Page 147 of Sinful Hearts

“David died trying to protect you,” I say, softening my tone. “I’m so sorry.”

She chokes on a sob. “I loved him.”

I pet her hair. “I know you did. And he loved you. I know it.”

I lather a washcloth in soap and hand it to her.

She scrubs her skin harshly, as if trying to take off a layer.

The more she scrubs, the more she calms.

When she’s finished, I step out of the shower, soaked, and change into sweats and a tee. She dries off as I throw my wet hair into a bun, ignoring the water dripping on my back.

She wraps a towel around herself. I pull her into a tight hug. She cries in my arms, her body shaking, and I rub her back while telling her everything will be okay.

But I don’t know that.

I don’t know what the fuck is going on.

An hour later,I walk downstairs.

I calmed Dasha down, gave her a melatonin gummy, and made her comfortable in Aurora’s bedroom. It didn’t take her long to doze off.

Emilio and Antonio are sitting in the dining room.

Their conversation stops when they notice me.

Worry lines their faces, though I see hints of happiness on them both.

There’s no sadness from them that my brother is dead.

I stop in my tracks, that reality finally hitting me.

My brother andDedushkaare gone.

Emilio stands and helps me into the chair beside his.

Neither man says a word until I’ve made myself comfortable and Emilio sits back down.

Antonio clasps his fingers together, sitting across from me, and leans closer. “First, I want to say I’m sorry for your loss.”

I bow my head and whisper, “Thank you.” I glance from him to Emilio and back at him. “Are you guys going to tell me what’s going on?”

“Your brother fucked up,” Antonio says.

I can’t stop the snort that leaves my mouth.

“Aleksy had asked you to kill Emilio,” he states, and I heavily nod. “That request came directly from your grandfather in Russia. He wanted Emilio dead in revenge for Yaroslav’s murder. Which is bullshit because we had nothing to do with that. We only killed Dima.” He scratches his cheek. “When your grandfather learned Emilio was still alive, he came here to punish Aleksy for it.”

“The night of the party, when we were run off the street, was that Aleksy or mydedushka?” I ask.

“We think it was both,” Antonio answers. “Lev said it was only Aleksy’s call, but I don’t believe him.”

“Wait.” I raise a brow. “Lev? My brother’s Lev?”

Antonio rubs his chin. “Lev was playing all sides. He was betraying your brother. Your grandfather wanted Aleksy dead, but knew he couldn’t do it himself. So, he and Lev were trying everything they could to convince us to kill him. The hit on Emilio that Aleksy ordered from you? Lev told us about it, hoping we’d kill Aleksy. The car chase? Lev blamed it on Aleksy. They wanted Aleksy gone, but knew it’d look bad if they did it themselves.”

“And Dasha?” I stutter out. “How’d they find her?”