Page 52 of Arranged Obsession
Tonight, there’s only the dull beat of my heart and the sound of a car door slamming nearby.
Oh, fuck.
I turn sharply. There are headlights at the end of the alley. Another car’s back. I hear voices as men come toward me.
Three of them, all speaking Russian.
Fucking shit.
I hide behind the dumpster and pull my gun. They’re joking with each other, but I’m not fluent enough to understand. One of them laughs as the group comes closer. “Yuri!” another calls out.
Come on. Keep going.If they walk past me, I can slip out behind them when they find the dead body.
Instead, they don’t move.
“Yuri, damn it, time to go!” They talk to each other again, and finally one of them storms forward, looking annoyed. I shrinkback into the shadows, keeping myself still and quiet. “Yuri, what the fuck?—”
He stands over the body, all his muscles rigid, and slowly turns to his friends.
I squeeze off a round.
The gunshot sounds like a direct lightning blast. The bullet rips through the young Russian’s head and splatters skull and brain matter against the wall. He makes a strange squeaking noise as he teeters sideways and collapses against Yuri, two corpses piled like logs.
The other two start yelling. I come out from my spot, staying low, but they must be experienced soldiers. One’s already in cover with his gun drawn, and he fires at me the second I’m exposed.
Bullets ping off the ground as I roll. I come up shooting, blasting through the pallets he’s trying to hide behind. They break apart, shattering wood splinters in his face. He gasps in pain and I clip his throat, sending a splash of blood into the air. I shoot him two more times, chest and guts, before my magazine clicks empty.
I reload as fast as I can. The third Russian’s already running. I jam more bullets into my gun and fire a couple of shots as he disappears around the corner.
Fucking shit. He’s getting away. If he saw my face, there’s going to be hell to pay. I sprint after him, gun at the ready, but I’m blinded by high beams as I come out after him. The SUV roars in my direction, hopping the curb, and I have to throw myself sideways to avoid getting run over.
The Russian clips the side of the alley and nearly loses control. Car debris scatters across the road. Glass and plastic glitters in the lamplight. The SUV roars, tires burning, and manages to right itself as it speeds off into the night.
Leaving me behind.
I stand there breathing hard. Sweat pours down my back. Behind me in the alley, there are two dead soldiers and a murdered Bratva captain.
No time to get rid of the bodies. The third Russian’s going to be back with friends.
I sprint to my car and get the hell out of there.
Chapter 16
Bianca
I’m exhausted but I can’t sleep.
The couch feels all wrong. I toss and turn, thinking constantly about that stupidly comfortable bed upstairs and how it’s totally empty right now just waiting for me to get under the silky sheets.
I don’t know where Cormac is, and I don’t really care.
He’s not my problem.
It’s been a weird night though. I spent most of it unpacking my stuff. I still don’t have any furniture, so I can’t get fully set up, and this house still feels really strange, like I don’t belong here.
I’ll get used to it, but still.
I check the time. It’s almost one in the morning. I hope Cormac’s okay. I mean, I know what he does for a living, but he’s probably fine. The guy seems like he’s made of granite.
