Page 119 of Bound By Hate (Born in Blood)

“I had to.”

She throws her arms around me into a tight hug. “I know. I know.”

Sofiya watches the two of us for a moment before joining the hug. “We did it.”

“Yes, we did.” I stare at Gleb’s dead body, feeling fucking vindicated. I killed him. He thought he could come back into my life and take control.

Well, I showed him.

Then, the pain from the bullet hole in my leg jolts me right back. I cry out and bend over.

“We need to get you to the hospital,” Mila says.

“Call Alek,” I say. “I need him.” And I know at that moment just how much I mean those words. I need him more than anything. Even though I killed Gleb without him, I still need to know I’ll be ok, and the only person who has ever made me feel that way is Alek.

Sofiya grabs Leo’s phone and hands it to me. “Call him.”

And I do.

“Viktoriya?” Aleksander’s voice carries through the door before he enters. Mikhail is right behind him.

I’m seated on the dusty, moldy couch, pressing a rag to my wound. Sofiya and Mila remain seated beside me, almost like they’re offering me their protection.

The moment Aleksander locks eyes with me, I know I’ll be all right.

He rushes to my side. “What happened?”

“It’s obvious what happened,” Mikhail says, gazing down at the dead bodies of Leo and Gleb. “Who killed them?”

“Vik did,” Mila says softly.

Alek’s eyes widen. “Are you hurt?”

“Shot in the leg.” I nod down at my wound.

“Let’s get you home. I’ll call the doctor.” He stands up to call, but I grab his hand.

“Have Mikhail call. I just want you with me right now.”

His eyes soften as he sits back down. “Ok. I’ll stay.”

We both know he means more than just at this moment. What might have started as a challenge for both of us has blossomed into something more.

For the first time since meeting Alek, I know I love him.

Chapter

Twenty

VIKTORIYA

“How do you feel?” Alek asks me as we lie in bed together, running his hand up and down my thigh. I glance down at my leg, which has healed from my gunshot wound. It’s been a month since Gleb kidnapped me and I killed him.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be able to dance again,” I say.

“How does that make you feel?”

I think about it, and then I shrug. “It doesn’t make me sad any longer. In fact, I feel free, like a weight has been lifted off me. I was never going to be good enough any longer. I was either going to be not skinny enough or not strong enough to dance. Now, I don’t care as much. Going through what I went through put a lot of things in perspective. I could have died. My sisters could have died. Ballet seems so small in comparison.”

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