“I’ve given him an order I expect him to carry out. I’ve already texted my cousins and let them know I’ve instructed Gedeon to kill Rogue if he attacks this woman, and Gedeon is not to be blamed or harmed. I expect you to protect Gedeon from them should they come. That is a direct order.”
His gaze met Gedeon’s. Gedeon’s nod was nearly imperceptible, but Maya caught it. Immediately she wished she could see through the little window. She knew there were windows along that hallway. Her best guess was that someone was outside those windows with a high-powered rifle. If one or both bodyguards made a move against Gedeon, they weren’t going to live through it.
But what did that mean for her? Maya heard truth in Gorya’s voice, but he wasn’t making sense. He believed his leopard might try to kill her. No, he believed hisleopardwouldtry to kill her. He fully expected Gedeon to have to shoot him. Why would he chance it? If Gedeon shot the leopard, it could kill Gorya. Unless Gedeon was such a good shot he was able to incapacitate the animal without killing both. She doubted anyone could do that with an experienced leopard attacking. She was certain Gorya’s leopard was extremely fast.
Gorya closed the door on the two bodyguards, and the basement was once more dimly lit. He turned toward her as he toed off his shoes. “My name is Gorya Amurov, in case you didn’t hear it. My leopard reacted very strongly to your voice. Pappas had your name as Maya.”
She shook her head. “Keep your leopard away from me. I don’t want anything to do with you or your leopard.”
“I’m sorry, Maya, but he’s very insistent.” As he walked toward her on bare feet, he slid the buttons free on his shirt.
She swallowed fear and moved closer to the wall to protect her back, although she gave herself room to move. She couldn’t control the way her heart accelerated. That embarrassed her. If she was going down fighting, she didn’t want him to think her a coward. The hell with him and his leopard.
Gorya came at her in a slow, steady, silent stalk, the way a leopard would. No freeze-frame, but alarming all the same, maybe more so because he didn’t take his eyes from hers.
She shook her head and moved into a fighting stance, feet shoulder-width apart, hands up to block any move he made. The blade was concealed, but she could strike with it from any direction. She’d already picked her targets.
“He isn’t going to get to her.” Maya made it a firm statement.
Gorya nodded. “I understand you feel you must protect her. I feel I should protect you. Gedeon will see to it that no harm will come to you or your leopard.”
“I don’t know or trust you or Gedeon. Back off.” It was more of a plea than a command.
Gorya was relentless. He just kept coming, and the closer he got to her, the more invincible he seemed. She did her best not to let tension show, not to grip the hilt of the blade too hard and give herself away. He got into her personal space, his eyes staring right into hers.
Like frost. She could see the leopard looking at her through those gray eyes, giving them that bluish cast that by turns burned and froze her.
Gorya didn’t break the stare when he reached her. “Gedeon.” He caught her arms and pulled her close. “Bog, your scent.” He took a deep breath, inhaling her into his lungs.
She tried not to breathe him in. As it was, it took every ounce of determination to rotate her wrist and step into him, to thrust the blade at his chest. At his heart.
No,Wraith protested.I recognize his leopard.
She should have driven it deep, but he very gently caught the blade, wrapping his fist around it and twisting it out of her hand. Blood dripped from his palm as he tossed the knife aside and turned her around, pressing her front against the wall.
That’s impossible. We’ve never met them before. His leopard is a killer.
“What are you doing?” She pushed her forehead against the wall, closing her eyes, trying to figure out what she should do. Wraith had never gone against her decisions before. Not once.
She couldn’t move. Her hands were trapped, and Gorya’s body weight held her in place. He seemed driven by his leopard and as uncertain of the outcome as she was. Maya couldn’t stop shaking even though Gorya tried to soothe her by rubbing her arms gently.
“Gedeon,” Gorya repeated. “Rogue is insistent. For thefirst time, I’m uncertain if I can hold him back. Come closer. Be ready.”
“He could kill her,” Maya found herself pleading. “Not like this. Don’t let him kill her like this.”
“Gedeon is fast,” Gorya assured her.
“No one is that fast.” The truth was, the leopard would kill Maya, but Wraith would be too close and feel the pain. Maya didn’t want that for her.
If Gorya was allowing his leopard to claim Wraith, and the monster’s intention was really to kill her, Maya might not be able to stop Wraith from rising. On the other hand, if Wraith believed the male leopard was determined to kill Maya, she might shift. These men—and the leopard—wouldn’t expect that. Females didn’t shift until the emergence, which happened during the first heat cycle. They had worked at it. Practiced out of dire need. Maya had been a child and Wraith had come to her aid.
He will not kill either of us. I would never allow it.
Maya could barely stand the scent of Gorya surrounding her. He was too potent. Too male. She tried holding her breath as he pushed her shirt up, exposing her spine. She froze. He would see the scars. A road map of them. Tiny white lines like a giant spiderweb spreading across her entire back. From the dimples at her bottom to her shoulder blades. No one else had seen them—not in years.
Damn him to hell. She knew he was staring at them. She felt his gaze, burning hot, right through her skin. She refused to squirm. She nearly jumped out of her skin when the pad of his finger brushed along the network of scars, following each of those thin lines. It was the lightest of touches, but she felt every brushstroke as if it sank through skin and muscle straight to the bone, branding her.
Maya shuddered. She couldn’t help it. “Please, don’t let him do this.” She wasn’t a woman to plead, especially with a member of thebratva.She knew better. She knewthey didn’t have hearts, but she couldn’t stop herself. “I can’t be claimed. Those scars you see, Amurovs did those.” She whispered it to him, hoping Gedeon couldn’t hear her make a fool of herself. He was leopard, which meant his hearing was acute and most likely he could. That only added to her humiliation.
