Ivan keeps a firm hand on my shoulder and doesn’t answer while steering me through the crowd of Lukov men rushing in to take down whatever men of Yuri’s they can grab. I’m pulled away from the heart of it, able to see everything unfolding at once.
Finally, I catch sight of Sergey standing above Yuri on the ground now, one knee pressing into his back, forearm pinning the back of his neck. Yuri thrashes, snarling his curses and spitting blood.
"You’re a fool, Sergey!" he barks. "You think she’ll stay with you? You think she’ll stand by you just because you forced her into this? The moment I get the chance, I’ll shred you first.”
“Wrong again,” Sergey growls, voice rough while he makes sure Yuri can’t move an inch. “You don’t know your sister like you think you do. She’s not yours…not now, and not ever.”
With a brutal twist, Sergey pins Yuri’s arm behind his back while more Lukov men close in, and one of them pulls out a pair of cuffs, snapping them onto Yuri's wrists and hauling him up. He keeps yelling and spitting incoherent curses at all of us, especially me. He knows this is it.
When Yuri’s eyes fall on me, his gaze turns murderous. “You’re a traitor, Katya. You had your chance to have the worldin your hands…but you’re just like Mom was. You’re weak and disposable. I had plans for you. You were going to secure me the deal of a lifetime, but you just couldn’t help yourself. Now look at you…a Lukov whore!”
Something inside me shatters, and his words cut down as far as he intends them to.
Once, I had loved him as my brother. Back when he was innocent and incapable of being so cruel. But now, when I look at him, I only see a pathetic waste of skin, rotted by greed.
“I don’t want to see him again,” I say coldly to Ivan, my voice somehow even and calm despite the fury boiling inside me.
Ivan nods, then waves for the others to haul him out. The Lukov enforcers don’t hesitate.
Yuri is dragged away, still kicking and shouting, but I don’t hear the words anymore. I only see Sergey, standing in the middle of the room, panting with blood dripping from a split in his brow and a cut along his cheek.
The moment I pull out of Ivan’s grasp, he lets go, and I hurry over.
"Jesus, Sergey…" I murmur, immediately reaching for him.
His eyes meet mine, dazed, but he smiles. It’s small but real, and it’s the biggest relief to see him still standing and breathing.
"You okay?" He asks, taking my arms in his hands gently, holding me close while the rest of the situation around us is neutralized.
I scoff and gently wipe the blood from his cheek with the sleeve of my jacket while my other hand cups his jaw. "You’rethe one who just got into a fist-fight, and you're asking me if I’m okay?”
“It’s all I cared about…and you’re the one who was abducted again,” Sergey murmurs, and his subtle smile falters while his voice breaks a little. "I was afraid I wouldn’t see you again."
My heart clenches, and the thought alone hurts. "Don’t say that."
He lifts a hand to my face, brushing back strands of hair. His knuckles are torn and lightly bleeding still, and his body faintly trembles with exhaustion. Regardless, he touches me like I’m the most important thing he has ever known.
"You stayed for me,” he whispers, swallowing back whatever emotions try to bubble up. “You could’ve joined him.”
"I never wanted to follow Yuri,” I murmur back, gently stroking along his unscratched cheek.
“I’m glad.”
We sit there for a moment longer, tangled in the aftermath of everything that just happened. The Lukovs finish securing the area while Roman barks orders, but the noise feels more distant now. Blurred, in a way.
Now, it’s just me and Sergey and the light presence of our shared relief.
I don’t know what’s ahead of us, but for now, we have each other.
And that’s enough.
Chapter 29 - Sergey
The wake of the fight hits me harder than I expect.
My body aches, my knuckles are bruised, and blood stains my shirt and skin, but none of it matters at this point. Not when Kat is in front of me, her breath shallow while she tends to me in the bedroom. In our house, safe and sound.
Despite my occasional wince while she cleans my cuts, I can hardly look away from her. Seeing her here, knowing that Yuri can’t take her away from me, is everything I needed. Finally, it’s over.
