Page 2 of Tangled Vows

Ivan nods and signals our two men. They take off, slipping into the shadows of the warehouse. I lock eyes with Aleksei. He grins, gun at the ready. We begin to creep along the perimeter of the large room, using the tall shelves for cover. I can tell the Armenians haven’t spotted us yet. Their wild firing at my pinned down men is more than enough proof of that. What a bunch of amateurs. They must have seen scenes like this in the movies and dreamt of being in one for real because it looked cool.

As we reach the halfway point, I spot Ivan and our men sneaking into position about twenty yards from the enemy’s side. I catch his eye and hold up three fingers, then make a fist. He nods.

I start my countdown. Three... Two... One...

“Now!” I roar, springing from cover and firing at the Armenians.

Ivan and his team do the same, catching them in deadly crossfire.

Two go down immediately, their bodies tumbling to the floor with a thud. The remaining three whip around. Letting fear get the best of them, they make the mistake of scattering instead of staying in a tight group. In a matter of seconds, we pick them off, one by one. The echoes of the guns popping linger in the air when the final one draws his last breath. Blood dripping from his lips, he lays flat on his back, eyes still open but no longer seeing.

Silence falls on the warehouse, my ringing ears reminding me what just happened. I can smell the gunpowder in the air, smoke still rising from the barrels of our weapons. Watchful for any other threats, Ivan and I sweep the area. It doesn’t take long to reach a conclusion. These five seemed to be the only armed guard present.

“Clear!” Ivan calls out from my left, his weapon still drawn, barrel pointing upward. I give the all-clear signal and my men emerge from their cover. A sense of relief washes over me. None of them is hurt, apart from a few cuts and bruises along their forearms.

“Guess our intel was good,” Aleksei remarks as they reach us, nudging a dead Armenian with his boot.

“What about the girls?” Ivan asks, his urgent tone showing his worry.

I turn to him. “Back to the SUVs, now!” I command, my voice bouncing off the walls of the warehouse.

We rush outside. I’m relieved to see my drivers are still standing guard by the vehicles full of our unexpected cargo. The young women have stayed hidden, although I can see shadows shifting behind tinted windows. I bet they’re nervous; I know I would be if I were in their shoes.

I jerk open the rear door. Wide, frightened eyes flash to mine but instantly calm when they recognize me. I offer my most reassuring smile before gesturing for Clare to step out. She hesitates only a second, then hops out of the SUV, tugging on the hem of her torn dress.

Up close, her beauty hits me like a goddamn smack in the face. The dress she’s wearing, or what remains of it, must have cost a bundle. Her daddy must be loaded. Someone must have paid top dollar to have her kidnapped. She’s a prize. A trophy in the eyes of some twisted fuck who thought he could steal her from her family. Rage surges through me as this thought enters my mind.

“Are you alright?” I ask, keeping that notion to myself. She’s got enough troubles; I’m not going to burden her with a horrifying scenario of slavery. Her delicate face makes her appear younger, but I can tell she’s closer to her twenties than teens, like some of the other girls.

She runs a hand through her long dark hair and parts her lips. “Yeah, I think so. Just shaken up, and uh...” she glances down at her torn, filthy dress. “Feeling a little exposed at the moment.”

I frown and shrug off my leather jacket before throwing it over her bare shoulders. That oversized coat makes her look tiny and fragile. I’m sure one more Clare would fit under my jacket.

Moments of silence pass between us, and in those, an urge rises within me. It’s completely new, but I can’t ignore it, even if I wanted to. I want to shield and protect this woman. And that instinct must show on my face, judging by the eyebrow Ivan arches at me. That son of a bitch knows me too well. Of all the people in the world, he’s the one I can’t hide from.

Clearing my throat, I address our group. “We need to move fast. The shooting means this place will be crawling with cops in no time. Yuri,” I pin my coldest stare at my driver. “Get them to the safe house. Now.”

He nods, his expression stiff. “Yes, sir.”

Yuri may be young, but he’s one of our best drivers and can navigate Miami streets like a seasoned native.

The rest of my crew begin loading back into the vehicles. I turn back to Clare as she tugs on my jacket, her gaze down to the floor.

“You’ll all be safe soon,” I murmur. An impulse drives me to brush a strand of silken hair from Clare’s cheek.

Her eyes hold mine just for a brief moment. That rare shade of green is fixed on my face, and I lose my will to offer her more words of comfort. Something passes between us before Ivan steps up and opens the SUV’s rear door for her.

She smiles up at me and then ducks into the vehicle. The sharp closing of that door snaps me out of my daze not a moment too soon. We need to go now. I can’t afford to gaze at anybody, no matter how hot they look.

But still, I’m not the kind of guy who stares like some lovestruck moron. I’ve been with my fair share of women. What the hell was that? I give myself a mental ass-kicking before gesturing to my men.

“Move out!”

The SUV engines roar to life and the vehicles veer towards the road, slipping away just as I hear the telltale sirens in the distance. Their wailing grows louder in my ears. The cops will be on-scene in two minutes. No time for the cleanup crew. Ivan and I share a glance. We sprint off, heading for our cars. It’s time for us to make our own, hasty exit. I slide in, adrenaline and emotions still pumping through my veins as I turn the key in the ignition.

Tires squealing, my mind is playing tricks on me. It keeps straying back to the sight of Clare wrapped in my coat. How tightly she clung to my jacket, even in the safety of the SUV. She looked like she enjoyed having something of mine on her. Maybe she caught my scent and wanted to...

Oh, shut the fuck up, idiot!

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