Page 57 of Ruby Menace

And Kirill… Kirill is still on the floor. My heart leaps into my throat as I rush over and fall to his side.

“Kirill!” I can’t breathe as I take in the sight of him. The red stain on his chest continues to pump blood. Too much blood. “Oh, God, Kirill!”

His face is pale as death itself, but he manages a weak smile when he sees me. “I… knew… you were a fighter,” he gasps out between ragged breaths.

“Kirill, stay with me!” I choke out, staring down at the bloody mess of his shirt. “I need you here, okay? I need you here with us.” I press a hand over his chest, trying not to gag as I feel how my fingers press into the hole there. “Kirill, please! Please!” I don’t know what I’m asking for, but I repeat the word over and over again as his eyelids droop shut.

And he goes deathly still.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Kirill

We’re at war.

And it’s not looking good for us.

Vlad Petrov’s private army infiltrated my home, blew up parts of the building, and killed several of my men in the process. They came in with guns blazing, and left nothing intact, those bastards.

Shootouts in confined spaces usually happen in a short amount of time. But not this one. Despite the fact that we’re in my study, we’ve been trying to kill each other for over half an hour. That’s a lot of time to be constantly shot at. And as much as I had hoped that we can finish off every single one of these motherfuckers for good, the whole thing just keeps dragging on. I saw multiple of my men go down in a rain of bullets and I know there will be more.

I am wounded too.

My flesh has been pierced in multiple places, and I bled all over my shirt. But I don’t care. Not as long as they didn’t hit anything vital, and so far, they didn’t. Time is not on my side, though. I know I am going to start feeling the blood loss, very soon. But before I fall to the ground and heave my last breath, there is something I must do.

Tiana.

She’s all that matters. I need to get her to safety, whatever it takes. She is pregnant with my heir. My heirs. She carries not one, but two of my offspring and it is my job to protect them at all cost. It is my only goal right now.

My study continues to echo with the cacophony of gunfire, the metallic tang of blood heavy in the air. Bullets rain down like a perverse summer storm, piercing the wooden furniture that offered scant cover just minutes ago. Tiana, her face etched with fear and eyes wide with terror, huddles behind the bullet-torn sofa. Every fucking fiber of my being screams to protect her, to get her to safety.

Ignoring the sting of sweat in my eyes and the growing stain of blood on my shirt, I lung across the open space. The world narrows to her face, pale and vulnerable, the only thing that matters amidst the chaos. She has been in danger before and I always found a way to protect her.

But this time, it’s different.

As I fly through the open space, a searing pain erupts in my chest; hot and insistent. My body lurches, momentum failing me as I crash to the floor a scant meter away from her.

Blyad.

So much for protecting your woman, mudak.

I immediately know what happened. This is not my first close encounter with death, but it may well be my last one. Because this time I’ve been hit in the chest, right where you don’t want to get hit. The circle-shaped red stain coloring the middle of my shirt is proof.

The first thing I see after my body hits the floor is Tiana’s face. Her eyes are locked on mine, a whirlwind of emotions swirling within them – terror, disbelief, fear, and a realization that I’ve been shot. But that’s not what worries me the most.

You failed her, dolboyob.

I, who had sworn to protect her, lay here useless, blood blooming crimson on the white of my shirt. I fight for air, but it doesn’t seem to come. Tiana’s face is now a blur, but she reaches for me and screams my name one last time.

Then, the world goes black.

That’s when something or someone gently slaps me.

What the fuck?

Confusion gnaws at me. It’s still dark, but I’m no longer in my study. I’m not feeling the metallic tang of blood either. My body throbs with a dull ache, but it feels distant, unreal.

Then, another slap follows, this time sharper.

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