Page 66 of Toxic Salvation (Krayev Bratva #2)

KOVAN

I have half a second when I storm into the room to assess what’s happening. It’s a jumble of things: Yana, Luka, Ihor, Vesper. A knife, a bed, a rope, a nightmare.

I don’t think—I don’t have time for that.

I just react.

Shoving Ihor aside, I grab Yana by the waist and yank her off Vesper. Yana loses what’s left of her mind. She goes ballistic—screaming and clawing and biting and kicking like a rabid animal. I lose track of the knife, of Ihor. All I can think is, Get this bitch away from my family.

Behind me, I register that I’m alone. Pavel and Osip should be right at my six.

Where the hell are they?

I pull out my gun and aim for Yana’s center mass, but before I can fire, something heavy slams into the back of my skull. The gun flies from my hand as I go down hard.

No time to recover. I hit the ground and roll, then leap back to my feet, expecting another blow that doesn’t come. Ihor stands over me, but his attention is fixed on the window.

“Yana! Lock the door—his backup is here!”

She stumbles from the bedroom while Ihor turns back to me. Behind him, Vesper runs to Luka and pulls him into her arms.

“How did you find us?” Ihor demands of me. “She tipped you off?”

“She did nothing. I’m just smarter than you are.”

He roars and pulls out his gun. Mine winks at me from under the bed, too far to reach. With no other option, I throw myself directly at him, grappling for control of his weapon. The barrel points at the ceiling now, but one wrong move and this gun goes off. No telling who catches the bullet.

Behind us, Yana slides back into the room. “Come here,” she snaps at Luka, who shakes his head defiantly.

Vesper steps between them. I’m too busy wrestling with Ihor to focus on their exchange, but I hear the argument escalating.

Then there’s a scream. A shout. Vesper and Yana hit the floor in a tangle of limbs while Luka screams at Yana to stop.

“No! Mom! Leave her alone!”

“It’s okay, Luka. I’m here. I’ll keep you safe!” I roar over the chaos.

Ihor laughs. “How are you going to do that when you’re dead?”

I drive my elbow into his face. He staggers, squinting, and I follow up with a punch to his gut.

“Mama!”

It would take me three seconds to finish Ihor. But I can’t ignore Luka’s terrified scream. He needs help, and three seconds is all it takes to end a life.

The moment Ihor hits the floor, semi-conscious and bleeding, I rush forward to throw Yana off my wife. But when I turn to them, I freeze.

“Luka…” I whisper.

He’s standing there shaking, holding a bloody knife while Yana presses both hands to her side, blood seeping between her fingers.

“You… you stabbed me,” she gasps, staring at Luka in disbelief.

Luka looks from the knife to Yana. “I had to stop you,” he says quietly. “I had to protect my mom.”

“You little—” Yana takes a step forward, one bloody hand reaching for him. Vesper grabs Luka and pulls him out of reach, but she doesn’t need to.

Because Yana never makes it that far. She sways, her eyes roll back in their sockets, and she hits the ground.

“I killed her,” Luka whimpers. “I killed her.”

Vesper grabs him and pulls him to her chest, turning his face away from Yana’s body. “It’s okay, sweetheart. Everything’s going to be?—”

Her gaze finds mine, then goes wide with panic as she notices something behind me. She opens her mouth to warn me, but I already feel his shadow looming.

I duck just in time to avoid the bullet that whistles past my head. “Luka, Vesper, take cover!”

Where the fuck are my men?

I reach for my gun, but it’s rolled too far under the bed. I’ll have to do this with my bare hands.

Fine by me.

First, I need to disarm the bastard. As he approaches, taking aim again, I spin and kick his shins hard.

“Fuck!” Ihor doubles over, his eyes blazing with fury as the gun slips from his grip.

But Ihor didn’t rise to power by accident. He’s got twenty years on me, but those years have made him deadlier. He’s got strength and cunning. In many ways, he trained me to fight. He showed me how to shoot. He molded me into the fighter I am today.

Which means he knows all my weaknesses.

Before I can go on the offensive, he hits me in the ribs. I stumble backward, trying to suck in air before his next strike.

I dodge his second punch by inches, feeling the wind graze my cheek. There’s banging outside the apartment. Then a crash.

“Uncle Pavel!” Luka screams. “We’re in here!”

Ihor’s eyes dart wildly. He knows he’s cornered now. If my men are here, they’ve gotten past his.

“Last man standing, Ihor?” I smile.

“Figures you’d need an army to defeat me. Can’t do it alone, can you, boy?”

I shake my head in disappointment. “You think you can goad me into dropping my guard? Those tactics are beneath you.”

The room fills with bodies. I glance over my shoulder to see Pavel, Osip, and several of my men in the doorway.

“We got him,” Osip announces.

“No,” I turn back to Ihor. “ I’ve got him.”

I feint toward his fallen gun. As Ihor surges forward, trying to reach it first, I kick his knees hard. There’s a sickening crunch, then Ihor drops like a stone.

