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DMITRI

I see Igor's smirk fade as Katarina steps forward. My fingers twitch near my holster, every muscle coiled. The warehouse air reeks of oil and rust. Tash stands beside Igor, her eyes burning with hatred when they meet mine.

"Release her first," Igor demands.

"Together," I counter. "On three."

Katarina moves with measured steps. One. Two?—

A glint of metal catches my eye. One of Igor's men raises his gun.

"Down!" I shove Katarina toward her father, diving for Tash. Gunfire erupts, bullets punching through metal and concrete. I grab Tash's arm, yanking her behind a shipping container as shots ping off the steel.

"Stay down," I order, drawing my weapon. Blood pounds in my ears. Igor's shouts mix with Katarina's scream.

More of his men emerge from the shadows. I count six, no, seven. Too many angles. A bullet grazes my shoulder, hot pain slicing through my muscles.

"Erik, northwest corner!" I call into my earpiece, taking out the closest shooter. "Nikolai cut off the exit!"

Tash presses against me. Her pulse races under my fingers where I grip her wrist. Another spray of bullets forces us deeper into cover.

"When I move, run for the black SUV," I tell her. "Don't stop."

"I hate you," she spits.

"I know." I pop up, firing three precise shots. Two men drop. "Now!"

I push her ahead, providing cover fire as we sprint through the chaos. A bullet catches my thigh. I stumble but keep moving. Have to get her out. Have to keep her safe.

Igor's enraged roar echoes through the warehouse. More shots. More screams. But Tash is almost to the vehicle. Almost?—

Pain explodes in my side. I spin, firing back at the shooter while shoving Tash the final few feet to safety. Blood soaks my shirt, but adrenaline keeps me upright. Keep firing. Keep her safe. That's all that matters now.

"Move!" I shove Tash toward the SUV, my body shielding hers as bullets whiz past. Blood seeps from my wounds, but the surge of adrenaline dulls the pain. All that matters is getting her out alive.

"Akim, start the car!" I bark into my earpiece, firing back at Igor's men. Two more drops, but others keep coming.

Tash stumbles. I catch her arm, half-dragging her the last few yards. A bullet slams into the door beside us. She flinches but keeps moving.

"Get in!" I wrench open the back door, practically throwing her inside before diving in after her. My side screams in protest. Warm blood soaks through my shirt, pooling beneath me on the leather seat.

"Go!" The SUV peels out as more shots crack against the bulletproof glass. Tash curls into herself, hands over her ears. I pull her against my chest, not caring that I'm staining her clothes red.

The warehouse shrinks behind us. My heart hammers against my ribs as reality crashes in, and I realize how close I came to losing her. How easily Igor could have killed us both.

"Are you hurt?" I run my hands over her arms and her sides, checking for injuries. She's trembling, but I find no wounds.

"You're bleeding," she whispers, staring at my blood-soaked shirt.

"I'll live." The pain starts breaking through the adrenaline haze. "We need to get somewhere safe."

Tash's fingers dig into my arm as Akim takes a sharp turn. I hold her tighter, feeling her rapid breaths against my neck. We made it out. She's alive. That's all that matters right now.

Blood loss makes the city lights blur as we speed through the streets. Akim pulls into a secure garage beneath one of our properties. The screech of tires echoes off concrete walls.

"Take me home," Tash demands, her voice cracking. She pushes away from me, pressing herself against the door. "I can't do this. Any of this."

"I need to see the medic first." My side throbs where the bullet tore through the muscle. "You should get checked too?—"

"No!" She fumbles for the door handle. "I don't want your doctors, your protection, any of it. Just let me out. I'll get an Uber."

"Tash—"

"Don't." Her eyes flash with a mix of fear and fury. "You don't get to act concerned now. Not after using me as bait in your gang war."

"That's not what happened." Pain shoots through my chest that has nothing to do with bullet wounds. "I never meant for you?—"

"Save it." She yanks the door open. Cool air rushes in. "I was stupid ever trusting you. To think you could be anything but what everyone warned me about."

"At least let me have someone drive you?—"

"I said no!" Her voice echoes off the concrete walls. "Stay away from me, Dmitri. I mean it."

Blood drips onto the concrete floor as I watch Tash's face contort with disgust and pain. Not physical pain – I made sure she wasn't hurt – but something deeper.

"Your world..." She wraps her arms around herself. "The violence, the games you play with people's lives. I can't be part of this."

"I never wanted you involved." My vision blurs slightly. Blood loss is becoming an issue.

"But I am involved. You made that choice for me the moment you pursued me." Her voice cracks. "Did you ever stop to think what it would mean for me? Or was I just another acquisition?"

The words hit harder than the bullets. "You were never?—"

"A pawn? A bargaining chip?" She laughs bitterly. "Tell that to Igor Lebedev."

"Sir," Akim steps forward, eyeing the growing pool of blood at my feet. "You need medical attention. I can take Ms. Blackwood home while you see the doctor."

"He's right," Tash says quietly. "This is what I mean. Your world and mine don't mix. They can't." She turns to Akim. "I'd appreciate a ride home."

I want to reach for her to explain everything, but the room starts tucking. "Tash?—"

"Don't." She backs away. "Just... don't. Akim can drive me. You should get those wounds looked at."

Akim moves toward the other vehicle, and Tash follows without looking back. The click of her heels on concrete echoes through the garage, each step driving home how badly I've failed to protect her from my reality.

"Sir?" Viktor approaches, ready to help me to the medical wing.

I watch until Tash disappears into the car, taking with her any hope I had of bridging our two worlds.

My instincts scream to stop her, to explain, to protect her. But the look in her eyes I'd seen, that mixture of betrayal and disgust, holds me in place. Blood drips steadily onto the concrete as I watch her slip into another vehicle with Akim.

I lean heavily on Viktor as we make our way to the medical wing, my blood leaving a trail on the polished floor. Each step sends fire through my side, but the physical pain barely registers compared to the look in Tash's eyes before she leaves.

"At least she's safe," Viktor says, echoing my thoughts.

"For now." I grit my teeth as we reach the medical room. Dr. Kelvin rushes forward, helping me onto the examination table.

"Three gunshot wounds," Viktor reports. "Right shoulder, left thigh, and right side."

I close my eyes as Kelvin cuts away my ruined shirt. The bullet in my side went clean through, but the other two will need to be extracted. I barely feel the sting of the local anesthetic.

All I can see is Tash's face. I'd sworn to protect her, and instead, I'd dragged her into the worst of my world. The irony burns worse than the wounds. Every move I'd made to keep her safe had only put her in more danger.

"This will hurt," Dr. Kelvin warns, probing the wound in my shoulder.

I welcome the pain. It's less than I deserve after what I put her through. The museum board meetings, the galas, the quiet moments in her office—I’d selfishly pulled her deeper into my orbit, knowing the risks. And now she'd paid the price for my weakness.

"You'll need to rest for at least two weeks," Kelvin says, working on extracting the first bullet.

Two weeks. Fourteen days to figure out how to make this right with Tash. That's if she'll even speak to me again. I've got a lot of groveling to prove that she means more to me than this war. But first, I need to ensure she stays safe, even if it's from a distance.

"Viktor," I catch his attention. "Double the security detail on her apartment. Discreet surveillance only. She doesn't want to see any of us."

He nods, already typing on his phone. The second bullet clinks into a metal tray.

I close my eyes again, remembering how she trembled against me in the car. I'll fix this. I have to. Whatever it takes.