Page 95 of The Hermit

They’re all covered in soot, and there’s blood on the side of Dominik’s head as well.

Evinka leaps onto the back and shoves Ilias away from Dominik.

Frozen in horror, I watch as she rips her armored vest off. She pulls her shirt over her head and presses it hard to the wound. When she signs something at Alan, he jumps onto the back, and taking off his belt, he helps secure the shirt to the wound.

I keep gasping as my entire world is ripped from beneath my feet.

Alan quickly takes off his shirt and hands it to Evinka so she can put it on, and when he and Leo lift Dominik’s lifeless body I start to hyperventilate.

No.

No.

No.

This isn’t happening.

Seeing Dominik’s arm sway limply as the men move him rips my heart from my chest.

Suddenly, Santiago starts to cough as he regains consciousness, but I can’t tear my eyes away from my husband as he’s lifted off the truck.

Stuck in a haze of horror, I follow the men to an SUV. Evinka runs for the driver's side, but before she can climb behind the steering wheel, Dominik lets out a groan.

I shoot forward, and when the men lower him to the ground, I fall to my knees beside him. The moment his eyes open and I see his blue irises, uncontrollable sobs burst from me.

With trembling hands, I frame his jaw. “Don’t d-die. Just don’t die,” I cry.

“I’m fine,” he grumbles as he begins to sit up.

I shake my head and try to hold him down. “Your side. You’re bleeding so much.”

Evinka drops down on his other side and shakes her head hard at him before signing something.

“I’m fine,” he growls as he sits up. He pulls the shirt away to check the wound, then says, “It’s nothing. The bleeding will stop soon.” Shaking his head, he squints. “If anything’s going to kill me, it’s the headache I have.”

“We need to get out of here,” Enzo tells everyone.

“We can go to my place,” Santiago offers. “It’s the closest. I’ll have a doctor check on Dominik.”

“You have a place in Peru?” Leo asks.

“Of course,” Santiago mutters, then sounds smug as he adds, “I have a house in every country in South America.

“Let’s go,” Dominik agrees.

Evinka and I help him to his feet, and when he sways, I quickly wrap my arm around his lower back.

“Are you sure Pavlov is dead?” Ilias asks Cassia, his tone unhappy as they walk toward us.

“Yes. I saw his body when I dragged Dominik out of the office,” she answers, clearly annoyed with her father.

Dominik’s head snaps in her direction, a flash of pain on his face from the sudden movement, then he says, “You got me out of the office?”

She nods, a proud look on her face. “And Santiago. Your asses are heavy.”

Respect tightens my husband’s features as he says, “Thank you, Cassia.”

“I want the alliance to succeed, and we can’t do that if I let two of you die on our first mission together.”

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