Then it comes back to me. Ed was hit on the head and I was attacked. I’m hanging over the back of a Russian’s shoulder.
Panic surges and I struggle against the arms clamped around the back of my thighs. My captor drags me from his shoulder and drops me so I land on my ass at the top of the steps. My head throbs in time with the music coming from the marquee. I’m on the terrace overlooking the party.
As I’m pulled to my feet, a face looms. Andrey.
“Utter one word and I’ll knock you out again,” he hisses, clamping his hand to the back of my neck and facing me forward. “Walk, bitch.”
Cold fear replaces panic as I’m marched towards a set of French doors. There are people in the vast room beyond. Three men stand at the far end of the hall, Duke and his brothers. There’s no sign of Killian as the Moncriefs face a group that includes Katarina. She’s gesturing to an older man in a black, woolen coat.
Andrey opens the door and I immediately feel the cold metal of a gun at my temple as I’m marched into the room. I see the horror on Duke’s face turn to cold fury as he draws his gun and aims it at Andrey’s head. A series of clicks echo through the hall as other weapons appear.
Rory aims his gun at the man in the coat. I’d thought the brother next to him was Calder, but it’s a younger man with the same russet hair. Fitz, I presume. At least something worked out right tonight.
“No one move,” commands the man Katarina had been talking to. “We haven’t finished talking.”
“I’ve finished talking,” growls Duke.
As he casts his gaze over me, I pull back my shoulders and try my best to look less afraid. A smile is beyond me, but I manage one anyway. If he pulls the trigger, we all die.
“Marmaduke,” the man in the coat says, commanding attention. “I only need you to say two words:I do. And once you and my niece are married and our families are merged, you’ll be free to fuck your whore as often as you like.” Katarina’s his niece, which makes this man Vasili Barkov. The smile he gives me turns the blood in my veins to ice. “If we clean her up, she can be Katarina’s bridesmaid.”
Slowly, Duke aims his gun towards Vasili. “If anyone touches her, you’re the first to die.”
“Please, less of the dramatics,” Vasili replies. “You’ve been outmaneuvered. You were always going to be outmaneuvered. I know all about Grace Hamel. And I know younever intended to go through with the wedding to Katarina. Your plan failed. I win.” He glances at his niece. “You’re such a disappointment. Men are supposed to want to marry you. I shouldn’tneedto threaten them.”
As he talks, I take in more of my surroundings. Above us there are two soldiers at opposite sides of the viewing gallery, their guns aimed at Duke and his brothers. The only Russian without a weapon is a man to the side of Vasili holding what looks like a bible. A pastor? He’s going to marry them tonight.
“Let me be clear,” continues Vasili. “If the shooting starts, it won’t be contained to this room. Can you imagine what would happen to the Moncrief market value if every last person you’ve invited here were slaughtered? And rest assured that’s exactly what will happen. No one will be showing up to stop us.”
A crack, followed by a whoosh rises above the music coming from the marquee. Andrey has my head fixed straight ahead, but in my periphery, I catch the haze of red reflecting off the windows.
“You might be able to block radio waves,” says Rory, “but that flare can be seen for miles around. And our friends will know what it means.”
Vasili heaves out a frustrated sigh. “This is so tiring. Let’s speed things up, shall we? Marmaduke, you have two choices. You either marry my niece or I take her back, and I’m starting to think that might be preferable. It’s time to break that wild streak of hers once and for all.” Vasili looks over his shoulder at Danyl. “I do believe I promised you the task.”
He nods. “She’ll break for me.”
I’m twenty feet away, but I see Katarina tense. Dukeand Rory do the same. It’s as if they were expecting the Bratva soldier’s body to crash onto the floor in front of us, having fallen from a great height.
Chapter 33
Duke
The moment the first soldier drops with his throat cut, I snatch the extra gun from my waistband and pass it to Fitz. “On Vasili,” I say as I switch my aim back to Andrey. I have to block out Grace. I need to tamper down the rage that had my hands shaking when I’d seen her injured face. My focus stays on the man I’m going to kill.
“There’s just one problem with your cunning plan, Vasili,” Killian calls out.
The second soldier up in the gallery shouts something in Russian. He’s the only one to have eyes on Killian, but just as he fires off a shot, he makes a gurgling sound. I glance up briefly to see a throwing knife embedded in the guy’s throat as he stumbles back. The thump of his body hitting the gallery floor isn’t as dramatic as Killian’s first kill, but the soldier isn’t getting up again.
I’m back on Andrey, but I feel the glare Vasili directs at me. “You reject us, but count the McConkeys as your friends?”
There’s genuine shock in his voice. The all-seeing Vasili didn’t know about Katarina’s involvement with Killian.
“It’s a bit of a sore point at the moment,” Rory says, far more jovially than the situation warrants. “Friendship might be stretching it, but I do believe Killian owes me a favor.”
Danyl steps in front of Vasili to cover him and they back away until they’re beneath the platform where Killian remains hidden. The pastor has retreated to the furthest corner of the hall, close to the doors where I suspect reinforcements of one form or another will arrive soon. Vasili’s men are nearest, but Max could try to launch a counter attack. If it is Max, he won’t know exactly what to expect. It’s about to get very messy.
“As I was saying,” Killian continues. “Unlike the Moncriefs, I come from a family that isn’t concerned about public image. In fact, I’d say our image will be improved if we take you down.”
