Page 77 of Betraying Family Vows

Fuck.

My hands are shaking now.I'm letting her down,I think, and I'm not sure if I mean my mother or myself.I'm letting him down too.

I try another code. Another red flash. Three attempts left.

I want to cry.

I close my eyes, trying to center myself. What would he use? What would make sense for a man like him?

I remember something my mother used to say: "Cosmo never forgot important dates." She'd said it with pride, like it proved something about his character that he remembered her birthday even when he couldn't remember to acknowledge her publicly.

On instinct, I type in my mother's birthday: 040778.

The screen goes dark for a second.

Then, it unlocks.

I can't breathe.

I just stare at the phone, my breath caught in my throat, heart slamming against my ribs like it's trying to escape.

For a second, I almost feel her there beside me. Like this is the last thing she ever asked me to do.

Then the adrenaline hits, and I'm on my feet.

"DIMITRI!" I scream, loud enough to wake the dead. "DIMITRI, I GOT IT!"

Footsteps thunder down the hallway. The door crashes open, and Dimitri bursts in, gun drawn, eyes wild with panic. For a moment, I think he'd shoot anyone who looked at me wrong.

He scans the room for threats before his gaze lands on me.

"What happened?" he says, lowering his weapon slightly but not holstering it. "Are you hurt?"

I shake my head, unable to speak through the emotion clogging my throat. I hold up the phone, my hand shaking so badly the screen blurs.

"It was her birthday," I choke out, tears starting to gather. "We're in."

Dimitri stares at me, confusion flickering across his face before understanding dawns. He holsters his gun and approaches slowly.

"The password," I say, wiping at my eyes with my free hand. "It was my mother's birthday. April 7, 1978."

Dimitri reaches out, his hand hovering near mine but not touching. "May I?" he asks, nodding toward the phone.

I nod and place it in his palm. Our fingers brush, and the contact sends warmth up my arm.

"All this time," I say, "I thought he didn't care. That she was just..." My voice breaks. "Oh, it doesn't matter. It's unlocked."

Dimitri pulls the other chair around the desk so he's sitting beside me, not across from me. It's a small gesture, but it speaks volumes. We're on the same side now.

He looks at me and then down at the phone and speaks.

"Let's see what we can find."

25

DIMITRI

I've never been one to hesitate when it matters. Not when my father first taught me to kill. Not when I left the warmth of my home behind to become the weapon he demanded. And not when I buried him.