Page 92 of Thorns of Love

That was what it was. I feared losing her.

Somewhere deep down, I knew my own mother feared me. Maxim feared me. I didn’t want to see that same fear in her eyes too. So I hid it all and now, I could lose her.

I shoved my hands in my hair again, pulling at it. I felt like my sanity was hanging by a thread and it’d snap at any moment. I had to get her back. Ineededher.

This world was safer with her in it. Without her in it, I’d make this fucking planet burn. Without her, neither I nor this world would survive. Losing her would break me.

She was the air I breathed. My reason for existence.

“You’re right,” Boris said, interrupting my dark thoughts. “They’re headed to Russia. On a cargo plane.”

No wonder we couldn’t trace any commercial or private flights. We assumed he traveled the normal way.

“We can’t be late,” I rasped. Boris nodded. Marchetti’s men hung in the front of the plane, checking their weapons.

I kept checking my phone. I didn’t know whether calling her brothers was good or bad. Was calling her brothers admitting defeat or not? Then before I’d change my mind, I dialed up Vasili.

He answered on the second ring. “Found my sister?” His greeting was filled with humor.

If Adrian wasn’t involved, I might have felt it too. Except I didn’t. Adrian would give Tatiana the same treatment my father gave our mother. Only for the fact that I loved her. That was her only offense.

“I did.” My voice was raspy. I gritted my teeth before adding, “Adrian has her.”

Two heartbeats passed.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” He roared so hard that the static came through the headset. “What in the fuck is going on?”

“In short, Adrian isn’t dead after all and is using Tatiana for revenge against me,” I rasped. “He’s my half-brother and he’s going to kill her unless I get to her in time to stop him.”

“Fuck!” Vasili’s voice portrayed rage. Anger. “And why didn’t I know this?” he bellowed. “How the hell did he go from being dead to being alive? That’s my baby sister he’s taken. You’re supposed to protect her, not put her in more danger.”

“Maybe you should have checked into your friend a bit more,” I snapped. I didn’t need him to point out the obvious. “You should have never let him touch her.”

“Do you even know your wife?” he spat, anger lacing his voice. “Telling her to stop is like adding fuel to her fire and throwing her into it.”

Yes, I fucking knew that. I fucking did that by withholding information. Except, I was so fucking pissed off, I needed an outlet.

“Where is Adrian?” he demanded. “I’m going there.”

“You’ll never make it on time,” I said, resting my elbows on my knees and gripping my hair. “They’re headed to Russia. Outside Moscow.”

He was already barking orders. He’d go to Moscow either way.

“I’m going to tell you this, Konstantin,” he growled. “If anything happens to my baby sister, Adrian will be the least of your worries.”

He hung up. I clenched my jaw so hard that my molars protested. Before I knew it, the glass that sat on the table next to me flew across the cabin and hit the little round window. The liquid spilled over the seats and the glass that once held my drink shattered.

“We’ll get her,” Boris said in a low voice. “We’re not far behind. If anything, we’ll probably pass them. Cargo planes go through extra steps at the border.”

I stared at Boris. The idea flickered to the surface and I immediately dialed my contact at the border. Five minutes later, I had it all lined up. Every single cargo plane in all of Russia would undergo additional inspection and scrutiny.

“Good thinking,” I commended him. At least someone was able to think clearly since obviously I was out of my fucking mind.

“Illias?” he called out. “She might want to leave after–” He paused when I shot him a dark, murderous look. Apparently it wasn’t scary enough because he continued talking. “After she learns about the connection and shit.”

I let out a sardonic breath. “I think she knows.” His brows furrowed. “She mentioned a picture she found of Adrian and his parents. She suspected it, but I thought it was too far-fetched.”

“Nothing with your father was too far-fetched.”