Page 106 of The Cold Bratva King and His Forced Curvy Bride

“You’re alive,” I whisper, the tears finally spilling over. “You’re alive.”

I close the gap between us, throwing myself into his arms.

He catches me, lifting me off my feet. He smells like gunpowder and sweat, but underneath it, there’s the faint, familiar scent of his old leather jacket. The scent of home.

“I thought you were dead,” I sob into his shoulder. “I looked everywhere. I found the ring… I found the file…”

“I know,” he says, his voice thick with emotion. “I’m so sorry. I wanted to tell you. I swear, I did.”

He pulls back, cupping my face in his hands. His thumbs brush away my tears, leaving streaks of dirt on my cheeks.

“I’m here now,” he says. “I’m not going anywhere.”

“Where have you been, what happened?”

“It’s a long story,” Nikita says, his arm wrapping around my waist, holding me up. “We’re standing in the middle of a crime scene.”

He looks at Ayaan. “We need to move. Now.”

“Go,” Ayaan says. “I’ll secure the site.”

“We wait for you,” Nikita says firmly.

“You can’t.”

“We will.”

They stare at each other, a silent conversation passing between them. Two men who have seen hell and survived it.

Finally, Ayaan nods. “See you at the safe house.”

Nikita turns me around, guiding me toward the exit. I’m numb, my mind racing. My brother is alive. He’s here. How?

We step out into the cool night air. The adrenaline is crashing, leaving me shaking uncontrollably.

“Hey,” Nikita says, stopping me. He pulls me into his arms, burying his face in my hair. “Breathe.”

“I don’t understand,” I gasp against his chest. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I couldn’t.”

“You promised me the truth.”

“I promised you safety. The truth would have gotten you killed.”

I pull back, looking up at him. “Is that why you married me, to protect me from the truth?”

“Yes.”

“He asked you to?”

“Yes.”

Nikita’s gaze flicks past me, to the warehouse door. “He did what he had to do. He went deep undercover to take down Lorenzo from the inside. He’s been living in the belly of the beast for two years, Freya. A single slip, and he would have been tortured and killed. And you… if you knew, if Lorenzo even suspected you knew…”

“He would have used me.”

“Exactly.”