Page 19 of The Pakhan’s Accidental Bride

Then I hear it. A single gunshot that cracks through the night air like thunder.

And I watch in absolute horror as Kiera collapses to the ground.

9

KIERA

Arnie's fingers dig into my arm like a vise, and he yanks hard, trying to drag me out of my apartment doorway.

"You think you can just ignore me?" His breath reeks of whiskey and rage. "You think⁠—"

Training kicks in before panic does. All those self-defense classes. All the times my brothers wrestled with me, taught me how to break holds and fight dirty.

I drop.

My knees hit the concrete walkway hard, the sudden shift in weight and angle breaking his grip instantly. His fingers slide off my wet arm, and I hear him curse above me.

Then the world explodes.

The crack of the gunshot splits the night open. The sound is so loud, it feels like it punches through my skull. Something hot passes over my head, so close, I feel the displacement of air against my scalp, ruffling my damp hair.

A bullet. Someone just shot at me!

For a moment, I can't move and just sit there crouched in shock. If I'd still been standing, if I hadn't dropped to break Arnie's hold, that bullet would have hit me and I'd likely be dead right now, bleeding out on my doorstep in nothing but a damp robe.

I look up at Arnie. He's staring at me with his mouth hanging open, his face pale as death in the dim light. He's frozen, his hands still outstretched where they'd been gripping my arm seconds ago. For once, he looks as terrified as I feel.

"Kiera!" Multiple voices shout my name at once.

Heavy footsteps pound toward me from the parking lot. An engine roars as a car screeches to a stop somewhere close by. More shouting and the sound of car doors flying open.

I'm still on my knees, my robe gaping open with water from my bath dripping down my legs. My brain feels sluggish, still caught on the fact that someone just tried to kill me.

Two figures come running from the shadows of the parking lot. Even in my shocked state, I recognize them instantly. Emil, his powerful body moving with lethal grace, and Luca right behind him, his hand already reaching inside his jacket.

From the other direction, my brothers' car skids to a stop at the curb. I catch a glimpse of Kevin in the driver's seat, Devin beside him, Jack and Kaleb in the back.

Where the hell did they all come from?

Emil reaches me first, taking the stairs up to my second floor two at a time. He doesn't ask if I'm okay. He doesn't hesitate. He simply positions himself directly in front of me, his broad back blocking my view of everything else. His body is a wall between me and whatever danger is out there.

"Stay down," he orders, his voice hard as steel.

I try to stand anyway, I guess out of reflex. My mind isn't really functioning properly right now. My legs are shaky, my knees throbbing from hitting the concrete, but I need to get up. I need to understand what's happening.

His hand shoots out and presses against my shoulder, keeping me on my knees. The touch is firm, unyielding.

"I said stay the fuck down." There's no room for argument in his tone.

I crane my neck around Emil and see Luca with a gun drawn, sweeping the area with the practiced efficiency of someone who's done this a thousand times. The sight of the weapon should probably scare me more than it does, but right now, I'm grateful for it.

My brothers are trying to get out of the car. I can hear them shouting, see the doors opening.

"Stay in the fucking vehicle," Emil barks without turning around. The command in his voice is absolute, the kind of authority that makes people obey without thinking.

"Like hell," Kevin shouts back. "That's our sister!"

"And there's a shooter somewhere out here who just tried to put a bullet in her head." Emil's voice drops to something even more dangerous. "You want to give him more targets? Stay in the goddamn car."