Page 110 of Warlord’s Empire

“The car leaves in a few minutes.”

He smoothed the curls off her forehead, enjoying the way they stubbornly sprang back into place. “The car won’t leave without me.”

She relaxed against him. “I suppose that’s true. As much as there does seem to be peace between you and my family, I think they’re still wary around you. Your violent reputation precedes you.”

“Rumors and lies,” he assured her.

“Leeza says its mostly true,” she countered with a raised brow.

Changing the subject, he said, “Do you have any idea how happy it makes me to hear you speak of our future as a family? It makes me want to conquer the world and place it at your feet.”

She snuggled against him, laying her head against his chest. “I don’t want the world, just you and Rory.”

“And so you will have us.”

“You haven’t had any nightmares since you’ve been here.”

He set his chin on top of her head. “When our daughter was born, when I was holding her in my hands, my fear for you choking me, the world rearranged itself. Everything became clear to me.”

She tilted her head to look at him. “What changed?” she asked softly.

“In that moment, my world, my wife, my daughter, everything was mapped out in front of me. So fragile, a thread about to be cut, lost to me forever. I knew nothing else mattered. Not the past, not the empire I’ve built, or the armies I have amassed. Only a future that could have so easily disappeared. It’s now my mission to do everything in my power to protect that future.”

Her breath caught and her eyes sparked with tears as she gazed at him. She touched his face, cupping his cheek, running her thumb over his lips. “I love you, Muhammed.”

“And I love you, my angel.”

Chapter Forty-Eight

Radik followed Havel through a darkened alleyway as they closed in on their prey. Leeza was behind Radik, rounding out their team of three. Jozef was coming at their target from the other side with Ayaan, and Cooper.

They were in Minsk, preparing to take Prime Minister Branislav Makovsky and his wife into custody. Radik’s mercenaries had secured the city block for the strike teams.

Havel held a hand up once they were in position, texting Jozef to let him know. Seconds later, Havel asked, “Are we go, team?”

“Go team,” Radik said.

“Go team,” Leeza echoed softly from behind him. He heard the click of her safety disengaging.

“Leeza, you stay behind Radik, got me?” Havel said, his voice hard.

“Yes,” she hissed, her tone annoyed, and Radik grinned into the shadowy darkness.

Good to know that even after several years of marriage, there was still tension. Havel’s need to protect his wife prickled her combative pride. Radik suspected it would be somewhat the same between him and his soon-to-be wife.

Having learned Guard Dog’s coded communication, Radik was ready for the signal to strike. Three beeps sounded in his earpiece, telling him it was time.

Havel, Radik and Leeza moved in unison, crouching low as they approached the house from the front.

Jozef’s team would take the rear.

Leeza helped Havel plant explosives on the front door while Radik covered them, then the three of them took cover. When Jozef’s signal came, Havel hit the button, blowing the front door off its hinges.

They heard the echo of a similar explosion come from the back of the house.

They waited, not entering, and seconds later, two men rushed out the door, semiautomatics at the ready.

Havel took them out with one headshot each.