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Emmanuelle’s mouth formed a surprised O. A small, perfect red dot blossomed between her eyes. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but then she swayed and tilted to the side. The light in her eyes died before her body hit the ground.

Cool air eased some of my pain. I summoned my last reserves of energy and looked up.

Ayana had somehow freed herself from the chair. She stood there, Wentworth’s gun clasped between her shaking hands. Her wide, unblinking eyes were locked on Emmanuelle’s body.

Behind her, the photographer was trying to crawl away as inconspicuously as possible.

I’d deal with him later. Emmanuelle was dead, and Ayana was in shock, but this wasn’t over. We needed to get out of here before backup came.

“Ayana, sweetheart, look at me.”

She didn’t move. She appeared to be transfixed by Emmanuelle’s prone form.

“Ayana.” My voice firmed. I was minutes away from losing consciousness, and I needed to get through to her before I did. “It’s okay,srce moje.Lookat me.”

A shudder ran through her body. She wrenched her eyes away from her old agency head and focused on me instead.

Awareness gradually set in. She sucked in an audible breath and ran over. She was still missing one shoe. It lay next to her chair amidst a tangle of rope.

“We don’t have time,” I said as she untied me. “I brought a few men with me, but I don’t know if they’re dead or alive. We have to leave in case other Brothers come.”

“Okay.” Her voice trembled. “Can you walk? Do you know where the exit is?”

She finally freed me from my ropes. I allowed myself a tiny sigh of relief before I replied. “I’ll manage, and yes. But first…” I gently eased the gun from her hand. “There’s one more thing we have to take care of.”

Emmanuelle was right about one thing. No loose ends.

A feral hiss drew our attention to the other side of the aisle. Shadow had bounced back from his earlier injury, and he was pissed. He raced after Wentworth and grabbed the man’s pant leg between his teeth. A vengeful slash against his ankles brought forth another howl.

I was tempted to let Shadow take care of him, but like I said, we didn’t have time.

Ayana helped me to my feet. Despite the pain, I closed the distance between the other man and me with several heavy steps.

I’d let him go the first time. He wouldn’t be so lucky the second time.

“Wait,” Wentworth pleaded. His face was a bloodied mess. One eye was swollen half shut from his injuries, and his voice bubbled with panic. “Wait, if you let me go, I swear I?—”

“I told you what would happen if you went near Ayana again.” I pressed the gun against his forehead. He sobbed. The scent of urine filled the air. “But I forgot to mention another thing. Don’ttouchmy fucking cat.”

This time, the gunshot was accompanied by a spray of crimson mist and gore. Behind him, Shadow’s tail thumped with satisfaction.

I preferred knives, but Wentworth didn’t deserve a blade; he deserved an unremarkable death.

Ayana’s mouth opened and closed. She appeared to be sliding into shock again.

“Markovic!” Roman rounded the corner, looking noticeably worse for wear. His shirt was ripped at the shoulder, and a nasty bruise blossomed over his left eye. His eyes were uncharacteristically frantic. “We gotta go. They wired this place to blow!”

We sprang into action. I couldn’t move fast with an injured leg, but I tried my best. However, I made sure to grab Shadow and take him with us as we raced toward the exit.

Ayana and Roman wrapped their arms around me and helped me along.

“Sean and the others are waiting outside with the car,” Roman said.Thank fuck. They were alive. “We took care of the other Brothers in here. There weren’t many. Emmanuelle only brought her most loyal soldiers, and now they’re all dead.”

I didn’t have enough energy to respond. My breaths weakened by the second, and we were only halfway to the exit.

A boom rocked the air. Heat billowed over us in waves. Shadows of roaring flames danced on the walls, and the unmistakable scent of burning flesh saturated the air.

“Fuck!” Roman cursed again.