Page 32 of The Crimson Lily

Béatrice spits blood out of her mouth and scowls at the large man. She checks on Alejandro to see if he’s fine, but his forehead is bleeding, and his nose appears broken. He leans on the wall behind him with his eyes closed. He looks like he’s begging for this madness to stop.

“Where is your Bratva dog?” the gunman asks.

“That’s none of your business!” I bark.

My response enrages him. In a stampede, he marches to the bed, catches a grip of my hair, and holds the gun beneath my jaw.

“I swear, bitch, I’ll shoot you if you don’t give me what I want!” he warns.

I laugh. I don’t know what’s gotten into me, but I’m laughing with a wicked grin. I find the situation…‌entertaining.

“I had the Bratva beat information out of me,” I say and look him dead in the eye. “I know what your deal is. If you wanted me dead, you would have shot me the minute you got into this room!”

I spit at him…‌and get a fist to my face. He ditches his gun to the side and seizes my neck. He’s squeezing way too hard. I can’t breathe. I struggle. I batter his chest with my fists. He keeps on pressing his thumbs against my throat. I feel my fingers turn cold. I feel my head become heavy. My eyes roll, and I just see the white ceiling through the glaze of my livid eyes.

I refuse to walk. William tells the man to lower his gun, then he wraps a silk scarf around my neck. I struggle. I fight him. He tightens the grip. I scratch his hands, try to go for his face. I lose consciousness and fall.

So that’s how it happened. At least, I’m pretty sure now. William is responsible for my accident, for my amnesia, for the loss of everything I knew.

The gunman lets me go. I fall back on the bed, inert. I think I hear another gun-cocking sound, but then, a sudden crack echoes between my ears. I hear thumps, grunts. I turn my head to the wall and see only moving shadows.

And then,bang. The shot of a gun. Silence. I close my eyes, focusing on the stillness. Someone lifts me up, holds me. There is warmth, the haze of an embrace.

“Liliana!” I hear a familiar voice call to me.

I can’t move.

“Fuck! Fuck! Goddammit, fuck!”

Is that Alejandro?

“Is she dead?”

Definitely Alejandro.

“She’s stunned,” the same familiar voice responds.

I manage to open my eyes and bend my head a little. It’s Maksim. He’s holding me close to his chest, his hands around my face, trying to wake me.

“Liliana?” he calls.

I nod.

“We need to leave,” he presses.

“How?” I can barely ask.

“Fuck this shit, I’m out!” Alejandro exclaims. He punches the nearest wall. “This is way too fucking dangerous.”

“I don’t have time for you children,” Maksim roars. “You leave, I terminate you.”

Alejandro is about to blow, but when his eyes meet Maksim’s, he lowers his arms. “Fine!” he jerks. “I’ll wait in the fucking lobby.”

I suddenly notice Béatrice next to me. She has traces of blood on her face, but most of it is gone. I wonder how long she’s been here. She paces away and heads after Alejandro.

“Wait!” she calls after him, then she briefly turns to Maksim and me. “You’d better get her to a safe place, or I will fucking kill you.Putain de merde!”

She runs behind Alejandro into the hallway.