Page 198 of The Devil's Thorn
Yuri clicked his tongue. “And if we don’t show?”
“They take it as guilt. Or disrespect. And either one gets us killed.”
The table went quiet again, and then Rafael turned to me. “You’re coming with me,” he said, tone final. Unbothered. As if he hadn’t just dropped a bomb in the middle of the conversation.
My eyes narrowed. “I don’t remember agreeing to that.”
“You’re not being asked.”
“Of course I’m not.”
He leaned back in his chair. “They already know you exist. You were at the meeting. They saw you. It’s better they see you again—this time on my arm.”
I hated that a part of me shivered at that. That some twisted part of me wasn’t entirely opposed to walking into a den of vipers beside him.
“You think parading me in front of them is going to make you look more powerful?” I asked, tone cool.
“No,” he said simply. “I think it’s going to make you look untouchable.”
That stole the breath from my lungs for a second.
“Besides,” he added, “if they’re watching us like I suspect they are, they’ll already know about you sneaking inside.”
My jaw tightened. “You really want to put me in a room full of men who might’ve been behind the ambush that nearly got you killed?”
“I want them to see that I’m not afraid,” he said. “And I wantyouthere, so you can hear what’s said and what isn’t. You’re good at reading between the lines.”
“And if something goes wrong?”
His gaze didn’t waver. “Then you do what you’ve already proven you can. You survive.”
I looked away, toward Kellan and Ash—who still weren’t saying much, though both looked one breath away from snapping. But this wasn’t their choice.
It wasn’t even mine, not really. Because if I wanted the answers, if I wanted to burn this world down from the inside out— I had to walk deeper into the fire.
“Fine,” I said. “But if I’m dressing up to play pretty next to you, I expect a damn good view.”
That earned a low chuckle from Yuri. Rafael didn’t smile, but his lips twitched just enough to show he’d heard me.
“Careful,” he said, voice low. “They might start to think you like being at my side.”
I picked up my glass and downed what was left. “Then maybe you should be the careful one. I’m not above biting the hand that feeds me.”
He leaned in, elbows on the table, eyes on fire. “Then I’ll make sure to chain the bite.”
And still—still—I didn’t look away.
A few more minutes passed before Rafael stood up, everyone following after him. My legs moved before my mind did. The entire group started filing out of the restaurant, chairs scraping against the tile, voices low, eyes sharp. And I followed.
Rafael’s hand brushed against mine—just a graze—but it sent a flash of heat through my chest. I didn’t look at him. I didn’t have to. I knew that if I did, I’d see the same thing I always did in those eyes: a storm building, held together by control so tight it made you wonder how it hadn’t exploded already.
Kellan and Ash trailed behind me, their silence louder than words. I didn’t need to turn around to feel it—their stares burning holes through my spine.
The cars were already waiting. Of course they were. Everything about Rafael Romanov was premeditated. Calculated.
I slid into the backseat of the black SUV, letting the tension soak into my bones. Kellan followed. Then Ash. The silence inside was suffocating. It didn’t last.
“You really think this is smart?” Kellan asked, tone clipped, as Ash started the engine.
