Page 27 of Hostage of the Russian
Her eyes widened. “Eighteen hours? I missed—” She started to sit up, then immediately fell back against the pillows with a gasp.
“Easy.” Kostya was on his feet instantly, his hands hovering over her shoulders. “The only thing you missed was more sleeping. Doctor’s orders.”
“But my classes—”
“Will still be there when you recover.” He settled back into his chair, studying her face. “This is my fault.”
“What?”
“The shooting. They weren’t targeting random students.” His hands clenched into fists in his lap. “They were targeting you to get to me.”
Azriel was quiet for a long moment, processing this information. “Who’s ‘they’?”
“Competitors. People who think hurting what’s mine will give them leverage.”
“What’s yours?” Her voice was soft, but there was something sharp in her eyes.
Kostya met her gaze steadily. “What’s mine.”
She looked like she wanted to argue, but exhaustion was already pulling her back under. Her eyelids fluttered closed, and her breathing evened out again.
For the next day and a half, Kostya barely left her side. He worked from his laptop, fielding calls and messages while keeping one eye on Azriel at all times. When she was awake, which wasn’t often, they talked in fits and starts, her medication making it hard for her to focus, his guilt making it hard for him to find the right words.
By the second evening, she was able to stay conscious for longer periods. Kostya had been telling her about the time Viktor had tried to impress a girl by climbing onto the roof of their childhood home, only to get stuck and need the fire department to rescue him.
“He made us all swear never to tell anyone,” Kostya said, watching as Azriel’s mouth curved into a smile. “Threatened to put hair dye in our shampoo if we breathed a word.”
“Did he ever get the girl?”
“She married his best friend.” Kostya grinned. “Viktor claims it’s because she was intimidated by his ‘dangerous masculine energy.’“
Azriel’s laugh was soft but genuine. “Your family sounds...”
“Completely insane?”
“I was going to say interesting.” Her eyes were growing heavy again. “Tell me another one?”
So he did. He told her about Fedya getting into a fistfight with a swan at the park when he was twelve. About Irina convincing all of them that she could talk to ghosts and charging kids in the neighborhood five dollars for séances. About the timehis cousin Adrian had hacked into the school’s system to change everyone’s grades to A’s, thinking he was being helpful.
“You have a big family,” Azriel murmured as sleep began to claim her again.
“Yeah. They’re loud and obnoxious and constantly getting into each other’s business.” Kostya’s voice was fond. “You’ll meet them soon enough.”
But she was already asleep, her breathing deep and even. Kostya settled back into his chair, planning to work for a few more hours before trying to catch some sleep on the small couch by the window.
He must have dozed off in the chair, because the next thing he knew, sunlight was streaming through the windows and someone was watching him.
Azriel was propped up against her pillows, fully alert for the first time since the shooting had occurred. Her color was better, though she still looked fragile in the hospital gown.
“Good morning,” she said softly.
Kostya scrubbed a hand over his face, suddenly aware that he probably looked like hell. “How long have you been awake?”
“A while. You were snoring.”
“I don’t snore.”
“You do.” Her smile was small but real. “It’s kind of cute.”
