Page 13 of The Games of Madmen

My stomach bottoms out when he wraps his finger around the cat’s neck.

“Don’t you dare,” I warn, pointing a finger toward him. I’ve seen plenty of death, caused it myself, but the cold cruelty against a defenseless animal makes bile rise up my throat and anger flood my muscles.

He pauses, studying me like I’m peculiar, and the cat begins to struggle, realizing the danger it’s in.

“Why would you want to kill the damn cat?” I shoot a glare his way.

“I don’t leave evidence.”

I make a hissing noise, which sends the cat feral. It scratches and writhes until it drops. The cat bolts, and I breathe a sigh of relief. “Guess there’s a first for everything.”

“Now I’ll just have to kill every stray I come across,” he threatens.

Not if I can help it.

He watches me with a steely gaze as he goes about loading the maid’s body into her own truck that’s parked on the other side of Rodion’s car. He’s laid out a tarp in there as well. We were too busy, lost in each other, to even notice she hadn’t left.

I could make a run for it back into the apartment but then he will be closer to the twins. They’re incapacitated and helpless—two things I never thought I’d say about them.

“So, are you going to kill all of us?” I demand, hoping to stall for time.

He can try.

“I was told to, if you were found with them.” He flicks his gaze toward the door. “To kill them and return you to your owner.”

Owner? Like I’m property. Unreal.

“I was Vlad’s fighter, not Yuri’s. He does not own me,” I inform him, voice turning slightly shrill. I know Vlad hasn’t sent him. He wouldn’t want the twins dead. Ven would never forgive that betrayal.

“You cost him a lot of wasted money and pride. I’m not sure which he’s more bitter about.”

It’s the fucking pride, and we all know it.

“I won’t let you kill them.” I’ll give my last fucking breath to make sure that doesn’t happen.

The air is thick with tension. I feel like each second ticks by slowly. If only I could use that time wisely and think of a way to handle this monster in front of me.

“Get into the trunk and come without trouble,” he instructs, “and I’ll say you weren’t with them when I found you.”

My chest constricts. I can’t let Yuri have me. He will make The Games look like a trip to Disneyland for what he will have planned for me.

But…

I also don’t want Rodion and Z to die because of me. That torture would be worse than anything else.

Reaching into his jacket, the man pulls out a gun with a silencer attached. He checks that it’s tightened.

He’s definitely not going to let my boys live.

Grabbing one of the bottles nearest to me, I chuck it at him. He sees it coming and bats it away, but I use the second of distraction and leap at him, grappling for the gun. He’s a hulk of a man and tosses my weight around like I’m made of air. We careen into a wall, and he rears back, headbutting me. Pain radiates across my face as my nose bursts, pissing blood all over me. Little sprinkles of white dots dance in my vision as I fall backwards onto my ass, the concrete ground rattling my tailbone.

Aiming the gun down at me, he tuts mockingly. “He said you’d be a firecracker.”

Before he even gets his words out, I kick my foot out against his knee and rear my fist up to meet his gut as he stumbles forward. Cussing in pain, he roars at me like an angry zoo animal. I’m on my feet quicker than he expects, because he looks shocked, his beady eyes springing wide.

I nod down to his stomach and smirk. “I’m not a firecracker. I’m a fucking grenade.” I yank the knife protruding from his gut. My fist wasn’t empty when I struck. I plunge it back in, smacking away his hand when he attempts to raise the gun in my direction. “And you, threatening what’s mine, was you pulling the pin on that grenade.”

I’d overcome any injury and endure all the pain to fight for what I love.Them.