Page 121 of Ruthless Reign

“You better fucking stop running if you know what’s good for you,” Anatoly snarls.

Gasping for breath, I turn and force myself further up the steep hill. There's nowhere to run and nowhere to hide; the only possible escape is up. I have to keep climbing and hope like hell that I can outrun them or, at the very least, hide out.

My energy is fading fast. Even with adrenaline surging, my body's reserves are depleted, and I can feel myself slowing down.

A quick glance back confirms my worst fears—Anatoly is gaining on me, his guards close behind.

“You think you can outrun me. That you can hide? You fucking can’t! Stop right now, or this ends very badly for you.”

Ignore him, ignore him, ignore him.

He wants me to surrender, but where will that get me? If he gets his hands on me, I know I'm as good as dead.

On all fours now, I force myself to scramble over the jagged rock, desperate to keep moving despite the exhaustion that threatens to overwhelm me. Hopelessness claws at my chest, but I push back against it fiercely. I can't abandon Sofiya to face this horror alone, and Roman would have expected me to fight to my last breath. He wouldn’t give up, just like I won’t. But I need rest.

My face meets the cool rock, and I catch my breath. Just as I begin to regain some strength, a deafening explosion rips through the air.

Flames and smoke surge up from the house, and the shockwave that follows nearly topples me.

Holy shit! What the hell is going on?

Automatic gun fire splits the air.

Is this about me?

I don't have time to figure out what's going on because, despite the explosion, Anatoly is still coming for me. He pauses to shout orders to his men—something about securing the property and figuring out what happened—but he’s still pushing forward.

“I told you not to run from me, you little bitch.” His voice is full of venom. “I’m going to catch you and make you suffer more than you thought possible. Then I'm going to move on to your sister.”

My stomach knots with fear, but his words shake me out of my stupor. My breath saws in and out of my lungs as I push harder up the hill, and my muscles scream in protest.

Gunfire and shouts continue below, but Anatoly is gaining ground, close enough that I can hear his ragged breaths and curses as I try to stay on a straight path.

I make the mistake of looking back. In the span of a heartbeat, my toe catches on a rock, and I go down hard. Pain flashes through my toe, intense and piercing, as if it’s been split open.

Gritting my teeth, I try to stand, pushing through the sharp jolt. I hobble forward, dragging my foot in the dirt, but it’s useless. Fire shoots through my foot the moment I put weight on it. I try again and again to right myself. To move forward, even if I have to drag my foot behind me.

But there's no pushing through this. It’s over for me.

The only thing I can do is curl up into a ball and cover my head with my hands to protect myself.

With a savage grasp, he flips me onto my back.

Jagged rocks bite into my skin, scraping across my back with brutal intensity.

He stands over me, his face a mask of fury. “How the fuck did you do it?” His hand finds my throat, squeezing as I gasp for air.

My eyes snap open, locking onto his dead eyes, as I try to figure out what he means. How did I do what?

“Are you working with Belov?” he continues. “Is that it? How did you get a message to him? Fucking tell me now.”

His words confuse me, but I’m done fighting. I fought to the bitter end, but even I need to accept that it’s over. He won.

Who knows, maybe Roman will be waiting for me on the other side. It’s a nice thought at the very least.

“Tell me,” Anatoly rages and squeezes harder, making it impossible for me to talk. Hell, I can barely breathe.

The edges of my vision begin to blur into darkness when, suddenly, a voice I never thought I’d hear again cuts through the air.

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