Page 184 of Sinful Games

Angelo cursed loudly on the other end of the line. “Damn it, Alexsei! I’m outside with the fire department—Jade, Volk, andSofiya are all here. I couldn't find Caia before the blast. I thought maybe she got out with everyone else when the alarms went off, but then I realized we hadn’t heard from you either. What the hell happened?”

“She’s not with me, Angelo!” I growled. “I haven’t seen her. Leila said she was targeting her next. I need to find her!”

Fuck, Caia, please—please be alright, moya solnyshka.

“Shit,” Angelo muttered. “Okay, listen—we’ll start searching for her right away through the crowd. But you need to get out of there first, Alexsei. The fire’s out of control.”

“I can’t!” I yelled. “She must’ve locked Caia up somewhere in your damn building. I have to find her!”

“Alexsei, don’t do this!” Angelo’s voice was frantic now. “The building’s a ticking time bomb! You could die in there!”

But I was already moving, forcing my way through the thickening smoke, the heat searing my skin.

“I’m not leaving her behind!” I shouted, my heart pounding in my chest. “I’ll tear this place apart if I have to, but I’m finding my fucking wife!”

I hung up, coughing into the crook of my arm.

Just hours ago, this place had been buzzing with people celebrating an exhibition of strong women—icons of power and resilience.

Now, it was all going up in flames, set ablaze by a woman twisted by revenge.

The very symbols of strength were being reduced to ashes.

I made my way to the third floor, where I knew Jade’s and Angelo’s offices were. I barged through the doors, barely able to touch the scorching handles without burning my skin.

The offices were empty—no sign of Caia.

The blaring alarm and growing heat were disorienting, so I stumbled down to the second floor, where the accountant’s offices and a small ballroomwere.

I threw open every door I could, wincing as the hot handles seared my fingers.

Each room I checked was deserted.

This building was too damn big, and my sense of direction was slipping away.

Frustration surged through me as I tried to think like Leila.

Where would she hide Caia to ensure her ultimate death?

I gripped my hair in desperation, trying to think fast. With each step, the chaos around me seemed to intensify. The fire roared louder, the smoke thickened, and the alarms blared like an angry beast.

Then it hit me.

The building was going to collapse soon because of the fire.

That’s where Leila must’ve hidden Caia—someplace where if the flames didn’t kill her, the crumbling structure would.

The thought made me sick as I sprinted toward the most vulnerable parts of the building, hoping I could find my wife before it was too fucking late.

Chapter

Sixty-One

“After all, what's a life, anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die.”

?E.B. White

Caia

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