Page 106 of No Vow Broken

“Give it up, Sergei,” I shouted. “You’re finished. You aren’t getting away this time.”

“You’re wrong,” he responded. “You know nothing about my plan.”

“It’s not your plan. It’s Plotnikov’s, and he’ll sell you out in a second to save his own skin. There’s no reason now to kill anyone or die on his behalf. You’re a professional and smart enough to know when it’s time to abort the mission. That’s right now.”

Sergei paused, clearly running through his options. I tried to put myself in his shoes. Logically, he should stand down, as he was out of options. Maybe he hoped that, given the protection of the suit, he could flee downwind, where no one would follow, and escape.

He pretended to lower his club, hoping to catch me off guard, but then he stepped forward and swung. I gave as much ground as I dared. His mobility was limited, but it wouldn’t prevent him from landing a crippling blow to my head. I couldn’t even spare a glance as he slowly forced me away from the canisters. I was at a point where I couldn’t move any farther without giving him the access he needed, when I spotted another good-size rock near my feet out of the corner of my eye. Without hesitation or warning, I threw the one in my hand as hard as I could at him, then grabbed for the second rock while he was distracted.

He blocked most of the force of the rock with the arm that held the club, but the impact was enough to cause him to drop it. The second rock followed the first one as I dove at his legs. I stumbled on the slick rocks in my dress shoes and didn’t hit him with the impact I’d hoped. It was enough, however, to send us both tumbling into the stream again. I tried to rip off his helmet, potentially deterring him from releasing the agent, but my hands couldn’t get a good grip on the smooth plastic, and he managed to jerk his head away.

We struggled for a bit before he was able to toss me toward the bank. I’d clearly underestimated his size and strength. He started to crawl the last few feet to the canisters, but when I lunged for him, the only thing I was able to catch was his right foot. I grabbed it and rolled over and over like an alligator, twisting his ankle and knee until I could hear and feel something pop.

He shrieked and kicked at me, his other foot slamming hard into my jaw and head. I saw bright flashes of light, and for a moment, my ears roared. I realized belatedly I’d lost my grip on him. When I could focus again, he was reaching for the knobs to release the nerve agent and there was nothing I could do to prevent it.

“Stop! Don’t move or I’ll shoot you,” a female voice commanded.

Sergei paused with his hand frozen over the nozzles. I blinked a couple of times before realizing Lexi stood on the bank of the stream in her muddied wedding dress, her hair sticking up in every direction, pointing a gun at Sergei like a television show cop.

Apparently, not considering her a threat, he growled and reached for the knobs anyway.

Two consecutive shots echoed unusually loud in my ears, giving me cause to suspect I might have a concussion. When I was able to see again, Sergei was lying on his back, holding one arm with his hand, and screaming. It looked like Lexi had also shot him in the leg as well because it was spasming. The weird ringing kept thrumming in my ears.

“If you move again, I’ll put the next one in your head, Mr. Sokholov,” Lexi said calmly.

Sergei lay still, and his screams turned to whimpers.

“Slash, are you okay?” she called out.

I managed to stagger to my feet to stand between Sergei and the canisters as an extra precaution. “I’m good, except for the church bells ringing in my ears and the fact that my tuxedo is waterlogged.” I blinked a few more times and stared at her again. “What happened to your veil?”

“I left it on a raspberry bush. We’ll have to retrieve it before we head back to the church.”

“Oh,” I said, swaying slightly. “We’re still getting married today?”

“If I have to drag you to the altar and give the blessing myself,” she said. “I’m not doing this again.”

“Good point.”

I could hear voices calling out before Lexi shouted, “Over here. We’re over here. All clear.”

She looked magnificent, standing on the bank of the stream in all white, waving the gun around like an avenging angel. I just hoped she didn’t discharge it again and shoot me by accident.

A second before I passed out, I was thinking how I’d never loved her more.

FIFTY-SEVEN

Lexi

Saturday afternoon, later than planned—St. Michael’s Church, Wedding Day

“Ouch, Mom! Is it possible to brush my hair with little less force?” I winced and tried to scoot forward in the chair, but Mom put a firm hand on my shoulder, keeping me in place as she pulled out leaves and twigs and tried to smooth things out.

“Hold still, Lexi,” Mom said sternly. She shook the hairbrush so I could see her in the mirror of the church’s tiny dressing room. “I’m attempting to unsnarl what had once been a perfect hairdo.”

“I said I was sorry.” I tightened the blue silk robe around me and rolled my neck while she cleaned some hair from the brush. “At least we got a few photos where everyone looked nice. And I didn’t lose the necklace or the pretty hair clip, so there’s that.”

She sighed but didn’t say anything further. Instead, she resumed trying to wrestle my hair into some semblance of normality.

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