Page 53 of Cruel Redemption

Nikoli stood next to me. “He’s gone, Luka. Let him go. I’m sorry.”

I closed my eyes. How the hell did I do that when I promised my sister and Amara I’d bring him home? I couldn’t just let him go.

“We need to get moving,” Ciro grunted. He was in pain. I had to move or I would be trying to carry him out.

“Grab the tarp,” Nik instructed the men. “We’ll wrap him and take him as far as we can take him together. Then you come back and get him tonight when it’s safe to move him.”

They nodded, carrying out Nik’s step by step plan. He held the light while they unhooked the tarp from the wall and yanked it. It cascaded down.

“Good. It will be easier to move him with this.”

“What about them?” I nodded at the bodies of the guards.

“I’ll send in another team for them later,” Nik explained. “Maksim and his men can handle this. They’ll clean up the tunnels.”

Nik looked at Enzo. There was a brief softness in his voice and in his gaze. “Fucked up what happened to him.”

One of the men laid the tarp flat and rolled Enzo into the middle. They worked together, wrapping Enzo tightly and then carried him through the tunnels.

Twenty-Nine

Amara

It had been too long. Hours. Any time was too long when Luka was gone. But this was absurd. I called. I texted. There was nothing from him or Ciro. How could he go this long and not tell me what was happening? What if they had been attacked? What if Luka was hurt?

Rebecca and Kyle left after another cup of coffee.

I thought about driving to the Vieux Carre, but I had to stay with Katya. She still had no idea there was a lead.

I had convinced her to sit by the pool with me.

“We started talking about baby names.”

“Hmm?” I looked up from my phone. There was a tray of lemonade between us. I had Bella mix a martini for me.

“Enzo and I started coming up with a list of names.” She smiled.

“What made the list?” I asked. Talking about anything was a good distraction for her.

“Well I like the more unique names and Enzo likes more traditional names.”

“Oh, really?” I grinned. “Are they all a secret?” If I could keep her talking. Keep her preoccupied, it would at least make time seem like it was moving instead of standing still.

“He likes Charles and William. I’m more of a Blaze or Orion.”

“Oh wow.” My eyes widened. “You two are on different ends of the baby name spectrum for sure.”

She smiled. “Maybe we could combine them.”

“Maybe.”

“What does that mean it’s a boy?” I stared at her. She said that she and Andrey were waiting a little longer.

She nodded. “It is.” She rubbed her stomach protectively. “Enzo and I had an appointment together. He wanted to know. So did I.”

“That’s wonderful, Katya. I’m so happy for you.”

She exhaled. “And it’s another reason I can’t let this baby grow up as a Petrov. It’s shitty that just because he’s a boy they’ll care more about him than if I was having a girl. Maybe I should have wished for a girl instead.”

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