Page 109 of Convenient Vows

He turns to his second-in-command, lounging beside the vehicle. “Did you get that?”

The man blinks awkwardly. “No, sir.”

Cristóbal sighs. “What a shame. Mara, again. Smile this time.”

My face burns, but I obey.

I step back toward him, press my lips to his, and pull away slowly. I let my smile bloom like a practiced lie, but inside, I feel dead as the camera clicks again and again.

Cristóbal grabs his phone, scrolls through the shots, and holds one up. “Not bad. Here. Pick one and set it as your screensaver.”

I take the phone with steady hands, select the one with the brightest smile—the one that looks most real.

I send it to myself and set it.

I will play along. I will laugh. I will kiss him again if I must. I will endure every cruel demand until I find a way to contact Zasha because I know he is my only hope, the only person who can bring this to an end. The only one ruthless enough to match Cristóbal. The only one who would burn the world for a child, that’s his—even if he hates me for hiding the truth.

And he will hate me.

But what is one more ounce of Zasha’s disdain if it gets Maksim out of this living nightmare?

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Chapter 32

Zasha

The floor creaks under my boots as I shift my weight. Ten hours. Ten hours in this goddamn room with nothing but caffeine, tension, and Lev breathing beside me.

I crouch by the window again, peering through the scope mounted on the tripod. It’s a beast—forty times magnification, eighty-millimeter objective lens. I can practically see the glint off Cristóbal’s cufflinks from more than a mile away.

But I’m not looking for him right now. I’m looking for Mara and the boy.

Lev lounges against the far wall, but he’s not relaxed. His fingers twitch near the stock of his rifle. His eyes haven’t drifted once.He might be joking under his breath now and then, but every nerve in his body is wound tight.

We’ve marked every guard change, every delivery van, every shadow that’s crossed that estate since we got here. But still no sign of her or the kid.

My phone vibrates and I answer without looking. “Yeah.”

“Do we have eyes on them yet?” Viktor’s voice is clipped and straight to the point.

“Not yet.”

“So that motherfucker’s got them locked in.” He curses quietly on the other end. “You let me know the second you do. This delay’s killing me.”

“You and me both.” I end the call.

My muscles ache, and my jaw is tight. I’ve clenched it for so long that I barely notice anymore. But I can’t move until I’m certain. I won’t risk a breach without knowing for sure that they are there.

I refocus on the scope, sweeping across the estate again. Every second that ticks by adds another weight to my spine. Lev says nothing, but I feel him glance my way.

“You breathing over there?” he asks, voice low.

“Barely.”

I adjust the focus again, zeroing in on a movement near the west courtyard. It’s nothing—just a guard lighting a cigarette.

My trigger finger twitches anyway. Because I know she’s in there. I can feel it like a pull in my blood. He has her. And every second I don’t act is a second she’s living in hell.

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