“Go,” I say. “I’ll see you both soon.”
I squeeze Sasha’s hand one more time before shutting the door. Andrei nods to me, then guns the engine. The car pulls away and is soon out of sight. Relief washes over me at the knowledge that my son is safe.
But this mission is far from over. Gun in hand, I turn my attention to the warehouse.
CHAPTER 51
AMALIE
Iknow what the room is for the second they drag me into it.
Concrete floor, a drain in the center. Hooks on the wall. One bare light bulb hanging from the ceiling.
My wrists aren’t bound anymore, but the guards have me in their grip. My pulse is loud in my ears, but my mind is weirdly calm, like just before a car accident where everything slows and sharpens at the same time.
“Alright, let’s do this quick,” one of them says.
The other takes out his pistol. He clicks off the safety and raises the gun.
Automatic gunfire like what I heard at the gala erupts. It’s coming from all different directions up above.
“Shit,” one of the men mutters. “That’s got to be him.”
Roman!
Another burst of shots. Closer now. Shouts. Orders barked in Russian.
The man with the gun hesitates. “If that’s Barinov and he finds out we’re the ones who killed his woman…”
The other nods, taking off his beanie and running his hand through thinning hair. “Yeah.” He takes a moment to think.
“You should listen to your friend,” I say. “I’ve seen what he can do when he’s got someone alone in a room like this.”
I’m not lying. It’s a fact that I hate I know, but it’s the truth.
“He’s got all sorts of tools on the wall, too,” I continue. “And if he had the guys who killed his girl in front of him? I bet he’d take his time, use them all.”
The men look like they’ve seen a ghost.
“Shit. Shit. Shit.” The man with thinning hair turns and starts to pace. “She’s right. We can’t do her now. Barinov would disembowel us.”
“Then what do we do?” the other asks.
Thinning hair guy looks around. “Leave her here. Lock the door. We’ll come back and finish the job after the battle, assuming we’re still alive.”
No hesitation from the other guy. “Good call.” He turns to me. “Wait here, lady.”
Without another word, the guys leave. They shut the door behind them and lock it.
Idiots.
More shots crack overhead. Something heavy falls. More shouting.
I want to sob with relief, but there’s no time for that. Roman’s coming for me, but I’m not about to wait patiently to be rescued.
I look around. I know the door is locked, but it’s not solid steel like the doors at Roman’s house. It’s cheap wood with exposed hinge screws. I glance at the hooks on the wall and see that one is broken, barely hanging in place.
A closer inspection reveals it’s brittle enough to pull off. The hook feels solid, but the broken end is sharp.I yank it from the wall.
