Page 126 of Brutal Reign
“You really think Chen can lead us to Simon?” Kira asks.
Dinara looks up from her laptop for the first time. “I’m certain of it. The digital breadcrumbs are there, even if I can’t crack their messages.”
“Maxim, Roman, Niko, and I will be onsite.” Pavel points to different locations on the schematic. “Maxim will be with our men in the main security office here, where he can see everything happening throughout the club. Roman and I will be on the VIP floor, close to the action.”
“I’ll be running ops from headquarters,” Dinara adds without looking up from her screen. “Coordinating everything and monitoring all feeds from a secure location.”
Pavel turns to me, his expression intense. “Until the moment you need to meet Chen in that bathroom, I’m not leaving your side.”
“I know, and I trust you,” I say quietly. “I can do this. I’m ready.”
Because more than revenge, more than anything, this is about securing forever with this man. The only way to get to that future is to eliminate the threat hanging over us.
“Anything else?” Maxim asks.
“One more thing,” I say, looking around the table. “What happens to Chen after you capture him?”
Silence settles over the room. Everyone seems to be weighing their words carefully.
“We’ll use any and every method available to us to find out where Simon is hiding and anything else we need to know.” Pavel runs a thumb over his bottom lip. “And he’ll pay for every lie he told you, every moment of pain he caused.”
I expect to feel horrified by the implication, but instead I feel emotionally drained. I nod, accepting what needs to happen even though I wish it didn’t have to come to this.
The meeting winds down, but Pavel doesn’t move, his attention focused entirely on me as the room empties. Our eyes meet, and in his gaze, I see a storm of pride, possessiveness, and a raw hunger that makes my blood sing. He’d burn down the world to keep me safe, and I’d do the same for him.
And tomorrow night, I’ll prove it.
CHAPTER
FORTY-FIVE
PAVEL
The limousine pulls upto Element’s curved driveway, where a line of Moscow’s party-goers snakes around the block, waiting to get in.
The opening of our biggest nightclub to date should be a moment of triumph, but I won’t celebrate until Hope is safe and Chen, and whoever else he brings, is tied up in my basement.
Hope sits beside me, her knee bouncing anxiously as she looks out the window. I place my hand over her restless leg, feeling the warmth of her skin through the fabric of her dress. She’s nervous. Hell, so am I, but I won’t let her see that.
I’ve run hundreds of operations, but none involved the woman I love walking into danger. She’s well prepared, but I know how quickly things can go sideways, even if I’d die before I let that happen
“Breathe, angel moy,” I murmur. “This will work.” The words are a reminder to me as well.
Hope’s face softens, and some of the steel in her expression melts into something tender. She nods, and her shoulders dropas she settles into the calm determination that’s carried her through the last few days of preparation.
“Are you ready to do this?” I ask her, inclining my head toward the door.
“I’m ready.” Her hand slides into mine, and the reassuring squeeze speaks volumes.
I give Roman the signal, and he runs his thumb along his earpiece before doing a final check-in with the team.
“We’re about to step out of the vehicle. Everyone locked and loaded?”
“I’m in position,” comes Vadim’s gravelly response. Our sniper is stationed in the building across the street, with a clear view of the roof and the main entrance.
“Drones active. Airspace clear,” follows Eva.
“Security center operational. All cameras live,” reports Maxim from the security room inside the club.
