Page 67 of Forbidden Boss

I wipe the knife on his jacket and stand there for a long time, looking down at what’s left of him. There’s no satisfaction. No relief. Just the dull pulse of rage cooling into exhaustion.

Somewhere in the distance, I hear Mari cry out. Maybe Yuri’s treating her wound. Maybe she’s calling for me. I can’t move yet. My legs won’t listen. I close my eyes and let the sound of her voice cut through the noise in my head.

When I finally open my eyes, I catch Marcus’s stare. All the life has drained out of him. He’s dead.

I slide the knife back into its sheath and turn toward the trees. My men will clean this up. The police will find a body torn apart by wolves, if they find anything at all. But none of that matters.

I follow the faint sound of her voice through the woods until I see the glow of headlights in the distance. Yuri’s loading her into the SUV, wrapping her in a blanket. She looks so small. So fragile. For a second, I can’t breathe.

Yuri spots me first. “It’s done?”

I nod once.

He studies my face.

“You need to clean up,” he says sternly, looking from me to Mari. “Don’t let her see you like this.”

I simply nod in response. As desperately as I want to hold her, to wrap her in my arms and tell her everything will be okay, I know he’s right. I head back to my car.

29

MARI

Iwake to an awful smell. Hospitals all smell the same: antiseptic, plastic, and a faint sweetness that turns my stomach. I blink until the ceiling comes into focus. The lights are too bright, and everything hurts. My throat is raw, my head is pounding, and my arm stings where the IV is taped. When I try to move, a low groan slips out.

“Easy, princess,” Yuri says, his voice steady and close. “You’re safe now.”

I turn my head and find him sitting in a chair pulled close to the bed. His hair looks wild, and he’s holding a coffee cup I doubt has anything resembling coffee in it. His jacket is tossed over the back of the chair, his sleeves rolled up, and his gun holster is still clipped at his side. No one in this hospital is going to mess with him.

“How long have you been here?” I ask, my voice coming out weak and scratchy.

“Since we brought you in,” he says.

“You don’t have to stay,” I murmur. “Go home. I’m fine.”

He snorts. “You think I’m leaving you alone after all that? Lev would kill me.”

I smile faintly, though it hurts. An image flashes through my mind, and suddenly I’m back in the woods, watching Lev push Marcus against a tree. Marcus’s face is battered and bloody, and his eyes are full of fear.

“He wouldn’t kill you,” I say weakly, even though I realize now that Lev would kill for me. He proved that.

“Fine, he wouldn’t kill me,” Yuri agrees.

I sink back into the pillow, my heart heavy. I shouldn’t feel guilty. None of this was my fault. But it’s hard not to.

“Don’t look like that,” Yuri says. “He’s fine. Everyone’s fine. You’re fine. That’s all that matters.”

I nod slowly. “Where is he?”

“Lev?” Yuri takes a sip of his drink and winces. “He’ll be here soon.”

There’s something in his tone that tells me not to inquire further. I already know what that means. I close my eyes, seeing flashes of the woods again, and hold back a shudder.

The doctor knocks lightly before coming in. She’s young, maybe my age, with tired eyes and a kind smile.

“Glad to see you awake,” she says softly. “We’re going to do a quick exam and check you over. You have a lot of open wounds, and we’d like to make sure there’s nothing more serious.”

I glance at Yuri. “You can go,” I say quietly.