"No,slonko. I'm fine. Pissed off but fine."
I see her watching me with a thousand questions in her eyes, so I answer her unspoken thoughts.
"I'm sorry you didn't get your perfect day yesterday because of me."
For a few seconds I avoid looking at her, afraid I'll see disappointment in her gaze, afraid I'll see her already regretting saying yes to being mine.
"How many women can say they almost became a widow less than two hours after saying 'I do'?" She tries to joke, but I detect a trace of sadness in her voice that tears at my heart.
I know she's trying to ease the tension, so I follow her lead and do what I do best. I make her smile.
"I think my will would've helped you get over the trauma," I tell her, laughing as I try to sit up, but my liver sends sharp waves of pain through me.
Her hands slip beneath my shoulders, helping me sit up.
"Ooh, could I have kept your motorcycle?"
"Depends. If you stayed faithful to me until...let's say eighty, sure," I reply, watching a radiant smile light up half her face.
"Don't be ridiculous, who the hell would want me at eighty?" she says, laughing as she arranges the pillow behind me.
"Me, obviously. I'm sure I'd reincarnate immediately, and even though I'd probably be younger than you, you seem like the type who'd go around corrupting a young man."
I watch her eyes become glassy.
What the hell did I say wrong?
"You'd reincarnate and choose to be with me again?" she asks softly.
My hand rises to her chin, and though the gesture sends arrows of pain through my abdomen, I don't care. I want to see her eyes when I answer.
"I'd find you in every lifetime, Roxanne. And I'd make sure in each one I made you laugh at least once."
She nods slightly and leans in to kiss my cheek, and my heart starts beating harder. Because it's rare enough for her to initiate a tender or romantic gesture between us that I plan to savor every willingly given touch, every stolen caress.
"I'm really not getting rid of you, am I?" she asks.
With my lips inches from hers, I whisper, "Not a chance. As you can see, I'm not that easy to eliminate."
Right then someone knocks on the door, so I let my head drop, prepared to lose her body warmth. Roxanne gets out of bed and runs to the bathroom. Vasili enters the bedroom, and from the dark circles under his eyes, it's pretty clear he hasn't slept all night.
"What do we know?" I ask.
"Marzena," he replies, and you can't miss the fury in his voice. "I think it's time we went on the offensive."
A smile spreads across my lips because usually I'm the one coming up with these suggestions. I try to stand up, and Vasili is there to catch me when my legs almost give out from the pain. Maybe the bullet missed my liver, but the bastard still hurts like hell.
Until now, the Council has conditioned me not to hurt her until she attacks first.
“Help me get changed. It’s time to bring out the new knife collection. What kind of shape is the bastard who dared to invade my house in?”
"After Roxy gave us the green light to treat him like a sacrificial pig, not great."
My body tenses and I turn slowly toward him.
"Excuse me?"
A laugh escapes my friend as he tosses me a shirt.
