Page 99 of Cruel Honor

Yes. But I know this is life or death, and I can’t be judgmental right now. Honestly, after what I did to Tatiana, I can never judge anyone ever again.

Dimitri drives us to a motel. “They take cash.” The motel in question is fairly run down. When we step inside our room, I can see mold stains on the walls and on the floor.

“Ugh.” Katya shudders.

“It’s the best on short notice,” Dimitri explains. “Stay here. I’m going to go deal with Abram.”

By deal with him, he means kill him.

“And after you’re done dealing with him?” Katya asks.

“Then we find a new home.”

Before Dimitri leaves, I grab his hand and pull him to the side.Katya steps away to give us some privacy. “Are you mad at me?” I ask. “About going to the police?”

He sighs and grabs my face gently. “No. I know you want Dima caught.”

“He’s still out there. Killing women.”

“I know. Once Abram is taken care of, I promise I’ll find Dima and kill him. It will be top priority for me.”

“Ok.”

He gives me a small peck on the lips before walking out the door.

I turn to Katya, who’s staring down at the bed with her nose wrinkled. “I’m not getting in that,” she says.

“We could sit on the floor.”

We both look at it. A cockroach scurries across the ground.

Both Katya and I scream.

“The bed!” She scrambles on top. “Maybe it can’t get to us that way.”

After everything we’ve been through, it’s kind of a miracle that the sight of a cockroach could freak us out this much.

It makes me feel somewhat normal again.

DIMITRI

“So, I need your help,” I say once Nikolai opens his front door. He stares at me—his scar pale against his tan skin.

“When don’t you need my help?” he mutters, letting me on in.

I nod at Ava as she hovers in the living room doorway. “Ava. Nice to see you again.”

“Don’t talk to my wife,” Nik growls.

I raise my hands up. “Hey, I have a wife of my own now. No interest in yours.” A wife I would much rather be fucking than having to fight for our lives.

“What do you need?” Nik asks as we head to his office.

“Help in killing Abram. He won’t stop. Do you know he blew up my fucking house?”

“I heard something to that affect.” Nik leans against his desk,crossing his arms. “If you haven’t been able to kill him over these past weeks, then what makes you think I can do it?”

“Because you’re the feared Nikolai Petrov. I thought you could do anything.”

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