I move on instinct.
My free hand slides between us, fast and precise, fingers hooking into his pocket.Keys.Cold metal bites my palm as I wrench them free. His hand tightens reflexively at my throat—then loosens, just enough.
I don’t wait to see his face.
I twist, duck under his arm, and bolt.
Branches whip my face as I tear through the dark, lungs burning, boots slipping on wet leaves. Behind me, I hear it—low at first, then breaking wide open.
Laughter.
Howlinglaughter.
He sounds…delighted.
It echoes through the trees, wild and unhinged, following me all the way to the clearing where his car waits. I fumble the door open, slam inside, hands shaking as the engine turns over on the first try.
His laughter is still ringing when I throw it into gear
I don’t look back.
I leave him standing there in the dark—bleeding, laughing, empty-handed, as I peel onto the road and disappear.
***
I drop his car off at my place. He’ll be heading there anyway and I run to the only person who Maksim wouldn’t expect.
Gabriel.
I pound on Gabriel’s door hard enough that my knuckles split.
The night air bites at my face, sweat cooling on my skin, making me shiver. My breath comes in ragged gasps that I can’t control.
The door swings open.
Emir stands there, gun already drawn, eyes scanning the street behind me before landing on my face.
“Ayla?” His brows furrow. “What the fuck—”
“I need to see Gabriel.”
“It’s three in the morning.”
“I don’t care.”
He studies me for a long moment—the sweat, the brass knuckles still on my hand that I forgot to take off. His jaw tightens.
“He’s in his office. But—”
I’m already moving.
Gabriel glances up when I enter, his expression shifting from mild annoyance to calculation in the span of a heartbeat. He takes in my appearance, the designer clothes, the wild look in my eyes.
“Well,” he says slowly, setting down his pen. “This is unexpected.”
I close the door behind me. Lock it.
“I need somewhere to stay. For a few days.”
