Page 146 of Wicked Refusal

The next few minutes are a flurry. I entrust Eli to my parents and Ginny, and their protection to Isaak. He’s incredibly gracious about it, despite being virtually a stranger. I’ve never appreciated him more.

Once that’s settled, I rush with Kallie and Nikita to the car. All the way there, I keep chanting in my head. The words are incoherent, dripping with fear and regret.

Please, let him be okay. Please, please, please.

It can’t end this way.

I haven’t told him yet.

I haven’t told him…

That I want to spend the rest of my life with him.

50

YULIAN

Manhattan’s lights glint off the water like gunfire. “Perimeter’s secure,” Maksim informs me as I arrive. “Couldn’t get the Volkov twins here, but Kazimir’s in play.”

Zhenya’s still bed-ridden, and Anton was never a beacon of courage. The only person he’d ever risk his life for is his sister. He sure as fuck isn’t going to offer himself up as a sacrifice when she’s no longer on the board.

“Last I checked, serving yourpakhanisn’t optional,” I remark coldly.

“No, it’s not,” Maksim agrees. “Are you going to discipline him?”

There it is again:discipline.A sanitized word for an ugly act of violence. “I should.”

“But you’re not going to.”

My thoughts flit back to Mia. To everything I did to keep her from the battlefield, from risking her life, because losing her would have broken me.

What would losing Anton do to Zhenya?

She’s weakened. Can’t walk—never will again. If she’s going to keep her post, she’ll need her brother more than ever. Without him, she’ll be as good as dead, too. People don’t get far in this line of work without racking up grudges.

I can punish cowardice. Can judge it with a bullet to the back of the head, like it deserves.

But I won’t do that to loyalty.

Especially not when it’s to family.

“Let’s get through the night first.” I fix my cuffs, glance around for Kazimir. “Tell me the plan.”

“Well, we’ve only got one bait.” He says it with a shrug. “It’s pretty convenient when you get down to the nitty-gritty of it. One target, one shot.”

He’s not wrong. Knowing where the bullet will land lets us control the board.

I walk up to Kazimir. “You don’t look like you’re saying your last prayers.”

“Don’t I?” He laughs, low and brittle. “Then I guess it’s not too late for me to go into acting.”

“I can make a few calls to Hollywood.”

“Now, you’re just dangling my last meal in front of me.”

“You’re not going to die tonight, friend.” I put my hand on his shoulder, squeeze firmly. “Not on my watch.”

He shakes his head. “It’s fine. I knew what I was signing up for. You don’t go into the Bratva and expect to make it to retirement age.” His lopsided smile turns sad. “You dragged me out of the gutter, Yulian. You let me make something of myself. Thanks to you, I’ve lived a good life. If it ends tonight, I’m good with that.”