Page 66 of Sinful Embers

I freeze.

Rage blinds me.

The dark, mottled fingerprints stand out starkly against her pale skin. Handprints. Someone had held her down. Someone had fucking hurt her. Something inside me snaps.

“Who did that to you?” I say through gritted teeth trying hard to control my rage as I take her wrist in my hand..

“It wasn’t Dmitri,” Leigh assures me.

“I hope you’re not covering for him,” I warn her. “Because, trust me, he not worth the time of day.”

I don’t realize I’ve stepped forward until Leigh places a shaking hand on my chest.

“Radomir.” Her voice is quiet, but firm. “I’m not leaving without him.”

Our eyes lock.

And I know she means it by the stubborn set of her jaw and defiance in those insanely green eyes.

I grit my teeth so hard my jaw aches. Every instinct in me wants to leave him. To let Carlos finish what he started.

“Fuck.” I reached down and heft him over my shoulder. I’m alarmed to feel just how frail he is.

We head to the SUV in silence, and I can feel something is wrong. Something in Leigh has changed and my gut wrenchesas black thoughts tumble through my mind wondering what else the fucking dick Carlos did her to.

I find some rope in the back of the vehicle and tie Dmitri’s hands behind his back.

“Is that necessary?” Leigh asks. “He’s really sick and …”

“Jesus!” I give a low whistle as Dmitri’s sleeves hike up and there is a spider web of black line creeping up his arms. “What the hell is that?”

“Vivienne’s designer poison,” Leigh replies, and I see her eyes heavy with guilt.What the fuck is going on here?

“That’s…” Sabrina sputters. “That’s what you arm looked like from the bolt, Leigh.”

Leigh’s head snaps toward Sabrina. “You saw it?”

“Not the bolt in your arm but the veins.” She nods. “They spread nearly all over your body.”

“How come you’re cured and he’s not?” My brow creases, not that I give a fuck. I hope there is some pain to go with it.

“Different types of designer poison,” Leigh mumbles. “The sliver is for the man with your father’s face and the gold for the Ice Man.”

I start to become alarmed as I see Leigh zoning out.

“Leigh!” Sabrina hisses. “There’s plenty of time to moon later. We have to move now and maybe get you some new clothes. Barny’s spring wear does not suit you.”

Leigh snorts and I breathe a sigh of relief to see the dark clouds in her yes lift a bit. “Not my choice of wardrobe I promise you. For the past fourteen days I feel like I’ve been wearing E.R. hand me downs.”

We all pile in, and I take off hitting the dirt back road, if you can call it that, it’s more like tracks made from a horse cart. Luckily we’re not in the Beetle as we’d never have made all this rocky gravel terrain.

Eventually we hit a main road and the old SUV rattles as we speed down it. The Russian landscape blurs past in streaks of green and brown.

Leigh is curled up in the seat beside me, staring out the window, silent.

Sabrina watches her, concern etching her features.

Dmitri groans, stirring.

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