Tristan’s smirk slants. His eyes go feral before he backhands Gianni in the side of the head with the pistol, knocking him to the floor.
Then he looks back at me.
“Is the kid worth it, Rozanov? You’re talking billions lost for some street kid and his tramp of a sister. A woman who, if I’m not mistaken, has been betraying you since the day you hired her. In fact…” he pulls out his phone and sends a text.
My phone buzzes with a notification. I ignore it for now.
Suddenly, behind Tristan, I see movement. In the corner, hidden in the shadows, are two silhouettes. I make no expression, but mentally outline them and recognize the stances.
Maverick and Baron.
“He’s not just some kid,” I say as Mav and Baron head towards us, unseen by Tristan. “He’s my brother. And the funny thing about brothers? They stick together.”
A side door opens, and Daniil and Yury bolt through.
“Tristan, down!” Yury calls out, and Tristan ducks just in time to miss a shot fired by Baron.
I pull my gun and duck behind a nearby pillar, staying low and covered as shots fly in every direction. Gianni is panicking, trying in vain to rip his hands free from the bondage, but honestly, no one cares about him. As long as no stray bullets hit him, he’s probably safe. This is about me and Tristan and no one else.
Tristan is trying to get the high ground, maneuvering around the shots fired by Baron and Maverick as he works to get close enough to me for a clean shot. Meanwhile, Yury and Daniil are trying to take out Mav and Baron. Between shipment containers, trucks, and pillars, everyone has a place to duck and cover, making it hard for anyone to actually hit anyone else.
Bullets are ricochetting off the metal left and right. I keep my peripheral attention on Gianni to make sure he’s not getting hit. My life means a lot, but in Amara’s eyes, not as much as his.
I wonder when that started mattering. What’s important to her.
But I can’t kid myself anymore and pretend I don’t feel anything. That our arrangement is just about business or chemistry. If it was, I wouldn’t be here right now, risking my hide to save her little brother. To spare her the pain I felt when Nik was ripped from me.
Amara matters.
And Gianni matters too.
I slide across the polished concrete to grab the back of the chair and fling him towards the wall, out of the way.
“Boss!” Baron calls out.
I duck just in time to miss another bullet. It grazes my arm, but I don’t even flinch.
I want a clear shot of Tristan. I want to take him out right here, right now. His boys will run off, tails between their legs, and the Chadovichs will lose once and for all if I can just drive a bullet between those cocky eyes of his.
But just when I think I have it, another door opens and a voice fills the room, sinking my heart to the pit of my stomach.
“Gianni!”
No.
Amara is rushing across the room, unaware or uncaring of the gunfire and everything else. I see Daniil’s eyes lock on her, greedy for glory because he’s a stupid fucking kid that doesn’t know the weight of things.
His gun lifts.
I bolt and dive on top of her.
Maverick comes out of hiding and fires at Daniil. I don’t know if the bullet hit him.
All I see is Maverick hitting the floor.
With my body caged over the top of Amara, I watch as Tristan sees Maverick laying on the floor in a pool of his own blood. He barks out an order to his brothers, something I don’t process because the noise in the room has gone white.
Baron unties Gianni, pulling him away from the scene, and Tristan throws one last cocky smirk at me before running off.
