Page 12 of Warlord’s Empire

She shuddered as she passed the body. Catching her revulsion, Radik snapped, “Get him out of here.”

His bodyguard nodded, calling two men into the room who carried the former hotel manager away.

She collapsed into a plush chair, her gaze on Radik, who stood behind the doctor, his arms crossed as he watched the other man bend over her, brushing her hair aside as he inspected the bump on her head.

“I’m not your woman,” she said to Radik.

His expression didn’t change. “You are.” She opened her mouth to deny him, but he added, “We’ll talk about it later. For now, you must rest and recover.” His face softened. “I’m sorry you saw that. I shouldn’t have allowed my rage to overtake me. It won’t happen again.”

Of course it wouldn’t, because she was out of there the moment the doctor finished examining her.

“I need to get back to the hotel,” she said, holding in a wince as the doctor probed her head. Then she realized she hadn’t seen her satchel since waking up. “Did you happen to see a laptop bag when you brought me here?”

“Yes, it’s here,” Radik replied.

“I want it,” she said quickly, pushing the doctor away so she could stand. “I’m leaving. I have to go back to the hotel.”

Radik looked concerned as he glanced at the doctor before repeating in a gentler, slower tone, “We have your things here. You don’t need to go back to the hotel.”

She shook her head, instantly regretting it. Putting a hand to her temple, she said, “I need to talk to the police about Aurelia. Make sure her family knows what happened.”

He frowned. “The dead woman?”

She flinched, her mind conjuring an image of Aurelia sprawled dead on a blood-soaked mattress. Tears burned and she nodded, unable to speak as she swallowed hard, pushing them back.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“You don’t understand,” she said, her heart pounding as she stepped up to him. He stood well over a foot taller than her, dwarfing her. “She’s dead because of me. I have to… I don’t know. Take responsibility or something.”

She couldn’t stop seeing the blood. Stop seeing her dead friend.

“How do you know she died because of you?”

“Those guys were after me, weren’t they?” she pointed out. “They must be connected to Jozef somehow.” She gasped. “Oh shit, Jozef! I have to call him. He’ll be frantic.” She turned on the spot, glancing around, checking her pockets for her phone. She’d had it with her when she was attacked. “Do you know where my phone is?”

Radik wrapped his hand around her bicep, anchoring her. “Stop, Saskia.”

She stared at him, everything and everyone else fading from the room. “I can’t,” she whispered. “It was my fault.” Again, the tears surged to the surface and she blinked rapidly.

He turned her to face him and gentled his grip, his thumb rubbing her arm. “It wasn’t your fault. Aurelia Novakova was killed before the Russians went after you, correct? They went to her room first, not yours.”

But what did that have to do with… oh. “If I was the main target, they would have gone for me first.”

“They went after both of you, her first, which made her the primary target.”

She stared at him, craning her neck as a trickle of relief went through her. Maybe it wasn’t her fault. “But who would want both of us dead?” She turned her head, unable to think while his intense gaze was on her. Her mind, body and heart were at war from his presence and she needed a clear head. “We’re friends, but we don’t see each other much outside of work, so it must be related to our work for the Prime Minister’s office. But what could it be?”

“It doesn’t need to concern you now,” Radik said. “I will take care of it.”

She shook her head. “You can’t. I need to talk to her family, talk to Jozef and let him know what happened.” Her thoughts raced as she tried to pin them down. “I’ll have to find a safe way out of the country. Whoever did this is probably watching the airports. Once I’m home, Jozef will – ”

“No,” Radik said, steel ringing in the single word.

“This isn’t your problem. You’ve done enough.” She stopped, realizing exactly what he’d done for her. She touched his arm, a rush of excitement sizzling through her as she allowed her fingers to linger on his warm skin. “You saved my life and I’m so grateful. If you hadn’t come for me… well… never mind. I don’t expect anything else from you. If I can just send a message to Jozef, he’ll send Leeza and Havel to collect me.”

“You misunderstand,” he said, his tone sharp. “Perhaps on purpose. You’re a smart woman, I think you know what’s going to happen here.”

Her heart fluttered in excitement, then sank. Yes, she knew what was happening. She’d worked it out almost from the moment she set eyes on Radik strangling the hotel manager.