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Roan!
I surged forward, but two pairs of hands grabbed me from behind and held me in place. Trying to throw them off with a snarl, I glanced over each shoulder, recognizing Misha and his driver.
“What the fuck is he doing here?” I asked Misha in Russian.
Misha held my gaze for a pointed second, before he looked at Sergei. His boss had risen to his feet and was talking with Dimitri in low voices.
Roan was standing too, his arms crossed over his chest, his brows slanted over worried eyes. Helookedok, but who the hell knew what happened before I got here and who knew what was going to happen next.
“Sasha,” Sergei said, drawing my attention to him. “I’ve been hearinga lotof things about you. A lot of… troubling things.” Strangely, he spoke in English. I cocked my head at the language choice, stealing another quick glance at Roan.
I didn’t say anything as Sergei moved closer. Misha gave my shoulder a squeeze before letting go and shoving me forward a step.
“Viktor tells me you are queer.” Sergei looked me up and down, his lips twisting beneath the neatly trimmed gray beard. “He tells me you and your” — he gestured dismissively to Roan — “whatever, have conspired to steal from me. He thinks you are trying to oust him and set yourself up as a captain.”
“Exactly!” Viktor exclaimed, taking a step forward. “And he—”
Sergei held up a finger, silencing the rest of Viktor’s bullshit. “So, tell me, Sasha. Is the Wolf of Verkhoyansk, the terrifying butcher of men, a filthy, fucking faggot?”
I had a decision to make. If Sergei knew the truth, he’d kill me. But if I lied and he knew I was lying, he would kill me in a much more painful fashion. Since I was bound to die either way, I hoped my truthfulness would spare Roan. My gaze shifted past Sergei and settled on Roan as I answered. “It’s true.”
Roan covered his mouth with his hand, looking like he was two seconds away from throwing up. Even from a distance, I could see the wetness in his eyes, highlighting the purple color I loved so much.
Sergei nodded, running his tongue over his teeth, also looking like he was going to vomit. “And the two of you fucking faggots stole my property from the bank?”
“Yes,” I answered tightly.
Sergei nodded again. “Where is it?”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “My boot.”
Misha immediately dropped to a crouch. I picked up my left foot and he unlaced it quickly, pulling it off. The flash drive fell to the floor. Misha shoved my boot back on and snatched the drive off the ground, handing it to Sergei.
Sergei looked it over and tucked it in his pocket, apparently satisfied it was the original. “What were you going to do with it?”
I shot a glare at Viktor and his stupid grinning face. “I was going to leverage it, to see if this piece of shit actually set me up.”
Sergei followed my gaze. “Setyouup? For what?”
“This,” I hissed, gesturing at the confined space. “Someone has to take the blame for what a fuck up his nephew has been. It was Yuri’s idea to rob the bank, Yuri who called the police and ratted out your warehouse. But it was Viktor who was trying to set himself up as the new boss, not me. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”
Sergei’s brows lifted. “Is that so?” He turned to Viktor, the same curious expression on his face.
“He’s a fucking liar!” Viktor said, his lip curling. “You can’t believe a word he says.”
“What has he lied about?” Sergei asked, spreading his hands. “He confessed to being queer, to stealing the flash drive. He’s right about Yuri being a rat. Eduard found the proof in the phone records, records your man Gregor tried to hide from Misha.”
Viktor blanched, covering it with a laugh. When no one laughed with him, he swallowed. “Sergei. You can’t be serious. You thinkIam behind any of this? It’s these two rapists you should worry about, spreading lies and disease and trying to make you look like a fool.”
Sergei looked past him to Dimitri and tossed his head toward the door. The two men walked out together, closing the door behind them.
Without any hands restraining me, I darted over to Roan and threw my arms around him, careful not to crush his ribs. “Are you ok?”
He nodded, trying to push me away. “They’re looking at you.”
“I don’t fucking care.” I caught his face between my hands and kissed him, right there in front of Misha and the others. There might have been gasps and curses and murmuring coming from behind me, but all I cared about was Roan’s soft moan against my lips. Dying with the memory of his lips on mine was all the comfort I needed. I’d kiss him in front of Sergei and happily take the punishment for both of us if it meant sparing Roan’s life.
I hated to pull away, but I did, keeping hold of his face gently. “I kept my promise.”
