Alek dives out from the car and manages to shoot one of the guards in the head. He presses himself back behind the car as the other guard continues to shoot at him. As thatguard is distracted, I run out from the other side of the car and make my way up to the house. When I step inside, I come face to face with Gabriel…
Who’s holding Nina in his arms, a gun pressed to her head.
“I would be careful if I were you, Luca,” Gabriel says. “I could so easily kill your wife.”
Nina’s eyes plead with me to save her. I cannot let her down. For all the passion she has brought out in me, I have to be logical right now to save her life.
“You could,” I say, “but then you’d have nothing left to use against me.”
“I don’t need anything else. I just need you dead. I want your power. Your territory. And I’m going to get it.”
“Not if I kill you first.” I raise my gun but Gabriel scoffs.
“You couldn’t kill me. Not when your wife is in my arms.”
Nina whimpers as he presses the gun harder against her temple. The sight of my wife terrified makes a heavy weight settle in my stomach. I chose Nina because she didn’t annoy me the way Susanna did. But I brought her into this world by choosing her. My logical choice has consequences. And Nina is paying the price.
“Let her go,” I growl. “This fight is between you and me.”
“It is. But I can’t make it too easy on you.”
I can hear a gunshot outside before Alek comes running into the house. I’m relieved he’s alive. A fucking Russian. I never thought I would see the day but here I am. Changing. Because of Nina.
“You can kill me,” I say, lowering my gun to the ground. Nina’s eyes widen. “Just let her go.”
Gabriel hesitates, looking between me and Alek. He knows he’s outnumbered now. He knows he’ll die if he lets Nina go but there’s also a good chance he’ll die if he doesn’t. He’s out of options.
“You would risk your own life… for your wife?” Gabriel asks. “The woman you’ve only known for a short time?”
“It doesn’t matter how long I’ve known her for. What matters is that I made a choice to marry her and I am sticking to that. I will fight for her even if it means my death. So if you want the chance to kill me, Gabriel, take it. Now is your chance. You’re not going to get another one so easy.”
Gabriel moves his gun from Nina’s temple and aims it at me.
“Luca,” Alek hisses.
“I have to do this,” I respond, looking into Nina’s eyes. I took her from behind when we had sex because I wasn’t ready for the emotion that comes with looking into another person’s eyes as they fuck. But I will never look away from Nina’s eyes now. I know it. She means that much to me in the short time we’ve been married. It’s right.
It’s not about logic. It’s about what my gut is telling me to do and that’s to save Nina, no matter the cost.
“Luca, no,” she whimpers. I’m shocked by it. Does she not want me to die? Do I mean a lot to her as well?
“Just do it, Gabriel,” I say.
He pulls the trigger. An intense pain ricochets its way through my chest as I fall to the ground. Alek shoots at Gabriel but Gabriel tosses Nina to the ground and turns and runs out the back door. Alek hesitates but instead of going after Gabriel, he turns to me.
Nina rushes to my side, tears streaming down her face. “Luca, no. Why did you do that? You’re going to die!” She presses her hands on my chest.
I can still feel pain which is a good thing. It means I’m not dead yet.
Alek calls someone on the phone but I can’t hear it. All I can see is Nina’s face.
“I’m sorry,” I rasp out. “For putting you in this position.” I cough. The one good thing is that the bullet didn’t hit my heart. I’d already be dead if that were the case.
“Luca,” she cries, clutching my hand to her face. Nina cares for me. Actually cares. That makes my heart lighter than it has ever felt before. “Don’t die on me. Please.”
But blackness takes over my vision and I fall under.
Nina
