Page 66 of Fatal Bonds

“Maybe we should leave the Russian,” another suggests. “He killed the others, and he’s as good as dead. Give them a body, and they won’t keep digging.”

“He did leave us a fucking massive crime scene to clean up.”

“No, you arenotletting Maks take the fall for this,” I snap, glaring up at Lucian with all the ferocity I can muster. “He doesn’t deserve that, and you know it. He did this to protect me. So, you’re going to help me keep him alive by getting him to the back door of the building. Now, give me your knife.”

Amusement flickers across Lucian’s face as he lifts one eyebrow in surprise, but when I hold out my hand expectantly, he actually opens the butterfly knife and passes me the blade. Carefully shuffling out from under Maks, I use the knife to cut the lower half of my skirt off at mid-thigh before passing the knife back. Then I lean in to wrap the fabric around Maks’s chest, grunting with the effort to pick him up enough to get the job done. No one jumps in to help me, and a ball of lead settles in my stomach at the silent message that sends.

“You really think I should be helping you two right now? You’ve left me a fucking mess to clean up,” Lucian says. “You’re lucky I stepped in at all. Though, from the looks of it, if I hadn’t, you’d be dead right along with him by now, and I would be back to square one.”

Fury ignites in my chest, and I glare up at him. “You’re the one who wanted to be in charge, and now you are. So, are you going to step up and prove that you’re the man people need to respect, or are you going to let Maks take credit for what you’ve done? Isn’t the whole point of killing him to showyou’rethe new boss in town?”

I’m winging it based on the heated conversation Maks just had with Don Costanzo, but I’m hoping it might drive Lucian into action. And maybe it’s wishful thinking, but after mouthing off to a man I just watched kill someone in cold blood, I’m hoping that the look in his eye is grudging respect—not murderous intent. Otherwise, I might have just signed my own death warrant.

“Vito, with me. The rest of you wipe the room of any evidence we were here. Do it quickly and quietly. We need to get ahead of it if we’re going to control the narrative on this.” Lucian stoops next to me and grasps Maks’s arm.

When his man follows suit, they heave him up together, slinging his arms across their shoulders as they carry him between them. Maks’s head lolls dangerously, and my stomach knots as I feel the clock ticking down.

“Lead the way, Mrs. Yashkova,” Lucian says.

The name sends a jolt through my body, and I can’t ignore the warmth that floods me as I turn toward the side door. I think that’s the first time anyone’s called me by Maks’s last name, and it unleashes a deep longing in my chest.

With bated breath, I open doors for them and check that the coast is clear as we head toward the door at the back of the building that Maks pointed out earlier tonight. A few times, we have to duck back into rooms to wait for a convention center employee to pass, but when the frigid Chicago air finally rushes across my face, I breathe a deep sigh of relief and hold the door open for Lucian and his man to exit through.

Two black Escalades sit idling behind the limo Maks and I arrived in tonight, and as soon as we step outside, Liam is out of the first SUV with three more men close behind him.

“What the fuck happened?” he growls, his glare threatening as he levels it at Lucian and climbs the steps.

“Emiliano shot him,” I say, stepping forward to stop a conflict before it can start. “He needs serious medical help. He’s lost a lot of blood.”

There’s a moment of tension as the Italians stop and Maks’s men take custody of his limp body. As they carry him back down the steps toward the convoy, I hesitate a moment, turning to Lucian.

“Thank you,” I breathe.

Lucian inclines his head, his lips curving into a crooked grin. “You’re welcome. He’s lucky to have a woman like you to watch his back,” he adds, tipping his chin in Maks’s direction. “I can see now why he trusts you.”

I don’t know that I would go so far as to say Maks trusts me, but the compliment is still surprisingly touching coming from the man who’s been watching my every move.

“He was right—to choose you for an ally,” I say. “You came through.”

A low chuckle slips from Lucian’s lips. “Yeah, well, it’s nice to know I’ll be able to call in a favor when that time comes,” he says pointedly.

With a wink, Lucian is gone, leaving me with the lingering sense that it’s probably not a good thing to owe a man like him a favor—especially one as big as what he did for us tonight. I have a feeling it won’t be the last time our paths cross. I just hope he still thinks of us as allies by then.

“Let’s go,” someone says behind me, his deep voice, making my heart somersault.

When I turn around, I immediately recognize the behemoth who first kidnapped me from the club. His bald head shines in the streetlamp’s light as he scowls up at me from the bottom of the stairs, and even though he still scares the shit out of me, this time I don’t hesitate. Racing down toward him, I keep going when I hit the curb, climbing into the limo so I can ride with Maks.

“Are we taking him to the hospital?” I ask as the doors close and the car starts rolling.

“A doctor will meet us at thepakhan’s penthouse,” Liam says.

Anxiety coils in my belly as I check on Maks. His pulse is frighteningly weak and shallow, his face so pale his lips are almost blue. The makeshift bandage is holding tight, but even so, when I reach back to feel between his shoulder blades, the torn fabric of my dress is wet to the touch—soaked through with his blood. “That’s not good enough,” I insist.

“It’s the medical help we can get him without alerting authorities to the fact that he was here tonight.”

Glaring at Liam, I wonder just how many times I can get away with mouthing off to these deadly men before one finally decides to permanently shut me up. But before I can get started, Maks’s man cuts me off.

“We know the rules,gospozha. This is what thepakhanwants, and we’ll do everything in our power to keep him alive.” Liam’s voice softens as my tears start to fall silently once again. “He’s strong. If anyone can survive this, it’s him.”

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