I glare at Gavriil, but I hold my hand out for the revolver. He knows that I won’t be stupid enough to use it on him. There are too many guards, and I have Alina to think about.
Gavriil shows me the cylinder, the single bullet, before he spins it. Once it’s locked in place, he pulls back the hammer, then places the gun in my palm.
I turn toward Petrov as Roman steps to the side to get out of the way. Drawing in a deep breath, I lift the gun and point it at Petrov’s right shoulder. It’ll hurt like a bitch if there’s a bullet ready to fire with this shot. And if so, and I miss by a few inches, I could kill him.
Even after what he did to me, I still feel guilty about shooting him this way. It’s even worse that Alina is watching because I know how she is. She’ll blame herself for this too. It’ll remind her of the gunshot that took her brother’s life.
Petrov meets my gaze. There’s a flicker of fear in his eyes, but he remains still aside from giving me a tiny nod. Acceptance of whatever happens next.
“Tick tock. Should I add another bullet or two?” Gavriil asks knowing the answer.
I try to breathe smoothly through my nose to steady my hand, but the lack of decent sleep and nutrition is wearing on me, making my hand shakier than normal. My finger rests on the trigger as I take in one more breath, steeling myself as much as I can.
And then I pull the trigger.
I barely flinch when the gun goes off, but I tense up more than normal as the sound rings in my ears.
Fuck.
I don’t see where the bullet lands, but it knocks him off his feet and sends him into the grass. I exhale heavily and take a step forward, but Gavriil holds out his hand to stop me.
“You’re still not completely off the hook,” Gavriil says as he takes the gun from my hand. Roman grabs my arm again and yanks me back toward the house.
I look over my shoulder to see a guard kneeling next to Petrov, who hasn’t gotten up. My blood runs cold. Did I miss and kill him?
Gavriil doesn’t give me the chance to wait and see before he has Roman drag me inside. He takes me down to the prison and shoves me into my cell before locking the door behind me. “This was fun. Too bad for Petrov,” my brother says. “But I have some business to take care of before I convince Alina to let me fill her mouth.”
I lunge at the door, trying to grab him through the bars.
Gavriil steps out of the way just in time, amusement sparking in his eyes. “With food of course. She has been stubborn, but it hasn’t been all bad. She was more than happy to let me warm her up after her shower.”
I shake my head. “I don’t believe you.”
Gavriil shrugs. “I don’t care what you believe. I held her in my arms, and she couldn’t get close enough.”
Jealousy burns through me like fire. “Keep your fucking hands off her!”
Gavriil smirks. “Come on. You know what happens to women in my cage. Soon she’ll be begging me for more, proving my point to you that she’s not loyal to you, and that your obsession with her is a waste of time. I can’t wait to show you the video after she gives herself to me.”
I spin around with a scowl, putting my back to him as fury pulses through me so I don’t have to look at his fucking face. All I can think about is his hands on her, on my wildcat. “She doesn’t deserve this, and you fucking know it!”
“What did I say about being sentimental?” Gavriil sighs like he’s disappointed in me.
“If you hurt her, I’ll fucking kill you,” I bite out as I glare at him over my shoulder.
To him, emotion is weakness. To me, it’s the reason to fight. I give a damn about someone, and he sees that as a flaw.
Gavriil cocks an eyebrow at me. “Seeing howourwildcat affects you after such a short amount of time with her just makes me all that more intrigued by her.”
My stomach twists as we stare at each other. He’s right. I’m only piquing his interest even more with my outbursts. And I don’t like the way he called her “ours”.
“Don’t hurt her,” I say, my voice coming out weaker and more desperate than I mean for it to. “Figure out a way to get her to eat or at least drink something.”
“I told you not to get attached to anyone after how badly things ended with Daria,” Gavriil tells me as he starts to walk away. “Alina’s not worth the trouble, little brother. Why would you ever want a woman who enjoys screaming my name?”
My frown deepens as I watch him step out of view, leaving me alone with my dread.
If this goes wrong, if he can’t convince Alina to eat or drink something, I may never see her again.
