Page 118 of Dangerous Vows

Matteo steps forward, slow and steady, the gravel beneath his shoes crunching like bones. It’s as if the night is unfolding as a slow-motion reel. Part of me wants to speed ahead to learn the ending, and the other half dreads that we might not be victorious.

“This ends tonight,” Matteo says, like this is a negotiation.

Petrovic sneers. “It can. I have a deal.” He gestures lazily with his pistol. “I take her,” he roughly pulls Amara to him, “and Pietro lives.”

My fists curl at my sides. But Matteo doesn’t hesitate.

“I don’t think so, Miloš.”

And then?—

Crack. Ping.

Gunfire explodes through the warehouse.

Chaos ensues in its wake.

I dive, gun drawn, as bullets rip through crates and scream past my head. Men are shouting—ours and theirs—some are already hitting the ground.

Matteo’s barking orders. Renalto storms in through the side door, blasting two Serbs before they can raise their weapons.

I look up and thank God, Niccoló is a shadow in the rafters, a sniper’s rifle kissing his shoulder.

I roll behind a crate and fire off two clean shots, hitting one of Miloš’s guards in the chest.

Vukan shoots Stefano point-blank in the head.

“Where’s Miloš?” I shout into the commotion.

“Back left,” Matteo calls.

Good.

I run.

And as bullets ricochet, as gunfire swallows the air, I know one thing?—

This endsnow.

He doesn’t get to touch her again.

And that’s when I find him, standing like a cornered animal with a gun to Amara’s head. One of us won’t make it out alive.

The frozen look on his face confirms that he never suspected his brother was helping us.

An eye for an eye.

“Any last words?”

“I’ll take that bitch from you if it’s the last thing I…”

I look to Amara, and our eyes lock in a gaze I’ll remember forever. Her defiance kicks in, and she elbows Miloš. It causes him to lose his grip on Amara, and she pulls away just enough for me to take my shot. I hit him in the head.

He crumples, falling forward. I move in and kick his gun aside before grabbing Amara and pulling her into me. She’s in shock, but other than that, she looks fine.

I lean down, taking one last look at Miloš. With Amara under my arm, I holster my gun and join our men.

The warehouse is silent. Everyone knew the Morettis were running low on their luck, and the fact that the marriage contract wasn’t fulfilled, it’s only fitting that Vukan was the one to pull the trigger that killed Stefano.

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