“That’s exactly why I’m invoking it,” I say as I close the distance between us.
A murmur ripples through the room.
Gavriil’s eyes gleam, fascinated, furious. “You’re sure you want to offer yourself in her stead?”
“I’m herzashchitniknow,” I continue. Her guardian. “She answers to me. Not you.”
I refuse to look at Alina, to break eye contact with Gavriil.
He walks around her, stopping when she’s between me and him. Gavriil’s voice is filled with threat when he says, “You would betray me? Put yourself between me and what’s mine?”
“Not yours,” I say evenly. “You gave me a job to do, and I won’t fail you. But I’ve given my word that she will not be harmed.” While I haven’t said as much to Alina yet, I intend to. And once a man gives his word, that’s not something even aPakhancan casually break.
Gavriil’s gaze sharpens. A long pause stretches between us, thick with unspoken meaning. “You’re wagering your honor on a girl you’ve known for less than an hour,” he says softly. “That’s a dangerous gamble,Bratishka.I would hate to see you repeat your past mistakes.”
“It was one mistake that you enjoy throwing in my face every chance you get,” I correct him. “And this time is different.”
His smile is razor sharp. “Tell me. How so? Why isshedifferent? Because she is prettier than Daria? How do you know she won’t betray you as well?”
I don’t answer him because the truth is dangerous: Alina fought for every breath tonight. She refused to beg. She refused to break.
And something inside me, something I’ve kept buried for years, rose up and saidminebefore I could stop it.
Gavriil lifts a hand as if to touch a strand of Alina’s hair falling from her messy bun, the same strand I caressed earlier.
I move on instinct, catching his wrist midair. Not hard. Not aggressive. Just forbidding him.
The entire room holds its breath.
Behind me Viktor curses under his breath.
Gavriil stares at my hand touching him like I’ve forgotten who the hell he is.
“Ah. So that’s where your weakness hides,” Gavriil murmurs. Then he sees the red abrasions I had kept hidden. The ones Alina inflicted on me in her struggle. A dangerous smile curves his mouth. “Well,” he murmurs. “Now it’s getting even more interesting.”
He jerks out of my hold and steps back. Not retreating but calculating.
“You want her under yourkrysha?” he asks loudly, switching to English so she hears every word.
“Yes.”
“You want to be her protector?”
“Yes.”
“You want her fate tied to yours instead of mine?”
I hold his stare. “Yes.”
He considers this for several long, punishing seconds. Then: “Very well.”
Alina’s breath rushes out when she’s finally caught up on our discussion.
But Gavriil isn’t finished yet.
“She remains under your protection,” he says, “for one week. That’s how long you have to find Archer and my money.” He then stares at her backside silently for so long, I want to scream. Finally, he adds in Russian, “It’ll be more fun to take her from you once you’ve grown attached to her. And that’s exactly what will happen if you fail me again.”
He moves then so that he’s right in front of Alina, looming over her in a way that she can’t ignore. “Beautiful girl,” he says in English, as if to intentionally provoke her. “Do you understand why you’re here?”
