Page 27 of Darkest Game (The Dark Mafia #3)

“And it’s hard to tell from a hospital bed. But if he says you’re sweet, then I want that for him. A wife who brings out the good in him. Can you do that?”

“Ma, don’t put that pressure on her.” Liam offers me a kind smile that only makes him more handsome. “Sorry about her. She can push some boundaries.”

“I’ll try to be good,” I answer. “If he tries for me.”

Liam huffs. “Me? Good? Never. I’m just happy you’re alive. I’m not sure what I would have done if you had… died.”

Ashley lets my hand go. “I’ll give you two some space. And once you’re feeling better, I want you to come over to my house for dinner. I want to celebrate my son being married. I don’t want to miss out on this part of his life.”

She’s speaking like me and Liam still have a future. I hope we do but I know Nico and Mikhail are still itching to kill him. And if Elaine wins…

“Ma,” Liam says.

“I can’t help the offer,” she says. “But I’m going.” She gives Liam a kiss on the cheek. “Take care of this girl. Make me proud.”

His eyes darken but he nods. “I’ll try.”

“I know that’s all I’m going to get from you.” She leaves the room with a last wave at me and is replaced with Nico and Mikhail.

“So, one of my guys has a lead on Elaine,” Mikhail explains. “We can take her by surprise. Kill her. But we have to go tonight.”

Liam looks at me. “I can’t leave Irina alone.”

“I’ll have multiple guards keep an eye on her,” Mikhail says. “And we’ll let the nurses and doctors know to not let anyone into this room who isn’t us. Good?”

Liam hesitates.

“You wanted Elaine dead,” Mikhail tells him. “This is your chance.”

“Go,” I say. “Protect us both.”

Liam takes my hand and kisses it. The gesture is so intimate that it almost takes my breath away, especially since he does it right in front of Nico and Mikhail.

“I’ll end her,” Liam promises.

I have to believe it because what else do I have?

Liam

“So, where is she?” I ask when we all get into Mikhail’s car.

“My guy said she was spotted at a restaurant a few miles from here. An Irish one. We go in, shoot anyone down who comes at us, and kill her before she can kill us.”

“Sounds like a plan,” I say. “But how did your guy find her? And who is this guy of yours?”

“One of my most trusted allies. Now shut the fuck up.”

I clench my hands into fists. “You should know something, Mikhail. I killed the last man who spoke to me this way. So I would be careful.”

“Let’s just all try to get along,” Nico says. “Even if I do hate the sight of both of your faces.”

That diffuses some of the tension in the car.

It’s a short drive to the restaurant but it feels like eternity being trapped in the car with my enemies.

The moment Mikhail stops outside the restaurant, I don’t hesitate to take my gun and rush towards the door.

“Slow down,” Mikhail growls. “We have to be smart about this.”

But I’m not listening. Elaine almost killed Irina today. I’m not going to let her get away with this.

I kick the door in and run inside. The restaurant is empty but I can hear talking in the back kitchen.

The three of us head that way.

We burst into the kitchen… only to find cooks working on the dinner menu.

“What are you doing in my kitchen?” a chef asks, flipping us off.

“Is Elaine Finnigan here?” I ask.

“Who? Get out. Go.” He ushers us out with a wave of a rag.

“What the fuck?” I ask Mikhail once we’re back in the main dining room. “Your guy said Eliane would be here.”

“Your guy either lied,” Nico says. “Or he fucked up.”

Mikhail frowns as he pulls out his phone. “This is what he said. He’s never lied to me before.”

That’s when the front door bursts open and something is thrown inside. A… grenade.

“Shit!” On instinct, I grab Mikhail, who’s closest to the grenade, and throw him to the ground as far away as I can. Me and Nico dive behind a table when the grenade goes off.

It leaves behind a huge explosion. My vision goes black for a moment before I can blink through the smoke and debris left behind. There’s a huge hole in the wall and part of the ceiling as collapsed.

I run my hands over my body to make sure I’m ok. The only thing wrong with me is my ears ringing. But otherwise, I managed to make it out of this alive.

I push myself upright, coughing all the dust particles out of my mouth. Nico is getting up too.

That’s when I see Mikhail on the ground.

Part of his arm is covered in red welts. I’m not sure if he’s alive.

I go over to him and roll him onto his back. He lets out a long, low groan, telling me he’s not dead at least. But he’s hurt. Bad.

“We have to get him out of here,” I say, not even considering that this is my enemy. Before I met Irina, I would have left Mikhail here without a second glance. But she wants me to be a good man and a good man helps others, even if it’s a person I hate.

“I’ll call for help,” Nico says, taking out his phone, even though his hands are shaking. I’ve never seen the great Nico Bernardi look so freaked out before.

“A fucking grenade,” I say. “They knew we’d be here. That’s the only way.”

Nico calls for an ambulance before he hangs up. “I know. But how did they know we’d be here?”

I nod at Mikhail. “His guy. Whoever he is sent us here and set us up.”

“You think Mikhail set us up?”

“No. He’s hurt. Why would he put himself in harm’s way? Someone else did this.”

“You…” Mikhail gasps out.

“What?”

“You saved my life,” he manages to say. “You fucker. You saved my life.”

“I just pushed you out of the way. But you still got hurt.”

He narrows his eyes at me. “You did it on purpose.”

“No. Just funny timing.”

He coughs and blood spills from his lips. This isn’t good. Mikhail is seriously hurt if he’s bleeding from the inside.

“Just stay still,” Nico says. “An ambulance is on its way.” He stumbles over to the window and looks outside. All the glass is gone from it. “Shit.”

“What?”

“Denis Petrov is outside. Across the street.”