Page 205 of Cashmere Ruin

“I HAVE NO HANDS, IN CASE YOU DIDN’T FUCKING NOTICE!”

True to his word, Carmine’s still locked in a struggle against Matvey. His men are trying to reach him, but Petra’s like a one-woman army: the second one of them raises his gun, they lose the gunandthe hand holding it.

Like I said: never fuck with the pregnant ones.

“Go to her,” I urge, sensing Yuri’s conflict. “I’ll be okay. I can?—”

“Not so fast,suka.”

My blood freezes. “Vlad.”

“I’m not going to monologue,” he spits. “Die, bitch.”

BANG!

I squeeze my eyes shut. It’s all I have the time for—that and wrapping my arms tight around my baby. I brace for pain, but it doesn’t come.

When I open them again, I see why.

Yuri’s standing in front of me. He’s dressed all in black, so I don’t see it immediately: the reason I’m still breathing.

But then he stumbles.

“Yuri!” I catch him with my free arm and lay him on the floor, then put a hand to his chest.

It comes away soaked in red.

Petra hears my scream and twists around. “NO!”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see her fly past the crowd of enemies, gunning down everyone who’s stupid enough to stand between her and her new target.

Her father.

“You’re dead, Otets.”

Vlad sneers. “You stupid girl. Your mother didn’t know her place, either. I should’ve put you down the same way I did with her.”

Petra allows herself exactly one second of shock before her rage comes back tenfold. “You can fucking try, old man.”

Then she pulls out her knives and charges.

I can’t spare any attention for their fight. I wish I could: she’s pregnant and surrounded and fighting against herfather—who, unless I heard wrong, just admitted to murdering her mother. The same mother Petra grew up believingshe’dkilled.

But there’s only one way I can be there for her now.

“Yuri. Look at me.”

Yuri’s gaze is hazy, unfocused. “I’m sorry,” he rasps.

“None of that now. Here, just—” I shrug off my jacket. “Press this to the wound. Don’t let up, okay?”

“I’m so sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for. You did the right thing in the end. You—you saved my life, you—” I try to find something else to plug the wound, but there’s just so much blood… “Yuri. Stay with me.”

“C-Call?—”

BANG!

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