“Fuck!” he roars, clutching his shattered knee.

I bend over and pick up the gun. Ihor stares up at me, his eyes small with fear.

“Are you going to beg for your life, old man? I’ll offer you the courtesy of last words.”

Ihor looks past me at Luka. “The boy is mine.”

I squat down in front of him, dangling the gun between my fingers. A bullet’s too good for this piece of shit. I should throttle him with my bare hands. “Yeah?”

“I’m not lying,” Ihor insists. “What would I gain from lying now? The boy is mine. I am his father.”

“I know.”

The room goes silent. Dead silent. I can hear Luka’s ragged breathing, Vesper’s gentle murmurs, Ihor’s panicked gasps.

He looks ghastly. “You know?”

“Vitalii told me.” I cock the gun. “My brother wasn’t as blind as you thought.

He knew for a long time that Luka wasn’t his biological son.

” I stand, raising my voice so Luka hears every word.

“It didn’t matter, though—because he loved Luka from the moment he held him.

He may not have been Luka’s father, but he chose to be.

Just like I’m choosing to be his father now. ”

Ihor’s face pales. I can see his death in his eyes.

“Vesper, take Luka outside,” I order. “Osip, go with them.”

Vesper wraps her arm around Luka’s shoulders and they leave with Osip.

Pavel steps beside me. “Your men held us up outside,” he tells Ihor. “I was worried I wouldn’t get to see you die.”

“No chance, brother. I was always going to wait for you.” I pat Pavel’s shoulder. “Together, we avenge Vitalii.”

We raise our guns at the same time.

I aim for Ihor’s head.

Pavel aims for his heart.

“No—!” is all Ihor manages before our guns ring out. Two bullets fired in perfect unison.

I’m not sure which bullet hits first. It doesn’t matter.

The only thing that matters is that he’s dead.

When I walk out of that building ten minutes later, Vesper cries out my name.

But she doesn’t leave Luka’s side. They’re sitting on the stoop of the neighboring building. There’s a blanket wrapped around Luka’s shoulders while Vesper cradles him, rocking him gently.

His eyes are open but glassy. Haunted. He has every right to be after what he’s seen today, what he was forced to do.

“Luka…” I whisper, kneeling in front of him.

He peeks at me, still hiding half his face against Vesper’s chest. “I killed her,” he whispers. “I killed my own mother.”

“No. You didn’t. Yana is still alive.”

“What?” Luka sits up straight, and I finally see his whole face. One cheek is redder than the other, both stained with tears. He looks older. All the innocence he had left has fled in the last hour.

“She was breathing,” I assure him. “She’s alive.”

“So I didn’t kill her?”

“No, son. You didn’t.”

Luka gasps, then bursts into tears. Vesper pulls him back to her and we both hold him while he cries.

Once he settles, I sit on the stoop beside them. “I want you to know how proud I am of you. You protected Vesper and defended yourself today. You’re a hero, Luka.”

“You’re my hero,” Vesper agrees, kissing his forehead.

He smiles through his tears—the first sign he’s going to be okay. “I had to protect Mama. It’s what you would have done.”

“You’re a lot like me. You’re a lot like Vitalii, too.”

Luka’s smile fades. “What Ihor said?—”

“Forget what Ihor said. Do you remember what I told you?”

Luka nods slowly. “That you and my dad both chose to be my father.”

“That’s right, malysh . Family is who you choose. We’re family because we’ve chosen each other. That makes our bond stronger.”

Vesper meets my gaze and nods. One of her tears slips into Luka’s hair. “We’re safe now, my darling,” she tells him. “It’s finally over.”

“Mama? Papa?”

I put my hand on his knee. “Yes?”

“Can we go home to Tali now?”

Vesper laughs, a burst of pure joy in the midst of all this death. She hugs Luka tight with one arm and grabs my hand with the other.

“That sounds perfect,” she breathes. “Let’s go home.”

Pavel carries Luka to my SUV, but Vesper hangs back, her fingers entwining with mine. “Is it true?” she asks softly, glancing at Luka. “Is Yana still alive?”

I shake my head. “He’s too young and too sensitive to have killed his mother. This way, he can put that burden on me. I’m strong enough to carry it. He doesn’t need to know.”

Vesper’s hand tightens around mine. “Thank you.”

“I’m his father. It’s my job to protect him.”

She sinks into my arms. For a moment, I listen to her heartbeat keeping rhythm with mine.

“I have one question,” she says, pulling back to look at me. “How did you find us?”

I grin. “Remember that gift I gave you this morning?”

Her eyes go wide with amazement. “The stethoscope?”

“There’s a tracker in it.”

“You’re crazy,” she says, half-laughing and half-disbelieving. Her blue eyes flush with relief and happiness. She’s never looked more beautiful.

“Crazy for you,” I agree as I nuzzle the curve of her neck.

“Let’s go home,” she murmurs with a soft smile that I’ll take to my grave. “Let’s go be with our boys.”