Page 102 of Kings of Cruelty

I can’t stop crying, can’t stop trying to hit him—a pummeling he doesn’t even try to stop.

“I hate you so much,” I rasp.

That gets the reaction hitting his chest hadn’t. He rocks back like I really had landed a blow, but he squeezes me close to him. “I deserve that.”

“You really do,” I whisper. “You should’ve been there.”

“I know,” he whispers back. He kisses the top of my head, all bulk and muscle as he keeps me close.

There’s so much I could say. I could tell him about the rapes, about the branding, about the way they’d treated me—but then, he already knows about all of it. He’d put those pieces together on his own the night he’d seen me at the masquerade.

“I would take you away from all of this in a heartbeat,” he says hoarsely. “If you’d let me. But you… You had to go and fall forthem, didn’t you? God, you’re as much of a fucking idiot as I am.”

“Not possible,” I sniffle. “You’re the stupid one here.”

He snorts. “Okay,” he agrees, then he says more quietly, “You really are the smart one here. I just wish you would choose a different life than this.”

I shake my head. “It’s too late for that,” I tell him.

Kyran inhales slowly. “Yeah. I was kind of afraid of that.” He strokes my back, and I finally rest my head against his broad chest. “Promise me one thing, okay?”

“What?” I ask warily, my voice muffled.

“Stay with us when they go in. Not forever. I know you know how to use a gun, but you have yourselfandthe… the baby to worry about,” he says, stumbling over the words.

I stare at him. “That… is cheating,” I tell him, hardly able to believe my brother manipulated me like that.

He shrugs. “Is it cheating if it’s the truth?” He finally releases me. “Stay safe until the fighting is over. Okay?”

I sigh, but I have a feeling that Konstantin, Yuri, and Nikolai are going to agree with him.

He’s right. I know how to use a gun, but I’m no expert.

And I have to worry about the baby now, too.

“All right,” I tell him. “Fine. You win.”

My exhaustion is damn near crippling, and he steadies me when I wobble.

“Let’s get you out of here,” he says.

Nodding, I let him lead me back to Yuri, who wraps his arm around me and pulls me close. “You okay?” he asks, his voice low.

“You could’ve interrupted that at any time, you know,” I tell him, unable to keep a little bit of accusation out of my voice.

“It sounded like you had things under control,” Yuri answers. “Although I did not see that coming. That he was the one to…” He trails off.

“I should have,” I say quietly. “I should’ve known Cresci would never get his hands dirty like that.” I shake my head. “I… I need more time to think about this.”

Yuri nods and hugs me tighter. “Yeah. Well, Kotya is about to commit patricide too.”

I grimace. “Yeah. That’s different, though.”

But I think about the body in the basement, and I wonder if it’s really that much different at all.

TWENTY-SIX

Konstantin

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