I watch as he chokes on his own blood, his body jerking. Then he goes still, his eyes wide and glazed.
My knees wobble, but I keep watching until I’m sure he’s dead. Gone forever.
“Avelina!” Grigory’s voice cuts through the ringing in my ears.
I turn.
He’s barking orders into the radio on his shoulder, calling for more transport and help. But his gaze is glued to mine. And briefly, I see the flicker of something I don’t expect.
No judgment. No pity.
Just understanding. And respect.
Turning back toward the lifeless body, my knees give out, and I crash to the ground. Tears blur my vision.
Warm hands wrap around my arms, hauling me up. “Alright,” Grigory says softly. “It’s alright.”
With his help, I stumble across to the SUV. Viktor’s paler now. But he’s talking, mumbling something in Russian. I squeeze past to see Matvey still putting pressure on the wound.
Viktor’s gaze finds mine, glazed. “You okay?”
I nod through my tears. “You got shot, and you’re asking if I’m okay?”
His lips twitch for a brief moment. “Matvey said you ran him over?”
I nod, my stomach bottoming out again.
Viktor’s head falls back slightly. “That’s my girl… Remind me to never piss you off.”
Despite everything, I huff out the smallest laugh.
“We’re getting you out of here, Vik,” Matvey says, his voice cracking with concern.
I climb into the SUV and cradle Viktor’s head in my lap as the tears roll down my cheeks. “Just hold on,” I whisper to him. “You’ve got to hold on.”
Grigory’s voice and the rest of them fade into the background as they coordinate the extraction and set up for men to meet us at a private hospital.
But all I take notice of is Viktor. I brush back the hair from his clammy brow. “I don’t like killing,” I whisper.
“I’m sorry,” he murmurs. “You shouldn’t have had to do that, Avelina. I should have done it.”
I swallow the taste of bile. “I’d do it again if I had to. To protect you. And to protect Sofia and Leon.”
“You won’t have to,” he says. “You’ve got us. And if anyone tries to retaliate, they’ll have hell to pay. Grigory and I will see to it.” His hand slowly lifts to wipe away my tears. “You’re family now, Avelina. And I protect what’s mine.”
A helicopter arrives. The sound reaches me before I see it—low, rhythmic, thunderous. My pulse leaps. I shield my eyes as it descends, the blades whipping my hair into a frenzy. The noise is deafening, drowning out everything but the pounding of my heart.
Viktor is barely conscious now. His breathing is shallow and rattling.
I grip his hand tighter, refusing to let go. “They’re here,” I whisper, though I don’t know if he can hear me anymore.
The moment the chopper touches the ground, men in black rush toward us with a stretcher. I don’t move. Can’t. One of them tries to gently pry me away, but I shake my head violently.
“I’m going with him,” I shout over the roar.
They hesitate for a split second, then nod.
I help guide Viktor onto the stretcher, biting back a sob when he moans out in pain. His eyes flutter open for a second. Just long enough for me to say, “You’re going to be okay. You hear me? I’ve got you.”
