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“Why are you doing this Ero?!”

“Because I have to. You won’t let me save you. So you have to go. Be with our brothers.” He’s delirious. Delusional.

And I can’t shout that our brothers are alive and well and in hiding.

Ero levels the gun at me again.

“I’m sorry, Ciro.”

“I am too. You brought this on yourself.” I sob, the pain in my body compounding with the pain in my heart. Because I see Bratva, here and there, soldiers returning for survivors, to eliminate the Mocro, even some pulling themselves out of the rubble. They’re all armed. Taking aim at my twin brother.

“Yes. he brought down the entire organization too.” A melodic, rich voice joins the symphony of chaos. “Because they took from me what they should not have.”

Adil Abas.

“Where is my son?” he asks no one in particular.

He rests his hand on Ero’s shoulder, sliding his fingers over his arm, guiding the gun lower. Aiming it right at Vanya. “Lower your weapons, or my assassin will kill her. One child of a leader for another, eh, Vanya Sokolov?”

Ero nods in agreement, dazed.

But I have no doubt he could still hit her before anyone could shoot him. They’re all at a distance, behind cover. He’s fifteen feet away, framed by rubble.

“We will retreat once you have put down your weapons and vacated the ballroom. Then you will lay down your weapons for good. I have the city surrounded.”

“Fuck you, Abas,” Vanya shouts. “Do not obey him. Pyotr would not concede! Neither shall I!”

“Girl, you hang by a thread. I could simply walk away and do nothing and he will eventually drop you.” Adil shifts as he spots more of our guys taking aim. Several to the side, he’s guarded by a fallen pillar.

“I would rather fall to my death than surrender to you.”

“Funny. Pyotr did surrender, right before he died.” The man’s eyes flare, savoring her helplessness, her impotent fury.

“Liar!” Vanya screams.

And I want to scream it too. I want our guys to fucking shred these Mocro bastards. But I can’t move. No one can, really.

The scene sort of freezes in a stalemate. Our guys hesitate, unsure of whose orders to follow. None of them lower their weapons either.

It’s only a matter of time before somebody shoots.

And me? My grip is slipping. My body is giving out.

I don’t know what’s worse. The fact that I’ll be the death of the love of my life, or that I will have to watch her, watch me drop her.

Selfish, I know.

I’ll probably slide off too and just faceplant in the basement. Why do pancakes sound so good all of a sudden?

Probably the blood loss.

Which also would explain the strange sight I see across from me. A goddamn zombie, blood soaked and huge, rising up behind Adil Abas standing several feet behind my brother, under an overhang.

“If you will not stand down, then all of you will die.” Adil smiles, that smug, sinister grin I hate so much. He reaches for his phone, swiping the call button.

“You first.” That mighty growl sends a chill through my body.

Everything happens at once.