Page 14 of Cruel Juliet

“I hope that’s true,” she says carefully. “Because everyone else will start asking the same thing. They’ll wonder if you’ve lost your edge.”

“They can wonder all they want.” I shrug. “I run this house and this Bratva. Not them. Not you.”

Her eyes narrow. Then she exhales through her nose and nods. “Of course.Just thought I’d weigh in. After all, you have a blind spot when it comes to her.”

My fists clench at my sides. The mention of any blind spots regarding Sima makes it hard to let go of my fury. Even for the sake of my brother’s wife.

“You’ve been good to me, Kira. I don’t forget that,” I say. “But this isn’t your call.”

“I get it.” She shrugs, but I can tell she’s still bothered by it. Not that I particularly care. If Kira’s got a problem with Sima being here, she can damn well deal. “You’ll keep an eye on your wife and I’ll keep an eye on my husband. Order all around.”

I welcome the change of subject. “How’s Dimitri doing?”

“Making progress.” Kira’s mouth softens. “The doctors say it’ll be a long road, though. He has to relearn everything. How to walk, how to talk. Even feeding himself is going to be a challenge.” Her eyes cloud over with disappointment. “It’s bad, but at least now he’s awake.”

It’s the one piece of good news that’s come out of all this. While I was busy chasing after Sima’s tail across the country, a miracle happened: My brother woke up from his coma. The doctors didn’t think he ever would, but Dimitri always did love proving people wrong.

I nod once, jaw tight. “I should go see him.”

“You should,” Kira agrees. “He keeps asking for you.”

I know,I think but don’t say. Because the truth is, I can’t stomach going to him. My brother, a man who once brought rooms to silence with a look, reduced to eating through a straw. I hate seeing him broken. It’s why I haven’t been visiting as much as I should.

“I will,” I concede. “Tomorrow.”

Kira nods. “Good. He’ll be happy to hear that.” Her gaze drops for a second. “I’m glad he survived, of course. I definitely am. But… Do you ever wonder if this is the kind of life he would have wanted?”

“What are you saying?”

“Nothing,” she says quickly. “Only that it’s hard to see him like this. The strongest man we knew, struggling with basic things.”

A chill creeps up the back of my neck. For a moment, it almost sounds like she thinks it might have been better if Dimitri never woke up.

That can’t be what she means, though. She’s been devoted to him longer than anyone. No one took it harder when he ended up in that hospital than her.

“He’s already beaten the odds,” I remind her. “Everyone thought he’d never open his eyes again, but he did. He’ll beat these challenges, too.”

Kira studies me, her expression unreadable. “You really believe he’ll come back from this?”

“He’s my brother. He’ll recover fully. Maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next month, but he will.”

Her shoulders ease, just a little. “Then I believe it, too. If you say he will, then he will.”

The tight smile remains, but Kira’s nod seems confident enough. She disappears back out the door.

A bitter taste fills my mouth. I’m not sure where it’s coming from: Kira’s words, her unconvincing smile…

Or the fact that it wasn’t Sima knocking on my door.

8

PETYR

I stride out of the house and slam the front door behind me.

There are half a dozen walls between Sima and me, but it’s not enough. I need more miles, more distance, because if I stay, I’m going to bust right through every single one of those walls to get to her.

And that cannot happen.