Page 30 of Til Death Do Us Part (Kornilov Bratva Duet 2)

Luckily, neither of them landed any punches, so I shouldn’t have any obvious injuries to my face. If I’m careful, no one will know about this.

I turn to go back to my car, the crowd parting, and that is when I see her.

Molly.

She is standing across the street near my car, her hand wrapped around Theo’s, with her friend standing behind her. But all I can really focus on is the shocked expression on her face. And the anger.

A million questions run through my mind in a matter of seconds. What? How? Why?

Then, I see the guards tailing them. And the greasy bag of food in Molly’s other hand.

She told me Hannah wanted to go out for lunch soon. Apparently, they did. Unfortunately, they chose this exact time and place.

I rush down the block towards them, and Theo pulls away from me, partially hiding behind his mom’s leg.

“It’s okay, bud,” I say softly, holding out my hand. My knuckles are bloody, and I pull my hand back, tucking it behind my back. I can’t even look at Molly. “What are you doing here?”

She holds up the diner bag silently.

I take a deep breath. One problem at a time.

I kneel down and hold out my other hand to Theo. “I know that was scary, bud, but those were bad guys. I was just … taking care of them.”

Theo is peeking out at me from behind Molly’s legs, and I don’t blame him for being scared. He has never seen that side of me before. I’ve kept it purposefully hidden from him and Molly, for that matter. If they don’t need to see my violent side, then I don’t want them to. It isn’t my best quality.

“It’s okay,” Molly says, ruffling Theo’s hair.

I’m surprised she is encouraging Theo to forgive me, but then I realize it is for Theo’s sake, not mine. Molly doesn’t want Theo to be afraid of me, even though she knows he probably should be.

Eventually, Theo lays his hand in mine and lets me hold it.

Molly, I know, won’t be as easily swayed.

Hannah is standing behind her, eyes wary. Molly just looks livid. If smoke could come out of her ears, it would.

“Molly, what—”

“Your arm,” she says, nodding to the cut. “You should go to a hospital.”

I shake my head. “It’s fine.”

I want Hannah to disappear. I want to be able to talk to Molly, to explain what she saw. I lost my temper. The thought of Fedor pushing boundaries upset me, but remembering how he invaded Molly’s space and put Theo in danger, that set me off. I lost control and did something stupid, and Molly witnessed it.

“You should clean it,” she says. “It could be infected. I doubt that man cleans his knife very often.”

“I have a first aid kit in my car.”

Molly asks Hannah to watch Theo and then motions for me to follow her towards the car. I’m not concerned about the cut, but I do want to talk to her alone.

We climb into the front seat and Molly pulls out a small first aid kit from the glove compartment. She moves quickly and efficiently, her hands steady.

Hannah and Theo are looking in the window of a toy store on the street. I see the guards in the rear-view mirror, so I allow myself to ease back and focus on Molly for a second.

“Molly—”

“Not now.” She shakes her head and then grabs the hem of my shirt and pulls it up. “Take your arm out.”

I do as she says, surprised by that fact. In different circumstances, I’d grab her face and force her to look me in the eyes. I’d pull her brown eyes to mine and make her listen to me.

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