Page 102 of Coveted By Cupid

“But they may still have your brother,” I press, playing my last card. “If Artem is alive, we should try to rescue him. Another man who knows the job is better than training a fresh one.”

Mikhail steeples his hands against his face, looking torn between saving his brother and staying alive. His leg bounces under the table, shaking the dishes on the surface.

“Her absence from campus makes sense if she is under the club’s protection,” Kirill says, musing. “Cupid will keep her under lock and key, as he should.”

“Then why is she back on campus?” Mikhail asks, his face lined with confusion. “Cupid must know we are close by, watching. Why risk her returning?”

“Because Vanessa would give him hell if she couldn’t finish the semester,” I say, knowing my girlfriend and her desire to complete her degree.

Mikhail rolls his eyes. “Letting your women run the show—pathetic.”

“But that’s good for us,” Kirill interjects optimistically. “We’ll know where she’ll be. She’ll either be in class or with Cupid, most likely in Loveland. If Boden does surveillance of the MC’s territory, we’ll know of her whereabouts.”

“And Artem,” Mikhail says, his eyes probing Kirill, making sure he’s not forgotten what really matters to them.

Kirill wraps his hand around Mikhail’s neck, pulling him in and connecting their foreheads. “We’ll get him back. If he’s alive, we’ll bring him home.”

Riley huffs, crossing her arms across her ample chest. “Is this chick worth pursuing? She doesn’t want Boden back, and she’s affiliated with the Royal Bastards. She seems more trouble than she’s worth.”

“Shut your mouth, Riley,” I snap, crossing the space to get in her face. “Your opinion of Vanessa is irrelevant. The Royal Bastards took Artem. We need to find out what happened to him. If we’re already searching for Mikhail’s brother, we might as well keep tabs on Vanessa.”

Mikhail’s eyes widen, as if a light bulb has turned on above his head. “If we can get our hands on Vanessa, we could use her as leverage and make a trade for Artem.”

What?! No. Fuck!

“We’re not grabbing Vanessa just to hand her right back to the bikers,” I shout, my heart hammering in my chest anxiously. “You promised to give her back to me!”

Mikhail snaps, standing so fast that he knocks over his chair. He’s across the room and on me in a nanosecond, pinning me against the wall.

Riley lets out a terrified shriek, rushing forward. She pounds her fists against the Neanderthal’s back, trying to get him to release me. Mikhail easily shrugs her off, making her fall backward onto the floor. She cries out in pain.

“Fuck,” Kirill says, jumping from his seat to help Riley up from the floor. His head swivels up to us, his face lined with worry as Riley cries against his chest. “Mikhail, stop!”

But Mikhail doesn’t back off, showing no sign of releasing me.

“We had a deal,” I wheeze between pants.

“What deal? You’re not in charge here. The only reason they took Artem in the first place is because you got butthurt your woman left you and you wanted to make her pay for it.”

I struggle against his forearm pressing down on my windpipe, but I choke out, “You wanted inventory. I suggested her to you. Kirill agreed to hand her over after you had your fun with her.”

“Fuck you and your pettiness,” Mikhail hisses, leaning harder against my throat.

Kirill appears at our side, pushing against Mikhail’s chest with all his strength. “ENOUGH! Release him, Mikhail.”

After a few more shoves, the goon releases me with an irritated growl, pushing past his boss to put distance between me and him. I’m bent over, coughing my lungs out. Riley helps me upright, tears streaming down her face. She tries to hug me, but I pull away from her. I already had one Russian try to kill me today. I don’t want to anger another.

“Listen, everyone,” Kirill says sternly, bringing order back to our group. “Nobody is going to do a damn thing unless I say so.”

His cold eyes land on me, pointing a gnarled finger in my face. “You and Riley will go to Loveland and scout the Royal Bastard territory, reporting back to me daily. Look for any weak spots and any place they could hold Artem. Mikhail and I will monitor Cupid’s woman on campus⁠—”

Mikhail scoffs, interjecting. “It is too dangerous, Kirill! We don’t know if there are other Royal Bastards keeping watch of her aside from her security detail.”

“We no longer have a choice, Mikhail,” Kirill retorts. “The president’s ole lady is our best shot at recovering your brother. The sooner we have Artem back, the sooner we can rebuild.”

Mikhail’s lips turn down in a scowl, but he says no more.

When no one else says anything, Kirill looks at me and Riley with a Don’t fuck with me glare. “Pack a bag. You leave for Loveland today.”