I fell on the ground, and my butt and back seared, being dragged on the dirt and dry twigs into the
woods. Several men lay unmoving around me. Then a foggy wave swirled in the horizon. I thought it
was just me being dizzy, about to pass out. But then I heard them. Roars. Motorcycles revving their
engines.
More gunshots rained down on us, and Jesse was screaming my name over and over. All I was
thinking was that I was glad he was still alive. I glanced up and saw it was still my uncle who had
hold of me. I hated that he was going to be the last face I’d seen before I died.
Why hadn’t he shot me yet? Leverage, I presumed. That only meant one thing. He was losing, and
he thought he could trade my life for his.
The hope spiked the adrenaline in my blood, and my brain started to work again. The bikes, they
must be Jesse’s friends. But how did they find us?
It didn’t matter now. What mattered was that they had guns, and they killed my uncle’s men. Now,
he was all alone.
My eyes strained open, and I listened to the footsteps crunching the leaves, scurrying toward me. I
realized there was still a fight in me. I rolled on my side despite the pain and, with an aching shout, I grabbed my uncle’s ankle with all the strength I had left.
He stumbled back a step, calling me a bitch, but he didn’t lose his balance. Instead, I earned
myself a blow on the head with the back of his gun. Groaning, I fought so hard to stay awake, my head refusing to comply.
“Sia! You son of a bitch!”
That was Jesse. I could no longer open my eyes, but I still recognized his voice. Then I felt myself
standing, held steady by strong arms, and cold metal pressing to my temple.
“One more move and she’s dead,” my uncle threatened. “Drop your fucking guns.”
“Let her go.”
“You know you’re a dead man. The rest of the Romanovs in Russia will hunt you down and kill
you. All of you are dead men.”
“So are you. Now, let Sia go. I won’t say it again.”
“My life and theirs for yours…uncle,” I mumbled painfully. “I’ll disappear. You can tell
everybody I’m dead, and you’ll get everything.”
“Sia, no.” Jesse aimed his gun at my uncle. “If he says yes now, he’ll be lying. He’ll come after us
later. He has to die right here right now.”
My uncle pressured his gun more against my skin. “Listen to your girl, Jesse Savage. She’s much
